| “ | Everyone wins! Even if it seems like some of the everyones are gone, or absorbed, or dead. This is just part of the natural process of winning. | ” |
StrexCorp Synernists Incorporated is a mysterious private corporation that presumably runs the town of Desert Bluffs and has since begun infiltrating the town of Night Vale. StrexCorp promotes the worship of a "smiling god," and routinely releases announcements pressuring citizens to improve their productivity and extend their work hours. It is hinted they may be involved in cybernetics; their Strex Pet is described as being not wholly biological, as is Daniel, an office manager they sent to oversee Cecil's radio show. Kevin also offered Steve Carlsberg the chance to 'fix' his stepdaughter Janice who is in a wheelchair, but it is unknown if that would have involved mechanical enhancements or induction into the cult of the Smiling God.
StrexCorp in Desert Bluffs
StrexCorp was a dominating presence in Desert Bluffs long before it arrived in Night Vale. According to Kevin, a radio host in Desert Bluffs, the local government is too disorganized to keep the town in order, and so the town is instead maintained by StrexCorp. StrexCorp provides the citizens of Desert Bluffs with trade schools, regulated behaviors, insurance, helpful pandemics, and black helicopters, services that are mostly provided by the City Council in Desert Bluffs' sister city, Night Vale.[1][2] The relatively sunny outlook of Desert Bluffs citizens, despite the fact that their environment is apparently even more terrible than Night Vale, seems to have been imposed upon them by StrexCorp's aggressive corporatist propaganda.
StrexCorp in Night Vale
On October 1, 2013, StrexCorp began dropping leaflets from yellow helicopters upon the town of Night Vale.[3] Each leaflet was marked with a triangular logo that had an orange 'S' in the middle, and inside StrexCorp's motto was written:
Look around you: Strex.
Look inside you: Strex.
Go to sleep: Strex.
Believe in a smiling god.
StrexCorp. It is everything.
Night Vale's City Council seemed to regard StrexCorp's arrival as a threat. However, shortly after their leaflet campaign, StrexCorp purchased Night Vale Community Radio, and radio host Cecil Palmer was forced to broadcast StrexCorp's propaganda alongside the City Council's.
By January 2014, despite their failure to stamp out a violent underground resistance movement, StrexCorp owned virtually every business in Night Vale, and their authority apparently eclipsed that of the City Council. The Sheriff's Secret Police were bound to obey commands from StrexCorp management, and StrexCorp had the power to proclaim and enforce bans on common local activities, such as the manufacture and use of bloodstones.[4]
By April 15th, 2014, Strex had even apparently taken City Hall, which was covered in a yellow tarp with an orange triangle on it.[5]
Anti-StrexCorp resistance movement in Night Vale
13-year-old Night Vale resident Tamika Flynn, famed for her violent victory over Night Vale's fearsome librarians, began organizing an anti-StrexCorp resistance movement in the form of an organized child militia in the Sand Wastes in mid-November, 2013.[6][7] When pressed for comment on her militia's activities, Flynn answered only with a defiant rejection of StrexCorp's motto:
We do not look around.
We do not look inside.
We do not sleep.
Our god is not a smiling god.
And we are ready for this war.
Since the organization of her militia, StrexCorp has attempted to apprehend Flynn without success. On December 1, 2013, Flynn's militia successfully brought down one of StrexCorp's yellow helicopters using only rocks and slingshots, and took the helicopter's female pilot captive for unknown reasons.[8]
Although Cecil Palmer is currently a StrexCorp employee, he supports the anti-StrexCorp resistance movement to whatever extent he can, going so far as secretly hijacking Night Vale Community Radio to broadcast forbidden news of Tamika Flynn's victories to the citizens of Night Vale. This forbidden news was delivered to Palmer by officers of the Sheriff's Secret Police, who also seem to support the resistance movement, despite their apparent obedience to StrexCorp's management.[8][9] When Palmer is forced to report StrexCorp propaganda, he often adds his own color to the broadcasts, revealing his true feelings on the matter. For instance, when forced to condemn Tamika Flynn's defiant protest of the ban of bloodstone circles, he explained, "This was wrong of her, and it is my duty to condemn her act of extreme civic pride and heroism. Which is also wrong. Everything was incorrect and not allowed, and should not be celebrated, or reported on."[4]
On April 1, 2014, Cecil asked his listeners to purchase Girl Scout cookies from his "niece," a "specific young woman with helicopter skills" who may or may not be an alias of Tamika Flynn. Cecil thanked those who purchased the cookies for empowering kids who will one day rise up and speak a great truth while waving tear-stained copies of Elizabeth Barret Browning's Sonnets from the Portuguese, but his attempts to clandestinely fund the resistance alerted StrexCorp executives to the existence of the Girl Scouts of Night Vale. StrexCorp promptly purchased the organization in order to gain access to their databases, which they hoped would aid them in their manhunt for Tamika Flynn and her comrades.[10]
Cecil's insubordination does not seem to have gone completely unnoticed by his StrexCorp managers. On March 15, 2014, the station management gave him the unannounced gift of a vicious, deadly bio-mechanical StrexPet, which they later claimed was a "birthday present," although it was not actually Cecil's birthday; it is possible that this was a thinly veiled attempt on Cecil's life.[11] Cecil is particularly resentful of this incident, especially for the injuries the station pet Khoshekh sustained at the hands of the StrexPet.[10]
On May 1, 2014, Cecil and Tamika teamed up to launch a rebellion against StrexCorp on Parade Day, with Tamika sending out morse code messages encouraging Night Vale, and Cecil using passive-agressive remarks to announce the event before full-out asking Night Vale citizens to join. Unfortunately, no one joined Tamika's army, and she was captured, while Cecil was confronted by his manager Lauren and Desert Bluffs' Kevin, who took over the Night Vale broadcast on May 15, 2014, denying Cecil had ever worked for the radio station.
On June 1, 2014, StrexCorp decided to launch a massive renovation of Night Vale, planning to demolish nearly all buildings in town, and rebuilding them. This plan met resistance when outgoing Mayor Pamela Winchell, Old Woman Josie, and the Angels launched a protest at the vacant lot proclaiming to be the future site of the Old Night Vale Opera House. Soon after, through the help of the Angels and Intern Dana, Cecil was able to escape the company picnic, and retake Night Vale Community Radio, chasing out Lauren and Kevin, and declaring a new rebellion against StrexCorp.[12]
The Smiling God
StrexCorp's official motto is apparently a paean to an omnipresent Smiling God that exists around us, within us, and even inside of our dreams. Although the loyal executives and managers of StrexCorp usually present themselves as mundane corporate professionals, Cecil Palmer has observed his StrexCorp supervisors pressing themselves against the wall in the break room and endlessly chanting, "I take my warmth from your great warmth, I take my warmth from your great warmth."[13]
The Smiling God was later described in a StrexCorp radio advertisement as having a smile so wide that people could see themselves in its mirrored teeth, and that a thick, pink, gray, wet tongue could be seen pressing through the teeth.[11] The Smiling God's mirrored teeth reflect a person's "perfect self" while the Smiling God's grotesque tongue reflects a person's "imperfect self", whom the listener is urged to kill. It is possible that this philosophy suggests a connection between StrexCorp and the March 15, 2013 invasion of Night Vale and Desert Bluffs by malevolent doppelgangers.
Intern Dana's contact with the Smiling God
The Smiling God exists, although probably not exclusively, in the barren alternate reality that Dana accessed via the The Dog Park. On February 15, 2014, Dana discovered an abandoned settlement in a tightly wound, spiral-shaped gorge.[14] Along the walls of the gorge, Dana observed drawings of orange triangles, not unlike the StrexCorp logo, that grew larger and larger as she descended further into the gorge. The triangles emitted a soft light that caused Dana sharp physical pain, but she found that she could not look away. She somehow knew that the inhabitants of the abandoned settlement had been good people, but had been taken away by something much larger and stronger than they were. "There is something coming, Cecil," Dana warned, like a hot wind blowing, or like a deathly cold, vast creature rushing at us out of the gaps of time and memory with which we hold together our lives. On the horizon, she saw a light like the soft light of the triangles in the spiral, and claimed it was the "unraveling of all things."
By April 15, 2014, the light had grown much closer to Dana, and it was spreading across the endless desert, "Alive, and malicious, and vast, and encroaching." All who observed the light were harmed by it, and all who were within the light were destroyed by it. In an apparent trance, neither understanding how he knew what he knew or why he should explain what he knew to his audience, Cecil Palmer explained that the malevolent light was a Smiling God of terrible power and ceaseless appetite, and its intent was to devour everything that exists. Cecil did, however, hint that the smiling god takes different forms on different planes of existence and would likely not appear as a vast, spreading light to the citizens of Night Vale.[5]
StrexCorp products
J.P. Oranges and J.P.'s OJ
These transdimensional oranges and orange products, which had the unfortunate side effect of causing customers to cease to exist forever, were produced by J.P.'s OJ, Ltd., of which StrexCorp is a majority shareholder. It is also noteworthy that the J.P.'s OJ logo featured a cartoon sun with a strained, toothy smile, a possible depiction of the Smiling God, and that J.P.'s OJ was not founded by John Peters—you know, the farmer?—but rather by an evil doppelganger of John Peters—you know, the imposter?—who may have been John Peters' "perfect self", to use the parlance of StrexCorp.[9]
StrexPets
One of these malevolent, dangerous bio-machines was given to Cecil Palmer as a "gift" by his StrexCorp managers. Cecil described it as having huge duck eyes, puffy fur like that of a bear cub, a thick round belly, and no discernible arms and legs, but only little nubs that flit about as it slowly moves across the ground. It makes a sound like a mouse squeak combined with a bike horn combined with a sincere question about love. Cecil initially believed the StrexPet was adorable, but it later viciously attacked him, and somehow knocked the bathroom door off of its hinges in pursuit and grievously wounded the station pet Khoshekh before ultimately being deactivated by Animal Control.[11]
Kevin also apparently received a StrexPet. "Oh, it is the cutest! I take it for walks, I throw sticks at it, I tell it my worst secrets!" He also feeds it mice, possibly either in an attempt at sabotage or simply out of sadism.[15]
StrexBooks
StrexCorp proposed to tear down the library and replace it with StrexBooks purchase centers.[15]
StrexCorp employees
Lauren Mallard
Lauren is the highest ranking met member of StrexCorp, having risen in the ranks on-air from Station Manager of Night Vale Community Radio, to Vice-President of the company, and owner community supporter of Night Vale.
Kevin
Kevin seems to be Cecil's closest counterpart in Desert Bluffs, being the local community radio host. In StrexCorp's takeover of Night Vale, he has acted as Lauren's right-hand man.
Office drones
In StrexCorp's counter attack, they have unleashed a seemingly endless horde of office drones. They sound somewhat similar to Kevin, being eyeless and covered in blood splotches.
References
- ↑ 19A - The Sandstorm (Part A) at [1]
- ↑ 19B - The Sandstorm (Part B) at [2]
- ↑ 32 - Yellow Helicopters at [3]
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 39 - The Woman from Italy at [4]
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 45 - A Story About Them at [5]
- ↑ 28 - Summer Reading Program at [6]
- ↑ 35 - Lazy Day at [7]
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 36 - Missing at [8]
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 38 - Orange Grove at [9]
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 44 - Cookies at [10]
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 43 - Visitor at [11]
- ↑ 48 - Renovations at [12]
- ↑ 42 - Numbers at [13]
- ↑ 41 - WALK at [14]
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 49 - Old Oak Doors Part A at [15]