Super Sales on Super Heroes

by William D. Arand

  Getting out of the car, Felix looked up at the sign hanging above the entrance to the building.

  “Reznik, Blacketer, and Troy,” the sign read. Supposedly they were the ones who owned the business, though Felix had nothing to do with them.

  Walking up to the front door, he pulled the handled and stepped inside.

  Waiting for him was the same steel-haired matron he always saw behind the reception desk.

  She never smiled, she didn’t say anything out of line, and Felix wasn’t even sure if she blinked.

  Maybe she’s a robot.

  “Felix Campbell. Monthly meeting for my trust,” Felix said, picking up the clipboard and signing himself in.

  “Take a seat, they’ll be with you shortly,” said the woman without a hint of anything resembling a personality.

  Rolling his eyes, Felix sat down in a leather recliner. The lobby was empty, and he couldn’t help but feel like they were making him wait to prove a point.

  That they could make him wait.

  Felix picked up a magazine and started to leaf through it.

  He was halfway through an article about the fact that the economy was on the rise since the takeover before they called him in.

  Tossing the magazine negligently onto a table, Felix followed behind one of the young associates as they led him to the same conference room they always went to.

  She gestured to the lone chair that he always sat at.

  Felix took the proffered seat. Looking up, he found himself facing the eight lawyers his aunt and uncle had contracted should something happen to them.

  One of the clauses of those worst-case scenarios was if they happened to be missing. And that they were to be declared dead in absentia, providing that it was the appropriate amount of time they were missing.

  Along with that provision came an impressive and full set of rules they’d had to put together to protect themselves, their estate, and Felix.

  “Good afternoon, Mr. Campbell. Good to see you, as always,” said the lead legal expert. The group that had been put together was evenly split by men and women, though they seemingly came from every background imaginable.

  The head honcho of this little group was an older man in his fifties by the name of Mr. Joseph, who had a head of salt-and-pepper hair and a clean-shaven face. He looked like your next-door neighbor—minus the fact that he was a bloodsucking bastard without a soul.

  “First order of business, we’ve reviewed your request to have a regular gardener take care of the front and back yard,” said Joseph.

  He’d gotten sick of mowing the massive yards and decided he might as well make use of the maintenance money that was set aside.

  “It’s been approved and we’ll be hiring an appropriate candidate to take care of the grounds. Salary will be paid out of the maintenance account, of course.”

  Felix nodded at that. That was fine. He didn’t like them picking the candidate, but he wasn’t going to argue with them. They’d just start quoting clauses and subsections at him.

  “Second, and I apologize for this, as I don’t believe this is fun for anyone, we need to discuss your living arrangements.”

  Felix lifted his eyebrows at this. “What about them? I’ve been living in that home for as long as I can remember. Grew up there.”

  “Yes. Well. As you’re living there, we believe you should be paying rent. Should have been paying rent as well.”

  Felix shook his head, his mouth opening and closing twice.

  What the actual fuck? What stupid horse shit is this?

  “To that end, we need to collect roughly one hundred and fifty thousand dollars from you in overdue rent.”

  “Are you fucking kidding!?” Felix stood up, pressing his hands to the table.

  Four of the people on the other side of the table looked uncomfortable, while the other four seemed sure of themselves.

  “It’s all perfectly accurate, I assure you.”

  “You want me to pay rent for living in a home that I’ve been in since as far back as I can remember?” Felix shouted at them.

  “That’s correct. The amount is in your favor, I assure you, since it’s mostly free of interest. I’m sure this is a shock to you, so we’ll conclude our business with this item,” Joseph said with an oily smile.

  “To that end, I believe if we were to set up a simple payment method, from you to your parents, and put it at a set rate, as well as your monthly rent, we can get this taken care of without a problem.”

  “And what exactly are you thinking is the rent?” Felix asked, his anger starting to make his vision blur as his heart thudded in his chest.

  “Well, according to the survey we conducted of the area…” Joseph said, looking for a paper in front of him.

  A survey? They’ve been planning this. This isn’t random or ill-thought-out.

  “The rent for the house would be roughly twenty-three hundred a month. Though since you’re a relative of the owner, we believe fifteen hundred would be more comparable.”

  Felix shook his head slowly. This couldn’t actually be happening. This was insanity at a level he’d never thought possible.

  This was something you saw on a terrible movie.

  “I see that this has upset you greatly. We’ll discuss restitution and repayment at our next meeting,” Joseph said, stacking the papers in front of himself.

  “No, we’ll discuss it now. Give me a damn copy of the agreement, now, as I know I’m entitled that, and show me where this is possible,” Felix said, grinding his teeth.

  “That or I call the police and we have them sort this out.”

  That got their attention. Suddenly everyone was a lot less confident.

  Joseph blinked, and then withdrew a packet of papers from his briefcase. Coming over beside Felix, he set the papers down and flipped through a couple pages. Laying on the table face up was an entire section about “living in the house” and appropriate rental rates.

  Damn it. Seriously? What the hell is this?

  Felix started to read through the mind-numbing legal jargon before giving up. He was in no mood to try and ferret out where this clusterfuck of a shitshow went.

  “Fine, we’ll talk again,” Felix pushed the words out between his teeth. Snatching up the documents, he stomped out of the offices, making sure to slam every door in his way.

  It wasn’t until he pulled onto the road that his head cleared at all.

  “They’re trying to drive me out. I’m sure there’s something they want. Something they’re after. Okay, during this week-long vacation, we’re gonna sit down and really go over the contract and will. We’ll get this figured out. Yeah.”

  Felix sighed, and gripped the wheel tighter.

  He couldn’t afford the rent, to be frank. A fast food manager didn’t exactly make stacks of cash. Not in the least.

  No, this would end up with him falling into a never-ending pit of debt to his own family.

  Growling, Felix slammed his hand into the steering wheel as his anger spiked again.

  Chapter 3 - It Begins -

  The garage was utterly silent as he stared at the three open wooden coffins.

  Without realizing the impact of what he was doing, he’d opened all three boxes, made sure each one was in a coma, and confirmed the draw at one hundred percent. Then he’d wandered off with his supplies and set up the “ward,” as he was calling it.

  Dropping the money off as instructed, he’d gone back into the garage.

  Only on his return did he now realize he wasn’t sure who was the one he’d bought first, and who were the two he’d just purchased.

  He’d reverted all his modifications back to the baseline to get his points back.

  They all looked the same. He really hadn’t paid much attention to anything that would have made the first one stand out from the others.

  They all looked as if they were corpses that’d gone through a meat grinder.

  Ah well. Doesn’t matter. It’s not like this is a stup
id story where the first heroine on the scene gets all the fans.

  Felix grumbled to himself and then set to work. That meeting with the lawyers had really thrown him off.

  Pretty badly, in fact.

  Felix changed his thoughts as fast as he could before he settled back into a violent anger.

  He carefully lifted each woman, one at a time, and carried them to the ward. Once he settled them in the bed, he reused the slave box on each individual. Luckily, they each had at least one toe or finger he could fit in the box.

  Now that he was really paying attention as he shifted them into their new homes, he realized they all had different heights.

  He couldn’t really tell what their body types were, though. Especially given the fact that they’d had their entire body mutilated. They were scarred and horribly disfigured.

  Whoever had done this to them truly hated them. Selling them in this condition had been the final insult, he imagined.

  Sighing, with his hands on his hips, he regarded his three sleeping corpses. He’d dressed them in simple pajamas he’d purchased and had put them in diapers.

  He’d have to work fast to get them to a point where he could at least get nutrients in them.

  Not being a doctor, or having any clue about medicine, he gave himself two days. He could keep them going through his power and forcing their bodies to repair, but that was a short-term solution that would inevitably end their lives.

  No, he had to work to get them to a point where they could drink and eat. To live and keep themselves alive.

  Beyond that, everything else was superficial.

  Looking around his ward, he did a mental check of it.

  It was one of the big master bedrooms that had been turned into a guest room. The attached bathroom with tub and shower would be perfect for a temporary ward.

  He wasn’t quite sure how long they’d be laid up, and giving them a bath close to their sick bed would probably be ideal.

  He’d also attached a smart TV to the wall in case he got bored. Hours spent waiting around for living corpses didn’t sound great to him.

  Three occupied twin single adjustable beds with matching sheets were the big-ticket item in the room. Not to mention they took up most of the space.

  It had been a little more expensive to get the adjustable ones, but he figured being able to sit them upright would help for meal time.

  Then there was a single stool for him to use, so he could sit next to those beds. Standing next to them as he worked didn’t really sound all that fun.

  He’d also purchased a sleeping bag for himself in case he had to sleep in here.

  There were also three rolling trays like the ones found in hospitals that could slide over beds. Eventually they’d be eating and drinking again.

  And a veritable slew of supplies that he would probably need during their convalescence. Bedpans, more pajamas, diapers, cups, bowls, utensils, anything he could think of that they’d need.

  Dropping down into the stool with a clank, he looked around nervously.

  “Hah, they can’t hear me. What am I thinking?” Felix said to no one.

  Pushing off the ground, he wheeled the stool around to the first bed.

  A fraction of a thought from him and the window popped open. He cycled through everything that was wrong with her.

  “First things first. The ability to eat and drink,” Felix muttered.

  Two changes and she had teeth and lips. She still had a tongue, and as far as he could tell, everything was working as far as her plumbing and digestive system went.

  Frowning, he contemplated some of the mental issues listed. He didn’t bother to read them off. It was apparent she’d been tortured to near insanity.

  Even if he managed to get her to a point where she could eat, would she be a raving lunatic?

  Tilting his head to the side, Felix focused on the idea of wanting her to lose her memories of the last month.

  He’d chosen a month since that was about the time that the heroes of the city had started to take real losses.

  And the sought-after negative trait appeared. “Short-term amnesia” popped up as if by magic.

  In the same instant that he selected it, the negative mental problems turned gray. Gray as in no longer active. That they wouldn’t be a problem any further.

  The traits weren’t really gone, but they would no longer be able to make an impact anymore.

  It even had the added bonus of giving him points back, since amnesia certainly wasn’t a good thing.

  “Neat,” Felix said. He confirmed the changes and slid to the next bed, repeating the process for the other two women.

  Upon finishing on the third, he realized he still had about three hundred points or so left. The amnesia had really offset the costs and pushed him into a better point bracket than he’d thought he would be.

  Shrugging, he looked at the clock. It was about ten minutes till midnight.

  The whole midnight reset thing still bothered him, but not enough to question it anymore.

  Standing up, he stretched his back and then prepped three cups of water, three bowls of chocolate pudding, and three bowls of lime Jell-O. There was no telling if they’d be hungry. Or thirsty, even. But he’d rather be safe than sorry. Not to mention, it might help him earn some brownie points with them.

  Cooperative slaves were preferable.

  Then he walked in front of each bed at eleven fifty-eight p.m. and disabled their comas one by one.

  Deciding that he’d rather be perfectly safe without a concern for what they might do, he then took the restraints he’d purchased and looped one around each woman’s waist. They’d be unable to get up unless he undid the buckle that ran around the back of the bed.

  It took only a few minutes, but they all began to stir at roughly the same time, their arms twitching and their lips fluttering as they came back to life.

  “What’s going on?” one asked.

  “Why can’t I see? Get this blindfold off me,” someone else said.

  “My fingers, my fingers are gone!” shouted a third.

  Felix bit his lip and took a deep breath. “Good evening, everyone,” he said.

  All three stopped, their eyeless heads swiveling in his direction, trying to track him.

  “First, don’t panic. You’re in a safe place while you recover. While you’re put back together.

  “Second, there’s been some serious changes in the city. You three were captured by a villain who took over the city. They run it completely, from top to bottom.”

  Felix took a breath before he continued. “You’ve been… you’ve been tortured to the point that you should be dead.”

  Felix felt his stomach flip over. This wasn’t the best way to start.

  “I’ve removed your memories for the last month and I’ve begun working to… to fix you. To put you back to rights. I swear I can do it. You’ll find that at this moment, you’re a normal human with… severe injuries.

  “The city has fallen. Heroes are being hunted and killed in the streets for bounties, or being turned over to the government to handle. Also for a bounty. Heroes are pretty much outlawed right now, and there doesn’t seem like there is anything that can be done to change the situation.

  “In fact, the population supports everything, as the economy is now booming. Unemployment is way down, economy is up, and they pushed through universal healthcare.”

  Three hairless heads made tiny bobs as if they agreed or understood that.

  Odd.

  Now the hard part.

  “The only way that I was able to retrieve you was to purchase you as slaves. Slavery now being legal, that is. Slave contracts are enforced magically and permanently binding. I can shift your ownership to someone else if I chose.

  “As your slave contracts appear to be a punishment, rather than for a set limit or cost, there is no going back for you. You’re slaves for the interminable future.”

  At this point, all three women sat up strai
ghter, their spines stiffening. One lifted her battered arm to gesture wildly at where she probably thought he was.

  They started asking questions at the same time, all demanding an answer of him. Loudly. Annoyingly.

  “Be quiet,” Felix finally got out, raising his voice. Then he closed his eyes and counted to ten in his head.

  He had to tell them exactly what was happening now. There was no room for there to be misunderstandings or changes down the road.

  This was where he set it all up.

  All three had fallen silent from his command.

  “Sorry, but you don’t seem to understand your position. I own you. I’ve bound you in a slave contract. I’m no hero. I’m not doing this for charity.

  “I don’t want you to suffer, nor do I want you to be disfigured for life. I do want you for what you can give me, though. My power seems to increase in power by the number of people I have in a contract. I imagine it works for villains or heroes. Probably even civilians, to a lesser degree.

  “Oh, and you’ll not discuss any of this with anyone. This is confidential, for us alone.”

  Felix sighed and put his hands on his knees. The woman in the center bed was struggling with the strap around her waist. The closest one had the stumps of her hands pressed to her mouth. The one in the furthest bed looked… disoriented but unafraid.

  “You can speak now. Please don’t yell. And since none of you can see, there’s three of you here. Nor do I know your names. Let’s start there. My name is Felix.”

  “I—”

  “My nam—”

  “Stop,” Felix cut in. “Let’s do this. I’ll touch you on the shoulder, you say your name.” He got up and walked over to the woman on the far left. He gently touched her shoulder with a finger. “What’s your name?”

  “My name is Miu. Miu Miki,” said the woman.

  “You may ask one question before we move to the next person,” Felix said. He was trying to be fair, but he also wanted to get moving with this whole thing.

  “What do you plan to do with us?” Miu asked.

  “Plan to do with you? Nothing. You’ll end up living with me while you recover. After that, I don’t know. Maybe get jobs and have a normal life? Next.”