Don't go out alone. Don't put yourself in dangerous situations.
Don't trust strangers.
Kelly and Joan were inseparable. As twins, they had rarely spent more than a day apart. Their outward personalities were identical, and more than once one had suggested to the other that they swap places or names for a day, though neither had ever had the guts to go through with it. The only difference anyone else could find between them was that Kelly was near-sighted and Joan far-sighted. This meant they both wore glasses, and of course they chose the same frames, so no one was ever certain which one they were talking to.
It had been 20 years and 1 day since they were born, at least by Joan's phone. The soft glow of the screen failed to illuminate much in the darkness of their tent, and signal on the side of a mountain was spotty at best. Still, she had enough to check for any last birthday messages sent to her. The warmth of her sister in their double sleeping bag, soundly out after a day of hiking, was making her drowsy. An early start tomorrow meant that after a few more minutes she decided she too should get some rest. Before another 10 minutes had gone by both sisters were dreaming happily.
The next thing either of them knew was flashing light and a piercing, ringing noise. Even if they had been awake enough to respond, opening their eyes was impossible with the torch-beam constantly flicking between their faces, keeping them disorientated while several sets of hands lifted their limp bodies out of the shredded remains of their tent. Before either was able to do anything other than moan, rough bark was on their backs, rubber balls were in their mouths, binds on their wrists and rope tightly across their bellies and legs.
"What did you think you were doing?"
A sympathetic male voice sounded from behind them. By now, both twins had their eyes open, squinting every time one of the torches swung into view. A hazy group of people, all dressed in black, were surrounding the restrained girls and staring. All the light was trained in Kelly and Joan's direction so it was impossible to see the figures clearly. A new man stepped into view, with enough light on him for Kelly to see his youthful face.
"There are dangerous folks around here," he crooned, staring into each twin's face in turn. "You're lucky we found you first. Two girls, alone on the side of a mountain? A recipe for trouble."
With one more step he stood facing them, his white robe rippling in the breeze.
"What we need to know is if we can trust you." His tone changed suddenly, becoming grand and resonant.
"The Disciple of Eros have been thrown from our home, left to wander this desolate landscape. We are forever severed from our former lives, and while we do not miss what we had, from our lonely base here it is impossible to bring new lambs into the fold."
At this point he reached down to lift Kelly's head. He noted with a smirk that the two were clutching each others hands as best they could with their wrists tied, squeezing intensely.
"Yet here we are, blessed with the presence of two uninitiated, poor sinners. They do not notice the shackles binding them, the filth they wallow in, the pain they cause, but," and he whispered, "I can set you free."
The time for words seemed to be over. The man motioned and four of his entourage stepped forward. Two grasped a head each and turned the girls to face each other. The other two held their hands in position to undo the gags at a moment's notice. The man knelt in front of them and spoke in hushed tones.
"To be truly free, you must be born anew. Cast off your old self, your unworthy self, and become one with us, the world, and each other. I know this is difficult, but I will guide you. First, you must be compliant. You must be willing to merge, to show that you understand there is no self. To remove your binds, you must realise that there are none. Embrace each other, as sisters, as lovers, and prove that I am able to let you go."
The gags were removed. The two captives stared at each other, light pressure on the back of their heads encouraging them to move closer. Joan could see the tears in Kelly's eyes. She had to do something.
"No."
"I'm sorry?"
A rush of confidence came from the sight of her sister in so much pain.
"No! You want me to, what, make out with my twin? What's wrong with you? This is sick, this is wrong, this is," she began sobbing, "please don't make us do this. Just let us go."
"Can't you see yet? The reason you can't go is because you refuse to do this. It's easy. It's painless. It doesn't matter what the outside world thinks, defy them! Rise anew and show they can't control you!"
At his words came murmurs of assent from the assembled crowd. Joan couldn't let her sister be the only one trying to protect them, and took matters into her own hands. In an instant the twins' lips were pressed together. Kelly jumped at the feeling, but resigned herself to it. The hands on the backs of their heads pushed harder, keeping them together. A smirk on his face, the leader stood.
"I said as lovers."
Kelly's eyes opened wide as Joan continued complying with the leader's demands. Even while tears dropped from her face onto Kelly's, Joan pushed her tongue through parted lips and clumsily attempted to gain entrance to her sister. In her inexperience she ended up mostly licking around her mouth, while eventually Kelly gave in too. The two sloppily opened and closed their mouths on each other, saliva swapped between them so often they eventually had to swallow it. Periodically one twin would open her eyes to watch the leader, to see if they were allowed to stop. He still stood there with a serene smile, unmoving.