Viking Weregeld

by Griff Hosker

  I prepared to leave Raibeart and Ragnar’s halls. Brigid did not wish to leave her daughter. Now it was I who was desperate to leave and Brigid who was happy to stay. In the end, I left alone with the chest.

  As I rode up the Water I began to feel threatened. I shook it off. I was in my own land. Who would take the chest from me? And yet I could not shake off the feeling that I was being watched. A wind blew across the Water. The flecks of white on the waves appeared like teeth. It was the spirits. Had I, in some way disturbed them? And yet I was meant to find the blade. That much was as clear the sky above me.

  Kara, Ylva and Aiden were at the door of their hall as I rode up. Their faces told me that they had sensed my approach. It would have been the spirits of the Water who alerted them. I dismounted and Aiden waved to a slave to take my horse. I hurried inside. Kara cleared the chamber of all slaves and I laid the chest upon the table there. I put my hands on it and then, before I opened it I told them how we had found it.

  Aiden frowned when I had finished, “Àird Rosain? I have read that name before. There was a king, Rhydderch, he was a friend of your ancestor, the Warlord.” He scurried away to the chest which contained his parchments and books.

  Ylva put her hand on mine, “All threads lead to you grandfather. You need to take more care. You should have bodyguards with you.”

  I laughed, “I can look after myself.”

  Kara shook her head, “That was true once, father but now… The spirits are disturbed. We knew not why until you told us your tale. Something has disturbed them. You were meant to find the chest and what it contains but things are out of kilter. We will need to dream.”

  Aiden came back in and his face was now beaming, “I knew I had heard of it! The saint of the White Christ, St. Patrick came there and he founded the church. That is why it is holy to the men of Strathclyde. It was he who took them to serve the White Christ and to abandon the old gods. That is why the jewels were kept there. I am guessing that they believe they will be safe under their saint’s protection. As for the dagger?” He shrugged, “We will need to see it first but it is known that Myrddyn was imprisoned in Alt Clut and he flew from its lofty towers to escape. Àird Rosain is not far from Alt Clut. It may have been Myrddyn who placed the blade there.” He looked pointedly at the chest.

  I took a deep breath and opened it. Aiden took out the calfskins and laid them to one side. Kara took out the lambskin and she untied the jet fastening even more carefully that I had. She did not even open the skin but she closed her eyes as she touched the stones. She almost caressed each one, “This is ancient. This was born and was worked before the Romans came.” She gasped, “Ylva go to your grandfather’s and fetch the ancient sword.” All of us knew better than to question my daughter, the volva. Ylva ran and Kara opened her eyes. She laid the necklace on the table. We could now see that, quite clearly, it was a necklace. It had been used as a fastening but its original function had been different.

  Aiden looked at it, “In ancient times it was believed that the jet was even more valuable than gold. It was mined at Hwitebi. Do you see the way the stone has been worked? That would have taken a skilled man many months. The holes he drilled are all identical.”

  Ylva came in with the old sword. The rust had gone. She had cleaned it but the blade was still pitted. She laid it next to the necklace and Kara laid her hands on both of them. She smiled. “The man who wielded this sword and the woman who wore this necklace are connected. There is a thread.” She looked at me. “The thread leads to you.”

  I nodded and took out Ragnar’s Spirit. I placed it next to the old sword. Mine was longer and looked like a sword but you could see elements which were more than similar. They were identical. The groove down the middle was one. The hilt was another and the use of a stone in the pommel was a third. I unrolled the lambskin and placed the dagger between the two swords. The three of them stared at them and then their hands went to their amulets.

  Kara picked up, almost reverently, the dagger and closed her eyes. “This is younger than the necklace and the sword yet it was held by your ancestor too.”

  Ylva asked, “But how did Bagsecg make Ragnar’s Spirit so that it looked a little like the sword and is identical to the dagger?”

  Aiden said, “We must ask.” He left the chamber and came back moments later. “I have sent for him.”

  Ylva suddenly looked at me, “You are worried, grandfather that the discovery of this means that you might have to break your word for the first time in your life.”

  I smiled, “You read my mind.”

  She nodded, “You risked the wrath of a Norn to rescue me. You went to the Otherworld to fetch me back. There is a bond between us which is even closer than the one between you and my mother.”

  “And?”

  “And I cannot answer you yet. My mother is right. We need to dream. There are layers of meaning here. We peel one and find another.”

  Bagsecg came in. Normally a confident man he looked almost fearful. “I came as soon as I was summoned have…” He looked down at the three blades together and his hand went to his hammer of Thor. “By the Allfather…”

  I smiled, “Old friend, you see why I have sent for you. You told me that when you made Wolf’s Blood you dreamed before you made it. How did you come to make Ragnar’s Spirit which is almost identical to these two ancient blades? Did you dream?”

  “It is many years, Jarl Dragonheart.” He closed his eyes. When he opened them he said, “In those days we were at Hrams-a. My forge was by the river and close to the sea. I remember that the day I made it the wind came from the south west. I know that for it was a warm breeze. The day was clear and I thought we could almost see across the sea to Wyddfa. I knew that I was making a good blade for you but I could not come up with a design. I wanted it to be special. The blank was one of the best I had ever worked. In my head, I heard the soft singing of a woman and then the blade was finished.”

  I was disappointed. I had expected some revelation which would link the blade. This was an accident.

  Kara nodded and put her arm around Bagsecg. “Thank you for your honesty. Some would have made up a story to link the blades. You did not, you told the truth and now we know the answer.”

  Bagsecg and I looked at them. I shook my head, “How? I cannot….”

  “The wind from Wyddfa and the woman’s voice. It was your mother, Jarl Dragonheart. She had seen both blades. She put the thought in Bagsecg’s head and she guided his hand.”

  Aiden’s words made perfect sense. Bagsecg beamed, “You have given me renewed energy. I have often had such thoughts and I wondered if I was become so old that I could not concentrate. Now I see that it is the spirits. I can continue to make swords!”

  He left and I picked up Ragnar’s Spirit to examine it as though I had never seen it before. How had I missed the similarities with the ancient blade?

  Aiden opened the first calfskin. “This is from St. Patrick himself. A priest has copied it and it tells of his coming to the land of Alt Clut and making them follow the White Christ.” He opened the second one and, as he began to read he sat down. “But this one is even more important. It is in the hand of Myrddyn. I have seen it before. He tells how the one you call the Warlord is dead. He was slain by a treacherous ally. This dagger belonged to him. Myrddyn says that it will lie in the box until one comes who will defeat the Saxons.” His hand went to his amulet. “Someone who has the blood of the ancient ones in his veins; someone with the heart of a dragon.”

  They all looked at me. Kara put her arm around my shoulder and kissed me on the top of my head, “It is you, father. The old wizard foretold your coming even before you were taken as a slave.”

  Ylva said, “We can still dream but we have your answer. You are to fight Egbert but it is not because you pay weregeld or because Klakke wishes it so. It is because it is foretold. The Dane was obeying orders from the spirits. He will provide the ships and you will defeat Egbert.”

  “You mean we
take the land from the Saxons?”

  “It is like a stone tumbling from the top of the Old Man. In itself it is small and insignificant but as it rolls down the hill it gathers speed and power until, when it reaches the bottom it is an avalanche. You may not be there at the end, Jarl Dragonheart but it is you that will begin the end of the rule of Saxons and it will be one of our people who will rule this land. This is wyrd .”

  I went to my hall and mounted the sword and dagger back on the wall. They were in my eye line when I sat in my chair. This was a link to the past and beyond into the mists of time. Kara had insisted that I wear the necklace of jet. “It is magical, father, and it will protect you. We will all sleep easier knowing that it is around your neck.”

  The three of them would sleep that night in the sweat hut. They would speak with the spirits. I mounted my horse and rode around to the grave of my dead wife, Erika. I sat and watched the afternoon sun begin to dip behind Old Olaf. I had much to think on. Someone, who was of our people, would rule this land. Aiden had said that there was a circle here. The sword had belonged to the ruler of the land and been passed down from generation to generation by those who protected the land. I was the latest to wield a sword which would protect the land. Ragnar’s Spirit had always been magical and now I began to fully realise its power. I now understood why I had been so successful. The sword protected me. When I died would I hand it to Ragnar? I now saw that he was the one who would lead after me. I hoped that my time was not coming to an end but I was now older and death awaited all. I closed my eyes and spoke to Erika. Sometimes her spirit answered me and sometimes it did not. I did not mind.

  On the way back, as the sun set over the mountain, I stopped to speak with Bagsecg. I dismounted and he had one of his grandsons walk my horse back to my hall. “What did we begin Jarl?”

  “Nothing, old friend, we just continued on from those who went before. When your father and my mother were slain at Hrams-a we thought that was an end but it was not. Their spirits helped us both. You to make the finest sword and me to protect this land. When I am gone, I would have you make sure that Ragnar gets to wield my sword.”

  “That will be many years hence, Jarl.”

  “We cannot know that. I had thought that Wolf Killer would carry on after me. You thought your son would be the smith here when you went to the otherworld. Mine is dead and yours lives in Frankia.”

  “The Weird Sisters.”

  “Aye.”

  When I woke, Aiden was waiting in my hall. He looked drawn. “You dreamed?”

  “We did. We saw two mighty fleets. We saw two longphorts. One fleet was led by you and the other by Thorghest. We saw two mighty battles. One was against the Saxons and one against the Hibernians.”

  “And the result?”

  “There was great slaughter.”

  I smiled, “And that means that you cannot know the outcomes.”

  “We can only speak that which the spirits show but your mother and Erika spoke of you. It was they directed you to the blade and the parchments.” He hesitated. “When you return to Whale Island I would like to examine the jewels you found.”

  “They may have been sold already.”

  “True but I think not. There was something nagging at the back of my mind. Why were they left with the other chest? The spirits meant us to have them but for what purpose?”

  “Then come with me. It will be good for you to see the improvements at Whale Island.”

  Before returning to Whale Island I rode to speak with my Ulfheonar. They deserved to know all. Haaken joined Aiden and I for he wished to see his granddaughter. He was in good spirits as we rode south. “The three of us are still alive. Through all of our battles and trials we three have been a constant. You would have thought it would have been Cnut for he was the one there when the gods touched Ragnar’s Spirit.”

  Aiden said, “The three of us were linked before Cnut. You and Jarl Dragonheart journeyed to Hibernia with me to rescue Kara and Wolf Killer. That is the bond. The sword links the Dragonheart with his past and the future. We three will die and fade but the sword will live on and, through it, this land will be protected.”

  That gave me enough thoughts to keep me silent all the way to Whale Island. I was surprised to see ‘Wolf’s Teeth’ in the water. There was no mast and she rode so high that I knew she had no ballast but they were able to test if she was watertight. Soon she would be ready for sea. Thorghest and Bolli had worked hard. I saw Thorghest and his crew as they hauled the drekar back to shore. Bolli was on board. I knew he would be. He would prove the seaworthiness of the ship. There was no dragon’s head yet. That would still be hidden. When that was fitted, the ship would be ready for war.

  We rode directly to Erik Ironshirt’s hall. He was not surprised to see us. “I wondered, Jarl Dragonheart, about these jewels. My men were keen for us to sell them.”

  “They may be more valuable than you can know. Let Aiden see them and tell your men they will not lose out. I will recompense you and your men for them.”

  “You do not need to.”

  “No, I wish it to be so. I will explain later but let us just say that your invite for the raid was directed by the spirits. You and my son were merely tools.”

  Aiden opened the chest. He had brought with him the third piece of parchment from the chest. He had not read it and I had thought it unimportant. “What does the parchment say?”

  “It lists the jewels and crowns of King Urien, last king of Britannia. It was placed here by Myrddyn.”

  “But the dying warrior said they came for the jewels of Strathclyde.”

  He looked at me, “And they left these.”

  I felt my hair tingle.

  “Take them out one by one Jarl and I will see if they are on the list.”

  As I did so I realised that I had not examined all of them properly. These were finely made and there were two larger coronets at the bottom of the chest. They tallied exactly.

  As I looked on them I understood the import of my discovery. “So, Aiden, you seem to know more about this than any. What do we do with them?”

  “The King of Britannia is dead and the only one who could claim that now would be King Egbert. He has called himself Bretwalda.”

  “And yet he does not control the whole land.”

  “You cannot give him the jewels father!”

  “If I thought he had a right to them then I would give them to him but Myrddyn said that we were to defeat the Saxons. It cannot be him.”

  “Nor is it you, Jarl Dragonheart. You are the protector. Gruffyd and Ragnar will also be protectors. These are intended for someone who is yet to be born. We need to bury them where they will be found in the future.”

  I knew what was coming. “Myrddyn’s cave in Wyddfa.” He nodded. “It is buried beneath a rockfall.”

  He shrugged. “When we reach there and find we cannot get in then we will realise that I am wrong and this was not meant to be. But we have to try.” I knew he was right. “And it will have to be soon for war with Egbert is coming.”

  “Haaken, ride and rouse the Ulfheonar. I have need of them. Gruffyd ride to Erik, I need the ‘Heart of the Dragon’ preparing for sea. We sail to Wyddfa.”

  Chapter 6

  A iden’s map

  Ragnar and my son came with us and the crew was made up of the Angry Cubs and the Ulfheonar. Brigid, for once, did not mind my absence. Sámr was being delightful and, knowing that Erika might be leaving soon, she was spending time with her.

  We sailed at dawn. The waters around Mona were treacherous. We would have to sail well to the south of the island and then make our way back. There were Saxons and the Welsh to contend with. As much as they hated and fought each other both hated Vikings more. Aiden was with us and he had written on a new piece of calfskin. It was a message to the future. He wrote it in Latin. “I am guessing that men will still use that language to write in the future. It was what Myrddyn used.”

  “And what have you said?” />
  “Just that the jewels belong to the King of Britannia. I write who we are and how we found them.”

  “You seem confident about this.”

  “That they will be found by the right people?” I nodded. “You found the sword and you found the chests. You were meant to. It was you who discovered the secret of Myrddyn’s cave by the Lough Rigg. Someone, as yet unborn, will stumble upon them.” He shook his head, “No, stumble is the wrong word. They will be directed to find them and my missive will just point whoever it is in the right direction.”

  We knew where to land. We would round the headland which was well to the south of Mona and sail east to the valley and the trail which led to the cave. We knew, from our previous raids, that there was now a walled defence to the west of the trail. We wished no harm to the garrison but we knew that they might see our visit as hostile. We would be ready for war.

  We negotiated the island just before dusk and, with the setting sun behind us we rowed east. We did not sing and we had the mast lowered. We wished to be invisible. We would be rowing up the Afon Dwyryd where we would anchor. The river was wide and would allow us to anchor in the middle section. There the ship would be safe from attack while we pursued our quest. It was a narrow channel between the Welsh strong hold and the south bank of the Afon Dwyryd. It was the most dangerous part of the journey. As we sailed east we spied the dark shape of the wooden walls of Porth Madog. We steeled ourselves against a cry of alarm but there was none. I spied the masts of ships. None, alone, would worry us but together they could pose a problem. Having passed them that would be a problem for the return voyage. The river widened as we passed through. There was an alarming grinding from the keel as we passed over a sandbar. Erik pointed to the north and put the steering board over.

  We were clear of any houses and he said, “The tide is on its way out, Jarl Dragonheart. We will wait for you in the middle of the river. That way we will be safe and we will head back to pick you up when it turns. It will take you a day to reach Wyddfa will it not?”