I assumed he meant the packaging, as I couldn't tell him the hrst thing about magic. I turned it over in my hands. "Well, for starters, this Idris guy doesn't have a marketing department. He must have done this with his home computer and an ink-jet printer." It didn't even look like he was trying to market his products. Then again, the contents would sell itself to the kind of person who'd be interested in this sort of thing.
"Let others do your dirty work for you," the package said on the front in big letters.
In another font, in smaller letters, it added, "Use unsuspecting normals as your personal slaves. They won't even remember what they've done for you. Always have an alibi, for you were nowhere near."
I looked at the others and smirked. "You have to admit, they have a compelling message. You don't need a lot of flash when you've got a proposition like that."
Although I tried to keep my tone flippant, the thought of it sent chills down my spine. I knew I was safe because I was immune, but there were too many people I cared about who weren't immune. "A personal slave sounds pretty appealing. I could get someone to do my laundry and wash the dishes."
"Or carry out a robbery while you were somewhere else, with plenty of witnesses to verify your alibi," Owen remarked.
That made me think of the robbery Merlin had just foiled. I wondered if that thug was operating under his own will or someone else's. "That, too." The crime implications alone were staggering. I imagined a rash of bank robberies carried out by people who were somewhere else at the time. "I'm not sure our marketing campaign can beat this," I said. "If someone's interested in this kind of thing, they won't care about all that quality and testing stuff."
"But your marketing may keep many stores from stocking these spells," Owen said, not looking directly at me. I mentally kicked myself for not having thought of that for myself. I was supposed to be the marketing expert here, even if Owen was an all-purpose genius.
"That's true," Jake added. "This was the first one I found, and that shop isn't too picky."
"We'll just have to keep an eye on the stores where most people shop. Maybe we should do a brochure and really hit the stores with our next big push," I said.
"Good idea," Merlin said, and I got the impression he actually knew what I was talking about. Another genius. I was surrounded by them.
"Our best bet is to make these things as hard as possible to find," I added, trying to make myself sound more authoritative than I felt.
"What do you think of the spell itself?" Merlin asked Owen.
"It's along the lines of what he was working on when he was here. His project started as a fairly simple influence spell, one that can make anyone more likable. To be honest, I wasn't entirely comfortable with that, but Gregor thought there was a real market for it, and it wouldn't cause any real harm because there would be limits built in. But Phe-lan took it beyond that, and that's when we put an end to it. I don't know if he ever got it to work. I suppose we'll have to find out."
Jake groaned. "Don't make me do anything stupid or embarrassing, okay?"
"No, you don't make me do anything embarrassing." At Jake's blank, shocked look Owen added, "I need to feel the effects of the spell to get a better sense of what I'll have to come up with to counter it."
Jake grinned, showing crooked teeth in his freckled face. He looked like Jimmy Olsen in a lab coat and a punk rock T-shirt. "Sure thing, boss."
"Don't get too excited," Owen said. "Remember, even if I'm not supposed to remember what you made me do, I have witnesses."
"Geeze, take all the fun out of it. I was only going to make you cluck like a chicken."
Owen looked alarmed. "No chickens!" I imagined it was difficult for someone like him to put himself in such a helpless role. It didn't help matters that he was so easily embarrassed. He blushed when he spoke to someone. I couldn't imagine how he'd feel if someone made him cluck like a chicken or take his clothes off. "First, though, we'd better make sure there's nothing hidden in there. Katie?"
I flipped the book open. "What do you want me to do?"
"If you don't mind me reading over your shoulder, I'd like you to read what you see out loud to me, word for word."
"Isn't that dangerous?"
"You're immune. You couldn't do magic if you tried. In fact, you're the only one who's safe reading it out loud. Anyway, there's more to magic than saying some words."