Gi'sli Þo'rvalðs'on was an orc-man of means who lived at the edge of a fjord in a place called Hjænda'ta1. Gi'sli had his hall on top of a hill at the centre of the village, but little else has been told about the village except that it was surrounded by a palisade that was, perhaps, twice the height of an orc-man, and there were many homesteads in the surrounding dale. Much of the land around the fjord was owned by Gi'sli, and he had many huskatnar to work it: the rest was rented out. He owned a boatyard and a ship which he often used to go south with.

Gi'sli had two sons and five daughters. Þo'rvalðr was the oldest, being near the age of wisdom2. His twin had died in infancy, but he loved his brother He'lgi like a twin ever since the younger had been born. However, He'lgi had been abroad for some years.

On a certain day, Þo'rvalðr was told of a ship coming up the fjord, so he went down to where the boathouses were, together with He'lgi's twin sister, whose name was Ro'n'og. Ro'n'og lived with her husband in one of the nearby homesteads. She and Þo'rvalðr waited on the pier as the ship docked. When it had, He'lgi disembarked and to greet and embrace his two siblings warmly.

“Is this your ship?” asked Þo'rvalðr;

“Yes it is.” Replied He'lgi,

“I take it your trip went well, then?”

“Very well.”

“What did you learn?” Ro'n'og asked,

“Didn't you hear? I was learning all about rune lore.”

Ro'n'og rolled her eyes; “I know that! So if you had to spend so long abroad, why don't you show us something you learned?”

“Like what?”

“I don't know. You're the expert!”

“Alright, then in that case...” He'lgi reached into his bag to pull out a whalebone. He etched a rune into it and handed it to Ro'n'og.

“What's this for?”

“Hold on to it. It'll become clear in time.”

Þo'rvalðr, meanwhile, was watching the ship's crew unloading the cargo. The crew consisted of both men and orc-men. “Who are these men on your crew, Hel'gi?”

“Englishmen.”

“Did you find what you were looking for in England then?”

“Yes.” He'lgi nodded and crossed his arms, “It wasn't easy finding an English rune loremaster.” Ro'n'og sneezed. “There aren't many of them left, and those that are still around have to be cautious.”

The siblings went on talking about Hel'gi's travels in England and Sweden and of how things had been in Hjænda'ta. When they finished speaking, they went up to the hall, where He'lgi greeted Gi'sli.

“It's great to see you again!” Gi'sli said after the two had embraced,

“Where's Mother?” Asked He'lgi,

“She went to Ulvrin''s place to help his daughter. She's been sick.”

“Is Mother still there? Shouldn't she have been back yesterday?” Ro'n'og asked,

“Yes, but it wouldn't be the first time she's stayed longer than she initially thought necessary. But enough of that—as soon as she gets back, we must have a feast to celebrate your return!”

Gi'sli set about making preparations as news spread of He'lgi's return, and all were glad of it.

Late that evening, Si'gvejg arrived at the hall together with Ulvrin' and his family, his herd, and their belongings. Si'gvejg was happy to see He'lgi, but the cheerful mood dropped when they heard what she had to say about her run-in with Haralðr. They stayed up into the night talking in the hall.

“This is disastrous news.” Gi'sli said;

“Indeed. This just keeps getting worse and worse. Ever since O'lǫ'vr took power, and what he did to Þo'rgerðr...”

“What happened to Aunt Þo'rgerðr?” Asked He'lgi,

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Si'gvejg sighed; “What have you heard about O'lǫ'vr Tryg'ves'on while you've been abroad?”

“Only that he's a staunch Christian and seeks to convert Norway, by the sword if necessary.”

“You heard correctly. Þo'rgerðr was one of a group of vǫlvar who were arrested for practicing sejðr without permission. They were tied to poles at ebb-tide and left to drown. I managed to escape by pretending to give it up, but now they know the truth. Actually, I'm not sure Haralðr ever believed I truly gave it up.”

“They didn't mark you with the... sign?”

“What sign?”

“I saw a priest do it to a woman in England. He tattooed a circle with a cross inside it and a Latin inscription around the circumference on the woman's neck. She couldn't practice magic after that. As far as I know, she could never practice again.” It was silent in the hall for some minutes.

“He'lgi, what other sorts of things did you see in England?” Asked Gi'sli;

“Of the priests? Not much. I tried to avoid them, to be honest. The Church has a complete monopoly over the practicing of magic. They tolerate the use of runes, but not the lore of the runes. Only a few people still dare practice it in secret.”

“And now that king of yours is trying to do the same here.” said Ulvrin', “It's not natural. You can't force a wolf to stop shifting. You might as well tell a reindeer to stop shedding his antlers in the winter.” The others nodded solemnly.

Gi'sli looked around at them and said, “Well, we've got plenty of good orc-men who'll come to our aid. We've got a wolf, a rune-master, and a vǫlva. And I've got that steel-weave tunic Þo'rgerðr made before she died. I'd say we've got a decent chance.”

They continued talking far into the night, but nothing more is told of what they said.

* * *

As the next few days passed on, news spread quickly that Haralðr wanted to kill Si'gvejg, and many orc-men came to Hjænda'ta to offer their support because Si'gvejg was well-known throughout the area for helping those in need of a vǫlva. Gi'sli said they must prepare for an attack, but Si'gvejg decided to consult the spirits about what the future might bring. She seated herself in her seer's chair, which was so high she had to climb a ladder to reach it.

From her seer's chair, on top of Hjænda'ta's hill, she could look out over the whole fjord. She put her staff between her legs and started spinning yarn with a handspindle. The twins So'lbjǫrt and Kolþerna, two more of Si'gvejg's daughters who were learning her craft, stood below the seer's chair and sang. As they continued doing so, Si'gvejg entered a trance-like state and said:

“I think I know that battle: it will be killing with weapons, but not completely. I think I know that fire: it will be burning fiercely, and yet, can it consume cloth? I think I know that arrow: he will shoot, and yet, can he hit the one with the cloth?”3

When she finished speaking, Si'gvejg went and recited it to Gi'sli.

“That's a bizarre prophecy.” he said, “What does it mean?”

Si'gvejg did not answer immediately. She looked over the fjord for several moments. “I think it means we've got a tough battle ahead of us.”

Meanwhile, the people of the dale were preparing to fight Haralðr when he came. He'lgi took staves and carved a series of runes down the length of them. He then sharpened one end of each and put a bull skull on the other end, facing the same direction as the runes. When these were made, he went outside the palisade with Ro'n'og and Þo'rvalðr. Þo'rvalðr carried the rune-staves and He'lgi drove them into the ground. They went in a circle around the palisade. As they went, Ro'n'og often sniffled and periodically coughed or sneezed.

“You catch something?” asked Þo'rvalðr,

“Yeah, I've had a cold the past few days.” She replied and sneezed again;

Nothing was said for a minute. Then Þo'rvalðr asked; “When did it start?”

“Oh, about the time He'lgi came back.”

Þo'rvalðr paused a second time before saying, “Do you still have that bone He'lgi gave you?”

“Yes.”

“Would you let me see it?” Ro'n'og took the bone from a pouch at her waist and gave it to Þo'rvalðr, who glanced at it and, seeing the rune ᚴ, he asked, “Do you know what rune this is?”

“Of course, it's kawn.”

“Do you know the meaning behind it?”

“No.”

“He'lgi,” Þo'rvalðr handed the bone to his brother, “tell her what the rune means.”

“Sure.” Replied He'lgi, “It means 'ill-health'.”

Ro'n'og's jaw fell open as she stared at He'lgi in disbelief. “You cast an enchantment of ill-health on your own twin?!” She took a rune-staff from Þo'rvalðr and would've hit He'lgi with it, but he said,

“Wow, wow, that thing's dangerous! If you're gonna hit me, hit me with something else.”

“Give me your bag then.” He'lgi sighed, dropped his bag on the ground, and ran away. “Þo'rvalðr, you'll finish up for me right? Just finish the circle!” He called over his shoulder as Ro'n'og chased him away whilst twirling the bag above her head;

“Hey! Are you ten years old? Get back here, this is no time to be goofing off!” Þo'rvalðr called after them,

“Oh, let them have fun.” Si'gvejg said from behind him, “They're still young. Just because you've

nearly reached the age of wisdom doesn't mean you should forget the impetuousity of youth.”

Þo'rvalðr agreed reluctantly and the two finished setting up the rune-staves.