Dragonborn: Mated to the Dragon king

"Our king wants your eleventh daughter, the one called... Aria," Emrys declared, his tone cold and indifferent, as though oblivious to the horrified expressions of those before him.

"My sister... What does your stupid king want with her, you monster?!" Sybilla, who had been quiet, suddenly snapped, her face red with unparalleled rage.

Emrys turned toward her with a smirk, the deep rumble of his chuckle reverberating ominously. Behind him, the other three dragons growled low in warning, but Emrys raised a hand, silencing them instantly.

"Calm yourselves. Her words are harmless," he spoke to the dragons, then turned his piercing amber gaze to Sybilla again. "You should be careful with your words, human. A single breath of fire from one of them, and you would be a pile of ashes within seconds."

Rodric, who had been silent all this time, looked up at Emrys with fury in his eyes.

"What does your king want with my daughter? This demand was not part of the covenant my ancestors forged with your kind. Are you now twisting the terms of our agreement? I will not surrender my daughter to your king!"

Emrys's raised hand cut him off immediately.

"You have no right to question the will of our king. However, it might interest you to know that your daughter has committed a crime against the dragonborns," Emrys said sharply.

Rodric froze, his mind racing.

"You lie! My sister has done nothing wrong to your people. She has never even crossed the border before, let alone seen a dragon in person!" Sybilla tried to defend her sister, but Emrys chuckled deeply, his disdain evident.

"Your precious sister did more than just cross the border," he said. "She shot a dragon, wounding and rendering it blind. Her reckless act is the reason the outlands of Scalethorne burned."

Rodric was shocked. In that moment, he understood the reason for the dragon king's demand. Yet, he found it difficult to accept the situation. He needed to hear the truth from Aria herself.

---

The princesses saw their father returning and thought the Morveth had been successful. They heaved sighs of relief and went to welcome him. However, the sad, empty look in his eyes shattered their fragile hope.

Something was wrong.

Behind him, Sybilla appeared, her expression downcast and her eyes brimming with tears. The princesses were worried.

"Father?" Genevieve asked, approaching Rodric. "What's wrong? Was the sacrifice ritual not successful?"

Rodric said nothing. His silence was answer enough. Suddenly, Sybilla broke into uncontrollable tears. She turned and saw Aria, who had just walked in, looking clueless. With rage, she rushed over to her younger sister and grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her violently.

"Aria! What have you done?!" she cried, her voice breaking with grief.

Aria, startled, stared at her eldest sister in confusion and worry.

"Sybilla... stop! What are you talking about? What have I done?"

But Sybilla couldn't speak anymore. She stared down at Aria for a brief moment, her face red and tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Father...?" Wilhemina urged King Rodric to speak. At last, he lifted his devastated gaze, staring directly at Aria. She now stood in the center of the chamber, looking disturbed.

Seeing their father's gaze linger so long on Aria, the other sisters also turned to look at her in confusion.

"Aria, why... Why did you cross the border?"

The question hit her like a blow. Livia shifted uncomfortably. She had crossed the border too, and Aria never wanted her to, but she had pleaded to come along.

"Father... I... I didn't mean to..." Aria muttered, lowering her gaze.

"You crossed the border?!" Wilhemina questioned, her eyes wide with anger and disbelief.

Aria lowered her head in shame.

"Do you understand what you have done?! The fire outbreak that happened yesterday was because of you, and now the dragons are enraged!" Rodric shouted, his voice trembling with sorrow and anger.

Aria's heart raced faster now.

"I'm sorry, Father. I... It wasn't intentional. But... Livia and I were chased by a dragon. We had to defend ourselves—" She stopped abruptly, realizing too late that she had implicated her younger sister.

Rodric was even angrier now.

"What? You took Livia across the border?! Do you realize the danger you both were in?!"

Aria, now at a loss for words, lowered her head in shame again.

"Father, it wasn't her fault," Livia finally summoned the courage to speak. "I begged her to take me with her. If anyone is to blame, it's me."

"It no longer matters who is at fault. The dragons are enraged, and they demand retribution. The offerings were rejected. Now, the only way to appease our enemies is to give them what they want," Rodric said, his voice heavy with sorrow.

"Didn't they accept the offerings, Father?" Elysandre asked worriedly.

Rodric shook his head. "No..."

"Then... What more do they want?"

"They claim that the dragon king wants your sister, Aria."

A deafening silence settled in the chamber. The sisters stared wide-eyed in horror for a moment.

"They... want Aria?!" Livia exclaimed, her voice filled with raw fear.

Rodric nodded sorrowfully.

Aria froze in place, her breath growing heavier. Then, she took off, running up the stairs to her chamber.

Inside, she shut the door and backed away from it, panting heavily as fear overwhelmed her.

"The dragons want me... No... It can't be!" she thought, cold sweat forming on her forehead.

"I can't leave my family... I can't become their prisoner!"

Aria paced her chamber, trembling with fear. Then, the door burst open, making her flinch. It was Livia.

"Aria...!"

"Livia...?"

"I won't let them take you," Livia said fiercely, tears glistening in her eyes. "I would rather burn than let those monsters have you."

Before Aria could respond, the other sisters walked in, their faces pale and their eyes watery. Genevieve rushed over to Aria and grasped her hands, her cheeks streaked with tears.

"Whatever happens, we'll face it together," Genevieve said firmly. "You're our sister. We won't let them take you."

The others nodded in agreement.

Aria stared at them with teary eyes, her lips trembling.

"But... I don't want you to die such horrible deaths..."

"You will face a fate far worse than getting burned to death if they take you, Aria!" Sybilla cut her off, her voice loud and full of anger. "You don't know what these beings are capable of. I saw them today. They are... devils! They have no empathy! I don't want to imagine what they do to humans in their world, but we would never let you go through that!"

While her sisters spoke, Aria barely listened. She stared at them, her heart breaking at their loyalty. Yet, she couldn't bear to see them suffer for her mistake.

If only she had gotten her head out of the clouds and acted more mature and ladylike as her elder sisters always told her to.

Now, the fate of her entire family and Eldoria lay in her hands.

There was barely enough time to make a decision. The dragons had given her father until noon. The sun was climbing higher in the sky.

Aria held her breath as the world spun around her. Her sisters' voices echoed in her mind until the chaos became unbearable. Clenching her fists, she released them again, defeated.

Without a word, she walked out of her chamber.

"Aria?" Sybilla called, but she didn't stop.

Descending the stairs, Aria walked up to her father, who spoke with his councilman. They had been discussing ways to stall the dragons.

"Father..." Aria said calmly, her voice steady despite the tears in her eyes.

Rodric turned to face her, his face etched with worry.

"Daughter..." he murmured.

"I will go," she said, her voice trembling but firm. "I made a mistake, and I must face the consequences. I will offer myself to the dragons."