t Gunnar with a great spear which he
held in both hands.

Gunnar threw his shield before the blow, but Hallbjorn pierced
the shield through. Gunnar thrust the shield down so hard that
it stood fast in the earth (1), but he brandished his sword so
quickly that no eye could follow it, and he made a blow with the
sword, and it fell on Hallbjorn's arm above the wrist, so that it
cut it off.

Skamkell ran behind Gunnar's back and makes a blow at him with a
great axe. Gunnar turned short round upon him and parries the
blow with the bill, and caught the axe under one of its horns
with such a wrench that it flew out of Skamkell's hand away into
the river.

Then Gunnar sang a song:

"Once thou askedst, foolish fellow,
Of this man, this seahorse racer,
When as fast as feet could foot it
Forth ye fled from farm of mine,
Whether that were rightly summoned?
Now with gore the spear we redden,
Battle-eager, and avenge us
Thus on thee, vile source of strife."

Gunnar gives another thrust with his bill, and through Skamkell,
and lifts him up and casts him down in the muddy path on his
head.

Audulf the Easterling snatches up a spear and launches it at
Gunnar. Gunnar caught the spear with his hand in the air, and
hurled it back at once, and it flew through the shield and the
Easterling too, and so down into the earth.

Otkell smites at Gunnar with his sword, and aims at his leg just
below the knee, but Gunnar leapt up into the air and he misses
him. Then Gunnar thrusts at him the bill and the blow goes
through him.

Then Kolskegg comes up, and rushes at once at Hallkell and dealt
him his death-blow with his short sword. There and then they
slay eight men.

A woman who saw all this, ran home and told Mord, and besought
him to part them.

"They alone will be there," he says, "of whom I care not though
they slay one another."

"Thou canst not mean to say that," she says, "for thy kinsman
Gunnar, and thy friend Otkell will be there."

"Baggage, that thou art," he says, "thou art always chattering,"
and so he lay still in-doors while they fought.

Gunnar and Kolskegg rode home after this work, and they rode hard
up along the river bank, and Gunnar leapt off his horse and came
down on his feet.

Then Kolskegg said, "Hard now thou ridest, brother!"

"Ay," said Gunnar, "that was what Skamkell said when he uttered
those very words when they rode over me."

"Well, thou hast