The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

Matthew Freeman’s Historic Suite, the Waldorf Towers Hotel—New York City

Saturday in New York brought a cold wind to the city, and most people were out in their winter clothing. Helen and Kimberly had spent the previous days shopping in New York’s upscale malls and outlets, Helen insisting that Kimberly start buying a new wardrobe, as she would soon be moving in with her and Matthew. With both of them wearing bulky, snorkel coats with fur-lined hoods (Helen’s being white and Kimberly’s a light tan), with large rose-colored, gold-framed glasses, fur-lined boots and high-end jewelry, sales attendants everywhere had been falling over themselves to service these two incredibly hot, and obviously VERY wealthy women.

Kimberly felt like a movie star.

Kimberly had been initially reluctant to indulge in such things, nervous that it would seem as though she were using Helen’s and Matthew’s generosity. Helen would not accept ‘no’ for an answer, however, and by the time they had returned, it was well past one o’clock, and neither had eaten since breakfast, and even then that was just a slice of toast.

Helen had called ahead to inform her husband that she and Kim were coming home. The limousine pulled up in front of Saks 5th Avenue as Helen handed Yvette her phone. Kimberly had discovered that Yvette was apparently a ‘wedding gift’ to Helen from Matthew.

Since her service to Helen began, Yvette had since become Helen’s favorite personal assistant, serving as her maid, butler, sometimes cook, and when necessary (or when Helen demanded it), filling a role as her personal sex toy, footstool (as Kim had already witnessed), table, clothing hanger, or any other piece of furniture Helen wanted.

And today, Yvette was serving as Helen’s shopping assistant, carrying bags and such and helping her and Kimberly in the dressing rooms.

Helen had insisted that Matthew come with them, even bragging a bit to Kimberly that Matthew had a good eye when shopping, something most men rarely ever had, though Matthew himself admitted that he had little interest in shopping if it wasn’t with Helen, which Kimberly found so very sweet.

But, as luck would have it a courier arrived from Gerard Winters’ office, and delivered three envelopes to their doorstep in the early morning.

When Matthew opened them, he discovered that they were files on his soon-to-be appointed Knights, and future subordinates. Matthew opted to stay home and review them.

Helen was a bit concerned that he might get a little lonely, considering they had left him all alone. After all, Tanisha, their newly acquired black slave, was busy that day getting her affairs in order.

Tanisha, her full name Tanisha Princeton, had informed her landlord that she would soon be selling her apartment, and she had left that day to turn in her keys and otherwise get all of her affairs in order. She had already quit her job as one of the senior waitresses at the Peacock Alley restaurant downstairs. Helen instructed her to gather all the personal effects she wanted, but to bring none of her clothes, save for any eveningwear or lingerie she might have. Tanisha had informed Helen and Matthew recently that she had a boyfriend, and it was getting rather serious, but Matthew assured her that he would handle that.

Otherwise Tanisha was getting prepared to forever leave New York and come to work as a sex slave for Matthew and Helen. Helen had decided that because of her stellar performance during the night they met, she would give Tanisha a ‘special task.’

With Matthew left alone, Helen worried that he would not get any special attention. Both she and Kimberly considered staying in with him, but he insisted that they should bond, and reassured them that with the arrival of those files he would not be able to concentrate.

The ride home was rather fun, at least. Helen and Kimberly sat beside each other on one side while Yvette sat opposite them on the other side of the limo. Being in public, Yvette had been forced to wear something more ‘appropriate’ as opposed to her usual maid’s uniform. She still wore a regular maid’s uniform, keeping the frill on her head from her original sexy outfit, but otherwise this was extremely modest, have a wide skirt that reached mid-calf in length and a dull gray apron that had no frills or lace whatsoever. To make it interesting, Helen and Kimberly had Yvette remove their boots and was subsequently giving them a bit of foot worship, sucking their feet obediently.

They found Matthew in the living space at the desk, with two folders on the tabletop, and one folder in his hand, reading intently as he took a sip of coffee.

“Hi honey!” Helen beamed, taking off her jacket and going over to him to French kiss him on the lips.

“Hello.” Matthew smiled back.

“Good morning, Master,” Kimberly followed, doing just as Helen had done, kissing him a bit longer.

“Good morning, Master,” Yvette finally followed, but instead of kissing him she knelt before his chair, almost as if offering herself to him. She probably was, Kimberly thought. “May Yvette suck your cock, Master?”

“No, not right now. You may stand, Yvette,” Matthew said.

“Thank you, Master.” Yvette bowed and stood, before turning to Helen. “May Yvette please be allowed to change into her uniform?”

“Sure, dear.” Helen responded.

“Thank you, Mistress.” Yvette picked up the numerous shopping bags and disappeared into the guest room.

Helen and Kimberly moved to the large couch and sat opposite each other, making light conversation. Matthew had returned to his review of the files that had been sent over. “I had room service bring up something…” he said, almost as an afterthought.

“Okay, honey,” Helen said.

“Um, Master?” Kimberly asked, curious.

“Yes?”

“Are those the Knights you will be working with?” she asked, making a vague gesture towards the folders on the table.

“Well, three of them, at least.”

“May Kim know who they are?”

“All right. I suppose you should know, since you’ll be working with them too,” Matthew said as he stood and walked over to her. He handed her the file. “I think you’ll find this first one a very pleasant surprise,” Matthew added, winking.

“Valeria Cross…” Kimberly said as she looked at the photo, surprised at the picture she saw...a quite attractive woman, if it hadn’t been for the scowl across her face.

“She’s one of Jeffries’ Vassals, apparently.” Matthew continued. “According to her record she served as Jeffries’ chambermaid back in the Middle Ages, when she was still Valeria Ibranecht of Antioch, and Jeffries was called Sir Pierre Deauchampe, one of the chief lords of the Knights Templar.”

“Well, Kim supposes if you want your team to have a bit of edge, she’s the way to go, Master.” Kimberly paused, then looked at Matthew, “Master, you never told Kim exactly WHAT you did to Valeria.”

Matthew winked and gave her a sly grin, “Let’s keep it a surprise.”

“Who are the other two?” Kimberly asked eagerly.

Matthew handed him the second file folder. “The second is Angel Gutierrez, a Vassal of Julio de Vega. This is interesting. Apparently one of de Vega’s early identities was a high priest during the Mayan civilization, named Quat-kha. Angel, then known as Uru-chal, was intended to be an offering to the Mayan gods, but Quat-kha made her his Vassal instead, announcing her to be so pure, that she was sent by the gods to be an oracle.”

Kimberly rolled her eyes. “There’s no way she ever retained her purity with a body like this…” She said as she looked at the picture. Angel Gutierrez was a small but very well-built, attractive woman with deep brown skin and Mexican features. The picture in her hand showed her in a blue, two-piece, string bikini, standing on a beach with a snorkel and diving goggles in one hand and a conch in the other. Kimberly had little doubt in her mind. “De Vega took one look at her fine ass and decided that he wanted her as a sex slave.”

Matthew nodded. “I couldn’t agree more,” he concurred, before finally giving her the last file.

“The last one is Theodore Nehru Sharidi, a young boy who serves as the Vassal of Narisa Leone.” Kim looked at picture of the young Indian boy, no more than a teenager, most likely.

“What’s his story?” Kimberly asked, curious.

“Says here that Narisa made him a Vassal during the mid-19th century, during the Sepoy Mutiny,” Matthew read.

“What was that?” Kim asked.

Matthew closed the folder. “The Sepoy Mutiny was the first war that India fought to attempt and liberate itself from British control in 1856. India lost that war and came under the control of the British Crown Empire. Narisa in that age was Jerahijya Arangani, one of the women who helped staged the mutiny in Southern India. When the mutiny failed, she was captured by British forces. A few soldiers attempted to rape her during her captivity, but before she could use her OWN powers to escape, this Nehru bravely stepped in and helped her escape…they eventually became lovers and she made him into her Vassal.”

“That’s sooo romantic,” Kim said, sighing.

“Kind of like how you helped Matthew escape from the Agency,” Helen added.

Matthew and Kimberly both smiled.

“Well, that’s all of them,” Matthew said. “I don’t know if all the members of the Order of Kings will be volunteering their Vassals. The Anointing will give me substantial control over them, and I don’t know if they’re all willing to let me do that.”

“Well, Kimberly will stand by you, no matter what, Master!” Kimberly said with conviction.

And she meant it, too. From the moment Matthew had entered her life she had placed her trust in him. He had been open with who he was, and though he did not initially tell her the whole truth, she had stood by him because she had faith that he would. That fateful Thursday, in the wee hours of the morning, when he and his wife, the legendary Helen of Troy, told her everything, Kimberly had discovered at last where she belonged.

Matthew didn’t NEED to tell her everything. Of course, he had promised to tell her, but that didn’t mean he actually NEEDED to do so. He was powerful enough to make her forget about that promise. He was powerful enough to make her not even care. And yet, despite all that, he told her anyway. He told her about the Fallen, the Empowered, the Ascended, their Servants and Vassals, and the Order of Kings. He told her about San Carenza, the Soul Collector, and how the Order had given him a sacred mission to find the Collector and kill him. And finally, Matthew told her of the chance at absolute power.

It had been overwhelming, yes, and infinitely so.

More overwhelming than when she first heard him speak her name, causing her to nearly fall over in orgasm.

More overwhelming than the first time he ever fucked her.

More overwhelming than seeing a mother offer her two daughters’ pussies, before engaging in a magnificent, incestuous orgy.

More overwhelming than finding out that the perfect vision of beauty she had come to know as Helen was in actuality Helen of Troy.

But despite the fact that it was overwhelming, despite the fact that logic told her that the past ten days were probably some long, twisted, impossible, but very pleasurable dream, she didn’t allow herself to panic or fear. No, tremendous as it all was, and no matter how she felt that all this was WAY too big for her, she knew that Matthew was there beside her. She understood why the famous Helen of Troy, heralded as the most beautiful woman in the world, would choose him as a partner…his Power, his confidence, his intelligence and cunning, his take-charge attitude and his charm and wit were all well and great (as were, of course, his incredibly hot body, his large cock and INCREDIBLE endurance in bed), but Kimberly believed that most of all, what made him special was that he could make ANYONE a believer in HIM. Able to overcome any problem, take on any challenge, beat any obstacle, he made you BELIEVE that you could do it together, he made you believe that ANYTHING was possible.

And she believed that now.

Matthew, Helen and Kim had a late lunch, but it didn’t matter. None of them were particularly hungry, and all of them had decided on a light salad and some good sparkling wine.

Their conversation was light and the mood was cheerful. If Matthew was at all nervous about the ritual that was to be carried out the next day, he did not show it. As Helen often did, she had stripped herself of all her clothes and instead donned a magnificent brown fur coat, keeping it open and allowing everyone to see her perfect body.

Kimberly had very much wanted to do the same on many occasions, but being naked around the renowned Helen of Troy, despite her own beauty, still made her feel insecure. It would make ANY woman feel insecure. It was a different story on the numerous times Matthew was plugging the two of them together. Perhaps Kim could not match her skill with Helen’s, as the buxom blonde goddess had hundreds of years of experience, but certainly she could match her energy, her passion, her lust. But in the light of day, outside the bedroom, the first thing people would see was Helen’s incredible beauty, a face that would make any man hear angels, and a body that would make any man sell their soul to the devil for a chance to look upon it again. There was no competing with THAT.

Suddenly, Kimberly noticed that she had been staring at Helen’s exposed body at the dinner table for some time. Helen had not taken notice, probably due to the fact that she was used to getting such stares. Kim snuck a glance at Matthew, who was grinning at her. Shit. Kim knew that he had undoubtedly noticed.

The knock on the door was a welcome relief to Kim.

“Yvette, see who’s at the door, dear,” Helen ordered, not bothering to even look at the blonde, who was waiting patiently behind Helen’s chair for additional orders.

“Yes, Mistress.” Yvette promptly spun on her high-heels and headed for the door to the suite. Normally, Kimberly would have worried about letting Yvette open the door, considering that the pretty little thing had already dressed in her smutty maid outfit. The past week or so had taught Kim, however, that for as long as Matthew was around, there was little to worry about. Just a few nights before, they had walked throughout the hotel from ground floor to suite with a beautiful African-American woman in tow who was holding her dress up and exposing her bare ass and dripping pussy. Every single hotel guest and staff member between the restaurant and their suite had seen it…even little children who pointed and stared and asked their parents why ‘that woman is showing her pee-pee’. The hotel security cameras and the one hidden in the elevator undoubtedly recorded the entire thing.

Yet, despite all the witnesses, despite all the pointing fingers, confused looks and bewildered onlookers, no charges had been filed for indecent exposure, no complaints had been logged against them, and, Kimberly theorized, even the hotel’s surveillance was nothing to worry about.

In any event, it didn’t matter.

“Yes?” Kimberly heard Yvette from the other room. With whoever it was that came knocking still standing in the hallway, Kim couldn’t make out what the person was saying…but she could tell it was a woman.

“Yes, the Master is eating lunch with his wife and Miss Kimberly,” Yvette’s voice came again.

More garbled words. The voice was a bit familiar, Kim thought.

“Please wait here, madame.” Yvette finally said, closing the door.

Yvette reappeared a moment later. “Master, there is a Miss Sharon Baxter at the door, and she is requesting for an audience.”

Matthew looked up from his plate. “Very well, let her in. Tell her I’ll be a moment.”

“Of course, Master,” Yvette bowed, before turning and leaving to follow her Master’s instructions.

Matthew took one last bite and put down his fork, before downing the last of his champagne. “Ladies,” he bowed as he stood.

“Miss Baxter! A pleasant surprise to see you here,” Matthew said, moving forward and offering a handshake to the platinum blonde assistant of Gerard Winters. Sharon beamed at Matthew, before shaking her hand as she let her eyes roam over him, much in the same way she had done when she first saw him in Gerard Winters’ office, licking her lips and undressing him with her eyes, not even trying to hide what she was doing.

When she was done checking him out, she released his hand and gave him a seductive smile and a lick of her lips. Matthew smiled in appreciation of her brazen desire for him, but he knew that Sharon was sent here by Gerard on business.

“How can I help you, Miss Baxter?”

Helen sat down in one of the Bergere armchairs and Matthew sat in the one opposite to her. Yvette arrived and offered both of them some coffee. Matthew took one cup but Sharon denied, instead opting to give Yvette a playful little squeeze of one of her tits.

“You are hot,” Sharon complimented Yvette, eyeing her in her wonderfully revealing maid outfit, her eyes traveling from her perky breasts to her exposed pussy and ass.

“Thank you, madame,” Yvette said, moaning a bit before Sharon released her nipple.

Yvette left them, and Sharon turned to Matthew.

“Your slut looks very delicious.”

“Thank you. Yvette was my wedding gift to my wife when we got married.” Matthew explained, smiling.

“And a wonderful gift she is, I’m sure,” Sharon replied.

Matthew nodded.

“Well, I suppose I should get to the point,” Sharon finally said, before reaching down and picking up the thin briefcase she had brought. “I have here for you another file that came in just an hour ago for another one of your teammates. His name is Zhao Yin, one of Madame Li’s Vassals,” she explained, handing him a file folder which she fished out from the briefcase.

Matthew took it and put it down on the coffee table. “The previous deliveries were made by a courier. Gerard wouldn’t have sent you to me personally unless you had something to give me personally.”

Sharon smiled. She took a small envelope with an address written on it and gave it to him. Matthew felt that is was heavy as soon as she had handed it over. He opened it and let its contents fall into his hand…a small cellular phone and a set of keys.

“Please keep the phone with you at all times. Included in the phone’s memory is my cellular phone number. It is a secure line. You may call at anytime between now until five in the afternoon of tomorrow for any questions you may have regarding the ritual, but you may only do so until 5PM tomorrow. At that time, I will be the one to call you. The keys that I gave you are for a black Mercedes sedan currently parked at the address on the back of the envelope. You MUST be in the car when I call you at 5PM tomorrow, at which point I shall give you the address and other instructions you will need to get to the ritual site.

“It is IMPERATIVE that you bring the card you presented to me at Gerard’s office with you. Is it with you?” Matthew fished into his pocket and produced the black card with the silver symbol of a chess piece king, showing her.

Sharon Baxter nodded in approval. “Good. Do you understand everything?”

Matthew nodded.

Sharon Baxter smiled and stood up.

“One question, though, Miss Baxter,” Matthew added.

“Yes, Mister Freeman?” Sharon Baxter asked.

“You mentioned I would be allowed to meet any of the Ascended for as long as their schedules permit. Are any of them available?”

“Unfortunately, Mister Freeman, no. Most of them arrived this morning, and are still settling down. I’m afraid we’ll have to wait and see if they will be willing to see you between then and now. I’ll call them to see if they’re willing; no promises, though, I’m afraid. I’ll call to let you know.”

“Thank you.”

“A pleasure as always seeing you, Mister Freeman.”

“Likewise, Miss Baxter.”

Matthew walked her to the door.

Meanwhile...

The Alpha Agency Central Office – Boston, Massachusetts

Agent Valeria Cross attempted to zone out the disgusting image that she had been forced to walk in upon. She had just reentered active service after an extensive (and somewhat painful) debriefing program under the supervision of several of her co-Vassals. Fortunately for her, the damage that had been done to her mind was thankfully not permanent. For her former partner Adam Blackwell, though, the story was infinitely more…tragic. The last time Cross saw her former partner, he was being wheeled off to a mental asylum, his face distorted into a silent and tormented scream, a look of sheer horror permanently etched on his face.

Agent Cross had indeed been fortunate, if you call being found in the back of some bar after three—or four—or five, disgustingly fat bikers rammed their dicks into every orifice of her body fortunate.

Still, her mind was successfully put back together—for the most part.

Take for example, the vision she was watching now.

Bernard Jeffries was not an attractive man. He was short and fat, bald, smelled like he rarely ever bathed, and was rude and arrogant, and, Valeria noted, he had been that way since the fucking Middle Ages!!!

Valeria remembered the centuries that flew by after she had been turned into his Vassal. Balthus she had discovered, was his Truename, and she served him loyally, fucking him when he wanted it, helping her kidnap and rape quite a few women over the course of human history, stealing, lying and killing for him when he needed it.

She never minded. She thought the world of her mentor, of her beloved Balthus.

Until now.

Valeria had never doubted in Balthus until that fateful day she was ordered to break Matthew Freeman, the Vassal of Azrael the Mighty.

Something changed…Valeria knew that…the moment her mind was blown away by orgasm she knew something had changed. True, the mere fact that she offered to be fucked every which way by complete strangers in public was enough evidence to that…but there was something more to it than that. Whatever it was…whatever Matthew Freeman did to her in that cell while he screwed her pussy, whether intentional or not, she knew that she would never view Balthus with the same unconditional loyalty she once had.

And this was no exception. Bernard Jeffries—Balthus—whatever—was currently sitting in his office, letting some 46-year-old, graying woman suck his cock obediently.

“Suck it you stupid, worthless bitch. Suck it. Suck it.” The woman was crying.

Valeria fought back the urge to vomit. The poor woman was Edith Hubrick, the Chief’s wife. The Chief himself, Stanley Hubrick, had pissed off Vice-Chief Jeffries a few days ago, and this was Bernard’s way of getting back at him…forcing his wife to suck cock.

Back in the day, Valeria knew that she had helped Jeffries do worse.

Jeffries was a bully. He always had been. And she had helped him.

But only on that day in Matthew’s jail cell did Valeria realize it.

“Is everything ready?” Jeffries asked impatiently.

“Yes,” Valeria answered.

“Good. We leave this afternoon.” He said simply, smiling at Hubrick’s wife giving him head.

Valeria shook her head. He didn’t notice. He was too preoccupied. Valeria silently thought how it was that this beast could even consider torturing this woman just because her husband put Jeffries’ in his place. Edith Hubrick had no fault, no sin here, yet she was being forced to pay for something she never did. Valeria felt a pang of guilt. How many have suffered at her hands? How many lives has she ruined? How many dreams has she destroyed, all at the command of this loathsome animal?

“Will that be all, Mr. Jeffries?” she asked hurriedly, wanting to get out of there as soon as possible.

“Hmmm?” Jeffries said, not really hearing her. It was no surprise, really, as Edith had started to cry.

Just days ago, Matthew had fucked her, and he had done it, to some extent, against her will. She knew he was responsible for her being gangbanged by drunk bikers thereafter, but she had deserved it, she knew that. For all the sins she committed she knew she probably deserved worse. He had punished her through his own brand of poetic justice, but when it came to the point that HE was the one fucking her, he actually made her ENJOY it, and he made her enjoy it immensely, as part of Matthew’s brand of punishment was actually making her enjoy something she would otherwise hate doing. But she did ENJOY.

But Jeffries was relishing the fact that he was terrorizing this poor woman. He was exerting his power over someone who was powerless, and he was doing it simply because he could.

This wasn’t justice. This was torture.

Valeria didn’t wait for answer to her question. She couldn’t take it.

GODDAMN YOU. Valeria wanted to say it. She wanted so much to say it. But she couldn’t. She had seen Jeffries for the detestable monster he truly was. But though the wool on her eyes had been lifted, the binds on her wrists had not been broken. By virtue of the Power, she was still forced to do Jeffries’ bidding, but at least now she didn’t have to like it.

She left the room as quickly as possible, taking a deep breath as she stepped out.

She walked back to her office, hoping that would be the last time Jeffries would summon her for the day. In fact she hoped that he would never call for her again.

She sat down when she finally got to her office.

Valeria stared at the empty seat across from her. Blackwell’s seat. She and Adam had been Jeffries’ most powerful Vassals, and Jeffries had originally sent her to San Carenza, New Mexico with Blackwell to investigate the murder of Vincent H. Lancaster. He had ordered them to break Matthew Freeman, to discover everything they needed to know about how Lancaster was killed, to discover anything they could…about the Soul Collector. As one of Jeffries’ Vassals back when he was still Pierre Deauchampe in the Middle Ages, Valeria knew of the Soul Collector’s quest to kill all Empowered. Silently, she wished it had at least succeeded in killing Balthus. It was clear why Jeffries wanted to find the Collector so badly…the coward was afraid.

And now Valeria discovered that she had been chosen by Jeffries to be Anointed, to serve under the inheritor of Azrael the Mighty’s legacy in a New Crusade against the Soul Collector. She was happy to volunteer. It would give her a chance at least to get away from the sick bastard.

She silently wondered who was the man destined to take Lancaster’s place. Jeffries had not told her a thing.

The Next Day

5:57PM, Sunday – Brooklyn, New York City

“Yes,” Matthew spoke on the phone, “I’m on 82dn avenue right now.”

He had been driving for the better part of an hour. The rush hour had delayed his travel time significantly, and only now had he finally pushed through and made it to Brooklyn. Looking about, he could see he was in a residential neighborhood that sported very large houses. Not as large as the one he had in Riverside, no doubt, but quite elegant and large all the same.

“Okay, I’m turning left now,” Matthew continued to update Sharon, who was constantly giving him directions.

“Yes, I see it. A red ribbon on the gate…yes. All right.”

Matthew put down his phone. This was it.

The house that he pulled up to was large, probably two-and-a-half or three stories. He recognized the neighborhood. It was Dyker Heights, one of the more well-to-do residential neighborhoods in Brooklyn. This particular home was a classic Queen Anne style building, probably one of the original historic houses originally built when the area was first developed, and certainly one of the largest ones at that. It had undergone recent remodeling and renovation though, considering it already had a garage. Still, it had been well done, as even the addition of the garage had not done anything to hinder the classic Queen Anne look. As he pulled up he saw the big red ribbon on the gate, just as Sharon Baxter had described. He pulled into the stone driveway, again, another new addition, and the gate opened automatically.

As he switched off the car engine he reached over to the passenger seat side and opened the glove compartment, picking up his ‘black king’ card.

He exited the vehicle and walked up to the door.

At the top of the steps, Sharon Baxter was waiting. Though she wore an odd, blue cloak that covered her entire body. The hood was pulled back so he could see her smiling as he made his way up to her. In one hand she held a three-branch silver candelabrum with a long, lit, black candle. In the other hand she held a folded black cloak. “Good evening, Mister Matthew.”

“Good evening yourself, cutie,” Matthew smiled.

With just the slightest hint of redness in her cheeks, Sharon handed him the black cloak. “Put this on before you enter.”

Matthew pulled the robe over his head and straightened it out, fastening it at the neck. Made of fine velvet, the cloak covered him entirely.

“You look dashing, Mister Matthew,” Sharon winked, before opening the door and leading him into the house.

Matthew followed her until they came to the living room, where nine other individuals stood waiting. Some of them wore black cloaks similar to his, while the others wore white. With all their hoods down, Matthew recognized them at once.

This was the Order of Kings.

All of them at once looked at him. A few, such as Bernard Jeffries and Jacques Deveraux, looked upon him with raised eyebrows. Both Madame Li and Narisa Leone smiled wickedly, their faces betraying their intentions as they looked him over. Natalya Zerapova remained indifferent, her expression never changing. Gerard Winters, who stood by the fireplace, smiled. It was Arnold Cunningham, Julio de Vega and Lu-Makate Gutambo who came forward to shake hands…well, Arnold and Julio, anyway. Lu-Makate, a large black man, came and gave him a bear hug. “Welcome, brother!” he said, and all Matthew could do was blurt out a weak “thank you” and hope the man would let go soon so he could breath.

Thankfully he did, and that was when Gerard put down the glass he had been holding and approached him. He introduced Matthew to each and every one of the Ascended, and Matthew greeted them all cheerfully. Most returned his smile, especially Narisa and Anni, whom, instead of receiving a handshake, were treated to Matthew bowing and kissing the back of their hands. Matthew did the same to Natalya, who didn’t ever smile. Redness however shone just a little on her face when he did kiss her hand, and she looked away nervously as he did. Both Jeffries and Deveraux remained cold.

As the introductions were over, Gerard requested that Matthew recount just what happened in San Carenza and how he escaped the Alpha Agency’s clutches. Matthew narrated his chance encounter with the Soul Collector and the subsequent demise of Vincent H. Lancaster. He told them of the fight that had left the whole town of San Carenza looking like burnt Swiss cheese.

Then he recounted the tale of his capture and attempted torture, and how he and Kimberly escaped thanks to the help of a police officer, and how they made it through to Riverside. At Kimberly’s request, he changed the story a bit when he got to the events that occurred in Flagstaff, in sticking with the story that he and Kim narrowly escaped Agent Rogan’s clutches.

Jeffries seethed. He knew that wasn’t what happened…but he couldn’t prove it. Agent Rogan’s mind had become impossible to read, as had Valeria’s. Blackwell’s mind was nothing more than en endless scream, and it pained him to try and get in. Every mind that this Matthew character touched was impossible to scan thereafter, and he knew why.

Azrael had the highest level of telepathy in the Order of Kings, save possibly for Azazel. With so much of his energy dedicated to developing ways and means to retain a good measure of a slave’s personality, he had become so adept at mind manipulation that his powers actually developed a ‘counter-telepathy’ trait by accident. Though the Empowered and the Ascended never could read each other’s minds, they could always read the minds of the Servants and Vassals of others…except for Azrael’s. That was what made him so powerful, and that was what Azazel—Gerard Winters had meant when they discussed his Ascension. Gerard was certain that ‘counter-telepathy’ had been passed on by Lancaster to Matthew. After being unable to delve into Rogan’s mind, Jeffries was now sure of it.

Applause came after ‘Ooh’s’ and ‘Aah’s’ from most of the Order of Kings as Matthew finished his tale.

“Well, there it is, ladies and gentlemen,” Gerard beamed, placing an arm around Matthew’s shoulder. The pride in his voice was apparent. It wasn’t a fatherly pride, Matthew could tell. It was more of an ‘I told you so’ pride. “Now do you see why we couldn’t be in better hands?”

They all nodded approvingly in unison, some of them grudgingly so like Jeffries, but the others all seemed rather enthusiastic. If any doubt still existed in the minds of the Order of Kings after Matthew told them of his daring escape, they certainly didn’t show it. Clapping together, they approached him and began to ask him questions about little details. Anni Li and Narisa were particularly interested in him recalling small details of what occurred in Holbrook with the Marbury family. A request which caused Matthew to raise an eyebrow, but everyone else in the Order seemed to think it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, so he obliged.

“Mister Freeman!” Gerard called out. Matthew looked. “Would you like to meet your team?”

Matthew nodded and replied, “Sure.”

In they walked, in blue cloaks all. Matthew recognized them from their files. The first to walk in was Theodore, who came and bowed down to him, “I hope to be an asset, Sir Matthew.” They shook hands.

The next was Angel Gutierrez. “You’re cute!” she said, before bowing down. Matthew gave her a kiss on the hand which caused her to giggle a bit.

The next one was Zhao Yin, who was taller than he had originally thought. A Chinese man skilled in martial arts, Matthew knew of Zhao Yin’s history. He was a general of the Han Dynasty’s army in Ancient China, and a good one at that. This was a man who knew how to fight.

He smiled and bowed down to Matthew, saying nothing. Matthew returned it.

Finally came the tall and attractive Valeria Cross. Her eyes filled with surprise as she saw Matthew’s face, but she showed few other signs that she was startled. Matthew could tell, though. The room fell silent. By now, everyone had heard Matthew tell of how he had conquered the great Valeria Cross, Vassal of Balthus.

“It’s a pleasure seeing you again, Miss Cross. Glad to see you back up on your feet.” Matthew said.

“And I’m glad to see you in more pleasurable surroundings, Mister Freeman.”

“Well, any room with you in it is VERY pleasurable, indeed,” he replied, smiling.

Valeria raised an eyebrow. “It’s too bad you’ve gone and changed your fashion style, Mister Freeman. Jailhouse orange suits you.”

“And I see you’ve changed your wardrobe as well, Miss Cross. I’m a bit disappointed, since being naked seemed to suit you just fine; and the tan color of the prison wall being rubbed against your face while I fucked you really brought out the color of your eyes.” Matthew winked. Valeria rolled her eyes and kept silent.

Everyone in the room chuckled.

Valeria said nothing further, but underneath her clothes, she was dripping.

“Well, since we’re all ready,” Gerard said, “let’s move to the attic and we can begin the Anointment.”

They all agreed, and they all made their way upstairs.

In the attic, Matthew candles everywhere. In the center, drawn in chalk, was a large circle encircled with runes and ten black candles. Within the circle were five smaller ones, arranged in an ‘X’ pattern, with lines tracing the central circle to the four around it. The central circle had an ornate, ruby studded, golden goblet sitting in the center of it. It was empty.

Matthew was instructed to stand in the centermost circle and pick up the goblet. Valeria, Theodore, Angel and Zhao took their respective spots in the four circles around him, but they were told to kneel and bow, facing Matthew.

Each of them were instructed to put on their hoods, and Matthew was asked to take out his card. Gerard took the card from Matthew and placed it on top of one of the runes, the side with the black king chess piece symbol facing up, making sure in lined up perfectly with one of the black candles and Matthew.

Sharon entered the room with a long lighter and she lit the ten black candles, before exiting quickly.

Each of the Nine Ascended approached, and each one reached into their cloaks. Out came other cards, similar to the one Matthew had just given Gerard. Each card was black, and each had a different symbol of a chess piece on it, either dull gold or bright silver. The gold symbols represented the black chess pieces, while the silver ones represented the white. Gerard took out his own, a silver king on his card.

Then came knives, long and ornate sacrificial daggers with curving blades and magnificently wrought handles, bearing ancient symbols and gargoyle heads. Each of the Nine Ascended held one.

Gerard put a hand on Matthew’s shoulder. “Are you ready?”

Matthew took a deep breath and nodded.

Gerard smiled. “Relax. You don’t have to do much.” He took his place outside the main circle, standing on one of the runes and holding out his right hand, holding his card and letting the symbol face Matthew. The dagger he held with his left hand, letting it rest at his side.

All the other Ascended ones took similar spots around the circle, standing on top of a rune with a black candle burning in front of them.

“Let us begin” Gerard said calmly.

The other Ascended raised their cards, the symbols facing Matthew. Gerard began to chant, as did the others. It was a long and solemn hymn, similar to a Gregorian chant.

Matthew could feel a cold breeze, though the windows were closed, and the candles did not flicker.

The chanting grew louder and louder, and Matthew noticed the candles were burning brighter…and the room had somehow become pitch black. All he could see were white and black robes surrounding him, no faces, and the bright burning candles and the gold and silver symbols of chess pieces surrounding him.

As the chant grew to a crescendo, Matthew could feel the wind growing stronger, as if coming from beneath him. The chalk outline of the circles began to glow a dull white light.

Matthew took another deep breath, staying as calm as possible. He felt the goblet grow warmer in his hands. Not hot, but warm.

Then the chanting stopped. Gerard spoke. His voice was eerily cold, a far cry from what he truly sounded like. It was deep, and resounding, but sinister and foreboding, sounding like metal scraping against metal and at the same time sounding like a gentle whisper. In fact, it was like several voices at once. Matthew knew then, that he wasn’t hearing the voice of Gerard Winters. He was hearing the voice of Azazel himself…he was hearing the Fallen’s voice.

He spoke in a language unknown to modern times, in a dialect known only to the Fallen. But Matthew understood every word of it.

“We anoint thee, son of Azrael, we grant thee power,” Azazel spoke. “and in this ritual we hereby bestow upon thee, o scion of the Mighty, a great and powerful gift. But for you to attain this gift, this boon of the Ascended, a sacrifice must be made…a taste of Power, for a drop of blood.”

With that, the Ascended took their daggers and pressed the sharp edges against their right forearms, letting them drip blood.

Suddenly, the symbols of the Ascended began to glow and smoke. Matthew could clearly see the glowing glyphs around him. Even the card that had been placed on the ground began to radiate a bright light a small column of smoke erupting from it. Blood flowed from the forearms of the ascended onto the candle flames beneath each of them, but instead of extinguishing the flames, the blood turned the flames blood red.

The goblet in Matthew’s hand began to shake. Matthew suddenly realized that a viscuous liquid was now swirling in the goblet—a bright red liquid.

“A taste of Power…for a drop of blood…” Azazel said again, and the others repeated. He said it again, and they repeated. He repeated the phrase several times more, and the other Ascended echoed him. As they chanted it over and over, the true voices of each of the Ascended filling Matthew’s ears, he noticed that the more blood they spilt, the more the goblet produced. It slowly and surely filled to the brim. Then, just when it was about to overflow, the Ascended dropped their hands and the candles in the room all went out.

For a time there was only darkness.

Finally Azazel spoke, modifying the chant to “A taste of blood…for a drop of Power.”

Matthew understood. He closed his eyes and lifted the goblet to his mouth. As he drank, he noticed that it didn’t taste like blood…it tasted like…POWER.

The inscribed runes glowed a white hot light, as did the circles that Matthew, Valeria, Zhao, Theodore, and Angel were in. As Matthew finished the last drop, he swallowed, and took a deep breath as the goblet dropped to the floor.

And then all of a sudden, the candles in the room lit up, and the ritual was over.

Some of the Ascended took a deep breath and some staggered. Their human voices had returned.

“That took more out of us than I thought,” Cunningham said, “my chest is bloody killin’ me, it is!”

“Oui, I do not remember the Anointing being that exhausting,” Jacques piped in.

“We used more blood than we did back then,” Gerard said, himself panting a bit. “We agreed to give much more power than we did back then. He’s going to need it.” He faced Matthew. “How do you feel son?”

Matthew’s brow was furled, his eyes were closed and sweat was pouring down his face, as if he were trying to gain control of the power he had received. He took several deep breaths through his mouth and exhaled slowly. He raised his left hand, opened his eyes and looked at it and concentrated. Flames erupted forth, but he wasn’t being burned. He looked to Gerard, who had a wide smile on his face. “You’re welcome…” he said, as he raised his own hand and did the same feat, flames bursting forth.

Matthew raised the other hand, and concentrated. It went blue, as if freezing, and it began to give off a cold vapor.

“One of mine…” the Russian behind Matthew said. It was Natalya, who was breathing heavily.

Matthew nodded silently.

Gerard picked up the Black King card and handed it to Matthew. “Congratulations, Sir Matthew, Knight of the Order and New Crusade. Rise, all of you.”

The four others rose at the command of Gerard and took a deep breath.

“Your powers, while nowhere near the Power level of Sir Matthew here, have all been augmented. You too, are Knights of the New Crusade. From now on, Sir Matthew will be your lord and you will follow his commands unless they are in direct violation of a command from the Order of Kings, until such time that the Crusade is no longer needed. Now, let us retire for the evening. I’m a bit tired, as I’m sure we all are. Matthew, Sharon can drive you back to your hotel tonight. She’s waiting downstairs and will wait for you to be ready to go home. We’ll contact you for further instructions. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”

The Ascended left one by one, leaving Matthew and his four Knights in the attic, staring at each other, contemplating this newfound power and responsibility.

“I can’t believe it,” Theodore said, “this is really happening.”

“Believe it,” Angel said in response.

“We have a mission,” Zhao said in a strong Chinese accent, “and we must honor our masters by focusing on that mission.”

“All in good time, friend,” Cross chimed in. “We still don’t know anything about the Soul Collector’s whereabouts or what he’s capable of.”

“I do,” Matthew said, finally. “And this won’t be easy on any of us. Get some rest everyone. I’m sure that the Order will summon us again for our first mission soon. We need to be ready when they do.”

After exchanging a few pleasantries and making sure they each had a way to get home, he went downstairs and found Sharon beside the fireplace. She had removed her cloak, and it occurred to Matthew to remove his own as well. She was wearing a sweater and tight black denims with knee-high brown boots. The fireplace flickered and she was framed beautifully, her shapely legs well-defined by her hugging jeans.

He cleared his throat to get her attention, and she turned to him and smiled.

“Mr. Winters instructed me—” she began, but Matthew raised a hand to stop her before she could finish.

“I can drive home myself,” Matthew assured her, “I’m not that tired anymore.”

“Well, in any case, I won’t take ‘NO’ for an answer,” Sharon Baxter said. “We don’t know how well-adjusted you are yet to that much power, and the Order would be very disappointed indeed if you lost focus and died in an accident.”

She stepped forward and offered him an open palm. Matthew smiled, rolling his eyes in defeat before fishing the keys from his pocket. “Fine, you can come with me, but I’m still driving.”

“Fine…” she said, swaying her hips as she made for the door.

As they got into the car and Matthew backed the car out of the driveway, Sharon turned to him and told him some additional information. “You should know that now that the Ascended have bestowed a part of their Powers into you, you will need to constantly train with them to hone your skill in their usage. It is imperative that you learn to control this as soon as possible, should your next encounter with the Soul Collector take place sooner than we expect.”

“What’s being done to locate him?”

“Mr. Jeffries is using his Agency ties to put out a red flag bulletin to most intelligence agencies around the globe. However our best bet is to use the Three Sisters. That’s the first mission that will be assigned to you and your team…convincing them to help us.”

“Who are the Three Sisters?”

“They’re a powerful trio of Empowered Ones who focus their abilities to divination and witchcraft.”

“You mean like ‘Charmed’?” Matthew asked, referring to the television series.

Sharon Baxter laughed. “Kind of. But the Three Sisters have lived for centuries. In fact, it is sometimes said that if the Order of Kings had wanted thirteen members, the Three Sisters would be the other three members. But they aren’t on very friendly terms with the Order of Kings.”

“Why not?”

Sharon smiled and shrugged sheepishly, as if she were almost embarrassed to tell. “Well, that’s actually Azrael’s fault.”

“What? How?”

“The Three Sisters were famous in Ancient Times. Back then they were known as the Moirae to the Greeks. The Romans would call them Parcae, but that was much later.”

“Moirae…” Matthew repeated the name to himself, as if trying to remember something. “They were the FATES?”

“Yes. Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. They were known to other civilizations as well, in particular the Norse, where they were known as the Norns. Urda, Verdandi, and Skuld…basically Past, Present and Future.”

“So why the grudge against Azrael?”

“Atlantis. At the height of it’s power Atlantis was the only city that boasted a monotheistic religion, a belief in a Supreme Being. Oddly enough the Atlanteans’ leader, Vincent, then using the name Corantor the Gentle, was their leader… a Fallen angel leading a city of faithful followers of the Supreme Being…ironic. In any event, Atlantis grew in power and maintained that Power for thousands of years. Many in the ancient world flocked to it. It was technologically advanced, extraordinarily beautiful, and isolated from the world. The Sisters were plying their trade however as mystical beings of polytheistic religions, which meant that the more successful Atlantis became, the more people started to drift away from worshiping the Greek and Norse pantheons. They requested that Azrael allow the worship of Greek and Norse gods in Atlantis, and in so doing restore the faith in the false pantheons.”

“But the Sisters were in reality, Empowered Ones themselves, correct?”

“Yes.”

“So why have people believe in the Greek and Norse pantheons?”

“Tribute. Gold. Worship. What else? The more people believed that they were in fact the Fates or the Norns the more people brought them tribute, the more that their temples made. In the end it all boiled down to greed.”

Matthew nodded. “Where are they now?”

“We’re not sure. But one of your fellow Knights, Theodore Sharidi, is gifted with Pandora’s spiritual echolocation. We can use that to locate them.”

“Echolocation…you mean like dolphins?”

“Kind of. It’s spiritual echolocation, meaning he can detect other Empowered individuals when he’s nearby. All we need to do is figure out where the Three Sisters are today, send your team, and Theodore can do the rest. Narisa gave you the power of spiritual echolocation as well, but not nearly as powerful as hers or Theodore’s, so it’s better if you use him. Once we find the sisters, we can try and convince them to divine where the Collector is.”

“Why not just ask Narisa to find the Soul Collector and go directly to him?”

“The Soul Collector is nearly immune to spiritual echolocation. Before his pseudo-demise in the Middle Ages, Empowered ones with spiritual echolocation were still killed without warning. It’s unknown what techniques or powers he’s developed and absorbed to allow him to avoid detection, but he has. The Three Sisters are three times as powerful as Narisa when they join, and so they’ve got a better shot at it.”

“I see. Anything else I need to know about the Three Sisters?”

“Just one. The moment they see you they’ll know it was by Azrael’s hand that you achieved your Power. And they still hate him. You’ll have to convince them to help.”

“Perfect.”

“You can do it,” Sharon Baxter said. “I believe in you.”

“Really?!”

Sharon nodded. “…Which is why I’ll be joining the team as a liaison and briefing officer from now on. I’ll be accompanying you on missions and monitoring the team’s progress.”

“I see…Gerard assigned you to this job?”

“Why the surprise? I’m highly qualified, I’ll have you know. I worked with the CIA on many…”

“CIA?”

“Yes. C-I-A.” She said, spelling it out for him. “We were investigating Mister Winters when he…ahem,” she cleared her throat before continuing, “uh—recruited me.”

“I see.”

“You seem disappointed to have me on the team, Sir,” Yvette said accusingly.

“No, no; not disappointed at all,” Matthew chuckled. “I’d be very happy to have you on my team. I’m sure your ass would be something that we would all appreciate.”

“What?!” Sharon asked.

“What?” Matthew asked back.

“You said my ‘ass’ would be something to appreciate.”

“No, I didn’t. I said I’m sure your ASSETS would be something that we would appreciate.”

“Right,” she said, heavy on the sarcasm. “Look, I’m one of the biggest asses you’ve got on the team. SHIT. ASSETS. I meant to say assets. I’m one of the biggest ASSETS you’ve got on the team.”

Matthew suppressed a laugh. “I’m sure you are. Just want you to know that you don’t have to prove yourself to me or anyone else. Just as long as you show your breasts.”

“What did you say?!”

“I said just as long as you try your best.”

Sharon rolled her eyes. “Are you always this horny?”

“Are you always this sexy?”

Sharon blushed. “Fine, fine, you win, Sir. Stop turning me on before I do something stupid and jump you while you’re driving.”

“Well, I can think of something else you can do while I’m driving.”

Sharon gave him a seductive look, licked her lips, before reaching over for the zipper on his jeans. “Well, since you insist…” she spoke finally, before opening her mouth and leaning forward to wrap her lips around his cock.