“What force, now, wilt thou add to ours?” he asks.

“Two long-ships, one with twenty, and the other with thirty seats for rowers.”

“Who shall man them?” asks Hallvard.

“I will man one of them with my own house-carles, and the freemen around shall man the other.  But still I have found out that strife has come into the river, and I know not whether ye two will be able to get away; for they are in the river.”

“Who?” says Hallvard.

“Brothers twain,” says Oliver; “one’s name is Vandil and the other’s Karli, sons of Sjolf the Old, east away out of Gothland.”

Hallvard told Gunnar that Oliver had added some ships to theirs, and Gunnar was glad at that.  They busked them for their voyage thence, till they were “all-boun”.  Then Gunnar and Hallvard went before Oliver, and thanked him; he bade them fare warily for the sake of those brothers.

CHAPTER XXX.

GUNNAR GOES A-SEA-ROVING.

So Gunnar held on out of the river, and he and Kolskegg were both on board one ship.  But Hallvard was on board another.  Now, they see the ships before them, and then Gunnar spoke, and said—­

“Let us be ready for anything if they turn towards us! but else let us have nothing to do with them.”

So they did that, and made all ready on board their ships.  The others patted their ships asunder, and made a fareway between the ships.  Gunnar fared straight on between the ships, but Vandil caught up a grappling-iron, and cast it between their ships and Gunnar’s ship, and began at once to drag it towards him.

Oliver had given Gunnar a good sword; Gunnar now drew it, and had not yet put on his helm.  He leapt at once on the forecastle of Vandil’s ship, and gave one man his death-blow.  Karli ran his ship alongside the other side of Gunnar’s ship, and hurled a spear athwart the deck, and aimed at him about the waist.  Gunnar sees this, and turned him about so quickly, that no eye could follow him, and caught the spear with his left hand, and hurled it back at Karli’s ship, and that man got his death who stood before it.  Kolskegg snatched up a grapnel and casts it at Karli’s ship, and the fluke fell inside the hold, and went out through one of the planks, and in rushed the coal-blue sea, and all the men sprang on board other ships.

Now Gunnar leapt back to his own ship, and then Hallvard came up, and now a great battle arose.  They saw now that their leader was unflinching, and every man did as well as he could.  Sometimes Gunnar smote with the sword, and sometimes he hurled the spear, and many a man had his bane at his hand.  Kolskegg backed him well.  As for Karli, he hastened in a ship to his brother Vandil, and thence they fought that day.  During the day Kolskegg took a rest on Gunnar’s ship, and Gunnar sees that.  Then he sung a song—­

  For the eagle ravine-eager,
  Raven of my race, to-day
  Better surely hast thou catered,
  Lord of gold, than for thyself;
  Here the morn come greedy ravens,
  Many a rill of wolf[14] to sup,
  But thee burning thirst down-beareth,
  Prince of battle’s Parliament!