Sentinels: Children of Valhalla (Sentinels Saga Book 1)

by Linn Schwab

  Robin sighed and lowered her head. She’d been looking forward to seeing Commander Jeffries again, but the prospect of navigation problems somewhat tempered her enthusiasm. There were so many factors and variables involved that even the simplest calculations could tax her mind to its limits. Here we go, she thought in dismay. Plot a course to a moon, that orbits a planet, that orbits a sun, which is influenced by this or that particular cosmic phenomenon. “Ugh!” she muttered under her breath, then looked up at the screen and braced herself for the worst.

  Katrina made her way into the lounge and took a seat at one of the empty tables. She leaned forward and gently laid her head on the tabletop. Phoebe and Sheri sat down beside her, followed closely by Robin and Michelle. The morning lecture was only half over, but Commander Jeffries had called a short break to give them a little time to recover.

  “Hoa–nhh,” Katrina moaned, “my brain hurts.”

  “These navigation studies are so hard!” Sheri whispered.

  “Why can’t we just let the computer do it for us?” Phoebe complained. “Isn’t that what computers are for?”

  Robin smiled and shook her head. “And what happens if your computer malfunctions while you’re somewhere out in the middle of space?”

  Sheri grinned and cleverly responded, “We’ll just ask you where to go, Robin.”

  Robin sighed and looked at Sheri. “And what if something happens to me, silly?”

  An uneasy silence gripped the table. Robin was puzzled by the reaction. The other girls exchanged a few tentative glances, then Katrina somberly replied, “Then none of us will care what happens to us.” She raised her head up from the tabletop and gazed into Robin’s eyes with sincerity.

  The words sent a chill down Robin’s spine. She felt a lump beginning to form in her throat. She glanced uncomfortably from one girl to the next, disturbed by the somber expressions on their faces. It was apparent that they’d already discussed the possibility and had reached a consensus amongst themselves. Oh my god! she thought in sudden panic. What are they saying? That they intend just to sit down and die? The thought of it was absolutely horrifying to her. Worse than any nightmare she could possibly imagine. Somehow, I have to find a way to fix this, she told herself. I can’t possibly live with this hanging over me.

  “Hi, girls,” Nancy cheerfully greeted them, sliding into one of the seats at their table. “What are you doing in here? Aren’t you supposed to be in a lecture right now?”

  “Commander Jeffries is giving us a break,” Sheri explained.

  Phoebe nodded, then added, “Two solid hours of navigation studies.”

  “Oh,” Nancy responded with a chuckle. “That’s enough to fry anyone’s mind.”

  “We’ve still got two more hours to go,” Michelle said. “Would you care to join us?” she teased.

  “I believe I’ll pass on that,” Nancy replied. “But maybe we can do something later on together.”

  “A sing–along!” Katrina suggested.

  “Yeah!” Phoebe exclaimed in agreement. “Let’s get everyone together and have a sing–‌along tonight!”

  “Sounds great,” Nancy said. “What do you think, Captain Starling?” she asked, puzzled that Robin had remained silent thus far. “You think we should hang out and harmonize tonight?”

  Robin forced herself to smile. “Do Hornets actually remember how to sing?” she asked, feigning an attempt at playfulness.

  “You just wait!” Nancy boasted. “We are going to amaze your ears!” With that, she stood up and headed for the corridor, waving back to the girls and singing, “La–‌la–‌la–‌lahh…”

  “I can’t wait!” Phoebe said, beaming with excitement. “This is going to be so much fun!”

  Wonderful, Robin thought to herself. I only hope I feel like singing. She sat up straight and looked around the room. Caroline, where are you? she wondered. I really need to talk to you right now.

  Sighs of relief filled the classroom when Commander Jeffries wrapped up her lecture. As the girls began filing out of the room, Robin hastily pulled Caroline aside and led her into a secluded area.

  “What’s wrong?” Caroline asked, puzzled by the look on Robin’s face.

  “I want you to promise to do something for me.”

  Caroline nodded uneasily.

  Robin hesitated. “If anything happens to me, I want you to take my place.”

  Caroline’s eyes began to moisten. “Robin,” she whimpered, “don’t say things like that!”

  “Please,” Robin insisted. “You’ve got to promise me. I have to know someone’s going to look after the others. I have to know, Caroline. Please promise me you will.”

  Caroline looked into her eyes for a moment, then reluctantly gave in to her. “I promise.”

  “Thank you,” Robin whispered, then wrapped her in a firm embrace.

  “Why me?” Caroline asked. She rested her chin on Robin’s shoulder, and could feel her entire body trembling. Clearly this was deeply important to her.

  “I’m not sure,” Robin said. “It’s just … a feeling I have.”

  STATIONS 019

  “There you are!” Jenny said, taking a seat beside Robin in the cafeteria. “I’ve been looking all over for you.” She looked across the table at Caroline. “Why are you two so late eating lunch?”

  Robin exchanged a quick glance with Caroline. “We had something important to discuss,” she explained.

  “Oh,” Jenny said, looking at Caroline. “About Mindy?”

  Caroline remained silent and lowered her eyes.

  “Yeah,” Robin responded, “sort of.” The tone of her voice suggested she didn’t want to discuss it any further.

  “Fair enough,” Jenny said, nodding in acceptance.

  “Are you gonna come sing with us tonight?” Robin asked, changing both the subject and tone of the conversation.

  “Are you kidding?” I wouldn’t miss it! It’s been a while, but I think I can still carry a tune.” She cleared her throat and vocalized, “La, La, Lahh…”

  Robin and Caroline smiled at each other.

  “That was just a test,” Jenny said with a laugh. “I’ll be better tonight. But listen, we’ve got something special planned for this afternoon’s session. So hurry up and finish your porridge, little sisters.”

  Robin grinned at Caroline. “You heard her,” she said. “We don’t want to keep Goldilocks waiting.”

  Nancy greeted Caroline and Robin at the door, and saluted both of them as they entered the classroom. “Captain Starling,” she formally announced, “welcome aboard the Sentinel Warship ‘Demon–‌stration.’”

  The two younger girls grinned in amusement and surveyed the setup in the room with their eyes. A number of seats had been arranged in a pattern which mimicked the layout of a destroyer’s bridge.

  “Have a seat, everyone,” Jenny insisted. “Robin, you sit in the captain’s chair. We’re going to run through a brief simulated mission for you now, just to give you some idea what it’s like. Nancy, dim the lights, will you. Let’s try to make this as realistic as we can.” She turned to Robin and explained, “Nancy and I are going to run the scenario. The rest of my girls will take the place of your crew. Okay?”

  Robin nodded.

  “Take your places, girls,” Jenny ordered. “Let’s begin! Nancy?”

  “Captain Starling,” Nancy announced, “you are commanding a Sentinel destroyer patrolling this sector in search of enemy vessels. Your current position is nineteen thousand kilometers from Volaris. Suddenly, you receive an urgent call.”

  “Robin,” Jenny said, “do you know who your communications person is?”

  Robin looked at the layout of the seats and tried to remember the bridge positions. “Umm … ‌Lisa?” she answered, pointing to her left.

  “Correct!” Jenny confirmed. “Proceed.”

  “Captain,” Lisa announced, “urgent call coming in from Volaris. They’re under attack and are requesting assistance.”

 
“Captain Starling,” Nancy broke in, “It’s time for you to issue your first command. Remember, an attack has already begun. Time is critical. Every second counts. What do you think your first command should be?”

  Robin felt herself trembling a little. Even though it was just an exercise, she felt enormous pressure to make the right decision. “First,” she said with just a hint of hesitation, “we should plot a course to Volaris.”

  “That’s not an order,” Nancy informed her.

  “Who is your navigations person?” Jenny prompted.

  Robin looked around the layout again. Virginia, she decided. It has to be Virginia.

  “Virginia!” Robin commanded, “plot a course to Volaris.”

  Virginia smiled, hinting that Robin had gotten it right. “Affirmative,” she replied. “Plotting a course to Volaris, Captain.”

  Robin smiled and sighed in relief.

  “Next order!” Nancy insisted.

  Now what? Robin puzzled. Virginia was still busy making calculations. What else could Robin do at the moment? “Lisa,” she said after considering her options, “contact Volaris and find out what kind of forces are involved.”

  “Good!” Jenny proudly exclaimed.

  “Affirmative,” Lisa responded. She then busied herself with an imaginary call.

  “Captain,” Virginia called out, “course to Volaris plotted and entered.”

  Robin looked at Nancy, as if expecting more verbal prodding.

  “Ahem.” Nancy cleared her throat, then directed Robin’s attention to a nearby clock, hinting that seconds were ticking away.

  “Trixie!” Robin commanded, turning to what she thought was the helm position. “Initiate course to Volaris.”

  Jenny continued to watch Robin closely as Nancy whispered into Lisa’s ear.

  “Affirmative,” Trixie responded. “Initiating course to Volaris.”

  “Captain,” Lisa said, “I have the information you requested from Volaris.”

  “Captain,” Trixie called out, “we are locked on course to Volaris.”

  Robin’s head was beginning to spin. Everything seemed to be happening so rapidly.

  “Captain Star–‌ling…” Nancy prodded.

  “Throttle up to point nine five!” Robin ordered.

  “Affirmative, Captain,” Trixie responded. “Throttling up to point nine five.”

  “Lisa,” Robin said, “what kind of enemy ships are we facing?”

  “Volaris reports being attacked by two destroyers and one light cruiser.”

  “How many friendly ships are involved?”

  “None,” Lisa answered. “Only station defenses are active.”

  “Stop!” Jenny ordered, interrupting the scenario. She smiled at Robin and clapped her hands in approval. “Very good!” she said. “You seem to handle pressure quite well.”

  Robin relaxed and glanced at her squad. Michelle flashed a thumbs up to her while the other girls smiled and clapped along with Jenny.

  “Nancy,” Jenny said, “why don’t you take over the session for a while. Robin and I need to discuss crew assignments.”

  “Okay,” Nancy agreed. “Anyone else want to try out for captain?” she teased, looking from each of Robin’s girls to the next.

  “Have a seat,” Jenny said to Robin as the two of them entered the observation lounge. “It’s time for you to designate your crew positions. Have you given it any prior thought?”

  Robin shook her head. “No. It never really occurred to me.”

  “It’s very important,” Jenny explained, “to assign the right personnel to the right positions.”

  “How do I know who the right personnel are?” Robin asked, wondering how she was going to decide.

  “Well, that’s what we’re going to discuss right now. First of all, let’s start out with the pilot of your ship. The helm operator. Who would you choose for that position?”

  Robin shook her head. “I don’t know. What should I look for?”

  “It’s the most important position you’ll assign. It’s crucial for the two of you to work in sync with each other, so try to pick someone who thinks the way you do‌. Someone who you think would make similar decisions.”

  “Caroline!” Robin said, certain of her decision. “Caroline should be my helm operator.”

  “Alright,” Jenny said, “that one seemed easy enough. Let’s try another. Who would you put in charge of navigations?”

  “Someone really smart?”

  Jenny grinned. “Obviously.”

  Robin took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds. “Michelle,” she said, confidently. “I need Michelle at that position.”

  “She’ll be happy to hear that,” Jenny joked.

  Robin laughed. “She’s going to hate me, I know.”

  “How about communications?”

  Robin pictured the bridge in her mind. That person sits right beside the captain, she thought. I want Mindy sitting next to me so I can keep an eye on her. “Mindy,” she said, without hesitation.

  Jenny looked puzzled. “Why Mindy? I would have thought you’d pick Katrina for that.”

  “Really?” Robin asked. “You think she’d be a better choice?”

  “Well, Mindy seems a little shy to me. Katrina is more of an extrovert. She just seems like a natural for that position.”

  Robin considered the suggestion for a moment, then shook her head and said, “No, I definitely want Mindy there.”

  “Okay, it was just a thought. What about your systems controller? You’re starting to run out of choices now.”

  “What would make a good systems controller?”

  Jenny shrugged. “Probably someone creative, I would think. Someone who can come up with different ways to solve problems. Remember, she’ll be controlling the ship’s major functions. If something becomes damaged or inoperable, she’ll need to find a way of compensating for it.”

  “Sheri would be good at that,” Robin insisted. “I’ll give that position to her. What’s left?”

  “Weapons controller and auxiliaries. Both of them are very straightforward assignments. All you really need at those positions is someone who will follow your orders.”

  “Then I’ll put Phoebe on weapons and Katrina on auxiliaries. And it’ll be the best destroyer crew around,” Robin boasted.

  Jenny smiled and let out a laugh. “Come on,” she said, getting to her feet. “Let’s go break the news to them, shall we? And put those Earthling fleets on notice. ECHO 5 is another step closer to deployment!”

  UNDERTONES 020

  The control room almost seemed abandoned when Commander Jeffries arrived to inspect the daily summary report. At the bank of consoles along the outer wall, only Veronica was present at the moment. “Good evening, Lieutenant,” the commander called out to her, walking directly to one of the consoles. “Anything of significance to report today?

  Veronica stretched and shook her head. “Nothing unusual,” she replied with a yawn.

  As the commander began to examine the summary, she thought she heard other voices in the room. She strained her ears to hear over the hum of the consoles, then turned to Veronica and asked, “Do you hear singing?”

  “Mm–hmm,” Veronica replied. She pointed to one of the security monitors. “Some of the girls are singing together in the lounge.”

  Intrigued, Commander Jeffries walked over to her and studied the images on the display screen. Moved by the expressions of joy she was seeing, she reached forward and turned up the volume a little. Sounds of sweet voices poured into the control room, triggering fond memories from her own past. “It’s been a long time since I’ve heard singing,” she said.

  Veronica nodded in agreement and gently began to sway with the melody.

  “Would you like to go and join them?” the commander offered, sensing how much it would mean to the girl.

  “I can’t,” she answered. The disappointment on her face was easy to see. “I’m the only one on duty right now.”

 
“I’ll cover for you,” the commander assured her. “You go ahead and enjoy yourself.”

  “Really?” Veronica said with a gasp of surprise.

  “Go on. Have a good time.”

  “Thank you, Commander!”

  As her junior officer exited the room, Commander Jeffries slid into a chair and glanced around herself once more to make certain no one else was present. She then focused her attention on the younger girls’ voices, closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and softly began to sing along with them.

  The first song ended to a jubilant round of applause and enthusiastic calls for the next to begin. Seizing the opportunity to suggest one of her favorites, Nancy stepped to the center of the lounge and vocalized the beginning lines of “High Hopes.” Her selection was met with cheers of approval and the other girls eagerly joined in with her. The room was filling to capacity now with personnel crowding in from all over Volaris.

  Mindy stood between Robin and Katrina, holding hands with both of them as she sang. Caught up in the emotion of the moment, she allowed her attention to wander about the room until she noticed the two pilots she’d seen share a kiss. Still very much intrigued by what she’d witnessed, she couldn’t keep herself from focusing on them.

  The pilots had formed a line with the rest of their squadron, and all of them were swaying back and forth with the melody, with their arms wrapped around each others’ shoulders. She closely observed their movements and gestures, and the expressions they passed along to one another. There was something about the way these pilots interacted that suggested a very strong sense of unity. They seemed to display greater coordination than any other squad or squadron in the room. What is it about these girls, she wondered, that makes them so much different from everyone else? As she continued to puzzle over her perceptions, the song cycled through its chorus and came to an end. Another round of applause followed.

  “What shall we sing now?” Nancy asked the crowd.

  “Pick another one for us!” Michelle suggested.

  “Let Robin choose the next one!” Christy teased, flashing a devious grin at Robin.

  Robin blushed and looked down in embarrassment as a wave of cheers echoed through the room.