Bloodlines Ch.03

A week rushed by, the monotony of work and lectures only broken by sleep and food. Exams were next week, so pressure was up, even though Garth was less worried about his future after coming into his powers. He was confident he would be able to get by anyway. He kept replaying his tryst with Erica as inspiration in bed at night, though stress and long days took the edge off quite effectively.

Saturday came around, blissfully free of plans, and he considered doing some more reading last minute before the exam on Monday. That would have to wait though; first he needed food and fresh air. He took off at a brisk walk towards the tiny mall a few blocks over, just next to Lisa's apartment. The black car down the road was still parked in its usual spot, he mused, wondering who around here had the money for such a nice set of wheels. No matter though, he had never seen anyone enter or leave it, and it was no concern of his in any case.

Questing out with his power was no longer an active choice; it was just something he did, like breathing or walking. It required no effort on his part unless he thought actively about it, kind of like how he had to remember to draw breath now, instead of it happening on its own. He decided his neighbors were a fairly complex mix of people, like any residential area, he supposed. Seeing their emotions did nothing to lessen the impression. There was a jungle of emotions swirling all around, practically all possible emotions like some chaotic painting, only making sense if he focused on a single person at a time. For example the lonely woman who lived a few apartments away to the right somewhere, or the couple who were very much in love next door. Several times a day, as a matter of fact, Garth mused.

He had been trying to judge how far he was able to sense people, figuring that was useful to know. By triangulating on the emotions of the old man who was always Angry, he moved around his neighborhood and decided his range was about three city blocks, or around a hundred meters. He figured there was some kind of gradual cutoff, since he could feel people outside that range by surging his power, though the tradeoff was probably not worth the cost of herbs as opposed to just closing in. The reverse was also true, to some extent. The closer he was to someone, the less effort it took to manipulate them, but rather than requiring less power, it was more about better control and resolution as he thought of it. In his apartment that still meant he had access to dozens of people to read and use for exercises, if only reading their emotions. For the most part.

Garth pushed his cart down the aisle with canned goods and bags of soups and casseroles. He was by no means a bad chef, he just did not see the point in making elaborate meals for himself on weekdays. Ready meals that just needed heating was taking it one step too far, though. Usually.

Now he was mostly annoyed at the kid screaming his lungs out the next aisle over, his mother having denied him some cereal or other. Garth could feel a throbbing begin behind his eyes, a headache announcing its arrival like a stampede of marching geese, the kid's scream for a fanfare. The emotions roiled off from the kid, Anger, for the most part, but as opposed to an adult's, the emotions seemed almost hollow. It was as if there was no substance to it, just hot air and flashy colors. Forming a spike of power, he prodded at the wave, only to see it burst and disappear. The kid silenced as if muted by the push of a button. Garth smiled and continued shopping in peace.

"Base, this is one-seven, come in!" The radio gave off some static inside the car outside the mall. "This is base, report, over." "Subject four is inside the local mall, we are reading moderate activity. Do you want us to intervene?" A few seconds of silence. "Negative, one-seven, keep your distance and report any major changes. We are informing Mr. Schieler currently, we will use him as a means of control for now. Base out."

As he came back to his apartment, Garth noticed the black car was gone, though the thought was just a passing one. He glanced up towards Sophia's apartment, seeing the curtains were closed, sensing her inside. They had not seen much of each other lately, with him being away at lectures or work, though her emotions were muted pretty much all the time these days. It felt almost artificial, he thought, but that could just be his relative inexperience at interpreting people. He had just realized that they were complex, after all. He briefly considered trying to contact her, but decided against it. She was an unknown element after all, and Garth felt that he had enough stuff going on in his life as it was.

Sunday arrived, and with it an unusual bout of nerves. He had an exam the following afternoon, so he spent the morning reading furiously and learning little. Introductory Biochemistry was one of those subjects you either got or not. Garth was reasonably sure he got it, at least well enough, but he always messed up the pathway from Isocitrate to Succinate, always confusing where Coenzyme A belonged. Oh well, at least he could draw and name all the essential amino acids, that had to be something, right? And everyone always said there was no point reading much the day before an exam, that was too late to learn something new. Better to blow off some steam and do something relaxing or fun. He decided he could use a vent. Maybe have some fun in a controlled setting, with friends.

Garth picked up the phone and dialed Lisa's number. "Hi Lisa, it's me, Garth!"

"Hi Garth, how are you?" Lisa's voice came back.

"I was wondering if you had any plans tonight, I'm bouncing off the walls from tomorrow's exam and could use some company."

"Sure, I guess. I wasn't planning anything, but the apartment is a mess..." She trailed off, sounding a little guarded.

Garth was not taking no for an answer though. "Great, I'll be right over. I'll bring a bottle of wine!"

"Sure, ok, see you in a bit."

As he got to her front door, he quested out, finding two people inside, both familiar, both female. Lisa opened the door for him, a careful smile on her face, obviously a little uncomfortable. Reading her he found a roiling mass, Anxiety, Anticipation, Desire and others churning. A sudden insight struck Garth, adding two and two.

"Is Christa in the shower?"

"Yeah, she..." Lisa trailed off, caught unawares by his casual tone. "How did you...? What...!? Oh crap!" Realization dawned on her face. "How much did you see?" She was obviously referring to their little party a couple of weeks before.

"Well, not much really. When Josh started fucking Amy from behind, I saw the two of you were playing tonsil hockey, tearing each other's clothes off." Mortification and Embarrassment flared high. "I figured there was no point trying anything with either of you girls, and I doubted Josh would want to spit roast Amy with me, so I went home."

His crude language struck a nerve and Embarrassment flared even higher with Arousal hot on its heels. Garth smiled inwardly, reaching out to Christa in the shower, feeling her comfortable, relaxed emotions. He began to tweak her, Arousal slowly simmering. Lisa got a small dose of it too, and a very subtle dampening of her Anxiety.

Garth was weighing in his mind, wondering if he should say anything. His uncle had been clear that secrecy was paramount, but when he saw what his uncle had with Alyssa and Erica, he wanted something like that for himself. Something he chose, not something that was chosen for him. He knew Lisa and Christa well, they had been fast friends for years. E ven though they were shallow at times, he felt sure he could trust them. At least with parts of the truth. Maybe he could persuade the organization to let him include them as Jeff had done.

"By the way, you're welcome." Garth decided to take a leap of faith.

"What do you mean?" Lisa said with confusion obvious on her face.

"You and Christa. I saw how you were both pining for the other but holding back. I nudged you to act on your desires. Lisa, I can influence your emotions."

"Haha, very funny." Scorn was heavy in her voice. He gave her a pointed look, holding her eyes with his and Garth saw Uncertainty and Nervousness.

"No way, you're messing with me." Her eyes flickered a little.

"You're serious? No way! Ok, prove it!"

Garth smiled, trying not to look condescending. He took hold of her Lust and yanked roughly. Her eyes flew open, pupils dilating and nostrils flaring. He pulled and pulled, her eyes starting to slide closed as she bucked a little, knees mashing together. Then he stopped abruptly, her Lust dropping like a stone. Lisa slumped like a marionette that got its string cut, air whooshing from her lungs. While she recovered he kept manipulating Christa, ramping the rate up a little.

"Shit! That was something else!" Lisa trembled slightly, eyeing Garth carefully. "I guess you weren't messing with me. Is this hypnosis or something?"

"I don't know, exactly." He lied. "It started a few weeks ago, it just appeared one day." Not a complete lie, that. Just not the whole truth either. He felt a little bad for holding back, but he wanted to gauge her reaction a little first. He opened the wine and poured two glasses, setting a third on the table between them as he told a heavily censored version of the latest events. All the while he kept working on Christa, her emotions responding nicely.

"That must have been quite a ride," Lisa said, wonder and awe in her voice. "You can bend people's will. Wow! Just, wow..." Her voice trailed off. "I can't change emotions or control people, it's not like that," He said defensively. "I can only increase or decrease something that's already there." Garth detected a hint of residual Lust and tugged on it very subtly, afraid she might get suspicious. Just to be on the safe side he pushed down a tiny bit on any negative emotions, keeping a steady push. Lisa did not seem to notice, her look far away in thought, though her finger twirled her hair a little.

"I wonder what's taking Christa so long. She's usually not that slow." She said.

Garth had a very good idea what was taking her so long. Christa's emotions were roiling and pulsing in a steady rhythm, his pulling all but stopped as she kept them rising on her own in time with the pulsing. He was quite sure she was masturbating, orgasm not far off. Her Arousal spiked and they both heard a loud gasp from the bathroom. Lisa rose, Alarm and Anxiety rolling off her in waves. Garth surged his influence and tamped them down. She stopped dead, confusion apparent. "Whaaat?" Her voice was a little sluggish.

"Sssh, relax." He came up behind her, pulling her hair to the side, kissing her neck as he increased her Arousal and Lust. She sighed, her neck an erogenous zone, as he well knew. "Christa is fine. More than fine I think." He let his hands roam her hips and stomach, gliding slowly up to cup her tits as he pushed and pulled, playing her like an instrument. Soon she was grinding her firm ass against his hard cock, leading his hands down towards her fly, urging him to touch her. Garth obliged, opening the button and slowly snaking a finger down towards her folds, coarse pubes parting. She groaned with pleasure as he connected with her clit, gently pressing down on it.

"Lisa! You'll never guess..." Christa trailed off as she came face to face with Lisa, Garth's hands down her panties and on her now bared breast. Mouth opening and closing like a fish on land, she clutched a towel around her body, still moist hair cascading down over her shoulders. Garth pulled on her quite prominent Arousal and Lust, pushing down Confusion and a crest of what had to be Jealousy.

"Christa, dear, I was just showing Lisa here some tricks I've learned." He gave her the full force of his power, making her sway a little; her mind malleable like clay while she was off balance. "Lose the towel and get over here, Lisa needs to have her pussy eaten."

The towel dropped, revealing a curvy figure Garth knew well. Heavy tits, sagging slightly and broad hips, a dark bush covering her pussy. He smiled, remembering fondly how he held those hips as he thrust into her, thumb playing with her inviting asshole. She stepped forward almost drunkenly, heavily influenced by him and fell to her knees before Lisa.

Garth spread Lisa's lips open and thrust into her backside, pushing her into Christa's open mouth. They both cooed with pleasure, emotions flaring without his aid. He stepped back a little, dropping his own pants, cock springing free. He pushed it into Lisa's thigh gap, the top of his cock sliding along her wet lips and into Christa's mouth.

He grabbed Christa's head and pushed inside her mouth, cock slick with Lisa's juices. Then he began to fuck her face slowly, Lisa moaning as his cock ground against her pussy. Soon his cock was slick with saliva and pussy juice, ready for the next step.

He bent his knees, angling his cock up a little and aligned it with her open pussy. Tensing, he prepared and then thrust up, cock forcing her lips apart as he slid all the way inside in a single thrust. Lisa had always liked to fuck hard, coming extra hard when he pushed her roughly down and pulled her hair as he fucked her. Today was no exception.

She shrieked as Garth fucked her aggressively, holding her arms back, Christa mauling her tits. He was no longer manipulating their emotions, just watching them as a sea in storm. Wave after wave of Pleasure rolled off Lisa, and pretty soon she stiffened, her pussy squeezing his cock again and again.

"Christa! On your knees, now!" Garth panted. She complied, gazing up at him adoringly, mouth open and tongue out. She was ready for him. He grabbed Lisa, lifting her stiff body off his cock, a slurping sound as it exited. He set her gently down on the couch and placed his cock in Christa's mouth. Her lips closed around it, her tongue tickling his head and slit. He groaned in pleasure and felt cum soaring up his shaft.

Pulling out, he came in rapid spurts all over Christa's face, glazing her in thick white cum. Then he groaned and fell down next to Lisa on the couch, cock slowly deflating. Christa purred and crawled towards them, leaning down to kiss Lisa, sharing his cum with her.

"What was that!?" Lisa said as she recovered slightly, licking her lips to gather the last of him remaining on them. "Did you do that?" She looked at him.

"Yes, I'm sorry. I hadn't planned for this to happen exactly, but I got carried away by the rush. When Christa came in the shower, I lost control a little. Please don't be mad at me!?"

"I'm not mad at you, not really. It's just. This is a little too much. What did you do to me? To us?" She looked down at Christa who sat on her knees in front of them, not saying anything yet, just watching them. She had always been the quiet type. "Ah, well, it's complicated," He began. "Try anyway, you owe us!" And so he told them. Everything. Almost. He obscured Erica, not wanting to talk too much about her to the girls, at least not yet. Anxious for their response, yet relieved at not keeping secrets, he realized he had formed a deeper connection with them after being intimate not only with their bodies (he had done that before, after all), but also with their minds. He trusted them, just as much as his uncle, only in a different way.

"So you're some kind of freak magician with superpowers?" Lisa was still the one talking, Christa next to her on the couch, the second bottle of wine almost empty. "I can remember being afraid when Christa moaned, then that fear just vanished, and that should have left me terrified. Except it didn't, I got horny instead, and then..." She trailed off, sending him a look of mock disapproval.

"I'm sorry," He began. "You looked so good, and I remembered how much you like it when I nibble on your neck." He reached out and pulled a little on her Lust, just enough to make it obvious. Her eyes grew wide. "Stop it!" She smiled as she said it. Christa winked at him from the other side of her and leaned in to nibble at her neck, at just the right spot. Garth checked his reserves, judging there to be at least another hour or so left of his herbs. Smiling, he got to work.

"Base, this is one-five, we might have a situation with subject four, please advice." The two men waited patiently in their car outside the apartment complex. "One-five, this is base. We are initiating containment protocol three, teams one-six and two-one will take over surveillance of the apartment, you stay with subject four until further notice as usual."

Garth was tired. Really tired. Last night had devolved into a proper orgy, all three of them eagerly licking, grinding, groping and fucking one another long after he had used his final reserve of power. Now, he was all but exhausted, walking the proverbial walk of shame home, clothes all wrinkled and askew. He did not mind in the slightest. But he did mind that his exam would start in only a few hours. Not his best choice of preparations, even if he was relaxed.

Friday was his final exam, Morals and Ethics. He was just finishing his paper on the morality of sacrificing one to save many and the nuances of active versus passive choice; the old train problem. He was reasonably satisfied with his arguments, quite confident of passing. Sitting back he focused on his neuropathic sense, realizing with surprise that he was influencing the entire room, suppressing Nervousness and Anxiety without active thought. When had he started doing that? Had he done it before? His thoughts flickered back to the night when he had matched Lisa and Christa, had he been tweaking Amy and Josh before that as well? He really had no idea, he only remembered having his power active pretty much all the time, but no memory of doing something like this.

Shaken by the implications he decided to pay more attention; he was losing control too often. Lost in his own thoughts, he sat until the bell announced the end of the exam half an hour later, not really seeing or hearing anything, just trying to remember what he had done lately.

"It's a common problem for inexperienced neuros," Jeff explained. They were sitting in the break room at the shop. "Imagine how that particular problem is for kines, we're quite sure that was a main contributing factor to the whole poltergeist-theory. Picture closet doors opening and closing at random." They both laughed at the absurdity.

"Many new to their power do this, it happens as your mind tries to adapt to the power. The process is not well described, so we don't know why it happens or what causes it. It usually passes quickly if you stay alert when ingesting herb. Now, I need you to listen carefully, this is serious." Garth perked up, mirth gone in a flash at his uncle's change in demeanor.

"I was approached by the organization several days ago; they are concerned with your frivolous use of power around others. They wanted me to talk to you earlier, but I got them to agree to let you finish your exams." Garth was confused, what was Jeff talking about? How could the organization know that? Was he being followed or something?

"What do you mean, uncle? How could anyone know that? I don't understand." "You didn't think they would just let you run free, did you?" A note of incredulity was obvious in Jeff's voice. "These are powerful people, Garth. Many are high-ranking officials and politicians whose whole career would be ruined if this was common knowledge. They work very hard to keep a lid on this, and any threat to their position will be dealt with. Sometimes permanently." Jeff held Garth's eyes, imprinting the gravity with unblinking eyes.

Garth felt sick. He had not really considered that, he had only been seeing things from his own perspective, and while he had been circumspect, at least in his own estimation, he started to realize others would not necessarily see it that way.