Chapter 8: The Journey Begins

On the docks, Leif and Thors agree the weather is perfect for setting out. At Thors's doorstep a drowsy Ylva half-listens to Ari boast about the harsh voyage ahead and his promise to bring her a necklace plundered from England. Just as he works up the nerve to propose, his mother arrives with the lunch he nearly forgot. Mord and the other departing youths crowd in to court Ylva too, and she wearily suggests they try someone else.

As the village bids farewell to the five recruits, Ari, Magni, Grimm, Mord, and Harkon, some wonder why Thors takes so small a crew. When a flustered girl comes to see Ari off, Leif quietly draws her aside and reveals the truth: Thors intends to drop the boys in Norway on the way to Jomsborg and hire a proper crew from there, calling on his friendship with the old king for help. He limited the group to five because that is all his own knarr can carry back, and he never meant to bring any of them into battle. Stunned, the girl asks whether that means Thors will go to war alone.

Thors strides through the village shouting for Thorfinn, unable to find his son before departure. He boards the longship, where the five boys man one side of the oars while he alone works a massive oar on the other. Helga and Ylva watch from the docks; Ylva frowns that Thorfinn is still sulking over yesterday's scolding. Thors fumbles to leave a message for his son, and Helga gently assures him she understands and will pass it along. Leif starts the rowing beat, and as the crowd cheers, Helga looks on with quiet sorrow.

Later, once they reach the current, Thors tells the exhausted boys to rest the oars, since the ship will now drift on its own. When someone asks if that means there is no turning back, a small voice calls him father. Thorfinn springs from a nearby barrel and dashes to the rail to relieve himself. Thors advances, plainly angry and ready to scold him, but the boy points to the open sea with such delight that his father's temper melts away.

Leif privately reveals that Thors plans to leave the five village boys safely in Norway rather than take them to war. Thors fails to find Thorfinn before departure and sets sail with only the five youths crewing. The fleet reaches the current, past the point of return. Thorfinn emerges from a barrel as a stowaway, and his awe at the sea disarms his father's anger.

Released June 22, 2005 in Volume 2, this chapter adapts into Episode 3 of the anime. It launches the voyage that defines Thorfinn's childhood, showing both Thors's quiet protectiveness toward the young recruits and the boy's fateful decision to stow away.