"Have you done this sort of thing before?" "Me?" "Of course." "I've been looting and pillaging up and down the coast." " Looting and pillaging, eh?" " Yes." " What about the raping?" " Shut up." "Well, it's obvious you haven't raped anyone in your life." " Do you like women?" " Huh?" " Of course I like women." "I love them." " You don't love me." "Well, no, I don't." "Mind you, I'm not saying I couldn't get to like you." "As a matter of fact, I actually prefer it if there's some sort of mutual feeling between two people." "What?" "Rape?" "Well, no." "Obviously then it wouldn't be rape then, would it?" "Get it over with." "I don't suppose that you..." "No." "No." " What?" " I don't suppose that you:" " You do like me at all?" " What do you expect?" "You come in here, burn my village, kill my family and try to rape me." "You don't like it, do you?" "Well, I just think it's a little bit crude, that's all." "What about all the killing and looting?" "That's just as crude, isn't it?" " Well, you have to do them." " Why?" "Why have you got to go around killing and looting all the time?" "To pay for the next expedition, of course." "But that's a circular argument." "If the only reason for the expedition is the killing and looting and the only reason for the killing and looting is to pay for the next expedition, they cancel each other out." "Stop talking as if we're married!" " Well, you started it." " I just said I didn't feel like raping you." "And I was just saying that rape is no more pointless or crude than all the killing and looting." "Scream." "Louder." "Rape!" "Thanks." "Rape?" "Where?" "He raped me standing up." " You finished, then?" " I suppose so..." "Right!" " Leave her alone!" " No!" "Thanks for saving me from a fate worse than death." " I didn't mean to!" " That's all right then." "It's the thought that counts." "You told them I raped you." "Why?" "I don't know." "You looked so vulnerable." " Why should you care?" " Why should you care?" "Tell me your name." "Tell me, what is it?" "Erik the Viking." "What can you want with me, Erik the Viking?" "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come." "Afraid they will make fun of you for listening to an old woman's stories?" "Young men, only interested in fighting and killing." "Yes." "But has it always been like that?" "Since the beginning of time?" " What do you see, Erik?" " I see the world." " Is it night or day, Erik?" " Why, it is day, of course, Freya." "Is it winter or summer, Erik?" "Well, the winter is passed." "It is summer." "Have you ever seen the sun, Erik?" "No, it's up beyond the clouds where it always is." "But have you ever seen it, Erik?" "Think back." "I remember once as a child." "A dream." "It was as if the whole sky were blue." "It was blue, Erik." "The old stories tell of an age that would come such as this when Fenrir the Wolf would swallow the sun and a great winter would settle on the world." "It was to be an ax age, a sword age, a storm age, when brother would turn against brother and men would fight each other until the world was finally destroyed." "Then this is the Age of Ragnarok?" "Is there nothing men can do?" "The gods are asleep, Erik." "I will go and wake them up then." "Tell me what I must do." "Far out in the midst of the Western Ocean, there is a land." "Men call it Hy-Brasil." "There you will find a horn." "This horn is called Resounding." "You must take the Horn Resounding and three times you must blow it." "The first note will take you to Asgard." "The second note will awaken the gods." "And the third note will bring you home." "Once you are in the spell of the Horn, hatred will destroy you." "Will the dead ever return, Freya?" "That I cannot tell you." "If you ever thought of converting, my dear, now would be an ideal opportunity." " Not now!" " No, of course not." " But you might not get another chance." " Go away!" "Right." "I'll..." "Yes, that's what I'll do." "I'll pray for you." "Let her go!" "Why?" "We haven't hit a single braid yet!" " He hit my wife!" " That showed her." "What's the matter?" "We're missing the fun." " What's it all about, Grandpa?" " What?" "We toil and labor, we loot and pillage, we rape and kill, and yet..." "Why you talking this piffle, son?" "Where does it all get us, Grandpa?" "Who you been talking to?" " I met this girl." " Woman." "It's always a woman who causes all the trouble." " She got me thinking..." " So?" "What'd you do to her?" "I killed her." "That's my boy!" "Come on, Erik." "Erik, what are you doing?" "Thorfinn just said Sven's grandfather died of old age." " He must fight to the death." " That's right!" "Sven must kill me." "Aren't you afraid of death, Thorfinn Skullsplitter?" "Not death by the sword!" "It means I shall drink in Valhalla with the great warriors." "You don't believe in this Valhalla nonsense, do you?" " Go away." " Right." "Fine." "Just checking." "And you, Sven, aren't you afraid of crossing the Rainbow Bridge to Asgard?" "I will join my grandfather there." "He's not in Valhalla!" "He died of old age!" "You liar!" "Stop it!" "Stop it!" " There's only one way to settle it." " He must kill me!" " There is another way." " Who gets killed?" " Nobody gets killed." " Oh, well..." "It'll be dangerous." "Maybe none of us will return." " Shall we all go and pack now?" " What are you talking about, Erik?" "What if we could find Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge?" " Find the Rainbow Bridge?" " Find it and cross it!" "Look, you can't find somewhere that doesn't exist." " Shut up!" " Right." "What's the matter?" "Are you afraid to try?" " Of course we're not afraid to try, but..." " But what?" "But what?" "Nobody's ever crossed the Rainbow Bridge to Asgard." " We'd be the first!" " You mean we'd be dead?" "No!" "We would be the first living men to set foot in the halls of the gods." "But how?" "I don't know." "But I'm not afraid to try." " Well, I'm not afraid of anything." " Neither am I." "Wish you were going, too?" "But you can't." "Too busy." "That's a good one." "You could charge Halfdan 15 for that one." "Yes, it is good, isn't it?" "But I told him 10, Loki." "Yes, it is good, isn't it?" "But I told him 10, Loki." "You charge him what you like." "You just can't make enough swords and spears and knives and daggers to satisfy the demand." "You could charge Halfdan 20 for that and he'd pay it." "I couldn't do that." "The Blacksmith's Code says that I must..." "Yes, yes, of course, the Blacksmith's Code." "If this is the Age of Ragnarok, Keitel Blacksmith, it is good to us." "Can't make enough swords!" "Can't make enough ax-heads!" "But, Keitel..." "If Erik ever finds the Horn Resounding, if he ever crosses Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge, if he ever wakens the gods..." " They chase Fenrir the Wolf from the sky." " The Age of Ragnarok ends and..." "The bottom falls out of the sword business!" "It's not just your livelihood at stake but your son's and..." "Well, the livelihood of all blacksmiths." " My brother blacksmiths." " That's right." "You just can't let Erik do that." "What's your business?" "I wish to speak to Halfdan the Black." " He's too busy." " I have money." "See!" "Come along, Hecate." "Look, I'm not an unreasonable man, Thord Andersson, but this is the second chance that I've given you." " But I'm a poor man, sir." " Yes, but it's not just me, you see." "A lot of people depend on this money." "I really can't give you a third chance, I'm so sorry." " Would you behead him, please?" " No!" "Take all my sheep, all of them." "That's a good idea." "Take all his sheep." "Take everything!" "If only they'd think ahead." "I really wish they would." "The blacksmith's assistant from Ravensfjord." " Garrote him, would you, please?" " No, no." " My lord, Halfdan the Black." " You've brought me more swords?" "I bring more than swords." "I bring a warning from my master." "A warning?" "No!" " Flay them both alive, would you?" " No, it's a mistake." "Erik and the men of Ravensfjord are setting off to cross the Western Ocean." "Lucky things!" "I could do with a holiday, I could tell you." "All this financial work, you know, the stress really gets you." "Flay him alive, garrote him and then behead him." "No, I'm not Hildir Eysteinsson!" "I'm Hjalti Skeggjason!" "You've got the wrong man." "They seek to drive Fenrir the Wolf from the sky to waken the gods and to bring the Age of Ragnarok to an end." " End Ragnarok?" " Who do they think they are?" " Just cut his hand off." " Oh, thank you, thank you, my lord." "Thank you, a million thank yous." "Perhaps you could cut them both off if you want." "Thank you very much." "So why should you tell me all this?" "Because, my lord, my livelihood depends on Ragnarok." "Like yours." "And, of course, if anything should happen to your master, you would become blacksmith of Ravensfjord." "Don't forget, never let your enemy get behind you." "No, Mother." " Keep your sword greased." " Yes, Mother." "Good-bye, Dad." " Don't forget to wash, you know, all over." " No, Dad." "And if you have to kill somebody, kill them!" "Don't stop to think about it." "I never do..." " It's a tradition." " I know, Dad." "You told me." "I was a berserk for King Harald Fairhair." " You went berserk..." " I went berserk in every battle" "I ever fought for King Harald." " So did your father..." " So did my father and his father before him." " But it's a responsibility..." " But it's a responsibility, being a berserk." " I must only let the red rage..." " You must only let the red rage take hold of you in the thick of battle." "I know!" "I've heard it all a thousand times!" "No, no, no, no." "You'll never make a berserk." "If you let it out now you'll have nothing left for battle." "Well, we'll be off now." "Say something a little more than that." "Right." "Mom." "Don't be sad." "Maybe untold dangers do lie ahead of us, and some of you may well be looking at the ones you love for the last time." "But don't grieve." "You see, even if the hordes of Muspell tear us limb from limb or the Fire Giants burn each and every one of us to a cinder, even if we're swallowed by the Dragon of the North Sea" "or if we fall off the edge of the world, don't cry." "No!" "No!" "Don't cry." "It's all fantasy, there is no edge of the world." " There is no Dragon of the North Sea." " That's what you say." " My son, I don't want you to go." " I don't want me to go, either." "Listen, it's not certain all of us are going to die, and in any case we may not die hideous deaths." "You'd best be going." " Right, farewell and for the..." " Don't say anything else!" "Wait, Erik!" "You can't go without me." "Who will sharpen your swords and mend your shields?" " Oh, no!" " Not him, too!" "What's the matter now?" "If Keitel Blacksmith goes with you..." "We'll have no one to do the things he did for us." "Or sharpen our knives and mend our pans." "Well, you have Loki, Keitel's assistant, to do all that." "Loki?" "What's the matter with Loki?" "He's so small and..." "Yes, we've got Loki." "That's true." "You coming?" "You don't even believe in Asgard." "No." "But I do hope to do a little business on the way." "You're wasting your time." "Listen," "I have been in this dump for 16 years and I have not made a single convert in all that time." "There was Thorbjorn Vifilsson's wife." "You converted her." "Thorbjorn Vifilsson's wife became a Buddhist, not a Christian." "Same thing, isn't it?" "No, it is not." " Hey, you two, what's going on?" " I was sitting there." " No, you weren't." " Leif's sitting here." "I need a bit of luck." " Look, I picked it last week." " It doesn't matter where you sit." "Yes, it does." "We could be at sea for months." "What difference does it make where you're sitting?" "I'm not sitting behind Snorri all that time." " Thank you very much indeed." " Sven, sit back there." "Leif, you better sit here and Harald, sit here." " Trust me to get the missionary." " What are you doing here?" " You might need a real berserk." " I am one, Dad!" "But we haven't got a spare place." "He can have my place." "I don't really want to go anyway." "Well, you are!" " He could have Bjorn's place." " Bjorn's not coming." " What's the matter with Bjorn?" "Halfdan the Black chopped off both his hands last night." "He was lucky." "Well, sit there." "You can't have Sven's dad sitting next to Sven." "They'll argue the whole time." "That's true." "Sven, sit behind Thorfinn." "Now you've got all the big ones on one side." "Thangbrand, sit where Ornulf is." "Ornulf, sit where Ulf is." "Ulf, sit where Thangbrand was." "Ragnar, sit behind Thorfinn." "Thorfinn, stay where you are." " I wanted to sit next to Leif." " Shut up." "Sven, switch with Snorri." "Snorri, sit behind Sven." "Keitel, sit here." "Harald there." "Leif there, Bjarni there." "Now you've got all the ones with beards on one side and all the moustaches on the other." " That doesn't matter." " Erik!" "Wait!" "Here, son." "Your father always made sure he could rest his head at night." "I can't take that on a voyage." "It was your father's." "It was the pillow he took with him." "Well, he said it once saved his life." "Please!" "Thanks, Mum." "Row!" "Row!" "Have a good look." "That's the last we'll see of old Norway." "Good-bye, home." "Good-bye, loved ones." "Good-bye, lunch." "You all right?" "No, I'm not." "You don't need to feel bad about being seasick, you know." "How can you help feeling bad when you're seasick?" "I mean, many of the greatest sailors were pukers." "I know." "I know." "Olaf Tryggvason used to throw up on every single voyage." "The whole time, non-stop." " Puke, puke, puke." " Look!" "I don't feel bad about it." "I just feel ill." " He used to puke in his sleep." " The bastard." "Thorfinn." " It's Halfdan the Black." " I know." "No, no, put it away." "Break out the oars, come on." "Move it." "We've only just started cooking supper." "You're going to run away from him, are you, Erik?" "Row, Thorfinn Skullsplitter." "Row!" "We can't keep this up!" "Row, row, row, row." "And up!" " The Gates of the World." " What?" "Now, we're in the unknown." "Look!" "I never thought I should live to see the sun again." "Where?" "So that is what the sun looks like!" "So that is what the sun looks like!" "Should the sun do that?" "Excuse me, what are you looking at?" "Look out!" "It's not the sun!" " What is it?" " It's the Dragon of the North Sea!" "That's why I can't see it." "Some dragon!" "Yeah." "What the hell?" "Look out!" "Row!" "Row!" " What's all the panic about?" " The dragon." "Children afraid of the dark." "We must kill!" "Kill!" "No good going berserk against a dragon!" "Stop it!" "What are you doing?" "Row!" "His dad was the same." "He used to take forty winks in the middle of a battle." "Has anybody told him we've got a dragon eating our boat?" "Barmy!" "It's at times like this that this book could prove most useful." "Shut up!" "Breathe in, you cod brain!" "Hold on tight!" "Get back!" "Get back!" "Get back!" "Look out!" " Who was that?" " Leif the Lucky." "I can't hang on!" "Let me go, Sven." "If you go, I go too." "Look out!" "My knee!" "First we're flying, now we're sinking." "What is it?" " Oh, it's the dragon again!" " No, no, it isn't." " The sun!" "That's it!" " The sky is blue." "Erik!" " She's got no clothes on." " It's disgusting." "Get her weapons." "She hasn't got any." "She must have a knife or something." "What kind of place is this?" "Maybe they've got weapons we haven't even dreamed of." " Let's hack her to pieces." " No." "Well, what else do we do?" "How about making friends?" " Friends?" " What's wrong with making friends?" "You don't go through all the hardships of an ocean voyage to make friends." "We can make friends at home." "Welcome!" " What did you say?" " I said you're welcome." "Welcome?" "Well, of course." "We always welcome friends." "How do you know we're friends?" "Well, everyone is friends here on Hy-Brasil." " Hy-Brasil?" " Is this Hy-Brasil?" "Well, of course." "Please!" "Please!" "What are those?" " What are what?" " Those things in your hand." " These?" "These?" "What are these?" " Yes." " They're swords." " Oh, no!" " What?" " No!" "Put them down!" " Please!" "Please put them down!" " What's the matter?" "Please!" "You don't know what you're doing!" " Make them put them down." " Why?" " Yeah, why?" " Why?" "Yes." "But surely you know?" "No!" " Know what?" "Well, the wonderful blessing under which we live here on Hy-Brasil!" "No, we don't." "The gods decreed that if ever swords spilled human blood upon these shores, the whole of Hy-Brasil would sink beneath the waves." "You mean if just one person gets killed?" " This whole place would sink?" " Yes!" "You mean, you can't kill anybody?" "That's terrible!" "Right!" "Isn't it wonderful?" " But how do you take revenge?" " How do you punish people?" "How do you defend yourselves?" "We don't have to." "We're all terribly nice to each other." " All the time?" "Well, of course!" "We have to be." "Being nice to each other is what it's all about!" "You see, we're terribly nice to each other." "We're friendly, bold and free." "We never say anything nasty 'cause we dare not." "No, sirree!" "Would you like us to sing for you?" "Sing?" "Well, that's very kind of you, but we're in a hurry and..." "What's the matter?" "Don't you want to hear our singing?" "Oh, well, yes, of course, it's just..." "You don't think our singing's going to be good enough for you?" " Well, I'm sure it's lovely." " But you don't want to hear it." "No, no, no, no." "We'd love to hear it, wouldn't we?" "Yes!" "Well, you'll have to ask us really nicely." "Well, we'd..." "We'd be terribly grateful if you would sing for us." " You're just saying that." " Well, of course he is!" "Of course we're not." "We would genuinely like to hear you sing." " Really?" " Really." "And you're not just saying that because you think we want you to?" "No." "Summon the musicians!" "We'll do the one that goes..." "Tum-tum-tum-tum-ti-tum-tum." "But it's not the one we're best at." "Could we do the one that goes..." "Tum-ti-tum-ti-tum-ti-tum." "Not when we've got visitors." "The musicians!" "Oh, dear, I'm sure you're not going to like this." "It's no good." "We are just not a musical nation." "No, no, no, it was..." "It was very nice." "Really?" "Now, I want you to be absolutely, totally, genuinely honest with me." "Did you really, truly, honestly like it?" "No." "They didn't like it." "My God, I want to die!" "Your Majesty, we come from a world where there is no music." "Where Fenrir the Wolf covers the sun." "A world where men live and die by the ax and by the sword." " Well, how do you think I feel?" " We must find the Horn Resounding!" "Is it here on Hy-Brasil?" " I'll tell you what..." " Yes?" "We'll do the one that goes..." "Tum-tum-ti-tum-tum." "Perhaps you'll like that one better." "Have you ever felt like this about anyone else?" "You mean got into bed with them?" "No." "Of course not, silly." "No, I mean felt like this about them." "You mean you have got into bed with somebody else?" "No, I mean have you ever felt that for the first time in your life you've met someone you really can believe in with your whole heart?" "Someone whose goals suddenly seem to be your goals." "Whose dreams become your dreams." "Have you ever been to bed with anyone else?" "Why do you go on about that?" "You've felt like this before." "It was different." "What was she like?" "Well, I didn't know her very well." "But you loved her all the same?" "We never went to bed together." "Why do you go on about that?" "What's it matter?" "You have been to bed with somebody else, haven't you?" " I've never loved anybody!" " I've never been to bed with anybody!" "Aud?" "Open up!" " It's my father." "I know you're in there." "Aud?" "Do you hear me?" "Oh, no!" "Halfdan!" "I will walk right in and surprise you." "Throw this over you." "Right!" " Well, where is he?" " Who, Father?" "Who?" "Whoever you've got in here, of course!" "Well, there is no one, Father." "I smell one of those foreigners." "That's who it is, isn't it?" " He's the fifth one this week." " Fifth?" "All right, where is he?" "There's no one here, Father." "Look for yourself." "Oh!" "He wouldn't be a midget, Father!" "Ah!" "So you admit there could be someone here." "You're losing your temper." "Of course I'm not, my dear." "I never lose my temper." "Oh, dear, more visitors!" "A- ha!" "Right!" "Come on!" "Come out of there!" "Come out like a man." "I know you're in there." "It's all in your own mind, Father." "I sometimes think you've got some of your mother's magic in you." "She could blind me as easily as the night, the day." "It's your fantasy." "Well, I'll catch you, like I caught her." "The Cloak Invisible." "It was my mother's parting gift." "Fifth one this week!" "Can I have my shirt back please?" "For goodness' sake!" "And I thought you said it was something special." "Erik, that's just what I am trying to tell you." "You are." "Five this week, how many the week before?" " You're as bad as my father." " And the week before that?" " Erik!" "Erik!" " Yes." "I just want to help you to get to Asgard." " Must not let him land!" " Who?" "Halfdan the Black." "I feel strange." " What, sort of wobbly and excited?" " Sort of." "That's fear." "Thorfinn doesn't know the meaning of fear." "Is it sort of like a sinking feeling in your stomach?" "That's it!" "But you're not even afraid of death, Thorfinn!" " I know, I know." " It's magic." "What magic?" "I've heard of a magic that strikes fear into the heart, so you cannot fight." " Yes, I can feel it." " I always feel like this!" "All right." "If they're using magic, we'll use a magic of our own!" "Aud!" "Why didn't you come up by the stairs?" " Where's the Cloak Invisible?" " Why?" "I can't see it!" "Have you got another man in here already?" "It's in that chest." "There isn't another man." "Oh, no, no." " I'll bring it back." " No, Erik, you don't understand..." "No, Aud, it's you who doesn't understand." "Halfdan the Black has come to kill and destroy." " We brought him here." "We must stop him." " No, Erik, you don't realize that..." "Good-bye, Aud." "Erik!" " Thanks!" " No, wait, Erik." "The Cloak Invisible, it only seems to work on my father!" "And a sort of slightly sick feeling?" "That's right." "And you keep wanting to go to the toilet." "Yes!" "So Halfdan the Black's using magic, is he?" "Well, I have here a magic to match his!" " What is it?" " A magic dish cloth." "To the oars!" "I don't think it'd be so bad if we knew what you were saying." "Erik!" "What magic have you brought?" "Here it is." "Here is the magic from the King's daughter!" " How did he do that, then?" " Do what?" " Vanish." " He hasn't." " Where is he then?" " He's there!" "Open wide." "Oh, dear!" "I've done it." "Yes." "Scary, scary, don't we look mean?" "You can't see me!" "But I can see you!" "I'm sorry!" "I'm sorry!" "What's the matter?" "Haven't you seen anybody fight before?" " No." "They're usually too scared of us." " Kill him!" "There, that's a true berserk." "Well I'm..." "I'm just building up to it, Dad." "The fear's gone!" "Kill!" "Now you see me, now you don't." "What?" " Well, come on!" " I..." "I..." "Hang the Blacksmith's Code!" "I am the air!" "I am the wind!" "Fight, damn you, fight!" " Well, go on, go berserk!" " Give us a chance, Dad!" "What about you, why don't you go berserk?" "I got to keep my eye on him." "This is the life, eh?" "Oh, dear!" "Erik!" "Kill!" "Thorfinn!" "Look out!" "Now row." "Row, you moron!" "Thorfinn!" "You can't die!" "I'm not frightened of anything." "You'll see my grandfather in Valhalla." "No, he's not..." "Not there." "Tell him I'm coming." "No!" "Wait, wait, Erik!" "Erik, wait!" "Loki." "What are you doing here?" "Halfdan wanted to stop you waking the gods, so I disguised myself to sabotage their plans." " To save you, Erik." " But..." "It was my master Keitel's idea." "Wasn't it, Keitel?" "Well, I..." "But..." "How is it that you can see me?" " You can all see me?" " What do you mean?" " Why shouldn't we see you?" " I can't see him." " I'm wearing the Cloak Invisible." " There you are." "You mean you could all see me this whole time?" " Weren't we supposed to?" " I feel a little..." "I made this for you." "Erik, we are grateful to you and to your men." "Yes, we are." "And there is only one way we know to repay you." "Musicians!" "We would love to hear you sing again, but what we'd really appreciate would be if you could see your way to lending, not giving, of course, but just lending us the..." "Well, to be quite blunt, the Horn Resounding." "It's yours." " Is that it?" " Is there something the matter with it?" "No, no, it's just I didn't expect it to be quite so big." "You do know how to play the horn, do you?" "What?" "You do know how to play the horn, do you?" "Yes, sir, yes." "Then I expect you'll be leaving first thing in the morning, eh?" "What's the matter, Keitel Blacksmith?" "Have you forgotten why you came on this voyage?" "Do you want Erik to wake the gods?" "How can we stop him now?" "Take this." "And throw it from the cliff heights." "They'll never be able to make the Horn Resounding sound without it." "Why me?" "Why don't you do it?" "Hurry!" "Surely you haven't forgotten your blacksmith's oath?" "Hurry!" " SNORRl:" "Keitel!" " What?" " What are you doing, Keitel Blacksmith?" " Get away, Snorri." " What have you got there?" " Get off!" "Snorri, get away..." "Oh, no." "Gods!" "What have we done?" "Now, I know what some of you must be thinking." "The day has come, we're all going to go down, etc, etc." "But let's get away from the fantasy and look at the facts." "We do seem to be going down quite fast, Your Majesty." "Not trying to contradict you, of course." "Oh, no, no, of course you're not, citizen." "But let's stick to the facts." "The threat of total destruction has kept the peace here in Hy-Brasil for 1,000 years." "So whatever else is happening, you can rest assured," "Hy-Brasil is not sinking." "May I just make a point in support of what King Arnulf's just said?" "May I just make a point in support of what King Arnulf's just said?" "We'd be delighted, wouldn't we?" "Yes, we'd certainly like to hear what one of us has got to say!" "Save yourselves!" "Hy-Brasil is sinking." "But you don't know our safety precautions." " It can't happen." " But it is!" "Look!" "I've already appointed the chancellor as chairman of a full committee of inquiry and in the meantime," " I suggest we have a sing-song!" "Good idea!" "I can't swim!" "I can't swim!" "Help!" "Help!" "Relax." " No, let go." " Help!" "Help!" "Excuse me!" "You hit him!" "Well, that's what you're supposed to do, isn't it?" "Look!" "Come on." " You know, I think we're getting better." " How can you tell?" "Father!" " It's all right, it's not happening!" " Father, it is!" " Get onboard!" " No, thanks!" " Who do you think you are?" " Panic-mongers!" " Come on over here!" "Leave us alone!" " Yeah." "Leave them alone." " It's sinking!" "Hy-Brasil is sinking!" "Well, my dear, I think you'll find it's all a question of what you want to believe in, and I happen to have more experience of these matters than you do." "I think..." "It's times like this, my child, when this book can..." "Right." "We must blow the first note." "The note that will take us to Asgard." "Over the edge of the world." "Here, let me have a go." " No!" "No, I'm doing it." " No..." "Look, you're always telling me..." "Telling me..." "Stop it!" "Why can't you let me do something for myself?" "Just the once?" "No!" "Don't fight!" "We're never going to get where we want to go, if you fight." "It has not spoken for 1,000 years." "Don't blow it, you don't know what might happen." "What are you doing?" "She wants to kill us!" "She wants to take us over the edge of the world!" "There is no edge of the world." "There is no dragon..." "Right." "You do want to get to Asgard, don't you?" " How do we know that's the way?" " We blew the Horn Resounding." "She blew the Horn Resounding." "Don't you see, Erik?" "She wants revenge!" " What are you talking about?" " Shut up!" "She knows it was our fault!" "I should have got rid of you long ago!" "Like you got rid of Snorri?" "No!" "No!" "No!" "We are in the spell of the Horn!" " Hatred will destroy us." " That's right!" "Hatred will destroy you." "He killed Snorri!" "He caused the land of Hy-Brasil to sink!" "She knew!" "Now she wants to take us over the edge of the world!" "Well, how else do you think we're going to get to Asgard?" "Do you believe I love you?" "Yes, I do." "Then let go!" " I'm still seeing stars." " We're all seeing stars." "No, I was hit on the head." "Bifrost." "The Rainbow Bridge." "Asgard!" " Where?" " Up there, you fathead." "Look at it." "It's real." "Hallucinations aren't real." "The second note." "The note to wake the gods." "Gently." "You've done what you came to do." "Not quite." "I came to find my grandfather." "I..." "I came here to find someone." "Valhalla." "There, you see?" "It's solid." "It's real." "Now do you believe us?" "There's nothing there." "If you're..." "You are all having me on, aren't you?" "It's Valhalla, where the warriors slain in battle go." "It doesn't exist for him." "He hasn't got an ounce of faith in him." "Listen." "Good!" "It's Mr. Wonderful!" "I've come to take you back to the land of the living." " What a stupid idea." " Why?" "Well, what's the point of being dead in the land of the living?" "Who is he talking to?" "Right." "Dad?" "How can you tell?" " The bastard!" " Dad!" " He drove me mad!" " Easy, Dad!" ""You'll never be a berserk if you lose your temper. "" "Dad!" " I hate you!" " Dad!" " I hate you!" " Dad!" "Dad!" "Dad!" "You won, Sven." "I'll ask the gods to give you life again." "Have you ever tried asking the gods for anything?" "No." " Odin!" " I'm busy." "He's busy." "Is that Odin?" "You'll have to wait till he's finished his game." "Odin." "We come from the world of Midgard." "Clear off." "No, wait, Thor." " You have to help us." " We don't have to help anybody." "Fenrir the Wolf covers the sun, men fight and kill each other all the time." " This is ridiculous." " Why should we care?" " Because you're the gods." " So?" "So bring the Age of Ragnarok to an end and stop all this fighting and bloodshed." "Erik the Viking." "We don't make men love each other, or hate each other." "But you're the gods." "What right have you to try and stop men fighting, Erik the Viking?" "There is glory in battle." "Riches to be made and won." "Made by you, Loki!" "By you, Keitel Blacksmith." "Don't you know, Erik?" "That's why he went with you." "Ragnarok was good for his business." "It's not my business anymore!" "Fenrir the Wolf has gone, Erik." "But will men cease fighting each other?" "I have one more request before we return." "Return?" "You have set your foot in the halls of Asgard, Erik." " You cannot return." " But it's all in your imagination." "Whatever "it" is." "You're the only one who can do it." "Please." "Oh..." "You mean we must stay here forever?" "Stay here?" "This is Valhalla." "This is reserved for those slain in battle." "Yeah, we're the lucky ones!" "Yeah, it's better than dying of old age." "For you there is only the pit of Hell." "Son!" "My son!" " Get lost!" " Dad!" "Grandfather!" "Sven!" "I tried to save you." " Why should you care?" " I don't know!" "I just did!" " SNORRl:" "Erik!" " No." "Let go, Snorri!" " I've got you!" " Hold on!" "You'll be sucked down, too!" "I've got you, Sven." "I've got you, Sven." "Listen!" "Listen!" "The third note!" "I want to go home." "I don't believe it!" "It brought us home!" " But who blew it?" " Well, who cares?" "We're home!" "Mum!" " Dad!" " We're home!" "Throw down your weapons or we kill the children." "Well, now, we'll kill the children anyway." "Mind your heads!" "Harald!" "Mum!" "Hello, mum!" "My boy!" "My boy!" "My boy!" "Look!" "Look!" "I've heard it all a thousand times!" "You all right?" "There is no edge of the world." "There is no..." "What a stupid idea." "Barmy!"