The Nonessential Podcast

This week, Ben reads a creepypasta that outlines why it may be a bad idea to follow clearly unhinged instructions you may come across while exploring old wells. Check out the anonymously authored 'Scribblings in the Well.'

Sometimes you want to get away from the place where everybody knows your name. This week, Steve reads a story about a man trapped in a kind of purgatory that... well, actually sounds pretty okay? Check out The Bar, by Alparos-Lilah.  Source: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Bar  

This week, Ben reads the exciting conclusion, or is excited to conclude, the mystery thriller creepypasta Lost Episodes Can Be Found, originally written by Hopelessnightowl.  As the protagonist draws nearer to finding the disturbing verion of Aristicats that has haunted him since his youth (yes, you heard that right), the bigger picture starts to emerge. But you'll have to listen if you want to know how this story concludes.  ...or, I suppose, go read the original story, sourced below.  Source: Lost Episodes Can Be Found Again | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

This week, Ben takes us on the first leg of a journey with more legs than one. Probably two. But perhaps three? Regardless, this is leg one, and it's the start of a tale of a traumatic version of the already traumatic Aristicats, and the narrator's quest to find out where and how it came to be.  Check out Lost Episodes Can Be Found Again, part one. By HopelessNightOwl Source:  Lost Episodes Can Be Found Again | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

In this installment of the Nonessential Podcast, Steve reads the story of a soldier who's past is quite literally haunting him. Check out the anonymously written Only Following Orders. 

Hubert Wiliks was a man on a mission. Well, a few missions. But war metals and documenting birds couldn't compare with his plan to pilot a submarine under the north pole, using specially designed evil-villain drills and a giant reverse ice skate.  Check out episode 258: The Adventures of Hubert Wilkins. Sources: https://www.centennialofflight.net/essay/Explorers_Record_Setters_and_Daredevils/south_pole/EX20.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubert_Wilkins  https://archive.org/details/undernorthpolewi00wilk/page/n11/mode/2up  https://library.osu.edu/site/nautilus/exhibition-overview/  https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2005/november/oceans-1931-first-nautilus-north-pole-expedition https://www.amphilsoc.org/exhibits/nautilus/history.htm  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_O-12  https://web.archive.org/web/20100221234746/http://library.osu.edu/sites/exhibits/nautilus/arcticdive.html  https://web.archive.org/web/20081215020300/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,742231,00.html

This week, Steve reads two firey stories from Alparos-Lilah: The Fortune Teller, and Echoes from the Ashes. Both touch on the themes of fire, death, and what comes next.  Sources: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Fortune_Teller https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Echoes_from_the_Ashes  

This week, Ben reads 'The Butcher Family' by Night Spirit. It's a tale of woe, generational curses, and the best damned meat-cubes you ever did taste.  Source: The Butcher Family | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

After a short (medium) hiatus, we're back. And this week's show not only has legs, it has at least sixteen of them. Check out a creepy double feature as Steve reads TheBrexters 'Creepy Crawlies' and SpoopySparkle's 'The Crawly Man.'    Sources: Creepy Crawlies | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom The Crawly Man | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

On the brink of starvation and ruin, a pastor struggles with the absolute abandonment of his congregation. But then a mysterious man-thing shows up and offers him a deal he can't refuse. This week, Ben reads the piously creepy A Friend in Need by Dylon Winfield.