The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

From Top to Bottom

by J. Darksong

pt.1)

For as long as I can remember, I’d only wanted to help people.

Not really surprising, growing up in a town like River City. When a good chunk of the population is sporting weird and strange super powers and spending their nights on rooftops in brightly colored spandex, it tends to become something of a staple in life. I used to read about the heroes’ exploits and see them on TV. Plus, really, who doesn’t dream of being a super hero as a kid, flying through the air, fighting bad guys, saving the day, and being cheered by the accolades of the adoring crowds?

I’d always wanted to be a super hero. Unfortunately, I hadn’t been born with any special powers or abilities. And, I’d grown up to be a bit of a wallflower, the typical pale pasty nerd girl with stringy lackluster brown hair, muddy brown eyes hidden behind coke bottle glasses, and small little barely-there B cups. I’d dreamed of being like my idols, Omega Girl, Ultra Girl, Spice Girl... strong, powerful and courageous heroines of might. Instead, I was just plain old me... just normal boring old Hannah Jane Crenshaw, about as far from heroic a person could get.

But there’s more to my story. Much much more. My grandma used to say nothing is impossible in this world. If you want something bad enough, you can make it happen. Those words always stuck with me. Not that I totally believed old Granny, though. She ALSO used to say that cats were the devil and that the government was monitoring everything she did and said through her false teeth. Yeah... Granny had a bit of dementia. Nevertheless, she DID occasionally say something worthwhile. and when she did, it was usually worth paying attention to.

I was eighteen when it finally happened. I’d graduated high school, and while smart enough to go to college, my family wasn’t affluent enough to afford it, so I was working part time at the Purrfect Groomin’ pet salon to save up enough money. Yeah, I know, weird choice... but I had hoped to become a veterinarian when I got my degree. The job was fun and easy, and it would be a great source of practical experience after I graduated. Those were my thoughts one night as I walked out of the office, preparing to head back home, just as a high-speed chase ended right in front of me. Some guy in a mask driving a big tanker truck filled with chemicals was being chased by several police cars misjudged the turn and crashed into the edge of the adjacent building, tearing the shit out of the back of the tank... and sending a huge plume of thick sparkling blue-green gas directly at me.

I’ll be honest. I was scared as hell when that unknown cloud of gas enveloped me. Too stunned by the suddenness of what had happened, it hadn’t even occurred to me to run, or close my mouth, or really do ANYTHING besides stand there in shock. Then suddenly, I was inside the cloud, hacking and coughing and gasping, wondering idly whether I was going to die, or dissolve away into a skeleton... or mutate into some kind of purple skinned ninja turtle like... thing. Then I felt dizzy, lightheaded... and then I’m pretty sure I passed out cold. When I woke up again, I was in River City General, with a bunch of tubes and IV’s in me.

Long story, short—I ended up with super powers! Maybe not the best set of super powers in the world... I couldn’t fly. I couldn’t shoot energy beams or melt things with my mind. But the gas had given me superhuman senses like an animal—hearing better than a dog’s, eyes sharper than an eagle, a sense of smell better than a bloodhound... you get the picture. I was also superhumanly strong... but not overly so. I could pick up a full sized sedan, lift it over my head... but a school bus was too heavy for me. And I was fast, faster than any normal human... but nowhere near as fast as speedsters like Echo. In short, I was a Super, but kind of on the low end of the spectrum.

But I didn’t care. It was all about helping people, right? There were a thousand Supers in this city, but no one could be in every place at once. I was ready to do my part. So the first thing I did was create a snazzy cool costume for myself, don a cute little domino mask, and head to the police station to apply for their badged Supers program. And after a brief demonstration of my powers and abilities, confirming that I was, in fact, a Super and not just some nut job off the street—apparently, that happened fairly often, who knew—they proceeded to test my qualifications.

Which... I failed. Badly. Like. abysmally bad. Record setting levels of bad.

When I finally collapsed at the finish line of the obstacle course, panting, glancing back at the... well... destruction I’d caused to the course, I already knew I’d failed. But the Sergeant still took the time to point out each and every one of my mistakes. In detail. “Look, kid,” he said at the end, “you do have powers. That much is true. But you have no idea at all on how to use them! You were like a bull in a china shop out there!” he said gesturing to the wreckage. “Your movements were uncoordinated and sloppy... as if you’d just gotten your powers yesterday!”

I glanced down and away at that. I’d actually just gotten them three days earlier.

“I’m sorry, kid... but I can’t let someone like you out there as you are now. You’re more of a liability as a so-called hero than some of the super villains terrorizing the city.” He ripped up my application. “Come back again after you’ve had some practice. When you’re ready, we can try this again.”

“Yeah... thanks, Sergeant Murphy. Sorry about all this...” I said, head down as I slunk away in shame.

Not the most auspicious start, huh? He’d been right, though. I had kind of rushed into this way before I’d been ready. I hadn’t really trained or anything or even learned the true extent of my powers. I’d played around a bit, learned what I could do, and what I couldn’t do—fly. But I hadn’t truly tested myself. I’d thought having powers would make me instantly ready to be a heroine. But I was wrong. I still had a long way to go.

* * *

It was about a month later than I’d discovered a new power.

In typical hero style, I’d carved out a secret identity for myself, and worked on defining myself for my her persona. By day, I would be mild mannered Hannah Crenshaw, teenaged pet groomer, and future veterinarian. But by night, I would become Pinnacle, the masked heroine of might, with a dazzling array of powers and abilities beyond those of mere mortal men.

I know, I know. Choosing ‘Pinnacle’ as a super hero name probably comes across as egotistical, and maybe even a bit misleading, but it’s not as if there were a lot of choices! My abilities were at the pinnacle of human evolution, the apex of what a normal person could become. And all the other good adjectives were already chosen. Hell, there was a guy in California calling himself ‘Epitome’, so I figured, why not?

Anyway, after several weeks of practice with my powers, I’d discovered, completely by accident, that I had one more little trick up my sleeve. I’d finished clean up at Purrfect Groomin’ and was heading home when I heard a scream come from the alleyway behind the store. Without thinking, I ran back there to see what was happening just in time to see a man in a black mask and coat about a mug a young woman. I skidded to a stop, freezing as they both turned to gaze at me. And I went blank, having no idea what to do or say.

I mean, should I rush the guy and tackle him to the ground and yell for the girl to escape? Or should I give some show of physical strength to scare the guy off? I wasn’t in costume, so whatever I did, I’d probably blown any chance at keeping my ‘secret identity’ a secret when this was all over. And... what if he was carrying a gun? I had no idea whether or not I was bulletproof and really had no wish to test that theory.

In the end, the would-be mugger solved my dilemma for me by grabbing the girl around the neck, and pulling a knife, glaring at me. “Beat it, bitch!” he growled menacingly. “Turn around and walk away, unless you want this bitch’s blood on your hands.”

“Please!” the woman begged, squirming slightly against her captor. “Please! Don’t let him hurt me! You have to do something! God, please!”

“SHUT UP!” he yelled, changing his grab into a choke, until the girl finally settled down, sagging in his arms. “Last chance, bitch. Move on, or you’re going to be next!”

I bit my lip, shuddering slightly in place. I had no idea what to do. I hadn’t been through the badged program yet. I hadn’t been trained for this. And now, suddenly, an innocent girl’s life was in my hands. The fear, the anger, the indecision, all of it was giving me a headache, a kind of... pressure in the back of my head that seemed to be building up second by second behind my eyes...

I had to do something. Say something. If I just turned and ran now, I’d be turning my back on everything I’d been striving for, working for, my entire life.

“You there,” I said, uncertainly, taking a step towards them. “L.. let the girl go. R-right now.”

The mugger blinked, head tilting to the side before he burst into laughter. “For real? Let get go? Are you shitting me? Bitch, your goddamn knees are knocking together! You look like you’re about to piss yourself, and you’re still trying to play hero?” He shook his head. “Look, kid... you’re not a hero. You’re out of your depth, out of your league, and out of your goddamn mind! Now... for the last fucking time... GET OUT OF HERE before I carve you up like a goddamn turkey!”

I was scared. But I was also pissed. Out of my league? Not a hero? What did he know? What the FUCK did he know? He didn’t know my hopes, my dreams! One of Grandma’s old sayings came to me then: A hero is someone who is someone who is scared to do the right thing but does it anyway, no matter the personal cost. That pressure, building up behind my eyes finally released as I bit my lip and glared back at the man.

“I said... let the girl go right now, dammit!” I demanded.

And... to my utter astonishment, he did just that. Eyes wide, his jaw gaping, he released her, standing there looking completely stunned. And I mean ‘stunned’ as if someone had just whacked him in the back of the head with a two-by-four! I’d expected the girl to scream and run off to safety, but to my surprise, she, too, stood there, stunned, wide eyed and wavering slightly in place. “Um... excuse me. Miss? Are you okay?”

“Am... I okay?” she asked back, her voice uncertain.

I admit that I’m a bit dense on the pick up for a lot of things, but after a moment or two, it finally hit me. I’d done something to them both, shocked their brains somehow when that... pressure, or whatever it was, finally released. I’d taken control of their minds. “Miss... um... what is your name?”

“Amanda...”

“Amanda, come over here and stand behind me,” I ordered her. She did so, walking a bit stiffly, almost robotically, but as soon as she’d left my line of sight, she gasped aloud. A hand gripped my arm, hard, but I held up a hand. “You, mugger... can you hear me?”

“Yeah?” he rasped, still gaping at me.

“When I count to three, you’re going to turn around, walk out of this alley, go find the nearest policeman and tell them exactly what you tried to do here tonight. Then you’re going to turn yourself in. Do you understand?”

“Yeah... I understand.”

“Good,” I said, softly, crossing my fingers. “Now... one, two, three!”

As hoped, the guy jerked slightly, then frowned, glancing around. He scowled, glaring at Amanda and me for a moment before turning on his heel and walking out of the alleyway. Once he’d finally left, I released the breath I’d been holding.

“Oh my gawd... oh my gawd,” Amanda panted softly, still clutching my arm. “That was.... I don’t know what... how did you DO that?” she asked me, in awe.

“Actually,” I told her, rubbing my chin, “I’m not so sure myself...”

* * *

I named it the Pinnacle Stare.

As best I can figure, it was some kind of latent psychic burst that temporarily stunned a person’s higher brain functions, making them passive and suggestible, for a short time. It was pretty brief, lasting about five minutes at the most before wearing off. But it was hella powerful. My new best galpal Amanda let me practice my skills on her over the next few weeks until I had it pretty much perfect. And yeah, I clued her into the whole ‘super hero identity’ part as well. Every good hero needs one special friend, a confidant that knows their secret and helps them out, after all.

So it was now three months, twelve weeks, since the accident that had given me my powers. I was better trained. I was confident. I had a better grasp of my powers and how they worked. I was ready to take the badged Supers test again.

And... again I failed. Not as badly as before, mind you. But yeah... pretty bad.

“Well, you’ve definitely improved,” the Sergeant admitted staring at my crestfallen face. “You moved a lot better out there. But you’re still not ready to face other Supers with powers. You just... you don’t have the judgment or experience to do this,” he said as gently as he could. “You’re getting there, but you still have a ways to go.”

“C’mon, Sarge!” I protested. “It wasn’t that bad! You have to pass me! I can learn what I need to know by doing the job! I’m never going to improve if you don’t give me a chance! How do you expect me to get experience if you won’t let me be a costumed heroine in the first place!”

“The best way to get some experience under your wing is to study under a mentor,” he barked, flipping through his clipboard. “Contact an established hero, ask to be their sidekick, their protege. Watch and learn from them. If you pay attention, you’ll find out if you truly have what it takes to do this kind of work or not.”

I frowned at that. “Uh huh. And how long will something like that take?”

He shrugged. “Typically, most heroes leave and go off on their own after, say, a year or two of—”

“Two years?!?” I yelled. “You expect me to play assistant hero for two years before you’ll let me try again?”

“Look, kid!” he said, irritation evident in his voice, “it is what it is. You don’t just pick up this stuff off the street. You have to be trained. We don’t just give out badges like Mardi Gras beads here you know! The tests I put you through are a modified version of what police academy trainees have to go through before THEY received their badges. Super powers or not, you are basically a licensed police officer when you carry this badge. And you have to earn it. There are no short cuts.”

Harsh words. Bitter pill. Whatever euphemism applies. They were words I didn’t want to hear, a truth I didn’t want to accept. I knew it was wrong, that it was definitely not something a hero would do. And even as I turned to the sergeant, catching his gaze, something inside me told me that this was not a good idea. But I WANTED my badge. I WANTED to be a hero. And I wanted it NOW.

Pinnacle Stare!

“Sergeant Murphy,” I said with a smug knowing smile as the stern policeman went completely blank and docile for me. “I want you to listen to me closely. You made a mistake. I did pass the test after all. You were just distracted. And you should mark down the results to reflect that.”

“Yeah...” he said softly, clicking his pen, scratching through the marks on his sheet. “I made a... mistake. You did... pass the test after all. I was... just distracted.”

I nodded serenely, ignoring the slight twisting in the pit of my gut. I was doing this for the good of everyone after all. The sooner I was out on the streets stopping crime and helping people, the better. “Thank you, Sergeant. And you should apologize as well... for making me think I’d failed.”

“Yeah... sorry, Pinnacle,” he apologized woodenly.

“Good. Now, in a minute, when I turn around, you’ll forget any of this and continue on as if nothing had happened. And it will be time to present me with my badge.” With that in mind, I broke contact with my gaze and turned away for a moment.

“Oh, hey, kid,” he called after me a second later, grinning as I turned around. “Not so fast! You can’t leave without this,” he said, holding up the small shiny golden shield on a chain, signifying my office as a duly deputized member of the badged Supers program. “Congratulations, Pinnacle! You finally have what you always wanted.”

“Thanks, Sarge,” I said, holding up the chain, sighing softly. It was exactly that... something that I’d always wanted.

So... why did I feel so bad about the way I had gotten it?

* * *

The next two months were incredible. Being a costumed heroine was awesome, the absolute best! I used my powers to save dozens, possibly hundreds of people, using my enhanced senses to find a lost child who’s wandered into a construction site and gotten trapped, using my superior strength to rip apart a car and help a family to safety after a car crash, and even rescued a bunch of hostages from a madman who’d set a bomb to go off to cover his escape. It wasn’t exactly A-list heroine stuff, like stopping Stonewall Jackson or Lodestone who had escaped from prison for the hundredth time. And definitely nothing earth shaking like saving the city from a power mad Supernova planning to rip apart time and space. But I was doing what I wanted to do by helping people and saving lives. I was doing my part.

Still, I thought I could do more. I’d proven myself to be a capable crimefighter despite what that Sergeant had thought. I had more than enough experience taking down run-of-the-mill criminals. And while I wasn’t stupid enough to try going toe to toe with someone really powerful and out of my league, I was confident enough now that I could take on a few supervillains. When Voltaire, the lightning powered villainess broke out of prison and started terrorizing the downtown area near where I lived, I didn’t think twice about it. My scarlet and white costume included a pair of red rubber soled boots, and I remembered enough high school science to know that rubber protected against electricity.

Frankly, the hardest part was making it up to where she was. The white haired crook was floating several feet off the ground, lashing out at police and bystanders alike, throwing down bolts of lightning like party favors. I had to climb up to the roof of a nearby apartment building just to get close enough to reach her. And... I’ll admit, I was a scared for a moment or two once I’d actually gotten close to her. It’s not every day that you stand up to someone who can shoot gigavolts of electricity from their hands. But the moment passed, and I strode forward, catching her attention, as I struck a heroic pose. “That’ll be enough of that, Voltaire! Your evil deeds stop here and now!”

The villainess frowned slightly, head tilted as she gave me a thorough glance. “Who the hell are YOU supposed to be? And what’s with that costume? Did you make it yourself from stuff you found at a garage sale?”

I felt my cheeks flush at her words. She’d struck a nerve there... I actually HAD gone thrift store shopping for my costume. Tight fitting spandex or lycra costumes were rather expensive, and I was basically a part time pet groomer on a tight budget saving for college. My choices had been rather limited.

“My name is Pinnacle,” I replied with an edge. “And the costume doesn’t matter. Surrender yourself now, and turn yourself into the police!”

“I think, not,” Voltaire replied, extending a hand towards me. My eyes widened as she let loose with a bolt of high energy electricity. I stiffened, barely holding back a scream...only to gasp in surprise as the bolt dissipated harmlessly, striking the building’s lightning rod installed just a few feet away instead of me. Scowling, Voltaire turned, bringing herself down to the roof of the building, body rippling with arcs of electricity. “Fine. We’ll do this the old fashioned way,” she said with a smirk, raising to electricity charged fists.

Okay, granted, I’d lucked up with the lightning rod... but at least with this, I was on level footing. A street brawl I could handle. And, rather than test how well my twelve weeks of tae kwon do would fare against whatever fight training she had, I decided to go with my big guns, my ace in the hole. Facing her down, I let the power inside me build for a second before unleashing it. “Pinnacle Stare!” I called out, zapping her with my trump card.

Voltaire sagged visibly where she stood, her stored up electrical power dispersing. I smirked, feeling a familiar sense of pleasure at having my enemy completely at my mercy. The tables had definitely turned; before, I was the one weak and vulnerable, cowering before a powerful, leering electrically powered tormentor. Now, I was the one with the power... and she was the helpless victim.

“Voltaire, you’ve been a very bad girl,” I chided her, smirking. “You have hurt a lot of innocent people. And you tried to hurt me. You need to repent, and apologize for your evil deeds!”

“Yes... Mistress,” she breathed softly, empty eyes staring straight ahead. “I apologize... for trying to kill you... Mistress.”

I blinked, gasping aloud. I’d used my Pinnacle Stare on dozens of criminals to make them submit, but this was the first time any of them had referred to me as ‘Mistress’ before. More than likely, she’d run into another hypnotic hero or heroine previously and had been conditioned to respond that way, and being entranced by me had brought back the feeling of submission in her.

Mistress... I kind of liked it.

“Good girl,” I told her, forcing back the rather nice feeling between my legs. “Now then, when I snap my fingers, you are going to fly down and surrender yourself to the police. You’re going to let them haul you back to prison. You will NOT harm or hurt anyone during the process.” She licked her lips. “And you will let everyone know that it was Pinnacle that defeated you and forced you to turn yourself in.”

“Yes, Mistress,” she stated in a dull flat voice that seemed to stroke my clit ever so sweetly. “I will obey.”

I snapped my fingers, and off she went, obeying her instructions to the letter. In hindsight, I probably should have thought about how the entire incident went down, about how lucky I’d been that I hadn’t been electrocuted at the very beginning of the encounter. I should have taken a moment to sit back and think of what had happened objectively, to see where I’d failed and how I had succeeded.

Instead, all I felt was bliss, the knowledge that I’d just taken down a MAJOR supervillain single-handedly, all by myself, with no help or backup at all! I’d graduated to the big leagues. And even if I wasn’t an ‘A-list’ heroine (yet) and my powers were really barely just superhuman, my Pinnacle Stare was the ultimate equalizer. With it as my trump card, I could take down ANY enemy, no matter what their powers were. As long as they had eyes, I could literally stare them down.

Yes, I knew I was ready. I had done a lot of good in this city. I’d proven myself to be a capable heroine. I had a lot to be proud of, and rightly so. But alas... another of my ol’ Granny’s saying was that pride came before a fall. I had quite a lot of pride. And it was only a matter of time before I fell...

* * *

The day had started off as such a nice one... but it quickly went downhill from there.

I woke up to a nice sunny day, had a pleasant breakfast, and caught took the bus to work. My first three clients were repeat customers that I knew well, and I hummed happily to myself as I worked, thinking about heading out on ‘patrol’ later tonight. I’d racked up a couple of really impressive notches on my gun belt over the past few weeks. After taking out Voltaire, I’d also managed to bring in Wrecker, Nytro, and Tempest, forcing them to submit with my Pinnacle Stare. I was on a definite streak and was starting to make a real name for myself.

The stifling summer sun had given way to a nice thick overcast skyline by the time I left for my hour lunch break. I walked the three blocks over to the nearby IHOP to meet up with Amanda for lunch. We made some normal small talk for a bit, then she launched directly into her crap. “I saw the news last night,” she began, gesturing at me with her fork, a piece of romaine lettuce still clinging to it. “You took down that crazy Typhoon woman last night.”

“Her name is Tempest,” I clarified, taking a bite of my burger before continuing. “And yeah, I stopped her and sent her off to jail.”

Amanda sighed, lowering her fork. “Hannah, that was totally reckless of you,” she hissed in a low voice, not wanting to attract too much attention. “Tempest is a really bad customer. The last time she escaped from jail, she put a bunch of people in the hospital. And her powers make her really dangerous!”

“I know. That’s why I had to stop her,” I argued back, frowning. “Geez, Mandy, You make me sound like I’m some kind of rookie who doesn’t know what I’m doing! I’ve taken down a bunch of criminals since I started doing this! I even saved your life, in case you’ve forgotten.”

“No, I haven’t forgotten,” she said ruefully, glancing down. “And I’m still very grateful that you were there. Look, Hannah, I know this is your calling, that this is what you want to do with your life. I just... I want you to be careful, okay? Don’t go rushing into something you’re not prepared for. You’re still really young, and really new at this.” She sighed, glancing away. “And, I really REALLY think you should take that Sergeant’s advice and find a mentor, someone to help train you—”

Ugh. This again. “Mandy, please. Just give it a rest, okay? I don’t need some know-it-all hero holding my hand, forcing me to sit on the sidelines while he or she does all the heavy lifting! I’m not a victim anymore—I’m a heroine! I help the victims now. And I can’t do that if I spend the next year or two sitting in a corner taking notes while my mentor does the actual work.”

Amanda merely sighed but said nothing. It was nothing new. She’d been on about this since the night I’d taken down Voltaire. I’d made the mistake of giving her a blow-by-blow account, and the part about the lightning rod saving my ass had severely freaked her out. Not that it hadn’t scared ME shitless at the time, but still... I was over it now. And I knew Amanda was only concerned about me, only thinking about my best interests, but come on. She wasn’t my mom! And while I wasn’t exactly the most... polished... crime fighter out there, I was doing my part. My Grandma used to say, “Sometimes it doesn’t matter how you got somewhere, as long as you ended up at the correct destination. Don’t sweat the small stuff.” And then she’d usually launch into a tale about how she’d taken a midnight drive one night and fallen asleep on the road and ended up in Florida on the other side of the country.

Yeah... Granny was definitely a character.

Lunch ended in an uncomfortable silence, however. Mandy was upset at my cavalier attitude about things, but like a good friend wasn’t going to push the issue. And me... I was being stubborn, knowing she had a valid point, but too pigheaded to acknowledge it. All in all, it was a bad scene. On the way out, I bumped into a guy getting up from the adjacent booth, causing him to spill his soda onto my blouse. My mood further deteriorated when the overcast sky decided to turn into a summer rainstorm as I was leaving the restaurant. And of course, sunny day and all, I hadn’t thought to bring an umbrella. The only real positive I could think of as I trudged the two blocks back to work in the downpour was that at least the rain would wash away the coke stain.

Oh, but things continued to go downhill. One of my afternoon appointments canceled, leaving me a client short. Normally, I could have taken off and gone home if my work load was clear, but I still had one last appointment for grooming coming in later at five P.M., so if I left, I’d just have to come back again an hour or two later. And as nice a boss as Melody is, she doesn’t pay me to just sit around and twiddle my thumbs. So I spent the next few hours doing menial cleaning and caretaking that really didn’t need to be done. Then at five o’clock, surprise surprise... my OTHER client canceled at well. Meaning I’d stayed the rest of my shift in damp soggy clothes for nothing.

Needless to say, I was in a bad mood when night finally arrived and I switched into my costume. I was pissed. I was upset. Hell, I was spoiling for a fight. I WANTED some super powered creep to show up just so I’d be able to dole out some ‘righteous justice’. I was planning to make the unlucky stiff that crossed me into my personal BITCH before finally sending them off to jail. So when an alarm rang out from a nearby electronics store and several masked men ran out to a waiting white van with arms full of stolen computer equipment, I smiled. I laughed. Jackpot, I thought with glee as I strode confidently out into the alleyway to confront them.

Only to crumple into a heap as a sharp blow from behind sent me to la-la land...

* * *

Ow. I mean, really... oww! On a personal note, I think it’s generally better to get knocked out with a tranquilizer dart, or chloroform, or some chemical that to simply get clobbered from behind. Seriously. It might be cliche or something, getting hit from behind and knocked unconscious... but in reality, the person attacked is losing consciousness because of their brains getting sloshed around inside their skull! They have numbers for how serious a concussion you get from something like that... and one too many and you wake up a drooling idiot, or you don’t wake up at all.

Glancing around, I took stock of my situation and groaned inwardly. I’d been captured. Dark dimly lit room? Check. Stone or concrete floor with a dank musky smell to it? Check. Tied and bound naked to a bed or restrained to a wall in chains? Ch... Huh? Actually, no. I was, surprisingly, free, completely unbound, and fully clothed, with even my mask still in place. I let out a small sigh at that. My secret identity was still a secret, at least for the moment.

Just then, the dim flickering lights went out, plunging me into complete and total darkness. “Ah, you’re finally awake!” a distinctively male voice spoke, coming from in front of her. “So nice of you to join us, by the way. I’m so honored to have the actual Pinnacle pay me a visit.”

“Hmph. Not as if you gave me a choice,” I answered, glancing around in the darkness. I took a step forward, only to wince as my foot bumped against a large metal box of some kind. Crap. I wouldn’t get very far wandering around blindly in this darkness. “So just who are you, anyway?” I yelled, frustrated. “And what do you want with me?”

“Oh! How rude of me.” the man said, his voice coming from behind her now, causing her to whirl around in shock. “My name is Professor Twyst. Perhaps you’ve heard of me?” He chuckled softly. “As for what I want with you... well, if you know who I am, I suppose the question itself is redundant, isn’t it?”

“Y...yeah,” I muttered softly, frowning. This was bad. Professor Twyst was a slaver, an expert at abducting hapless young women and turning them into obedient slaves, then selling them off to the highest bidder. Suddenly, my prospects of making it out of this situation intact had taken a severe nosedive.

“But... not to worry, my dear,” the Professor replied again, this time coming from my left side. “As it stands, I’m currently bereft of my technology. I had the misfortune of running into that muscle-bound menace Spice Girl two weeks ago, and she dismantled my workshop, along with a number of my best minions.” He sighed loudly. “First that robotic menace, now that red-headed freak! Honestly... that’s the third time in as many months. Damned do-gooder... it’s as if she’s made stopping my slaving operation her life’s mission or something...”

Ah. A ray of hope! I could maybe still turn this around after all. “You still didn’t answer my question, Twyst. Why did you bring me here? What do you want from me?”

“Mostly, I wanted to meet you in person,” he said, his voice coming from in front of me now. “I’ve been hearing rumors about a new costume wearing heroine that had appeared virtually out of nowhere and was making a real name for herself on the streets. You’ve been able to stop some pretty tough adversaries, Supers with powers that certainly trump yours.” The unmistakable sound of footsteps approaching caught my attention, faint, yes, but my enhanced hearing caught them enough to know he was really walking towards me this time. “And speaking of ‘trumps’,” he added with a chuckle, “I also heard rumors that aside from your rather mediocre powers, you possess a trump card of your own. Your mysterious Pinnacle Stare.”

I scowled at the obvious amusement in his voice. Was I a joke to him? Really? Was that why he hadn’t bothered to tie me up or shackle me... because he didn’t consider me a threat? A growl escaped my lips, and my hands clenched into fists as he drew nearer. He was close enough now that I could smell him, smell his aftershave, and sweat. He was just a few feet away now.

“You know, Pinnacle... I admit to being quite curious about that Stare of yours. I’ve never heard of an ability quite like it before.” The footsteps came to a halt. “I admit, I’d love to see it in action.”

A savage grin creased my lips, as I let the power build up within me. “And I’d love to oblige you,” I retorted, “but it’s too dark in here to see anything.” I held my breath slightly, hoping he’d take the bait.

“Oh, my dear Miss Pinnacle,” he replied with a chuckle, “ask and you shall receive. So, to quote He Who Hath Begun It All, ‘Let there be light’!”

The flickering lights around and above me suddenly came back to life, illuminating the room, and I let loose with my most powerful glare yet, ready to wipe that smug sounding grin off the Professor’s face. “Pinnacle Stare!” I called out, staring straight ahead at...

At...

Oh.

Oh. Fuck me.

As I stared, transfixed, at my own reflection, my eyes glowing with an eerie hypnotic glint, I had a few seconds of lucid thought to ponder my situation. I’d been tricked, duped, and had pretty much fucked myself in the absolute worst possible way. My gaze was entrancing, even to me, especially to me, in a way I hadn’t even considered. As my own power slammed back into my mind, leaving it open and vulnerable for whatever the devious professor had in mind, I had just enough functioning brain cells left to think: Goddamn it! I’m fucking Amy Vanderbilt from that ‘Falling For Her Tits’ story... done in by my own fucking power...