Awakening (arc)

Hubris Arc

A letter that certain players received in the mail

Written by	Alex Hall
Duration	February 17, 2011 to present (On hiatus since July 15, 2011)
Protagonist	Players
Videos	h b i s r ea l
Documents	Newspaper Letter

Preceded by

Followed by

The Hubris Arc is the third and final arc of the Haunted Majora's Mask Cartridge ARG. It follows the attempts of several groups to uncover the truth about the Moon Children. The arc has been halted indefinitely and remains unresolved.

It is preceded by the Moon Children Arc.

The following is a summary of the Hubris Arc, in chronological order of the events as they happened. Out-of-character events are in italics. All times are in EST. To see each page exactly as described, click the icon for each update.

Note: Many links in this article no longer work due to the Within Hubris Shutdown. Some of the pages have been saved via the Wayback Machine, and are linked instead; the links that do not work are kept here for archival purposes.

Within Hubris

Bastion of Defense

February 17, 2011

• Around 3:06am, Alex Hall posted an update to Jadusable's YouTube channel, reading, "Looking for three responsible individuals to act as forum moderators. Send me a brief resume at jadusable@youshouldnthavedonethat.net if you think you would be interested."
• Around 11:00am, a countdown appeared on the main page of youshouldnthavedonethat.net. The timer counted down to an event referred to as "Another Step," and was set to end at 7:00pm. When hovered over with the cursor, the counter read, "18 Feb 2011 is when you unite."
• Alex Hall posted another update on his YouTube channel requesting Skype names for moderator applicants, hoping to secure a meeting that night.
• Guestbook entries from the 10th to 16th disappeared.
• As the counter ended, the site went down.
• Jadusable's channel posted three updates containing pieces of the following binary code:
  • 01101000 01110100 01110100 01110000 00111010 00101111 00101111 01111010 00110001 00110101 00101110 01101001 01101110 01110110 01101001 01110011 01101001 01101111 01101110 01100110 01110010 01100101 01100101 00101110 01100011 01101111 01101101 00101111 01010111 01101001 01110100 01101000 01101001 01101110 01011111 01001000 01110101 01100010 01110010 01101001 01110011 00101111
  • The message was an encoded URL for a forum: http://z15.invisionfree.com/Within_Hubris/
• YSHDT's continuous server problems prevented many users from accessing the site.
• Two of the binary codes on Jadusable's channel were removed, followed by the third shortly afterward.
• Jadusable's YouTube channel posted another update:
  • " http://z15.invisionfree.com/Within_Hubris The final piece of the puzzle is sliding into place, when the bastion is completed you will have everything you need."
  • Bastion means "a group that defends principle" or "a stronghold into which people could go for shelter during a battle." Bastion refers to this forum, based on this forum post:
    • "This is our last haven, our last bastion of defense. And yet it houses our greatest minds, and our strongest warriors."
• Soon after the forum was discovered, two forum groups appeared for around twenty seconds before disappearing.
  • Forum group "HELP ME" with subforum "PLEASE GOD HELP ME" appeared first.
  • Forum group "MY EYES" with subforum "THEY TOOK" appeared around ten minutes later.
• In the list of members, the first thirteen members are listed as "Tenors." The Tenors are Jadusable, Hubris, Ryukaki, Alex, Nekko, Duskworld23, Drowned, BEN, Rosa, Insidiae, Tyler, Kelbris, and Guide.

February 18, 2011

• A new, permanent forum group was added to Within Hubris, titled "Wayward Horizon," which cannot be seen without logging in. It contained one sub-forum called "???," which was password-protected.
  • When first noticed, there was only one topic there, created by Hubris.
  • Minutes later, the subforum was empty.
  • Then, one topic appeared, created by Guide.
  • Another topic was created by Nekko.
  • Then another topic, this time by Duskworld23.
  • The fourth and latest topic was created by a new user, ???.
  • When trying to enter the subforum, one is met with a login page.
    • On the password screen, it says, "Please do not attempt to enter a password unless you are authorised. Failed attempts are logged and you may have your posting rights removed upon repetitive failure." However, it was soon discovered that this was not true, and failed attempts are simply logged.
• It was confirmed by one of the moderators that they have nothing to do with the strange happenings on the site. No one group has more knowledge than any other. They are only there as custodians, keeping the place clear of problems and keeping order. In another topic they admit having no connections to Guide, an admin, and are unaware of the password to Wayward Horizon.
  • Also confirmed are the forum categories "Announcements," "Story," and "Community" being out of character. Anything outside of that are out of the mods' control and is being controlled by Guide.

February 19, 2011

• The following binary code appeared on Rosa's user profile in the location field:
  • 10011101 10011110 10001100 10001011 10010110 10010000 10010001 10010000
  • When translated from binary to text, it becomes: žŒ‹–‘
  • When the binary is inverted, it becomes:
    • 01100010 01100001 01110011 01110100 01101001 01101111 01101110 01101111
    • This translates to "bastiono," which is Esperanto for bastion. This implies that Rosa is trapped within our bastion and alive.
• Around 6:24PM EST, YSHDT.net is updated with the following:

February 17, 2011

The time has come to unite.

Almost.

• Interestingly, the post refers to the 17th when the previous counter said we unite on the 18th.

• The binary code on Rosa's profile changed to:
  • 100111011001111010001100100010111001011010010000100100011001000010011001
  • Inverted and converted to text, it reads "bastionof," or "Bastion of." Words are missing.
• YSHDT.net's title is switched to "Within Hubris."
• A user named ProtonConroy solves the puzzle from Rosa's profile: "bastionofdefense." This was the password to Wayward Horizon.
• In Wayward Horizon, the posts made by Nekko, Duskworld23, and ??? are present. A few minutes later, a fifth topic by Kelbris appears. (Screenshot)
• Below is each post, translated from its original binary. The originals have been recreated here.

Wayward Horizon

Post #1 (Pinned post): "Welcome To The Waywar01011001110000101," by Guide

• Description: ????//
• You're not supposed to be here.Get.Out.

Post #2: "The First," by Nekko

• whatis? wherethis? help me please, i'm so scared. where is everyone?i'm so lonely... mommy im so sorry. i promise i'll be a better son, ipromise i'll be the little boy you've always wanted, i miss you i'm soscared... mommy just please wake me up. please PLEASE MOMMY WHERE ARE YOU

Post #3: "The Fourth," by Duskworld23

• I can't stand it. I can't even have a momentI can't stand it. I can't even have a moment no think. I want to kill myself, but I don't know how. Have to find a way, before I lose myself.

• Note: required several shifts and conversions for the end result

Post #4: "The Seventh," by ???

• I can become God.

• I can become everything.

Post #5: "...," by Kelbris

• GET OUT
• Note: only post not in binary.

• Soon after the password was used, it was reset and everyone was logged out of the forum.
• The new password for Wayward Horizon changed to "youshouldntbehere." Nothing in the forum has changed.

February 20, 2011

• At around 10:35pm, the copyright information on YSHDT.net changed to © 2011 Within Hubris.
• YSHDT.net went down again due to bandwidth issues, most likely related to use of reloading browser extensions like SiteDelta.
• The password "youshouldntbehere" stopped working for Wayward Horizon.
• The URL for youshouldnthavedonethat.net began redirecting to Within Hubris. At an unknown date, it stopped. From this point forward, youshouldnthavedonethat.net is officially no longer part of the story.

February 21, 2011

• Alex Hall begins seeking help with the downed YSHDT's problems.
• Jadusable's YouTube channel adds another channel, HubrisOST, to its friends list. This new channel is used for uploading songs from the ARG.
• At 8:13pm, Alex Hall announces @WithinHubris, the official Within Hubris Updates Twitter account on Jadusable's YouTube channel.
  • The first tweet, posted at 7:01pm, reads, "Twitter created. Stay tuned for the "Hubris Reveal" trailer later this week."
• As Guide, he posts the entirety of the Haunted Cartridge Arc on Within Hubris, then posts an update on Within Hubris that reiterates the update from the YouTube channel.

Hubris Reveal

February 25, 2011

• At 6:09pm, @WithinHubris tweets, "'Hubris Reveal' trailer debuts on Jadusable's Youtube channel on Sunday, February 27th at 6pm EST."
• Around ten minutes later, the same message was posted on Jadusable's YouTube channel.

February 26, 2011

• Several users of Within Hubris received an envelope in the mail. Contained within were a newspaper clipping and a letter, which detail potential Moon Children activity and a message from BEN, respectively.
  • The recipients of the letter were the top fifty donators to the link on YSHDT.net.
• Hidden periods were discovered in two posts from Guide. Whether these are significant is debatable.
  • The posts were lost due to the Within Hubris takedown.
• At 5:51pm, a timer was discovered on Within Hubris. It counted down to an hour before the release time given by @WithinHubris for the Hubris Reveal; alongside it was the ominous phrase, "They have to warn you."
• Guide posts A Comprehensive Guide to the Story as promised. It serves to help direct attention to the essential story points. In addition, it also states that you do not have to understand the other arcs in order to enjoy the Hubris Arc. The guide has been lost.

February 27, 2011

• Jadusable's YouTube channel posts three updates:
  • what are you doing?
  • STOP THIS
  • /i
• Just before 6:00pm, h b i s r ea l, a corrupted version of the Hubris Reveal, is posted.
  • The binary code in the video translates to "isn't clear yet."
  • Further analysis can be found here.
  • At 5:59pm, @WithinHubris tweets, "H b i s r ea l uploaded instead?"
• The updates on Jadusable's channel start to disappear and reappear continuously. Something is struggling for control of the account, which was thought to be "safely" in the hands of BEN up to this point.
• Guide's post from February 21 is edited. Hidden text is added below the main message, which reads, "not the real not the real not the real not the real not the real."

March 1, 2011

• At 1:13pm, Guide posts an update asking for an additional programmer and artist for the game.

April 23, 2011

• At 3:31am, @WithinHubris tweets, "There'll be an update on 4/23, look for it around 6pm est." At 5:23pm, it is followed with, "I would also like to clarify that around 6pm est does not mean *exactly*

at 6pm est :P It all depends on when my conference call finishes."

• Around 6:00pm, Guide posts an update on Within Hubris confirming May 10 as the release date for the Hubris trailer, as well as some additional information regarding the game.

May 10, 2011

• Guide posts an update on Within Hubris, explaining that the trailer has been delayed until further notice, as the person who shot the footage failed to return Alex's calls.

May 27, 2011

• Within Hubris user Kylinn receives a reply from Alex Hall, reading, "I haven't updated you guys yet because there isn't really anything to update about, I'm still waiting on that guy to get back to me =\ but I think most likely we'll be able to get something out in the beginning of June. I'll keep you guys posted!"

Early to Mid-2011

• Sometime between February 28 and June 8, youshouldnthavedonethat.net stopped redirecting users to Within Hubris. In its place, a notice that it was no longer in use (provided by GoDaddy.com) was present.
• Alex Hall assured players that, "Youshouldnthavedonethat.net will be returning, albeit in a different form."

June 8, 2011

• A Within Hubris user, MajinMew, finds a member of the Tenor group not previously listed, named Usekeb.
  • Usekeb joined on April 22, the day before 4/23, his last known date of activity.
  • He has made one post since joining, but it is not viewable, as is the case with the other Tenors.

June 10, 2011

• Within Hubris user MessedUpPro messages Alex Hall via Facebook regarding the trailer and receives the reply, "I'm working with him now again finally after all this time, so we should be able to put out something in the next week or so, but I dont want to give a definitive date yet incase it falls through again." When asked how he was doing, he replied, "Hectic, haha, to say the least. As much as I want the game to take precidence over everything else I'm doing, its hard to juggle all this stuff at once, but hopefully we're getting close to the light at the end of the tunnel."

June 22, 2011

• At 5:26am, @WithinHubris announced Alex Hall's new official Twitter account, @AlexanderDHall.
• Later, Alex Hall held a Q&A in the Knights of Theets Chatango.

The Hiatus

Gamejacking Accusations

July 15, 2011

• At 8:43pm, Alex Hall announced that the ARG has been paused indefinitely.
• Shortly afterward, Kayd Hendricks began a Q&A session, under the handle APseudonym, about his part in the ARG. This interview was controversial in that he claimed that most of his interaction with Alex was ignored, leaving him to handle the story on his own.

July 17, 2011

• In response to users calling him out for ignoring Kayd, Alex posted an angry declaration that he had no intention for Kayd's story to happen, and that he had essentially "gamejacked," but was left to continue because he thought Kayd meant well. He continues to say that he had originally intended to keep his story canon, but the bitter aftermath of the interview changed his mind.
  • In the same thread, Kayd fires back at Alex by saying that, had he known he was "gamejacking," he would never have continued, but after being called out due to the File 59 cipher and the swarms of players begging for information, he did what he thought he had to. Subsequent contact from Alex showed that he enjoyed the videos, so Kayd felt as if he did everything correctly.

October 26, 2011

• Files archived by We All Are Link during the Moon Children incident were released to the public. Some of these revealed never-before-seen interaction with Jadusable's YouTube channel, but no important information was gathered.
  • The files no longer exist due to the Within Hubris takedown.

King Kong and Hubris Alpha

March 27, 2012

• Users discover that youshouldnthavedonethat.net has been placed for sale. After contact from worried players, Alex Hall stated that he had no plans to use or re-purchase the site, and to disregard anything that happens there.

March 29, 2012

• Two videos have been renamed:
  • free.wmv is renamed "you can hear me.wmv."
  • 2 is renamed "4ucme.wmv."
  • Several tags are changed.

April 1, 2012

• A new video is uploaded to Jadusable's YouTube channel: king kong.wmv
  • Seemingly a version of day four.wmv with Goron Link, its true nature is revealed when King Kong by Jibbs feat. Chamillionaire begins playing.
  • This video and the other renames are part of an April Fool's Day joke conducted by Alex Hall. Everything reverts to normal soon afterward, except for a few tags.

Mid-April, 2012

• Sometime between April 1 and April 23, the videos 2 and h b i s r ea l are entirely removed from Jadusable's channel. Alex Hall's reasoning is for not confusing new players when he reboots the third arc.
  • The videos are available for viewing here and here.

April 23, 2012

• Around 6:00pm, in response to the iconic 4/23 date, Alex Hall posts an update for the future of his projects; while he has no new information on the continuation of the ARG due to his working on Methods of Revolution, he gives the players a gift: the Hubris Alpha, a very basic version of the first area of the planned game.
  • The game is a stripped version of the house seen in h b i s r ea l. It provides no new ARG information, but was a nice gesture nonetheless.

April 24, 2012

• Several changes are made to Within Hubris' design to coincide with Alex Hall's newest project, Methods of Revolution. The banner is changed and a timer counting down to an announcement is added; over the next few days, the banner is changed again. After the promotion is over, all changes are removed and the forum returns to normal.
  • No images were captured of these changes.

Final Days

June 2, 2012

• Alex Hall announces that Spanosa, a moderator, has been promoted to admin in order to help keep the forum orderly while Alex works on his film. He is given permission to make any necessary changes. Alex also clarifies that any spoiling content that admins could see are now saved and have been removed from the site until he is ready to continue the ARG.

August 9, 2012

• Prior to this date, a Q&A thread for the more prominent members of the forum was posted. One member was asked "who [they] would kill on the forums and why," as a joke. Playing along, the user posted a list of players with silly reasons for why they would kill them.
  • Many users took offense to this question, which prompted an argument. Subsequently, a report was filed to the police regarding "death threats" having been posted.
  • InvisionFree removed Within Hubris from its servers soon afterward. Panicked players began contacting Alex Hall hoping he could bring it back, but he announced that it was impossible, as well as that no back-ups were available. Within Hubris, and most of its content, is lost forever.

August 10, 2012

• Around 1:00am, a new version of Within Hubris is created by Kafeite, with help from other members. The new version, created using several archived threads, has no ties to the ARG canon, but houses several things that were able to be recovered from the original site.
  • Alex Hall, despite having been invited, has not made an account on "Newbris." It is unknown whether this version will be adopted when the ARG starts again.
  • Over time, Newbris evolved from a recreation of the original to a general interest forum.

August 16, 2018

• Around 1:00am, CircleHunter solved the cipher from File 59.

mhftt.txt

EBOAKBBYCKWWXQGMEQNOK,RKZVOKCIVOWYJJMBKA
I SEE YOU THREE LIVE, CAN MY DEAR ROSA PLEASE LIVE

April 23, 2019

• Around 12:00pm, Alex Hall uploaded an introduction video to his new podcast series The Digital Fireside, a sort of prologue to Methods of Revolution. While otherwise unrelated, it contained the following tags:
  • The Digital Fireside, Digital Fireside, Methods of Revolution, Ben Drowned, Alex Hall, Why are you reading this, Technology, career, social, education, internet, social media, talking, philosophy, games

Timeline
Preceded by Moon Children Arc	Current Arc Hubris Arc	Followed by N/A