Even from this distance, I could tell that Heide was quite beautiful, with dark blue hair that did not quite reach her shoulders. Everything, from her light blue dress and white apron to the red bow and cravat, was perfectly in place.

The woman’s eyes were closed as her lips threatened to kiss the white and brown flute that she held delicately to her face. Her fingers slowly danced across the instrument as it sang its hypnotic melody.

The sight of her made me smile, though I had no reason to. 

Despite her closed eyelid, the woman sauntered toward us with careful footfalls. The brown boots that appeared from under her swaying skirts barely made any sound as they touched the stone. 

Heide did not deviate from the path’s center as she walked. When she passed the people on either side of her, they pivoted their bodies to follow her with their faces. They all wore the same expression of blank enrapture as if they were staring at something otherworldly. Her eloquence certainly conveyed that sense. Heide carried herself with a grace that could rival the goddess herself—the very picture of serenity. 

Despite the size of the crowd, the only sound was her song. 

Heide was about twenty feet from us when she stopped. She was close enough for me to see even more detail, down to the few freckles on her nose and the beauty mark that decorated her right cheek, just below her eyelid, which then opened. Her eyes were as blue as her hair. 

The corner of her mouth turned upward in a serene smile at the sight of Lina and me, which did not affect her playing in the slightest. My mouth quirked to mirror her smile on its own. 

The waves of sound that rippled the air washed over me once again. And once again, a voice whispered in my ear. 

A most warm welcome, Prince Anno. I am Heide. I heard of your efforts through my helpers. And I must say, you have done well to resist me this far.

Then the music stopped, and Heide lowered her flute.

“But I’m afraid that this is where your battle ends,” she said with a voice as serene as her smile, “I have won. Now, be a dear and give Lina to me.” She held the hand that was not holding her flute out to me as if expecting me to drop Lina into it.

I wanted to resist. The music had stopped, after all. But my body was as numb as ever, still wrapped within the soundwaves that lingered in the air. I walked forward, raising my arms to present Lina to her. The other guards remained where they were, allowing me to pass before I heard their clanking footsteps for a moment before they went silent. I could not look back, but I presumed they formed a line at the entrance to the tunnel of people blocking my path. 

“I thank you,” said Heide warmly, “This will make my love very happy.”

If my body were working the way I wanted, I would gag at the sound of yet another disgusting pet name for that worm! But all I could do was obey.

It was difficult to imagine that she was under a similar spell. Her navy eyes sparkled with anticipation. A wickedness that did not fit her smile danced beneath the surface.

“That’s it. What an obedient prince.” She tilted her head and let her hair caress her face. “Even you could not resist my call, I am afraid. How…pitiful. I thought nobility would be made of stronger stuff. Sadly, I was wrong.”

Heide did not look even the slightest bit sad.

I was getting closer. Only ten feet away. The wall of people to my left and right provided no escape route but for the one behind me, which was blocked by guards.

I could see no way out. Whatever miracle Iliana had granted, if there was one at all, was now as useless as I was.

“To think that Gertrude had such trouble collecting Lina. If I had found her first, there would have been no delay. But it no longer matters. I am here to correct her mistakes. And Gertrude received a suitable punishment for her trouble.”

Heide’s smile barely changed, but there was less serenity. It was closer to the same twisted glee that I saw in Gertrude. I felt my face contort into that smile.

My throat tightened. Gertrude, what did they do to you? I was regretting my doubt of her loyalty to Lina. I could only hope the young mage was alive.

I was forced to only have eyes for Heide and was not able to look around at the crowd of people that made up the barriers around us, but I could see in my peripheral vision that their expressions had twisted in the same fashion as mine had. And even more so than Heide’s.

What a vile power! My subjects were trapped as I was, prisoners in their minds, forced to mirror the woman’s emotions and obey her every impulse, like tools rather than living beings. I could feel their fear and despair, even as their faces said otherwise.

My fury was growing with every moment that passed. The guards I had defeated, Herman and Red Beard, all were innocent. Whatever coup had taken place before my arrival was irrelevant; nobody deserved to experience a horror like this.

“Come to me, Prince Anno.” Heide’s outstretched fingers beckoned to me. 

But I did not come. 

Nobody was more surprised than I was when my legs stayed where I wanted them to. My forced smile fell, as did my eyebrows. I stared at her in defiance. I could feel Lina’s warmth in my arms, giving me strength. 

Heide’s smile faded. Her expression was blank, but the surrounding people’s faces contorted with rage. 

“I said, come to me, please,” Her voice remained tranquil. However, there was a slight quiver that had not been there before.

I could feel the waves compel my muscles forward. I did not move. My mind returned to the guards I had frightened off. Despite their direct orders, their fear had won out over Heide’s spell. 

If they could overpower Heide’s influence at that distance, how great was my anger to defy her right to her face? It must have been born from my princely resolve. I stared her down. She was slightly taller than Lina, but not by much.

Still, Heide met my gaze with just as much strength. “Why will you not come? I do not wish to hurt anyone. All I want is Lina.”

I continued to stare.

“Oh, dear,” Heide said, pressing her hand to her cheek, “You’re much more trouble than I thought, Prince Anno. I am not as unreasonable as Miss Gertrude. If you bring Lina to me, I will be more than happy to spare you and the rest of this town.”

Her smile returned. This one did not reach her eyes.

“I…” Speaking felt like trying to extract water from a dry well. But I fought against her hold as I pulled each word with as much power as I could muster, “...will… never… let… you… have… her…”

She would have to kill me first. 

Heide was silent as she watched me. Then she said, “I see. So, you think you can disobey me?” She did not shout, but her voice rang in my ears as if she had. Heide took a step forward, and I took a step back. 

For one moment, her smile broke into an enraged expression that matched the intensity of her prisoners. Her hair seemed to crackle and rise. Then everything fell back into place before her graceful smile returned as she raised her flute to her lips. 

Though the notes that she started to play were the same, I could not call it the same song. The waves that started up were very different, jagged, and angry, as if made from razor wire. They flew into me and dug themselves into my skin, becoming taut as they dragged me forward into stumbling steps. 

The voice in my ear returned, no longer a gentle whisper but a furious scream that threatened to make my head explode. Get over here, you insolent pig-stain! How dare you defy me! I’ll send you to your knees and make you lick my boots! You’ll beg for my forgiveness!

Heide’s face was as composed as ever, which made the crassness of her threats all the more jarring. I did not think someone who spoke so formally would be capable of such a filthy tongue. But I supposed these were her true colors. 

My body quivered as I felt two opposing forces threaten to tear my body in half as I willed myself to stay where I was. But my defiance was dwarfed by her sheer power as Heide’s transparent cords compelled me forward. 

I did not make it easy, though. Each step she pulled out of me dragged across the cobblestone. A part of me hoped I would trip, but I knew that would spell disaster for Lina. 

She and I were only four feet away when Heide’s song spoke into my ear, Good boy! Now drop to your knees and put Lina down.

I could no longer resist the waves of sound that were this close and this intense. That did not mean that I did not try my best. 

However, my best proved fruitless. I could feel my knees immediately start to buckle.

That’s it, Prince Guano! Submit to me like the dog you are! The people’s expressions morphed into one of sadistic pleasure. 

 I had to wonder if such a childish nickname was born from the False Hero’s or Heide’s imagination. At least she remembered to call me a prince. That was some small comfort, at least.  

But as my knees were about to collapse from her overwhelming force, a familiar noise sounded across the square–or rather, screeched. It was ear-splittingly close, enough to send shivers up my spine. I could hear shrieks of pain from the people around me as I saw many cover their ears in irritation.

My body realizes it had been freed from Heide’s control before my mind did. By the time my thoughts caught up with my legs, I was already yards away from Heide.

“No!” I heard the bard scream over the din, “Return at once!” 

I chanced a glance behind me to see that Heide was about to blow into her flute again in an attempt to drown out the obnoxious wailing. Before she could, however, the crowd that had once been forced to stay in place swarmed her. She was swallowed up by people, gone from my sight in an instant. 

The noise of the crowd overtook the wails, but I could hear a few choice phrases rising out of the chaos. 

“Tear her apart!”

“Take her flute!”

“She’ll pay for what she’s done to us!”

I could understand the people’s hatred toward Heide. Her power was truly capable of evil. But as much as I resented her in the moment, I knew in my princely heart that she was as much a victim in all of this as they were. It was all the fault of the false hero. But I could not allow myself to turn back. The crowd was quickly erupting into a mob. 

If I did not get Lina out of this, they would turn into a full-blown riot. I could only pray that Heide would survive, knocked unconscious so she would not be a problem, but unharmed. Maybe with a few cuts and bruises for her trouble. 

I knew the truth, however. I knew the people would not be able to overpower her. If she was as strong as Gertrude and Lina said she was, it was only a matter of time before she regained control, angrier than ever. 

I needed to use this time gifted to me by that wonderfully horrible noise. Every second was precious. Once her music started again, Lina and I would be right back where we started. 

People were everywhere, running in all directions. No one paid any attention to us, as I did my best to dodge through the chaos. 

The crowd was too large for me to be successful for long. It took only one bystander to knock into me and set off a chain reaction. I pressed Lina to my chest as carefully as I could as I was bounced from person to person. More than once, I was close to losing my balance, but I managed to recover quickly enough to make it a few steps before the next person ran into me, and the cycle began anew. 

On top of the imminence of Heide’s song, there was the major risk of being trampled by the surging mob. 

A particularly large man chose at that time to shove his way past me with my foot connecting with a loose cobblestone. And it was at that time that my weary knees chose to finally give out. As my legs crumpled beneath me, my instinct was to lean over Lina with the intent to shield her with my body as I was crushed by the tide of oncoming feet, but just then, something grabbed the back of my shirt collar and hoisted me back to my feet long enough for me to regain my balance.

I turned to look at my savior, expecting Dietrich, only to find another familiar face. Red Beard’s eyes were fierce as his beard twitched into a smile. “I’m glad to see you safe, my Prince. Follow me.”

I blinked in shock but obeyed without question.

Red Beard was sturdy enough to push back against the mob as I followed in his wake. His voice boomed over the senseless noise. “Oi! Follow us! Get out of range of her song! Do you hear me? Get out!”

A few people listened to his shout and joined us to walk against the flow. 

“Who was that Siren woman, Albert?” Asked a timid woman who kept herself close to me. 

“I don’t know any more than you do, Ida. All I know is that we need to get as far as we can.”

Our small band pushed forward, with Red Beard–or rather, Albert, leading the way. It only took a minute or two more to finally break from the mass of people and into a side alley.

We all took a moment to collect ourselves. I counted our group to be about six people. The only guard was Albert; all the rest were citizens. He looked at me with a rather mournful expression. “Forgive me, Prince Anno. I put you in a dire situation when I stole the girl from you.”

“Hardly,” said I, with a glance at Lina, who was as unconscious as ever, “You certainly did not make it easy, but you are no more to blame for this than I am.” I felt we were safe enough to crouch down and place Lina carefully on her side. It would give a chance for my aching arms to rest. It would only be for a few minutes. I did not feel Lina was safe unless she was in my arms. 

Whispers came from the citizens around us. One in particular made my ears prick, “Wait, did he say Prince Anno?”

That brought a smile to my face. Finally, someone who hadn’t tried to kill me recognized my status! I stood to face them and puffed out my chest, “Yes, it is I, your prince. Under normal circumstances, I’d be happy to meet and greet, but we are–”

“You’re the one that refused that Heide woman’s promise to spare us!” It was the woman that had clung to me earlier. 

My smile faltered, and my chest deflated. Instead of being showered with praise for freeing them from their mental bondage, the eyes of more than a few of my people were accusatory. 

“Come, now,” I said a little defensively, “Do you really think that Heide would ever allow any of you to live after going so far?”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try!” said a man, “I was there, close enough to see you refuse to hand that girl you carry over. She would have left us alone if you just handed her over!”

“You don’t know that. The fate of the world is–” I was again interrupted by the woman.

“Is one girl’s life worth more to you than all your subjects’? You’re supposed to protect us! You’re no prince of ours!!”

I opened my mouth to speak but found no words. My eyes fell back to Lina. Her beautiful face was tense with pain as she laid on the cold stone ground. My actions had delayed armageddon. Lina was now the only thing that stood in the way of the false hero destroying the world we lived in. That was reality. 

Yet the woman’s chidings cut deep. I knew that there was also the reality that I had protected Lina thus far because I cared for her. My personal feelings had trumped my duty as a prince. 

Had I truly valued my subjects, I would have prioritized their lives over Lina. 

“That is enough!” Albert’s voice cut through my thoughts as he towered over the angry citizens, “I will not tolerate you insulting the man who stood up to Heide. He saved our lives!”

“But he didn’t!” argued one, “It was that noise which set us free, including the prince!” 

“And who failed to stop the woman from controlling us? It was not the prince!” The people fell silent, “If you want to blame anyone, blame us guards who failed you first.”

I could have let him talk and come to my defense, but my need to interject outweighed my ego, “Sir Albert, they’re right about me.”

The guard rounded on me, “But, Prince Anno–”

I raised my hand to silence him before I stepped forward with a solemn expression, “I did fail you. When push came to shove, I made a selfish choice. And for that, I ask for your forgiveness. I left numerous citizens to face Heide’s wrath and fled when I should have stayed. And I did it for this woman’s sake. She has become dear to me in the short time I’ve known her. That is all true.”

I looked down at Lina. My lips pressed together before I turned my eyes to my subjects. “And I apologize that I will continue to be selfish as I prioritize her and the rest of the world’s lives over those for which I have responsibility. But I promise you that as soon as I know she is safe, I will fight for you with all the power I have left. I will not stop until Justice is saved or I have died trying. Just allow me to be selfish a little longer.”

Nobody spoke until Albert clapped my shoulder, “I don’t blame you for a moment, my Prince. Us guards have been getting in your way since you arrived. Had my son not put your friend in this state, you may have been able to act sooner.”

I shot him a look, “You mean Herman? He is your son?”

Albert nodded. “Forgive him for what he’s done, he’s a good boy.”

I smiled at him. “Yes, he is. Hold on, does that mean you are loyal to Ulrich?”

Albert stood at attention and pressed a fist to his chest plate, over his heart, “Always and forever. I’ve been sending Herman to keep Sheriff Ulrich informed.”

There came a gruff drawl from the streets. “And I’m glad you have, Albert.”

The sound of hooves arose and got louder as the still-hooded horse turned the corner and entered the alley, followed by Dietreich, whose face broke into a grin at the sight of me. And, for the first time in a while, my return grin was genuine.