The next day Mr. Carlos arranged for the other scientists to handle all the work in his lab and the three set out to check all the doors. There had been reports of ten known doors scattered in and around Night Vale so they decided to check each one in turn. The first one they checked was the door Alice came through near the Whispering Forest.
It stood exactly where it had been as if waiting for her to return but once again it failed to open in spite of attempts made by all three from both sides of the freestanding entryway. Mr. Cecil even tried bleeding on it as some doors seemed to require but still it remained quite firmly closed. Alice sighed and sat nearby as she watched Mr. Carlos circle the door with boxes and wires, waving and prodding them while Mr. Cecil muttered and occasionally gave the door a sound kick.
It was strange to see the scientist so absorbed as he looked at little glowing dials and numbers. It didn't take long to get bored listening to him mutter 'inconclusive' as he checked and rechecked the equipment.
She began to wander a little further, curious about the innocent looking forest they claimed to be dangerous. Of course she was prepared to run back if anything happened. She simply didn't see what could be so frightening about an empty forest.
"That is such a pretty new dress," She heard her rabbit friend whisper from nearby. "It really brings out your eyes."
"Oh, Mr. Rabbit! I thought you were still on the other side of the doo-" She was cut off by a strong hand on her shoulder pulling her back.
She looked up at Mr. Cecil and immediately felt guilty for the amount of concern in his eyes as he looked down at her. "That is the voice that brought you here?"
She nodded and he guided her back to the door where he rested a hand over the dial of the machine Mr. Carlos was studying.
"Cecil..." He protested in frustration.
"That talking rabbit... It was one of the whispering voices that lures people into the forest."
"Really? So they can get through the doors? Interesting..." Mr. Carlos said, looking back to the door with a smile.
"Does that help, sir?" Alice asked.
"Not yet but new information can help in the future." He said, glancing at the tall trees on the far side of the door. "Isn't this exciting?"
"Yes, sir." She answered weakly. Exciting was one of the last words she would have thought of. They had been by the door for over an hour and were no closer to opening it than they had been the day before.
"I don't expect you to understand." Mr. Carlos said with a sympathetic smile. "I mean, once we get you home you will see so many scientific and medical advances before you're sixty that it will hardly seem the same world. There is just so much still unknown in your time. These days most places have been explored, few new inventions are made as people just try to improve on old ideas. There's very little that cannot be explained logically and that's why I came to Night Vale! It's almost as if the laws that govern the rest of the world simply don't apply here. This place is so fascinating! It's the perfect place to do science."
She nodded, considering what he said. In only a few days she had seen many impossible things and other things that were both wonderful and terrifying. It did seem almost like another world and if she hadn't dreamed during the night and woken this morning she would be certain she was dreaming now.
Alice was still considering his words when they moved on to the next door. This one stood beside a large tree in Mission Grove Park, half hidden behind a strange monument that consisted of a great many metal and stone hands twisted and clasped together to form a pillar. It seemed there should be something held by the outstretched hands at the top but there was nothing there.
"Mr. Cecil?" Alice asked as Mr. Carlos began testing the door as he did the previous one. "Did someone break the statue?"
"Not at all." He smiled, looking up at the top of the pillar.
"Is it unfinished?"
"Oh, no. This excellent monument was created as a tribute to our hope for the future."
"But there's nothing there." She protested.
"Exactly." He nodded, smiling back down at her.
She edged away from the monument, entirely unsure what to think of that terrible concept. How could Mr. Cecil so easily accept that there was no hope for the future?
A strange noise erupted from Mr. Cecil a few minutes later and brought Alice's attention back to him. He took a small box from his pocket, pressed a button to silence it and held it to his ear. "Hello?"
He said things like 'Mmhmm', 'Ahh, and 'I see.' a few times before he pressed another button and returned it to his pocket before turning his gaze once more to Mr. Carlos. Alice tugged on his sleeve. "What was that thing?"
"My cell phone?" He asked, reluctantly turning his gaze to her. "It allows me to communicate with people. If I remember right there won't be telephones in your time for over a decade. You will enjoy them once they are invented."
"Oh. What did the person say?"
"John Peters - you know, the farmer - said he caught a girl in a red hooded cape carrying a basket wandering in his field of imaginary corn. When he tried to speak to her she ran into the whispering forest. She's probably been absorbed by now." He said with a small shrug.
"Is there nothing we can do to help her?" Alice asked, looking in the direction of the forest though it was too far away to see now.
"Nothing useful. She should have run any other direction." Mr. Cecil said with a disapproving edge in his voice.
"She could not have known to stay out of the forest if she was like me and came through a door." Alice pointed out with a frown. Why did he always act like everyone should know the rules of this strange town?
"She could have asked over a delicious ear of imaginary corn if she had been at all sociable."
She huffed at his off-hand comment and went to stand beside Mr. Carlos as he looked at numbers on one of his machines.
"It's all the same… exactly the same as the other door." He muttered in disgust. "Surely something has to be different…"
"Perhaps it goes to the same time as mine. We should look at the door Pollyanna came through and see if it's different since we are certain she is from a different time." Alice suggested.
Mr. Carlos gave her a wide smile and patted her head. "That is an excellent idea."
They returned to the car and made their way to the door nearest the empty lot where they met the cheerful girl. Alice looked out the window as they went and held her breath as they passed an alley - almost hidden by the shadows of the buildings she saw a young boy with a sweet smile and two very unfriendly looking dogs. Though she only caught sight of him for a moment she was sure she did not wish to see him ever again.
Pollyanna's door was behind Cheryl's Little Princess Dance Studio and since it was getting late and somehow even hotter, Alice and Mr. Cecil went to a nearby restaurant to get lunch for the three as Mr. Carlos did all his tests again.
They returned to find him just as frustrated as he had been at the other door. Mr. Cecil convinced him to take a break and have a sandwich. Without bread the sandwiches were little more than meat, vegetables, cheese and condiments held between a few large lettuce leaves but once she thought of it as a creative salad it seemed much nicer.
By the time Mr. Carlos was ready to go to the next door there were heavy storm clouds forming and Mr. Cecil convinced him to stop testing doors for the day. With very little convincing Mr. Carlos agreed that a trip to the Children's Science Museum would be an excellent alternative.
Though she was very excited at first, her enthusiasm faded as they walked around the museum and Mr. Carlos' smile faded. He was quite upset about many things he saw and any time he asked where a certain exhibit was Mr. Cecil told him that was no such thing as it was not municipally approved.
They left soon after and returned to the house where Mr. Carlos paced and grumbled about the sorry state of the education provided for the children. Mr. Cecil seemed unhappy about his criticism of approved information but did not argue though he clearly wanted to. They introduced her to the television until it was time for Mr. Cecil to go to work. Once he was gone Mr. Carlos began teaching Alice useful scientific information, though much of what he said was a bit too advanced for her to remember. He gladly answered any questions she had though he spoke in whispers the entire time and encouraged her to do the same. Alice was sure they could have spoken normally and still barely been heard over the thunder and rain outside.
When she asked why, he told her that the police were always listening and disliked people becoming too smart. That seemed a silly sort of thing to be upset about but it was fun to keep such secrets and by the time Mr. Cecil's show came on she had learned why the sky is the color it is, what makes rainbows, why grass is green and a great many other interesting facts.
"Seek the truth only at great risk, do you really think it's worth the price? Welcome to Night Vale."
Alice shivered, knowing that he had been speaking to her. What would be the price he spoke of? Mr. Carlos knew a lot of things and he seemed to be doing well.
"More children have been appearing in Night Vale, listeners. I don't know about you but I am certainly glad these are less troubling than the otherworldly children who appeared in the past. Although… there have been multiple reports of a little boy walking around with a growing pack of feral dogs serving as his guardians. When asked for a comment on the situation the representative of the Sheriff's Secret Police glared at me while chewing on a coffee cup from the Moonlite All-Nite Diner. When only the handle remained he said 'Children can smell fear' then stood, paid for his cup and left."
"We most certainly cannot!" Alice protested indignantly. How could anyone believe such nonsense?
"Most children in Night Vale do seem to have that ability, actually." Mr. Carlos said as he handed her a plate of meatballs in sauce. After that Mr. Cecil told the story of the girl in the red hooded cape disappearing into the woods when she ran in fear from the farmer. He assured everyone that the cheerful girl Pollyanna had become quite popular at the city hall as she convinced the City Council to play hide-and-seek then arranged a chorus for the daily chanting.
The boy in the loincloth was still in the petting zoo with the wolves and there were rumors that the boy scouts were attempting to recruit him while the Sheriff's Secret Police continued denying any knowledge of the boy who had been detained.
Mr. Cecil then spoke of the unusual thunderstorm that seemed entirely centered over the town, not moving away in spite of a stiff wind. Even the people huddled in the hole in the empty lot had sought cover and were now huddled in the Deli section of the Ralph's.
Once the show ended they quickly turned the radio off as Cecil's voice was replaced by the unceasing shriek of birds of prey. Alice yawned, exhausted from the heat and what felt like a very long day. She said good night soon after Cecil returned and went to bed. She only woke once late in the night as she felt the blankets being tucked in gently around her. Too tired to open her eyes, she smiled and drifted back into a deep and dreamless sleep.
A/N: Do I actually have anything to say here? Not really. There are probably things I should say but that can wait.
Today's proverb: Hold a seashell to your ear and you can hear the distant screams of countless millions who failed to perform the proper rituals and chants.