Chapter Text
Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young Prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, the Prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind.
His cruelty was unparalleled, and his many bloody crimes terrified those around him. His court may have been full of people, but his heart was cold, made of stone. Some whispered he had none at all. Some said his chest was empty. Those who tried to coax him were punished in the worst possible way, never to be forgiven.
The servants watched each day dawn with concern and fear. The courtiers and nobles of his court sighed with relief when twilight came. Even the peasants, whom he strangled with taxes, had ceased to hope for happy days under his yoke.
Every day was a feared day. A dreaded day.
Until the heartless prince committed one crime too many. The unforgivable.
That day, whispers spread wherever the cracks allowed. Servants, courtiers, even rats and insects stared in horror and awe. The atmosphere was heavy with a suffocating tension, as if even the weather knew that something serious had taken place.
Yet, while all were frozen, an old woman approached the Prince and his crime. The latter frowned, his cold features distorted by a disgusted grimace. What was this beggar doing in his luxurious castle, she who had been eaten away by time, she who was so dirty and disgusting? How dare she spoil the beauty of every object, every painting, every floor with her old age and ugliness? It was intolerable.
“Get out of here, you wretched woman,” he demanded in his cold voice. “You have no business in this palace; you spoil it by your very presence.”
It was like talking to a deaf woman - for she surely was. She stared intently at the evidence of her crime, pensive and vaguely intrigued. What a strange reaction... In the midst of all this frightened court, aware of the horror of the crime, how could an old lady be... so calm?
A thousand shivers ran down the young man's spine. The beggar's eyes seemed so old and yet so... strange. Like rubies reflecting back to him the wisdom of the world and the answer to all mysteries. But at last, the old woman turned to him, and the prince gasped.
She simply pulled back the hood covering her head, and suddenly her white-gray hair was gone. Her wrinkles evaporated, her hollowed face smooth and soft. Her figure straightened, and the old beggar became young and beautiful, surrounded by a golden light.
The crowd exclaimed in admiration.
An enchantress.
“Oh, little prince...” said the enchantress with a pained, resentful smile. “You have no idea what you've just done... Such a cruel man. Ready to spill his own blood. Do you like making people suffer? Fine. Now it's my turn to make you suffer.”
Then she grabbed his arm, dark tendrils spreading over him. Soon, both were surrounded by darkness. The cries of the crowd faded, as if muffled or disintegrated. The Prince looked around, searching for something familiar, but there was only darkness.
“Listen carefully to my words,” the enchantress proclaimed. “From this day forward, you will be alone. On your shoulders will rest your crimes and your guilt. The people you knew will be but memories in these ruins. No one will carry the weight of your sins beside you, you'll be alone. And this will last, until time runs out or a Wild Animal finds you.”
Such was the curse that sealed the fate of this heartless prince.
And the light surrounding the enchantress faded, leaving only darkness to engulf the damned, the sinner, the condemned.
Cut off from the world, from men and from time, years passed, then centuries, and the Prince endured his curse in total solitude. As promised by the enchantress, he lived in isolation, with only fading memories and the last enigmatic words of the woman who condemned him.
The more time passed, the more the Prince lost hope of a new future.
For who would give a heartless man a chance?