Normality of the Orthodox
"The reading program within Night Vale is already forecasting a phenomenal outcome this year, citing that the librarians are taking extra care in their preparations for the students this go around. Be sure to give your children ample provisions prior to the event, as they have been promised a reading program to never forget. Old Woman Josie claims that angels had revealed themselves to her, and with them they carried a frightening prophecy, which they informed her all the while assisting with her household chores. Due to the illegality of angels, we must add that they never approached Old Woman Josie in the first place. Our newest resident, Carlos the scientist, has already set up his lab across from Big Rico's. While we are unable to identify any of his equipment, we do know that they are strange, noisy, and utterly fascinating. We look forward to assisting our curious scientist!"
Having tossed and turned numerous times that night, the sweet embrace of sleep eluded the scientist. Just as Carlos felt his eyelids close, his heart would jolt him awake with either the memory of deafening gunfire and canons or cries of help from Rachelle and Dave. Fingers gripped his own pillow tightly as he buried his face into its plush embrace, only to find himself awake for another hour or two. Thanks to this, as the sun bloomed over the horizon and enveloped Carlos with its brilliant rays, he squinted his eyes tightly as he attempted to turn away from it.
Sleep, on the other hand, merely taunted him with the tiredness of his body while his mind spun about, already awakened. Forcing himself to roll onto his back with a groan of protest, golden eyes soon fluttered open. The cold, harsh ceiling greeted Carlos as the sun continued to pour through the cream colored curtains, their transparency doing little to shield him from the light. Raising his arms, he rubbed both eyes briefly before lips parted to a heavy yawn.
Temporarily residing within a floating town amongst the clouds no doubt gave way to an even brighter, possibly hotter, sun. Pushing away the blankets from himself, Carlos could already feel the heat swirling about within his room. He laid in place for a moment longer, his gaze falling back upon the ceiling that hovered above himself. Everything remained as still and quiet as a usual setting back upon ground; he expected the town to be plagued with drastic, noisy wind at all hours, though he was glad to see that he was wrong.
Thoughts having fallen back to the town, Carlos then pulled himself into a sitting position at the side of his bed. Curls of black hair framed his face as he planted his feet upon the wooden floor, arms at his sides as fingers gripped upon the edge of the mattress. He still felt faint, swearing he could feel his blood pooling towards his limbs as opposed to his head. Swallowing somewhat, a dragged out exhale then left him as he hung his head. He hadn't eaten since lunch the prior afternoon, and while his body reminded him with an audible growl, the thought of eating hardly seemed important.
Finally dragging himself from the bed, the scientist willed himself to get ready for the day. Originally he hadn't brought much in regards to spare clothing since he figured most of his luggage space would be claimed by equipment for his venture. Because of this, he donned the same worn slacks as the previous day, ecru in in hue. A tea stained top wrapped about himself with a matching, simple cravat which lay over a double breasted dark vest in russet. Black, fingerless gloves had been all he brought, having perceived his labor workload remaining towards helping manage the departed zeppelin. His boots remained as he only brought one pair, and his dusty lab coat completed his attire. Fingers rubbed at his chin, where stubble was already peering through yet decided against shaving just yet. Given his light headed state, the last thing he wanted was an unsteady hand gliding a sharp blade along his skin.
Not a moment longer had passed once Carlos deemed himself presentable before there was an abrupt knock at the door. Odd, he wasn't expecting any visitors that day, or had been told otherwise. Hesitantly he unlatched the door, and with a drawn out creak he swung it open. "Hello?" he greeted all the while.
" 'Morning!" came the reply. "I'm Dana; Cecil sent me to show you around-"
Standing before him was a young woman, donning a violet long sleeved top rolled to her elbows. A coal hued waist cincher vest lay under a broad bronze belt which held an array of clasps and small packs. Upon one side of the dark suspenders had been an ID tag that read 'INTERN: DANA' in bold, red font. Tiny light brown curls adorned her head past the band of her goggles, which remained perched amidst her wild hair.
"Your name is Carlos, eh?" she asked, the dimples in her cheeks all the more apparent as she smiled. Carlos himself cleared his throat, one hand absently reaching up to rub the back of his neck. Compared to her, the scientist towered over the young girl.
"Ah, I-I am," he stammered out. Dana's smile broadened all the more, before she gestured towards the view behind herself.
"Wonderful! Then shall we be off?" she asked, the sun all the more powerful when not shielded behind a thin curtain. Carlos gave a quiet nod, before his grip loosened upon the handle of the aged door.
"A moment, please?" his voice piped, met with an enthusiastic "of course!" from the intern. Closing the door behind himself, Carlos glanced about the apartment. He hadn't planned on venturing out that day, instead plotting to dedicate himself towards setting up equipment. The notion wasn't entirely unwelcome, however, as he deemed it would be the perfect opportunity to gain familiarity with the community in daylight. Taking hold of his satchel near the bed, he gave a brief exhale before swinging the door open once again, finding Dana with her hands clasped behind her back as she quietly hummed to herself.
"All set?" came her retort as Carlos meekly emerged from his apartment. Once he gave a slow nod, Dana's smile returned. Reaching out, she clasped her hand into Carlos', giving his arm a brief tug as she lured him away from the quiet apartment complex. Originally Carlos parted his lips to say something, anything, although he soon found himself silenced by the manner in which Dana carried the pair in. Her infectious smile seemed all the more apparent in the sunlight, her bronzed skin darker in contrast to his own deepened tone. Despite the pair having exchanged little more than greetings, it seemed as though Dana refused to allow Carlos to dwell within his own somber convictions.
Fingers intertwined, Dana held no qualms in nearly dragging Carlos from the building. The unforgiving sun waved down upon him, reminding him all the more of its strength so high in the clouds; it was no wonder Night Vale had been projected as a desert.
"I'm sure they told you the basics while in orientation," Dana began, the heels of her boots clicking loudly upon cobblestone street. "You know, outlining issues such as the illegality of wheat and wheat by products, pens, and even withholding information from the Sheriff's Secret Police. But I bet they didn't tell you about about the actual way our town functions, right?"
The night before had still been a blur for Carlos, his mind still tormented with his team's possible deaths; the lack of sleep hardly assisted the matter any. Putting forth his best smile amidst the circumstances, Carlos merely nodded as Dana peered at him over her shoulder, the illegalities hardly sticking with him despite their ridiculousness. With that, she smiled all the more, continuing to lead the other throughout the town.
"Cecil thought that might've been the case. There aren't many who actually partook orientation, none the less remember it. Most of us were born here, so we've never had need-"
A single brow perched in curiosity, as Carlos heard the name Cecil strung about a few times already since his arrival. Beginning to match his pace with Dana's, he finally asked, "-who is Cecil?"
Coming to a halt in her strides, Dana paused before her fingers slipped from Carlos' hand, instead moving tone hand to rest on her hips. Head tilted, she chuckled before gesturing to their surroundings using the other. Taking her heed, Carlos allowed his gaze to wonder, suddenly taking note of the seemingly randomly placed phonographs set up, even within the open street. Some were perched upon the shade of buildings and others were strewn about upon tall stands that lined the street.
"Cecil Palmer is the voice of Night Vale," she began, her hand waving about as she talked. "He keeps us up to date regarding the news, announcements, and anything deemed important for the community; he's also my boss."
"Oh, ah, I see," Carlos retorted, thinking back towards the voice he heard from the phonograph within his apartment the night before. He vaguely recalled the host referring to himself as Cecil, though his mental haze prevented him from further confirming that detail. Wasn't he the one who claimed to have 'loved him instantly'?
"You'll probably see him sooner or later," the girl added, reaching over to take Carlos' hand again. Returning to their stride, Carlos was once again pulled along. "Although he spends most of his time locked in that studio booth, he does cover the occasional field work. He cares a lot for the community and does what he can to help us when the need arises."
"He sounds very notable," the scientist commented, thoughts briefly drifting back to the night before. As Carlos fought to push away the torment of shock, it had been Cecil's voice that lulled him back into serenity - it was something he'd have to thank him for if he ever encountered him.
"He's all right," Dana added with a small laugh, "when he's not being demanding, of course! Though everyone isn't perfect-"
The pair came to a stop before a dead end in the road. It seemed as if the street had been so perfect cut off, the ground giving way to white, fluffy clouds. Along the edge had been a series of large clasps reaching out horizontally quite far into the sky, and beside that, a large board with various names and times presented on its face. Quietly releasing Dana's hand, Carlos approached the sign as eyes scanned over the names. "What's this for?"
"That would be the docking schedule," explained the intern, walking towards the display as well. "I don't know if you saw, or even if it was in orientation, but Night Vale is split up into different sectors. At certain times of the day, the sectors will meet and dock upon one another before drifting away again, docking at another sector. Does that make sense?" she asked, one hand pointing upwards at the names and times. "The next sector will be shopping district, set to dock in little over half an hour."
"This is incredible," Carlos stated, awe within his voice. "How are these sectors timed? How are they controlled and docked?"
Upon Carlos' inquiry, Dana emitted a faint chuckle. Pulling her arm back to herself, she shrugged somewhat. "I wish I had an answer to that," she began, her hands idly slipping into the pockets of her black capris. "Though I always figured it was configured by the Glow Cloud. All hail!"
Alongside her words, Dana gave a brief salute by quickly raising her hands again, pulling them palm up and fingers spread to her forehead. Only the tips of her index fingers and thumbs touched to create a triangle upon the middle of her forehead. Just as hastily, the intern lowered her arms back to her sides, oblivious to the curious expression of her companion.
"It's just so fascinating," Carlos remarked, a hand absently stroking his fingers along his chin. "I have always been fascinated by tales of the floating town, Night Vale. When contact had been established, I instantly took the opportunity, along with my team-"
Words trailed away from Carlos as he brought up his team, his gaze steadily falling towards the street. Dana gave a quiet nod, before suddenly taking his hand again. "-and now you're here! You're going to research our resources to help your own town, right?" she asked, giving Carlos' arm a brief tug in motion to continue following her. As Carlos followed her lead, Dana's grin returned.
"I've only heard stories about the world below," she began as she and Carlos continued their venture. "Tales about the ocean and land, about trains and cellular phones, about-"
"-wait," Carlos interrupted, Dana once more peering over her shoulder towards him. "I don't understand. Cellyu-are-fones? What is that?"
"Oh, you know, those little devices that you carry with you to call people with," she answered, her voice carrying a matter-of-fact demeanor. "And they can take photographs and can type messages, all while taking a size no bigger than your palm!"
Dana's words were met with a perplexed raised brow from the scientist, who slowed his pace somewhat as though it'd help process her words. She merely gave a light hearted laugh, turning away as they walked about. "Ah, no worries! Come on, we're just getting started!"
