This is the ninth chapter of the continuing saga, to read part 8, click here.

Chapter 9: A Gathering of Statues

                 Pamela enjoyed viewing the endless movement outside the comfortable, static setting of the window display where she had been changed into a mannequin earlier. It was a lovely spring day in the city, light traffic and pedestrians moving in a leisurely procession along the boulevard. Pamela loved springtime; the trees along the street were already showing traces of green her first day in the window. Every day the foliage increased as leaves sprouted; adding to the greenery were the delicate pastels of cherry trees blossoming into flower.

                The hours after midnight when the city was in a deep slumber was her quiet time, a period of tranquillity were time slowed to serenity.

                Standing still while flesh and blood there is never any true quiet or immobility, no matter how hard one tries. There is always the slight quiver of muscles, rise and fall of the chest due to breathing and the slight tremor of ones beating heart. As a mannequin, no longer flesh and blood, with no need of breathing or heartbeat, inflexible plastic attaining absolute immobility and soundlessness. Free from the limits of her previous body, a magical existence without need of food, air or water. Pamela loved the utter stillness of her new body, the wonderful peace and quiet, free of even the slightest movement both within and without.

                Sporadically there would be a faint rumble as the stores air conditioning groaned to life, then the soft whisper of air escaping from the ventilation system. Seconds later she would feel the gentle caress of air currents as an insubstantial breeze circulated through the enclosed space. A breeze so imperceptible as to barely cause even a hair to quiver or gossamer drapery to sway, yet she could feel its slight touch upon her bare fiberglass skin as easily as a human could feel a brisk wind. The subtle flow of air was a pleasant caress upon her polymer surface, like gentle foreplay from the gods of wind. Occasionally the faint sound of footsteps would echo faintly from the depths of the store as the night watchman made his periodic rounds. Outside, the infrequent passing of a patrol car or night shift workers, brief intervals punctuating the long nights.

                Hours later as the glow of dawn brightened the vault of the sky the metropolis would begin to waken; stirring slowly to life as a new day began. The motion of vehicles and people became a growing rumble, slightly shaking the floor under her still feet. The dull thunder of a passing bus or heavy truck would shake the display windows, ripples crossing the huge panes of glass as they jiggled in their metal frames. The vibrations would travel up the their stands, up the steel butt rods holding them upright causing the mannequins to quiver ever so slightly. As tremors shot upwards through the steel shaft of the butt rod in Pamela’s mounting socket, vibrating her rigid body, her continual orgasm exploded to new heights.                

                The morning rush hour came; filling the streets outside with a carpet of droning, blaring metal as the sun cleared the edge of the canyon of skyscrapers. The golden sun filled the street with its bright glory as a shaft of sunlight slowly crawled into a corner of the display window. The luminescent shaft grew in size and began to fill the display area with dazzling brilliance, covering the still figures with a band of solar cheer.

                Pamela felt the band of sunlight gradually, intersecting her still form, the gentle warmth against her cool skin like being submerged in liquid sunshine. Rush hour passed, replaced with the normal rhythm of the urban landscape as the sunlight flooded the streets. The day passed with a leisurely slowness where time had no meaning, every moment a torrent of pleasure and contentment. Afternoon came, the sunlight throwing long shadows along the landscape as the hours moved towards sunset, followed by evening darkness. The city began to repeat its endless cycle as traffic and pedestrians began to diminish in the late hours. Groups of employees began to exit the store in small clusters as the department store closed for the evening.

                The last employees locked the doors behind them, their footsteps fading into the darkness as night’s silence wreathed the establishment. Pamela’s heightened senses noticed a new sound, someone was still in the store, it wasn’t the security guard, and she was familiar with the schedule of his rounds. There was a jiggling of the doorway to the display room, and the door swung open. Out of the corner of her vision she saw a familiar figure enter, carrying a mannequin in a tight embrace. The intruder lumbered over with the new mannequin and leaned it against the window. She could see that the new figure was dressed identically to her, with a similar pose and matching hairpiece. As the stranger came closer and she suddenly recognized him, it was Terry Thadowski, the visual merchandising manager! Terry unceremoniously picked up Pamela, lifting her off her display stand and propping her next to the other mannequin. He picked up the near twin and mounted it upon the empty stand, spending several moments carefully adjusting the replacement. The substitute was so similar to her that only close examination would reveal the difference!

                Promptly she was in the clasp of the incorrigible manager, hauled out of the store like a piece of furniture and tossed into the back of a waiting van. Several minutes later the van arrived at a converted warehouse, occupied by several artists' studios. The van backed into a first floor garage, the automatic door rolled back down and locked shut.

                Terry climbed out of the van and walked over to an intercom mounted next to a freight elevator.

                “Hey Harry, its Terry, remember that favor you owed me?”

                “Yeah, I remember, what do ya want?”

                “I have something I want you to keep in storage for a while.”

                “What?”

                “You’ll see, send the elevator down.”

                There was the sound of an electric motor as a large platform descended, stopping with a loud bump and the sound of a solenoid tripping. Terry pulled open the steel lattice doors and carried the mannequin to the waiting platform, closing the elevator’s portal with a steel crash. He held Pamela upright in his arms as the elevator rose creaking to the upper floor.

                A thin, nerdy looking man waited on the next floor, fidgeting slightly as if effected with a nervous condition. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of Terry’s burden as the stiff mannequin was leaned against a convenient wall. A good portion of the floor was taken up by an artist's studio and lodgings, The studio seemed to be dedicated to the sculptural arts; statues, busts and figures in various forms and levels of completion were scattered about.

                Carl lay in relaxed pleasure as a bevy of Mediterranean beauties gave him the most incredible massage in his experience. At least a dozen doe eyed women simultaneously caressed and rubbed every portion of his body till he practically glowed. About half of the former statues were busy at giving Carl physical pleasure, while the other half were arranged around the large indoor pool in statue form. The ladies would take turns attending to his every pleasure; those not attending him were transformed back into statues. Each experiencing the sensation of being a substance other than gold. Statues of silver, platinum, bronze, brass, glass and marble were grouped around the pool, frozen in erotic poses.

                 Hypatia’s hands caressed both sides of his face as she bent over him, occasionally giving gentile kisses to his brow while whispering sweet utterances into his ears.

                “Carl, you will obey my every command, you will forget all else and listen only to me; Hypatia.”

                “Yes, I will, but what about Pamela, I have to go to the store and turn her back.”

                “Forget Pamela, think only of us, of me, there is no Pamela, she never existed, forget her, forget, forget....”

                 Deep inside Carl tried to raise a feeble amount of resistance, but the psychic powers against him were too powerful. All memories of Pamela washed away, as if she had never existed, and always had been a department store mannequin.

                “Carl, you will only think of me, of us, you love us, and we love you, be filled with good cheer and enjoy...”

                His mind went blank for a moment, then a smile crossed his face, he pulled Hypatia’s face closer and planted a deep passionate kiss, all else was forgotten.

                Carl lay back upon the marble surface along the pool, in incredible pleasure as one of the maidens rode his stiffened member, in the height of orgasm. She rocked back and forth, moaning joyfully as she pumped up and down upon him. Simultaneously another maiden in identical throes of joy sat upon his upturned face, riding his outstretched tongue, her pleasure planted firmly upon it. Several other maidens sat along side, waiting their turn to ride Carl, caressing and rubbing every exposed inch of his hard body. On each side of his chest a maiden licked his hard nipples and rubbed him with gentle hands. Carl had no difficulty in holding position, considering that he had transformed himself into a polished marble statue. His manhood a smooth stone phallus, upright and ramrod straight, his tongue a rigid stone dildo, as the women pleased themselves upon his immobile stone body.

                Carl spent several days in the form of a marble statue as the maidens pleasured him and took pleasure from him. Sometimes they would all join in, burying him under a mass of intertwined bodies, indescribably beautiful women focusing all their attention upon his form. Several times, when all were together in mass passion he would reach out with his powers and transform all into polished marble, freezing all into a stone tableaux for hours at a time.

                Hypatia felt growing triumph, Carl was settling more and more under her mind control, becoming an obedient slave. As she learned to command his will she found that he could use the precious touch at a distance, even while transformed into statue form. Gradually his thoughts would be locked completely into endless pleasure, forgetting all else, an indifferent intellect enslaved, by proxy giving Hypatia control of the precious touch. After he had been brought into her absolute dominion, Hypatia decided she would leave him in an inmate state permanently, imprisoned in endless pleasure. Perhaps turned to a gold or marble statue, standing eternally at attention, levitating itself slightly then turning the surrounding air into a cube of solid diamond. A statue embedded in a crystal monolith, not only representing her power, but also being the very instrument of that power!

                She had been giving the idea considerable thought, except as a trifling vessel for the magical powers of the precious touch, he was of no use to her. Hypatia despised all men, they were simple playthings, manipulated, then discarded at her leisure.

                A new idea occurred to her, have him transform into liquid water, form into a smooth column and transmute into purest gold. As an obelisk, polished to a gleaming shine it would truly resemble the tool it was. The enraptured soul would be a magical power source that would do her bidding without question, its physical form the implement it truly was. Carl would soon be a silent, motionless utensil, content at being nothing else.

                Controlling the mansion staff was easy; their feeble wills were easily swayed, hypnotized to ignore the unessential, memories of strange occurrences erased. Occasionally she would command Carl to return to flesh and blood to carry on business and maintain an aura of normalcy, for now...

                The head butler spoke, “Master William, there are 2 gentlemen here to see you on some important business.”

                “Tell them to go away, I’m busy, besides how did they even get through the front gate, I ordered no visitors!”

                “Master William, the security staff allowed them entrance because of the badges they carry, they are police detectives and they wish to have a conversation with you.”

                A minute later the butler ushered in a stern looking pair in business suits both with the attitude that law enforcement officers always seemed to carry.

                “Are you Mr. William, Carl William?”

                “Yes officer,”

                “I’m detective Larry Hooligan and this is my partner, detective Moe Thursday. We are here investigating a missing persons report.”

                “And who is the missing person?”

                “A famous model by the name of Pamela Eclare.”

                The detective pulled out a photo and held it in front of Carl.

                “Carl got a blank look on his face, as if he was almost recalling something, but couldn’t quite remember what it was.”

                “Sorry officer, but I can’t recall ever having seen the lady, who is she.”

                “Pamela Eclare, one of the most famous models in recent history, you don’t even recognize her?”

                “Why no officer, until this moment I never saw her before.”

                Detective Hooligan moved till he was face to face with Carl, his voice taking on a menacing hiss.

                “We have witnesses, photos from press photographers and a very interesting video tape, Mr. William!”

                Nose to nose with Carl, detective Hooligan’s face resembled an angry bulldog about to maul a mail carrier.

                “About 2 weeks ago you were seen in the company of Miss Eclare at William’s department store, you bought her some jewelry and other merchandise. We have an interesting piece of evidence as well, a videotape taken by one of the store security cameras. The security video shows you accompanying her through a door leading into a storeroom, then a few minutes later you, and you alone leave, and that is the last anyone hears of Miss Eclare! The security tape of the storeroom's interior came out blank, what happened in there?”

                Carl got a confused look on his face, his brows wrinkled in concentration as if he were about to remember something, but just couldn’t.

                “I think its time for you to come downtown with us, we have some more questions, Mr. William!”

                Moe, Larry’s partner smiled, flicked his wrists and a pair of handcuffs in hand clicked open...

                Handcuffed, in the back of a squad car on the way to police headquarters, Carl began to feel an increasing unease, as tiny fragments of memory began to assail his senses. He began to remember more and more as the distance from his mansion grew. Just before reaching their destination, miles away, it all came back to him, Pamela, restoring the golden maidens, Hypatia’s hypnotic words and the weeklong orgy with a harem of former statues. Hypatia! Being removed from her presence must have allowed his suppressed memories to return! He began a slow burn as his anger grew, even acquiring a bulldog face remarkably similar to the one detective Hooligan had demonstrated earlier.

                Several hours later after posting bail, Carl passed out of the front of the metropolitan police station accompanied by several of his best lawyers, straight into a terrifying gauntlet consisting a large mob of reporters, cameramen and paparazzi. Floodlights glared and flashes strobed as bundles of microphones and cyclopean cameras were shoved into his face.

                “Mr. William, do you have anything to say about the disappearance of Pamela Eclare?” A well-known reporter bleated as he shoved a mike into Carl’s face.

                Carl almost opened his mouth to tell the reporter to shove off when one of his lawyers intervened by moving between the pair and making an official announcement.

                “My client has nothing to say at the moment, except that we hope to have this cleared up very soon. That is the only statement at the present.”

                After pushing through the herd of media they took refuge inside a waiting limousine, as soon as the door closed the limo sped off as a torrent of reporters ran alongside briefly.

                “The first place we’re headed to is my department store!” Carl commanded, “And driver, make sure no one follows us, use every trick you learned at that counter terrorism driving course you took!”

                The next few minutes was a twisting and turning path though back alleys and side streets as Carl’s well trained chauffeur lost every pursing TV van and carload of paparazzi. Parking the limo behind the store they entered through a loading dock into the rear storerooms. Carl had his lawyers remain behind as he walked through the main floor to the entryway leading to the display window. Opening the door to the display, then walking behind the row of mannequins, stopping when he reached Pamela. As soon as he restored her to human form he was going to enjoy seeing a pair of detectives squirm in embarrassment.

                “Hi Pam, here I am.” Carl whispered into the ear of the still figure, resting his hand on its glossy plastic shoulder, “ I’m sorry you had to spend an extra week here, but I’ll explain later.”

                And brought his magic powers into play. Nothing happened, Carl got a confused look and tried again, Pamela remained unmoving plastic. He walked around to the front of her and was shocked to realize that the mannequin before him wasn’t Pamela! He checked every other mannequin in the display window, and every other display, Pamela wasn’t to be found! Carl began to get a frantic look as a dull feeling of anxiety began to course through him.

                Then, he remembered he had the ability to locate Pamela magically, wherever she was. He concentrated his magic and began to weave the proper spell that would seek out her soul. As he centered his thoughts a disquieting change began to come about, the spell seemed to weaken and fade, suddenly Hypatia’s face materialized before him. Her eyes lanced through his soul like ethereal spikes, causing the locator spell to dissipate into nothingness.

                Hypatia laughed and spoke with a telepathic roar, “Forget your poor Pamela, you are mine now, return to me my love, for I and the maidens are your only true love now!”

                “No!” Carl shouted as he pressed his hands into his temples, resisting Hypatia’s mesmerizing gaze, “I must find her, rescue her!”

                “Forget her, it is her destiny to remain a figure of molded plastic for eternity, disregard her, she is nothing but a eye pleasing ornament and will always be.” Hypatia’s eyes blazed with renewed fury as her mental voice grew louder, “ Pamela is an object, a thing, merely a statue, of no consequence, to be discarded like any inanimate object, the figure was never a person, forget, forget!”

                With a superhuman burst of psychic energy, Carl broke the connection with only moments to spare, realizing that in a few more seconds he would of lost to Hypatia, forgotten Pamela, stranding her as a mannequin for eternity!

                Hypatia, smiled, distance had allowed him to break the mental control she had erected in Carl’s mind, but only temporarily. With time she would gradually regain control over her new mind slave and through him control the awesome power of the precious touch! Carl’s affection for Pamela; his previous love interest had provided an anchor from being swept away by Hypatia’s psychic current. This Pamela must be put out of his mind forever, gotten rid of permanently!

                Hypatia realized that to gain enough power to overcome Carl’s defenses she would need to enlist the aid of another psychic, combining their powers into an unstoppable hypnotic force. She closed her eyes and began to channel an astral projection and seek out a fellow psychic, her eyes shut tightly and her brow furrowed as she began the hunt.

                Madame Crooke, was reciting a mantra before a circle of women, sitting cross-legged on soft cushions as they swayed to her chant. “Women are the channels of spiritual peace, bringing blessings to us all, men are the disruptive force, taking away love and kindness.”

                The circle answered in turn, “Women are bringers of good and light, women must love and protect each other, love and protect each other, love and protect each other...”

                In the center of the lavishly furnished temple, upon a raised marble dais a large glass case stood. Within the case a crystal clear sculpture of two women embraced in a moment of carnal love glittered under a set of spotlights. The Madame had spared no expense when she had relocated from far away Alaska down to the better pickings and warmer weather of the lower 48 states. Converting a storefront to a spiritual temple and mounting the acrylic statues in a display case had been simple; the scam was going to be a winner!

                Madame Crooke tuned her psychic powers and reached out to tap a small portion of the psychic energy of the two enraptured souls locked within their crystal bodies. A wave of indescribable pleasure filled the Madame as the spiritual energy flowed into her. Tendrils of orgasmic energy shot out of the Madame and jumped from women to women, joining all in a spiritual circuit. Everyone in the joined circle cried out in joy as all experienced orgasms beyond their wildest imagination, moans of pleasure howled from their wide open mouths as they quivered and shuddered in delight! The orgasmic circle remained in spiritual contact for several minutes, fading when the physical limits of human bodies within the circle were reached. The women slumped in exhaustion, panting from exertion; smiles of contentment upon their faces as the Madame broke the circle. Everytime she tapped the psychic pleasure she wished it would go on forever, but alas, the limits of her own body made that impossible.

                She dismissed the cluster of rich heiresses and wealthy businesswomen, mentally counting the financial take for that one session. About to close up shop for the day and lock the doors, she paused, feeling a presence within the room.

                Before her an unfamiliar face appeared, materializing into a translucent figure before her, who then spoke,” I am Hypatia, like you, a seer and mind reader.”

                Taken a bit aback, trying to look dignified, the Madame straightened her shoulders, and replied, “You have the courtesy of addressing Madame Crooke, seer of the unknown, channeler of spirits and reader of thoughts, what brings you to my temple?”

                “Have you ever wondered how two living souls became embedded within crystal forms, living on in eternal pleasure, never tiring, freed from the limits of flesh and blood?”

                “Yes, I have pondered the question, I have never been able to find an answer.”

                “There is a man who has a magical power beyond all else, who transformed two lovers into unmoving beings of crystal delight, granting eternal joy and life eternal. A man who I was able to control, but through accident fell out of my grasp and is rebelling against me. I need the help of another like myself, together, our powers joined we can regain control of the man and thus his power.”

                The Madame pondered for a moment and replied, “ And if we gain power over this man, what will I get out of it?”

                “Down deep inside you, as you tap into the spiritual energy of the two enchanted statues, it raises a craving, a desire within you. You wish you could become as them, freed from the limits of frail human flesh, becoming a statue of incorruptible substance and live as they, in eternal pleasure.”

                The Madame sighed, relaxed her shoulders and nodded in assent.

                “I can grant you your fondest wish, your ultimate desire, look into my eyes and let our minds join, share our knowledge, powers and thus attain our common goal.”

                Hypatia began the next step in her plan, concentrating again she began to seek Pamela’s spiritual aura. Her mental link had allowed her to absorb most of Carl’s knowledge, finding a mannequin with a human spirit residing within, was childsplay. She roamed the astral plane, twisting between dimensions as she homed in on Pamela’s aura, finally locating her.

                Reading Pamela’s thoughts and the thoughts of an artist, learning how the mannequin had been taken from the department store to the studio. Hypatia concentrated upon the artist, placing angry thoughts into his mind, forming distrust and fears of betrayal, counterfeit paranoia to serve her needs.

                Harry thought about it for a second, he had enough of Terry taking advantage of him, it was payback time! He picked up Pamela and moved the mannequin to the work area. A client had commissioned a series of Romanesque sculptures for a Las Vegas casino. The job involved taking standard department store mannequins and modifying them into fake marble sculptures. The lightweight fiberglass figures were easy to modify into imitation stone sculptures, costing a great deal less than real marble statues.

                Harry removed the mannequin’s legs, gluing them onto a low fiberglass pedestal. After the epoxy glue had set Harry set the section upright, a lone pedestal with a pair of shapely legs and waist. He dolloped large amounts of epoxy glue on the flat surface atop the mannequin’s hips and a layer on the bottom of her upper torso, then joined the two pieces together, hearing a satisfying click as the sockets snapped in place. The industrial grade epoxy would ensure that the sections would be joined together permanently. Soon Pamela had been completely reassembled, all her separate components and pedestal bonded permanently together into one piece.

                Next Harry troweled in a thick paste of epoxy putty into and over every seam, after the putty had hardened the surface was sanded down until no sign of any seam or join existed. A layer of epoxy glue was placed upon its baldhead and a nylon wig styled in a Roman fashion glued in place. The rest of the mannequin was covered with paper and masking tape leaving only the wig was exposed. A spray gun was used to put a thin coating of epoxy resin on the wig, when the resin cured the insubstantial layer locked the individual fibers rigidly in place. Another spray gun, with a long thin metal tube attached to its snout, dispensed polyurethane foam with the consistency of shaving cream. The tube was inserted into the hairpiece between the individual fibers and the foam injected inside. By carefully adjusting the process at different points the entire interior of the hairpiece was filled, after a few minutes a chemical reaction caused the foam to set into a rigid mass. A second coating of wet epoxy was applied, and then a dispenser gun sprayed a cloud of small fiberglass fibers that stuck to the wet surface, building up a thin layer of fiberglass flocking. A second layer of epoxy was sprayed on and allowed to set, the hairpiece becoming a strong lightweight fiberglass shell filled with rigid plastic foam. The masking paper was removed; the hairpiece sanded slightly, the result was sculpted hair in one solid piece, appearing as if it had been always part of the statue.

                Layers of paint were sprayed upon the mannequin and its pedestal, slowly building up a glossy coating. Larry pulled off the industrial grade filter mask clamped to his face and stood back to admire his handiwork. The mannequin had been transformed; it now resembled a statue carved out of white alabaster marble, only an expert could tell otherwise. Soon it would be packed in a crate and shipped to Las Vegas, becoming part of a display at one of the new casinos opening in the gambler's paradise.

Coming soon - Chapter 10: Vegas on a Pedestal