As Harald’s fleet races toward a village under attack, Freya sees three black-and-yellow Islunder drakkar on the beach and realizes the Nordelanders are undermanned because many of Harald’s warriors died in Helheim. Bjorn’s easy banter with Tora and Skade deepens Freya’s resentment, because it reveals that his ties to Harald’s people are older and closer than she wanted to believe. When Harald asks whether Freya will fight for him, Freya refuses, making clear that she will not use her power for Nordeland.

The Nordelanders begin their landing anyway. Skade kills one of the beach guards, but Bjorn suddenly warns that the wet sand means danger. An Islunder child of Njord has summoned a whale, and the creature heaves Harald’s drakkar into the air and overturns it, throwing Freya and the others into the sea. At the same time, the beach battle turns deadly as Arkyn, the Islunder lightning-wielder, blasts through Nordelander warriors.

In the water, Freya finds Tora unconscious and injured. Although Freya’s anger tells her to leave Tora behind because Tora killed Bodil, Freya chooses to save her instead. When a pod of black-and-white, sharp-toothed whales attacks, Freya calls on Hlin and shields both herself and Tora with magic. The whales cannot break through the protection, but their repeated attacks keep Freya trapped, and the pair drift farther from shore.

As Freya struggles to keep both of them afloat, she becomes enraged that the Islunder sea-magic user is forcing innocent creatures to kill, reminding her of Vragi’s cruelty. Tora regains awareness and understands that the whales are not trying to tear through the shield so much as drown them by driving them out to sea. Tora insists they must kill the whales to survive, but Freya refuses because the animals are not at fault. Faced with drowning and unable to see another escape, Freya finally yields and removes her magic from Tora’s hands, knowing she may be allowing the slaughter of creatures she believes are innocent.