The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

“Water!” cried Elizabeth. The words cracked her parched lips. She stumbled her way to the narrow stream. Ignoring her pained knees, she scrambled across the dry, rocky distance separating her from the water.

Plunging her face into the stream, she gulped it down, drinking until she thought she’d throw up. Her thirst sated for the moment, she rolled into the shallow water, letting the cool liquid soak her clothes. Pulling herself out, she collapsed on the bank.

Dehydration and heatstroke were staved off, but her problems weren’t over yet.

SUBMIT

It was always at the forefront of her mind. Urging, insisting she give in. She’d long since lost track of them, the others who escaped. Some, she’d seen captured, while the rest had scattered into the pitch black night. Elizabeth hoped they were doing better than herself.

It had been a tough battle. The Brotherhood was ready and waiting when they burst out the door. Although they had won the fight, or at least held out long enough to escape, she hadn’t been unscathed. Even now there were still thoughts floating through her head. Foreign thoughts, their thoughts.

Her phone was long since abandoned. Who could she call for help? Worse, she knew full well who she would call given the chance. In a moment of weakness, Elizabeth had almost done it, too. She’d come this close to calling before she realized what number she was dialing. It was a familiar one, a number she’d used many times before. The temple. The enemy occupied temple.

If she called, they would find her. Find her and catch her. Then they would capture her, take her back and make her a slave. Warp her mind until she wanted nothing more than to serve her masters, to obey and please them.

STOP THAT!

Elizabeth yelled to herself, trying to derail that line of thought. Not for the first time, she unfastened her pants and reached inside. Her pussy ached, and while it wasn’t as obvious now that she was soaked from the stream, her fingers found her slit moist and inviting.

That was how they operated. They used your own sensuality, your own arousal against you. They made you want it, want it in the worst way. They’d make you want to give in, want to be a slave, until you welcomed it. They made it seem like the hottest thing in the world, and you’d begin to fantasize, to wonder what it would be like to serve them, to have all your will redirected until you thought of nothing but obedience.

ENOUGH!

Elizabeth forced herself to stop, but she didn’t pull her hand away. If anything, she was more desperate than ever.

It improved after she came the first time, but she kept going anyways. Another two or three wouldn’t hurt.

Jessica Wei held up the two dresses, trying to make up her mind. She liked the red one. It seemed to cry out for attention, and she was definitely in a red sort of mood tonight. Still, the black one was sooooo cute. There were going to be a bunch of hot guys at the party tonight, which would catch their eye the best?

Ok, sure. If she just wanted some hunk in between her legs, all she had to do was jump in her car, pull up downtown, and have her pick of the hot young norms. Sometimes, though, she just wanted to get with a someone whose mind she couldn’t reshape with a thought.

That made these controller parties so fun. A room full of people just like you, where someone used to having their way with the world could actually sit down with their equals. Of course, there was also a dangerous thrill undercutting every moment of it. One slip, one false move and you’d be leaving the party a lot different than you arrived. Jess knew a couple people who’d wound up like that. Everyone did. At best, you’d spend the night on your knees and go home embarrassed the next day. At the worst... Still, you had to screw up pretty bad to go that far, and what fun was life without a bit of danger.

Mmm.. Danger. The red one then. Red was a dangerous color.

The doorbell rang. Now who could that be? For a minute, Jessica was tempted to let it go.

The bell rang again.

Oh, bother. A quick peek wouldn’t take long. Jessica reached out with her mind, scanning to see who it was.

What the? Jessica had to look twice before she believed what she was seeing, but seconds later she was on the move, scrambling down the stairs into the landing below. Her bathrobe came undone, but that was the last thing on her mind right now.

“Oh my god, what happened to you, Lisa?” she said once the door was open.

Without the door there to lean on, Jessica’s friend stumbled forward. Jessica tried to catch her, but only managed to fall along side her. Lisa’s clothes were a mess, and she was caked with dirt. The musty smell of sweat and dirt suggested that Lisa hadn’t bathed in days.

“Come on, work with me here girl,” she said as she moved Lisa inside.

It took quite a bit of effort, but she got Lisa over to the couch. Jessica cringed as Lisa’s dirty shoes dropped mud onto her new sofa, but whatever, it wasn’t important. She shook her friend slightly.

“Lisa. Lisa honey, are you ok?”

Lisa groaned, opening her eyes slightly.

“Wha- what?” Lisa mumbled through cracked lips. Her mouth moved, and for a moment it looked like she was going to say something, but her eyes closed and she fell back onto the couch.

“Come on, stay with me Lisa. Damn it, you need an ambulance. I’ll be right back, hon, I’m just going to get my phone!”

“No!” Lisa’s eyes shot open, looking wildly about her. “No, they’ll find me.”

“What? What are you talking about, Lisa?”

“They’ll check the hospitals. You can’t let them find me.”

“But who?”

“Water.”

“What?”

“Please. Water”

Jessica shook Lisa again, but her fried was out of it. What was going on. She should go get help. It was just that, Lisa was always the level headed one. If she said someone was after her... Did Jessica really want to that risk?

“You’d better hang in there, girl,” Jessica whispered softly as she went to get the water. The party was long forgotte. “I’ve got a lot of questions for you.”

“Holy crap, that’s messed up,” was the only thing Jessica could think to say once Lisa told her story.

“You hadn’t heard anything?”

“Not a thing,” said Jessica, “not even in the news. I looked up while you were asleep.”

“It wouldn’t exactly be on the seven o’clock.”

“I mean the real news. You know, online.”

“I guess they’d want to keep it quiet. But still, nothing?”

“Well, there was one thing. Some little blurb about a change in leadership. A new priestess after whatsherface stepped down. Can’t remember the name offhand. Alexis, maybe? Or was it Abby?”

“Alicia,” said Lisa.

“Yeah, that’s it, Alicia. She’s a bad guy?”

“You could say that. I fought her that night, barely made it out.”

“Bad then, gotcha. What are you gonna do?”

“I, um, I haven’t thought that far ahead,” Lisa looked a bit sheepish. “I have to tell someone, but—”

“But who, right?. Who won’t just go to Alicia, who tells them nothing’s wrong and they should mind their own business?” said Jessica.

“Pretty much,” admitted Lisa, “The worst part is, I’m not even sure who to trust. Alicia taught one of my classes. She seemed perfectly normal like two days beforehand. If she was with them, then who else? Anyone I talk to might be just another trap.”

“What about the Guardians?”

“Be serious, Jess.”

“Oh come on, why not?”

“I don’t know, maybe because they hate us?”

“Hate is a pretty strong —”

“No, seriously, if they could get away with it, they’d have wiped us out long ago, along with the rest of the ‘meddlers’.”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“Ok, fine. Maybe ‘wipe out’ was a bit too strong, but they still can’t stand us.”

“What about Derrick. At least give him a call. He’d listen to you.”

“We didn’t exactly part on the best of terms, in case you forgot.”

“Oh come on. There’s no way he’s still mad at you.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Oh come on, Derrick. Help me out here, for old time’s sake.”

“That didn’t count for much the last time we spoke.”

“I—,” Lisa closed her eyes and took a deep breath before bringing the phone back to her head. “That wasn’t about you, and you know it.”

“That doesn’t change what happened.”

“Come on, can’t you do anything?”

“Even if you are telling the truth, and god knows how I’d ever convince anyone, we wouldn’t do anything about it. We don’t involve ourself in internal politics.”

“Wholesale conquest is a little more extreme than ‘internal politics’".

“Look, you said you were worried that someone was after you. You know there’s always a place for you here. You haven’t been forgotten, you still have friends here.”

“And the Temple?

“I told you, we can’t get involved.”

“You just want me to abandon them?”

“There’s nothing you can do for them. At least here you could have a fresh start.”

“No! Absolutely not. I refuse to give up on them.”

“Lisa, please. Think it over.”

“Goodbye, Derrick.”

“Please Lisa, take care of yourself, don’t do anything stu—”

The phone went silent. Lisa had ended the call.

“So, not good?” asked Jessica as she stood up from the sofa. Lisa nodded, fighting back tears, and Jessica put her arm around Lisa, trying to comfort her as best she could.

“I knew they wouldn’t help, but—” she broke down, unable to do much more than cry as a week’s worth of repressed pain came crashing down. She was all alone, everyone was gone. Who was she kidding, there was no way she was going to be able to save them.

“It’s ok,” said Jessica as she hugged her friend, “I’m here. It’s all going to be ok.”

It took a couple minutes, but Lisa pulled herself together. If they were gone, then it was all up to her. Somehow, some way, she would have to see this through.

Elizabeth curled up in the small cliffside cave, idly stroking herself as she took shelter from the blazing sun. Physically she was ok. The water did a lot to renew her strength. Her food supplies were low, but she wouldn’t starve. For the dozenth time, she blessed her foresight in grabbing them before she made her break.

If only her mind was in similar shape. The long walk had taken its toll, and while the compulsions refused to lessen, exhaustion weakened her resolve.

By the hour, it grew harder to keep her own thoughts separate. In the end, Elizabeth was forced to admit the ugly truth. If she stumbled on civilization this very second, the first thing she’d do is surrender herself to her mas- her enemies. She still had some control, some presence of mind. She understood why they were her enemies, and intellectually she didn’t want to be enslaved, but it wasn’t enough. More and more, she yearned to be taken and made into some man’s eager little plaything. Out here, in the dusty wilderness she was able to keep hold of herself, but given the opportunity, she no longer had the strength to resist.

It was time to do something. She’d hoped to escape first, but that didn’t look like it was an option any longer. More and more, it was clear that her only hope would be to trance and wipe away the taint of Brotherhood programming.

It was a terrible risk. The process would lay her out for at least the better part of a day, possibly several. Her dormant body wouldn’t require much food and water, but she’d still be pretty weak when she came out. Not the best situation in a harsh environment. Worse, she’d be a sitting duck until it was over. There had been no signs of pursuit recently, but that didn’t mean they weren’t out there.

Her pussy clenched at the thought of being found. That settled it. Risky or not, her only alternative was to accept surrender. For all she knew, she was the only one to make it out of the temple. If anyone was going to go back and help them it would be her.

Still, she thought as her hand drifted back between her legs, another round of pleasure beforehand wouldn’t hurt.

Another one or three, that is.

“Oh hey,” said Jessica, “I thought of something.”

The two were seated in her living room, enjoying a cup of tea as they tried to think through Lisa’s problem.

“I totally know where you could get one of those Brotherhood guys.”

Taking a sip from the steaming mug, she looked more intensely at Jessica. So far, they’d been drawing a blank. The best Lisa could come up with was just to go online and tell anyone who would listen what had happened. That might hurt the Brotherhood, but it wouldn’t do anything for her captive friends.

“What do you mean, ‘get’?”

“I dunno. You said the traitors in the Temple were being weird, maybe if we nab a Brotherhood guy we could make him tell us something.”

Lisa thought about it. Jessica had a point. People wouldn’t stick their necks out to help the temple, but if there was a way to coopt people without stripping away their powers? That would be a serious game changer, one that would get attention.

If they believed it. It flew in the face of everything she’d been taught. Lisa would have dismissed it if she hadn’t seen the evidence with her own eyes. But if they had someone on the inside? Someone able to explain what had happened, able to prove it?

“Ok, tell me about him.”

“Stop picking at it”

“I’m not picking at it.”

The two were standing in a line outside the nightclub. It was a trendy place. From inside, they could hear the deep thrum of the bass as the latest hot new DJ worked the crowd. Lisa couldn’t remember his name, she’d never cared much for that sort of thing. Jess knew. She’d told Lisa earlier, but she’d forgotten. The important thing was that they’d find their quarry here.

Conrad Meyer, age 29. Longstanding Brotherhood member, but by all indications totally insignificant. Jessica kinda knew him through a friend of a friend. Apparently he was never up to much of anything in particular. He just whiled away his time in bars and nightclubs, using his power to pick up women. No one would miss him.

“Are too,” said Jessica, “Geeze, you’d think you never wore a dress before.”

“Not in a while, at least for this sort. I’ve been busy the past couple years.”

The plan tonight was Jessica’s, though Lisa couldn’t really think of a better one. Their target was known for bringing home women, and the two of them were certainly easy on the eyes. If they could catch his attention, getting him alone would be easy. He’d even think it was his idea.

To Jessica’s delight, that meant a quick flurry of dress shopping. Jessica had been more than happy to pay, which was good considering Lisa’s accounts were probably watched.

They were dressed to stand out. Lisa wore a slinky red dress with a plunging neckline. Other than a thin pair of straps, it left her shoulders and back bare, all the better to show off her honed athleticism. Jessica, on the other hand, wore a form fitting strapless minidress. Though it didn’t display as much cleavage as Lisa’s, the tight thin material clung to her like a second skin, showing the small yet perky breasts hidden beneath the material. The rather abrupt ending left her silky smooth legs on display, with the dress’s short length hinting at what lay just further up her thighs.

The trouble was, this was a trendy place. Pretty much every other girl in line was dressed up for a night out, and the sort of people that came here were used to standing out. Of course, Lisa and Jess had their own advantages. Advantages lacked by the others, but Lisa was loathe to use them. The idea tonight was to go as far as they possibly could through persuasion alone. They needed to get their guy out of here with a minimum of fuss, and that wasn’t likely if they resorted to their powers in the middle of a crowded room. At least, not against someone that could fight back.

Things weren’t hopeless. Without any false pride, Lisa knew that the two of them were beautiful. Granted, it wasn’t totally by accident. Almost every controller had a limited ability to mold their body, even if it was totally subconscious. Being able to sculpt one’s body in any particular direction was a rare feat, and not one that Lisa could accomplish, but even so, there were very few ugly controllers.

That aside, it helped that they were going after one particular person, one whose tastes they knew at least a little. They had planned their night around his tastes, not just in appearance, but mentally as well. At least some of the hesitance, Lisa knew, came from the decoy she’d wrapped around her mind. It was always a little weird, sharing her mind with thoughts and emotions that weren’t quite hers. Lisa was used to it by now, but Jessica didn’t have the advantage of her long training to grow accustomed.

Too bad. This was her idea, and they were never going to pull it off without disguises. They needed their target to accept them as they were pretending to be, a group of young underclassmen from the local college out for a night on the town. There was no way he’d buy that if a cursory scan showed them to be fellow controllers, and from what she’d heard, he wasn’t much interested in girls that could hold their own against him.

Tonight, Lisa was disguised as a pole vaulter from the university’s track team. They’d decided on making her a sheltered athlete, a particularly naive one that had shunned most things social in to focus on competition. Tonight, she was out on the town at the insistence of her more outgoing roommate, even though she wasn’t totally comfortable with it.

In short, she would appear to the world as a young, beautiful, and above all, sheltered girl. The perfect blend of strength and innocence. If Jessica’s sources were accurate, Conrad wouldn’t be able to resist her. By all accounts, he was drawn to innocence. Well, let him dream about twisting and corrupting her. He was about to bite off more than he could chew.

If they got inside, anyways. This damned line was taking forever to move. Lisa looked behind her, the line stretched to the end of the block and began to wrap around the corner. At least they’d made it before that happened, but it still wasn’t making the front move faster.

“You know what, screw this.”

Lisa grabbed Jessica’s hand and pulled her out of the line.

“What are you doing,” Jessica said, “this is the hottest club in town. Trust me, it’ll be worth the wait.”

“We’re going inside, but I’m sick of waiting in line.”

Marching towards the door, Jessica tried to pull her back.

“What are you doing? I’m not sure what you’re used to back home, but this is the city. They’re not going to let you cut in just because you flash a pair of tits!”

Wow, Jessica was really caught up in her role. That happened sometimes, especially when you weren’t used to it. Lisa smiled at the doorman as she walked up, her heart started beating a little faster as she approached. The doorman frowned, anticipating a scene when he turned them away. Lisa noted that even as he did so, his eyes still fixated on her breasts. ‘Bethany’, Lisa’s cover identity, couldn’t believe what she was doing. The ‘good little country girl’ was nervous enough about going out in such a slutty dress, what in the world was she doing trying to cut in line.

Lisa held her self in check, keeping her true self firmly under control beneath the decoy. Even as the man opened his mouth to turn them away, she gave his mind a little push. He blinked. Once, twice, then he smiled and waved them through. The people in line weren’t happy. A few held calculating looks, trying to see if they could recognize her, assuming she must be famous to just get waved through like that. Whatever. She didn’t even have to do anything to make them forget about it. A few grumbles, a long wait, and Lisa’s shortcut would be nothing more than a passing curiosity.

That was a small risk, using her power on the doorman, but not much of one. Their quarry was inside, surrounded by people. The door should be the last thing on his mind. Besides, Lisa kept her touch light.

“How did you do that?” said Jessica as they walked inside. It was like stepping into a furnace. The outside air had been warm, but the oncoming night and a faint breeze cooled it. No such luck in here. The room was filled with the press of bodies. Every breath brought in the smell of sweat and booze. There were some people who would find themselves at home here, but not Lisa. She and her decoy were both a little unnerved by the hungry looks a lot of men gave her.

She leaned towards Jesisca, whispering in her ear “you know full well how I did that, Jess. Pull yourself together.”

“What are you talking about, Beth, I’m... Jessica?” Realization dawned in her eyes. “Wow, that’s right, I’m Jessica. Huh, kinda weird to forget that. For a few minutes there, I really did think you were Beth, and we were a bunch of college kids.”

“That’s right, but ah, don’t shake it off all the way. We’re still going to need that.”

“Gotcha. Either way, I need a drink. How bout you?”

“No thanks, I” Lisa paused. She’d normally turn one down, but ‘good girl Bethany’ was cautiously curious. Better to stay in character.

“All right, let’s go get one.”

Not even slightly surprising, Jessica never wound up paying a cent for her drinks, but instead managed to pick up a cute young man. Before long, Lisa found herself dragged off to a table where his friends were waiting. After a round of introductions, Lisa had to suffer being chatted up by one of the overeager guys. The only upside was that the table had a view of the dance floor.

There! She saw Conrad out on there. He’d moved into the thick of it, getting ready to make his pick. She’d have to act soon, and that meant getting rid of these clowns.

“Christy!” Lisa whined to Jessica, “You said we could dance!”

Jessica flashed a look of annoyance at her, a slight slip before she remembered their true purpose. Unfortunately, the guys thought it was a great idea and went out with them. Before long, they were swaying to the beat of the music while the guy she was with grinded into her from behind. After a few minutes, he grew bold, and his hands started to move more freely across her body. She didn’t have to feign her discomfort with the situation, but after she delicately stopped his hand from climbing up her thigh, he backed off.

All the while, she moved closer to her quarry. When they neared one another, she started lightly flirting with him. He caught her eye as she stared at him, and she shyly blushed, eyes darting away. She thought she felt a brush against her mind, but it was hard to tell. Her decoy was supposed to be a normal, so those senses were a little dull tonight.

Then he made his move. Apparently she’d caught his attention, since her dance partner abruptly lost interest and wandered off. As her did, Lisa was surprised by how disappointed that made her feel. As he broke contact with her, she found herself missing the touch of his body. In the back of her mind, she wondered whether that was Conrad’s doing, but that was brushed aside when he showed up.

She’d recognized that he was handsome, of course. That much had been plain enough looking at him across the room. Even so, she wasn’t prepared for how attractive he would appear. Suddenly, just as she was craving contact, there he was. His face just somehow blossomed in her mind, blotting out everything else in the room.

This was the critical point. She’d have to give herself mostly over to Bethany now, she couldn’t afford the slightest bit of doubt in him. He’d begun controlling her of course. At least she hoped so, because wow, there was just no way any man should be that hot in real life. In theory, the decoy would catch all his alterations unless he realized what she was doing.

Then his hands were on her, and unless she wanted to drop her decoy the time for thinking had passed. She pressed in close to him, nipples coming to attention as her breasts rubbed against his hard body. She slid close to him, craving contact. It was time to let Bethany take over, and Bethany was a girl torn. On one hand, she wanted him so badly, but still, she was a good girl, wasn’t she? She wasn’t slutty, really, but he was just so unbelievably hot.

Her hand reached lower, holding his crotch as she felt it harden through the fabric of his pants. She looked up at his face, then jerked her hand away. Her entire face flushed bright crimson as she giggled nervously.

“Sorry, I’m not usually so... I don’t know what came over me.”

Conrad smiled at her, a warm, reassuring grin that told her everything was all right. She couldn’t help but reciprocate his affection wholeheartedly. Who could resist a look like that?

“Hey, no shame in going for what you want”

“I guess not,” she giggled. In the part of her that was still independent, Lisa had to admire the smooth way he reinforced the idea that his crotch was what she wanted. It was true, though, at least for now. Her entire body was aflame as she pressed against his hardness, the Bethany part of her mind marveling at the strange new desires coursing through her.

“It’s getting pretty crowded in here, isn’t it.”

“Mhmmm,” she nodded.

“I bet you’d like to go somewhere a little more private, wouldn’t you?”

“Please,” she begged.

Before they could leave together, Lisa dared insert a tiny shred of doubt into the mask she wore. She couldn’t abandon her friend. At Lisa’s silent urgings, Bethany pulled back and said.

“I’m supposed to be here with my friend. I, I don’t suppose she can come too, can she?”

Conrad must have pulled the knowledge from her mind, because she immediately looked over at Jessica, who quickly disentangled herself from her own dancing partner. As she walked over, she saw Jessica’s face blossom with sudden awe as she looked over at Conrad. Lisa knew the feeling all too well, and imagined hers looked similar. Jessica sauntered up to Conrad and threw her arms around his neck.

“Damn, Beth, what did you find here.” Lisa felt a surge of jealousy as she pressed her body against him, but as quickly as it came the feeling extinguished.

“Think we can share him,” asked Jessica with a saucy smile. Lisa had a sudden revelation that she would do anything so long as it made him happy. With a sudden surety that it was what he wanted, she leaned in close to her friend and kissed her full on the lips. It was intense and passionate, taking her breath away, but it was only a prelude to the real pleasures that were coming. Taking her place at her man’s side, the three of them walked out the doorway.

There was a limo waiting when they stepped out of the club. The driver bowed slightly as he held open the door for the three of them. Lisa was first, followed by Conrad, with Jessica coming last.

She was on him the moment the door slammed shut, even before the limo pulled away. She didn’t care as he slid her dress straps off her shoulders, pulling down the top to expose her full breasts. Her own hands were busy feeling his body, but soon they settled on the one place she was most interested in. She gasped with desire as she pulled his thick hard rod free from his pants. Given her line of work, it hand’t been that long since Lisa had seen one, but sweet innocent Bethany was far more sheltered.

Breaking off her kiss, she realized that there was something else she could use her mouth for. Bethany had heard about it, she wasn’t that naive, but it was just something sluts did, wasn’t it? But she wanted it, oh boy she wanted it. Did that make her a slut?

Oh who cared, as long as she could wrap her lips around that glorious member. Leaning down, she flicked tongue across it ever so slightly. Nervousness warred with desire, and desire won out big time. A little further, and her lips touched it. Then they parted, letting it inside.

Dimly, she was aware of Jessica making out with him in the corner of her eye. That was good. It was right that Jessica helped him out while she was occupied. Besides, she was the lucky one, the one who got to have his cock. Somewhere, she felt a sense of anticipation, as though she was waiting for the right moment, but it was hard to remember what. All she knew was that she would know it when she saw it.

His cock twitched, and he groaned as his hips bucked into her. His tool sputtered to life, shooting its yummy load into her waiting mouth. Even as she swallowed, a voice seemed to echo through her mind. Now!, and Bethany was gone.

Lisa was fast, hitting his mind while it was still flush with the release of his climax. He tried to fight, but it was futile. Maybe if he’d had time to prepare, but he was never given the chance. It took Jessica a moment to realize what was going on, but then she shook off the decoy and joined in. Against the two of them, there was nothing he could do. Within seconds after Jessica joined in, Lisa had him under control.

Putting him to sleep, she reached out and directed the driver to Jessica’s car. With the important parts out of the way, Lisa took stock. Her own dress was bunched up around her waist, at some point, her panties had come off, and she wasn’t even sure when. Jessica was digging around the floor trying to find her dress, somehow she’d managed to pull it off while making out with Conrad. Lisa felt a trickle slide down her face. Wiping it off, she realized that it was a drop of cum, and spat as she noticed the taste lingering in her mouth.

“Well,” she said, “that got a little out of hand.”

Her skin crawled as she remembered his fingers reaching between her legs into her dripping slit. Her juices still stained the seat. She found her panties, but didn’t put the sopping garments on. Jessica had her dress on, but also decided against wearing the sodden underwear.

“At least,” Lisa said as they pulled up to the parking lot, “at least we got him.”

Now it was time to go home and see what it was worth.

The depths of her mind twinkled like the million lights of a cityscape, blinking and shining in the depths of the night. In her conscious thoughts, the memories of this place were beautiful. That was then. Now, she was beyond consciousness, beyond thought and emotion.

This was trance, the true self beneath the self, and the place where all ills could be healed. The entirety of her mind and self was laid out in a dizzying array. Fractals within fractals that glowed and shifted before her. It would have dazzled a normal person, but there was no concept of worry in trance, nor of self. She knew the landscape before her, knew it to the core of her being, for it was her. Here in this place, with all other awareness cast aside, all she knew was that the pattern was wrong. She was here to set it right.

She glided over the surface. Here and there, she brushed it with feather soft nudges. Now and again, a part had gone wrong completely. Those parts, she stopped to rebuild. It was slow and laborious. Each minute section had to be examined individually, and there was quite a bit of it. This did not bother her. Impatience was an emotion. There were no emotions here.

Curiosity too was a foreign sensation, but when she felt a second presence join in, that was the closest thing to her reaction. This was something new, something she had no idea how to handle it. With a sense of disquiet very out of place in the serenity of trance, she continued her work.

Then it changed something. That was wrong. It wasn’t supposed to do that.

What was it doing? Rushing to the anomaly, she wasted no time before scanning to see what damage he’d caused. Inch by inch, she poured over the place it touched, and her scan found... nothing. For all that she had witnessed him act, the pattern was clean and unblemished.

Being a disembodied awareness inside a mental representation, she couldn’t exactly shrug, but that was the easiest way to characterize her reaction. Her purpose was to set the mind to rights, so if that area checked out then she had no further interest.

No matter how anomalous the other presence was.

She continued with her work. Even if the other presence wasn’t hurting things, there were still aberrations she had to set right. From time to time, the other presence would reach out, always to a spot she’d already cleaned. Each time she would dutifully examine it. There was never anything out of sorts, but her trance state was nothing if not methodical.

In time, she finished combing the depths of her mind, satisfied that everything had been repaired. With an impulse that might have translated to a contented sigh, she let her awareness expand. The twinkling lights of trance faded as her awareness grew to once again encompass her mind.

Elizabeth woke in a brightly lit room. The air had a faint chemical smell that matched the clinical and sterile surroundings. There were a few seconds of disorientation. Where was she? What happened to the cave, to the desert? Her mouth was dry, lips cracking slightly as she opened them, but that was expected after trance. She heard footsteps behind and turned to look.

Then she saw HIM.

“Master,” she whispered.

Suddenly it made sense. He was her master, she understood that now. To the core of her being, she realized that her only purpose in life was to serve and please. Intellectually, she knew that they had changed her to think like this. That was fine. More than fine. The sole point of her existence was to serve her masters, and she was grateful they took the time to make her a better servant.

Joints aching from the prolonged trance, Elizabeth pulled herself off the bed. The floor was cold against her knees, but that wasn’t important. What mattered was that Elizabeth make a good impression as she awaited her master’s first command.