The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

Basking in the afterglow.

That was probably the most accurate description, Kyle mused, sighing deeply, taking a moment to simply enjoy the sensation of Anadriel’s beautiful naked form clutched tightly against his own. He had to admit, it felt good, finally having the object of his affection, and knowing that she finally, finally, reciprocated his feelings. Reaching out, he slid a hand deftly along her long pale thigh, stroking her smooth elven skin, just to remind himself that she was actually there and not merely a fever dream or his imagination. Dri stirred slightly at the contact, snuggling tighter against him. “Mmmmm… Master,” she murmured softly in her sleep, a wide smile crossing her face. Kyle smiled at well. Despite the circumstances, it was good to see Dri smiling again.

It has been a long time since I’ve seen her actually smile, he thought dimly, thinking back. Yeah, she’s grinned before, a wry twisting of the lips, but there was never any real happiness behind it. She does that little sardonic smile, when she knows she’s beaten an opponent, and there’s that smirk she uses when she gets something she’s really wanted for a long time. But yeah… just a simple innocent happy smile…

Kyle rolled over idly, staring at the wall, pondering. Not so long ago, I was the same way. I didn’t really smile a lot either. Not that I had a whole lot to smile about. Still… it’s kind of strange how much things have changed for me in so short a time. If I’m really honest with myself, it all started about the time I met up with Nora out in the forest… Kyle sighed again, his restful bliss dissipating. Nora. The girl was still in Marion’s clutches, his helpless mind controlled thrall. He’d used her against Dri as a weapon, the ultimate tool to break her spirit. He’d already seen firsthand the damage Marion had caused to Anadriel through the encounter; he shuddered to think of the kind of psychological and emotional damage Nora herself must be experiencing.

I have to save her, he thought grimly, already making the promise with himself. And not just because of Dri. Nora’s a sweet kid… a nice girl. She doesn’t deserve what Marion is doing to her. I don’t care what it takes… I’ll free her from his control. He stared down at his hands, curled into fists. And slowly he smiled. Heh. Guess it’s official. It’s a vow. And I always keep my vows.

“Kyle…”

He glanced over to find Dri looking at him sidelong, her beautiful golden hair framing her head like a halo. “Is something wrong?” she asked, biting her lips slightly, concerned.

“It’s nothing,” Kyle reassured her, rolling back over to face her, pulling her into a kiss. “Just thinking deep thoughts. There’s a lot going on that I need to fill you in about. But it can wait for later,” he replied with a slight growl, her nearness and the scent of her feminine arousal causing the wolf blood within him to stir once again. “Right now, I’m feeling a bit like an engine that’s been set to idle for too long. I need to burn off some excess energy,” he said, grabbing her roughly about the waist and arms, pinning her down. Anadriel squealed in surprise, and delight, squirming against Kyle’s powerful frame. “And I think I have just the activity to burn off some steam,” he growled, eyes flashing, as he straddled his willing and eager victim.

Anadriel groaned loudly in pleasure as she felt her Master enter her once more. Their first coupling had been wonderful, amazing, truly spectacular. The second, incredible, blissful, beyond description. And yet somehow, in some unfathomable way, this third time was even better than the first two. A scream of pure delight ripped from her throat as she climaxed yet again, her hands, her nailed digging into his back as she struggled to hold on—to him as well as her sanity—in the onslaught of sexual pleasure sweeping over her. Hardly a prude or a virgin, she’d had lovers before, specially picked partners for her amusement, or when she had an ‘itch’ that needed scratching. She thought she knew what satisfaction was. She thought she’d experienced pleasure before.

Being taken this way, ravished by her Lord and Master, the Owner of her heart, mind and soul, she realized suddenly that her prior experiences didn’t even do the word ‘pleasure’ justice.

“AAAAHAHHHHH!! YESS YESS YESS! AAAHHH MASTER! YESS! TAKE ME! TAKE ME! FUCK ME! GAAAWWWHHDD YESSS! PLEASE! MASTERRRR!! DON’T STOP! NEVER STOP! NEVER STAAAHHHPP! AAAAHHHH! YEEEESSSSSSS!” she screamed with complete abandon, loud enough for the entire keep of the Sylvan Order to hear, and not caring a goddamn bit in the slightest. She felt as if her soul might rip free of her body, that at any moment her frail physical form surely must burst into flames from the sheer power of their passion. And when finally, blessedly, Kyle let loose a roar and came within her, she cried, sobbing blissful tears, clutching him to her with all her remaining strength.

He came in me… she thought weakly, as she felt her strength fading, her consciousness fading once again into restful slumber. I made my Master cum… I managed to please him…love him… so much…

Dammit! Jeffrey Danzig growled silently in frustration as he ducked behind a large withered tree, narrowly avoiding a trio of sentries sweeping the area. I like a good game of hide and seek as well as the next person, but this is getting ridiculous! I’ve teleported to twenty-eight different locations all across this world, and they’re STILL tracking me! As one of the sentries turned, heading back in his direction, he phased, moving himself inside the tree, allowing its code to mask his own.

Sheesh. I wonder who put a bee in Mandy’s bonnet. She’s never been this persistent before. Usually by now, she’d have given up and called it a day. I guess my recent activities didn’t go by as unnoticed as I’d hoped. He sighed deeply, panting slightly. Things were progressing faster than he’d anticipated. Marion was devoting all him time and effort into finding the other Dragon God artifacts, and had the system admins feeding him information. Worse, they’d finally pegged him as the anomaly causing them all the trouble, and were finally serious about tracking him down. Despite his cavalier attitude, the last thing he wanted was to be erased from existence.

“It’s over here,” one of the admins, a virtually faceless human-shaped avatar in a black suit called out, gesturing towards Jeffrey’s hiding spot. “The tree. It’s in the tree.”

Welp, sounds like that’s my cue to leave, JD quipped, preparing to teleport again. At the last moment, however, a strange disruption sent him flying, tossing him out of phase with the tree, knocking him to the ground. “Oooowww!” he grunted, rubbing his shoulder painfully, as he rose back to his feet. “That never happened before.”

“Disruption field,” the admin replied smugly, stepping forward, a small silver globe shaped device in his hand. “Prevents any and all teleportation out of the area. You won’t be escaping this time.” He snapped his fingers, and twelve large monstrously shaped abominations appeared, each vaguely resembling a human-shark hybrid with huge gaping claws for hands. Great, JD moaned silently. He’s using Selachiions as admin enforcers. Vicious, bloodthirsty, and basically mindless—the perfect shock troops. And in my current weakened state, a bit more than I can handle.

Aloud, still smirking, he ran a hand through his hair, turning to face the admin, saying “Escaping? Heh. You guys certainly are thickheaded. Escape, he says. Did it ever occur to you that I wasn’t running away… that I was actually leading you here into a trap?” The Admin actually twitched, frowning. “You guys have been hunting me now for what… more than twenty years? Do you think you’re the first to actually come this close to me?” he laughed, digging deep into his bluffing skills. “You simpletons are how I stay so well informed. Once I get one of you ‘all powerful’ admins alone, I negate your abilities, drain your strength, hack your information, and send you back with no memory that anything even occurred.” The admin took a few steps back, and JD held his breath, hoping that he’d bought the line of BS he’d thrown out.

“Nice try,” the human avatar stated, after a moment, “but my scans show you don’t have the power or capacities to hack through my firewall. Enforcers… eliminate him, now!” With an inhuman grunt, the shark creatures charged forward to attack.

“Well, so much for Plan A,” JD said with a shrug, powering up, preparing to use his remaining strength. “Let’s go with Plan B!” Pointing his hands towards the closest Selachiions, he let loose with a lightning attack. “Fulgure!” he blasting a deep gaping hole in the mindless creature, destroying it with one blast. Heh. Not too shabby for an old man with most of his power spent and gone, he thought, turning away, preparing to strike a second time.

“Aaaaaahhhh! Shhhhiiitt!” he yelled, jerking back in pain, his shoulder bleeding through the gaping hole shredded through his armor by the Selachiion he’d just destroyed. Staring in surprise, the creature, blackened, barely intact, with its skeleton showing through the burned away flesh, continued forward, reaching out again with its claws. Dammit! Stupid! Fucking stupid! Of course they would have disabled the creatures’ death protocols, he realized dimly, rolling out of the way, backing steadily away from the advancing hordes. What better way to take on a seemingly invincible foe than with invincible undying troops? And with that damned device jamming me, I can’t teleport out of here either.

“Ah, so you can bleed,” the Admin quipped unremarkably, watching idly as his shock troops continued to circle the injured mage. “I was wondering about that. Some of us were of the opinion that you were simply a ‘rogue NPC’, a malfunction or defect of some kind. To be honest, even this close, your scan doesn’t match up with anything in our database. Once the Selachiions have finished tearing you apart, I’ll have the IT department examine the pieces, and see if they can figure you out.”

JD growled furiously, finding himself backed into a corner. This is bad. I can’t afford to die this way. If these bastards get their hands on my program they’ll learn everything—about Kyle, Bonnie, the mind control frequencies… everything! I can’t let that happen. He opened the pouch at his side, removing a pair of small round objects, considering. If I called for help, he’d come. But… I don’t want him exposed to this yet. I want to keep these kids OUT of danger, not drag them in with me. Gah… my only other choice is to somehow take these things out by myself and escape… or do the unthinkable, and use that final protocol.

A final failsafe the original Jeffrey Danzig had designed into the program inhabiting his consciousness, considering the situation that had forced its creation, he had known he might someday find himself in a similar situation, having to choose between his own self-preservation, and the good of those he was trying to protect. If it came down to it, and there was no other choice, he had the ability to activate a self-destruct subroutine within his matrix, wiping out his program completely, and erasing all his accumulated data. Doing so would destroy him forever, with no hope for reintegration or salvaging. There would be nothing left for the Admins to examine, and no trail of breadcrumbs leading them back to Kyle, or Bonnie, or the artifacts they were seeking. He’d be gone for good, but everyone else would be safe.

“Fuck it,” he snarled, tossing the second orb to the ground at his feet, creating a wall of thick black vision obscuring smoke. “I’m not dead yet!” Focusing his energy, he activated a few of his lesser known or used protocols, things that he hoped the Admins wouldn’t have thought to prepare for. Making a quick series of hand signs, he yelled out, “Fire style—fireball jitsu!” Placing his hands in front of his mouth, making a small cone, he exhaled, sending a plume of superheated fire breath at the enemies flanking him, setting them on fire. He turned as he exhaled, engulfing them all, then sighed, panting heavily, dropping down to one knee as the smoke finally cleared, revealing only him left on the battlefield.

“Wow… I’m impressed,” the nameless Admin replied, clapping loudly, coming up behind JD, causing him to turn. “Never saw anything like that before. It wasn’t a spell or technique that I’m familiar with.”

“You obviously never watched many Saturday morning cartoons did you?” JD replied with a bit of a snark. “So… what now? I just took out your troops. Are you going to try your hand at taking me on yourself, or run off back to Miss Faraday with your tail between your legs?”

“How did you kn—“ the man blurted out before narrowing his eyes. “Ah. You really ARE well informed, aren’t you? I guess perhaps you weren’t lying about your run-ins with previous admins after all. That’s fine. But I have noticed three things you might not be aware of.” JD’s eyes narrowed.

“Oh? And what’s that?”

“One, that you’re still bleeding from your wound, and that your life points have just dropped into the red. Two, that even with whatever strange unknown assortment of powers and abilities you seem to be packing, you still don’t possess the processing power to hack me. And three,” he replied with a smirk of his own, “the wireless request for additional backup units was received loud and clear,” as twelve additional Selachiions appeared just behind the Admin.

“Well… shit.”

“Take him!” the nameless avatar commanded.

Grunting, JD found himself tackled, pinned to the ground, his injured bleeding shoulder protesting the treatment. The beast pinning him growled, opening its gaping maw wide, preparing to bite down, even as JD struggled to hold the creature back long enough to activate his failsafe code. In his struggling, however, he failed to notice his pouch, tossed aside as he’d fallen to the ground, lying open, the crystal given to him long ago shining brightly, its pale light darkening to a potent blood red. “Yes! Finish him now!” the admin yelled out in delight, as the creature lowered its head.

A brief flash of light caused everyone to pause, however, as a strangely dressed youth with short dark ruffled and unruly hair holding a wooden staff in one hand, and a glowing yellow crystal in the other. Saying nothing, he took in the scene before him in an instant, and acted, striking out with the staff, knocking back the shark creature from its victim. “Caveam Ventus Retrorsum,” the boy chanted, pointing towards JD, encasing him within a swirling vortex. Then, he turned to face the others. As two Selachiion closed in on him from opposite sides, he raised a hand towards each, a mere flicking of his wrists, barely ruffling the edges of his long red scaly robe. The effect, however, was devastating, as the two enemies were literally sliced to pieces by the gesture, each letting out a short garbled shriek before collapsing into a pile of bloody meat.

“Well, well, well,” the admin grunted, shaking his head. “Looks like I wasn’t the only one who called for backup.” He opened his menu, and started a scan of the newcomer. “I don’t know who the hell you are, boy, but after all this, I don’t intend to let my hard earned prize slip through my fingers this… what? WHAT? What the hell… ‘identity unknown’? I’m an Admin, there’s no way you can be blocking your ID from my scan. How the hell are you—“

“Shut up,” James Windsaber said quietly, gesturing lightly towards the avatar. Immediately, the man’s menu closed, locking up with a stream of error messages.

“Aaahhhh! Fuck! What did you do? I can’t access my Operator commands!” she screamed.

“I said, shut up,” James said loudly, eyes flashing briefly, as a wave of energy swept through the nearby area. The admin let out a cry as he was flung back, landing hard on the ground, his life bar shifting from green to yellow, to red… then to black. Eyes wide, he stared in disbelief even as his avatar began to fade, his ‘unkillable’ status somehow negated by the boy.

If James had expected the rest of the shark creatures to simply run off with their leader gone, he was sadly mistaken. Controlled or not, the beasts were mostly mindless killing machines, and even without orders, they continued to charge at him, intending to slay him. More annoyed than concerned, he brought his hands together, and focused his energy. “Ventus Frustram Tempesta!” he growled, sending out a swirling wave of air, miniature tornados that struck each of the sharks, slicing and dicing them all into tiny pieces before dissipating. Satisfied, he finally turned back to the spinning globe of wind encompassing the felled mage and banished it with a gesture, dropping down to one knee, staring at the injured man.

“Hey, Uncle Jeffrey,” he said amicably, “you look like crap. What happened here? What’s going on?”

JD let out a soft sigh. Grateful for the help, he still wished he could have kept the youngster out of this latest run-in. “Long story. Long and complicated. Thanks for saving my ass, by the way. Very grateful. Suffice it to say, we need to go somewhere else to talk.” He managed with an effort to get back to his feet. “I don’t suppose you have somewhere safe we can talk and catch up… and maybe patch up the old man’s shoulder?” he added, wincing slightly in pain. James placed a hand gently on his arm, sending out a wave of healing, causing the wound to close up.

“That should hold you for the trip,” he stated, taking hold of JD’s arm firmly. “Hang on. I know just the place.” With a bright flash, they both vanished.

A loud beeping caused Kyle to stir. Groaning, he turned over, trying to ignore it, only to sigh deeply, kick off the covers, and slide out of bed. Anadriel stirred as well, coming instantly awake at the loss of him at her side. “What is it?” she asked sleepily.

Kyle grunted, scrolling through his menu at the alerts he’d received. “Nothing to worry about. It’s a reminder about an event I have to go to in an hour,” he said with obvious distaste. “Some kind of soiree being thrown for some important VIPs with the Reality’s Board of Directors, or some such nonsense. My agent booked me a personal appearance.”

Anadriel nodded, rolling over, causing the covers to part, revealing her in all her naked glory. Kyle’s eyes widened at the sight, which caused Dri’s heartbeat to quicken. Mmmmm… gods and goddesses, but I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing that reaction in him! “So, Kyle,” she said in a low husky voice, extending a long leg upwards towards him, brushing his bared chest with her bare foot, “any chance you might be able to bow out of this? Fake a cold or something?” she asked playfully, wiggling her long sender toes against his chest.

“Heh. I wish I could,” Kyle grinned, taking hold of her foot, scratching lightly along her sole just enough to make her squeal in ticklish protest, before leaning forward to lightly kiss her toes. “Believe me, I’d much rather stay here with you. But I have an obligation, to my agent… and to others,” he said in a softer voice, glancing away guiltily, “and I have to go. But I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he said, turning back to her again. “I promise.”

“Kyle,” Anadriel said, suddenly serious, no longer playful. The change in tone caught his attention, and he moved back to her bed, sitting down across from her. “Master,” she said solemnly, holding up a hand in protest. “Yes, I know, I don’t have to call you that. I know. And I thank you again for giving me that option. The old me would have probably insisted on it, made a bunch of unreasonable demands on you, tried to negotiate this ‘relationship’,” she said, making air quotes, “into something more favorable for her position. And, knowing you, you would have let her,” she added, smiling softly, eyes sparkling with unshed tears at the thought.”

“Dri,” Kyle began, only to have his mouth covered up by her hand.

“God, Kyle, can you just shut up and let me finish this, please?” she said without heat, smirking at him. “Geez… always having to have the last word… lucky thing you’re my Master, or I’d never let that stand,” she said with a giggle. “And that, Kyle, is my point. You ARE my Master. I am your slave, willingly, joyfully, happily. I’ll do anything you ask me to, and do it knowing that it will please you. I love you so much…” She shook her head, trying to find a way to express what she wanted to say. “I… I think I’ve always loved you, deep down. I just didn’t know how to express it. And… the old me… there was just so much other junk in my head, in my heart, getting in the way. But now, now I can see clearly for the very first time just how amazingly wonderful you are—“ She clamped her hand tighter around Kyle’s mouth as he started to protest. “Uh uh. Still talking,” she said, leaning forward to kiss him lightly.

“Listen, Kyle… I know I’m not the only slave in your stables,” she said after a moment, glancing down. “And I want you to know… it doesn’t bother me. Not really.” She sighed again. “In fact… I’m happy that you have them. Honor… Serena… that little assassin girl… they all seemed really nice. And the way you spoke about them before, the way you defended them—I can tell they mean a lot to you.” She took a deep breath. “I think… no. I feel that they all deserve your love… more than I do. I know how you’ve always felt about me. I’ve known for years. And I used those feelings to my advantage. I’m sorry about that. Still, even though I’ve changed, it still doesn’t make up for all the hurt I caused you. Kyle,” she said, looking up at him now, her face wet with tears, “I don’t deserve you.”

“Dri, stop!” Kyle said, pulling her into a tight embrace. “You do! If anything I don’t deserve you! You’re smart, you’re funny, you’re kind and considerate, you’re loyal—you’re a much better person that you think you are!” But Anadriel shook her head sadly.

“Thank you for that. But we both know its not true. I was a bitch… a selfish, self-righteous bitch. And I’m not worthy to be your slave. Oh, don’t worry—“ she added quickly, seeing Kyle’s expression. “I’m not planning to do anything stupid. And I’m not asking you to release me—I’d rather die than be without you, my Master,” she said clutching him tight. “What I’m saying is… I have a lot to make up for. And if it takes me the rest of my life, I’m going to do whatever it takes to prove myself worthy of a man as incredible as you.”

“You don’t have to prove anything to me, Dri,” Kyle said softly, wiping her tears.

“I know, my love,” she replied just as softly. “But I have to prove it to myself. I made myself a solemn vow last night… that I would become a better person that I was, not just for you, but for me. And as a dear friend once said to me, a person should always keep their vows.”

Kyle chuckled at that. “So they should. Just know, from personal experience, it isn’t always easy.”

Sighing deeply, he rose back to his feet. “Well, Anadriel, I need to get going. I have a few things I need to do before leaving for the party. Could you do me a favor and check in with the other girls for me? I think you probably have Honor in your contact list already, but I added all their communication addresses to your menu earlier when I woke up just in case.” He quickly dressed. “Not sure how long this thing is going to take, but I’ll get back in touch with all of you again as soon as I can.”

“No problem,” the elven guild master replied. “In the meantime, is there anything else I can do for you?”

“Hmmm?”

“You know, to help you with what’s going on? I’m guessing you are searching for those artifact things that Marion used in our duel as well. You’re wearing one on your wrist, after all,” she pointed out. “Anyway, if it will stop Marion and help us free Nora, then I’m on board.”

“I think we’ve got it covered for now,” Kyle replied. “Honor and the others are doing research in the Athenaeum in Reus Polten, and should be checking in at any time with whatever they’ve discovered. We can all compare notes and reconnoiter once I get back. For now,” he said gently, “go spend some time with your people. The Sylvan Order just faced a major battle, and they nearly lost their leader. Everyone is worried about you, especially Rald.” Kyle closed his eyes, frowning inwardly, barely able to believe the words coming from his lips. “Rald… is not such a bad guy,” he managed somehow. “And he blames himself for how things went in your duel. I think you and he, and the others, need to talk. If nothing else, it will reassure everyone that you’re okay.”

“Yeah… that I’m okay,” Dri said slowly. The thought had been circling around in her head for a while now, only brought to the forefront of her mind at Kyle’s mention. The Sylvan Order had, for most of her time in the Reality, been her life. From her first entry, making her way up through the ranks to become the undisputed guild master, she’d eaten, slept, and breathed the Sylvan Order. She’d sought to make it the best and largest guild in all of Axaelle, and it she hadn’t done so exactly, she’d certainly come close. The Sylvan Order was widely known, respected, and feared. And she herself was known as one of the most powerful mages in the game, a member of the Pantheon, and an idol to millions.

Yet in the grand scheme of things, none of it had brought her half the joy and happiness she felt now, knowing herself as Kyle’s slave. True, being with the Order did give her a sense of satisfaction, and pride. She had accomplished a lot with them. And she had a great number of friends within the group, despite the recent unpleasantness with Marion slipping a number of his agents within her ranks. Even with all that going in its favor, she knew without a doubt that she would resign her command and walk away from it all if Kyle so much as hinted at wanting her to leave.

So, what does that say about my commitment to the Order? she thought idly. That I’m even thinking about walking away now? And what does that mean about me? Have I changed that much in becoming Kyle’s slave? I can’t call it a bad thing, really, and I sure as hell don’t want to become the driven single-minded person I used to be. But that singlemindedness is what made the Order what it is now. Maybe without the drive, I won’t have what it takes to lead them anymore…

Forcing a smile, she nodded. “Yes. You’re right. We do have a lot to talk about.” Standing up, slipping on her robe, she walked over and gave her Master a parting kiss. “So then, off with you! Go to your party. Be dashing, be deboniare, be the adoring idol of millions that you are. Most of all, try and have a good time! One thing though,” she said, suddenly serious again. “If you see any attractive women at this party of yours, and think about hooking up with them,” she said crossing her arms, causing Kyle to take a step back, “—then make sure and tell me all about it afterwards,” she said, grinning again. “And I mean major, graphic details. Don’t you dare leave out a single one!”

Kyle gaped at her in shock. “Y… you’re actually encouraging me to have sex with someone else?”

Anadriel laughed. “Kyle, you have three other slave girls already. And as close as you are to them, I can’t believe you haven’t already slept with at least one of them already. Am I right?” Kyle’s blush as he averted his gaze only made her giggle. “You see? So, now, I don’t mind. I’m not jealous. Heck, I’m currently the newbie, the low man on the totem pole, comparatively speaking. If anything, the others would have more of a claim on you than I would.” She caressed his face gently. “All joking aside, Kyle, you are the Master here. You can do whatever you want with whomever you want. I know in my heart of hearts how you feel about me now, and that will never change. So, now, I won’t begrudge you having some ‘fun’ with other girls.” Kyle merely nodded.

A part of him had kind of hoped she would make a big deal about it, that she’s act jealous or angry or outraged at the idea. Honor meant a lot of him. He loved her, just as deeply, if not moreso, than Dri. But Honor had already made it plain that she didn’t like having to share him with anyone else, that as much as she felt about him, they would never be more than ‘friends with benefits’ as long as he kept his ‘harem’. It was all so complicated.

It was so much easier sorting out my feelings when I was by myself, sitting in Calypso’s grotto, pining away after Anadriel, knowing I could never have her. Calypso… that thought reminded him that something was going on with her as well. He sighed. So much to do, so little time… yet I have to go and waste more of it at a fancy dress ball with a bunch of stiffs.

“Okay. I’m heading out. I’ll see you soon,” Kyle said giving her a smile before logging out.

“…and then you appeared, flattened the entire group, healed me and brought me here,” JD finished, filling James in on what had recently occurred. “So, yeah, I meant it when I said you save my ass. I was pretty much on my last legs when you showed up. If you hadn’t come when you did,” he said, shaking his head.

James stared at him for a long moment, then sighed. “I don’t know what I more upset about… the fact that you made yourself this weak and vulnerable to help this Kyle kid out, or that you DIDN’T call me when you got in over your head!”

“I didn’t want you exposed,” JD lamented. “Not this soon, anyway. I was, actually, coming to find you and tell you everything when the Admins caught my trail. The reason I was in such bad shape to begin with was from using up all my remaining energy teleporting all over the Reality trying to lose them.”

“That’s still no reason not to come to me,” James replied, sullenly. “Look, Uncle… you can’t… you have to be more careful, okay? You’re the only family I have left. I don’t want you dying on me… not if I can help it.”

Jeffrey laughed ruefully. “You know, Bonnie said pretty much the same exact thing to me before I left her cove. Still, like I told her, I’m not technically alive. I’m a computer program. The real me is dead and gone. I’m just a ghost in the machine…” he added with a chuckle. “If it come to a choice between protecting you kids and myself, I’m sorry, but I’m choosing you guys.”

James considered. “Well…maybe I can help you get stronger so you’ll be able to protect yourself again, so you hopefully won’t have to make that choice.”

“Oh? What do you have in mind?” JD asked, curious.

“A little something left behind by my dad,” James replied with a grin, walking away for a moment to retrieve something.

Jeffrey started at that. Your dad, huh? he thought sadly. Yeah. If anyone could come up with a way out of this mess, it would be you, Anthony. You were always the brightest of us. I just wish you hadn’t been so naive to believe the company execs would actually do the right thing…

Anthony had been, officially, the first casualty in the company’s war against the programmers. After confronting them about the secret of the Reality’s program, and the hidden mind control frequency embedded within, the company had arranged an ‘accident’, a car crash that ended up taking the life of the senior computer analyst. Sitting alone in his basement, hiding out for the five years afterwards, Jeffrey had blamed himself. Tony was always an idealist, a head-in-the-clouds kind of guy. JD felt that if he’d tried harder to convince him not to bring the information to the Board, if he’d argued the man into submission as he usually did, things might have turned out differently. When he’d learned about Anthony’s son, James, and the accident that had befallen him and his mother years later, he’d arranged to have the comatose boy hooked into his own private online server, with his own private version of The Reality to keep his mind active.

And maybe it was karma, he thought with wonder, or maybe just meant to be, that the son would turn out to be a computer genius just like his dad. He’d somehow managed, all on his own, to link his private server into the main network, allowing him to transport his avatar, mind, and will over to the main public server. He, Bonnie, and myself… all in the same boat. James, his body alive and well, healthy even, but comatose, his mind severed, locked away inside this game. Bonnie, she’s just the opposite—with a fully functional brain in a ruined body… the only one of us that can leave this world. Only returning to ‘reality’ traps her in a prison, a vegetable husk of a body that she can’t control.

JD’s hands clenched into fists. “And all of it due to the damned company,” he growled softly. “So many lives ruined, all for the pursuit of money and power. Well, not these two. Not if I can help it. They’ve suffered enough. I’m going to take down this wretched corporation if it’s the last thing I ever do…”

“And just maybe this can help you,” James replied as he returned. In his hands he held a small golden disc, with the head of a dragon engraved upon it. “This is a little something I found in my dad’s personal files, a special program he created for the Reality that he never had the chance to upload. I know you and he always used to talk about dragon lore, and creating a special class of dragon warriors for the game. Well, this I believe is his prototype.” He sighed, rubbing his shoulder. “I have to admit, he hid it pretty deep in the files. I had to literally fight my way through a crypt to get it. As near as I can tell, it should unlock a special class known as a ‘Dragon Knight’. The program’s incomplete, however, so it can only be used by someone who is already part dragon.”

JD grinned. “A Dragon Knight, huh? Yeah… that sounds like your dad all right. He always loved the Final Fantasy series. I’ll never forget the time back in college when we played Final Fantasy 4 ’til the wee hours of the morning, trying to beat the Sealed Cave. It was late, and we needed to get to bed, so after beating the main boss we didn’t bother to save, just sprinted back to the entrance to get back to the overworld.” He chuckled in memory. ”And ran into the most diabolical evil trap ever created. It was a timed battle against this thing called the Evil Wall. Massive HP, strong attacks and defense, and you had to beat it before it literally crushed you flat. And remember, we hadn’t saved the game earlier, meaning if we died, we would have had to play for hours to get back everything we would have lost.”

James nodded. He’d heard the story before. Several times. “But luckily you managed to beat it—“

“—on the very last attack,” JD replied enthusiastically. “At the last second, I use the Dragon Knight Kain, tell him to jump, which makes his fly off the screen for one round and come down a round latter for a massive attack. The Wall slams everyone, and kills everyone. It looks like game over… then Kain lands with the last hit, destroying the wall and saving the day!” James merely rolled his eyes.

“Yes, well, I don’t know about all that… but this Dragon Knight should unlock and enhance your normal abilities as one of the Dragon Gods. As an ‘NPC’, you’re kind of limited in being able to heal yourself, or utilize most items in the game. Being an all-powerful Dragon God you never really had to worry about that limitation, until now. This class’ zen ability should take care of that. It will allow you to channel and process the elements, like fire, ice and lightning, and use them not only to heal yourself, but to strengthen and boost your stats.”

“Hmmm… that could definitely come in handy,” JD admitted. “And your Dad came up with this, huh? Impressive. But I also know how it works. The better the ability, the more costly the drawback. So, what’s the downside?”

“Yeah, the downside,” James replied with a sigh. “Well, for one thing, you can only absorb ONE element. Whatever you chose when you integrate the class, you’re stuck with. And you can’t absorb your own element to empower yourself. So you can’t choose fire, pelt yourself with fireballs, and make yourself invincible—it has to be someone else’s fire. And also, zen will only empower you when you recover from injury. If you use it when you’re fully healed, it won’t empower you at all.”

“Huh… the ‘Dragonball’ rule,” JD muttered. “I should have guessed.”

“Dragon… what rule?” James asked confused.

“Never mind. Is there anything else I should know?”

“Well, there are a bunch of other things,” James admitted, “but frankly, I don’t know how much of it will actually come into play until you use it. After all, it’s an unfinished prototype, and you’re not a PC. It might work exactly as predicted, or it might give you completely different abilities altogether. All I know if that it’s your best bet for regaining some of what you’ve lost.”

Staring at the emblem, JD nodded. “You’ve got a point. Okay, I’ll give it a try.” He took the emblem, holding it in his hands for a moment. “Um, James… nothing’s happening.”

“You know the drill, Uncle. Hold it up in the air.”

Eyebrow raised, he did as he was bade, holding up the emblem. Suddenly, a loud trumpet medley played, and the words ‘You found a magic emblem!’ appeared over his head. James burst out into loud belly laughter, while JD merely shook his head.

“You know, that is not nearly as fun when it happens to me as it is watching it happen to someone else,” he muttered, as the golden disc began to glow. The glow grew slowly brighter and brighter, as a warm energy began to flow forth into Jeffrey. When finally the light faded, the disc had vanished, but Jeffrey himself was clad in heavy slate grey armor complete with a helmet shaped like a dragon’s head.

“Wow! Cool!” James replied, walking around, touching the metal. “Very cool. I was expecting a robe like mine… but this is even better.” He grinned. “I christen this, the Jeffrey Dragonzoid Armor.”

“Uh, no, we’re not calling it that,” JD replied with a smirk. “I think that since your father designed this, we’ll go with what he had in mind. This is ‘Kain’s Armor’,” he stated proudly. “And while I’d love to take it out for a spin and see what she can do, we have more important matters. We need to head back to Kêr-Is. Now that the heat is off me, it should be safe enough.” He nodded to himself. “It’s time to introduce you to Kyle and his friends.”

Stepping out of the shower, Kyle glanced up as a ping sounded from his computer terminal. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he walked out into his bedroom, and glanced down at the display. Hmm. New text message from Dri, he mused, opening it. He read, nodding briskly, then smirked, laughing aloud.

“Hahahaha… those girls! They actually managed to capture that psycho Vale Stormsinger? Way to go team!” Shaking his head in disbelief, he continued getting dressed, laying out the rest of the tuxedo his agent’s people had sent over for him. Tailored, of course, no doubt having his measurements on file from the last event he’d attended. Pushing the unpleasantness he was heading towards later tonight away for the moment, he continued to ponder the current situation.

If everything Honor told Dri is accurate, then we have a real opportunity here. With Vale as our captive, we can learn everything Marion is up to, and how far along he is in his search for the artifacts. Better yet, we can maybe use her to feed him disinformation… and act as a spy for us. Marion doesn’t trust anyone, now even his most trusted associates… but Vale has always been something of a wildcard anyway, with a reputation for being completely insane. I doubt there’s anything I could ask her to do would draw any attention to her.

He briefly considered merely keeping the arcane archer as his prisoner, and using her as a bargaining chip to force Marion to release Nora, but he discounted that idea almost immediately. Even if he valued Vale as more than merely another disposable pawn in network, Marion would never give up something or someone he felt as valuable for the sake of another. More than likely, he’d either simply order his guild to attack and try and rescue her, or, barring that, simply leave her to fare for herself.

Fully dried and dressed, he took a moment to fix his tie, nodding to his reflection in the mirror before straightening up. He glanced at his watch just as the doorbell rang. “Yes. Perfect timing as always,” he muttered, spying his driver through the viewer. Glancing back once more at his terminal, and the headgear, he stepped forward, readying himself for a night of expensive drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and small talk with people he had absolutely nothing in common with.