The Sun Saint is a mysterious figure by the very nature of being the only saint worshipped to have not yet lived. Popular depictions show a young maiden, blonde of hair and blue of eye, dressed all in white. A girl who is a paragon of virtue; kind, pure and devout, an example to all of goodness and light, even in the face of adversity.

~ Extract from the last chapter of The Istorii Sankt'ya, translated from Old Ravkan.

*

At the first whisper of a group of testers finding a Sun Summoner in the Dva Stolba valley, the Darkling was already ordering his horse saddled. He set off from Os Alta at a fast pace, alone aside from two of his favoured Heartrenders, hoping to meet them on the road before they left the mountains. He was not taking any chances where this was concerned, not after waiting for so long.

His blood ran cold like it had not done in decades when they came across the gory scene surrounding the carriage. One of his Heartrenders, Vladimir, swore colourfully. They had heard the unmistakable sounds of a skirmish further ahead and picked up the pace, pushing the horses even faster. Though apparently they were not fast enough.

The oprichnik driver was dead, guts sliced open by a Druskelle axe. The Heartrender, Maxim, had made an impressive stand and killed half a dozen, but had been felled by a shot to the head. On the steps of the carriage was Alyona, a bullet-wound in her forehead; she had died protecting the children within.

Two of those children - a girl and a boy - were sobbing in the arms of the amplifier, Maria, as they huddled behind the battered carriage. The woman had fabrikated an earthen shield to protect them, and had taken the driver's gun, though would likely have faced certain death regardless.

The Darkling glanced over all of this, however. Far more remarkable was the circle of scorched earth, the charred other side of the carriage, and the eight blackened, smoking Fjerdan corpses surrounding the small girl stood in the middle of it all with her hands still outstretched. She had turned around at their arrival, eyes wide and stunned, in disbelief at what she had done.

Seeing her in the flesh, after all this time, did not feel real. Yet at the same time, it felt so very right. There was no mistaking her for anyone else. Something within him clicked as their eyes met, and if there had been any doubt, he now knew. Like calls to like. He had waited so long, alone aside from Baghra. And now, she was here.

Before he could say a word, the Darkling saw one last Druskelle running towards the child from behind, axe raised, ready to deliver a blow that would cut her in half. But he had not lived so long by having slow reflexes. Nor would he let his long-awaited Sun Summoner be snatched away from him so soon after finding her. The Cut flew over the girl's head and separated the man's shoulder, head and neck from the rest of his body. In a spray of blood, it all collapsed in a grisly heap on the ground.

The child turned at the wrong moment, and when she whirled back around to face him once more, her face and singed grey dress were covered in blood. There was the look of a cornered animal in her wide eyes, as she drew a small but sharp-looking knife from her pocket and pointed it in his direction.

"I'll burn you too if you try and cut me in half. Like I did them," She was afraid, yes, and disturbed by what had happened, but did not seem horrified by all the death around her. Her common accent belied her low birth, and the Darkling was surprised at the ferocity in her tone. The girl likely had no idea how to repeat the same feat, a result of pure terror and adrenaline, but her bravado was admirable. So much for that purity and innocence that all those religious fools preach endlessly about.

"I would not dream of it," The Darkling could not help the smile spreading over his face, no matter how inappropriate it was to the scene around him. After all this time... But first there was a frightened, overly-powerful child who must be calmed before she ran away. Or killed them all. "I won't hurt you," His voice was steady, reassuring, and he made no sudden moves towards her. "Look at my kefta, I'm Grisha, like you. Could you tell me your name?"

For a moment he thought she would not answer. Then -

"Alina," Her voice was quiet.

"You can trust me, Alina," He said. "If I wanted to kill you, it would have been easier to let that last Druskelle do it," Her eyes darted to the side at the unfamiliar word, as she finally had a name for those who attacked her. But she seemed to realise that made sense, so he pushed the advantage. "Could you come over here for me? You do not want to linger too close to those bodies. Fjerdans smell terrible at the best of times," Let alone when they're cooked well-done.

She let out a strangled laugh at that, then clapped her hand over her mouth. Ah, now it sinks in. "I killed - I killed all of them," Alina stared at the corpses. "I've only killed animals before. And you - you cut one in half,"

"You did the right thing," He wished to prevent a breakdown, if at all possible. "They were trying to kill you, after all. You have been very brave, but hold yourself together for a little longer, Alina,"

Children tended to be little self-interested sociopaths anyway. Whilst there may be screaming and tears at first, it was much easier for them to grow used to death and violence than it was for an adult who had never seen it before.

The girl seemed to think for a moment. "I'm keeping my knife," She warned, before giving in. Alina did not take his outstretched hand, and never stopped glancing his way with those wary dark eyes, but walked with him back to the carriage. Albeit, at least five feet away from him at all times. Like a stray cat.

Vladimir had helped Maria and the children to their feet. The older girl had stopped crying, even if she looked ready to vomit at their surroundings, and was trying to soothe the inconsolable little boy. The Fabrikator wore a grim expression. She had kept her composure well considering her order was not trained in combat, though her hands were shaking and she looked seconds away from breaking down.

"What are Druskelle doing so far south?" Ivan, his other Heartrender, was growling as he sealed the dead oprichnik driver's innards back into his body to transport back to the Little Palace. "We're in the foothills of the Sikurzoi,"

The Darkling was gratified that the man had not blinked at the men Alina had killed. Best she didn't think about it too much.

"What they always do," Vladmir spat on one of the corpses Maxim had killed. "Cold-blooded murder,"

"Such a big group must have travelled down through the eastern mountains to be unnoticed," Maria said in a tremulous voice as she moved to join them, ushering the two other children with her. "Is it possible they heard of a Sun Summoner?"

He did not miss Alina's head snap in her direction; the girl was sharp. How much had she been told already?

"Surely not," Vladimir replied. "How would anyone know, aside from us?"

As ever, they all looked to the Darkling for answers.

"They may have been a group that wandered too far south and were fortunate enough to find a target," He said with distaste. "Or as you say, somehow the word got out," Whether an accident or deliberate, anyone could have let slip the news of Alina's power. The hypothetical Sun Saint was a figure of holy legend, after all, the prophesied salvation of Ravka, a saint above others, idealised in religious texts for centuries. Absurd, of course - young Alina was no more a saint than he was - but it did not pay to underestimate the idiocy of religious fervour.

"We were careful," Maria said. "Only twenty other children and a teacher saw the light, and we told them, and her parents, she was an Inferni. We left the village before word spread. And the place truly was in the back end of beyond, like most of the settlements in Dva Stolba. Surely news could never travel so fast out of that valley to Fjerda,"

All good points. News could, however, travel that fast from Os Alta to Fjerda, which raised the possibility of a spy. He would have to look into that upon his return. "For now, all three of you take those two children and the bodies of Alyona and Maxim in the carriage,"

"What about Alina, moi soverenyi?" Maria asked, concerned.

He placed a hand on the shoulder of the silent girl, who stiffened but didn't move away. "She rides with me,"

Despite several vocal protests from Alina, between them they managed to convince her to put on Alyona's bulletproof kefta. She saw sense eventually, clearly wary of more Druskelle attacks. The red garment drowned her, so large it would have been comical, if it weren't for the bloodstains. The kefta trailed along the ground behind her, and she looked like a tiny, indignant monarch with a sweeping train as they neared his horse.

Alina had clearly never ridden a horse before, and appeared wary of the huge animal. "How in hells am I meant to get up there?" She looked at him, her stare almost accusing, less scared of him now than she had been.

"Like this," He picked her up easily, ignoring her indignant squawk and wriggling, lifting her onto the stallion's back. He mounted behind her once the large kefta had been arranged, wondering how old the girl was. She was tiny, and too thin; her weight would no doubt become far more healthy with proper food at the Little Palace. Yet the way she spoke, her whole manner really, suggested she was older than she looked.

"I've got blood all over me," She seemed to realise as he urged the horse into a canter; the faster they made it to Os Alta, the better. Her tone was rather numb.

"You were unfortunately close to the man I Cut in half," The Darkling said. "Here,"

Holding the reins in one hand, he pulled out a black handkerchief. She took it and scrubbed at her face, her hands, though there was no saving Alyona's kefta, nor her shabby dress. It was plain and worn anyway, as well as too small for her. There would be more appropriate clothes available at the Little Palace.

"You're holding up rather well considering what you just saw," He told her.

"I've seen lots of dead bodies," She said listlessly, still trying to get the blood off her hands. "Shu raiders come to the village sometimes. Normally it's not so bad, but they killed all the people next door once. Da always made us hide under the floor,"

Life in the border villages was famously harsh. No wonder she was so calm, having already witnessed many of the various horrors of war.

"Yes, the King is rather lax in protecting his people near the borders," The Darkling said. "I have told him to send more troops to the south-east for years yet he does not listen," That was true for strategic reasons, though an exaggeration; he hoped it would endear him to Alina somewhat, and get closer to winning her trust.

"Then the King is stupid," Alina said with refreshing bluntness. "He should try hiding in a tiny hole in the dark for hours while they slice up people he knows and see how he likes it,"

He smiled. "Whilst I agree the man would benefit from a little more perspective, perhaps keep things like that to yourself, or you might get into trouble. The King does not like being told he's stupid,"

"Even though he is?"

"Even though he is,"

There was a pause.

"I know about the Shu," Alina said. "But why did those men - the... the Drooskilla - why did they want to kill us? Maria said it was because of a Sun Summoner. That's me, I'm a Sun Summoner - why would they want me?"

"Druskelle are Fjerdan witch hunters. They hate all Grisha and would see us all burned at the stake. Men, women, children have all died screaming on Fjerdan pyres,"

She was silent for a moment, and he wondered if he had not softened his words enough. "I'm glad I burned them, then. Serves them right,"

Her reply surprised him, but made a smile twist his lips. The chances of the church getting their claws into this one were diminishing by the minute. He had underestimated the child's bloodthirst. And her sense of irony. "As for your other question, how much did Alyona, Maxim and Maria tell you about what you can do?"

"Nothing," She scowled; this had annoyed her. He felt her curiosity burning. "They told me I'm a Sun Summoner, but that was it. They weren't very helpful,"

"You are the Sun Summoner," He corrected. "There aren't any others,"

She was silent for a moment at that, seeming uncomfortable with the knowledge. "Is that why everyone made such a fuss when the light came out my hand? But why did they lie, and tell everyone it was fire?"

Oh, the Darkling could only imagine the chaos that had erupted when the examiners had discovered a fabled Sun Summoner, something they knew he had been searching for for a very long time.

"What you can do makes you very important to Grisha, Alina. And the whole of Ravka. I have been looking for you for longer than you can imagine. Equally, our enemies cannot catch wind of the fact you exist. They would try to use you against us, which none of us want to happen,"

Another pause.

"Is that why I have to ride with you, and Katya and the little brat had to stay in the carriage?"

"The little brat?"

"That boy. Damiel. He wouldn't stop snivelling for his Mama and Papa the whole way," Her tone dripped with disdain, and he wondered how many Shu raids it had taken to make her so... hardened. The Darkling did not interact very often with individual children, but Alina seemed unusually bearable. He would have made the journey just the same with a sobbing, terrified girl but this was much more preferable.

"Would you rather have stayed in the carriage?"

"No," Alina sounded disgusted. "The crying was driving me mad. And so was Alyona,"

"Alyona died," He reminded her.

"Well now she might talk less," The girl muttered, then looked around with wide eyes. "That was horrible. I didn't mean that. She wasn't pretending to be nice, she actually was. She stepped in front of those bullets for us," Alina looked genuinely apologetic, and he saw the horror beginning to rise in her eyes like a dam overflowing. "They shot right through her head. That's why I ran out the carriage, I think. To hurt them like they hurt her,"

She had run towards the enemy, not away like the other three. An incredibly reckless move, which lacked any survival instinct, but it was brave at least. Alina clearly had a hot temper and thirst for revenge. Interesting.

"Alyona was a fine soldier, and died bravely. Her memory and service to Ravka will be honoured," The Darkling said, then lowered his voice to the conspiratorial tone that children loved. "But - and don't repeat this - you are not wrong. The woman never did learn how to shut up,"

Alina smiled for the first time since he had met her. It was fleeting, faint, but a smile nonetheless. Good. It would make everything easier if she liked him. But the frown was back soon; he could sense it even if he couldn't see her face.

"Why would she let herself die for us?"

"She's a soldier of the Second Army," He replied. "She would have stepped between any Grisha children and an attacker. Let alone the Sun Summoner,"

"But I can't do any summoning on my own," She said. "I'm useless. How do I do it without Maria touching me, or Fjerdans trying to kill me?"

"That, you will learn once we return to the Little Palace,"

"Are you a teacher there?" She asked. "Can't you show me now?"

He could show her now, himself being a living amplifier, but the Darkling did not want to tempt fate and attract more trouble. For now at least, he would keep the knowledge of Alina's powers secret. Confined to the Little Palace, at least. The King did not have to know just yet, nor the Apparat, who would no doubt wet himself that the Sun Summoner truly existed. He wanted the church involved as little as possible; they would see Alina as their property, theirs to raise in their own image as a holy sankta, a legend and religious symbol made flesh.

"Teacher," He shook his head. "You don't know who I am, do you Alina?" The other little girl had known. He'd seen it in the terrified way she looked at him, the way she shrank behind Maria.

"Some Grisha," She shrugged. Her irreverence was amusing; no one had spoken to him like that in years. "Should I know? Are you not a teacher, then?"

"Most people call me 'General'," He summoned a swirl of shadow to dance over her hands, twisting around her fingers.

"Oh," The girl tensed, but that was all. "You're the Darkling. Suppose that explains all the black," She turned around to look at him, frowning. "You're in charge of the whole Second Army. Shouldn't you be doing more important things than taking me to the Little Palace?"

He chuckled at her nerve. "The entire Second Army is not as important as you, Alina,"

Her brows furrowed. "Don't lie," It wasn't false modesty; she misliked compliments, apparently.

"I'm not lying," He said. "Do you not like people saying nice things to you?"

"No," She said, voice flat. "I don't trust people who are too nice,"

"And why is that?" He would need to understand her, to win her over.

"Because if they're nice, they're lying,"

"Not necessarily,"

"They are!" She turned to glare at him for doubting her. "I'm not stupid. Mother acts nice one minute, but it's a trick. She'll be all hugs and kisses and 'Lina, I love you so much' but then one tiny thing will annoy her and it turns into 'I wish you were never born, my life is miserable because of you, you're just like your wretched father',"

Her tone was sullen as she recited words that she had no doubt heard often. All the Darkling heard was that he would need to be careful in his strategy to win over the Sun Summoner; because, of course, the girl would have to trust him. A shame she was so cynical already. Most little girls would adore him simply for taking them to live in a palace, giving them fine clothes to wear, calling them pretty and showering them with gifts. He doubted that was going to work with Alina. It might actually turn her against him.

The rest of the journey was spent on lighter topics of conversation. The Darkling found out that Alina Starkova was her full name. She was nine winters old (like most peasants, she did not know an exact birthday) and had lived in Temgora for her entire life. Her best friend was Mal, and she was annoyed at him for some reason she was rather cagey about. Her mother was Shu, and her father was Ravkan; she was a weaver, he was a hunter, an ex-soldier. She often went hunting with her father, and therefore knew how to shoot a gun and how to live in the wilderness. That explained how well the child took to the hard pace of riding, and sleeping on the ground for the two nights it took them to return to the city. Not one complaint left her lips, and she paid avid attention to the lands they travelled through, curious about the unknown.

"I like being outside," She said, when he asked how she was holding up. "I sleep better under the stars. The air is fresher, especially in the mountains. Father prefers it too," She paused. "Though I think that's because he has to sleep next to Mother when he's at home,"

That got a breath of laughter out of him. For a child, Alina was rather amusing, whether she meant to be or not.

It was late when they arrived at the Little Palace. The girl was yawning whilst trying to pretend she wasn't tired, but perked up in interest as they rode through the city streets.

"It's quite shabby," She said, peering at all the buildings, and the few people going about their business. "I thought everyone in Os Alta was rich,"

"This is the Outer city," The Darkling explained. "People here are barely more rich than the rest of the country. The Inner city is different, though, as you will see,"

Her eyes narrowed when they crossed into the wealthier part of the city, all elegant townhouses, mansions, fountains, statues and brightly lit streets. "It's not fair that people get to live here, whilst everyone in Dva Stolba starves and shivers,"

"Perhaps not," He agreed absently, to stay on her good side. "Wait until you see the Grand Palace. It is somehow both the grandest and most ugly building in Ravka,"

They were not to see the Grand Palace today, however. For one it was dark, and even the multitude of lanterns could not light up the palace grounds that much. And it was the gates closest to the Little Palace that he led them to. The Darkling wanted Alina to enter without anyone who was not Grisha knowing.

"Moi soverenyi," Fedyor, a young Heartrender who seemed oddly taken with Ivan, greeted them with a respectful nod, though his tone was strained. "I hope your travels fared well?" In other words, where is everyone else and why is the child covered in blood?

"There was a Druskelle attack in the foothills of the Sikurzoi," He said, dismounting and offering a hand to Alina. "Ivan and Vladimir are bringing two other children north. I rode ahead,"

Fedyor relaxed upon hearing that, turning his attention to Alina, who had ignored the Darkling's offered hand and slid off the horse herself, staggering slightly at the unexpected drop and almost tripping over her too-big kefta. The Heartrender smiled his usual warm smile. "Then you must be the Sun Summoner, no?"

Alina narrowed her eyes in suspicion. He saw that her hand was in her skirt pocket, where he knew that she still carried that hunting knife. "What's it to you?"

That was no doubt meant to be threatening. The effect was ruined by her arms drowning in enormous sleeves, the rest of the kefta pooling on the floor by her feet.

"Alina," The Darkling warned at her rudeness, earning him a scowl and a rather petulant glare.

"The last people who knew I was a Sun Summoner tried to kill me!" She protested, as a stable hand led the horse away.

Fedyor just laughed. "I wouldn't dare - Alina, was it?"

"Yes," She said begrudgingly, after a glance at the Darkling.

"I don't know about you, but after a long journey I like nothing more than a nice warm bed and some hot food. I can sort all that out for you. How about I take that huge kefta to stop you falling over your own feet, and you follow me, hm?"

"I've never slept in a proper bed before," Alina mused, sounding like she was tempted by his offer, missing the raised eyebrow Fedyor and the Darkling shared at that revelation. How poor was she? "And I am tired. Fine. I'll go with you. But I burned eight Drooskilla to death when they tried to hurt me, so don't you even try," Saints, she had an attitude. He would have tried to take that knife off her, for everyone's safety, if he did not know that would instantly make her hate him.

"Did you really?" From anyone else that would have sounded like they were humouring her, but after a glance at the Darking (who nodded sharply), Fedyor just sounded curious. "That's one hell of a story. Can you tell me what happened?"

"I will if you find me some food,"

The young Heartrender laughed. "A girl after my own heart. Come on then, Alina, I'll find you something to eat. Can I call you Allie? Or Lina?"

"No,"

The Darkling watched as Fedyor led her away, into the Little Palace. The young man was good like that; good at winning reluctant people over, and good at reading what the Darkling wanted him to do without him having to ask. A set of rooms had already been prepared for her in the Darkling's own private wing. No doubt she would end up there soon enough. Despite how she enjoyed travelling and sleeping out in the open, Alina was clearly exhausted, most likely from using her powers so dramatically for the first time

Though Fedyor was not a particularly large man, Alina looked very small next to him, skinny ankles sticking out from her ragged grey dress. She needed something substantial to eat. And a chance to use her powers often. Soon she would be the picture of health, rather than the hollow-cheeked, sallow-eyed girl he had met.

The Darkling wondered what she would grow into. Already, many of his plans for a hypothetical Sun Summoner had been thrown out the window. There was no chance of this girl becoming a meek little puppet to sit at his side and follow his every command, for one. At least the church would struggle to win her over, once they realised what she was. She had too much of a spine, and was far too cynical for a girl her age, even for a girl who had grown up in a border village, regularly faced with war, death and fear.

Only time would tell if that was a good or bad thing.

*

Alina's attitude is a lot of fun to write. I wanted to make her cynical, obnoxious, independant and bold, but still act and sound childish (albeit old for her age, due to her traumatic past experiences with her parents and various war crimes). This will create interesting conflict with the expectations of the church and worshippers. I feel like in canon we never really got Alina utilising her full potential in any aspect really, so would like to explore that here. I also chose not to go by the show's 'General Kirigan' name - here, he is just 'the Darkling' or 'the General' - because if he has a fake last name, surely he has a fake first name, which Alina would enquire about at some point and I didn't want to diminish the reveal of his true name in the future by having her know him as 'Sergei Kirigian' or some other bullshit haha.

Once again, thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think of the story so far; a few words mean a lot!