almost immediately. Almost all the inhabitants who were able to help were involved, and even so the whole process took four years; now the jarl’s pride and joy was returning from its maiden voyage.
As it turned out during the first trial voyages, as Einar’s father used to say, the ship performed better than he had anticipated. Of course, it was not as manoeuvrable as smaller vessels, but it was by no means far behind in terms of capability. The elders were delighted and even began to consider building another vessel of this type; however, after lengthy discussions, they came to the conclusion that even if they were able to build a sister ship, they might not have the crew to man it.
The very fact that seven ships were due to set sail left Stairon with few defenders who could take up arms if necessary. Of course, the village remained under the protection of the druids living in the nearby forest, but even magic was unable to guarantee the settlement’s complete safety.
The Flame of Dawn finally came to a halt at the largest quay, and work began on securing the mooring lines and lowering the gangway. Einar waited eagerly for the usual hustle and bustle of mooring the giant ship to subside so that he could welcome his father and brothers home and inform them that, whilst they were away, Astrid had given birth to a healthy son, the fifth child of Olaf Anson, known as the Fiery Sword.
Obviously, Einar knew full well that Olaf was not his real father, yet he had never been treated any differently from the other Anson children because of it. Nor did anyone need to tell him this. For as long as he could remember, he had suspected that his real parents must have perished on one of the expeditions, as he bore no resemblance to anyone in the family. He was not a broad-shouldered, tall lad with golden hair, green eyes and a roughly chiselled face. No, Einar bore no resemblance to any of the Ytrens living in Stairon. He
