It was early morning, around 5:21am, when I woke up. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I sat up and braced myself for another boring day of school.
I walked to my desk to grab my hairbrush and noticed my notebook lying open where I'd left it.
'I fell asleep writing again,' I thought with a quiet sigh.
It wouldn't hurt to write for the next hour. I had time. I settled into my chair, picked up my pen, and began to flip through the pages to find where I stopped.
'Now, where was I?'
...Flip..
...Flip..
...Flip..
'Ah, here.' Without much thought I began to write…
…straight you can fly, let's shoot a few arrows before Mom calls us in for dinner."
"Ok, Father."
Nieves and her father shot arrows till evening came, when her mother called them in for dinner.
Years passed on the island of Grimoire. Nieves grew into a skilled archer. By the time she turned twelve, she could hit targets her father with her eyes closed.
One night, Nieves woke to the smell of smoke.
She sat up. Orange light flickered through her window.
"Nieves! Get up!" Her father burst through the door, bow in hand. "We're under attack!"
She grabbed her bow and hurried to the door.
"Bandits," her grandfather said from the hallway. "They've come for our supplies."
Her mother appeared, her face was pale. "James, get Nieves to the boat."
"I'm not leaving without you," her father said.
A crash came from downstairs.
"Too late for that," a rough voice called out. "Come on down, Evergreens."
Nieves notched an arrow. Her father placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Stay behind me," he whispered.
They descended the stairs and pushed through the front door.
The village was burning.
Flames consumed the houses. Neighbors ran screaming, children crying. The bandits moved through the chaos, laughing as they cut down anyone in their path.
"The boats! Everyone to the boats!" her grandfather shouted.
Her father grabbed Nieves's hand and ran. Her mother followed close behind. They reached the shore where her grandfather was already pushing boats into the water. Villagers scrambled aboard, too many for the small vessels.
"Get in! Now!" her father shouted, lifting Nieves into one of the boats.
People piled in around her, crying. The boat rocked, overloaded. Her father pushed it toward the water.
"Wait! Mom! Dad!" Nieves screamed.
"We'll get the next one!" her mother called back, running toward another boat.
The boat began to drift. Nieves struggled against the hands holding her back. "No! Come with us!"
Her mother reached the second boat and pushed it into the water. Her father stood guard, arrow notched.
"Hurry up, Mom! Please!" Nieves cried.
Her mother stepped into the boat, relief on her face. She looked up at Nieves—
A blade flashed.
The sword came from nowhere, arcing toward her mother's back. Her father loosed an arrow, deflecting it. But the bandit was already upon him.
Clang! Clang!
Steel clashed. Her father fought hard, but another bandit joined. He was outnumbered.
"James!" her mother screamed.
Her father looked up for a moment, meeting his wife's eyes.
The blade went through his chest.
He fell to his knees.
"NO!" Nieves shrieked.
Her mother stumbled from the boat, running toward him. A second blade found her back. She collapsed beside her husband, their hands reaching for each other.
"MOM! DAD!" Nieves threw herself toward the edge, trying to jump. Strong hands grabbed her, pulled her back.
"Let me go! LET ME GO!" She fought, clawing, screaming. "I have to save them! Please!"
"Stop, child. Stop," an old woman whispered, arms wrapped around her.
"No!" Nieves collapsed, sobs shaking her body.
The boat drifted into darkness. Behind them, Grimoire Island burned. The last thing she saw was two figures lying together—
Knock! Knock!
"Liane, are you ready for school?" my mom asked.
I blinked, pulled back to reality. I checked the time. 7:30 already.
'I got lost writing again' I sighed.
I hurried to the bathroom, got dressed, and came downstairs.
"I'm ready now, Mom," I said with a gentle smile.
My mom came out of the kitchen with my breakfast. She kissed me on the forehead and told me to eat.
I always felt bad for my mom. She didn't have a man supporting her. My father died when I was just six years old. That event changed her forever.
After thirty minutes, I decided to go ahead and walk to school.
On my way, all I could think about was when I'd get back to continue Nieves's journey. In my head, I played out scenarios to comfort myself.
I arrived at school and saw everyone outside lining up at the buses. Wondering what they were all up to, I spotted a guy standing nearby. He had the school uniform on, but I'd never seen him before.
He wore headphones, nodding to whatever music was playing. I walked up and tapped his shoulder.
He pulled one earbud out. "Yeah?"
"What's going on?" I asked.
"The teachers decided to use today for an excursion," he said, then raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you read the timetable?"
I pretended not to hear him and turned away. An excursion? I didn't hear about it yesterday.
I walked over to the teacher handling it and asked, "Is it compulsory, sir?"
The teacher turned to me and replied, "No, it isn't, but most students are coming. Are you coming too?"
I hesitated for a moment, and said, "No sir."
He nodded. "Oh, then you wait at school. We'll be back in the evening. There are some other students who also decided not to come. You guys can play board games until we're back." The teacher smiled and continued what he was doing.
I walked into school and found a classroom where all the students who weren't going stayed.
Most of them had gloomy expressions on their faces and just stared at their phones. Others read books quietly.
I sat in front of a random guy. He had white hair and sharp features, pale skin that made him look almost fragile. He was reading a thick book, his gray eyes moving quickly across the pages.