Story (Full) 2
Notice: These first three pages of Johnisdead's story recap are dedicated to Ben Drowned - a separate ARG created by Alex hall in 2010. This is because the two ARG's share several characters, concepts, and locations with one-another.
- A summary of Ben Drowned can be found on the Story Summary Page.
- An even shorter version can be found on the Story Cliffnotes Page.
- Alternatively, click here to skip these Ben Drowned-related pages.
For a full recap of the Ben Drowned ARG, continue reading this page.
The story so far...
In the previous section, players were introduced to Alex - a sophomore in college. He met an Old Man who gave him a suspicious old copy of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask - a videogame for the Nintendo 64. Upon playing it, Alex was met with many oddities as the game seemingly broke the fourth wall. Alex went to get some answers from the Old Man only to find that he had vanished. Over time, Alex learned that the game once belonged to Ben - a child who tragically drowned on April 23rd, 2002. It seemed as though his spirit was now trapped within the game cartridge - along with a malicious entity named BEN.
BEN was not Ben - rather, he was an evil entity that was simply using the child's identity. BEN tormented Alex, forcing him to continue playing the game for his own sick amusement. During this time, Alex's friend Tyler became concerned for him as he became more of a paranoid recluse. As Alex continued playing the game, more strange names started cropping up - a group called "The Moon Children" and someone named Matt. Alex eventually had enough and decided to destroy both his laptop and the cartridge. However, it's unknown if he was ever able to pull this off.
A few days later, Alex's notes were uploaded to the internet. Here, it was revealed that some of the content posted by Alex was actually uploaded by BEN himself. In fact, it was implied that BEN had somehow infused himself with the notes. This led to the horrifying realization that thousands of players across the internet had all allowed him into their computers and granted him free reign to the internet. With Alex nowhere to be found and BEN free to roam the internet, this leads us into the next arc of the story...
On September 17th, 2010, several ciphersA cipher is an encoded message that must be solved before it can be read. Ciphers introduce a puzzle element to the story, requiring users to identify and solve each one's type of encryption before they're able to be translated and reveal their hidden message. appeared on Jadusable's YouTube channel. These read as follows:
WE ALL WEAR A MASK, SOMETIMES. KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED - MOTHER, I WONDER WHAT IT IS YOU WHISPER FOR DUSK TONIGHT. GOOD LUCK.
.NET
THINK.
.NET IS YOUR ONLY CLUE
HTTP://WWW.SHOWEQ.NET/FORUMS/ARCHIVE/INDEX.PHP/T-3355.HTML
YSHDT.net was set-up as follows:
- Front Page
- Contact Page
- (Hidden Contact Pages)
- Search Page
- Press Room Page
- Blastoff! Page
- The Truth
- Creed Page
- About Page
- Theories Page
We'll first cover each page as it initially appeared when YSHDT.net was first discovered. After this, we'll go over the various other updates and discoveries that were made on the website.
Youshouldnthavedonethat.net
"This is a website for those who have formed a spiritual connection with the Moon and Him and recognize that we have been selected to preform miracles and bring enlightenment into this world. She has chosen us - and only us - to survive the upcoming apocolypse because we have honored Her and devoted ourselves to Her. As we work to enforce Her will, we grow together as a family and serve the greater good. We are the Moon's Children."
YSHDT.net belonged to the Moon Children - a cult that worshipped two figures simply referred to "Him" and "Her". The website's introductory paragraph implied that the group believes in some sort of spiritual powers and supernatural connections. The front page also featured a variety of posts from various high-ranking Moon Children:
Ifrit (mod)
Posted: 9/14/10 @ 11:35am
Subject: Welcome to the new site!
Luna shine, brothers and sisters. We now have a new home! It's going to be a busy couple of days trying to put everything together and while we're doing that the forums will most likely be down. Feel free to use the Guest Book below to talk to each other, if the Guest Book isn't your thing there's always the IRC chat if you know it. We're looking at maybe a week or so before we're all done with the website. But for now just sit back and relax and let us do all the hard work.
Ifrit is one of the Moon Children's most prominent members. Here, he can be seen welcoming users to YSHDT.net three days prior on September 14th. The website is still under construction - as well as its Forums. In the meantime, users are told to communicate via the Guesbtook - a section of the website's front page were comments can be posted. The Guestbook will be covered in more detail later on. It's also implied that the Moon Children have their own IRC chat somewhere. It's worth mentioning that YSHDT.net also featured an "About" page where more details were revealed about its users. Ifrit's entry on this page read as follows:
Ifrit - Rodney R.
Likes - Helping people decide to join our cause, Seinfeld, Playstation 2, and reading
Dislikes - "Troublesome" people, long nights, and waiting
Ambition - Building a sense of community here, and of course Ascension, who doesn't?
Ifrit, whose name is revealed to actually be Rodney, claims to be a fan of something called "Ascension". More will be revealed about this mysterious term soon. Back on the front page of YSHDT.net, another post could be found:
Nekko (mod)
Posted: 9/15/10 @ 1:34pm
Subject: we're back
Hey guys its Chris! So glad to finally back with my (true) family! I hope you're as eager as I am to finally have a new place to call our own. anyway, like Dusk said, we lost a lot of content that we had stored. The good news is that I've got saved some of our testimonials, so that page should be up by tomorrow., but a lot of this will be under construction (bleh). we've got a few new toys, this new host gives us a lot more room to play around, however with the new domain I wouldn't be surprised if we get more than our "usual" amount of visitors, some may have potential, others may "think" they are good enough to join us. we're not ready to open up yet - we want to at least have a few pages working before we welcome you guys back in, so by the time you read this this will be a few days ago. how's the future? Do we have flying cars yet (heh)? Also, If anyone asks the background music is entitled "Lost in My Thoughts", i really like it.
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
This post was from another one of the website's moderators - Nekko, whose real name is revealed to be Chris. This post was made two days earlier on September 15th. Chris claims that he's saved some of the Moon Children's past Testimonials and hopes to have them uploaded by the next day. He also refers to a post made by a user named Dusk. However, this is strange - the only other post made at this point was by Ifrit. After this, Chris once again mentions "Ascension", claiming that his own Ascension will be transpiring very soon. He was supposedly informed of this by someone simply referred to by "Him" - possibly the same "Him" worshipped by the Moon Children.
Unfortunately, Chris's entry on the "About" Page was not archived. It's likely that it also spoke highly about "Ascension". Back on the front page, an announcement from another new character could be found:
Duskworld23 (mod)
Posted: 9/15/10 @ 8:24pm
Subject: Rebirth
DW here. You may notice the slight name change, figured it was symbolic. We're back for what looks like to be for good.
First of all, I'd like to say congratulations Chris! He sure has taken a huge interest in you lately (lucky), I'm not surprised it finally gave you an Ascension date, I'm happy for you man (can you tell I sound jealous?).
Anyway, about the move - I know its been a hectic past couple of days with the domain change and all, but I think that we've finally found our home (fingers crossed). This will no doubt attract more potential Children, all the more merrier I say.
The site's going to be under construction for a while due to me and Rem having to transfer all of the data over here - unfortunately not everything ended up saved and we lost of stuff so we're going to have to try and rebuild. We've done it before, we can do it again. If you guys know of any of "our guys", feel free to link them to this site, but try and keep it somewhat exclusive. Some of our old siblings (and you know who) were not meant to be part of our group.
And please guys, don't make Mr. D upset.
- DW
This seems to be the "Dusk" individual mentioned by both Chris and BEN - "Duskworld23". He mentions that he recently changed his username - presumably from "DarkWorld23", given that this is the filename of his avatar. Dusk congratulates Chris for his upcoming "Ascension". He also mentions the name of a fellow Moon Child who's helping with YSHDT.net's reconstruction - Rem. Strangely, Dusk mentions that "some of our old siblings" are not welcome to the Moon Children and are forbidden from being invited to YSHDT.net. This seems to imply that the cult has some enemies. He ends off his post with a warning to not make "Mr. D" upset. Mr. D is possibly the same "Him" who schedules Ascensions and is worshipped by the Moon Children.
Dusk's entry on the "About" Page reads as follows:
Duskworld23 - Spencer L.
Likes - Vigils, Eurotrip, Who's Line Is It Anyway, and drawing
Dislikes - My parents, wishing I was Ascended already
Ambition - Leaving this piece of shit place behind taking as many people as I can with me
Here, it's revealed that Dusk's real name is Spencer. The front page also contained another enigmatic announcement:
DROWNED (admin)
Posted: 9/15/10 @ 11:04pm
Subject:
You shouldn't be reading this.
Unlike Ifrit, Chris, and Spencer who were simply moderators, DROWNED was the website's administrator. Additionally, hovering over his avatar would result in it changing to an image of the Elegy Statue, implying that DROWNED was BEN. Unlike the others, DROWNED did not have an entry on the "About" Page. Further down on the front page were more announcements:
Nekko (mod)
Posted: 9/16/10 @ 2:11pm
Subject: :)
I finished updating the testimonials page and I'm going to be handing my modship over. bahhh enough with the updates, i just wanted to say thanks for everything you guys have done for me, i feel like before i found this i was so lost and without a purpose, just wandering aimlessly. being with you guys over the past year has made my so happy and ive mad a lot of friends here and gotten to know some really nice guys. i never really believed in destiny before, but now im realizing that... yea this is what i was made to do. im counting down the minutes until hahah, i still feel like im gonna pinch myself and wake up at any moment. i already have everything i need to go there, its like all my life ive been waiting for this moment, when i can finally achieve what i was meant to do!!
keep this site running strong for me while i'm gone, i'll be back to come get you guys soon :)
This announcement was posted one day ago - September 16th. As mentioned in his previous post, Chris has successfully recovered the Moon Children Testimonials. Strangely, they are nowhere to be found on YSHDT.net. Regardless, Chris announces that he's about to partake in his Ascension. It's implied that this process involves the participant dying, as Chris speaks with a great sense of finality. However, he also mentions that he'll "be back to come get you guys soon", implying that there's some paranormal ghost-esque element to Ascension. Perhaps Ascension is the process of an individual committing ritualistic suicide with the belief that they'll become some sort of spiritual entity?
Duskworld23 (mod)
Posted: 9/16/10 @ 4:23pm
Subject: Ascension
DW here. I just wanted to say that Chris (Nekko) had his successful Ascension earlier today and there were no complications. Even though I'm sooo envious of him *cough cough* :-P, it really warmed my heart when I heard the news and I'm sure it will for you guys too. Actually - I don't exactly have our logs out here in front of me - but I think Chris was the youngest person we've ever had do a successful Ascension (which makes sense, Chris always was mature for his age). We're all really happy for you Chris and hopefully we'll be seeing you soon (now if only He would start talking to me... :P ).
- DW
PS has anyone felt an increase in spiritual presence lately? It's making my neck hairs stand up on end.
Spencer announces that Chris's Ascension was a success. Strangely, he also claims he's been feeling an increase spiritual aura recently. This brings us back up to the present day, September 17th, where Ifrit had posted one more announcement:
Ifrit (mod)
Posted: 9/17/10 @ 10:26am
Subject: Updates
Finished adding the Contact, About, and Theories sections. Contact page has been acting weird. Hm. Fixed up the Creed, Dusk you had a few typos there. Watch that. And this layout, especially for the news posts is pretty disgusting. You guys'll have to bare with us until we get everything set up before we change it.
Anyway, TGIF, anyone want to have a vigil Sunday night? Drop me an email. And congratulations to Chris, we all knew he had it in him! That's the first successful one we've had in a while!
Ifrit congratulates Chris's Ascension. He also begins planning a vigil for Sunday night. This brings us to the Guestbook - a section of the front page of YSHDT.net where users could leave comments. The Guestbook contained several interesting conversations:
Posted by David on Sep 17th, 2010
Alright, the site's back up. Finally, I was getting so sick of IRC...
Posted by Dark_Rider404 on Sep 17th, 2010
gotta say I like the new site, the layout needs work, but it'll do
the important thing is that most of us survived the blackout
anyone know what happened to Alex? I havent heard from him
Posted by David on Sep 17th, 2010
NO idea. Haven't heard ANYTHING on his end.
Posted by sidicus9 on Sep 17th, 2010
Bout time we can post. Have Luna or Mr D been speaking to anyone lately?
Posted by Paradoxicle on Sep 17th, 2010
Hm. At least the guest book is up. Had another miserable day at school today. I'm done puting up with it. I literally have no more excuses. I'm going to get fucking shitfaced tonight and then on Monday I'm going to come back to my school with my dad's 9mm and just squeeze and squeeze and squeeze the trigger until I fucking die.
Posted by Dark_Rider404 on Sep 17th, 2010
@Paradoxicle
sound rough, just remember that human emotions are only in this life. i've had half a mind to do the same myself - just kill them all in Her name. seriously, its the same shit. boring 9 to 4, wife always is on my case and i'm almost positive shes fucking someone else. you know, if you're serious I'll come drive down to you this weekkend, if we team up we can probably kill a lot more and i've got another nine you can have. lets do your school, whats it matter, we're all innocent in this fucked up world. we're the liberators, these kids are too stupid to know that we're doing them a favor. once we've all transcended this doomed reality, we'll all be with Her anyway, follower or not.
Posted by 13fliptime on Sep 17th, 2010
rofl, looks like we're going to lose 2 more soldiers earlier before the end. you get my seal of approval, the less this world slips comfortably in complacency the better imo.
you guys haven't been talking to Luna have you?
Posted by David on Sep 17th, 2010
Careful guys. We're on a new domain on a .net now, take it to PM.
Posted by Paradoxicle on Sep 17th, 2010
David: No PM's yet
13fliptime: No, this is of my own free will, I'm just tired of this shit and want to make a difference in the world.
Dark: Give me your number on IRC, we'll take it there
Posted by CB on Sep 17th, 2010
on a lighter note, i almost lost my mask, i was freaking out rofl. seriously, sometimes i just get so used to it on my face that i forget to pick it up if i put it down.
Posted by BoogeymanHere on Sep 17th, 2010
I don't know, I think the fact that we've only been operational for a day and already DR and Paradoxicle are going to shoot up some place is pretty funny. If you guys go through with it, see you on the other side, I think my Ascension's coming up soon - I've been feeling a surge of something spiritual over the past two days.
Posted by Duskworld23 on Sep 17th, 2010
I think I'm hearing Luna, I'm not sure thought, my mind could just be playing tricks on me. But I could've sworn I heard her just now. Not sure what she said though.
And remember - we're continuing with the whiteout - that means no using these names or posting outside of here. No facebooks/youtubes/twitters/whatnot. Mr D has been EXTREMELY strict on this rule.
...Could've sworn I just heard her again. Maybe. Idont know.
Posted by Sable on Sep 17th, 2010
Ifrit you might want to take a look at the contact page, somethings not right with it
The Moon Children reference an event simply called "The Blackout". What exactly this is referring to is unknown. They also mention that Alex had supposedly gone missing, implying that he actually held some connection to the Moon Children all along. The Moon Children also mention "The Whiteout", which is simply a rule that Mr. D imposed on the Moon Children that restricted them from using their same usernames on other websites - presumably for the sake of the cult's privacy and security.
Several Moon Children mention that they've had difficulty communicating with Mr. D and Luna recently. It's implied that Luna is actually the main goddess that the Moon Children worship, meaning that the "Him" and "Her" held in high regard by the cult is Mr. D and Luna. The main exception to this seems to be Spencer, who claims to have heard Luna whispering to him. This is likely what BEN was referencing when he said "MOTHER, I WONDER WHAT IT IS YOU WHISPER FOR DUSK TONIGHT". Meanwhile, one Moon Child mentions that they almost lost their mask, implying that wearing masks is one of the cult's practices.
This completes our coverage of the Front Page for now. We'll return to it later as more updates and discoveries are made. In the meantime, we'll cover the rest of the pages that YSHDT.net has to offer:
The website's "Contact" contained the following text:
So you've taken the first step into the inward journey of discovering yourself and decided to contact us. Or perhaps you are on the fence about becoming something greater than you can possibly imagine, and if so, let us present the reasoning that has drawn so many of us to conversion to Luna: Do you ever feel like life is just a dream? That you're sleeping this whole time, waiting for something great to happen? Do you ever feel like you cannot relate to these human beings - that in this day and age of lewdness and vanity it is simply disgusting to try and lower yourself to "fit in"? You do try to fit in, but it never really feels genuine, does it? Believe it or not, you have a purpose in life, and that purpose is not to sit idlely by while your talents and abilities are wasting away. Just by discovering us, Luna has guided you with Her gentle hand and touched you. You are about to become apart of something grander than you could imagine.
We are so glad that you are going to listen to your spiritual energy crying out for release and satisfy it. You are about to embark on a wonderful quest of self-discovery and growth, and you will come to realize all of the glorious gifts that She can provide us. If you have additional questions do not hesitate to submit them and we will share with you the knowledge that the Goddess has bestowed upon us.
This seems to indicate that the Moon Children generally target recluses and outcasts in an attempt to indoctrinate them into the cult. This text was followed by a form where users could submit their name, email address, phone number, and questions. The "Contact" Page would have more significance later on.
YSHDT.net's "Search" page seemed fairly barebones and simply featured a search bar. However, hidden within the page's code was a threatening message from BEN that read as follows: "Do you honestly think you can escape me?". Also, clicking the page's banner seen above would redirect players to another page:
This page was called the "Press Room", and it seemed to simply be one of the cult's test pages. It contained the following text:
Area Under Construction - Please check back later
Launch!
Neeto speedo! We can easily change EVERYTHING!
However, this page also hid some threatening text within its code: "Like little lambs. The man is smiling.". This implied that the Moon Children were happily being led to their deaths - presumably by the cult's leader, Mr. D. Clicking the word "Launch!" in the text above would link players to yet another new page:
This page, titled "Blastoff!", seemed to be yet another simple test page. It contained some default text often used for test purposes. However, it also featured the following text: "For the fold, number 3, for the fold, number 3, for the fold, number 3" Players speculated that this phrase was a reference to 423 - a enigmatic number that made numerous appearances on Alex's YouTube channel.
- "For" - Four
- "Fold" - Two
- "Number 3" - Three
This number is presumably significant because it relates to the date of Ben's death - April 23rd, or 4/23.
The page simply called "The Truth" was password protected and could not be accessed. It's believed that it contained the Moon Children's deepest secrets, however - as indicated by text that read "It's what THEY don't want you know".
"The Creed" Page contained two of the Moon Children's creeds. These read as follows:
The Creed
[Participants must be wearing their Mask]
O father, I pledge to youa
O mother, I give myself a hundred times
May the Moon illuminate our path
We bare our souls to you
To that which will Bring the end
Empower us with your infinite grace
May we recieve the greatest glory of all
May we ascend to the heavens themselves
We are the Moon's Children
We are mortal angels
The Initiation Creed
By my blood, as I draw it here
I dedicate myself to service
I severe all ties of my old life
Those who birthed me are meaningless
Those who raised me are hopeless
Those who loved me are worthless
I now wear this mask to symbolize my transformation
As a child learns to walk so too will I learn to fly
[Pause as for the mask ceremony]
With these words I pledge myself to my new family
That even though this mask may leave my face
The scars that symbolize my devotion will never fade
Now I am truly born
The page also contained this cryptic text:
Youshouldnthavedonethat.net
"Men must become angels"
The "About" Page simply consisted of details regarding the website's various moderators. We already covered most of these while going over the Front Page. However, there was one other user listed on this page who had not yet made any announcements:
Insidiae - Kevin F.
Likes - Studying the occult, fantasy, demons, and spirits
Dislikes - People who lie
Ambition - Ask me again in two years
The page also mentioned several other Moon Children near the bottom:
A special thanks goes out to David, Ryan, Jeff, Danielle, and Rosa for being faithful contributors to the site and its content.
The final page listed was the "Theories" Page. This page contained various theories related to how the world will end. These seemed mostly unrelated and are archived below:
Moon Children Theories
Mayan Calendar Prophecy
This is the most popular of the 2012 apocalypse stories, and the one most often referenced in the media and popular culture. The Mayan calendar is quite complex, and is broken up into units called “Kin”, “Tun”, and “Baktun”. The much hyped “13-baktun cycle” is scheduled to be completed 1,872,000 days (or 13 baktuns) after the beginning of their calendar. This period of time is the well knwon Mayan “Great Cycle” of their Long Count calendar and is equal to 5125.36 of our standard years. This is where the date of December 12, 2012 comes from, as the Mayan calendar purportedly began August 11th, 3114 BCE — do the math, and you’ll come to the same conclusion as other Mayan scholars. The “end” of the Mayan calendar is 12/12/2012. Hence the 2012 apocalypse scare.
One reason people put so much stock in the Mayan Long Count calendar is that the Mayans were extremely sophisticated mathematicians and stargazers. It is well known that Mayans understood mathematical concepts hundreds of even thousands of years before the rest of the world. The Mayans worked out the seemingly simple concept of zero by around 36 BCE. Inscriptions discovered by archaeologists show the Mayans working with complex sums up to the hundreds of millions. The Mayans also produced extremely accurate astronomical maps and notes — their charts of the movements of the moon and planets are far superior to the maps and charts of any other civilization that was working strictly from observations by the naked eye.
Because the Mayans are known to have worked out a complex and accurate calendar well before “Western civilization”, people put great faith in their 2012 apocalypse theory.
Hindu Prophecy
According to Hindu scripture, the “Golden Age of Krishna” is likely to start in 2012. In the “Brahma-Vaivarta Purana”, Lord Krishna tells a devotee named Ganga Devi that a Golden Age will come in the Kali Yuga – one of the four stages of development that the world goes through as part of the earth’s time cycle — a cycle described in Hindu scriptures. Lord Krishna predicted that this Golden Age will start 5,000 years after the beginning of the Kali Yuga, and will last for 10,000 years.
That may sound like sometime in the distant future, but according to some Hindu researches, the Kali Yuga began on February 18, 3102 BCE. That means there is only a difference of 12 years between the Hindu’s beginning of the Kali Yuga and the Mayan’s beginning of their “Fifth Great Cycle”. Its important to know that the ancient Hindus mainly used a lunar calendar but also used solar calendars — this throws off those of us in the West, as the ancient Hindu time system is vastly different from our own. By either solar or lunar years, we are over 5,000 years into the Kali Yuga and it is time for Lord Krishna’s prophecy to happen according to the ancient Hindu scriptures. This may not be a direct reference to 2012, but is so closely aligned to the Mayan and other prophecies, that people lump it in with other “2012 apocalypse” theories.
NASA predictions
You may be surprised to learn that many 2012 apocalypse believers point to some NASA studies as evidence of the coming endtimes. NASA has released a study of the sun that includes predictions about solar flares, sunspots, and other solar interference that could have a catastrophic effect on life here on Earth. According to the report:
“Many forecasters believe Solar Cycle 24 will be big and intense. Peaking in 2011 or 2012, the cycle to come could have significant impacts on telecommunications, air traffic, power grids and GPS systems. In this age of satellites and cell phones, the next solar cycle could make itself felt as never before.”
Some see the fact that this new solar outburst will arrive in 2012 as more than a coincidence — maybe it is further evidence of a catastrophic event in 2012, something that ushers in the 2012 apocalypse.
However, there was one theory that was different from the others. This one was wholly unique to the Moon Children:
Luna Prophecy
Dating back to 1998, a Moonchild named Kelbris recieved several whispers from Luna herself. The Order was still young then and Kelbris was the first member to have been talked to by Her. Rather than Ascending him, however, these whispers informed him of how The End will come about. The whispers were brief and vague, detailed below:
"They (unintelligible) break free of the prison"
"Engulf the world"
"Man will be betrayed by its minions and I will be brought down from the sky, consuming everything"
It's worth noting that the number three is reported by Kelbris to have been said numerous times, sometimes in between words, sometimes even between letters so it's assumed that there is some kind of significance there. Kelbris was later found electrocuted - whether it was foul play or an Ascension was never determined. Although transcended, Kelbris' discovery has made him a legendary figure within the Moon Children and much of the Order today is based off of that prophecy.
This claims that there was once a Moon Child in 1998 named Kelbris who was spoken to by Luna herself - much like how Spencer supposedly is now. Luna claimed that she would "Consume everything". This resembles a line spoken by the Moon from Majora's Mask - "I... I shall consume. Consume... Consume everything.". It also harkens back to one of the two videos uploaded to Jadusable in 2009 - the "All Consume Kills" video of the videogame "Prototype".
Regardless, it seems as though the goddess Luna was warning Kelbris of her inevitable arrival in our world - something that will bring about the apocalypse. At some point, Kelbris was killed via electrocution. The Moon Children don't reveal how this transpired, but they claim it resulted in him Transcending - a mysterious term that's implied to be related to Ascension. This wraps up our coverage of the content immediately available on YSHDT.net upon its reveal. We'll now begin covering the various updates and discoveries made over time.
A photo of Kelbris.
Players remembered one strange comment from YSHDT.net's Guestbook - "Ifrit you might want to take a look at the contact page, somethings not right with it". Initially, the "Contact" Page seemed fine. However, after some experimentation, players discovered that entering in various names into the page's URL would lead them to some hidden pages.
The first "Contact" Page discovered was Ben's, which contained a timer counting down to "The Fourth Day". This countdown was scheduled to end at some point on the next day - September 18th. This page also contained a distorted version of the Happy Mask Salesman's theme from Majora's Mask. This page's very existence perhaps implied that Ben was somehow connected to the Moon Children - perhaps even having been a former member before he died in 2002.
Players then discovered a "Contact" Page belonging to "DROWNED" - the strange entity found on the front page that's implied to be BEN. This page contained a horrific image of a large, disfigured green individual. This file's name revealed that this was actually a depiction of Kelbris, who was telling the players "Dead End. Go back" and "MY EYES... THEY TOOK... MY EYES...". Kelbris's presence implies that his spirit somehow still lingers long after his death in 1998 - likely due to his aforementioned "Transcendence". At the time, the connection between Kelbris and BEN was unknown.
On September 18th, 2010, Ifrit posted a new announcement to YSHDT.net:
Ifrit (mod)
Posted: 9/18/10 @ 4:32pm
Subject: Updates #2
Add info to the Contacts page, noticed that we have a huge influx of trolls, no doubt because of the fact that we're a bit more "maintstream" now. We've been going down every so often because of bandwidth overload, and we've gotten an insane amout of "requests" to join us, most of them are trolls. I'm having some of the other moderators go through them carefully and we'll contact those who seem legitiment in the coming days, but we don't want to make a jump to do anything rash.
Ifrit acknowledges the large influx of visitors on the website - likely referring to the players. After this, players checked the "Contact" Page once again and discovered a hidden page for Ifrit. This page featured the text "Should you know what question to ask, the gate to truth will be opened." and a link to Ifrit's email address - "ifritmoon@gmail.com". The username associated with this email address was "Matt HUBRIS", implying that Matt was Ifrit's real name and that "Rodney" was simply an alias. Players began emailing Matt en masse and learned some interesting details.
How did Ben drown?
Ben? You've heard from Ben? Where is he?
As far as I can tell, he's everywhere.
No... we lost Ben during the blackout. We haven't heard from him.
Matt confirms that he knows who Ben is. He claims that Ben went missing during the aforementioned Blackout. This is strange as it's implied that The Blackout was a fairly recent event. However, Ben died over eight years ago in 2002.
If you aren't aware. You're next. I'm not sure what your group is planning, but you might want to consider some alternatives...
((A link to Ben's "Contact" Page is posted.))
That page redirects to a 404, are you sure you typed that in right?
It seems as though Matt is unable to perceive the stranger pages on YSHDT.net, such as the hidden "Contact" Pages.
Do you know what is in The Truth section of your website?
Yes.
Could you perhaps let me know?
Your eyes... they aren't worthy to see it
Is this a treatable ailment?
Give them.
Matt claims that before someone is granted access to "The Truth", their eyes must be given to the Moon Children. This is likely meant to be taken in a metaphorical sense, meaning one would have to join and pledge their allegiance to the cult before they're trusted enough to gain access to "The Truth". However, it also has some parallels with Kelbris's claim that his own eyes were taken.
Is Ben missing? Everything is so cryptic and bizarre on Jadusable's channel and on your website.
Jadusables channel? Yes, Ben was my good friend. We're not sure, he might have ascended, but nothing was ever for sure.
I've heard that Ben drowned. Is that true?
I dont know, that may explain why we never found his body.
Matt says that Ben was a good friend of his. However, he claims that Ben's fate was left unknown as his body was never discovered. It's possible that he Ascended.
Who is Drowned?
A friend of mine.
Matt refers to "DROWNED", or "BEN", as a friend of his.
Where has Alex gone?
Alex disappeared during the blackout, haven't heard from him.
Matt claims that Alex went missing during "The Blackout" - the same event that supposedly led to Ben disappearing as well, somehow.
What is "The Truth" ?
It is the true nature of the world, of us, of the prophecy.
Matt states that whatever lies within "The Truth" relates to the true nature of the world and Luna's prophecy that was whispered to Kelbris.
What happens during ascension?
Become one with Luna.
Who gives you your specific ascension times?
Luna.
When is your ascension time?
When Luna starts whispering to me.
Matt claims that when someone undergoes an Ascension, their spirit becomes one with Luna. Ascensions are scheduled by Luna herself. An individual becomes aware that their Ascension will be coming soon because Luna herself will begin whispering to them - much like how she did with Kelbris and Spencer.
Did you kill Rosa to gain entrance to the Moon Children...
Of course not. Rosa is my sister.
Matt reveals that the "Rosa" mentioned on YSHDT.net is actually his sister.
I'm very interested in learning more about the Moon Children. I stumbled upon your site a few days ago, and was reading to learn more, but the site alone has not quenched my desires. I need to know more, and since you seem to be my verbal counterpart, I decided to ask you.
Where do you live? We could set up a meeting. We have members throughout the United States, although a few were called down to the Midwest recently I think by now they should be heading back to their respective homes.
Matt claims that some Moon Children were called down to the Midwest United States recently. The reason for this isn't fully known. However, it would later be revealed that Alex's college was located in the Midwest - St. Louis, Missouri, specifically. It's possible that the Moon Children travelled to Alex's location for one reason or another. Regardless, said Moon Children are now said to be returning home.
This is my Mask... Do you like it? Should I wear it?
((The player sends a photo of Majora's Mask.))
Why base your mask on a video game? It doesn't represent you.
Why, it represents my love for the game
No, it represents unoriginality. It represents filth.
Matt insults a user for basing their mask off of a videogame, claiming it represents unoriginality and filth.
Say to me, how did you get in the Moon Children? Who did u kill, Ifrit?
I've been spammed with this question, you guys are not going to hack into my account. Forget it.
Seriously, how did u get in? Don't say who, just say how.
Why would I tell you that?
Matt seems to imply that he killed someone in order to join the Moon Children, though he's unwilling to reveal who it was.
Would I kill Ben?
Did you? It would lay my mind to rest knowing that my brother is gone instead of clinging to false hopes that he still may be alive.
Matt refers to Ben as his brother, implying that the two are related.
Though it's unarchived, it's worth noting that Matt referred to Alex as "our most powerful warrior" at one point. Also, as the countdown on YSHDT.net began nearing its end, Matt began replying to every email with "Hang on, someone is knocking at my door", implying that he was in danger. This was accompanied with the announcement from "DROWNED" disappearing from the Front Page as a song titled "Matt's Final Hour" began playing, which was a distorted version of the Happy Mask Salesman's theme.
Around this time, the Jadusable YouTube channel updated with the message "What's that calling, calling my name/Tossed a brick through my window pane/Boom boom boom, bang bang bang" - lyrics from the song "Who's that Knockin'" by The Genies. This seemed to be a reference to whoever was knocking on Matt's door.
After this, a new YouTube channel appeared - "TheLinkMissing", which uploaded the following video:
Description
N/A
<--- Click for Video Transcript
This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - the predecessor of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Link can be seen walking towards the moon in Hyrule Field. Here, he pulls out the Ocarina of Time and plays the Song of Time. After this, the screen fades to white as the video ends.
Summary
- This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
- Link can be seen walking towards the moon while playing the "Song of Time" - something that would normally reset the three-day-cycle in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask.
The name of this enigmatic video was "fj6rt" - a strange jumble of text that was also found on Matt's "Contact" Page. Shortly after this video was uploaded, the text on said "Contact" Page was replaced with a link to this video. Around this time, the same post from three days prior featuring "TheTruth.rtf" was once again posted to /x/ as YSHDT.net went offline for maintenance. This seemed to imply that the "Song of Time" from the video above rewound time back to three days prior - just like how it would within Majora's Mask.
This was confirmed on September 19th, 2010 when YSHDT.net came back online. The website now appeared how it did when it was first discovered two days prior. However, Matt was missing - presumably thanks to the entity that was knocking on his door. He had no entry on the "About" Page and his introductory announcement on the Front Page was replaced by a new post from Kevin - the Moon Child who up until now did not make any posts.
Insidiae (mod)
Posted: 9/19/10 @ 11:35am
Subject: New site
Hey everyone, welcome to the new site. While we can finally get away from that IRC chat, there's going to be a lot of heavy construction going on here. I'll try and keep you guys updated but I'm literally dealing with a dozen things right now. If you guys can get ahold of anyone make sure to refer them to the website. Also, we need one more moderator so if anyone wants to step up feel free to send me a message.
Best wishes.
Kevin's introductory post is effectively the same as Matt's from before, though he also acknowledges that the website could use another moderator - referencing Matt's absence. YSHDT.net had essentially rewound back in time and entered into another three-day-cycle - much like in Majora's Mask. These three-day-periods would later go on to become known as "Cycles" by the players. Chris and Spencer's posts were made after Kevin's. They were nearly identical to how they were during the first cycle - the only difference being that the line "like Dusk said" from Chris's post was removed, which originally seemed to reference a non-existent post by Spencer.
It's worth noting that the players actually discovered YSHDT.net on the second day of the first cycle. However, here in the second cycle, the players were now able to view the website as it appeared for the full three days. This meant the website currently only featured the three announcements mentioned above and that Chris was actually still alive at this point.
This cycle had several other differences, however. First, the audio on the front page had changed from a rather calm track to a somewhat tense one. Oddly, the Moon Children themselves seem unaware of this change, still referring to the audio by the name of the song that was playing during the previous cycle instead. Meanwhile, Matt's "Contact" Page now contained three images of the Elegy Statue with text that read "Expecting to find someone else?", accompanied by the Skull Kid's laugh.
Further exploration led players to Alex's "Contact" Page, which was actually hidden as a sub-directory behind Matt's "Contact" Page. Here, text could be found that read "another who knows of them, chooses.... mask....sends aid.... fallen.... vehement.....diety.... he is alone against them.", implying that perhaps Alex was somehow fighting against the Moon Children. This also seemed to imply that "TheLinkMissing" was actually Alex, as he was the one who "sent aid" to assist the players. This was confirmed via "The Truth", which was surprisingly freely accessible during this cycle. "The Truth" contained the following text:
Still in the progress of moving everything over, sorry for the delay. But it is imperative we find him and silence him before he can reveal our intentions. Also, I can't figure out how to make this private, we've got about two days or so before we open up this website to the world so I figure it'll be okay for now, not like anyone can stumble upon this, but can someone help out with that? - DW
It seems as though the true contents of "The Truth" had not yet been added during the second cycle - likely due to either the lack of manpower because of Matt's absence or the fact that the players were viewing the website one day earlier than they were before. Regardless, this page now contained a message from Spencer in which he proposed that the Moon Children kill someone who wished to expose them. It's likely that this individual is actually Alex, given the text that was discovered on his "Contact" Page. This is stark contrast to how Alex was perceived during the previous cycle where he was lauded as the cult's "strongest warrior" and seemed to have several members concerned for his whereabouts.
Overall, the players were still at a loss on what exactly they should be doing or how to progress. It's implied that "The Truth" also once again became password protected around this time. On a whim, the player Freyadutenebres followed in Alex's footsteps by uploading their own gameplay footage - this one of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask featuring Link playing the "Inverted Song of Time" - a song that would slow down time in-game. Shortly after this, BEN responded to the video on YouTube:
BEN
"YOU'VE BEGUN TO START THINKING. YOU'VE BEGUN TO CATCH ON. YOU'VE MADE A DISCOVERY TODAY, BUT HOW LONG UNTIL THAT BLESSING BECOMES A CURSE?"
This is how the players learned that they themselves held the power of The Ocarina - the ability to upload videos, images, and songs from The Legend of Zelda series to affect the world of the ARG. This process would later become known as Submitting. After this, players began submitting other videos in an attempt to test out their new powers.
The player MFGreth submitted the "New Wave Bossa Nova". This song's original purpose in Majora's Mask was to grant characters the ability to speak. This was submitted in the hopes of allowing players to contact Matt once again. While this submission did not do anything immediately, it would come into effect later on in the day. In the meantime, the player HigurashiMGOST submitted the "Song of Healing". As mentioned before, this song has the effect of healing and easing the souls of troubled spirits. However, it's also heavily associated with BEN. This submission resulted in a new announcement appearing on the website's Front Page:
WHO DO YOU THINK I AM
Posted: 9/19/10 @ 6:66pm
Subject: MISTAKE
I AM KNOCKING AT YOUR DOOR NEXT. LET ME IN. I WANT TO SPEAK.
The "Song of Healing" accidentally summoned Kelbris, who revealed that he was the one who knocked on Matt's door and presumably caused him to disappear. Shortly after this, the "New Wave Bossa Nova" took effect, resulting in the players not being contacted by Matt, but instead his sister Rosa. Strangely, she was still using his email, however.
Can you speak?
WHY DID YOU PLAY THAT
WE NEED TO KNOW HOW TO FIX THIS BEFORE WE REVERSE TIME. WHAT DO WE DO?!
THE BLACKOUT, SOMETHING HAPPENED IN THE BLACKOUT
MATT DON'T OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR, ROSA SAID. WHAT SONG DO WE NEED TO PLAY?!
-I- AM ROSA, WHO IS THIS? DO YOU KNOW WHERE MATT IS?
Rosa something is going on, what happened to alex, give me as much info as possible. We may be able to save matt somehow, all I can tell you is that this is Ben's fault.
Bens been dead, I dont see how, i dont know what happened, after the blackout i dont know where matt is i dont know where alex is, why would we want to find him anyway??? ,please call someone i can hear it counting down outside my door
Rosa stresses how bad of a decision it was that the players submitted the "Song of Healing". Much like with Matt during the previous cycle, Kelbris is now outside Rosa's door. She once again brings up the enigmatic Blackout, claiming that, in this cycle, Matt went missing during it. She reiterates that Ben is dead. She also claims she doesn't know where Alex is adding "why would we want to find him anyway?", implying that she, too, perhaps views him as an enemy like the rest of the Moon Children.
The next player to email Rosa was a player named Ryukaki, who will become very important later on in the story. This is their conversation:
What happened in the blackout! Talk to me, Matt!
Rosa?! That's you?!
Yes, who sist his plase if you are nearby a phone please call the policei can hear it outside my door what is going on
Leave! Get out now! Rosa, where do you live?! I will call the police!
OREGON. ITS OUTSIDE MY DOOR
They're coming for you, you need to get out!
I CANT GO ANYWHERE
ROSE WHAT IS THE USERNAME AND PASSWORD QUICKLY WE CAN SAVE THE OTHERS.
Rosa, please! Hurry! There's still time!
MattHubris423/thelensoftruth
IF you can escape, do so! I will not waste this chanse!
please call the fucking police
... it stoped
Give me your address!
... It's leaving? .. Rosa? Are you still there?
Please tell me you're safe! Rosa! Please!
THe login isn't working! Fuck fuck fuck
Ryukaki attempted to assist Rosa, who revealed that she lived in Oregon. She begged him to call the police as Kelbris loomed outside her room. Meanwhile, Ryukaki asked for the login information for "The Truth", which she eventually gave him. However, instead of sharing this with his fellow players, Ryukaki instead held onto it himself. Additionally, it seems as though the login information was incorrected, as Ryukaki himself was unable to use it to access "The Truth".
On September 20th, 2010, the second day of the second cycle, the player Miya submitted the "Song of Time". As expected, this resulted in the second cycle coming to a close. Much like with her brother before her, the players were unable to save Rosa. This was indicated by the tags "YOU, DIDN'T, SAVE, HER," and "Rosa, Trapped" being added to videos on the Jadusable YouTube channel.
Meanwhile, an unknown user submitted a video titled "jf6rt.wmv". While the contents of this video are unknown, it resulted in Alex saying "No, it's too soon!". This, coupled with an ill-timed submission of the "Oath to Order" from the day prior led to Alex's untimely death - as seen in the following video:
Description
N/A
<--- Click for Video Transcript
This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - the predecessor of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Link can be seen dying at the hands of Dark Link - a mini-boss that acts as a dark reflection of the main character Link.
Summary
- This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
- Link can be seen dying at the hands of Dark Link - a mini-boss from Ocarina of Time that acts as a dark reflection of the main character Link.
Thankfully, the players were quick to respond. The player MFGreth made yet another successful submission with the video "SAVING_ALEX.MP4", which showcased gameplay footage of Link using a Fairy - an item that normally revives the main character from death. This was successful, resulting in the upload of the following video:
Description
N/A
<--- Click for Video Transcript
This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - the predecessor of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. The Game Over screen is present, showing the player selecting "Yes" when asked if they wish to continue.
Summary
- This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
- The Game Over screen is present, showing the player selecting "Yes" when asked if they wish to continue.
Unfortunately, this victory was short-lived. The player Cerxi submitted the "Sonata of Awakening", resulting in the upload of the following:
Description
N/A
<--- Click for Video Transcript
This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - the predecessor of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Dark Link can be seen exiting the Temple of Time.
Summary
- This video features gameplay footage of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
- Dark Link can be seen exiting the Temple of Time - presumably in pursuit of Alex.
Although the players managed to revive Alex, the submission of the "Sonata of Awakening" seemingly resulted in them disappearing. This video indicated that Dark Link was now attempting to hunt them down. After this, YSHDT.net briefly entered into a third cycle. However, before much could be explored, the ARG took a surprising turn...
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