ATTENTION 

Serial Mugger / Harasser on the Loose

There have been numerous reports of a mugger striking between the hours of 10pm and 3am in the Old Gaol district. Each victim presented with no apparent physical injuries but recalled very little of the attack outside of the first few moments of contact. No drugs have been detected in the systems of any involved, aside from alcohol or other substances that the victims themselves consumed. Evidence gathered by City Watch suggests that there was no specific struggle at the scenes. Possible user of unlicensed magic. Investigations are ongoing.

Description : Reptilian - Naga - Male. Reticulated scales, darker shades. Eyes are described as red, or yellow, or orange. 

Extra Deputies wanted for posting in the area during the above times outlined. Some of the previous victims have included Deputies on their volunteer shifts. Reward from the Community Funds promised for capture of the perpetrator, or information leading to their capture.

—

The grey-furred canine shivered. He kind of wished he’d thrown on a slightly warmer jacket. Kodiak wasn’t too dressed up, though he was wearing the tell-tale yellow-green sash of a Citizen Volunteer. It clashed with his blue scarf, but he refused to take it off under any circumstances. It was part of his silhouette! How else were people supposed to recognize him once he hit it big as an adventurer? 
Besides, whenever anyone did glance in Kodi’s direction, they didn’t stare long enough at him to clock the clashing fabrics. Still, he was just a smidge self conscious; after all, he didn’t normally see this many people while out and about on work.
Whenever Kodi took on a patrol contract with the City Watch, he would usually take a very quiet shift. Sometime in the late morning, around lunchtime. Most people were working, and he had plenty of space to let his mind wander as he patrolled. It didn’t pay that much worse than the night shifts.The Old Gaol wasn’t his usual beat, and late night wasn’t his usual shift. But the prospect of a very tidy reward for capturing that mugger was too good to pass up. It’d set him up for a month at least. 

The notices did not jump to any conclusion about what the naga’s specific tactics were. Some thought they were using some untraceable drug or magic. Others thought it was some sort of scam and the ‘mugged’ folks were in on it. Others still thought it was viral marketing for a new movie or something. 
Kodi didn’t disbelieve the victims. He’d spoken to a few of them to gather info. The one thing they warned him, the one thing that he kept in the back of his head, was that he should not look this guy in the eye under any circumstances. Not the best thing to do when faced with an armed attacker though. Kodi was expecting this attacker to be armed, or at least equipped with magic. Better safe than sorry. 

Kodi was making his leisurely way towards the heart of the district, where all the clubbers congregated. 
Whenever he came to a particularly dark alley, he shone his flashlight down it, never finding anything of note aside from trash cans or the odd young couple pawing at each other and making out. At most he gave them a little nod and a smirk before carrying on; if they noticed him, that is. The bassy thump of music from the various clubs in the Old Gaol assaulted him subtly from every possible angle. Not his scene at all.  He was far more at home in a dungeon full of beasts than a mass of sweaty drunk bodies like this. He wouldn’t go inside any of them if he could avoid doing so.

He glanced over his shoulder every so often, looking at the scattered tipsy revellers  behind him. They weren’t looking at him or even acknowledging his presence; they were off to the next club, or to some greasy take-out restaurant to fuel up. Even when he was certain he was not being followed, the little tingle on the back of his neck persisted. His subconscious was trying to warn him. Warn him of what exactly? He had had a lot of false alarms so far tonight though. He chalked it up to general nerves more than anything else.

He knew what he was looking out for, of course. A reptilian of some description. There were a lot of those, and he wasn’t about to start tailing every single one. That would be shitty. And considering how he’d been hounded in the past for being a magic user, he wasn’t very keen on visiting that same prejudice on another bunch of people. 

The crowds were getting thicker, though, and the music was getting louder. Kodi found himself on a street festooned with bars and clubs, with clusters of partiers overflowing into the streets, their voices mingling into a shapeless, incomprehensible beehive buzz. He was starting to realize that he may have gone too far into the fray. Surely the mugger wouldn’t be so audacious as to strike here and now? Kodi foolishly thought it would be easy enough to scope things out, but he didn’t anticipate just how jam packed this place was. It was too overwhelming for him. He clenched his jaw shut tightly and pushed his way through the crowd. Mercifully, his luminescent sash made people give him a respectable wide berth, and soon he had made his escape from the throngs. He walked quickly, letting the chatter and the thump and the heat recede behind him until it was distant and far more manageable for his mind.

The cool air felt glorious against his overheated body. He panted, his pink tongue wagging out from his open mouth, and he leaned against a brick wall next to an alleyway. He sucked in deep breaths of the night air, letting it cool his insides. Naturally he did so through his mouth, minimizing the acrid tang of the city’s scents. He was half tempted to prestidigitate himself a little bit of cool air, but he saw a group of young ones staggering in his direction. They were chattering loudly, clearly having come from a pre-game to the area. If they caught a sniff of his magical prowess, they would insist on Kodi performing some shit magic tricks for them. No thanks.

Once they receded from his sight, Kodi took another deep breath and sighed. The ringing in his ears was starting to subside. In a moment he’d be ready to dive in again. But for now, he needed to rest…

“‘Scuse me, deputy!”
Kodi yelped and shot upright, his wide eyes settling on the source of the voice. The person he was looking at seemed to be just as panicked as he was. The naga was slithering towards him with some speed, his green eyes wide. He was dressed for a night out, with a crisp, open collared red shirt and a skirt to cover the point where his more anthropomorphic body became a long muscular rope of scaly coils. His grey-black scales were difficult to discern, even with the amber light of the street lamps overhead.

“Yes, how can I help you?” Kodi tried to put on a brave face. Poor guy looked really upset. The least he could do was act the part of a deputy.
“Yeah, hi, I got attacked a little while ago outside the Boudoir, there were some guys who saw me and started accusing me of trying to attack them or seduce them, or I dunno, I didn’t catch it and-“
“Slow down there, champ,” Kodi said. “Just breathe, okay? Take your time.”
“Agh…” the snake sighed, managing to stop his hyperventilation and settling himself. “Yeah, yeah you’re right, I’m… fuck, I just wanted to have a good time. I think they took my stuff too, I left my jacket and my wallet was in there…”

From his slurred speech, the naga seemed to be half in the bag already. Kodi’s heart bled for him. The first thing he could do was try to calm him down.
“Let’s get you some water, and we can file a proper report from there, ok?”
“Ok… ok…” the snake tried his best to relax, but still seemed very distressed. The wolf-dog put a reassuring paw on his shoulder and lead him along.
“Why don’t you tell me your name? I’m Kodi.”
“Zeer…” the snake said. He was very good at hiding his natural serpentine lisp. Kodi assumed it was something he’d practiced. He was trying his best to assimilate among mammals. More than most. 
“Have you been here long?” Kodi asked him.
“No, I’ve only been here a few months. This city is amazing though… jus’ wish I was better at handling the night life…”
“It’s a bit much for me as well, to be honest. You’re not really missing too much.”
“I guess… everyone has been very kind to me, though. The people here are so generous. Like you.”
“Well, just doin’ my duty!” Kodi said with a warm smile. “I am getting paid for this.”

Zeer started to laugh, but it abruptly died in his mouth. There was a tell-tale change in tension in Zeer’s body. He got stiffer. There was a soft gulping noise in the back of his throat. His eyes widened, and his head shot in the direction of a nearby alley. Zeer just covered his mouth and peeled away, not even taking the time to apologize. He didn’t seem to have it. Before Kodi could stop him, Zeer surged down that alley, vanishing into the darkness.
“Wait up!” Kodi didn’t run, but he moved quickly. Going down an alley like that was just asking to get mugged. He found Zeer not too far away, leaning against the side of a building. The wolf-dog noticed the distinct lack of the smell of vomit. 
“Did you manage to keep it down?” he asked. “You okay?”
The naga turned towards Kodi, without a hint of the sluggish drunken posture from before.. Zeer’s eyes were alight with rippling rings of colour, pulsing inwards and drawing his gaze towards him. He grinned widely, a hungry look in his dazzling eyes.
“Never better. Now come clossser to me…”

Don’t look at the eyes. He’d forgotten not to look at the eyes. It was too late now…

Zeer reached out a hand and beckoned as though he was already scratching the wolf-dog under his chin. The fingers splayed and curled one after the other like synchronized swimmers, tempting Kodi closer. The wolf dog’s arms had dropped by his sides, and his feet were very slightly starting to pull forward and shuffle along. His head was heavy, and he wanted to dip it towards the ground. Paradoxically, his eyelids were light, and he couldn’t blink. All he could do was gaze into the pretty eyes. Red, Yellow, and Orange. Each new colour pulled him in closer, beckoning like a warm, soft bed. 
“Closssser, now.” Zeer purred, his head dipping in low arcs, tilting and twisting from side to side. Kodi followed. He couldn’t resist following. His unconscious mind, his primal instinct, was utterly enthralled by the colours, and the sway, and the glimmer of the scales in the dark alleyway.  Pure pleasure swirled around his insides, and his pants began to feel very tight indeed.

“Good… now back.” the fingers gently shooed Kodi, and he nodded slightly as he obeyed. Shuffling back, then forward, then back again at Zeer’s beck and call. He was little more than a puppet, or at least his body was. He was sent back further and further until he felt the rough brick wall behind him. Zeer was upon him, thick with the arousing scent of reptilian pheromones. Or perhaps cologne. Whatever it was, it made the colours seem warmer, and the air seem warmer too. The snake’s body pressed close, and Kodi let out an involuntary yelp as pleasure coursed through his veins.

“Oh~! Looksss like you’re one of those.” Zeer sneered. “You have a bit of a paraphilia for my kind, hmm? Well, thisss’ll make thingsss much easier.”
By now, Kodi was backed firmly against the wall, smothered in scales. Zeer’s tail was creeping up his ankles and thighs, taking its sweet sweet time to wrap him up. Kodi made another little moan, but was hushed by Zeer. The reds, oranges and yellows pulsed even faster now, seeking to quell what little seemed to remain of Kodi’s brains.
“No interruptionsss…” he cooed. “We don’t want any disssturbances, do we.”

Kodi said nothing. He stared blankly, his body doing as it was commanded by the voice and the colours. His unconscious mind was wrapped around Zeer’s little finger.
His analytical mind, however, was not. Kodi had been hypnotized plenty of times, by magical means or otherwise, and he was not about to let this amateur get the jump on him. He’d played along long enough. The snake’s face was so close to his. Zeer didn’t expect a thing. He was in for it now. 
Kodi concentrated. He focused directly on Zeer’s right eye, first. Behind that was more thoughtful side of his brain -  the slightly softer side.  Kodi let his eyes tingle. He felt the familiar pulse of hypnotic magic flow through them. 
“Yesss…” Zeer hissed. “Ssslip deeper and deeper under my power. You can’t ressissst the pretty coloursss, can you. Sssuch warmth… sssuch bliss…. Red, orange, yellow, and red, and orange, and yellow, and orange, and yellow, and…?”

The look of confusion on the snake’s face was delightful. Kodi resisted the urge to smile even as he felt sensation returning to his face. The hypnotic patterns in his own eyes happened to be very similar to Zeer’s. All the better to get the jump on him. The red rings ebbed and vanished from Zeer’s eyes, and the ripples slowed to a halt. The orange and yellow rings pushed outwards, reversing direction. That was the final tell tale sign Kodi needed. He allowed a smile now.
“Could you gimme some space?”
The befuddled, slack-jawed snake nodded and slithered slowly backwards. The movement was sluggish and a little unsteady. It was a far cry from the elegant glide from earlier. Now he seemed drunk. 

“What’s… going on…?” He slurred. “What’re you… doing to me…?”
“Didn’t see this coming, huh big boy?” Kodi crossed his arms and pushed off from the wall, approaching the snake and looking up at him. “I thought you would have been a little bit more careful about your targets.”
“Cuh… careful…?” it was impressive that Zeer was even able to make coherent sounds at all, let alone a full word. 
“You must have expected you’d run into someone who knows a hypnosis spell or two, right?” 
“N...no…?” There was no guile in Zeer’s voice or his face. He really was unaware.

Kodi couldn’t help but laugh. 
“Oh man, you really are new here… That’s okay! That’s fine.” He reached out to stroke Zeer’s face, and keep his gaze locked onto the warm rings pulsing through his open eyes. “You just need someone to teach you how things work here. To show you how to be a good citizen. Isn’t that right?”
Kodi nodded his head up and down, and Zeer followed. He didn’t respond.
“Nothing to say?” Kodi asked. “I get it. I’m sure the pleasure you’re getting right now must be overwhelming. It feels great, right?”
He nodded again, and Zeer did the same. His slack jawed expression was quite cute. 
“Shame you’re using those good looks of yours to rob people,” the wolf-dog tutted. He got on his tip toes, pressing his snout against the naga’s and making sure the honey-and-lemon were all he could see. Zeer was beginning to smile too, and the gaze in his eyes almost seemed loving.
“Good boy,” Kodi whispered. The snake hissed and shuddered in response. He liked the praise, evidently. “Such a good boy, yes you are…”
A rather deliciously evil thought slipped into the back of Kodi’s mind. He smirked widely, bringing a claw just underneath Zeer’s chin to stroke and tickle it. 
“You know what would make you an even better boy, though? For one thing, I think you could lose that shirt. Show yourself off a little more…”
“Okay…” Zeer murmured softly, and his sleepy hands traveled to the bottom button of his bright red shirt. Each time another button came loose, Kodi rewarded him with another “Good Boy,” and a more intense flash of hypnotic colour. The dog’s warm paw rested on the snake’s cool stomach, and slid upwards as more and more of his toned body was bared. Zeer shrugged off the tacky shirt, and Kodi made no effort to pick it up off the dirty alley’s floor.

Kodi licked his lips as his fingers roved along the subtle grooves of Zeer’s muscles. 
“Good boy. Goooood boy. But then… I don’t think you’re the best boy you can be yet. We have a bit of a problem, don’t we?”
“We do…?” 
“Yeah, you’ve done some very very bad things, haven’t you.”
“Y…yes, I have…”The poor zonked reptile looked genuinely sad, crushed by the realisation. It was adorable.
“Don’t worry though, I know exactly how you can make everything right again.”
“Oh… good.” There was the relieved smile again. 
“Give me your tail, please,” Kodi said as he held his paw out. He waited for the tail tip to rise and gently curl around his wrist. He gave it a tug - firm, but not so hard that it would jostle Zeer from his stupor. 
“Come along now, there’s a Goooood Boy.” Kodi guided his thrall along, out of the darkness and back out into the lights of the city streets. It didn’t take long for him to draw attention from bystanders. Some averted their gaze and walked quicker. Others started a bit longer. There were some laughs and scoffs. It was understandable; it wasn’t often that you saw a Volunteer walking side by side with a woozy, swirly eyed and topless naga down the streets, with the snake’s tail wound around the canine’s paw like a leash.

Kodi relished the attention. He gave a brief, rippling glance to his charge every so often, ensuring that he was still nice and placid. The poor dear was not self conscious in the slightest. It was delightful. Kodi leaned over to murmur to his pet, his words soft, sensual and encouraging.
“Soon we’re gonna be at the sheriff’s office,” and you’ll get to apologise for being such a bad boy. But don’t worry, Master is going to put in a good word for you, and you’ll get to stay with me for ever and ever…”
“Heehee… yay…” 

Kodi was already thinking about what he was going to spend the reward on. Previously he was considering putting it towards some new gear. Now, though, he was imagining what might be a suitable outfit for his soon-to-be houseboy. Perhaps a nice slim waistcoat. Or maybe something a little more frilly and feminine. Maybe he could even convince his dear Zeer to get a piercing or two, make him a little more exotic. The possibilities were endless, once he “convinced” the sheriff to let him keep the captured thief. After all, he would make sure the snake was well rehabilitated. He wouldn’t cause such mischief on his watch. After all, he clearly wanted to be a good boy.