|
|
| (63 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown) |
| Line 1: |
Line 1: |
| − | <p>Johnisdead is an ARG set in the universe of [[Ben Drowned]]. Spanning across seven different arcs and countless websites, it can be difficult to understand Johnisdead at first. While the [[YSHDT Arc|Timelines]] contain the most comprehensive retelling of events, this article aims to explain the story of Johnisdead in a more easily understandable format.</p> | + | <p>Johnisdead is an ARG that spans across many different arcs. The links below contain three different retellings of the story with varying levels of detail.</p> |
| | | | |
| − | <h1>Jadusable's ARG - Ben Drowned</h1> | + | <p style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: fit-content;">[[Image:Storypage1.png|link=Story (Full)]][[Image:Storypage2.png|link=Story (Summary)]][[Image:Storypage3.png|link=Story (Cliffnotes)]]</p> |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/6/66/Arc0.png" alt="" style="margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; display:block;" />
| + | <p style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: fit-content;">[[Image:Storypage4.png|link=Arc_Timelines]]</p> |
| − | | + | <p style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: fit-content;">[[Image:Storypage5.png|link=Chronological_Timelines]]</p> |
| − | <p>Before diving into the story of Johnisdead, it's important that one first has a basic understanding of <b>Ben Drowned</b> - the ARG created by <b>Alex Hall</b>. Many events and characters from Ben Drowned are referenced and built upon throughout Johnisdead, making it required reading before proceeding. Below is a brief summary of Ben Drowned. This summary contains only the basic information needed to understand Johnisdead. For a more comprehensive understanding of the story, it's recommended that you read through the timelines available on the [https://jadusable.withinhubris.com/Haunted_Cartridge_Arc Jadusable Wiki].</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>Foreboding Premonitions</h2>
| |
| − | <p>The year is 2009. An unsuspecting YouTuber named Jadusable - real name <b>Alex Hall</b> - uploads a video featuring gameplay from <b>Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines</b> containing an interaction with a character named <b>Rosa</b>. Though she is a minor character in the game, Rosa has psychic abilities that allow her to foreshadow upcoming events and even break the fourth wall by addressing the player directly. A few days later, Jadusable uploaded another video to his channel titled <b>Prototype: All Consume Kills (Warning: Extremely Graphic)</b>, showing off some special kill animations from the game Prototype.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>This YouTube channel was just like any other on the website - completely unassuming among the hundreds of thousands of channels. However, one year later, everything would change.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>The Haunted Cartridge</h2>
| |
| − | <p>In September of 2010, Alex Hall is attending college. One day, he comes across a yard sale held by a strange <b>Old Man</b>. The Old Man appears to be blind in his right eye and he had strange mannerisms. On display were strange items and amateur inkblot paintings. Alex asked the Old Man if he had any video games for sale. After rummaging around his garage for a few minutes, the Old Man returned with a tattered copy of <b>The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask</b>. The Old Man gave Alex the copy of Majora's Mask for free. After thanking the man and began walking away, Alex heard him say, "<span class="canquote">Goodbye, Ben!</span>".</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/5/5b/Elegychase.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/5/5b/Elegychase.png" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>Alex face to face with the Elegy Statue.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>When Alex arrived home and began playing the game, he immediately noticed that something was off. The game had a preexisting save file named <b>BEN</b>, which would occasionally get referenced by NPC's in Alex's brand new file. As Alex continued to play the game, it soon became clear that these odd "glitches" were actually sentient hauntings from an entity calling itself <b>BEN</b>. Wherever Alex went in the game, the <b>Elegy Statue</b> would follow. References are made of an authoritative figure known as <b>The Father</b> and the phrase "<b>You shouldn't have done that</b>" are repeated ad nauseam. The number <b>423</b> is implied to hold some significance as well.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>As time went on, the hauntings worsened. Alex began having nightmares involving strange cults, masks, and BEN. One day, Alex decided to revisit the Old Man with his friend <b>Tyler</b>. However, all they found was an empty house. Back in his college dorm, Alex slowly began going insane. BEN had now manifested on his computer, having traveled through Alex's recording equipment via wires and circuitry. BEN and Alex began speaking through <b>Cleverbot</b>. Through these chats, BEN revealed that he was a truly malicious spirit - torturing Alex for pure thrill and pleasure. Alex discovered that Ben, the original child who owned the Majora's Mask cartridge, had drowned. However, Alex also believes that the malicious spirit known as BEN might not even be related to Ben at all, and instead it's just a preexisting entity that stole his name.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>On September 15th, 2010, Alex's <b>roommate</b> upload a collection of notes written by Alex over the past few weeks. These notes were titled "<b>TheTruth.rtf</b>". As players read through these notes, they began noticing strange oddities. Hidden messages spelling out "<b>LIE</b>", the fact that these notes were supposed to be a txt file instead of a rtf file, and the theory that Alex may have not had a roommate at all called the authenticity of these notes into question. Many believed that BEN may have tampered with "TheTruth.rtf" while inside Alex's computer. These fears were confirmed when players reached the end of the document, revealing this message from BEN:</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="storyquote">
| |
| − | <p>
| |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/e/e4/BenClose.png" alt="" />
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotename" style="color:gold; margin-bottom: 0px;">
| |
| − | BEN
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotebox" style="margin-left: 2em; margin-top: 0px;" >
| |
| − | "Lastly, thank you for taking the time to open this and open yourselves up to me by hearing my story, despite maybe not beliEving me. You didn't have to do that - really, you shouldn't have. Your support this entire time has kept me going and now I am finally free of this."
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | </div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>By downloading the file en masse, the players had inadvertently spread BEN all across the internet. He was now free to spread his hauntings to every corner of the world.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>The Moon Children</h2>
| |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/f/f4/Yshdt.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/f/f4/Yshdt.jpg" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>The front page of Youshouldnthavedonethat.net.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Following the upload of "TheTruth.rtf", the Jadusable YouTube channel began behaving oddly as strange, garbled messages began appearing. Players soon realized that these messages were actually ciphers - coded text that hide secret messages. One of these ciphers led players to a strange website, <b>Youshouldnthavedonethat.net</b> - the home of a moon worshiping cult known as the <b>Moon Children</b>. The Moon Children believed in a moon goddess named <b>Luna</b>, and were led by a figure known as <b>The Father</b>. Other strange entities appeared on the site as well - a mysterious authoritative figure called <b>Mr. D</b>, an entity wearing a gas mask named <b>Drowned</b>, and a deceased Moon Child who was electrocuted named <b>Kelbris</b>.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>It's believed that Kelbris's death was not an accident, but instead a part of a Moon Child ritual called <b>Ascension</b>. Essentially, ascension is a ritual suicide that is meant to result in the victim spiritually transcending and presumably gaining immense power. Players began learning more about ascension and the cult's history through the various moderators on the site - <b>Matt Hubris</b>, who also went "Ifrit" and "Rodney R.", <b>Chris</b>, who also went by "Nekko", <b>Spencer L.</b>, who also went by "Duskworld23", and <b>Kevin F.</b>, who also went by "Insidiae". By searching around the site, players discovered Matt's email address, allowing them to speak directly.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="storyquote">
| |
| − | <p>
| |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/7/75/Nekko.jpg" alt="" />
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotename" style="color:gold; margin-bottom: 0px;">
| |
| − | Chris
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotebox" style="margin-left: 2em; margin-top: 0px;" >
| |
| − | "Unfortunately I'm not going to be a mod for much longer - my Ascencion date is coming up really soon :) :) He finally told me when it was going to be and it's..... TOMORROW!! haah it's all I can really think about now, my family can't understand why im so excited haha :D"
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | </div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:left; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-left:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/6/69/Kelbris.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/6/69/Kelbris.png" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>Kelbris's grotesque form on Youshouldnthavedonethat.net.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Matt revealed that Ben was a former member of the Moon Children, implying that he was drowned during an ascension. This would mean that ascension results in the souls of the ascended becoming trapped within electronic devices such as computers and video games. Matt also explains that a valuable member of the Moon Children named <b>Alex</b> has recently gone missing, referring to him as their "greatest warrior". Whether or not this person is Jadusable or a completely different Alex is unknown.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>After digging through Youshouldnthavedonethat.net further, players discovered two things - a locked page called "<b>The Truth</b>", and an ominous countdown. As this countdown neared its end, Matt began hearing someone banging on his door. Just as the timer was about to hit zero, something happened. A YouTube channel by the name "<b>TheLinkMissing</b>" uploaded gameplay footage of "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" featuring Link playing the "<b>Song of Time</b>". By submitting the "Song of Time", TheLinkMissing, who was later confirmed to be the missing Moon Child Alex, managed to turn back time to three days prior. This revealed that submitting songs from the Legend of Zelda series through YouTube videos would result in various effects. The effects of these songs would mirror that of their Majora's Mask counterparts - playing the Song of Storms would cause it to rain, whereas playing the Song of Time would reset the cycle.</p> | |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Since time we set back three days, Youshouldnthavedonethat.net was also reset. The same posts as before began appearing as the same events began playing out. However, there was one major difference - Matt was missing. The players were unable to save Matt from whatever entity was knocking on his door, and the Song of Time was unable to bring him back. A post from Kelbris later appeared on the front page, reading as follows:</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div style="width:60%;" class="storyquote">
| |
| − | <p>
| |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/1/17/Tinykelb.png" alt="" />
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotename" style="color:gold; margin-bottom: 0px;">
| |
| − | Kelbris
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotebox" style="margin-left: 2em; margin-top: 0px;" >
| |
| − | "I AM KNOCKING AT YOUR DOOR NEXT. LET ME IN. I WANT TO SPEAK."
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | </div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>This implies that it was actually Kelbris who caused Matt to disappear. After this, players attempted to contact Matt once again through his email. However, it wasn't Matt who replied to the players, but instead his sister - <b>Rosa</b>. Rosa shares a name and mannerisms with the character Alex spoke to in the Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines game. Unfortunately, a few miscalculated song submissions on the players part resulted in Rosa going missing as well. Things became more grim as an entity represented by <b>Dark Link</b> in Ocarina of Time began hunting down Alex, presumably killing him. The player submitted the Song of Time before the second cycle came to a close, resetting the clock once again.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Youshouldnthavedonethat.net then experienced an update known as "<b>The Glitch</b>", resulting in cryptic text reading "<span class="canquote">You are waking up now</span>" and "<span class="canquote">Pulling the plug</span>" appearing. Players also began discovering hidden files on the site. One of these files was from Matt, warning the players about how manipulative BEN is.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>Ryukaki and Hubris</h2>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/c/c7/Whforums.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/c/c7/Whforums.png" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>The Within Hubris forums.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>At the end of Matt's message was text that read "<span class="canquote">KAYD HENDRICKS YOU ARE IN DANGER.</span>". After a bit of digging, players discovered that <b>Kayd Hendricks</b> was the name of a player who was exclusively given the login information for "The Truth" page by Rosa. Kayd began uploading videos to his YouTube channel <b>Ryukaki</b> where he detailed strange experiences at his new home. Over time, it's revealed that Kayd is actually living in Ben's former home. The Moon Children's base of operations was also revealed - a location known as "<b>The Orchard</b>". Kayd began receiving strange phone calls and was chased by a pack of dogs. It appeared he was experiencing hauntings similar to Alex's. In a final upload, Kayd gave the players the login information to access "The Truth". Unfortunately, the password given was incomplete, and the players were unable to uncover Youshouldnthavedonethat.net's final secret.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Not long after this, a new website was discovered - a message board called "<b>Within Hubris</b>". These forums had accounts for nearly every canon character, including obscure ones like Tyler. Players also discovered a secret board on Within Hubris titled <b>Wayward Horizon</b>. Inside, it appeared that Kelbris was guarding the souls of various ascended Moon Children, including Spencer and Chris. However, shortly after players accessed Wayward Horizon, they were locked out by Kelbris.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Two years later in 2012, the Within Hubris forums were shut down. Although a few dedicated players managed to reconstructed them, all was quiet. That is, until the year 2015...</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h1>Arc 1 - YSHDT Arc</h1>
| |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/b/b6/Arc1.png" alt="" style="margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto; display:block;" />
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>The [[YSHDT Arc]] is the first arc of Johnisdead, beginning on January 22nd of 2015.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>Dawn of a New Day</h2>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>On January 22nd, 2015, four years after the original Ben Drowned ARG was placed on hiatus, a new user named <b>thelaw</b> joined the reconstructed Within Hubris forums. Thelaw shared a strange website he discovered with the players - <b>YSHDT.com</b>. This site contained an image of BEN and its name, "YSHDT", was an acronym for "You shouldn't have done that". A few days later, the players banded together and formed a new Skype group called the <b>Internet Detectives</b>. Together, the Internet Detectives dove deeper into YSHDT.com and uncovered writings from someone named <b>Douglas P</b> - a high school student who had joined a cult in the past and is now regretting his decision.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/4/4d/Gameover.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/4/4d/Gameover.png" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>A hidden image on YSHDT.com featuring BEN.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>The players were eventually led to a blog owned by Doug himself named <b>Letschasethemouse</b>. Players began chatting with Doug through the comment section on his blog. Doug reveals that he had just recently been invited to join a "religious group" by his friend. Players quickly realize that Doug is actually speaking to them from the past - the year <b>2009</b>, to be exact. This means that there's still a chance for the players to save Doug. Their attempts to convince Doug to leave the cult are fruitless. Doug already considers the cult to be his "true family", and believes they are his real friends. One player, <b>Jacob</b>, manages to convince Doug to let him join the cult. Doug then refers Jacob to his friend <b>Mason</b> - a fellow cultist who handles new recruits. Over the next few weeks, Jacob is asked to record himself carrying out odd tasks in order to fully accepted into the cult.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>At this point, not much is known about Doug's cult. While most players were assuming it was simply the return of the Moon Children, some things didn't match up. For example, instead of being based at an orchard, this new cult was housed in an old <b>fishery</b>. It was still too early to tell the exact nature of this cult.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>New Friends and New Foes</h2>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Back on the Within Hubris forums, a new character begins speaking with the players - <b>/Patrem\</b>. Patrem spoke to the players in an authoritative manner with an air of superiority. It was soon revealed that Patrem is actually "The Father" of Doug's cult. Players also discovered that Patrem was no longer human - he was now a timeless entity that had become trapped within the body of another cultist named <b>Vincent</b>. However, Vincent himself was completely unaware of Patrem's existence, seemingly having no recollection of the cult's existence, since the only time Patrem took full control of Vincent was when he fell asleep. Patrem spoke a few cryptic phrases before departing - "<span class="canquote">Three of you are not as you seem</span>", and "<span class="canquote"> o n urn d. Now he has ascended</span>".</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="storyquote">
| |
| − | <p>
| |
| − | <img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/c/cd/Tinypatrem.png" alt="" />
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotename" style="background-image:linear-gradient(7deg,#461c46,#000000,#000000,#000000); text-shadow: 0px 0px 2px #8a558a; color:#8a558a; margin-bottom: 0px;">
| |
| − | /Patrem\
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | <p class="storyquotebox" style="color:#a94ca9; margin-left: 2em; margin-top: 0px;" >
| |
| − | "I came to the fishery, and the fools trapped me inside him. Vincent, return to your slumber now. There is no home for you brats."
| |
| − | </p>
| |
| − | </div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/1/14/FISHERY.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/1/14/FISHERY.png" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>The cult's base of operations - an old fishery in the Floridan woodlands.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>The players soon met another mysterious entity - user named <b>Drown</b> who entered Internet Detectives Skype group. Players immediately drew connections between Ben and Drown because of their names, but the two acted nothing alike. Drown was asking the players for help and cowering before Patrem - completely different from the malicious entity known as BEN. A third entity later joined Within Hubris and began chatting with the players - <b>Helper</b>. Helper began assisting the players by delivering mail to them. His uncanny delivery abilities seem to be powered by his hat, which is the Postman's Hat from Majora's Mask - though it is more commonly referred to as <b>Helper's Hat</b> by the players. Through Helper's abilities, the players accidentally stole Doug's mail. Shortly after this, Doug made a post on his blog where he mentioned that an important religious package was meant to come in the mail.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Doug began displaying more worrying signs over time, scribbling prophecies from Kelbris in his school notes and posting cryptic messages about <b>Time Aggregation</b>. On February 20th, 2015, Doug began heading towards the Fishery, despite the players' warnings. Following this, Doug made one final post on his blog - an update that simply read "<span class="canquote">Help</span>".
| |
| − | | |
| − | <h2>Mason, Our New Link</h2>
| |
| − | <p>After Doug went missing, a new author began posting updates on Letschasethemouse - <b>Mason</b>, Doug's friend who handled new recruits for the cult. Mason, concerned for his friend's well-being, had become suspicious of the cult. He began working alongside the players to discover what exactly happened to Doug.</p>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <div class="articleimg" style="float:right; margin: 1em; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:0px;"><html><a href="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/a/a8/DED_HELPER_%28RIP%29.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://johnisdead.withinhubris.com/images/a/a8/DED_HELPER_%28RIP%29.jpg" alt="" /></a></html><p style="margin-bottom:0px; text-align:left;"><i>Helper's Hat surrounded by blood.</i></p></div>
| |
| − | | |
| − | <p>Unsure of how to proceed, Mason decided to just go directly to the fishery and ask about Doug. Seeing that this was a bad idea, the players summoned Helper and asked him to go to the fishery and help Doug. Helper began jogging towards the fishery. Meanwhile, Mason had reached the fishery's outer perimeter. In at attempt to distract some guards, Mason blindly hurled a rock in their direction, Unfortunately, this rock ended up hitting Helper instead, instantly killing him. Mason managed to retrieve Helper's magical hat before being chased away from the fishery.</p>
| |
