alk of that now," said Freydisa, and we parted.

This was our plan: To sail for Lesso by the moonlight, and when the moon
went down to creep silently towards the shores of the island. Then, just
at the first break of dawn, we proposed to beach the ships on a sandy
strand we knew, and rush to attack Athalbrand's hall, which we hoped to
carry before men were well awake. It was a bold scheme and one full
of dangers, yet we trusted that its very boldness would cause it
to succeed, especially as we had put it about that, owing to the
unreadiness of our ships, no attack would be made until the coming of
the next moon.

Doubtless all might have gone well with us but for a strange chance. As
it happened, Athalbrand, a brave and skilful captain, who from his youth
had seen much war by sea and land, had a design of his own which
brought ours to nothing. It was that he and his people should sail to
Fladstrand, burn the ships of Thorvald, my father, that he knew were
fitting out upon the beach, which he hoped to find unguarded, or at most
only watched by a few men, and then return to Lesso before he could
be fallen upon. By ill luck he had chosen this very night for his
enterprise. So it came about that just as the moon was sinking our
watchmen caught sight of four other ships, which by the shields that
hung over their bulwarks they knew must be vessels of war, gliding
towards them over the quiet sea.

"Athalbrand comes to meet us!" cried one, and in a minute every man
was looking to his arms. There was no time for plans, since in that low
light and mist the vessels were almost bow to bow before we saw each
other. My father's ship ran in between two of Athalbrand's that were
sailing abreast, while mine and that of Ragnar found themselves almost
alongside of the others. On both sides the sails were let down, for none
had any thought of flight. Some rushed to the oars and got enough of
them out to work the ships. Others ran to the grappling irons, and the
rest began to shoot with their bows. Before one could count two hundred
from the time of sighting, the war cry of "_Valhalla! Valhalla! Victory
or Valhalla!_" broke upon the silence of the night and the battle had
begun.

It was a very fierce battle, and one that the gathering darkness made
more grim. Each ship fought without heed to the others, for as the
fray went on they drifted apart, grappled to their foes. My father,
Thorvald's, vessel fared the worst, since it had an enem