Hello and welcome to Sifting Through The Ruins - An In Depth Exploration of Depravity in the Twenty First Century. As I hope you already know, this is an advanced history elective made available only to postgraduate students who have sufficient grounding in the basics of history and an interest to specialize in the darker side of ancient anthropology. In this unit we will be diving deep into all the sordid details of what some of us in the field have collectively dubbed the Time of Troubles; such as the pandemic, the general elections and the resulting social upheaval, and the major players involved during this period of conflict. This will be by no means an easy or straightforward task, since few relics from that period in question have survived to the present day, leaving historians such as us no other recourse but to piece together what little we have; relying on the imprecise methods of theory and speculation in order to paint a clearer picture of what truly transpired during that time. On the first page of your course materials - which I am now projecting on the screen before you - you will find a rough lesson plan and brief summary of our course aims. We will be tackling these issues in three modules; focusing upon individuals as catalysts of change - specifically the ones that general opinion considers the worst villains of postmodern history. It is at this point that I must urge those of you who lack the...stomach...required to discuss such controversial topics reconsider your field specialty and pick another area of expertise. Always remember that your studies, however important, should not come before your own health and peace of mind. I am contractually required by law to issue this disclaimer, given the...nature of the individual(s) in question that we will be discussing.
That said, for bonus participation credit, would anyone like to guess as to whom I might be referring to and why this might be? Come, come - you're all history majors, are you not? This should be second nature to you for the answer is by no means obscure; even the average layperson should be able to...yes?
Indeed, that is correct. For those of you who will be following this lecture transcript remotely; please direct your attention to the screens. Projected there is our best guess at what history's greatest mastermind might have looked like, based off information we have managed to retrieve from their archaic Internet at the time, as well as witness testimonies. What you are seeing now is the most prevalent, and therefore presumably most accurate depiction of the terrorist leader known only as `Chaon', whom even now exists as a household bogeyman conjured by parents to scare their children straight due to the notoriety of their crimes. Such is the scope of their infamy that they remain on the list of Interpol's most wanted even to this day, with a hefty bounty promised to anyone able to come forward with documentary proof of their true identity. The Alliance of United Nations; formerly known as the UN, has also posted rewards for information leading to the discovery of this `Chaon' either dead or - I shudder to think; regardless of how unlikely it may be - alive.
Yes - the gentleman in the fourth row? You had a question?
Was Chaon actually human? A fair query, I suppose - given the...appearance...of their only existing portrait. What you see before you, students, is a facsimile of what was commonly referred to in the Time of Troubles as a `pfp' or in other circles, an `avatar'. Pfps and avatars were the means that individuals of that time period identified themselves on the worldwide information repository system known as `The Internet'. From a detailed analysis on the nature of avatars - an analysis that you yourselves will be conducting later in this semester as part of your dissertations - we conclude that most surprisingly; an actual human face is by no means a common representation. Avatars vary in scope from the real to the abstract, leading some of us to theorize that they might be no more than mere representations of the individual, chosen on the basis of artistic license or merit. Others; and I count myself among them, acknowledge that while certainly in the realm of possibility, the existence of so many of these `animal' avatars alludes to something far more sinister - the actual creation and subjugation of an entirely artificial slave race, colloquially known to those of that period as `furries'. Given that countless writings from that period agree on the existence of `furry', it is my firm belief that illegal genetic experimentation can be counted among this Chaon's long list of crimes against humanity. Those of you who have any interest in examining the arguments for and against this hypothesis are free to consult my previously published thesis `Chaon: Man or Mutant' in the university library for further reading.
Bestial as their appearance might be, it nonetheless pales in comparison to their true nature. As many of you are no doubt aware, the Time of Troubles gained notoriety as a period of lawlessness, unrest and depravity. Nor is this an unfair generalization, for much supporting evidence can be gained from the relics and pictures our historians have obtained from their primitive Internet during this infamous era; referred to by some in our circles as the second Dark Age in human history. In the next couple slides of this lecture I will be projecting some of the material evidence in question earlier alluded to - archived pages from one of their Internet repository sites that will show the terrible scope of these horrors. Those of you with weak dispositions are advised to look away.
I hear a few of you screaming. This is by no means an uncommon reaction. As you can see, these pictures obtained from the source sites `e621' and `inkbunny' generally show a disturbing trend of incest, hedonism and various horrors that those in power during the Time of Troubles perpetuated upon their victims - victims primarily of the `furry' persuasion. Although a few of my detractors may argue against my hypothesis, claiming that the fact that some of these pictorial records are clearly drawings and should not be considered as evidence of actual events occurring during that period, I maintain that drawing has always been a medium of expression equally capable of recording events both real and imaginary. Although the fact that it is produced by hand casts some doubt upon their veracity, I need not remind you; my students, that art is often an imitation of life. The fact that certain...themes...make up a sizeable percentage of the visual evidence we have managed to retrieve from this time period clearly speaks for itself. Nor should we forget to consider the inherent technological limitations that plagued that era in question, limitations that I daresay made digital drawing as a means of recording historic events more preferable than alternatives which did not exist back in the day.
As we sift through these disturbing depictions, I would like you to cast your attention to the captions and specialist commentary associated with each work. Should you do so, you will surely notice that certain names - the archivists commissioned by terrorist warlords such as Chaon no doubt - accompany each depiction. Studying the images closer, we notice a trend of commonly recurring names; names that can be traced back to some association with the enigmatic Chaon in some way - possibly junior officers or lieutenants ordered by the warlord to commit and record these atrocities. Regrettably, not all the images survived with their source captions intact and for those who did not we can only speculate as to the origin and context. Cross referencing the uncaptioned works against the remainder however, reveals that many maintain enough points of similarity with each other to suggest they were the creation of the same parent source - sources that we are able to trace back in turn to Chaon's commissions. For those of you who have studied historical trends in art or culture this will likely not be a surprise to you. Art; and the direction thereof, has long been the province of the rich or those in power. We see this in the King's support of Mozart and the Medici family's patronage of Da Vinci to name a few. Similarly, Chaon seems to follow that well established pattern, luring visionaries and inventors to their side to further their nefarious aims.
Take, for example, the image presented in this next slide - one that I must reluctantly interpret as some kind of bizarre milking machine clearly intended to depersonalize the occupant in question. For all of its distasteful nature and purpose, note the symmetry and attention to detail in its construction, as well as the name that accompanies it. As you progress through this unit, that name will become more familiar to you as the brilliant mastermind behind many of Chaon's commissions. The frequency with which they are referenced in the accompanying captions suggest that this person, known only as M--; could be a highly placed officer within what historians are calling the Kennel Regime - perhaps even their warlord's Number Two. With their origins and background equally shrouded in mystery, they have similarly been classified as a Person Of Interest by international authorities with sizeable rewards for information leading to their capture, dead or alive.
Perhaps some background relating to the terrorist leader Chaon is appropriate at this stage, before we continue. Most of you will have only heard the stories or the rumours but not the facts. That they were the one behind the conceptualization of the facility known as the `Kennel', an institution that operated openly in several countries by presenting a facade of public service while furthering their true goals of biological experimentation. That they were the progenitor of several inventions and fields of philosophical inquiry; some of which are still popularized today. That they are the single greatest source and patron behind an entire genre of furry `artwork' - though I hesitate to label it such - to date. It is from the latter that modern society co-opted the term `chaonic' as an adjective to describe medical and institutional practices of a draconian nature - much in the same way the French hedonists Masoch and deSade provided us with the terms `sadism' and `masochism' due to the nature of their controversial works. Interestingly enough, much of the influence for the Time of Troubles seems to stem initially from deSade's own legacy, for the themes of bondage present in these historical records persisted well before Chaon's first recorded appearance on the scene. It is to be believed that the soon-to-be warlord found great inspiration in Masoch and deSade's early works, later managing to incorporate their ideas and philosophies into various projects. How much of this is fact and how much is merely conjecture or fiction is the question we hope to explore in this series of lectures.
Yes - the lady in the front row... Your question?
Where was the Kennel located? Your guess is as good as mine. That it is real or not is not up for debate, given the amount of evidence in its favour including detailed blueprints, schematics and notes which can be traced to the same M - chronicling its construction. Its location, however, is a question that has puzzled many historians and archaeologists. Something of that size, scale and scope does not lend itself to being easily hidden after all. And yet despite combing the most likely sites and locations where geothermic energy was known to be present, our best researchers and field teams have yet to uncover a single relic or artefact dating back to that period which can be said to be part of the Kennel's foundation. Numerous fakes abound of course, but the veracity of these are easily disproved by a standard carbon dating procedure. The natural hypothesis given what we know of the matter is that the regime immediately after devoted itself to systematically eradicating every trace of Chaon and their works from the world; lest they be uncovered by future generations to plague humanity once more. This presents somewhat of an issue for us historians given the lack of evidence available, with scant traces of the Time of Troubles surviving the purge. What did survive - written records for the most part - make for interesting study. Were it not for copies of Chaon's own essays and letters surviving the purge, we would know far less than what we currently do.
In fact, it is from such primitive means of communication that modern day historians are able to pinpoint possible areas that may have once been sites of Kennel construction, though of course no physical evidence can be found to corroborate either way. A popular theory places the original site in Southeast Asia; at the tip of the peninsula of what was known as Malaysia in that era. Several bits of evidence lend credence to this theory: that particular location can be confirmed to house Chaon's own country of origin; a point they alluded to as much in back to forth communications with fellow colleagues on the platform known as `Discord', of which we will be examining in greater detail at a later date. Another point in its favour is the penchant for civil unrest and lawlessness in the South Asia region even before the Time of Troubles, making it an ideal location for the construction of a clandestine facility should the right amount of bribery be paid. Further, records tell us that Chaon was not a fan of travel, preferring to communicate with their contacts remotely rather than meet with them in person. This we surmise from the fact that the warlord has never been known to actually attend summit meetings with their fellow despots. These meetings; known to those who existed at the time as `furry conventions', functioned as a sort of neutral territory for these ruling powers wherein one might swap goods and services if so inclined. Judging by the reverence with which people of that era spoke of in the context of attending conventions, to be unfortunate enough to miss one was seen as a tragedy nigh inconceivable. Attendance was traditionally high, with some participants going as far as to charter flights from countries away. Clearly these were important and high level gatherings; social soirees worth even risking one's life to the terrible consequence known of `con crud' to face. Yet for all that, there is no mention of Chaon attending any one of these functions - a characteristic that sets them apart from others of their ilk and is therefore significant enough to consider seriously.
These facts taken together make it likely that the site of the Kennel was in Asia; a location they would be able to access without difficulty. Other possible sites include the Americas or Afghanistan; regions that were mentioned occasionally in passing in the warlord's own essays and communications. Much of what we now know can be attributed to the Discord archive between Chaon and one `W - ' in particular, with the pair interacting off and on upon occasion. From their conversations, we place `W - ' as a talented engineer whom Chaon was keen on building a professional alliance with. While not officially inducted into the terrorist's inner council, Chaon and `W - ' shared ties to the same Discord group where they brainstormed ideas at times; ideas which later became the foundation principles behind Chaon's philosophies. History is not sure what to make of this `W - ' who does not make any major appearance in the regime thereafter. There are some who speculate that `W - ' was in fact a spy or plant, working on behalf of the revolutionaries that would later succeed in toppling the terrorist and ending their reign of tyranny.
We now turn to the menace behind the mask. One can only imagine what manner of twisted individual lurks behind that comparatively innocent portrayal of their screen avatar; doubtless an intentional ploy to lull the guileless into feelings of complacency. Little is known about them aside from the fact that; like most despots, they wrote - apparently specializing in themes of dark horror and poetry. Some of their writings exist as cult classics to this very day. The backdrop of the twenty first century must have been rich pickings for such a mind inundated as it is by the social structures of its time. It was an era characterized by sensationalism, corruption and violence; all these self-evident in the forms of media patronized by that generation's youth. Games produced during this period typically romanticized open world environments and post-apocalyptic scenarios encouraging players to leave their mark upon the setting and reshape surroundings to their whim. In addition, quite a number were predatory in design, employing microtransactions and subscription based models to reel in the client base and keep them engaged long after any `content' can reasonably be said to have ended. Is it any wonder then, that such cultural innovations and the growing sense of cynicism they are likely to have generated gave rise to ever rising numbers of the disenfranchised and gullible more than willing to follow charismatic leaders with the same fervor as they mow down badly rendered zombie hordes?
Yes - the student in the back row. Did you have a clarification you wished to make?
Hm. Interesting... How can we know enough to trust the veracity of such findings; given that all that we have access to are secondhand accounts from scattered writings and digital images? It is a good point. I am sure that by now, all of you are well aware of the different tiers of source reliability; what makes a good source reliable and so on. In our introductory units, you have all no doubt been taught to question your sources; to scrutinize the context in which they were made and their point of origin before taking for granted their actual content at face value. Alas, those skills that you have honed and refined as historians will have little use here. As fellow scholars of the twenty first century will likely have told you; few firsthand logs or accounts exist. We are left only with the imperfect archives from their obsolete Internet to pick through; and so must trust in the claim of others that everything saved within its databases must be true. Enough of it is easily verifiable to privilege this assumption to a statistically significant percentage, after all. Until wiser minds than ours say different, we shall proceed under the assumption that these snippets of information we have reliably paint a fairly accurate picture of those troubled times and the events that occurred therein. While it is true that at times some of these may be contradictory, it is the historian's work to sift through the chaff and arrive at the most plausible conclusion through comparison and analysis of the resources available. As budding archivists in our field, it is my hope that some if not all of you will formulate hypotheses of your own and back them up with enough supporting evidence for us to get a clearer picture of that shrouded period and learn the lessons which it has to teach us.
That said, there have actually been some events of the period which we were able to verify - occurrences that would otherwise seem outlandish at first impression. Perhaps you remember your instructors touching briefly upon this era in your History-101 courses as an undergraduate? If so, you must surely recall the global toilet paper shortage of the 2020s - a phenomenon caused by supply-demand forces and hoarding behavior in the backdrop of a widespread pandemic. Yes, yes, laugh if you must - the notion does sound most ludicrous...and yet we have evidence in the form of ledgers and news articles supporting its veracity. When one considers that this isn't even the most bizarre occurrence of the twenty first century that was proven to be true, it seems logical to assume based upon these selfsame sources that the entity known as Chaon was real.
Yes - the gentleman in the aisle: you had a query?
Ah. Yes. As some of you may perhaps have noticed, among the textbooks you have been assigned for this unit is a rather...robust...tome of twenty first century linguistic terms. Now you may well be wondering why a history course requires such an accessory, but let me reassure you that at least a passing familiarity with the various terms, concepts and references explained therein is paramount to performing well in this course. Case in point - do any of you know what a `twink' is? How about the term `dummy-thicc' or the acronym `MILF'?
None of you? While disheartening, I can't confess to being surprised. We have lots of work ahead of us to bring you all up to speed so I advise you to spend a great deal of time brushing up on those ancient terms so you will be able to follow the topics of discussion ahead. There will be a pop quiz just before the first semester break to gauge your understanding of the slang terms, which will be a necessity once we enter this unit's third trimester - where we will begin looking at the baffling form of communication and entertainment that those of the era called `memes'.
With that I conclude our first lecture. Homework - read the first three chapters of `Chaon: Man or Monster' and come to our first tutorial prepared for a lengthy academic discourse on the issue. Your instructors will be splitting you into groups for a trial debate simulation in order to assess your skill in extrapolation and how much you have learned. Those of you who have not already done so, please remember to mark your attendance in the roster before leaving this lecture theatre. Dismissed.
