Here begins the tale, and tells of a man who
was named Sigi, and called of men the son of Odin; another man withal
is told of in the tale, hight Skadi, a great man and mighty of his hands;
yet was Sigi the mightier and the higher of kin, according to the speech
of men of that time. Now Skadi had a thrall with whom the story must deal
somewhat, Bredi by name, who was called after that work which he had to
do; in prowess and might of hand he was equal to men who were held more
worthy, yea, and better than some thereof.
Now it is to be told that, on a time, Sigi fared to
the hunting of the deer, and the thrall with him; and they hunted deer
day- long till the evening; and when they gathered together their prey
in the evening, lo, greater and more by far was that which Bredi had
slain than Sigi's prey; and this thing he much misliked, and he said
that great wonder it was that a very thrall should out-do him in the
hunting of deer: so he fell on him and slew him, and buried the body
of him thereafter in a snow-drift.
Then he went home at evening tide and says that Bredi
had ridden away from him into the wild-wood. "Soon was he out of my
sight," he says, "and naught more I wot of him."
Skadi misdoubted the tale of Sigi, and deemed that this
was a guile of his, and that he would have slain Bredi. So he sent men
to seek for him, and to such an end came their seeking, that they found
him in a certain snow-drift; then said Skadi, that men should call that
snow-drift Bredi's Drift from henceforth; and thereafter have folk followed,
so that in such wise they call every drift that is right great.
Thus it is well seen that Sigi has slain the thrall
and murdered him; so he is given forth to be a wolf in holy places,
(1) and may no more abide in the land with his father; therewith Odin
bare him fellowship from the land, so long a way, that right long it
was, and made no stay till he brought him to certain war- ships. So
Sigi falls to lying out a-warring with the strength that his father
gave him or ever they parted; and happy was he in his warring, and ever
prevailed, till he brought it about that he won by his wars land and
lordship at the last; and thereupon he took to him a noble wife, and
became a great and mighty king, and ruled over the land of the Huns,
and was the greatest of warriors. He had a son by his wife, who was
called Refit, who grew up in his father's house, and soon became great
of growth, and shapely.