Hivemind Control

The conversation carried on for awhile after the revelation, almost ignoring the fact that the Central Equestrian champion distance swimmer was about to retire from the sport. Celestia had since relaxed, but the feeling in her gut had not gone away; not even three glasses of wine had cleared it.

Some of the guests had gone home, leaving only two. Only Celestia and the manager were still around, aside from the residents of the manor. Things were winding down, and Celestia was planning to leave as soon as she finished her wine. She didn't want to overstay her welcome, after all.

"You have a manager lined up for next year, Dip?"

Dip just shook his head. "Just a coach."

The manager smirked. "Tell ya what, I'm short a client next season. There'll be an opening for you. I'd give you my card, but I don't have one on me right now."

"I've been to your office a hundred times. I know where to find you."

The manager chuckled. "How's about a preview of what I'll be working with? Come on, let's see your moves."

Dip and his father looked to each other and smirked. Setting their drinks down, they stood up simultaneously and tossed their robes aside. Underneath, they were both wearing their swimming gear, and after a quick adjustment to tuck away their manes and tails, they brought themselves out to the pool.

Seeing Dip disrobe sent shivers down Celestia's spine. Arguably, he was more clothed now than he was a moment ago, as more of his body was covered, but with the form-fitting outfit, her imagination was running wild, and her mind went blank.

She was brought back to her senses as the host put his hoof on her shoulder. "Come on, you can be the judge."

"O-okay," stammered Celestia, setting down her wine glass and following everypony out to the pool. Everypony was gathered at the end closest to the door, with Dip and his father stretching and limbering up. They both had strong, muscular bodies, and seemed to be the very picture of health, exactly what one would expect from world-class athletes. Celestia was given a whistle as the swimmers took their positions.

"Okay, now standard competition rules apply," instructed the manager. "At the moment the whistle sounds, you both dive in and swim to the other side. Then you turn and come back. That's one lap. We'll have five laps in total, and the first one to touch back here at the end of five laps is the winner. Stay in your lane, no fighting, no cheating. Ready?"

"Ready," sounded the stallions in unison.

Celestia blew into the whistle and the two dove into the water. They were neck and neck as they rushed down to the other side. There had been a lot more splashing at the competition earlier, but perhaps that was from the other contestants. These two seemed to cut through the water with ease and grace, even sometimes diving below the surface entirely for smoother movement. As they came back, however, Dip was half a head behind.

As the second lap began, Celestia couldn't take her eyes off of Dip. His body, contorting and contracting, writhing and stretching, had transfixed her, and every movement of his muscles caused the feeling in her gut to return and amplify. It almost felt like there was something moving in there, brought on by her thoughts. As ridiculous as that sounded, that's what it felt like. But it wasn't a bad feeling. It actually felt kind of... arousing.

"That's three," nodded Celestia as he returned.

"Begging your pardon, but that's four," corrected the manager. "This is the last lap."

Celestia thought back. She didn't remember the third lap ending. Dip had finished a head behind on the first, a head and a half for the second, she'd watched his butt scrunch up as he rolled beneath her, and now he'd just finished the fourth. Where had the third lap ended? She should have remembered, but she couldn't place it.

It seemed as though Dip was going to lose at the final turn. He was a good second and a half behind his father reaching the opposing wall. They didn't look like they were holding back, either, so to be this close to his father was a feat on its own. suddenly, Dip took a deep breath, kicked off the far wall, and with his hooves clenched together as if he was diving again, he skidded across the water, splashing significantly more than he had previously, as was his father. The final stretch had turned from a trial of endurance to a sprint, and that was allegedly Dip's specialty. So much so that, despite being more than a body length behind at the halfway point, Celestia couldn't tell who won. Their hooves seemed to touch the wall at the exact same time.

The manager pulled the host out of the water and wrapped him in a towel. "Boy wasn't kidding when he said he was a good sprinter. That last dash was a knockout!"

The host's wife stepped up to hug her husband. "Swim like that at nationals, and you'll be going out on a high note."

Celestia offered her hoof to Dip to pull him out of the pool. "You were fantastic."

Dip grabbed her hoof and pulled himself out. "I need a bit more work. I can't start my career by losing like that."

"I couldn't tell who won," admitted Celestia. "Looked like a tie to me."

"I was about a quarter second behind," grumbled Dip. "I heard his hoof hit just before mine."

"Still, it was a close call," chuckled the manager. "You swim like that, you'll be taking your daddy's place in the rankings for sure. Unless some new upstart decides to make a fool of everypony, but that's not something you plan for. You're gonna be a real winner, kid; it's in your blood."

Dip nodded and turned to Celestia. As he looked into her eyes, the intensity of her gut-wrenching arousal intensified, and she found her back legs tensing up. "I'll try to increase my stamina," he said, locking his gaze with hers. "At my current levels, I can go fast or last a long time. If I keep pushing, though, I'm sure I can penetrate that barrier and keep a solid pace for longer."

Celestia could do no more than nod. While what he said was expressly about his ability to swim, her mind had putrefied his words into a sexual fantasy. She couldn't let him know what she was thinking.

"That's my boy," smiled the host, breaking the tension. "He's going to surpass me, and I'm going to help him do it. Just you watch."

Celestia nodded again. She certainly wouldn't be opposed to watching him.