THE SLAYING OF HJORT AND FOURTEEN MEN.
After that Starkad egged on his men, and then they turn down upon them
into the ness. Sigurd Swinehead came first and had a red targe, but in
his other hand he held a cutlass. Gunnar sees him and shoots an arrow at
him from his bow; he held the shield up aloft when he saw the arrow
flying high, and the shaft passes through the shield and into his eye,
and so came out at the nape of his neck, and that was the first man
slain.
A second arrow Gunnar shot at Ulfhedinn, one of Starkad's men, and that
struck him about the middle and he fell at the feet of a yeoman, and the
yeoman over him. Kolskegg cast a stone and struck the yeoman on the
head, and that was his death-blow.
Then Starkad said, "'Twill never answer our end that he should use his
bow, but let us come on well and stoutly". Then each man egged on the
other, and Gunnar guarded himself with his bow and arrows as long as he
could; after that he throws them down, and then he takes his bill and
sword and fights with both hands. There is long the hardest fight, but
still Gunnar and Kolskegg slew man after man.
Then Thorgeir Starkad's son said, "I vowed to bring Hildigunna thy head,
Gunnar."
Then Gunnar sang a song--
Thou, that battle-sleet down bringeth,
Scarce I trow thou speakest truth;
She, the girl with golden armlets,
Cannot care for such a gift;
But, O serpent's hoard despoiler!
If the maid must have my head--
Maid whose wrist Rhine's fire[25] wreatheth,
Closer come to crash of spear.
"She will not think that so much worth having," says Gunnar; "but still
to get it thou wilt have to come nearer!"
Thorgeir said to his brothers--
"Let us run all of us upon him at once; he has no shield and we shall
have his life in our hands."
So Bork and Thorkel both ran forward and were quicker than Thorgeir.
Bork made a blow at Gunnar, and Gunnar threw his bill so hard in the way
that the sword flew out of Bork's hand; then he sees Thorkel standing on
his other hand within stroke of sword. Gunnar was standing with his body
swayed a little on one side, and he makes a sweep with his sword, and
caught Thorkel on the neck, and off flew his head.
Kol Egil's son said, "Let me get at Kolskegg," and turning to Kolskegg
he said, "This I have often said, that we two would be just about an
even match in fight".
"That we can soon prove," says Kolskegg.
Kol thrust at him with his spear; Kolskegg had just slain a man and had
his hands full, and so he could not throw his shield before the blow,
and the thrust came upon his thigh, on the outside of the limb and went
through it.
Kolskegg turned sharp round, and strode towards him, and smote him with
his short sword on the thigh, and cut off his leg, and said, "Did it
touch thee or not?"
"Now," says Kol, "I pay for being bare of my shield."
So he stood a while on his other leg and looked at the stump.
"Thou needest not to look at it," said Kolskegg; "'tis even as thou
seest, the leg is off."
Then Kol fell down dead.
But when Egil sees this, he runs at Gunnar and makes a cut at him;
Gunnar thrusts at him with the bill and struck him in the middle, and
Gunnar hoists him up on the bill and hurls him out into Rangriver.
Then Starkad said, "Wretch that thou art indeed, Thorir Easterling, when
thou sittest by; but thy host and father-in-law Egil is slain."
Then the Easterling sprung up and was very wroth. Hjort had been the
death of two men, and the Easterling leapt on him and smote him full on
the breast. Then Hjort fell down dead on the spot.
Gunnar sees this and was swift to smite at the Easterling, and cuts him
asunder at the waist.
A little while after Gunnar hurls the bill at Bork, and struck him in
the middle, and the bill went through him and stuck in the ground.
Then Kolskegg cut off Hauk Egil's son's head, and Gunnar smites off
Otter's hand at the elbow-joint. Then Starkad said--
"Let us fly now. We have not to do with men!"
Gunnar said, "Ye two will think it a sad story if there is naught on you
to show that ye have both been in the battle".
Then Gunnar ran after Starkad and Thorgeir, and gave them each a wound.
After that they parted; and Gunnar and his brothers had then wounded
many men who got away from the field, but fourteen lost their lives, and
Hjort the fifteenth.
Gunnar brought Hjort home, laid out on his shield, and he was buried in
a cairn there. Many men grieved for him, for he had many dear friends.
Starkad came home, too, and Hildigunna dressed his wounds and
Thorgeir's, and said, "Ye would have given a great deal not to have
fallen out with Gunnar".
"So we would," says Starkad.