The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

The Reality

by asianpersuasion & J. Darksong

Companions

“Why are you still following me?” Kyle grunted in frustration as he cleared the last rise, coming upon the gates of the free trade city Valimoore. Several steps behind him, Serena Wildeclaw trudged along quietly, a soft smile on her lips, despite her travelling companion’s dour mood. She was starting to learn that the man was naturally moody, not really grumpy, per se, but aloof, and solitary. He was used to being alone on his own, as his social skills apparently showed. Yet, she wasn’t put off in the least by his gruff exterior. She owed him a debt, and she intended to follow him until she got the chance to repay it.

“Okay, seriously!” Kyle said suddenly, turning around to face her. “It’s been two hours now. You’ve been following me ever since we left the Lynx guildhouse!” He frowned slightly at the memory. “I can understand you not wanting to hang around there anymore, after the way everyone treated you... but it doesn’t mean you have to keep following me around like a lost puppy!”

Serena sighed inwardly. Her departure from her former guild had been unpleasant to say the least. After being pretty much shunned by her friends and fellow guildsmen, the reveal that she was innocent lead to several awkward conversations with well wishers, assuring her that they’d ‘always known she was innocent’ they’d merely been afraid to step forward. “You can understand that, right?” one of her friends, Danisha, had said to her just before she’d left. “It’s that whole ‘mob mentality’ thing, yanno? I just got so caught up with everyone else being out for blood that I just... got swept along.”

It was the closest thing any of them had come to an apology. In the end, she hadn’t raged, hadn’t yelled and screamed, hadn’t called them out on their bullshit. She’d simply walked away, silently, the discarding of her white and red tunic, letting it fall to the ground as she left. They were all were creatures, all of them feline hybrids, but because she wasn’t a Seripin as well, she’d stood out, apart from the group. Well, now they’re all a uniform group again, she’d thought sadly as she’d walked through the gates for the last time. It was just as well that she leave; without Honor around, she really had no reason to stay.

“I already told you, Kyle Shadowchaser,” she replied to his question with a grin. “I owe you a debt. If not for your testimony in the Chamber of Justice, I would have lost my life to the same treachery that took away my friend. I owe you my life, and I will follow you to the ends of the world if need be to repay that debt.”

“Lovely,” Kyle groaned softly. And here he’d been looking forward to some ‘down time’, being able to unwind a bit after the fiasco with the Lynx. Truth be told, he was feeling a bit antsy. Before her untimely death, he and Honor had gotten along quite well, and had been looking forward to accompanying her back into her private chambers later to get to know each other a bit more ‘intimately’. His were blood had heated up at the idea. Later, in the courtroom, being called out and challenged by the old shaman, his blood had once again been brought to a boil. The trial was now over, and he’d left the guild house far behind, but the heat racing through his veins hadn’t yet cooled. His wolf instincts were making their presence felt, not overwhelming or consuming by any means, but he reaching the point where the only way to find relief would be through fighting or through fucking.

And as he was a long way away from his preferred hunting grounds in the northern Hinterlands, that left one alternative.

“Look, it’s late, and I need to find a place to bed down for the night,” he grumbled, turning back towards the city’s main gate. “I was also hoping to find a little entertainment while I’m here. I don’t come out this way too often, and I planned on enjoying myself while here in the city.”

“Well, fine!” she said brightly. “Let’s do that. I’ve never travelled to Valimoore myself, and I’d love the chance to see the sights. We’ll find room somewhere and bed down together, and tomorrow we can explore the city.”

Kyle blinked, smirking slightly. “Bed down, together?” he repeated, causing her to redden. “It’s a bit unexpected... but if you’re offering—“

“NO!” Serena replied, blushing hotly, unable to meet his gaze. “I wasn’t offering! I mean, no offense, or anything, you’re a great guy, and handsome, really... I just misspoke. I meant we should both get rooms here while we’re together in the city,” she finished lamely.

Kyle chuckled softly, shaking his head, ruefully. For a woman who’d dressed the part of a seductive scantily clad slave girl only a few hours earlier, she was remarkably ‘straight arrow’. He was half tempted to use his Dragonspeak on her, to command her to go away and leave him alone. But after everything she’d suffered, everything she’d just gone through, he didn’t have the heart to take advantage of her that way.

“All right. Let’s compromise then,” he said, pulling a small round object from his belt pouch.“You feel free to travel and explore the city all you like,” he said, tossing the smoke bomb to the ground at his feet, disappearing in a large grey cloud. “I’ll do the same... just in a different part of the city! Later!”

Serena, coughing, waving her hands to disperse the smoke, merely sighed. She’d half expected such a move, though frankly she’d thought he would do so earlier while they were still trekking through the woods. Still, in the grand scheme of things, it was only a minor inconvenience. Her class was a Savage. well trained in the art of tracking. She’d meant when she said about sticking with Kyle ’til she repaid her debt, and she was determined to follow through. Even without an ID tracker to lock in on, she confident enough of finding him through her enhanced senses alone.

“You can’t get away from me that easily, Kyle,” she called out, sprinting on towards the city gates.

Inside, Kyle glanced around, looking for a place to hide. His smoke bomb trick had bought him some time, but it wouldn’t delay the girl long. She was a werecat, and she had his scent. He needed to put as much distance between them as possible while her senses were still clouded from the special effects of the smoke bomb he’d used. Glancing over his shoulder, he didn’t notice the white haired old man until he bumped into it.

“’Hey! Watch it there, Billy,” the man wheezed, in a high nasally voice. “Have some respect for an old man, willya? These old bones ain’t as resilient as they used to be.”

“Oh, um, sorry. Sorry about that,” Kyle mumbled, trying to move past, only to find the old man had clamped a surprising strong hand on his shoulder. “Hey! What gives... let go!”

“Now, now, just a minute there, Billy,” the old man replied, coughing and wheezing a bit, causing Kyle to cover his own mouth. “You bumped into me, there, boy, so the least you can do is give me a moment or two of your time for a lecture. We old guys, we have a lot of knowledge to give, you know, a lot of wisdom from our long long... really long lives of living and adventure and... um, living,” he finished, frowning slightly in confusion. “Um... wait... what was I saying again... oh yeah! Wisdom. And I got tons of it... but you youngsters these days, always in a hurry, never wanting to take a moment and listen to sage advice from those who’ve gone on before ya.”

“Uh huh, right, well, I’ll definitely have to do that some time,” Kyle answered, wincing inwardly as he say Serena enter the city gates a few yards away. “Well, Sir, I’ll definitely take your advice. Oh well... see you lat—”

“Hey, now, hang on, there, Billy,” the old man protested, grabbing him again. “You can’t take my advice if I haven’t given it to ya yet.” Kyle groaned inwardly. Things like this were why he preferred solitude to the crowded heavily populated cities. You never knew when some crackpot was going to pull you into an unwanted conversation. He sighed deeply as Serena walked steadily towards him... then paused, glancing around in apparent confusion, before turning off to the right and continuing on. As if she’d somehow missed him from less than two feet away?!?

“So, anyway,” the old man continued, yammering on as Kyle pondered over that strange occurrence, “all this brings me back to what I was saying before. We old folks have a lot of old sayings... things like ‘look before you leap’... and ‘don’t look a gift horse in the mouth’... you know? Stuff like that. Well, looking before you leap is pretty obvious... if you don’t look where you’re going you could leap off a damn cliff! And a gift horse... or a regular horse, who cares? Why would you wanna look one in the mouth anyway? Those things have really bad breath... and they tend to bite when they get pissed.” he frowned again, scratching his head. “Are you even listening to me, Billy?” he asked, rapping Kyle lightly with his walking stick.

“Ow! Yes, yes I’m listening, geez!” Kyle growled, rubbing at his knee. “Will you PLEASE just get to the point so I can continue on with my day?”

“Okay, all right, Billy,” the old man grumbled. “Youngsters these days.... no respect. I just wanted to give you a piece of advice: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

Kyle blinked. “Really? That’s it? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder? What does that even mean? And why do you keep calling me ‘Billy’? My name is Kyle!”

“When you’re old, every young kid’s name is ‘Billy’,” the old man replied, as if that were completely obvious. “As to what it means... huh... you know, I don’t rightly know. You know, Billy, I used to be an adventurer too... until I took an arrow to the knee. My team and I once faced a beholder—big ugly sucker too, with dozens of eyeballs on wiggling little tentacles...” He shuddered in remembrance. “If there was anything in ANY way beautiful about that encounter, I sure didn’t see it.” He shrugged. “At any rate, it’s still good advice. So don’t forget it, Kyle.”

“Okay, fine, I wo... hey! Did you just call me Kyle?” Kyle asked, whirling back around to face the old man.

“Eh? What’s that, Billy?” he asked, raising a hand to his ear. “Speak up there, Billy. I’m old, and I don’t hear so good.”

“Uhh... never mind,” Kyle replied wearily, shaking his head. “Thanks for the advice.” Turning, he headed off deeper into the city. The old man nodded softly, tapping his staff lightly to the ground as his image changed radically, his hair darkening to a wavy brown do with a mustache, and a simple white and brown tunic. Jeffrey Danzig sighed softly, watching the boy depart. He’d given him a warning, as much as he was allowed to without drawing undue attention to himself. He only hoped the boy took it to heart.

* * *

Sitting in front of her terminal, nursing her sorrows, Patricia Johnson switched to The T, the international news network covering the goings on of The Reality. She hadn’t received a confirmation back from Kyle that he’d received her email, which meant he was probably still online. Kyle. The thought made her smile slightly. He was a truly remarkable young man. She’d met a lot of people in her time in the game, and had connected with quite a few of them.... but she could tell Kyle was special. There was just something about him... a kind of roguish charm that just drew her in...

“....certainly right about that, Steve,” the female news reporter replied. “Hold on... this just in! Earlier this evening, in a tragic and dastardly trick, Honor Crayfellow, respected and raunchy Guildmaster of The Lynx, was killed!” The feed shifted, showing stock footage of the guild hall. “As the Lynx were throwing one of their infamous parties, Honor was apparently assassinated, taken out with poison, and met her untimely death. Kyle Shadowchaser and Lynx second-in-command Serena, were accused of the murder. However, upon proof of his innocence, Mr. Shadowchaser was able to swiftly prove their innocence and uncover the guilty party, none other than The Lynx Shaman himself, Dorran Duskrune.” Patty gaped in surprise, laughing aloud. Somehow Kyle had managed to uncover the truth and bring the old bastard to justice! She cried again at the vindication, happy tears this time. It didn’t restore her lost character, but at least she’d been avenged.

“It is also believed that the Shaman was aided by none other than Vale Stormsinger herself, noted scion of equally infamous Marion. The Viridian Sun have failed to comment.” Erin reported.

Vale. That makes perfect sense, Patricia thought grimly. I thought that flowery scent smelled familiar. I should have remember that crazy psycho skank’s scent from the last time we crossed paths. And this whole thing, it’s definitely Marion’s M.O. And that tingle I felt just before everything went black was definitely the Viridian Suns entering the Sacred Caverns at the border of our lands. A deep sigh escaped her lips. Of what used to be her lands. Whatever was happening now, it was no longer any of her concern. She was officially ‘out’, no longer the Guildmaster of the Lynx, no longer a Lynx member at all. When she returned to the Reality, she would be starting from scratch, from the very beginning. By herself, alone, with no one on her side...

On impulse, she opened her computer files, pulling up her past activity logs. There, listed in her network contacts, was Kyle’s ID, from when she’d ‘friended’ him at the party. Staring hard at the network ID, she blinked in surprise. The first nine digits were the same as her own, meaning he connected to the same online network hub that she did! Meaning that he lived in the same area, the same city, possibly even the same neighborhood!

I could meet him in real life, she realized suddenly. I could meet him... thank him for finding my killer... we could talk, face to face...see each other for real... touch each other for real… Shaking her head, she turned and closed the window. No, no, that’s silly. That’s something a crazed stalker would do. I couldn’t do that... it would be embarrassing! Patty Johnson is definitely not the kind of girl to do something like that... Then, after a moment, she reopened the window, bringing up the file again.

Okay, maybe Patty Johnson wouldn’t do something this reckless... but Honor Crayfellow certainly would.

* * *

“O.M.G! You’re, like, totally, him!”

Kyle glanced sidelong as a very beautiful, very voluptuous young Seripin girl with long flowing blonde hair walked up to him. He raised an eyebrow as she literally danced in place. “I, like, so can’t believe this! It’s really really you! You’re Kyle Shadowchaser!” Kyle sighed inwardly, draining his glass.

“Yes, it is me,” Kyle said with a smirk. “So I guess the real question here is, who are you?”

“Oh! Hahaha! Silly me!” the girl giggled. “My name is Amara. Amara Firness.” She stepped closer, pressing her bosom up against Kyle’s back. “I’m your biggest fan! I’ve been following your career for, like, forever! Oh, and I was there at the Lynx party, and saw you totally kick butt in court!” She leant forward even more to whisper into his ear. “You, are so totally, my hero!”

Kyle swallowed a bit, considering, then poured himself another drink. “Well, it’s always nice to meet a fan,” he quipped. “So... is there anything I can do for you, Miss Firness?”

Smirking in a decidedly wicked grin, she nibbled lightly on the edge of her finger. “Actually, Kyle,” she said with q seductive purr, “I was wondering if there was anything I could do for you. For instance... it’s getting kind of late in the evening. Do you have lodgings for the night? If not, I have the perfect place for you to spend the night... though I doubt you’d actually get much sleep.”

Grinning, Kyle drained his glass and tossed a few coins to the barkeep. “Sounds like exactly the kind of encounter I was hoping for tonight. Let’s go!”

* * *

The two guardswomen entered the room and bowed respectfully before snapping to attention. “You summoned us, Guildmaster?” the brunette spoke, only to take a step back as Anadriel whirled on them in apparent anger.

“Where is Nora?” she asked, hands crackling with spell energy. “What have you done with her?”

Jendetta and Alimor glanced at one another in confusion. “L... Lady Nora?” Alimor replied. “But I assumed she was resting comfortably in her room—”

The floor at their feet crackled, scorched with the power of the Guildmaster’s spell. “Do not LIE to me!” Anadriel growled, gathering even more mana for an even stronger spell. “The guards to the western gate saw the two of you leave with Nora in tow! Now, I won’t ask you again. Where is my cousin?”

“But... but my Lady!” Jendetta babbled fearfully, “I... I swear! It wasn’t us! We merely did our patrols as always, taking the same route we always do!” She frowned slightly. “I actually thought I’d spotted an intruder at the edge of the Primrose Woods along the border—but I was mistaken. There was no one there. We encountered no one in the woods.” Dri started slightly at the change in the girl’s voice, going suddenly flat and monotone, as if she were reciting a prepared speech instead of simply speaking. Then she blinked, continuing on as if nothing were wrong. “Then we finished our rounds and reported back in just like normal.“

“Jen speaks the truth, my Lady,” Alimor added. “We haven’t seen the Lady Nora since her return earlier from the dungeon of the White Graves! We merely had a boring and uneventful patrol. I suppose it did run a little… longer than usual—but there was simply because we lost track of the time. There was nothing unusual in that. Perfectly normal. It’s not even a concern, so no need to even think about it.” She to blinked rapidly for a few seconds before continuing. “Please, Lady Anadriel, you must believe us! Whomever the guard saw making off with Lady Nora—it wasn’t us!“

“Yes, so I see,” she said softly, allowing her gathered mana to disperse. Despite her words to the contrary, she hadn’t really believed Kyle and Nora’s tales of ‘mind control’, of the Viridian Suns being able to wield this mysterious power to bend an unwilling victim to their will. Listening to Ali and Jen, however, hearing their impassioned pleas of innocence, that they truly desperately believed—then hearing the flat hollow tone as they both parroted back obviously edited memories of what occurred, made a believer out of her.

“Very well,” she sighed wearily. “I believe you. Still, I have to confine you both to your quarters until this matter can be settled conclusively. I hope you can understand that.”

“Yes ma’am,” both women replied with a bow. “It’s okay. I’d do the same thing in your place,” Alimor replied with a small smile. Nodding again, Anadriel dismissed them, then called for her commander. Rald entered a moment later, his grim face even more dour than usual.

“So? Were they the ones responsible?” he asked without preamble.

“Yes... and no,” Dri answered, tiredly. “It was exactly what Kyle tried to warn me about. The Viridian Suns have the power to control people’s minds. Jen and Ali... they don’t even remember leaving here with Nora. And worse, talking about what they do remember, they suddenly went flat and emotionless, like a robot reciting its core programming or something.” She shook her head. “Dammit! Why didn’t I listen? Why didn’t I take him seriously? If I’d thought for a moment that Marion could get to our own people like this... could turn us against each other so easily...”

“Easy, milady, easy,” Rald said gently. “It will be okay. Marion has your cousin. We simply have to get her back. That bastard of a Bastard Knight has been spoiling for a fight all this time...I say we give him one!”

“Yes,” Dri said softly, then again louder, with conviction. “Yes, you’re right. If Marion wants a war, then by the Dragon gods of old, I’ll give him one! Rald, alert the guild, and prepare my honor guard. We’re going to march to the Viridian Sun stronghold. We’re going to kick Marion’s presumptuous, arrogant ass. And we’re going to get my cousin back!”

* * *

“Nice place you have here,” Kyle commented idly, sitting on the bed while the young Seripin girl began undressing. “Very quaint. And second story too, nice view out over the city.”

“Thanks. I got a special deal from the innkeeper,” Amara replied, lifting her tunic, tossing it to the floor. “Up here, we should have plenty of privacy.”

“Good to know,” Kyle commented, finally sliding off his cuirass. “So... you name is Amara, right? That’s a very pretty name.”

“Like, thank you!” the girl giggled, now clad in only a pair of skimpy pink panties. “You’re, like, so sweet!”

“Unusual name for a Seripin, though,” Kyle replied idly, turning to face her as she approached the bed, sitting down next to him. “It means ‘Beautiful Woman’ in Elvish,” he added conversationally, as she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close. “It’s kind of a strange coincidence, you know, ’cause I met an old man earlier today that gave me some advice.”

“Uh huh,” Amara said, straddling him, leaning forward for a kiss. “And what did he say?”

Reverbero,” Kyle chanted forcefully.

“AAhhhhh!” Amara yelled, as she was flung back hard into the wall, a small dagger clattering to the floor in her passing. “Ahhhh... what the hell?” she growled, struggling, now finding herself pinned in place by a holding spell. “Is this how you treat all your fans?”

“Just the ones who aren’t who they pretend to be,” Kyle said calmly, kneeling down to retrieve the dagger from the floor. He sniffed the edge lightly, noting the wet sheen. Poisoned. Huh, Well, of course it was. ‘Beauty in the eye of the beholder’ indeed. Thanks for the tip old man’. Shaking his head, he walked over to the girl again. “So, who are you, really?“

“I... I told you... I’m one of your fans,” the girl replied, struggling futilely against the spell holding her in place, able to only move her fingers and toes. “The knife... I just carry it for protection, that’s all! I swear! Yanno, in case some guy gets too fresh with me...”

“You can drop the act. I cast ‘true seeing’ on myself earlier tonight before you arrived. I’ve known what you really look like underneath that illusion spell since you first entered the bar. And your black and red tunic clearly identified you as a member of DEATH.” He reversed the grip on the dagger and brought its edge up to the girl’s throat. “Tell me... why is DEATH after me? What does East and the Assassin’s guild want with me?”

“Well, fuck...” Leila Duskshadow grumbled, releasing her illusion, letting her true dark brown, pale skinned visage show through. “Okay, hero boy. Looks like you got me. So, fine, I’ll answer your questions. First of all, the name is Leila. And DEATH isn’t after you, not specifically. Just me.” She managed a slight shrug. “Your old pal Marion is apparently a little miffed about you showing him up publically in your little duel. He offered East a king’s ransom for your head on a platter... but the boss doesn’t really like him much, so he offered the contact to me. And it’s the standard, one-time, one-shot deal. I keep going ’til I kill you, or you kill me, but once it’s done, no one else will be coming after you.”

Kyle nodded, relaxing a bit. That was good news. Marion was one thing. Being on the bad side of someone like East Greywind was another thing entirely. The head of the Assassins guild was extremely good at what he did, and East himself was known as a determined and relentless opponent. Kyle was good at looking after himself, and he could spot most traps easily enough to avoid falling into them... but even HE couldn’t remain aware and on alert 24/7.

“All tight then. I guess this just leaves the question of what to do with you,” he mused aloud, lowering the knife from the girl’s throat. “I don’t want to simply kill you out of hand... but I can’t have you following me around for the rest of my life, trying to take me out when I least expect—hey!” Glancing down at his bare chest, he found three small thin, barely visible pins sticking out. He glanced up at the girl in shock, who was smirking quite evilly at him, her hands, the only part of her body capable of moving, still outstretched. “Wh... what? How?” Kyle managed, before stumbling back, slumping down next to the side of the bed.

“Hey, I’m a member of DEATH, remember?” Leila snarked, pulling free from the wall, the spell shattered in her surprise attack. “I came prepared with a backup plan. These cute little silver bangles around my wrists?” she explained, holding them up, “not just costume jewelry. They contain a few dozen microthin darts, laced with a powerful paralytic poison. The dose is small enough, only enough to incapacitate a person for half an hour or so, but in my line of work, that’s more than enough time to finish the job.” Calmly, she bent down and retrieved her dagger. “So, Kyle, how does it feel to be the one paralyzed and helpless now?”

Kyle suddenly grinned, lashing out with a kick, knocking the girl off her feet, following up with a punch to the jaw. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I wouldn’t know,” he answered the dazed, groaning girl at his feet. “And for the record, I’m immune to poisons. If anything, your little dart trick was effective only as a surprise. I just went with it to see what you’d do.” Turning away, he knelt down to his backpack, and opened his inventory menu. “Well, this has been fun. I was looking for a way to burn off some angst after the trial, and sparring with you certainly helped... though not exactly in the way I’d planned.” Finding a pair of iron shackles, he withdrew them from the pack. “These should hold you long enough for me to leave here and head out of the city—”

With surprising agility, the young girl pounced, diving hard on Kyle, knocking aside the shackles, and wrapping her near naked body lithely around him. He cried out in surprise, trying to react, to guard or counter, but before he would move it was already over. Moving almost faster than he could see, she somehow managed to press him down face-first onto the floor, sliding herself horizontally along his body, locking her legs in place around one arm then wedging her neck and shoulders around the other arm, pulling tight on his wrist with one arm, locking it in place. Beautifully and skillfully done, in less than the blink of an eye. With a grunt, she rolled backward, flipping them both over onto Kyle’s back.

“Gotcha!” Leila panted softly in triumph as Kyle struggled mightily, and uselessly, to get free. “You’re not the ONLY one who knows how to play possum! I pretended to be dazed while you went through your bag, just waiting for the moment to strike. And by the way, thank you ever so kindly for opening your menu,” she replied, gesturing to the still open menu box on Kyle’s restrained right arm. Using her free hand, she casually strolled through his window, pulling up the ‘duel’ option, and clicking the YES button. “So kind of you to do my work for me,” she replied with a laugh, reaching down, and retrieving her dagger once again. “Just so you know, this is going to hurt like hell. So, babe... any last words before I end your pitiful little life?”

“Yes... actually,” Kyle managed, struggling to even gain a breath to talk in the painful constrictive hold he found himself in. Closing his eyes, he grunted out the phrase he’d memorized in case of extreme emergencies. “Wux re sia teno silit!” Behind him, the girl let out a loud gasp, shaking slightly as a shudder ran through her body. Her grip on him loosened, however, and Kyle managed to deftly extricate himself from her grasp as his Dragonspeak continued to work its magic. Shaking himself slightly, he twisted his neck and shoulders hard to the side, allowing them to pop, his tendons stretched nearly to their breaking point by that pin. He cancelled the duel function the girl had initiated, then closed his menu, locking it. Turning back finally as the sound of a soft sigh, he received a completely unforeseen surprise.

Not one, but two girls knelt on the floor at his feet, staring up at him in complete adoration! “We are your obedient and adoring slaves,” both girls intoned humbly, leaning forward to press their foreheads against the floor in complete subservience. “Please command us, Master. We will obey.“

“Ser... Serena?!?” Kyle yelped in surprise. “When... how... where did you come from?”

The redheaded girl lifted her head back to the kneeling position, gesturing with a slim hand. “The window, Master. I was searching for you throughout the city when I caught your scent. I was outside the hallway, trying to find your room, when I heard what sounded like a struggle going on inside. I couldn’t get through the door, it was apparently magically shielded, so I climbed out onto the roof and slid down to the ledge and came in through the window just a second ago.” She smiled serenely. “I came to save you, my Master, to repay the debt of honor I owed you... but now I realize that I belong to you. I owe you my body, my life, my very soul... a debt that I can only repay by serving you for the rest of my life!”

Oh great. Just great, Kyle groaned inwardly. I hadn’t wanted her as a bondservant, now I’m stuck with her as a slave!?! Now I get why the text said use that phrase only in case of extreme emergencies—it didn’t put them to sleep, or in a trance that I could control. It simply bypassed all that and turned them directly into my slaves! Gaaaahhhh!

“Master?” Leila’s timid, almost stumbling voice pulled him out of his dark thoughts. Glancing down, he was surprised to see tears streaming down the girl’s cheeks.

“Leila? What... what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

Raising her head, she crawled forward, and with a savage cry, clamped tightly around his left leg. “Please Master! Please... forgive me,” she sobbed, shaking with emotion. “I was... I was trying to... I was going to k...ki... kill you...” she managed before descending into incoherent crying again. Kyle sighed heavily. The coldblooded ruthless killer that, just moments before, had planned to gleefully slit his throat and watch his blood run down her naked body as he died slowly, had been reduced to a pitiful, sorrowful sobbing mess at his feet. By all rights, he should punish her, inflict some terrible and heartrending punishment on the girl, make her suffer for the deed she’d been about to inflict.

But... she’s not the same person anymore, is she? Kyle thought grimly. With a few words, I declawed the snake... took away her venom. Now she’s just a harmless pet—my harmless pet. Those words were supposed to make it impossible for her to harm me...and they did, by turning me into her complete and absolute Master, the center of her entire universe, the reason for her existence! Her and Serena both... dammit. I hadn’t planned for this. But like it or not, they are both now my responsibility. Sighing wearily, he made his way to the window and resecured it, locking it tight.

This is just way too heavy to deal with right now. It’s getting late... I’ll deal with it all tomorrow. Nodding, a goal of sorts in mind, he felt down and unbuckled his pants, then made his way back to the bed. “Leila, Serena, we obviously have a lot to discuss. But it’s nearly the middle of the night, and I for one am tired. Let’s go to bed,” he said, patting the mattress beside him when they didn’t immediately move closer.

“You mean... we can sleep with you, Master?” Serena asked, sounding completely unsure of herself.

“Instead of on the floor at your feet, as we deserve?” Leila added.

Kyle cursed silently again, blasting the damned Dragon gods and their stupid words. Submissive was all well and good, but he didn’t want timid little titmice following him around. First thing tomorrow, I’m going to see about building their confidence and assertiveness back up, he promised himself. Aloud, he simply nodded, saying “Yes. Now both of you, get up here. It’s been way too long since I fell asleep with a warm body next to me, and I think I’m overdue.” Smiling again, both girls eagerly joined their Master, and with a soft contended sigh, they all went to sleep.

* * *

Logging out of the system some time later, Kyle made his way to the bathroom, idly considering the complication he’d just saddled himself with. All things considered, it could have ended a whole lot worse. He was alive, for one thing, his character and skills all still intact. Poor Honor had lost everything... was probably someplace off still mourning her loss. He tried to remember what he knew about her, about when she’d first taken over as Guildmaster of the Lynx. Was it six years ago? Seven? You could never REALLY tell online, but he got the impression that she was his age, or fairly close. To have risen to the rank of Guildmaster seven years ago, and be his age... she must have been a truly phenomenal player, starting at an early age and making a steady and consistent rise the entire time.

He’d received her email message shortly after logging off for the night, reading her warning and her thoughts about the Viridian Sun’s likely target. He’d written back a quick reply, though most likely she already knew how the trial had ended, thanks to all the news coverage. He’d felt an unexpected pang as he sent the reply, however... a feeling of... what? Lonliness? Regret? Empathy? Or was it... pity? He too had lost everything, his life, his ideals, his very identity, when Dri had betrayed him and left him at the Proving Grounds. He’d had to rebuild himself from the ground up, bit by bit, to become the person he was today. Honor, or whatever her true name was, would be going through that same pain right about now.

He’d just slipped into the kitchen for a bottle of vitamin water when his doorbell buzzed. Frowning, he activated the security monitor from his kitchen console. A young woman appeared on the monitor, lithe, thin, rather pretty with long dark brown hair, and soft doe brown eyes behind a pair of stylish glasses. Cute enough, yes... but what was she doing here in the middle of the night? Most of the rabid fans that had managed to somehow track him down at least had the decency to pester him during the day. He was tempted to simply activate the security screen and have her escorted off the premises... but something about her... something about the way she stood, or looked, or moved... he didn’t know what it was, but for some reason, he pressed the ANSWER button instead.

“Hello? Can I help you?” he asked.

“Wow! It... it’s you!” the girl replied, smiling grandly. “I actually did it! I found you!”

Kyle sighed softly. So it was just another of his rabid fans after all. “Sorry. It’s really late. If it’s nothing that’s too urgent, could you come back in the morning?”

The girl chuckled bashfully, then shook her head. “Sorry. I’m acting like a total spazz. Please... I just... I’m sorry to bother you. I just got so caught up in finding out that you were so close—just a few blocks away, really—that I just HAD to come by and see in person if I was right!” She laughed, a soft tinkling sound that seemed so familiar. “Sorry, I’m doing it again. Kyle, I just wanted to stop by and say thanks... thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“Thank me?” Kyle asked, confused. “For what? Who... are you?”

“Really? You don’t recognize my voice?” the girl asked, arching an eyebrow. “I recognized yours almost immediately. It’s me, Kyle... it’s Honor! Honor Crayfellow... in the flesh!”