Under Gullveig’s influence, the Ice Folk grew in power and strength. They were many in number, while the Aesir and Vanir were few. They created strongholds in the mountains, with fortresses built into the rock. They carved valleys through the glacier ice and made roads through the mountains.

Some of them moved from the Northlands into the forest of Ironwood, only a stone’s throw from Ida, the plain above which Asgard stood. They used Gullveig’s runes to shift Aspect, taking the forms of animals – snow wolves, hunting birds – to hunt and spy on their enemies. They preyed on Aesir and Vanir alike, growing in malice every day, until at last the General realized that unless they worked together, both Aesir and Vanir would fall to this new, unexpected threat.

But, after years of conflict, neither side trusted the other. How could they hope to keep the peace without assurances of faith? Odin’s solution seemed simple.

‘We’ll make an exchange,’ he told them. ‘Your people, your expertise for ours. We can learn a great deal from each other if only we cooperate. And if either side betrays the other, they’ll have a handful of hostages to deal with as they see fit.’

It seemed like a reasonable idea. The Vanir agreed to the exchange. They would give Odin the runes while he would share with them the art of war and provide them with leaders who would teach them the value of order and discipline.

And so after long discussion, the Vanir accepted to hand over Njörd, the Man of the Sea, with his children, Frey and Freyja. In exchange they got Mimir the Wise, Odin’s uncle, good friend and confidant, and a handsome young man called Honir (nicknamed ‘The Silent’ in the hope that one day he might take the hint), whom Odin had chosen, not for his skills, but precisely because he was the least likely of the Aesir to be missed when the inevitable happened.