"Here I bring you your axe," said Thorgeir. Then he struck at
Thorfinn's neck and cut off his head. Flosi was up on the beach
and saw it. He urged on his men to give it them back. They
fought for a long time and the Kaldbak people were getting the
best of it. Most of them had no weapons but the axes with which
they were cutting up the whale and short knives. The men of Vik
were driven from the whale on to the sandbanks. The men from the
East, however, were armed and able to deal wounds. Their captain
Steinn cut off the leg of Kolbeinn's son Ivar, and Ivar's brother
Leif beat one of Steinn's men to death with a rib of the whale.
Then they fought with anything they could get, and men were slain
on both sides. At last Olaf came up with a number of ships from
Drangar and joined Flosi; the men of Kaldbak were then overpowered
by numbers. They had already loaded their ships, and Svan told
them to get on board. They therefore retired towards the ships,
the men of Vik after them. Svan on reaching the sea struck at
Steinn their captain, wounding him badly, and then sprang into his
own ship. Thorgrim gave Flosi a severe wound and escaped. Olaf
wounded Ofeig Grettir fatally, but Thorgeir carried him off and
sprang on to his ship with him. The Kaldbak men rowed into the
fjord and the two parties separated.

The following verse was composed on these doings:

"Hard were the blows which were dealt at Rifsker;
no weapons they had but steaks of the whale.
They belaboured each other with rotten blubber.
Unseemly methinks is such warfare for men."

After this they made peace, and the dispute was laid before the