Hail Hrothgar!

Hail Hrothgar!
Higlac is my cousin and my king; the days
Of my youth have been filled with glory.  Now Grendel’s
Name has echoed in our land: sailors
Have brought us stories of Herot, the best
Of all Mead-halls, deserted and useless when the moon
Hangs in the skies the sun had lit,
Light and life fleeing together.
My people have said, the wisest, most knowing
And best of them, that my duty was to go to the Danes'
Great king. They have seen my strength for themselves,
Have watched me rise from the darkness of war,
Dripping with my enemies' blood. I drove
Five great giants into chains, chased
All of that race from the earth. I swam
In the blackness of night, hunting monsters
Out of the ocean, and killing them one
By one; death was my errand and the fate
They had earned. Now Grendel and I are called
Together, and I've come.