Chapter 14: The Sword of Thors

The showdown between Askeladd and Thors enters its final stretch amid the shattered rigging of a ship. Askeladd lunges from beneath a fallen spar hoping to catch his rival off guard, but Thors reads the move, evades, and snaps back with a kick that nearly connects. Shaken that his ambush drew only a shallow line of blood, Askeladd accepts that surprise will not work on this opponent, yet he relishes having sailed all the way to the Faroes for a foe of such rare quality.

Thors acknowledges the strength behind the attack, offers an apology, and stops holding anything back. Steel rings against steel as Askeladd calmly turns aside every strike while hunting for a gap. He notices the edge of his own weapon crumbling and understands that Thors has been grinding it down on purpose, then reasons that the giant's blade must be worn just as thin. Anticipating the next swing, he lets it crash into his armor to shatter Thors's sword, and, certain he has finally gained the upper hand, drives forward for the kill.

The whole exchange, however, unfolded exactly as Thors intended. A precise blow to Askeladd's elbow tears the sword from his grip, Thors plucks the falling blade out of the air, and the point settles against Askeladd's throat. Only now does the chief realize he danced to another man's tune from the first move. As Thorfinn and the onlookers roar in celebration, Thors asks for nothing but surrender. Askeladd will not give it, declaring that a leader can never bow before his own men, and he tells Thors that the contest will remain open unless it is finished with his life.

Askeladd's opening ambush fails when Thors slips it and counters, proving that trickery is useless against him. Thors then drops his restraint after conceding his opponent's skill. Believing he has outmaneuvered the giant, Askeladd absorbs a hit on his breastplate to break Thors's sword and commits to a finishing blow. Thors instead strikes his sword arm, catches the loosed blade in midair, and takes the victory. When Thors demands only surrender, Askeladd rejects it and insists the duel cannot conclude while he still draws breath.

The Japanese title Tōruzu no Ken translates as the sword of Thors. The chapter fills twenty pages and belongs to the second collected volume, having first run in the 2005-42 issue on September 14, 2005. Its events are dramatized in the fourth episode of the television adaptation. Beyond the two duelists, the pages bring in Thorfinn, Leif Ericson, and fighters from both bands, among them Magni, Ari, Mols, Mord, Grim, and Hakon.