0:04

Hello from our 12th year

0:06

anniversary. That's a weird

0:09

amount of time to think about. I'm just not going to

0:11

think about it anymore. Here is what is going on in

0:13

the world of Night Vale. If you're

0:15

not part of our Patreon, it's the

0:17

only way we can keep making this

0:19

show. Please consider joining it. We do

0:21

four bonus episodes a year that are

0:24

Patreon only, two behind the scenes episodes

0:26

and two in-universe episodes. We

0:28

have director's notes on every episode. We

0:30

put out Patreon hangouts with us. Other

0:33

cool little bonuses we throw out there only for

0:35

Patrons. And most importantly,

0:37

it is how we pay everyone who

0:39

makes this show. So go to welcometonightvale.com

0:41

and click on Patreon. Also

0:43

we are opening pre-orders for our

0:46

new Jessica Hayworth design spider

0:48

shirt. If you went to one of our Attic

0:50

live shows, you've seen this thing. It's

0:52

wild. I love it so much. Go check

0:54

it out at welcometonightvale.com and click on store.

0:57

These pre-orders tell us how many of these shirts

0:59

to print and we won't print many more than

1:01

the pre-orders we get. So if you like it

1:04

and don't want it to run out before

1:06

you can get it, pre-order it. We have

1:08

a goal of 50 pre-orders, but we're hoping

1:10

you all will absolutely smash that goal. Okay.

1:14

Love you all. Thank you for 12 years. Enjoy

1:17

the show. This

1:20

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states and situations. I

1:57

don't make the rules. I just

1:59

gleefully enforce them. them even though I

2:01

don't have to. Welcome

2:03

to Night Vale. There

2:26

is no Ralphs. There is

2:28

Mother Lauren's pantry. There

2:31

is no hole out back

2:33

of the Ralphs. There is

2:35

Mother Lauren's soil embrace. There

2:38

is no Night Vale. There

2:41

is Mother Lauren's brood. We are

2:43

loved. We are loved.

2:46

We are... It

3:03

is difficult to breathe free of the malign

3:05

influence of Mother Lauren. We

3:08

live in two realities. One

3:10

in which all is well and one

3:12

in which we are teetering over an edge

3:15

from which we cannot return. I speak

3:18

from both realities. I speak

3:20

from both sides of my

3:22

mouth. The

3:25

conflict that roiled Night Vale continues,

3:27

but in a strange, slow

3:29

way. Mother Lauren

3:31

stands on a podium in what

3:33

once was Grove Park, her tendrils

3:35

snaking through every part of the

3:38

town and through many of the

3:40

people. The buildings

3:42

expand and contract like

3:44

lungs. The

3:46

trees are melting. The

3:49

people of Night Vale still bravely

3:51

fight, but like people fighting in

3:53

a painting, smudgy

3:56

and two-dimensional. The

3:58

boy who is the younger. Version of

4:00

Kevin from Desert Plus stands

4:02

next to Mother Lauren holding

4:05

her hand. His face shows

4:07

exertion. As if the

4:09

greatest battle is inside his body. But

4:12

he cannot move. The

4:15

last time Lore came to Night

4:18

Vale, she came as a representative

4:20

of strict score here to conquer

4:22

us the name of capitalism. This

4:24

time is different. This time she

4:27

fights. With strangers. Six

4:31

He is turning. Us into another

4:33

desert blocks I think is

4:35

anything she is making all

4:37

the bus part of her

4:39

body she's transcending and we

4:41

are fodder for her change.

4:45

Motherboards, And

4:47

her voice wings out from every

4:49

part of her body, which is

4:51

the entire city. I

4:54

am for the already have

4:56

this. She says it was

4:58

too easy to you. Your

5:01

loss is not as delicious

5:03

to me as I had.

5:07

But all is not just

5:09

lost. there is a plan.

5:11

Our future lies with Allah.

5:13

Hundred new new as Ronnie

5:15

Sharma and Nautical Barnes of

5:18

Mr. Prescott. Fifth period A

5:20

P English class otherwise known

5:22

as the Library Tween sprayed

5:24

children have followed into me

5:26

Kathleen's footsteps, coming face to

5:28

face with a librarian and

5:30

emerging victorious. Now they must

5:33

come face to face with

5:35

something maybe fifteen percent more.

5:37

Horrifying than a librarian

5:39

twisted cause of god.

5:42

that is told me not to

5:45

meet the specifics of the plan

5:47

only that involves using ropes and

5:49

grappling hooks to cross the dangerous

5:52

city streets through the air guerilla

5:54

style strikes on mother laurens weak

5:56

points capturing cabin and family attacking

5:58

mother morning when she leased

6:00

the sisters at noon

6:02

today. She'll never see it

6:05

coming. As part

6:07

of the plan, I have been asked

6:09

to create a distraction so that Mother

6:11

Lauren and Kevin won't notice what they

6:13

are doing until it is too late.

6:16

They told me it is vitally

6:18

important that no one notice until

6:20

the plan has been completed and

6:22

so I have been sworn to

6:24

secrecy. A secrecy I

6:26

will break for no one. Except

6:29

of course you, my listeners. I

6:32

could never keep anything from you. I

6:35

thought a lot about what a distraction would

6:37

be and here's what I've come

6:40

up with. Hey, look

6:42

over there! provided

7:01

m h

7:04

h h h

7:10

h h h

7:16

h h

7:20

h h

7:25

h h h

7:30

h h

7:34

h h

7:38

h h

7:42

h h

7:46

h h h

7:52

h h

7:56

h H.

8:18

How. Very.

8:22

Little at a Press. Will

8:25

see subvert. Know,

8:31

despite what some might say is

8:33

the best distraction anyone has done

8:35

in the history of getting people

8:37

to look away from something. Insisted

8:40

he the fears that mother more

8:42

and somehow got wind of the

8:44

plan. C flinched and the world

8:47

flinched with her. She glared and

8:49

the world swooned. She no longer

8:51

even have to fight like Bill

8:54

is perfect Sledging hard for pock

8:56

marked lungs see has made us

8:58

part of her disease. I

9:01

am the universe itself. See

9:03

how old an air raid

9:06

siren have a voice coming

9:08

from all places at once?

9:10

Fine to me just to

9:12

fight the fabric of existence.

9:14

A laughable effort. The

9:18

library tweens were seized by mother

9:21

the ones drones who once where

9:23

our own citizens but now. Or

9:25

pink spongy lumps with no eyes

9:28

constantly screaming Help me, I still

9:30

feel all of it. There is

9:32

some vital part of me that

9:34

remains untainted. I still have a

9:37

soul as they lumbered comically towards

9:39

the twins. The

9:41

twins put up a valiant fight, but

9:43

they were captured and thrown into the

9:45

town prison, which now is covered in

9:47

a pale. Flaky skin, The

9:51

boy watched this all happened,

9:53

holding on to Mother Lawrence,

9:55

hands in, folded in her

9:57

multitude of oil slick wings.

10:04

Motherboard with the effort of

10:06

his entire soul, he resisted

10:08

her influence. and he's. A

10:11

nice into worse. Without

10:14

bothering to look his way, she

10:16

waved her tendrils around him and

10:18

he was absorbed into her being.

10:21

The boy now stands at

10:24

her feet, the tendrils fused

10:26

with his skin and pulsing

10:28

sickeningly. His eyes are blank

10:30

once. His hands

10:33

step about like or playing an

10:35

invisible piano. Oh.

10:40

This is the moment of

10:42

coldest despair. We

10:44

have not only been defeated foot. Changed.

10:49

We are no longer who he

10:51

are. And

10:53

to make matters worse your comes

10:55

cabin unfolding himself from the crowd

10:58

strutting the up to the podium

11:00

of his victory. He

11:03

looks around at the city that

11:05

he is finally driven the under

11:08

his thumb or two years of

11:10

resisting him He can resist no

11:12

more. He sees the bowling alley

11:15

in robed in veins and arteries

11:17

and malignant tumors He sees Town

11:20

Hall turned into with. Covered.

11:23

In white paws. He

11:26

sees my own station, my

11:28

beloved radio station now

11:30

entirely made of the same

11:33

stuff as toenails. He sees

11:35

all the evidence of his

11:38

victory. And

11:40

then he turns. And looks at

11:42

the ball. The. Boy

11:45

that he came back for.

11:47

The boy that is the

11:49

younger version of himself. He

11:51

looks at the helpless boy

11:53

and he smiles. Here.

12:00

These in the. On

12:06

aware snow. Somewhere

12:09

far away, Mobile.

12:30

D Rom.

14:00

Anything we don't want to.

14:05

For all. For

14:10

all. For

14:14

all. For

14:30

all. I

14:42

got my tea, all good and

14:45

white wine. I

14:49

loved the taste, and

14:51

I loved the food, and

14:54

my eyes. For

14:58

all. For

15:14

all. For all.

15:21

For all. For

15:23

all. For

15:28

all. For

15:37

all. For

15:46

all. a

16:06

on I

16:31

well okay

16:36

I don't know what to do here honestly usually

16:40

when we go to the weather

16:42

report a great struggle

16:44

or climactic event happens

16:47

concurrently with it and

16:49

we come back to a problem solved

16:52

with my perspective now shifted to the past I can

16:55

then fill you in on how we made it through

16:57

yet another dangerous day in

16:59

our fair town now

17:03

some people mistake this for the weather

17:05

actually fixing the problem but that's that's

17:08

not the case the

17:10

weather usually just happens at

17:12

the same time as what fixes the problem

17:14

and then I utilizing

17:16

my expert narrative skills

17:19

tell you how that happened this

17:23

time however everything

17:26

is more or less how we left it

17:29

the boy still captive

17:33

mother lauren still a second

17:37

and Kevin still

17:39

smiling there

17:43

will be no victory shift in

17:45

perspective only a

17:47

terrifying march through the season's

17:50

present and

17:52

in that present moment Kevin turns

17:54

to the boy he

17:56

feels down still smiling and

17:58

takes the boy's hand Gently,

18:02

he untangles Mother Lauren's tendrils from

18:04

the boy's skin. He

18:07

guides the boy down from the podium. Mother

18:11

Lauren, her eyes to the cosmos,

18:13

is seemingly impassive to the final

18:15

meager death throes of our little

18:17

town. The

18:20

boy looks at Kevin. Kevin

18:22

smiles at the boy. I

18:24

do not like that smile, but

18:26

then I have never liked Kevin's

18:29

smile. The

18:31

last time I was here, Kevin says,

18:33

I said that this was a situation

18:36

I would not be able to handle

18:38

alone. And I was right. And

18:41

I was wrong. Because I

18:43

can handle it with just me, but

18:45

I cannot handle it with only one

18:47

of me. I'm

18:50

sorry, the boy says, but I

18:53

don't know who you are. It

18:56

seems that his encounter with the body

18:58

and mind of Mother Lauren has left

19:00

him without his memories. He

19:02

stares blankly at the world like it was

19:04

a book in a language he took a

19:06

few classes back in high school, like he

19:08

should know it, but he doesn't. That's

19:12

okay, Kevin says, because I

19:14

remember enough for the both of

19:17

us. I've never

19:19

talked much about my father. He

19:21

was a jovial man, but a stern man. He

19:24

was a fair man, but with priorities

19:26

I did not always understand. I

19:29

think he did the best job he could.

19:32

In fact, I know he did,

19:34

because in this moment, I understand

19:36

him better than anyone has ever

19:39

understood their own father. Okay,

19:43

the boy says. He clearly

19:45

doesn't know why this man is telling him this.

19:48

He says, I don't have a father.

19:52

He doesn't say this tragically, but likes he

19:54

was telling the time to someone who asked.

20:00

you do. My childhood

20:02

was a strange riddle I never

20:04

could quite solve, and

20:06

here you are, a neat solution

20:08

to the question of my life.

20:13

Listeners, I am starting to understand what Kevin

20:15

is getting at here, and

20:17

I'm not sure I like it, but it

20:20

does have a certain symmetry to it. Life

20:23

is rarely fair, but

20:25

it is often balanced. What

20:29

are you saying? The boy says. Your

20:32

name is Kevin, and

20:35

I am your father, says

20:37

Kevin, who is Kevin's father.

20:39

I am?

20:42

You are? Says the boy

20:44

who is Kevin. Yes,

20:47

says Kevin's father. I will

20:49

raise you well or well enough

20:52

or well enough, you

20:54

know. I will see you through.

20:56

He looks

20:58

up at mother Lauren. She

21:01

finally looks down, her tendrils weave

21:03

through the earth and the bricks

21:05

and the flesh of night bale,

21:07

her sunny smile clouds over. I

21:12

thought I was through with you, she

21:14

says. You were

21:17

wrong, says Kevin and Kevin's

21:19

father simultaneously. Kevin's

21:21

father stands tall and Kevin stands as

21:24

tall as he can, which is not

21:26

nearly as tall as his father. Not

21:28

yet. Dead

21:31

wrong, calls a voice from the crowd, and

21:34

here steps forward Alejandra Nunez, Ronnie

21:36

Sharma and Nánico Barnes of Mr.

21:38

Prescott's fifth period AP English class,

21:41

otherwise known as the Library Tweens.

21:44

I thought you were in jail, I

21:46

say, from my radio booth, because

21:48

this is all happening in the present moment, so

21:51

it just now occurred to me that I could

21:53

be an active part of these events. We

21:56

were, says Ronnie, but then this

21:58

nice old lady busted. trusted us

22:00

out. I am

22:02

not old. I'm in my early

22:04

twenties for God's sake, says Tamika

22:06

Flynn. She did

22:08

a real daring and action-packed

22:10

jailbreak, says Nanako. I

22:13

wouldn't have known someone that ancient had it

22:15

in her. Ugh, says

22:17

Tamika. But she does

22:20

look exhilarated about having once again taken

22:22

part in an adventure. In

22:24

one hand she holds a rope, and in

22:26

her other hand she holds a copy of

22:28

the novel Autumn by Allie Smith. It's

22:31

the British first edition, the one that was printed

22:33

on a working blowtorch. Point

22:36

is, says Alejandra to Mother Lauren,

22:39

you'll have to stand against us.

22:42

And me, says Tamika, shooting a

22:45

menacing jet of fire from Allie

22:47

Smith's elliptical portrait of Brexit-era Britain.

22:51

And me, says Kevin's father. Kevin,

22:54

the young boy that he is,

22:57

looks around unsure. This

22:59

is all a lot of new information all at once.

23:02

But he makes his decision. And

23:06

me, he says. Mother

23:09

Lauren laughs, and the

23:11

mountains laugh with her, hollow

23:13

boons in canyons and passes.

23:16

She swaths at Kevin. But

23:19

Kevin dodges. Mother Lauren's face

23:21

flickers with concern. She swaths again.

23:24

Nothing connects. The

23:26

streets royal. I

23:29

knew you before, Kevin's father says.

23:32

I know that somewhere

23:34

in there is human

23:37

vulnerability. Blabble,

23:40

screams Mother Lauren. She

23:42

is not laughing. Mother

23:44

Lauren's drones advance. But

23:47

a few stop. And

23:49

then human faces start

23:52

to come out of their pink fleshy

23:54

lumps. We

23:57

could neither breathe, nor could we

23:59

die. The people inside

24:01

the drones say, We were trapped

24:05

in the moment between breaths. It

24:08

was torture without end. Other

24:11

Night Bell citizens give them thumbs up, indicating

24:14

empathy. No,

24:17

I am a god, shouts

24:20

Mother Lauren. Yes,

24:22

says Kevin's father, and

24:24

like any god, you

24:27

are defined by the belief of

24:30

your worshippers. Mother

24:33

Lauren's face screws up in fury,

24:36

and then she scowls up again

24:38

at the cosmos. Yeah,

24:43

okay. Screw

24:45

it, she says. This universe

24:47

was getting too small for

24:50

me anyway. And

24:52

with that, she floats into the

24:54

sky. The stars open like

24:56

a door for her. She

24:58

steps through. She glances back

25:00

for a moment at the city below her.

25:04

One day I will return, she

25:06

says, or I won't. TBD.

25:12

And then the stars swing shut behind

25:14

her, and she

25:16

is gone. Gradually,

25:20

the city comes back to itself.

25:24

People shake off the influence of Mother

25:26

Lauren. The buildings, and

25:28

the earth, and the trees

25:31

return to themselves. All

25:33

is as it was, minus

25:36

those who are dead, or injured, or

25:38

missing, which is a good

25:41

amount of people. At

25:43

the center of all this is a boy, and

25:46

his father. The

25:48

boy is holding his father's hand. The

25:51

boy is holding his own hand.

25:54

Kevin is holding Kevin's hand,

25:57

and together, Kevin looks back

25:59

to him. his home, to live

26:01

if not always happily, then at

26:03

the very least, ever

26:05

after. After

26:14

the Kevin's passed through it, Carlos pulls

26:17

the plug on the portal, deciding

26:19

that science, while worth some cost,

26:21

is not worth every cost. Science

26:25

must be in the service of humanity, never the

26:27

other way around. It is a tool,

26:29

not a goal. Oh,

26:32

he says that the portal made a real cool

26:34

zap sound as it turned off. The

26:37

Library Twings, as they wish to be called,

26:40

have declared the creation of a

26:42

new Teen Militia to protect Night

26:44

Vale from any further incursions from

26:46

Desert Bluffs 2 and

26:49

anyone else who might want to mess with them. Tamika

26:52

Flynn, who knows a thing or two about

26:54

leading a Teen Militia offered to be a

26:56

mentor. But the Library

26:58

Twings put out a statement saying,

27:01

uh, that's okay. No

27:03

thanks, ma'am. What

27:07

lies ahead for Night Vale? I

27:10

cannot say. Our future

27:12

is an unwritten slate. Our

27:14

past is a diary scribbled in

27:16

handwriting none of us can read, and

27:18

our present is the view through

27:20

a dirty window. Specifically,

27:23

for me, the dirty window

27:25

in the studio, through which

27:27

I can see Amber Ickini teaching her

27:30

son how to ride a bike. I

27:33

can see Michelle Wynn and Maureen

27:35

Johnson taking their poodle earwig mix

27:37

or poo wig out for a

27:39

walk. I can see,

27:41

oh, I can see a

27:43

mysterious van with the symbol of a

27:45

labyrinth on it with a man who

27:47

is not tall and a man who

27:49

is not short inside driving some unknown

27:52

cargo out into the scrublands. In

27:54

short, I see the day-to-day

27:57

of a town that has been through a lot.

28:00

but remained through it all very

28:03

much itself. I

28:06

see Night Vale and

28:09

I love it. Good

28:11

night, my favorite town.

28:15

Good night. This

28:24

show was sponsored by BetterHelp. This year has

28:26

gone by so quickly. Like what's something you're

28:28

proud of in 2024 so far?

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28:33

this year? Those are really tough questions to

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answer and therapy can help you take stock

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of your progress and set achievable goals for

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the next six months. I talk to my

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therapists a lot about intentions, things I want

28:44

to do for myself. It helps to have

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someone to share this with, someone who will

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ask questions back and check in on how

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That's betterhelp.com/nightvale. Welcome

29:19

to Night Vale is a production of

29:22

Night Vale Presents. It is written by

29:24

Joseph Fink, Jeffrey Cranor, and Bree Williams

29:26

and produced by Disparition. The

29:28

voice of Night Vale is Cecil

29:31

Baldwin, original music by Disparition. All

29:33

of it can be found at

29:35

disparition.bandcamp.com. This

29:37

episode's weather was cutting teeth

29:39

by Priscilla Snow. Find

29:42

out more at ghoulnoise.bandcamp.com.

29:45

Comments, questions, email us

29:48

at info at welcometonightvale.com

29:51

or follow us on Instagram and Tumblr

29:54

at nightvaleofficial. We now have a TikTok

29:56

at nightvaleofficial as well. If you like

29:58

watching, share, like, and subscribe. Most

30:01

importantly, check out welcometonightveil.com, where we

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have a twice-monthly mailing list that

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is the best way to keep

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up to date directly from

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us to you. This

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is the most reliable way to hear about

30:13

new stuff we are doing. Today's

30:15

proverb, hit me with your best

30:18

shot. Ow! Okay,

30:20

actually that sucked. Please hit me

30:22

with one of your worst shots instead. Thank you. Hey

30:59

y'all, it's Jeffrey Cronin. I do another

31:01

fiction podcast called Within the Wires, which

31:04

are stories told through the guise

31:06

of found audio. Each season

31:08

is a separate tale. You want a

31:10

prison escape told through relaxation tapes? That's

31:12

season one. Want a love story that

31:14

unfurls through voice messages only? Season five.

31:17

How about the revelations of an unexplained

31:20

death told through a series of museum

31:22

audio guides? Season two. There

31:24

are seven seasons of Within the Wires for

31:26

you to binge right now, each only ten

31:28

episodes long. So go get Within the

31:31

Wires wherever you get your podcasts.