From the following account we see that these men of old knew how to die, and how the spirit of chivalry seemed to have departed from the land, though Eirik, the son of Hakon, at last stopped the bloodshed which had taken place. After the defeat of the Jómsvikings by Hakon jarl, eighty of the men who had not been captured landed on a skerry, and suffered great privations from the cold.
“Now it is to be told that Vagn and Björn the British talked of what they should do: Vagn said. ‘There are two choices: to stay here in the ship till daybreak, and then be captured and that is not pleasant, or go ashore, and do them what harm we can, and then try to escape.’ They all made up their minds, took the mast and the sailyard, left the ship and floated on them, eighty men together, in the dark. They wanted to get on land, and came to a skerry, and thought they were ashore. Many were very exhausted, and ten wounded men died there in the night, and the other seventy lived though many were much tired, and they could get no farther; they stayed there during the night. It is said that when Sigvaldi had fled the shower ceased, and all lightning and thunder, and the weather was cold and quiet during the night while Vagn was on the skerry till it was daylight.
“Shortly before day Hákon’s men were dressing their wounds, and had been at it the whole night, beginning as soon as they landed, because so many were wounded. They had almost finished it, when they heard the twang of a bowstring in a ship, and an arrow flew from Búi’s ship, and hit the side of Gudbrand, Hákon’s kinsman; it was enough, and he died at once. The jarl and all thought this a great loss, and began preparing his body as well as they could, having no means to do it with. It is said that a man stood at the door of the tent. When Eirik went into it he asked: ‘Why dost thou stand here, or why dost thou look as if thou wert dying; or art thou wounded?’ It was Thorleif Skúma. Eirik said: ‘I see thou art near to death.’ Thorleif answered: ‘I am not sure that the sword-point of Vagn Ákason did not hit me a little yesterday, when I struck him with the club.’ The jarl said: ‘Badly has thy father kept his stock in Iceland if thou must die now.’ Einar Skálaglamm heard what the jarl said, and made a stanza.... Thereupon Thorleif fell down dead.
“When it was light the jarl at once went to search the ships, and came on board Búi’s ship, and wanted first of all to know who had shot in the night, thinking that that man deserved to be ill-treated. When they got on board they found one man, little more than breathing; it was Hávard Höggvandi (the slashing), Búi’s follower, sorely wounded, as both his feet were cut off below the knees. Svein Hákonarson and Thorkel Leira went to him; when they came, Hávard asked: ‘How is it, boys; was anything sent from the ship this night ashore to you or not?’ They answered: ‘Certainly there came something; didst thou send it?’ He said: ‘I will not deny that I sent it to you; did the arrow hurt any man when it stopped?’ They answered: ‘It killed the man whom it hit.’ He said: ‘That is good; and whom did it hit?’ ‘Gudbrand the white,’ they answered. He said: ‘I did not succeed, then, in what I wished; I meant it for the jarl; nevertheless I am glad that a man was hit whose death is a loss to you.’ Thorkel Leira said: ‘Let us not look at this dog, but kill him as soon as we can.’ He struck at him, and others ran thereto and cut him with weapons, and beat him till he was dead. Before that they had asked his name, and he told them.
“They went ashore after that, and told the jarl whom they had killed; that the man had been more than a common monster, and they had seen by his words that his character did not make him a better man. Then they saw that very many men were on the skerry; the jarl told them to go out to them and bring them all to him, as he wanted to have their lives in his power. The jarl’s men went on board a ship, and rowed out to the skerry; few men there were able to fight, on account of wounds and cold, nor is it told that any one defended himself; they were all taken by the jarl’s men ashore to him; they were seventy. Then the jarl had Vagn and his men led up on land, and their hands were tied behind their backs, and they were bound with one rope, one at the other’s side, not loosely. The jarl and his men took their food, and sat down to eat; he wanted to have them all beheaded leisurely and in no hurry that day.
“Before they sat down to eat, the ships and the property of the Jómsvikings were taken ashore, and carried to the poles. Hákon and his men divided among themselves all the property, and the weapons; they thought they had won a great victory as they had got all the property captured from the Jómsvikings, and they boasted very much. When they had eaten enough, they walked out of the war-booths to the captives, and it is said that Thorkel Leira was appointed to behead them all. First they talked to the Jómsvikings, and asked whether they were as hardy men as was said; but it is not told that the Jómsvikings gave them any answer.
“It is next stated that some sorely wounded men were untied from the rope; Skopti Kark and other thralls had hold of it, and guarded them. When they were untied the thralls twisted sticks[[165]] in their hair; first three wounded men were led forward in that way, and Thorkel went to them and cut off each head; then he asked his own companions if they had seen him shudder at this work, ‘for it is told,’ said he, ‘that any man shudders if he beheads three men one after the other.’ Hákon answered: ‘We do not see that thou hast shuddered at this, though it seemed so to me before thou didst it.’
The fourth man was led out of the rope, and a stick twisted in his hair, and he was led to where Thorkel beheaded them; he was much wounded. When he came Thorkel asked, before he struck, how he thought of his death. He answered: ‘Well think I of my death; it will be with me as with my father; I shall die.’ Thereupon Thorkel cut off that man’s head, and thus his life ended. The fifth was untied from the rope and led thither; when he came, Thorkel said: ‘How likest thou to die?’ He said: ‘I remember not the laws of the Jómsvikings, if I am afraid of my death or speak a word of fear; once must every man die.’ Thorkel struck him. They wanted to ask every man before he was slain, and try whether they were as fearless as was told, and if no man spoke a word of fear they thought it proved. The sixth was led forward, and a stick twisted in his hair. Thorkel asked the same as before; the man said he liked well to die with a good fame, ‘while thou, Thorkel, wilt live with shame.’ He struck the blow. Then the seventh was led thither, and Thorkel asked the same. The man said: ‘I like very much to die, but strike me quickly; I have a belt-knife in my hand. We Jómsvikings have often talked of whether a man knew anything (had some consciousness) after his head had been cut off very quickly; it shall be a sign that I will stretch forth the knife if I know anything, else it will fall down.’ Thorkel struck; the head flew off, but the knife fell down. The eighth was taken, and Thorkel asked the same. He said he liked it well, and when the death-blow was coming he said, ‘Ram!’ Thorkel stopped the blow, and asked why he said this. He answered: ‘There will not be too many rams for the ewes which you, the jarl’s men, named yesterday when you got wounded.’ ‘Thou art the greatest wretch,’ said Thorkel, and dealt him the blow. The ninth was untied; Thorkel asked the same. He said: ‘I like well my death, as do all my companions; but I do not want to be beheaded like a sheep, and I will sit for the blow; strike me face to face, and look carefully whether I wince in any way, for we have often talked of that.’ This was done; he sat with his face to Thorkel, who walked to him and smote in his face; he did not wince, except that his eyelids sank down when death came over him. The tenth was led forward. Thorkel asked him the same. He said: ‘I should like thee to wait while I arrange my breeches.’ ‘I grant thee that,’ said Thorkel. When he had done, he said, ‘Many things do not go as one hoped; I thought I should get into the bed of Thora, Skagi’s daughter, the jarl’s wife.’ Hákon jarl said: ‘Behead that man as quickly as thou canst; he has long had bad intentions.’ Thorkel cut him....
“Then a young man was led forward; he had much hair, yellow as silk. Thorkel asked the same. He said: ‘I have lived the finest part of my life, and such men have now lost their life a little while ago that I do not care to live; I do not want thralls to lead me to the death-blow, but one who is no less a man than thou; it is easy to get that man, and he shall take hold of my hair, and pull away my head so that my hair does not become bloody.’ A hirdman came, took the hair, and wound round his hand; Thorkel raised his sword, and intended to strike him as hard and quick as he could. He struck; but when the young man heard the sword whistling in the air, he pulled away his head strongly, and so it happened that the blow hit the man who had hold of his hair, and Thorkel cut off both his arms at the elbows. The young man jumped up, and said as a joke: ‘What fellow is owner of the hands in my hair?’ Hákon jarl said: ‘The men who are still in the rope will do us great mischief; slay him as soon as you can; he has brought a great mishap on us, and it is clear that all of them who are living ought to be slain as soon as possible, for they are too hard for us to deal with, and their bravery and hardihood have not been exaggerated.’ Eirík said to his father: ‘We want to know, father, who they are before they are all slain; what is thy name, young man?’ ‘Svein,’ answered he. ‘Whose son art thou,’ asked Eirík, ‘and what is thy kin?’ He said: ‘My father was called Búi, the stout, son of Veseti, on Borgundarhólm. I am of Danish kin.’ ‘How old art thou?’ said Eirík. ‘If I live this winter I am eighteen winters old,’ said he. Eirík said: ‘Thou shalt live this winter, if I have my will, and not be slain.’ He took him into peace, and into the company of himself and his men. When Hákon saw this, he said: ‘I do not know what thou art thinking of, as thou savest a man who has caused us so much shame and disgrace as this young man; he has done us most harm, but nevertheless I like not to take him out of thy hands, and thou shalt have thy will this time.’ Thus Eirík had his will. Hákon said to Thorkel: ‘Behead the men quickly.’ Eirík answered: ‘They shall not be beheaded before I have first spoken with them, and I want to know who each of them is.’