[narrator reads]
[thunder rumbling]
So, um... who are you?
Hello, Howard. My name is Randolph.
I'm the son of John and Augusta Lovecraft.
I received word that Butler's Sanitarium
was destroyed.
And that your father, Winfield had passed.
What? Dead? Poppycock!
You're... you're alive!
It seems the reports of my death were greatly exaggerated.
But how?
Ho, ho, ho, if I told you, you'd probably drag me
to the loony bin yourself.
Father, you know this man?
Well, I don't recall John and Augusta
-ever having children-- -Oh, come now.
How could you forget me, Uncle Winny?
My memory's not what it used to be.
Good, then. Hmm, yes.
Don't just stand out there all day. Come in, Robert.
-Randolph. -Randolph.
I can't say I've had the pleasure.
[chuckling] Well, come in.
-You must stay with us. -Stay?
It'll be Howard's birthday soon.
A time for family to come together.
Yes.
We'll be glad of the company.
We'll get you all settled.
[thunder rumbling]
[creature growling]
[chanting spell]
[Howard] I had never believed in magic.
Not before I met you, Spot. [gasps]
[stirring]
[Howard] Easy. Stand down.
[Spot grunts] Can anyone help?
Give me your word as a... uh, a fish thing,
that you won't hurt me.
-[Spot] Pull! -Hold on.
[Spot grunting]
[Spot] Saved life, Master. Me, Thu Thu Hmong.
I'm gonna call you... Spot.
[Spot] Spot.
-Master Howard. -Hey, you promised.
Master cold. Spot makes warm.
[Howard] We discovered the untouchable.
Saw the invisible.
I showed this horrible monster that thing in my pocket,
-and it froze in fear. -Thing?
-[Howard] This. -[Spot yells]
[both groaning]
[Spot] Elder sign has great power.
-[chants spell] -[grunts]
[Spot] Careful. Book also has power.
None of these words make sense.
[chanting spell]
[all grunt]
-[Spot] Huh? -[Howard shudders] No.
You cannot control the dark magic in these pages.
I've done it before,
and to save Mother and Spot, I'd do it again.
[chants spell]
[Howard] And together, we mastered the unbelievable.
[chanting spell]
[stuttering] Mother.
You're back with us!
I love you, Mother.
I was so scared we'd lose you.
I'm here, Howard. I love you, too.
-[Sarah] Howard... -[whispers final word of spell]
I wanted to wish you a happy birthday.
-Thank you, Mother. -Are you feeling all right?
-You're so pale. -No, I-- I feel fine.
It's possible to spend too much time indoors, Howard.
-You should get outside more. -I will.
[sighs] I love you, son. Very much.
I can't tell you what it means to me
to have the whole family together under one roof.
And you, my special boy,
you'll be a young man soon. I just hope you'll let your...
goodness flourish.
Your father made some questionable choices
in his youth.
I won't make Father's mistakes, Mother.
I'm glad to hear it.
I want you to know something important, Howard,
something your father's books can't teach you.
Howard...
I love you.
You'll remember that, won't you?
-I will. -Good, good. Now, make a wish.
[Randolph hums "Happy Birthday To You"]
Well, I haven't met our guest.
Great Aunt Mary.
You say you're family?
I'm Augusta and John's boy, Randolph.
Well, I don't remember any Randolph.
But there is something familiar about you.
-Is there? -Yes.
Surely you remember me.
I was at our last reunion with Aunt Cordelia,
Aunt Emily, Aunt Mary-Louisa.
They were all so happy to see each other.
You do look like someone I know, or knew.
-Well, you kind of look like-- -Randolph!
Don't overthink it. You'll wind up a kook,
like Dear Uncle Winfield.
[squawks]
Hmm.
[gasps]
The walls between worlds are breaking.
Uncle Randolph, what are you doing?
Oh, hello.
Actually, I wanted to talk to you.
What about?
You may find this hard to believe,
but I was very much like you when I was a boy.
-Oh? -Yes.
I studied all sorts of things in my spare time. Things...
not of this world. Tell me, Howard.
You wouldn't be practicing the dark arts
-in your spare time, would you? -What?
[stuttering] What makes you say that?
I can't help noticing the fabric of reality has been...
-spread a bit thin. -What do you mean?
You grow attuned to these things with training.
I've had some training from Armitage.
From Miskatonic University? I've heard of him.
But by using magic, there are consequences.
What kind of consequences?
[thunder rumbles]
What's happening?
[creature growling]
Hmm? Danger. Danger!
-[Randolph] Night-gaunts. -[night-gaunt growling]
-Howard, with me. -Thanks, Uncle,
-but I know a thing, or two. -Howard, stop!
Your magic only increases the tears between dimensions.
Quick, to the house!
[Winfield yells and grunts]
[night-gaunts growling]
[growling continues]
[Winfield] No, no, no! [groaning]
-[night-gaunt growls] -Randolph grunts]
-No, no, no, no, no! -[Howard grunts]
[all grunt]
My runes will stop them from entering.
-Thank you, Randolph. -Yeah.
-Thank you, Uncle Randolph. -No thanks necessary,
but that shows me we need to see your Dr. Armitage.
There are walls between worlds, Howard.
Magic draws on the energy and the fabric of reality.
I believe your magic is wearing a hole in those walls.
Professor Armitage never warned me about that.
[Randolph] He knows what you've been up to?
It takes considerable power to tax the barriers.
Just what have you been getting up to, Howard?
We are safe, right?
Until we know more about why this happened,
we shouldn't assume that the danger has passed.
But who should we see?
We should see Dr. Armitage. This is serious.
He would be at Miskatonic University.
Do you know how to... to...
[sighs] Can you take us there?
I don't want to use any more magic
and I've actually never walked there.
I've no idea where it is.
Yes. Yes, I can.
-Come, Howard. -[Howard] Just one minute.
-Howard? -[Howard] I'll be right back.
So... you know magic?
Where did you learn?
Miskatonic University.
Come on, let's go.
[laughs] Just some food.
-[Howard] Dr. Armitage! -Who on Earth?
[Henry] Howard? [chuckling] What a surprise.
What brings you to Miskatonic?
Night-gaunts came from a portal on my front lawn.
They tried to attack our house.
Night-gaunts!
I know what night-gaunts are but slow down.
I'm Dr. Henry Armitage.
This is my Uncle Randolph. He went to Miskatonic.
He said, you'd know what was causing it.
The walls between worlds wear thin, Professor.
You believe that the barrier between worlds is thinning?
Hmm. This theory isn't accepted by many.
However, a group of my colleagues and I
believe this to be true.
If the barriers, the walls, as you put it were to break,
it would mean the destruction of our planet.
But no one has reported a breach yet.
This would be the first.
Assuming that is what happened on your lawn,
this situation has gotten much worse.
-Follow me. -Where are we going?
This is a university, young man,
the leading institute of magic and the dark arts.
You are about to meet a collection
of the greatest authorities on the arcane and mystical.
Together, we will come to an informed decision
on how to proceed.
[thunder rumbling]
[Henry] Dr. Jaswald Atwood, Dr. Ellen Ellery,
Dr. Warren Rice,
and my teaching assistant, William Dyer.
You all know why I've summoned you here.
There's a distressing amount of activity in the ether.
Young Howard tells me there's already been a breach.
[Randolph] That's correct. A quartet of night-gaunts
clawed their way through to our world.
-Who is this? -This is my Uncle Randolph.
He saved me. He used to go here.
Howard has had a lot of experience recently
-with the occult. -Howard, you saw the breach?
I'm studying to be a geologist and most of my focus
is on the signs of stress to the Earth's mantle.
Something is putting undue pressure
on The Plateau of Leng.
And you think this pressure created a crack
releasing night-gaunts from below?
I do believe it's a theory of tectonic plates.
Undue stress or pressure on one plate
affects the one surrounding it.
Too much stress and it can shatter,
sending out shock waves.
-Like an earthquake. -Exactly.
Maybe the night-gaunts came from below our Earth's core.
[Dr. Rice] Ah, you booming parsley.
No, I don't believe your theory and I do not believe
that night-gaunts are from our world.
If they're from another dimension,
this could be a symptom of a far greater problem.
-Another dimension-- -The power is escalating
exponentially, creating these cracks.
I do think most of us believe these creatures could be
-from another dimension. -Agreed.
This kind of change doesn't happen naturally.
Something is supplying that pressure.
Either on this side, or the other.
Shouldn't we exhaust all other options first?
Yer bum's out the window.
When everything comes as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat,
you'll be at the coo's tail.
My first kilt is older than you.
No, literally. It is.
Say they are from another dimension.
Then it is safe to assume, um...
he is behind this. Agreed?
-Who? -I don't think it's him.
I hope it's not him.
What we do know of him is he is not allowed
to directly interfere on another plain.
-Who? -Right. And in line with that,
he hasn't interfered. It's been night-gaunts
and maybe there are minions doing his bidding.
-[exclaims unintelligibly] -Who are we talking about?
They're talking about Az--
-[thunder rumbling] -[all] Shh!
Oh, come now. The boy has to know
-what we're up against. -We do not say that name.
You can call him: "It".
-The nuclear chaos. -Or the Blind Idiot God.
Before recorded time, there were creatures
of such inestimable power and ferocity
that they defied description.
Bigger than life, older than the universe.
To even try to capture their full might
in your mind at once is to invite madness.
[thunder rumbling]
The very oldest of these, the stuff that nightmares
are made of, watches all in the beyond.
I joined what is now called The British Indian Army
back in '84.
I have seen war, I have seen death.
After a decade with the army, I was responsible to search
for who was behind the darkest deeds.
Behind the most horrific murders,
behind the supernatural sins.
This is the monster that profits from them.
-I've seen him before. -[chuckles] You couldn't have.
I did. But, well, you know, kind of, uh...
I closed my eyes and then I saw Azathoth--
Stop.
Um... I saw his eye.
Whoa, his...
-You saw him? -Yeah.
-Impossible. -But the sight of him
-would drive you to madness. -I did see him. I really did.
Nyarlathotep showed him to me.
-[thunder rumbling] -[all gasp]
Howard, this is critically important.
-Nyarlathotep, are you positive? -Yeah.
Spot even confirmed it.
-Spot? -It's a... you know.
-The Sleeper of R'lyeh. -Henry!
You mean Cthulhu, the Destroyer of Worlds.
Yes, I've been keeping an eye on The Sleeper.
"Keep your friends close" and all.
-[Howard] And Spot is my friend. -Cthulhu is not your friend.
Oh, laddy, you're the wee hen that never layed away.
-He is my friend. -Settle down, everyone.
Back to Nyarlathotep.
If the boy is telling the truth, and all of these scriptures
are real, and Nyarlathotep has shown himself...
this changes everything.
Why?
Nyarlathotep cannot directly act against our universe.
Then I guess it's a good thing that I wasn't in this universe
when I met him. This happened on Yuggoth.
Oh, come on! You've been Yuggoth?
If I may, if what you're saying is true,
and Nyarlathotep cannot directly affect this plain of existence,
then he could be applying pressure
to one of our neighboring dimensions.
This is all theory, though.
[chuckles] It's just theoretical. Right?
-Vhrool. -[Howard] What?
A world where the laws that bind matter together don't apply.
Time, gravity, the conservation of energy.
They are simply random variables on Vhrool.
There is no constant. Up is down.
Seconds can feel like centuries.
It's a place of... madness.
If the stresses on that plain could be interrupted,
then that should mean our own universe
-would be safe once more. -What are you suggesting?
-Trying to go to Vhrool? -Most definitely.
-We have no other-- -The fact is,
we lack sufficient data to plan any course of action.
Even if we identify the cause of these fractures,
we cannot be certain of the proper solution.
-I completely disagree. -[groans]
Only one of our number has the expertise
-to know for sure. -Ah, don't say--
Dr. West, no one knows more about the walls
between worlds than he.
I do agree. I think we all do.
But Butler's Sanitarium is condemned.
-Where would he be? -He has a facility
-in Antarctica. -Antarctica?
-As in the South Pole? -That's the one.
-And if he's not there? -If we are actually
facing the breakdown of dimensional barriers
and the possible destruction of our world,
simply stated, there's no one else to consult.
[Dr. West chuckling] You can't be serious.
As a heart attack.
Howard, uh, Randolph, was it?
Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
It's a long journey and we will leave immediately.
We'll drop you three off at the Lovecraft home.
-Excuse me? -I cannot allow civilians
to venture into some strange dimension.
[Randolph chants spell]
[Randolph] I am far from a regular civilian.
Like I said, I attended Miskatonic University
and I know a lot about the dark arts.
-I do not remember him. -The dangers are too great.
This is not happening on my watch.
Dr. Armitage, when did the school get... this?
[Henry] This is a dirigible balloon, William.
And it's on loan.
This is bleeding-edge technology.
It can reach speeds of over 25 kilometers per hour.
-Well that's pretty quick. -Indeed.
I've made some improvements
on the original design, and I can now beat
-the Le France record. -Wouldn't a portal
-get us there faster? -It's far too dangerous.
If the walls between words
are indeed waning thin, then we will dare not
put any additional stress upon it.
This will get us there safe and sound.
Now, we haven't a moment to lose. Full speed ahead.
[stomach growling]
What?
[Henry] Oh, leave it. Not now.
-[William] This is incredible. -[Henry] Yes.
[Howard] This is crazy.
At 25 kilometers per hour, uh, 15 miles per hour,
and it looks like Antarctica's around 8,700 miles away.
Is that right?
-Your point? -Hold on, it's going to take...
five-hundred-and-eighty...
well... divide by 24, carry the zero, 21...
[gasps] three weeks?
[William] Who's back there?
[chants spell]
-Hold on. -Explain yourselves.
Uh, we... we snuck on.
I said, you were not welcome on this journey.
Look, my father, a Lovecraft, is responsible for most of this.
I am the only one who has seen Nyarlathotep
-and Azathoth. -[gasps]
Yup, both of them.
Look, I know my spells and I've been
on these journeys before.
Dr. Armitage, I know the risks.
And I need to do this.
-[Henry] And you? -I will look after the boy.
[scoffs] Strap yourselves in. It will take a while.
[Randolph] Howard, what if I told you
that us meeting wasn't entirely a coincidence?
Oh, uh, really? What do you mean?
I arrived when I did for a very specific reason.
With training, Howard,
you'll learn to read the signs, as I have.
I knew something like this was coming.
I only came to make sure you were in the right place
at the right time with everything you need.
-Really? -Yes.
All I want is to ensure you have a long
and healthy future, my boy.
-Thank you, Uncle Randolph. -You're welcome.
Randolph, you say you went to Miskatonic University.
-What year was that? -Oh, it feels like ages ago.
Well, I'm the class of '81. I've also--
-Dr. Armitage? -Yes, my lad?
-How do you know, Dr. West? -Dr. West looked after
your father in Butler's Sanitarium.
Either out of duty or guilt, sir.
Winfield has always had a... unique sensitivity
to the darkness.
Symbols kept appearing in your father's visions,
in his nightmares.
To prevent these visions from driving him mad,
he needed to continually scribe them.
He wrote down every symbol, every word, every rule.
As a man of science, West studied and experimented
in the dark arts.
He wasn't a doctor yet.
Jeffrey West and Winfield Lovecraft
pushed on the barriers until they ripped
through dimensions and came face to face.
With Jeffrey's scientific methods
and your father's special, uh, connection with the darkness,
together, they learned lots. [chuckles] Maybe too much.
I've always been fascinated with books of the arcane,
so I was thrilled when West invited me
to read Winfield's journal.
Uh, less thrilled when I found out his lab
-is in Antarctica. -[books thud]
[Henry] He knew the symbols in this journal had power.
-[electricity zapping] -We were not prepared
for the horrors that were about to come.
Lovecraft, this is extraordinary.
We stand on a precipice,
an entire new world to explore, right at our fingertips.
The planet Vhrool. Incredible!
What do you see?
I... I can't describe this.
Winfield, what do you see?
[growling]
Winfield, get in here!
-[growling intensifies] -[Winfield grunts]
-Jeffrey, close the portal. -Close it?
[chuckles] I plan to swing the door open wide.
You don't know what you're doing.
[Jeffrey] Well of course I don't know.
That's what it makes this so exciting.
Shut it down. We had a deal.
Well, I won't ring the deal.
This is too important to pass up.
Don't you see this is bigger than either of us?
[growling]
Shut it down! You'll doom us all.
[Jeffrey] No, no! [stutters] what are you doing?
Stop, you'll ruin everything!
What have you done, you blasted fool? [grunts]
[wind howling]
[sighs] I just wanted to...
understand, to explore the...
-Now that... is Cthulhu. -What?
The writings from my journal! That is the Destroyer of Worlds.
Winfield, are you sure?
[Winfield] Cthulhu is on his way to R'lyeh right now,
to destroy our world.
-Where is R'lyeh? -Very, very close.
Oh, Lovecraft, don't be like this.
Don't give in to your simplistic emotions,
there's so much we can still learn together.
We shouldn't deny science, this advancement.
Think of what we'll learn.
-What have I done? -This journal brought
that demon here. Let's hope it can send it back.
That was how your father first ended up in R'lyeh.
So it was that journal that stopped Cthulhu.
It put Cthulhu to sleep.
That's why Spot is The Sleeper of R'lyeh.
If Spot wakes up, he would be Cthulhu,
the Destroyer of Worlds.
That spell also froze the kingdom,
but I heard you stole back that journal from a Shoggoth
-and freed R'lyeh. -Yeah, I did.
[shudders]
A blizzard is coming.
Long time no see, huh?
We hoped that after Butler's Sanitarium closed,
you'd be here.
Been a long time. I see you've rebuilt it all.
Yes, better than it was, actually.
With the residue from the other side,
we have made massive leaps in understanding.
We come with dire news.
We believe the walls between worlds is thinning.
Cracks have formed, they've been, uh,
interlopers, night-gaunts.
Oh, we analyzed what remained after Winfield's abduction.
We stripped down the residue to its base elements
and even identified a few new ones.
Quite something when one discovers raw matter,
unbound by the laws of conventional physics.
-Unbound by the laws? -Life, it's about life.
I've dedicated my life to studying the arcane,
but with the materials we've analyzed from R'lyeh,
we've been able to prevent decay.
It is essentially immortal.
Speaking of which, you opened a portal to Vhrool
from his lab, right?
Right here. Are we able to go back?
-[chuckling] Oh, yes, I-- -That is great research Jeffrey.
Can you help us seal the breaches, or-- or not?
Ah... yes.
Yes, I believe we can.
-[screams] What is that thing? -[Jeffrey] He was a... a...
a friend of mine and was...
around during the first experiments.
He also might have been an early test. [chuckles]
You re-animated your staff?
[Jeffrey] No, no. My son re-animated him.
May I introduce you to, uh, Herbert West.
Hello, I'm Herbert West, and this is Captain Obed Marsh.
I gave him life.
Sadly the Captain's afterlife
is something more of a half life.
It's not a perfect experiment, but he's loyal.
Uh, yeah, progress. Not perfection.
Uh, excuse me?
Sir?
Uh, Obed? Captain?
Uh, hello. Captain Marsh, sir?
Ugh, here's your... hand. [chuckles]
[roars]
Huh?
[growling]
You don't scare me.
[stuttering] Okay. That scares me.
[chants spell]
[Howard grunts]
[chants spell]
That was great, Howard.
[creature growls]
That was terrible. Howard, that was a death spell.
On top of that, by using that magic,
you've torn a hole in the walls big enough for an army.
[stuttering] I was trapped, and they were too many.
And I needed something more powerful.
Howard, you're no longer facing mere servants of evil,
but evil itself.
Do not become the same evil you're trying to fight.
I am so sorry.
We will not win this fight. Anyone have any ideas?
-Maybe the Plateau. -Yeah.
We can go to the Plateau of Leng.
We can walk them out.
-Lead the way. -Let's go.
[creatures growling]
[panting]
[Herbert grunts]
Well, we're not going back that way.
Come on, come on. What are we waiting for?
There's nothing to fear here.
[Howard] Wow. La-di-da!
[Jeffrey] What did I tell you? What did I tell you?
Forces like nothing on this Earth.
Evidence of intelligence
far beyond anything we've ever known.
Here, beneath the ice. Resting, waiting for us.
[sighs] Waiting for me.
We've only explored down here a couple of times,
but my father thinks he's translated the runes.
If I'm reading these ancient hieroglyphics correctly,
which would be frankly astounding...
they actually welcome us to this place.
From the look of it, they pre-date the great flood.
My father's a very determined man.
Yeah, I can relate.
How does one discover how to go to other planets?
Well, once upon a time, Howard, your father crossed over
to some distant place, an entire world
locked in unending ice and snow.
-[Howard] R'lyeh? -[Jeffrey] Yes, R'lyeh.
I theorized that these other worlds
you and your father have visited,
these dimensions in space and time...
what if they're not so impossibly far away?
What if they're all occupying the same space?
Parallel to one another. Like dinner plates,
stacked one on top of the other. Imagine it.
These portals that your father has found and opened,
that you have found. They're simply places
where the walls between dimensions are thinnest.
And at those spots, the worlds can be crossed.
But these doorways need a key to activate.
You need a catalyst, that small singular spark.
The Necronomicon.
I think The Necronomicon could be a key
if one has mastery over the arcane,
but I believe an even stronger key is you,
the blood of a Lovecraft.
Oh, this is the portal.
Jeffrey, are you sure?
-[Jeffrey yells] -[Herbert] Dad.
Dad, are you okay? Speak to me.
[grunts]
-Are you all right? -[sighs]
-It's a dead end. -You are a Lovecraft.
-You will open the portal. -What?
-Howard... touch that door. -Howard, no.
Funny enough, I've actually done this before.
Look who I found.
Spot! You're okay.
I couldn't find you. I missed you.
Good to see you again, Thu Thu Hmong.
Is he-- That's Cthulhu. Right?
This is Thu Thu Hmong. Or as Howard calls him, Spot.
I am okay now, Sir Howard.
But I do not know how I got here.
Cthulhu lies dormant, asleep deep within Spot.
But I assure you, our friend here
is no Destroyer of Worlds.
Come on, I'm about to open another portal.
-You'll burn! -[footsteps approaching]
[sighs]
Nothing happened.
By the stones of thunder.
[Howard] That symbol. It looks like Earth.
It is. And that's Mercury, Venus, and these are the rest
of the planets from our solar system.
These other symbols. We assume they're planets,
but we're not sure which solar system.
We still don't know how to stop the dimensions from colliding.
Vhrool.
What? Vhrool?
Vhrool is where we can stop everything.
Now that we have this big fellow,
we should be able to solve all our problems.
Thu Thu Hmong?
The ancient ones cannot be fought.
Howard, you need to come and bring Thu Thu Hmong.
-What? -Azathoth cannot be beaten!
Spot, come here now.
Or I kill Howard.
You do not move.
No, Spot, stop. Spot, you can't go to Vhrool.
You know, Howard, I have a hard time believing
how simple it was to fool you.
I don't think I was ever this dumb.
I do not wish to hurt you.
But I need to save Master Howard.
[Howard] Spot, don't!
Vhrool is the birthplace of Cthulhu.
Spot, you cannot enter.
Stay put!
Get back from the portal.
[chants spell]
[grunts]
[screams in pain]
-Let him have it. -[both chant spell]
-[Spot grunting]
[grunts]
[roars]
[both chant spell]
[groans]
[Spot roars]
His body's healing faster
than the necrotizing fasciitis can spread.
[Spot roars]
[chants spell]
[both grunt]
I am sorry.
They're gone.
It's over.
[Howard] Spot.
-What do you want? -Does it matter?
-You're not my uncle. -No.
-[Howard] Who are you? -I am you, Howard.
I-- I don't understand.
-We are the same person. -How? You can't do this.
I already did. I did what I had to do
-in order to save myself. -You're lying. You have to be.
[Howard] You were behind all of this!
[Spot grunts]
[chants spell]
Enough.
[grunts]
[Nyarlathotep] As you see,
I'm a bit more hands on in Vhrool.
I'm going to give you the gift
of the life you have yet to live.
To re-capture my youth, all my knowledge
and experience and power inside of you.
Well... me.
As promised, I have brought you The Destroyer.
The Necronomicon, [scoffs] we don't need that anymore.
That is the book of the dead. We're on Vhoorl.
This the planet of the dead.
This is the birthplace...
-of Cthulhu. -[ground shaking]
This time, everything is in place.
This time, The Sleeper's going to be wide awake.
[Nyarlathotep chanting spell]
[spell continues]
[Spot groaning]
[Cthulhu roars]
One name for this ancient entity is The Sleeper of R'lyeh.
But together, you and me, we found a way to wake him.
Know what he's called now?
-The Destroyer of Worlds. -[Cthulhu roars]
[Randolph] The future I come from isn't very nice, Howard.
I no longer dream.
Nightmares bleed into my reality.
I'm living in lucid nightmare where Wunderwunt...
is gone.
I am...
so tired.
[Nyarlathotep] Father, The Sleeper has awakened.
Your son Cthulhu is before me.
Nyarlathotep, I am asking if you may bring us.
So we may watch the Destroyer of Worlds.
[Azathoth growls]
[thunder rumbling]
That was...
the price Yuggoth had to pay was terrible.
But it was necessary for me to get The Silver Key.
[Nyarlathotep] Yes. Here's your prize.
The lost key to the gate of dreams.
[chuckles] Yes!
-Don't resist. -[panting]
[chanting spell]
[Randolph] I'm in, Howard.
-I'm in your mind, now. -I won't quit.
I admire your spirit.
So much like my own.
But Nyarlathotep is beyond even us.
He cannot be fought. He cannot be beaten.
The only way is surrender.
-So, you just gave up? -I gave up far too late.
They're people in our life, Howard,
people that would be with us,
protected and safe from his power
if only we'd joined him sooner.
People you haven't even met yet.
-There's no time anymore. -I don't believe you.
You don't have to.
You just have to become me.
What happened to you?
You wouldn't believe me if I told you.
-Show me. -It's too horrific.
[explosions]
[Cthulhu growls]
[Randolph] It's not too late.
Don't you see?
We merge and become one.
Young and strong, and whole.
With time on our side once more.
[Howard] No.
What do you have that's worth preserving?
Why do you resist?
[Sarah] You'll remember that, won't you?
I want you to know something important, Howard.
Something your father's books can't teach you.
Mother?
You may have forgotten, but I haven't.
Mother... Mother...
please... help me.
I'm so tired.
Please, Mother.
Tell me what you told him.
[Sarah] Howard...
I love you.
I love you, guys.
I love you, Mother.
I knew you could do it!
I will never forget you.
I can't...
I can't do it.
I can't rob you of what time you have left with her.
With them.
Nyarlathotep is going to destroy your Earth next.
-Destroy Earth? -The more planets they destroy,
the stronger, Vhrool, Cthulhu and the Ancient Ones become.
My plan was to go back in time and, well...
replace you, and then I'd be young again.
I'd stop the destruction of Earth and relive my life
as a regular eight-year-old.
Well, we can still stop the destruction of Earth...
together.
[Randolph] Together.
Cthulhu cannot be beaten on Vhoorl.
The only chance we have to stop him
from destroying Earth is to confront him on Earth.
Each planet has a kingdom.
Yuggoth had Yl'glhuh, Vhrool has Chigagonikeloy.
-And Earth has-- -[Howard] R'lyeh.
[Randolph] That's right. R'lyeh. Each of these kingdoms
were constructed on their planet in an exact location
that aligns them for intergalactic travel.
Cthulhu destroyed Yuggoth above the Undisted Kingdom,
and he will destroy Earth over R'lyeh.
We need to get back to Earth and prepare
for the final battle.
Howard... this is yours.
-[chanting spell] -It's okay, he's on our side.
Don't believe him, he's wanting to release Cthulhu.
Well, yes. Wanted, but we worked it out.
Worked it out? You've been gone seconds.
Time on Vhoorl moves differently than on Earth.
I am sorry. [sighs] I was wrong.
-I am here to help. -Yuggoth...
is destroyed... and Spot...
Cthulhu's coming here to destroy Earth.
H.P. is giving us an opportunity to save everyone.
We don't really have time to argue.
So...
-how do we stop Cthulhu? -It will be on R'lyeh.
It will take an army.
And it will take Howard.
I'll teleport us to R'lyeh.
I assume we don't care about the tears
-between dimensions right now. -[Henry] Ah, no.
-I will get the army. -My dad is hurt.
-He can't go with us. -I'll drop him off
at Miskatonic University. Herbert and William,
go with Howard and Randolph. Let us all meet at R'lyeh.
Thank you, Dr. Armitage.
[chanting spell]
This is crazy.
[indistinct muttering]
[creatures jeering]
[thunder rumbling]
[Howard] Squidkids!
[all] Howard!
How are you? What brings you here?
It's bad. It's really bad.
Spot is gone.
-Gone? -What do you mean, gone?
Will Spot come back?
Spot is dead.
And it is Cthulhu who's come to destroy Earth.
We think he's coming to R'lyeh.
-Right now. -Cthulhu! He's awake?
The Destroyer.
Cthulhu will send his hoards in before his arrival
to kill everything in the kingdom.
-Cthulhu will appear thereafter. -[indistinct muttering]
So our goal is not to die. Got it.
Yet if we can hold off his army long enough,
Cthulhu will appear. It is at that point, Howard...
[creature mutters]
Howard, [stutters] at that point, Howard does what?
You will use The Necronomicon to kill Cthulhu.
[Howard] I don't know if I can.
Then ready yourself for whatever comes next.
[creature growling]
[growls]
[roars]
[chanting spell]
[roars]
[Howard chants spell]
-[grunts] -[chanting spell]
[chanting spell]
[all exclaim]
[chanting spell]
[grunts]
[chanting spell]
[creature growling]
[chants spell]
-[creature growls] -[Herbert grunts]
[creature burps]
[Herbert] For the Earth...
[chanting spell]
[Herbert] Watch out!
[chanting spell]
[creature cackles]
For science.
-[creature growls] -Whoa!
[chants spell]
[sighs]
[grunting]
[creature growls]
[chants spell]
[Howard] Professor-- Professor Armitage.
Howard, you've done great. Now rekindle your courage
for we have come to turn the tide.
All right, it'’s a braw bricht moonlit nicht tonight.
[growling]
[grunting]
[Dr. Atwood chants spell]
[chants spell]
[William chants spell]
[Nyarlathotep] Denizens of the dark,
I come bearing gifts.
This time has been delayed enough.
[thunder rumbling]
[Dr. Ellery gasps]
Heavens!
[Cthulhu] I watch you, as the final seal opens.
There is a great earthquake.
The sun turns black...
like a sack cloth made of goat hair.
The whole moon turns blood red.
And the stars in the sky are falling to Earth.
I see the kings of the kingdoms
and the great old ones, and the rich,
and the powerful and everyone, slave and free,
hide themselves, calling to the sky:
"Fall on us and hide us from the face of him,
for the great day of his wrath has come.
And who can stand?"
[thunder rumbling]
[growls]
[Nyarlathotep] Cthulhu will destroy this planet
and in the discord,
seeds of a new life shall be sowed.
Father...
[Henry] Howard, seek an audience with Cthulhu.
See if you can find your old friend Spot deep inside.
We'll hold off this demonic hoard.
[chants spell]
[creatures growling]
[Dr. Rice chants spell]
[grunts]
[creature growls]
[grunts]
[gasps]
[screams]
[Dr. Rice grunts]
[chants spell]
[all chanting spell]
[chants spell]
It'’s a lang road that's no goat a turnin.'’
[grunts]
Oh, that will leave a wee mark.
[Dr. Ellery whimpers]
[Nyarlathotep] He is the Alpha and the Omega.
He is the first and the last.
He that liveth, and was dead.
He has the keys of life and of death.
Write the things which thou has seen
and the things which are, and the things
which shall be hereafter.
[creatures growling]
[Howard chants spell]
[chants spell]
[creatures growling]
Spot...
[creature growls]
[Howard grunting]
[Howard] Oh, no.
No. [yells]
[grunting]
[Howard yells]
[Howard gasps]
Spot, you must still be inside.
You listen to me, Spot.
You once gave me your word that you wouldn't hurt me.
[Cthulhu growls]
I saved your life, remember? And you swore I was your master.
I am your friend.
You're in there, somewhere. You're my friend, Spot.
[Nyarlathotep] Get away from him.
The deal is off.
[chants spell]
Everyone converge on Nyarlathotep.
[all chant spell]
Now you look at me. Look at me, Spot. Focus.
Listen to my voice.
I love you. [echoing]
[Spot] Master Howard. Wait for me.
-[Howard gasps] -[Spot grunts]
Are you okay?
[Spot grunts] I...
[Cthulhu] Howard...
[roars]
Spot... you have to stop.
Cannot... stop.
[Cthulhu] Howard... Elder sign.
Elder sign has great power.
[both yelling]
No. No, no, there's gotta be another way.
[Cthulhu] No.
[Cthulhu yells]
[Cthulhu pants]
-Spot... -[Cthulhu] More.
More?
[thunder rumbling]
Necronomicon.
[Cthulhu mutters indistinctly]
[Nyarlathotep] This is unacceptable. Cthulhu!
[Cthulhu roars]
[Cthulhu screams]
[Howard panting]
Spot...
No, no, no, Spot.
[Cthulhu roaring]
Spot!
Spot.
[screams in pain]
No, no, no, he's gone.
My best friend's gone.
[footsteps approaching]
Howard... you saved our planet.
You saved us all.
Amazing, Howard. You're a hero.
But, Spot...
[sobbing] I'm sorry... but he's not coming back.
You know, matter is neither created nor destroyed.
Nothing is ever really gone for good.
And nothing good is ever really gone.
Let me take you home, Howard.
[Herbert] Dad! You had me worried.
You must be exhausted after your journey, and cold.
You won't believe what happened. They were night-gaunts,
shigots, and elder things. I helped fight off
a monstrous hoard. I even attacked a Cthulhu,
because he was going to destroy the planet.
Howard stopped him.
[chuckling and speaking gibberish]
Thank you for everything you've done.
I don't think any of us would be here if not for you.
-If not for Spot. -Indeed. Still,
we are in your debt. Both of your debts.
And we look forward to continuing your education
when the time is right.
You want me to come to Miskatonic?
Indeed. You have a marvelous future ahead of you.
You don't have enough room inside you for a rheumatic pain.
But we'’re a Jock Tamson'’s bairns.
You'll do great at Miskatonic, Howard.
Lang may yer lum reek.
Physics is a requirement here and it would be my honor
to have you in my class, Howard.
I'd be happy to help you, Howard.
Howard's test can be quite... hard.
This is what I wanted to do.
Is this what you want, Howard?
[stuttering] Absolutely. What about you?
I think I've done all the damage I can, here.
I need to go back home.
What will you do?
I don't know. Continuing writing, I guess.
Maybe see if I can get something published. [chuckles]
Howard, you are a Lovecraft. And this... is your destiny.
All things are possible at Miskatonic University.
Oh, my. He certainly didn't learn that here.
This was incredible.
I sincerely hope that we can go on another adventure,
-Howard Lovecraft. -I'm sure we will, Herbert.
Take care and thank you.
-I will see you soon, Howard. -Good bye, Howard Lovecraft.
-See you soon. -Haste ye back!
Howard... thank goodness you'’re safe.
-[Howard sobs] -What is it, darling?
-I just... I miss my friend. -I'm sorry, son. Truly.
At least we have each other, right?
We're all staying now, Howard.
I feel I could fall in love with you all over again.
[all chuckling]
[growling]
[grunts]
[narrator] We live on a placid island of ignorance,
in the midst of black seas of the infinity.
[Narrator Reads]