by Robert Low
He acknowledged it with a bow and then turned his grin on the scowling Avraham.
'See? I have returned, as I said I would,' he declared. 'The steppe cannot kill me and I hear you have been seeking a way across the Great White, you who could not find your prick with both hands.'
Avraham, eyes ringed in violet in a face blue-white, had not the strength to answer, nor hide his relief that Morut was back.
Led by the little tracker, we hauled the horses down the balka to where it shallowed and opened out into a great expanse of opaque ice, tufted with rimed grass and across which the new snow of the buran drifted in a hissing wind. This let us backtrack to where the carts were, but so many horses were dead that a score of carts were abandoned and anything that could be was left with them.
No horses remained for the druzhina and even little Vladimir was on foot now Cleverest of us all were Thorgunna and Thordis, who had the frozen horse carcasses chopped up and loaded on to a cart, with the smashed-up wood from several others. Now we had food and wood to cook it with, even if Finn said he was hard put to decide which of the two items would be more tasty.
'I thought you could make anything tasty,' Thorgunna chided, her wind-scoured cheeks like apples as she smiled and Finn humphed with mock annoyance, staring with a rheumy eye at one stiff, hacked off pony haunch.
'You boil it in a good cauldron with one of its own horseshoes,' he growled. 'It will be tasty when the shoe is soft.'
The rest of the carts we burned that night, making camp there and hauling out the large cooking kettles to boil more meat in, as much as we could. Horseshoe or not, we had heat and full bellies that night, enough to stitch us together again. We, who seemed set to die this day or the next, even started to talk about what lay ahead.
'Another storm like that will end us,' growled Red Njal and little Prince Vladimir scowled at his elbow, for we were all one sorry band now, leaching the same heat from the same fire.
'We will succeed,' he piped and no-one spoke until Morut fell to telling us of his journey.
He had tracked the Man-Haters a long way, down a balka filled with ice to a big frozen lake with an island. All the way, he had come upon ruined carts, dead horses and dead men; those of Lambisson. He had seen no women, though — but the brass-coloured horse, he said, was dead of cold and hunger, as were others that were clearly steppe ponies. Avraham groaned at the loss of the heavenly horse.
That, I offered up, was a good sign, for surely now it meant all the Man-Haters had died. Save one, I thought to myself, for you cannot kill the fetch who owned that sheened horse, or swung the twin of my sabre. I had not planned to say anything, but reached up one hand to touch the rag-wrapped bundle of the sabre on my back and caught Finn's knowing eye across the fire.
He growled and would have spat his disgust, save that he was nestling Thordis in the crook of his arm and thought better of it.
'There's no Hild-fetch, Trader,' he said. 'That bitch-tick is long dead.'
He knew I did not believe him and I looked for Kvasir to take my shieldless side in this argument, but he was wrapped in the arms of Thorgunna and asleep.
'Well, at least I know it isn't Fimbulwinter,' I offered them.
The I told them of my dream. A few, Gyrth among them, simply shrugged; they wanted to say that it was only a dream brought on by a dunt on the head, but kept their chapped lips together out of politeness to me. Others, though, were stronger in their belief.
'A witching form often brings the wise,' Red Njal declared, 'as my granny used to say. It seems to me that Trader Orm has just made a good deal with Odin.'
He beamed, but Finn had the look of man more concerned that his jarl talked with gods in his dreams, while Klepp Spaki was interested in the riddle, but added that thinking it out was like trying to row into a headwind.
'A sea-farer at last, are we?' growled Hauk, though he grinned when he said it. Klepp, who had discovered he had no legs or stomach for the sea, acknowledged his lack with a rueful smile.
Finn eventually growled that there was nothing much about my visit with All-Father and I did not know whether to be relieved or angry at that.
'After all,' he went on, 'it has told nothing more than we know already — even that part about a sacrifice of something held dear. Odin always wants something expensive draining lifeblood on an altar. It might even be me, since I took the valknut sign after the vow I made in the pit prison in Novgorod.'
'In return for what?' asked Sigurd, his silver nose gleaming in the firelight. Finn shifted uncomfortably, looking at little Prince Vladimir; what he had wished for was the death of that little prince and thought he had got it, too, when we heard the bells ring out.
Of course, it was the boy's father who had died and Finn simply put that difference down to not being specific with a shapechanger such as Odin —. but we had still been got out of the prison. The memory let me save Finn's face.
'To be free of the prison,' I offered up, smooth as new silk. Finn nodded eagerly and thanked me with his eyes. Vladimir frowned, considering the answer; he had an unhealthy interest in comparing the advantages of different gods.
'I am thinking,' piped up a voice, 'that the reason men give offerings to Thor is because he is less likely to betray them than All-Father Odin.'
All heads swung to Crowbone, sitting hunched in his cloak and blooded by firelight.
'What do you know of the betrayal of gods?' asked Gyrth curiously and those who knew Crowbone's early life stirred and wished he had never voiced the question.
Little Olaf favoured Gyrth with his lopsided look and cleared his throat.
'I know the treachery of gods and men both,' he said and brought one hand out of his cloak to take a twig and poke the fire so that sparks flew and the flames licked up. Few men wanted to back away from it, all the same, even though their hair was scorching, for we all knew we would be a long time cold after this.
'There once was a shepherd,' he said and there was a whisper like sparks round the fire, the relish and apprehension of a tale from Olaf.
'It was at the end of a deep and dark winter, almost as bad as this one. He brought his sheep into the field to find some grazing and sat down under a tree to rest. Suddenly a wolf came out of the woods. A lord of wolves, it was, with a ruff as white as emperor salt and a winter-hunger that had his chops dripping.'
''I know that hunger well,' interrupted a voice and was shushed to silence.
'The shepherd picked up his spear and jumped up,' Crowbone went on. 'The wolf was just about to spring at the man when he saw the spear and thought better of it, for it had a fine, silver head and he did not like the idea of a shepherd with so clever a weapon. They stared at each other and neither dared to make the first move.
'At that moment, a fox came running by. He saw that the wolf and the shepherd were afraid of each other and decided to turn the situation to his own advantage. He ran up to the wolf and said: "Cousin, there is no reason to be afraid of a man. Jump on him, get him down and have a good meal."
'The wolf eyed him with an amber stare and said: "You are cunning, right enough, but you have no brains. Look at him — he has a silver spear, which is surely magical. He will stab me and that will be the end of me. Be off with your stupid advice."
'The fox thought for a moment, then said: "Well, if that is the way of it, I will go and ask him not to stab you. What will you give me if I save you?"
'The wolf told him he could have anything he asked for, so the fox ran to the shepherd and said: "Uncle shepherd, why are you standing here? The wolf wants to make a meal of you. I just persuaded him to wait a while. What will you give me if I save you?"
'And the shepherd promised: "Anything you ask." The fox ran to the wolf and said: "Cousin, you will have a long life and sire many cubs — I have persuaded the shepherd not to stab you. Hurry up and run now before he changes his mind. I will see you later."
'The wolf turned and leaped away as fast as he could —which, in truth, he could have done a
t any time but for his fear. The fox came back to the shepherd, saying: "Uncle shepherd, you did not forget your promise?"
'The shepherd said the fox was no nephew to him but asked him what he desired and the fox answered: "Not much, only a bite out of your leg. That will be enough for me."'
'Ha — even that seems tasty to me,' shouted a black-browed Slav and those of us who had known oarmates to have done such a thing once shifted uncomfortably and said nothing at all.
'The shepherd stretched out his leg,' Olaf went on. 'Just as the fox was about to sink his teeth into it, the shepherd barked. The fox jumped back, asking: "Who made that noise?" The shepherd shrugged: "What do you care? Take your bite and be done with it." The fox cocked his head cunningly. "Oh, no. I will not come near you before you tell me who made that noise."
'The shepherd sighed. "In that case, I will tell you. This winter in the village we had nothing to eat. And then my sheepdog had two puppies. Well . . . I was so hungry, I ate them. Now the pups have grown up in my stomach. I am thinking they smell you and want to get at you, so they are barking."
'The fox got even more frightened but he would not show it. He said with dignity: "I would have no trouble handling your pups. But I must run and see the wolf on some urgent business. Hold back your sheepdogs for a while. When I come back, I will teach them such a lesson that they will never attack foxes again."
'The shepherd smiled. "Be quick," he said.
'And the fox went streaking off into the woods, happy to get away with his life. After he caught his breath, he set out to look for the wolf and said to him: "Well, cousin — I saved your life when you were frightened of the shepherd and you made a promise."
'The wolf howled, a long howl. "What promise?" he growled. "I am no cousin to you. I am the jarl-king of these woods. Who dares to say that I was frightened?" He raised his paw to strike the fox down — who ran off before such a thing could happen, thinking to himself: "There is no gratitude in this world."
'Then the fox slunk into his hole to teach his children to stay away from men and wolves both.'
'Aye, true enough,' Red Njal agreed. 'The cod who swims with sharks is swiftly eaten, as my granny said.'
'Heya,' muttered Gizur, 'I hope you are friendly enough with men and wolves to get away with that insulting saga, little Prince Olaf.'
'And gods,' added Onund Hnufa meaningfully.
'With shepherds only,' answered Crowbone and some laughed, though it was forced. They still did not know how to read the runes of this boy.
Into the gentle warmth of this stepped a large, dark figure — Kveldulf, his bearded jaw thrust out challengingly and a scowl between his brows.
'I am the last of Klerkon's men,' he declared, glancing at little Crowbone. 'I am known as Kveldulf and noted as a shapechanging berserker. It comes to me that you are shorthanded and could use a good man.'
This was right enough, but I did not like or trust Kveldulf and did not want him in the Oathsworn. Crowbone's face was stiff and not all of it was cold; his eyes glittered, one ice, the other dark fire. I remembered that Kveldulf had been Klerkon's man and wondered what had passed between them when Crowbone was a thrall there.
'True enough,' I said, 'but we are the Oathsworn. You may have heard of us and the oath we take. Can you take it and keep it?'
'I am known all over Smalland as a man of my word,' he replied, angry at the hard sneer from me.
Crowbone cleared the choke from his throat, which turned all heads.
'Just so,' he said, in a voice thin as an axe edge. 'You promised me I would never see my mother again, the second time I ran off. True enough, I never have.'
The wind hissed into the silence that followed that, until I forced myself to speak.
'What skills have you that we might need?' I asked Kveldulf.
He blinked at that. 'I have said. I am known as a shapechanger and berserker. A killer am I. A serious jarl would welcome me.'
That was insulting and I felt the burn of anger. It was a surprise, that feeling, for it made me realize how much the cold had seeped in to the centre of me and numbed a great deal.
'Not known to me,' I said careless of insulting this man's fame, which was a dangerous business. 'Nor have I seen you bite a shield, for all the fighting we have done so far.'
'I was not well during the fight at the village,' he admitted, at which Finn gave a snort of laughter. Kveldulf curled a lip at him.
'I am well enough now to show those with no respect some manners. I have heard that the way into the Oathsworn is to fight one already in it.'
I felt Finn bristle and wanted none of this — wanted none of Kveldulf.
'Times are harsh and we are fewer,' I said. 'I have chosen a new way.'
Men leaned forward, curious now and not having heard of this. It would have been hard, since I had just thought of it and I blame the cold and the weight of events for making me savagely reckless.
I held up my left hand, swathed in a leather glove, which was still stiffened with rime. If I had not been at the fire there would have been a mitten over it.
'How many fingers do you see?'
He blinked, then grinned, clearly thinking this was a formality and no more.
'Five, of course.'
I bent the stiff, empty sockets of the glove and those who knew I only had two fingers and a thumb on that hand chuckled. Kveldulf's scowl returned, more thunderous than ever.
Kvasir laughed, loud and hard.
'There are stones with more clever in them,' he said. 'Jarl Orm should get one of them to swear to the Oathsworn.'
'Heya; rumbled Gyrth, smiling. I felt only the hot rush of shame, for it had not been right to smack Kveldulf so hard with words, him who blinked with the effort of understanding.
Kveldulf, trembling like water on the brink of spilling, finally spun round and lumbered into the dark, Finn's savage chuckles goading him. Slowly, conversation resumed but I sat silent, aware of disapproval across the fire.
Eventually, Thorgunna gave a snort. 'The hasty tongue sings its own mishap if it be not bridled in,' she intoned.
'You sound like Red Njal's granny,' I answered, trying to make light of it. 'Or my foster-mother.'
'You never had same, it seems to me,' she replied tartly, 'for she would surely have taught you to be kinder.'
Which was a tongue-cut too deep and Kvasir put a hand on her elbow to still her.
'Look where we all are, Jarl Orm,' Thordis interrupted, leaning forward so that the fire glittered her eyes. 'Here, in this place. Following you to an uncertain doom. If your wyrd is upon you, it is right we should speak. There are more lives at risk here than you know.'
That smacked up memories of Einar, too harsh for me to take easily and the hackles rose on me.
'Do you want Kveldulf? Take him and welcome — but I do not want him at my back . . .'
Then it struck me, what she had said and I stopped, gaping. I looked from her to Finn and back. Finn looked stricken and Thordis chuckled at his dismay.
'Not me, Horsehead . . . not yet.'
Thorgunna, swaddled in a cloak, raised her head. 'I am not alone.'
It was the way we announced it in the north and Kvasir had clearly known of his wife's condition for some time, since he did not even stir at this. I did, more than a few times. Jon Asanes laughed; Red Njal and others swapped the news, which sprang from head to head like a spark whirling from a fire.
'Are you sure?'
It was question a rock would have asked and her sheep-dropping eyes raked me with silent scorn.
'Even with the cold and the lack of food I can tell when life quickens in me, Jarl Orm,' she snapped. 'Anyway, I slept with an egg in there and lopped off the far end next morning. By the yolk, it will be a boy.'
I sat back a little, looking from her to Kvasir, feeling that, somehow, they had conspired against me. One of the big Slavs — the same who had sworn he could eat someone's leg —growled, 'An egg,' in a tone that wanted to know where she had got
such a prize.
'So you see, Trader,' Thordis went on, ignoring all this, 'why we are concerned.'
I did and felt twice as ashamed as before, had to shake my head to clear it.
'The words were hasty,' I admitted, 'the reason was sound. What's done is done. The unwise man is awake all night and ponders everything over; when morning comes he is weary in mind and all is a burden as ever.'
'As your foster-mother used to say,' added Red Njal. 'She knew my granny, I am thinking.'
This last was greeted with chuckles; talk resumed, low and soft round the fire. But I could not take my eyes from Thorgunna, kept flicking back to her, wondering about the life there, marvelling at it happening at all in this place, fearing it at the same time.
I had women and youths enough to crush me with the worrying. Now the unborn were weighing my shoulders, even before they sucked in their first breath.
I stood on the back of a dun-coloured whale breaching a frozen sea and stared into the maw of its blowhole, listening to Finn and Kvasir and the others scoffing at me for having failed to recognize the place when I had seen it from the edge of the frozen lake.
We came to it down a slick of cold tragedy, each rimed droplet a huddle of stiff, jutting limbs and fleeing scavengers.
Little Morut led the way, waiting patiently for us now and then, stopping to feed his rib-thin horse on chopped straw mixed with animal fat. I admired the little Khazar, in the same way I had admired the Bedu who tracked so easily over the Serkland deserts and for the same reasons. Even Finn offered a nod to the little man while Avraham, that noble Khazar Jew, had scorn and relief chasing each other across his face like fox and chicken.
It was Morut who pointed out the splendid golden horse, no longer glowing, its limbs stuck out like a wooden carving and that glorious coat now sheened with ice. Wolves slunk from it when we came up, red-muzzled and thin, though they did not go far. They dropped to their bellies on the frozen, stiff-grassed steppe and waited, paws crossed, for us to go away. Patient as stones, Odin's hounds, for they had put in a lot of work on the beasts and men littering the area; there were no soft parts to start gnawing on an icebound corpse.