Chapter 2

John had carried Erica to his bed where she now lay, sleeping peacefully. Right now, John was at his computer going over notes. Of course, he had saved all his files on MC-125 and right now he was pouring over every detail, every note and side note that he had ever made, especially those concerning the salt extraction that he did. Yes, the MC-125 gave complete control of subjects exposed to outside stimulus when the salts were present in their dosage. He didn't bother with a test of how those subjects would react without the salts in their system but were added by an external source. He had to do more tests. John had work tomorrow at the Pharmtech lab; he could conduct his experiments there. That decided, he headed back to his bedroom.

Erica lay in his sheets snoring softly. What was he going to do about her? She was the best friend that he had and he had just inadvertently caused her to have sex with him. This was going to make things very awkward in the morning. Not thinking it right to take advantage of his friend by accident again, John grabbed an extra pair of blankets from the cupboard and camped out in the living room.

John awoke to the smell of frying bacon and buttered toast. He sat up in the coach and looked over in the kitchen where Erica was busily cooking him breakfast. "Um, good morning, Erica."

Erica looked over her shoulder and looked at him awkwardly but replaced the look with a smile. "Good morning," she said. "Sleep well? I did."

John smiled. Erica was always the one to put a happy face on despite the situation. He stumbled into the bathroom and took care of some business then came out to talk to his friend. John sat down at the dinner table and helped himself to the plate that was set before him. Erica sat across from him and was busily shoving scrambled eggs into her mouth. "Look, Erica," John began, "About last night..."

Erica cut him off. "I'm sorry I took advantage of you like that last night, John."

John was a little too stunned to reply.

"I was really depressed and needed to feel... well, not loved but something. My breakup with Phillip was pretty ugly and I needed to blow off some steam. When you invited me over all I really wanted to do was talk, honest. But I felt really needy last night and you were just there. You've always been there for me, John. I know how you feel about casual sex, how you consider it unethical and against your way. But last night... well, something just came over me when you held me and I just couldn't help myself. I'm just sorry that I abused our friendship."

John still didn't know what to say but it looked like she was expecting some sort of response. He reached out across the table and held her hand in a gesture of comfort. "Erica, we've been friends for a very long time. I have to admit that I was turned on by having an attractive woman in my arms, not all the guilt is on your shoulders. I could have tried to stop you. As you well know, I haven't had a girlfriend for a couple of years. I guess I was needy, too. So don't blame yourself for all of this." Her face relaxed as he said that. "Let's just not let it happen too often, eh? Every once in a while is okay though..."

John's words had the desired effect and she laughed. "You pervert," she giggled. "I'm so lucky to have you as a friend. You really are a nice guy."

"Maybe too nice," John remarked. "I think most guys would try to take advantage of the situation."

"Most guys would," Erica said. "But you're not like most guys I know. You'll make one girl very lucky." She decided to tease him a little. "And if last night was any indicator, you'll make her very very very happy."

John blushed at that and tried to hide his face behind a glass of milk while he drank. Erica laughed. They continued to eat and chat until a thought of popped into John's mind. "Erica, can I ask you a personal question?"

"No one here but us girls," Erica said. Much to John's chagrin, Erica considered him one of her best girlfriends since he was such a good listener.

"Last night... I don't really know how to say this. Is your sex usually like that?"

It was Erica's turn to blush. "I honestly can't say what had gotten into me last night. It almost felt like you were telling me exactly what you wanted and I just did it. I couldn't orgasm though. I should have at least two more times, the way we were going at it, but I just couldn't. At one point I stopped caring about your pleasure and just tried scratching my itch but nothing would happen. It wasn't until you came then I could. It was so weird. Do you usually do that to the women who sleep with you?"

John fumbled for an answer to that one. "Well, I've only had two girlfriends but none of them acted like you did. I guess you just had some pent up anxiety holding you back." John had a hunch that wasn't the case though. The timing was too perfect. MC-125 popped into his mind again. "Look, I've got to get to work. You can hang out here all you want unless you've got other things to do." John hastily got dressed and headed for the front door when Erica called out his name.

"John, we're still just friends, though, right?"

"Erica, you and I both know that there could never be an 'us'. We're just too different."

"Great, then I think I'll go man-hunting. I feel more confident now."

John hurriedly parked his car and rushed into the lab. He zipped by the receptionist at the front desk and headed straight for his lab. Quickly, he stuck a sterile needle in his arm and drew a blood sample. He spent the remainder of the day mixing chemicals and running all sorts of tests. John worked feverishly at the lab bench and came to a conclusion by the end of the day. He had indeed absorbed the salt key into his bloodstream when he drank it. It was quite the amazing discovery, there was a strange twist to one of the complex salts that resulted from the extraction process from MC-125. The salt wouldn't be broken down or passed out of his stool when it hit his stomach. Instead, it was infused almost directly into his bloodstream and was then carried throughout his body. Eventually the salts would find their way to his sweat glands and that was where the magic happened. It created a sort of salt bridge when in contact with someone with the diluted version of MC-125. So, all he had to do was touch someone and they were primed for suggestion. Turned out they would only obey his will since the salt went through his own distinct biochemistry. It was like giving subliminal programming without all the fuss of a hypnotherapist. Not only that, but when in constant contact with someone, the test subject would be under constant bombardment by his thought, like a direct feed to his very will. That's what had happened to Erica last night. He gave her a hug at the bar and that primed her, which was how she so readily complied to his suggestion that she come over. The prolonged contact with her when she hugged him as she cried gave him a direct link to feed commands to her.

And he had such power over ninety-eight percent of the nation's population.

Quickly, John scrubbed every bit of data that he had on his computer pertaining to MC-125. The test tubes he used he immediately washed with highly toxic cleaners so that even the waste liquid would be permanently sealed off in a hazardous waste disposal container. No one would come into contact with the salt. John thought of all the implications of what he held in his head. He could have pretty much anything if he asked for it; money, power, and women would be just the tip of the iceberg. Absolute dominion over pretty much all of America and who knows how much past its borders, the formula in his head would be worth empires. John took a while to think about it. With absolute power literally at his fingertips what would he want to do? The possibilities were infinite.

"Another long day at the lab, John?"

John spun around, startled. It was Teresa, a neighborly chemist that was working on an AIDS vaccine in another lab. She was a nice woman, happily married with two lovable kids. Teresa was older than him by a few years but age didn't dim her natural good looks with her slim figure and alluring eyes. John thought about the MC-125 and discarded it. No, that wouldn't be right. She was a friend and had a family to care for. Above all else, John respected family.

But that didn't mean he couldn't give her husband a bit of fun...

"Yeah, you know how it is sometimes," John finally said. "You get a bit of inspiration and you can't put it down. There's far too much work and too little time."

Teresa grunted in agreement. "You mean you have deadlines."

John laughed. "Yeah, well, what can you say? Tell me, how're the husband and kids?"

"They're just fine. Daren just bought a new sound system for the television and is as happy as a clam. I swear he almost wants to make love to those speakers."

John worked up his nerve as he listened to her talk, making sure to work up a sweat in his palms. When he did, John held Teresa's hand, startling her.

"What are you doing?"

"Relax, Teresa." John watched as the salt slowly did its work on her and didn't say anything else until he was sure he had a firm grip on her mind. "Relax. What I'm about to say, you will forget when you exit that door but you will still obey my command. Tell me, how is your sex life with Daren?"

Unblinking, Teresa answered. "We have sex about once every other week if we can find the time."

"Do you wish it were more often?"

"Yes."

"What I want you to do from now on is to try to get more alone time with your husband. I want you to make love to him at least four times a week from now on. Is that understood?"

"Yes."

John smiled when he thought of something else. "Tonight, I want you to get your kids to spend the night at their friends' houses. Then, you are going to have sex with Daren involving those speakers. Make it seductive, make it so that he will never look at those speakers the same way again. You will not stop having sex with him until the first light of dawn. Is that understood?"