The Saga of the Volsungs

by Jackson Crawford

  Guðrún was asleep in Sigurð’s arms when she woke in dumbstruck terror, soaked in her husband’s blood. Then she screamed, weeping and raving, and Sigurð lifted his head from the pillow and said, "Don’t cry. Your brothers are still alive and there is joy for you in that. And there is my young son, who cannot fight his enemies on his own, and they have done themselves harm with their actions. They won’t find a better nephew or brother-in-law to ride with them in battle—if they let him grow up. And now it has happened as was long ago foretold, but I refused to believe. No one can fight his fate.

  "Brynhild is the cause of this, because she has more love for me than for anyone, but I swear truthfully that I never did any wrong to Gunnar, and I respected the oaths we swore, and I was never too much of a friend to his wife.

  "And if I had known this before, and had I been able to stand on my feet armed with my weapons, many men would have lost their lives before I fell, and then all your brothers would be dead, and I would be harder for them to kill than the biggest buffalo or wild boar."

  And now King Sigurð died, and Guðrún screamed so that she lost her breath. Brynhild heard her and laughed, when she heard that scream.

  {62} Gunnar said to her, "You’re not laughing like this because you’re cheerful in the roots of your heart. Why have you turned pale? You’re a murderous woman, and you’re likely near your death. Nothing would be more fitting than to see your brother King Atli killed before your eyes, and you’ll be the cause of that too. Now we have to see about the funeral of our brother-in-law, our brother’s killer."

  Brynhild said, "No one thinks that the murders are over, but King Atli doesn’t care about your threats or angry words. He will live longer than you, and he’ll remain a more powerful man."

  Hogni said, "Now everything has happened as Brynhild said it would. This is an evil deed that we’ll never be able to make right."

  Guðrún said, "My brothers have killed my husband. And the next time you ride out to battle, you will find that Sigurð is not riding at your right hand, and you’ll remember that he was your good luck and he was your support, and if he had lived to have sons like him you’d be the stronger for his children and kinsmen."

  No one could explain why Brynhild had laughed when she asked them to do it, and wept when it was done.

  Chapter 31. The Death of Brynhild

  [compare Brot af Sigurðarkviðu (Brot af Sigurtharkvithu), st. 15–19, Sigurðarkvitha en skamma (Sigurtharkvitha en skamma), st. 34–71, and Helreið Brynhildar (Helreith Brynhildar) in the Poetic Edda]

  Brynhild said, "Gunnar, I dreamed that I slept in a cold bed, and you rode into the hands of your enemies. You and all the Niflungs will be cursed, you oathbreakers!

  "You must have forgotten when you and Sigurð blended your blood in a pledge of brotherhood, and that it was your idea. Now you have repaid all his good with your evil—Sigurð, who let you be the foremost.

  "When he came to woo me, I tested how faithfully he would keep his promises. He laid a sharp-edged sword between us, hardened with poison.

  "It didn’t take much to convince you and your brothers to do harm to him and me. I once lived at home with my father and had everything I {63} wanted, and I wanted to marry none of you when you three kings came riding to our home. But my brother Atli asked me if I wanted to marry the man who sat on Grani’s back. And that man did not resemble you in any way, and I promised myself to that son of King Sigmund and to no other.

  "And your luck, Gunnar, won’t improve, even if I die."

  Then Gunnar rose up and he touched his wife’s neck and begged her to live and accept money, and everyone else begged her to live, too. But she drove away everyone who came to her, and said she would not be talked out of what she planned on doing.

  Gunnar went to Hogni and asked his advice, begging him to go to Brynhild and find out if anything could be done to soften her anger. Gunnar said that there was great need, that her mind needed to be changed and there wasn’t much time to do it.

  But Hogni said, "Let no one try to talk her out of killing herself. She’s been no good to us or to anyone else since she came here."

  And now Brynhild ordered a huge amount of gold to be brought to her, and she invited everyone to come and take it who wanted any. Then she took a sword and put it through her own heart and sank down by her bed and said "Everyone who wants it, take some of the gold now." But they were all silent. And again she said, "Take the gold as my gift and enjoy it."

  Then Brynhild spoke again to Gunnar. She said, "Now let me talk to you for a little while about what is going to happen. You will make peace with Guðrún, with the assistance of Grímhild’s magic. Guðrún will give birth to Sigurð’s daughter, named Svanhild, and she will be the most beautiful woman ever born. Then Guðrún will be married unwillingly to my brother King Atli.

  "Gunnar, you will want to marry my sister Oddrún, but Atli will forbid it. But the two of you will still meet in secret, and she will love you, and Atli will betray you and he will put you inside a snake-pit, and soon after Atli and his sons will be killed at Guðrún’s hands. Then the ocean’s waves will take Guðrún to King Jónakr’s castle, and she will give birth to his excellent sons. And then Svanhild will be married off to King Jormunrekk, but Bikki’s advice will be the cause of her death. And with that, your family will come to an end, and Guðrún’s agony will be all the worse.

  "Now, Gunnar, I make my last requests. Make a great funeral bonfire on the flat plain for all of us, for me and Sigurð and the men who were {64} killed with Sigurð. Put a blood-reddened tent above it, and burn me on one side of that Hunnish king. And burn my men on the other side of him, two at his head and two at his feet, and burn two hawks. Then everything will be arranged properly.

  "And between him and me, place Sigurð’s drawn sword, just as it was the last time we shared a bed, when we pledged to become husband and wife.

  "And it won’t be as if the door was just shut on Sigurð’s heels this way, if I follow him, and our funeral won’t be remembered like some peasant’s passing if you kill five slavewomen and the eight slavemen my father gave me to follow him, and burn them there along with the men who were killed with Sigurð. And I would say more if I weren’t injured, but my wound is bleeding and coming open, and I have spoken the truth."

  Now Sigurð’s body was prepared in the ancient way, and a great funeral pyre was built. And when the fire had been kindled, they put Sigurð, the killer of Fáfnir, on top of it with his three-year-old son, killed on Brynhild’s orders, and Guttorm. And when the fire was burning high, Brynhild spoke with her serving-women and told them to take the gold that she wanted to give them. And after this, Brynhild died and burned there with Sigurð, and their lives came to a close.

  Chapter 32. The Marriage of Guðrún to King Atli

  [compare Guðrúnarkviða II (Guthrunarkvitha II), st. 1–36, in the Poetic Edda]

  Now everyone who has heard this story agrees that there will never be another man like Sigurð in the world, that no one will ever be born again who could equal him in anything, and that his name will always be famous in the German language and in Scandinavia as long as the world lasts.

  It is said that one day Guðrún sat in her room and said, "My life was better when I had Sigurð. He was better than all other men, as much as gold is better than iron, or garlic is better than other plants, or a stag is better than other animals, until my brothers became jealous of this man who was better than all others, and they could not sleep until they had killed him.

  {65} "Grani neighed loudly when he saw his lord injured. And I spoke to him as I would have to a man, when he bowed his head over the earth and knew that Sigurð was fallen."

  Then Guðrún went away into the woods. Everywhere she went, she heard the howling of wolves, and she thought she would be happier if she died. She wandered until she came to the hall of King Hálf, and there she stayed with Thóra, daughter of Hákon, in Denmark for three and a half years. She was made welcome there with g
reat joy, and she made a tall tapestry, and on it she wove scenes of many great deeds and great contests which were talked about in her time, and of swords and armor and other kingly things, and the ships of King Sigmund as they departed from shore, and how Siggeir and Sigar fought on the island of Fyn.

  The women found their joy in such things, and for a while Guðrún found a little comfort in her misery.

  Grímhild learned where Guðrún was, and she summoned her sons, asking which one of them would go to Guðrún and offer to compensate her for the murder of her husband and son, which she said they owed her. Gunnar said that he would be happy to offer Guðrún gold to repay her for her agony, and he sent for his friends. They prepared their horses, helmets, shields, swords, and coats of chainmail and every other sort of war-gear. And this expedition was prepared in the noblest fashion, and no great champion sat at home. Their horses were given chainmail to wear, and every rider had either a gilded shield or one that had been polished until it reflected like glass. Grímhild herself went on that journey with them and said that their errand wouldn’t be completed unless she went along. Altogether they were six hundred riders, and they had many excellent men with them. Valdar the Dane went with them, as did Eymóð and Jarizleif.

  They went into the hall of King Hálf, where there were men of the Langobards, and of the Saxons and Franks. They went in full armor and they wore red cloaks, as the poem says:

  They had tailored shirts of chainmail,

  they had pointed helmets,

  they had swords at their belts,

  and their hair was chestnut.

  {66} They wanted to give their sister good gifts and they spoke kindly to her, but she trusted none of them. Then Grímhild gave Guðrún a cursed drink, and she was forced to accept it, and afterwards she remembered none of their crimes. This drink had been mixed with the might of the earth and the sea and the blood of Grímhild’s own son, and the drinking horn itself was carved with every kind of rune and painted with blood, as it is told:

  "There were all sorts

  of runes in that horn,

  carved there and bloodied,

  I couldn’t read them.

  There was a long sea serpent

  carved on the horn,

  there was an ear of wheat,

  there were animal guts.

  "Many evil things

  were mixed into that beer,

  the blood of all beasts,

  and burned acorns,

  and eagle’s blood,

  and intestines, and

  boiled pig’s liver, all because

  she wanted to make me forget."

  And after this, when they had forced her to agree with them, there was great rejoicing.

  Then Grímhild met with Guðrún and said, "Be well, my daughter. I’ll bring you gold and every kind of treasure to inherit from your father, and precious rings, and bed drapings in the style the noblest Hunnish girls use, and then you’ll be paid back for your husband’s death. And then you will be married to the powerful King Atli and you’ll have his wealth. Don’t forsake your family for the sake of one man—do as we ask, instead."

  Guðrún said, "I never want to marry King Atli. It would not suit us to produce children."

  {67} Grímhild said, "Don’t turn your thoughts to blame. It will be as if Sigurð and Sigmund never died, if you have sons with King Atli."

  Guðrún said, "I can’t stop thinking about him; Sigurð was better than all other men."

  Grímhild said, "You are ordered to marry this king, or you will be without a husband."

  Guðrún said, "Don’t offer me to this king. Only evil will come from his family, and he will do evil things to your sons and it will be avenged on him cruelly."

  Grímhild was upset when Guðrún mentioned misfortune befalling her sons, and she said, "Do as I order, and you will receive great fame and my friendship, and the lands called Vínbjorg and Valbjorg." Grímhild’s words were so powerful, that it had to be done.

  Guðrún said, "It has to be done, though I am not willing, and this will cause more agony rather than joy."

  Then the men mounted up on their horses and put the women in the wagons. They traveled seven days by land, seven days by sea, and then another seven by land, until they came to a high hall. A great crowd was there to greet her, and a wonderful feast was prepared as agreed to before, and everything was done with great honor and ceremony. And at this feast King Atli was married to Guðrún.

  But her heart never smiled upon him, and their days together had little joy.

  Chapter 33. Atli Sends an Invitation to the Sons of Gjúki

  [compare Guðrúnarkvitða II (Guthrunarkvitha II), st. 1–36, and Atlakviða (Atlakvitha), st. 1–9, in the Poetic Edda]

  Now it is told that one night King Atli woke from his sleep. He said to Guðrún, "I dreamed that you stabbed me through with a sword."

  Guðrún interpreted this dream. She said that dreaming about iron was an omen of fire, "and also a sign of the arrogance of considering yourself higher than all others."

  {68} Atli said, "I went on to dream that two reeds had grown here, and I never wanted to cut them. But then they were severed from their roots and reddened in blood, and they were brought to my table and offered to me for food. Then I dreamed that two hawks flew from my hand, but they flew unluckily and they went to Hel. I dreamed that their hearts were served mixed with honey, and I ate them. Then I dreamed that two handsome puppies lay at my feet and barked, but then I ate their raw flesh against my own will."

  Guðrún said, "Your dreams are not good, but these things will come to pass. Your sons are doomed, and many terrible things will happen to us."

  "I dreamed further," said Atli, "that I lay in my own bed and I was killed."

  Time passed, and the two said little to one another. And Atli began to wonder what had become of the great treasure that Sigurð had owned and King Gunnar and his brother Hogni now had. Atli was a great, powerful king, wise and with a large following, and he talked with his men about how to proceed. He knew that Gunnar and Hogni had much more wealth than any other men could compete with, and he decided to send messengers to seek those brothers and invite them to a feast with offers of many fine things. And the man who led these messengers was named Vingi.

  Queen Guðrún noticed their secret talks and suspected that a plot was being made against her brothers. She carved a message in runes, and she took a golden ring and tied a wolf’s hair around it. She gave these things to the king’s messengers, who afterwards left on their mission. And before they reached Gunnar’s realm, Vingi noticed the runes, and he modified them to make it seem that Guðrún had said she was eager for her brothers to come.

  When the messengers came to the hall of King Gunnar, they were given a good welcome. Big fires were prepared for them, and they were given good drink to enjoy.

  Vingi said, "King Atli sent me here to ask that you visit him at his home and be welcomed there and receive great honors from him, as well as helmets and shields, swords and coats of armor, gold and fine clothing, soldiers and horses and vast lands to hold as his vassal—he thinks there is no one better to leave his kingdom to than you."

  {69} Then Gunnar turned his head to Hogni and said, "How should we respond to this invitation? He’s offering us great wealth, but I don’t think any kings have as much gold as we do, because we have the whole treasure that was once at Gnitaheið. We have large chambers full of gold, and the best swords and all kinds of armor. I know that my horse is the best and my sword is the sharpest, and this gold the finest."

  Hogni said, "I’m perplexed by his invitation, because it’s something he has seldom done. I think it would be foolish to accept, and there’s something else that gives me pause. In the jewels that King Atli sent us, I found a golden ring with a wolf’s hair tied to it. Perhaps Guðrún thinks he has a wolf’s heart toward us, and she doesn’t want us to make the journey."

  Then Vingi showed him the message in runes that he said Guðrún had se
nt.

  Now most of the commoners went to sleep, but Gunnar and Hogni stayed up drinking with some men. Then Hogni’s wife Kostbera, the most beautiful of women, went to look at the runes. The name of Gunnar’s wife was Glaumvor, and she was a very capable and talented woman. It was the brothers’ wives who were serving the drinks, and both King Gunnar and Hogni became very drunk.

  Vingi did not fail to notice this, and he said, "I won’t lie to you. King Atli is very old and having trouble defending his kingdom, and his sons are young and incapable. Now he means to give you his kingdom while they are still young, and he would like it best if it was you who had it."

  Now, because he was very drunk, and because he was offered a great kingdom, and moreover because no one can fight fate, Gunnar promised to go to King Atli, and he told his brother Hogni.

  Hogni said, "Your decision must stand, and I will follow you, though I do not go eagerly."

  Chapter 34. Concerning the Dreams of Kostbera

  And when the men had drunk as much as they wished, they went to sleep. Kostbera, Hogni’s wife, looked at the runes and read them. She {70} saw that something different was written underneath, and that the letters looked haphazardly written. She was wise enough to read it, though, and afterwards she went to bed with her husband.

  And when they woke, she said to Hogni, "The journey you are planning away from home is unwise. Go another time, if you have to. You aren’t reading clearly if you think it’s your sister who invited you this time. I read her message in runes, and I was perplexed that such a wise woman would have written so poorly, but what I read underneath those runes spelled your death. I can see that she either missed a letter, or that others changed what she wrote. And now, listen to my dream. I dreamed that a river crashed into the hall, and it was very strong and it broke the pillars."

  He said, "You often feel suspicious, but I don’t have the personality to think badly of other men unless they prove otherwise to me. He’ll greet us gladly."

  She said, "You’ll test that, but his friendship will not follow his invitation. And I had another dream, and in that one another river crashed into the hall and made a loud noise and broke up all the floorboards in the hall and it broke your feet and Gunnar’s too, and this must mean something."