Coward "I don't want to get married," Natalia complained to Josiah; she had spent the whole day trying to convince her father that she didn't want anything to do with Josiah, but he had turned a deaf ear to her pleas. "You know I hate it more than anything to be tied to commitment for the rest of my life? That's not the kind of life I want to live." Josiah remained silent with his back turned to her; there was a small frown on his face; he couldn't put into words just how he felt. He liked Natalia and had always done things for her to notice him. And no matter how hard he tried, she never did; she just kept their relationship casual. "My father would listen to you. If you tell him you don't want the marriage, he will cancel the wedding." She begged even harder. This puts him in a tight spot; for the first time in his life, he was given an opportunity, one he never wants to let go of. "But the chief is right." Josiah answered, "Drawing swords and playing with arrows? That's far too dangerous for you." "What are you talking about?" She asked, feeling betrayed. "I will not cancel the wedding." He was more precise this time, turning towards her to hold her hands gently. "To be honest, I want to get married to you, and I want to be selfish." Natalia was speechless, and tears welled in her eyes. If Josiah wasn't resisting in any way, then she was bound to marry him. "But I am willing to compromise." He grabbed her shoulders. "I won't stop you from doing the things you love, be it swordsmanship, horseback riding, or archery. I won't stop you; in fact, I am going to help you train." His thumb reached for the tear that had fallen to her cheek. "Because I like you." He finally confessed, "I have liked you ever since we were children, and I assure you it is not some silly crush. I feel like I can't live without you, and I promise that I am going to be a good husband to you. I am going to love and protect you." He held her hands tightly. "Please give me a chance." He begged. "I promise it's not going to be as bad as you think, and we can do everything you want, as long as you are my wife." Another tear rolled down her cheek as Natalia now realized that her plans to stop the wedding had become futile. No matter how hard she resisted, it would happen, so she decided to accept her fate. "I am sorry; there is nothing I can do to stop this wedding," Cassandra said as she adjusted the golden hairpiece in Natalia's hair. "To think that you would get married before me." Natalia remained quiet as her sister helped her up from the stool she was seated on, adjusting the red ceremonial attire she wore. "You are the most beautiful bride I have ever seen," Griselda commented with a sharp smile, and Natalia rolled her eyes. "That feels like an insult coming from the goddess of beauty herself," she joked. "Anyways, let's go. The groom is waiting." Griselda smiled briefly again. Natalia felt her breath shake as she headed towards the courtyard, where people were gathered, lanterns were hanging, and the sound of instruments filled the air as members of the tribe celebrated the marriage between the second daughter of the chief and the chief commander of the village's army. It was a grand event; she hadn't seen anything bigger. "Don't do anything to make Father even angrier," Griselda advised as they neared the place of the event, now walking toward Josiah, who was also in his traditional attire. "Getting married isn't going to be as hard as you think, so try to smile more," Griselda whispered to her again, but before Josiah could reach for her, a loud explosion vibrated through the air, sending splinters of wood and shards of iron flying in all directions; the neighing of horses and the terrified screams of guests filled the once-celebratory atmosphere. The force of the explosion flung them off their feet. Natalia felt herself slammed hard against the trunk of an oak tree in the far end garden; her breath knocked from her lungs. She barely registered what had just happened when she felt something heavy falling on top of her, pinning her against the rough bark. "Gather everyone! Look for the chief." Those were the last words she heard before she lost consciousness. "Ugh!" Natalia felt a burst of air rush into her lungs as her eyes flung open suddenly; she was trapped between the tree and a broken tent that sealed her against the tree completely. Every attempt to free herself was futile, She felt a thick, viscous liquid stream down her face; she touched it and grimaced at the bright red color. "I will count to three." She heard a bone-chilling voice, one that she had never heard before. "Come outside, Princess Griselda Ayala, for we want to behold your beauty with our very own eyes." There was a bone-chilling aura that came with this particular voice, she felt her heart quicken in her chest still finding it hard to comprehend what was going on. The last thing she remembered was holding her sister's hand when the world exploded. This could only mean one thing... The village was under attack. Who could have done this? The neighboring kingdom had always been at peace with the tribe-after all, the tribesmen were their main source of food and livestock. "Will the princess of the tribe hide away as she watches her people die for her sake?" Natalia heard that commanding voice again, and her eyes quickly darted around in search of her sister. "Princess..." She heard a familiar voice whispering to her. Her eyes darted in the direction of the voice, and she could see Josiah cautiously crawling towards her. He was bleeding; he had cuts and wounds all over his body, but he was still struggling to come to her. "Have you seen my sister?" Natalia whispered back, and he nodded, pointing to the end he was coming from. "I was able to take her to safety, on the chief's orders." He answered and a small smile reached Natalia's face, she was relieved that her sister was at least safe. "What is the situation?" "We are under attack, the emperor of the dragon lairs has launch an attack, and we are unable to defend." He explained as his eyes fell towards the rumble that was holding her against the tree. He checked his back to see if they would notice him from here, but the tent was too big for him to lift, trying to get her out will draw attention towards them, Natalia was quick to notice this. "Don't worry. Leave me and go; the emperor came here for my sister." She explained, "And if he finds her, he would kill her." "I can't leave her without you, Talia." Josiah snapped, there was a look of raw panic on his face. "The chief has ordered me to get both of his daughters to safety. As the chief of army commander, that's the least of what I can do." "It doesn't matter, Josiah. This isn't your fault. If you try to rescue me, we will all be caught, and we will all die." Natalia explained, "I want to protect my sister." "And I want to protect you." He argued again. "There is no point in my existence if I can't save you. Please." "My legs are broken I don't think I can run," She lied, knowing how stubborn Josiah is, he won't leave her there, and if it comes to it, she would have to use her authority against him. "I will carry you on my back." "No, Josiah, you are going to leave without me." Her voice was resolute. "You have a duty to the chief of this village and to its people, and as your princess, you leave me no choice." "Please don't do this to me, Natalia." He begged, and for the first time, she noticed tears rolling down his cheeks. She had never seen him so weak before. "I beg you, don't." "I order you to take my sister to safety, and don't get caught." Josiah bit down on his lips, glaring at her now, but he didn't have a choice but to leave. "I will count ten seconds, I know you are still here, I can smell you." The voice boomed again, Natalia's heart pounded in her chest. Was this the voice of the emperor? Not even a single soul knew his name. They simply called him the devil or the dragon's firstborn. "If you don't come out, then I will kill your father. Would that be enough to make you come?" She could also hear laughter in the distance. Josiah and Griselda should be far away now. "I am here!!" Natalia screamed, unsure of if they heard her or not, but she soon noticed torches coming towards her, they were the emperor's men. One of them stood out; his build was similar to a beast, he had a ragged scar on his face. With one hand, he yanked the broken tent away from her legs, and Natalia sprung up. She dislocated her ankle, but it wasn't broken. Before she could move, she was grabbed and then forced towards the crowd, her eyes taking note of her surroundings. Thankfully, she hadn't seen any dead body yet, which meant her people were still somehow safe, her eyes darted to her father who was also made to kneel amongst the crowd, he was bounded in chains, and he seemed to have gone through an ordeal because he was covered in wounds and blood. Natalia suddenly felt the hairs on her body stand, and her eyes darted towards the dreadful aura that she had been feeling. The being was seated in the darkness, she could only see the dangerous glint of his red eyes peering out of the darkness. There was a strong scent of death that surrounded him; Natalia felt herself tremble, it felt as if she was in a nightmare and embraced by frost biting cold. No one needed to tell her that it was the dragon emperor. "Kneel." His voice was nothing like the announcer's. It was soft-smooth, almost seductive in its calmness-but it sent a cold shiver through her. Instead of being guided down, one of the guards struck the back of her knee with his boot. She gasped as her legs buckled, and she dropped hard onto the ground, hissing when her knees scraped against the stones. "Are you the princess, Griselda Ayala?" he asked, a note of curiosity in his voice as he rested his chin thoughtfully on his hand. Natalia bit down on her lips to stop them from quivering, the aura that he emitted pressed against her frail body, they were like frost bites against her skin, and it was almost as if she forgot how to speak. "Yes!" She forced out, and there was a loud gasp from the crowd. Her eyes darted towards her father and the rest of the tribes people that had been held captive, she hoped they would understand and play along with it. "Isn't it me you want?" She yelled, mustering all her courage. "Why do you cowardly torment innocent people?" Just as the words left her mouth, she felt her head yanked to the side, and excruciating pain shot up from her cheeks. "How dare you speak to the emperor like that?" The man standing beside her hissed, his eyes narrowing at her, and the emperor outstretched his hands as if to stop him from further assaulting her. "Why are you mad I simple spoke the truth?" She argued with the angry guard stubbornly. "Only a coward would sneak an attack on a peaceful village at noon with the laughable reason of being rejected by a woman." Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!