It was just not Haley’s day. Her usual boring shift at the local convenience store became unbearable when the air conditioning units broke down mid-morning. The blind date she was looking forward to and hoping would save her day turned out to be a disaster. The guy just wouldn’t shut up about himself, only being able to last through it with an entire bottle of wine. When she left so that her narcissistic date would pay for the food, she wasn’t exactly drunk, but she wasn’t exactly sober either.

For the date, Haley wore a shoulder-less top, an above-knee skirt, and short heels. As she stumbled along the streets, she stopped for a moment, admiring the streetlights that made it somewhat safe for a woman to walk out in the streets at night. She scanned the area, getting her bearing on her location. “Isn’t this place…” Her thoughts trailed off. Making up her mind, she shouted “Taxi!”. On the second try, she quickly got in and told the driver, “Listen up, bub. You’re gonna take me to…”

>>Fast Forward>>

Haley shut the cab door behind her. She didn’t notice the cab speed away as she took in the building in front of her. It looked like a four- maybe six-story mix between a condominium tower and an apartment complex. She found the front door unlocked and let herself in. She found herself in a hall with all the lights off except for the elevator’s in the middle. She got in an pushed the button for the second floor.

At the second floor, the halls were completely lit. She seemed studied its layout. It had a rectangular hallway layout, looping back around to the elevator. The outer walls were lined with doors for many rooms, while the inner walls seemed to only house just one big room. She found all the outer walls’ doors were locked, but the couple of doors to the inner room was unlocked. “Ooh, still never lock your room, eh?” she thought. She picked one door and went inside.

The room seemed big, but it was dark inside. Haley felt around the door frame for a switch. She felt one flicked down and flicked it up. A strong light blinded her.

>>Fast Forward>>

“Yes, I’m riding up the elevator as we speak. I have now arrived at the second floor.” A man was talking with someone on his cellphone.

“Eat an actual breakfast this time, all right?” a female voice on the phone advised.

“Yes, ma’am, I will,” the man said.

“Hehe, okay.”

“Okay, I am coming up on my room now.” The man fished out his key and inserted it into the knob.

“Actually, Michael, I wanted to talk about that night last week…”

“What is it?” Michael asked as he was turning his key, looking around while doing so. He spots something off.

“Well, I just wanted to tell you again th—”

“Hold that thought, Athena,” interrupted Michael. “Looks like someone got into the testing room. I’m gonna have to call you back. Bye.”

“What? Oh, okay, be careful. Bye.” Michael hung up.

Michael noticed one of the doors to his testing room left open. He approached it slowly, holding out in front of him a stun gun he always carries just in case.

“Hello? Anyone in there?” he called out to whoever might be in the room. “I’ve remotely locked the other doors, so there’s no escaping out the back. Just come out, and return what you stole; I promise you won’t be harmed.”

When he reached the door, Michael swiftly kicked it fully open. With his stun gun ready and aimed, he went in. Inside, he found a woman seated and bent forward on a wooden bench. Her neck was in a metal stock attached to the bench, while her wrists and ankles were in short, semi-circular tubes, securing them to the bench.

“Mmmm!” the woman cried, looking at Michael.

“What the?! Haley?! Wha—How did you—What are you even doing here?!”

Michael quickly went over to Haley and the bit gag in her mouth.

Haley gasped at the relief. “Michael! Ah, my head still hurts. What is this thing?” She paused for a moment. “Actually, that doesn’t matter. Get me out!”

“I can’t,” Michael said.

“What? What do you mean you can’t?” Haley retorted.

“I mean I can’t because I designed it that way. You remember I do magic now, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Well, I designed a magic-based security system for the magic testing room you are in right now,” explained Michael. “This is where I design, create, and test new illusions. The security system works by scanning whoever enters the room, and if he or she is unrecognized, he or she gets magically trapped in a randomly chosen illusion.”

“Okay,” interjected Haley. “but that doesn’t explain why you can’t get me out!”

“Oh, that. As punishment, I made it so that I have to test the illusion on whoever gets trapped in it in order for them to get out,” Michael elaborated.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Haley said annoyedly. “Are you sure you can’t just magic me out of here?”

“I would, but I made the system during a week when I really hated thieves,” Michael said. “Some petty crook had snatched my weekly feel-good popsicle, so I programmed in the system that no one caught, even if I changed my mind, could never get out by magic, as to discourage future theft attempts.”

“All right, fine, if you say so,” conceded Haley. “I’m sorry. I won’t sneak into your place again.” She spoke half-mockingly and half-genuinely.

“Apology accepted. Your transgression is forgiven,” Michael said. “Hang on a minute, why did you sneak in in the first place?”

“Uh…,” Haley hesitated for a moment. “I’ll tell you when I get out, okay, so hurry on with this thing already,” she urged. “I’ve been doing some yoga recently, but damn, are my thighs burning. What does this do anyway?”

“The bench you’re on? Oh, that’s just to hold you still. Hold on, let me bring the thing. Where is it?” Michael looked around the room and spotted the thing he was referring to. He brought it around, positioning it over Haley. It was a rectangular blade as wide as the bench under it, attached to a cross bar on a pole mounted on a wheeled base. There was a mechanism connecting the blade and the lever on top of the pole.

“Michael, w-what does that do?” Haley’s voice trembled during the query.

“I call this illusion: The Chopper,” stated Michael.

“The what?!” Haley began to panic. She tried to pull her limbs out of their restraints.

“Haley… Haley! Calm down!” Michael reassured. “Look, my illusions, my magic is completely safe, okay? You know I won’t put you in any real danger, right?”

“Right, yeah, okay.” Haley seemed to have calmed down a little.

“Okay, but–and this is a big but–since this is your first time experiencing my magic, it’s gonna hurt.”

“Wha-what do you mean it’s gonna hurt? I thought it was safe!”

“Well, it is technically safe, but I’ve honed my magic to be realistic,” Michael clarified. “For example, if I chop off your finger with my magic, then you will feel the blade go through, the pain of the cut, the loss of function of the finger, and the bleeding.”

“Are you sure you can’t not do that?” Haley sounded desperate.

“I can’t, sorry,” Michael kneeled beside Haley and gripped her left arm. “and sorry you have to go through all this.”

“I’m sorry, too, for sneaking in here.” Haley sighed. “I will tell you why later, when I’m in a more… comfortable position.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. Let’s get started.”

Michael stood up and pulled down the lever slowly. He wanted to make sure the placement of the blade was just right.

“W-What’s gonna happen to me?” asked Haley.

“Well, the Chopper does what it says. It ‘chops’ horizontally whoever’s on the bench into as many segments as the operator wants, like chopping up some leeks… except of course, I’d be chopping up a person, in this case, it’s you,” described Michael. “Good thing you asked that, too. I was about to do it the normal way, but I guess I can tone it done to two or three chops. Heck, I think I can still get you out if I take it slowly and do just one chop.”

Haley thought about it for a moment. “N-No, no, don’t take it slow. Do more than one,” she finally said.

“Really, are you sure? Don’t you wanna get out as soon as possible?”

“I do, yeah, but if I’m gonna be in one of your magic tricks, you can’t half-ass it, right?” Haley reasoned. “Besides, it’ll be just like old times. Your hairbrained schemes always get me out.”

This was different from the “old times”, Michael thought, but he knew Haley was serious. When she was serious, she always kept her word.

“One magic trick, the normal way, coming right up.” Michael tried his best not to show it, but Haley could see his eyes light up when she said that she’d go all out. This put a smile on her face.

“Do be warned: this will hurt like hell,” warned Michael. “I’m gonna move your clothes out of the way, so they don’t get damaged.” He pulled her top up, and tied it up where her bra was. He also pulled her skirt up, closer to her hips. “That should do it. Are you ready?”

Haley took a deep breath. “Okay, I’m ready. Let me have it.”

“All right, here we go. The blade will cut through at the base of your bra and through the middle of your thighs below.” Michael pulled up the lever, pulling the blade up as high as it can go. “I’ll count, so you can brace yourself properly. Ready?” Even though he had full faith in Haley, he was still nervous about doing this to her.

Haley closed her eyes. “Uh-huh.”

“One.”

Haley’s heart began to pound.

“Two.”

“Wa-wa-wait!”

“What, what?!” Michael seemed a bit relieved that Haley stopped him.

“You said it would hurt like hell, right?” Haley asked.

“Yeah?”

“How bad will it hurt?”

“Hmm, well, Ath—”

Haley cut him off. “You know what? Don’t tell me. Just put on that gag you removed earlier. I need something to bite into.”

Michael quickly secured the bit gag into Haley’s mouth.

“You good?”

Haley nodded.

“Okay.” Michael kissed the top of her head. This gave Haley slight comfort. “Here we go, again.”

“One.” Haley closed her eyes.

“Two.” She clenched her fists.

“Three!” Michael pulled down the lever with all his might.

THWACK!

“MMMMMMMMM!” Haley loudly moaned. She began to drool blood around her gag. The cut felt like the bite of thousands of ants going through her torso all at once. The blade just barely missed her elbows. She repeatedly banged her wrists against their restraints. She lost feeling to everything below her chest. Blood dripped from all six wounds. Surprisingly, no internal organs spilled out.

“Sorry, I’m sorry! I know… it hurts,” Michael said, trying to comfort Haley with words. Even though he has done this before, he was still worried about her. He immediately tried to retract the blade, but it wouldn’t budge. “Ah, crap, the blade bit into the wood. Hold on.” He pulled up and down on the lever a couple times before the blade dislodged itself from the bench.

Michael knelt beside Haley again. He put his hand on what’s left of her back. “Look, I think it would be better for you if I just skip to the last cut. Sound good?”

Even she’s in great pain and can’t even breathe anymore, Haley managed a nod. She thought to herself, “At least it’s just one more. How much more painful could it be?”

“Okay,” Michael stood up. “This last cut will go through you directly behind your neck stock and the cuffs on your wrists, and just below your knees,” Michael remarked, lining up the blade. “The cut won’t kill you. You’ll just feel an overwhelming numbness, and when you start to lose consciousness due to lack of oxygen to your brain, my magic will kick in and keep you alive in a catatonic state. Are you ready?”

Even after hearing that insane sentence from Michael, Haley nodded. Before, she was just acting strong for him, but now, she just wanted it over with.

“Okay, for the win.” Michael gripped the lever, tighter this time.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three.” Michael pulled down the lever, but not as hard as last time.

THWACK!

Haley’s head fell off the neck stock, landing face down on her legs. A sharp pain shot through her neck, followed by, as said by Michael, overwhelming numbness. She heard the blade being removed and wheeled away. She felt her head being gently picked up and opened her eyes. She saw she was being held up to Michael’s face saying something. To her, time had apparently slowed down.

“Haley, look at me,” Michael said as if in slow motion. “You looked! You’re still conscious, but not for long.” He set her head down on a small table. “The illusion worked perfectly. You should see yourself before you inevitably pass out.” He stepped aside, going behind her, so she could see her body in full.

Haley gazed upon her chopped up body in awe. All the stocks had unlocked themselves. The middle section from the first cut had straightened itself out, the stomach end teetering off the bench. Her chest section was perched perfectly on top of her knees and lower thighs, her shoulders now relaxed. Her legs and feet remained as they were, while her hands have become unclenched. All the stumps visible to her continued to bleed. Despite all the violence committed to her body, something about seeing her dismembered figure appealed to her.

Michael went around in front of Haley again. “So, what do you think?”

Haley’s eyes just stared blankly into the distance.

“Haley?”

No response.

“She must’ve passed out already.” Michael took a good look at Haley’s severed head. He sighed.

>>Fast Forward>>

“So, let me get this straight: you took a cab to my place to hide in my closet and jump scare me when I came home, just so you can cheer yourself up after a very crappy day?” Michael asked.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Haley bluntly confirmed. “In hindsight, it wasn’t a very good idea.”

“Not a good idea? Come on, your head is just the centerpiece my living room had been missing,” Michael remarked, sitting at one end of his couch. “Kinda ties the whole room together, don’t you think?”

Haley playfully stuck her tongue out. Her head was placed on top of a doily, situated in the middle of a glass-topped center table. Though her head was talking, the rest of her was unresponsive. Her stomach and hip portion, knees portion, and legs had already been put together and was lying face down on the couch, stomach end toward Michael. Her chest, shoulders, and arms portion was right beside Michael, facing her. Her hands were palm down, fingers away from Michael, each cupping a respective butt cheek. Her legs were bent to accommodate all of them on the couch. “It’s not like I wanted to be decapitated.”

“Well, you are now.” Michael gently picked up the piece of her containing her chest, shoulders, and arms. “Actually, I had just finished that Chopper illusion last week. I really wanted to show it to you this weekend.”

“Aw, really?”

“Yeah, but seeing as you were already trapped in it, might as well have you test it.” Michael inspected her arms, noting the red stumps at the ends where her hands used to be.

“It works wonderfully, and to be honest, I kinda enjoy being a talking severed head. I think it’s kinda cool being in pieces like this,” Haley chimed in. “By the way, how come I can only feel my parts, but I can only move my head?”

“Oh, that’s because I control feeling and, well, control for each individual part just like a switch. I turned on feeling for all, but only control for your head,” Michael explained. “I can also control the parts myself, but only through commands.”

Michael put down Haley’s handless arms for a bit. “I have to say, I’m really glad you enjoy it. I was scared at first since you seemed to be in a lot of pain earlier, but you seem to be handling it pretty well now. You should try being headless; Athena loves being headless.”

“Nah, it’s no big deal. It was painful at first, sure, but now, all I can feel at my stumps is this very warm and pleasant feeling.”

Haley’s mind pondered the possibilities. “Headless, huh? Maybe I w—Hey, stop rubbing my stumps together! It feels weird in my wrists.” She blushed a bit.

“Sorry, sorry, I just love to play with limp body parts, but Athena never lets me play with hers. Consider this as part of your punishment,” Michael answered.

“Fine, but you’re taking me to brunch later. I know this really nice place uptown, and I’m famished.”

“I got a counterproposal for you.” Michael put down beside Haley’s chest portion to lean in and whisper something in her ear.

After he finished whispering, he sat back down on the couch. “Come on, it’ll be great! Hell, I’ll even pay for brunch.”

“Eh, what the heck. It’s not like you haven’t seen me naked before,” replied Haley.

“Nice,” Michael said jubilantly. “and don’t remind me about that incident. Not nice.”

Michael quickly secured the bit gag once more into the wide-eyed Haley’s mouth.