The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

“Ebony! Check your six! NOW!” Sioban MacMillan yelled out loudly, maneuvering in midair, narrowly avoiding a stream of ionized particles fired from the guard’s standard issue weapon. The storage area was large enough for her to fly about, but just barely, necessitating intense concentration to keep from crashing into roof, walls, beams or storage crates. Shit! This is a bad situation. I should head for the skylight and take this outside where I have room to maneuver...but if I do, there’s a good chance the perp will escape!

“I got it, Ivory!” her partner, Tawnya Parkinson yelled back, swerving in midair, tucking in her wings, reaching out and grabbing a support beam as she flew by, using it to spin around, change direction, and lashing out with a powerful kick at the guard attempting to shoot her from behind. Landing, panting slightly, she decked the man as he attempted to sit out, taking him out of the fight. “You don’t have to baby me!” she yelled, sliding back behind a crate as two more guards moved in. “I know how to handle myself in a fight!”

“I’m NOT babying you,” Sioban yelled back, dropping down onto the top of a large crate, letting loose with a blast from her new Omega Beam gauntlet blaster, causing the approaching crowd to scatter. “I’m TRYING to watch out for you! And I’d like you to do that a little for me too, KIDDO!”

Tawnya growled, her hackles raising at the pointed reminder of her position on the totem pole. True, she WAS just a teenager, recently starting her senior year at River City East...but she’d trained night and day with this tin-horn dictator! She deserved a little more slack! Plus...disregarding their ages, SHE looked more the part of a heroine that Sioban did on her best day! SHE was the first one to spot the lights shining in a part of GrimTech’s Bio-technical Research facility that should have been vacant. SHE was the one who’d spotted the thief trying to make off with their Master’s newest technological breakthrough. And SHE was the one who’d managed to take out four of the twenty or so guards trying so hard to blast them into dust.

“We’re wasting time, Ivory,” she replied, trying to force her voice into a calm, somewhat respectful tone. “We’re stuck dealing with these peons while the crook is getting away! We need to stop playing nice with these guys and take ’em down fast and hard!”

“You know we can’t DO that, Ebony,” Sioban yelled back, ducking down as a stray shot barely missed her shoulder. As much as I’d like to...damn, that was a close one! “These guards are innocents. They’re brainwashed. They don’t know what they’re doing! Besides that, they’re OUR people. They work here at GrimTech!“

“Yeah? Well that’s not stoppin’ ’em from tryin’ to waste us!” she snarked back, ducking down and lashing out with a spinning kick as a guard drew close to her hiding spot, sending the poor woman to the floor. “The least you could do is to try and hit a few of them with your Stunner, instead of firing over their heads. If you’re trying to frighten them off I got news for ya, Red...they ain’t scared of ya!”

Sioban bit back a growl at the implied slight. Not that ANYONE is scared of you. Ever. She knew her partner longed to say aloud. What rankled more was the fact that it was true. At five feet even, and a healthy one hundred and ten pounds sopping wet, Sioban was utterly dwarfed by her taller, more athletic companion. With over eleven inches and thirty pounds over her, it was little wonder that, almost from day one, Ebony was the Angel that everyone feared and respected, that the police or citizens always addressed their concerns to. Tawnya even LOOKED older than tiny, delicate-featured Sioban. It angered her, deep down. As much as she tried to hide it, as much as she even tried to rise above it, she could tell that Tawnya sensed her resentment through their bond.

But what can I do? I can’t help the way I feel. I played the junior partner to Patricia for ten years before she retired. I paid my dues. I’m the senior partner now...and yet everyone still treats me like a damned child just because I’m not a six foot tall behemoth!

Ironically, Tawnya’s feelings were like a mirror image of Sioban’s—the same main features, but flipped around—she’d never admit it but she really did respect Sioban’s wisdom and experience. Even so, it was hard to keep her cool when her junior status always being thrown in her face, She doesn’t listen. She doesn’t even hear my ideas, my suggestions, much less take them seriously, just because I’m not some super-genius like her! A part of her, deep down, knew that at least part of what she felt was the left over resentment and angst that another Tearbearer had felt towards HER mentor, passed on through the Tear Memories. They both knew that the emotional echoes of the Patty-and-Angie drama would cascade down through Tearbearers for generations to come, even though Patricia and Angela themselves had solved their problems, buried the hatchet, years before either retired.

It was, in many ways, a rite of passage, having to prove one’s self and suffer the indignities of being relegated to the ‘sidekick’ role for a while before truly earning her place. The problem with their pairing, however, was, well, Nigel Grimalde. Sioban loved her Master with all her heart and soul, but she resented the way that he had injected himself into the “Tearbearer selection process” as he called it. She had brought him candidate after candidate and he had vetoed every one until Tawnya. None of her predecessors, bearers of the Right Tear of the Valkyrie, over centuries and centuries, had EVER had to put up with someone else vetoing their choices when it was tlme for them to find someone to bear the Left Tear. It was just one more thing that made Sioban feel disrespected.

And besides that, Sioban had a sneaking suspicion that Nigel had picked Tawnya more to mesh with HIS personality than with Sioban’s. As the harem sisters were wont to say, Tawnya was “Nigel’s kinda girl”, lots of cushion in all the right places and a hellion in the sack Like Patricia...Like...like me. But professionally...Sioban and Tawnya just didn’t click the way Tearbearer partners should. Why did they fight all the freaking time? Sioban was becoming convinced that it just wasn’t a good match. Why couldn’t I have had Erica? Erica and I would have been great together. But nooooo, she was only a C-cup.

Sioban sighed. It was too late for might-have-beens. Tawnya had entered into their Master’s harem over two months ago, along with picking up the Left Tear of the Valkyrie. So they were lovers. All the harem sisters were each other’s lovers. And really they were pretty good together in bed. Tawnya was an amazing sex partner—fun, generous, empathetic, and skilled beyond her years. But they were hardly friends. They were probably more distant from each other emotionally that any other pairing from Nigel’s harem would have been, even those pairings including one of them. Crap! Another near miss. Get your head back in the fight, Bonnie girl!

“That tears it!” Tawnya yelled, leaping into the air, extending her wings, powering up her gauntlets. “Enough of this damned pussyfootin’ around. This insanity ends now!” Extending both hands outward, she activated the wide area Omega Beam dispersal feature. A bright flash lit up the room, and several of the guards cried out, shuddering briefly, before falling limply to the floor. Landing in the center of the group, she laughed. “Oh yeah! That’s how you bring down th’ house!”

“Dammit, Ebony!” Ivory groused, landing beside her seconds later. “That was completely uncalled for! And that...that...blast? We’ve never even tested that mode before! What if you had hurt someone?”

“Yes, indeed,” a male voice called out, stepping slowly into view from across the room, a tall thin man dressed in black, wearing a black mask, and holding a silver clarinet. “Such recklessness. And blatant disregard for the poor civilians used as helpless pawns! One would think you two would be called winged devils instead of ‘angels’.“

“Well, if nothing else, I managed to draw out the big cheese,” Ebony Angel replied with a scowl, crossing her arms. “Hey Cheesy, who exactly are you supposed to be? With that bow tie and tails, and that clarinet, you look like you escaped from the opera. Is that it? Are you the Phantom of the Opera?”

The man bristled. “Oh ho. Insults! You think you can criticize my apparel when you two are dressed in little more than color coded lingerie?” Both women blushed hotly at the reminder of Master’s choice of “uniforms”, although, of course the bloom of color was much more obvious on Sioban’s ginger-pale skin than on Tawnya’s dark chocolate complexion. “I call myself the Piper. And you are...hmm. Let me see...what was that name I heard bandied about a few years back? Ahhh...the ‘Flying Dykes’! Yes, I remember now.” He smirked, making a show of looking them over. “Not the same two from back in the day, but something tells me you gals are keeping the tradition alive. Am I right, ladies? Am I? Huh? Huh?” He laughed gleefully, which pushed Tawnya’s temper past its boiling point.

“Oh fuck this!” she growled, powering up her gauntlet, stepping forward to wipe the smirk of the man’s face. “Time to say goodnight, Dick!”

Sioban, wise enough not to get drawn into the man’s obvious taunting, called out a warning. “No! Ebony, wait! He’s just trying to get under your skin! Think before you go rushing in!”

“I am thinking,” she snapped back, breaking into a sprint, “thinking how satisfying it will be to put the smackdown on his candy ass!” Rearing back, she swung with her considerable strength, aiming for a knockout blow—

Only to find herself frozen in place, unable to complete her swing.

“Ah hah! Excellent!” the man crowed triumphantly. With a flourish, he opened his jacket, revealing a large metallic belt clenched around his waist, with several LEDS flashing brilliantly. “I’d been wanting to see just how well this new stasis generator GrimTech cooked up worked. I’d have to call it a rousing success!”

“EBONY!” Sioban cried, almost rushing forward instinctively before forcing herself to stay back and wait. She had no idea of what she was facing, other than the obvious, given its name. Hmm. Stasis field generator. Tawnya seems completely frozen in place, though not in time or anything truly exotic. I can see her eyes moving, and her nose seems to be flaring, so she is at least able to breathe. Whatever energy its giving off must have locked up her muscles, paralyzing her. Damn...hopefully it’s just temporary. And...he lured her in, taunted her into getting close, so it must not have much of a range. Maybe I can use that to my advantage.

“So, now what?” she asked aloud, taking another wary step towards the confident villain. “Is this the part where you threaten to hurt my partner if I don’t give in to your demands? Think I’ll beg and plead for her safety, or bargain to trade myself for her?” She shook her head., taking another small step. “Sorry to disappoint, but I don’t deal with criminal scum like you. Your best chance of getting out of here in one piece is to drop the tech you pilfered, get down on your hands and knees, and beg me not to kick your sorry ass into next week.”

The Piper scowled, slightly perturbed by her lack of concern. “Actually, my plan was to hold her here in stasis while I played my hypnotic tune for her. If she could get out of range fast enough it might not ensnare her, but with her frozen and helpless like this, unable to escape, she’ll eventually succumb, and become my loyal thrall, just like those ‘peons’ she blasted moments ago.” He smirked, drawing a small knife from his pocket. “As for you, Miss Ivory Angel...you keep your distance...unless you’d rather I simply slit your lover’s throat and save myself the bother?”

“She’s my PARTNER, asshole,” Sioban said with heat, “and anything ELSE she is, is none of your damned business. She knew the risks coming on here the same as I did. Just know this: if you harm a hair on her head, I’ll give it back to you so hard your grandparents will feel it.”

To punctuate her threat she pulled pipe off of a nearby wall and bent it over her knee. Sometimes a strength demo was the only way to get the bad guys to take tiny Sioban seriously. And his eyes did get larger.

It’s also a pretty good distraction, she thought, as she made another small casual step, slowly closing the distance without making it appear that way. “Last chance. Surrender or pay for it later. Oh, and you should decide quickly. That device you stole? Its effects only last for about five minutes. I’d like to wrap this pipe around your neck, but Ebony is MUCH stronger than I am. I wonder how much damage she would do to your teeth if that fist actually connects? Oh! And look at that! She’s is already starting to move again.“

“What?” The Piper asked, suddenly nervous, glancing to the side. That was all the opening tiny Ivory Angel needed. In a flash, she struck, firing blasts from both her gauntlets, striking the Piper directly in the chest, stunning him unconscious. Sighing softly, Sioban rushed over to Tawnya.

“Hey, are you okay? Can you hear me?” she asked, worriedly. Placing one hand to the taller girl’s neck, the other in front of her nose, she sighed. “Okay. Your vitals are normal. That’s a good sign. Hopefully, the paralysis will wear off soon, and you’ll be back to normal.” She shook her head. “Honestly, Tawnya...what the HELL were you thinking charging in like that? I told you to hang back, NOT to let him get to you. But did you listen to me? No-o-o-o-o-o. ‘I’m Miss Badass. I’ve gotta dive into every fight head first, just to show how tough I am.’ You’re not crashing the boards in the title game, Tawnya. You’re risking your one and only LIFE—standard issue, one each. Did you hear him talking about slitting your throat? Did you think he was KIDDING? Why can’t you just listen to me?! I’ve been doing this for TEN FUCKING YEARS. I might just have a clue of what I’m talking about!” Kneeling down, she examined the stasis device still clad around the Piper’s waist. “Well, the good news is that I think I can reverse the effects with controls on this device. Cross your fingers...here goes nothing.“

An intense tingling feeling enveloped Tawnya, like an annoying pins and needles sensation, and then, suddenly, her muscles unlocked, responding to her thoughts again. “Gaahhh!” she exclaimed, stumbling slightly as she tried to regain her balance. “Shit...that sucked big time. Ahh...and my back!” she yelped, reaching back to scratch madly. “Nothing worse than an itch you can’t scratch!”

Tiny Sioban looked up at her partner, regarding her critically, eyes narrowed, arms crossed. “Oh, you’re welcome, by the way,” she snarked, turning away, flipping her hair in exasperation. “Honestly! Can’t you even show a LITTLE gratitude?”

“HEY! I am grateful!” Tawnya insisted, scowling back. “And I was just about to thank you before you went all menopausal on me!”

“Meno...” Sioban’s eyes widened, her fair skin reddening in her anger. “You arrogant, cocksure, spiteful, fat-assed BITCH!” she yelled, losing what little remained of her temper. “You think everything is a fucking game! Think you’re hot shit, stronger, faster, and all around BETTER at being a Tearbearer than I am—”

“Honey, I don’t think it, I know it!” Tawnya shot back, hands on hips. “You’re just fucking JEALOUS that everyone else knows it too! You call me arrogant, say that I never listen to you? YOU fucking never listen to ME! You’re little Miss Know-it-all, Miss, ‘I’m a SENIOR partner. I’ve got a fucking PhD, and you’re just my stupid high school KID SIDEKICK. Yah, mule. Tote that barge. Lift that bale.’ Well, KISS MY ASS!“

“I never said any of that!” Sioban yelled back, growling now, walking over to the taller girl. glaring defiantly at her smug face. “I’m not a know-it-all, but dammit I do know what I’m doing! I’ve been doing it a long time, and I damn well know what I am talking about when I tell you to watch out for something!” The two of them glared at one another for a long moment, panting softly.

“You know what your problem is?” Tawnya said after a moment. “You’re afraid! Afraid to take risks, afraid to try something new...afraid to put yourself on the line! You sit back watching the action and jilling off in your head, while the moment, the time to strike, passes you right on by.” Shaking her head, she turned, walking towards the steps leading up to the roof. “You call me reckless? Fine. I’ll own that. It’s better than being a fucking coward—”

“NOOOOO!” Sioban cried out loudly. Tawnya whirled, turning around just in time to see the Piper, awake once more, grinning madly, one of the guard’s particle weapons aimed right at Tawnya’s chest. Her eyes widened at the flash, signaling the telltale discharge...but the blast itself was intercepted, as the senior partner literally dove in front of shot, shielding the novice. The secondary shockwave knocked Tawnya back hard onto the ground, but Sioban, of course, took the full brunt of the blast. It sent her careening into the nearest window, shattering the glass, and sending her tumbling out of the building and down to the street below.

“IVORY!” Tawyna yelled, her heart clenching in shock. “No! NO! Oh Gawd...no!”

“Yes,” the Piper replied, dusting himself off, holding the gun at the ready. “That’s what you get for thinking me down for the count. Never underestimate the Piper, child,” he chided her menacingly, raising the gun as she took a step towards him. “That’s a lesson that comes with experience. Ah, well...you’re young yet. You’ll learn...if you survive” He gestured to the broken window, shaking his head. “Too bad about your partner, though. It’s a shame...but I guess she really IS an angel now.”

Pain. It hurts. Goddess, it hurts.

Falling.

Heading towards the street. Need to stop, break my descent somehow. Need to...deploy my wings...glide away, somewhere, give myself a chance to heal...

Everything’s foggy. Can’t concentrate enough. C’mon. Wings. Fly. How can I be this lucid and not be able to conjure my wings? I don’t even feel connected to my body!

How many stories up am I? How long until I hit? Three seconds? Five? Can’t get it together...it hurts too much...can’t focus.

Dammit....all the times we practiced, all the times Patricia drilled me in this exact kind of thing...to be able to just extend and flare your wings when falling, even unconscious, even in your sleep! But...so out of practice. Two years in post-doc, sitting at a desk, crawling around some dirty refinery, writing reports, writing papers...

Don’t wanna die...not like this, not this way. Ebony...Tawnya...Oh Goddess, she’ll blame herself. But, it’s my fault, not hers...

At least she’ll be a better mentor to the next Bearer of the Right Tear...Nike...Edna...all those times I cursed you for a fool...I didn’t know...I’m sorry...Maybe we can talk about it when I see you...

“GOTCHA!”

Eyes opening, the wing-less winged heroine gasped, wincing slightly from the pain of injured flesh and muscle being pulled. I gave her a grin nonetheless, lifting us back up towards the sky. “Hope you don’t mind me swooping in,” I said conversationally, as I dropped us on a nearby rooftop, “but you looked like you could use some help. Are you okay? Wow, You’re, um, bleeding pretty heavily from, like, a dozen cuts. From that scorch mark on your chest, I’d say you took a hit from a particle gun. In fact, it’s pretty amazing that you don’t have a smoking crater there instead of a chest!”

“Yes...thanks...I’m, ah, pretty tough,” Ivory Angel managed, panting slightly. “I just need a minute...to catch my breath.” She groaned softly, shaking her head. “Thanks for catching me. Tough or not, I’d have been dead without you.”

We land on an nearby rooftop, and I set her down, standing. Wow, she’s even shorter than I am. “Don’t mention it,” I replied with a shrug. “We heroines have to stick together after all. So...can I hazard a guess and say you came from that high rise across the way? The big GrimTech building? I saw flashing lights like weapon discharges a moment ago, and thought I’d go in for a closer look. Lucky for you that I did.” I paused, frowning slightly. “Hey...you’re um...one of the Flying—, uh, Angels, aren’t you? Um...um...Fire Angel? Or are you, ah, Sunshine Angel?”

The redhead colored slightly, she seemed kinda...embarrassed or something. Shit, she’s blushing! But why? I mean, the names seem a bit hokey to me, but they picked those names themselves, didn’t they?

Finally she answered, “Ah, no, Sunshine retired a few months ago, and I changed my name to, um, Ivory Angel.”

Damn, she’s turning redder! What’s up with that? Taking a deep breath, she stood up, deploying her wings, rubbing her shoulder gingerly. “Well, sorry to chat and run, but my partner’s in trouble, and I need to get back to her.“

“What? Wait,” I protested, moving to stand in her way, “you can’t go now, you’re still injured!”

The winged heroine gave me an indulgent smile. It made me feel all warm and tingly. If she were to pat my head right now I might roll over and purr. “It’s fine,” she said, “I heal really fast. I’m feeling much better, really. Besides, it can’t wait. My partner is in real trouble and I don’t have time to lose.”

“Well...why don’t I come with you?”

Ivory Angel frowned, slightly, considering. “I dunno...I’m pretty sure we can handle it ourselves,” she said slowly. She seemed to be weighing her options, deciding if she could trust me.

“Look,” I said, “You’re still injured, though I guess not as bad as I thought,” Honestly. I was sure I had seen at least a dozen free-bleeding lacerations before, but now there were only like five lightly scabbed scrapes. What’s up with that? If it weren’t for the blood-stains soaking her lacy bra, I’d have thought I was going nuts. Red blood all over those gorgeous tits...Down girl! Not NOW!... “And, anyway, your partner’s in trouble. It seems to me you could use a hand. I’m just offering mine.“

“Well, you did save my life,” said the redhead, giving me a subtle once over. Oh GAWD my nips are getting hard. I hoped she liked what she saw. I certainly did.

Finally she grinned up at me. “You know what they say,” said Ivory Angel, “The more the merrier. Come on, let’s go!”

“Great!” I cheered, excited to be invited along. “I’ll do whatever I can to help! And don’t worry, I’ll follow your lead.” I extended a hand. “The name’s Katie, but in costume I go by Lum—”

“The introductions can wait for later,” Ivory replied, taking flight. “We need to move before the Piper gets his hooks into my partner!”

I sighed softly, shrugging. “Um...okay. Got it,” I replied, powering up, and streaking off right behind her. I kind of grinned, unable to help noticing what an adorable little ass she had. Rowr! Now, now, Katie...reign it in! You’re in hero mode now, and trying to impress this cool older Super. At least, I think she’s older. No, she was Fire Angel. She’s been doing this since I was in grade school. She’s gotta be almost 30. But damn, she looks younger than ME. And sexy. Really, really sexy. Aaaaaah, this is no time to start acting like a horny newb with a schoolgirl crush! Although, looking at that chest, I think I can finally understand the attraction of “motorboating”. NO! STOP IT!

Trying to focus on the task at hand, I mentally went back over what I knew about the guy I was about to face. Hmmm...the Piper. Don’t remember much about him from Dad’s database...something about having hypnotic powers from some kind of flute or whistle. Um...damn, can’t remember if it was his instrument that had the hypnotic ability or the guy himself. Lessee...what else? Not superhumanly strong or fast or anything...but there was something else...what was it? Something important, I know...but I just can’t remember. Dammit, not for the first time do I wish my brother and I had switched brains. His perfect memory would come in handy right now...

Reaching the top floor of the building, I spotted the point my new friend had fallen from. She hovered just outside the window, trying to decide how best to slip through the jagged glass shared into the building. “Hang on,” I said, focusing my light into my hand, “I’ve got this.” A narrow focused beam of light shone forth, and I directed it in a circle, cutting away a section of the ruined window and wall large enough for us to comfortably enter. Nodding in approval, Ivory Angel flew inside, and I flew in right on her heels, only then remembering about the restraining orders against Aunt Eva and the Albinns.

“Um...you don’t think the owner of the building will be too mad about the damage, do you?” I asked, suddenly worried about the consequences and repercussions of stepping inside a Grimalde owned business, with all the ill will between them and our family. To my relief, Ivory shook her head, giving me a small grin.

“Somehow, I don’t that will matter much, in the grand scheme of things. If we can stop the Piper from making off with that Stasis Generator, he’ll probably be so happy he won’t care about a little cosmetic property damage.”

Inside, surveying the scene, Ivory Angel decided we should separate. “The Piper doesn’t know about you yet,” she whispered. “If he gets the drop on me, you’ll be a nice little surprise for him.” Agreeing, I dimmed my light, and tried to be inconspicuous...which wasn’t exactly easy, sporting a hot pink costume. Still, it wasn’t too hard to find our quarry, as the sound of clarinet music could be heard coming from the center of the room.

I froze, taking a moment to get my bearings as the room seemed to shift beneath my feet. The music! I realized, taking a few steps back, shaking my head to clear it. Duh! The Piper. Hypnotic music. Dammit, Katie, focus! You’re not going to be any good to these guys if you get brainwashed in the first five seconds! Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out my IPod, and the wireless earbuds, sliding them into my ears. Heh. Looks like my penchant for listening to Symphonic Nebula while on patrols and stake outs is coming in handy. Turning the volume up to eleven, I made my way slowly through the storage room floor, heading towards the center of the room. Of course, by then, Ivory Angel had already arrived.

And...it seemed, was having some issues with her partner.

“Ebony!” she yelled, struggling hand to hand against a much taller, dark skinned equally scantily dressed girl, surrounded by a circle of uniformed security guards. “C’mon! Snap...out of it!” she gasped, trying to break the other girl’s grip on her throat. “He’s controlling you! Don’t let him!”

“I...know...” Ebony Angel slurred, visibly shaking with the effort of resisting. “I’m...trying to fight it...but that damned...clarinet...” she grunted, eyes rolling back into her head as the Piper, sitting atop a small crate, hit a particularly high piercing note. “Uggghnn...trying...but...getting harder...the more he plays...”

I could see that Ivory Angel herself was floundering. Restrained, held fast by her entranced partner, she was starting to feel the effects as well. More of Dad’s database entry on the Piper was coming back to me now. His music was like an insidious jingle, an evil earworm....it got into your head, spinning round and round, endlessly, over and over...building and building...until it pushed everything else, including free will, out. Ivory Angel’s left hand shuddered, losing its strength momentarily, before she refocused her attention, forcing herself to fight.

“Ebony...” she pleaded, struggling again, aiming towards the Piper. “Please...just let go...just for a second! I just need...one clear shot...”

“Oh, I imagine you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” The Piper taunted, halting his tune momentarily. “One heroic last-ditch effort to break free and wrest victory from the jaws of defeat?” He chuckled loudly. “Typical hero nonsense. You know...I could have simply frozen you both from the get-go and played my little tune until you were completely utterly mine! Ah...but where’s the fun in that, hmmm? Where’s the challenge? This...this struggle, friend against friend, partner against partner, lover against lover if you will....THIS is what I want to see! So, come, ladies,” he said, placing the horn back to his lips. “Show me what you’re truly made of!“

“How about sugar, spice, and everything nice?” I replied, creating and tossing a small barrage of star shaped light constructs, taking the Piper completely by surprise. Crying out in alarm, he rolled off the crate, ducking behind it, yelling out to his enthralled minions.

“Get her!” he shrieked, sounding remarkably effeminate in his panic. “Shoot her! I don’t care what it takes, get that stupid bitch!”

Guess that meant I’d scored a hit or two. With the Piper taken care of, I was hoping the effects of his music would wane, and the Angels would shake off his control. In the meantime, I had to contend with a group of mesmerized security guards looking to subdue me. Coming up to my hiding spot, they quickly took aim, preparing to shoot. Trusting in my good luck fairies, I held my ground, placing my palms together, channeling my light to construct a long fighting staff. As I’d hoped, none of the blasters fired, their power modules apparently having powered down. Dropping their weapons, however, each guard drew a nightstick and continued to advance on me.

Well...shit.

I have to give them credit. For hourly wage employees, the men and women of GrimTech Security have some pretty decent skills. With my own hand-to-hand combat training, my above average speed, strength and stamina, and my sheer luck at landing and dodging blows, even fighting twenty to one odds, we were pretty evenly matched. The thing is, and not everyone knows this, my luck does have its limits. A fully loaded machine gun can fire a lot of bullets, but eventually it runs out. A swimming pool holds thousands of gallons of water, but eventually it all runs down the drain. And even I can only block or dodge so many attacks before one finally lands. Yelping in pain, I twisted sharply to the side, then grunted as a second blow to the leg took me off my feet. Flat on my back, staring up at my attackers, I briefly considered letting loose, blasting them back with a barrage of light bursts...

No. Innocents. Can’t hurt ’em. They can’t control their actions, they’re just helpless pawns in all of this. All right. Let’s go with containment then.

With a cry, I released my gathered light, changing it slightly as it emerged, wrapping them all in cocoons, binding them tightly. Sighing softly, a bit winded from the expenditure, I tried getting back to my feet, but instead dropped down to one knee. Strong hands lifted me back to me feet, and I turned to find Ivory and Ebony, free of their earlier enthrallment, supporting me. “Hey guys,” I said wearily, “you all right?”

“Yeah, thanks to you,” Ivory stated with a grin. “How are you doing?”

I rubbed my knee lightly, wincing. “Well, I don’t heal nearly as fast as you seem to, but I think I’ll be okay. Just a couple of bumps and bruises.”

“What about them?” Ebony asked, pointing to the wrapped up minions. “What did you do to them? What is that stuff?”

“Light cocoons. They’re fine, they just can’t move or cause any trouble until I release them.”

“Okay...any reason you didn’t just do that from the beginning?” Tawnya asked with a frown.

“Hey, doing that to twenty people takes quite a bit of energy, yanno,” I explained. “Not to mention the fact that I was coming back from the end of my patrol anyway when I came to help you guys. It’s been a busy night, and I’m a little drained. I haven’t got much juice left in the old tank right now, so if anyone else shows up, you guys will have to take ’em down yourselves.”

The sound of clapping caught our attention. Glancing up, I saw the Piper making his reappearance once more, his fancy black suit dingy, dirty, and ripped in several places. And he did not look happy. “Well done, ladies. Well done. I have to say, I didn’t see this coming. Ebony Angel, Ivory Angel, and ‘Luminaire, the Light of Justice’, all chummy-chummy, and buddy-buddy.” I felt Ivory stiffen, and heard Ebony gasp at the mention of my name. Huh. So, I guess they hadn’t recognized me after all. Awk. Ward. “You showing up unexpectedly ruined my little game. Well...that’s what I get for not taking things seriously, I suppose.” Lifting his clarinet to his lips, he chucked evilly. “Rest assured, ladies, fun time is over. Time to pay...the Piper!”

Both of the Angels tensed up as he blew, but I placed a hand on their shoulders in reassurance. Sure enough, the squealing noise that issued forth was closer to the sound of a strangled cat than actual music. Blinking in surprise, he held his horn up, gazing in outrage at the small series of holes and gashes along its surface I’d inflicted earlier with my little surprise attack and some expertly thrown shuriken. Not that I could claim total credit for the idea, mind—I got the idea from an episode of Trigun.

“You...bitch!” he roared, completely losing his composure, throwing it onto the floor. “That clarinet was an antique! One of a kind! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!?”

“You mean besides making it impossible for you to brainwash anyone else and generally ruining your day?” I replied with a smirk, which seemed to push him over the edge.

“I’ll fix you,” he growled, sliding his hands down to the large shining belt buckle thingy he wore, causing all the little lights to light up. “I’ll fix you all! We’ll see how smug you are when you’re frozen stiff and helpless, unable to defend yourselves!” He walked slowly towards us, grinning all the while. “Forget turning you into my obedient little slaves! No, that boat has set sail! Now, I’m thinking more along the lines of slow and painful torture. And rape,” he said, looking the Angels and myself up and down appraisingly, “Oh yes, definitely rape.” Again, the Angels moved to step back, but I placed a reassuring hand on their shoulders, holding them still. I trusted my little good luck fairies, and I wanted them to trust me.

“Does that scare you, girls?” he taunted, continuing to advance, less than a foot away now. “Does it? The Flying Dykes, version two-point-oh...deflowered by a man!” He laughed again, close enough now to reach out and touch. “Might have to change your names after this, ehh...eehhhk.. eeeeeehhhkkk!! He stopped, pausing, eyes wide, hissing strangely, his mouth frozen in mid-speech just as the rest of his body simply stopped moving. With that, I let out the breath I’d been holding.

“Okay. Well, that worked exactly the way I’d hoped it would,” I said, giggling a bit as stress relief. “So...you guys wanna go out for Chinese? I’m totally starving.”

The two angels glanced at one another before turning back to me. “Wait, wait, wait,” Ebony said, waving a hand. “Back up a second. What just happened here? How did you reverse the effects of the Stasis Generator to affect him and not us?”

I blinked. “Spatial whatsis?” I asked, not quite understanding the question.

“Stasis generator!” Ivory Angel repeated, shaking her head. “How did you do that? Did you know that would happen? Was that why you kept us from backing away when he got closer? And why didn’t his music mesmerize you? We’re naturally resistant to mind control as it is, and even we fell under his spell!”

“Hold on a sec,” I mumbled softly, reaching into my ear, taking out my earbuds. “Sorry. My lip-reading skills are way rusty. Can you repeat that again?”

Things were sorted out fairly quickly after that. With the Piper’s horn destroyed, the spell over the security guards soon faded. The Piper himself was taken into police custody, though I found it personally hilarious watching them try and fit him through the doorway of the squad car with him frozen in position. Ivory Angel assured the authorities that the effects of the paralysis would eventually wear off after they removed the Stasis Generator device from his person, but to contact GrimTech’s research office tomorrow if it lasted more than twenty four hours. Soon enough, the bad guy was whisked away, and the GrimTech security guards were more or less resuming their duties. That left Ivory, Ebony, and myself alone once again.

“So...you’re, ah, Luminaire,” Ivory prompted me after a moment of silence. I sighed, nodding.

“Yeah. I tried to mention it earlier, but you were in a hurry. It’s Luminaire...or ‘Katie’ to my friends?” I said, hopefully, batting my eyes.

Ebony chuckled. “Hehheh...you’re cute. Well, Katie, I for one appreciate you coming in to help. I kinda shudder to think about what might have happened if you hadn’t been there.” She shook her head. “Excuse the pun, but we’re the ones that were lucky you were around.”

“By the way,” Ivory asked, “speaking of luck...you never really answered the question earlier. Did you know that the Piper would end up frozen like that instead of us? Were you so confident in your good luck, that nothing bad could happen to you, that you somehow knew that the device would backfire like it did?“

I sighed, debating on exactly what to reveal. “Well...not exactly,” I said slowly. “It was kind of lucky, in a way...but not completely. When I crept up and saw you two under the spell of his clarinet, and surrounded by his minions, I knew I needed to do two things: distract him to give you two a chance to break his hold over you, and trash his flute so he couldn’t use that trick on anyone again.” I gestured with my hand, creating a star shaped light construct, tossing it lightly from hand to hand. “From my ‘sensei’s’ training, I’m pretty good with throwing stars, so when I let loose with a barrage of them, I aimed specifically for his clarinet, trying to cut it up enough that it wouldn’t play music anymore. When the Piper freaked and rolled out of the line of fire, a few of them slashed his arms and chest...and two of them struck the device on his belt.”

Sioban nodded slowly in understanding. “I see. So you knew you had hit it and damaged it, and that it wouldn’t work...but you didn’t know exactly what the outcome would be when he switched it on.”

“Exactly. I knew something was gonna happen, just not what.” I shrugged. “I have to admit, I was starting to get a bit nervous when he got as close as he did. And with the music pumping away in my ears, and my poor lip-reading skills only giving me about half of what he was saying, I didn’t know exactly what the thing on his belt was supposed to do. Still, I figured if he got close enough to touch me, I’d just deck him.”

Tawnya laughed out loud at that. “HA! ‘Just deck him’, huh? I like the way you think, Katie.”

“Thanks,” I said blushing hotly. I kinda liked her laugh, Ebony Angel was a tall, dark, fierce and imposing figure on the surface...but somehow I could tell that it only went surface deep. Of the two of them, she actually struck me as the more warm and gentle one deep down. Really the two of them made quite a pair the younger one with the body of a tall 25-year-old, and the older, experienced one with the body of a tiny but WELL-developed high-schooler. But Ebony in particular, with her curves, with that black coffee skin, with that luscious lustrous hair...I had to forcibly remind myself that I had a girlfriend of my own waiting back home for me.

Damn. Speaking of which...

“Well, girls, I need to get going,” I said wearily, pausing to stretch a bit. I smiled inwardly, noting them both checking me out discretely. “My girlfriend is waiting for me to get back home so we can go out to dinner. I called her when I saw the flashing lights and explosions. I told her I was gonna fly over and investigate. But now it’s been more than an hour, and she’s probably getting anxious.” Lifting off from the ground, I hovered for a moment, glancing back at them. “Yanno, the offer to come along for Chinese still stands! My treat?”

“You make a tempting offer,” Sioban said with real regret,” but we need to finish up here and report in. Rain check, maybe?”

“Rain check,” I nodded, smiling. “See you around, ladies! Seriously, don’t forget!” With that, I flew off into the evening sky.

The two Angels stood there watching for a few moments in silence as “The Light of Justice” flew away.

“Sioban,” Tawnya said softly, turning back to face her. “I...I’m sorry...I didn’t...”

Sioban turned, shocked to find her partner’s face wet with tears. “Tawnya? Wh...what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

“I’m sorry!” she said, moving over to hug her tightly, surprising her again. “I didn’t mean...all those nasty things I said...I was just upset...I didn’t mean it! I swear I didn’t! ”

“Shhh, I know, I know,” Sioban replied softly, standing on tiptoes, kissing her partner’s cheek, her own eyes beginning to well up. “It’s okay. Don’t worry about it...”

“No. It’s NOT okay,” Tawnya insisted, shaking her head. “I thought that the last word I would ever say to you would be ‘coward’ Right before...” Tears were streaming down the big girl’s face now. She was sobbing her breaths. “R-r-right before you did the bravest thing...I ever saw in my WHOLE LIFE. You were right...so fucking right about me...I’m damned reckless...and stupid...and impulsive...and...and...and when the Piper...when he pulled that gun...when you took the hit for me...and you...you...you f-f-fell...” She was crying openly now, and shaking slightly, her huge frame causing Sioban to shudder with her as they hugged each other. “I thought...I thought...you were dead...that you hit...hit the pavement...and the last thing you hur-hur—...heard was all the...the SHIT I’d given you...even though I was...the sssssstupid jerk who got...huh-huh—...herself frozen...and I just...I couldn’t...”

“Tawnya, look at me,” Sioban said in a calm, firm voice. Staring down at her mentor, she found the older redhead smiling back at her, her own face wet with tears. “I love you, sweetheart. I was wrong too...I said a lot of things I didn’t mean. It was...just the heat of the moment. I know you don’t hate me...and I know I can be a little...overbearing at times...” Tawnya laughed a little at that “but it’s only because I care about you. I know what you’re going through. I was the Junior Partner to Patricia before you, you know...and if you think I’m bad...well, have you ever seen Patricia when she’s angry?” She sighed, shaking her head, smiling momentarily, before sighing again.

“Tawnya,” she began after a moment, “when I was falling earlier...when I thought I was going to die...” She paused, the memory still fresh, causing a salty metallic tang in her mouth. “What was foremost in my mind was all the harsh and hurtful things I’d said to YOU. I was sad...thinking you would blame yourself for my death...that the memory of our last words would haunt YOU.” She laughed ruefully, descending into sobs. “I remembered...thinking...knowing that...you’d be a...better mentor...to your charge...than I was to you. Look, you’re NOT stupid, and you’re way, way more of a natural at this than I am. You just don’t really know what you’re doing yet. When you do have that experience, you’ll have it all.” Sioban reached up and grabbed Tawnya’s face in both hands and looked up into her eyes. “You’ll be so fucking awesome, that, well...when I retire...um...hell, nobody will even remember me.“

Tawnya wiped her eyes and looked down into Sioban’s, “You’re the boss, and I’ll never fight you again. But I can’t let that go. I’ll never forget you. And when you retire—and dammit I’m gonna watch your back so good that you won’t have to retire until you’re a gray-haired old lady—when you retire, I can only hope to be half the leader that you are.“

Both women simply held each other for a long moment, crying out the pain and angst they’d been holding in all this time, airing out their repressed feelings, allowing themselves to truly honestly express themselves to each other for the first time. They discovered to their own surprise how much they truly did care for each other and how much more alike they were than they could ever have believed possible. Finally, the tears dried, and the hurt salved, if not completely healed, the topic turned to their new friend.

“So, Katie Frasier,” Tawnya said after a brief pause. “Cute little thing, don’cha think?”

Sioban smiled. “Hey, watch it with the ‘little’ crap. We short folk are kinda sensitive about that,” she said with a wink, “But yeah, she’s a genuine cutie. And she saved my life. Both of our lives, actually. And she’s honestly, truly a really nice girl.”

“Yeah,” said Tawnya, “Not anything like we were led to expect from a Frasier.”

They sighed, considering. On the one hand, Nigel had laid down the law long before Tawnya, or even Sioban, had come on board: to give Omega Girl, Armor Man, Whitewash, Shinobi, and especially Echo, a wide berth, to avoid them all like the plague, and have nothing to do with them. Patricia and Angela still told horror stories of the so-called ‘heroes’ trying to break into Grimalde Tower, into their HOME, and wrest them away from their beloved Master, or have him taken away from them, locked up somewhere in a cold dark windowless cell. As far as they’d been taught, Parker Albinn, Eugene Frasier, and all of their kind were the enemy.

And yet...one of the ‘enemy’ had saved them, selflessly offering to help them, even after learning who they were, even knowing the bad blood between them. She hadn’t attempted to capture them, or snatch them away for some ‘well-meaning’ deprogramming by Whitewash, or anything other than try to help them. True, she HAD done minor damage to Nigel’s building, a couple thousand dollars worth of stone and plaster repair, pocket change for Nigel Grimalde. True, she’d also damaged the Stasis Generator the Piper had tried to steal, necessitating its need to be repaired...but at least she’d stopped the thief from making off with it. And for Nigel, who’s reputation was his most valuable commodity, preventing some punk thief with delusions of grandeur from stealing from him was worth more than the price of the device the Piper had attempted to steal. In that respect, Katie had done them a very huge favor.

“I like her,” Sioban admitted after a bit. “She’s sweet, and adorable...and well...I certainly wouldn’t kick her out of my bed, if you know what I mean.”

Tawnya nodded, licking her lips, thinking along the same lines. “Same here. She’s definitely got what it takes. Hey, did you see the way she looked at you?”

“Yeah. Made me kind of tingly. But her eyes got twice as big when she got a good look at YOU.”

“Well,” joked Tawnya, “After all there’s a lot more of me to look at! OW!”

Sioban punched her in the arm, but they both had a good laugh about it.

“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Sioban asked, a wry grin curling her lips.

“I think so.” Tawnya replied with the same grin. “And I’ve never really had a chance to go ‘hunting’ yet. Maybe some fresh blood is exactly what the Master needs to get him out of his funk.”

“Absolutely. Then here’s the plan,” Sioban stated, nodding. “We report in about the break in, but we keep Katie Frasier’s involvement a secret for now. We’ll cozy up to her, and extend the hand of friendship...and anything else she wants from us. And we’ll start a dossier on her, like I did with y—, err, Constance. And then, when the time is right, we bring the plan to Nigel, as an offer to make her our new harem sister!”