The Stolen Princess

I hate this carriage.

It's creaky. It smells like horse dung. The axles creak. The seats are in tattered. The wood is covered in mysterious dark stains.

This is no place for a princess!

Ah, but I have no choice. It is this or death.

This rancid arrangement is what our new Emperor decided. 'To keep the peace.' That monster's favorite phrase. His Empire were the victors in the war between our nations. My father, the King, was slain in cold blood. He was lied to, just like my brother, mother, and myself.

In the treaty, it was agreed that my life would be traded for the family castle, and the Grand City to remain as a puppet state. I would live in the capitol, marrying into the Emperor's family. In return, my family would be allowed to live in our former territory. We would be lower nobles, owning a small plot of land somewhere, but at least we would be together, even under the rule of the infamous Empire of Peaches.

Just as my father signs the treaty, his head is separated from his shoulders. Executed by one of the Emperor's axe-wielding generals.

That's what my brother told my mother and me. He returned to us, pale and covered in blood.

"We have five years," he whispered, as my mother had (rightfully) fainted onto a couch, "No later than three days after your twentieth birthday. That's when you must be delivered to the…"

"But what about you and mother?!" I rushed over to him, gripping his trembling hands, "He just killed our father! How do we know the fiend will let any of us live that long?!"

I still remember the look on my brother's face. His eyes were too-wide, wet with coming tears. His cheeks were washed, a sick gray color. His mouth a straight, thin line.

"We don't."

Looking back, this was a move by the Empire of Peaches to scare my people into submission. They wanted an effortless victory. We did not give them the satisfaction.

Within hours of my father's murder, many of the citizens in the capitol had steeled their hearts. Within days, they stormed our castle sized prison, rescuing my family. We escaped, but were forced into hiding.

For a while, there were pockets of small rebellions around the former kingdom. But they were nothing more than mosquitoes to the Empire. Soon, the rebels had to hide too, but they did not disappear completely. They were clever, hiding graffiti all throughout the city. I ignored them. I wanted to be with my family. I couldn't put myself at risk. My brother agreed.

A year had passed since my father's murder. We were living in a small shack. My family had nothing now, save for the family hunting dog, Kyu. A puppy my brother had somehow saved. I remember my mother frowning. She only saw him as another mouth to feed, but I made sure to prove her wrong!

He and I would go out to hunt ducks during the winter, and rabbits during the spring. Kyu and I made quite a team. My bow crippling them, then Kyu endlessly chasing, eventually returning with… food!

One day during spring, I went into the Grand City to deliver a set of rabbit skins to a leatherworker. I went disguised, as the whole Empire was looking for me. There were eyes everywhere.

When I had finished my business, I found that I had wandered back to the castle.

Outside the large gates I saw eight wagons stuffed with items. In the back of a wagon, I saw my mother's dresses pressed beneath a chest from her private closet. Men strolled in empty handed. Reappearing with arms full of silks and draperies. All while Peach Guards watched. Some of them laughing and making conversation.

I watched silently as my home was looted. Once those Peach bastards were done, they left the castle doors wide open. I wandered those halls with my heart filled with disgust. Family heirlooms were torn from walls, and swiped from cases. To be sold off to pampered foreign princes who had more money than sense. The thought sickened me. Everything was gone, from tiny pieces of precious jewelry to the collection of large well-bred horses.

I left the hollowed castle angry. The people of the Empire were evil, there was no doubt in my mind. All they do is take, take, take! The castle was a warning, and I needed to heed it. I needed to do something.

I didn't go home. Instead, I weaved myself into alleyways and between stores. I followed the graffiti that I used to ignore. I knew that there were mumblings of a new rebellion. They just needed someone to lead them.

I crashed their secret meeting, demanding justice. I volunteered myself.

The next three years were long and bloody. We were so close to winning but… a snake sabotaged our plans. We lost. Our final push failed, and I was captured. That final year, was spent being watched.

'To keep the peace.' The Emperor decided to uphold the treaty, but he changed the rules last minute. The brute! My mother and brother were to be exiled, along with my allies from the failed rebellion. When my mother heard the news, she wasn't angry.

"It's not a death sentence," she said with a faint smile.

My brother agreed. Before we were separated, he left me with two gifts.

"You've got to stop acting so selfishly AhnAhn," he said, his tone gentle. "You can't be free anymore…"

I held my tongue. I didn't want our last meeting to be a sour one. He hugged me, then handed me Kyu.

"He's yours now."

Kyu is such a good dog. But I wish he was with my brother and mother now. They had been banished north, past the edges of the mountainous Empire, into barbarian territory. The winters there are harsh.

"Please live," I whisper a single prayer, as the carriage hits a bump. "Ow!" My shoulder bounced off a wall. Hard.

"Sorry ma'am!" the coachman said. "This here road is unpaved," he explained, his thick accent made my ears itch, "but we can't afford to slow down, it gets dangerous at night!"

Petting the sleeping Kyu, I couldn't help but think…

I will get my revenge on this blight of an empire!