The gods wanted to have a grand feast. Everyone was coming. Everyone was going to eat and drink and have a wonderful time. Ægir, who lived by the sea, promised to brew ale for the whole party. He was the best brewer in all nine worlds. The only problem was that his cauldron was too small.
"I need a really big cauldron," said Ægir. "One so large you can stand inside it and not reach the rim." Tyr, who was brave and clever, knew where to find such a cauldron. His stepfather Hymir, a large and grumpy giant far away in Jötunheimr, had exactly that kind. "We can fetch it," said Tyr. "I will come along," said Thor at once, because Thor always came along.
They walked through mountains and forests and arrived at Hymir's hall. It was big and cold and covered in frost. Tyr's mother opened the door and smiled when she saw them, but her smile quickly turned worried. "Hymir will be home soon," she said. "And he does not like surprises. Hide behind the cauldrons on the wall and I will tell him about you once he has eaten."
Thor and Tyr crept behind the cauldrons. When Hymir came home he was so angry that his stare cracked the beam in the ceiling. Every cauldron fell down. Crash and clatter. All of them broke, except the very biggest and strongest one. It rolled out onto the floor and stopped. "Hm," said Hymir, staring at Thor and Tyr. Tyr's mother put out food and Hymir calmed down a little.
At dinner Thor ate so much that Hymir was absolutely astonished. Hymir decided they would go fishing the next day. They rowed out in Hymir's boat, far out on the dark sea. Thor cast his fishing hook, and something enormous bit. He pulled and pulled. The boat rocked. The sea bubbled. A huge serpent lifted its head from the water and stared at them with glowing eyes. It was Jörmungandr, the great sea serpent that lies coiled around all of Midgard.
Thor was strong and held on, but Hymir was so frightened that he cut the fishing line. The serpent sank back into the deep. Thor was disappointed, but he knew the important thing was the cauldron. They rowed back to shore.
"Now we take the cauldron," said Thor. He went into the hall, lifted the enormous cauldron and placed it upside down on his head like a great hat. It was so big it hung down to his feet. Tyr could barely see him underneath it. "Time to go," said Thor, and his voice echoed inside the cauldron.
They walked and walked. Behind them they heard Hymir shouting, and other giants too, but Thor set down the cauldron, turned around, and raised his hammer Mjölnir. The giants looked at the hammer. They looked at Thor. They decided to go home.
Thor and Tyr carried the cauldron all the way back to Ægir. Ægir was so happy that he started brewing at once. It smelled of honey and malt all through Asgard. And that evening the gods held the finest feast anyone can remember, with ale brewed in a cauldron that two friends had fetched together, far away from a grumpy giant who was never invited.