"So. This is the Silver Moon Pool?" asked Asuka, staring at the silvered waters of a still lake fed by a small waterfall spraying out of a mountain in the middle of the lake.
"It is."
"Well...it's pretty, I'll give you that."
"It is," said Rei, averting her eyes. Staring at the enchanted waters of the Pool was not a good idea. She didn't choose to share that fact with Asuka.
"You know what? I'm going to go for a swim," declared Asuka, beginning to remove her armor. "Want to join me?"
"No thank you," answered Rei. The magic of the lake was equivalent to a mild enchantment spell that compelled pretty girls to strip off their clothes and leave their possessions on shore and wade into the lake where they would be vulnerable. Knowing about it, Rei could easily resist the effects. Asuka, however, didn't share her immunity.
"I will go over there now," she said, vanishing into the trees as Asuka waded into the water.
Obeying the compulsions living in her head, Asuka ran through the water, making sure to pose for any potential watchers. It never really got much deeper than her waist, so she was sure that anyone who looked on would get quite a view.
Something soft poked her buttock.
"Wait, what?"
Something cold and slithery brushed across her breasts.
Asuka turned around to run for it but it was too late. A dozen tentacles made of water rushed up from the lake's surface and trapped her. They pinned her arms and legs, wrapped around her toso, and probed at absolutely everything. A humanoid figure emerged behind her, with the tentacles ultimately connecting to it. It - she - leaned over Asuka's shoulders, studying the way the tentacles were kneading her flesh.
"Hello, human girl," crooned the water elemental. "Did you come here to meet me?"
Asuka tried to struggle, but she couldn't break free of the tentacles' clutches. Her sword was on the shore, and so was the rest of her gear. Right now she was just a naked girl trying to wrestle living water and doing a poor job of it.
"First things first. Some of the girls who come here know how to fight without their weapons. Let's just wash any dangerous knowledge out of your brain."
One of her water tentacles lines up with Asuka's ear and pushed its way in. Asuka felt a horrible sensation, like the worst wet willy in history followed by what felt like a sucking hole in her head, draining some of her knowledge.
"Oh no, my prestige class!" she yelled, felling it disappear. She was back to basics.
"Let's try that again, shall we?"
And no matter how much Asuka struggled she could do nothing but watch and scream as the elemental rooted around in her brain and her level counter creeped all the way down to one. Then, as a final insult, it rolled all the way down to zero. Somehow that was more annoying than being molested by a monster in the first place. Even farmers had one level. She wasn't even affiliated with her basic class anymore!
Satisfied that Asuka was in no position to offer resistance (with her level 0 stats she'd be lucky to wrestle a kitten, much less a monster), the elemental dragged her onward, occasionally squeezing a ticklish spot with its pseudopods. She was briefly dunked in the water and emerged in a dank cave.
"Only one thing left, sweetie. It's almost over."
"Nngh!" answered Asuka.
The elemental dragged her forward again. Most of the cave was dark, but Asuka was being pulled towards a light source. Her head was pushed through a crack in the floor.
And Asuka saw the true Silver Moon Pool. The thing above was just a lake with a little magic in it. This was a perfectly round pool that shone like a silver coin. Asuka never wanted to tear her eyes away, even as the pool's light swelled.
"It's filled with the power of the moon, you know. Condensed and refined. Girls who see the light are always much more obedient afterwards. It's called moonblinking."
A little part of Asuka's mind screamed before the swelling finished and the pool exploded in one grand flash of light, blinding Asuka momentarily and making her brain go all fuzzy.
The elemental pulled her head back out, letting her fall on her bottom.
"There now. Isn't that so much better?"
Asuka blinked, not knowing how to respond.
"Stand up, girl."
And Asuka did, without even pausing to think about it.
"Turn around."
Again, Asuka obeyed without thoughts. She instinctively turned around slowly and made sure to stick out her rear end when appropriate.
"Excellent. Spread your legs."
Asuka obeyed. Some part of her was aware enough to not like where this was going, while several other parts, some of them recently created, very much did.
"Rock Bullet Barrage!"
The water elemental suddenly became riddled with holes. For a second it looked like the water would just fill them in but then it gave up and the holes grew larger instead. The elemental dissolved.
Asuka looked up to see Rei standing in front of her.
"How did you do that?" she demanded.
"Back attack multiplier. Surprise attack multiplier. Opposed elemental damage multiplier. Potion of accuracy. Multishot."
"Hm. Well, it took you long enough!" compained Asuka. She tried to cover herself, but some voice in her head resisted, forcing her to settle for placing her hands on her hips.
Rei looked at the Second Child in satisfaction. Even though Asuka was still acting tough, she was actually almost completely helpless. With her adventurer levels drained and her gear out of her reach, she couldn't resist Rei even if she weren't moonblinked. As it was, though, she was effectively locked in slave mode, unable to resist a direct command or regain her adventurer levels. She would remain that way until she was either rescued or claimed by another player character. Rescuing her would mean bringing her back to a civilized area, where she would be free to resume her career as a level 0 pushover. Claiming her, on the other hand, would mean treating her like a slave. The lingering magic would then lock Asuka into the role permanently, opening the appropriate classes and abilities, and making sure she would never again have a voice in the party's decisions.
"Well? Aren't you going to do anything?" asked Asuka, still unaware of her impending loss of status.
Rei had one last decision left to make: should she claim Asuka herself or set her up to be claimed by Shinji instead? She'd put in a lot of effort into making Asuka into a slave, and she liked the idea of getting to train her. But on the other hand, with Asuka reduced to the status of property Shinji would likely assume the mantle of leadership, since Rei didn't want it. It would only make sense for him to boss Asuka around directly. Besides, the way Asuka pressured Shinji had always annoyed Rei. She would enjoy watching them interact now that the power dynamic was set to a more optimal configuration.
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(Posted Thu, 08 May 2014 09:51)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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