Victory: The Invincible - Chapter 3

Wynn

Dingalingalingaling

The bell that told us when customers were coming in chimes its familiar song as I begin my morning shift. The cool morning air left chills on my skin, a flurry of goosebumps slowly dissipates as I turn on the heat in the shop. I hang up my jacket and place my apron over my characteristically short button-down shirt as I head into the back to prep for today's breakfast rush.

Breakfast rush goes by fairly quickly. Kim, my coworker and partner on a lot of my shifts, tends to chat a lot with the patrons as I quickly whip up their morning coffees. She's one of the main reasons people come here. She's sweet and friendly and gorgeous, so she helps them feel welcome. And it's my job to make sure orders get filled.

We make a great team.

Speaking of talking with customers, that's what she's doing right now as the breakfast rush slows down. Chatting to a large, very stoic looking man in a business suit. His briefcase rests on the floor next to him and Kim, being an insatiable flirt, twists her bobbed blonde hair with her left hand as she crosses her other arm under her breasts, making them appear plump to the apparently unimpressed businessman.

As they chat, I go about my duties, cleaning the espresso machines and prepping more paperware for the lunch rush. As I turn to the sink and concentrate on making sure every bit of this pitcher is clean, I hear a loud WHOOOOSH!

What just happened?

I turn to where Kim and the businessman were talking and they're both gone.

“Kim?” I call out, looking around the corner where we had a reading nook set up in the shop. Nope. Not there.

“Oh no…”

I knew that stoic guy looked familiar, I just didn't know why. He's the Amphere. One of my nemeses. And now…

He has Kim.

The Amphere was a cruel and sadistic man. He often kidnaps women and tickles them until they are piles of giggling goo, unable to quell their laughter for hours after he removes his powerful feathers. And that was his tool of choice: the feather. He often taunted me into battling him as Victory, and always captured me. I never understood why, but his feathers were the most ticklish of any I had ever encountered before even taking my heightened sensitivity as Victory into account. They seemed to be unlike any bird plumage I had ever seen, with an iridescent, almost rainbow-like color and both the softest, fluffiest ticklish fronds and the most torturous blunt shafts I ever had the pleasure-... err… uh, displeasure to be tickled by.

One of his favorite ways to smoke me out was to capture a bystander and, late at night, chain them up on top of a roof and tickle them mercilessly. He always knew I would hear the howls of laughter and pleas for release and would come running. And he always had some kind of plan to capture me. I’m sure this time is no different.

Except that he has my friend. I guess that makes things very different.

I call my boss to cover my shift, making up a vague story about a family emergency. I rush out of the cafe as soon as he arrives, darting into a nearby alley and transforming into Victory. With a hushed whoosh, I propel myself into the air, listening intently for anything that might lead me to Kim’s location.

Come on, Kim… Where are you?...

____________________________________________________________________________

Kim

“AH!” I wake with a jolt. A rusty old warehouse surrounds me as sunlight trickles through the many holes in the ceiling. The sound of rustling metal and swinging chains hums in my ears as I take in my surroundings. Water drips into a puddle somewhere nearby. The concrete slab floor is damp with no structurally sound exterior to protect it from the elements. I try to step forward only to be met with immediate resistance at my wrists which are chained above my head. I shiver as a cold breeze chills my bare midriff. My clothes have been removed, leaving me in my bra and panties. My bare feet press against the cold concrete floor as I pull against the chains securing me in place, my ankles free to move but my wrists bound firmly.

“Somebody?...” I whimper. “IS ANYBODY THERE?”

“Only me…” is the lone response as a looming, dark figure emerges from the shadows. It’s wearing armor fashioned like a colorful dragon covered in bright feathers. A reptilian style helmet with vicious eyes peers at me, striking fear in me. I feel my heartbeat quicken as the figure approaches, my own body shackled and vulnerable. I can’t speak. Hell, I can’t even breathe… Why is this happening to me?

The armored menace moves closer to me and I try to pull away, my arms still shackled to the exposed beam above my head as it reaches a hand towards me, caressing my cheek gingerly.

“Do not be afraid. I am not here to harm you and I apologize that it has come to this. Unfortunately, you just happened to be the perfect bait,” the deep voice explains.

With a slow, deliberate move, the large man grips a bright green and yellow iridescent feather on his armor around the stem and plucks it, holding it by his side as if it were some kind of saber. The feather seems to sparkle in the sunlight filtering through the tattered walls and ceiling, appearing almost angelic in nature. I’ve been following Victory for ages now. Well, at least since she came on the scene. And now I’ve been captured by one of her nemeses to be used as bait? No! I can’t let Victory get drawn in by this villain. I have to hold back. I know what he’s going to do… I have to…

The man lifts the feather towards my outstretched armpit and begins wiggling it back and forth in the air menacingly. It points straight at my silky smooth underarm and gently sways back and forth as the man slowly approaches my skin with the soft plumage. As soon as the feather meets my bare armpit, I feel a shock of ticklishness rush through my entire body like I’ve never felt before.

“HRNNN!” I grunt, trying to hold back my laughter as the feather slowly strokes up and down my armpit. My god, does it tickle like hell. But if I laugh, then Victory will try and save me. And if she tries to save me, she’ll end up trapped just like I am. I have to stay composed.

That damn feather continues caressing my defenseless underarm. Up and down. All the way back up to the very top of my armpit, and then back down to the side strap of my bra. Those fronds frolic all over my ticklish skin and the gentle breeze causing them to rock back and forth makes the tickling motions even more relentless. My twisting and tiptoeing distracts my mind from the tickling, but not nearly enough to ensure my laughter won’t break free from my lips and alert Victory to fall right into Amphere’s trap.

“Eep!” I accidentally squeak out as those tickling feathers assault my outstretched armpits. I purse my lips back together and the Amphere continues his tickling.

“Come on now, I know you want to see your friend,” Amphere teases, his deep voice menacing beneath that dragon helmet.

He’s right… I don’t want to draw Victory into this trap, but it would be awesome to meet her. Hopefully, I’ll get to meet her under different circumstances.

“Ahhhh-!” I gasp and hold back an even louder laugh as the feather has brushed along my ribcage.

“Come on now. Let’s hear that giggle,” the Amphere removes a second feather from his armor and wiggles it in my other armpit, both now being tickled by the iridescent feathers. I’m sure my face looks quite silly, contorting and scrunching to try and keep my laughter contained. But with both armpits being tickled so skillfully and my arms unable to defend my bare body, there’s no way I can-

“AHHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” I hear myself bellow with peals of laughter. Finally, I couldn’t contain myself anymore and since I’ve already let out a shriek loud enough to wake the dead, I allow my laughs and pleas and thrashing to flow freely.

And I hear a loud WHOOSH as a puff of dust glides past the Amphere…

_________________________________________

Victory

As the dust clears, I quickly take note of my surroundings. Kim is tied up, arms above her head, wearing nothing but her bra and underwear. The Amphere is standing in front of her wielding two of his brightly colored feathers. Kim is panting, obviously having already been tickled by the villainous fiend. I get to my feet, my skimpy outfit exposing my entire midriff, a generous amount of cleavage, and my long legs.

“Ahh, there you are, Victory,” the dragon growls.

“Let her go, Amphere,” I demand,, cocking my fist back and preparing for a fight.

“Where’s the fun in that?” the low rumble escapes the reptilian helmet. “We were just getting started. Would you like to join us?”

Suddenly, the Amphere moves with lightning speed towards me, lunging at me with his massive feathers. If he can just land a single flick of one of those feathers on one of my tickle spots, then he can bind me up and demand I leave this city under his control. All he’s ever wanted is power over the financial districts here. And I’m the only one who’s stood in his way since he was too incompetent to do it more diplomatically.

I dodge to the left, his feathers barely missing my exposed side. As fast as I can move, I lunge towards Kim, hoping to free her before Amphere has the chance to turn around.

“K- I mean… I’m here to help!” I nearly blurt out her name as I land beside her, holding the chains binding her tightly and pulling. As the links begin to stretch, I hear the Amphere push off the concrete wall of the warehouse and fly towards me. I duck his feather sword and, in one swift motion, I send an uppercut into the villain’s gut, sending him flying upwards and crashing into the ceiling.

I reach back towards the chains and pull as hard as I can, finally snapping them. The chains fall to the ground and Kim rubs her wrists, finally free of her shackles.

“Thank you, Victory!” she hugs me tightly. I hug her back gently.

“We have to get out of here,” I tell her. “Follow me!”

We run towards the closest open hole in the tattered walls of the warehouse. Just before we make it out, I hear a FHWIP and feel the quick brush of a feather against my side. I let out a squeak as it quickly tickles me. Almost immediately after, I feel a gust of wind rush past me and a feather against my bare midriff, wiggling back and forth rapidly. The Amphere already recovered and is standing in front of me wielding his signature feather blade.

I fall to the ground, trying to use my hands to protect my midriff, but the feather moves too quickly. The Amphere tickles my sides when I protect my tummy and he moves to my neck as I cover my midriff. He’s too quick and practiced at keeping my powers at bay through the relentless tickles. All my strength, my speed, my flight, everything… All gone as long as he can keep the tickling up. He steps towards me, keeping pace with his merciless tickle assault on my bare skin. Kim is frozen in fear as she watches me be tickled so torturously. The Amphere removes a small device from his belt with his free hand and lets it go. The orb floats in place as he lowers his free hand, continuously tickling me with the feather in his other hand. My laughter echoes throughout the empty warehouse as the device approaches my midriff. I try to cover my stomach as it moves closer to me, but The Amphere just tickles my sides which causes my arms to jerk back and protect them, opening up my stomach for the device to land perfectly inside my exposed belly button. I hear a soft whirring before what feels like a thousand feathers inserts into my belly button and begins tickling all over the walls and floor of my deep navel.

“AAHHHHHAHAHAHAHAHA!” I cackle, doubling over now with the ticklish torture overwhelming my senses. There’s no coming back from this. It’s just too much.

“I see you’re enjoying my latest piece of tech,” the Amphere chuckles. “Now, let’s get you and your friend here strapped up. I have a lot of fun plans in store for you both.”

“Wha- Me too? I thought I was just the bait…” Kim whines as the Amphere approaches her, my cascading laughter still roaring in the background.

“Yes. You too. I enjoy having extra toys around just in case one needs a break,” the Amphere cranes his neck to look back at my giggling puddle of a body on the floor, laughing my heart out as the robot brushes and feathers all inside my exposed navel. “Although, from what I understand, this one never needs a break.”

The Amphere turns back towards Kim, smiling widely beneath his dragon mask.

“So, you’ll just be accompanying her for my entertainment.”

Kim’s face twists in horror as her eyes go wide and her jaw seems to hit the floor. The Amphere truly is a sadistic demon, content to make others suffer for his own personal enjoyment.

I can barely see the outline of the two as The Amphere tosses Kim over his shoulder and moves to do the same to me. Despite my desperate clawing at the device in my navel, I can’t remove it to save my life. A mixture of distraction from the ticklish torture and the loss of my powers has left me incapable of escaping the slightest amount of tickle torture.

I’m helplessly tossed over The Amphere’s shoulder and taken to the same place Kim was just chained up, The Amphere now securing us both to the same beam with identical chains. The tickling in my navel hasn’t let up at all as The Amphere secures my wrists in the shackles next to Kim. We’re standing side by side with our wrists dangling from the shackles above our heads. Kim is dressed only in her bra and panties while I’m clad in my skimpy superhero costume with its bright red coloration, extremely short sleeveless crop top, heart-shaped cutout revealing plenty of cleavage, and bikini brief bottoms that reveal my entire toned midriff. The “sleeves” that run from my wrists to my upper arm don’t protect much of my body from my ticklish weakness. Of course, it’s also incredibly difficult to think of a way out while my belly button is being so relentlessly tickled by this damn orb.

“Now that I have you right where I want you, Victory,” the armored evil scoffs. “I think it’s time for us to have a little play date.”

With this, he removes two feathers from his armor, replacing the tattered one he initially threw to capture me, and waves them in the air. The fronds dance like leaves in the breeze. The shifting sunbeams hitting them illuminating various shades and colors as the iridescent material sways. I’m still cackling like a witch while Kim stands beside me horrified.

“I’ll let your little friend here watch for a while. Since she seems so invested in your wellbeing, I’m sure she’d be relieved to see you smile.”

With this final threat, The Amphere reaches his feathers out to my outstretched armpits and begins flicking them back and forth, eliciting even more raucous laughter from my already bellowing belly.

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! PLEASE NOHOHOHO MORE!” I beg, already overwhelmed by the tickling sensations on my armpits and in my navel. I’m already extremely ticklish. But in my Victory form, I’m extremely ticklish. Like, pumped up to 11 ticklish. Especially on one specific spot that my costume unfortunately leaves very open…

Those hellish fronds tickle all across my exposed and vulnerable armpits, my strength completely sapped by the ticklish torture making me too weak to fight back. The brushing inside my navel compounds the ticklish sensations, forcing me to bounce up and down in my bonds as I feel the panic rising in my chest. What if the tickling never stops? What if he keeps me locked in here with more of these drones? What if he never lets me go?

What if that’s exactly what I want?

My face flushes as that last thought crosses my mind. All sense of self drains from my body as the tickling starts to break me, making me beg for it to stop, but secretly… I don’t think I want it to. Those feathers tickle like hell in my armpits, the wispy, soft barbs dancing effortlessly along my smooth skin. But it feels so… good…

I laugh and dance in my shackles, completely unable to beg at this point as the tickling overwhelms me. The feathers the Amphere tickles with are famously the most ticklish feathers in existence. Thankfully, he seems to be the only one to know where they come from. I can’t imagine the kind of trouble I’d be in if the Tarantula got a hold of them. Or the Pink Prowler. Or…

My heart races at the thought of being tickled by all of my nemeses at once. This tickle torture is sending me into a full-blown obsession. What is happening in my brain? Why do I want even more of this?

“Victory! Your clothes!” I hear Kim yell over my raucous ticklish laughter. I look down to see the bright red of my outfit slowly wash away into black. The sleeves on my arms slowly dissolve away from my arms, leaving them completely bare. My outfit becomes even more revealing. And I feel… I feel… like I could just stay here and be tickled forever.

“More…” I moan between peals of laughter. “Plehehehease more!”

The Amphere takes a step back, shocked at the words leaving my lips. My cackling never ceases as the navel orb continues its ticklish work. He grits his teeth and plunges the feathers back into my armpits, tickling even more furiously than he did before.

“I’ll give you more!” he shouts. “You think you can play mind games with me? Just surrender!”

I let out a piercing screech that descends into frantic laughter as the feathers meet my skin again, swinging side to side as much as my shackles will allow. A ticklish tear trickles from my eye as I continue to daydream about staying like this forever. Or even better. What if the Tarantula showed up? Those robot hands of his could get my sides. Oh, and Pink Prowler! Her wickedly ticklish claws would feel so good and tickly on the soles of my feet…

“Stop it! Stop!” I hear Kim yell above my shrieks and howls.

“Oh yes, I nearly forgot about my second toy. Let’s not leave you out of this,” the Amphere reaches a feather towards Kim’s exposed midriff, waving it against her ticklish skin and she giggles.

“Is that all you got?” she taunts him.

The Amphere’s face distorts into a grimace. “You want more, too? Fine!”

He places both feathers on Kim’s defenseless sides and begins tickling away at her, causing her to skip up and down with laughter erupting from her lips.

“EEEEEEHAHAHAHAHAHA!” she squeals, dancing the ticklish dance of a ticklish lee as her laughter joins mine in bouncing off the empty warehouse walls. The orb in my navel never ceases tickling as Kim is the focus of the Amphere.

Until the orb suddenly stops, that is. My laughter slows as I look down at the orb which drops out of my navel and clicks against the ground. I gasp for air, the red color returning to my suit and my sleeves again adorning my arms.

The battery died in that thing… I mumble, almost disappointedly.

The Amphere is too distracted tickling Kim to notice my laughter has stopped. His feathers diligently tickle away at the gorgeous blonde’s sides, taking up and down rapidly as she skips and squeaks in her chains.

In one swift move, I break the chains holding me to the ceiling and grab the Amphere, knocking the feathers from his hands. I pin him to the ground and use the chains that held me to wrap him up, closing the links around each other with my bare hands.

“You’re not going anywhere. And you’re not going to hurt my friend anymore,” I growl. The Amphere lies  on the ground defeated as I rise to my feet and free the panting Kim.

“Those feathers tickle so bad…” she mutters through gasps for air.

“Tell me about it,” I giggle.

“How do you deal with all the tickling?”

“I guess… I guess you could say I have gotten used to it,” I smile at Kim warmly as we leave the warehouse together. I scoop Kim up and fly her back to the back alley of the café.

As we’re saying our goodbyes, Kim asks, “Hey, I know you gotta keep some things secret. But what happened to your clothes back at the warehouse?”

My eyebrows scrunch up and I frown, “I’m not really sure myself… there’s still a lot I’m learning.”

Kim’s soft eyes are comforting in my uncertainty as she smiles. “If you need someone to talk to, you can always talk to me. I’m a huge fan.”

Kim nervously scratches her cheek as she mutters the last sentence and runs inside, grabbing a spare change of clothes and getting back to her shift.

“A… fan?” I stammer. I figured people knew about my superheroine identity, but… a fan? That feels kind of… nice.

I fly a block or two away and turn back into Wynn, the magically red Victory outfit turning to sparkling dust as it falls off of me. I walk around the corner, back into the café, and immediately hear, “Wynn! There you are! I had the craziest day!”