her
lands and swarms of vikings.

Now Onund laid his ship alongside one board of the ship of Thorir
Longchin, about the midst of the fleet, but King Harald laid his on
the other board, because Thorir was the greatest bearserk, and the
stoutest of men; so the fight was of the fiercest on either side. Then
the king cried on his bearserks for an onslaught, and they were called
the Wolf-coats, for on them would no steel bite, and when they set
on nought might withstand them. Thorir defended him very stoutly, and
fell in all hardihood on board his ship; then was it cleared from stem
to stern, and cut from the grapplings, and let drift astern betwixt
the other ships. Thereafter the king's men laid their ship alongside
Onund's, and he was in the forepart thereof and fought manly; then the
king's folk said, "Lo, a forward man in the forecastle there, let him
have somewhat to mind him how that he was in this battle." Now Onund
put one foot out over the bulwark and dealt a blow at a man, and even
therewith a spear was aimed at him, and as he put the blow from him
he bent backward withal, and one of the king's forecastle men smote
at him, and the stroke took his leg below the knee and sheared it off,
and forthwith made him unmeet for fight. Then fell the more part of
the folk on board his ship; but Onund was brought to the ship of him
who is called Thrand; he was the son of Biorn, and brother of Eyvind
the Eastman; he was in the fight against King Harald and lay on the
other board of Onund's ship.

But now, after these things, the more part of the fleet scattered in
flight; Thrand and his men, with the other vikings, got them away each
as he might, and sailed west over the Sea; Onund went with him, and
Balk and Hallvard Sweeping; Onund was healed, but went with a wooden
leg all his life after; therefore as long as he lived was he called
Onund Treefoot.

CHAP. III.

At that time were many great men west over the Sea, such as had fled
from their lands in Norway before King Harald, because he had made
all those outlaws, who had met him in battle, and taken to him their
possessions. So, when Onund was healed of his wounds, he and Thrand
went to meet Geirmund Helskin, because he was the most famed of
vikings west there over the Sea, and they asked him whether he had any
mind to seek after that kingdom which he had in Hordaland, and offered
him their fellowship herein; for they deemed they had a sore loss of
their lands th