Viking Boy Read Online Free PDF

stands in the Land of Ice and Fire, a whole month’s journey across the sea. And then of course you’ll have to deal with Heimdall, guardian of the bridge.”
    “A whole
month
?” Gunnar’s heart sank. It hadn’t occurred to him that getting to Valhalla would take so long. He tried not to think of what might happen to Mother and the steading in the meantime. But he had no choice – he would have to follow his plan. “Where can I find a ship that will take me?”
    “There are usually plenty of ships in the harbour at Kaupang.”
    Gunnar had heard that name too, and had an idea it was a big town, but he knew nothing else about the place. “How do I get there? Is it far?”
    “Three days by foot. Maybe more if the weather is bad.”
    Gunnar groaned, but then he found himself yawning. His eyelids seemed to be growing heavy, and his limbs too. He looked at the old man through the skeins of smoke from the fire and saw that he was smiling again.
    “Who
are
you?” Gunnar asked. “I don’t even know … your … name…”
    “Oh, you’ll know it one day, Gunnar, when you fly with the eagle to the Land of Ice and Fire,” said the old man. It seemed as if his voice was coming from a great distance. “Sleep now; you must sleep…”
    Gunnar lay down, his cheek cushioned on his hands. How did the old man know his name? He was sure he hadn’t told him. Gunnar had a feeling the answer might be important, although he couldn’t think why. Then a dark wave swept through his mind, filling it with blackness, and he knew no more.
    He woke with a start and thought for a moment he was at home, until he sat up and remembered. It was almost dark outside the hut, a white mist creeping across the ground. Gunnar saw that the fire had gone out and he shivered. The old man had vanished, but he had left his bag, and Gunnar opened it. He found more bread and cheese, a flask of ale, a flint and a few silver coins.
    And right at the bottom was a long grey feather from an eagle’s wing.

S IX
T HE R IGHT R OAD

    H E SOON GOT the fire going again with the flint and ate some more bread and cheese, washing it down with the ale in the flask. Then he sat and brooded, staring sometimes at the yellow flames, sometimes at the feather.
    The old man had been friendly and generous – Gunnar guessed he had left the bag for him. But it had been a strange encounter. The old man had known his name without being told it, and hadn’t been surprised to hear Gunnar talking about Valhalla. And what did he mean about
flying with the eagle to the Land of Ice and Fire
? Falling asleep like that had been odd too. Perhaps the old man was a sorcerer and had cast a spell on him…
    Now Gunnar tutted, angry with himself. It had been natural for him to fall asleep, and perhaps he had told the old man his name and then forgotten. And maybe meeting Brunhild was making him think everything was strange. The old man had come and gone, and Gunnar felt he should just be grateful for his help. But he thought he’d better keep the feather safe, and tucked it in his pocket.
    It was fully dark outside the byre now, and Gunnar knew there was no point in setting off for Kaupang before morning. He kept the fire going as long as he could, then tried to rest. He slept uneasily, his dreams filled with blood and fire, and woke feeling unrefreshed, his back aching, the cold deep in his bones.
    He finished the bread and cheese and left the byre, the old man’s bag on his shoulder. It was a crisp autumn day, the sun bright in a blue sky. The track that had brought Gunnar to the God House carried on, and he decided to follow it, hoping he would find someone who could tell him how to find Kaupang.
    The track skirted the mountains and took him through low, rocky hills. Towards evening a shepherd told him he was already on the road for Kaupang. He passed the night in a cave, using the flint to make a fire, his stomach grumbling with hunger. On the second day the weather grew colder, the