by Griff Hosker
I shook my head, “The head of our clan was a woman. Arne, my brother, was the warrior but when Gytha spoke then all men listened. I would know what it is that you wish. I think of Stands Alone. You and I are content here and the island has all that we need. Does Stands Alone?”
Laughing Deer looked at her sister who smiled and said, “I am content here and I trust Erik. I still fear that the Penobscot will come to find us!”
Laughing Deer nodded, “And that is my fear too. We are safe here. Let us live on this island for there is peace and we both have much to forget.”
“Then I am happy too!”
The next day I took my axe and headed into the forest while Laughing Deer and her sister made bread. The bread oven was a revelation to them! I hewed a tree which was as long as the birch bark boat. I intended to make it more stable. I would attach it a pace and a half from the side of the birch bark boat and then I could make a proper mast and sail. I would make a steering board. In my mind, I was planning for the day when we would visit Chief Wandering Moos and reaffirm our friendship.
This would be the fourth vessel I had built, and it was the smallest. Despite its small size I needed to be careful for the birch bark was fragile and I needed to use the original vessel as the base of the boat. I stripped the bark from the log and then shaped and attached bracing arms which, eventually, I would fit to the boat. I cut a cross piece which would be parallel to the new log and the boat. That would be the most crucial part of the design for that would house the mast.
That first day my work was cut short when a storm came from the south and west. We were lucky, for we were on the edge of it, but it was a terrible storm and we retreated inside the hall and barred the door while the wild wind tore branches from trees and wrecked some of the houses. The rain pounded down and Stands Alone was so afraid that she slept in our bed that night. The next day the storm had done its worst although I could still see it to the east and I feared for the clan. Perhaps they had avoided it. I prayed that they had. It took a day to repair all the damage which had been done. I was lucky that I had not yet begun to assemble the boat which I had decided would be my own invention, a Mi’kmaq snekke! Gradually, over the next few days, the winds abated and the weather became clement.
Each day, as I worked, Laughing Deer and her sister explored the island and foraged. They would be there when I needed food and rest and they would both talk, excitedly, of something which they had found from the time of the clan. They were excited about things I took for granted like the quern stone which had been left. It made grinding the grain much easier. Although we had made our mark on the land as I walked with them I saw the damage done by the storm. Some of the farms had crumbled as the rain had weakened the turf walls and they had fallen in on themselves. There were only two in such a bad way but over the years there would be more. Some of the trails we had first used when we arrived and explored were now overgrown. Nature was reclaiming Bear Island.
They came with me when I went to cut the mast and the crosspiece. These had to be strong and straight lengths of timber. I found a tree which was perfect. It looked like an ash tree from home but it was subtly different. I had learned that the Mi’kmaq just called them trees apart from the birch bark. To them, that tree was almost sacred. I could see why; it allowed them to build the boats they used and as I had learned, the land was riven with waterways. The boats could be carried easily, and they were the horses of their land.
One evening, as we ate another satisfying meal, I asked Laughing Deer about horses. I used the Moos to help me to describe an animal which looked similar to a Moos but without the antlers. When I described men riding them then they laughed. The Mi’kmaq did not domesticate animals except for dogs. Without our sheep, cattle and fowl, I could not show them how we did so. Our life was almost idyllic. The days were getting warmer. I found a pouch of seeds which Laughing Deer and her sister planted, and each night Laughing Deer and I lay together as happy as any pair of people anywhere.
It took a month to finish my Mi’kmaq snekke and then I had to find a sail. Once again, we scavenged. The old sails from the knarr and ‘Jötnar’ had not been discarded. The clan had used them to make their homes watertight. We found enough pieces for Laughing Deer and her sister to sew together to make a sail. The honeysuckle climbers we had used before would not be good enough for the new sail and so we had to make rope. The unexpectedly early departure of the clan aided us for they had left the hair we had collected from the Moos and I showed them how to make rope. That tedious task was so new to the two of them that they found it enjoyable. As Skerpla came and the sun’s rays grew hotter I was almost ready to sail. The night before I was due to sail her, I had a bad dream. This was not a Gytha inspired one, it was an old fashioned one. A storm raged and I could barely control the ship I sailed. I thought I was going to drown. I watched people I recognised being swept overboard and I could do nothing about it. When I woke, with a start, the hall was quiet and Laughing Deer and Stands Alone were asleep. Did this bode badly for the boat?
As I spoke to Laughing Deer, I tried to keep the nervousness out of my voice but inside I wondered if the dream was a premonition of disaster. “I will take her out into the bay and around the headland. When I come back, I will take you around the island to show you my new boat. I will call her ‘Ada’.”
Laughing Deer was amused that we named our ships. I knew that one day I would have to tell her about Ada and my children. ‘Ada’ was much stronger than the simple birch bark boat had been and it was much easier to climb aboard. The wooden framework I had made gave her strength. I fitted the steering board. I had found some small, discarded pieces of metal and I had made them into cleats to allow me to operate the sails from the steering board. The sail was not as big as the snekke’s, but it was bigger than my cloak had been. Waving to the two of them I headed out into the bay. The bay itself was sheltered and the wind did not catch me. When I left it, however, a freak gust almost capsized me. I had to lean over the larboard side of the birch bark boat to stop it from doing so. The birch bark part was too light. The log was heavier! I needed another log on the larboard side to counterbalance the other log. I turned, lowered the sail and returned to the quay.
Laughing Deer looked terrified, “I thought you were going to fly! Did you mean to do that?”
I shook my head, “The Allfather was telling me that I am not as clever as I think I am. I will need to work on the boat a little more.”
“Do you have to? If you just wish to go to the mainland and see the tribe who live there, then we can use the birch bark boat.”
I shook my head, “I need to finish this. I am Erik the Navigator and I need to sail. Besides, when I am finished this will be a very safe vessel.”
I had learned my lesson and after another week I had a boat which I hoped would be better balanced. The second log was not as thick as the first, but I hoped it would counterbalance the other. I also added thwarts so that we could carry more. The Mi’kmaq snekke was heavier and might not be as swift but she was strong. When I took her out on the second attempt, I saw Laughing Deer and Stands Alone clinging to each other. If I drowned, then they would be trapped on the island. It was a sobering thought. I knew that I would have to make contact with Chief Wandering Moos before his tribe headed back to their winter camp.
The wind, once again, caught me as I left the bay but this time it was only the new log which rose slightly out of the water. When I had passengers or cargo that would not be a problem. I took ‘Ada’ to the east where the waves were slightly bigger. I never left sight of the island and I knew that I could swim back if I needed to. I had been wrong about ‘Ada’; she was even faster than the birch bark boat. The original hull was supported by the two logs and the fact that I had taken the bark from them made them slip easily through the sea. I headed back to the bay where I saw Laughing Deer and her sister smiling.
“Come aboard!” They both looked nervous. “Trust me, she will not capsize, and we can fish for th
e larger fish.” We had caught fish in the fish traps my people had used but they were only small. I had carved more bone hooks so that, as we circumnavigated the island, we could try to catch something bigger.
“Come, Stands Alone, we must trust Erik for we owe him our lives.” They clambered aboard and Laughing Deer smiled, “This is easier, and we do not get wet.”
“Nor do you need to use a paddle.”
Once we hit the sea, I heard a squeal of delight from Stands Alone as ‘Ada’ flew across the waves. If we were going to fish then I would have to sail more slowly but, for the moment, it was good to let ‘Ada’ have her freedom. I remembered where the good fishing grounds were from Aed and Padraig. I sailed to the northern end of the island where there was a channel between Bear Island and the smaller one to the north-west. I adjusted the sail so that we sailed slowly and threw out the lines.
Laughing Deer turned to me and said, “We could be at the mainland quickly in this boat.”
I nodded, “And we will make the voyage in the next moon or so. This is the time we need to plant for when winter comes and the tribe leaves, we will be alone.”
She nodded, “And the Penobscot will not come in winter.”
Stands Alone was fascinated by the fish below the boat and I spoke quietly, “You still fear them?”
“Angry Voice lost his warriors and he lost me. His reputation was damaged when you took us. He will seek us. He will know that we sailed away and that we went in this direction. He will come but, each morning when I walk to make water, I look to the land of the Penobscot and I pray to the gods that he will not find us.”
I nodded, “If he does then I will end his life for I am a Viking, and no one harms my family while I live and breathe!” It was a bold statement, but I meant it. I would not lose another member of my family!
We caught two large fish and they would feed us for a few days. I was pleased with my new boat and, as we neared the bay, I looked over to the mainland. I could see the smoke from the fires of the Mi’kmaq, and I knew that they would see ours. If Laughing Deer was correct then, by now, the Penobscot scouts could also be watching from the mainland.
I let the two of them land at the quay and then sailed the boat up the river. I saw storm clouds and I wanted the boat secured not to the quay, where waves could batter her against the pilings, but tied to three trees where she would be safer. She was also protected by overhanging bushes. If the Penobscot came I did not want them to find the boat easily.
As the other two carried the fish to the hall and after I had I secured the boat to the trees, I looked at the hall. We had some defences, but not enough. Walking to my hall I saw puddles which remained from the storm we had endured. We had thought of a ditch around the settlement, but Arne had deemed it too much work when there was no danger. I could not dig a ditch all the way around the settlement, but I could around Gytha’s hall. I had been told how the Romans sowed stakes and spikes in their ditches to trap the unwary and they would be easy to manufacture. As I looked at the ground, I realised that, if I made the ditch, it would keep the hall drier. The turf walls still looked firm enough but the ones which had crumbled on the other side of the island were a warning. If I hewed more logs or, even better, re-used the ones from the wrecked homes then I could make the walls of the hall stronger, more resistant to attack and they would keep us warmer in winter. Leaving Laughing Deer and her sister to their work I went to scavenge logs. It was easier than I had expected. We had logs I had hewn to make ‘Gytha’ and not used because they were not straight enough. After splitting them I placed those around the base and found that I had one course. By the end of the afternoon, my muscles burned but I had two courses of half logs and timber in place. The food, that night, tasted even better for all the hard work I had put in.
It was as we ate, I thought about the small deer which lived on our island. We had not taken them all and if I left them for a year then the herd would build up and we could cull them. They would not be domesticated as such, but I would be providing a source of food for my small family. The island had more than enough for the three of us.
That night Laughing Deer nuzzled into me, “We do not need to go to the mainland. We are happy here.”
“Is that fair on Stands Alone?”
“For the moment it is. She was hurt by the Penobscot and I do not just mean her loss of voice. She bled and was close to death. When you first found my mother and me, we were collecting herbs to heal her. We did but then my mother died. Let us wait until the new season when the tribe return. Then this will be a secure home and Stands Alone may need to see others. For now, she has all that she needs.”
I was content for my world was in balance. I missed the clan, Fótr, Ada, my children, but Gytha had not come to me to tell me that they were hurt. Until she did then I would believe that they were safe and happy. For the next four days, life was idyllic and then on the fourth night, as Laughing Deer fell asleep in my arms, I saw Gytha and she was with a woman I did not recognise. I heard no words, but I saw smiles and the woman, who was older than Gytha, looked to be both beautiful and terrifying. They parted and I saw a warrior wearing a wolf cloak. He bowed and then they faded and disappeared. I sat bolt upright in bed. What had happened? I knew it had something to do with the clan and the warrior with the wolf cloak could have been Sámr. I was speculating. Wherever my clan was they were an ocean away or at the bottom of the sea!
For the next four days, we worked hard for the days were becoming longer but I had the same dream or a variation of it for the next nights.
Laughing Deer confronted me for she knew that something had upset me. “You have had more than one night where you have not slept well. It is time this stopped for you disturb me and… it is not good for you. We will build a sweat hut.”
“Sweat hut?”
“My people use them. You build a hot fire in a dwelling and close the entrance. The smoke and the heat purify you.”
I had vaguely heard of their use by the Clan of the Wolf. How did the Mi’kmaq know of them? “I will be fine.”
For the first time since I had known her, she did not accept my words. She argued with me and it marked a change in our relationship; it was a change for the better! “No, we will build a sweat hut. You have lost your clan, and this will bring you a little peace.”
It was quite easy to make. There were many willow-like trees on the island and we bent them to make a sort of wooden structure which looked like an inverted helmet but much bigger. Leaving a hole in the top she wove more willows into it and then plastered leaves on the outside with river mud. She had me light a small fire inside to dry it off. “It will be ready tomorrow. Stands Alone and I will collect some fragrant herbs. We will light the fire and, after we have eaten, then you can sit in the hut and reflect. I guarantee that you will sleep easier.”
I nodded but I knew that what would help me sleep even easier was the batch of ale I was brewing. I had toasted some barley for I liked the darkened ale it produced. The winter must have killed off the bees for I could not find any wild honey and we would not be able to make mead. Despite Laughing Deer’s words, I knew that the fermented ale would do me more good.
The ale was not ready, and we had drunk that which Ada had left. The steam hut would have to do. When we had eaten our food Laughing Deer had cooked some mushrooms. At the time I had not noticed that neither she nor Stands Alone had eaten them. They were delicious but made me feel sleepy. I had lit the fire before eating and after stripping off in the hall I covered myself in the bearskin and went to the hut. Already it felt hot. Once inside I dropped my bearskin and sat upon it. Laughing Deer had placed a ladle and a bowl of water in the hut. I was given clear instructions. ‘Sprinkle water on the fire. You do not wish to douse it, but you need to make steam. Breathe in the smoke through your nose and out through your mouth. I will come for you when the time is right.’
She kissed me and then dropped a large handful of dried herbs on the fire. I did not recognise them.
Some were green and some were brown. The smell of the herbs as they began to rise was something I had never experienced. I followed my orders and sprinkled water. I did not cough, as I thought I would. Instead, the smoke seemed to clear my thoughts. I breathed regularly as she had suggested and found that I seemed to be floating. I was not aware of the ground. And then I was no longer in the hut. I was in the dark night and I was flying.
I was not flying over the sea for I could hear nothing and below me was blackness. It was all around me and I felt as though I might be dead. I heard a voice called softly to me and I saw a dim glow in the distance. I did not seem to need to move anything, it was as if I was being drawn towards whoever it was. It was then I realised that I was in a cave and I saw the beautiful and terrifying woman who had been with Gytha. There was a fire burning before her which lit up her face and I saw that she looked not only at me but into me. I seemed to float gently to the ground and landed on a large flat rock. It was a cave and there was a pool of water, but I felt no cold. I could still feel the heat from the sweat hut. Even as I looked at the woman, I knew that this was just my spirit and my body was still on Bear Island. Wherever this was it was not Bear Island. She smiled, ‘You are clever, Erik the Bear. You have understood that I have summoned your spirit.’
‘Did you ask Laughing Deer to suggest the steam hut?’
‘Gytha planted the idea but she was compliant; your new woman has skills and you should cherish her. We do not have much time and I will speak quickly for what little power you have will soon be used up. My name is Ylva and I am in Myrddyn’s cave in the Land of the Wolf. Your brother, Fótr, is safe and lives. He is to become a great hero soon. I have summoned you so that you can know that all is well. Ada and your children accept their new life and sad though they are, they are also proud of you. You will never see them again and after this night you will see neither Gytha nor me. Our threads and those of the Clan of the Wolf are woven tightly. You and the Skraeling are also woven. Your future is in the land in which you now live but you have a purpose. Your seed will spread across the land and the blood of the Clan of the Fox will make the tribes you meet stronger. Your name nor you will ever be forgotten. Your son and daughter will have their own children and they will tell your tale for you were the first to sail the Great Sea. Be content.’
