It took over 30 minutes for the crowd to form; most of that was the wait for the challenger. But Victoria stared at the white-haired mystery that plagued her school, who looked like she was about to ask for seconds of the monstrous meal in front of her.
“Alright, you know the drill. After 30 minutes to finish this, you get your picture added to the wall, and you will receive a T-shirt.” Bill said, taping the table and raising his outstretched arm like a shooter. “Ready. Set. Go.” Dropping his hand and sending Taylor into a feeding frenzy.
Victoria blinked as she found more fries than 5 Hands would give you for a large order, losing half its number. Then the burger was inhaled without Taylor so much as stopping to breathe. She was proud of her metabolism, thanks to Amy constantly patching her up when her forcefield collapsed, but Taylor is out-eating her and 3 of Amy’s patients combined. The jukebox hadn’t even finished one song, and already Taylor was nearing the finishing line. When Taylor snapped out of her food consumption trance or whatever that was, she had the audacity to look ashamed.
“Umm, how long has it been?” Taylor questioned as she polished off her fries. She had a look of embarrassment on her face like she wasn’t satisfied.
“Are you still hungry!?” Victoria cried in shock. Getting a nod in response, Victoria collapsed into the booth, ready for the afterlife to take her.
“A new record, 3 minutes 12 seconds. I already have the picture, so what size T-shirt?” Bill said with a devious smirk on his weathered face.
“XL, please, and can I have two chicken sandwiches with another large shake?” Taylor said as she patted her stomach with a blush on her face.
“Add a family-sized Chili fry, and we will see where we go from there. Kids like you need a lot of food to keep going.” A voice spoke from the entrance to Fugly Bob’s as a pair of Women walked in. A breeze wafted through the woman's flax-colored hair as she stepped in. “Uncle Sam will foot the bill.”
“I hope you don’t offer hard tac as a grandmother treat.” Taylor snarked with a fond smile. Victoria was confused as the woman looked to be in her early 30s at the latest.
“And your generation is spoiled with ice cream,” The woman responded with a playful smirk. “Alright, everyone who does not want to sign enough NDAs to fill a CIA black site, OUT! Except you, Bill, you can stay because I need someone to feed the kid, as I can only make Hartack and Grog.” Victoria watched in awe as people filed out of the restaurant faster than the PRT Press corps.
“I don’t have a clearance to listen to any of this. I was just a cook, not a spook.” Bill grumbled as he walked into the back.
“You have the clearance now. Piorun, I need you to give Glory Girl the NDAs while I inform her of the consequences. Now Victoria Dallon, should you break this NDA, you will find out just how little of the world you know, and I will sic my sister Constellation on you. Keep in mind, back in the day; she turned the Barbary Coasts from a pirate den to a graveyard.” Constitution spoke with a bloodthirsty grin. At that, Prioun slipped a series of papers two inches thick.
Victoria swallowed as she looked through the paperwork. Skimming through it, she noted several sections with unusual wording. “Do you of your right state of mind, through no act of coercion or force, willingly give your silence of the Paranormal. Isn’t this supposed to also mention legal age?” Victoria questioned the woman.
“Because by many standards, this is not a legal contract, but I won’t say more if you don’t sign. The door is still open, and I would be more than happy to let you go.” Constitution said with a shrug, losing her grin and settling on a business look. “But I would urge caution if you do intend to sign. That agreement is more binding than you think; the only reason you are seeing it is because you are close to the kid and getting her here for a meal.”
“Oh,” Victoria mumbled. Reading through the stack of papers, she eventually signed it. “Gah, how did I get cut?” She cried out as a few drops of blood landed, forming a seal on the top documents.
“Welcome to the supernatural, kid. Where Zeus stops by the states bi-annually to try and get a woman pregnant, skinwalker hunting in the Rockies is a daily occurrence, and stuff that makes Endbringers look like the villain of the week shows up every other week. Magic, Myth, and legends are all real; you are now part of it. Taylor, as you know her, is also the incarnation of the warship USS Enterprise CV-6. I am the USS Constitution of the original 6, and my sister Constellation is also of the original 6. Any questions or concerns?” Constitution asked as Enterprise was sipping on her milkshake.
“Umm, yes, is 2012 the end of the world,” Victoria asked.
“Best guess, it's just Ragnarok.” Constitution returned with a shrug.
“Can you demonstrate your weird voodoo then, because I.” Victoria started but was interrupted when she stared down the broadside of 24 and 36-pounder guns manifested in front of her.
“Do take care not to call it voodoo. While we try to employ individuals of spiritual talents, such as Voodoo practitioners, most tend to focus on their local community or hacks tricking tourists. Enterprise and I would fall under Fae or Yokai, leaning heavily toward the latter.
“So does this mean I don’t have to attend church?” Victoria then asked with a hopeful smile.
“I would recommend it. While the Abrahamic God has not been seen, there have occasionally been reports of the angels. They have helped to deal with a nasty Eldritch incursion in Seattle, along with healing men and women whose minds were past the brink upon seeing the denizens outside of human comprehension.” Constitution informed the flying brute.
“Damnit.” Victoria snarked as Constitution chuckled.
“So, grandmother, why did you bring a Brit?” Enterprise asked, pointing to Piorun.
“For later, I have taken a liking to her and hope to help her grow. It's a good point to rub in Victory’s face when I talk to her next.” Constitution grinned like a cat that caught the canary. Enterprise shrugged and finished the milkshake in front of her.
“So, what did you want to discuss with Enterprise?” Victoria asked.
“Ah yes, how to handle the situation we have found ourselves in. By all accounts, Enterprise is former Navy property but is now a young woman. This leads to an interesting dichotomy, how do you treat a marvel of 1930s engineering that has gained sentience? In truth, there is a plan for the spirits who reside in Davy Jones's locker to become citizens and have the right to refuse to offer their service to the US. Most of this is written by me and the SECNAV of the time. But that plan cannot be enacted until the current SECNAV is read in. This also requires the bubble of skepticism that keeps the worst of the supernatural at bay to be popped rather brutally.” Constitution spoke, only stopping to take a breath.
“What do you mean bubble of skepticism and it being popped,” Victoria asked.
“It refers to the metaphorical bubble that formed during the industrial revolution that inadvertently protected the material world from the worst of supernatural incursions. As for the popping, Parahumans and Endbringers, not to mention the new Eldritch god, are starting to reverse the work that keeps the worst of the supernatural at bay.” Constitution answered without missing a beat.
“Um, is that bad?” Victoria asked with trepidation.
“Ragnarok on the material world, the Titans returning, Orochi, just to name a few that are kept at bay thanks to that skepticism.” Piorun piped up for the first time, a new milkshake in hand.
“So very bad. Back to the matter at hand. Thanks to Enterprise being underage as a human, we cannot legally ask her to join officially. There is also the matter of us not being a Parahuman group, so we can’t try the wards trick to get you in our corner house, and because the Paranormal fleet plan is not enacted. The Navy cannot ask for your enlistment. So I must encourage you to avoid the PRT and try not to kill everyone. At least for a few days, maybe a week, so we can finish our investigation of the perpetrators and read in SECNAV. Can you do that for me?” Constitution asked with a serious tone.
“I can do that.” Enterprise responded.
“Good, now I am off to talk with your father. We will need a proper base in New England for the plan, and the docks here are perfect for the task.” Constitution said as she stood up and left the dinner.
“Is it too late to say I want no part in the supernatural?” Victoria asked.
