Finnr

*"You slaves! I like your sticks. You. Good luck fending off the demon with that thing! Hungry? Tonight you are the food!"*
―Finnr[src]
**Finnr** the Nose-Stub is a follower of Fjölnir the Brotherless.

## Biography

### Murder of Aurvandil

*"I'll make it slow."*
―Finnr to Amleth[src]

Finnr is among the soldiers who accompanies Fjölnir when he ambushes his brother, King Aurvandil War Raven, outside of a temple. Aurvandil's young son, Amleth, attempts to defend his father, who tells him to run. The men bring Aurvandil down by shooting him with arrows and stabbing him with spears before Fjölnir decapitates him. Fjölnir orders his men to bring him Amleth's head and they search the forest for him.

Finnr finds Amleth and attacks him. He pins him to the ground and pulls his dagger, promising to make it slow. However, Amleth pulls out a dagger and cuts off Finn's nose before he can strike. Unable to find the boy, Finnr returns to Hrafnsey and attempts to cover up his failure by telling Fjölnir that he has killed Amleth and dropped his body in the ocean.

### Fleeing to Iceland

*"Fjölnir fled to that frontier backwater with his wife and son after King Haraldr of Norway, took his kingdom. He killed his brother for nothing, now he's a sheep farmer!"*
―Eiríkr to Amleth[src]
Finnr continues to serve Fjölnir during his kingship. However, Fjölnir is later overthrown by King Haraldr of Norway and flees to Iceland with his wife Gudrún and son Thórir. Finnr and Hallgrímr accompany them and continue to serve them as they set up a farm in Freysdalur, where Fjölnir and Gudrún later welcome a son, Gunnar.

### Delivering Slaves

*"Let him rot, the seagulls will eat him, if they’re hungry. MOVE SWINE!!!!"*
―Finnr to the slaves[src]

Years later, Finnr and Hallgrímr travel to the coast and collect a shipment of slaves who have been sent to Iceland from the Land of the Rus. He sees a slave who has drowned and orders for him to be left behind for the seagulls to eat. He orders the slaves to move, inhaling deeply and shooting a ball of mucus at them. He and Hallgrímr shackle the slaves together and set off on horseback while the slaves follow on foot.

Once they reach the farm, Hallgrímr alerts Fjölnir that his shipment has arrived. They order the slaves to their feet and and line up, allowing Fjölnir to inspect them. One of the slaves, Björnulfr, catches Fjölnir's attention and the chieftain decides to keep him.

The next day, Finnr and Hallgrímr see another slave, Olga, talking to Björnulfr and order her to come with her, as Fjölnir wants her close. They then drag her away.

### The Chieftain's Feast

Later that night, Finnr and several others meets with Fjölnir and they discuss the Chieftain's Feast, which is due to take place the next day. Fjölnir tells of his plan to beat the slaves of Hákon Iron-Beard in a game of knattleikr. He states that Thórir will select their strongest slaves, who will prove that Hákon's men are born of mud and water. Fjölnir's dog, Rakki, begins to bark and they search for the cause, but Fjölnir orders them to take Rakki home and get themselves to bed, as it is nearly dawn. Finnr and Hallgrímr return Rakki to the longhouse before going to bed.

The next day as they prepare to leave for the feast, Thórir approaches Björnulfr and asks if he can fight. Once he replies that he can, Thórir orders Finnr to place him with the other slaves due to take part in the game of knattleikr.

### Murders at Freysdalur

*"Is Thórir right? Could it be the Christian swines? Their god is a corpse nailed to a tree."*
―Finnr[src]

One morning, Thórir's friends, Hersveinn Battle Hard and Hjalti Battle Hasty, are found murdered and dismembered, their bodies nailed to the barn in the shape of Sleipnir. Thórir promises bloody revenge on those responsible and accuses the Christian slaves. He begins attacking them and on Fjölnir's orders, Hallgrímr and Finnr restrain him. Fjölnir calms his son and promises that his friends will be avenged. He then orders Hallgrímr to remove him and he leads the tearful Thórir away.

Finnr asks if Thórir is right, as the Christian's god is a corpse nailed to a tree. Fjölnir dismisses the idea, saying that Hersveinn and Hjalti never harmed them and Gudrún wondering where they would find weapons. The temple priestess, Áshildur Hofgythja, examines at corpses and determines that they were killed by supernatural means and a sacrifice must be performed to sate the spirit. Finnr then orders the slaves back to their duties.

Later that night, howling is heard in the distance. It drives the dogs mad and causes them to attacks their owners, who kill them in self-defence. Hallgrímr and Finnr accompany Fjölnir and Thórir to the temple, where they find Áshildur bound and gagged and her assistant, Hallur Freymundur, castrated and disemboweled. On Fjölnir's orders, they free Áshildur from her binds.

The next night, Finnr mocks the now armed slaves, stating that they will not be able to fight off a demon. He eats the dinner served by the female slaves, telling the male slaves that they will be eaten that night. However, he begins to experience horrific visions. Consumed by terror, he screams, runs and rolls on the ground.

### Thórir's Murder

The next morning, Thórir is discovered to have been murdered with his heart cut out. Finnr orders the slaves to their knees as, at Gudrún's urging, Fjölnir begins killing them, demanding to know which of them aided in his son's murder. As he prepares to kill Olga, Björnulfr appears and offers the return of Thórir's heart in exchange for her life. He reveals that he is Amleth and declares his intention to avenge his father's death. They attack him and he fights back until they overpower him. He suggests that it may instead be the heart of a rabid dog killed two nights before. Fjölnir suspends him in the barn, beats and questions him, but he does not reveal the location of Thórir's heart. Finnr attempts to unsheath Amleth's sword, but is unsuccessful and throws it down in frustration. They return to the barn after Thórir's funeral, but find him gone.

### Death

*"The cub you once hunted ate of your nose. Now the wolf is grown. He hungers for the rest."*
―Amleth to Finnr[src]

Several nights later, Amleth returns to the farm under cover of darkness. As his fellow soldiers are slaughtered, Finnr attempts to hide, only for Amleth to find him. Pinning him against a wall, he tells Finnr that the cub he once hunted ate of his nose, but now the wolf has grown and hungers for the rest. He plunges his sword into Finnr's nasal cavity and out the back of his head, killing him.

## Personality

*"Fjölnir! Fjölnir, my lord. Th' b-oy! Th' b-oy...Th' b-oy is dea-dd ...Dea-dd 'n the sea. He sank like a stone."*
―Finnr[src]
Finnr puts up the facade of a dominant and fearsome warrior, giving orders to slaves and mocking them. However, he is really a coward, as shown when he lies to Fjölnir about killing Amleth in order to avoid punishment. He continues his cowardly ways later in life and attempts to flee from an adult Amleth before dying in terror.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Eggers, Robert; Sjón, *The Northman*, Focus Features, USA, April 22, 2022