the fleet gained twenty ships from Orkney, the latter three versions state that the fleet numbered twenty when it left Orkney. Once in the Isles, the fleet linked up with the three other members of the Meic Somairle on Islay. According to the saga, the Meic Somairle held a feast for the Norwegians. That night, whilst Donnchad slept on board with Óspakr, the Norwegians are stated to have attacked Dubgall and Somairle, killing the latter amongst many others. Once Óspakr became aware of the attack, the source states that he allowed Donnchad to escape, and took Dubgall under his protection. One possibility is that Donnchad's escape was enabled as in an attempt to retain the Meic Dubgaill's dual allegiance to the Norwegian and Scottish Crowns. Another possibility is that Óspakr's Meic Somairle kinsmen were suspected of attempting to sabotage the operation. Certainly, Donnchad's later career reveals him to have ingratiated himself to the Scottish cause. There are two conspicuous Meic Somairle absentees from Óspakr's campaign. One such man was Ruaidrí mac Ragnaill, who seems to have been driven from Kintyre by Alexander II, King of Scotland in the 1220s. One explanation for Ruaidrí's nonappearance may be his possible participation in the near-concurrent insurrection of the Meic Uilleim claimants to the Scottish throne. Ruaidrí's younger brother, Domnall, is likewise unattested, although this may have been due to the fact that he seems to have come to an accommodation with the Scottish king in the wake of Ruaidrí's expulsion, and to have owed his lordship in Kintyre to Alexander's good will. If correct, the Norwegian muster off Islay, and the ravaging of surrounding territories, may be indicative of an attempt by Óspakr to overawe Domnall. News of the gathering Norwegian fleet soon reached Alexander II, who appears to have made straight for the western coast, diverting his attention to the now rapidly developing crisis. On 28 May, Alan is recorded in Alexander II's presence at Ayr, where the Scottish royal forces appear to have assembled. It was probably May or June when Óspakr's fleet rounded the Mull of Kintyre, entered the Firth of Clyde, and made landfall on Bute, where his forces successfully stormed and captured a fortress that is almost certainly identical to Rothesay Castle. The Flateyjarbók, Frísbók, and Skálholtsbók versions of the saga specify that the castle fell after three days of battle, and that three hundred Norwegians and Islesmen