The final step (or was it really the first?)

The engine of the stolen black Porsche 9-11 roared as Derek nearly floored the gas pedal. He was beyond the city limits now, and free to drive as fast as he wanted. Trees and lights and buildings blurred past him as he pushed the car’s engine.

The earlier sun had given way to black clouds that had poured across the sky like petroleum on water. Faint white-blue light flashed intermittently across the sky.

A drop of rain tapped his windshield.

“I told you, Angela. Artemis is in trouble. I’m on my way out of the city to help her.”

The car had a nice computerized system as well, and he was able to hook up his phone to the Bluetooth speakers to use while he drove.

“Sir, I strongly advise against this course of action,” the British woman’s voice had an edge of worry to it. “How are you even leaving the city anyway? Why do I hear what sounds like the engine of a sports car?"

“That doesn’t matter right now. I’m only telling you about any of this because I know you’d track me down anyway since you helped me ditch school. Tell me I’m wrong.”

There was a low growl on the other end of the call. Derek’s lips twitched upwards.

“At least tell me the address of the place you’re going so I can inform the authorities,” she said.

Derek shook his head, idly dodging cars as he weaved in and out of the afternoon traffic. A few cars honked their horns.

“No cops, Angela. Agree to that and I’ll give you the address,” he replied. The last thing he needed was GCPD’s finest rolling up on him while he beat the shit out of whoever had hurt Artemis.

“Agreed,” the severe woman replied rather quickly. Derek figured that was what she preferred, anyway. The sidearm she liked to have strapped underneath her jacket wasn’t strictly legal within city limits, and the police often used that as an excuse to rough up anyone they thought was suspicious. He rattled off the address Artemis had given him. He was pretty confident he could deal with whoever he needed to and get Artemis to safety. He hoped she was alright.

Thunder rumbled above. The GPS system chimed, almost in sequence with the beginnings of the storm above.

“Alright, I’m almost there. See you later.”

“Be careful, sir.”

He ended the call before taking his exit off the highway. The ramp curved backwards to the right, giving him a view of the direction he’d driven from. The city of Gotham hung like a malevolent specter in the distance. The lights of the buildings were constant, almost in defiance of the inconsistent flickering of the lightning above.

The exit ramp melded into a state road, eliminating his view of the city. He continued onwards for around twenty-five minutes as the suburban districts around the city gave way to the first outcroppings of undisturbed nature.

Then he saw it. His destination was a mansion, abandoned for well over a decade. It hung in the distance in a way that matched its surroundings. Empty and forgotten. Its once-pristine white painting was beginning to peel. The windows were boarded up, but it seemed the structure was too far from the city for people to vandalize it.

“Huh.”

A familiar blue Ford sedan sat in the long gravel driveway, directly in front of what looked like the main entrance to the mansion.

He pulled up next to it, scanning for anyone while projecting perfect illusory stealth over himself. He exited his newly-acquired Porsche and walked past a barren water fountain. The entrance was a set of white double doors. One of them was slightly ajar.

Derek refrained from calling or texting Artemis. He had no idea what her situation was and from the way she’d spoken to him on the phone, she was afraid of her captors overhearing. He frowned. Why hadn’t they confiscated her phone? Had she somehow managed to snag it back and escape? If so, then why not leave the mansion altogether and call him for a pickup?

As he entered the mansion, he felt more and more like something was very wrong.

His eyes fell to the dark wooden floor. An arrow had been spray-painted into it in bright red. It pointed up the nearby stairs.

Derek took a deep breath and reinforced his invisibility illusion. If this were somehow an ambush, whoever masterminded it would have a hard time surprising him.

He clenched his fists and walked up the steps. The wood floor creaked underneath him, but he paid it no mind. Only he would be able to hear it, after all.

Another arrow at the top of the steps directed him down a long hallway. It seemed familiar, somehow. The floor was lined with several more arrows drawn hastily in red. Their structure seemed to grow more urgent the closer he got to the end of the hallway, where a closed wooden door awaited him.

A red arrow had been sprayed into the door.

Derek closed his eyes. He’d never successfully extended an illusion beyond himself without seeing the people he was affecting beforehand. Yet he felt a tingle in the back of his mind. There was someone in the room beyond, and they’d completely succumbed to what he’d made them see.

He opened the door.

The room was dark, with hardboards blocking the windows. He heard a whimper.

“Artemis?” he charged into the room. Then he saw her. His pseudo-girlfriend was naked as the day she was born and handcuffed to what looked like a medical bed.

He dropped his illusions and ran up to her. He cupped her face.

“Artemis? It’s me. It’s Derek. Are you okay?”

She spat on him.

A glob of saliva landed on his nose and mouth. He was so surprised by it that he didn’t wipe it in time and it dripped down onto one of Artemis’ big tits. The girl growled beneath him.

Derek blinked, looking into her eyes. Artemis’ eyes were wet and bloodshot, with tears streaking across her face.

“Artemis-”

“Fuck you!” she snarled, struggling against her restraints. He almost winced at the naked hate and heartbreak in her gaze.

He stared at her.

“Artemis, what’s wrong? Who did this?”

She spat at him again. This time he was ready and dodged it easily.

“Don’t you dare! Don’t even pretend you care about me!” she almost screamed. “You… you used your powers. You **** me. You made me cheat on my boyfriend. Oh god, you made me hate him! You made me hate Wally!”

Artemis gagged, as if she were physically ill.

He took a step back.

No.

The captive blonde sneered at him, even as her eyes brimmed with tears.

“Yeah, that’s right. I know about your little illusion ability. How you’ve been using it to fuck with my head. What’s the matter, Derek? Couldn’t get a girl to love you the old fashioned way? You’re fucking pathetic.”

Derek just stared at her, a well of shame burning a hole in his chest. He wanted to hide again, to use his illusions to prevent Artemis from staring at him with those hateful, wounded eyes. He wanted her to love him again, like she had this morning.

“Hm. That’s not a very nice thing to say. Not nice at all,” A familiar feminine voice enunciated behind him.

Derek turned and beheld Harleen Quinzel. The beautiful blonde therapist was still wearing the blouse and tight pencil skirt he’d fucked her in and ejaculated on. He could see the stains where his ropey cum had smeared against her clothes.

“H-Harleen?” Derek croaked, feeling numb and almost at a complete lost for words.

His therapist smiled and walked up to him. Her blue eyes stared lovingly into his from behind her glasses. There was no judgement in them, and he couldn’t remember a time when there’d ever been.

“Derek, it’s okay. I’m here for you.”

She planted a small kiss on his cheek.

“Harleen? What… what are you doing here? What’s going on?” he gave her an imploring stare.

Artemis strained against her restraints again. She grunted.

“Uh. Hello? The woman’s obsessed with you. Did you **** her, too? Fuck with her mind? Is that why she’s like this?”

This can’t be happening.

Harleen sidled up next to him, wrapping an arm around his. She was so warm and soft that he almost reflexively drew her in to his side. The older woman giggled.

“Nothing Derek could do would ever be **** to me,” Harleen smirked and gave him a considering look. “I mean, unless you’re into that. I’m very good at pretending.”

Derek’s eyes widened.

“Sick fuck,” Artemis muttered.

Derek clenched his fists. He was sick of this. Sick of being confused and not knowing what was going on. He wanted answers. He shook his head and pushed Harleen away from him. The voluptuous blonde seemed hurt.

“Will someone tell me what the hell is going on? Let’s start with you. Harleen. What are you doing here?”

His therapist chewed her lower lip. She crossed her arms, pushing her big breasts upwards. The upper buttons of her blouse had been undone, exposing bare titflesh to his gaze.

She smiled at him.

“I’m here because I love you, Derek. More than anything else in the whole wide world,” she leaned towards him. His eyes flickered downward, enraptured by the sight of her breasts.

“You love me?” he muttered, his tongue moving numbly in his mouth.

Harleen nodded.

“Mhm. I want you to know that you can share who are you are with me. Unlike that dumb bimbo Artemis. I showed her the truth and she rejected you.”

“That’s because he fucking **** me, you bitch!” Artemis struggled against her restraints again, to no avail.

“Artemis, please understand-”

“Oh, I understand everything perfectly,” she interrupted him. “Everything about you is a lie. You… you made me see things. Feel things that weren’t there to begin with. And for what? To get in my pants and then fuck over my team? Who put you up to this?”

“Team? What team?” Derek asked.

Harleen smacked her forehead.

“Shit! Guess we should have started with that. You see, your dumb bimbo slut is actually a costumed wannabe hero. Heh. She fights bad guys for a living with that Robin Hood cosplayer Green Arrow, but she didn’t see little old me coming,” Harleen giggled. “I got her all wrapped up nice and tight for you. Your own personal little hero.”

Derek stared at Aremis. The naked girl looked away from him, which all but confirmed the validity of Harleen’s words. A pit opened in his chest.

Shit. If I’d known Artemis was working with Green Arrow, I’d have left her alone. That guy works with the League. If Martian Manhunter or some other telepath had read Artemis’ mind, I’d have been fucked.

“You know what she calls herself? You’re gonna laugh,” Harleen started tapping her foot. “Artemis!”

Derek blinked. He vaguely recalled seeing blurry photographs of a young athletic blonde in green tights and a mask fighting criminals alongside Green Arrow.

“Wait a minute. That’s her superhero name? Artemis? You’re kidding me,” he said.

Derek wanted to admire her for the sheer audacity it must of taken for her to use her own first name as her superheroine moniker. Her boldness was after all one of the things that had drawn him to her in the first place.

“That’s... uh, not a very smart choice,” he said.

Artemis snorted. “Fooled you, didn’t it?”

Derek quirked an eyebrow and shook his head.

“Alright, we’re getting sidetracked. Harleen. How did you find out about me?"

She smirked at him.

“Derek. Your abilities are pretty powerful, but they don’t work on the little hidden cameras I had installed in my office. You really should be more mindful of those things since not everyone’s gonna be as understanding as me.”

Derek lowered his gaze, slightly embarrassed.

So she’s seen what I’ve been doing to her all this time. Probably has hours of footage of me molesting and fucking her. Why hasn’t she called the cops on me?

“So you’ve been… what? Just watching me as I used you?”

Harleen gave him a smoldering look.

“Oh yes, I’ve been watching you have your way with me for months now. The way you just used me like I had no say in the matter was… oh god!” she moaned shakily before taking a deep breath to compose herself. “I was so fascinated with you, Derek. I still am,” she took a step toward him. He was taller than her, so she had to look up at him. He glimpsed a hint of nervousness in her gaze. “You’re like a god. You can do whatever you want to me and I can’t stop you. And I’d never want to stop you.”

She rested a palm on his chest.

“I was hoping you’d come clean to me and we could explore everything you can do, together. You’ve got so much potential in you that you don’t even realize. I want to help you reach it, Derek. Please let me help you. I’ll do anything…” she leaned up and kissed him. Her plump lips were soft and inviting. He could tell she wanted to deepen the kiss, but she held herself back.

“You two are so disgusting,” Artemis mumbled. He broke the kiss and looked at the girl he’d been trying so hard to win over. Harleen had ruined that, out of a sense of jealousy or something else he didn’t know. What he did know was that he still wanted her.

“Artemis-”

“Save it.” She snarls. “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say, you fucking creep. She showed me all the footage from her hidden cameras. When I get out of here the first thing I’m gonna do is beat your ass and throw you in prison.”

Derek traced his eyes over her nude body, exposed for the first time to him without the use of his abilities. What were they going to do about her? He couldn’t afford to let her go and tell people what she knew, and keeping her captive would still make her associates search high and low for her.

Harleen stepped past him towards Artemis, a smirk twisting her lips.

“Now now. Is that anyway for Derek’s little side-slut to talk?”

He waited for Artemis to retort. To try to tear down Harleen with a particularly biting comeback. She stayed silent, however. Her mouth drooped open.

“Artemis?” he approached her. Her brown eyes seemed blank and unseeing. She blinked occasionally and her chest rose and fell as she breathed, but she did nothing beyond that.

Harleen grinned at him.

“Artemis isn't home right now, Derek. See, I’ve got her in a little hypnotic trance. She'll do whatever we say. That’s how I got her to bring you here,” she said.

Derek poked Artemis’ cheek. Her head moved slightly, but she didn’t react. His manhood throbbed.

“You hypnotized her? She’ll… she’ll do anything I want?”

“Mhm.” Harleen nodded up and down.

“Artemis, will you do what I say?”

“Yes, daddy,” the blonde superheroine replied blankly.

He shot Harleen a questioning look. She shrugged.

“Don’t look at me. I just programmed her to be obedient in this state. There must be something in her subconscious mind that has her calling you that. I wonder if it’s part of the residual influence of your illusions on her.”

Derek’s dick throbbed.

“My illusions made her call me daddy?”

Harleen chuckled.

“You really have no idea how powerful you are, Derek, do you? You think your power’s just about making people see, hear, or feel things. It’s so much more than that,” she grasped one of Artemis’ breasts and began idly squeezing it. “Everything we humans are is determined by what our five senses tell us about the world. You can control all of that and more. Make things the way you want them to be.”

She pinched Artemis’ nipple. The girl didn’t react.

“I know that,” Derek muttered. “I still can’t control people’s minds. They’re still free to think whatever they want no matter what I make them experience.”

“No, they’re not,” Harleen said. “Take this little whore for instance. I got her wrapped around my finger by pumping audio subliminals into her room. Those subliminals gradually reshaped her subconscious mind into something I could control with a few hypnotic phrases. I could only do so much with those, however. I could only manipulate her while she was in her room and I wasn’t able to manipulate her using her other senses."

Derek’s eyes widened.

Harleen grinned widely, showing perfectly white teeth. She seemed almost mad, then. Not crazy in the way the Joker seemed. Something far more insidious and obsessive.

“You’re getting it now, aren’t you? All this time you’ve been making people sense things in a way their conscious minds normally would. It's like having a sports car and only driving the speed limit. Imagine what would happen if you ran targeted subliminal messages utilizing all of a person’s senses, even taste, touch, and smell nonstop. You could do it anytime, any place you wanted. Even if someone knew they were being manipulated, they’d never be able to look away or cover their ears because your ability bypasses all of that. Don’t you see? You were always meant to be a mind controller. You just have to, you know, be a little creative."

Derek gazed at Harleen. His therapist. His girlfriend’s kidnapper. His seemingly adoring fan.

He looked at Artemis. She was blank and submissive, trapped within her own mind. Was she still in there, he wondered? Was she pounding at the walls of her mind, trying to claw her way out? He couldn’t allow her to. Not when she knew all about him.

If what Harleen has said is true, then I can reprogram Artemis’ subconscious mind far more effectively than she can. Maybe I can make her forget. Maybe I can make her love and obey me the way I’ve always wanted.

“I won’t lie to you, Harleen. I’m very angry with you for telling Artemis about me,” Harleen recoiled as if struck. She opened her mouth as if to launch into a **** plea for his forgiveness, but he held a hand up. She shut her mouth immediately. His cock hardened at the sight of her almost eager obedience. “But I think I know of a few ways you can make it up to me.”

Harleen’s beautiful, intelligent blue eyes shimmered with unshed tears. She clasped her arms in front of herself and fell to her knees, seemingly uncaring of hurting herself. She smiled at him in a way that reeked of a level of desperation he’d never seen before.

“Yes. Yes, Derek! I’ll do anything!”

Derek smiled.

Angela Davis watched impassively as Doctor Harleen Quinzel knelt before her charge. She'd set up on the floor above, snaking a camera into the room through the ceiling. She'd witnessed many strange things in her line of work, but nothing tonight had rated even in the top twenty. Keeping watch, she silently dialed a number on her phone.

"Yes?" a heavily accented feminine voice answered.

"Mistress. The boy has found someone who's offered to hone his abilities. Please advise."

"The therapist?" the voice guessed.

"She finally got tired of watching. She even ensared the Crock girl with some hypnotic triggers," Angela smirked.

"Hm. The Crock girl is expendable. They may do with her as they will. The therapist will be useful to him even if she is a little unstable. For now, continue to observe as normal."

Angela nodded.

"Yes, Mistress."

The call ended with a click.

Angela settled in to watch. She was glad she'd brought food with her. It looked like it was going to be a long night.