AUTHOR'S NOTES
The protagonist of the below story is a man gifted with the ability to control the minds and bodies of others. If you are the sort of person that likes to know the features and limitations of his power, read on. If not, eh, skip to the story.
Comments are welcome and can be addressed to the author via the CONTACT tab on his profile.
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Our nameless protagonist does not know how his power works other than it appears to be genetic and kicks in around puberty. He has had this power for a while now and through his investigations (aided by many who of course do not remember lending their expertise) he has some understanding of how it works but not why.
Our protagonist's abilities:
- allow control of a subject's motor functions, both voluntary (walking, moving head and arms, etc) and autonomic (breathing, heart beating, etc). He does not like to control autonomic functions however due to the high risk of killing the subject by for example forgetting to tell his heart to beat.
- control is executed through commands ('run', 'jump', 'pick up that object', etc). The subject's body seems to be able to work out the details as long as the command is not too vague (so 'hit that man' will work but not 'hit anyone who looks threatening').
- commands are transmitted mentally.
- He can read minds and memories, and can change the intensity of base emotions (fear, anger, lust, etc) but cannot create or change thoughts, switch a subject's emotions or affect complicated emotions (love, jealousy, etc).
- He can create visual, auditory and tactile illusions. These work as normal commands - he tells the subject what to see/hear/feel and the subject's mind works out the details provided the illusion is simple.
- commands can only be given to subjects in direct line of sight. Detection of other minds is possible through walls, etc up to a certain distance, but they cannot be altered unless our protagonist can see the person.
- Commands remain effective until removed by the protagonist, even if the subject is no longer in view.
- Commands can be made to only one subject at a time, but multiple subjects can be controlled by giving commands to one, then the next, then the next, etc.
- larger scale and/or simpler commands work better than fine detailed ones. The protagonist cannot change facial expressions, and attempts to force speech results in meaningless slurring.
The protagonist's only real fear is that someone like him will notice his ability and take it away from him. Consequently any potential activity is investigated and if another 'Talent' such as he is discovered he takes steps to neutralize the danger. He has not yet met a Talent with abilities as strong as his, but he feels sure they are out there, somewhere.
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All characters and events are fictional. Many are illegal, immoral and/or impossible. Never try this in real life. You do not have mental powers.
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There are people in the world who can directly control the minds and bodies of others. I know this because I am one of them, and I have met others with similar abilities.
This has made me quite paranoid. So far none of the Talents I have met match my own level (especially after I alter their minds to limit or disable their ability). Most have been much weaker, and none so far truly recognized their singular talent as I have. But I live in fear of meeting one who is stronger than I, of that stronger Talent doing to me what I do to weaker ones. Or just plain killing me. And then of course there is always the danger of discovery by non-Talented but still powerful forces, and me ending up on a dissection table somewhere.
Because of this a 'normal' life is not possible for me. I move from place to place. I never pay for anything myself; people very kindly buy things for me then forget they did so. As long as these things are small - a meal here, a set of clothes there - I stay under the radar (I think). I live well, but modestly. I see a lot of train and bus stations. Such as the one I'm in now.
There are perks of course - did I mention I can control people? I can't make them think or say whatever I want, but I can move their bodies, read and erase their memories and create simple illusions. So when I see a (young, female) body I want to move, I may risk doing exactly that. If I see two, and I'm in the right mood, well...
The train platforms are accessed by an underpass with stairs to each platform. Turning to the stairs to one such platform I am met with the sight of two teenage girl's asses right at my eye level as their owners climb the stairs ahead of me. A thoroughly enjoyable coincidence, especially as one has decided to beat the summer heat by wearing tight green shorts that reveal the bottom third of her tanned and shapely ass as she ascends. The other girl is also wearing shorts, but of a looser denim. Nonetheless I'm sure there is a cute little ass hiding in there (I'm something of an expert in this).
The girls reach the top of the stairs and stand waiting on the platform, talking to each other. I stand a discreet distance away, far enough that I can look in their direction without obviously staring (dark sunglasses help). Miss Green Shorts - a quick rifle through her mind reveals her to be Sophie, eighteen - is tanned and fit, but still with soft teenage curves. Her bright green shorts with white trim are below a blue and white striped top, tight enough to show a respectable chest. Long brunette hair frames a round face with full lips and an easy smile. Blue sneakers and a large brown handbag.
Her friend (let's see... Alice, also 18) stands about a head taller than Sophie. If she has curves they are hidden in loose denim shorts and white sweater (a slightly odd combination for this heat, but what do I know of teenage fashions).
Blonde hair with darker streaks reaches down to just below her shoulders. Blue eyed with a straight nose and somewhat pronounced cheekbones, probably some Scandinavian heritage in there. White sneakers and a black shoulder bag.
I do some more mental digging as the girls chat (Sophie animatedly telling a story of some kind to Alice who mostly just nods and laughs). The two friends have just started a day of shopping; having been through the nearby mall they are now heading to the center of town where they plan to stay until late.
By this time I've pretty much made up my mind to entertain myself with these two hot teenage girls. Taking control of Alice first (I can command only one person at a time, but my commands remain in place until I change them) I have her reach into her bag and put on a pair of sunglasses. I also order her not to talk, but Sophie does not notice as she is too busy talking. Besides, the moment Alice dons her sunglasses I take control of Sophie, who also falls silent and puts on sunglasses. I then get them both to walk over to a nearby bench, sit down, take out their cellphones and stare at them. There; to the casual observer these are two girls immersed in their smartphones, their no doubt confused and scared expressions effectively hidden by sunglasses and hair falling around bowed heads. They aren't going anywhere until I tell them to, so I leave the station to make some arrangements.
Do you have self service hotels in your area? Wonderful things - no receptionist, no bellboys, no regular staff at all. You book a room online or through an automated kiosk in the hotel foyer, it gives you a code to unlock a room, and that's it. Zero human interaction, very discreet. There is one such hotel attached to the mall next to the station. A couple of passers-by pay for some rooms for me (four rooms at the end of a corridor - I only need one but this way there will be no foot traffic past my door or neighbors beside or opposite) and go on their way after a selective memory wipe. I then return to the station through the mall, picking up an item or two on the way.
I find Sophie and Alice exactly as I left them. No one appears to have noticed their condition, but I wait five minutes and gently scan the minds of everyone around just to be sure - paranoid, remember? All seems in order, so I command the girls to get up and start walking. I follow some distance behind. They eventually get to the hotel and board an elevator. I board the same elevator, the first time I have been within a few feet of the girls since I took control of them.
I stand beside Sophie and wrap an arm around her waist. I get her arm to do the same with me as her head leans on my shoulder. We exit the elevator on the correct floor and go the end of the corridor, Sophie and I still holding each other while Alice walks behind. I don't know if there are cameras in the elevator or corridor, but this little charade is just in case.
We enter the hotel room at the end of the corridor. It is sparse but functional - double bed, couch (which folds out to become another double bed), TV, etc. A door leads to a small bathroom with a shower, toilet, etc. Perfectly adequate for my needs.
The girls stand beside the bed facing me, drop their bags and take off their sunglasses. As expected their pretty faces are twisted with fear. If I hadn't disabled their tear ducts they would be crying (manipulation that fine is at the limit of my abilities, but worth the effort I think). I decide to dial down their fear, at least for now. What rises to the surface is instead anger, which is evident when I finally allow them to speak.
"What... what the fuck?"
"Who are you? How the fuck are you doing this?"
"Let us go you fucking... fuck!"