Vox Dominus Pt. 12

Chelsea felt the phone slide from her fingers, falling in a cushion of leaves below. But she didn't care. Her hand was now free to tear open her blouse. To knead her own needy breasts. To imagine it was her Master was taking. That she was the mindless slut at his beck and call.

God. She was close. So close.

"Kneel." Master commanded.

Kate obeyed.

Chelsea's knees buckled, but she forced herself against the tree, some final spark of willpower determined to keep her upright, if not in mind, then in body.

"Good girl," Master said. "You may cum."

It was too much.

Chelsea shrieked as her body erupted.

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The cry hit Seb like a torrent of icy water, nearly knocking him off-balance.

"Wh-who's there?" he demanded, waves of panic pushing the Vox back inside him, causing his voice to crack. He searched the surrounding trees for a source, but the foreign scream had blended with Kate's cry of pleasure, masking the interloper's location.

Fortunately, Kate didn't seem troubled by this. She remained kneeling naked at his feet, too empty-headed to do anything but pant with pleasure and await his next command.

So Seb waited. And listened. If somebody was watching him, there was no way they could leave without making a sound. As long as he caught them before they left the woods, he could use the Vox to make sure they didn't remember a thing. Or, the sinister voice inside him pressed, maybe if it was one of Kate's girlfriends, she could join in on the fun...

Something prickled the edge of his hearing. It sounded like heavy breathing. And it was coming from a towering tree not more than a few meters away. He took a cautious step towards the sound, only for a twig to snap under his shoe.

"Stop!" A girl's voice called from behind the thick trunk. "I-it's Sophia!"

Seb's blood ran cold. The Vox, which had just begun creeping back out, quickly shrank back as terror seized his throat and squeezed his lungs. "S-Sophia?" he stammered in a strained whisper, only to belatedly realize...that wasn't what her voice sounded like. It sounded more like...

"N-not another word," Chelsea said, shaking slightly as she stepped into the clearing. She held her phone in front of her like a magic talisman, the shining display turned towards Seb. And...she was in quite the state.

Her jeans were unbuttoned and opened, revealing a hint of dark red panties. Her blouse was disheveled and wrinkled, the collar open wide, displaying her prominent bust cradled by a push-up bra. In some ways, it looked like Seb had interrupted her in some lewd act, not the other way around.

Seb blinked, paralyzed by a rush of conflicting emotions: relief that it wasn't really Sophia who had found him; anger and arousal that it was Chelsea instead; and most of all confusion regarding the whole scenario. Why was she here? What did she want? And...hold on, how did she know about Sophia?

Seb opened his mouth to speak.

"Ah!" Chelsea shouted, shoving the phone further in front of her. "Don't try to use the Vox. If I even feel a whisper of it in my head, I'll send this video to Sophia."

Seb's eyes widened. Now that Chelsea was closer, he could clearly see what was on her screen: a video thumbnail of Kate stripped and submissive at his feet, locked and loaded in a text addressed to Sophia, with Chelsea's finger hovering perilously close to the "send" button.

Cold horror and disgust churned in Seb's stomach. He slowly raised his hands in surrender, daring not to even breathe too quickly.

Chelsea smirked. "You can speak if you want now," she said. "But only normal words. And don't try to talk to your new slut either."

Seb cleared his throat. "H-how did you find me?" he asked.

"I have my ways," Chelsea replied. "You're not nearly as sneaky as you think, you know."

Seb's eyes narrowed. "And Sophia? How do you know her?"

"Like I said, you're not as sneaky as you think," Chelsea taunted, slowly circling him. "Trying to erase my memory of her was a bold move. But if you're gonna make a play that risky, you might want to make sure it pays off."

Seb tracked her orbit with a glower as his mind spun through possibilities. Had he actually messed up the mind-wipe? At the time, it certainly seemed like Chelsea had been completely under his power. If she really did remember their coffee shop encounter, why was he only now finding out? The Chelsea he knew would've definitely raised hell a lot sooner, especially if she knew she could fight back against his memory manipulation.

"How much do you remember?" Seb asked, hoping his neutral tone wouldn't force her hand.

"E-enough to be pissed off!" Chelsea countered, waving the phone at him like a loaded gun. "Now shut up. It's my turn to ask some questions."

Seb bit his tongue. As he had suspected, it seemed Chelsea's bravado was in some ways a bluff. But he couldn't risk testing it now—he would have to play her game until an opening presented itself.

"So..." the blonde continued, eyes darting towards Kate. "Who's your new toy?"

"Just some girl I met at this party," Seb answered. "Her name's Kate. I don't know anything beyond that."

"Huh," Chelsea's eyebrows arched in exaggerated surprise. "I could've sworn you hated the thought of turning girls into sex slaves. So what changed? Is it the hair? I could add some color to mine, if you want."

Seb grit his teeth. "It's...complicated."

"Well either you explain it to me, or to Sophia. Your call, Master," she added with a cheeky wink.

Seb took a deep breath, trying to align his trembling thoughts. All the rationalizations and explanations he had told himself now seemed facile and incoherent, not nearly enough to stop the apocalypse Chelsea was threatening him with. Still, he had to try.

"Look," he began, forcing his voice to stay low and level. "The Vox isn't just something I can turn on and off like a light. It has...desires of its own. And if I don't...do something about them, it gets harder and harder to control."

"Sounds rough," Chelsea quipped. "If only there was a willing subject you could turn to. One who has been very explicit about her own desires, I might add."

"I told you, I'm not going to enslave you," Seb growled. "It wouldn't be right."

The blonde scoffed. "And turning Kate into your personal party pet is?"

"It's different," Seb insisted. "I don't...brainwash them for life or anything. I just...make them feel good so they'll help me."

Chelsea frowned. "Is that really the best justification you can come up with?"

"I-it's just for one night!" Seb protested. Somehow, his heart was beating even faster. Why was he getting so flustered? "Plenty of guys go to parties to seduce girls—how is this any different?"

"I think you know," Chelsea countered. "And I think that's why you told Kate not to remember any of it."

Seb growled with frustration. "It's easy for you to talk like this. You're not the one with a monster in your head."

For a moment, Chelsea hesitated, a shadow passing over her expression. "I wouldn't be so sure about that," she said.

"Then tell me: what the hell am I supposed to do?!"

"You could start by taking some fucking responsibility!" Chelsea shouted.

Seb flinched, his mouth gaping uselessly, unable to form a response. Chelsea's gaze burned into his, her pupils no longer brimming with playful condescension, but cold, vindictive fury.

"I know it's not easy for you," she admitted. "I know what it's like to have...feelings and desires that make you do things you regret. But that doesn't mean they're not a part of you. You keep talking about the Vox like it's this...other thing. Like it has nothing to do with you or your feelings. But we both know that's not true. The Vox IS YOU, Seb. It came from you, and you decide how to use it. You were the one who hypnotized me—not the Vox. You were the one who told me to send you nudes, who made me ignore my mother and suck your cock. You were the one who wanted me humiliated and submissive. You were the one who wanted me to call you Master. And the crazy thing is, I wanted it too!"

Seb took a step back, his mind reeling. But Chelsea wasn't finished. She moved closer, her voice becoming dangerously quiet. "But you didn't want what came with that, did you?" she asked. "You didn't want the consequences or commitment my submission would bring. You didn't want to confront what these desires said about you, about us. So instead you ran. Back to a childhood dream you told yourself you could relive, and to quick fixes you told yourself were harmless. Not because they were right. But because they were easy. You realize this, don't you?"

Seb shut his eyes tight, no longer able to meet her gaze. Anger and shame burned his cheeks. His balled fists shook. It wasn't true. She had it all wrong. He didn't run out of cowardice—he did it for her protection. He didn't hypnotize Kate for fun—he did it so the Vox wouldn't target Sophia. The version of him Chelsea had described...that wasn't who he really was.

It couldn't be.

...Right?

"You can mock me all you want." Seb croaked, his tongue clammy and stiff. "But it's not like you're some innocent little angel either. So what do you want?" He forced himself to match her glare. "I doubt you're here just to get your kicks."

For a moment, Chelsea seemed at a loss. Then she laughed, shaking her head, the ice in her expression thawing. "Fair enough. There is something I need you to do. Don't worry," she added, as though reading his mind, "I'm not gonna ask you to brainwash me here. It'd be too easy for you to just convince me to delete the video the second I'm under."

"So then...what?"

Chelsea paused, her eyes darting away for a moment. "It...well...even if you didn't erase Sophia from my memory, the Vox has had another...lingering side effect on me."

Seb's blinked. "What are you talking about?"

"I can't cum, okay?" She blurted. "You put this stupid idea in my head that my body belongs to you, and ever since then, I haven't been able to make myself orgasm until just now when you...you know."

Seb's brow furrowed. Had the Vox really affected her that deeply? If it could do that, how on earth had she retained memories of Sophia? And was getting herself off really the reason for this whole blackmail scheme? Seb could understand her frustration but...

"So you want me to hypnotize you and remove the effect?" he asked.

"Not exactly," Chelsea wagged her finger. "Once you have me under, there's a chance you could just have me delete the video. I need something a bit more indirect, and easy to control."

"Like...what?"

"Like...a recording," Chelsea finally answered. "I want you to record in an induction with the Vox. One that will trance me and command me to cum."

Seb arched an eyebrow. "Are you sure that will work?"

"No, but it's worth shot." His opponent smiled wryly. "Given how the Vox works over the phone, my guess is that it won't be as powerful as it is in person, which makes it safer. Plus, this way I can scan the audio and look for traps ahead of time."

"And...if I do this, you'll delete the video?" Seb pointed to her still-glowing phone screen.

"Scout's honor," Chelsea nodded. "In fact, if you want to put a command to that effect at the end of the audio file, I'll allow it. Just don't push your luck."

Seb paused, allowing his pulse to slow and his head to clear. He doubted Chelsea had given up on her ultimate goal of enslavement, but this ask seemed reasonable for now. Maybe having an easy way to indulge her fantasies would even blunt some of her ambition, or at least distract her for a while. So long as he was careful with how he worded the induction and commands, there didn't seem to be any major drawbacks for him. In any case, it wasn't like he had much of a choice.

"Alright," Seb agreed. "I'll do it."

"Thank you, Master," Chelsea grinned. "I'll contact you later to set the details and conditions. In the meantime, I suggest you and your toy sit pretty for at least ten minutes before trying to leave the woods. If I suspect you might be trying to follow me before I can escape, well..." she gave him one last flash of her phone before turning away. "You get the picture."

A hot spark of anger leapt to Seb's throat, but he kept his mouth shut as Chelsea fled out of sight. When he was sure she was out of earshot, he turned his attention to Kate, gradually bringing her up from her mindless daze and giving her commands to make sure she would clean herself up and return to the party without realizing that any part of her night had been abnormal. As aggravating it was to release a catch he had worked so hard for, whatever arousal he had felt had been smothered by that irritating blonde and her stupid schemes.

Or...maybe it was safer to say the feelings had been redirected, honed by a desire sharper than any sexual frustration. A desire Seb didn't fully understand, but one he experienced with searing clarity.

There was no denying it: Chelsea had gotten him good tonight.

But that didn't mean she would win.

__________________________________

As soon as Chelsea was out of sight, she made a mad dash for the edge of the forest. She didn't think Master would try anything as bold as chasing and subduing her, but she had made the mistake of underestimating him before. And, as hot as it was, she couldn't afford to stumble like that again.

Fortunately, she made it out of the woods without incident, and managed to compose herself again as she returned to the party. She wasn't looking forward to squaring things with Veronica and Sophia later, but at the very least the night had been a success.

Mostly.

She chewed her lip as she slipped through the backyard gate, wandering aimlessly through the crowds to give herself time to reflect. Honestly, she was disappointed in Master. Even as he had become more cunning and ambitious with his powers, he was still afraid of them. Sneaking into parties and brainwashing girls into one-night stands...he was as deep in denial as she had feared. Persuasion wouldn't be the key to cracking his shell—something more forceful was needed.

Fortunately, she now knew just what that "something" was.

There was still a lot that could go wrong. But tonight, she had been dealt the cards she needed to make her play. Sophia's story had confirmed that the Vox could be coaxed out by strong desires unrelated to libido. And the oblivious Latina had also revealed that she was susceptible to Master's influence.

If Chelsea's calculations were correct, once she got the recording, she would have Sophia.

And once she had Sophia, she would have Master.