ss the fjords, the
men rowing with all their might. They came up; it was Svan of Hol from
Bjarnarfjord with his men, and he at once told Thorgrim not to let
himself be robbed. The two men had been great friends, and Svan offered
Thorgrim his aid, which the brothers accepted, and they attacked
valiantly. Thorgeir Bottleback was the first to get on to the whale
where Flosi's men were. Thorfinn, who was spoken of before, was cutting
it up, standing near the head on the place where he had been carving.
"Here I bring you your axe," said Thorgeir. Then he struck at Thorfinn's
neck and cut off his head. Flosi was up on the beach and saw it. He
urged on his men to give it them back. They fought for a long time and
the Kaldbak people were getting the best of it. Most of them had no
weapons but the axes with which they were cutting up the whale and short
knives. The men of Vik were driven from the whale on to the sandbanks.
The men from the East, however, were armed and able to deal wounds.
Their captain Steinn cut off the leg of Kolbeinn's son Ivar, and Ivar's
brother Leif beat one of Steinn's men to death with a rib of the whale.
Then they fought with anything they could get, and men were slain on
both sides. At last Olaf came up with a number of ships from Drangar and
joined Flosi; the men of Kaldbak were then overpowered by numbers. They
had already loaded their ships, and Svan told them to get on board. They
therefore retired towards the ships, the men of Vik after them. Svan on
reaching the sea struck at Steinn their captain, wounding him badly, and
then sprang into his own ship. Thorgrim gave Flosi a severe wound and
escaped. Olaf wounded Ofeig Grettir fatally, but Thorgeir carried him
off and sprang on to his ship with him. The Kaldbak men rowed into the
fjord and the two parties separated.

The following verse was composed on these doings:

"Hard were the blows which were dealt at Rifsker;
no weapons they had but steaks of the whale.
They belaboured each other with rotten blubber.
Unseemly methinks is such warfare for men."

After this they made peace, and the dispute was laid before the
All-Thing. On the side of the Kaldbak men were Thorodd the Godi, Skeggi
of Midfjord, and many others from the South. Flosi was exiled, along
with several others who had been with him. He was put to great expense,
for he insisted upon paying all the fines himself. Thorgrim and his
brothers were unable to show that t