FSE

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The character selection screen was the first thing that felt out of place. It wasn't such a rare occurrence, but the fact that he had been taken back to it was the first thing that made Rekiz… think, in a way, in a while.

He'd been paying attention, hadn't he? Of course he had. He'd been playing. So why had he been kicked out to that screen? Has he been AFK for so long? And when exactly had that happened? The otter scratched the back of his head, suspicion growing inside him. He wasn't always that good at perceiving when he was being toyed with, as experience proved, but he could tell something weird was going on.

Plus, Persegan and Blue were visiting. That was practically a confirmation that hypnotic shenanigans were to be expected.

As his right paw fumbled for the mouse and he began playing again, Rekiz told himself that the duo had been surprisingly quiet as of late, as if they were plotting something. He'd caught them whispering when he wasn't in the room and he'd thought maybe they were planning some kind of surprise for him – only, in their schemes, Rekiz was practically sure he'd sensed a hint of… competition?

He shook his head. That didn't explain why he'd been so spaced out that he'd been pushed to the character selection screen without even noticing, but he was absolutely certain it had something to do with it. He tried to remember what he'd been doing. Sorting his inventory, trying to free some space – then someone had visited, he thought. Rekiz found his memories going back to the paw that now rested on the mouse.

It had been made to feel lighter, or so he thought. Much lighter. Floating, with a gentle touch on his wrists – like a bunch of balloons were tied to it – and then it had dropped just as heavily on his lap. The memory of the drop made Rekiz's cheeks turn red and his mind grew slightly hazy, although that was to be expected.

He shook his head, trying to shake the feeling away, and he was about to resume playing when someone cleared his throat at his back.

The otter turned to the door. Blue was there, leaning on the doorframe with a knowing smirk that seemed a threat on itself.

“So, did Persegan finish with you already?"

Ah, so it was Persegan who did it, Rekiz thought, unaware of just how easily the idea that Persegan had done something clicked in his mind.

The otter hesitated before nodding.

“Uh… I think so? I don't think I can answer that one properly. If he did something, he made sure I wouldn't remember. Or perhaps I just forgot naturally?" the otter asked, tilting his head with a nervous smile.

Blue chuckled.

“You're good at that. Do you remember what he asked you to do?"

Rekiz didn't. He tried to think about it – the blurry, heavy minutes after the hard drop, the feeling of his head resting on his chest as words were whispered in his ear and he nodded mindlessly, letting all those suggestions sink right into his brain. He blushed again.

“Nuh-uh," he answered. “Is that a problem? Should I?"

Blue's grin grew wider. The big, broad-shouldered skunk moved away from the doorframe and approached the flustered otter, who squirmed a bit on his seat. Okay, seems I wasn't wrong, he thought. They have planned something.

“I can help you remember, if you want," the skunk offered with the kind of voice that tasted like honey and intoxicated like poison. “It's a much, much simpler thing than you think."

The otter found himself nodding even now. His own helplessness stirred something inside him – something less innocent than mere embarrassment, hotter and more pleasant. It was his turn to clear his throat before giving a meek answer.

“I… I mean, if you… if you think I need to… remember then sure, by all means, do it. Just let me close the game and…"

“What game?"

The question caught Rekiz off-guard. Blue was really close, enough to just grab his chin and force him to look up, but that wasn't even necessary by now. Those big golden eyes of his were already fixed on the otter's and Rekiz couldn't look away. He gulped.

“Huh?" he asked with a thin voice.

“What game, hun?"

The first blue and golden rings came and eased his mind like a lullaby. Rekiz struggled to form new thoughts. His shoulders sank and his tongue grew heavier. What game?

“I…"

“You were sitting here and then that cute goat came and made you drop really, really deep, yeah?"

Rekiz's eyes mirrored those blue and golden rings perfectly. He was falling deep into that stare, pulled by its gravity – and the mimicking response came to his lips without hesitation, like he'd been trained to do.

“Yeah."

“And then I bet he pushed you even deeper with his sweet, sweet words and you found yourself agreeing to whatever he said," Blue continued, his voice falling to that cadence Rekiz found so hard to resist, even though the fight was over already. “And he whispered in your ear and you followed. Yeah?"

“Yeah."

“Are you following now, hun?"

“Yeah."

This one wasn't prompted, but it came to Rekiz's lips like a trigger nonetheless. The otter's heavy body slumped on the arm of the chair, his gaze lost in that deep, golden and blue pool. He was following.

“It feels good to follow, doesn't it?"

The otter nodded, tongue lolling out. His head rolled on his shoulders for a second before coming to a stop on his chest. It felt familiar.

“And you're so good at following too," came those irresistible words. A dumb smile spread on the otter's face. “That goat made you promise something. Can you remember what it was?"

Thoughts and memories were hard at the moment. The otter's mind was like a black ocean. Rekiz tried to dive through the dark abyss to find something, but the only thing he managed to do was grow even more exhausted. When he turned his attention back to reality, those deep eyes were there. Blue's paw was holding his chin and his consciousness was sinking more and more into total submission. The rings kept coming.

A soft moan escaped the otter's throat in response.

“That's okay, hun. No need to make yourself tired. Let me tell you – he asked you not to repeat a certain sentence if someone other than him asked you to. Do you know what that sentence was?"

This time, Rekiz barely struggled. He took a glance at the space full of weight, haze and darkness his mind had become and decided it wasn't worth the try. As if the skunk could tell what the otter's process had been, a chuckle escaped his throat.

“He said you wouldn't repeat the following sentence – 'You win. I belong to you entirely' to someone other than him. Can you remember the sentence now?"

Rekiz felt he was nodding. Yes. The sentence. 'You win. I belong to you entirely'. He'd been instructed not to repeat it to anyone other than Persegan. The command had been drilled into his mind – deep, embedded in a place where he couldn't consciously find it, but where it'd have a big, practically absolute effect on his behavior. He could remember, even if just for a blink of his heavy eyelids.

“You promised you wouldn't repeat that sentence when asked by anyone other than him. And you followed, yeah?"

“Yeah."

“And you're following now, yeah."

“Y-yeah…"

“And if I ask you to make the same promise to me – that is, that you won't repeat that sentence to anyone but me – you'll be a good boy and obey, yeah?"

“Yeeah…"

“You won't repeat that sentence for me. You won't repeat that sentence for him. You'll keep both promises just like you've been instructed to do. Even if it's difficult, you'll try to resist as hard as you can, no matter how much we push you, until you simply can't resist anymore. And when that happens, you'll give in – but not before fighting back with all the strength left in that fuzzy mind of yours. Do you understand, Rekiz?"

Rekiz nodded again, the movement plunging him one or two levels deeper into trance.

“Resisting is hard, but obeying is easy. And given that you obey both Persegan and I so well, you'll make a really good job at trying to resist, just because that's what we asked you to do. Obeying to resist. Resisting to obey. Yeah?"

“Y… yeah…"

A heavy paw landed between Rekiz's ears then. The otter's dumb, wide smile grew a bit wider as fuzzy, warm feelings swirled inside him like those rings mirrored in his eyes.

“Very good, hun. You're making such a good job. So if I ask you to repeat that sentence for me now…"

Rekiz's felt the compulsion to obey – and then it encountered the previous promise, the one he'd made to Persegan. There was a brief struggle inside the otter and then the absolute need to follow instructions faded away easily, like it'd come across an obstacle it couldn't walk through and dispersed like mist in the morning.

“Thaaat's a good boy." More pats on his head. The otter let out a soft, content sigh. “I'm going to let you wake up now, at your own pace. Remembering your promises to both Persegan and I. And when you're fully awake and aware, you'll come to the living room. There, we'll put your will to keep those promises to the test. Does that sound good to you?"

The otter nodded. Anything the skunk would say with that voice would sound good to him.

“Good." Those rings faded. Nothing changed for a few seconds, but then Rekiz thought the waters in his mind were getting slightly easier to see through. “You can close that game of yours if you want to, but don't be late. We'll be waiting for you, yeah?"

“Yeah…"

“Heh, heh. That's what I thought."

There was another final pat and then Rekiz found himself staring into thin air as the skunk left the room. Awareness returned to his brain, albeit slowly. The general idea of what was going on remained on his mind, like a shadow, but the details of the conversation – if one could call it that – quickly evaporated from his mind.

When he could finally swim all the way to the surface, Rekiz blinked a few times and tried to adjust to the light in the room. He turned to the computer, closed the game and looked down briefly. His cheeks turn red again when he noticed the telling tent between his legs. It must have been there even when the skunk was in the room with him. Had he noticed? Perhaps he'd been too busy drilling his brain with his eyes in order to do so, right?

Well, it's not like he'll be surprised at this point, the otter thought, trying to calm down. Let's go to the living room.

He wondered whether that thought was his or the remnant of the instructions Blue had given him.

The otter wasn't entirely sure he could tell the difference at this point.

e e e

Persegan looked up from his mobile phone as Blue walked into the living room.

“That was fast," the goat noted. “I wasn't expecting you to come back so soon."

“What can I say? I'm very convincing," the skunk said with a shrug. “It didn't take many words on my side to replicate what you'd already done."

“Oh…?" An amused grin spread on the goat's face. “Is that your way of implying you're going to win, skunk?"

Blue chuckled and dismissed his friend's words with a wave of his hand.

“Of course not. I don't need to imply anything. The results will speak for themselves," he replied. “So now that all ground rules have been established and the game is set… Do you want to be the first one to try?"

Persegan finished setting a few parameters on the app he was toying with and put the phone on the table – right next to a promising visor he'd brought out of its box, just for the occasion.

“Sure, works for me." He heard steps down the corridor and his smile widened. “And it doesn't look like we'll have to wait for long, either…"

When Rekiz appeared through the corner and walked into the room, he suddenly found himself as the focus of two very intent gazes. Persegan couldn't help but chuckle a bit as the otter squirmed in embarrassment.

“Okay, this is weird," the otter mumbled as he ran for the couch and found a seat there, where he'd be more comfortable. “I don't mind you guys teaming up to zonk me, but…"

“Teaming up? This is quite the opposite, really," Persegan said.

“Mhm." The skunk leaned on the doorframe and crossed his arms on his chest. “It's more of a friendly competition, silly otter."

“Oh."

Rekiz blinked his eyes a few times. Persegan could tell he was trying to make new sense of the thoughts and recollections he still had from the two previous trances. The goat couldn't blame him for not knowing – he'd dropped the otter into such a deep trance the first time that he'd been surprised if memories had come naturally to his mind.

“So what? You're trying to see who can hypnotize me first or what?" the otter asked.

Blue and Persegan exchanged a knowing look and laughed.

“Who can hypnotize you?" the skunk repeated, still chuckling. “Hun, if that was it, there'd be no competition at all."

“Yeah, you're not exactly difficult to put in a trance," Persegan added with an apologetic smile. “I'm sorry, Rekiz, but that's how it is."

The otter blushed, but he shrugged and tried to play it cool with a smile.

“Hey, it's not like that's a bad thing. I get to be hypnotized whenever I want."

“That's fair," Persegan said.

“So this is like a competition to make me do something specific," the otter guessed. “I think I can try to remember what it is, but I have a feeling it'll be more fun if I don't remember?"

Blue's eyes gleamed enigmatically behind his glasses.

“I'd say you're completely right."

“And what's the prize? What does the winner get?"

Persegan opened his mouth to answer but then closed it again. Prize. They hadn't talked about that. How come they hadn't talked about the prize? That was generally the second most important thing in a bet, the terms of the bet itself being the priority.

“Who knows. We'll get there when we get there," Blue answered with a smile. “Anyway, I think Persegan here wants to have a go with you first. What do you think?"

The otter was wringing his paws at the moment, and even though he still looked intensely flustered, he managed to smile back and give a somewhat bold answer.

“Hopefully nothing, soon enough," he said, his eyes moving to the goat.

“That's the spirit!" Persegan encouraged him. He grabbed the visor and took a few steps closer to the sitting otter. “Remember this?"

“Uuuuuh… No. Sorry."

“No worries. Not remembering is generally a good sign. Be a good boy and put it on, okay?"

Rekiz nodded and did as he was told. Persegan handed the visor to him and watched as the otter adjusted it around his head obediently. He hadn't asked him to put the visor on as a command, but the goat knew there was a part of Rekiz that was already suggestible to instructions, whether they were issued as commands or not, or whether the otter was hypnotized or perfectly aware. Constant conditioning would do that to someone.

“Okay. Done," came Rekiz's hushed answer. Persegan could tell he was making a conscious effort to hide how much he was enjoying the situation.

“Good. I'm going to turn it on… now."

The visor's screen flashed for an instant before displaying a big, pink spiral that filled it completely. Rekiz squirmed on his seat as his pupils dilated, suddenly hit by a new wave of stimuli that he had kinda been expecting, but had probably understated. His eyes – which Persegan reckoned must already be tired from all that previous dropping and staring – suddenly got flooded by flashing lights, subliminal conditioning in the shape of blinking sentences and the large, overwhelming spiral.

It didn't take long before the first effects of the visor became noticeable. The otter let out a soft groan as his shoulders sank, those eyes getting glassier as they tried to make sense of all the information displayed in front of them.

“It's so very easy to go back into that state, right, Rekiz?" Persegan asked, making sure his voice fell into the right cadence, the one the otter associated with trance after having listened to it so many times before. “Like you've never even left it. Like you've always been there, waiting for instructions. Back into trance. That's a good boy."

The goat's finger tapped on the screen of his mobile phone. The words and pictures displayed on the visor were controlled by an application he'd downloaded when he'd bought the useful contraption, and regulating the spiral, the messages, the flashing lights and even the binaurals – if one wanted to get a slightly more mind-breaking experience – was extremely easy to do.

For now, Persegan was going with a standard program. There'd be enough time to break the otter's mind and he didn't want to rush things. Plus, it wasn't like he needed more.

“Look into the spiral, Rekiz," Persegan cooed. “Let your gaze sink right into its center. And with it, let your mind drop."

The last word came accompanied with a piercing snap.

Rekiz's ears twitched momentarily before his face grew slack, his mouth hanging open as his tongue lolled out. His half-lidded eyes kept staring into the screen, seeing without really seeing. Back into the practiced trance. Persegan felt a smile creeping into his face and decided it was time to give a first, tentative try. Out of the corner of his eye, he could sense Blue's interest as he watched the scene from the doorframe.

“So, Rekiz," he began. “You remember your training, don't you?"

The otter nodded slowly.

“Good boy. So what happens when I say the words Drone Otter Activated?"

Rekiz's body twitched momentarily, a wave of recognition washing over his blank expression – then fading away just like everything else. His fist slowly moved to his chest and drowsy, monotone words flowed from his mouth.

“Drone R-22 is ready to obey."

“Very good. Do you remember your mantra, drone?"

There was another nod. Automatic. Almost mechanical.

“Let us hear it, then."

“Soy un buen drone… un drone está vacío y obediente… escuchar y obedecer."[[1]](#_ftn1)

“That's right." Persegan couldn't help himself and patted the otter's head, who remained perfectly still in his pose. “Such a good drone. Let's see. If I tell you to override the promise you made to Blue and stop resisting the urge to say that sentence for me… will you do it?"

There was no response from the drone otter. Persegan had been expecting that much, anyway. If Blue's suggestion had held so little power over Rekiz's mind, then there wouldn't have been a competition to start with. The skunk knew what he was doing.

He paid attention to the otter's face and managed to imagine the conflict inside him – the programmed need to obey Persegan, clashing with the walls the skunk had built to prevent Rekiz from giving up so easily. No, the otter would keep on trying to fulfill both promises until he couldn't fight anymore. That was what their plan had been, after all.

Which didn't mean Persegan couldn't insist.

“Interesting," he said, scratching the otter's ear. “Repeat your mantra again, R-22."

““Soy un buen drone… un drone está vacío y obediente… escuchar y obedecer."

“That's right, listen and obey. Now, say that forbidden sentence for me. Come on."

Again, silence. Persegan could tell Rekiz was trying his best to obey and, at the same time, he was trying really hard to resist obeying. His brain simply refused to follow the contradictory command. Well, don't worry, he thought. It's just a matter of removing that contradiction little by little.

“I'd say you've had your try by now," Blue mentioned from the doorframe. When Persegan turned to the skunk, he noticed he was smirking knowingly, as if he'd predicted the outcome long ago. “I think it's my turn now, don't you agree?"

The goat turned to Blue with a raised eyebrow. He'd used a very particular tone, like he was the skunk's subject and not Rekiz. Or perhaps he's just getting in the mood, Persegan thought. Who knows what his process is.

“Alright," he ended up saying. “I guess I've already tried twice. Let's see if you can get something better out of him."

Persegan turned to the otter drone, whose vacant gaze kept getting lost in the depths of the visor.

“Okay. Now, R-22, I want you to be a good drone and…" The goat snapped his fingers. “Wake."

Rekiz's body twitched. His eyes regained some focus as his body swayed, caught off-balance on the couch. The visor turned off a few seconds later as Persegan's finger tapped the screen of his mobile phone once again, closing the app. Rekiz remained there, confused, and looked down to find his fist on his chest. His cheeks immediately turned red.

“W… what…"

Blue chuckled.

“You didn't have to wake him up, silly goat," he said, stepping closer to the bewildered otter.

“Hmm? And let you take advantage of the nice, open state I've left him in?" Persegan asked with a scoff. “No, thanks."

“Who knows. Perhaps you're giving me more advantage by waking him up. Fractionation is a thing that works, remember?"

The goat shook his head, a smile on his lips.

“Okay, okay. Say whatever you want. I just thought it'd be fair if we both started from square one."

Persegan moved aside and let Blue stand in front of Rekiz. The dazed otter appeared to be getting used to reality once again. The sight of the imposing skunk towering over him was probably not helping him get any less flustered. Rekiz's somewhat glassy eyes looked up as Blue moved his hand to the back of his own neck and unclasped the golden chain that rested on his shoulders. The blue pendant hanging from the chain dangled in front of the otter's gaze and the skunk chuckled again.

“It isn't square one, no," he said, “but close enough, anyway. Now, Rekiz – why don't you let your eyes rest on the beautiful jewel? I see your mind is coming back, so let's try and solve that, hmm? Trust me, it won't be hard."

“B… but…" Rekiz mumbled.

His head bobbed one time before coming to a comfortable rest on Blue's fast hand. A thick thumb slid dangerously close to the otter's mouth and then stopped at his cheek. The gentle but firm grip of the skunk kept his head from dipping again.

“No buts, hun," Blue smiled. “Just look into the pendant and let your mind drift again, yeah?"

“Yeah…"

Persegan moved from the skunk's side and chose a different spot to watch the show. He was familiar with Blue's pendant and knew the particular effect it could have in someone's attention. And even though he couldn't be one hundred percent certain of what Rekiz was thinking at the moment, he could tell the otter had been overcome with the compulsion to answer born from the trigger. He wasn't sure why he knew, but he did.

“That's much better. Now, I'll make this nice and easy. I'm not going to sway the pendant back and forth, like you might be used to. I'm just going to let it hang there, right in front of your eyes. The only thing you need to do is keep staring. Couldn't be easier, yeah?"

“Y-yeah…"

The otter's half-lidded eyes had moved up to focus on the blue jewel. His heavy shoulders were already pushing him forward, his body's weight leaning only on Blue's hand. In spite of the induction being halfway through, Persegan could tell that the otter was already deep in trance. He hadn't been able to wake all the way up from his previous slumber before being pushed back to it with just a few carefully placed words – and now, he was sinking to further depths than last time, just by staring at the magnetic pendant.

The goat could more or less imagine what Blue's goal was. By raising the dangling pendant little by little and forcing Rekiz's eyes to roll up, the skunk was making the otter feel in a particularly mind-altered state. Never mind that Rekiz had been in that state for a long time already – whether he knew he was in trance or not, being made to feel like he was would certainly plunge the otter deeper into a mindless abyss. Of course, just as Blue had pointed out earlier, fractionation played an important role there.

Well, he might be taking advantage of that now, the goat found himself thinking. But if he doesn't manage to get that sentence out of Rekiz this time, then it'll be my turn.

“You're doing a wonderful job, hun," Blue congratulated the otter, who sighed in happy bliss. “Your thoughts drifting. Following. All you need to do is watch, relax, listen and obey. Just like that. I told you it'd be easy."

As Persegan watched the otter melting under Blue's grip, he felt a swirl of warm, aroused feelings stirring inside him. He scratched his cheek, which was unnaturally hot at the moment, and adjusted his pants. The skunk certainly knew how to put on a good show. And seeing Rekiz like that, completely out of it and about to drool the contents of his brain out… why, it was making him a bit jealous.

“Now, let's do something together. You remember the mantra I gave you the other day, yeah?"

It took Rekiz a few seconds to react. Persegan had to refrain the urge to smile – there must be so many mantras in the poor otter's mind by now that he was surely trying to guess which one the skunk meant.

“Yeah…" came the slow, drowsy response after a few seconds. Apparently, he'd been able to find the one.

“Good boy. Say it out loud for us, then."

Rekiz's mouth moved slowly, a dreamy look in his eyes.

“The… The Master of my Master is my Master…"

“There you go. Say it again, come on."

Persegan listened as Rekiz repeated the mantra. Something inside him felt… weird. Like an itch he couldn't scratch at the moment. There was something wrong and right at the same time about the particular way the words in that sentence were arranged, but he wasn't supposed to understand what it was, not now.

In any case, the otter's mantra gave him an idea. One that he might use to override the defenses they both had placed in his mind… with one simple suggestion. His wandering thoughts got interrupted by what he imagined was Blue approaching the important bit and origin of their bet.

“Now, keeping that mantra of yours in mind. Letting it echo in your head, over and over. If I ask you to say that sentence out loud, if I ask you to say that I've won, what do you do, hun?"

The otter's mouth opened. Persegan could see a flash of total surrender going through Rekiz's helpless eyeroll – he was about to do as Blue commanded, no hesitation. That dangling pendant, the skunk's honey-sweet words and the deep trance brought by fractionation had been too much for the otter's mind. Damn, the goat thought, slightly disappointed. Maybe there'll be no next round, after all.

However, right at the last second, the otter seemed to remember something and his mouth closed again, his chin brushing against Blue's hand. The skunk chuckled softly.

“Nothing? Oh, I should have seen it coming. You're so good at obeying that it only makes sense you'd resist this well."

Rekiz let out a soft moan. The bulge between his legs was fairly noticeable at the moment. Persegan knew the otter had been already feeling aroused when he'd walked into the room – two trances in a row were more than enough to make him feel like that – but now Rekiz was probably completely unaware of just how much the current situation was turning him on.

And it wouldn't stop there, of course. Not now that Persegan's turn was getting closer again.

“Alright, little otter. I want those tired eyes of yours to close down now as I put the pendant away. Letting them rest for a few seconds and then drifting upwards to awareness once again, slowly but steadily. Yeah. Just like that. Up and up. Up and up. Nice and awake… mostly."

It took a few seconds for Rekiz's eyes to open all the way again. When they did, the otter's head bobbed a few times as he tried to get used to awareness – or at least, the partial awareness he could achieve after being dropped so many times in a row. If there was one thing Persegan knew was that it would take some time for Rekiz to fully wake up once they were done with him.

Which was hot in its own way, the goat thought.

“So, is it my turn again?" he asked, beaming a confident smile at Blue.

The skunk nodded and moved aside after petting the otter affectionately between his ears.

“W… whuh…" Rekiz mumbled, blinking a few times. “Y-your turn…? But you were just getting started when… I… uuuh…"

He grew quiet as he tried to make sense of the confusing thoughts and memories in his mind. Blue and Persegan exchanged a knowing look, refraining the urge to laugh at the otter's intervention.

“Oh, is someone's brain getting all soft and mushy?" the skunk asked.

“I think the poor otter's had too much brainwashing for a day," Persegan teased, watching with satisfaction as the otter's cheeks turned a deep shade of red. “Not like too much brainwashing exists, for that matter, but four times in a row will surely make thoughts difficult at some point."

Blue turned to the goat and winked an eye at him.

“What do you mean 'four times'? It's been ten or twelve at least."

“What? There's no… no way I… uh…" The otter shook his head, his expression growing even more confused as he heard those words. “So… who won? Or… hasn't that happened yet…"

“Not yet, no," Persegan said with a smile. “But it's about to happen."

Blue chuckled softly.

“You sound really confident all of a sudden. Thought of a new trick, goat?"

“Oh, trust me. I've got an idea."

The skunk raised an eyebrow, curious, but he refrained from asking more questions. Satisfied, Persegan turned to Rekiz, who was looking up at the goat with an expression that ranged from extremely flustered to completely oblivious. The otter would be a horny, utterly embarrassed mess later on, when all memories from that experience returned to his mind or Persegan recounted it to him with an awful amount of detail. Oh, he'd make sure to let him know what he'd been through.

“Ready to go under once again?" he asked.

Rekiz nodded slowly, his expression slackening a bit at the mere mention of going under. The otter was so suggestible after so many deep trances that, by now, it probably wouldn't take much to drop him down again.

But Persegan had a different idea this time.

The goat tapped his mobile phone again and the visor, which remained attached to the otter's head, blinked back to life. The pink spiral resumed its slow, mind-numbing spinning on the screen. Rekiz got slightly cross-eyed for a second as his focus turned to the enticing swirl. Then, his gaze relaxed a bit as his eyelids began to drop down, pulled by an invisible force. With half-lidded eyes, the otter's head began a slow, irresistible descent until his chin rested on his chest. The tip of his tongue stuck out of his open mouth, the otter's heavy, limp body slumping on the chair.

“That's nice. You're so far gone that I don't even need to speak in order to make you go under," Persegan smiled. “Luckily for you, it's not just putting you in a trance that we're trying to achieve here… so you're going to have to listen to me for a while. And you like listening to me, don't you, Rekiz? Say it for me."

“I uhlike… listening… to… you…"

“That's a good otter. Let's make sure you don't forget about that and put you in your drone state, okay? This time you don't need to salute – it's okay if you stay right where you are, all loose and limp." Persegan made a short pause, just to let his words sink straight into the otter's suggestible mind. Then, he hit it with the well-practiced trigger. “Drone Otter Activated."

Rekiz squirmed a bit on his seat, yet he didn't salute this time, just like instructed. The tent between his legs seemed to throb a bit as the otter's mind shut down and went back to its thoroughly programmed settings.

“Drone R-22 is ready to obey," he mumbled.

“Very good. Good drone!" Persegan praised the otter. A glimpse of a dumb smile spread on the otter's face upon hearing those words. “Let's see. I'm going to give you some very specific instructions now. I want you to follow closely, just like you always do. You're going to be a good drone and do as I say, right? Come on, R-22, repeat your mantra."

“Soy un buen drone… un drone está vacío y obediente… escuchar y obedecer."

“Muuuuy bien[[2]](#ftn2). And that's what you'll do – listen and obey. I want you to think about the first time I put you under today. I want you to remember your paw rising, so warm and light and relaxed. And I want you to remember how it _dropped heavily, plunging you into trance. And when you're done remembering it, I want you to remember it again. Over and over, playing in your mind like a loop. Just think about that moment when you went so deep that I put that suggestion in your mind – to say that sentence, only to me: 'You win. I belong to you entirely – and you accepted it without question. Can you do that for me?"

There was a weak, slow nod. As the dropping of his paw played time and time again in his mind, Rekiz's gaze grew even glassier, looking way beyond the spiral swirling on the visor's screen. There was nothing behind that vacant gaze.

“And now, I want you to think about Blue's induction, right after I left you."

“Uh, what?" the skunk asked from behind. “What are you planning, you sneaky goat?"

Persegan didn't let that question distract him.

“Think about how deep he made you go before you made the same promise to him. Think about that moment again, as you remember your paw dropping. Over and over. And now, focus on the spiral in your visor. Listening to Blue as he puts you under… and sinking as your paw hits your lap. Again. And again."

Out of the corner of his eye, Persegan could notice he'd surprised Blue. The skunk had crossed his arms on his chest again, right over the pendant he'd been holding in front of Rekiz's eyes just a few minutes ago. That's right, the goat told himself. The pendant.

“And as it does, remember staring into the pendant as well. Remember dropping for both of us so easily, every single time today. Feel it happening, all together – your paw dropping, Blue conditioning you afterwards, the visor in front of you, the pendant attracting your gaze. And you're there, R-22, in all those scenarios. Being dropped into trance, hypnotized by the two of us in an endless loop."

Persegan had no idea what the overwhelming experience would feel like to the poor otter's fractionated brain, but the trickle of drool dripping down his chin confirmed his suspicions that the otter was so, so far gone that he could proceed with his attempt at winning the bet. This has to work, he told himself.

“And as it repeats in your mind, pulling you deeper than you've ever been… you hear a single command issued." Persegan avoided specifying which one of them would be issuing the command – it was part of his plan, after all. “Say the sentence, R-22."

The otter struggled, if only for a split second. His body twitched a bit as he tried to fight the growing flood of mindless obedience burying everything. So many open flanks that he had no idea where he was or what he was supposed to do anymore. And then, things seemed to click in his mind.

“You… win," he muttered in a weak, slow monotone. “I belong to you entirely."

Hah! Yes! Persegan had to stop himself from celebrating. He could tell by Blue's somewhat impressed expression that the skunk hadn't been expecting that to work and that made him feel inexplicably proud.

“That's a really good drone, R-22," he praised the drone otter, petting his head. “Now you're allowed to be a good boy and drift in that sleep for a while until I wake you up, understood?"

The otter's head moved up and down almost imperceptibly. Drool poured on his chest.

Persegan turned to Blue with a knowing smirk. The skunk tilted his head, smiled back and clapped a few times as if congratulating him. As if. Something about the specific way he moved made Persegan think Blue was up to something, but he had no time to think about that. He'd won the bet, after all.

“Well, I suppose that settles it," he announced, unable to hold the triumphant smile threatening to spread on his face any longer. “I won. Seems like my trick wasn't that bad after all."

“It was a good one, hun," Blue commended. “Although…"

Persegan held his gaze.

“Although what?"

“Well, I'm just going to point out that you won by making him think he was being hypnotized by the two of us at the same time," Blue noted. “Don't you think that can be interpreted like we both were winners?"

“What? No way. I'm the one who had the idea to put those scenarios together in his mind," Persegan argued. “I won fair and square! Plus, you said it before – you were taking advantage of the fact that he was fractionated. I just used all the inductions we'd left there beforehand. It's more or less the same."

“Hmm. I don't know, I don't know," Blue teased, a playful grin on his face. “We'll have to call someone else to act as the referee."

“Pffft. You'd probably hypnotize them as well!"

Blue nodded, his smile growing slightly wider. It took Persegal several seconds to consider the sentence he'd just said and find it… weird. Hypnotize them as well. Implying what? That Blue had hypnotized someone there other than Rekiz? But that made no sense.

Then again, the skunk was fairly skilled when it came to confusion inductions… and Persegan remembered, or thought he remembered, a specific one that wasn't so different from the last one he'd used on Rekiz. Had Blue been the one who'd used that…? Who had he used that on?

“Why are you smiling so much?" he asked. “I won, remember?"

He wasn't nervous, but he could tell there was more below the surface that he wasn't seeing. Something escaping his awareness and slipping right through his fingers. Persegan could tell because that was the same feeling he'd made others feel sometimes – the presence of a memory that was supposed to be there, but that he'd decided to forget, or not look at directly, because someone had told him to do so.

The goat took a step back and looked up into Blue's eyes.

“I… I won," he repeated. He wasn't sure whether he was trying to convince the skunk or himself.

“Of course you did, hun," Blue replied with a calm, gentle voice. The kind of tone he'd used before, when cupping Rekiz's chin with a hand. “I'm not going to take your victory away from you. I just thought you could use some… um… perspective."

“What do you mean?"

There was something odd going on. Persegan could tell. Those blue and golden eyes were staring straight into his, except…

… except they hadn't always been blue and golden. They were swirling and Persegan simply hadn't noticed before. The goat felt his thoughts slowing down, the edges of his mind softening under the calming influence. His arms were suddenly much harder to lift, his complaints much more difficult to voice. Why hadn't he noticed they were swirling before? He should have noticed. He should have, but…

Another step back was all he could take before his body stopped there, heavy and comfortable. His eyes tried to escape from the skunk's enticing gaze, knowing fully well the kinds of things that the magnetic pull would make his brain feel, but it was already too late.

“Well, the little otter said so himself," Blue spoke, taking a step closer to Persegan and grabbing his chin to make him look up, straight into those swirling eyes. The goat's body twitched, but offered little resistance. “The Master of his Master is his Master. And if you're his Master, that makes me your Master, yeah?"

Persegan felt the compulsion to repeat the last word. No, he thought, trying to fight the urge. Not because it didn't feel good, but because he wanted to hold on to the last specks of pride that hadn't been washed away by those pretty spirals. The goat pulled and pulled, trying to break away from the temptation to just say what he was supposed to say.

In the end, the weight of those hypnotic eyes and the overwhelming need to comply ended up winning the war inside him.

He gave in.

“… yeah," he muttered.

“That's what I thought. And do you know what I also thought? That you'd do a good job at breaking this poor otter's resistance. You've always been good at that, hun," the skunk said, a devious grin on his face. “So why do it myself when I can ask you to do so… and then have two suggestible cuties all for myself?"

Persegan gulped. So the bet, the competition, had all been staged. He'd been deep in the skunk's clutches before all that even started. The goat had simply been playing along, unable to notice that until it was too late. Blue had been winning all the time.

And somehow, that felt good. Really good.

“I can tell you like it, yeah?"

Another weak attempt at resisting.

“Y-yeah…" the goat answered in a thin voice. His own confirmation cemented the fact in his mind – he did like it. A lot.

“And you're going to be a good boy and claim your prize, yeah?"

“Yeah."

Blue chuckled softly. The sound sent a pleasant shiver down Persegan's spine. F-fuck, I'm already too deep into it, he managed to think. This is… hmmf…

“Zero thoughts, yeah?"

“Y… yeah."

Zero thoughts. Persegan stood there, staring vacantly. The skunk pet his head and gently guided him towards the couch where Rekiz was still drooling his brains out. Somehow, even without thoughts, Persegan had a feeling that things would soon get pretty similar for him. There was a pat on his shoulder.

“Kneel."

The goat dropped to his knees in front of the couch, losing sight of those swirling pools. His mind seemed to fill with white noise.

“R-22, be a good boy and kneel next to your Master and in front of the Master of your Master, yeah?"

“Y… yu-uh…" came the otter's distant response.

The next thing Persegan knew, Rekiz was kneeling next to him – the otter's body gently swaying right and left as he tried to keep himself more or less upright. After all, that visor was still working in front of his eyes. There was a chance his mind kept on playing all the times he'd been dropped that day, on repeat. No wonder he couldn't even find his balance.

Blue was sitting on the couch and regarded them with that teasing, playful grin of his, as if he'd just gotten away with a particularly devious prank.

“Gehehe. That's what I like to see. Two drooling cuties deeply hypnotized, getting ready to worship my paws."

Worship his…?

“Zero thoughts, yeah."

“Yeah," came the automatic response of both Rekiz and Persegan.

“Veeery good. Now, I believe you two have some work to do."

Blue's paws were lifted until they rested in front of Persegan's face. The goat didn't need to be told twice before eagerly grabbing the paw and pushing it to his head, fingers sinking on the fur at its back as he felt the soles brushing against his face. Out of the corner of his eye, too fuzzy-brained to really process it, Persegan could see Rekiz mirroring his moves, just like a shadow.

“Good boys. Remember – under paw and under control. That's where you need to be."

A content sigh escaped the lips of the goat, echoed by Rekiz. Yes. That's where they needed to be. Both started licking and worshipping the skunk's big soles, still on their knees and displaying their building arousal shamelessly as their minds fell right into place.

From the couch, Blue regarded them with a smirk. He'd been looking forward to having the two like that, right at his paws. And he planned of taking advantage of it – oh yeah, he'd had a few rough weeks and his soles needed some tender work. It was such a pleasant coincidence that Persegan and Rekiz were happy to give them the attention they deserved.

With a little help, of course.

His gaze moved to the goat and he couldn't help but chuckle.

“Hope you like your prize, little goat," he said with a wink. “After all, you know what they say…"

The skunk pushed his paw gently against Persegan's face, who let out a muffled, deliciously helpless moan.

“The winner takes it all."

---

[[1]](#_ftnref1) “I'm a good drone… a drone is empty and obedient… listen and obey"

[[2]](#_ftnref2) “Veeeery good."