I ain't saying I beat the devil, but I drank his beer for nothing

Sylvia hummed a jaunty tune as she strolled into the Master’s Suite. She’d just had a really good day, having been invited on a certain talk show for hosts only. She was really coming into her own! The other hosts were starting to acknowledge her! She couldn’t feel more fortunate if she tried!

And her very first challenge was tomorrow! She could hardly wait!

“Hello, Nick!” She chirped, pushing open the door and flouncing into the lounge. Nick was reading on the couch. He glanced up at her.

“Sylvia.”

Sylvia frowned, tapping her chin. “How odd… if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were expecting me.”

Nick narrowed his eyes. “It was the logical conclusion. None of the girls are scheduled to spend the night with me. And I’m not so naïve as to think you’d actual afford me some time off. So what’s going on? Are you here to seduce me, now?”

“Why?” Sylvia asked, fluttering her eyelashes at him. “Are you looking to be seduced?”

Nick refused to dignify that with a response.

Sylvia clicked her tongue, smirking. “Come now my boy. Don’t be like that. It wasn’t so long ago that you were drooling over me in my office, do you remember that?” She purred, slinking over to Nick and stroking his cheek. “You wanted me back then. You didn’t want to want me, but you did.”

She leaned in close, her lips practically pressed against his as she whispered, “and I think you still want me.”

Nick took a step back, a retreat to conserve his personal space. “Keep thinking that,” he spat in a **** attempt to reclaim his dignity. Sylvia could see right through him. She smirked.

“If you’re not here to seduce me, why are you here?” Nick demanded.

“To remind you where you stand, my boy,” Sylvia said. The levity in her tone was gone. “Tomorrow is the first challenge. And your duty is to play along. Go with the flow. Do what’s… expected of you.”

“You mean have sex,” Nick glowered at her.

“I mean play the game,” Sylvia rephrased it casually with a wave of her hand. “You’re resisting, and that’s adorable. But soon, eight girls will become nine. And when the Auditionee appears, you’re going to need to make some tough choices.”

Nick continued scowling, and Sylvia smirked.

“Ooh, I love it when you get angry with me, Nick,” she purred. “But it doesn’t change anything. You’ll have a new girl next round. And if you keep playing this ‘I don’t want to indulge what the girls want’ game, then the only one who’s going to lose is you. And Holly, of course.”

“What does she have to do with this?” Nick demanded.

“You asked her to keep you under control,” Sylvia scoffed. “Don’t tell me it never occurred to you what would happen if she goes along with that? If the audience thinks that it’s her fault they’re not getting the sex they want, you know what they’re going to do? They’ll turn against her. That rise in popularity she had? Gone. And when that happens, elimination isn’t far away.”

“Maybe, but if one of the other girls chooses her for their buddy, then-”

“Then someone else will still get eliminated,” Sylvia cut him off. “Every week, someone’s getting eliminated. The sooner you come to terms with that, the better. And the more you’re willing to indulge the whims of the show and the audience… the lighter those eliminations might be.”

Nick flinched. “What…?”

Sylvia smirked. She had him on the hook now.

“It’s simple. A deal I’ll make with you. If you promise to give up this whole bit of resistance and honestly, I mean honestly play the game and indulge yourself at your own pace, then I’ll do something for you, too,” Sylvia offered.

“Do what?” Nick asked.

Sylvia clicked her tongue and wagged her finger back and forth. “No, no, no. That’s not how this works. HERE is how it works. I’m not going to make you do anything you truly don’t want to do. But you and I both know that you wanted to have sex with Carly, just like how you wanted to kiss Kim. You kissed Kim. But you wouldn’t have sex with Carly. Not because you didn’t want to, but because you wanted to spite me. So instead of opposing me, work with me. Just… do what you want to do, that’s all I need from you. Give into your desires! And in exchange… I promise, no true harm will come to the girls, even after elimination.”

Nick’s eyes widened. “Wait… harm? What do you mean?” He asked worriedly.

“When girls are eliminated, the punishments can vary in intensity,” Sylvia shrugged. “There’s some really fucked up shit you aren’t ready to face. And eight girls will be eliminated before this game is complete. So I am willing to promise you, Nick, if you’re willing to stay, those eliminations? We won’t touched the REALLY fucked up shit. No human toilets or sealing souls into pocket pussies. No giant walking boob. Your girls will remain themselves, mostly, at least, and remain here, with you, until the end of the competition. Bang ‘em, don’t bang ‘em, do as you like. And then, I promise, they’ll be allowed to return to their lives if they so choose. Or… they can stay with you.”

“Stay… with me?”

“They won’t be bound to you forever, you won’t have to have sex with them. But the choice will be on the table for them. Stay with you, go back to their lives, try to make the best of things, whatever. But I promise that anyone who is eliminated will, at least, have the mental ability to make that decision for themselves.”

“But you’ll still be transforming them,” Nick glowered at her. “Warping their bodies and minds in sick ways.”

“That’s the name of the game,” Sylvia shrugged. “Not even I can change that. I can limit it to some degree… but only so much. We’ve got to give the fans what they want, after all. This is the best deal on the table, Nick. You go along, and the girls are fine. Keep resisting, and I promise, if a girl gets eliminated… her punishment is going to the audience. And they might not be as merciful as me. So what’s it going to be?”

Nick glared at her, shaking in impotent rage.

“Going once. Going twice. Remember what might happen if a girl loses. Some girls can lose a whole lot more than their freedom, you know.”

But she was right. It was probably the best he could hope for. He remembered Dakota’s plunge through the rankings, and the threat Sylvia made if she were eliminated. He couldn’t let her die again. Not for this.

“…Fine,” he spat out. “Make sure that the others are safe… and I promise, I’ll go along with it. I’ll… I’ll stop fighting what I want. But I won’t coerce anyone. If I think someone doesn’t want this, then I won’t do it. I can… I can at least be that good of a person, anyway.”

Sylvia disagreed, but she didn’t say anything. “If it makes you feel any better, you may have just saved Dakota’s life,” she purred. “So do we have an agreement? I have to hear that word. ‘Yes’.”

“YES!” He spat. “Is that what you want?! FUCKING YES!”

“Excellent!” Sylvia cheered, clapping with joy. “Now that we’ve got business out of the way… it’s time for pleasure.”

Nick blinked. “…What are you talking about?” He demanded.

Sylvia batted her eyelashes. “What we were talking about before,” she purred. “About maybe the two of us… doing something.”

“You’ve gotta be shitting me,” Nick laughed incredulously.

Sylvia closed the distance between the two of them, running her fingers across his shirt. “I understand your apprehension. You don’t know a woman’s body, my boy. Not really. But that’s fine. If you want… I can give you some experience.”

Nick couldn’t believe it. She was serious.

“You… you’d really have sex with me?” He whispered.

“Of course,” she purred in his ear. “Just think. Having sex with the host… it would be fair. Having your first time with me. Not Dakota, not Carly, no bias towards a member of your harem. Just me. Give me this night, one night… and then tomorrow, you’ll see a new perspective,” she promised, staring right into his eyes.

Nick stared back at her, his expression unreadable to Sylvia for a moment.

Then he pressed his lips against hers.

Sylvia froze, shocked that he was actually taking her up on the offer. She was only half-serious, really, not thinking he’d go along with it. But he was kissing her! And… he wasn’t that bad at it, either. Not that Sylvia would know. For all her seductiveness, she’d never kissed anyone before, either. She clutched his shirt as his tongue slipped into her mouth, and he reached around and pulled her in close, one hand wrapping around her waist and the other grabbing her ass.

“Ooh, yeah…” She panted, curling her hand through his hair and pulling him deeper into her lips, while she clutched the cane with her other. But her grip was loosening.

Nick suddenly jerked his head back from the kiss. Sylvia gasped, pushing forward, trying to keep it going. A critical mistake. Nick grabbed her arm and knocked the cane out of her grasp.

“Now!” He shouted.

Sylvia barely had time to react. From behind the couch came a flash of blue, and suddenly a mountain of flesh slammed into Sylvia, knocking her off her feet. It was Dani! She’d been hiding in the room the entire time! Sylvia caught white and gold in the corner of her eye as she was knocked over, and another girl held her down as well. Gina!

“What is this?!” Sylvia roared. “Let me go you cunts!”

“Not so good, is it?” Dani hissed. “Losing your power. Talk about irony! You gave me this strength. That twig of a body can’t do anything against it!”

She had Sylvia pinned down, with Gina holding her arms. Sylvia thrashed wildly, and saw Dawn crawl out from her hiding place in the cupboard. The cat girl grabbed her cane, clutching it tightly to her chest. All the girls glared at Sylvia, and Nick stood over her with hatred in her eyes.

“What is this?” Sylvia demanded again, glaring up at his cold eyes.

“This is the end,” Nick replied. “Checkmate, Sylvia.”

Hours ago…

“You want to strike back against Sylvia?” Dani hissed, looking around in shock. She wanted to make sure none of the faeries were listening in. “You’ve gotta be crazy!”

“I’m in,” Gina said automatically.

“Just think about it,” Nick said. “I don’t know how we can do it, but we need to do it. I’m certain that Sylvia’s going to come up to my room tonight. You guys don’t have to go into the Master’s Suite tonight, but nothing says you can’t go. So if you sneak in, then…”

“Why just the three of us?” Dawn asked, frowning. “Why not bring the others in?” She stared suspiciously at Nick, and Nick frowned.

“I don’t know if they’d go along with it,” he said. “Mary is too timid, and Holly… she’s too much of a wildcard. Carly might be up for it, but they haven’t been altered as much as you three. They might not be willing to risk punishment if we fail.”

“I’m in,” Gina repeated.

“Which brings me to my next point.” Dawn narrowed her eyes. “What if we fail? We don’t know what to do here. How Sylvia’s doing everything. What even IS your plan? Jump her and knock her out? Tickle her until she gives up?”

“W-Well…”

“She’s right,” Dani nodded. “We don’t even know how Sylvia does all this stuff. I get trying to fight back against her, but this just sounds like reckless desperation, Nick.”

“I’m in,” Gina said for a third time.

“Look, if you want to get rid of Sylvia and put a stop to all this, I’m willing to do it,” Dawn said. “But tell me HOW we stop her.”

The girls all looked to Nick for answers. But unfortunately, he was fresh out of them.

“It’s the cane.”

The answer came from an unlikely source. The four of them turned to Dakota, who had been listening in on the conversation.

“Dakota?” Nick winced. He hadn’t wanted to bring her in on this, because if they failed, the possible punishment for her was too dangerous.

“What was that about the cane?” Dawn asked, narrowing her eyes.

“You must have noticed,” Dakota frowned. “That cane of hers. Whenever she summons those screens, or teleports one of us, or when she inflicts transformations, any time she uses her powers at all, that cane is involved. She never goes anywhere without it.”

“I’ve never seen her put it down even once,” Nick nodded. “And you’re right, she was using it all the time when she brought everybody here.”

He remembered the swirling shadows in the crystal embedded into the black wood. Just picturing that miasma made him shiver.

“It could be the source of her power,” Dawn theorized. “If we take it away from her somehow, then maybe she’ll be powerless!”

“And we could use it to reverse what happened to us!” Dani nodded eagerly.

“It’s worth a shot,” Nick agreed. “We just need to come up with a way to distract her enough where she lets her guard down. Then we can try to get the cane away from her.”

Gina grinned, her eyes shining with excitement. “I’m in.”

Right freaking now

“Let go of me!” Sylvia struggled against the girls, but there was nothing she could do. They had her locked down tight.

“Not a chance,” Nick growled. “This ends now.”

“Do you have any idea what I’m capable of?” Sylvia growled. “I told you, didn’t I? Transformations beyond your worst nightmares! This is your last warning, let me go and give me back my cane.”

Dawn smirked, pushing up her glasses. “Thank you for confirming it, Sylvia.”

“Huh? Confirm what?” The blonde spat.

“That this is the source of your power,” she replied, holding up the cane like a trophy. “It’s how you’ve been using your magic, isn’t that right? How you’ve been controlling all of us, making this whole place dance to your will. Without it, you’re just a helpless girl!”

Sylvia seemed genuinely shocked for a moment. Then she burst out laughing.

“Ha… well, you got me,” she sighed, giving up her struggle. “You’re right. That cane is the source of all my powers as a host. Without it, I’m practically human.”

“I figured as much,” Dawn laughed. “Now we have it. We can reverse the changes you made to us, and put an end to this damned game!”

Sylvia seemed rather ambivalent about the idea, which worried Nick. She seemed way too calm given the situation.

“Dawn, I think we should reconsider this,” he hissed.

“What’s there to reconsider?” Dawn snorted. “We’re going home.”

“Go ahead, do it,” Sylvia laughed. “You won’t be able to.”

Dawn scowled. She was right. No matter what Dawn tried, she couldn’t seem to make it work. She wasn’t even sure what she was supposed to be doing.

“You have no idea, do you?” Sylvia scoffed. “Of course not. In your present state, you’re a helpless little girl. That cane is useless to you.”

“…Maybe,” Dawn admitted. “But at least now you don’t have it. We may be trapped here forever, and stuck with these transformations, but it still ends here. You won’t be able to alter us any further.”

Sylvia blinked. “…Fair enough,” she agreed. “But I don’t think the producers would like that very much.”

Dawn only had seconds to process what she was saying before the cane began to glow. All of a sudden, Dawn felt heat like nothing she’d ever felt before emanating from the wood. It was like plunging her hand into scalding water- no, open flame!

With a scream, Dawn dropped the cane, which clattered to the ground and stopped glowing. The pain in her hand disappeared the second she broke contact with it, but like an injured cat she backed off, unwilling to get close.

“As the host, I can’t let just anyone play with my toys,” Sylvia smirked. She flicked her wrist and the cane shot across the room, landing in her hand again. The shadows in the crystal began to writhe.

“Oh-!” Dani gasped.

“-Shit!” Gina finished.

The two girls were flung off of Sylvia by magical ****, and suspended against the wall. Sylvia stood up and brushed herself off, glaring at the two girls who’d pinned her and the cat-girl huddling in the corner.

“Sylvia!” Nick was the only one who could move, and he flung himself between Sylvia and the girls.

“You fucking tried this shit with me?!” Sylvia roared. All traces of affability had left her. Whatever persona she’d been putting on for the contest, it was gone now. “YOU fucking tried THIS SHIT with ME?!”

“It was the only way!” Nick protested weakly. “Look, I know you’re upset-”

“Upset?” Sylvia shook her head incredulously. “Fucking upset? Oh, we are far, FAR beyond ‘upset’ my boy. Upset and I aren't in the same zip code right now. No, right now I am FUCKING. PISSED. OFF. The one rule of Harem Hotel, the rule you are NEVER supposed to break? Do not. Attack. The host! And you broke it. You bitches broke it. People have been eliminated for less, you know!”

“Please, don’t,” Nick pleaded, holding up his hands in surrender. “We had a deal, remember? You wouldn’t do anything too ****-”

“Oh, so you’re honoring deals now?” Sylvia asked bitterly. “And here I thought that was a trick to get me to lower my guard?”

Nick winced, unable to refute her.

Sylvia shook her head in disgust. “Not a fucking chance. But don’t worry, Nick, I’m not eliminating them. I wouldn’t do that to you, removing these girls from your harem.”

A wicked smile crossed her face.

“But they have to be punished for going against me. That’s how the game is played. I’m sorry my boy, but I don’t make the rules.”

“But you don’t have to enforce this one,” Nick pleaded. “Look, just punish me. Give me a transformation or something, and then we can pretend this was just one big mistake. Come on, the first round isn’t even over, you don’t want to do this.”

“No, I don’t,” Sylvia shook her head. “But you need to learn your lesson. All of you bitches need to learn your fucking lessons. And class starts right now. You wanted me to punish you, Nick? Well, here it is. Your punishment. These girls will be transformed, and it’s all because of what YOU roped them into doing.”

Her cane flashed as she waved it through the air, landing on Gina first.

“Gina my girl, here’s your punishment!” Sylvia crowed.

Wearing Your Heart on Your Sleeve: Gina has always been pretty up front about her desires. Now she’ll be incapable of hiding them. Her arm will now be covered in a tattoo sleeve that will have written down all her lurid fantasies. And any time someone reads one of them, including herself, that fantasy will immediately appear in their mind. (Punishment)

Gina cried out in pain as her right arm began to glow. From her shoulder to her wrist, dark splotches of ink appeared, and they began to shift into twisted skulls. Each skull was accompanied with a speech bubble, which began to fill up with words.

“Tie me down and **** me.”

“Beat me until you split my lip, like the punching bag I am.”

"Treat me like a dirty fucking cunt."

“Fucking maul my boobs until they’re bruised and bleeding.”

“Cut me with-"

“Shove a-"

“Spread me open until-"

Gina fell to her knees as all her deepest most depraved fantasies burst into her brain at once. Everyone was **** to look away from her arm in fear of seeing them for themselves.

“It’s quite a harsh punishment,” Sylvia clicked her tongue. “But on the other hand, congratulations! Your tattoos look gorgeous. You’re finally reclaiming some of that alt-girl charm!”

She shook her head, as if she disapproved. “But what would your parents say, if they knew their good little girl was having such fantasies? And tattooing them on her body, no less.”

Gina had nothing to say in response, she was too busy dealing with sensory overload. So Sylvia went to her next victim, Dani.

“Please,” Dani begged, practically in tears. “Don’t take away my strength, too.” She had by far the most trauma associated with transformations. Nick and Dawn watched on in pity as Sylvia assigned her punishment.

Sweet Dreams Are Made of These: Dani has always fantasized about women. And though she’s slept with men before, the thought of being with one now revolts her. At least consciously. But starting now, whenever Dani goes to sleep, her dreams will be plagued with nothing but moments between her and the master, as she remembers her past sexual interactions with him. (Punishment)

Dani felt like she was going to throw up as Sylvia explained the details of her transformation.

“It’s really very simple,” Sylvia smirked. “From now on, all those wet dreams you love having so much? Nick will be playing a starring role in them, whether you like it or not. I think when you go to bed tonight, you’ll be going back to that time in the sauna.”

“No, please!” She begged, disgusted at the thought of reliving that moment again.

“If I were you, I’d start making some more dirty memories with Nick, then,” Sylvia shrugged, moving on to Dawn. “The more raunchy moments you store in your subconscious, the more variety your dream has to choose from.”

Dawn stood petrified, her tail standing on end. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. She’d KNOWN this was a bad idea, she’d said as much. But she’d gotten swept up in it anyhow. And now she was trapped.

Sylvia smirked. “This punishment is just perfect for a pretty kitty like you, my girl,” she decided.

Catch a Tiger by the Tail: Dawn’s tail and ears function just like a cat’s do normally. But now, their sensitivity has been heightened, to the point of becoming an erogenous zone. Contact with either her ears or tail will sexually arouse her, and the more prolonged that contact is, the more intense the arousal spike will be for her. This effect will be more pleasurable depending on the type of fondling. (Punishment)

Dawn let out a moan as her tail stood up and began shaking. She could feel the wind roll across it now, and it was starting to make her wet between the legs.

“The audience likes you my girl,” Sylvia said, kneeling down next to the collapsed cat girl. “But they also think you’re a little bit frigid. Hopefully the master will be pleased to give you lots of pettings to make you loosen up, hmm?”

“Sylvia, just stop it!” Nick pleaded.

“Very well,” she sighed, standing upright. She flashed Nick a smile. “My work here is done. As for you ladies, I hope this will serve as a reminder for you, and all the other competitors: do not pull anything like this again. If you do, it’s elimination time. Understood?”

“Yes!” Dawn cried.

“Mhm,” Dani noded, wincing.

Gina just let out a moan. Her eyes were clenched tightly shut to keep from accidentally glancing at her arm.

“Oh, and one more thing,” Sylvia said from the doorway. “The rules of the Master’s Suite still apply. Once you enter, after 6 o’clock you can’t leave. And when it’s time to go to sleep, well…”

She glanced at the bed, which contained enough space for two people to sleep comfortably, maybe even three. But certainly not four.

Nick swallowed and looked at the other girls. They all had varying degrees of fear and worry (and arousal) on their faces.

“We’ll… we’ll think of something,” he mumbled. In the end, the four of them had **** but to sleep in bed together, pressed up like sardines. Nick had smartly chosen the spot next to Dawn, so at the very least he wouldn’t be drifting off with Dani or Gina’s soft breasts smooshed against him.

It was the best victory he could hope to achieve after Sylvia so thoroughly routed his plan.