When the Raven Flies

In the opening scene in Ireland, Gestur's parents are killed and his sister is kidnapped during a Viking raid. Gestur is spared despite Thord's order to kill him, and the loss sets his quest for revenge in motion. The event establishes the personal stakes that drive the whole story.

Two decades pass and Gestur has grown into a solitary man who travels to Iceland to avenge his family and locate his sister. He remains nameless to most, known only as Gestur, a name that means guest. His presence is felt as a quiet threat as he begins to map out his plan.

Establishing himself from the shadows, Gestur manipulates two Viking gangs who are living in exile from Norway and King Harald Hairfair. He pits their power against each other to weaken Thord's grip and position himself for revenge. He rarely shows himself directly, revealing his killings only to Erik, Thord's fosterbrother.

Gestur slays several of Thord's men and frames Erik's gang for the killings. Thord becomes convinced that Erik is conspiring with Harald to topple him. Thord's younger brother fuels the deception, masking a larger internal power struggle.

Thord is led to believe that a conspiracy against him is underway and moves against Erik and his supporters. The younger brother's scheming hints at a coup to take Thord's position.

Thord launches a brutal assault, killing Erik and his men in a decisive strike. The attack consolidates Thord's power but leaves Gestur's plan teetering on the edge of failure.

Gestur learns that Thord is married to his long-lost sister and that they have a young son named Einar. This discovery gives Gestur a personal stake in defeating Thord.

Gestur reveals himself to his sister, who is Christian and refuses to aid any assassination plot against Thord. Her faith ties her to family memory but prevents cooperation in Gestur's plans.

Gestur secretly manipulates Thord's altar, making Thord believe the gods demand his son Einar as a sacrifice. The fear of omens drives Thord toward drastic action against his own family.

Gestur's sister reveals that he manipulated the altar, aiding his escape even as Gestur is badly wounded. He flees to Erik's grave to hide and recover, while Thord tightens the chase.

Thord decides to use Odin's ceremony as a staged ruse to lure Gestur out and to save Einar. He hopes the ritual will expose Gestur's presence and force his hand.

Mid-ceremony, Gestur appears in Erik's funeral cloth and reveals his true identity. Thord's arrows miss, and his followers mistake Gestur for Erik's vengeful ghost, causing them to flee in panic.

Secretly armored beneath his cloak, Gestur closes in and kills Thord and his brother, ending their rule and revealing his role in the massacre. The climactic kill seals his revenge.

Gestur buries his weapons and asks his sister and her son to accompany him back to Ireland, declaring that he will abandon violence and live as a Christian. His sister refuses, saying her son is old enough to have seen too much, echoing Thord's earlier choice.

In the film's final moment, Einar, Thord's son, watches Gestur with anger and digs up Gestur's buried weapons, signaling a continuation of the cycle of vengeance. Gestur departs for Ireland, leaving the immediate conflict unresolved and the threat of future violence hanging in the air.