Men of Sweden against him,
And Danish swordsmen doughty.’
¶ Then waxed the battle very fierce, and men fell thick and fast, and so at the end befell it that all the ships that pertained unto King Olaf were cleared save and except the ‘Long Serpent,’ & by that time all those of his folk who were still able to bear arms were come aboard of her. ¤ Then did Earl Eirik bring his bearded ship alongside the ‘Serpent’ and thereon ensued a fight with man at sword’s length from man. ¤ Thus saith Halldor:
‘Into so hard a trap fell now the “Long Serpent”
(The shields were cut asunder, together clashed the swords),
And when the axe-bearer laid his bearded ship high bulwarked beside the “Serpent,”
The Earl did victory win at Holm.’
¶ Earl Eirik took his stand in the forehold of his ship encompassed by a wall of shields, & his men fought both with trenchant arms, and by the thrusting of spears, and by the throwing of everything that could be used as a weapon, though some shot with the bow or threw javelins with the hand. From all sides had the war-ships been brought up around the ‘Serpent,’ and so great was the shower of weapons which fell on her, and so thickly flew the arrows and javelins from all sides, that men could but hardly ward off the missiles with their shields. The men that were with King Olaf had ere now waxed so furious that they had climbed up on to the bulwarks to the end that they might reach their foemen with their swords and slay them; but many of their foes would not come so nigh alongside the ‘Serpent’ that they could be beguiled into close combat, whereas a many of the folk of Olaf being unmindful that they were not fighting on a level field themselves fell overboard and so sank down together with their weapons. Thus saith Hallfrod:
‘From the “Serpent” sank they down, wounded in the fight;
Give way or flee they would not, resisting to the last.