The Voice Of The Wind

"The Man Who Came Early."

When Gerald, losing a fight with Viking weapons, draws his gun and shoots his opponent dead:

"A stillness came, where only the wind and the sea had voice." (p. 209)

Yet again, in a Poul Anderson work, the wind comments on the action.

Leaving Ospak's household, Gerald stays with a crofter. If he had known to declare the killing, then he would have been safe at least until the Thing had decided on the matter. However, keeping it secret makes him immediately a murderer and outlaw. As soon as it is known where he is, he is hunted down and fights till his gun gives out, then is cut down while defending himself with a dead man's sword.

Ospak had to withdraw his support for Gerald in order to prevent a feud between his family and that of the man whom Gerald had killed. We see the limitations of the Icelandic legal system.

We know of two time travelers killed in combat and buried in barrows: Stane and Gerald Samsson.