Stormchildren: The Beginning

Chapter 9: Strategies

I had a dreamless sleep, and in the morning, the situation with Jayce was still on my mind. Since I was running late and didn't want to find out what happens if you're late, I quickly got dressed and rushed out of the room. In the hallway, I bumped into Diana, who looked even more stressed than I felt. Her blonde hair looked like she had just gotten out of bed. She flinched in surprise and muttered, "Sorry, didn't see you there."

I grinned at her and said, "Good morning, Diana. Do you live in the room next door?"

She nodded. "Yep, I'm sharing a room with Lea. She's already gone ahead. But if we still want to grab something to eat, we need to hurry. In 15 minutes, we have training with our weapons, followed by shooting practice."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"We have a holo on our nightstand. You just need to tap it, and it projects our schedule," she explained.

"I didn't know that. Thank you." She turned to look at me and asked, "Who are you sharing a room with, anyway?"

"I was supposed to be with a guy named Jayce, but he was selected for the Sentinels' pilot school on the Moon. So now, I'm alone in a room." Diana's eyes lit up. "Really? Wow, Sentinels' pilots are super rare. Did you know that? They have to pass countless tests because the strain of controlling such a machine is immense. I've never heard of anyone making it all the way to the Moon. He's really lucky."

We finally arrived at the cafeteria. We quickly found a free spot, stuffed our food down, and headed to the training hall. Our squad was already waiting at the entrance and waved us over. Marc patted me on the shoulder and winked. "Well, my dear ones, what took you so long?"

"We almost overslept," I grumbled back. Marc burst into hearty laughter.

We walked into the hall together when a Helpron approached us and asked which squad we belonged to. We gave him our answer, and he led us to the armory. The room was now filled with racks holding every imaginable weapon. The Helpron scanned us and told us which rack held our weapon. I had rack number 4. Since it was a low number, I guessed my sword would be near the front—and sure enough, there it was, held in place by a shimmering energy field. Next to it was a small box with an opening.

I reached my hand inside and felt a warm sensation. A moment later, the energy field began to hum and slowly lowered. Overjoyed, I took my weapon in my hands just as the field activated again. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed my sword—its weight and the way it felt. It was wonderful. I could feel my spirit connecting with the core of my weapon.

A commanding voice boomed through the armory: "Squad 34, over here!" We turned in unison and saw a giant of a man. Every recruit in the room fell silent, staring at the enormous warrior. He was about a head taller than Marc, which was already an impressive feat. On his back, he carried a massive war hammer, and a storm rifle and the helmet of his armor hung from his belt. Behind him stood five more soldiers—four men and a woman. Two of the men carried long golden swords, while the other two wielded battle axes. The woman had two forearm-length daggers at her hips and held a medium-sized laser pistol in her left hand. All of them wore the pitch-black armor of the Stormborn.

We stepped forward and saluted the squad.

"I am Squad Leader Narses from the 1st Battalion of the 1st Army of the Stormborn. We've been pulled from the front to train you here. I hear you're the last squad, which means you're in urgent need of guidance."

Lea stepped forward, looked him straight in the eye, and said, "And just because we're the last squad, you think we're the weakest?"

Narses began to laugh, then grew serious again and pointed his rifle at us. "If you ever speak to me like that again, I will personally see to your execution." He turned and said something to his comrades, who then left the room.