Chapter 5

The red-haired lass took a deep breath, holding the card in her hand. She was alone in her bedroom, just like before.

"Punish me."

Nothing happened to her body, no ribbons or ropes sprouting from her collar. However, the text on the card changed.

GO SKINNY-DIPPING IN THE POOL TONIGHT AT MIDNIGHT. ALL THE DOORS WILL BE UNLOCKED.

She stared at the card, waiting for some horrible detail to emerge. Really? That was it? She just had to go skinny-dipping in the pool? Hell, that was barely in a trial. That was more like a summer camp dare. Sure, it would awful if she got caught and being up so late on a school night wasn't very appealing, but screw that; this would be easy. It seemed she had finally caught a break.

For once in what felt like ages, school seemed to pass by without dread or worry. Sure, Xavier was using Sophie as a hostage against her, but all she had to do was just go swim naked in the school pool. As long as she did that, Sophie would be fine, and hopefully, Xavier wouldn't do anything to mess with her. That certainty was a huge weight off her shoulders. As the day wore on, she found herself imagining the night to come more and more and even thinking that maybe, just maybe, it would be a little fun.

Helena thought it would be difficult to keep from falling asleep, but instead she was incredibly restless. She hated the idea of breaking the rules and getting caught, but she was actually kind of excited. At quarter to 12:00 with Sophie out like a log, Helena put on some spare clothes and snuck out of her dorm room. Strange, the last time she had done something like this was when she went to the church and Xavier revealed himself as the Antichrist. She made her way across campus, being as quiet as possible and avoiding any signs of staff or students awake like her. She reached the gym, and as the card had promised, all the doors were unlocked. She entered the poolroom and smiled. The sides of the pool were lined with lights that she had never noticed before, creating shifting hues that painted the dark ceiling while the air itself was heavy with night's shadow. It was beautiful, stunningly even. The chlorine pool that she had swam in hundreds of times before now looked like a glimmering spring from the Garden of Eden, or some crystalline oasis deep beneath the Earth.

Standing at the edge, she slowly took off her clothes. She felt incredibly nervous, unable to stop imagining the bleachers being lined with spectators. It took a dozen looks around the room for her to gain the confidence to slip out of her bra and panties. Completely naked and shivering in anticipation, she looked to the clock up on the wall. Both hand struck 12 and her collar activated, telling her that the time had come. Taking a deep breath, she took a step back and then jumped. She hit the water in a perfect dive, sliding in like a dagger. The feel of the water against her naked body shocked her like a bolt of lightning and she writhed beneath the surface, overcome with this new, blissful sensation.

Surfacing, she gasped for air and clutched her naked form. After all the time she had spent in this pool, the water had never felt so good. The freshening chill shocked her system like peppermint, and unlike a bath, she was able to stretch and move. She began swimming to the other end of the pool, relishing the sensation of the cool water kissing her breasts, tickling her stomach and back, and licking her between her legs like a paintbrush. She moved at her own pace, her speed decided only by how fast she wanted the water to roll over her skin.

Reaching the shallow end, she rested her chin on the edge of the railing below the surface and let her body float up. Her eyes bolted open as she heard someone enter the water nearby. Covering herself, she looked back to see Xavier, settling in the pool like it was a hot tub. Like her, he was naked, and she was almost tempted to look down.

"What are you doing here?!" she hissed.

"I wanted to join you. You were having so much fun."

She blushed and looked away, embarrassed from the joy she had felt just a moment ago. She readjusted her arm across her breasts and Xavier sighed.

"Honey, we're a little past that. Relax, I know what you look like. Besides, I'm in the same boat as you are."

She refused to meet his gaze. "Stop that. I'm not like you. I'm nothing like you."

Xavier moved over to her and she screwed her eyes shut, afraid of how he was going to molest her. She could feel the movements in the water, his hand reaching for her covered breasts. But instead, he gently grasped her hand.

"Do you think people cover themselves because they really believe that nudity is sinful, or because they are afraid of the world not accepting their true selves? Be proud of who you are. You don't have to hide your beauty, especially from me."

The way he spoke, that gentle and soothing way, it would have made her heart flutter if coming from anyone but him, though that wasn't to say Helena didn't feel something when he spoke to her. He gently pulled on her arms, and as if forgetting why she had held them there in the first place, she dropped them and let herself be exposed, under the water at least. Xavier moved past her to the wall, then pushed off and began swimming across the pool in the backstroke. Helena kept her eyes shut, not wanting to find out whether or not "it" would float.

"Come on, just standing there naked doesn't count as skinny-dipping. You're allowed to enjoy yourself, just like you were a minute ago."

"Why are you doing this? Why make me do this things?"

Having reached the other end of the pool, Xavier turned back to her. "Sorry! I can't hear you from all the way over there!"

Muttering curses, Helena swam over, feeling like she might as well have been crawling on all fours.

She reached end and sighed angrily. "So why?"

"So that you'll have a little fun for once. Stop taking everything so damn seriously and live on the wild side."

"Oh, so that rope thing was fun? And I should take the rape of my friend seriously?"

Xavier sighed and began swimming back to the shallow end, this time with Helena following. Only once they both touched the wall did he answer.

"Sophie doesn't seem very upset. Hell, she hasn't even had her first kiss yet, let alone lost her virginity. Admit it, being bound was the most thrilling experience you've had in a while, even more than when you beat up punks. You felt alive when you were tied up. You sensed everything like never before as if you had just rediscovered your own body. The exciting possibility of getting caught, the erotic feel of the ropes clutching your body like hands, you were high as a kite on endorphins. And this whole day, you were looking forward to coming here. You didn't care about breaking the rules. If anything, it made this more exciting for you. You're having fun, enjoy it."

Helena lowered her head below the water and blew bubbles in frustration and embarrassment. Xavier looked over to the clock. "Tell you what, swim with me for twenty minutes and then you can go."

"Fine."

For the next twenty minutes, she tried to push Xavier out of her mind and simply enjoyed the pool. She did slow laps and lazily floated on her back, her exposed breasts pointed at the ceiling. He mostly left her alone, swimming off on his own. It felt so strange to her, to be swimming naked with a man, the Antichrist of all things. It was like this pool really was from the Garden of Eden.

'No! No! Don't make that comparison! He's evil! He's a monster!'

"Helena, watch this."

She followed his voice, spotting him on the diving board like the statue of David. She yelped and looked away, afraid of seeing him so boldly displayed. But a part of her couldn't look away. Even after all the times he had been with Sophie, Helena had never gotten a look at him nude. It had always been too dark. He was very masculine, almost buff. It filled her stomach with butterflies for a reason she didn't understand.

"I'm serious. Watch this."

He did a few quick jumps on the board to build up energy and then leapt off. In midair, he spun around and curled his body into a flip, simultaneously. Even Helena couldn't hide her surprise at the sight of the stunt. She had seen Olympic divers perform similar maneuvers from the high jump, but never off the diving board just a meter above the water. To think he could do it with so little room and time.

He surfaced, sputtering but with a grin. "I learned to do that one of the times when I swam in the River Ganges. Do you want to try?"

Narrowly stopping herself, she turned up her nose at him and looked away. "As if."

"Come on, you'll be happy that you tried it. If you don't, you'll spend all of tomorrow wondering what would have happened had you gotten up on that board."

Helena tried to resist, but any will power she built up just poured out of her like a bucket filled with holes. "Fine."

She moved to the edge of the pool and climbed out. Walking to the diving board, she realized as if for the first time that she was naked. Sure, she had been naked this whole time, but at least she had to water to hide herself with! But on the other hand, Xavier was right when he said that he had already seen her like this.

'I guess it really isn't that big a deal.'

She stepped onto the diving board and again felt a small twinge of nervousness, realizing she had basically put herself on display for Xavier like a trophy. She shook those thoughts away and cleared her mind, trying to focus on how she was going to do this. She dared a glance at him. The smile he was wearing was warm, supportive, and sent a rush through her. She again tried to push these strange feelings away, and after a quick hop to built up energy, she leapt off the board. She was far from graceful and hit the water before she even knew what she had to do.

'Ah damn it. Now he'll make fun of me for sure.'

Preparing herself for Xavier's ridicule, she surfaced, but couldn't find him anywhere. Had he left? "Xavier?"

The reply came when she felt his hands on her back and rear end. He burst from the water beneath her like a missile, picking her up and tossing her a few feet away with a splash. She gave a shrill yelp when he sent her airborne, and upon rising to the surface, she splashed him. She didn't do it out of rage or frustration, but out of some kind of childish instinct. Laughing, Xavier splashed her back, and the two of them began fighting in this manner. They moved around in the pool, trying to avoid getting hit with each other's waves while sending their own, all while the clock left the original deadline in the ancient past. For that time, Helena could not stop herself from smiling. She didn't want to admit it, but she really was having fun.

Once she got tired, she called for a time-out to catch her breath and check the time. It shocked her how late it was. Had she really been so preoccupied to lose track of time to that extent?

"Uh oh, I really need to get to bed."

"Hold on. Before you go, I have a proposition."

She turned back to him. "What?"

"Well I heard that you're the fastest on the girl's swim team. How about a quick race? One lap? We can even make it interesting."

She looked at him suspiciously. "How?"

"Let's see ... How about if you win, you can give me one free kick to the testicles any time and I can't stop you. Hard as you want, no collar to hold you back, and I won't even use my powers to block the pain. You can save it for the next time you're angry."

"And if I lose?"

"You have to return to your dorm without your clothes. Let the night air dry you off."

Helena's whole body tightened up at the prospect. On one hand, the idea of getting an unhindered kick to Xavier's nuts was a dream come true, but on the other hand, getting caught running naked across the campus would easily be an instant expulsion, but she really was the fastest on the swim team, but then again, she wouldn't have shoes and the run back would probably be freezing, although...

"No powers, right? You swim like an average human?"

"Of course."

"Fine."

"Damn you, Xavier!"

Helena sprinted across the university campus, naked as a jaybird. Somehow, he had beaten her by a hair, regardless of how hard she swam. He had teleported her clothes to her room and she had showered, so all that was left was to get back to her dorm room without getting caught and ruining her life. She could only move at a certain pace without shoes, and every drop of water on her unclothed body felt like the prod of an icicle. She also didn't like the feel of the cold air on her naked form, or to be more accurate, she didn't like that she liked it.

Xavier was walking back to his dorm, whistling to himself with his hair wet from the shower he took after swimming. That had gone even better than expected. He could see it in Helena's eyes, her conflicting feelings towards him, caught between hating him for what he was and what he had done, and being drawn to him for his rare kindness and the sexual pleasure he forced her to experience. It was that conflict that strengthened her emotions. He knew precisely how to manipulate her thoughts and feelings and pull her closer to him. Bending girls' hearts had always been second nature to him, as well as a way to kill time and indulge his thirst for sadism, but she was different. It really excited him to see the results of his work. It made him ... happy ... to see her smile, to know that he had made her smile.

The sound of spray paint being released and its stinging aroma interrupted him from his thoughts. Who could possibly be out this late? He followed his nose to the back of the gym, his favorite place to screw Lily. There was a girl there, about Helena's age. She had wiry black hair, tied into pigtails, with a cigarette between her lips and a can of spray paint in her hand. On the wall was a crimson pentagram, lopsided and runny like egg yolks.

She turned to him and took a drag on her cigarette, the end almost as bright as the flame that would have lit it. "What the fuck do you want?"

Xavier sighed. "Satanist? Really? Is that your real belief or do you just do it to be a rebel? Are you just some poser that wants to look cool to the catholic schoolgirls? Why don't you just paint that big A for anarchy while you're at it."

"Fuck off."

"You people always make me laugh. You're more delusional than the Christians and the easiest to mess with."

"Hey, I told you to fuck off!"

"Or else what? You'll blast me with some heavy metal?"

She turned and sprayed him in the face with the paint can, yet not a single drop ever landed. Her eyes widened as the crimson paint simply swirled around him like flames. Her jaw hanging slack, the cigarette between her lips fell to the ground.

"You should be careful," said Xavier as he picked it up. "You have to make sure you put it out or else it could start a fire."

He held it up to his face and stabbed himself in the eye with the lit end, extinguishing the ember without even the slightest twinge of pain.

The girl staggered back. "What ... what are you?"

"That depends on your level of faith. If you are just a fake Satanist, then I am the man who is about to turn your life into Hell. If you truly believe in the Antichrist's arrival, in MY arrival, then I am your new Master."

"You're the Antichrist?"

Xavier's eyes lit up like burning coals and she was brought to her knees by the weight of his power, crushing her from all sides like the ocean. A wide smile crossed her face, when any normal girl would have been crying in terror.

"I've been waiting for this day my entire life, the day when I would finally meet you. It's been my dream to take part in the end of the world, to help bring about the destruction of mankind."

A cruel smile crossed Xavier's lips. "It seems you may be of some use to me. Very well, I will let you serve me from this point forward. What is your name?"

"Daphne, Daphne Brooke."

"Daphne, do you swear to do anything I tell you and obey my every command?"

"I swear!"

"Do you swear to give yourself to me, mind, body, and soul? For every cell and hair to become my property?"

"I swear!"

"Do you swear to be whatever I command you to be? To be my servant, my apostle, my slave, my disciple, the toy to bear the wrath of my lust and hunger, as well as my second in command?"

"I swear!"

Xavier began to chuckle and then leaned down. He pressed his tongue to her forehead and branded her with the three sixes, while around her neck, an ethereal collar formed. She screamed at first from the pain, but soon settled once he stood back up.

"Then from this point forward, you are mine."

He then reached down and unzipped his pants, hefting his manhood in front of her face. "Time for you to pleasure your new Master."

Without hesitation, she lunged forward and began sucking on his cock, eager to please him and begin her life at the Antichrist's side.

It was a very long and tiring day for Helena. After being up so late the previous night, staying awake in school was a nightmare. She had to admit, while she had been angry when she went to bed, she had slept very well. It seemed some late-night swimming had allowed her to relieve some of her stress. When she arrived in class for first period, she felt nervous around Xavier when she should have felt fear and hatred. Last night, he had made her smile when they swam together. He looked at her and grinned, giving her that same smile he wore when he watched her jump from that diving board. She averted her gaze, feeling a tightness in her chest. She was also worried, as there had been no task written on the hard he gave her. Even when she gave the order for her punishment to begin, nothing happened. Was he going to go back to Sophie? Or did he have something more insidious in mind?

Thane moved through the school, checking the batteries he had laid out earlier. He carried a device with him that would gauge the amount of power they had, and if they had lost their charge, it meant that something supernatural had passed through the area and caused an energy distortion. The batteries were untouched, all reading full charges. That was three failed tests, the first being the compass and the second being the voice recorder. He had gone through the school and used it to record himself saying prayers from the bible. If there were anything around, it would certainly react to the sound of praying and hopefully respond. The recorder had picked up nothing. The only evidence he had was his own gut feeling. But was that just a fluke? Had he been wrong about the school being haunted? Or was it possible that he was dealing with something too powerful to be detected by such simple tricks? He still had one thing left: the pictures he had taken, waiting to be developed.

"So what is your first order for me?" Daphne asked, walking with Xavier down the hall.

He was preoccupied, looking around at the batteries taped to the walls of the corridor. "I'm not sure yet. Tell me, how long have those been there?"

She looked at them in confusion. "What are those, batteries? I've never seen those before."

"Very interesting. That's a trick paranormal investigators use to detect the presence of spirits and demons. Is there some kind of ghost hunter club in this school? Any groups or individuals known for doing this kind of thing?"

"I can think of one person. Alexander Thane, he's a junior exorcist who does work for the Vatican."

"And it seems he's looking for something here. It's quite likely that I'm what he's after."

He began to laugh. "This could be fun."

The second Helena lied down on her bed, she knew something was wrong. There was something underneath her pillow. With Sophie working at her desk, she dared a look. It was a portable DVD player with a red ribbon and the card taped on. Sitting next to it was a pair of new headphones, high quality. What in the world... ?

CONSIDER THESE A GIFT, AS WELL AS YOUR NEXT TRIAL. WATCH THE FIRST EPISODE ON THE DVD TONIGHT. THE CHARGER IS UNDER THE BED WHEN YOU NEED IT.

'Oh jeez, what now? Knowing him, this may be a snuff film or something else awful. Oh well, this could be worse. Hopefully Sophie will go to sleep soon and the episode will be quick.'

As usual, Sophie was passed out within minutes of hitting the pillow, and once she heard snoring, Helena pulled her blanket over her head and turned on the DVD player. She had never used one of these before, but it was easy to figure out. Oh goody, it was porn. Yep, Xavier was making her watch porn. From just the opening page, it looked like kind of miniseries about college kids screwing each other in between scenes of poorly-acted drama, and not for a second did she believe that anyone in this series was under 25. Praying for God to forgive her and protect the innocence of her soul, she put on the headphones and selected the first episode.

For the next hour, she watched the story unfold. When the first sex scene started, her collar activated and held her still, fighting her desire to rip off the headphones and cover her eyes. She had seen Xavier rape Sophie so many times before, but this was different. The consensual aspect spared her the fear and anguish she felt during those times, leaving only an instinctive reaction. The scene had one of the secondary female characters fucking her teacher for a better grade, and as she watched them rip off each other's clothing, she felt her body shudder with nervousness. This sensation, it was almost impossible to describe. It was like the dread she felt when she was called to the Disciplinary Committee's office, but so much more intense, and even ... pleasurable. The sight of the woman's breasts made Helena's stomach twist with jealousy. Sure, hers were a good size, but this woman's were like melons. Were those the implants she had heard of?

She watched as she started sucking him off. The way she looked up at him as she did it, that lustful grin when she pulled it out of her mouth and stroked it, it brought Helena to a statuesque pose, so fixated on the movie that she was barely even breathing. Sure it was all acting, but see that expression of depravity, to see someone experiencing sexual bliss, it was actually making her curious. Then when he went down on her, Helena's curiosity grew. What did it feel like to have a man do that? The woman was shaved down there just like Helena. Was this why Xavier had used those flames? Because he was planning on doing ... that ... to her?

Then the real action started. As Helena watched the professor make that initial penetration into the student, she held her breath. To actually see it slide in like that, she didn't understand how someone could moan like the woman was. Wouldn't it hurt? To have such a big thing pushed inside her? From there, it progressed as every porno did, and while Helena had originally been disgusted by the very idea of watching this, now she couldn't look away. She tried to ignore the way her body was heating up from her arousal and the moistening of her panties. She couldn't pretend that this wasn't arousing her, but her physiological interest wasn't as intense as her scholarly interest.