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“So, you’re paying, right Hannah?” Erin asked, sipping the last of her drink.
“Yeah, yeah, like I said, it’s my treat.”
“Sweet.” June said. “I mean, I could pay, but if you’re offering…”
It was a weekend, and as such Erin and her friends had decided to spend it out and about, wandering around town. There wasn’t much to do in Malake today; however. The movie theater was closed for renovations, the mall’s AC was broken, and the morning train for Ecrin had already left. Still, wandering for a few hours with some friends wasn’t a bad way to spend time, not at all.
Once they’d all finished their beverages, they left the cafe. As they made their outside and started wandering around main street, Hannah said. “Hey, check her out.”
After a moment of scanning the opposite sidewalk, Erin noticed the woman Hannah had mentioned. With flowing purple robes, and long, braided black hair, she certainly cut a distinctive figure.
The woman caught them staring, looked them up and down, cocked her head a little, and then returned to examining something in her hands.
“Interesting outfit…” June mumbled. “Surprised she isn’t dying of heat stroke.”
“Yeah.” Hannah agreed.
They walked down the street for a few moments, and then found that the woman was now walking beside them, evidently crossing the same intersection as them. Erin was about to greet her, when suddenly the woman snapped her fingers, and all three of them froze mid-stride. The woman walked around them, coldly examining them the way one would examine a vehicle or other piece of machinery.
“You’ll do, you’ll do.” She mumbled. Another snap, and everything went dark.
When Erin awoke again, on the ground. When she opened her eyes, she saw that she and the others were inside a home, slumped against a wall. She tried to pull herself up, but found that her limb refused to move. Try as she might, she was stuck.
As if on cue, their kidnapper entered the room, seeming relaxed. She spent a few moments examining them, before grabbing Hannah.
“You first.” she mumbled, manhandling Hannah onto a chair.
Erin could only watch as the woman set Hannah down onto the chair, and then began mumbling, and running her hands across Hannah’s face.
Finally, it was Erin’s turn. She wanted to resist. To do… anything. Yell, kick, scream. Her body refused to budge, remaining limp on the floor as the woman walked over to her. She was placed in the chair, and whatever this witch had done to Hannah was now being done to her. It started with the witch closing her eyes, as she did this, a wave of drowsiness struck Erin. Then, she heard two voices. One, distant and unintelligible, mumbling words Erin couldn’t parse. The other felt as though it was within her mind. It felt like… her own voice. It was whispering.
“Surrender…”
“Ah… wuh…” Erin thought drowsily.
“Surrender…”
She felt a hand caress her forehead.
“Su…..” As she tried to form the word, she felt a warmth wash over her.
“It feels nice, doesn’t it? Letting go?” The voice asked
Erin managed to nod her head.
“Yes, let go, let yourself fade into that warmth.” The voice said. As it spoke, a hand gently cradled her chin.
“F…”
“Yes, that’s it.” The voice cooed.
“Fa…”
“Just a little more…”
“Fade…” She thought hazily. As she did, the warmth became more intense, and the drowsiness became impenetrable. Try as she might, she couldn’t form any more words. All that remained was a definite, if unfocused, sense of purpose. Then, she felt a sharp, cold pain sever something, and everything stopped.
Mair looked over her new drones. They weren’t much to work with, but they would suffice for the time being. She had no intention of using them for anything but housekeeping, after all. The rest of her plans for this city were too delicate to be executed by a mere drone. Speaking of housekeeping, her apartment was in disarray, with her bags and materials spread across every flat surface.
“Tidy this apartment up.” She said flatly, before picking up a rather hefty tome and sitting on the couch.
“At once, Mistress.” The one in front said, and all three began tidying up the apartment.
“Lovely.” Mair mumbled. “Now that that’s settled, time to get to work.” She said, opening her book.