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puttingfingerstokeys · 3 years

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A little something I whipped up for @heamatic with her Shinnok in mind.

No timeline alignment stuff here, just pure gift work based on a thread we’ve got on my RP account @bastardsunlight. Ft. Shinnok being creepy because that’s kind of his thing. Shinlao, because we haven’t come up with a ship name and I am appalled at our laxity.

Also like, I can’t believe I’m saying this but neither writer is in any way under some fucked up impression that this is a good, safe, or non-toxic ship. We use the term to describe people who are involved IN SOME WAY. That way is not necessarily healthy.

This story features no NSFW instances.

The dimly lit corridors of the Bone Temple are familiar passageways to Kung Lao as he moves effortlessly toward the audience chamber where he will soon be needed. Shinnok does not often offer his time, but today, he evidently feels generous. It is therefore his favorite creature’s duty to attend as well. Lao has long since stopped thinking of himself as a monk or even a former one, though his spiritual power is still formidable. That life is behind him. Netherrealm is—if not his home—his territory.

Emerging from a massive double door at one side of the infernal hall, he surveys the emptiness of it, the cavernous opulence of the mad god’s particular tastes. Deeper, under vents in the floor—Shinnok appreciates the screams of his captives—is the dungeon proper, though the audience hall very much resembles it. The high pillars are of dark reds, shining obsidian, and shot through with veins of other colors difficult to distinguish in the Stygian light of the realm of dishonored dead. Everything is bone and sinew and suffering here, fire and brimstone and ugly deception.

“You have kept me waiting, little one,” purrs the Elder God of Chaos from his throne. It is, naturally, constructed of bones—not all humanoid. He leans to one side and regards Kung Lao with those inscrutable eyes characteristic of his kind. “Do you wish to bring punishment down on yourself?”

“No, master,” responds Kung Lao, approaching the dais and then ascending to within reach of the massive entity’s long arms. If Shinnok wishes to pull his guts out and toss him back down like a used doll, he may do so from anywhere; why inconvenience him?

“Yet you offer no explanation…” The Elder God’s finger came out and lifted Kung Lao’s chin before sliding down his neck, over the pretty young man’s Adam’s apple, and down to collar bone and chest. He has left this one alive, appreciating the responsive heat and goose flesh of living skin. It bruises so prettily.

“I offer no excuse, my lord.” Kung Lao meets his eyes with an impertinence he loves and hates and oh he has made the right choice in this one. He had known the moment they met upon the field of kombat that Kung Lao would, indeed, make an excellent addition to his collection.

“You are wise beyond your years, it seems, if a bit pert.” Shinnok retracts his hand and waves it about. “Well, get on with it. I’ve better things to do.”

Quan-Chi materializes presently, late as well, though his arrival receives no acknowledgement whatsoever. His dark lord spares not a glance, instead watching the retreating back of the foolish monk who exchanged his own freedom for the life of his friend. Sentiment is worthless in Netherrealm and soon, the arrogant boy will learn this, if the old soul sorcerer must show him the way with his own two hands. His fists clench with the thought, imagining themselves about Kung Lao’s throat, squeezing until something breaks. The pleasure that arises from the thought sends a shudder down his spine.

Meanwhile, Kung Lao, unaware of this contemplation—or if he is aware, he cares so little, he doesn’t bother sparing the man, if a thing like Quan-Chi can be called a man, a single glance—turns to descend the dais. An oversized bone arm which has sprouted from the stone and bone floor of the mad god’s receiving hall offers itself, open-palmed, to the fallen monk. Kung Lao accepts it gracefully, laying his hand in the much larger one, knowing he has not displeased his lord on this day. The dry, brittle-feeling digits wrap gently about the young man’s hand as he makes his graceful retreat to discharge his duties.

Quan-Chi scowls at Kung Lao’s back until Shinnok actually turns his attention on his favored sorcerer—really the only sorcerer who will competently serve him with true, deep loyalty. It really is pathetic to watch, but sometimes a whipped dog is better than no dog. Shinnok has not even had to whip this one. He’s done it of his own accord.

A strange Netherrealm native (as native as anyone can be in a realm of dishonored souls and demonic constructs born of the mad god’s fits of rage), it had been he who had approached the Elder God of rot and chaos to serve him. If Lord Shinnok could be said to be grateful for anything, he might have chosen that moment when Quan-Chi’s power had drawn him to his lord and master’s prison and set about events which would eventually free and embody him. Of course they have greater plans, but for the time being, this will do.

This will do very nicely indeed, he considers, regarding his little pet’s taut backside as Kung Lao makes his way through the hall, the bone arm now sliding along with him, digging a furrow in the ground which seems to knit itself together just a few feet behind the abomination which now has its hand on the curve of Kung Lao’s lower back. Every sensation the bone arm feels, he also feels and the warmth of living flesh is delightful; he wants to grasp it hard, make the boy squeal with pain, make him bleed a little. Just a little.

Perhaps later.

“You have some… news?” Quan-Chi has been scheming—he is always scheming—to manifest his dark, mad god in Earthrealm and he clearly believes he has hit upon something. Shinnok can see it in the sparkle of the man’s eyes. Oh how he loves me, contemplates the Elder God with absolutely no reciprocity of that feeling.

“I do, my lord,” responds the sorcerer, bowing to one knee and standing to deliver his findings. Shinnok listens patiently, mind elsewhere as it must always be. He is chaos incarnate. There is little order to be had in Netherrealm beyond his absolute rule. Not much can hold the attention of an Elder God, in general, but Shinnok in particular has always allowed his mind to wander where it will. Aside from grand machinations of upset and overthrow which delight him endlessly, there is almost nothing of such magnitude in all of existence—no single object or concept which can so fascinate him. What could possibly be of such import that he, a deity, might need to focus his energies on it for any length of time? The boy, some part of his thoughts remind him sweetly. You’re quite captivated with your new toy, aren’t you? Ah but toys come and go. He will tire of this one… eventually.

That boy is now crossing the threshold of the temple’s audience hall, the doors gliding open before him. The dry heat of Netherrealm has ceased to move him and he walks out into it, ushering in the first petitioner, wondering if his lord and master will listen to this one, or slay it on sight. Any creature, demon, or lost soul who is bold enough to approach the Bone Temple and beg favors of the lord of the Realm is desperate, addled, or too cocksure for their own good. An obliteration by the death god is permanent, it is nothingness, non-existence. Somehow, that void is more terrifying by far than the screaming, burning, howling dimness of Netherrealm.

The first demon in line—he is first by virtue of having killed his way up the queue; the corpses of those before him are littered in pieces here and there as a testament to this, all still twitching and flailing as the death he grants is only pain—is a truly imposing figure, easily ten feet in height, with massive, twisted horns like a ram and a maw full of jagged teeth. His eyes ablaze with contempt. This expression does not soften when it lays its burning gaze (with all four eyes) upon the pretty, behatted monk—Kung Lao may not think of himself as a monk, but they do—but rather hardens to something bordering on obscene. The thing licks slavering lips with an exaggerated motion, clearly aiming to upset the small, soft-looking mortal, who does not respond, only gestures to the hall.

“The master will see you now,” he says in a neutral tone that betrays nothing. “Please, follow me.”

As they enter, the beast’s three-toed feet hit the ground much harder with each step than might actually be necessary, as if to emphasize his weight. Shinnok leans back upon his throne and assumes a semi-attentive posture. There is no real reason for him to pretend he cares; even the pretense is worthless, but for now, it entertains him. Some of the denizens of his realm wait the Netherrealm equivalent of months, even years, if Shinnok is indisposed and simply does not care. Lately, he has been taking more audiences, but then he has only lately had a… secretary. Kung Lao moves swiftly ahead of the demon, braid swinging tantalizingly behind his shapely back. The boy is an hourglass, upon close inspection, broad of shoulder, narrow of waist, and thick of hip and rear-end. The demon is inspecting.

“This is far enough,” instructs Kung Lao. “What are you called?”

The demon splutters with indignation. How could they not know him, the greatest general of the northern armies of Khadul, the god-king of the demons, the true creatures of Netherrealm! He has severely overestimated his importance, a grave error in the Bone Temple. The silent hall rings with its silence. An audience chamber ought necessarily to have an audience, but Shinnok prefers the cavernous immensity. It reiterates just how small his petitioners truly are. He eyes the demon, but has yet to speak. A bone arm sprouts near Kung Lao and it makes a twirling motion with its forefinger.

“Lord Shinnok bids you speak,” says the shapely boy through plump lips that look like they ought to be bruised and bloodied and used, in the creature’s foul opinion.

“I will speak,” he snarls, reaching out toward Kung Lao with the intent to brush past, “but with the lord of this Realm, he in whose temple we stand, not you, little slut. There are things I would do with you, yes, but speaking… it is not one of them.” The demon’s laughter rings out boldly into the hall, bouncing off the skulls and femurs and ribs and myriad other bones which make the walls, floor, and ceiling. Quan-Chi flinches minutely, though more at the brazenness of it than the sound. Shinnok is a statue. The bone arm has dissipated, crumbling like ash and ruin, leaving Lao alone. His lord is watching.

“No,” says Kung Lao, the syllable sharp and clear as a pretty bell rung in a mausoleum—and equally as incongruous next to the obscene, guttural speech of the demon. “No,” he repeats, “you do not speak. You bark like a mangy cur begging for scraps. Heel.”

He rushes the demon with lightning speed as it swings for him. There is a brief moment when it seems he might make a try for the beast’s sizeable testes, which swing visibly behind the scant loincloth one might say he is “wearing”. The idea occurs to him and a strange flash of melancholic amusement jolts Kung Lao’s spine before he disappears beneath his hat in a flash of red light and lotus petals. The creature, having never encountered this particular mortal, looks baffled and squats to examine the hat. Quan-Chi’s mouth opens to warn the beast of its insolence in his master’s presence, but a sharp gesture from said master silences him. His face heats with rage. How dare the boy show off this way? He will be punished—perhaps disemboweled or flayed. How delicious that would be!

As the as yet unnamed demon reaches toward the object to pick it up, the flash occurs once more and the deadly piece of headwear flips upward, turning vertically, its far edge held by the owner, the only man in any realm able to master such a strange weapon. The creature barely has time to cry out as Kung Lao draws the hat up its entirety, bisecting the thing and spilling its steaming insides along the floor. Midair, Kung Lao flings the hat, hard, toward Shinnok. Once more, Quan-Chi blanches, but the mad god catches it easily and holds it, bottom facing downward, toward his knees where he sits. This, he thinks, is the most fun I have had in millennia.

Kung Lao’s form plummets toward the gory mess he has made and for a brief, shining moment, Quan-Chi thinks perhaps he will fall and snap his neck and that will be that, one last escape attempt with the final spark of the monk’s spirit left to him. Lord Shinnok has no need of a broken doll. Of course this is a flight of pure fancy. Shinnok will find a use for that beautiful body, even broken.

Alas, rather than crashing to his death—or maiming, at least—Kung Lao’s body dives into a circle of blood, red light, once more accompanied by a flash and flurry of lotus petals. It takes only half a moment for him to repeat the trick, falling out of the hat and into his lord and master’s waiting lap. Shinnok allows the hat to settle upon Kung Lao’s head and once more tilts his chin upward so that their eyes meet.

“Far too impertinent,” he scolds, shaking his head, running his thumb over his little doll’s full, perfect, soft lower lip. Kung Lao is flushed with the pleasure of his accomplishment and hasn’t a spot of blood on his person. “Who are you to decide who I do and do not address, hmm? Is this not my domain?”

“His master would pretend it is not. One cannot serve two lords and you rule this Realm.” This is not a question, nor is it simpering. Kung Lao speaks cold, hard facts. “I merely saved you the trouble of hearing a dog bark.”

So bold, Shinnok thinks. I must curb this. But he does not punish his little favorite. The unpredictability delights him. Quan-Chi senses this misplaced delight and recedes from the receiving hall unseen, glowering over his shoulder and now hellbent on perfecting his machinations to bring his master to Earthrealm.

#violence #cc #cw #mortal kombat #kung lao #shinnok #shinlao #gift work

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nachohypno · 4 years

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The Daylight Club Ch. 3 - Missing In Action

Donnie’s POV

I woke up in the middle of the street. ‘What the hell happened?’ I wondered, as I got up and moved out of the road just in case a car wanted to try and pass me over.

I was in front of my house, so I just walked inside as soon as I noticed my situation. My phone wasn’t in my pockets, and I had no idea what time was it.

Probably morning?

…Fuck. My phone, where I had all the information, was gone. This is why going in groups to the missions is important, Bobby or Molly could have taken a backup if they were down with me at the maze.

“Dad! I’m home!” I yelled, before he made a scandal about my whereabouts last night. He liked to play the worried father from time to time.

No answer. That was weird, the old man was usually at home at this point.

Never mind, I’ll check the time and see if I can still sneak into school.

I went to my room and turned on my computer. 9 am. Geez, the longest blackout I’ve ever had. I checked my pockets again and the USB drive wasn’t there anymore. It was obvious that this would happen, something got me last night and I was lights out until now.

I should have hidden it somewhere. ‘Stupid Donnie’ I thought.

Anyway, I got my school bag and went outside. Dad seemed to be out for the morning, which was really strange. But I shrugged it off.

That meant that the old man wouldn’t ruin my morning. I smirked at the thought.

I went outside and walked to school. Bobby should already be there.

The streets were empty, not a single soul outside. I wondered if the curfew was extended into a perpetual lockdown, but that didn’t make sense. People had to keep their lives going around town.

Finally, I found someone at the school’s entrance. The main security guy stopped me right on my tracks, fuck.

It was a relief, though. Finding someone, I mean.

“Brandon Thompson, what a surprise” The guy was Jeffrey, we all liked Jeffrey— We used to like Jeffrey, before he got mind-fucked like all the adults in town. “You know, I can stand letting you enter after the first class is on session, but I can’t let you violate the dress code that the Powell family declared for the school”

Dress code? What the hell was this all about? And what does Patrick’s family had to do with it?

“Wait, there’s no such thing as a dress code—”

“Yes, there is” He said, getting a measuring tape from his pocket and starting to measure my frame. I wanted to complain, but strangely I couldn’t. It was like I didn’t know what to do. And this was obviously not normal, because why would a security guard have a fucking measuring tape?!

“Hmm… a large one will do…” He mumbled, before putting the measuring tape back on his pocket and pointing to around the building. “You won’t be able to enter without your uniform, go get one at the locker room”

He pointed to a separate building from the school, near the library and the sports area.

I shrugged “Yeah, whatever” And went directly for the entrance door. Jeffrey didn’t try to stop me, and I know why.

The door wasn’t moving at all. I could hear chatter inside, but I couldn’t open the door.

“Get your uniform, then you’ll enter” said Jeffrey, still at the entrance. I just noticed he wasn’t moving, and he stared straight ahead like a robot.

Shit, seems like I don’t have a choice. What the hell is going on, anyway? How long have I been asleep?

I walked to the sports area’s locker room and found it was… completely different.

I’ve been here before, I used to play sports before being expelled from the boxing team, when the whole voices and the shape thing started and my hatred for school spirit started to arise.

It seemed like some kind of clothing store now. Anyway, I needed a uniform if I wanted to look for my friends.

I… I really don’t need it… right? I mean, it’s not needed if I just want to enter my school. What the hell is going on? This isn’t… this isn’t normal, right?

The supposed new uniforms were stacked in two rows, one for guys and the other for girls. I rolled my eyes and went over to the stack at the left, looking for a large uniform. ‘This has to be some kind of fucked up dream. Maybe all the club members have this happening once they’re caught for the first time’ I thought, heading to the dressing room with the uniform in hand.

“So… I’m doing this. It’s okay, play along ‘til you wake up” I mumbled, as I undressed. Once I undressed, I couldn’t help but to flex to the mirror front of me. It was a nice habit I have, but I reminded myself to keep going.

The dressing pants were… surprisingly comfortable, and not restricting at all. I felt like if I had to run out of school for whatever reason, I would perfectly be able to.

I examined myself in the mirror of the dressing room, mumbling a “You look ridiculous” to my reflection. “But I’m apparently in some kind of nightmare… so better try to progress, maybe I haven’t woken up from the blackout yet”

I felt proud of myself for figuring that out with barely any help. I’m not the best lightbulb of the box when it comes to thinking, but hell, I’m really into this “resistance” kind of thing we’ve settled in our town against the voices, and CHORUS.

I’m a good leader.

I left the dressing room, and the locker room/clothing store. I was doing good so far, can’t wait to wake up though. This dream or whatever is getting boring pretty fast.

I walked over to the front of the school again, and tried to open the main door. Still closed.

What. The. Fuck?!

“You missed something in there” Jeffrey sighed, still standing at the entrance. “Here, take mine. It would be a hassle if you had to go back there” He took off what seemed to be some… earbuds, then passed them to me.

“What’s this for? I’m going to school, not the gym” I mean, I’m supposed to have my ears uncovered to pay attention to the classes. This would be counterproductive.

“There’s… a cat trapped in the vents. It’s making a lot of noise, yeah. Wear those for protection, or you won’t be able to enter. Orders from above” He finished, as soon as I opened my mouth to complain.

“That’s bullshit— A’ight. Then I’ll be able to enter the damn school? I’m already late, dude!” Not that I really care, but what shitty game is he playing right now?!

“That’s the last detail, yeah” Fucking finally. I placed the earbuds on my ears without a second thought, then ran towards the front door, which opened in front of me.

FINALLY!

I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited about entering school. Now, to check on the others!

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Kevin’s POV

I woke up on the closet’s floor. I opened my eyes and realized I was back at Donnie’s room.

I thought about staying at the hideout for the time, using the ‘dorms’ there. But Donnie suggested me to stay on his house instead, since he wanted to keep an eye on me after my “spectacular entrance to this chaos, with bike and everythin’”.

And funny enough, this… gave me a pretty good view of the events of last night. And I couldn’t do anything to stop it from happening.

Everyone got trapped by the shape, which wasn’t as invisible as they said it was.

They were running around with their eyes closed, but I could see it perfectly running towards them.

Grabbing them by their necks.

…I assumed it was disturbing for them. Seeing their friends floating in the air and then acting against each other all of a sudden.

I was mostly surprised when the ‘wings’ appeared. Bobby and Ryan started screaming “THE SHAPE! IT'S LIKE AN ANGEL!”

I wanted to go out and do something. Anything, to help out. I was in the club, right?

But they dismissed me and told me to stay in my position because there “were already four members out on field”. Such a dumb excuse, and look at how it went for them.

The thing didn’t look like an angel at all, by the way. I still remember the cocky look in Adam’s face as he helped me get out from OceanVille.

Funny things about angels: They can’t kill humans. I should thank William for turning me into one during our confrontation.

The angel had no other option than to let me go and live my now mortal life, to avoid having me around William, worsening his PTSD.

I snapped my fingers.

Nothing happened.

I was too weak for that. I tried to summon a rainy day to avoid heading to school. If I’m going to pass as a normal student around here, I should play the whole act, right?

But first, let’s get cleaned up.

I went to Donnie’s closet and checked out the stuff. ‘My home is your home’ he mentioned, before leaving for the mission ‘Just try to not cross paths with my dad. I haven’t told him you’re staying here and it’s better if the enemy doesn’t know you’re here’

‘Don’t worry, big D. Your dad is dancing on the palm of my hand’ I thought to myself before leaving the room with a clean towel.

I went to the bathroom to take a shower, undressing and leaving the dirty —or ruined— stuff on the ground. Been a while since I took a shower. I would normally just snap my fingers and ta-da, I would be clean.

Warping the reality was amazing, but going back to my human behavior was… a nice change of pace.

I won’t share the details of my shower, but it was relaxing. My body was still a bit sore-y after falling straight to the pavement from my bike. It was also a nice and relaxing place to think about what the heck is going on here.

Like, for example… What is the shape, anyway?

I have pretty good knowledge of supernatural beings, or powers and stuff.

Mind controllers were a thing, I’ve seen one. But this wasn’t their doing, I could tell. Their power was almost limitless, as long as they trained their minds to handle it. But… no, it couldn’t be. A whole town was way too much, unless it was an especially powerful one.

Body hoppers? The only one I’m aware of is still at Riverwood. And even if there was one here (since some people seems to change completely after being mind-fucked) there wouldn’t be many of them for every adult in town. They’re almost extinct, as far as I know.

These voices… I’ve never heard of such a thing, but apparently they’re real. That, or these guys have a severe case of schizophrenia, and just imagine them to have someone to blame.

But that didn’t seem the case. They were really convinced of their existence, that was obvious.

And what’s with that CHORUS thing? They’re the principal manufacturers and tech service providers of the town, without any competition.

That HAS to do something with everything that’s happening at night. Otherwise, why would a modern town be so… isolated, if they’re welcoming technology like this town seemed to be?

I went back to Donnie’s room and grabbed some clothes from his closet.

A tee, a hoodie and some jeans. He was bigger than me, so the clothes would look baggy on me, still better than being naked. And, I had to be presentable for my first day at school.

…Again.

I checked my bag. The papers I made up for when I had to enter William’s school were still there, and still looked useful. I could just say that I’ve been repeating the senior year over and over, or something like that. I’m still 18, supposedly.

“You REALLY are eighteen? You don’t seem to be aging well, kiddo!” A goofy voice said, and it caused me to fall backwards because of the surprise.

“W-Who’s there? Matthew?” But I got no answer back. Fuck, that confirms it, then. The voices are definitely real, and I’m being watched even at this very moment.

I looked at the street through the window, trying to distract my mind from the recent scare. People passed by, taking their dogs for a walk. Some were teens heading to school.

And then, I noticed Tweedledum walking towards this house, scratching his head in confusion. Bobby rang the bell a few seconds later, so I grabbed my bag and walked downstairs.

I opened the door, and he seemed surprised to find me there. “Hey… Where’s—”

“Donnie? I was waiting for him to reappear after yesterday’s failure of a mission” Bobby rolled his eyes, then motioned me to follow him. “And I’ll assume he hasn’t contacted you yet… maybe he’s at the hideout?”

“He would have called; I guess… But he probably is, no need to worry. Donnie would call us pricks if he saw us worrying over him” He said, reassuringly and patting my back. Like I’m the one that was worrying over him.

Truth is, Bobby seemed a bit down after hearing that Donnie wasn’t at his house. Funny, he doesn’t look like the kind of guy who would worry a lot. Not saying that he doesn’t have the right to worry but… He and Donnie don’t really seem like nice cupcakes when you first meet them.

And he was now pretty silent. I don’t know him enough to bring up a conversation topic, so I just followed him to school and he would sometimes look out to the side, probably to check if I was still next to him.

The girl from yesterday at the hideout, Molly, was at the entrance wearing a cotton beanie that covered most of her hair.

“What’s with the beanie?” Bobby said, apparently cheered up at the sight of his friend.

“Oh, excuse me, Mr. I-get-trapped-and-wake-up-with-perfect-hair!” ‘It isn’t, hun. Have you looked at this guy’s head? He looks like he just fought with a grizzly bear’ I thought, smiling at my mental dialogue. “I didn’t have time to shower after waking up from the blackout, so… this is the best thing I could find”

I honestly didn’t care about their conversation. Not because I don’t like them, I find them hilarious actually. But I feel like the disappearance of Donnie (Or better yet, what were they doing after being trapped yesterday?) are more important questions rather than ‘Oh, does my hair look nicey?’ ‘Oh no, look at my hair!’.

Priorities guys, priorities.

“Do you know where the principal’s office is? I still gotta get transferred here—”

“Wait, you’re still a student? How come you arrived at town without your family?” Bobby interrupted me. It was alright, but I sort of assumed he would have made the connection already.

“I’m emancipated, that’s why” I lied. It was much easier than saying ‘I’m an all-powerful —not so much anymore- demon that’s older than all of you’.

“Huh, weirdly enough, that sounds cool with the parenting situation around here” Molly sighed, before grabbing my hand and guiding me inside. The corridor looked boring and gray, which I didn’t find weird. According to these guys, adults (and the things controlling them) want order around town.

Colorful places could inspire imagination? I don’t know, I saw it in a movie once.

The bell rang as we walked in silence and Molly guided me through the corridors. “Shit… I have to be in time for class, perfect assistance record and stuff. Just turn around this corner, keep going forward and you’ll see it. Got it? I can go with you if you want” Huh, nice girl. I liked her.

“Nah, I’m good with directions. I’ll see you in a bit” I told her, and the distressed Bobby behind her. They both nodded, and wished me good luck, then walked away together.

“Aw, I ship them” The random voice appeared again in my head. I looked around but couldn’t see anything. Then…

‘Close your eyes’ Donnie said when reciting the rules yesterday. I did as he said, and found some kind of… footsteps? I could only see them when my eyes were closed, and they seemed to go around the corner.

A few moments later, alternating between closing my eyes and looking out to not bump into people, I arrived at the principal’s office. “What the…” I mumbled, wondering what was that all about. Were the footprints guiding me here? Why?

This is definitely weird, but I’ll take it, I guess.

I walked into the principal’s office, and the older man just looked at me with curiosity “I… We’ve never met before, right?” Wow, if I were a student this guy would have come off as an asshole.

I shook my head “I’m here to join. I used to study at home due to anxiety problems before, but my parents decided it was time for me to socialize more with my fellow seniors and have a good high school experience during my last year” I tried to sound as convincing as I could, while handing him the paper works I had used to sign up at OceanVille High.

I’m aware that they’re outdated, but maybe I could… use my mind control power to change his mind about me entering? It was worth the try, at least.

He looked at the papers with a raised eyebrow. I snapped my fingers behind my back, trying to focus on this guy’s mind but… It was really difficult. I sort of felt like something was already in his mind, making it difficult for me to tinker with him.

In the end, I gave in and stopped trying, but that apparently made him dizzy enough to not register the papers as cautiously as he should have.

“Ev— Ev…” His face was twitching. Oh, okay. The voices are tinkering with his head right now, maybe? I pushed harder for him to ‘break free’ of their control, before giving in to me, but again, it was useless. “Everything… seems in order” He finally said, handing the papers back to me.

“Thanks so much, I’m excited to start my senior year in Greenwood High, sir!” I feigned a nerdy tone, hoping I would get on his good side.

He shook his head, like he just woke up from some kind of weird trance. “Y-Yes… I’m sorry, I have some trouble sleeping lately” Huh, just like the club guys said. “Head to your first class, my secretary will provide you with a schedule for the senior year. It’s…” Yawn “A bit late to begin your year but you still have time to take on some optative classes or extracurriculars”

Did he… Did he just yawn? I guess that all that sleepwalking while they’re enslaved at night is paying off during their daytime routine?

I shook my head, my business here was done. If I tried to push my weak mind control further he could snap or something, so I preferred to just head out to my first class.

“I’ll check out the options later, thanks again!” I said, before walking out.

Geez, this place is filled with crazy people, apparently.

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Donnie’s POV

The corridors were empty, just like the town outside. Seems like I’m still in the mind fucked world.

Funny enough, I tried to turn towards an empty corridor but it was… closed?

The door to enter the corridor was apparently locked with a chain, which was a weird thing since I’m supposed to be at a normal school day. “Is this the best you can do? Fuckin’ lazy, bro…” I mumbled, scratching the back of my head as I turned around.

I had already found my classroom, but I decided to not enter and just explore this weird place. My detective skills wanted me to try and find some info around these blackouts in here.

I tried something out: Closing my eyes. The footsteps didn’t appear on the ground, so I couldn’t guide myself, but I did notice shape-like figures outside of the school building. ‘Shit, nice thing I’m inside or I would have freaked out while out there’

But as I thought that, a pair of hands grabbed me by the shoulders and started moving me away. “You were late, dude. You need to learn when to enter your classes in time” Jeffrey’s voice said, as I was pushed through the corridor and into the detention room I spent so many hours before.

I entered unwillingly, which made no sense at all because it was still morning. I’ve been at detention before and the asshole principal likes to have it after class to make sure we lose time of the evening.

“Fucker” I mumbled, as the door was closed behind me. I looked in the room, and noticed Bobby was there along with Ryan. They sat next to each other, and were dressed in the same shitty uniform I was.

“Hey Brandon” Bobby said, as I walked over and sat on the desk chair beside him. This was already not right, noticeable by the point that Bobby was dressed like a fucking prep and acknowledged me as ‘Brandon’.

“Hey dude, got sent over here too?” Nevertheless, it was comforting finally seeing a friendly face around here, so I stood my ground and didn’t lose my cool. Yep, that’s me. The guy trapped in a dream fantasy with fucking preps.

“Yep. Detention class is cool, though. I heard we’re having a new professor!” New professor? Detention class? What he said didn’t make any sense,

A man I’ve never seen before entered the room, carrying a book and a coffee mug. He was wearing a sort of lab coat, and seemed to be in his mid-30s. Made me curious, mostly because we already had a biology professor.

“Good morning. I’m the new professor taking care of the re-education course you’ve been sent to. We can’t have you little troublemakers running around school and skipping classes”

“Uh, sorry dude, but—” I started, before the guy dropped his book harshly on the desk in front of us. Bobby and Ryan looked at me with disdain, like I just said ‘Hey, I fucked your mother’.

“Dude?! I’ve heard some stuff from the other professors about you, Brandon Thompson, but I will not tolerate a student not addressing me by my surname, or my title, especially not in this class. I didn’t serve in the military for a little brat to disrespect me like this…” He finished, rubbing his face with his hands like some kind of cartoon character.

“Uh, aren’t we supposed to be at class? How come we are in detention right now? Isn’t that counterproductive, dude?” I finished my question after he rudely interrupted me.

His mad stare made me think that he was about to throw the book he just dropped at me, but teachers aren’t supposed to hurt their students. ‘You’ll have to step up your game, TAO’ I mumbled, taunting the voice that was probably behind this all. Think-As-One (Shortened as TAO).

The name alone already implies the hive-mind mechanic that the sleepers and lucids have been reflecting in the real world at night.

“Let’s start with that as the first lesson of our class” The new professor, who didn’t even state his name yet, said while ignoring my question once again. Apparently, logic reasoning wasn’t the forte of people in this world.

I looked beside me at the fake Bobby and Ryan, both wearing uniforms like I was, their hair was perfectly combed to the side… Their eyes were glazed over, so I was right. I couldn’t trust in them during this weird sequence. How long until the blackout ends? Me don’t know!

“Properly addressing your superiors! Robert, what can you tell me about it?” The guy continued, looking at my best friend beside me. Huh, I almost forgot Bobby was just a nickname. Bobby doesn’t like being called Robert though, so it was just another signal of my friend not being himself right now.

Bobby/Robert raised his hand and answered in a ridiculous nervous tone. “Yes, sir! We have to always show respect to our superiors by addressing them as their title, like Mom and Dad, or Sir, when it’s not a relative, Sir!” Then he sat back down, looking proud of himself and with a big grin.

That answer disgusted me. I knew Bobby was usually the ‘polite’ one of the duo, but he still wouldn’t call a professor ‘Sir’ even if his life depended on it.

Ryan lifted his hand beside Bobby, and waited for the man in front of the fake classroom to notice him. “Yes, Ryan?”

“May I add that showing respect to our superiors includes principles like doing what you’re told to do without complaints, and always trying to look your best to avoid embarrassment?” I noticed both guys beside me had earbuds on their ears, which made me realize I had signed my death sentence.

I’m not dumb, but I should have been more careful before entering here.

“That’s a good answer! Are you taking notes, Brandon?” The professor said, looking over at me as I struggled to move my body and take off the earbuds off. It was useless though, it was like when you want to do something in a video game, but that action isn’t programmed in so you just can… play along.

“S—Suuuuuuuuur—YEaaaa—“ I couldn’t speak nor lie properly, and that was pissing me off. Then, I felt like my body entered some kind of autopilot mode. “No, Sir!” I felt myself saying, and I swear I wanted to puke so bad.

“Hmm… That’s too bad, young man. But I’m glad you’re being honest. What do you think of your fellow classmates? They are brilliant gentlemen, aren’t they? Model citizens of the future!” He sounded like some fucking commercial.

I wanted to lie again, but my voice wouldn’t complain. “They’re disgusting, Sir! I couldn’t feel more embarrassed of them even if I tried!” Bro, what the fuck?! I would never say something like that about Bobby! I mean, I could do it to Ryan, but Bobby is a nice friend!

My club mates beside me looked at me with sadness, their eyes seemed teary but still glazed over. “Oof, that was really mean, Brandon. Look at what you’ve done, are you proud of yourself for making your classmates sad? I’m sure you feel like a cool guy right now…” He shook his head in disapproval, and that sort of made me feel bad?

Like, I didn’t care about this guy, but at the same time I was beginning to care a little that I disappointed my supe—WHATTHEFUCK!

“I’m sorry, guys. I shouldn’t have referred to you like that” My body finally said, and weirdly enough, I meant it. I couldn’t care less about these fake copies of my club mates— but I really wanted to apologize for my bad behavior and talking like that.

“That’s more like it, Brandon” The professor said, and I gave a shy nod before answering a weak “Thank you, Sir”

I noticed my mind getting number with each passing second. Every bit of this that seemed to not make any sense suddenly started making sense as an unknown influence kept trying to take over my mind.

And the influence... It made it very difficult to resist, so... I might as well give in... Right?

“Nice progression we’re having here” The professor said. “Now, let’s have a quick summary of the school rules, shall we?”

The three of us nodded, excitedly. I’ve never been so excited to hear about rules, except maybe when we made up the club’s rules…

I… An image seemed to appear in my mind… Me, along with the rest of my classmates proudly looking to the front of the classroom. I was sitting beside Patrick, my best friend, as we carefully paid attention to the professor.

I liked spending time with Patrick before… Why did we stop… The club...

The club… It rang a bell inside of me, but I could also feel myself not overflowing with joy every time I thought about debunking all the shit that had been going on at the town.

I just wanted to be a normal student now. I wanted to be with my real best friend again, Patrick Powell. He left the club, and I should do the same. For him.

Bobb- Robert was a good best friend, but he wasn’t as good best friend as Patrick was. He was the one I liked...

I… I had to leave the club then… That sounds about right, yeah. I wanted to be a normal student. I wanted to be back with my best friend… Hell, I’d do anything for him.

I could feel my mind being fully filled with fog as I stopped resisting the influence. It felt…

Good.

It was like my worries and any thoughts of resistance just faded away. A feeling of proudness covered my body every time I complied with this man, for some reason, and I wasn’t going to complain about that.

“First rule,” The professor said, while writing it down on the blackboard in front of us. “You must always remain respectful towards your superiors”

“We must always remain respectful towards our superiors” My two classmates repeated, and looked at me.

“…We must always remain respectful towards our superiors” I noticed some faint music playing over the earbuds I had on. Music like the one that plays at the maze? I couldn’t tell. I had to pay attention to the re-education course, it was more important.

I had to remain respectful towards the professor.

“You will do as you’re told by your parents and elders, without second thought” The guy continued writing, placing all the points in little bullet points to make it all better looking.

“We will do as we are told by our parents and elders, without second thought” The three of us droned this time around. It was alright, I had to be respectful towards my dad, my professors and stuff.

They’re always right.

A sly smile appeared on the professor’s face. I noticed he hadn’t told us his name, but it was alright. I could refer to him as ‘Sir’, if I had to.

“You won’t take place in clandestine and/or Illegal activities, like breaking the curfew at night” The man finished a new rule that seemed to obviously target at…

At…

I wasn’t a club member anymore, that’s for sure. I’m not a troublemaker, so I don’t have to go around breaking the rules.

“We won’t take place in clandestine and/or illegal activities” We droned again. It felt good to say it. We had to be good citizens for the future, hah.

The professor drew a little line at the bottom of the three golden rules, and just turned towards us. “Now you three, I want you to go out and follow these rules like your lives depend on it, they’re the key for a better you, understood?” He finished, a big grin on his face.

We got up from our seats calmly and said “Yes, Sir!” Before heading out toward the door. The door seemed to have a weird reddish color around it, all of a sudden. Sort of reminding me of the ones that the shape uses to…

It must be my imagination, I just had to go back to class.

I had to be a good student.

-------

Kevin’s POV

Being at school sucked, and that’s one thing I didn’t miss from being a human.

I must say, my new classmates are very nice indeed. Patrick tried to take me on a tour around school, but I asked him if we could go later. I wasn’t in the mood for tours right now.

The first class went by fast, nothing interesting happening besides Ryan’s reappearance, and he seemed to be just like he always was, according to Bobby and Molly.

We met up at the corridor as I tried to open my new locker. “Here, lemme help’chu” Bobby mumbled, gently pushing me aside and harshly pulling from the locker’s handle. The thing seemed to open without much effort, even when I apparently used the correct combination.

“These lockers are shit, but anyone with enough strength can open them” Molly explained “The locks are a joke, just pull the handle as hard as you can and… voila” She finished, opening her own locker.

‘Huh, interesting. I should remember to not place anything valuable in these lockers if anyone can open them’ I thought, after mumbling a quick thanks to my new club mates.

As the three of us were chatting, something unexpected happened. I noticed him passing besides us, without even looking at us.

I stopped Bobby’s speech and moved towards the other guy. I grabbed his shoulder and he turned to me. “Donnie?” I said.

The guy was wearing almost the same clothes as Patrick was earlier today. A green polo shirt, tucked in his khaki pants. Like some kind of uniform, now that I think of it. Or… “Preppy”.

I recognized that style, it was one of my favorite stereotypes when I was a demon. Warping a guy’s mind to fit the stereotype, becoming well mannered, ‘boring’ some would say. And one important part…

“I’m Brandon, not Donnie” He said, as he took my hand off his shoulder and went back to walking away from us. I wondered if he noticed Bobby and Molly beside me. I’m not someone he’s fond of but these two are supposed to be his friends, right?

Patrick was a few lockers away from him, and stared at him in awe.

Brandon went up to him, and they shook hands. His new friend placed an arm around him after that, as they started walking deeper into the corridor.

I turned to my fellow club members, who were in a mix of confusion and surprise, as well.

“What the hell… That was… That was Donnie, right?” Bobby asked. Molly seemed too shocked to add something, she just stared at the guy who saved my ass a few nights ago walking away like nothing ever happened.

I cleared my throat, trying to set all the pieces together in my mind of what could have happened. But in the meantime…

“Alright mates, we need a plan. ASAP.” I said, with determination. This shit was already going way too fast, and it was only my second day in town. “Let me… I think I have an idea, let me think it out a bit more” I finished, as I watched the club’s leader walking away.

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#The Daylight Club #mind control #brainwashing #brainwash #gay hypnosis

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