While the world spins on in some chaotic direction around them, the people of the Pleasure Society continue their party none the wiser. Jack and Komodo lounge about, their minds addled by the treats of the night, while their bodies drape over some other party-goers, satisfied with the pleasures of the evening.
"So," Komodo says, scratching behind the coyote's ear. "Your friends haven't come back yet. I do hope they aren't up to anything untoward with my Mouse."

"Ah, don't you worry," Jack says, scooting up beside her more robust frame. "I'm sure they're either having a nice talk, or they're enjoying the evening as we are. Goodness knows someone needs to get laid around here."

Komodo laughs at that. “Well, as long as we’re still waiting for them, why don’t we have some more fun, ourselves?”
“Hell, I can do this all night,” Jack says, snickering as he slides up towards her.
She pushes him back onto the divan, a toothy grin spreading across her maw. “Now, now, you’re my guest. Let me take the lead for you.”

The spa had not been so empty during such a busy night. Three forms lay on the ground around the pools, each of them spaced out and breathing steadily. Their unclothed forms might suggest they had partied too hard, but the truth is much more complicated than that.
Uma had thought this was all fun and games. She had let the stress of her life fade away into the background, hidden deep within herself, where she would never need to confront it again. Life had become a blur of programming, classic 80s anime, and cuddling and other such things, but now, she is cold, alone, and in a dark void.
Jay sits there across from her, sipping from a hot mug of coffee. “Something’s bothering you, kid. Why don’t you talk about it?”
Uma stands up, sniffing the air, her whiskers twitching. “What’s… where am I? Oh, gawd, am I tripping?”
“Always the clever one, right?” Jay says, taking a sip. As she glances at him, Uma realizes that Jay’s fur is singed, his suit burned. “Is there something that’s messing with you? Making you act like a child?”
“I’m not a child,” Uma says.
“So, why not be more responsible?” the visionary Jay asks. “What are you so afraid of?”
"I'm… Uma… she's been used for something terrible. The world is going to be a dystopian horror world because of my technology."

“And so, your answer is to blow it all up while you fiddle and dance over the flames. How imperial of you.”
"I don't need you condescending me, you know? You're not even real. This isn't real," she says, turning around and folding her hands over her chest

“So, you scorn this illusion, then?” Jay says, placing his coffee down. He stands up, stepping behind her, placing hands upon her shoulders. “Then, why don’t you try that with the illusion you’ve created for yourself? If even for a little bit?”
Feeling her cousin touch her tenderly while she is in such a sensitive state makes Uma shudder and pull herself away. When she does, she finds the cold she feels to be the tiles against her back. She sits up with a start and glances around the room. There, Arya lays, idly swaying back and forth. The vibrator that Uma had placed on her buzzes on the tiles and off of the snake. Across the pool is Star, curled up in the fetal position.

Uma skitters over towards her companion and friend, shaking her by the shoulders and calling out her name.
“Star, Star! What’s wrong? Speak to me!”
The horse’s distant gaze focuses slowly back on Uma. A moment later, she wraps her arms around the rat and holds her in close. “Oh, damn… Mouse… what the hell happened?”
“I’m… I’m not sure,” Uma says, looking over Star’s shoulder to see Uma laying there. “I think we got hit with something potent—a power I never thought possible.”
"Damn… the snake did that?" Star asks, relaxing her tight grip on the Mouse. "That's… bigger than anything you wanted to try."

"Yeah, I… oh shit!" Uma rips herself away from Star, padding her way along with the tiles and back into the hallway. Star gets up and follows her, hooves clopping heavily down the hall. Soon,  Uma is back in the server room, damaged computers and all. Frantically, the rat clacks away at the keyboard, her eyes wide with worry and a little excitement. Star stands in the doorway, giving her space as she works, watching as Mouse hits the final key and slumps back in the chair.

"So… what's that all about?" Star asks. "Weren't you going to stick it to the man? Isn't that what this whole game was about?"

"It's not worth it," Uma says, rubbing her forehead. "There's just too much… too much that could go wrong and too much that has to go wrong for this to work."

“The workers?” Star asks.
“Yeah…” Uma says. “I thought I lost Jay in that fire last year. I think… I would cause so many more people to become like me if I blew up the factories. I didn’t really think about that, not until my vision.”
"You had one of those too, huh?" Star says, kicking over a chair and sitting backward in it, leaning into the back.

“Yeah. Well, now you know what mine was about. How about yours?”
Star shakes her head. “Let’s deal with one world-shattering revelation for now, shall we? This stuff is way above my pay grade already, and you don’t need the burden.”
“You’re not a burden to me,” Uma says.
“Do you even know who I am outside of this society?” Star asks, her stare holding a seriousness Uma had never seen before in her lover.
“I, no, you’re right,” Uma says. “Come on, let’s go see if Arya is okay.”

Arya groans as she flops over on the bed, her eyes bleary and her head pounding. A mug sits on the nightstand next to her, her tongue catching the earthy aroma of Ygaracharife. The snake swipes it up and gives the liquid a quick gulp. Its contents warm her throat and belly and give her the desire and the energy to push herself back up. She's clothed now, well, more than before, having been placed in a house robe that hangs loosely over her shoulders. There is calm around her, a peace of the chirping of birds outside and the warmth of sunlight peeking through the mostly-shut curtains.

Arya jumps up and rushes to the door, throwing it open, only to be greeted by the guys, all similarly robed and enjoying light breakfast fare
Jay rushes over to the door, putting down his tea. “Arya,” he says. “You’re awake. Are you alright?”
“My uncle!” Arya gasps, frantically scanning the room. “Where did he go?”
"That old snake's never been here," Tobias says, ripping off a chunk of red steak with his teeth. Through his chewing, he continues, saying, "whatever Uma did to you must have been some pretty serious shit if you were tripping that hard."

"Now, now," says Jack, who is laying on his stomach on the couch, the only one still in the original ‘uniform' of the night, but with a heated blanket draped over his lower back. He slowly turns the dial up as he shifts to face Arya. Beside him is a cooler, which he reaches for, pulling out a can and placing the cold metal against his knee. "The mistress of ceremonies said that everything was okay, and I'm inclined to believe her. After all, lady Komodo is a lot of things, but a liar is not one of them, even if she keeps everyone's secrets.

Arya frowns. “I don’t… then what was… what happened?”
“You showed Uma and her friend just exactly what you could do,” Tobias says, swallowing the meat. “Hit them dead center with some super power of yours, beyond anything I’ve seen any other snake capable of.”
“What happened in there?” Jay asks, grabbing Arya’s hand and leading her towards the table. 
She subtly pulls herself free and slithers on over towards the door. “I need to know what’s going on. Uma… she… she killed people last night. Placed a bomb in the factories producing the shots. I tried to stop her, but-”
"But you succeeded," Jack says, sitting up slowly, though he winces as soon as his butt hits the cushion. "Plus, the Mouse whipped us up something if you want to take on your uncle without any more fuss from her, and we have Pleasure Society chapters ready and willing to help us out.

"How did you-?" Arya begins, but as if to answer her question, in steps Komodo through the door, a smile spread across the giant lizard's face. "Good afternoon, my little darlings. I'm glad to see you well, Snake."

"Arya," Arya corrects her, slinking towards the carafe to refill her coffee.

“Of course. Don’t you worry about any bad blood we had. Once your friend got my blood really pumping last night, we were able to strike up a deal that was mutually beneficial for all of us.”
“Really?” Arya says, taking the newly poured mug to her mouth. “So one group that uses mind-altering tricks is going to help us take down another group that uses mind-altering tricks.”
"Mind unlocking tricks, darling," Komodo says, sitting down next to Jack, who tenses up a moment when she places her hand upon his thigh, rubbing his bum leg. "My darling puppers only unlock what's already there deep in your heart. Sadly, we didn't realize you have such a big obstacle to overcome. I should have realized it sooner, but once Jack sweet-talked me about you, I realized something important."

“Yeah, what’s that?”
Komodo stands up and walks on over towards Arya, placing a hand upon her shoulder. “The truth is that we’re not so different, you and I.”
Arya sips the drink, her tongue flicking out a moment after pulling the cup away. “Really? That’s what you’re going with?”
Komodo chuckles. “It’s true, if a bit dramatic. I was like you once, with all the baggage and all the problems in the world.”
“Somehow, I seriously doubt that.”
“When we have more time, you should spend some time and chat. Purely platonic, if you’d like, partially business, if you’d also like.”
"Right, well, we don't have time. We need to turn our attention to Uncle, now," Arya says, sliding on past her and towards the others. "Are we ready to go?"

The men all mutter their agreements and get themselves up from the dining room. Jay reaches his hand out to Jack, but the coyote waves him off, using the arm of the couch to push himself up. “Alright, let’s pack things up. It’s a brand new day with new possibilities to make a buck and save the world.
“Don’t be a stranger,” Komodo says, giving the coyote a wink.
Jack chuckles and turns away from her, muttering under his breath, “Dang…”
The emptiness of the rest of the house makes the warmth of the summer's sun an odd companion. What was once the den of debauchery is now a calm and quiet home. The only evidence that anything occurred here was the folded bundles of clothes, lined up and ready for their occupants to take them back.

Jay picked up each bundle and handed them to each of his companions, and though they came back with only a few sores and headaches and the acquiring of new allies, Arya can’t help but think that she has failed yet again.

As the group finally gets themselves dressed, Komodo, who herself wears a smart business suit and sports a pair of stylish glasses, waits for them by the entryway. “You boys go ahead. I want to talk to Arya a minute, just us girls.
Arya slithers on up to the imposing figure, sitting higher on her tail to match the woman's height. The dress the snake wore in her human disguise clings tightly to the snake, making the discomfort only that much more annoying. She waves to the others, and they exit the door to the warm sun-lit vista beyond. "What is it?" the snake asks.

“You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, Arya, and you really show some restraint. That sort of thing is important, especially in leadership roles. You have an aura of command, Arya, and I’m not talking about the snake thing you got going on.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re going to ask me something I’m not going to like?”
Komodo runs her hand through her frills. "That obvious, huh? Well, just hear me out, and you don't have to think about this. But I'm no spring chicken. Goodness knows I have plenty of them working during these parties, and I can hardly keep up. To me, the business side is pleasure in its own way. I get what I can take now of the carnal desires, but I just want to see people happy, and I think you want to, as well. We've got connections, and we got power."

"We've talked about this already," Arya says, the tip of her tail twitching. "You're going to help us, and I accept that."

"It's not just that, Miss Snake," Komodo says. "I want you on board, not as some drone and not as some sex-crazed fool. I want someone in the managerial position, running their own chapter and perhaps even taking my place one day."

Arya shakes her head and slips on past her. “Not interested. Too much happening.”
“And once this is all over? Once you get your happy ending? What will you do then?”
“I guess…” Arya says, holding onto the door. “I guess I’ll have to think about that part.”
"Then promise me this," Komodo says, holding out her hand. "You'll think about my offer because it's an open invitation. You're always welcome here, just say my name."

“Right… tell them Komodo sent me at some dive and get backroom access, right?” Arya says, rolling her eyes, but still taking the reptile’s hand.
Komodo gives her a firm squeeze and a grin, saying, “No, tell them Caileen Edling sent ya.”
Arya pauses a moment, a brief twitch in her eyes and a slight flicker of her tongue, but she pulls away and says, “alright… I’ll consider it.”
On the outside, the men all wait for Arya, despite having come on their own without her. When the snake slithers out, Jay walks up to her, hands in his pockets. "Alright, so we figure we should probably do something about the distribution. I think a smear campaign would be best, but we can get the details in later. Want to meet back at Uma's bunker, or get to one of the Society's outposts closer to your Uncle's HQ?"

Looking off towards the sea, Arya shakes her head. “Huh, sorry? Y-yeah, let’s go closer. THere’s nothing here for us now.”
The doors burst open, and, standing on the threshold, fully dressed and panting, is Uma.

The group all waits with bated breath for the young woman to say something, but all that seems to want to come out are those taxing breaths. There’s a slight watering in her eyes as she looks cautiously over her shoulder to where Komodo still stands, just out of sight of the others.
Arya slips to the front of the party, waiting expectantly at the base of the stairs. The two are eye-to-eye at this moment, yet both are speechless.
“Wait, I…” she’s desperately trying to say something, but it is just too difficult. She is too scared to get her throat to commit to the oath behind those words.
A slight tapping on her shoulder breaks her out of it, and Komodo, looming over her, just smiles as she whispers to the rodent. “Go,” that deep, tender voice blows into her ear. “If you didn’t have the choice to leave or stay here, it wouldn’t be a pleasure, now would it?”
Uma finally cracks a quick “Yeah… but…”
“I’ll be here waiting for when you get back,” the other voice speaks up. It’s Star, leaning in the opposite doorway.
Uma’s face slowly lights up as the support from both of them. She gives the reptile a big long hug, which is returned with a firm embrace and a pat on the back of the head. To the horse, Uma rushes up and jumps itno her arms. Star holds onto her as the two lock lips for a moment. “Go… get that bastard, and do it right.”
Uma pulls hesitantly away, rushing out the door. “Wait up, please, wait up! I’m coming with you!”