Line #20 Blog/TheSunVanished


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_sun_vanished.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Stay out of the light.]]
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4	''[[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/ The Sun Vanished]]'' is a post-by-post horror story told on {{Website/Twitter}} that started in April, 2018. One day in this world, the sun suddenly... [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin ya know, vanishes.]]
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6	Soon enough, they find out they still have an internet connection and create a Twitter account, logging their experience from that point on.
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8	After a while, they manage to get in touch with a few other survivors who basically tell them, "just don't go anywhere." And shortly after, they find out why. There are ''things'' outside. Nobody knows what they are, or why they're there, But we do know they're unfriendly. A few unpleasant experiences later, the protagonist decides it would be best to just sit tight in his home, waiting for it all to blow over.
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10	[[FromBadToWorse It doesn't really blow over.]]
11	----
12	!!This web original provides examples of:
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14	* AfterTheEnd: The protagonist is struggling to survive in a world where society has collapsed and likely the majority of the world population is either insane or dead.
15	* AlienInvasion: While it isn't certain exactly ''what'' is causing all of this, the protagonist is dealing with forces well beyond human comprehension, and even saw a floating object that looked like some kind of malformed diamond. [[spoiler: As the story goes on, it becomes clear he is indeed dealing with otherworldly creatures of some sort, and that the flying diamonds are advanced aerial crafts of some unknown alien design. Other characters begin speaking of the creatures as some kind of invading force, and Earth's situation is described as an occupation.]]
16	* AlwaysNight: The sun, the marker of daytime, vanishing into nothing has that effect.
17	* ApocalypticLog: The neighbor of the protagonist left a journal detailing some experiments in an attempt to deal with whatever monsters are lurking in the dark, and found them inexplicably attracted moreso to light sources than anything else. The log ends with him scribbling "The Sun is back", indicating he is one of the mad people wandering the street.
18	* AxCrazy: Those affected by the red lights are incredibly dangerous, willing to smash a window open with their heads.
19	* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:Danyon arrives to pick up the protagonist just as a brainwashed lady is about to find him under a bed.]]
20	* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:The sun is still gone, and the protagonist is suffering both physically and mentally as well as being harassed by a mysterious group that wants to stop him from resisting the aliens. However, even after his bout of SanitySlippage, he manages to pull himself back from the edge and continue fighting to survive. His recent update shows him actually managing to ''kill'' one of the alien lights as it comes for him, and he promises that he isn't going to give up just yet, suggesting that there is still hope for humanity in the survivors.]]
21	* BloodyHandprint: After investigating the upstairs but before finding the woman who likely left the handprint, the protagonist comes across a bloody handprint on a door jamb.
22	* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Nobody is sure why the creatures are doing what they're doing, and the protagonist wonders why they are keeping remnants of humanity alive when they seemingly have the ability to just exterminate the species.
23	* BrainwashedAndCrazy: Anyone who looks directly into the flashing lights when they're red become this. It's implied it starts with loss of memory, followed by insertion of subliminal messages, completing the change with complete loss of sanity and desire to kill anyone around you.
24	* TheCorruption:
25	** Exactly ''what'' the red lights do isn't certain, but those who gaze into it seem to repeat that they see the sun again, become very dangerous, and actively hunt others such as the protagonist.
26	** The dark water, a mysterious substance the invaders released into Earth's water supply. It causes whoever drinks it to become paranoid and delusional, and also begins to change their bodies. [[spoiler:When Danyon eventually reappears, his skin has turned ''gray'' due to prolonged consumption of the water.]]
27	* CrapsackWorld: The world our protagonist finds himself in. Whatever's happening out there, it absolutely isn't good.
28	* CosmicHorrorStory: Between the bizarre strobing lights and the giant flying objects, its clear that something beyond human understanding is attacking the planet with great success.
29	* CurbStompCushion: While the long term effect appears to have been minimal at best the protagonist does observe a couple instances of what appears to be military aircraft destroying the hovering objects.
30	* DarkWorld: The story is posted on Twitter and anyone in reality can look outside and see the sun isn't out, but that's not the case for the universe that this story is happening in.
31	* EldritchAbomination: Whatever the flashing lights are, they're ''clearly'' not regular occurrences.
32	* EldritchLocation: When the sun disappears, Earth itself seems to become this. The stars, despite it taking thousands of years for their light to reach the planet, just vanish. The planet is now inhabited by sentient balls of light. Some people have working electricity and [=WiFi,=] while others are completely without technology. Later in the ARG, it's pointed out that it's more likely that ''something'' is covering up the sky.
33	* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: Looting, rioting, and general societal distress was the first phase of the sun vanishing, now the planet is being besieged by strange lights, flying objects, and people turning into psychopaths uttering MadnessMantra.
34	* EverybodysDeadDave: The protagonist only finds crazy people. Up until Danyon shows up to help him escape, he couldn't find a trace of any sane individuals, and even his neighbor, ''who he heard screaming less than a few minutes before'', vanished from his ''own house'' without a trace.
35	* FromBadToWorse: No matter how bad things get for our protagonist, whatever forces are at play seem to find ways to make his life worse and worse.
36	* HellIsThatNoise: When the lights are near you, ''[[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/status/993714245484318725 you will know.]]''
37	** Equally unsettling is the sound of the... ''[[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/status/992095357617127424 thing]]'' that flies over the protagonist's house on occasion. They don't know what it is, but they can guess it's unpleasant.
38	** During a later encounter, the thing flies over the house and stays there for a while, shaking the entire house. He [[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/status/1001284425001431044 got a shot of it]] later on, revealing what seems to be some sort of aircraft.
39	** The [[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/status/1046568900341698560 sounds the aircraft make when they activate their blue light]].
40	* HumanoidAbomination: The closest we've gotten to a sighting of the creatures is [[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DdICRZSVMAELEHg.jpg this image]]...of a totally black, [[NothingIsScarier featureless silhouette, standing in the corner of the room.]] [[https://twitter.com/TheSunVanished/status/1019064563814330374 We later get another partial glimpse of one]], and the protagonist notes that it's very tall.
41	-->"I followed it into the crops to get a good look at it. The crops we're about 6-7 feet high, so that gives you a good idea of how much taller it was."
42	* InscrutableAliens: If there is an invasion from outer space, they don't seem keen on explaining themselves in any way. They're not even killing humanity directly, they ate the sun then went to Earth to drive the population insane.
43	* LightIsNotGood: Ironically for a premise of the world plunged into darkness, lights are often an indication of danger.
44	** The... ''things'' that appear as flashing strobe lights turn people into delusional hostile monsters.
45	** The aircrafts emit a bright blue light accompanied by [[HellIsThatNoise a loud blaring noise]] over anyone they find. If the tweets given before the protagonist makes his escape are any indication, something [[NothingIsScarier horrible]] happens to those exposed to it.
46	* MadnessMantra: The woman keeps repeating "The Sun is back" while the protagonist hides.
47	* NeverendingTerror: The world is no longer safe, and the protagonist will have to live watching over his shoulder for the rest of his life.
48	* NothingIsScarier: As of now, ''absolutely nothing is known about anything.'' All we know is that the sun and stars are just ''gone,'' and now flashing lights are changing people.
49	** The closest we've gotten to seeing whatever the entities responsible look like is...''[[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DdICRZSVMAELEHg.jpg this.]]''
50	** During one of his visits to his neighbors house, he finds that the place has been attacked in some form and he heard screaming. You'd expect him to find a crazy person, one of the lights, or at least his neighbors corpse, but he finds absolutely nothing in the darkness while walking around.
51	** A number of videos only have audio, making you sit there and imagine what is exactly happening.
52	* OminousKnocking:
53	** The protagonist tells his friend of a strange person standing completely still outside their house, and is told to not let anybody inside. Moments later, a video shows that this person went from standing like a statue, to knocking incessantly at the front door and even going so far as to jiggle the knob. This event leads the protagonist to stay hidden in their bedroom for two days straight.
54	** One case happened when the protagonist was hiding in his house, and all the information the audience got was through twitter; apparently, someone was banging at their door, and managed to break into the house when nobody answered.
55	** In another case, a video was uploaded of the protagonist answering the door; though the video was completely dark, the constant knocking was heard, following by the person at the door claiming the sun came back. In a following tweet, it was claimed that this person began to start banging again... on the window, with their ''head.''
56	* OutsideContextProblem: It's very clear that nobody was prepared for this, and the protagonist, along with others, are trying to discover exactly what they're dealing with while also trying not to get killed by it.
57	* RedEyesTakeWarning: Well, red light, but looking at the lights when they turn red is implied to be what kickstarts going BrainwashedAndCrazy.
58	* SanitySlippage: The protagonist as well as Tucker and Danyon seem to be experiencing this. Anyone who stares into the red light has this as well.
59	* TheStarsAreGoingOut: The entire premise of the story. It's implied the sun isn't the only star to go out, as when the protagonist looks into the sky, they're met with pitch blackness all around.
60	* WaterSourceTampering: The invaders have done ''something'' to the world's water sources; drinking it appears to cause SanitySlippage as well as damage to the body. Only bottled water from before the sun's disappearance seems to be safe.
61	* WhamLine: In the house the protagonist is hiding in, he finds a notebook documenting a series of experiments involving flashlights and the creatures outside. The final page shown in a tweet tells of how the writer eventually gave in and looked into the red light, ending with the line, [[spoiler:"the sun is back".]]
62	** Also, when the protagonist is asked why he vanished for a month: [[spoiler:"Wait what the hell do you mean I've been gone for a month? It's only been a week or so."]]

Context Blog / TheSunVanished