though the chip had apparently been successfully implanted, victor didn't feel even the slightest change in his mind. his desire to escape hadn't disappeared, or been dulled - if anything, he only felt it more strongly.

and yet, adrianus released him from the restraints in the chair. as if that wasn't the only thing keeping him there. as if the chip alone was enough.

he stood up, cautiously at first, staring at adrianus as they simply watched him. he stepped backward across the laboratory room, toward the door - there was no shock, nothing hijacking his brain or stopping him, and adrianus didn't even follow him, still just standing there, watching.

he laughed, trying to shake off his tension. "you- you seemed to think you were going to brainwash me," he said. "but absolutely nothing has changed at all."

"the door requires a passcode," adrianus simply said.

he turned to see a keypad behind him.

"and is there anything stopping me from trying to guess?" he asked.

"there isn't," they replied.

he still moved slowly, gingerly, as he reached to push the buttons, entering the first random combination that entered his head, which was obviously incorrect.

still, nothing else happened. the screen didn't inform him that he only had so many guesses left, there was no punishment, nothing.

he entered combination after combination, gradually moving more quickly, becoming more certain that there would be no consequence at all. if he could just get lucky, if he could just guess it, he could simply leave, couldn't he?

perhaps if he did, the chip would activate, or they would find him with a tracking device, but that wasn't important at the moment. if nothing else, it meant there was at least a limit to their control. they hadn't simply brainwashed him. they couldn't simply brainwash him. all of those things they had said about controlling him, it had all been a bluff, an attempt to make it sound scarier and more futile than it really was.

even now, their calm and collected demeanor must have been an act. they were only pretending that things were going according to plan. surely, deep down, they were nervous. panicking. desperately trying to come up with a new plan. they thought they could fool him, that they could hide it, that they could get inside his head simply by behaving as if they'd already won. perhaps there was no chip to begin with. maybe they really believed they could control him with the mere idea of it. that he would be gullible enough to think he was brainwashed just because they told him he would be.

or, maybe, they were deluding themself into thinking that it was working, lying to themself so effectively that they really believed it.

he was hardly even thinking about the numbers, just hitting keys at random, his hand shaking, his fingers clumsily pressing numbers that he hadn't meant to press. all the while, he felt their gaze on his back.

perhaps if he glanced back at them, over his shoulders, he could catch a sign, a sign that they really weren't in control. maybe he would see them falter.

but when he looked over, they looked the same as always.

"are you having fun?" they asked.

"i- i could ask the same to you," he said quickly. "are you just going to stand there and watch me? do you have nothing better to do? i mean, what will you do if i guess the combination correctly? do you really not care?"

their smile widened, ever so slightly. "i don't have a plan, for if you guess the combination correctly."

"no matter how unlikely it is, surely you should be prepared for the possibility, or just prevent that from ever happening to begin with, shouldn't you?"

they didn't reply. they just continued to stare, with that unreadable, placid look.

he turned back to the keypad. there was no reason for him to waste time looking at them, talking to them. they were only trying to make him nervous. perhaps they thought that all they needed to do was wait it out? wait for him to simply give up? it was ridiculous. surely if they were the sort of mastermind they seemed to want to present themself as, they wouldn't allow this. it was such an inelegant plan. inefficient. and risky. they were simply roleplaying as a puppetmaster. that's all this was.

"victor," they said after a few moments. "do you want to know what the chip actually does?"

"it does nothing," he said.

"did you think it was a mind control device, the sort of thing you would see in a sci-fi movie?"

"that's certainly the impression you seemed to give, though obviously it isn't."

"you're right that it isn't. it's actually quite simple. relatively speaking, at least. much more simple than complete mind control would be."

victor's finger pushed against one of the buttons with more force than necessary. "it's nothing more than placebo, isn't it?" he said. "you're going to tell me all about the effects, in the hope that i'm going to be stupid enough to really believe it, aren't you? if it really did anything, why wouldn't you have demonstrated that already? if you really have so much control over me."

"as i said, victor, it is not a mind control device," they replied. "it is a training device."

he couldn't help but laugh, starting as a sound under his breath, and gradually becoming louder. "training? you think you're just going to train me?"

"that's much more reasonable than mind control, isn't it? and much easier."

"are you forgetting a very important factor here?" he said, finally turning back around to face them, taking his hand off the keypad. "are you forgetting about me? about my own willingness to cooperate? is that not a factor? does that not matter? i'm certainly not just going to allow you to train me! especially when you have just told me that's exactly what you're going to do. you think i'm not going to resist?"

"it's much easier than training a wild animal, which is also quite possible. after all, i can just speak to you, and tell you exactly what you should be doing."

"that's- does that not make it more difficult?! i can understand your intentions, unlike a wild animal, who--"

"you're also much less likely to severely injure me," they continued. "it's not impossible, but you don't seem like a particularly violent person. you seem quite restrained by social convention, as well."

he couldn't even respond in that moment, feeling nothing but bewilderment and annoyance.

"yes, well, you are lucky i have the sense to not maul you like an ape," he finally said, his voice shaking. "what would that get me, anyway? i would still be trapped in this room without the code, wouldn't i?"

"yes, that's exactly right."

his face burned. "don't- don't say that as if i just- it really is perfectly reasonable!"

"of course it is. i didn't say it isn't."

"you said it- you said- i know what you meant. you made it sound like you were... like you were praising me for it, like i was saying what you wanted me to say, but it was just..."

"did it feel strange?" they asked.

"you are not doing this," he said quickly. "you aren't- i know what you're doing."

"and what am i doing?"

"this is all nothing but mind games. you think that it's as simple as making me doubt myself. you think that the most basic psychological tricks are enough."

"i will admit," they said, their words unbearably slow, "i have been holding back, just to see how you react."

"you are pretending. you are pretending to be in control. you are saying things that make it sound as if you are already in control. i don't buy it."

"you say that you don't buy it, but you've been shaking, and wavering, and hesitating. you understand that you're really in quite a hopeless situation, but you don't want to admit that. besides that, you're quite fixated on every perceived flaw in my own planning and behavior, everything that reveals that i'm not some sort of perfect villain. i wonder if you wish that i was?"

"you think that i wish that i was in the clutches of a perfect mastermind?!"

"you seem a bit disappointed at every bit of evidence that i'm not."

"i am- if- if anything, i am searching for evidence that you aren't- for my own sake," he said. "obviously i'm... i'm aware this is not the ideal situation for me to be in. but it's comforting to see that you really aren't as in control as you seem to act like you are."

"do i really act as if i'm in complete control of everything? or is that something that you're projecting onto me?"

"do you think i don't have a brain? surely you must know i do, if you really implanted something inside of it. the way you're always acting calm, the way you're simply standing there, the way you talk, the things you say, obviously these things all convey a sense of control!"

"but the control isn't complete. of course, i am in control of the general situation. that doesn't mean i need to be in control of every minute detail."

victor stepped closer to them, for no particular purpose - he knew he couldn't get himself to do anything violent, he was just exasperated.

"that's right," they said. "get closer."

he was in the middle of a step when they said it, and his foot came down before he could freeze.

"good."

the instant they uttered the word, a shiver ran down his spine, a feeling of pure pleasure traveling through his body like a shock, for only a brief moment.

it was vivid. it was undeniable. it was not a response he could have possibly had, if it weren't for the chip they implanted.

his anger dissipated, his thoughts stopped in their tracks.

"you see? it's very simple," they said. "all i need to do is reward the behavior that i want from you. it isn't complete mind control. you may be able to resist some of it, to some degree. but i think i should be able to work with that. but what do you think?"

how could he even respond? what could he even say to that? he couldn't stop thinking about how good it had felt.

"do you want to take another step closer?" they asked.

taking another step would have given him that feeling again. but it couldn't be that simple. he couldn't let it be that simple for them.

"there- there's nothing stopping me from stepping back," he said, doing exactly that. "i can just... i can just keep guessing more numbers..."

once again, they didn't stop him, even as he shakily lifted his hand back to the keys again, putting in another combination, looking back and forth between the keypad, and them.

"you're right," they said. "there is nothing stopping you."

he knew. it hit him in that moment, as much as he tried to shove it back down, to ignore it, to tell himself he was mistaken. but he knew that they really were in control. it wasn't simply his imagination. it wasn't just an act. it was control, a real kind of control, an undeniable kind of control, a mundane one. they weren't interested in flaunting it, they weren't impatient about asserting it, it was just such a basic fact of the situation to them.

it wasn't the sort of fragile thing that could be broken by his basic, childish charade of disobedience. it didn't hinge on them getting everything right, on them being some kind of perfect genius. there was no curtain to pull aside, no loophole to exploit.

he was still for a moment, his hand hovering over the keys, not pushing any of them, his eyes just staring at the numbers.

"if you're not going to push the buttons anymore, why don't you put your hand down?" they said softly.

it made no difference. it dropped to his side. they didn't even praise him for it. not that he was looking to he praised.

"do you want to know a secret, victor?" they asked.

"what is it?" he said sort of flatly, still staring at the keys.

"just come over here, and i'll tell you."

he didn't move at first, just thinking to himself. they were going to reward him for coming over to them. they wanted to be able to call him over, to get him to come to them on command. like he was some sort of dog.

he could have just refused. they seemed very patient. they hadn't punished him at all. if he stubbornly refused to do absolutely anything they said, maybe he could remain uninfluenced.

still, it wouldn't mean anything if he couldn't escape.

did it really matter so much, if he came over to them this time? or if he was trained to do that, in general? was there any benefit to his refusal?

he did wonder what that secret was.

slowly, he turned toward them, taking a small step.

"good," they said. "just like that... just come over here..."

he felt that overwhelming shock of pleasure again.

he was... he was more than a mere animal. but then, as a being capable of reason... if he was in a situation where there wasn't any more reasonable option...

he took another step. no reward. another step. another.

"good. keep going..."

it was irresistible. it was such a simple action, approaching them. if he was rewarded so much for just that simple action... it was impossible to make any other choice.

he kept walking until finally, he stood right next to them.

"good, very good," they said, petting him, as he felt another shock of pleasure.

he almost moaned. he realized the danger of this. he already had the feeling that it felt good, just being near them. it wasn't just about training him to approach them - they were a source of direct, pure pleasure. they were encouraging him to enjoy just being around them.

"it feels nice, doesn't it?" they cooed. "do you feel silly, for all of the things you said earlier? do you still feel like i'm simply pretending to be in control?"

he wouldn't have tolerated that sort of condescension just a few minutes ago, but now, he was quiet.

"do you want to hear that secret?" adrianus murmured.

"y... yes, i suppose," he mumbled.

their smile was wide, affectionate, the most expressive he had ever seen them. "the keypad does absolutely nothing. it was only there as a distraction. that's why it didn't matter what combination of numbers you pressed."

he didn't even know what emotion to feel upon hearing that.

perhaps he should have been angry, indignant, afraid, or humiliated, or some combination of all of those feelings. instead, he felt a sort of blankness, something indescribable.

in that moment, he considered what they had said earlier, about how it seemed that he wanted them to be some sort of perfect mastermind.

"it's a lot to process, isn't it?" they said gently.

it truly was.

"do you want me to make it a bit easier for you, victor?"

"...easier?" he questioned. "h... how?"

"if you don't know how to feel about the situation..." they said slowly. "you could always just let me tell you."

the idea was absurd.

"i... if you're... if you really trained even my thoughts and feelings, that would be... that would be mind control, wouldn't it?" he said quietly. "can you even do that?"

"are you already having doubts about what is and isn't possible? about what i can and can't control?"

he couldn't help it. of course he would have doubts. his mind was scrambled, his thoughts in a feverish frenzy.

"what do you think, victor? do you think i could do such a thing? you seem to at least believe it might be possible. it's your mind... so your belief is certainly a factor."

he absolutely did believe it. it was an automatic thought, an automatic feeling, a deep conviction that he had in that moment - they could absolutely control his thoughts and feelings. and that conviction did not come from them, or from the chip. it was a belief he had had from the start, one that he had tried desperately to deny.

"if... if you were to... tell me... how to feel about this... what would you...?"

"just tell me, victor," they said in a low voice, lifting his chin with their finger, staring directly into his eyes. "tell me, out loud, that you enjoy this... that you're excited. you don't need to entirely believe it. you only need to say it."

he felt trapped in their gaze. "i... i... i do enjoy this," he said quietly. "it is exciting..."

it sounded so genuine, he almost couldn't believe it came from his own mouth.

"good."

their gaze bore into him as he shuddered in pleasure. when he was across the room, simply walking, it was a more general kind of pleasure, but when he was this close to them, making eye contact, just after telling them that he enjoyed this... it was a much more intimate feeling, that left him trembling even after that brief shock was over.

he knew that they could have done anything to him. there was no possible way he was going to escape. they could leave the door wide open for him, and he wouldn't leave. he had offered them absolutely no resistance in the end, no challenge at all. with just a bit more time and effort, they probably could have even accomplished the exact same thing, without the chip.

it was difficult for him to imagine any reality where he wouldn't end up being trained by them. it seemed so inevitable.

but it felt so good, to be praised by them, to feel their hand absentmindedly petting his hair. there was no reason for him to resist, and every reason for him to obey.