I should have known better than to trust anything that seems too good to be true on the internet. But I was desperate, and my desperation clouded my judgment in a way that still haunts me to this day.
Let me back up a bit. I’m just some guy living in a cramped studio apartment in the city. At least, I was living there until a few days ago when the events I’m about to describe unfolded and my life unraveled in the most terrifying way imaginable.
I’ve always been a pretty shy, reserved guy who kept to himself. Loser-ish, you could say. I was never one of the popular kids growing up. But I tried my best to make an honest living after graduating from college with a degree in computer science. I had managed to land a decent job as a software engineer at a mid-sized tech company. The pay wasn’t amazing, but it allowed me to (barely) afford rent and basic living expenses in the expensive city I lived in.
That all changed two months ago when corporate did some “restructuring” and I found myself among the many who got laid off without warning. Just like that, my primary source of income was gone. I burned through what little savings I had fairly quickly trying to keep a roof over my head and food in my belly as I desperately applied to countless jobs over the next few weeks. But opportunity after opportunity slipped through my fingers as the rejections kept piling up.
Last month, I was seriously behind on rent and utilities. The looming threat of eviction and potentially becoming homeless haunted my every thought. That’s when I stumbled upon the sinister website that has since turned my life into a waking nightmare.
I don’t even remember how I initially found the site. I was probably falling down some YouTube rabbit hole of videos about “easy ways to make money online” when a link showed up in the comments pointing to Don't-Stream.oni.
The site itself was fairly barebones, with a minimal white and blue color scheme giving off retro vibes. And it was really just a website where people were allowed to stream almost whatever they wanted to stream. Wether it be regular and short streams, or apparently, they could also participate in regular challenges. The homepage itself simply read:
RULES FOR OUR 24h CHALLENGE
1) Stay in front of your webcam.
2) No nudity or violence.
3) Do NOT stop filming.
4) Receive your $10,000 immediately after the challenge.
Yeah, it seemed shady as hell. But I was desperate. $10,000 would be more than enough to get me back on my feet and cover rent for quite a while as I continued my job search. And even if they didn’t pay me - in the end, I’d have just wasted 24 hours in front of a webcam. No harm done.
After mulling it over for a while, I decided what the hell, it was worth a shot. I created an account using my old college email address and a generated username (Str3ngr96 - I know, I know, a bit cringey). Afterwards, I went to prepare myself. Some snacks and energy drinks were all scattered over my desk, the sun was setting too, so this was a perfect time to simply start streaming.
When I logged in, I was greeted by a fairly standard livestreaming interface not too different from Twitch or YouTube Live. A smallish preview window showed my webcam feed with the option to go live just a couple clicks away.
With a deep, nervous breath, I started the stream.
“Uhh…hey there, whoever’s watching,” I said, waving awkwardly. “Not really sure what I’m supposed to do here, but I guess I’ll just…live my life for the next 24 hours?”
I fired up my latest game addiction, an open world fantasy RPG, and tried my best to just vibe and play while occasionally glancing at the chat box. The stream started out fairly uneventfully. A few curious usernames popped up and some greetings were exchanged, but nothing too crazy. I honestly didn’t expect any viewers at all, but maybe this whole website had more traffic than expected.
.
[CatBoy42]
what’s good my dude? :sparkles:
[LURXpwner]
What kinda game is that? Looks cool! :D
.
I obliged with some background info about the game world and my current quest. Killing time was the main objective for the next 23ish hours remaining, so figured I may as well lean into my nerdy gamer side. And as the hours ticked by, my eyelids grew heavier and I decided to take a short nap around 3am. I’d have to be slightly delirious from sleep deprivation to stay awake the full 24 hours, right? I wasn’t getting younger after all.
When I awoke around 7:30 the next morning, I was a bit startled to see my tired face illuminated by the computer screen had accumulated close to 500 live viewers.
.
[A1i3nPr3dat0r]
Yo he’s awake! The nap stream was mad boring lol
.
I rubbed the crust from my eyes and yawned. “Yeah, uh, apologies for the lack of excitement. Didn’t exactly plan out 24 hours of compelling content here.”
.
[CatBoy42]
just get some more gameplay going my dude, it’s all good x3
.
With a shrug, I spent the next several hours slaying digital monsters and grinding for XP and loot while scarfing down a breakfast burrito and slobbish amounts of Cheetos and Baja Blast. By the time noon rolled around, over 1,000 viewers clogged up the scrolling chat box. I figured a good chunk of that traffic was probably bots, but it was still surreal to have that many “eyes” on me while I zoned out on virtual quests. I wouldn’t watch myself, if I was being honest.
.
[xZINGGGx]
This is literally the most boring shit ever but I can’t look away for some reason.
.
I took a break from gaming for a while and watched YouTube videos, played a mindless mobile game, and even read a book for the “literary” crowd I assumed was out there. A few IMs popped up from users asking some casual getting-to-know-you questions.
The stream took on a fairly repetitive pattern as the hours dragged on. Game, video, game, snack break, game. Rinse and repeat, killing time until the 24 hour milestone. I tried to avoid too much personal or identifying information, despite seemingly innocuous questions from curious viewers. Can’t be too careful on the internet, y’know?
.
[Loli_Hunter]
you got any brothers or sisters?
.
“Just a younger sister, she’s 20 or something,” I replied, not looking up from my phone when mumbling those words. Unsettling comments and usernames like that were peppered throughout. But perhaps I was being a bit paranoid - antisocial weirdos are par for the course online.
.
[Loli_Hunter]
oh yeah? what’s she like? :eyes:
.
As the day turned into night once again, the fatigue and mental fuzziness of operating on almost no sleep started to kick in hard. But I persevered, desperate to reach that finish line and sweet $10k payday. When that timer finally hit 10:00 after over a full day of mind-numbing streaming, I’d never felt such a huge sense of relief.
“Thanks for watching, I guess? I have no idea what just happened, but I’m gonna go pass the fuck out now,” I mumbled half-consciously before ending the stream.
Darkness. Blissful, uninterrupted sleep. No backlit screen illuminating my face. No scrolling text boxes of meaningless chatter.
When I finally peeled my eyes open what felt like a full day later, I noticed I had a new email notification from the Don't-Stream.oni website. I opened it and could scarcely believe what I saw.
Congratulations, you have successfully completed the 24 hour streaming challenge! Payment of $10,000 has been issued to the account on file. We hope you’ll consider streaming again with us soon!
No way. Could it really be that easy? I scrambled over to my online banking app with groggy desperation. And there it was - a pending direct deposit of $10,000 from an undisclosed sender. The relief I felt was beyond words. I could actually pay rent and expenses without having to panic for once.
After getting myself back on semi-stable financial footing within some hours, my masochistic curiosity eventually got the better of me. I decided to go back to the site, maybe review my old stream to see just how big of an obliviously humiliating spectacle I had made of myself. Or maybe I could even stream again, grind some more money. I couldn’t believe my luck, really.
With a few clicks, I pulled up the video from my recent 24 hour stream - but felt the blood drain from my face almost instantly.
The title alone made me audibly gasp.
I FUCKING KILLED HER
What the fuck?
Thoroughly unsettled by the drastic change from the fairly innocuous title I had used, I reluctantly hit play on the video. Maybe some hacker or someone operating the website had thought they’d be super funny and play with the titles, I thought.
It started fairly innocent. I cringed at my own awkward greeting and watched how I eventually started streaming - all normal, all good. To save myself from the embarrassment though, I skipped several minutes and hours.
Suddenly I was able to watch in complete bewilderment and abject horror as a version of myself I didn’t recognize looked up from his phone screen directly into the camera. It looked like me, sure - same disheveled hair, same gaming chair and cluttered studio apartment backdrop.
But the way this… this debased doppelgänger was behaving was a million miles away from the shy, reserved person I knew myself to be.
“Now, time to switch the fucking gears a bit, this shit is boring,” the on-screen figure snarled, eyes bulging maniacally as spittle flew from his contorted mouth. “You’ve tuned in for a night of utter moral depravity, I hope? Good.”
.
[Cun7sl4y3r]
this already the sickest shit i’ve seen. I’M IN :fire:
[Cannibal-Shia]
Lmao the fuck
.
I watched in reviled disbelief as this unhinged version of myself proceeded to pull up video after video of hardcore pornographic material far beyond the scope of what could ever be considered normal. We’re talking graphic fetish videos, extremely rough BDSM, even simulated assaults and worse. All while he enthusiastically masturbated and chanted vulgar, profanity-laced refrains like a deranged porn parody preacher.
“Only bullshit that gets me going these days,” he groaned as his fist furiously pumped away at his exposed genitals. “Fuel this unholy shrine of sexual blasphemy!”
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[CatBoy42]
NOW we’re talkin! get that dick out dude
[LXVIII]
Nice greasy nest you got there bro, I’m sure this is the most action you get on a lonely Saturday PogChamp :clown:
.
Of course I didn’t watch all of it. The NSFW barrage continued for hours in that vein, until this… this sickening apparition switched gears entirely when I skipped some bits of the stream again.
“Now that we’ve gotten the warm up round of debauchery out of the way,” the doppelganger cackled before grinning into the webcam, “it’s time for the main course of utter depravity and confession this cum-soaked evening of filth has been building towards!”.
.
[DogeFam]
Wtf is he about to confess?
[Cun7sl4y3r]
YOOO PERVERT STREAM LETS GO
[xZINGGGx]
I guess I took too many edibles or something.
.
That’s when the on-screen manifestation of utter insanity turned the camera towards an old family photo on his cluttered desk, prominently featuring a younger me alongside both my parents and my little sister, Mai.
“See that cute, innocent looking little angel right there?” he sneered, jabbing his finger towards Mai’s beaming smile. “Well, that sweet little cunt hasn’t been so cute and nice all these years. Daddy always wanted another son, not some annoying bitch.”
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[Drock]
Wait what did he say about his sister? :cold_sweat:
[TechGurl]
wwwww Sicko I’m all ears
[Loli_Hunter]
elaborate lol
.
What came next was… was indescribable. No amount of sick, twisted imagination could have possibly prepared me for it. In graphic, haunting detail that will forever be burned into my nightmares, the psychopath on video described how he had brutally murdered Mai in a prolonged, unspeakable fit of extreme violence.
I watched, paralyzed in mute revulsion, as he re-enacted every gut-churning moment - from the initial sadistic violation of her skin and bones to the sickening crunch of her windpipe being forcefully crushed.
His recollection of the event was so visceral, so overloaded with fleshy sound effects and stomach-churning play-by-play narration, that part of me began fearing the horrible validity of what he described.
“She struggled and screamed so much at first,” he chuckled with a devilish grin. “But that sweet little angel’s life drained from those fear-widened eyes while chanting Why, Why, I love you big brother…”
.
[Slayer_MacheteBath]
mother of fucking shit.. I don’t know if I should call the cops or applaud this sick fuck
[LimpNpDickrd]
SOMEONE TELL ME THIS MOTHERFUCKER IS JUST AN AMAZING LIVE ACTOR! PLS
[DogeFam]
ADMIN??
.
The appalling, graphic saga continued in that vein for what seemed like an eternity, detailing every violation in extreme, viscera-soaked language more befitting a shock horror film than any semblance of reality. Anguished tears streamed down my face as this vile, reprehensible bastardization of my form panted and writhed in demonic euphoria, retelling the worst act of evil imaginable to all of us slack-jawed onlookers.
No, I kept telling myself - this can’t be real. It cannot be real. There’s no way I could have committed such an impossibly heinous act without knowing it, without having even a single scrap of memory buried in my psyche. Right?
After what felt like a dozen eternities of relentlessly depraved, graphic confessional, the video finally cut to black without any resolution. I collapsed into my desk, sobbing uncontrollably in utter devastation and swirling confusion. My hands frantically fumbled for my phone to call Mai, to ask her if she was okay, as a thousand frantic thoughts threatened to unhinge my already tenuous grip on sanity.
While the rational part of my brain knew that this could not be real, I was scared.
One ring, then two, then the phone suddenly cut to dreadful silence. No one picked up. I sent her several texts afterwards while pacing through the room, told her to immediately call me back when she had time. But once I was too exhausted to move further, I found myself in front of my computer again. Now I needed answers more than anything else.
My hands were trembling anxiously over what fresh horrors might be awaiting me. Blocking or deleting that… that inhuman monster’s channel was the first instinct. Next was scouring every recess of the Don't-Stream.oni website for any shred of evidence regarding its origins or who was behind this unfathomable depravity.
But I came up empty, no matter how many WHOIS or DNS queries I ran. The site’s registration was completely anonymized, with no clues as to its webhosts or backend servers. In an increasingly anxious and escalating flurry of obsessive searching, I even tried to backtrace any documentation about the .oni top level domain itself - but it was as if the entire website existed in a void beyond the normal reaches of the internet. Instead, I opened a public general chatroom on that very same site.
.
[Str3ngr96]
Help me, please! Someone or something has hacked my account here. I have absolutely NO recollection of ever appearing in the stream that’s up now. I didn’t murder my sister, I swear! What the hell is going on?!
[ZeroChill413]
Bro ur sis is even on the news lol
www.buzz!wire.net/20-year-old-found-in-xxxx-march-24
her name was Mai right?
[cassybby]
Nice try covering your tracks, freak. We all saw you admit to being a murderous sicko
[CatBoy42]
fuck off dude, don’t ruin this for us, the depravity was top tier. i’m a fan!
.
I gave up, utterly defeated. I couldn’t even really describe the emotions I was going through when I stared blankly at the provided link, too scared to click on it. But I knew that I had to. This was just a coincidence, nothing else. Mai was alive and I was just the victim of some deepfake.
As the site loaded, I was immediately provided with my sister’s full name, my city’s location and the vague descriptions of her passing. Before I could even finish reading, I collapsed into my desk, sobbing uncontrollably in utter devastation and swirling confusion.
There was no way. No fucking way.
At that point, I knew that this wasn’t simply the doing of some freaky hacker. This was something far, far more sinister. I knew that I have never left my apartment the past days, and yet, I had sold my very soul to unleash a demonic part of myself at the very same time.
Who was operating this website? Or what?
I spent countless delirious hours huddled in my apartment’s tiny bathroom, clutching a kitchen knife and shaking like a terrified child, second-guessing every innocuous sound lest some malevolent entity be hiding in ambush around every corner. I kept getting emails from Don't-Stream.oni - prompting me to do more streams ever so innocently.
Only a few fleeting moments of clarity pierced through the unravelling haze of madness when it slowly became dark outside, shouting at me to flee - get as far away from this cursed place as humanly possible before the shadows came alive and dragged me away to ritual sacrificial slaughter like some unhinged cult’s human offering.
That singular thought overpowered the otherworldly fog of confused terror gripping my mind. Somehow, someway, I had to escape this awful fate and get out of this city while what few threads held my sanity together remained intact.
Late at night, beneath a shroud of darkness and pouring rain, I stuffed what little I owned into my car’s trunk and made my way to the outskirts of town. My hands trembled as the engine roared to life and I began following the first highway out of that shadow-haunted hellscape, never once looking back.
That’s where I’m holed up now - inside my car - incoherently scrawling out this final account for all of you voracious binge readers. My phone is running out of battery, and my time here is running short. I hope that by adding my terrifying testimony, it might save even one other wayward soul from the same doom I’ve shambled towards these past days.
So heed this warning, for the love of all that is sacred: Stay the fuck away from Don't-Stream.oni and whatever demonic forces are coalescing at its corrupted core.
May the rest of you find peace where I cannot. And whatever you do, for the love of all you hold sacred - do NOT stream. Not there. Not for them.