A great deal is unknown about Iona's past. What is known is that she was conceived before her mother was kidnapped by a rival band stallion, and Iona herself was orphaned at two months following an attack on the small herd the stallion that had kidnapped her mother ran. She was taken in by a kind mare, but was booted away after said mare took in another foal that appeared stronger and healthier than Iona. After the mare that nursed her for two months abandoned her, Iona was pretty much on her own. She was always on edge since she had no parents to protect her, a background that caused her to develop her always-on-edge fiery-mouthed and cautious personality. When she was old enough to leave the safety of her herd, the at-the-time filly left without looking back. In her travels, unwittingly, she ran into her father, who was leading another band of mares. After spending just a few months there, she once more left despite a nagging sense that she should stay. Iona traveled on her own for over a year and a half before arriving in Beqanna.