The Republic of ARMY

1. Welcome to China

"Name?"

"Raina Mtenyo Atek."

"Purpose of visit?"

"International Conference on Environment Protection hosted by UNEP..."

"How long will you be visiting Hong Kong?"

"Fourteen days."

"Enjoy your stay!"

I smiled as I went through customs, only stopping momentarily due to a Skype call coming in from an intern under my department back at the office.

"Thank God I found you!" She said as she smiled eagerly. "Are you already in Beijing?"

"Yes, just gotten through Customs. What's up?"

"Well... Your brother just called..."

"Oh. That?" I smiled at her. "He'll probably do that in a few minutes too. Why?"

"He sounded eager. He will probably call you later."

"Thanks Mercy. Did he leave-"

The young lady had already ended the call, making me sigh. I looked around and dragged my luggage with me. I finally spotted the person sent to pick me up, and waved before heading over.

I was just getting to the best part of the visit, which was hauling my bags into the boot, when I got a Skype call from my brother.

"Hey! I'm already here!"

"That was fast!"

"Uh huh! That's the advantage of having people sort out your visa with other people. I trust you are taking a well deserved break from work?"

"Yes ma'am!" Ryan bowed and I giggled. The chauffeur directed me to get into the car and I did, smiling when I spotted a guy with a face mask staring at me in surprise. I didn't dwell much on it, focusing on talking to my brother instead.

"So what are you up to now...?"

"Heading to my hotel..."

"Where are you staying?"

"Shangri-la...?"

"Whoa! You really are moving on up!"

Ryan was the brother who understood me best. My other brother, Nick, was a typical last born. We had general similarities, but my father pampered him way too much. After all, he was born just after my dad became a billionaire.

My father considered him his good luck charm.

I was my father's bad luck charm. My mum told him she was pregnant with me when he had just received news of a huge loss that almost made him bankrupt. It wasn't until a year after my birth that things got better for the family.

Ryan always stood up for me. He was a year older than me, and he was always the kind of big brother every little sister wants. Nick adored him very much too.

He was very strong and brave, and so he joined the army, exactly like my father had asked of him. He had studied medicine in a Kenyan university, before going on to join the army as a medical doctor.

I studied a science too, but I focused on the Environment.

Nick, my youngest brother, already had the makings of a computer genius. I was already very proud of him, and he modestly acknowledged my praise when he was out of my dad's sight, which was rare.

Yes, my dad kept a very close eye on him. He probably hoped that my bad luck would not harm his beloved second son.

I wasn't even upset about it. At least I got to study something I was passionate about.

That was more than I could say for Ryan. He loved strategy despite him being a genius. He was already studying high school maths by the time he was in standard six*.

I was a little more on the average side. My mum was always in my corner, talking to me and encouraging my pursuits. She'd praise me loudly when I achieved something, and my father would begrudgingly award me for those efforts.

Maybe it was all pretense.

I had done a lot of things since the first time I took it upon myself to prove my father wrong. I consistently won 'Best Student' in my grade every year, won 'Most Valuable Player' in my school's netball team yearly, and I was a very good actress and singer too.

I tried everything my school offered.

I even became an editor for the school magazine, was chairperson of my university's student association and I played volleyball for the university team. I was the MVP there too.

Getting into UNEP wasn't easy. I worked very hard, wound my way into NGOs through valuable three to six months internships, and eventually, the experience gave me a cutting edge over most of the other shortlisted candidates.

I had been there for two years, and was currently their Best Employee of the Month for twelve months straight.

I often represented them on conferences due to all the papers I wrote. My mentors were all proud of how far I had come.

The money was good, and I saved a lot of it since I planned to retire at thirty five. My mum found my thoughts funny, but still supported me.

She had even deposited something "small" in my bank account despite my insistence that I had a good per diem and everything was paid for by UNEP.

I couldn't help smiling as we headed to the hotel. I pressed play on my music player and 'WangXian' the OST from 'The Untamed' started to play. What a lovely way to start my short stay in China!