godslum: The Landlord System

Chapter 2: Tenant Union

Aaron stood at the window. The street was full of black cars. Men in suits stood outside. None of them had faces.

The man in front held up a paper. “Aaron Wolfe,” he said. His voice sounded like a key in a lock. “You are being evicted. From life.”

Aaron looked at his hand. The key tattoo on his palm felt warm. He could feel the building. He could feel every wall, every floor, every broken pipe. He could also feel the ghosts. 1,439 of them. They were cold. They were angry.

“Come and take it,” Aaron said.

The faceless men ran at the building.

*SYSTEM: BUILDING DEFENSE MODE. YOU CAN USE THE BUILDING TO FIGHT. SOUL RENT: 12%. LOW POWER.*

Aaron didn’t know what that meant. But he didn’t have time to think.

The front door broke open. Two faceless men ran into the lobby.

Aaron touched the wall. The building listened.

A pipe above the door burst. Hot, dirty water hit the two men. They screamed. It wasn’t water. It was memories. Years of hot water that Marco turned off in winter. The ghosts were in the water.

The men fell down, shaking.

*TWO ENEMIES DOWN. SOUL RENT: +2%. TENANT MORALE: +2.*

More men came in. Too many. Aaron ran up the stairs. He had to protect the people who lived here.

On the second floor, Mrs. Chen opened her door. She was old. She held a broom like a weapon.

“Mr. Wolfe?” she said. “Is it Marco’s men?”

“Worse,” Aaron said. “Stay inside. Lock your door.”

“Marco is dead?” she asked.

“Yes.”

Mrs. Chen smiled. It was the first time Aaron saw her smile. “Good. He turned off our heat three winters ago. My husband died.” She closed the door and locked it.

Aaron kept running up. On the fourth floor, he found the little girl from before. Her name was Lily. She was pulling her mom, Maria, into the hall.

“Are they here for you?” Maria asked. Her eyes were wide with fear.

“Yes,” Aaron said. “Go back inside. Now.”

“The roof,” Lily said. “You said you’d fix it.”

“Not now, Lily!” Maria pulled her back.

Aaron looked at the ceiling. Water was dripping from a big hole. He put his hand on the wet wall.

*REPAIR COST: 5% SOUL RENT. DO YOU AGREE?*

He didn’t know what Soul Rent was. But a little girl was asking him for help.

“Yes,” he said.

Heat ran down his arm. The wall under his hand moved. The hole in the roof closed up. The dripping stopped.

*ROOF REPAIRED. TENANT MORALE: +5. SOUL RENT: 9%.*

Lily’s eyes got big. “You fixed it! You’re a real landlord!”

Maria stared at Aaron. “How did you—”

A loud crash came from downstairs. The faceless men were breaking doors.

“Inside. Now,” Aaron said. “Don’t open for anyone but me.”

He ran to the roof. He needed to see how many men were out there.

The roof door was locked. Aaron broke it with one hand. He stepped outside.

From the roof, he could see everything. Twenty black cars. Maybe fifty faceless men. They were surrounding the building. Some had knives made of paper. Some had guns.

Aaron was one man. He had one building. It wasn’t enough.

*SYSTEM: YOU NEED AN ARMY. FORM A TENANT UNION. OFFER TENANTS POWER FOR LOYALTY.*

A Tenant Union. Like a crew. A family.

Aaron closed his eyes. He could feel the people in the building. He could feel their fear. But also their hope. Marco was dead. For the first time, they might be safe.

He spoke, but not with his mouth. He spoke through the building. Every person inside heard him in their head.

_“This is Aaron Wolfe. I killed Marco. I own this building now. The men outside want to kill me. They will kill you too. I can’t fight them alone. Will you fight with me? If you do, I will fix this place. I will keep you safe. I will be a better landlord than he ever was.”_

Silence.

Then a voice. Mrs. Chen. _“My husband died for this building. I’ll fight.”_

Another voice. A young man. _“Marco took my sister. I’m in.”_

Then more voices. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty.

*TENANT UNION FORMED. 23 MEMBERS. SOUL RENT SHARED. NEW POWER UNLOCKED: TENANT’S WRATH.*

Aaron felt stronger. He could feel the tenants. He could feel their anger. Their pain. It flowed into him.

*TENANT’S WRATH: CALL ON TENANTS TO POWER YOUR ATTACKS. COST: TENANT STAMINA.*

The roof door burst open. Three faceless men ran out.

Aaron didn’t move. He pointed at them.

“Mrs. Chen,” he said.

On the second floor, Mrs. Chen felt a push. She lifted her broom. The broom flew out of her hand, through her door, up the stairs, and hit the first man in the chest. The man flew off the roof.

“Jamal, 3D,” Aaron said.

Jamal was a boxer. He punched his wall. On the roof, the air shook. The second man’s head snapped back. He fell down.

The third man stopped. He looked scared.

Aaron walked up to him. “Tell your boss,” he said. “This building is not for sale.”

He grabbed the man and threw him off the roof.

Down in the street, the faceless men looked up. They saw their men falling. They stopped moving.

The leader looked up at Aaron. He couldn’t speak, but Aaron heard him in his head.

_“You don’t know the rules, boy. A landlord must be registered. You are not in the Book. You are nothing.”_

Then the cars started. The men got in. They drove away.

It was over. For now.

Aaron went back downstairs. The lobby was quiet. Doors opened slowly. People looked out.

Mrs. Chen was first. She had her broom. “Is it over?”

“For tonight,” Aaron said.

Jamal came out. He was big, with boxer’s hands. “You… you used me. I felt it. I punched that thing from my room.”

“I’m sorry,” Aaron said. “I needed help.”

Jamal looked at his hands. Then he smiled. “It felt good. Can I do it again?”

More people came out. They looked at Aaron. Not with fear. With questions.

Maria held Lily’s hand. “The roof,” Maria said. “You really fixed it.”

“I told you I would,” Aaron said.

“What now?” Mrs. Chen asked. “Marco is dead. But the city will come. The police. They will ask questions.”

Aaron hadn’t thought of that. He was a killer now. He owned a building he took by force.

*SYSTEM: NEW QUEST. LEGALIZE OWNERSHIP. GO TO CITY HALL. REGISTER THE DEED. WARNING: CITY HALL IS OWNED BY THE PRIME LANDLORD.*

Prime Landlord. The boss of all landlords.

“I need to make this legal,” Aaron said. “Or they will come back.”

“And us?” Jamal asked. “What do we do?”

Aaron looked at them. Twenty-three people. Scared. Tired. But still standing.

“First, we clean,” Aaron said. “We fix what Marco broke. Then, we get ready. Because they will come back. And next time, there will be more of them.”

*NEW QUEST: REPAIR THE BUILDING. 100% REPAIR = FULL POWER. CURRENT: 13%.*

Lily tugged on his shirt. “Mr. Aaron? Can I be in your army?”

Aaron looked down at her. He saw his own face when he was eight. Hungry. Scared. Wanting someone to be strong.

“Yes,” he said. “You’re the first member of the Tenant Union.”

Lily smiled. It was the first real smile he’d seen in this building.

*SOUL RENT: +10%. TENANT MORALE: MAX. BUILDING POWER UP.*

Aaron felt the building get warmer. The lights got brighter. The cold ghosts felt a little less angry.

He could do this. He could be a landlord. A good one.

Then his phone buzzed. He didn’t have a phone. It was the system.

*SYSTEM ALERT: NEW TARGET FOUND. SELENE KAINE. DESIGNATION: CORPORATE LANDLORD. SINS: 5,204 COUNTS OF EVICTION FRAUD. OWNS 50% OF THE CITY. VERDICT: PENDING. SHE IS COMING TO YOU.*

The front door opened.

A woman walked in. She was tall. She wore a white suit. Her shoes were clean. She had no dust on her. Her face was perfect. And her eyes were cold.

She looked at Marco’s blood on the floor. Then at Aaron.

“Aaron Wolfe,” she said. Her voice was smooth like money. “I’m Selene Kaine. I own the building next door. And the one after that.” She smiled. It wasn’t a nice smile. “We need to talk about your new business. Before the Cabal kills you. Or I do.”

She held out a card. It was black. Her name was on it in silver.

Aaron didn’t take it.

*SYSTEM: CHOICE. KILL HER, TALK TO HER, OR RUN. CHOOSE FAST.*

Selene looked at Lily. Then back at Aaron. “You have tenants now. They are weak. I can help you protect them. Or I can buy this building when you are dead. Your choice.”

Lily hid behind Aaron’s leg.

Aaron could feel the building. He could feel Selene’s power too. It was huge. Cold. Like a skyscraper in winter.

He was a mechanic with one building. She owned half the city.