Chapter 29
Freyja met Crystal and Freckles at the cabin door. She reached up to her necklace and pulled off one of the rectangles, then touched it to Crystal’s throat. A gold chain quickly grew out of the rectangle and circled the Crystal’s neck. She was now wearing a gold necklace, just like the other four girls in the cabin.
“What about Freckles? Where is her necklace?” asked Crystal. Freckles looked downward and scuffed her feet in the dirt.
“Not now,” said Freyja. “We each get what we need when we need it.”
Crystal could see the hurt on her friend’s face. “Freyja, you need to tell us what is going on, now.”
Freyja gave Freckles a sympathetic look and then smiled. “Yes, I do owe you some explanation. The other girls too.” She opened the cabin door and called, “Come on girls, let’s all go to breakfast. Valfoor and I have some announcements to make. Be sure to remain in the hall, even when Valfoor excuses everyone else.”
Without saying another word, Freyja turned and began walking to the Great Hall. Five ravens circled overhead as the girls followed Freyja. There was no discussion between the campers; even Bubbles kept quiet. The time for wild guesses about the camp’s purpose was over.
Breakfast proceeded as normal, except that Lucky was missing and Eiti had two black eyes. The grown-ups got their food, and then the campers got theirs. When the first camper stood to leave, Valfoor rose and began to speak, as he sometimes did when he had announcements.
Valfoor spoke in Swedish, so Crystal leaned in towards Freckles. “What is he saying?”
“He told everyone that they are still asleep, and breakfast has been a dream. We were told to go back to our cabins and lay down until the sun rises twice more.”
Crystal looked on with amazement as girls and the counselors from every other cabin stood in unison and started to leave the hall. Freckles stood and yawned, then quietly said to Crystal, “I didn’t make the cut. I couldn’t bond with a horse. But it’s okay, Crystal. I knew I wasn’t brave enough for something like this, anyway.”
Crystal wanted to grab Freckles hand and make her stay. She wanted to scream at Valfoor that his decision wasn't fair. But one look from Freyja told her that she needed to be quiet and listen.
When the other girls and counselors were outside, Helga and five additional women who worked at the camp emerged from the kitchen and sat down at the head table. Valfoor resumed speaking, this time in English.
“You all know that this is not your average summer camp. If you didn’t know that you’d be heading back to your cabin to sleep for the next forty-eight hours.
“Ragnarok, the end of the world as we know it, is approaching. If we allow it to happen the Fire Giant, Surt, will drag his flaming sword across the sky and incinerate the planet. Smoke and ash will blot out the sky, darkness will descend, and the earth will be plunged into the “Great Winter.” Most of the life on earth, including all of mankind, will be exterminated.”
Odin looked at Crystal and her teammates, making sure they were taking this seriously. “The remaining Gods, or at least some of the remaining Gods, have honored their pledge and returned to the Earth to prevent this from happening. If we succeed, then Ragnarok will be delayed at least for another century. If we fail, then we all die, Gods and men alike. Our fate is now merged with yours.”
The other girls from Freyja’s cabin began to whisper to each other, but Crystal remained focused on Odin.
“Fifteen hundred years ago a band of human warriors helped the Gods slay Jormungand, the mighty sea Kraken that triggers Ragnarok. And for fifteen hundred years the Giants have been trying to discover how we slaughtered the monster, and to find a way to bring it back. They are on the verge of success.
“I know that you are young girls, who have only experienced a small slice of life. But without your purity and your determination, we will be unable to defeat the Giants and return the Kraken to its unholy grave. Without your willingness to risk your lives in this heroic battle, all of mankind, including you and your families, will be destroyed.”
When Odin returned to his seat, Freyja looked over at Helga and the other five women and said, “Valkyries, stay with Odin. We must prepare for battle and be in place by six o’clock tomorrow morning.” She then turned to the girls from her cabin and commanded, “Shield Maidens, follow Eiti and me. You can ask any question you may have while we prepare; there is no time for questions now.”
Freyja and Eiti walked out the front door with Blondie, Shorty, Bubbles, Pumpkin, and Crystal following them. The girls whispered amongst themselves, sharing theories about what was actually happening.
Pumpkin thought this was some sort of initiation ritual that new campers had to go through. Blondie thought that Odin and Freyja were master criminals who were going use the girls in a robbery. Bubbles was worried that everything they had been told was true and they really were going to fight Giants and monsters. Shorty hoped that Bubbles was right but figured this would turn into some sort of competition between cabins.
Crystal believed Odin completely. She walked along quietly, thinking about Freya, Rayna, her family, and the Viking boat at the bottom of the fjord. She looked back at all of the stupid things she had done in her life and realized she might not have enough time left to fix those mistakes. All she could do was learn from them and try to live the rest of her life with honor.