Elizabeth's eyes widened as we stood directly before the castle.
It was a little beat up but still in very good shape compared to when it is seen in-game.
We were led through an arched stairway and into the courtyard, where the entrance to King Cola's Court was located. It was actually a theater where they used to have plays and magic shows.
The ghoul woman leading us opened the double red doors, and we went inside.
The first thing we saw was a defunct concession stand and a hall leading to the actual theater.
We followed behind the ghoul woman as she led us to another set of double doors and opened them for us as well.
Inside, it was dark, and Elizabeth nervously tightened her grip on my hand.
"It's okay, Princess. Our hosts are giving us a show," I said confidently to calm her as we stepped into the darkened theater.
As we did, a spotlight suddenly illuminated the stage, and a woman's voice echoed through the theater speakers.
"And now... the show you have all been waiting for..."
The spotlight moved around until it illuminated the balcony above the stage.
A puff of smoke appeared, and a ghoul wearing a black tuxedo and a top hat materialized.
"Oswald the Outrageous!" the voice finished as he appeared.
At this point, he was a normal ghoul who had yet to become a glowing one like his future counterpart.
"Welcome, guests! To the court of King Cola! I am Oswald the Outrageous, the magician of this court!" he said theatrically with a bow, followed by another puff of smoke as the spotlight moved to the stage, where he appeared again.
"Woah! He just moved!"
Elizabeth had already forgotten her nervousness and become excited.
I led her over to a theater seat and brushed an old skeleton off of it before sitting down.
Oswald also watched us with amusement in his eyes, but there was still a bit of caution. At least he was humoring us by performing.
I have to admit, Oswald was a natural entertainer. He dazzled us with stage tricks, and his interactions with his two clown assistants actually made me burst out laughing at one point during their routine.
At the end, Oswald vanished from the stage in another puff of smoke. He and his assistants took a bow, and Elizabeth and I stood up and clapped for them.
"Wonderful performance. Even after 50 years, you've still kept that spirit alive. I'm very impressed, Mr. Oppenheimer," I said while approaching the stage.
"You seem a bit young to know me, stranger. And you even know my full name. Who are you really?" the ghoul in the top hat asked. "And... what was that you did with our gate?"
On that last point, I could tell it was the question he wanted answered most. Curiosity was practically oozing from him.
"I already said my name is Frankie. Franklin D. Winter, if you want my full name. I'm the leader of an organization of survivors. I won't go into much detail on that now, but as for what I did..."
I raised my right hand and removed the leather glove I was wearing.
Then, as they looked at my hand, it began to turn red and crack, pulsing with heat. My fingertips held a living flame, one that I could use to launch an incendiary blast at any moment.
Oswald, his assistants, and the other ghouls in the theater opened their eyes wide at the sight.
I shifted my power to Electro-Bolt, and my hand went from red and burning to almost neon blue, with sparks dancing around the tips of my fingers.
I then switched again to Telekinesis, and my hand appeared normal, but there was a sort of wave of almost imperceptible energy following its movements.
I picked up a nearby trash can and threw it to the other side of the room.
"Real magic... Real magic... It's real!"
Oswald practically charged at me and started assaulting me with questions.
One of his assistants, his girlfriend Rachel, just started shaking her head, exasperated by her partner's actions.
"Ozzy, calm down! We still have to see what our guest is even here for, or did you forget all about what you said about being cautious?" the woman said, but with an amused sort of warmth to her voice.
"But Rachel... It's real magic! Not like the tricks I perform. This is real! What we just saw isn't something that can be faked. This is huge!" the magician responded, almost childlike in his wonder despite being over 80 years old.
But after a moment, he took a step back and coughed lightly.
"You're right, Rach. Ahem!"
I just chuckled.
"If you're curious, I could tell you... depending on how our talks go. It seems the two of you are the leaders around here. How about we speak privately?"
Oswald and Rachel looked at each other, seemingly having a conversation with their eyes.
Before they could respond, I turned to the ghoul woman who had led us here.
"Your name, miss?"
She blinked in surprise.
"Me? My name is Fran."
"Miss Fran, would you kindly keep my daughter entertained while I speak with your leaders? It won't take long, I promise."
"You want... me to look after her? But I'm..." she started, but I interjected.
"You're what? A ghoul? I don't really care about that. I understand others in the wasteland may hold prejudice toward ghouls, and you have all probably even had bad experiences and faced discrimination from the people who have come here before me... But I still see ghouls as people.
"And from what I've seen so far, you lot have kept your humanity intact more than most.
"So... will you watch her for a moment?"
I was being sincere. After all, ghouls are still humans. Humans afflicted by ghoulification, but still human at heart. Unless feral.
Fran looked like she was about to tear up but simply nodded.
"Okay... I'll watch her."
I smiled and then faced Oswald and Rachel.
"Let's talk backstage," I said without waiting for their input as I began walking, knowing exactly how to get there.
The two just looked unsure of what had even happened before turning and following me.
"Stay here, Dean. Help Fran entertain the kid," Oswald said as he and Rachel followed after me, leaving the other assistant, Dean, behind.
"Uh... yeah, sure."
Backstage, I pulled over a chair for myself as the two sat down in chairs nearby.
"So..." I started the conversation. "You wanted to know why I'm really here. I was telling the truth about letting my daughter enjoy the park... and thank you again for the show. But I also came to extend an invitation."
Oswald raised one of his brows.
"An invitation for what, exactly?"
"Citizenship," I answered.
This time, Rachel spoke up and asked, "What do you mean by that, exactly? Do you want to take over the park?"
I shook my head.
"No. I'm not remotely interested in occupying Nuka-World at this time. I came here for specific resources and noticed you all living here, so I decided to pay you a visit. I could tell you weren't bad people, so I brought my daughter along."
I really didn't care about controlling Nuka-World. There was some strategic value in each park being surrounded by tall walls, as well as some other advantages.
The biggest problem was... this place was too conspicuous! Eye-catching. Sticking out like a sore thumb!
It attracted way too much attention.
"My organization is here to... appropriate... some assets left in the park. As for you, I have decided to invite you to join our people. We haven't yet, but we will be working on a serum to reverse the ghoulification that you're afflicted with."
That got Rachel's attention as she rose from her seat. From my memories of the game, Rachel was a organic chemistry graduate that was here because of acting.
"Really?! You think you can cure us? Are you serious?"
"I'm as serious as a heart attack. Of course, it would help tremendously if I had some willing subjects who could donate genetic material for research..."
I watched their reactions as they processed what I said.
Oswald was the first to react.
"You want us to be lab rats?!"
"Ozzy, calm down. I don't think he meant it that way..."
"Indeed," I answered. "I said I was inviting you to become citizens, so why would I treat you like lab rats? I was merely saying that if you joined us and donated some tissue from time to time, it would speed up our research for a cure to your condition."
After a moment, Rachel spoke up again.
"It sounds like you have the facilities needed to make that happen, with how confident you are. As much as we would all like a cure, we would still need more information about what we're getting ourselves into. Can you tell us more about your people and those... magic powers?"
Oswald was bobbing his head in agreement at the last part.
I chuckled and then responded.
"I won't tell you our name or location. But I will tell you that we are dedicated to the survival of humanity. We are still growing, but you could look everywhere and never receive an offer as good as the one I'm making you right now.
"We have greater potential to revive human civilization than anyone else in the world. I'm sure you've already noticed how the other people in the wasteland are living. If you hadn't, you wouldn't be living the way you are. Holed up in an amusement park fairy castle, painting yourselves to scare away intruders."
"Our people are guaranteed their four basic necessities without exception. Food, water, shelter, and medicine. Which means that if you were a citizen, your medical care would be shouldered by the governing body. That includes your affliction."
I let that settle for a moment before continuing.
"As for the 'magic,' again, I won't go into specifics, but it isn't magic in the classical sense. It's magic born from scientific discovery. A product only available to our people. Any other questions?"
The talks went on for about half an hour. I didn't give anything important away, and I answered in ways that kept things vague.
I wasn't that terribly interested in bringing them into the fold. It was more like they would be a bonus.
One benefit would be having more diverse genetic material to work with as I researched a cure for ghoulification.
The other would be that, after they were cured, they would add a small boost to the population and also introduce more genetic diversity.
It would be a shame if cousins and siblings started getting together more often than what might already be happening or had happened.
I don't ask those questions because I don't actually want to know the answers.
I just understand that it's a good thing if I can bring in more fresh blood.
Before leaving Kiddie Kingdom, I told Oswald and Rachel to talk it over with their people. If they decided to leave this place permanently, they were to meet us in seven days at the monorail.
Elizabeth and I enjoyed some rides and attractions in the park, such as the Ferris wheel and the teacups on our way out of the park.
As I looked over at Elizabeth while we spun around and around in the teacups, with the ghouls watching us in amusement, I thought...
'Rule 32 of Zombieland. Enjoy the little things.'