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Adventure V.
In Ægir's Kingdom.
The vessel in which Siegfried sailed was soon far out at
sea; for the balmy south wind, and the songs of the birds,
and the music from Bragi's harp, all urged it cheerily on.
And Siegfried sat at the helm, and guided it in its course.
By and by they lost all sight of land, and the sailors wist
not where they were; but they knew that Bragi, the Wise,
would bring them safely into some haven whenever it should
so please him, and they felt no fear. And the fishes leaped
up out of the water as the white ship sped by on woven
wings; and the monsters of the deep paused, and listened to
the sweet music which floated down from above. After a time
the vessel began to meet great ice-mountains in the
sea,--mountains which the Reifriesen, and old Hoder, the
King of the winter months, had sent drifting down from the
frozen land of the north. But these melted at the sound of
Bragi's music and at the sight of Siegfried's radiant armor.
And the cold breath of the Frost-giants, which had driven
them in their course, turned, and became the ally of the
south wind.
At length they came in sight of a dark shore, which
stretched on either hand, north and south, as far as the eye
could reach; and as they drew nearer they saw a line of huge
mountains, rising, as it were, out of the water, and
stretching their gray heads far above the clouds. And the
overhanging cliffs seemed to look down, half in anger, half
in pity, upon the little white winged vessel which had dared
thus to sail through these unknown waters. But the surface
of the sea was smooth as glass; and the gentle breeze drove
the ship slowly forwards through the calm water, and along
the rock-bound coast, and within the dark shadows of the
mountain-peaks. Long ago the Frost-giants had piled great
heaps of snow upon these peaks, and built huge fortresses of
ice between, and sought, indeed, to clasp in their cold
embrace the whole of the Norwegian land. But the breezes of
the South-land that came with Bragi's ship now played among
the rocky steeps, and swept over the frozen slopes above,
and melted the snow and ice; and thousands of rivulets of
half-frozen water ran down the mountain-sides, and tumbled
into rocky gorges, or plunged into the sea. And the grass
began to grow on the sunny slopes, and the flowers peeped up
through the half-melted snow, and the music of spring was
heard on every side. Now and then the little vessel passed
by deep, dark inlets enclosed between high mountain-walls,
and reaching many leagues far into land. But the sailors
steered clear of these shadowy fjords; for they said that
Ran, the dread Ocean-queen, lived there, and spread her nets
in the deep green waters to entangle unwary seafaring men.
And the sound of Bragi's harp awakened all sleeping things;
and it was carried from rock to rock, and from
mountain-height to valley, and was borne on the breeze far
up the fjords, and all over the land.
One day, as they were sailing through these quiet waters,
beneath the overhanging cliffs, Bragi tuned his harp, and
sang a song of sea. And then he told Siegfried a story of
AEgir and his gold-lit hall.
Old AEgir was the Ocean-king. At most times he was rude and
rough, and his manners were uncouth and boisterous. But when
Balder, the Shining One, smiled kindly upon him from above,
or when Bragi played his harp by the seashore, or sailed his
ship on the waters, the heart of the bluff old king was
touched with a kindly feeling, and he tried hard to curb his
ungentle passions, and to cease his blustering ways. He was
one of the old race of giants; and men believe that he would
have been a very good and quiet giant, had it not been for
the evil ways of his wife, the crafty Queen Ran. For,
however kind at heart the king might be, his good intentions
were almost always thwarted by the queen. Ran could never be
trusted; and no one, unless it were Loki, the
Mischief-maker, could ever say any thing in her praise. She
was always lurking among hidden rocks, or in the deep sea,
or along the shores of silent fjords, and reaching out with
her long lean fingers, seeking to clutch in her greedy grasp
whatever prey might unwarily come near her. And many
richly-laden vessels, and many brave seamen and daring
warriors, had she dragged down to her blue-hung chamber in
old AEgir's hall.
And this is the story that Bragi told of The Feast in AEgir's Hall.
It happened long ago, when the good folk at Gladsheim were
wont to visit the mid-world oftener than now. On a day in
early autumn Queen Ran, with her older daughters,--Raging
Sea, Breaker, Billow, Surge, and Surf,--went out to search
for plunder. But old AEgir staid at home, and with him his
younger daughters,--fair Purple-hair, gentle Diver, dancing
Ripple, and smiling Sky-clear. And as they played around
him, and kissed his old storm-beaten cheeks, the heart of
the king was softened into gentleness, and he began to think
kindly of the green earth which bordered his kingdom, and of
the brave men who lived there; but most of all did he think
of the great and good Asa-folk, who dwell in Asgard, and
overlook the affairs of the world. Then he called his
servants, Funfeng and Elder, and bade them prepare a feast
in his gold-lit hall. And he sent fleet messengers to invite
the Asa-folk to come and partake of the good cheer. And his
four young daughters played upon the beach, and smiled and
danced in the beaming sunlight. And the hearts of many
seafaring men were gladdened that day, as they spread their
sails to the wind; for they saw before them a pleasant
voyage, and the happy issue of many an undertaking.
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