Pain and Pleasure

The world was super, there were powers everywhere, from China to the USA to the endless nations of Europe. Every human had an innate power.

Invisibility.

Teleportation.

Control over the elements.

Indestructibility.

And every powered person had a class; a ranking associated with the human. One derived both from the ability and from its depth of expression.

Invisibility that could only be maintained for 30 seconds daily was largely considered weaker versus invisibility that could be maintained at will but which susceptible to detection through alternate means to sight.

Who interpreted this? The worldwide guild of Supers, or WGS for short, implemented across nations, they knew no bounds, every person at 18 was assigned a ranking.

Now, occasionally every now and again, that ranking changed, when a person who trained and utilized their power requested this update. This was rare.

Both because few could train their power to this extent, and some simply preferred the element of surprise.

Yet some never quite became Gods on earth, the lottery couldn’t we won by everyone after all. Then rich people would be poorer.

Gerald Wagner was one such failure, a F- on the (F-) – (S+) Ranking. He had the ability to instill pleasure or pain selectively in a person via touch with increasing effects amplifying into other sensations or emotions over time. The assessor of the power even theorized that the ability could eventually generate with power enough that the emotion would impact objective reality. Well at least reality related to, or controlled by, the subject.

However, this power did not work on anyone with innate powers. The only known exception being Wagner himself. This pathetic, low ranking ability required repetition and time to truly show any impact.

And so, the WGS view, was that Gerald Wagner was nigh worthless, a man who could at best be a decent dog trainer.

This was not Gerald’s perspective; he had radically different goals in mind.

For years, as long as he could remember, he had sought an escape path, and he was hardly idle while he searched. For any ability could be trained if one but had the strength of will. If all he could change was himself and the mundane, so be it. Change those.

Bored academic thinkers sometimes noted that society brought weight to existence and under this pressure people adopted. Thank you, Hello, You’re Welcome, the instinctive urge to help others, the views of the whole were greater than personal opinions, people were equal, villains were bad.

Some of these common agreements Gerald agreed, some he did not.

And unlike most, Gerald had a mechanism to support his beliefs, he simply punished himself when he started to agree with dissimilar views, and pleasured himself as he upheld his own views.

Through this sadomasochistic technique, his beliefs were transformed and reforged. Mild racism became fanatic gene superiority belief. Christianity became something far beyond a Jehovah’s witness. A distaste for female classmates surpassing him became a deep rooted, unshakeable misogyny.

The world disagreed with him? Then the world was wrong.

At long last, 2 years ago, Gerald found the key to fulfilling at least part of his dream. At 23, Gerald met Aster, 36-year-old white woman, who was deeply hated and ostracized for her power. Aster could nullify all powers within a 1-kilometer difference. Once disabled a week was required to return those powers partially. And another week to return them to full strength.

An incredible power, one that was banned by both Superheroes and Supervillains

Eventually, due to the endless threats and constant public contempt she learned to nullify even her own ability.

And then, at one rainy bible study meeting with her friend (she was not agnostic, but willing to join for her shy friend’s sake), she met the rising priest, a charismatic, if not attractive, man called Gerald.

When Gerald shook her hand, the rest, as they say, was history.

He realized he could affect her when he shook her hand.

Later, from her social media he noted her abilities.

He addended his annotation of his power. The ability could not affect anyone, save himself, with active innate powers.

The thought of the future, the glory that was coming, Gerald proceeded to orgasmin his pants standing there that day, teeth glinting, eyes smiling behind glasses.

He did not hesitate. He did not blink. He did not stop.

Full throttle, all the way, she would be his, mind, body and soul. He would perform the gaslighting of the millennium.

And then slowly, because for such a woman, slow was the best way, he changed her, he altered her. Subtly, then drastically, until 2 years later, 1 year after marrying Gerald, she wouldn’t be able to recognize her current self in old photos if existence itself required.