Emily Windsnap and the Land of the Midnight Sun

  “What makes you so sure?” I demanded.

  “I know Njord’s methods. Before he was turned to ice, my folk followed his movements for many generations. He doesn’t play by the rules; he makes up his own as he goes along — and believe me, they are dirty. Neptune doesn’t stand a chance.”

  Millie edged closer to the railing and knelt down. “So . . . so you mean, all this time, all the secrets . . . it’s all been to support Neptune?”

  Archie edged closer and looked up into her eyes. “Totally. I just couldn’t tell you any of this before, as our operation is the most secret one there is. Even Neptune doesn’t know about it.”

  “Why not?” I asked. I wasn’t completely ready to let go of my suspicions yet.

  “Can you imagine how he’d feel if he knew there was an elite group whose sole aim was to keep him from harm? How would his ego cope with that?” Archie replied. “Besides, Neptune deliberately took away his own memories. How could I reveal the truth without reminding him of everything he had chosen to forget? It would have destroyed him.”

  “But now you’re saying Njord will kill him?” I said.

  “Not if we can help it.” Archie turned back to Millie. “Darling, I’m sorry about the way this has all come out. I know that the manner of our getting together might have had more to do with my work than anything else — but everyone knows that you became more than work to me. You are my sunrise, my full moon, my —”

  “I forgive you!” Millie exclaimed, blowing a kiss down to him. “I understand. Oh, darling, you are still my hero.”

  Archie beamed and blew a kiss back to Millie.

  I had to confess, his story did sound plausible. There was just one thing still troubling me. “Why did you need to keep an eye on me in the first place?” I asked.

  “From your first speech in Neptune’s court, we knew that you were someone with the potential to help,” Archie said. “Someone we might need if Neptune ever came to be in real danger. And you turned out to be more valuable than we had ever dreamed.”

  “You mean because Aaron and I found the rings and got Neptune’s power?”

  “Exactly. After that, we knew that if Neptune’s power was ever taken away, we still had you to save him from whatever threat he was facing.”

  “Which was why you were so keen to help us get our power back, once we’d lost it,” Aaron put in.

  Archie met his eyes, and then mine. “Exactly,” he said. “I didn’t know if it would work, but I knew it was worth a try.”

  My head was spinning. I didn’t know what to think anymore.

  “My whole life has been leading up to this moment,” Archie said. “You have to help Neptune, your king. And you have to believe me.”

  Aaron looked at me, and I nodded. Archie was telling the truth — I could see that now. He was desperate to keep Neptune out of trouble. I couldn’t doubt him anymore. And he was right about something else — we had to help.

  “We believe you,” Aaron said.

  “Oh, my Archie, my brave, clever darling,” Millie squealed. “I’m so proud of you!”

  Archie smiled broadly at all of us, the relief plain on his face. “Thank goodness,” he said. “OK, listen. There’s no time to waste. Millie, wait for me. I will come back for you. Emily and Aaron, come and join me down here and let me tell you my plan.”

  “I’ve been thinking hard about this, and there’s only one way to do it,” Archie said, once Aaron and I had gotten off the ship and joined him in the water. “We have to get the narwhal to take away both Neptune’s and Njord’s memories. If neither of them can remember ever falling out, they can rule the seas between them — and no one needs to die.”

  “That sounds like a good plan. How do we do it?” asked Aaron.

  Archie turned to me. “You can hear the narwhal’s thoughts, can’t you?”

  “How did you know?”

  “I saw you. When it came back. You spoke to it, didn’t you?”

  I nodded. “I spoke to him.”

  “As I thought. It will be up to you, then.”

  “What do you want her to do? I’m not letting you put her in any danger,” Aaron warned — which was kind of sweet, but also kind of not really his decision.

  “Just tell me what I have to do,” I said.

  “Take the narwhal to Neptune while he’s sleeping. Tell him to pierce the king’s thoughts as he did before; tell him to take away all the memories of his argument with his brother. After that, we must take away our memories of all these events as well.”

  “What about Millie?” I asked.

  “Hers too. We shall bring the narwhal to meet her at the shoreline and do it there.”

  “And Njord?” I asked. “Do I have to take the narwhal to him, too?” I couldn’t help a shiver running through me as I thought about that. How was I going to face him? Did Archie expect me to creep up on him and double-cross him while he slept? I didn’t think I could do it.

  “Just tell the narwhal to listen to my instructions on that. I will take him to Njord. It’s far too dangerous for you to attempt it.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

  “OK, let’s get on with it,” Aaron said. “The sooner we get started, the sooner we —”

  “There’s one more thing.” Archie looked uncomfortable.

  “What?” I asked.

  “I haven’t told you what you have to do next.” He looked awkward now, turning away and refusing to meet my eyes.

  I was worried now. “What?”

  “You have to take the narwhal away,” he said.

  Why had he found that so difficult to say? “Fine, just let me know where I need to take him and I’ll do that.”

  Archie finally met my eyes. “Emily, you have to lead him to his death.”

  No one spoke for a moment. I think we all assumed we’d heard wrong. “Say that again?” I murmured at last.

  “You heard right,” Archie said. “We have to take away all of our memories and make sure that they never come back. And that’s the only way.”

  “I won’t do it.”

  “Emily, you have to. Otherwise, this battle between the brothers will go on forever. And I promise you, it won’t end well for Neptune.”

  I was about to argue, but then I heard a voice.

  Do it.

  I looked around. A familiar shape was coming closer: the narwhal.

  Do what he says. He is right — it is the only way.

  “No! I can’t do it; you’ve done nothing wrong. It’s not fair!”

  Please, do not worry about me. I am prepared to lay down my life for Neptune. It would be an honor. Please. We have no choice.

  I turned to Archie and, eventually, I nodded. Let him think I would do it, but I knew in my heart that I wouldn’t let the narwhal die — I couldn’t. I had no idea how I would stop it — but I’d think of something. I had to.

  I watched as the narwhal took away Neptune’s memories. Holding his tusk against Neptune’s forehead, sparks and colors silently flowed around them while Neptune slept — unaware of any of it.

  When it was over, I followed the narwhal along the dark tunnels that led to the place where Archie had told us to meet him.

  “Is it done?” Archie asked.

  I nodded.

  “Everyone?”

  “Everyone,” I confirmed. “There’s just you, me, and Njord to go.”

  “Well done. I’ll take the narwhal to Njord now. I will get him to remove Njord’s memories and then my own. Meet me back here in twenty minutes. Bear in mind, when I see you again, I won’t remember why we’re here. Put your faith in the narwhal. He’ll lead you where you need to go.”

  “I’ll be waiting for you,” I said. “Please, be quick.”

  Archie nodded, and then he turned and swam away. I watched as he and the narwhal disappeared into the pitch darkness of the tunnel.

  Twenty minutes later, they were back.

  “Hey, Emily! How did you get here?” Archie sai
d, all smiles.

  “You told me to meet you,” I replied. “I’m exactly where I was the last time I saw you!”

  Archie looked at me quizzically. “Huh? The last time I saw you was in Brightport!”

  Wow! This was really it, then. The narwhal had taken away Archie’s memory. A shiver ran through me. It was all down to me now; I was the only one who knew the truth of all this.

  “Oh, yes, ha, ha,” I said. “Just kidding. I’m here on vacation. How about you?”

  “Official duties. I’m here with Neptune. Don’t even ask me why — I have no idea! I think he just felt like a trip north.”

  Just then, the narwhal swam out from behind Archie.

  “Wow, a narwhal!” Archie breathed. “You don’t often see them. They’re extremely rare, you know.”

  “Really?” I said in my best well-I-had-no-idea-about-that-at-all voice.

  The narwhal swam over and nuzzled against me.

  “It likes you.” Archie nudged a thumb in the direction of Neptune’s quarters. “Anyway, nice to see you. I’d better go and check on the boss.”

  With that, he was gone, and I was left in the dark tunnel with only the narwhal and the awful knowledge of my task for company — the task that I promised myself I would not do, no matter what happened.

  The narwhal and I swam off together. The worst of it was that he seemed to know the way. He knew exactly where he had to go in order to face his own death. Well, he might be resigned to his fate, but I still wasn’t. I would think of a way around it — I swore it.

  We swam past weird see-through creatures with long feathery legs and filaments sparkling all around their bodies. We swam past rocks covered in pale-yellow shrubs and big green plants that looked like giant cabbages. We swam past a shoal of fish so big it turned the sea black as it came toward us. On and on we swam, until the surroundings began to feel familiar.

  We were in the tunnels Shona and I had used when we came out of Njord’s mountain with the narwhal the first time — the ones that led to the deep pool that Njord and his guards didn’t even know about.

  The ones that no one knew about.

  That was it! The perfect solution!

  I kicked hard with my tail and caught up with the narwhal. “Stop! I’ve got an idea. We don’t have to do this!”

  The narwhal turned and raised his head.

  “Take me to the secret pool at the end of these tunnels,” I said. “No one knows about it. I could leave you there.”

  The narwhal didn’t move. Did he understand what I was saying? He tilted his head to the side, as if he were trying to communicate with me — but still he didn’t say anything. “Take me to the pool,” I said again. “Please.”

  The narwhal didn’t move for a moment. And then he bowed his head, turned, and led the way.

  Together, we swam in silence through secret tunnels, through dark crevices and hairline cracks, to the biggest secret at the very heart of Njord’s mountain.

  I put my arms around the narwhal’s head and kissed the top of his tusk. “Will you be all right down here, all on your own?”

  The narwhal nodded. I guessed he must have been too choked up to speak. I almost was, myself.

  “Hide here for a bit: a few days, maybe a week, just to be sure,” I said. “Once Neptune and Njord are friends again and this is all over, they’ll leave here and you can come out again. You’ll be free.”

  I looked into his tiny black eyes, stroked his speckly gray head. He looked beautiful — and sad. His eyes seemed to be saying something, but still he wouldn’t speak.

  “Stay safe,” I said. He pressed his head against mine. I kissed his forehead. “It’s time. Take all my memories away.” I stumbled on my words as the tears clogged up my throat. “Make sure you remove them all, so there’s no chance that I can ever betray you.”

  My tears were flowing freely now. And then I noticed — I wasn’t the only one crying.

  I reached out to wipe a tear from the narwhal’s eye. He turned away from me, probably embarrassed that I’d seen him cry. As he turned, I felt something happening in my hand. I looked down.

  The narwhal’s tear had hardened and turned into a crystal! It sparkled and glowed in my palm. I quickly closed my fingers around it and shoved it into my pocket. Once the narwhal had taken my memories away, I wouldn’t know what it was — but even if it would no longer remind me of him, at least I’d get to keep something beautiful from having known him.

  I gave him one final hug. “Bye,” I whispered. Then I curled my tail around, lowered my head, closed my eyes, and waited for him to touch me with his tusk.

  A moment later, I felt a tiny scratch and a dull pressure on my forehead.

  “I’ll never forget you,” I said — even though I knew I was wrong. As soon as the magic took effect and I was out of here, I would forget him. That was the whole point.

  The midnight sun shone down on me as I swam back to the ship. I was so tired. Imagine choosing to come out in the middle of the night for a swim! I laughed to myself, flipped my tail, and dived underwater.

  Shaking my tail dry, I sat on the pebbly beach near the harbor, waiting for my legs to come back. Then I headed back to the ship and made my way to my cabin.

  Millie was in bed already, asleep and snoring as usual. As I undressed for bed, something fell from my jacket. I bent down to pick it up. What was this? It looked like some sort of crystal. As I held it in my hand, it sparkled and shone, sprinkling light around the cabin. Where on earth had this come from?

  I shoved it in my drawer. I was too tired to do anything about it now. All I wanted to do was get some sleep.

  I’d think about the crystal in the morning.

  “Emily, wake up!”

  I pried an eye open. Millie was leaning over me, shaking me by the arm.

  “Oh, good, you’re awake,” she said, smiling brightly. “Come on, let’s go.”

  “Go where?”

  “Breakfast. First sitting. And then we’re off with Archie. He’s sending a boat for us. Says he’s got a treat for us before the ship moves on.”

  “Swishy!” I jumped out of bed, got dressed, and followed Millie down to breakfast.

  “So, kids. What do you feel like doing today?” Mr. Beeston asked as he spread a thick layer of marmalade on his toast. “Captain says we’ll be moving off this afternoon, now that the storms finally seem to have passed.”

  “Millie says Archie’s got a treat for us,” I said.

  “Sounds good to me.” Mr. Beeston wiped his mouth. He had a bit of marmalade on his chin, but I didn’t point it out. “Everyone enjoying the trip?”

  “Totally!” Aaron said.

  “Absolutely!” I added.

  “Couldn’t be better,” Millie said as she sipped her tea.

  I wolfed down my breakfast as quickly as I could. I couldn’t wait to find out what kind of surprise Archie had in store for us.

  Half an hour later, we were in a small bay, around the headland and out of sight of the ship. Millie sat in a little boat, leaning over the side to kiss and cuddle with Archie. He grinned up at her. Honestly, those two — could they ever give it a rest?

  Aaron and I were in the water with Mr. Beeston. Shona had joined us, too. She’d gone on vacation here as well, so she could be near us.

  It wasn’t long before we saw something coming toward us. Something very familiar. Neptune! What was he doing here?

  He was in his chariot — and there was someone else with him. Wait — was I seeing double? The other person was the image of Neptune!

  They rode toward us, both grinning broadly and talking animatedly.

  Neptune slipped from the chariot and held out a hand toward his mirror image. “I would like to introduce you to someone very special,” he said. “This is my twin brother.”

  His what?

  “My long-lost, beloved brother, Njord.” He turned to his brother. “We haven’t seen each other in . . . how long is it, now?”

  “I can’t r
emember,” the mirror image — Njord — replied.

  Neptune burst out laughing. “Neither can I! And what’s more, I don’t care, either! What I care about is that you’re here now. And that deserves a celebration.”

  Njord got out of the chariot and put an arm around Neptune. “My dear brother,” he said, smiling. “I couldn’t agree more. Let’s have a party!”

  Neptune thrust his trident in the air. “A party — that’s exactly what we’ll have! I order it! Midday, everyone back here. We will celebrate in style.”

  And with that, the two brothers got back in the chariot and rode off, talking, laughing, and slapping each other on the back all the way.

  “Wow, Archie certainly knows how to plan a treat,” Aaron said.

  “Doesn’t he just. I can’t wait for the party,” I agreed.

  “Nice thing to do before we carry on with the trip,” Mr. Beeston added.

  “Come on,” Aaron said, flicking water at me with his tail as he turned and began to swim away. “Race you back to the ship.”

  We swam along together, laughing and splashing each other. This vacation really was turning out to be the trip of a lifetime.

  Once we got back to the ship, I went to my cabin to get ready for the party. I caught sight of myself in the mirror — my hair was in a terrible state! I opened my drawer, looking for my brush.

  What was that?

  The inside of my drawer was glowing. It looked like a light flowing through a kaleidoscope. White smoke, swirling and curling, filling the whole drawer with a flickering, dancing light. It seemed to be coming from something at the back of the drawer. I reached inside and felt around. My fingers closed around something hard: a crystal. I vaguely remembered putting it in my drawer last night, but I had no idea where I’d gotten it from.

  As I held it in my palm, I got a really weird feeling. I couldn’t put my finger on it — what was it? It felt like sadness, but there was more than that, too. A strong feeling of — of what? I know it sounds stupid, but it felt like family — like someone I loved was saying my name. I turned the crystal over and over in my hand.

  The longer I held it, the more it pulled at me.