Let's see where do I begin, well the start I suppose?

My name is Rena, I've never really had a surname, I was left on the doorstep of an old Shu couple when I was just a few weeks old, the only things to come with me were an old pale gold blanket that had intricate stitched details surrounding the border with my name on it, a royal blue scarf and a note from my parent that read;

"My deepest apologies for leaving my child here, but it was for her own good, she will find me when the time is right, her name is Rena, meaning 'peace' and 'joy', I hope, unlike me, she will be able to find it"

It wasn't much but I still carried them with me wherever I went, the letter always in my pocket, the blanket on my bed, and the scarf never leaving my neck. The old Shu couple had taken me in and treated me as their own, they had said I was always welcome to take their surname but for some odd reason I just couldn't, I know I could have felt angry at my real parents for abandoning me but I still held out hope they would come back.

I had always been different, I looked Shu but also Ravkan, and of course, I wasn't sure which one I was, as like I said before my parents had left me, but also we lived on the war threatened border of Shu Han and Ravka, meaning they could have been from anywhere.

It was drilled into nearly every Shu child that lived near the border that when the Grisha came, and they always did; to run, run and stay out of sight, straight to the woods and don't look back, don't come back unless an elder says. The Grisha were like monsters, taking our crops, killing or severely injuring anyone who tried to resist, worst of all they took the children, anyone they could get their greedy hands on was tested to be Grisha, used as entertainment, or taken away, never to be seen again. As I got older, the more responsibility I was given, help the lost ones find the way, comfort them, and most importantly DON'T let them go back.

Our village was strange, it was quaint, not of any significant importance, technically we were in Shu Han but the Grisha treated it as if it was their own as if it was Ravkan. The Shu Han government never gave us any help, almost as if we were a lost cause (which we probably were, but don't tell the elders that).

It was on my 15th birthday that it all went wrong (when I say birthday I mean the day I was found on the doorstep, but we liked to call it my birthday), the whole village (which wasn't many people) came over to our small home, as I blew out the candles on my cake I closed my eyes and made a wish, 'Please, I just want to know who you are', and of course it was just my luck that the Grisha decided to have a surprise infiltration, "They're a week earlier that they always are" someone yelped in fear as mothers hurried their children out so they could run but it was too late, the Grisha had already surrounded the whole village.

I looked around me, everyone had already run out thinking they could escape, I was alone in the small house.

I heard a man address the village "It is by order of General Kirigan, that to avoid more bloodshed, everyone here swiftly moves to another village, leave your belongings and be gone" he announced, there were quite a few gasps and some whimpers from the small children, who did this General Kirigan think he was, this was not Ravka, this was our home, our home in Shu Han, he had no authority here, and he certainly did not have the power to take our home away from us.

I jumped as a door to my left slowly opened, my adoptive mother walked through, her shiny grey hair fell loosely around her shoulders, she put her finger to her lips and motioned to me to hide underneath the window and gave me my old baby blanket, she then walked out of the door, "The Darkling has no authority in these parts, this is not, and I repeat, not Ravka." she shouted, her voice as harsh as a cold winter breeze.

"But you see, old one" He mocked "Your precious government has already abandoned you", it was true, we all knew it, but that didn't make it any easier. I heard the roar of a few of the older men and peered out of the window to see what was going on.

They were fighting back, each and every one of them, but we were a quiet village, with not many physical talents, they were quickly stopped and separated, men, women, children, and elders, it was a horrifying sight. I sat back down below the window-sill and closed my eyes trying to figure out a plan. Those were my neighbors, family, friends, I had to somehow save them, help them.

I opened my eyes to take another look but when I did a Grisha was staring back at me, their blue robes had intricate orange, red and yellow stitching that made swirls around the cuffs and collar of the robe.

We stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity, but in reality, was probably around 2 seconds. I had no escape, even if I had jumped out a window or ran out the door I would only be spotted by another Grisha.

The Grisha in front of me grabbed my long dark hair and dragged me outside, as we came out I found no strength to fight back as before me was the most horrifying sight my eyes had ever seen, half the villages people were on the ground not moving and not breathing, dead, they must have tried to fight back again, but I hadn't heard any shots...... heartrender, I thought with distaste, I looked around thinking it couldn't get any worse, but it did.....