“Keani?” E.E. asked, snaking through the crowd and rushing up to her. “Where the hell have you been?”

“…Bathroom?” Keani replied, tucking her shirt back into her pants. “You need me or something?”

E.E. pulled her aside and lowered her voice. “We have a breach. Server room. Zariel’s on her way, but I can’t get ahold of anyone else.”

“Noa and Trevor aren’t by the door?”

“No… it doesn’t make sense…”

“You’re panicking,” Keani said.

“What?” E.E. scoffed. “I’m not–”

“Yes, you are,” Keani insisted. “I feel it.” She looked around and noticed a few other guests looking anxious and confused. “And I’m not the only one.”

“I…” E.E. cleared her throat. “I can handle it.”

Keani stared at her. “Can you?”

“…Not alone,” E.E. admitted.

“Zee needs backup?” Keani cracked her knuckles. “I’ll get my spear.”

The server room was cold, the air stale and noisy with the sound of fans spinning and hard drives clicking. The sound muffled Zariel’s footsteps as she padded cautiously over the metal grated floor, but it also drowned out any noise the intruder might be making.

She focused her hearing anyway, trying to listen past the noise. She closed her eyes. You can do this, she told herself. Just focus. Just like Doctor Lawson makes you do… She filtered out the sounds. Quieted her thoughts. Let instinct take hold. Fight or flight.

“Nice of you to join us.”

Fight.

Zariel leapt up and grabbed onto a ceiling light. She spotted a figure a few feet away, leaning against a server rack, silhouetted by the blinking red lights. She unleashed her claws, hissed, jumped–

Her body went limp.

She landed roughly on the floor, scraping her knee in the process. “Fuck!” Zariel yelped, gritting her teeth.

“Oh, and you were doing so well up until then!” the figure laughed. She stepped out of the shadows and leaned over the fallen heroine.

Zariel spat into the floor. Her face was pressed down and she couldn’t move her head. She looked up out of the corner of her eye and scowled. “And who are you supposed to be?”

“Don’t you recognize me? We just met the other day.”

“Hm?” Zariel squinted. “…The… tailor?”

“Bingo!” Ariana grinned.

“The fuck is going on here?” Zariel tried to move her body, but it just wouldn’t listen to her. Or maybe her brain wasn’t listening; beyond the sharp pain in her knee, all she could feel was a warm, slightly tingly feeling. “What did you do to me?”

“Well, first, let me just say…” Ariana knelt down and purred. “You look ravishing in that dress. Some of my finest work, if I do say so myself. Honestly, I was worried, since I didn’t have you in to wear it before tonight.”

“Wh-What?” Zariel sputtered. “You’re talking about that right now? And… a-and I thought you did the suit…”

Ariana shrugged. “The measurements work for both. Actually, I spent more time on the dress. I knew Lorelei would like that better.”

“Huh? But… but I chose this one…”

“Really?” Ariana chuckled. “That’s what she made you think? That’s cute. You have no idea just how cooked you are, do you?”

Zariel furrowed her brow. What is she talking about…? Did Doctor Lawson do something to me…?

She heard footsteps behind Ariana. “Transfer is complete, Operator,” said a male voice, filtered through some sort of speaker.

“Good work, drone,” Ariana smiled.

Another figure stepped into Zariel’s line of sight. She had to blink to make sure of what she was actually seeing.

It was a man, slim build, dressed entirely in black, form-fitting latex with red accents. He wore a helmet with a darkened glass front face framed by a thin band of red light. He looked down at Zariel, but did not make a sound.

“Jesus…” Zariel muttered. “What the fuck, man…”

“You like?” Ariana giggled. She stood up and placed a hand on the side of the drone’s helmet. “He’s gorgeous, isn’t he? Tailored to perfection. Outfit, body, and mind.” She grinned at Zariel. “You’ll get to see what it’s like soon enough.”

“Bullshit,” Zariel spat. “I-I’ll never–”

“It’s too late for that,” Ariana scowled. “Honestly, I had hoped she would’ve fixed this arrogance in you. You’ve already given up too much of yourself to turn back now.” She paused, nudging Zariel with her foot. “Unless you really are stupid enough to think things can go back to normal.”

Zariel growled.

“Oh? That struck a nerve, hm?” Ariana smirked. “And what are you going to do about–”

The jaguar screamed and pushed herself off the floor. She tapped into all the reserves of adrenaline that her body had accumulated, forcing the lethargy out of her limbs. She swiped at Ariana, drawing blood from her cheek.

The drone grappled her from behind. Zariel kicked off the floor and slammed him into another server. She grabbed and threw him to the ground, punching his helmet over and over.

Her hand stung. She saw shards of glass cutting into her fingers, her knuckle. She didn’t care. The adrenaline turned off the human parts of her brain, devolving her into a beast worthy of her title.

Fight or flight.

Instinct.

But it couldn’t last. She hadn’t dipped into the power in weeks, and she was pushing it harder than she ever had before. It was a matter of moments before she was spent.

She punched through the glass and left a hole. She saw the drone’s face just before she passed out.

“…Al…ex…?”

Noa was in heaven.

The superheroine could not believe how good this stranger, Maria, was making her feel. It was like… she didn’t have the words. Everything was just so perfect, so blissful and wonderful that she could’ve sworn her brain was literally melting from the pleasure.

And all of this was just from a hand on her cock.

Maria had brought them into a back room somewhere, a janitor’s closet maybe. Noa couldn’t remember what happened to her clothes. She didn’t care. She couldn’t care, really, about anything anymore. Maria had shorted out the parts of her mind that could think and reason and question. All she could do now was feel and react. Like an animal.

“Guhhnn-!” Trevor moaned as his cock twitched and shot out a rope across Maria’s dress. Noa had almost forgotten he was there. It was strange. She used to feel a sense of… not animosity, necessarily. He was annoying, yes, and a bit crude sometimes. But she knew he was mostly harmless, a frat bro in disposition but not outlook.

Maria clicked her tongue. “This was expensive, you know.”

“I’m sorry!” he whimpered, clutching into her tight. Noa did the same; she knew Maria wasn’t mad at her, but just hearing her mad at all made her heart sink. It wasn’t right for such a beautiful, perfect person like Maria to be upset.

“Shhh.” Maria patted Trevor on the cheek and wiped her hand off on his chest. “It’s alright. Just rest, cutie.” Noa saw her pulse again and shuddered. She felt a twinge of jealousy for her comrade. She wanted Maria’s attention undivided. She wanted to feel her in her head.

Trevor smiled sleepily and slumped to the floor, leaning against the back wall while his flaccid cock twitched slightly.

“You,” Maria said, turning back to Noa. “Undress me.”

Noa blinked. She couldn’t have heard that right, could she? Was she really about to–

“Undress me,” Maria repeated, pulsing this time.

“Yes,” Noa gasped as her mind shrank again. She reached clumsily, like a teenager on prom night, as she fumbled around for the zipper. She giggled when she realized it was right in front of her, carefully hidden underneath a stylish slip of fabric. She felt dumb. It reminded her of the first time she got high. Everything felt a little more electric, brighter, but also fuzzier and farther away. She had trouble coordinating herself. That was funny. Zariel had thought so too.

She realized she hadn’t actually started unzipping Maria’s dress yet. She heard the other woman tapping her foot impatiently. “Honestly…” She grabbed Noa’s head and shoved her face into the dress. “Use your teeth, then, you stupid mutt.”

Noa whimpered. She fumbled again, finding the zipper with her tongue and biting down on it. She pulled, the room dead silent aside from the rrrrrrrrr of the metal teeth unlatching from each other.

Finally, it was done. The dress fell to the floor.

And any lingering traces of thought in Noa’s mind were obliterated.

Maria’s body was divine. Holy. There was no other way to describe it. It was as though an immortal goddess had manifested itself and deigned to show its physical form to a mortal whose mind could not fully comprehend it. Noa shuddered, drooling on herself as her tiny cock sprung back to life.

The goddess smiled. “Well, now. I had expected to have a tougher fight with you. I know that bodies like yours are often more sensitive…” She lifted her foot and pressed it between Noa’s legs. “And it’s a little harder for you to climax. But you can manage it for me, can’t you?”

“G-Guh-buh…” Noa babbled, synapses misfiring in her brain. Her eyes rolled up into her head. If her mind was melting before, now it was practically boiling. Her whole body felt hot and sweaty and delirious. She could only process, only conceive of pleasure and desire.

“Poor baby,” the goddess giggled. “I almost feel bad for teasing you this way.” She pressed her foot down harder. “Almost.”

The superheroine groaned. It was too much. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t think. The goddess had taken that away from her. No, not taken. Noa had given it freely. The goddess deserved nothing less.

“That’s it,” the goddess cooed. “Let it go. Cum. Cum for me. Now.”

Noa moaned. Howled. Became a beast, a mindless, stupidly devoted servant of this perfect Goddess. Her seed sealed her fate, splattering against her stomach along with her worthless will.

“That’s better.” Goddess lifted her foot again and pressed it against her follower’s lips. “Clean me.”

The mindless thing mumbled something. Even she didn’t know what it was. She didn’t know anything right now, besides devotion. She lapped up the cum from the Goddess’s foot, swallowing dutifully.

“Good girl,” Goddess said. She pressed a finger to her ear. “Mode and Revolution are mine. How are things progressing with the other two?”

She paused. “Alright.” She put her hand down and smiled at her converts. “On your feet, dears. Administrator wants to see us.”

Zariel winced as she felt something get pulled out of her hand. She opened her eyes, slowly, cautiously. She felt hung-over. The light stung.

But, still, she could see what was in front of her. The drone she’d just fought was standing off to the side, staring blankly into space. His helmet was gone. Now there was no pretending otherwise – that was Alexander. But if he noticed Zariel, he didn’t show it. His face was a blank, completely still, but not obviously entranced. He looked… focused.

Nearby him was Ariana, along with Doctor Lawson’s two guests from the party. What were their names… Dakota? Montana? One of them was a state, I know that. And the other… not “Shakira,” but it was kinda close. I think? They looked much the same as Alexander, standing at attention with blank faces. Like machines, or dolls perhaps.

And directly in front of Zariel, kneeling down and pulling shards of glass out of her hand with tweezers, was Lorelei. She looked into Zariel’s eyes and smiled warmly. “Ah. Waking up, I see.”

“D-Doctor–” Zariel gasped as she felt a particularly large piece get removed from between her fingers.

“You’re okay, dear,” Lorelei chuckled, cupping Zariel’s chin. “You might need stitches, though. We’ll have to work on this self-destructive behavior.”

“I was fighting a bad guy,” Zariel muttered, shaking free of the doctor’s fingers and standing up.

“Fair point,” Lorelei replied. “But that was awfully reckless of you. What did you think would happen, Zariel?”

“I… wasn’t,” Zariel admitted. She looked into Lorelei’s eyes and scowled. “What’re you doing here, Doctor Lawson?”

Lorelei pursed her lips. “Looking.”

“Yeah?” Zariel scoffed. “For what? Don’t tell me the Bureau lost our medical records or some bullshit like that.”

“There is something here the Bureau doesn’t have,” Lorelei said. “And it’s something Eleanor doesn’t want you to know about.”

“Hm.” Zariel narrowed her eyes. She wasn’t great at telling when people were lying. Keani was better. She was right. The vibes were rancid. “Why should I believe you?”

“Well, you trust me, don’t you?”

“As a therapist? Maybe. But, uh…” Zariel motioned towards the frozen people against the wall. “Gotta admit, that’s pretty fucking suspicious.”

Lorelei sighed. “True. But I do only have your best intentions in mind. Honest.”

“Oh, come on,” Zariel spat. “You had Alex attack me! You put him in some… some fucking fetish gear! All you’ve done all night is humiliate and torture me, and now you’re doing some spy hacking crap? You’re full of–”

Smack!

Zariel gasped. Her cheek stung. She looked up at Lorelei. Did she just…?

Lorelei scowled. “Are you done?”

She snapped her fingers and pointed down at the floor. Something – shock, desire, her casual confidence – compelled Zariel to kneel. “I had hoped you were better-behaved than this. But you’re like an animal. A dog that keeps ripping up my furniture.”

“J-Jaguars are cats, actually,” Zariel muttered.

“I’m not joking.” Lorelei sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “And I had thought we were making better progress than this…” She shook her head and turned away, towards the hypnotized drones standing against the wall. “Dragonfly, Seraph. Mind the front. Alexander, make sure Zariel stays put.”

“Yes, Administrator,” Alexander replied. He didn’t sound quite as blank as he looked. His eyes fluttered a bit. Zariel thought she saw his cock twitch against the skin-tight latex he was wearing.

Then she felt her legs go limp, but only her legs. She sagged a bit, her posture suffering, but she wasn’t going anywhere unless she dragged herself with her hands. She looked up and noticed Georgia and Shahirah marching off towards the door.

Zariel frowned. She’d figured out what led her to kneel. Shame. Shame at disappointing Lorelei, at being a “bad dog.”

No, not just shame. She was scared. She was utterly helpless; she couldn’t even move, let alone fight. And even the shame made her feel uneasy. She wanted to be good, to make her therapist happy. She knew that as deeply as she knew her own name. But seeing all of these people, utterly under the good doctor’s thumb… was any of that real? Did Zariel decide she wanted to be good, or did Lorelei decide for her?

“Citra,” Lorelei said, slicing through the noise in Zariel’s head. “You have the prototype?”

“Yes, Administrator,” Ariana replied.

“Bring it here.” Lorelei looked down at Zariel. “You’re going to help me test something.”

“F-Forget it,” Zariel spat, trying to put some of the venom back in her words. “I’m not helping you. What the hell are you even after, anyway?”

Lorelei smiled and held out her arms dramatically. “World domination.”

“That’s not even funny, man!” Zariel shouted.

“I’m still not joking, Zariel.” Lorelei crouched next to the helpless heroine. “Though I am exaggerating, just a touch. I’m not out to control or destroy the world. Just… improve a few things. For you, and Alexander. All of us.”

“‘Us’…?” Zariel asked. “What are you talking about?”

Lorelei chuckled. “Guess.”

Zariel’s eyes widened. “You’re… y-you have powers…?”

“Something like that, yes.” Lorelei smiled. “It has nothing to do with my hypnosis, I’m afraid. I suppose God couldn’t make things that easy for me. But my gifts were hidden enough that the Bureau’s masked thugs couldn’t take me away, like they did with you.”

She stood up, turning her back and slowly pacing. “But I knew. I knew I wasn’t like everyone else. It was like… like I could see the script everyone else was following. The words they said, before they said them. I thought I was going mad… but I wonder, sometimes, if the truth was worse.”

“Yeah? And what ‘truth’ is that?”

“The Bard said it best,” Lorelei mused. “‘All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.’ And you have been played, Zariel. By fate, by society, by Uncle Sam.”

“I don’t believe in ‘fate,’ Doctor Lawson,” Zariel replied. “I chose this life. Did he choose this?” She pointed her chin at Alexander, still standing motionless in his bizarre uniform. “Huh? All your weird mind control shit? You think this is any different?”

Lorelei smiled sadly. “You misunderstand me. I’m not here to unshackle you from the script the world has written for you. I’m here to write you a new one. One where you know you’re a puppet. One where you can enjoy it. I’m freeing you from the illusion of free will.”

“Oh my god, do you even hear yourself…?” Zariel muttered.

“Here, Administrator,” Ariana said, walking up to Lorelei and handing her something.

“Thank you.” Lorelei took the object and approached Zariel. “I don’t need you to understand. But you’re going to listen. And you’re going to obey.”

“Wh-What is that?” Zariel stammered, realizing just how helpless she really was. She couldn’t get a clear view of the thing in Lorelei’s hands; it was made of a black material, maybe carbon fiber, with some metallic canisters on the sides.

It wasn’t until Lorelei knelt down that Zariel could tell what it was.

It was a mask.

A muzzle.

Lorelei held the top of Zariel’s head and pressed the mask against her face. “This is here to augment you. These canisters are filled with an aerosol, based on the adrenaline compound your body secretes.”

“Wh-What?” Zariel said flatly. “Where did you even get something like that?”

“I designed it myself,” Lorelei said proudly. “With some help – and measurements – from Citra, of course.”

Zariel tried to struggle, but Alex extended his ring to encompass her entire body, making her utterly helpless to fight back. How is Alex keeping this up for so long? That whiny brat couldn’t control his power nearly this well before. Maybe Doctor Lawson did something to him…?

“Now, I need you to listen carefully, Zariel,” Lorelei continued, pulling a strap over the heroine’s head. “You’re going to fight Alexander for me. You’re going to win. You’re probably going to hurt him. But you will not–” She grabbed Zariel’s chin and forced their eyes to meet. “You. Will. Not. Kill him.”

“What?” Zariel asked. “Do you really think I would do that?”

“I think Zariel Logan, as impulsive and reckless as she is, has enough control to avoid it.” Lorelei grinned wickedly. “But I think Jaguar is a wild animal. A beast that still hasn’t been housebroken.” She stood up and stepped off to the side. “Consider this your first day of obedience training.”

“Get this stupid thing off me,” Zariel growled. “I’m not fighting Alex.”

Lorelei stared at Zariel. “One. Two. Three.”

“W-Wait,” Zariel blinked, feeling the floor start to slip out from under her like sand washed away by the surf.

“Four. Five. Six.”

“I-I… stop…” Zariel’s eyes fluttered. The room spun. The lights dimmed.

“Seven. Eight.”

Zariel whined and moaned. She was so close. She was falling.

“Nine…” Lorelei stopped. “Well?”

“Nnuh?” Zariel murmured.

“Go on,” Lorelei said. “Beg.”

“…Huh?”

“Beg, Jaguar.” Lorelei grinned. “You know what you want. Either you can choose to wake up now, and stay stuck on the floor while I get what I need. Or, you can sink for me. Knowing that it would make you helpless. Knowing that I’d make you fight your friend. Knowing, that if you did… you’d never truly wake up ever again.”

Zariel blinked slowly. A tiny part of her thrashed and shouted, barely audible, barely noticed in the darkest corner of her mind. And her mind was so very, very dark now, teetering on the knife’s edge of trance. She still knew the stakes. She had heard what Doctor Lawson told her. If she gave in, there was no way in hell Zariel would ever be truly free again. She wanted to. God, she wanted to, even if she knew she couldn’t.

But Jaguar could.

She knew the trap she had fallen into, even as her lips curled into a dreamy, pathetic smile underneath her mask. Letting the beast take over was a coward’s choice. No, not even a choice. An excuse. A lie to make herself feel better, to pretend that she was stronger than she really was.

Because there was no Jaguar. Just Zariel. A mean, angry, bitter little thing who would rather obliterate herself than be a person.

“Please,” she said.

Doctor Lawson snapped her fingers. “Ten.”

Jaguar shut her eyes and sank. That small, annoying part of her went silent. She was free. She heard someone say something else, miles away. The lethargy seeped out of her limbs. She could move again, if she wanted. If Doctor Lawson told her too.

“Jaguar.”

The voice. Jaguar’s eyes opened wide.

“Stand up,” Doctor Lawson commanded.

Jaguar complied. Obeyed. Even this was blissful. Being told, ordered, just simple actions were enough. As long as she was making Doctor Lawson happy. As long as that tiny part of her would shut up. Shut up. Shut up–

“You’re going to fight Alexander for me,” Doctor Lawson continued, cutting through the noise. “First one to pin the other and hold it wins. Alexander, you will not use your powers, but you will not concern yourself with Jaguar’s well-being.”

“Yes, Doctor Lawson,” Alexander said, the dull flatness of his voice seeming icier now.

Doctor Lawson pointed at Ariana and snapped. “Seat.”

“Yes, Doctor Lawson,” Ariana whimpered, falling to her hands and knees and straightening out her back.

“Now…” Doctor Lawson sat on the tailor’s back, crossing her legs. “Begin.”

Jaguar lunged forward, unsheathing her claws. Alexander was a chump. He could sucker-punch her with those rings, sure, but without that, he–

Alexander grabbed her arm and pulled it back and over her head. He kicked the back of her knee, sending her to the ground. He kept bending her arm. Too far. Too far. Jaguar felt it pop, a sharp pain stinging through her shoulder and torso.

So that’s how this was going to go. Jaguar snarled and swiped at his back with her free hand, digging her claws into his back. She felt his blood gush around her fingertips, his flesh tear and split open.

But he didn’t scream. He didn’t even flinch.

Instead, he elbowed her in the face, then grabbed the side of her head and slammed it into the floor. Jaguar kicked his leg out from under him and scrambled to her feet, trying to pop her shoulder back into her place. Something was wrong. This couldn’t be the Alexander she knew. Where was this when they were fighting Scorpio, or Lovelace, or Psychlone?

Alexander stood up and punched her in the stomach. Jaguar wheezed. She couldn’t breathe, let alone stop him as he grabbed her torso and pulled her up and over himself, slamming her back down on the floor with a loud thud.

Jaguar gasped and struggled for air. Alexander knelt down, rolling her onto her stomach and grabbing her dislocated shoulder. He pressed his knee into her back. “One,” he said, his voice still unnervingly blank.

This couldn’t be happening.

“Two.”

This couldn’t be happening.

“Alexander, freeze,” Doctor Lawson said. Jaguar felt him tense up.

Doctor Lawson rose to her feet, holding something small in her hand. “You’re disappointing me, Jaguar. I thought you were the fighter of the two, but you look like an amateur out there.”

Jaguar whined. It wasn’t her fault. Something was wrong with Alexander. He wasn’t himself. It wasn’t fair.

“Aw, I know, I know,” Doctor Lawson pouted. “You’re trying. But trying isn’t good enough. I need you to win.”

“Can’t,” Jaguar whimpered.

“You can. You will.” Doctor Lawson held up a remote. “And I’m going to help you.”

She pressed a button. Jaguar heard a click and a hiss and tasted something strange on her tongue. Something metallic, almost a little salty. It smelled like sweat.

But whatever Doctor Lawson had done, beyond what she tasted or smelled, Jaguar felt.

She felt her muscles tense up.

She felt her claws unsheathe.

She felt her mind crack, and something less than human seep out.

Jaguar felt good. She grinned savagely, drool dripping from her lip, as she glared at her target.

She lunged at it, slamming it into a server rack and smashing its face into the glass. It yelped in pain. Jaguar liked that sound. She stabbed her claws into its back and yanked hard, watching its blood glint in the light. She grabbed it by the neck and slammed it to the ground, raising her claws, preparing to rip out its throat–

You will not kill him.

Doctor Lawson’s words shouted in her ear. Jaguar’s eyes fluttered, slipping shut. She wanted to hurt it. She wanted to kill it. But she wanted to please her owner more.

She slammed her elbow into its stomach, then grabbed its leg tightly. “One!” she growled. “Two! Three!”

“Ding ding ding!” Doctor Lawson giggled. “We have our champion!”

Jaguar released it and knelt obediently, smiling underneath her muzzle. She won! She’d done good! Her owner would be so happy with her!

Doctor Lawson stepped towards her and scritched her under her chin. “Good girl,” she cooed, like Jaguar was a housecat and not a wild beast. “Gooooood girl. Now, stand off to the side so I can take a look at him.”

Jaguar nodded, hurrying out of her way.

“Alexander, dear?” Doctor Lawson knelt down and shook him gently. “Are you alright?”

“Y-Yes… Doctor Lawson,” Alexander wheezed. “Just… out of… breath…”

“Seraph will patch you both up, once we’re finished here.” Doctor Lawson smiled and kissed Alexander on the shoulder. Then she stood, pressing a finger to her ear. “Lynx, where–”

“Right here, Administrator,” Maria announced. She sauntered in, grinning like a predator after devouring its meal, her naked body on full display. But without her power active, she looked… beautiful, still. But beautiful in a more conventional, earthly way. Not divine like before.

Following behind her, holding her hands and stumbling far less gracefully, were Noa and Trevor. They were naked too, glistening with sweat, panting and grinning blissfully. Jaguar recognized Noa’s expression immediately. She’d just had sex. And really, really good sex, too.

At the sight of Jaguar – naked, muzzled, bloody – Noa stirred. “Zee?” she slurred, blinking a few times. “What… where am…I…?”

“I told you, cutie,” Maria giggled. “We’re in the sever room. Don’t you remember? Are you still feeling a little fuzzy?”

“F-Fuzzy…” Noa closed her eyes and shuddered. “My head… can’t think…”

“You should get used to that,” Doctor Lawson chuckled, stepping closer and examining the dazed heroes. “I think we’ll have to start having sessions too, after all this. You and Jaguar have a lot of catching up to do.”

“You’re that… lady…” Trevor mumbled.

“Indeed,” Doctor Lawson replied. “I’d say Lynx did a number on you, but… I honestly don’t see much of a difference here. You never were very bright, were you?”

“Hey…” Trevor furrowed his brow. He seemed to be thinking very, very hard about something. Finally, he said, “That was… mean.”

Doctor Lawson smiled. “You know, at first, I didn’t know what she saw in you. She’s a strong woman, beautiful, smart… why would she settle for a boy like you?”

“She?” Jaguar stared at Doctor Lawson.

“But now, I think I get it. You’re cute. Uncomplicated. Easily led.” Doctor Lawson placed a hand on the side of Trevor’s head and scritched him gently.

“S-Stoooooop,” Trevor whined, even as his face broke out into a silly grin and his eyelids fluttered.

“I don’t think I will, actually.” Doctor Lawson cupped the pretty boy’s cheeks with both hands. “Do you want to stop me? Because you can. All you need to do is look into my eyes.”

Trevor blinked. His eyes reflected the Doctor’s. A faint glow started growing behind his pupils.

Doctor Lawson shushed him, pressing a finger to his lips. “No powers, Mode. You don’t need them. Just stare.”

“Buh… But… how can…?”

“How can staring into my eyes defeat me?” Doctor Lawson smiled. “Well, you can feel how hard you have to strain, right? Your eyelids just feel so heavy now. You must be using all your strength to keep them open.”

“Um…” Trevor blinked again. His eyelids fluttered as he slowly brought them back up.

“See? It’s already working. You’re winning. I know it’s so hard to keep going, but you have to. You need to beat me, right? Aren’t you a hero? The mighty Mode?”

“Hero…” Trevor smiled cockily. “Yeah… I’m a hero. I’m Mode!”

“That’s right!” Doctor Lawson grinned, her voice condescendingly chipper. She was talking to him like one would to a kindergartener learning the alphabet. Or a dog learning how to do tricks. “You’re a strong, capable hero. You’re almost there. You’ve got me on the ropes. Just a little more now. Just give me that last little bit of strength, and I’ll be yours.”

“Last little…” Blink. Flutter. Whine. “H-Hard…”

“I know. I know it’s hard. But you have to do it. I’m almost there. You’ll have me in three… two… one…” Snap!

Trevor’s eyes finally, gladly, slipped shut. He slumped forward, resting his head on Doctor Lawson’s shoulder.

“There, there,” she cooed, patting him on the back. “You’ve won, Mode. You’re the hero. Now you can rest.” Snap! “And sink.” Snap! “And fall.” Snap! “And sleep.”

“Ssssssleeeeep…” he murmured, nuzzling her.

Doctor Lawson chuckled. “Boys are so much easier, aren’t they?”

Noa blinked. She hadn’t realized how transfixed she had been by the scene. “I-Is… is that what you did to Zee and Alex?”

“Well, it wasn’t quite this easy,” the Doctor replied. “But that’s the basic gist, I suppose. And the boys are easier, by the way. Alexander is proof enough of that.”

“God…” Noa stepped back, running her hands through her hair. She looked to Jaguar. “Zee? T-Talk to me, please…?”

“Don’t panic, Revolution,” Doctor Lawson said, casually setting Trevor on the floor. “She and Alexander are quite alright. Both of you, up. Wide awake.”

“Mmuh?” Alexander’s body shuddered. His eyes closed, then blinked rapidly. He looked instinctively at Doctor Lawson, a dopey, lopsided smile spreading across his face. “Hi…” he sighed, like a lover waking from a nap.

Zariel followed suit, looking around the room, bewildered. When her eyes landed on Noa, she tensed up. “…Hey.”

“Hello,” Doctor Lawson smiled. “And how are my patients doing? Do you both feel alright?”

“Of course, Doctor Lawson,” Alexander said, beaming with pride.

“S-Sure,” Zariel muttered.

“Yeah? And I’m just supposed to take their word for it?” Noa pointed at Alexander’s latex bodysuit. “How exactly do you explain that?”

“Well…” Alexander looked down at himself and smiled. “This is… therapeutic. Doctor Lawson is making me a better teammate. A better hero.”

“By brainwashing you and putting you in fetish gear?”

Alexander shrugged. “It works, doesn’t it?”

“I hardly think it’s fair to criticize my methods when you’ve never experienced them yourself,” Doctor Lawson interjected. “Perhaps I should schedule a session for you?”

“Save your breath,” Noa scoffed. “I’ve spent plenty of time figuring myself out. I don’t need some psycho like you telling me who I am.”

“Couples therapy, then?” Doctor Lawson grinned and stepped towards Zariel. “You do have a lot to catch up on with Jaguar. She was the top for you, wasn’t she?”

“That’s private,” Noa fumed.

“So is your cock, but you don’t seem to have any shame about that.” Doctor Lawson wrapped an arm around Zariel’s shoulders. “What do you think, Jaguar? Do you still have what it takes to please her?”

“S-Stop it,” Zariel muttered. She fidgeted, squirmed, but didn’t push the predator away.

“Do you want to tell her,” Doctor Lawson purred, reaching up and playing with Zariel’s ear, “what we did? How you’ve changed for me? Or should I?”

“Zee…?” Noa asked cautiously. “What is she talking about?”

“Doctor Lawson,” Zariel whined, squeezing her thighs together, “please–”

“Quiet,” Doctor Lawson said sternly. “I’ll tell her, then. You just stay still.”

She turned back to Noa, idly running her fingers across the straps of Zariel’s muzzle. “It was obvious what was wrong with her. She was angry, bitter, hiding in a veil of cynicism and apathy. And at the root of it all was a desire to escape. To shut off her brain, dull her senses.

“That’s why she resorted to drugs,” Doctor Lawson continued, unstrapping the muzzle and letting it hang loose. “But I refocused that. She has something better now.” She reached down and groped Zariel’s breast. Roughly. Possessively. “She has me.”

The need on Zariel’s face was obvious now; she couldn’t look Noa in the eye, but she looked at the doctor with nothing but dumb, awestruck desire. The message was clear. She doesn’t belong to you anymore.

Noa, for her part, had a good poker face. She glared at the two of them, betraying little but annoyance. “So you brainwashed her too. Big deal. You wouldn’t be the first.”

Doctor Lawson laughed, the sound dripping with condescension. “This is a little different from some run-of-the-mill supervillain plot, dear. I’ve planted my roots deep in her skull. You’re not getting me out without a fight.”

“In two weeks?” Noa scoffed. “You think too highly of yourself.”

“Do I?” Doctor Lawson smiled. “Okay. Try me.”

She pushed Zariel towards Noa. “Go on,” she purred. “Take control. Like you used to.”

Zariel gulped and shook her head. She had to focus. Had to think, even if she had nearly forgotten how. She looked around the room, at everyone still gathered, watching them. “D-Do I have to do it in front of them?” she asked, trying to inject some of the old attitude back into her voice.

“Hm.” Doctor Lawson nodded. “Fair point. Alexander?”

“Yes, Doctor Lawson,” Alexander nodded. He closed his eyes and focused. Zariel felt a wave of energy pass her by. She followed it with her head and saw Ariana get hit by his ring, falling limply to the floor, sound asleep.

“Just pretend we’re not here,” Doctor Lawson smirked, wrapping an arm around Alexander and turning away from Zariel and Noa.

I guess it’d be too much to hope she’d leave too… Zariel took a deep breath and grinned at Noa. “Hey, baby. You miss me?”

Noa didn’t respond. She just stared at Trevor. She was scared, suddenly aware that taunting a woman who had Zariel and Alexander wrapped around her finger may not have been the best idea.

“I asked you a question, girl,” Zariel said, more insistently. She cupped Noa’s chin and forced their eyes to meet. “Did you miss me?”

“I…” Noa inhaled sharply. “Y-Yeah… it’s been weird, not seeing you at the office these past couple weeks.”

“I’m not talking about that,” Zariel chuckled. She licked her lips and kissed Noa on the shoulder. “I mean, did you miss my lips?” Another kiss, on her neck. “My fangs, giving you hickeys you always had to cover up?” Her hand on Noa’s breast. “My hands on your body?”

“Hhooookayy,” Noa whimpered. She closed her eyes, shuddering and relaxing into Zariel’s touch.

“I don’t mean ‘did you miss your coworker,’” Zariel smiled. “I mean, ‘did you miss your daddy?’”

Noa whined, biting her lip. “You know I hated calling you that…”

“Yeah?” Zariel laughed. “Funny. I remember you sounding pretty into it when I had you bent over. When you were taking my strap...”

“One.”

Zariel blinked. She shot a nervous glance at Doctor Lawson. She was still looking away, but Zariel knew she was smirking at her. So she’s playing dirty… “When you were taking my strap,” she continued, trying to focus on Noa, “squirming and moaning like a porn star.”

“I… I-I don’t remember that…” Noa smiled nervously. “Maybe you’d… like to remind me?”

“Oh, there’s my girl,” Zariel grinned. “Too bad I left that toy at home. But…” She reached down between Noa’s legs, gently touching the other girl’s cock. “We can make do with–”

“Two.”

“–thisss…” Zariel shook her head and inhaled sharply.

“Um…” Noa glanced at Doctor Lawson, then back at Zariel. “Are you alright?”

Zariel flashed her fangs. “Never better, baby.” She leaned in close, kissing Noa roughly on the neck before pulling away and licking her lips. “Mmm… whoops. Guess I left a mark, huh?”

“Remember how I used to cover those up?” Noa chuckled. “Still got all those turtlenecks…”

“Three.”

“Hm…” Zariel remembered how sexy Doctor Lawson looked the first time they met. The way her sweater accentuated her curves, her breasts… how the fabric contrasted with her skin…

“Zee?” Noa asked. “You’re… drooling.”

“Ah?” Zariel blinked again. “Oh… right…” She furrowed her brow, trying to remember where she was going with this. She had to get Noa hard and make her cum. Or at least edge. She kissed the girl again, on the collarbone, then her breast, swirling her tongue around Noa’s nipple.

“Hoooh, fuck,” Noa mewled.

“Still sensitive, huh?” Zariel chuckled.

Noa nodded. “Y-Yeah… especially since I got on progesterone…”

“That’s the stuff that makes you horny, right?”

“K-Kinda?”

“Mmm… I hope so…” Zariel purred. She groped her girlfriend’s other breast, squeezing roughly as she continued to worship her nipple.

“Fuck!” Noa squeaked. “Z-Zee…”

“Uh-uh,” Zariel giggled. “You know what to call me.”

“Buh… b-but…”

Zariel bit down on Noa’s tit.

“Ah!” Noa moaned. “D-Da–”

“Four. Five.”

Zariel shuddered and fell to her knees. Her head was swimming. Her thoughts ran so slowly, sounded so quiet and weak. So small compared to the numbers.

“Zee? Zee!” Noa shook her shoulder. “What is she doing to you?”

“She’ssss…” Zariel whimpered, startled at how slurred and slow her speech had become already. “H-Hypnotizing… me…”

“What?” Noa glared at Doctor Lawson. “What the hell?”

“I’m simply counting,” Doctor Lawson replied, shrugging her shoulders. “I didn’t do this to Zariel. She did this to herself.”

“Bullshit!” Noa spat. “Why should I believe you?”

Doctor Lawson chuckled. “Zariel, honey? Did I hypnotize you to give you this trigger?”

Zariel groaned. She didn’t want to admit it – not to anyone, but especially not to Noa. She couldn’t bear to let her former sub know how she’d fucked up her own head, pathetically lusting after her therapist to the point of obsession. “I-I… I…”

“Remember, girl,” Doctor Lawson said sharply. “You aren’t allowed to lie to me.”

“Dammit…” Zariel bit her lip. “I… Sh-She’s right.”

“That’s…” Noa narrowed her eyes. “Okay. That’s clearly some sort of conditioned response.”

“I learned that she’d recorded these… files,” Zariel admitted, closing her eyes, afraid to look at anyone. “She’d used them on Alex, and… and I wanted them too. He gave them to me. Doctor Lawson… she didn’t do anything…”

“Six, seven.”

Zariel groaned and closed her eyes. She clutched weakly onto Noa’s waist, nuzzling her thigh.

“Zee!” Noa shouted, shaking her friend. “C’mon, you can fight this! I don’t care how much stuff you’ve listened to, the Zariel I know wouldn’t go down like this!”

“Maybe you didn’t know the real Zariel at all,” Doctor Lawson smirked.

Noa inhaled sharply.

Suddenly, there was a great thrust of air. Alexander and Doctor Lawson fell to the floor, blown down by the gust.

Noa spun in the center of the whirlwind, turning at such incredible speed that her features were practically a blur. The winds around her were like a miniature hurricane – powerful, unyielding. Angry. “You don’t get to talk about her like that,” she scowled, the sound still clear even over the howl.

She rushed forwards, towards her enemy. Alexander stepped in to protect the doctor, but was blown to the side before he could prepare his rings. He realized, all too late, that this was Noa’s plan; get him out of the way so he couldn’t stop her from hurting Doctor Lawson.

Noa stepped closer, and closer. The wind whipped Doctor Lawson’s hair wildly, but she didn’t move. She didn’t try to get up or crawl away. She just laid there. Smirking. Almost chuckling.

“What’s so funny?” Noa glared as the winds started to die down. Her form became more distinct as her rotation slowed down.

“Are you done with your temper tantrum?” Doctor Lawson smiled.

“Not even close.” Noa lunged at her, grabbing her by the throat and squeezing as hard as she could.

“Ah, n-not bad,” Doctor Lawson grunted. “Did Jaguar teach you this?”

“God dammit, just shut the fuck up!” Noa shouted. She knew she was losing her cool, letting this psychotic bitch get under her skin. She didn’t care anymore. She knew that Doctor Lawson was hurting Zariel; that was more than enough reason to want the woman dead.

If nothing else, she was in pain. Noa could hear the doctor choking, straining for air. Yet that smug grin never faded. She looked like she didn’t care. She looked like she’d already won.

“Eight… seven…” Doctor Lawson muttered, closing her eyes.

“Don’t you dare,” Noa snapped. “I’ve had enough of you trying to fuck with Zee’s head!”

“Hm?” Doctor Lawson blinked. “No, it’s not that. I’m just counting down.”

“Yeah? Down to what–”

The sharp edge of a spear sliced between them. Noa backed away, turning so the extra wind would give her a boost. She landed on her feet, staggering back but keeping her balance.

Keani looked up and pulled her weapon out of the floor. “…I think I’m gonna need an explanation here.”