Chapter 23
Things were finally settling down on the beach. The shouting and screaming had stopped. Bubbles and Shorty were helping Eiti back to his workshop. The other campers sat quietly along the shoreline. Crystal, Borghild, Freyja, and Lucky stood before Valfoor.
“So, what have you discovered, Freyja?” asked Valfoor in perfect English. Crystal noted that this was the first time he had spoken English in front of her.
“Lucky fixed the race, risking Crystal’s life,” she said. “She summoned the squid, then gave Borghild a wetsuit covered in squid repellent.”
“That’s ridiculous,” said Lucky, giving Borghild the evil eye. “How could I summon the squid? I am not a Sea Giant, who has control over creatures of the water.”
“Then perhaps a Sea Giant gave you a summoning bell,” said Freyja. “Crystal saw you ringing a bell in the water last night.”
“Crystal did? You’re taking her word for it? If I had a bell like that, where is it? Where would I hide it? Go ahead and search my cabin. I have nothing to hide.”
“And I suppose that you didn’t coat this wetsuit with squid repellent,” said Freyja, holding up Borghild's wetsuit.
“Of course, not. I don’t know anything about squid repellent.”
Valfoor took the wetsuit from Freyja and walked into the fjord, letting the wetsuit drag in the water next to him. He stood there for a minute, looking around. “No squid,” he said.
“No,” said Lucky. “I’m sure they were just out hunting before and have moved on by now.”
Valfoor walked back to the group and handed Freyja the wetsuit. Then he grabbed Lucky’s hand and pulled her down to the fjord. Lucky stood at the edge of the water trying to appear unruffled. But she wasn’t unruffled. Crystal noticed that Lucky was taking long, slow, relaxing breaths, attempting to look calmer than she really was.
Then Valfoor picked up Lucky, as easily as Lucky had picked up Eiti, and tossed her into the water. When she came up to the surface, Lucky looked back at Valfoor, then began to swim rapidly towards the far shore. It took about three seconds for the first squid to wrap around her arm. Then, with every stroke, more squid grabbed onto her. Soon she was covered in squid and disappeared beneath the waves.
Valfoor walked slowly back to the group once more, his head down and a grief-stricken look on his face. “Crystal, I am sorry you had to go through this. But you cannot forge a weapon without sticking it into the furnace.”
Crystal wasn’t sure what Valfoor was talking about, and frankly she didn’t care. She was watching the water. Lucky had been under for a long time. A very long time. She didn’t like Lucky, but she didn’t want her to drown, either. She did not wish to witness a murder.
Crystal was just about to turn and speak to Freyja when she saw a squid rise out of the water. Then it turned into a pile of squid rising out of the water. Then she saw it was Lucky, covered from head to toe with squid, walking slowly towards them. For some reason, there was a very dim purple glow around him, and Crystal decided the sun reflecting off squid slime must be causing it. Maybe Lucky had some squid slime on her when Crystal saw that purple flash earlier.
When Lucky finally stood in front of Valfoor, she yanked off the squid that was covering her mouth. “I know where to go,” she said and began to walk up the hill.
Yes, Crystal decided, this was a very strange summer camp.