Blood on the Blade

by Griff Hosker

  Arne was the most belligerent of the three of us who had sworn an oath on the blade. He emptied his horn. “The ford upstream is the place that they would have to cross. It would be simple enough to have those who would be warriors to watch. Erik’s ship’s boys tire of fishing. They spend most days with Siggi and me. They practise with bow and sword. If they took the pony, they could watch there each day. It would give us warning of any coming here and would be good discipline for them.” He turned to me, “What say you, brother?”

  I nodded, “Padraig and Aed enjoy the fishing. I only go with them to learn more about sailing. If Snorri is right then one day we will have to leave and the only land for us would be the land of ice and fire. If I had to sail for a moon or more then I would need more skills than I have.”

  The raid on Dún Lethglaise had given me the chance to sail a long way and I had returned more skilled but I still had shortcomings. I was young. I needed the leathered skin of a navigator who has stood and steered through a winter storm before I could even contemplate a voyage to the land of ice and fire.

  Siggi said, “I do not think we will have to go to the land of ice and fire. This is good land. The Allfather guided us here and so far he was watched over us. The people who have come have made us stronger. Even some of the women and girls practise with weapons.”

  He was right. There were four girls who had come from Beinn na bhFadhla. They were sisters and cousin. They had come with their grandfather for the men had been killed by the King of Norway’s men. They had their families’ swords and they practised. Freja, the elder was a formidable fighter. She often sparred with Siggi and Arne. From what Arne had told me he found her attractive. Soon he would ask her to be his bride. We both knew that we needed children. I had not seen a woman yet whom I wished to bed. Siggi too had taken to courting Freja’s cousin, Gefn.

  My father nodded. He was now accustomed to the leather harness he had for his left arm and he was no longer self-conscious about it. He lifted it to the table and said, “Then we watch and we wait. If enemies come then we will fight them. At Haustmánuður we raid the Mercians for their grain. Let us see what the Allfather brings our way.”

  The grain raid was a great success. We landed on the southern bank of the Maeresea. We had not raided there before. I think that they thought their burgh of Caestre afforded them protection. They were wrong. I was now more familiar with the waters of the Maeresea. I knew where the shoals lay and we sailed in at night on a high tide. While Arne and Snorri led our forty warriors to raid the three settlements which lay between the Dee and the Maeresea, we turned around the drekar. They arrived back before dark with wagons laden with grain. They also had two more ponies and we loaded them too. As we headed north, in the dark, I reflected that I was a good navigator but only in waters with which I was familiar. I really needed to test myself on a longer voyage.

  Arne had slain a Saxon thegn. Those who had not been slain told Arne that the Mercian was the nephew of King Ceolwulf and his death would bring destruction to us. Arne had laughed it off for he had a fine mail shirt and helmet to show for the battle. When he returned he and Freja were married. Siggi and Gefn also chose that time to be wed. My mother was delighted. Fótr had been her last child and now she had a daughter, more, she would soon have grandchildren. We built Arne and Siggi two small halls and after the feasting they retired to their new homes. For the first time since I had been born, I did not share a room with my brother. Fótr would take his bed but he was a child. He was my brother but not my blood brother. He and his cousin, Tostig, were closer.

  My father and I sat before the fire. He looked thoughtfully at me, “And have you an eye for a woman, Erik, or does your eye and mind still sail the seas?”

  I started for it was as though he was reading my mind. “The last knarr which came spoke of the islands which lay in the middle of the ocean, Føroyar. They said that Naddod, who found the land of ice and fire, was sailing for those islands when he discovered the new land. I would travel there before winter sets in properly.”

  He frowned, “That strikes me as risky. Do not tempt the Norns, my son.”

  “I have thought this through, father. What we lack here is seals. We have to trade for oil and seal skin is as expensive as grain. We could hunt seals on the islands north of here but they now belong to the King of Norway. I would take Padraig and Aed. We would sail to Føroyar and find a beach with the grey seal. We could hunt them, make the oil and bring back the skins and oil here.”

  “A long way to go for oil, my son.”

  I smiled, “People call me Erik the Navigator. I take it as a compliment but I am not yet a navigator. I have not sailed the empty seas. I need to do so. We both know that one day we might have to sail to the land of ice and fire. I am not yet ready.”

  “You would be travelling when there is little sun.”

  “If we have to leave this land and travel to the land of ice and fire then that may be when the days are like nights and we cannot see the stars. Arne has tested himself in battle. He is a great warrior. He has bested a thegn. I am the navigator. I need to test myself.”

  “I would not lose you. I wish to see you in Valhalla.”

  I touched my father’s leather harness, “The Norns have spun, father. They took your arm and made me the one to sail. It is in my blood. You were the navigator and the warrior. Arne is the warrior…”

  He nodded, “Your mother will be unhappy.”

  I shook my head, “No she will not for she has a new daughter and Arne will spill his seed soon enough.” I smiled, “He may have done so already!”

  We sailed at Gormánuður. Both Arne and Siggi tried to dissuade me but I was determined. “Do you not trust me to return?”

  “The sea is wide and this is the season of storms.”

  “Then if I do not return then watch for the sea bird who swoops to spoil your mail!”

  He laughed, “Brother, we three swore an oath!”

  “And I will keep that oath. I did not chastise you for fighting a thegn. This will be my battle. I will be gone but a moon, perhaps more. By then Freja should be larger eh?”

  He grinned, “Perhaps!”

  I asked Padraig and Aed if they wished to sail with me. I would force no man to follow my dream. To my delight they were happy. “We have heard of those islands. Our grandfather told us tales of the old days when the prince of our land took men to settle there. I would be interested to see them.”

  We made barrels to take for the seal oil and we took hunting spears and bows. I left my shield in the hall. I would not need it. I did not take my helmet. We slipped away during the night. I did not want a great fuss to be made of me. I had my charts and I had my compass and hourglass. We had a barrel of ale and salted meat. We would fish as we sailed north. Until we reached Ljoðhús we would spend each night on land. There were many islands which were uninhabited. We would land and sleep ashore. After Ljoðhús we had a voyage due north. I had been told that there was nothing between Ljoðhús and Føroyar. We would have to make that leg in one voyage. None had done the journey but piecing together what I had learned I estimated that it would take a whole day and part of the night. If we left Ljoðhús while it was still night then we might sight the islands during daylight. We had a spare sail. Gytha and her volva had woven it for me. My hair and that of my mother were in the weave. Gytha told me that the spell would protect me. She was the only one who was confident that we would return. She had healed Siggi and I believed her.

  In many ways the first six days were the hardest and the most nerve wracking. We sailed the waters which were now claimed by the King of Norway. Every drekar and knarr we saw was a danger. It kept us alert. We chose the most remote of beaches for our camps but we lit a fire each night. Winter was coming and the nights were cold. Food in our bellies would fight off the cold during the day. The three of us got on well. Aed had always been the quiet one but the voyage made him speak more. I learned that he hoped that he might marry the daughter of F
inn the Scar. To be truthful Maren was a plain little thing but I had seen her flirting with Aed. It would be good for both of them. As we made our last camp on Ljoðhús Padraig surprised both Aed and me.

  “Tomorrow we sail into the unknown. Before we sail, Erik the Navigator, I would have you know that, like Aed, I have set my eyes upon a wife.”

  “That is good.”

  He paused, “It is Helga, your cousin.” I was silent. “Would your uncle approve?”

  I rubbed my chin, feeling the salt in my beard, “My uncle is a fair man but what of Helga? I know that Maren Finnsdotter likes Aed, but Helga?”

  He smiled shyly, “We have spoken. She likes the way I sing.” Padraig had a good voice. When we sat around the fires and sang our songs, he often gave us those from Ireland. We did not understand the words but they evoked thoughts which our sagas did not.

  I nodded, “Then that is good. When we return, I will speak with my uncle if you wish.”

  He had been right to speak before we sailed. It cleared the air. There were no secrets between us as we headed towards the unknown. As we headed north with rain coming from the east it was like stepping off a cliff. You knew the bottom would come but you knew not when. Sleet and then snow flecked the rain. I had my seal skin cape but Aed and Padraig were soon soaked for their cloaks did not keep out the wet.

  “Take out the spare sail and shelter beneath it. I am content to sail north.” In many ways I was sailing blind but the wind had been from the east and even without the sun I could estimate north. When daylight came the snow was falling even heavier than it had been the night before. ‘Jötnar’ did not seem to mind. We had cleaned the weed from her hull and sealed her with pine tar before we had left and she cared not that the snow fell and lay upon her thwarts. I guessed it was noon, for I had been turning my hourglass and estimated that the sun would be at its zenith, when the snow stopped. The Allfather must have taken sympathy on me for the clouds cleared and I was able to see the sun. It was behind me. I saw a thin shadow on the mast fish. We were heading north. It confirmed that the wind, which had been from the east, was now blowing from the north east. I would have to adjust our course accordingly. The clouds came back but not the snow.

  Aed and Padraig rolled up the sail and laid their cloaks to dry. They pulled in the hooks and took off the six shiny fish they had caught. They gutted them and we ate. No sea birds swooped for the waste. We were not near land. Padraig took the steering board while I made water and checked the ropes. We had spares but we had fitted newly made ones before we had left. They needed adjustment. All new ropes did. I returned to the steering board and we ploughed north. The black seas were empty. I had to trust my compass and the chart which I was now building in my head.

  It was coming on to dark and I wondered if I had missed the islands when Aed shouted, “Sea birds! There!”

  I followed his finger. He pointed to the steerboard side. Sea birds meant land and it was to the north east of us. We were sailing into the wind. We had to tack back and forth and zig zag towards them. Darkness came and the sea birds disappeared. Clouds hid the stars and we were sailing blind. I was tired beyond words but I knew this was a test. If I could find land after what must have been two hundred miles across open water then I was a navigator. Aed and Padraig hung over the prow looking for the tell-tale foam of rocks.

  “I see land! It is dead ahead!”

  The Allfather had not made it easy for us. We had to negotiate some rocks which would have torn the hull from ‘Njörðr’ but we made it through and saw a beach. As we ground onto the sand, I clutched my hammer of Thor and said, “Thank you Allfather!”

  After lowering and storing the mast on the mast fish we dragged her up beyond the weed which marked the high-water mark. We needed a fire but I did not relish searching for wood on an island we did not know. Instead we had some ale, ate some salted meat and wrapped ourselves in our blankets. I was asleep in moments.

  When I awoke it was to a grey damp day. Padraig and Aed slept on. I stood and wrapped my seal skin cape around my shoulders. As I looked south, I saw another island. We had missed that one. Looking to the north I saw a rocky beach. On it lay basking grey seals. We would not have to go far to hunt. Taking my spear, I climbed up the slope to get a look at the island. There were no paths. As far as I could tell the island was uninhabited. My joy at that evaporated when I saw that there were no trees either on this island or the island to the south. We would have to use the shrubs and leaves for kindling. I saw puffins and other birds nesting in the heather. We would not starve. Having established that we would not be disturbed I returned to the beach collecting as much dead and dried vegetation as I could. Padraig and Aed had woken.

  “There are sea birds and their eggs up yonder,” I pointed, “but little wood. I will scavenge for wood. We will need a fire if we are to render down the oil. You two hunt for breakfast.”

  I wandered along the beach. I found wood which had been washed ashore. There was more than I had expected. I made a pile of it by the snekke. I kept going further and further north until I was almost at the grey seal colony. The two sentries raised themselves up and barked at me. I guessed they had seen few men and would assume I was a strange looking seal. By the time I had collected the wood as far as the seals, Aed and Padraig had collected a few eggs and two puffins. I had eaten puffin before and quite enjoyed the taste. We would have to cook it.

  “Padraig, fetch the pot. Aed, prepare the birds.”

  I set to making the fire. I had seen more wood but it was close to the seals. We would cook our meal and then hunt. I used my flint. We had some dried wool I had brought and I used that to start the fire. The warmth made me feel human again. We had been chilled to the bone for the last two days and nights. I did not know how my two companions were coping for my seal skin cape kept the worst of the cold and damp from me. We had brought a metal tripod and the pit hung from that. Once plucked we put the birds in the pot of sea water. We ate the eggs raw. They were delicious.

  “While the food cooks we can hunt. The sooner we hunt the sooner you can have a cape and we can render the beasts down.” I knew that they were nervous. They had fished and killed quite large fish but a seal was as big as a man. “You two stay behind me. I will do the hunting. Your job is to protect me from any others which try to attack me. If you poke your spears at them then they will back off.” They looked dubiously at me. “Trust me.”

  “We do, Erik, we do.” Both men were Christian and I saw them clutch their crosses.

  I gave each of them two spears and I took one. I had the Walhaz dagger and a seax in my boots. We headed up the beach. I did not want to waste time and so I headed for the sentry. It would be a male and it would be big. I needed one with layers of fat. He opened his mouth and roared at me. I had sharpened my spear and, when I speared it, the head sank deep into its body. I must have been lucky and struck the heart for blood gushed and it fell dead. I retrieved my spear and headed towards the next sentry which obligingly headed down the beach towards us. This time the seal launched himself at me and his weight and my strike drove the spear so deep that, although he died, the spear was stuck. The seals were heading for the sea. I shouted, “Spear!” Aed handed me one and I ran towards the nearest one. I lunged and speared it in the side. This time I was able to retrieve it. One was just two paces from the water. I pulled back my arm and threw it. The seal did not die immediately. It managed to make it to the shallows before expiring. I was pleased. Four seals were enough for a small barrel of oil. “Let us take them back to the camp where we can butcher them.”

  By using two spears pushed through each one the three of us could carry all of them back easily. As Aed and Padraig went back for the fourth I saw sea birds swooping to take advantage of the kill.

  I set to work to first skin and then remove the fat which we would render. We had brought a specially made render dish. It was metal and shallow. I checked the stew, it was almost ready. I began to remove the fat. I found a large flat r
ock and used that to cut the fat up as small as I could. The smaller the pieces the quicker it rendered down. The crunchy fat which was left when we had finished could be eaten with salt. It tasted like the skin of the pig and was delicious. By the time Aed and Padraig had reached me I had finished chopping some of the fat off one of the seals.

  “Take the pot off the fire.” They used a folded piece of cloth to do so. I tied the four pieces of cord to the rendering platter and attached them to the hook. I hooked it to the top of the tripod. The metal platter would prevent the cord from burning. While Padraig ladled the stew into our bowls, I took the barrels we would use for the seal oil and placed them close to the fire. That done we ate. The two-bird stew went quickly. Had we had bread we would have wiped them around the pot.

  I showed them how to skin a seal and left them to it. I went to the oil. Using a cloth, I tipped the oil into a barrel. More would come. I put more wood on the fire and added more fat. We developed a routine. There was little talk for it was unnecessary. The animals were quickly skinned the fat removed and then the flesh chopped up. We put it in the pot with plenty of salt water. Aed and Padraig sourced more wood from the now deserted beach. It took most of the day to render down the fat. We emptied the small barrels into the firkin. With all the fat rendered we put the pot back on to cook the seal meat. We ate the residue left over from the cooked fat.

  “We keep the fire going all night. We sleep in shifts. Slowly cooked the meat will preserve better.”

  The next day was a repeat of the first. We crossed the island to find another beach. There we killed four seals and collected more wood. We stored the seal meat in a barrel with brine which we made. We prepared eight seal skins. We painstakingly scraped them clean and then made water on them. We pegged them out with rocks to allow them to air dry.

  The weather began to become even colder and dark black clouds threatened on the third day. The gods were telling us that we had spent long enough on the island. By the fourth day we had enough oil for our barrels and cooked fat was no longer something we looked forward to. The snow came. We would leave the next day. We wrapped up the seal skins and stored them. Aed and Padraig had two big enough to use as capes. When time allowed, they would be able to finish them properly but they would not be as cold going home. We found some eider ducks which we killed and we enjoyed duck meat. The down was saved. That was treasure beyond words! We had great quantities of offal. If we had had more barrels, we might have saved it. As it was the birds gorged as we set sail amidst a snowstorm. We headed south knowing that so long as we did not deviate from our course, we would hit land at some point. I had kept a record on my chart. I would know how to find the two islands again. If we went to the land of ice and fire, we would call at Føroyar first. We would be able to replenish supplies and make any repairs we might need. ‘Jötnar’ had been lucky. The drekar might not fare as well.