Angelina Clancy leaned her seat forward as she stirred and glanced at the clock on the wall of the airplane cabin. Feeling a little stiff from her nap, she stood up and stretched. Ordinarily, the passengers would be chattering and making other noises, but not this time. Other than the white noise of the engines, everyone else but Angelina was completely silent; staring blankly with half-opened eyes, awaiting her commands. Inwardly, there was confusion, fear and panic, but they may as well have been hamsters running in metal wheels for all the good it did them. Their minds were completely suppressed and Angelina was running this flight.

The telepathic takeover had been completely effortless, Angelina noted. A mere thought, and every mind on the plane instantly submitted to her every whim. She was getting really, really good at this; all the more reason to follow through with her plans. A quick check with the pilot's mind informed her that it would be another two hours before they reached their destination. One Angelina picked for her own purposes, of course.

The first-class cabin was well stocked with food and liquor befitting those who had the money to spend. The choices were filet mignon or grilled halibut; Angelina chose the halibut. It really didn't matter which one she chose as she could just as easily savor the taste sensations from the minds of the other passengers. Not the ones in coach, of course; they were stuck with turkey calzones and potato chips. What a shame for them, she thought with a little smile. A last meal should have been better than something reheated in a microwave.

"Coffee," she willed.

"Yes Miss Clancy," the stewardess replied submissively. The stewardess stepped forward to refill Angelina's cup, spiking it with just the right amount of Bailey's Irish Creme.

How appropriate, Angelina thought as she sipped. She didn't actually put those words into the cow's little mind, but the response was always the same. It confirmed that she had indeed reached full-circle.

"Yes Angela," nodded the administrator, with a blank stare. He then motioned to one of the caretakers, who proceeded to slap the frightened boy across the face.

"But...but that's not fair!" protested the brown-haired boy, only to receive another slap for his complaint.

"We've heard enough of your excuses, Mr. Drake," intoned the administrator. "You should know the rules by now. Angela gets her way. Maybe a few days in the closet will straighten you up."

Tim Drake started crying as he was dragged away and locked into the closet. In the next room, the other children in the Lockwood Orphanage quivered in fear. None of them understood how, but all of them had learned the object lessons. Angela gets her way. That's the way it was here. Ever since she was 6 years old, they started hearing Angela's voice in their heads. The voice made them do things. See things. Made them give Angela whatever she wanted. And made them remember and forget whatever she wished. It wasn't much longer before the adults did the same. She was only 8 years old; they were celebrating her birthday that day when Tim said he wasn't going to come to the party. Well, he was new here. He would learn. Just as they all did. They learned to smile whenever Angela told them to. Not to utter a peep of protest whenever the adults granted Angela yet another privilege. And most of all, never, ever get Angela mad. Because she could hurt you. Make you do things like setting your own clothes and hair on fire. Or when she was really upset, she'd make you think things. Horrible, terrible things...

Silently through it all, Angela smiled with all the glee of an 8-year old child and nodded as the adults scurried forth to do her bidding. So easy, she thought. And so much fun. Poor Timmy; now he was going to be punished. Maybe she would visit him in the dark room. And play some more. Make him scared. Make him really scared. After she had some more cake, of course.

Angelina poked at her cake idly as credit cards, wallets, and money floated and danced in front of her like butterflies. Silently, she blessed these fool business travelers. Them and their high-priced platinum credit cards that offered free air-travel insurance. Before they boarded, she had compelled a few of the passengers to buy some extra travel insurance. No sense wasting their deaths over nothing. Just one of those feelings, she willed to them. She considered making everyone buy some, but that would have looked too suspicious. One by one, she read each traveler's beneficiaries from their minds. Of course, she'd have to subliminally suggest to the insurance auditors to see her as each beneficiary, but that wouldn't be a problem. It wasn't like insurance agents really cared whom they gave the money to. And the beneficiaries themselves, well, it'd be like taking lunch money from children. Something she had experience in doing.

Angela looked at her report card with satisfaction as each classmate placed their lunch money on her desk and walked away. Straight A's as always. Of course, it helped that all of her teachers at Bedford Junior High School gave her that grade regardless of how little work she actually turned in. Not that she didn't learn anything; in fact, her powers allowed her to go through her teachers' minds with amazing speed and efficiency. It was just that she hated the drudgery of repetitious exercises as much as the next child. And what Angela wanted, she got.

Pocketing the money, Angela turned her attention to that evening. That new Barry Levinson movie, "Sleepers", was just coming out and she was interested in seeing it. Hollywood's interpretation of psychological torture wasn't necessarily accurate, but it did give her ideas she wanted to try on some of her classmate's minds to see how they reacted. And Brad Pitt was so cool...

With that in mind, she turned her attention to one of the boys in class, Peter Wells. Handsome and reasonably smart, he was in the JV football program and a lot of girls wanted to go out with him, but he was currently dating a girl named Monica Packard. No big deal; Angela would change his mind.

"Hello Peter," purred Angela.

"Oh, hi Angela," Peter stammered. He actually blushed a little. Well, why wouldn't he, she thought. By anyone's standards, Angela was a gorgeous young girl.

"So, how about taking me to the movies tonight? The new fall premieres are coming out."

"Gee, I'd like to...."

Angela didn't need to read Peter's mind to see what was coming so she just tuned him out. As he spoke, Angela reached into Peter's mind and confirmed what she already knew; he had already promised to take Monica to the mall that night. Well, that was easily fixed; she reached into his mind and gently lifted the memory out of his mind and erased it. The result was immediate and noticed.

"...but I...." Peter trailed off and looked puzzled as Angela smiled smugly.

"Yes?" Angela asked innocently.

Two rows behind her, Monica turned to watch the conversation. Even with her back turned, Angela could feel Monica's concern and jealousy. Well, too bad for her.

"Sure, I'd love to go!" Peter replied brightly. It didn't take much prodding to make up Peter's mind for him Angela noticed. He must have had real doubts about Monica.

"Hey!" Monica protested. "What about your promise?"

Peter looked at Monica with a genuinely puzzled expression, but Angela smiled with a knowing expression. Monica was crushed; she couldn't believe this was happening. And without a word, she slapped Angela across the face. "You bitch!"

The classroom suddenly went dead quiet at the challenge. Angela looked at Monica with complete shock. It was completely inconceivable that anyone would strike her! How dare this little...cow...lay a hand on her! Angela's eyes narrowed and Monica, despite her earlier rage, couldn't help but feel a sensation of fear.

"Let's go," Angela said with a deadly quiet voice. She walked out into the hallway and headed for the exit, with Monica following her with mixed feelings of anger and fear. Behind her, the rest of the class was about to follow them out; a fight always made the day something to talk about. But not this time. Angela concentrated and pushed a thought into the minds of the entire class: "Sit down and forget." What was about to happen next was between the two girls alone.

Outside in the school playground, Monica tensed for what she thought was going to be a fight. She was taller and was pretty sure she was stronger. She never saw Angela participate in any sports or give any indication that she could defend herself. Angela monitored all these thoughts as they passed through Monica's head. Poor little girl...she would never know what hit her.

"Just who do you think you are?" spat Monica. "Peter's going out with me!"

"So, he's your property?" Angela mused. "Sorry, but he clearly want to go out with me."

"You manipulative little bitch! I'm going to tell everyone what a whore you are!"

"I don't think so." Angela smiled and made a casual gesture. Monica's face instantly went blank. Mentally, Angela felt Monica's will crumble like soda crackers and what was left of Monica sat passively, awaiting Angela's command. No, she thought. Not enough. Monica had to be punished for what she did. Angela pressed deeper this time, feeling Monica's memories, her experiences, and saw how the crystal-like lattice of both combined built themselves into what made up Monica's personality and essential self.

Well, this was interesting, Angela thought. She had manipulated lots of people's memories before, but not at this level. What the heck, she thought, and started to play. She mentally formed a new set of structures that stated, "I will do anything Angela Clancy wills; Angela's slightest whim is my every command. I will see, hear, and think anything Angela wishes. I will remember only what Angela allows me to." With that done, Angela then inserted the new psychology into Monica's mind, and watched it rebuild itself around this new set of axioms. In her outer mind, Angela saw Monica's entire sense of being change. What little independence and personality there was left after the hypnotic spell was gone. She was now Angela's doll. Her toy. Her puppet. Monica would do her every bidding and nothing else. Gee, Angela thought, that was so much simpler than she would have thought it was going to be.

"Beg," Angela willed. She watched in satisfaction as Monica dropped to her hands and knees and kowtowed before her.

"Cry," Angela willed. Monica's eyes welled with tears and she burst out crying as if her heart would break. Angela began to giggle; this was fun!

"Now laugh." Monica's crying stopped instantly and she burst out laughing. Not the slightest hesitation or transition. Not even the tiniest shred of resistance that she normally encountered. Angela began to feel a little intoxicated with a sensation of power; she didn't even have to hypnotize Monica anymore. Monica was now hers to do with however she pleased and would remain hers until...forever, she wondered? Would this conditioning last indefinitely?

Back to business, Angela thought. She looked around and saw what she was looking for. She then willed an image into Monica's mind. "Walk over here, drop to your hands and knees, and bow." Like a robot, Monica walked to the designated location, dropped to her hands and knees, and bowed, not even noticing that she had just placed her face right into a fire ant mound. Agitated, the ants crawled all over Monica's face and hands and begin to bite. Not a twitch. They crawled into her nostrils, eyes and ears. Not a sound. After nearly ten minutes, Angela allowed her to stand and smiled. The ants did exactly as they would have been expected to do. But something was missing. Oh right, she almost forgot. Angela thought casually. "Pain..."

Impressive, Angela thought coldly. She didn't think Monica could scream so loudly.

Poor, poor, Monica, Angelina thought with a smile as she looked outside the window. So self-righteous. So sure of herself. So out of her league. Over the next few weeks, Monica's grades dropped sharply. She drifted through school like a zombie, ignoring all her previous friends, ostracizing herself until no one would acknowledge her. Finally expelled three weeks later, no one at school even remembered her. Angelina made sure of that.

Angelina turned her attention back to the present where several of the more well-heeled passengers were turning over wealth of a different kind to her. Information. Two of the passengers were upper-middle management to large companies. Two others were active in city- and state-level politics. Her plans called for gaining access to people and organizations such as these and they would make a good place to start. As they listed off what they knew, three other people were typing the information away on laptop computers. Angelina was fairly smart, but she didn't have a photographic memory and she knew it. Something she would have to work on.

As they worked, Angelina thought about Monica as she looked over the blank expressions of the other passengers. Unlike Monica, who had the misfortune of being the first, these puppets could function as real people when Angelina wished them to. Her experience with Monica had actually taught her a lot; she learned how to set up standing orders and commands in the minds of her slaves. How to be more subtle by influencing their memories, beliefs and morals while giving them the illusion that they were making up their own minds. And these people were actually in useful positions of wealth and authority. Under different circumstances, Angelina would have almost certainly returned them to their previous positions, after she had enslaved them to do her bidding. But that was not meant to be. Oh well, she thought, she'll just have to make due with their professional successors and next-of-kin.

With that task done, she pocketed a floppy disk and looked back to the window. Below, the terrain had started to become rocky and mountainous. From this high up, everything looked so pretty. Looking down from here, it was like being God.

Angela hovered 30 feet in the air above F. Murray Abraham High School's gymnasium, with a mixture of fear and exhilaration in her heart. She was flying! She was still wobbly and shaky though; she had a rope tied around her waist attached to the ceiling rafters and gymnastics floor padding below her for safety. Still, she was getting better with each day. When she first tried it, she fell down several times. Not because it was hard; in fact it was completely effortless. It was just a matter of believing it enough and not letting her mind's doubts disrupt her concentration. She closed her eyes and took a step forward. It felt weird not to have any sensation on her feet, but it didn't take long to get use to. Her whole body felt weightless and moving was now simply a matter of thought.

Suddenly the sound of an opening door interrupted her reverie. Crap, she thought; someone else had decided to stay after school in the gym. With her attention distracted, she dropped from the air, her fall stopped by her rope. As she swung back and forth, she nursed the twinge of pain on her hip as the rope bit into her side. The two students who entered stared with their mouths agape at the unusual sight. As she came to a stop, Angela looked at both of them and willed "sleep," causing both of them to drop into deep slumber and to remember nothing when they awoke.

After freeing herself, Angela grabbed her belongings and left the gym in a huff. Those two stupid idiots! She was making real progress and they ruined it! She thought about how to punish them. It would be so easy; she already controlled most of the school one way or another. One of the most beautiful girls in school, she was already a cheerleader, honors student, and sophomore class president. She had every honor, award and perk she could possibly want from school and more. Every student, teacher and administrator complied with her every wish. One negative word from her and they would be ostracized indefinitely. Or she could do what she did with Monica; strip their identities from them and have them tossed onto the streets for a lifetime of poverty and misery. She shook her head; they didn't quite merit that. She'd be merciful this time; a subliminal command ensured that both of them would fail all their tests and exams for the rest of the year.

But even that seemed almost pointless. It was all too easy, and it was really getting boring. Even the fun she had with Peter Wells was beginning to wane. He wasn't really such a bad guy. The two of them were considered an "item" ever since Monica had disappeared without a trace a few years ago. But the truth was, he didn't mean anything to Angela. He couldn't possibly provide an equal partner in any kind of meaningful relationship. He was just a trophy when it came right down to it, and truth be told, Angela had lost track how many times she had manipulated Peter's mind to get her way. Over time, he had become as much a puppet as Monica had been. She just treated him better.

The school's hallways were empty as the sun began to set. Even the janitorial staff had gone home. Angela walked slowly down the hall, alone with her own thoughts. The only thing that gave her satisfaction anymore was the thrill of using her powers. Having control over everyone around her was fun, but frankly high school was simply too small for her. She wanted more. Lots more. And so long as she continued this farce of normalcy, she knew she would never have it.

So without another look back, Angela left the school for what she knew was going to be for the last time. Let them all have their little meaningless, worthless lives. She was meant for something more than this. As she left the school grounds, her body began to float into the air. With each step, it became easier. Just the decision of leaving the school behind had a liberating effect on her, freeing her from the self-imposed constraints of being "normal". Before she knew it, she was almost a mile above the ground and she had stopped even bothering to move her legs in a walking motion. She looked down on the town and relaxed. It felt so natural up here. So right. With that, she pulled out her book bag and discarded all her possessions one by one. All but her ID card. She'd need that one more time when she visited the airport.

Angelina stood and got ready. The pilot's thoughts informed her that they were nearly there. With a thought, she began to glow with energy. Around her body, the clothes she was wearing changed and shifted as Angelina's feet lifted off the passenger deck. No longer would she touch the ground ever again. Walking was simply beneath her, she decided. The clothes formed into a costume of black leather and dark silk. Long black gloves adorned her arms, stiletto-heeled thigh boots flowed up her legs and a long billowing black cloak formed behind her and draped below her feet. The fit was flawless, molded to her body so perfectly she could barely feel it. A tad overly fancy, but who cared. Angelina had long ago mastered the ability to make people see and think anything she wished. Oh, there would be a few obstacles, she knew. The other metahumans out there would no doubt be more difficult than normal people were. But as loud, pompous and egotistical as most of them were, their minds were still only human. Well, most of them anyway. They could be enslaved as well. She would just have to be a little more judicious about it.

Angelina took one final look through the cabin as she floated through the center isle. It was really too bad, she thought. Not that she actually cared about any of these cattle, but it seemed so wasteful. The girl in 16A was taking this flight to escape from her abusive relationship with a boorish man. The family on 22 had saved their annual savings for this vacation, even though the father in 22C kept fretting about how they were going to afford it. The young man in 12E liked to shoplift and do drugs; he had a deep-rooted fear that his elderly mother would find out. So many opportunities, she sighed. Any one of them could have provided her days, even weeks of amusement. Oh well, she thought. There would be plenty more. With that resolved, she surrounded herself with a telekinetic bubble of force and slipped through the molecules that made up the underbelly of the plane into the open air.

Outside, she watched the plane speed away to its final destination. She had no trouble whatsoever keeping up and the telekinetic force bubble reduced what would have been a jet stream of air to a light breeze. Her cloak billowed behind her as she watched the plane propel itself into the heart of the famous Rocky Mountains. Inside, she could feel them. 330 minds, each had hopes and dreams. Each one had a name, a family and plans for the future. Included in that list was one Angelina Clancy. Honors student from F. Murray Abraham High School. School cheerleader, class president, and numerous other awards, she was quite the overachiever everyone would say. She shrugged as the muffled sound of the explosion echoed throughout the mountain range. Briefly, she wondered if any of the news coverage that was sure to come would mention her by name. But in the end, it really didn't matter. Because Angelina Clancy was now dead; she died in a tragic plane crash along with the other 329 passengers and crew of Flight AA303. There was only one witness to this tragedy; a young woman hovering nearly 10000 feet above the mountains as she watched the wreckage burn. A woman who's every thought could control the minds of whomever she wished. A woman now immortal as her mind constantly energized the cells within her own body. Now and forever, her name was Mindshadow.
 

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