Those gathered in the cafeteria were just finishing their meals when Dr. Vale arrived, making his way past the tables to stand near the back of the room. The menu boards swapped over to a series of monitors which showed those in the security center, conference call style.
Dr. Vale stood before the room and smiled as he indicated the monitors behind him while watching the new recruits. “Hello again, it is my pleasure to officially welcome you all to the Enigma Agency.”, he said and then waited for just a moment before beginning his introductions. “We are a multifaceted global entity which deals primarily with the borders between the supernatural and the human world. We have been around in some form for centuries, but not officially organized until the 1800s. Let me get the others introduced, and then we’ll all answer some questions.”
Dr. Vale once again indicated the screens behind him without looking at them, and then around the room. “We’ll start with Qelli, whom all of you have at least interacted with. Qelli runs the Agency’s Facilities, all of them. Seeing and hearing everything you do.”
Abigail made a face and raised her hand as she spoke up. “Even the bathroom?”
“Even the bathrooms. I monitor everything, but only report necessary information, such as when a person becomes ill.”, replied Qelli’s voice from the speaker.
“Oh. Okay. I just wanna like clear up the record then that what happened last night was not a usual thing. Totally should not have eaten the airport hotdog.”, Abigail said with a nod.
There were a couple of snickers and at least one horrified gasp from elsewhere in the room, and Claire was trying not to look mortified sitting next to Abigail, who was now briefly the center of attention.
Dr. Vale managed to keep a straight face as he just jumped straight into the next one to change the subject quickly. “This is Albert Kent, who is part of Psikorp, which the Agency uses largely for Intelligence and Counter-Intelligence. They have teams of psychics that can pick up on vibrations and give us at least some warning of potential trouble before it occurs, and they are also the people we send in when people need to forget they’ve seen us.”, said Dr. Vale as the camera in the security room zoomed in on Albert’s face while he was being introduced.
The screen then shifted, zooming in on the next two, who were dressed in what appeared to be security vests as Dr. Vale continued. “Phillip Conrad and Jesse Simmons are from the OTF, our Occult Task Force. The OTF have multiple departments of their own to include a Warding Department and an Exorcism Department. When we have a problem that needs to be handled head-on, these are the people who get that call.”
Dr. Vale continued and the screen zoomed in on Dr. Hall as he offered a wave, lifting one hand from his tablet and slightly adjusting his lab coat. “Dr. Hall and I work in the Research Division. Dr. Hall is a specialist in supernatural diseases, and I specialize in supernatural ecology. We both are part of the Cryptids Department, but there are dozens of different departments ranging from afterlife research to aliens to multidimensional travel and you get the idea by now I think.”
“So, ya’ll are like that SCP thing or Men in Black?”, asked Simon as he sat forward in his chair, watching what was going on with interest.
“While all of those sorts of organizations in media you’ve seen are similarly rooted with the same premise, there are some distinct differences. Originally our philosophy was one of observation-only, but that has changed with the times, though understanding of the enigmatic is still our core fundamentally.”, replied Dr. Hall from one of the screens above.
“We have actually used the site before to locate potential Enigmas in the past. Authors may have brushed up against something supernatural, and writing it out is the only way they can process it sometimes.”, added Dr. Vale. “Though in general, I just find them to be quite entertaining.”
“Do you have anything dangerous being kept here?”, asked Miranda.
“In this facility? No. This is a training facility, so we don’t keep anything truly dangerous here. We do have some things in deep containment though that are not a joke, but no one is allowed near those locations without proper training.”, replied Dr. Hall.
“What is the most dangerous creature you do have in containment, Agency-wide?”, asked Sarah with an appearance of mild concern.
“I think everyone who has been here a while will agree with me, that it would be a toss-up between the Wendigo and the Dragon.”, said Dr. Vale, and there was a series of nods of agreement from the screens behind him.
“But, don’t get the wrong idea. Those sites are both minimally manned, and kept as far away from human areas as possible. We only open them for sample collection and regular maintenance, otherwise, Qelli keeps them monitored for any changes. In the case of the Dragon, we’ve cultivated a ranch of cattle above the site, and have shelters for the humans taking care of those animals to retreat to. Once it eats it’s fill, about five thousand kilos of fresh meat, it just goes back to sleep. In the last two cycles, there were no human casualties.”, explained Dr. Hall.
Dr. Vale nodded in agreement as he addressed the room again. “This is very serious work, and can be dangerous. We have procedures in place to keep everyone as safe as possible.”
“Why keep something like that? Why not kill them if they are a threat?”, asked Ezra.
“Well, in the case of the Dragon, it has some properties which make it worth the risk. And as far as we know, it may be the last, so there are many that would be reluctant to make that final call.”, explained Dr. Vale, turning toward Ezra. “In the case of the Wendigo-”
“We just don’t know how to kill the damn thing. We can’t touch it when it sleeps, it ain’t even solid anymore, like a ghost, so even filling the damn container with cement didn’t work. When it wakes up, it can cause storms, and starvation in hours instead of weeks. But it’s the only time we can actually cause any damage, and even then it takes a lot to put the thing back down for a while.”, said Conrad with a bit of disgust.
“What he said.”, Dr. Vale agreed. “So the best we can do for now is keep it as far from humans as possible.”
Abigail again raised her hand up as she spoke, “So, then uhm, exactly what is it that we would be doing?”
“Well, that depends mostly on this next part.”, said Dr Vale as he looked over the occupants of the room once more. “First of all, let me start by saying congratulations to all of you, unless you do something especially idiotic, you’re hired. However, the following assessment tests will determine where you are ultimately placed with the Agency, as well as your starting pay grade, so there is some incentive to do well. I am telling you this so that you do not have that stress on you during these tests.”
“Because you’ll have plenty of other things to worry about.”, said Dr Hall rather ominously. “These tests are meant to see how you react under all sorts of conditions, including unpleasant ones. Nothing you face will be lethal, but may have some short-term side effects.”
“Also, we record everything and if you do something stupid, we will absolutely be watching the clips at holiday parties for years to come.”, chuckled Dr. Vale. “You will be put into pairs for each challenge, with the odd number coming with me to Security to make their own observations.”
One of the monitors changed over to a list and a map, with each persons’ names paired off. Abigail and Claire, Simon and Ezra, Sarah and Kevin, Miranda and Alexander.
Abigail squealed and leaned over, hugging Claire’s arm briefly. “Oh, yay! We’re partners!”
Claire smiled tiredly as she moved to get up from the table, seeing others starting to do the same. “It would certainly seem that way.”
Dr. Vale lead the way to the door, pausing to address the group as it opened for him, and motioned for Miranda to join him. “Here is where we part ways. Qelli will give you your instructions and show you the way from here. Good luck!”