In a deep bay surrounded by rocky cliffs stood the village of Jorundfjord. It was summer, but at night the aurora danced again, green and purple and bright as ever. Tryggve moved his fingers over the blade of his axe and looked at his friend Sven, who was sitting on the roof of the long house and looking up at the stars. They were both fifteen years old and had been dreaming of great expeditions for as long as they could remember. On this night, however, something seemed different. In the middle of the aurora, on the blackness of the sea, a shape appeared. - Can you see it? - whispered Tryggve. Sven nodded his head. The silhouette of a ship they had never seen before was blurring on the water. The hull was strangely long, and on the mast flew a flag with a symbol they did not recognise - something that looked like a rune they had not learned from their elders. - 'It's not one of our clan's ships,' Sven said quietly. - Perhaps the southerners have arrived? Tryggve shook his head. - 'No clan has such a flag. I heard from my grandmother that such ships are sailed by those who have taken more than they are allowed from the gods. Sven only smiled, though his eyes glittered with anxiety. - 'We'll check the coast in the morning. Maybe they were carried away by the wind, or maybe.... He didn't finish. Somewhere out of the forest, on the edge of the settlement, a shadow flashed by. The snap of branches could be heard. The boys fell silent and watched as Hild emerged from the darkness, a year younger than them but braver than many an adult Viking. The light of the aurora was reflected in her eyes. She curled up right next to them and whispered: - This ship came for me. I dreamt of it. We must go there before the sun rises. Tryggve and Sven looked at each other. Tryggve's heart began to beat faster. At the same moment, the deafening sound of a horn bellowed over the fjord - not the kind of horn called for at a feast, but a deep, bone-penetrating sound. The aurora flared even stronger. The boys leapt up from the roof, and Hild was already running towards the water. Without thinking, they dashed after her through the night full of whispers and lights, towards the unknown who waited by the shore.