The Th·Ttr Of SˆRli

I. To the East of Vanakvisl in Asia was a country called Asialand or Asiaheim. Its inhabitants were called ∆sir and the chief city they called Asgarth. Othin was the name of their King, and it was a great place for heathen sacrifices. Othin appointed Njˆrth and Frey as priests. Njˆrth had a daughter called Freyja who accompanied Othin and was his mistress. There were four men in Asia called Alfregg, Dvalin, Berling and Grer, who dwelt not far from the King's hall, and who were so clever that they could turn their hands to anything. Men of this kind were called dwarfs. They dwelt in a rock, but at that time they mixed more with men than they do now. Othin loved Freyja very much, and she was the fairest of all women in her day. She had a bower of her own which was beautiful and strong, and it was said that if the door was closed and bolted, no-one could enter the bower against her will.

It chanced one day that Freyja went to the rock and found it open, and the dwarfs were forging a gold necklace, which was almost finished. Freyja was charmed with the necklace, and the dwarfs with Freyja. She asked them to sell it, offering gold and silver and other costly treasures in exchange for it. The dwarfs replied that they were not in need of money, but each one said that he would give up his share in the necklace.... And at the end of four nights they handed it to Freyja. She went home to her bower and kept silence about it as if nothing had happened.

II. There was a man called Farbauti who was a peasant and had a wife called Laufey. She was thin and meagre, and so she was called 'Needle.' They had no children except a son who was called Loki. He was not a big man, but he early developed a caustic tongue and was alert in trickery and unequalled in that kind of cleverness which is called cunning. He was very full of guile even in his youth, and for this reason he was called Loki the Sly. He set off to Othin's home in Asgarth and became his man. Othin always had a good word for him whatever he did, and often laid heavy tasks upon him, all of which he performed better than could have been expected. He also knew almost everything that happened, and he told Othin whatever he knew.

Now it is said that Loki got to know that Freyja had received the necklace ... and this he told to Othin. And when Othin heard of it he told Loki to fetch him the necklace. Loki said that there was not much hope of that, because no-one could get into Freyja's bower against her will. Othin told him to go, and not come back without the necklace. So Loki went off howling, and everyone was glad that he had got into trouble.

He went to Freyja's bower, but it was locked. He tried to get in but could not. The weather outside was very cold and he became thoroughly chilled. Then he turned himself into a fly, and flew around all the bolts and along the whole of the woodwork, but nowhere could he find a hole big enough to enter by, right up to the gable. He found only a hole no bigger than would allow of the insertion of a needle. Through this hole he crept. And when he got inside he stared around, wondering if anyone was awake. But he found that the room was all wrapped in slumber.

Then he went in and up to Freyja's bed and found that she was wearing the necklace and that the clasp was underneath her. Loki thereupon turned himself into a flea and settled on Freyja's cheek and stung her, till she awoke and turned over and went to sleep again. Then he laid aside his flea-form, drew the necklace from her gently, opened the door and departed, carrying the necklace to Othin.

When Freyja awoke in the morning she found that the door was open, though it had not been forced, and that her lovely necklace was gone. She had a shrewd idea of the trick that had been played on her, and when she was dressed she went into the hall to King Othin, and told him that he had done ill to rob her of her trinket, and begged him to return it.

Othin replied that considering how she had come by it she should never get it back:

"--Unless you bring about a quarrel between two kings, each of whom has twenty kings subject to him; so that they shall fight under the influence of such spells and charms that as fast as they fall they shall start up again and fight on--unless there be some Christian man so brave and so much favoured by the great good fortune of his liege lord that he shall dare to take arms and enter among the combatants and slay them. Then and not till then shall the labours of those princes be brought to an end--whoever may be the chief who is destined to free them from the oppression and toil of their disastrous lot."

Freyja agreed to this and recovered the necklace.

III. Four and twenty years after the death of Frithfrothi a King called Erling ruled over the Highlands of Norway. He had a wife and two sons, of whom the elder was called Sˆrli the Strong, and the younger Erlend. They were promising young men. Sˆrli was the stronger of the two. As soon as they were old enough they took to raiding, and fought against the viking Sindri, the son of Sveigir, the son of Haki, a sea-king in the Skerries of the Elf. There fell Sindri the viking, and with him all his host; and Erlend the son of Erling also fell in that battle. After that Sˆrli sailed into the Baltic and harried there, and performed so many great deeds that it would take too long to recount them all.

IV. There was a King called Halfdan who ruled Denmark; and his capital was at Roskilde. He married Hvethna the elder, and their sons were Hˆgni and Haakon. They were distinguished for their stature, strength and ability. As soon as they were old enough they took to piracy.

Now we must return to Sˆrli and relate how one autumn he set sail for Denmark. King Halfdan had been intending to go to a gathering of kings. He was far advanced in years at the time when the events related here took place. He had such a fine warship that for strength and excellence of every kind it had no equal in all the countries of the North. It was riding at anchor in the harbour, but King Halfdan had gone ashore to give orders for a carousal before starting on his voyage. And when Sˆrli saw the warship his heart was consumed with a burning desire to possess it at all possible hazards. And indeed it is generally agreed that there never was a greater treasure of a warship than this in all the countries of the North, except the warships Ellithi and Gnˆth and the Long Serpent.

So he ordered his men to prepare themselves for battle--

"For we must slay King Halfdan and seize his warship."

A man called SÊvar, his fo'c'sle-man and marshal, made answer:

"That is not advisable, Sire, for Halfdan is a great chief and a famous man. Moreover he has two sons who will be certain to avenge him, for they are both very famous men already."

"Though they be superior to the very gods," said Sˆrli, "yet we shall fight just as we have done before."

They prepared for battle, and the news reached King Halfdan. He started up and went with all his men to his ships, and they prepared them for battle at once. Some of Halfdan's men protested to him that it was not advisable to fight, and suggested that he should take to flight as the odds were too heavy against them. The King replied that they would all fall dead one on the top of another before he would flee.

Both sides now prepared to give battle, and closed forthwith in a fierce combat, the result of which was that King Halfdan fell with all his host; and Sˆrli took possession of the warship and everything on it that was of value.

Then Sˆrli learned that Hˆgni had returned from a raiding expedition and was lying off Odins¯. Sˆrli set off thither with his ships, and when they met, he told him of the death of Halfdan, his father, and made him an offer of reconciliation on his own terms, suggesting also that they should become foster-brothers; but Hˆgni declined all his offers. Then they joined battle, as is told in the poem dealing with Sˆrli. Haakon fought very boldly and slew SÊvar, Sˆrli's standard-bearer and fo'c'sle-man. Then Sˆrli slew Haakon, but Hˆgni slew King Erling, Sˆrli's father. After that Hˆgni and Sˆrli fought together, and Sˆrli went down before Hˆgni from weariness and wounds. And Hˆgni afterwards caused him to be healed of his wounds, and they swore foster-brotherhood to one another, and both remained true to their oaths as long as they lived. Sˆrli was the first to die. He fell in the Baltic at the hands of vikings, as is told in the poem of which he is the subject.

And when Hˆgni heard of Sˆrli's death, he went raiding in the Baltic the same summer, and was victorious everywhere. He became king over those regions; and it is said that twenty kings were vassals to King Hˆgni and paid him tribute. Hˆgni became so famous on account of his great deeds and his raiding expeditions that his name was as well known in the north of Finland as away in Paris, and everywhere in between.

V. There was a King called Hjarrandi who ruled over Serkland. He had a wife and a son called Hethin, who quickly grew into a man remarkable for his strength, stature and ability. While still a youth he went on raiding expeditions and became a sea-king, harrying all round Spain and Greece and all the neighbouring kingdoms; so that he made twenty kings pay him tribute, holding their land and revenue as his vassals. In winter time Hethin used to stay at home in Serkland. It is said that on one occasion he went into a forest with his retinue. He left his men and found himself alone in a glade where he saw a woman, tall and fair, sitting on a throne. She spoke to him courteously, and when he asked her her name she said she was called Gˆndul. Then they talked together. She questioned him about his mighty deeds and he told her everything frankly and asked her whether she knew of any king to match himself in valour and hardihood, renown and prowess. She replied that she knew of one who did not fall short of him--one who had twenty kings subject to him just as Hethin had; and she added that his name was Hˆgni and that he lived in the North, in Denmark.

"I know one thing," said Hethin; "we have got to prove which of us is the more valiant."

"It is high time for you to return to your men," said she; "they will be looking for you."

Then they parted. He returned to his men, and she remained sitting there.

At the very beginning of spring, Hethin prepared to set out. He had a warship, and three hundred and sixty men in it, and he made for the northern part of the world. He sailed all that summer and the following winter, and at the beginning of spring he reached Denmark.

VI. King Hˆgni was at home at that time; and when he heard that a famous king had come to his shores, he invited him to a magnificent banquet, and Hethin accepted the invitation. And as they sat drinking, Hˆgni asked what motive brought Hethin so far north.

Hethin replied that his object was to compete with him in contests which would make trial of their courage and daring and all their prowess and skill.

Hˆgni said he was ready for this; and early next morning they went swimming and shooting together. They rode a-tilt, and performed feats of arms and of skill of all kinds. And in all their exploits they were so equal that no-one could distinguish which was the better of the two. After that they swore foster-brotherhood to one another, and bound themselves to share everything equally.

Hethin was young and unmarried, but Hˆgni was somewhat older. He had married Hervˆr, the daughter of Hjˆrvarth, the son of Heithrek Ulfham. Hˆgni had a daughter who was called Hild, and who excelled all other women in beauty and understanding. He loved his daughter exceedingly. He had no other children.

VII. It is said that a little later Hˆgni went on a raiding expedition while Hethin stayed behind to look after his kingdom. It chanced one day that Hethin went into a forest to pass the time. The weather was mild. He again wandered away from his men. He came upon a forest glade, and there he saw sitting on a throne the same woman whom he had seen before in Serkland--only now he thought her even fairer than before. She was again the first to speak and chattered to him gaily. She was holding a horn with a lid to it. The King fell in love with her. She offered him a drink and he felt thirsty, as he had grown warm; so he took the horn and drank; and when he had drunk, a very wonderful change came over him, for he remembered nothing that had happened to him previously. He then sat down and talked to her.

She asked him if what she had said to him before of the skill and courage of Hˆgni had proved true and Hethin replied that it was true enough--"for he did not come short of me in any feat that we tried, and so we declared ourselves a match."

"Yet you two are not equal," said she.

"And why not?" asked Hethin.

"For this reason," replied she: "Hˆgni has married a wife of high birth, whereas you have no wife."

He replied: "Hˆgni will marry me to Hild his daughter as soon as I like to ask him, and then I shall be as well married as he."

"Your honour will be impaired," said she, "if you ask Hˆgni for a marriage alliance. If, as you profess, you lack neither courage nor valour, you would do better to carry off Hild by force, and put the Queen to death by taking her and laying her down in front of the prow of your warship, and letting it cut her in two when it is launched."

The wickedness and forgetfulness contained in the ale which Hethin had drunk had so got the better of him that there seemed to him to be no alternative, and he had not the slightest recollection that he and Hˆgni were 'foster-brothers.'

Presently they parted, and Hethin went back to his men. This took place in the late summer.

Then Hethin ordered his men to get ready the warship, saying that he intended to go home to Serkland. Then he went into the ladies' bower and took the Queen and Hild by either hand and led them out. Hild's clothes and jewels were also taken. There was no-one in the kingdom who had the courage to do anything; for they were afraid of Hethin and his men--he glowered so fiercely.

Hild asked Hethin what his intention was, and he told her. She besought him to think better of it, adding:

"My father will marry me to you if you ask him for me."

"Ask for you?" echoed Hethin; "I will never do that."

"And," she continued, "if you really must carry me off, even so my father will make it up with you. But if you do anything so wicked and unmanly as to put my mother to death, my father will never make it up with you. I have had a warning in dreams that you two will fight and slay one another. Yet I am afraid that there must be something still more terrible in store. It will be a great sorrow to me if I have to be the means of exposing my father to the ruinous effects of magic spells; nor shall I have any joy in seeing you in difficulties and toils."

Hethin replied that he cared not at all for the consequences, and that he would do as he had threatened.

"You cannot mend it now," said Hild, "because in this case you are not your own master."

Then Hethin went down to the sea-shore, and now was the warship launched. He thrust the Queen down in front of the prow, so that she perished. Hethin stepped into the warship. And when it was quite ready, he took it into his head to land alone, leaving his men behind; and he went into the same forest where he had gone before. And when he came into the glade, there he saw Gˆndul seated on her throne. They greeted one another cordially. Hethin told her what he had done and she expressed her approval.

She had with her the horn which she had carried before, and she offered him a drink from it. He took it and drank; and when he had drunk, sleep fell upon him, and he let his head sink into her lap. And when he had fallen asleep, she slipped away from under his head, saying:

"Now I devote both you and Hˆgni and all your followers, and lay you under all the spells imposed by Othin."

Then Hethin awoke and saw the fleeting shadow of Gˆndul, but she appeared to him now to be big and black; and he recalled everything and realised how much mischief he had done. He decided now to go away somewhere a long way off, where he would not each day have his wicked deeds cast in his teeth. So he went to his ship, and made haste to free her from her moorings. A fair breeze was blowing off the land, and so he sailed away with Hild.

VIII. When Hˆgni returned home, he learnt that Hethin had sailed away with Hild and the warship Halfdanarnaut, leaving the dead body of the Queen in his tracks. Hˆgni was furious and bade his men start up on the spot and sail in pursuit of Hethin. This they did, and a fair breeze sprang up. Every evening they reached the harbour from which Hethin had sailed away in the morning.

It happened one day that as Hˆgni was making for a harbour, Hethin's sails were sighted out at sea; so Hˆgni and his men gave chase. As a matter of fact, it is said that at this point Hethin got a head wind against him, whereas Hˆgni had the luck to have a fair wind as before. Hethin then lay to off an island called Hoy, and there he rode at anchor. Hˆgni quickly came alongside, and when they met, Hethin greeted him courteously.

"I must tell you, foster-brother," said Hethin, "that so great a misfortune has come upon me that no-one save you can remedy it. I have carried off your daughter and your warship, and put your wife to death, yet from no personal wickedness of my own, but rather from promptings of evil spirits and wicked spells. My wish now is that you shall have your own way entirely in this matter between yourself and me. I also offer to give up to you both Hild and the warship, and all the men and money contained in it, and to go to such distant lands that I can never return to the North nor into your sight as long as I live."

Hˆgni replied: "Had you asked me for Hild I would have married her to you; and even in spite of your having carried her off by force we might have made up our quarrel. Now, however, since you have been guilty of such an outrage as to put the Queen to death in a most shameful manner, I certainly will not make terms with you. We will try here, on the spot, which of us is the more valiant fighter."

Hethin replied: "It would be best, if nothing less than fighting will satisfy you, that we two should measure our strength alone; for you have no quarrel with any man here save with me. There is no use in making innocent men pay for my crimes and evil deeds."

Their followers all swore with one accord that they would rather fall dead in heaps than that they two should exchange blows alone. And when Hethin saw that nothing would satisfy Hˆgni, save that they should fight, he ordered his men to land, saying:

"I will no longer hold back from Hˆgni, nor make excuses to avoid fighting. Let every man bear himself bravely!"

They thereupon landed and fell to fighting. Hˆgni was full of fury, but Hethin was both dexterous with his weapons and mighty in his stroke. It is told for fact that so potent was the evil charm in the spell that even when they had cloven one another to the very shoulders, yet they started up as before and went on fighting. Hild sat in a grove and watched the battle.

This harrowing torment continued to oppress them from the time when they began to fight until Olaf Tryggvason became King of Norway. It is said to have gone on for a hundred and forty-three years, until it fell to the lot of this famous man that one of his retinue released them from their grievous calamities and tragic doom.

IX. In the first year of King Olaf's reign, it is said that he came one evening to the island of Hoy and anchored there. It was a regular occurrence in the neighbourhood of this island that watchmen disappeared every night, and no-one knew what had become of them. On this particular night it was Ivar the Gleam who kept guard. And when all the men on the ships were asleep, Ivar took the sword that Jarnskjˆld had had and that Thorstein his son had given him, and all his armour, and went up on to the island. And when he had landed on the island he saw a man coming towards him. He was very tall and covered with blood, and his face was full of sorrow. Ivar asked him his name, and he replied that he was called Hethin, the son of Hjarrandi, and that he had come of a stock in far Serkland, adding:

"I am telling you the truth when I say that the vanishing of the watchmen must be laid to the charge of me and Hˆgni, the son of Halfdan. For we and our men have been laid under such powerful and destructive spells that we go on fighting night and day; and this has continued for many generations, while Hild, the daughter of Hˆgni, sits and looks on. It is Othin who has laid this spell upon us; and our only hope of redemption is that a Christian man should give battle to us.--When that occurs, he whom the Christian slays shall not stand up again; and so will each one be freed from his distress. Now I would pray you that you will come to fight with us, because I know that you are a good Christian, and also that the King whom you serve is very lucky. I have a feeling too that we shall get some good from him and his men."

Ivar agreed to go with him.

Hethin was glad at that and said:

"You must take care not to encounter Hˆgni face to face, and also not to slay me before you slay him; because no mortal man can encounter Hˆgni face to face and slay him if I die before him, for the glance of his eye strikes terror and spares none. Therefore this is the only way: I will attack him in front and engage him in battle, while you go behind and give him his death stroke. You will find it an easy matter to slay me, when I am left alive last of all."

Then they went into the battle, and Ivar saw that all that Hethin had told him was quite true. He went behind Hˆgni and struck him on the head, and clove his skull down to the shoulders, whereupon Hˆgni fell down dead and never rose up again. After that he slew all the men who were fighting, and last of all he slew Hethin, which was no great task.

When he returned to the ships the day was dawning. He went to the King and told him what he had done. The King was very well pleased with his work and told him that he had had great good luck. Next day they landed and made their way to the spot where the battle had taken place; but they saw no sign of what had happened there. Yet the bloodstains on Ivar's sword were visible proofs; and never again did watchmen disappear on that coast.

After that the King went home to his realm.