The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki (Penguin Classics) Page 11
Vogg told them that King Adils was so devoted a heathen sacrificer ‘that his like can not be found. He sacrifices to a boar, and I scarcely understand that such a monster can exist. Be on your guard, because King Adils is putting all his energy into looking for a way to destroy you.’
‘I think the possibility more likely,’ said Bodvar, ‘that he will remember having to leave the hall this evening because of us.’
‘You should keep in mind,’ said Vogg, ‘that he will prove to be cunning and savage.’
After this conversation they fell asleep, but a noise from outside awoke them. The noise was so loud that it echoed everywhere, and the house in which they were sleeping shook and swayed as if it was on soft ground. Vogg began to speak, ‘Now the boar has been set in motion, sent by King Adils to take revenge on you. It is such a great troll that no one can stand against it.’
King Hrolf had with him a great hound named Gram;68 it was outstandingly brave and strong. The troll burst into the house. It had the likeness of a boar,69 and hideous sounds came from its trollish nature. Bodvar set the hound against the boar, and the dog attacked without hesitation. A fierce struggle followed. Bodvar aided the hound, hewing at the boar, but his sword would not cut into the beast’s back. The hound Gram was so strong that it was able to tear the ears off the boar, taking with them all the flesh from the cheeks. All at once the boar withdrew, disappearing downward from the place where it had been standing.
Next King Adils arrived outside the house with a large following of armed men. They immediately set fire to the house and, inside, King Hrolf and his champions realized that yet again there would be no shortage of fuel.
Bodvar said, ‘A sad death’s day if we are to be burned inside here. I would rather choose to fall before weapons on a level plain. If this burning is allowed to happen, it will be an unfortunate ending for King Hrolf’s champions. I see no better plan than to hurl ourselves against the planks of the wall and in this way manage to break out of the house – if only that is possible.’
This task proved to be difficult, for the house was strongly built. ‘Each one of us,’ said Bodvar, ‘will have his man before him when we come out, but, as previously, they will quickly lose courage.’
‘It is an excellent plan,’ said King Hrolf, ‘and it will serve us well.’
29. Queen Yrsa Gives King Hrolf His Inheritance and More
Hrolf and his champions put the plan to work, throwing themselves against the wallboards with such force and determination that the wall broke apart and the men escaped. The area outside the hall within the fortress was packed with men in coats of mail, and a brutal battle began. King Hrolf and his champions pushed fiercely forward, thinning the ranks of King Adils’ men. Faced with the strength of the champions’ blows, none of King Adils’ men proved to be an opponent so proud or so stubborn that he did not crumble. In the midst of the hard fighting, King Hrolf’s hawk came flying out of the fortress. It settled on the king’s shoulder, and from there, filled with pride, it acted as though assisting in a glorious victory.
Bodvar said, ‘The hawk is behaving as if it has performed a great feat.’ Adils’ man, whose task it was to watch over the hawks raced up to the loft where they were kept. He thought it strange that King Hrolf’s hawk had managed to get free, but then he found all of King Adils’ hawks had been killed.
The battle ended with Hrolf and his men killing many of the enemy; nothing could stand against them. King Adils had disappeared, and no one had any idea what had become of him. Those of King Adils’ men who were still standing asked for mercy, and it was granted.
Afterwards Hrolf’s company went to King Adils’ hall. Entering boldly, Bodvar asked King Hrolf on which bench he wanted to sit. King Hrolf answered, ‘We will seat ourselves on the king’s dais itself, and I will sit in the high seat.’
King Adils did not return to the hall. He felt that he had suffered grievously, having achieved little despite all his schemes. Hrolf and his men sat for a while in peace and quiet.
Then Hjalti the Magnanimous said, ‘Would it not be wise for someone to go to the stables to check our horses to see if they require attention?’ A man was sent off, but soon he returned, reporting that the horses had been shamefully abused. As recounted earlier, they had been maimed. King Hrolf showed little response beyond saying that in dealings with King Adils everything went one way.
Now Queen Yrsa came into the hall and went before King Hrolf, greeting him in a refined and elegant manner. He received her greeting well. She said, ‘You have not been welcomed, kinsman, as you should have been, or as I wanted you to be. Nor ought you, my son, to remain here any longer in so inhospitable a place, because right now large numbers of troops are assembling throughout the land of the Swedes. King Adils intends to kill all of you. He has wanted to do so for a long time, had he only been able; but at this very moment your good luck has more power than his sorcery. Here is a silver horn, which I give to you. In it are kept all of King Adils’ best rings, including the one called Sviagris, the one he values most of all.’70 So, too, she gave him a huge store of gold as well as of silver. The treasure was so large that one person could hardly conceive of its value.
Vogg was present and for his faithful service received a reward in gold from King Hrolf. The queen had twelve horses brought forward. All were reddish in colour except one, which was as white as snow and was for King Hrolf to ride. These horses were the ones that had proven themselves to be the best of King Adils’ mounts; all were equipped with full armour. The queen also supplied Hrolf and his men with shields, helmets, war equipment and the best clothes that could be found, because the fire had ruined their weapons and their clothes. With generosity, she gave them everything they needed.
King Hrolf said, ‘Have you given me all the property which is mine by rights and which my father owned?’
She replied, ‘In many ways, it is more than I was entitled to give you, but you and your men have here won much fame. Prepare yourselves now as best you can so that you are not vulnerable, because you will be tested again.’
After that they mounted their horses. King Hrolf spoke affectionately to his mother, and they parted with tenderness.
30. King Adils Is Conquered by Gold and King Hrolf Angers Hrani
King Hrolf and his champions rode down from Uppsala, passing through the region called the Fyris Plains. The king saw a gold ring glowing on the road in front of him; it rattled with a loud sound as they rode over it. ‘It bellows so loudly,’ said King Hrolf, ‘because it dislikes being alone.’
He slid off one of his own gold rings and tossed it to the one on the road, saying, ‘It shall not happen that I stoop for gold, even if it is lying on the road. Let none of my men be so rash as to pick it up, for it has been cast here in order to delay our journey.’
They promised him that they would not touch the ring. Then, from all directions, they heard the sound of war trumpets and saw a huge force coming after them. The pursuing army was rushing forward furiously, each man forcing his horse to its fullest. King Hrolf and his champions, however, continued riding at the same pace.
Bodvar said, ‘These men pursue us hard. I, for one, certainly want some of them to reach their goal, and they themselves are surely eager to find us.’
The king said, ‘Take little notice. They will delay themselves.’
Then Hrolf reached out to Beygad, who rode next to him, holding in his hand the horn with the gold. The king took the horn from Beygad and threw the gold all over the road. He rode the length of the Fyris Plains sowing gold so that in the end the paths gleamed like gold. When the pursuers saw the gold glistening on the road, most of them jumped off their horses. A contest started and the best at the game was the one quickest to pick up the gold. They grabbed and brawled, and in the end, the strongest won.
The pursuit was slowed and, when King Adils realized the change in pace, he came close to losing his reason. He rebuked his men with hard words, telling them that they picked up the le
sser items while letting the more valuable prize slip away. ‘The foul shame will be heard in every land that we were unable to stop twelve men from escaping, despite a force as large as the one I have here pulled together from all districts of the Swedish kingdom.’71
Enraged, King Adils raced ahead of everyone, with a large crowd of his men following him. When Hrolf saw Adils galloping up to him, he took the ring Sviagris and threw it down on the road. When he saw the ring, King Adils said, ‘The one who gave King Hrolf this treasure has been more faithful to him than to me. Nonetheless, it is I who will now enjoy it and not King Hrolf.’ Adils, wanting above all else to retrieve it, reached out with the shaft of his spear to the spot where the ring lay. He bent down over his horse and guided his spear through the hole of the ring.
Seeing what Adils was doing, Hrolf turned his horse around and said, ‘I have made the greatest of the Swedes stoop like a swine.’ Then, just as King Adils was pulling the spear shaft with the ring on it back toward him, King Hrolf galloped up and sliced off both his buttocks right down to the bone. He did this with the sword Skofnung, the best sword ever carried in the northern lands.
King Hrolf then told King Adils to endure this shame for a time. ‘Now you know where Hrolf Kraki is, the one whom you have sought for so long.’
King Adils, suffering a great loss of blood, grew faint. He was forced to turn back, all the worse for the encounter. Meanwhile, King Hrolf recovered the ring Sviagris. There the two kings parted, and it is not told whether they ever met again. Meanwhile, Hrolf’s company killed all of King Adils’ men who, exposing themselves to the most danger, had ridden out in front. These warriors did not need to wait long for King Hrolf and his champions, since none of the champions thought himself too good not to offer them their services. Among the champions, no one squabbled over who should act once the opportunity arose.
King Hrolf and his men now went on their way. They rode almost the whole day and, as night fell, they found a farm. The farmer came to the door, and who was it but farmer Hrani. He offered them full hospitality, declaring that their journey had not turned out much differently from what he had predicted. The king confirmed this remark, adding that Hrani was a man not blinded by the smoke of deception.
‘Here, I want to give you these weapons,’ said the farmer.
The king replied, ‘These are hideous weapons, farmer.’ There was a shield, a sword and a coat of mail, but King Hrolf refused to accept the equipment. Hrani’s mood quickly changed. He nearly lost his temper, thinking that he had been shown dishonour.
Hrani said, ‘You, King Hrolf, are not acting as cleverly as you think, and you are not always as wise as you might assume.’ The farmer was much offended.
Now there was no staying the night and, even though it was dark outside, they prepared to ride away. Hrani’s face showed only displeasure; he thought himself poorly valued. The king had refused to accept his gifts, and he did nothing to hinder their leaving if that would please them. King Hrolf and his company rode out and, as matters stood, there were no farewells.
When they had not gone very far, Bodvar halted and said, ‘Good sense comes late to fools, and so it comes to me now. I suspect that we have not behaved very wisely in rejecting what we should have accepted. We may have denied ourselves victory.’
King Hrolf answered, ‘I suspect the same, because that must have been Odin the Old. Certainly the man had but one eye.’
‘We should turn back as quickly as we can,’ said Svipdag, ‘and test the truth in this matter.’
They retraced their path, but by then the farm and the man had disappeared. ‘It is of no use to look for him,’ said King Hrolf, ‘because that man was an evil spirit.’72
Then they went on their way, and nothing is told of their journey until they returned to their kingdom in Denmark. There they settled in quietly. Bodvar advised the king that he should take little part in battles from then on. To Bodvar it seemed likely that they would not be attacked if they remained quiet. He said that he was fearful that the king might not be victorious from then on, if he trusted his luck in battle.
King Hrolf answered, ‘Fate rules each man’s life and not that foul spirit.’
Bodvar replied, ‘If it were up to us, we would choose least of all to part with you. I suspect, however, that it is but a short time before momentous events affect us all.’ With this they ceased their talk.
From this journey, they gained much renown.
31. Queen Skuld Incites King Hjorvard
A long time passed during which King Hrolf and his champions stayed peacefully in Denmark, and no one attacked them. All Hrolf’s subject kings remained obedient. They paid him their tribute, as did Hjorvard, his brother-in-law.
It happened that Queen Skuld spoke with her husband King Hjorvard. Sighing heavily, she said, ‘It suits me little that we should pay tribute to King Hrolf and be forced to be his underlings. You must not remain his subject.’
Hjorvard answered, ‘It suits us best to suffer this indignity, as the others do, and to let everything remain quiet.’
‘What a weakling you are,’ she said, ‘to accept whatever shame is handed to you.’
He replied, ‘It is not possible to challenge King Hrolf, and no one dares raise a shield against him.’
‘In this respect you are all so cowardly,’ she said. ‘There is no spirit in any of you, and so it will remain for those who take no risks. How will we know whether King Hrolf and his champions can be hurt unless they are put to the test? The times are changing,’ she said, ‘and I believe King Hrolf is a man without hope of victory. To my mind it does not seem outlandish to test if this assumption is true. Even if he is my kinsman, I will not spare him. He himself suspects that he will not gain the victory, and it is for this reason that he remains continually at home. I will now prepare a plan – one that might work – and I will spare no trouble in finding the proper way to force a showdown between us.’
Skuld was a powerful sorceress. She came from elfin stock on her mother’s side, and for this fact King Hrolf and his champions would pay.
‘First, I will send men to King Hrolf, asking him to relieve me of the paying of tribute for the next three years. Instead I will offer to pay him everything at once, according to his rights. I think this ruse will work, and if he accepts the idea, we need do nothing further.’
Messengers now went between them, doing as the queen wished. When asked, King Hrolf agreed to the request concerning the tribute. Time passed.
32. Queen Skuld Attacks King Hrolf at Yule
Meanwhile Skuld assembled a troop of the best fighters as well as the worst rabble from neighbouring provinces. This treachery was concealed so that King Hrolf was completely unaware of it. Likewise the champions suspected nothing, because it was done with the most skilful magic and sorcery. Skuld, to overpower her brother King Hrolf, fashioned a spell of high potency, which summoned elves, norns and countless other vile creatures.73 No human power could withstand so strong a force.
Meanwhile, King Hrolf and his champions were happily revelling and amusing themselves in Hleidargard. With skill and courtesy they took part in all the games known to such men. Each of them had a mistress for his pleasure.
And now there is more to be told. When Hjorvard’s and Skuld’s forces were fully prepared, they set out for Hleidargard, arriving in uncountable numbers just at Yule. King Hrolf had commanded lavish preparations for the feast, and his men sat drinking deeply that Yule evening. Outside the stronghold, Hjorvard and Skuld pitched their tents, which were large and long and strangely outfitted. There were many wagons, all filled with weapons and armour. King Hrolf paid no attention to the new arrivals. His thoughts were more on his generosity, magnificence and courage. He dwelt on the valour that lay in his heart, pondering how to provide for all his guests in a way that would allow his fame to travel farthest. He already had everything that might enhance the honour of a worldly king.74
It is not mentioned that King Hrolf and his champion
s worshipped the old gods at any time. Rather, they put their trust in their own might and main.75 The holy faith, at that time, had not been proclaimed here in the northern lands and, for this reason, those who lived in the north had little knowledge of their Creator.
Next there is this to tell, Hjalti the Magnanimous went to the house of his mistress. It was then that he saw clearly that peace was not being prepared in the tents of Hjorvard and Skuld. But Hjalti raised no alarm, and his expression showed no concern. He lay now with his mistress; she was the fairest of women. After he had been there for a while, he sprang to his feet and said, ‘Which do you think better, two twenty-two-year-olds or one eighty-year-old man?’
She answered, ‘I think two twenty-two-year-olds better than men of eighty.’
‘You will pay for these words, you whore,’ said Hjalti, and he went up to her and bit off her nose.76 ‘You can blame me if anyone fights over you, but I expect that from now on, most will think you scarcely a treasure.’
‘You treat me miserably,’ she said, ‘and it is undeserved.’
‘Everyone,’ said Hjalti, ‘can be fooled by scheming.’
Hjalti then reached for his weapons, because he saw that the area around the stronghold was packed with men in armour, and that war standards had been raised. Realizing that battle was at hand, he made his way to the hall where King Hrolf sat with his champions.
‘Wake up, my lord king,’ said Hjalti,77 ‘War has come into our courtyard. The need is more for fighting than for fondling women. The gold in the hall will, I think, be little increased by the tribute from your sister Skuld. She has the fierceness of the Skoldungs, and I can tell you that it is no small army, with swords drawn and other weapons ready, which circles the fortress. King Hjorvard has not come on a friendly errand, nor has he any intention from now on of seeking your permission to rule his own kingdom.