Voice Activated Ch. 03

He had just got his pants on when the door burst open. Mike found himself staring down the barrel of a pistol. He froze, hands going up of their own accord.

The pistol's owner was a petite woman, her brown hair an untidy mess surrounding a jewel-like face. She was wearing olive green pants and a khaki jacket, the sort of clothes that Mike mentally sorted into rebel casual.

She smiled at him, and he was struck by how beautiful she was. "You're going to tell me everything you know."

He felt her presence in his mind. She was one of the Changed, then. Mike didn't know what she wanted, but he knew what to do now. He pushed back against her, thrusting her presence out of him by sheer force of will.

She looked shocked, like he'd struck an almost physical blow. She actually took a couple of steps back. The pistol dropped slightly. But her face hardened. "So that's how it is. I guess I can do this the old fashioned way." The pistol came back up. "Who are you? And why was De Luca here?"

"Fuck!" Mike flinched away from the pistol's barrel. Pointed straight at him, it looked about ten feet wide. "My name's Mike. And she was here to talk to me." He opened one eye, hoping that the pistol was pointing somewhere else. He was disappointed.

The woman frowned. "Why the fuck would De Luca want to talk with you?"

"To welcome me! I'm new, and it's tradition or something."

She scowled, and took another step closer to him. "Bullshit. De Luca? Here to talk to you? The Council's queen-bitch enforcer doesn't come all this way to talk to a fucking newbie." The pistol was pressed right up against his forehead now.

Mike was frozen, he didn't dare move. "I swear to fucking God! That was all she was here for. She didn't even stay very long."

The woman looked like she was about to say something else, but she suddenly tilted her head to the side. "Go ahead. No. I don't have anything. Just a terrified newbie who doesn't know shit." It took Mike a second to realize that she wasn't talking to him. She must've had a radio. "OK. Meet me at the link-up point." Her conversation over, she looked back at Mike. "Your lucky day, I'm leaving now. And you get to live. Word of advice. Steer clear of De Luca."

And just like that she was gone, the sound of her footsteps receding down the hallway. Mike slowly sat down, until his back was propped up against the bed. He took in a couple of deep breaths. That was where Clara found him.

She was still naked, except for the pistol in her hand. A couple of her staff followed, equally well armed. "Mike, baby. Are you OK?"

Mike looked up at her. "What the hell was that?" He told her about his encounter with the woman. "Who was she?"

Clara sat down next to him. "Do you remember how De Luca said that there were some of us who don't accept the Council's authority? She was one of them."

"De Luca didn't say that they were some sort of armed resistance." Mike could still the the barrel of the pistol in his mind. He shivered a little.

Clara put an arm around his and sighed. "It's... complicated. There aren't many independents, but they really don't like the Council. There's a lot of bad blood on both sides." She paused. "I try to stay out of the politics, and I recommend you do the same."

"Why was she here?"

"Probably looking to get De Luca, or at least find out some information that could help her do that. The Councilwoman has been around for a long time. She's made some enemies. She's been aggressive in trying to bring the independents back into the fold, and that rubs them the wrong way."

Mike shook his head. "Is this what life is like now? Now that I'm loyal to the Council?"

Clara smiled at him. "Not often. This sort of thing is rare." She looked around her, a sad expression on her face. "Though now that they know where I live, it might be time to find a new home."

Clara moved into Mike's apartment while she looked for a new place to live. There were plenty of mansions and estates available to choose from, at least there were for someone with her abilities. But she claimed to be unable to find one that suited her. Mike suspected that she just liked living with him. Not that he minded, he liked having Clara around as well.

With Clara's help he had transformed the apartment into a proper home. Mike had never really had the money or the opportunity to actually decorate a place. He had always been stuck with the cheapest hand-me-down furniture he could get. Interior design was not a skill he had expected to pick up. But he liked it. Mike found that he favored a simple, clean look. Lot's of dark wood and comfortable chairs.

They had hired a staff, six young women to cook and clean, and entertain. Mike had made sure to only select girls who would enjoy that sort of life. He didn't want to accidentally derail someone from their chosen path just to become his servant. To his surprise, he found out that many people harbored secret fantasies of being placed in that very role. Getting paid to do it was just a bonus for them.

He placed Irene in charge of the help. She ruled over them with an iron fist. That was another surprise. With Mike, Irene was submissive and accommodating, always up for whatever Mike wanted to do. With the girls, she was a tyrant. By the end of the first day, she had fucked all six of them. Mike had placed a gentle suggestion in each of their minds to be open to the idea of sleeping with their employers, to be sure. But he hadn't expected Irene to be so aggressive about it. It made Mike wonder what she would have been like if he hadn't come around.

Irene even selected a uniform, which didn't really add up to much clothing. Heels, thigh high stocking, a skirt so small it was more like a belt. Mike found it amusing, but he didn't exactly mind. And it wasn't long until he found himself woken up most mornings by a gentle blow job from one of the girls. He decided that leaving Irene in charge was definitely the right move.

Three weeks after De Luca's visit, and the attack that followed, Mike threw a party at his place. Lori had insisted. She said that if she didn't host her usual orgy, people would start to ask questions. That was the last thing Mike wanted, so he agreed.

The orgy seemed to start like any fancy party. Various wealthy people mingled in his home, sipping drinks and eating expensive appetizers. A fair number of the not so wealthy, but very beautiful, had also been invited. Everyone knew what they were here for, but no one wanted to start the festivities too early.

Lori introduced Mike as a business associate. There was no point in revealing that he had moved in. Mike met a few interesting people, and made a mental note to talk with them in the future. One thing that Clara had made sure to teach him was the importance of cultivating influence with powerful people. It was always easier to control someone subtly over time than it was to do it in a moment with brute force.

Mike was talking with a local politician when she walked in. It took him a moment to recognize him. Her messy hair was pulled back into an elegant bun, a golden net studded with gems holding it in place. She had traded her rugged combat gear for a black dress that clung to her body like oil. It was slit past the waist on both sides, revealing her legs with every step. She found Mike immediately, a small smile passing across her lips as they made eye contact. He felt a chill as he remembered the pistol in her hand. She turned into the crowd, and was gone.

Mike realized that he had completely missed what the man talking to him had been saying. "I'm sorry," Mike said. "I have to go talk to someone."

He found Clara on the roof, standing alone looking out over the city. She smiled as he walked up. "This is one hell of a view, I'll give you that."

Mike didn't have time for the view. "She's here."

"Who?"

"The women who held me at gunpoint."

"Seriously?" Clara looked skeptical. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. I'm not exactly going to forget that face." Mike was furious. "She walked in, looked me dead in the eye, and then vanished into the crowd."

Clara thought for a moment. "Well, there are two of us against one of her. And unlike last time she didn't try to shoot anyone on the way in. Maybe she's just here for the orgy?"

"Very funny. What do we do?"

"Keep an eye out for her, try and get her isolated, and see what she wants. She knows you're stronger than she is. I don't think she'll try anything."

"That's comforting."

Clara smiled and stroked a hand across his cheek. "That's what I'm here for."

Mike went back inside. Things had progressed while he was talking to Clara. Drinks had been set aside, and most people were in various states of undress. Mike saw Irene in a far corner, already sandwiched between two men, their hands pawing over here as she stroked both of their cocks. Any other time he would have joined in, but he needed to find that woman.

He made a circuit through the apartment, as things grew increasingly debaucherous around him. Couples, threesomes, foursomes, and ambitious groups of all sizes were coalescing around him. Mike saw his maids joining in enthusiastically. A small part of him was happy that he'd found women who could so easily become part of that lifestyle.

Mike still couldn't find her. Maybe he had been wrong, maybe it hadn't been the same woman. He was almost ready to give up. But then there she was. Mike saw her across the room. She was talking with Lori. Mike almost felt his heart stop when she leaned in and kissed her. His anger flared again. Not only was she here, invading his home, she was trying to take one of his people. He watched as the woman took Lori by the hand and led her out onto the balcony.

It took Mike a while to make it across the room. At every step he had to fend off grasping hands and step over tangles of writhing bodies. The balcony was mostly empty. Except for the woman, sitting back in a lounge chair, and Lori, her head buried between the woman's legs.

They must have been at it the entire time that Mike had been fighting his way across the room. He could tell that she was close, her eyes half closed, her cheeks flushed. She looked up as he walked out on the balcony, smiling at him. That just made Mike angrier. Why wasn't she afraid of him?

She began to twitch and moan as walked over, pushing Lori away as he approached. "Oh, that was very nice, dear." She looked up at Mike. "Is she one of yours?"

"She is," He growled. "And if you've done anything to her..."

"Please," She interrupted. "I'm not that sort of person. Unlike your councilwoman. And even if I was, that's not why I'm here."

Mike looked at Lori. She seemed confused, but otherwise fine. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm good. I was just having some fun."

"OK. Can you go back inside, please?"

Lori nodded, and headed back into the apartment. Mike turned to the woman. "So what are you here for?"

She gestured to one of the nearby chairs, waiting until Mike was settled to talk. "My name is Larissa, and I wanted to speak with you."

"About what?"

"I, and those like me, are concerned that you're only getting one half of the story about the Changed and our place in the world."

"I see. How is your story different then?"

"I'm sure De Luca told you that the Council guides humanity, and tries to direct it to a better future. Well it's all lies. They keep humanity down. They suppress anything that might truly allow regular humans to be in control of their destinies."

Mike raised an eyebrow. "That isn't what the councilwoman said."

Larissa leaned in. "De Luca is a monster!" Her voice was a harsh whisper. "If you knew the things that I did, you'd be begging to join me right now."

Mike leaned back, unconvinced. "So, you don't give me any evidence, you just want me to believe. Do you give this pitch to all the newbies?"

Larissa looked slightly embarrassed. "No," She admitted. "We would usually let them learn on their own how fucked up things are. But you..." She pointed at him. "You're strong. Really strong. And I wasn't kidding the other day when I said that De Luca doesn't make trips to induct people. She has underlings for that. There's something special about you that made her pay attention. And that makes me pay attention."

"How would De Luca know how strong I am? We only did the test on that day."

Larissa stood, and shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe ask your mentor." She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a card. "If you ever have any questions, call that number." She handed it to Mike and walked away.

He put the card in his pocket as he watched her go. Larissa looked back at him one last time before she entered the apartment, and Mike was suddenly afraid. What didn't he know?