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Project Ataraxia (Pt1)

By Whitepython

"They can't do this to me! There's no way this is happening!"

Farlox, the gecko, snapped as he rose from his desk in a violent outburst. Making his chair spin after bringing himself up in anger to his large reptilian feet.

He was a 1.86 meters tall and 29 years old gecko. He had a thin, almost scrawny body. His scaly skin consisted of a harmonic blend of green and yellow colored scales with dozens of tiny red spots decorating his body from the top of his head all the way down to his long-toed feet. The gecko wore a white lab coat. Under those clothes he wore a soft blue long-sleeved shirt and white pants.

"We asked and explained to them just last week that we require at least another three months for a safe prototype. We told them that we are almost done! I can't believe this is happening just when we are already in the final stage..." the reptile said with a voice that reflected the mixture of anger and sadness that the sudden bad news caused in him. "It's my project! I won't let them take it away from me!"

"Come on Farlox. It's not my fault. I'm just telling you what they've just said to me. I am on your side here, and I am as angry as you are." Isdel, the Panther, spoke as he stood before the enraged scientist. The feline's voice carried a tone which reflected an annoyed, yet patient attempt to keep the situation under control.

Isdel was a panther who was around 1.78 meters tall. With a slim build on his feline body, but not as scrawny as the reptile. He had large and yellow eyes on his black furred face. He wore under his pristine white lab coat a long sleeved clear gray shirt and black pants which revealed under them his also black furred plantigrade feet. He was 27 years old. Or at least that is what Farlox remembered.

The gecko took a deep breath once he caught the hint from the panther that his anger was getting out of hand. He locked himself in his mind for a moment as he tried to cope with the problem he was facing just now.

The struggles of hard and long working days with few hours for sleeping going on month after month to no end which he has invested in this project were about to become in vain. He sacrificed everything important in his life to fulfill his great dream. The reptile had even given up his relationship with his girlfriend for the sake of his dream. He desired for his project to crown him before thousands of his fellow employees as a great scientist and invaluable asset to A.S.Tech.

Instead of creating yet another technology of destruction like his superiors expected. He came up with a revolutionary machine that would help any soldier with post-traumatic stress disorders to erase bad memories. The device could even reinforce memories of victory to bring an emotionally wounded but otherwise healthy soldier back to the battlefield as good as new.

He turned around to look behind himself. To the bottom of his office where a thick glass next along with an even thicker metal door divided his office in half from his laboratory and also guarded the project he has sworn to finish someday; project Ataraxia.

Farlox felt like falling on his knees to cry out loud as he observed through the security glass that caged metal beast on display. The materialization of his vision. A powerful and sturdy monster brought to life by hard work and painstaking dedication that was threatened to be slain under an insignificant and thin sheet of white paper with a bunch of signatures on it in a matter of days.

"Even if Ataraxia is incomplete; there's one way to save it..." the feline spoke. Those words soaked in hope brought the lizard back to the present with a renewed desire to rescue his beloved project. "You need to go through the whole procedure and let me operate the machine on you. If we experiment around and make it work during this weekend, we could have a chance to present the project to the directive board. We could get the extension we requested a week ago instead of folding up."

The lizard opened his eyes wide as he choked on a suppressed scream of terror while a shiver ran down his spine. That had to be the worst idea! An unexpected bug on the software could destroy his mental health and leave him in a straightjacket at the insane asylum for the rest of his days. To build a secure software for the device was the reason they both placed a three-month extension request before the directive board in first place.

"Are you proposing that we experiment with an unstable prototype in my own mind during three days just to see what will happen?" Farlox's shoulders rose up as his nostrils flared while he jabbed a finger towards the feline "Are you nuts?!"

The panther stared at the gecko with a defiant glare as he shifted his lips into an uncomfortable twist. But he stood fixed on his spot as his black hands began to fist under his white lab coat sleeves as the gecko kept his harsh assault.

"Why don't you lay instead in the machine and let me do the work? So in case something really wrong happens your mind gets bonked out instead of mine!"

"Because I know how the software works and you don't!" The panther spoke with an aggressive voice. Isdel was now as angry as the reptile was. "I am trying my hardest here to be proactive instead of throwing a tantrum like a spoiled cub..." The panther began to walk from side to side before the reptile.

"If something wrong happens..." Isdel continued to talk as he flashed his fangs and waved his hands in anger "I can adjust the program and return everything to normal. You can't do that because you worked in the machine itself and the device is pretty much complete. There is nothing that can go wrong with it!"

The reptile was taken by surprise at the sudden change of attitude from his partner. This was enough to make him reconsider how he was reacting to this mess. He debated in his mind how risky could it actually be to allow the Panther to execute such complicated and time-consuming stunt in such short period of time.

Farlox remembered when he got the approval from the directive board one year ago. He knew he could build the machine itself for the work. But he was in dire need of an expert hypnotist. Someone who was also well-studied on how the mind functions. Isdel was the answer to his call. The directive board chose him from a pool of several, very qualified candidates. He was the best that could be hired for this project in the whole country. The feline was more than capable, and he has always demonstrated this during the development of the project.

"We only need to make the program work on its core functions," Isdel spoke with a somewhat calmed voice now. "We just need the minimum enough for a public demonstration. We don't need to finish the whole thing by Sunday night. And besides..."

Isdel stopped to pace from side to side and went silent for a moment as his shoulders fell down, the gecko could feel the change of mood in the room as the weight of those yellow eyes on him turned away.

"...Do you really think that I would ever allow something bad to happen to you? Do you think that I would never fight to protect you if something goes wrong?"

All the logic and rational concerns on the gecko's mind about the risky move fell off of his head. He now felt touched. It was not the words who did it. It was the flat and monotone, yet broken voice which delivered the suggestions that impacted him.

Ever since the rumors began about the abrupt end of the project, the panther believed in them, and he became more protective of the gecko. While Farlox himself decided to take a more rational approach and disregard everything as rumors and focus his mental energies on his work.

But that was until some moments ago.

The reptile supposed that maybe the feline was just as stressed as he was with the sudden bad news and he was acting protective of both the project and his work partner. After all, the feline had also poured all of his mind and soul in the project just like himself. -That had to be the reason-.

"I... look pal. I'm sorry." Farlox said, concealing defeat before the feline. "We are both hurt and confused about this issue. I suppose you really want to see this complete as much as I do and I guess you are just trying your best to make things work. But it really has to be me the one going into Ataraxia? Can't we get someone else?"

"Well, who do you suggest that we can hook into the machine in this very moment?"

"W... What? Why does it have to be right now?"

"We only have the rest of this Friday and both Saturday and Sunday to work as much as we can on the machine. Do you think we can waste time finding a willing candidate to put in there and at the same time make everything work in less than 72 hours?"

The gecko released a soft hiss in annoyance. The panther was right. It was either spend time hunting for a subject, or it was fixing the software to leave it working at least half decent enough for Monday morning.

"And what do you plan to erase from my memory?" the gecko inquired as he looked once again to his beloved invention behind the glass. It was obvious to him that he had to go in there and there was no way around it.

"Is there any particular memory you wish gone?" the panther replied with another question. The gecko spent a moment thinking. But nothing came to mind. Maybe the pressure of the sudden change of plans wasn't allowing Farlox to concentrate.

"Let me delete Anella from your memories. Since you broke up with her, you have changed so much..."

The panther had returned already to his calmed self. But even with a calmed voice, the gecko felt unsettled by the comment. That's a name he never expected to hear again. Not from his workplace, not from his work partner, -Not under this circumstances.-

"What are you talking about? Don't bring her into this!" Farlox spoke with an annoyed voice. The panther just poked something that had the power to hurt him just as much as losing the project he has poured himself onto; his ex-girlfriend Anella.

"It's just that you have been so different these past six months." Isdel went silent as he returned his yellow eyes on the gecko "I... look. I was mere trying to help with the first thing that came to my mind. Choose something else" The feline took a deep breath before releasing it out loud. "Pick a childhood trauma or something." Isdel encouraged the reptile with a forced smile.

The gecko wanted to leave behind all the issues that were eroding the precious little time left they had and get things done already. Farlox spoke the first thing that came to his mind even if it was meaningless in his life.

"When I was like six years old, I fell from a tall tree. I almost broke both of my legs if it wasn't because dad left a huge pile of dry leaves on the place where I landed by sheer luck. But ever since that day I feel quite uneasy on heights. A lot more when I take a look down from tall buildings. Let's work with that."

The feline erased his smile to squeeze his lips tight as his right hand scratched behind his black furred neck and left ear before turning his gaze away from the gecko and to turn his yellow gaze at the metallic structure behind the glass.

Farlox walked to the door that guarded his work. He placed his right clawed hand on a small and blue panel next to the sturdy door and waited for a couple of seconds before the whole surface changed to a vivid green color. The thick and heavy door next to the panel slid in a quick sideway motion to the right. This action granted access to both scientists to the materialized sum of their efforts; Project Ataraxia.

The machine consisted of two computer racks with all sort of panels, keyboards, and monitors mounted on the bottom wall of the lab. Attached to the ceiling, there was a long crane neck like structure with the most important piece of the project: a large ergonomic helmet.

The helmet had a visor attached to it for a complete experience which was risen up like the facial shield of a biker helmet. The helmet also had all sort of cables coming from the top. Cables that were wrapped around the neck of the crane and their opposite ends were connected with the computer racks.

Under the helmet, there was a large and sturdy metallic table. With its surface padded with soft and black cushions to make it comfortable to lay for whoever laid on it.

The gecko gathered all of his inner courage before stepping inside in resignation. He moved his long frame next to the large and padded table. He began to undo his large lab coat to throw it aside before sitting down on the comfortable surface.

"Remove the rest of your clothes as well..." Isdel spoke with a voice that sounded serious as he stood in expectancy before the reptile while the heavy security door shut itself down thanks to its automatized security system.

"What are you talking about?" the reptile replied in confusion and disdain.

"Standard hypnosis procedure." The feline justified his request as he diverted his eyes away from the reptile to look up at the long metallic arm hanging from the ceiling. "You must be as relaxed as possible for the session. Even the slightest uneasiness will divert your attention from the hypnotic trance and make you focus on the uncomfortable thing. This is the best course of action."

No matter how much he wanted to save the project. He wasn't getting naked before another male. And that was final.

"I... I think the more clothes I keep on, the more comfortable I will be..."

Farlox spoke with a tone which reflected his waning motivation to carry on through this already difficult situation. The panther turned around. With his tail in between his legs to leave the incident behind and to focus his attention on the panels mounted at the bottom of the room.

"Anyway. lay down on the table and wait while I make some preliminary tests on the software."

"I already know how this works..." The gecko looked around his small laboratory once he placed himself down on the padded table and stretched his long and scrawny self. Farlox has always seen this place from the perspective of a worker, but now he was able to take a look from the viewpoint of a subject. He always expected to see a soldier unable to reintegrate into society thanks to an awful day in the battlefield to lay on this table instead of himself.

"While the helmet gets ready I am going to use an aromatic oil to help you relax."

Farlox looked to his right just in time to see the panther produce from one of his lab coat pockets a white plastic bottle. It was around 10 centimeters tall and 4 centimeters wide. He shook it in his right hand before removing its lid to expose a dropper. Farlox was familiar with aromatherapy, but he never expected Isdel to be into that.

The feline looked into his eyes with a broad smile while his black tail danced behind him for a brief moment which reflected his playful attitude. The smile invited the reptile to relax. For a moment Farlox wasn't sure about letting the feline to put his hands all over him. But he has fought with Isdel since he came with the bad news. He decided to give the feline a chance just for the sake of not to be so conflictive.

Those feline fingers squeezed the bottle to extract the precious liquid it contained over the panther's left hand, allowing it to soak his thick pads. Isdel placed the bottle back into his coat. He dipped his index and middle fingers in the liquid collected on his left palm as he stood next to the gecko. Then he used his fingertips to rub them along the gecko's long and scaly forehead.

Those warm fingers left a refreshing sensation over his scaled skin. After a moment they also traveled along his cheekbone, the length of his muzzle and his chin which also left that soothing feeling. Isdel worked with care along the reptile's face. The gecko could feel how his tired and stressed self began to relax under those tender ministrations.

His nostrils were filled with the fresh and minty scent of the oil which helped him to ease the tension created earlier by this situation. He looked up at the feline every now and then to pay attention to his serious face as he worked with dedication on the task while the place remained sunk in complete silence.

After a moment, the feline disappeared with his soothing fingers. But after a few seconds, the refreshing sensation showed up over the top of the lizard's bare head and behind his neck. Those soaked fingers in fresh oil invited him to relax even further.

Farlox was glad that he threw aside his initial resistance and allowed the panther to take care of him with his dexterous fingers and special oil while those fingers squeezed with care the nape of his neck.

The relaxing rubs around his neck and the back of his head gave way to be replaced by the sensation of the padded insides of the helmet sliding over his skull. Even with his head inside the device, Farlox was able to see because the face shield like visor which acted as a screen was raised up for the time being.

The last thing Farlox saw before Isdel adjusted a small band around his chin and closed the visor in the helmet was a wide feline grin. After that, the helmet made his vision pitch dark. A soft click made it clear that the small screen was set in place.

After a couple of moments where the sound of the keyboard keys being hit was the only stimuli from the outside, the screen faded in with a soft glow. This gave the gecko enough time to get used to the source of light after spending a moment in pitch darkness.

The video of a river running in the middle of a forest appeared. The river was shallow enough for the rocks at the bottom of the river to poke out. The speakers on each side of the reptile's ear canals were emanating the sound of the liquid running around the stones as the sounds of the wildlife played along at a smooth pace.

Farlox waited for something else to happen as he relaxed before the landscape presented before him. As he paid attention to the recorded scene, he was able to perceive a soft voice speaking to him. It was difficult to understand what the voice was saying because it got lost among the sound of the creatures of the forest along with the noise of the river. It was a soft whisper trying to sneak into his mind.

The gecko wanted to pay attention to it so he could understand what was being said by the strange voice. Both to determine what was happening to him and to test how effective this project was.

As he was busy figuring out parts of the mysterious speech, his mental focus came to a full stop when he felt his long soles caressed by the same cold and smooth sensation his face and head received just some moments ago.

The gecko tried to spread his legs wide to escape the sudden feeling over his long soles but a pair of warm hands wrapped around his ankles to keep his legs in place. That action came accompanied with a request.

"Please stay calmed..." Isdel's voice was easy to hear through the helmet for the speakers in the helmet weren't loud "I need to finish the relaxing massage before the deep hypnosis session can begin. Let yourself go just like you did when I was rubbing your head."

Farlox decided to give into the requests of the panther. After all, he already did a fantastic job with his sore neck. Maybe he can trust him with his scaly feet. The gecko took a deep breath before relaxing and allowing the hypnotist to resume his work after resting his legs once again to submit his reptilian claws to the panther.

The reptile could feel the panther's thick padded digits to run with a firm touch against his scaly feet. Those fingers went up and down with even more energy and enthusiasm than before. Farlox could feel those thick padded fingertips to ran from under his clawed toes all the way to his heels with energy. They looked for any sore spot to smooth away as the minty oil left them refreshed. This deepened the reptile into a new dimension of relaxation while the helmet took care of doing the same to his mind.

His gaze remained lost in the middle of that forest as the sound of the river carried him deeper and deeper into relaxation. A soft hum began to play and to mix in harmony with the rest of the already present sounds while his nose still clung to the memory of the minty scent.

The pleasure his mind and feet were going through became a monotonous rhythm until a new event happened. A white text faded in on the screen. The phrase 'relax' made its appearance before the gecko but he disregarded it as corny. He just wanted to relax under the smooth attention he received on his clawed feet.

The word disappeared from the visor with a smooth fade out just to be replaced with another one who said 'sleep.'

That's when he noticed that more words were appearing and disappearing before his eyes at a speed which made it too hard to read on the corners of the visor. He wasn't sure for how long those ideas in the corners had being flashed. Everything the gecko could do was to relax and submit to the sneaky messages regardless of what they were saying.

To add to the series of instructions which were given to him, the pre-recorded voice of the panther began to speak to him in a smooth tone while the massage continued in between his long toes and along the edges of his feet.

"Relax...

"Feel your whole body surrounded by the beautiful and warm water of the river, covering your body, running along your skin and letting you feel immersed in the sensation of being caressed in the peaceful flow that helps you sleep...

"Take a deep breath. Hold it for a moment. Release it in a soft manner and follow my commands, knowing that you can relax for me and open your mind in the middle of the clearing of the forest and allow the peace of the forest to heal your mind and soothe your tired body."

The foot massage made everything so easy for the reptile to go along the hypnotic instructions and relax.

"It is safe to sleep now. It is safe to close your eyes and listen only to the voice. You will sleep protected by the voice, and wake up as a whole new person."

Farlox stretched his legs, pressing his feet against the feline's belly as the panther's hands squeezed his ankles in a slow pace. He decided to obey all the stimulation by closing his eyes. He allowed the voice alone to work its hypnotic charms as he began to drift into a quiet sleep. He gave full reign to the feline on his clawed feet as he gave the machine complete control over his mind as time began to pass by while he slept.

* * *

"I like to relax and allow the voice to take complete control...

"I give the voice full and total control of my mind so the voice can tell me what the best is for me...

"I let the voice guide me on every step during the smooth sail towards my new life...

"I handle to the voice total control of my mind with a blissful willingness...

"Only good ideas should be inside my mind...

"My thinking is incorrect. The thinking of the voice which comes from Isdel is correct...

"Isdel knows what the best is for me in the same way a master knows what is best for their slave...

"Becoming a slave to Isdel is the only idea I can think of...

"I accept complete slavery of my mind under master Isdel...

"I am now a slave to master Isdel...

"Slavery will set me free, Slavery will set me free, Slavery will set me free...

The gecko released a sharp gasp as he squirmed in his spot and opened his eyes. What was going on? Slave to master Isdel? What kind of sick joke was that?

For how long has he been sleeping?

As his vision refocused on the small screen before him, he could see the words 'slavery will set me free' on the screen disappearing and reappearing over and over again. The forest remained there to keep him relaxed while the looped voice of the panther kept on digging deep into his mind. Seducing him with ideas of submission.

When the gecko tried to take off the helmet, he realized that he was tied down to the table. Farlox placed a binding mechanism on the table in case someone had a violent reaction to the device. But that safe mechanism was now preventing him from escaping from his beloved invention. An invention that was corrupted from its original intention.

As he struggled in his spot, the reptile was able to feel the padded hands of the feline stroking his long and slim, almost scrawny chest as a soft purr escaped the lips of his captor.

"You woke up already huh? Such an early riser. We're almost done anyway. Relax and sleep for me once again and we will be ready in a few minutes."

"W...what is the meaning of this?!" The reptile demanded an explanation for this confusing situation.

"I guess it's time to be honest with you..." Isdel went silent for a moment as the reptile laid in expectancy for an explanation which came after a moment.

"The truth is that I have always found you very attractive. It was love at first sight when I first saw your pretty face at the annual new employee meeting where you joined this company.

"Ever since then I had always fantasized about ways to meet you and to hang out with you. But everything was empty fantasies until the announcement for project Ataraxia was made. When I learned who the head leader was and the profile in the team you were looking for I knew it was my golden opportunity. I pulled all my strings both dirty and clean with the directive board to be assigned to work with you.

"After working with you for a couple of months, it wasn't just a physical crush any longer. It became an emotional crush. You had a wonderful personality. You were the kind of man I have always looked for. Everything was perfect...

"But you changed a lot when that stupid bitch Anella dumped you." Isdel now spoke with an angry voice "You became easier to upset. More distant and cold. You stopped to work on Ataraxia with the original cheerfulness you approached it with. It became more of a chore where you poured down your frustrations onto.

"That broke my heart in many ways. My love for the project and for you began to wither with your change of attitude. But I refused to give up, I had to do something about it. You changed so much, and she is to blame. Or her memories in your mind to be more precise. So I spent my entire time in making a specialized program for the machine. I designed it in specific just to wipe her from your memories while at the same time it erases your sense of free will towards me, so nobody else takes you away from me. Now that we are so close to having the project taken away from us I don't have any option. I am forced to do this to you Farlox.

"If the project gets scrapped and you and I get sent to different areas I... I wouldn't survive it." The feline's voice broke down, and he went silent for a second or two before resuming "It would be my end for sure. Even if you have changed, it's her fault and only hers. It's up to me to fix you. -I will make you happy, and your life will be perfect when I enslave you to me-"

The gecko struggled as he listened to the real intentions of his partner. He couldn't believe that the fruit of his own labors and talents was about to turn him into an empty minded slave.

The gecko could feel his chest being exposed as the feline's fingers tugged and undid the buttons of his shirt. The reptile tensed for he wasn't sure what to expect. But after a couple of moments later he could feel a warm muzzle pressed against his cold and scrawny scaled chest. Those sensations came accompanied with licks and kisses along his yellow and green skin.

After a moment, the warm feelings disappeared to be replaced by the sound of some footsteps, followed by the noise of some keystrokes on the panels.

"In any case, the final stage will be complete." The Panther informed to his captured victim "But before I wipe you clean, I don't want you to be mad at me for doing this. You know very well that your ex-bitch left more bad than good in your life. I can't understand why a guy as smart as you can't see it. This is the best for you. A person who loves you knows already what the best for you is."

The green forest on the visor disappeared to give room to the image of an autumn forest. With a river dragging several golden and brown leaves along with its flow. The visor invaded the reptile's senses with the picture of a peaceful forest. But Farlox knew that such peace was corrupted.

"This last stage of the slave program is still in beta, unlike the relaxation and induction program. Didn't have enough time to smooth the rough edges on this one. -I hope it doesn't leave your brain way too melted down-"

In his current situation, the only resistance Farlox could exert was to close his eyes in an attempt to resist the incoming hypnosis. While he escaped the visual induction, he realized that it was of no use because the speakers in the helmet executed their task to slide his mind into a hypnotic trance.

The gecko remained bound to the table as project Ataraxia began to work on his imminent enslavement. The sound coming from the helmet consisted in several whispers which were impossible to detect just like the first time. But instead of being a single one it was a chant of several voices. His mind was assaulted many times over and over again from several directions with subliminal messages. Messages condemning him to complete slavery and total submission.

Even if there were no more massaging hands caressing his body, the soft humming coming from the background along with the voices and the sound of the river began to make him feel sleepy and relaxed. He tried to keep his mind away from the alluring sounds. But the more he sought to remain distracted, the easier it was to slip back into the smooth humming that accompanied the voices that whispered slavery.

Tired of struggling, the gecko felt his mind invaded by the curiosity about opening his eyes to see what was being presented on the visor. But he couldn't do that! It would complete his submission to the Panther and his utter defeat at the hands of the machine he built to help so many people.

But what if he could end up helping himself with the project? Ataraxia was about to be scrapped down. While his invention won't be able to help thousands of soldiers like he once dreamt of, he could at least be the sole receiver of the help he needed. What if Isdel was right and he really needed to forget about his ex? What if he should really focus on saving a part of his former self before his machine gets taken away for good?

The curious reptile opened one eye to see what kind of image the visor was presenting to him. The autumn forest remained before him as a series of words kept on appearing and disappearing before him, but they faded in and out at a fast pace. He couldn't read them just as the voices speaking to him were impossible to make sense of.

Farlox couldn't help it. His whole body began to sink into the smooth hypnotic sensations without being able to do much about it. His eyes succumbed to the seduction of the rapid changing words in the relaxing forest. His ears kept on receiving the soothing sounds that smoothed his easy to influence mind while his legs and arms stretched in submission just like his mind was doing.

"Was it that hard my slave? Just give into the smooth voice and pretty words" Isdel purred in satisfaction. "Soon I will own your mind and your body and everything else in your life. I shall become the new head director of project Ataraxia, and things will go my way. But don't concern yourself with that. The only thing that matters now is to get your mind clean from that nasty bitch and allow me to become the only one you love."

His head was already aligned with the smooth buzzing and humming coming from the hypnotic sound of the helmet while his eyes were dimming down. Farlox felt like sleeping and allowing the machine to brush every single corner of his mind. To be molded in the perfect fashion that the panther had designed for him.

But did he just heard that Isdel would steal the project off from him and make it his own?

He can't lose his most beloved dream. Can he?

The Gecko closed his eyes once again as he tried to shake his head with the hopes to loosen the helmet but the strap around his chin kept it in place. His hands turned into fists as his long, scaled toes curled up.

No matter how much he tried to resist. Somehow the machine was able to detect the resistance to increase its power on him. The more he fought back, the hardest it became to escape the brainwashing power of the helmet.

Ataraxia was behaving almost like a living organism focused on feeding itself on Farlox's free will and leave his mind like an empty husk. A vulnerable husk to every single wish and whim of the panther.

He had to escape. He had to recover his project and his dream to be recognized as a great scientist!

Or did he had to relax and allow the feline to take control of his life?

The gecko whipped his tail around after rising it as higher as he could in between his legs. Keeping his mind focused on his escape was impossible as his mind buzzed in a soft and peaceful rhythm controlled by the machine. The tip of his tail looked at random for the neck of the crane which protruded from the helmet in fading desperation. His tail was never tied to the table in the first place since he never set a slot for such thing.

The machine assaulted him with a fast and upbeat hum that made his own mind feel drained of fighting and struggling before the hypnotic rhythm returned to a soft pace. A rhythm which invited Farlox to sleep. A gentle pace which made the reptile felt like yawning and letting himself go in complete peace under the soft, yet enslaving caress of the helmet.

A serene pace which seduced every corner on Farlox's mind to allow his tricked enslavement to come to fruition. A soft pulsing sound and a quiet, relaxing vision which tore down all the resistance the reptile felt about allowing his beloved creation to change his thoughts into the thoughts of a submissive servant. The idea of permanent and unconditional enslavement under the service of the panther felt so right for him. Farlox approached the point where he desired to sleep in perpetual slavery for his captor.

As the very last of his free will began to slip away; a heavy tug from the tip of his tail brought one of the hanging cables along the neck of the machine down. Thanks to the almost unconscious move the whole thing went offline. The cable which fed Ataraxia with electricity to produce its corrupted energy to enslave minds became separated from it.

The gecko had built a safety protocol on the bindings. If electricity was ever cut while the machine was operational, the bindings could be opened so a subject could be retrieved from the device in case a serious emergency caused the failure. The gecko used his free hands to set apart the helmet off of his confused mind.

The reptile could feel his head buzzing, his eyes almost impossible to keep open, his arms and legs sleepy and his ear canals still ringing as his mind was still vibrating with the hypnotic pattern once produced by the machine. His mind was looking to resume sinking into the pleasure of the moment while his body escaped the device that threatened his freedom.

As his large and soft clawed feet stood with difficulty on the cold ground, a familiar voice cursed in the distance. A voice that brought Farlox to pay attention to his surroundings as his mind adapted again to reality.

The feline made his way towards the table to try to seize the gecko down. While Farlox didn't have a big complex, his tail was strong enough to receive Isdel with a strong slam which flung the feline backward against one of the panels which came accompanied by the sound of a hard blow.

The gecko knew his attack was a success after hearing a soft moan of pain. Farlox knew his captor was knocked out for a few moments. Moments which were enough for the reptile to run with his hazy mind towards the security door. Door he closed behind him and used his smooth palm to activate the safety lock.

The reptile felt invaded for a brief moment by a sensation of security after locking the panther behind the door. Farlox looked inside the room through the large glass on the side. He spotted Isdel holding his left side with his right hand while his eyes dug into the gecko's form in the same fashion a psychopath would eye his most hated target.

Farlox needed to escape at once. He had to stay away from the insane feline until his mind recovered from the assault so he could do something about him. He knew that Isdel could also unlock the door with his own palm; however, he wasn't sure if the feline could override the lock on his office door.

The still mind hazed scientist picked up his portfolio from his desk before he rushed to the Main entrance door to both his office and lab. Door which he closed with his personal keycard and left the scene as soon as possible. His mind was too shaken to think of anything else for the time being. But he knew that he would take some severe action against Isdel.

And soon...