Theodore Sharpe was no ordinary man.
He was an extraordinary man.
He had been an extraordinary boy too for that matter. He had always been a diehard realist and boasted excellent awareness of his own situation whether socially, financially or in combat.
This led Theodore's parents to be deeply concerned about their son, since he always seemed to see the darker side of life. However that was not really the case, he simply saw things with a more neutral lens untainted by his own emotions. His feelings were things he observed with curiosity rather than experiencing them himself, except a few extreme emotions like rage. His parents spent more time trying to get him to act 'normal' than actually study. As a result Theodore became exceptionally unmotivated in his studies and joined the military as a means of livelihood after graduating.
He performed well in the military.
Theodore followed every order with exact precision and was an excellent marksman He never expected to be deployed to the Middle East. Nor did he expect to serve four tours as a sniper. However life is full of surprises. His unique and emotionless perspective of life helped him survive. He did not worry about what he could not control because there was nothing he could do to change it. He did not worry about what he could control because he could change it. Thus twofold philosophy allowed Sharpe to remain in a near-constant state of calmness and serenity - a trait that helped him climb the ranks of the business world. He had focused entirely on his and his company's development and survival, ignoring the victory of his actual successes and learning from every experience he ever had. Theodore Sharpe was a brilliant man and was looked up to in the media with admiration despite the controversial nature of his company. Yes, he was an arms manufacturer and a world leader in the defence industry. However many of his products helped civilians too, most of which were vehicles and advancements in the medical field. ArmSys had been the largest weapons, military hardware and heavy equipment manufacturer globally.
Sharpe had been a near-literal king of his domain, his products orders of magnitude higher quality than his competitors with a price tag to match.
And now he was reduced to begging for expensive trinkets to prevent his ability from killing him sooner rather than later. If Theodore's "bank account" reached negative numbers, he would die. It was that simple. He had almost exactly 199 billion US dollars and every day 1 billion was deducted from his account. This meant in 200 days he would run out of money and perish, assuming he spent as little as possible. On the flipside, if he managed to make money by "selling" objects he could prolong his lifespan. However making 1 billion US dollars a day is no small feat, in fact many would regard it almost impossible. For now Sharpe aimed to simply increase his lifespan until he formulated a plan to make that absurd amount of money on a daily basis. To do this he had set up a makeshift store at London's Airport. Survivors would sell valuable yet not practically useful items like jewellery in exchange for more useful items - like weapons, ammo, medicine and other supplies. The rules that determined what he was allowed to 'sell' using his ability were strict. He had to already have owned the object outright or be given it out of someone's own free will. Threatening someone into giving him the item did not work, even if a middleman made the actual threats. Nor did killing a person and seizing their belongings. Thus he set up his trading outpost and traded supplies to survivors in exchange for them painting signs across the city that pointed towards his makeshift shop.
Theodore Sharpe sighed heavily, waiting for another customer. [It is only the beginning of the new era, so business will be slow until later] thought Theodore [But that doesn't make this any less annoying].
"Sir, are you alright?" asked 'Romeo', one of Sharpe's bodyguards. His real name was not Romeo, it was actually Roman, but being a hopeless romantic his nickname had stuck.
"This is going to take some getting used to, Romeo." answered Theodore while shaking his head solemnly.
"What do you mean Sir?" replied Romeo, his brow furrowing in inquisitive thought. Romeo was not particularly intelligent but was Sharpe's chief and favourite bodyguard. Theodore had hired the man for two reasons; he was a former soldier and he was a man of conviction. The latter had been proved time and time again. Romeo was as loyal as a dog, ready to lay down his life to protect his master. Which almost happened, if not for Theodore's quick-thinking and several operations which Theodore paid for. Now Romeo had no legs and only one arm, instead he had robotic replacements. Which had been designed, developed and paid for by Theodore personally.
Theodore Sharpe was not a good man, but that did not mean he could not be kind.
"Not having ArmSys anymore. I can only trade in supplies and weapons now. The market is gone. My stock is worth nothing." Theodore paused to take a shaky breath before continuing "I'm not sure what to do with myself. My company was my life and now.. What? Do I just try and not die? Try and make as much money as I can to prolong my inevitable death?"
Theodore then turned to look at his bodyguard and practically sobbed "What do I do now?"
Romeo embraced his boss in a hug. It was far from professional but these circumstances were far from normal. He had never seen Mr Sharpe this distraught before. Romeo quickly ended the embrace before consoling his boss.
"Sir, with all due respect get it fucking together." said Romeo. Theodore's eyes widened in shock, he had not expected such harshness.
"You are one of the greatest minds of our time. You are a brilliant engineer and an exceptional businessman. You've been given a gift of great power so fucking use it. You are the heart and soul of ArmSys, as long as you breathe your company still exists!" shouted the man.
Theodore's moist eyes quickly dried.
"You're right." replied Theodore, straightening his back and standing to his full height of 1.8 metres.
Romeo smiled at his boss. That look of ruthlessness was back in Theodore's eyes, he just needed a kickstart.
"So what are you gonna do then, Sir?" asked Romeo, smirking slightly.
Theodore Sharpe turned to Romeo and with a smile he said "I'm going to rule this new world."
Now it was Romeo's turn to be shocked.
"Sir... that's bold even for you. Are... are you sure, Sir?" stuttered Romeo, clutching his B-2 ArmSys machinegun nervously. He always knew that Theodore was ambitious, but this was simply ridiculous. Ruling a world is no small feat, in fact it was one of the greatest feats imaginable. Many have tried to conquer the planet and all have failed in the past. Genghis Khan, Napoleon, the Romans, all eventually failed as their nations collapsed inwards.
"I am completely certain, Romeo. I will rule this planet. People will remember me as the saviour of humanity, the rebuilder of civilisation, the supreme capitalist!" said Theodore, beginning to shout.
"Sir.. but.. How?" asked Romeo, eyes still wide.
Theodore Sharpe smiled like a man with a plan.
"I have no fucking idea!" he cried out before laughing.
[Oh my God maye the stress of the business world and shock of the apocalypse has driven him insane] thought Romeo, his knuckles whitening as he clutched his B-2 ArmSys machinegun.
Sharpe kept laughing, wiping tears from his eyes.
"The look on your face! Oh lord!" he cried, "Believe me I do actually have a plan dear Romeo."
Sharpe paused and gathered himself before continuing "It's much too early to act upon it, but my little shop here is just the start. I'm building my reputation as a reliable trader of all things imaginable. With my resources I can gather quite a following, can't I?"
Romeo furrowed his brow, thinking before realising. "You plan to rebuild and restructure ArmSys? Since you can provide food and supplies you could actually sort of pay people… like you're doing with me and the rest of the bodyguards. But what would you use them for? Only you can use your selling ability."
"Advertisement mostly and resource gathering, valuable things that aren't practical but sell for a lot. As Hermes grants me more abilities I'm sure I'll find other uses for them." explained Theodore, dusting off his suit.
Romeo opened his mouth to speak but was silenced by Sharpe's hand. Sharpe then slowly walked to the outside of his makeshift outpost - the airport terminal - and climbed onto a nearby abandoned taxi.
"HEAR ME!" screamed Mr Sharpe, his face reddening with vigorous passion as he shouted to the survivors waiting for his services "FOLLOW ME AND I WILL BE YOUR SAVIOUR. THE NATIONS MAY HAVE FALLEN, BUT ARMSYS LIMITED STILL STANDS TALL!"
A crowd gathered around Theodore and his bodyguards began to cheer. However it was not a normal happy cheer. This was a primal mix of shouting and chanting, a blend of hysteria and mania. Mr Sharpe suddenly began handing out various foods and luxury items, purchasing them via his ability. The crowd grew exponentially, willingly indoctrinating themselves into ArmSys Limited.
The first of many new nation-factions was born from greed.
The Phoenix had found a new purpose.
The First of the Nine Demons had begun his rise.