Book 3: 'Arrow Odd'

22.0 TALE OF TWO CITIES

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

TALE OF TWO CITIES (Circa 869 AD)

"And his shield was called Hrae's Ship's Round,

And his followers were called the Hraes'."

Eyvinder Skald-Despoiler; Skaldskaparmal

(869 AD) Returning from New Ireland, Oddi sailed around the old Ireland and beached Fair Faxi on the sand by Black Pool and went inland to visit Princess Olvor and his daughter, Hraegunhild, in Dub-Lin. "She has grown so," Oddi exclaimed, as he got dressed. Olvor was still in bed, propped up on one elbow. They had spent the morning talking...she had spent the morning listening...to Oddi's life these past five years and she was mortified. "You must kill this King Frodi, Oddi. He will never stop. You must find a way to kill him!"

"I shall lay low with Duke Roller in Normandy. Frodi can't touch us there. It's part of Charlemagne's Holy Roman Empire, the Constantinople of the West."

"There is no Constantinople of the west!" she countered. "The biggest city here is Paris, and your grandfather, Ragnar 'Lothbrok', already sacked that!"

"It's the plan Prince Erik came up with."

"I told you when I first met you that Ragnar 'Lothbrok' was your grandfather and you didn't believe me. My mother was a Welsh witch and she told me that years before I even met you."

"Okay, I believe you," Oddi whispered, as he joined Olvor on the bed.

"Well, thank you," Olvor whispered back. "It's just, if my mother knew you were coming and she's but a healer, how are you going to keep your location from this warlock, Ogmund Eythjofsbane?"

"My uncle has a spae-witch in Rouen that can block Ogmund's efforts. I'm to lay low there and work for my uncle in the Hraes' Trading Company stations. I'll be able to visit you from there."

"Why don't you just stay here? With us?"

"If Frodi finds out that I'm hiding in Ireland, he'll do what he did to Angleland and the Nor'Way. I can't put you and Hraegunhild in danger. But I'll visit you both when I can."

Oddi sent messengers north to Hrafnista and asked his kin to join him, so Gudmund and Sigurd sent word back that they would come to Ireland as soon as they could. Oddi spent the spring with Olvor and his daughter and Oddi taught Hraegunhild all about Saint Brendan and the land he had found "He's half Dane," Oddi chided. "That's the Dan part of Brendan." And Olvor worked at repairing Oddi's plate-mail shirt. At spring's end there was a joyful meeting between the Hrafnista men and Oddi. Afterwards, they set sail from Ireland and kept heading south, hugging the coast, and they crossed the Irish Sea and soon had Wales off their portside, then they crossed the Anglish Sea and the water became much shallower along the coast and Oddi had never been there before. They plundered southern Gaul, Frankland and Alsace. They created havoc as they went until they managed to crash their ships on an unknown shore. They went inland with full weapons and armour and they soon came upon a house. It was of unusual stone construction they had never seen before. It had colorful glass windows and spires on the roof. They went up to it and found that the door was open. Oddi said, "What do you think it's used for, Sigurd?"

"I'm not sure," he replied. "What do you think, Gudmund?"

"I am not sure," he said, "but I suspect that men must live here and will come back soon."

"We shouldn't go in," Oddi added. They sat down on a bench across the road from the house and waited. Soon they saw people hurrying into the house, and they then heard a racket coming from within that they had never heard before. "I think these are strange men in a strange country and we should wait here until they come out of the house." And it was as Oddi said, and soon people were hurrying from the house.