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Hard after me are my courtmen, but I was swifter than they." Now all this was wearisome to me, for I would fain follow Osritha in her flight, if I could. So I left Thormod, without a word to Ingvar, and went to the stables.
Hodulf got back to his courtmen, and now they came on. At that moment over the hill behind us rode Havelok and Raven, and saw at once what was on hand. They had ridden on, but the host was hard after them. "Send a man to bid the host halt," Havelok said to me, "for we can end the matter here. Now shall I be hand to hand with Hodulf, even as I would wish."
Now Alsi the king sat staring at him, still as a carven image, with his hand halfway to his mouth, as he raised his horn from the table; and Ragnar looked wide-eyed, for he knew him again, and I saw a little smile curl the corners of his lips and pass; and then Havelok was at the step of the high place, and there he gave the salute of the courtmen of a Danish king, heeding Berthun, who tried to make him do reverence, not at all.
Now they were set, and at once Berthun bore a great beaker of wine to the king, and all down the hall ran his men with the pitchers of wine and mead and ale, and with them the women of the household and the wives of the courtmen, filling every drinking horn for the welcome cup.
After and with them were a dozen older courtmen of Thorwald's. The women screamed and shrank back against the walls of the hall, hiding behind the tables. We had naught to fear from the thralls here, for they were shouting for Gerda. One of Eric's men leaned over to Arnkel and spoke to him. Then he shook his head and scowled at him, and stood up and raised his hand.
"Take service with me and make a good name for yourself," he said. "It is a pity to see a good warrior who will do a kindly turn to a captive naught but a wolf's-head Viking. I have need of courtmen." "I might do worse," he answered; "but hither comes my father, and I have no mind to fight him at the very beginning of my service."
"Men," I said, "save your lives as this chief bids you. Join him now, and leave him when you may." "Do you join him?" said one in answer. Not I." "Neither do we. We live or die with you. What else should courtmen of the jarl's do?" So said one of our Norsemen; but the eyes of the Scots were on the bleak hills, and for them the choice was harder, I think.
In the morning Eglaf came to bid us to the palace to speak with the king. "This is about what I expected, when I heard of the mistake that our king had made," he said, "and so far you are in luck. It is not everyone who is a fisher one day and captain of the courtmen next, as one might say.
"And that is well for you, friend." And so he turned and watched his courtmen, as the Danes called the housecarles, carry Beorn out. Then he went to the walls and began to handle axe after axe, taking down one by one, setting some on the great table, and putting others back, as if taking delight in choosing one fittest for some purpose.
Well fought the courtmen of the fallen king, and well fought my men, and we bore them back, fighting every foot of ground, until there were only five of them left, and these five yielded in all honour, being outnumbered. Yet ours was a smaller band by half ere there was an end.
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