The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

“Ohhhhh... ooh my gaawddd that is soooo amazingly good!” Morgan Cross gushed, eyes closed in pleasure. “Seriously! I haven’t tasted anything this good in years!”

“Yeah,” Eva murmured softly. “I suppose not, not since that night you and the others went out to eat together at Lorenzo’s,” she said, sipping idly from her glass. “That was a rather... memorable night for all of us, I’d say.”

“Now, now, lass,” Eugene chided her gently, “no need to bring up that particular memory. It’s all in the past now. Water under the bridge. We’re all friends now, aye?”

“Or, close enough, anyway,” Sabrina replied with a smirk. “I DO still have a bit of a grudge against you for that, you know,” she told him. “Bethany said she’d been acting under YOUR orders when she created that flashbang that knocked mom unconscious.”

The elder Scotsman had the decency to blush, looking embarrassed. “Aye... true enough,” he admitted. “And I do verra much apologize, Morgan, lass,” he said, speaking to the brunette lawyer directly. “It was a purposeful act, carefully calculated and planned specifically to draw out yer daughter and enrage her enough to act rashly. Still, I never meant for you to come to any harm. Please believe me.”

Morgan sighed, shrugging. “Well, I can’t say that I wasn’t a bit ticked off at being personally targeted that way. And really, I was angrier that your actions upset Mistress than being concerned about myself.” She chuckled ruefully. “But frankly, I think I was probably more upset with your most recent actions than I was about anything you did back then.”

Gene blinked. “Eh? My recent actions?”

“The way you so easily got Mistress released from prison,” she pointed out, gesturing with her fork, before remembering to continue eating with it. “Mmmm... sooo good,” she moaned before continuing. “Seriously, Frasier! You let me spin my wheels needlessly, working myself in a tizzy trying to have my daughter released, all the while one word from you, and they let her go, no questions asked?” She sighed. “You might have mentioned that BEFORE I made the trip to see Governor Grimalde and made a complete fool out of myself.”

“Lass,” Gene replied blandly, “I DID tell ye that I was working on getting Sabrina released. Several times,” he stated. “Hell, I told ye in no uncertain terms, to just sit back and leave it to me... that yer efforts, well-meaning as they were, were actually hindering my own!”

“Y-yeah, well,” Morgan replied, coloring brightly, “it’s not as if you told me exactly what you were doing all this time! How was I supposed to know you were actually following through? I thought you were just saying that to get me off your back...”

“To be fair,” Ana stated diplomatically, “it might have had more of an impact if Morgan’s memory had been intact, and she had a clearer picture of what actually happened... and the true identities of everyone involved.”

A bit of silent agreement went through the table, including Eugene himself. Many times over, he’d very much considered full disclosure, bringing Morgan into the fold and revealing the truth. But the risk had been too great, not to him or his mission, but to the woman herself. Indeed, her meeting with Sabrina earlier that day had demonstrated just how unstable the situation was. In a way, they’d been lucky the truth had merely overwhelmed her and made her pass out temporarily, instead of initiating a full psychotic break. Showing her the truth about everything she’d forgotten before she’d been ready could have very well destroyed her sanity.

“So,” Sabrina began, changing the subject, “I’ve been out of the loop for a pretty long time. What’s been going on since then? And... what’s happening with the rest of my girls? Um... I mean, well... you know what I mean,” she finished awkwardly.

“Ach, well, that’s a bit of a loaded question, lass,” Gene replied. “A verra lot has happened, and a lot of changes have occurred. For starters, Ultra Girl, Karen Summers, recently got married.” Sabrina gaped in surprise. “Aye. To a verra good man. I might add. A really stand-up guy. They’re verra happy together.”

“Oh. Well, that’s great. Good for her,” Sabrina replied, smiling. “I had hoped my, er... former slaves had ended up faring a bit better than mom did,” she said, glancing at her mother-slash-thrall. “I’d hate to think of them all sad and pining for me all this time.” She took a moment to dig into her food before continuing. “So, what about the others? How’s Megan doing?”

“Oh. she’s also doing quite well,” Eva chimed in. “She recently found a girlfriend of her own. Apparently, they’ve gotten pretty close. She recently left River City, moving across the country to live with her.” Sabrina was stunned. “We still hear from her now and then, but she’s pretty much a ‘Century girl’ now.”

That was something of a shock to Sabrina. Of all of her former slaves, Megan Tanner had been one of the most devoted, and most submissive. I suppose I can understand why someone else would scoop her up, though, she thought sadly. She’s hot, sexy, smart and funny... I know she had some problems with relationships early on, but for the life of me, I can’t imagine why. The girl is really the total package... anyone that she would favor her attention on would be the luckiest guy or girl in the world. Oh... speaking of ‘luck’...

“What about Katie?” she asked, curious. “And Jessica? I know you mentioned back when you came to see me in jail that they’d had some problems… that she and Jessica weren’t together anymore. But, well… do they still talk at least? Or keep in contact? As deeply in love as they seemed, I can’t imagine that they wouldn’t at least stay friendly to each other.”

A very noticeable silence greeted her question, and each person at the table glanced away uncomfortably, including her mother. “What? What is it?” Sabrina asked, concerned. “What did I say? I can’t imagine anything that could happen between those two girls could make them part on such bad terms that they don’t even speak to each other!”

After another uncomfortable silence, Eugene spoke up. “Ach, well... I kind of dodged yer question earlier, but I suppose I might as well give ye the whole story now. I mentioned before that something... happened to Jessica,” he said slowly, and to Sabrina, painfully. “Do ye recall mention of my older brother, Duncan Frasier?” Sabrina nodded warily. “Well, as Eva relayed, the bloody bastard had had a major vendetta against me, trying his best to ruin me and hurt anyone and everyone in any way related to me.” He sighed heavily. “Things came to a head a little more than two years ago. He hired a professional assassin to... to kill my wee Katie, and my son, Jimmy.” Sabrina gasped aloud, her expression horrified.

Lacie reached out and took her husband’s hand. “Now, the assassin failed. Jimmy and Katie, are both fine. They both managed to survive the attempts on their lives. But, it was a very near thing.” She sighed softly, lowering her head. “Unfortunately, there was... a casualty.” Sabrina stiffened, going pale, as the realization sank in. Somehow she knew what was coming. “The assassin had had a bead on Katie,” Lacie continued quietly, “and fired… his bullet was flying towards her. Her luck protected her as always and deflected it, causing it to swerve in midair, saving her life. But... it didn’t save the one that was with her...”

“NO!! By the Goddess, no!!! Don’t say it!! It... it can’t be,” Sabrina murmured, shaking her head in denial. “Jessica... she can’t really be... dead?”

“Aye, she is,” Gene remarked sullenly, bitterly. “And it’s MY fault. Ye can feel free to add it to the long list of my abysmal failures.” He hung his head. “I didnae tell them about the danger. I kept them all in the dark about Duncan. I didnae want my son and daughter living in fear, always looking over their shoulders, wondering when that madman would strike next. So... I hired security, the best and most able protectors I could find, and had them watch out for them from the shadows... like an unseen guardian angel.” He chuckled ruefully. “A clever plan... one that Duncan saw right through. So, naturally, he took out their protectors before sending in his killers. And by the time I realized what was happening, it was already too late. Jessica was dead. And Katie… she blamed me.”

“Oh my god!” Sabrina cried, in disbelief and sadness. Her heart went out to the man. Eva’s words earlier made much more sense now... about Eugene’s intrinsic need to help people, despite all the pain and sorrow he causes himself. He’d willingly given up his company, the business he’d created from scratch, that he’d built up for years, all to save his family and friends. He’d sunk a fortune, in time and resources, to rescue and save Rose and her friend, Chloe, from the dreadful fate they’d been dealt. And despite all the people he’d helped, all the lives he’d saved, the only thing that stayed with him were his failures... those he had failed to save.

After a moment, Gene managed to brush aside the maudlin mood and push on. Several other changes had occurred in the past four years. Shinobi was back with her husband and had reconnected in a big way. “They recently had a baby,” Gene commented with a small smile on his face. “A bouncing baby boy.”

Surprisingly, Ghost Girl also ended up with Parker and Veronica, becoming a part of their household in a rather unorthodox way. A certain villainess known as Venus Satore had been locked away in the local insane asylum after a fated run-in with Parker decades ago. Rose freed her, helped her regain her sanity, and as a reward, Satore brainwashed her and turned her into her permanent slave. Things became very complicated then, with another altercation with Parker, then one with Katie Frasier, all ending with the villainess defeated and choosing to reform. The strangest twist of all, however, was Parker deciding to take her in and welcome Satore and her slaves into his household.

On a sadder note, Sabrina learned that Melissa, Eva’s secretary and former girlfriend, had left, leaving the city. “It just wasn’t meant to be,” Eva stated, a bit of sadness in her tone. “We’d been growing apart for months anyway. Mel had always had a problem with being caught up in the chaos of dealing with supervillains and mind controllers that normally plague River City. And before you ask, no, dear, it wasn’t because of you,” Eva assured her. She sighed softly. “If anything, the incident with you forced us to sit down and talk about things openly and honestly. And we discovered that we both wanted different things.” She shrugged. “So, we parted ways on good terms.” She smiled sadly, taking Eugene’s offered hand, and squeezing it gently. “And all things considered, I think things ended up better for both of us in the end.”

Sabrina nodded. “And... what about Ella? Has anyone heard about her?”

Gene grunted. “Oh. Her. Aye, we’re familiar with what she’s been up to,” he murmured. “Yer precious Ella, or ‘Snow Bunny’ as she now calls herself, has embraced the life of a supervillainess in a big way. She departed River City shortly after ye were taken away, but she’s returned in the past several months to try and make a name for herself.”

“Yes, in fact, she recently crossed paths with Katie and her Tearbearer friends just the other day,” Lacie chimed in. “She’s currently locked up in Super-max,” she added with a shrug, “but you know as well as anyone, that that’s just for the moment. She’s far too powerful and unpredictable to be held there for too long.”

“And... isn’t there some way you could... intervene? Like you did for me?” Sabrina asked, plaintively. “I mean, she’s not evil! If anything, she became a villain because of me. Because of the way I... twisted her mind with my powers...” she murmured softly, feeling guilty. “Before me, she was a college student, smart, funny, and a little shy. Definitely not a supervillain...”

“I’m afraid not,” Eva replied with a sigh. “I’ve visited her a few times since she took on the mantle of a criminal, to try and see if it were possible to change her back the way she used to be.” She shook her head. “Ella’s... different now. And it’s nothing that you did, sweetie. Gene managed to break your hold over her as he did for all of us, and I personally went through her mind with a fine-toothed comb to make sure there were no implanted commands in her mind, altering her personality.” She sighed again. “Apparently, after being freed, she’d tried to go back to her old life, back to her college, only to have things not work out. She lost her job and her scholarship, and well... she just snapped. She iced her roommate, who froze to death, then went after several of her teachers and the Dean of her department, before leaving town. And she’s been on a rampage ever since.”

‘Great! Just great! One more fuck-up for this genius and former supervillain to feel oh so good about!’ Sabrina thought grimly. ’But this one is all my fault. M-maybe there IS a way to correct things with her? Maybe I COULD do... something? Help her in some way? She is my responsibility after all.’ Sighing to herself, she pushed the thought to the back of her mind, not forgotten, but to ruminate over when she had more time to consider her options...

“Wh... whaa... what’s... where am I?” Megan Tanner moaned softly, as awareness slowly returned. Her head was throbbing and felt as if someone had removed the top of her skull and poured molasses and cotton stuffing inside. She clearly recalled exiting the shower, settling down to eat and watch some TV, when a sudden feeling of drowsiness overcame her. She’d recognized the familiar feeling of being drugged, but before she could react, she’d collapsed, falling unconscious on her couch.

Only to awaken sometime later in bed, completely naked... and tied down to the bedposts.

“Nrrrrgg... dammit,” she murmured, struggling against her bonds in vain. “Hello? Hello?!? Is anyone there? Let me go!” she called out. “Josie, if this is you, I can appreciate the gesture, but this is NOT the kind of surprise I enjoy!”

Feminine laughter sounded from behind her, and she turned as the bathroom door opened. “Sorry, sweetness,” Tabitha replied with a smirk. “But I’m not your dear Josie. And sorry, but I went through quite a bit of effort getting you into this position, so I won’t be letting you go anytime soon.”

“What the hell are...” she began, only to blink, recognition washing over her. “Wait... Manx?!?” she exclaimed, struggling again. “What the hell is this?” she demanded. “What do you think you’re doing? And why have you tied me up?” For that matter, how the HELL did she find me, or even know who I was? she thought frantically. Did she somehow discover my secret identity? And… how the FUCK did she even know I was in town? I’ve been in Century for the past several months… and on the very day I come back to town for a visit, she captures me in my hotel room?!

“My, my, so many questions!” the neko catburglar declared with a laugh. She walked over to the bed, sitting down next to the bound brunette. “Considering the way I have you all tied up like a Christmas gift waiting to be unwrapped, I would think you KNOW why I have you this way,” Her smirk widened. “All those years ago, I missed out on getting to play with you when I took down your sexy slave sisters. Frankly, when I heard you’d moved away, I thought the opportunity was lost. But now, here you are, back in town again. Once I recognized you, I knew I couldn’t just let this opportunity slip through my fingers!” She chuckled, leaning forward to caress Megan’s cheek lightly. “I intend to play with you, dominate you, fuck you senseless, and utterly have my way with you,” she informed her bluntly. “And then, when I’m done abusing you physically, I intend to hypnotize you and turn you into another one of my brainwashed little pawns... toys for me to play with again at my leisure. Put simply, my dear... ‘Techna,’ I’m going to make you my loving and obedient slave!”

Megan growled, struggling yet again, pulling with all her strength. “Dammit... you won’t get away with this,” she hissed, closing her eyes, focusing her powers. “I’ll get free, and then I’ll make you pay for this—”

“Unlikely, dear,” Tabitha replied, blandly. “Oh, and you can forget it. Trying to reach out with your technopathy. I took the liberty of unplugging and powering down all the electronics in this room and unplugging the phone while you were still unconscious. There’s nothing in here for you to tap into, nothing that you can use to help you in any way.” She laughed at Megan’s expression. “Face it, sweetie. You’re mine to play with in any way I desire,” she stated, running her fingertips along Megan’s soft bare inner thigh. “And luckily for you, I am very much in a playing mood... But, don’t worry. You’ll be all too eager to... please me soon enough...”

Megan took a deep breath and looked right into Manx’s eyes.

“Like Hell, I will!”

Meeting Megan’s icy stare with her own, Manx just laughs as she takes her by the chin and kisses her.

“Yum! There’s that ever-so-brave spirit all you hero types have, Megan! Don’t worry. This is going to be fun! For me, at least.”

Tabitha stood up from the bed, and removed her mask, tossing it aside onto the end table. Taking a moment to shake out her hair, she grinned down at her captive, before removing her utility belt, tossing it aside as well. Still smirking, she gently toed off her leather ankle boots, stepping barefoot onto the carpet. Finally, she reached back behind her, finding the hidden catch, and unzipping her skintight catsuit, letting the fabric slide down her body, revealing herself in all her naked glory.

Megan’s eyes widened, stunned at the sight of the brunette. She’d known Manx was stacked, from a purely academic viewpoint, that her costume very effectively showed off the evil catgirl’s fantastic figure and supple curves. But she’d never seen the girl completely nude, seen that fabulous body up close and personal. To her surprise, she found that Tabitha was, in fact, a real honest-to-goodness nekomata; her cat ears were real and fully functional, not a headband as she’d believed. Her stubby little tail emerged from her backside, moving and twitching idly completely of its own accord. Her bright green and yellow slitted eyes were not exotic contact lenses after all, but her own natural eyes. Thankfully, she lacked a thick coat of fur, her bare skin clean and supple, and her hands and feet were normal, both both showcased some rather wicked-looking claws that extended forth at her will.

“Like what you see?” Tabitha teased, making a slow turn before stalking back towards the bed once more. She chuckled at Megan’s expression. “Good. That makes two of us.” Retracting her claws, she ran her fingers lightly over the bound girl’s skin, delighting at the sensation, letting her dextrous digits caress and stroke all along her captive’s thigh. “You may not remember, but we met once, a long time ago,” she remarked casually, “back when you were still mostly a little D-list nerd girl who depended solely on your little tinker toys. I was just starting out myself, still trying to find myself... when we ran into each other. It was brief and a bit quick, you managed to get the drop on me with your weird tech, and poof! Off to jail, I went.”

Megan winced, squirming slightly in her bonds. “Yeah? Sorry... I don’t recall. I’m guessing it was before your trademarked costume and mask then, huh?”

Tabitha laughed. “Oh yeah, long before that. You could say that our meeting was... memorable though. For me at least.” She smirked, running her hand lower, delving down to Megan’s inner thighs, slowly circling and spiraling her way inward. “You showed me how effective the right tech could be in the right situation, how a few gadgets could more than make up the difference in a lack of powers and abilities.” She chuckled again. “I certainly took that lesson to heart, Megan dear, and I have you to thank for it.”

“Yeah... great, now I want to kick my own ass,” the dark-haired heroine muttered, shaking her head.

“Another difference I can’t help but notice,” Manx added, recapturing her attention as her fingers began stroking her idly along the edges of her pussy, causing her to gasp and bit her lip in frustration. “You’re pretty damn cut! Seriously,” she remarked, enthusiastically, “the old you was all soft and squishy, not fat by any means, just not... tone. Definitely the body of a bookworm that spent all her time indoors with her face in front of a computer screen. But now,” she stated, her free hand caressing and tracing the line of Megan’s abs, the other gently tickling her delicate pussy lips, “now your muscles have muscles. I brought the reinforced ropes and chains with me to bind you to the bed, and now I’m glad. Something tells me that, even without superhuman strength, you would have snapped regular ropes like a bunch of weak threads.”

Despite her words, Megan continued to pull at her bonds, straining, feeling them resist her without the slightest bit of give. She knew that it was futile, that she wasn’t going to be able to break free, but she refused to give up, refused to simply let Manx have her way uncontested. Helplessly bound, unable to escape, she resigned herself to simply glaring at the woman in contempt.

“Eeeeep! Heheheheeeyyy!” She yelped lightly in surprise, a giggle escaping her lips before she could contain it. Down at the foot of the bed, Manx had moved to kissing and nibbling on her soft, tender, and obviously ticklish, bare feet. Megan giggled helplessly, toes flexing and curling, even as she shook her head, trying to snarl at the neko. “Knooaahahahahahahaakkk thaahahahatt ooffff!!” she managed between giggles.

“Awww, too bad,” Tabitha stated with a pout, drawing back, giving her captive a reprieve. “I’d hoped for a more pleasing response... but I guess having your feet played with is only a fetish for your dear friend Ultra Girl.” She shrugged. “Oh well, there are more than enough places to explore on that hot sexy bod of yours. I’m sure I’ll find something you enjoy much more.”

Megan merely grunted, turning her head away, focusing on remaining calm and composed, not wanting to give her tormentor the pleasure of seeing her react. It became much harder to hold her composure, however, when the wily catgirl climbed fully onto the bed, straddling her, making a show of kissing and suckling lightly on her bare flesh. “Mmmm, nice,” Manx commented, grinning down at her. “It’s almost a shame you’re fresh from the shower,” she added, letting her hands roan and caress Megan all over. “I’d actually prefer to taste the real you, all nice and sweaty...” Her eyes twinkled a bit as she suddenly slid lower, moving down to delve between her captive’s spread legs. “But no matter, sweetie, I think I can get a nice taste of your essence from right here.”

Tabitha’s pout returned, however, as she drew back, licking her lips. “Mmmm... just as delicious as I thought. But not nearly enough to satisfy me. You’re not getting into the spirit of things, Megan gear,” she chided her. “Your sex juices are barely a trickle. I want to see them gushing!”

“What the fuck did you expect?” Megan snapped angrily. “You basically drugged me, stripped me, and tied me up, against my will! Do you expect me to be getting off on this?”

“Yes, actually,” Manx replied with a smirk, reaching behind her. “You hero types all tend to get all hot and bothered by this kind of thing. Whether you’re willing to admit it or not, all of you little goody-goody heroes have one hell of a kinky streak. The fact that you’re upset with me is really the only thing holding you back. But don’t worry sweetness,” she purred, bringing her left hand up to Megan’s face, holding a small blue-tinted capsule between her fingers. “I have a little something to help get you into the proper mood!”

The capsule popped, releasing a plume of indigo-blue vapor. At the same time, Manx’s free hand, nestled between Megan’s thighs, found and pinched her clit, causing the bound heroine to gasp involuntarily. Her eyes widened as she inhaled the blue smoke, coughing several times, knowing that she had just fucked up. Almost instantly, those eyes glazed over, taking on a distinctly pale blue tint. A moan escaped her lips, and her body began to writhe, pulling lightly at her bonds again, no longer concerned with escaping as a very different impulse flooded through her. Manx merely chuckled darkly, pulling back, content to watch the plucky heroine for a moment.

“Yes, yes, sweetie, now you’re getting into the right frame of mind,” she murmured wickedly. “I think we’ll just let you marinate a little bit... let my little drug do its job and hit you with the full effect.”

Megan moaned softly, eyes rolling back into her head. She’d heard Manx’s words, but they were completely lost on her, relegated to the background, pushed to the back of her mind by the sheer overwhelming arousal and need surfacing her entire being. Her thighs continued to clench and unclench regularly, her poor needy pussy craving stimulation. Her mind was so muddled that she kept trying to reach her hands down to stimulate herself, to spread the delicate folds of her pussy, and diddle herself to completion, unable to understand why she couldn’t manage to reach.

She existed in that erotic limbo for several minutes... or was it years? Centuries? It felt like an eternity, a long endless period of everbuilding arousal with no reprieve, no stimulation or satisfaction to bring her over the edge. When she experienced a small, deft, stroke across the arch of her left foot, she screamed, throwing back her head in undiluted pleasure, the simple stimulation more than enough to make her cum. Her body shuddered shamelessly, toes curling, fingers clenching, as her love honey continued to pump from her in a steady stream along with her pleasure. When her orgasm finally ended, she groaned aloud, her need not satisfied, merely increased to match the intensity of her climax. She needed more, much much more.

Tabitha was more than happy to oblige her. More than a bit turned on by the wanton display, she took great delight in teasing and tormenting the stuck-up brunette beauty writhing beneath her, grinding her own needy sex against Megan’s thighs as she eagerly lapped up the girl’s sexual spend. Tweaking her hard little nipples made her buck like an untamed bronco, making her somehow gush even more. The girl, so proud and defiant only moments ago, was now little more than a sex-starved little slut. The notion gave Tabitha a truly evil idea, and after giving her trembling gushing pussy one more lick, she withdrew, sitting up again.

“Nhhhhnnaaaa... n-no! No! More, more, please!” Megan babbled, shaking her head, thrusting her hips forward, desperate for more contact, more sensation, more orgasmic bliss. But Manx merely shook her head.

“Uh, uh, uh, sweetheart,” she taunted her cruelly, slowly crawling her way back up Megan’s now sweat-soaked body. “Let’s not be selfish, now. I was nice enough to get you off quite a few times.” She smirked; it was true, of course, but the fact was that the drug she’d given poor Megan would, unfortunately, keep her in her frenzied needful state for at least an hour or more, no matter how many times she came. “At any rate, babe,” she continued, sliding her pussy directly over her captive’s face, “it’s about time you returned the favor. Eat me out, bitch,” she commanded harshly, “and if you do a good enough job, MAYBE I’ll be nice enough to let you cum again.”

Manx’s words and tone managed to pierce the pink fog clouding her brain, and Megan gritted her teeth, struggling to resist. She was royally fucked, in a bad situation, yes, but the specifics were hard to hold onto with the all-consuming need radiating from her poor needy snatch! Deep down, a part of her recalled that the catgirl was her enemy, that she should be fighting her, resisting her... but the much larger part of her in control simply wanted the sexy beast to touch her more, to run those nimble fingers all over her body, and that incredible tongue to thrust its way back into her pussy until she absolutely DIED from the pleasure overload. Whimpering, hating herself for her weakness, and cursing Manx for her duplicity, she extended her tongue.

“Mmmmm... yeeesss! Just like that... mmmmm fuuccckkk!” Manx groaned, grinning widely, grinding her pussy into Megan’s face, encouraging her to lick harder and deeper. “You want me to fuck that hot little pussy of yours, sweetie?” she murmured, reaching up to maul one of her breasts, teasing her nipples. “Then show me what you want me to do to you. Eat me out the way you want your own puuuu—fffuuccck yeeaaahh!!” she groaned, eyes crossing, back arching backward. Megan had finally broken, licking Tabitha’s hungry needy snatch with fervor and desperation, finding and sucking on her clit as if it were the most delicious lollipop she’d ever tasted. Before she even realized it was happening, a massive climax struck Tabitha, wringing a passionate cry from her lips.

Laughing blissfully, the horny catgirl continued to ride Megan to three more blistering orgasms, leaving her so weak she nearly passed out. Recovering, she climbed back off the bed, panting softly as she stared down at her prisoner. Megan Tanner continued to groan and moan, her hips humping the air, her tongue still licking and thrusting despite having no one to tend to. “Damn... I think I might have broken you,” Manx mused aloud, chuckling ruefully. “Still, you did do a really fantastic job,” she admitted, kneeling down, reaching for her backpack, retrieving the special items she’d brought with her. “So,” she said a moment later, straightening up, “I guess it’s only fair that I give you exactly what you want.”

Megan’s moans and groans suddenly changed to loud and plaintive screams of pleasure as a thick hard phallus suddenly entered her. Manx laughed manically, adjusting the strap-on dildo, making sure it was intact, before thrusting deep into her new slave, fucking her deep and hard, punishing the naughty girl’s pussy. Megan’s eyes were pure white, rolled back in her head, her back arched in a permanent bow, cumming in a steady stream of non-stop mini-orgasms, the drug in her system blasting away anything even resembling coherent thought, burning the experience into her mind, etching it into her very soul. When she finally reached her limit, letting out a shuddering gasp, she collapsed, dropping limply back down to the bed once again, finally sated.

Manx let out a soft giggle as well, slumping down to the bed as well, lying atop her captive. “Fuck... yeah. Now THAT was fucking good,” she breathed, struggling back to her feet on shaky legs. Grinning, returning to her backpack once more, she mused to herself silently, wondering if conquering and breaking her nemesis, Luminaire, would be as much fun. “Shit... if she fucks half as well as dear Megan here, I’ll be satisfied,” she muttered, giggling again. Bringing out the pair of special goggles, she slipped them over the unconscious girl’s head, fastening them carefully in place.

A tricky maneuver there, she mused to herself, as she switched them on. A gadget like this... if she’d been in her right mind, she might have used her powers to turn it against me the minute I switched it on. Obviously, I could only use these AFTER I’d broken her down, and tired her out. Still, I should probably be a bit wary... at least until they take full effect...

Indeed, as Megan began to rouse, she blinked, her eyes fluttering open to the brightness flashing behind her eyelids. Open again, she blinked, eyes widening as a blast of rainbow colors assaulted her vision, beaming directly into her brain. She had half a second, as she realized what was happening, that she was being brainwashed, and she stiffened... but then the moment passed, and the realization was swept away as she succumbed, relaxing again, her mind opening up like a flower blossom.

“Ahhh... there it is,” Tabitha nodded, grinning again. “That’s my girl. Nice and deep in a trance now, aren’t you?” she asked, moving to lie back on the bed next to her. “That’s just perfect. Now, listen closely, my sweet little Megan. Mistress is going to give you some instructions, and you are going to obey them. Listen... and obey. Simple isn’t it?”

“Yes... Mistress...” Megan responded blankly. “Listen... and obey. Simple.”

Manx’ smiled a Cheshire grin. “Excellent. Now then, my little slave. This is what is going to happen...”

“So, Katie’s off to visit Constance in Salem again,” Tawnya remarked to her partner.

“Yeah. She should be back sometime later this evening,” Sioban stated.

The two flying Angels circled around the city, heading towards their main hub, Grimalde Towers, as they completed their patrol. Tawnya spun around in midair, then fluttered over next to her partner. “Do you ever.... I dunno, feel concerned about that?” she asked.

“What? What do you mean?”

“About the fact that your girlfriend is traveling three times a week to spend time with another woman that she is trying to court.”

“‘Trying to court’?” Sioban laughed, shaking her head. “Geez, T, you make it sound like she and Connie are sneaking out to the Five and Dime, to go share a milkshake before heading off to go see the picture show.” Tawyna blinked, then laughed as well.

“You know what I meant, you dork,” she said, shaking her head. “Doesn’t it bother you?”

Sioban simply shook her head. “No more than it bothers Nigel to have YOU come spend time with Katie and me, and share OUR bed three days out of the week.” She grinned. “Like Nigel, I’m confident in where my Katie’s heart lies. So, no, I’m not jealous of the time she is spending with Connie at all. In fact, I encourage it. I’m really hoping that the two of them finally bury the hatchet once and for all, so we can all go back to being friends again.”

“Yeah, that would be nice,” Tawnya mused aloud. “But it’s not KATIE that’s refusing to let things go, you know. Connie’s the one making things so difficult.”

Bonnie let out a deep sigh. “Maybe... but I can’t really blame her, either.” Tawnya glanced over at her. “Katie betrayed her trust,” she explained. “Yes, she betrayed ALL of us, including Constance, and yeah, we all forgave her. And Connie has finally, FINALLY, started to accept that Katie wasn’t in control of herself, that Supernova was the one calling the shots. But still... Connie’s not a superhero. She doesn’t do what we do... and was never prepared for the kind of consequences you and I face on a daily basis. Getting her mind taken over and being used that way scared the hell out of her,” she reminded Tawnya. “So, I think she’s already forgiven Katie. It’s just... she’s afraid of her now.”

“Afraid? Of Katie?” Tawnya asked dubiously. “But... she’s the nicest, kindest, girl I’ve ever known!” she protested. “The girl could never even kill a fly! She’d rather die than hurt someone she cared about.”

“I agree completely,” Bonnie replied, as they both came in for a landing, dropping down lightly on the Tower balcony. “But the fact is, Katie COULD be dangerous if she truly wanted to. I mean, you were a part of what happened last year as well as I was. The girl brainwashed all of us, made us her obedient slaves, and did the same to nearly the entire city. Not to mention, she almost broke reality itself and destroyed the world.” She sighed heavily. “And I know she wasn’t in control, that that ink blot inside of her was controlling her the entire time. But to Connie, she can’t let go of the idea that Katie might do something like that again, that if she lowers her guard around her, and lets her get close, she might end up brainwashed by her again.”

Tawnya sighed. “Yeah. I know. And... it really sucks,” she complained, stretching her wings before folding them back down and dismissing them again. “So she and Katie just keep doing this whole song and dance every week... Katie goes over to spend time with her, trying to show that she is safe to be with and that she misses her. And Connie acts polite and civil but keeps the distance between them all the while. And nothing between them ever changes.”

The two Tearbearers merely stood in silence. It was a sad situation, yet neither of them could help. They couldn’t force Connie to feel different. She was the victim in this, and they both sympathized with her point of view. At the same time, they empathized with Katie as well, who’d been caught up in something out of her control, and was trying her best to make amends. Katie and Connie had been extremely close before the Supernova incident and had been intimate lovers. And both of them deeply missed that closeness. But as much as she wanted to, Connie couldn’t let go of her fear that something similar might happen again.

A loud explosion rang out over the cityscape. Both Angels turned, immediately locating the source, a plume of black smoke emanating from a building deep within the financial district. “Oh man,” Tawnya remarked, summoning her wings once more. “That can’t be good. That’s the Third National Bank, isn’t it?” she asked, peering down with her enhanced vision. “Probably no chance that was just one of the tellers dropping a VERY large party popper by mistake, huh?”

Bonnie chuckled. “My, you’re in rare form today, funny girl,” she stated, summoning her own wings. “C’mon, Ravenheart. We need to get down there, and now!” she said, leaping off the balcony.

“Right behind you, Dragonfyre,” she replied, following suit. “Figures that the end of our patrol would end up being the most exciting part...”

“Hyaaaa! Hiaaahh! Ho! Aaaahh!”

Morgan Cross stood in awe, watching her daughter fight, running through a gauntlet of seemingly never-ending threats in Eugene’s training center. Despite having been going strong for nearly an hour, her Mistress continued to move with flawless grace and beauty, barely working up a sweat as she dispatched each automated threat thrown at her. A soft touch on her shoulder captured her attention momentarily, before smiling, she turned back to watch the show.

“She’s really impressive, isn’t she?” Anastasia asked, coming up alongside her. “My sister mentioned that she just started this training program yesterday evening, and she’s already gotten to the point of mastering it.”

Morgan smiled. “Honestly, it’s still pretty uh... surreal finding out that my daughter is a meta-human and has actual superpowers, but, I wouldn’t expect anything less from my Mistress,” she said proudly. “She’s always been a prodigy at pretty much everything. From fighting to studying, on a whole host of subjects...” She shook her head. “I was honestly a bit on the fence with her deciding to become one of the city’s heroes,” she admitted. “But seeing her in action, seeing how powerful she is, I have no doubt. She can do this. She can do anything she sets her mind to! Always has!”

“Perhaps,” a second voice spoke up, “but it takes more than an ability to fight to be a hero.” Eva walked up to stand at Morgan’s other side. “The main part of this training is teaching her to fully control her powers under the most stressful of situations.”

“Aye, that’s certain enough,” Eugene called out from across the room, tapping away at his keyboard. “The lass is verra good, but that’s also part of the problem. She’s such a prodigy, that having to repress and limit herself is the only thing she’s having trouble with.” He chuckled. “It’s the same problem that my wee Lacie Ann had when she first started out.”

“Ah, speaking of which, where IS Lacie?” Ana asked glancing around. “Wasn’t she just here a moment ago?”

“She’s currently off to the Santa Rosa coastlines of California,” Gene remarked casually. “It’s the wildfire season, and she sensed a blaze erupting, and went off to stop it.” He shrugged. “She’ll be back soon enough.”

“Ah, yes, her duties as a goddess,” Eva mused, nodding. It was a bit annoying, somewhat, that Lacie would regularly have to dart off unexpectedly, not only to do her duty as the heroine Omega Girl, but also as the Nornir goddess Verdandi, making changes, big and small, to the world at large, to ensure the stability of the Great Weave, and protect mankind as a whole. While she certainly did not begrudge Lacie her responsibilities, in fact, very appreciative of all the hard work she and her Sisters did, Yggdrasil remained a most vexing place. Time worked strangely there; every visitation there lasted vastly different times. Some days, a week in Yggdrasil lasted only a few minutes in the real world. Other times, a single day there lasted nearly a month! The end result was that Lacie ended up spending more time away from home than she did actually with those who loved her.

On the plus side, she and Eugene had grown closer in Lacie’s absence. Far from being jealous at her husband and her best friend growing increasingly intimate, Lacie was overjoyed, happy that her Master was taken care of when she was away, and that Eva was able to tend to his needs in her place. Likewise, when she was there, both Gene and Eva doted on her, giving her all the attention and appreciation she could handle. The only downside was that they all felt that they wished she were around a bit more.

At that moment, the huge generators fueling the virtual reality simulation powered down, and the door opened. Sabrina walked over to them, smiling at her Mother and the others before turning her attention to Gene. “So, Coach, how’d I do?” she asked, peering over his shoulder at the monitors. He smiled back at her.

“See for yerself, lass. Green across the board,” he gestured. “I’d say ye aced the test. Not too shabby, since ye only started it yesterday.”

“Yes!” Sabrina said, thrusting her fist into the air. “I guess this means I’m ready to head out on the mean streets, huh?”

But Gene merely chuckled. “Ready? Nae lass. Not quite yet. Ye’ve mastered stage one, on Beginner mode,” he pointed out. “Ye’ve still got a ways to go before yer truly ready for the verra real thing. Acing my simulator is one thing, but facing a very real and experienced villain like, say, Voltaire, or Lodestone, or the Piper, is quite another, lass.”

“The Piper?” Sabrina asked, incredulous. “You… you’re serious? That insane nutjob dressed in a tuxedo that goes around committing crimes playing a clarinet? You consider HIM a threat to someone like me?”

“Frankly, aye, I do,” Gene remarked blandly. “And yer attitude expresses exactly why he is a threat. Most other heroes not in the know would consider him a joke. His power is complete mastery over any and all musical instruments. No big deal, eh?” Gene shook his head. “Aye… until ye consider that any instrument he plays can issue forth a tune that completely scrambles a person’s brain, bypassing their conscious mind and making them his obedient mindless slaves.” Sabrina blinked at that.

“But… that wouldn’t work on me,” she reasoned, frowning. “It’s just ‘music’ after all.”

“Ye’d think that, lass,” Gene remarked, grimly. “But I’ve studied that bastard’s ability. I’ve even stored a few recordings of his works in my files here and tested them against others who are… supposedly resistant or immune to mind control. And each of them succumbed just as easily.” He shrugged. “Ye ken the story of the Pied Piper of Hamlin, eh? How being snubbed by the mayor and citizens for performing his job he took revenge by playing a tune that enslaved all the town’s children and led them away in the night? Well, lass, the thing about old tales such as that is that there’s often a wee bit of truth to them. And in this case, the Piper’s abilities are just as real.” Sabrina merely nodded, taking his words to heart.

He gestured to the empty seat next to him, and she reluctantly sat. “Now then. Next, we need to go over strategy and tactics lessons. I think ye’ll breeze through this just as easily, but it still requires a bit of effort. To help things along, ye’ll need to memorize my personal set of rules...”

Sabrina’s left eyebrow rose. “Your own personal set of rules?”

“Aye. They are mostly common sense, but in the heat of battle, they’re easily forgotten unless ye make an effort to commit them to memory.” He cleared his throat, going into teacher mode. “The first rule is simple enough: know thyself, know thy enemy.” He tapped a few keys, bringing up a familiar-looking file. “Knowledge is power. Whether it’s for fighting crime or simply everyday life, the more knowledge yer armed with, the better yer decision-making process. I believe yer... somewhat familiar with my database on all the Supers residing in River City?” he asked blandly. “I believe Evangeline gifted ye with a copy the day ye enslaved her and her secretary in her office.” Sabrina colored slightly. “That was a verra short and abbreviated part of the whole. This list,” he stated, gesturing, “lists the current information on every known Super, not just in River City, but on the entire planet.”

“Whoa... did you just say EVERY Super?” she asked, frowning. “Excuse me for asking the obvious but... how the HELL did you get all that information? And... isn’t that illegal, a major invasion of privacy, or something? You can’t have accumulated all that specific information from people voluntarily.”

Gene shrugged. “Some was voluntary, some was simple speculation and observation. A lot of it was... inherited,” he said with distaste, “from years before, as well as just recently. The knowledge was already out there. I merely... claimed it and put it to a better use.”

“Claimed it from... definite pause here... whom?” Sabrina asked, still frowning.

“The first batch was from the government,” he stated with a sigh. “Aye... OUR government. Back before ye were born, a certain U.S. senator viewed Supers as a possible threat to the reigning government and to the world as a whole. The idea was, what if some ultrapowerful, nigh invincible hero went rogue... or some unstoppable supervillain decided to just take over? Who could stop them? So, he began a clandestine operation to gather as much information and data on Supers at that time, demanding they register their identities and powers with the government, and become duly deputized members of the U.S. Armed Forces... like being drafted into service.”

Sabrina blinked, stunned. “But that... that... violates civil liberties!” she protested. “Making someone register themselves, be added to a watch list, being forced into service—that kind of thing is unconstitutional! There’s no way something like that could ever pass and become legal!”

“But it very nearly did,” Eva spoke up. “The whole situation was... complicated. Suffice it to say, the main target of the Senator’s little witch hunt was our own Omega Girl. Think about it. She is arguably the most powerful heroine in the world. And, well... she HAS been brainwashed and mind-controlled more times than I can count,” she stated ruefully. “If she HAD gone completely evil and simply flew to the White House and demanded the country surrender itself to her, who could stop her?” She sighed. “At one time, the Senate actually considered her a national threat and sent the Air Force to launch an attack on her, to try and shoot her down. Several other heroes went after her as well, trying to subdue her, all in the name of ‘justice’. But she beat them all.”

“Aye,” Gene chimed in. “It didnae matter that she wasnae being controlled, that the whole thing was set up by the Senator to try and take her out of the picture. By resisting and fighting back, Lacie proved his point, and showed everyone that the country was woefully under-prepared for such an eventuality.” He shook his head. “It was a verra close thing. He’d nearly gotten away with it and had nearly convinced them all to vote in favor of his Registration Act. But I managed to crack his security and download proof of his operation. And Omega Girl managed to survive the onslaught and take down the Senator’s agents.” He chuckled in memory. “We actually entered the Senate during the vote and presented the evidence of Wellsley’s indiscretions right in front of the man.” He laughed again. “Next to my wedding day, and the day my wee bairns were born, it was the best moment of my life.”

Sabrina nodded softly. “So... you kept all of the information the Senator had collected about all of the Supers in the country after his downfall.” She sighed. “But what about the second group you mentioned? Where did that come from?”

Gene’s jovial mood soured. “Ah. That data I obtained from my brother,” he said grimly. “Duncan. He’d been gathering and collecting data on Supers for decades, as part of his genetic experimentations. The man was obsessed with creating the perfect mix of genetics to give himself ultimate power.” He grunted, shaking his head. “That bastard even obtained genetic samples of Lacie Ann, and my children, and attempted to graft them onto himself to gain their powers as well. Thankfully, blessedly, he’d only managed to merge Lacie’s DNA signature with his own, and not the wee ones.” He shuddered visibly, which confused Sabrina.

“Okay, you need to explain that one. I get from Eva’s explanation why this Duncan was so dangerous. And giving himself Omega Girl’s powers, her super strength, speed, and invulnerability, on top of all the other powers he’d given himself... he would be practically unstoppable. What could your two kids have added to the mix beyond that?”

“Oh, nothing much,” Ana replied, shuddering as well. “Nothing except cosmic level, reality-warping abilities, and the power to break space-time itself.”

“Wait... what?!?”

Sabrina was given a quick summary of the events that had come to be known as the Supernova Incident, of the desperate, heart-broken Katie being overcome and possessed by the entity known as Supernova, and enslaving and brainwashing the entire city before attempting to break reality itself to bring her lover, Jessica, back from the dead. Sabrina listened in stunned shock as they relayed how close the sweet gentle blonde she had so loved and adored had come to destroying the entire world.

“Aye... and the scary part,” Gene concluded, “the truly scary part? Both Jimmy and Katie’s so-called Key powers are stronger than the combined might of ALL the Nornir! Lacie Ann confirmed it herself—as dangerous as it was for the wee ones to keep such unbridled power, they were completely powerless to do anything about it.” He paused, letting that sink in. “So aye... the thought of my evil brother Duncan being able to wield such power himself? Now that’s true nightmare fuel...” Sabrina nodded, forced to agree.

Gene continued the lesson, letting the young woman peruse the massive list of information. She asked a few questions here or there, which he answered readily. Even though Sabrina had commanded Eva to give her her copy of this very information when Eva was her loving slave, she wasn’t quite sure how she felt about studying and memorizing the weaknesses of so many people, heroes as well as villains, but she did see the wisdom in it. One never knew when today’s friend and comrade might become tomorrow’s enemy. She herself had demonstrated that fact, turning Lacie and Katie against Eugene, and Veronica against Parker, forcing them to fight the people they loved and cared for the most. If she truly took up the mantle of hero, she might very well find herself in a similar situation, having to fight against those she had come to care for as well.

Know thyself and know thy enemy, she mused to herself. I can’t fault the man’s logic in that one. I’m very much in the process of doing both—learning about my powers and how best to use them. As for the other stuff... I know myself well enough to know my own weaknesses. I am impulsive... and I have a bit of a temper. And if loving and caring about someone too much is a weakness, it’s definitely one of mine! But most of all, I lack experience. That is something Eugene has in spades. She sighed inwardly. As much as I hate to admit it... I think he really can help me. If he continues to share his wisdom with me and helps me temper my own bad habits... I really think I can become a really great hero...

“Damn... looks like a bomb went off in here,” Ravenheart mused aloud, as she and her partner entered the bank. The walls were lightly scorched and blackened, the floors littered with the shattered debris of wood and plexiglass from the tellers’ stations. Even the vault door was damaged, the heavily reinforced steel door warped and bent, hanging oddly from one broken hinge. She sighed, shaking her head. “Looks like we’re dealing with a heavy hitter,” she murmured, tapping her wrist gauntlets, and preparing for a fight.

“Wish we had an idea of who we were dealing with here,” Dragonfyre murmured, powering up her gauntlets as well. “Stay sharp, T. Be prepared for anything.” The dark-skinned heroine nodded grimly.

Making their way across the battered, broken floor, they reached the vault door and peered inside. Rather than a bulking frame of a bruiser like Stonewall, or Wrecker, the intruder was a nicely curved auburn-haired woman in a skintight red, orange, and brown skintight, form-fitting costume, complete with eye mask. Even more curious, she was completely ignoring the stacks of money lying around the vault, instead targeting the myriad small metallic boxes lining the walls. As they watched, she lightly tapped one box, which emitted a loud PING sound before sliding open. Giggling to herself, she withdrew the metal case and emptied its contents into a small cloth sack.

“Huh. Nytro. Well, this is a first,” Ravenheart said aloud, causing the woman to whirl around. “I know bank robbing isn’t your usual M.O. and now I see why. Usually, most bank robbers tend to, yanno... actually rob the bank. You must be a rare kind of burglar to ignore all this cash to loot a bunch of safe deposit boxes instead.”

The villainess smirked. “I prefer to think of myself as more... discerning. But really, if you stop and think about it, it’s what EVERY smart burglar should do. Forget all that cash. It’s big and bulky, and you need a lot of it to make it worth the effort,” she pointed out. “Plus, these days, they keep track of all the serial numbers, or just tag the bills themselves, to track ’em down if they ever end up stolen.” She shook her head. “And if, by some miracle, you DO manage to get away with a nice haul before the police, or some do-gooders in flashy costumes—no offense,” she said, with a grin, “swoop in and stop you... then you have to go through all the trouble of laundering the money, exchanging it, or investing it, letting it change hands enough times that it can’t be tracked back to the original bank where it came from. So yeah, you can keep the cash. Thank you.”

Dragonfyre nodded. “You make a very good point. Considering all the dangers and effort involved, the old adage is true—crime doesn’t pay.”

“Ah, yes, unless you’re a bit more ‘discerning’ in what you take,” Nytro remarked. “Safe deposit boxes are a virtual treasure trove, just waiting to be uncovered. Sure, it’s a little like playing the lottery—you never really know WHAT you’re going to find. But most times, it’s always something valuable,” she said, holding up her nearly full sack. “Like expensive jewelry, or gold coins, or rare stones, diamonds, rubies, sapphires... or sometimes, rare works of art. Anything a person wants to keep stored safely, away from ‘prying hands’...”

Ravenheart crossed her arms. “You mean like yours?”

Nytro chuckled. “Yeah. Exactly like mine.” She tied up her bag and slung it across her shoulders. “So. Let me guess. This is where you tell me to drop the loot and surrender peacefully?”

“Wow. Got it on the first try,” Sioban quipped, pointing a glowing hand towards the thief. “I’d swear you’ve probably heard the line a few times before.”

Still amused, Nytro slowly raised her hands. “Quite a few times, yeah. Of course,” she added, twisting her fingers slightly, bringing her index fingers close to the thumbs, “I was never really the type to do anything peacefully...”

A sudden flash of insight struck both heroines, a warning of danger, and moving instinctively, they both jerked back, leaping aside as Nytro snapped her fingers. The bombs, tiny, virtually invisible, lying on the ground amidst the debris, exploded, causing a powerful concussive force to erupt right where they’d been standing an instant earlier. Thrown back by the impact, both heroines cried out as they slammed hard into the bank vault walls. Sioban gasped, the wind knocked out of her, sliding down the wall in pain, struggling to remain conscious. Tawnya, on the other hand, had managed to turn somewhat as she was thrown back, hitting more on her side, taking less damage. Grunting in pain, weaving slightly, she managed to stay on her feet. Growling, she focused her gauntlets and retaliated, firing at Nytro, who surprised that the two heroines had survived, ducked for cover.

“Fyre? Hey, Fyre! You okay?” Tawnya called out to her partner even as she advanced towards the enemy. “C’mon... say something! Let me know you’re all right!”

“Ugh... I’m... fine,” Bonnie managed, shaking her head to clear the cobwebs. “Just... winded. Healing is already... kicking in,” she grunted, climbing painfully back to her feet. “Ugh... man, what I wouldn’t give to trade fast healing for invulnerability right about now...”

“Ugh, dammit, dammit, dammit!” Nytro growled, tapping into her power, unleashing a spread of small bombs toward the pair of heroes. “This wasn’t the way this was supposed to go down!”

“Hey! You’re the one that wanted to do this the hard way!” Ravenheart reminded her, leaping up over the explosions, wall climbing briefly to gain some altitude, extending her wings to hover in mid-air for a moment, before crashing down and tackling the hapless villainess. “Gotcha!” she crowed in triumph, grabbing Nyrto by the wrists, squeezing her with an iron grip. “No more bombs, lady,” she growled, glaring hard at her. “You try anything funny at this range and you’ll end up doing more damage to yourself than you will to me.”

Nytro growled, struggling in vain. Despite her normal-looking physique, the young woman was deceptively strong, capable of bending steel with her bare hands. Her foe was not getting loose anytime soon. “Dammit! Let me go right now,” she demanded. “You’d better do it if you know what’s good for you!”

“Hah! You’d better shut your mouth if you know what’s good for you,” Ravenheart snarled, rearing back to punch the girl into unconsciousness... only to pause as Dragonfyre grabbed her arm.

“Hold it, Raven,” Bonnie cautioned, frowning. “Just what did you mean by that, Nytro? What do you have up your twisted little sleeves?”

The auburn-haired villain chuckled darkly. “Heh. I guess you’re smarter than you look. Did you really think that, after my grand speech about workings ‘smarter, not harder’ at burglary, that I’d make such a loud explosion, then sit around here calmly collecting my loot—and NOT have a contingency plan in place?”

Tawnya’s eyes narrowed. “What type of contingency plan?” she demanded. In response, Nytro snapped her fingers again. A small explosion sounded from nearby, powerful enough to cause the building to shake.

“As insurance, I set five of my most potent little bombs up in several of the nearby buildings,” she calmly explained. “Time bombs. If you let me go, I will deactivate them and let them simply poof away harmlessly. But if you arrest me, or try and knock me unconscious, they’ll all detonate when the countdown finishes.” She chuckled at their expressions. “So, what’s it gonna be, ladies? Take me downtown and risk the lives of countless innocents? Or let me escape and save some lives?”

The two angels glanced at each other grimly. “Dammit,” Dragonfyre grunted. “I hate to say it, but we have to let her go. We can’t take the risk...”

“Aww, c’mon! We can’t trust her to keep her word,” Ravenheart stated. “Even if we let her go, she’ll just detonate the bombs anyway out of spite once she’s out of range.”

“Yeah, I know,” the green-clad heroine grumbled. “But what other choice do we have? At the very least, letting her go gives us time to try and find her bombs and remove them before they blow.”

All the while, Nytro smirked, enjoying the predicament she’d set up for the heroines. In truth, she’d never even considered such a strategy before. Her erstwhile partner, Manx, had been the one to suggest it, to lay out the contingency plan for when the heroes eventually showed up. And she had not only expected them to show up to stop the robbery, she’d actively PLANNED for it.

Granted, she’d planned for all three of them to be there, both angels AND their little solar-powered sidekick Luminaire. The idea had been that her little booby trap planted by the doorway would take them all down, and do enough damage for her to subdue and capture them all in one fell swoop. When Luminaire failed to show with the other two, she’d been forced to adjust her plan somewhat. Now the plan was simply to escape, to recover, regroup, and try again later.

Heh. This wasn’t a defeat, she told herself, still grinning. At most, it’s simply a stalemate. You have no choice now but to let me go. There’s no way you can find where I hide my little bombs... and even if you somehow knew where to look, you don’t have enough time to get to all five locations before they go off! She chuckled to herself. Sorry, ladies... but this time you lose. It was just bad luck that you ran into me here today—

“Hey, guys! There you are!” a familiar voice suddenly called out. All three women glanced up as a beautiful blonde heroine flew into the vault, dropping down lightly to land next to the two heroines. “Heh. I should have guessed you’d be here. Nytro, huh?” she asked, glancing meaningfully at the restrained villainess. “Looks like I got back too late... you guys already have everything all wrapped up...” Luminaire stated with a sad sigh.

“Not quite, Lumy,” Dragonfyre said grimly. “Nyrto’s got us over a barrel. She planted bombs in five of the nearby buildings... and she’d threatened to detonate them if we don’t let her go.”

“What?!?” Katie gasped in shock. “You... you monster! You’d really blow up a bunch of innocent people just to make an escape?”

Nytro merely shrugged. “That’s all up to you, heroes! I’m perfectly willing to let you know exactly where I placed those pesky little bombs, as long as you let me go. But... you’d better decide quickly,” she smirked. “Time is running out. Wait too long, and you won’t have time to find them all...”

Luminaire sighed. “She’s right. We have no choice.” Reaching into the pocket of her skirt, she took out a gold-colored fountain pen. “Okay, Nytro. You have a deal. Tell us where the bombs are, and we’ll let you go.”

“Good, I knew you’d see things my...” she began, only to trail off. Her eyes went wide, and she took a step back. “Wa... what? Wh... whee... where did you get that pen?!?” she asked, gaping in shock.

Katie winced slightly, blushing and glancing away. “Um... From the DL Evans Bank across the street,” she said with a shrug. “I got a little lost checking to see which bank you guys were in, so I had to stop by a couple of them.” She winced sheepishly. “And... well... I saw that pen just on the counter... and I’m not a klepto or anything, really... but it was a REALLY nice pen, and I never remember to bring one with me when I’m in costume, and never have anything to write on...” She shrugged again. “I mean, it’s not a big deal or anything...”

Sioban, however, studying Nytro’s expression, had a hunch. “Actually, Lumy, I think maybe it IS a big deal,” she said, smirking, taking the pen from the blonde heroine. “You know what I think,” she said, tapping the heavy metal pen lightly against her palm. “I think something like this, something seemingly normal and innocent, something that you would never really pay much attention to... something like this would be the perfect place to hide a very small, but very powerful explosive device. What do you think about that, Nytro?”

The villainess gaped, mouth opening and closing, the words failing to escape. She shook her head in consternation. How? HOW? How the HELL could that ditzy blonde have found one of her bombs? In an entire city block, of all the places to search, she just HAPPENS to pick it up on a whim and bring it here with her?!? How the actual FUCK does something like this even happen?!? The angels laughed at her obvious misery.

“Well, I’ll take your lack of denial as confirmation,” Dragonfyre replied with a nod. “Luminaire, can you do us a favor and check the nearby buildings and pick up the other four bombs for us?” she asked sweetly. “I’m not sure if Nytro planted the rest of them in fountain pens as well, but something tells me you’ll know them when you see them.” She grinned. “In the meantime, Ravenheart and I will drop Nytro back off at prison.”

Luminaire nodded, grinning, happy to be useful. “Will do, ’Fyre. I’ll catch up with you both in a bit!” With that, the three heroines and their captive departed the bank, heading out their separate ways...

Some distance away, however, standing atop the rooftops of the nearby Armistice Hotel, a familiar figure watched through a pair of binoculars. She smirked, lips curling in a Cheshire cat-style grin as the three heroines departed. Heh. Well, I actually thought this would be the outcome. Cassidy played her part, however... she managed to draw out all three girls. Now I’ll be able to tail them back to their home, wherever it is they’re staying, since it’s not the mansion where dear Bethany assumed they lived. She chuckled darkly. A mistake that I’ll make sure she pays for next time I drop by to pay her a little visit...

She glanced over at her companion, standing silently, staring out over the horizon. Techna had already proven to be much more useful than she’d assumed. Not only was she a delightful and very tasty little sex toy, but once properly tamed and eager to please her Mistress, her genius had allowed her to augment and improve several of Manx’s tools, providing her with a veritable arsenal at her disposal. When the time came to finally go after the remaining people on her list, she would be truly ready.

In the meantime, I have my other obedient slave standing by to follow the cute little birdies, while dear Megan and I follow Luminaire. Even if that lucky little glowworm manages to give us the slip, Ultra Girl should be able to track the other two easily enough. She chuckled again. Soon enough, I’ll know where it is that you precious little birdies roost! And then... when the time is right... I’ll be able to strike at you all at my leisure!