The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

Somewhere in Middle America, Tuesday evening

Paul used the rear entrance into the Men’s Dorm so that he could avoid the long hallway with Erik and his other nosy neighbors. Getting Nicole in and out without being seen was never easy, even if she’d been game about it. “You’ve seen how I can turn on the charm, lover. These boys don’t stand a chance.” Paul had started to hear rumors going around the dorm involving him, last Friday night, and a hooker. He suspected Erik was the source, but at least Erik hadn’t sent Ron the Cool RA snooping around.

Not yet, anyway.

He shifted the small paper bag to his left hand as he pulled out his dorm keys. Obtaining what was inside hadn’t been easy. Crossroads Mall was out by the interstate highway and required two bus transfers each way, but Paul had persevered, and came away with a potential solution to Nicole’s ongoing strange behavior. At the very least, it could help him get at the roots of the problem before things got any worse.

Unless… they already have? Oh no, what now?

He opened the door to find Nicole standing there, motionless. She was dressed in frilly pink lingerie and, oddly enough, matching pink heels. She swayed slightly from side to side, staring straight forward, taking no notice of his arrival.

“God… dammit. They left the door propped open again?”

“Yes.”

“Nicole,” he said forcefully. “Listen to me.”

“I hear, and obey.”

His hand immediately went to the front of his jeans, where the rectangular bulge in his left pocket confirmed that yes, he still had the phone, and no, it wasn’t being used by someone else. “Why are you here? I didn’t… you know, summon you or whatever.”

“Come to your dorm room,” she mumbled. “Must come to your dorm room. Must wait for you to return.”

He thought about snapping her out of it with a firm command or, failing that, a slap across the face. But either action could end up awakening Indifferent Nicole, the girl who didn’t know him, and if that Nicole suddenly found herself half-naked in his room…

After checking to make sure the door was both closed and looked, he slid by Nicole to unload his backpack. He began to shrug off his jacket as well before reconsidering; he was probably going to have to go right back outside again, an entranced Nicole trailing behind as he led her back to her own dorm. He couldn’t risk sending her out on her own. If her friends found her while she was droning on and on about hearing and obeying… well, Erik and Ron the Cool RA would quickly become the least of his worries.

Paul needed to take control of the situation, and fast. “Nicole, listen and obey. Something happened… I don’t know if I butt-dialed you somehow, or, I dunno, thigh-dialed you? Anyway, it was an accident. We need to get you back on schedule before someone gets worried about you.”

“I will always obey you, master. Paul Sorelli is the most wonderful man in the world.”

That was… weird and new. “Nicole, did anything unusual happen today? Did you go somewhere? Did you… meet anyone? Talk to anyone?”

“Yes, master. I was in the student union. I asked someone for the time and he pulled out an old pocket watch. He started swinging it back and forth, back and forth. ‘Just follow it with my eyes,’ he said. Back and forth. Sleepier and sleepier. Deeper and deeper. He told me to come here and obey you without question, master. Paul Sorelli is the most wonderful man in the world.”

Like a sleepwalker, she drifted over to the bed and laid down, her head propped up by some fluffy blue pillows that hadn’t been there when Paul last left the room. Had she gone shopping for him? Was that somehow part of her programming, or whatever it was?

She slipped out of her heels, and continued to stare straight ahead. “I shall always obey. I am helpless to resist.”

“Who was this guy, Nicole? The one who had the pocket watch? Do you know him? Do you know his name? Where is he now?” Wait, is she winking at me?

“I am your mindless slave, master.” Her smile betrayed her otherwise blank face. “You should probably command me to sleep with you. Your slave is very, very horny right now.”

“Wait… are you?”

“Your mindless slave wants to fuck the shit out of you. Master.”

Paul’s cock went from zero to sixty. “You… oh my God, I totally fell for that. You’re good, Nicole.” He dropped his jacket on the floor. “I’m gonna make you pay for this.”

“Good, because… I mean, yes master.”

“Okay slave, remove your clothes.”

“Yes, master. I obey without question.” She reached for her panties.

“No… um… slow down, slave.” As much as Paul wanted to jump onto the bed, he knew that drawing it out for a bit would make the sex even better for both of them. He cycled through all of his fantasies, finally settling on an old favorite. “You’re a spy. You’ve been brainwashed. You’ve been programmed to seduce me.”

“Yes. Brainwashed. I must obey my programmed orders,” she cooed. She bit her index finger and shot him a smoldering glance. “So, we’re alone at last. Let’s get a little more comfortable, shall we?” She slowly slid her panties down her legs, wiggling her toes at the end. She reached around her back and slowly undid her bra, holding it loose against her breasts. “I need a little help with this.”

Paul pulled off his shirt as he made his way to the bed. He ran his hands up the length of her body, slowly lifting the bra and tossing it to the side. He gently caressed her firm breasts, then buried his head between them. He moved on to her neck and began kissing her soft skin. “I don’t know. Maybe we shouldn’t. I’m a very important diplomat with, um, a lot of, uh, top secret papers on my desk.”

“If they’re very important, you shouldn’t carry them around in a backpack.”

“Briefcases are for old people.”

“Attaché cases are hot. You’d look good with one. Not that you don’t look delicious enough all by yourself.”

Paul made a mental note to ask his parents for an attaché case. “Are you trying to seduce me?”

“Well, I’m already naked. And you? You’re halfway to being naked, Mister Very-Important-Diplomat. Let’s get you the rest of the way there, shall we?” She dropped to her knees, sliding down his pants as soon as he finished undoing his belt. “Be honest. You want me. You want my body. My tits, my ass, my warm tongue on your cock.”

“I do. I want you. I—oh! Ah!”

“What? Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He blushed. “The waistband hit my dick when you pulled my boxers down. It’s a little sore today, I think you wore me out.”

“Oh? Well, let me kiss it and make it allll better for you.”

She opened her mouth. Before she could close in, he placed his hand on her head. “Code Alpha Three, Agent Nicole. Your mind is blank.”

Thank you, she mouthed. “Yes, master. My mind is blank. Agent Nicole is ready for instruction.”

“Now that you’ve seduced me, you’re going to blow me.”

She had to stifle another smile before closing her lips around his cock.

If anything, she was twice as good this time around.

Somewhere in Middle America, Wednesday morning

“That was the most memorable sex I have ever had or will ever have,” said Paul, his face resting next to Nicole’s, his fingers tracing lazy circles on her stomach.

“Have ever had, yes. Will ever have? Not fucking likely.”

“You totally had me convinced for a second, there.”

“More like a few minutes, lover,” she laughed. “I can be really good at roleplaying when I want to be. I was thinking about doing this all day. It made me so hot, I can’t even.” She took his hand and kissed his fingers. “I’m glad you liked having a little fun with me. We’re going to have to do this again.”

Paul scrunched up in the bed until he was sitting up. “Well, what if… what if we kind of did it for real?”

Later

“I’m a little nervous.”

“Just try not to think about it. Just let it happen. It’s like letting yourself fall asleep instead of lying in bed, trying to fall asleep.” Paul was holding the crystal he’d bought from the mall. Nicole was propped up in his bed, her pink lingerie back on, a blanket pulled up to her waist.

She scrunched her face. “That doesn’t make any sense. How am I supposed to fall asleep without trying to fall asleep?”

“Sorry, that was a bad way to put it. What I meant was, it’s like if you really need to go to sleep and you’re unable to, and then you’re up half the night because you keep actively thinking about how you’re not falling asleep.”

“So, do the opposite.”

“Exactly. I’m going to help guide you along and give you something to focus on while we work on relaxing your mind, like letting the air out of a balloon, nice and slow.”

“I feel like a balloon right now.” She inhaled sharply and let it out slowly, smoothly. A weak smile followed. “Okay, deflated. I’m ready.”

“Good. Here we go.” He began to swing the crystal from its chain. “Now, just relax. I want you to focus your eyes on the crystal. Your pretty eyes on the pretty crystal. Watch it spin and swing, back and forth. So relaxing.”

Nicole’s eyes quickly locked onto the swinging, sparkling rock. Alarm bells rang in the back of her mind, distantly, not loud enough to stop her. The room around her faded into gray fuzz. There was only the crystal now, and Paul’s voice. He had a sweet, calm voice. She eased into the soft pillows.

“Back and forth,” he said. The crystal and her eyes settled into a steady rhythm. Back and forth. She could just catch both ends of the arc without having to move her head. Back and forth.

“And now you’re feeling safe and warm and very relaxed, deeply relaxed. Listening to my voice, only my voice. You can feel a wave of calmness washing over you, covering you like a soft, warm blanket. Starting with your toes, then up into your feet, covering your legs.

Back and forth. She could feel the soft, warm blanket sliding up her body. It felt real, like Paul was somehow moving it with a hidden pair of hands while he held the crystal in front of her. Back and forth.

She didn’t need to look down to see it. She trusted Paul, and Paul was telling her it was there. She kept her eyes on the crystal. Back and forth.

“And now that blanket is all the way up to your shoulders, tucked around your shoulders. And even though it stops there, you can feel the calmness keep going up, up and up, over your head, over your eyes, your hair. Covering you completely, deeply relaxed now. You can let yourself focus entirely on the crystal now, all safe and relaxed.”

Another distant voice. Spinning… pretty… relaxed… so very pretty…

Her eyelids began to close.

“Feel that relaxation go through all of your muscles, untying every knot, loosening every fiber, calming every nerve. You’re sinking into the bed and it’s so, so soft. You’re so comfortable, and safe, and warm, and relaxed.”

She thought of the little red Mars rocket, so tiny and alone in the vastness of space. Her thoughts were like that now, little individual rocket ships, alone, drifting in emptiness. “Ssssafe…” she whispered, without really knowing why. It felt good to say. It felt so good to let go.

“You’re doing so well, Nicole. Following the crystal with your eyes, back and forth. It’s very tiring. You’re in bed and you’re safe under that soft, soft blanket. You’ll find that you’re starting to feel very sleepy, because you’re so relaxed. You’re safe and in bed and you can let your eyes close, so sleepy, drifting away as you watch the crystal. Feel your eyelids getting so heavy.”

Nicole’s eyes were heavily lidded now. Her breath was smooth and even. The distant voice was gone, leaving only Paul’s smooth and relaxing cadence.

“Deeper and deeper now. Sleep. Sleep. Deep into a deep sleep. Deeply asleep. Your eyes close and you sink deep into sleep.”

Her eyelids fluttered, then slid closed. She pursed her lips, sighed, and fell still.

Paul lowered the crystal. His dorm room had never felt quite this silent and empty. He left the crystal on the bed next to Nicole and reached up, uncertain, fingers hovering just in front of her face. He extended his index finger and pressed it against her skin.

“Sleep.”

It was like he’d just popped a large balloon. Everything seemed to collapse. Her upper body, her shoulders, her head, even the corners of her mouth. She fell backwards into the blue pillows until her shoulders were resting against the cinderblocks.

Now all he had to do, according to the books in the library, was deepen her trance.

“Nicole, can you hear me?”

A moment passed before her lips parted, and a faint “yes” slipped out.

“Good. You’re, um, you’re doing really good. You let yourself sink into this state of complete relaxation. You wanted me to hypnotize you and now you’re there, hypnotized, in a trance, calm and warm and safe. I’d like you to picture a big, fancy staircase for me. Something out of a Hollywood mansion. Can you do that?”

“Mmmhmm. I can see it.”

“Start at the top step and start walking down. The steps are broad and wide and very safe, very steady, and each step brings you further down. Each step takes you even deeper into this wonderful trance. You can go as deep as you want. You started at step one hundred. Heading down to one. Can you tell me where you are now?”

She squeezed her brow. “Fifty. Forty… nine.”

“Do you want to keep going?”

“Yes. Forty four.”

“Okay. Imagine yourself taking step after step, and every time you do, the world gets a little calmer, a little quieter, sinking deeper and deeper. And when you’ve gone as far as you want to, you’ll tell me what step you’re on.”

“Okay.”

He waited for her to ‘descend,’ wondering how long it would take, wondering if she trusted him enough to go all the way to the bottom.”

“Five,” she said.

“Is that as far as you want to go?”

“Yes.”

“That’s very deep. Very far down the staircase. Very deep in trance. The stair widens out until it looks like a floor, you can stand there without having to go any further, without fear falling. You’re at five with means you’re very deeply asleep, very deep in trance.”

“Deep in trance. Hyp… hypnotized.”

“Yes. Next, we need to… we’re going to do a few exercises. Each one of them will let you feel even more comfortable where you are, deep in trance. That’ll be nice. Each exercise relaxing your body more and more. Relaxing your mind more and more. Just thinking about it makes you feel so good.”

“Feel good… you always make me feel good.”

“Okay, let’s start.”

Soon Paul had her raising her arm into the air, tied to an invisible balloon, then stuck straight out like a bar of iron. He pushed down on it without success. “That’s really good. I think we’re ready now.” He had a feeling that it was more than a lucky break that she slipped into a trance so easily. He’d read more than once that the more someone was hypnotized, the easier it was to put them under again.

“Nicole, I want you to listen to me. You’re so safe and relaxed. You trust me. You can leave this hypnotic trance whenever you wish. Do you understand?”

“Trusssst… yes. Relaxed and… ssssafe.”

Paul shifted in his chair. Jesus Christ, calm your horny ass down for once, Paul. “Nicole, I want you to tell me everything you did on Sunday after you left my room. Can you remember for me?”

“Yesss. Yes I can. I was in your room. I left. I had lunch at the food court.” Her voice grew more clear and confident as she continued, the memories developing before her closed eyes like old darkroom photographs. “I had a study meeting with Jenny. I went to my room to take a nap. I masturbated a little thinking of you. I got up and got dressed. I took Jenny to the field. I went home and went to bed.”

“That’s good. Really good. You’re doing so well, so relaxed and peaceful. Hearing my voice. Answering all of my questions, truthfully and easily. What field did you go to?”

“One of the fields on the north side of town. Where the old farm road goes. I don’t… it’s the one where the… where the… I don’t…”

Where I found the phone. “It’s okay. Relax. You don’t need to think about the question right now.” He thought about it for a moment, then added “You answered it and you made me happy that you did, okay?”

A faint smile. “Yes… I’m glad.”

“Why did you take Jenny there? To that field?”

“I…” The smile was replaced by a frown and furrowed eyebrows. “I, um, I had to. So I did. Then I went home and went to bed. I woke up the next morning and everything was perfectly normal.”

He tugged at her hand. “Fall a little deeper for me.”

“Nnnnnn.” She sagged, leaning to her left, threatening to topple off the bed. Paul placed a hand on her shoulder to steady her.

“A little deeper now, still feeling nice and warm and safe, even more than before. Safe and relaxed. Listening to me and answering my questions.”

“I like doing that. Safe with you. Always safe with you.”

“You trust me, and you want to answer all of my questions as truthfully as possible. Did you take Jenny to the field for a reason?”

“Yes.”

“What was the reason you took Jenny to the field?”

Her voice was softer now. “I had to take her. She’s pretty. So pretty.”

“Is there something in the field?”

“N-no. No.”

A post-hypnotic memory block, just like in the books. Hearing it in person both surprised and scared him, a reminder that very bad things were happening when he wasn’t around.

“Nicole, have you been to that field before? Recently? You can remember now. Your memories are clear, as if you were there right now.”

She tensed. Her hands curled into fists. “I… I was there on Wednesday night.”

“When the meteor fell? Did you see the meteor?”

“Yes. So pink and spinning and pretty.”

“The meteor was pink and spinning and pretty?”

“Yes.” Her hands unclenched, and she sagged into the pillows. “Faster and faster.”

“Did you pick up the meteor, Nicole? Did you take it back to town?”

She shook her head. “No… Ch-charlie wanted it. Was Charlie’s idea to find it. Couldn’t… it wasn’t.” She began breathing more heavily, as if the memory was upsetting. Paul was afraid to push her, but he also knew he was getting closer to the truth.

“Nicole, hear my voice and relax. Remember that you’re nice and safe with me.” He picked up her limp hand again. He held it close to his body. “I’ll keep you safe, okay?”

“Safe… always safe with you. Like in the planetarium.”

“Is Charlie still in Arizona?”

“Yes, he is. He broke up with me, the bastard.” She said the last part without a trace of emotion.

“Did he come up from Arizona to be in the field with you? Or did he break up with you and then go to Arizona?”

“Yes, we were in the field. Charlie was in Arizona the whole time. We broke up over the phone. He was never here.” She turned her head and frowned again. “I can’t… Paul… I can’t… I have to obey. I can’t… can’t resist it, so pretty and pink and swirly…”

“Shh, shh. Relax for me. It’s okay. Relax. Breathe.”

“No, no, stop making me… stop! You’re in my head, you’re making me… making me… obey. I will serve and obey. Serve and obey. Serve and obey.”

“Nicole. Listen to me.”

“Serve and obey. Serve and obey. Serve—”

Shit. He’d gotten locked out of his own hypnosis session. He couldn’t leave her like this—she’d end up a vegetable, mind fried, sitting in the corner of a padded room saying ‘serve and obey’ until the end of time. But how…

She wants to serve and obey. Make her do that.

The thought—he had no idea whether it came from one of the books he’d read that afternoon or from the depths of the Internet—was both ridiculous and perfectly sensible. Plus, it wasn’t like there were other ideas lining up to be heard. “Fuck, I hope I don’t lobotomize you.”

“—obey. Serve and obey. Serve an—”

“Hey. Nicole. Listen, okay? You will listen, and you will obey.”

His goal was to project an air of authority, like a cartoon villain. What came out of his mouth surprised him with how close it came to his imagination. His words were low, full of bass, serious and commanding. They had their intended effect. The brunette stopped mid-mantra, her mouth snapping closed.

“You will serve and obey me. I hypnotized you. I put you into a hypnotic trance. As long as you’re in this trance, you will do what I say. Because I’m the one who hypnotized you. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“When I hypnotize you, you will serve and obey only me. Your hypnotist. Because you wanted me to hypnotize you and then I did. You gave me your mind to control and now it belongs to me. Say it.”

“It.”

“No, I… let me restate that. Tell me that your mind belongs to me, and believe it when you say it. It’s the undeniable truth.”

“My mind belongs to you,” she agreed.

“You’re going to let me help you out of this mess that I made. That’s what you want.”

“That is what I want. I serve and obey my hypnotist.”

That works. “So, next we’re... um...“

Paul hadn’t put much thought into what ‘next’ would be. With Nicole this deep in trance, ‘next’ could be just about anything. His libido and his dick immediately began offering their own suggestions. Brainwashed love bunny!

Stop, he chided himself.

But if she’s your mindless drone, she can’t be someone else’s mindless drone, right? It’s for her own good! You can always deprogram her once the assholes controlling her get caught, right?

“Nicole, I want you to…”

Just tell her to obey and love you forever! Hear me and obey, Nicole! You have no other masters but Paul Sorelli! You will worship the ground he walks on! You’re madly in love with him! She’s so hot and she wants you when she’s like this! You’ll never be single again! You can marry her and spend the rest of your life with her and this is your one chance to make this happen and-

“Stop!”

“Yes, Paul,” Nicole droned. “I’ve stopped.”

Sigh. “For now, just for now, we’re going to let all of those memories we just talked about sink back down into your mind. Deep inside your mind. They’ll still be there if we want to look at them together again.”

“Okay.”

“I want you to imagine a big old-fashioned safe, the kind with a dial on the front. It’s open right now, and we’re going to put all of these memories into the safe.”

“Into the safe. Nice and safe. I feel safe. You make me feel safe.”

“Just the memories we talked about just now,” he added, in case Nicole took him literally again and mentally tossed her entire identity into her imaginary safe. That wouldn’t end well at all. “Are they all in there?”

“Yes, Paul.”

“Now imagine the door closing and locking. The little dial spins. And they’re locked away. You won’t think about them, and they won’t upset or confuse you. It makes you feel better, knowing that those memories are safely tucked away. It’s so relaxing to know that you don’t have to think about them now. Isn’t that good?”

“Yes. It’s so nice. Thank you.”

“I have something very important to tell you. I want you to listen to it, and then you’ll realize that you absolutely have to do it. It’ll be clear as day, and you’ll be so pleased that you can do it.”

“Yesssss,” she sighed, a happy smile returning to her face. “Always obey my hypnotist.”

“When I snap my fingers you will wake up, feeling relaxed and refreshed. You will… uh, you’ll remember nothing that happened while you were hypnotized. You won’t remember being hypnotized. You will remember me asking to try to hypnotize you, but it didn’t work. I’m terrible at it and I failed. It was very funny, watching me try. But it didn’t work. Do you understand?”

“Yes. I won’t remember. It was very funny.”

“If I ever show you this crystal again and say ‘sleep, Nicole,’ you will immediately sink back into this wonderful relaxing hypnotic trance.”

“Mmmm, yes. Back into trance. Wonderful and relaxing and deep.” She smiled. “I want to do that.”

Kinda figured she’d say that. He held up the crystal, trying to position it roughly where it had been when she began to drift off. He snapped his fingers.

“Huh? Oh.” Her eyes fluttered before closing again, squeezing tight as she segued into a long, stretching yawn. “Mmmmmph! I think I almost started to go into a trance there for a second.” She patted his forearm. “It’s okay. They say it happens to all guys now and then. You just need more practice.”

“Ah, but what if I did hypnotize you? And now, you are in my power!” He wiggled fingers in front of her skeptical face. “Look into my eyes, Nicole!”

“Very funny,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Don’t give up your day job, I don’t think you’re gonna become a nightclub hypnotist anytime soon. Hey, c’mere.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Better luck next time? I’m kind of curious as to what that mind of yours has in store for me once you finally have control of mine.”

“Only good things, I promise. Besides, I like you better when you think for yourself.”

“Go on vacation with me and then say that.”

“Thanks for the warning.”

“Can’t blame me now, I did warn you.” She leaned in for another kiss, longer and fuller this time. “Okay, English Lit rests for no woman. I’ll see you ton—tomorrow?”

“Okay.” Paul pretended not to notice the slip-up. He knew what he was going to be doing all day.

It was time to play secret agent after all.

Mars orbit, Wednesday morning

“Hey, Q’nan. Come over here and look at this.”

Q’nan, sprawled out as best as his space-chair would allow, remained motionless.

“Come over and look! This will cheer you up, I promise. Someone left a toy robot behind on this planet. It’s down there driving around on its own. Weird, huh?”

That was, indeed, weird enough to coax Q’nan out of his space-chair. With an exaggerated groan, he lurched forward and padded across the metal deck to B’nak’s homemade observation station. The shorter alien had filled two entire portholes with sensors, signal antennas, and view screen enhancers. B’nak had his face pressed into one of the latter, his right hand fumbling with a pair of switches that controlled the device’s view multiplier.

“You can see a little tiny robot with those screens?” Q’nan was impressed. For all of his friend’s faults, B’nak was a genius at putting old space junk back into working condition.

“Yes. I don’t know if it’s from the humanoids or some other species. It’s like a tiny little land craft. Wanna see?”

Q’nan did. He took B’nak’s place at the view screen and marveled at the dusty red landscape below them. “Well, I doubt it’s from the humanoids. They’re much too stupid to ever get off their own planet. It must be from a species we’ve never heard of.”

“That’s my guess, too. Isn’t this fun? We’re seeing things that no other Kzzrk has ever seen, ever, in the history of our entire planet!”

“Should we go down there and pick it up? It would make a nice gift for the younglings.”

“We won’t have time. We have to land again and see what our new slaves have brought for us. I’d rather pick up a beautiful humanoid female than some dusty robot!”

“At this point, B’nak? I think I’d prefer the dusty robot.”

“Come on,” said B’nak, in his very best come on voice. Which, all things considered, was far more persuasive than many Kzzrks could ever hope to be. Q’nan knew he would fall for it again, like always.

“I’m going to fall for this again,” he said. “Like always.”

“What’s there to fall for? We’re exploring a new corner of the galaxy, we found humanoid females, we enslaved two of them already, and we’re about to go pick up two more!” He waved a stubby hand at the view screen. “We just saw a tiny alien robot! This is fantastic, right?”

“It’s… okay, I’ll admit it. This is probably our best vacation yet. Happy?”

“I told you. Didn’t I tell you? And now we’re going to be at the best part, row after row of humanoid females filling up the ship! Come on, I know that you’re secretly loving this, Q’nan.”

“We spent an eternity crossing deep space, we’re hiding from hostile humanoids who would probably kill us if they saw us, our female humanoids barely know how to feed themselves, we don’t know whether our brain-smoother even works, and…”

“And?”

Q’nan smiled in a way that only the Kzzrks themselves would even recognize as a smile. “And we’re only a week away from becoming richer than anyone we’ve ever met or known.”

“And we just saw a tiny alien robot!”

“That, too.”

B’nak crossed his arms in triumph. “Feel better now?”

“Never a dull moment with you. And yes, I feel better.”

“Ready to collect more slaves?”

“I’ll even program the nav computer,” Q’nan found himself offering. “Let’s hope we get luckier with these humanoids than we did with the Blarn!”

He had, once again, fallen for it.

Somewhere in Middle America, Wednesday mid-day

Keeping tabs on Nicole proved to be harder than Paul expected. She tended to bounce from place to place. First, a lecture in Palmer Hall, then a stop at the food court, followed by some reading while lounging on a bench on the quad and a few quick chats with various people she knew. You’d never know that she’s actually a brainwashed puppet, he thought, but then again, that was usually the whole point of the brainwashing. His girlfriend was entirely normal, until she wasn’t.

Your girlfriend, Paul?

Did a blank slate programmed with ‘you are madly in love with me’ count as a girlfriend? Waves of self-doubt washed over him, a good soaking to snap him back into his sad reality. Girls like Nicole didn’t fall madly in love with guys like him, did they? Maybe in the movies, but as weird as his present reality was, one thing it was certainly not was a Hollywood movie where the hero got the girl in the end. Even if everything went perfectly and no one ended up dead, the best he could hope for was for Nicole to be totally freed from her mental enslavement. That meant that she’d go right back to being last week’s Nicole—beautiful, kind, funny, and totally unaware that he even existed. He’d be a hero, and no one would ever know about it, especially not the woman he…

“Oh, hi there! Do you have a moment to talk?”

To his annoyance, two women got between Paul and his view of Nicole. “Hey there,” said the blonde one. She was effortlessly pretty, the kind of girl who only spoke to Paul when she needed something from him. It made him think of post-enslavement Nicole again. The blonde was saying something to him, and he reluctantly focused on her.

“...cut our budget for Homecoming by a lot, and so we’re trying to raise money to make up the difference. We’re asking everyone if they can maybe help us out? Whatever you can, it’s all good.” The blonde gave him her most winning smile, and he had to admit, it was very winning. He smiled back.

“We can take cash now, or you can sign the pledge sheet with your name and phone number and e-mail and we can get back to you,” said the other girl, a cute redhead. She had the presentation down pat. “It’s okay if you change your mind, but Homecoming is really the event that brings the whole college together.” As she spoke, Paul tried to peek over her shoulder to check on Nicole, but there were too many students milling around the quad to see her.

“I don’t have any money on me,” he told them, “but I’ll sign up, sure.”

“Great!” The blonde smiled again. “Thanks so much! Your name is?”

“Paul.” Okay, Nicole isn’t going anywhere, calm down, just sign the sheet and they’ll go away.

“Hi Paul,” said the blonde. “I’m Jenny, and this is Becky. We hope we’ll see you at the Homecoming dance.” She thrust a pen and a clipboard at him.

Really really overselling it, girls. He reached down to take the pen, and stopped.

Jenny had a bracelet. Shiny and iridescent, just like Nicole’s.

I took Jenny to the field. I had to take her.

Nicole went to the field, and then she took a girl named Jenny there. Nicole was wearing a weird bracelet, and now this Jenny it had to be the same Jenny was wearing a weird bracelet, too. Was she another brainwashed slave? How many were there on this campus? He glanced over at Becky’s arm. No bracelet there. He realized that both girls were waiting for him. He scribbled down his info as quickly as he could, and handed the clipboard back to Manchurian Jenny.

“Thank you so, so much, Paul!” The blonde smiled before whirling around in search of her next victim.

“So nice to meet you, Paul,” added Becky. Paul smiled back.

The smile faded, however, when he turned back to find an empty bench and no Nicole.

Meanwhile

Nicole giggled. “The sex rocks. I feel like I have ten times the energy when I’m with him.”

“Aw, that’s so sweet and X-rated all at the same time.” The girl pushed a lock of dark brown hair from her face. “Pffft. I need to cut my hair shorter.”

Nicole gave her a look of fake outrage. “Noooo, Laura! You look soooo much better with long hair! I was so sad when you cut it last summer. You look—”

Pretty.

Laura ran her fingers through her hair. “Okay, okay. You win. It’s you and my mom against me, two to one, hair stays. Besides, if I show up at Christmas with my hair any shorter than it is right now, she’ll probably disown me or something. Hair is a big deal with that woman.”

Nicole nodded without paying attention. Laura’s hair framed her beautiful face, her dark eyes, her cute nose, her full lips. Underneath her loose-fitting clothing was a spectacular body that Nicole had seen only once, at an off-campus pool party, but still remembered perfectly.

Pretty, pretty Laura.

Spinning… faster… spinning… hear and obey… obey… you will bring her to us. You will serve the Kzzrk Empire…

Laura looked at her. “But if I get kicked out of my house, I’m moving into yours, is that clear? I hope your mom knows how to make chilaquiles.”

Nicole blinked. She looked at Laura. Pretty Laura. “What are you doing tonight? Do you feel like ditching studying for some adventure?”

“Should I get some money for bail? I don’t know a whole lot about you, Nicole, but you seem like the kind of girl whose adventures are on the wild side.”

Nicole smiled in the way that Paul adored so much. “Trust me.”