Egil and Asmund: The End of the Story

Asmund and Herraud embarked, and sailed off in the fine dragon-headed longship that had belonged to Visin and Bull-Bear. There’s nothing to tell of their voyage until they arrived north in Halogaland. When the people there saw their dragon ship King Ottar remarked on how far these men must have come.

As soon as they landed, they pitched their tents ashore. Asmund went with eleven men to see his father and greeted him respectfully. The king failed to recognize him, but his mother knew him at once and put her arms around him. The king asked who was this stranger his wife was being so friendly to and Asmund gave him the answer. Soon an excellent feast was under way, and they spent a month there enjoying the best of hospitality. They told the king all about their travels and he thought they’d had plenty of success and good luck.

Egil and Asmund: Another Wedding

King Hertrygg gave them and his daughters a great welcome. They brought him a good many treasures and told him exactly what had happened to them on the trip. The king thanked them handsomely for the journey they had made.

A little later the king called the people to a meeting, and reminded them of the promise he had made to the man who found his daughters. The king asked the foster-brothers whether they’d prefer to get their reward in gold and silver, but both gave the same reply, that they’d rather have his daughters as long as the girls were willing to marry them. The girls knew that the foster-brothers had saved their lives and said they wouldn’t want any other men for husbands if they could marry these. So the outcome was that Egil married Bekkhild and Asmund married Brynhild.

Egil and Asmund: Casualties

The cave had three doors. Skrogg the Lawman with his party was in charge of one of them and Skin-Beak was in charge of the door through which the common people went. The bridegrooms were led through the third door and just outside it were two smaller caves on either side, hung with fine tapestries, where they were to sleep.

When the two giants had passed through the door, each of them went into his own room. Egil accompanied Hildir into one, walking ahead. As Hildir entered the cave Egil turned on him, got hold of his hair and swung his shortsword, aiming at the throat, but Hildir struck back at him quickly, so Egil was knocked against the rock face, and the skin of his forehead broken. It was quite a wound and bled freely, but the shortsword caught the giant’s nose and sliced it off. The severed piece was big enough to make a full load for a horse. Hildir managed to get outside and shouted that he had been tricked. The giants inside heard this and made a rush for the exit, but didn’t find it easy to get by. At one door Skrogg the Lawman killed all who tried to get out and at the other Skin-Beak blinded everyone with the mirror. So the giants ran to and fro inside the cave, not knowing which way to turn and roaring and banging about.

Egil and Asmund: The Wedding

Now we take up the story at the point where the brothers Gaut and Hildir called the giants together to a meeting, to which they came from all over Jotunheim. Skrogg, as the giants’ lawman, was there as well. The two princesses were led before the gathering with the masterpieces they had created. Brynhild had made a carpet with this remarkable property, that you could fly on it through the air and land wherever you wanted. You could even carry a heavy load on it. Bekkhild had made a shirt that no weapon could bite, nor would anyone wearing it ever grow tired when swimming.

Now an argument started about which of the sisters had shown the greater skill. The final decision was a matter for all the giants, but they couldn’t reach an agreement, so Skrogg was asked to make the award. His verdict was that Brynhild was the more beautiful of the two, and that her carpet was made with the greatest skill, ‘and so Gaut shall be the king and marry Brynhild, but each brother rule over half the kingdom’.

After that the assembly broke up.

Egil and Asmund: Recovery

In the morning the brothers woke up early. The old hag joined them, and when they asked her what time it was, she told them that they could stay there all day. So they got up and dressed. The old hag was very hospitable. They sat down to a meal, and now she offered them good ale and fine cooking, and inquired where they were going and what business they had. They told her all about their business and asked her whether she could give them any idea of what had happened to King Hertrygg’s daughters.

‘I don’t know how successful you’ll be in your search for them,’ she said. ‘But first of all, I’d better tell you what happened after the death of the giant Oskrud. The brothers didn’t agree about which of them should be king, they both felt they had the right. Anyway, they did agree that the one who could get the more nobly born and talented princess should be king. Gaut was the first to go and he carried off King Hertrygg’s elder daughter Brynhild; then Hildir went and carried off Bekkhild. Both girls are here now in Jotunheim, but I don’t think they’ll be easy to get free. They’re to be married at Christmas, and all the giants will be gathered to decide which of the sisters has the greater skill.’

Egil and Asmund: The Underworld

So I went down to the Underworld and saw King Snow, and for sixty goats and a pound of gold I bought the horn from him. A poison-cup the size of twelve casks had been prepared for his queen, and I had to drink this on her behalf as well. Ever since then I’ve always been a bit troubled with heartburn.

From there I went to Mount Lucanus where I found three women (if you could call them women, for I looked like a baby compared with them), in charge of the chess set. I managed to get half of the chess set off them, but when they found it missing and realized it was me, they asked me to give it back. I refused and challenged any one of them to take it away from me, staking the chess set against all the gold I could carry. They thought this wouldn’t be too hard for them, and so one of them made for me, grabbed hold of my hair and tore half of it off along with my left ear and the whole of my cheek. She was hard on me, but I didn’t give in, I put my fingers into her eyes and gouged them out. Then I tried to throw her, but she caught her foot in a rock crevice so I dislocated her hip joint. With that we parted.

Egil and Asmund: Queen Eagle-Beak’s Tale

There was a giant called Oskrud, who came from Jotunheim. His wife was called Kula, and he had two brothers called Gaut and Hildir. My father Oskrud had eighteen daughters by his wife, and I was the youngest. Everyone agreed I was the best-looking of them all. My father and mother fell ill and died, and then they were put underground and given back to the trolls. We sisters inherited all the money they left, but Gaut and Hildir took the kingdom. They didn’t get on with each other.

My father had owned three remarkable treasures: a horn, a chess set, and a gold ring. The brothers took the horn and the chess set, but we sisters managed to hold on to the ring, which was a very valuable thing to have. My sisters used to bully me and I had to wait on them all. Whenever I tried to argue they used to hit me. In the end I felt I couldn’t bear it any longer so I made a vow to Thor to give him any goat he wanted if he’d even things up between my sisters and me.