soms! Lo, how the lonely lands
Are waving with the harvest that fell from my gathering hands!"

Scorning this prediction, Loki hastened to the rescue of his
fellow-gods; but, as the otter-skin stretched further and further, it
required not only all the treasure, but even the helmet and the
serpent ring of gold, to cover it and thus complete the required
ransom.

The new owner of the treasure now gloated over his gold until his very
nature changed, and he was transformed into a hideous dragon. One of
his two remaining sons, Fafnir, entering the hut, slew the dragon
before he realized it was his father, and then, fascinated by treasure
and ring, bore them off to a lonely heath, where in the guise of a
dragon he too mounted guard over them. This appropriation of these
treasures was keenly resented by his brother Regin, who, unable to
cope with the robber himself, now begged Sigurd to help him. Like
Mimer in the other version of the tale, Regin was an experienced
blacksmith, but, notwithstanding all his skill, Sigurd broke every
blade he forged for this task. Finally the young hero hammered out of
the fragments of his dead father's blade a weapon which sheared the
anvil in two, and could neatly divide a number of fleeces floating
down a stream.

Properly mounted and armed, Sigurd was guided by Regin to the
Glittering Heath, the place where Fafnir guarded his gold. A one-eyed
ferry-man (Odin) conveyed the youth across the river, advising him to
dig a pit in the track the dragon had worn in his frequent trips to
the river to drink. Hidden in this pit--the ferry-man explained--the
youth could mortally wound the dragon while he crawled over his head.

This advice being too pertinent to be scorned, Sigurd faithfully
carried out the plan and slew the dragon, whose fiery blood poured
down upon him and made every part of his body invulnerable, save a
tiny spot between his shoulders, where a lime-leaf stuck so closely
that the dragon blood did not touch the skin.

While Sigurd was still contemplating the fallen monster, Regin joined
him, and, fearing lest he might claim part of the gold, plotted to
slay him. First, he bade Sigurd cut out the heart of the dragon and
roast it for him, a task which the youth obediently performed, but in
the course of which he stuck a burnt finger in his mouth to allay the
smart. This taste of Fafnir's heart blood then and there conferred
upon Sigurd the power to understand the language of some