During the hiatus between Blurryface and Trench, a website featuring background lore and story for the concept of Trench was posted.
Timeline[]
On April 21, 2018, Reddit user jakedello, found a URL hidden in a GIF on the Vessel page of the Twenty One Pilots store. The URL, dmaorg.info resulted in a page which read:
404 ER_ROR
you are in violation. thEy mustn't know you were here. no one should ever find out About this. you can never tell anyone about thiS -- for The sake of the others' survIval, you muSt keep this silent. we mUst keeP silent. no one can know. no one can know. no o ne c an kn ow_
(Violation Code. 15398642_14)
The capitalized letters spell out ‘east is up,’ a lyric in “Nico and The Niners” from the Trench album. The still frame from the GIF on the webstore also revealed more of a URL. /found was discovered after dmaorg.info, and /clancy.html was found by combining multiple frames. In between /found and /clancy were a block of 9 dots, with the lower rightmost dot being separated from the rest by an underscore. These dots relate to the songs on the cover of Blurryface, and their track numbers, 1, 5, 3, 9, 8, 6, 4, 2, and 14. These numbers are identical to the violation code found at dmaorg.info. Substituting this code into the URL produced dmaorg.info/found/15398642_14/clancy.html.
At this URL, multiple images were found, along with text which revealed details about a character by the name of Clancy, and his struggle with Dema.
On May 9, 2018, another letter was added to the page.
On May 30, 2018, a GIF of a cheetah with letters was added.
On June 30, 2018, several more images were added, as well as an audio clip, which when reversed was revealed to by Tyler Joseph saying "We are Banditos". Additionally, the filename for this audio clip was 2018_514_3_8.m4a. When these numbers are assigned letters, they spell out TR_EN_C_H, the name of the album.
On July 1, 2018, more images were added.
On July 5 and July 6, 2018 more images, letters and GIFs were added, this time revealing the color yellow as significant to the era.
On July 8, 2018 a photograph and letter were added. This was the last update before "Jumpsuit" and "Nico and the Niners" were released.
On July 18, 2018 another letter from Clancy was added, this time describing the "Jumpsuit" music video.
On January 22, 2019, the day music the music video for “Chlorine” was released, a letter was added. It describes Clancy's return to Dema and confusion about where he belongs.
On Friday April 2, 2021 at 3 p.m. Eastern Time, the website changed again. At the top, a line of text reading "//Terminating Files..." appeared, followed by a continually changing file name. The full site was inverted using a line of code, turning the page black and turning all the images dark. A progress bar also appeared.
Posts Made on dmaorg.info[]
The following are all the posts made on dmaorg.info in reverse order (starting with the oldest first)
988 06MOON 18[]
The first post on the website was an image of a typed journal from a guy named Clancy. On the side of this page were the words, in pen, WEST WALL BLOCKED EAST IS UP. It was posted under 988 06MOON 18, which is Josh Dun's birthday (18 June, 1988)
CLANCY_S JOURNAL
The perplexities of the Dema horizon didn't occur to me until my ninth year. It was then that I began to contemplate the existential, and decide what type of impression I wanted my life to make. Naturally, to fuel my hope, I looked out upon the distance of the land that had cultivated me, only this time with a new awareness of the obstruction that my youthful ignorance had allowed me to overlook. Was it there the whole time? How had I not seen something so obvious? I am reminded of the moment daily, as the idealization directly collides with a unique hope for my own future. As a child, I looked upon Dema with wonder, today, I am wrought with frustration, as I spend each day squinting for a glimpse of the top of the looming wall that has kept us here. It was upon my ninth year that I learned that Dema wasn’t my home. This village, after all of this time, was my trap.
Before I became realized, I had deep affection for Dema. There was a wonderful structure to the city that put my cares to rest. Streets and locations were dependable, and the responsibilities of the day seemed to be accomplished with minimal effort. Once a task was taught and understood, we delighted in our ability to complete our obligations timely, and felt secure in knowing tomorrow’s duties would be accomplished with the same efficiency. We all worked to represent our bishop with honor, and knew that each inhabitant of our region had a like-minded dedication to consistency.
Keons embodied the spirit of this dedication. Of Dema’s nine bishops, Keons was revered as unwavering and forthright, possessing the ability to achieve focus that was rare for most in our region. We all admired him, and felt honored to be inhabitants his region. While we had heard legend of the ruthlessness of other bishops, Keons possessed a stoic demeanor unlike anyone I had ever met, and we were all proud to serve.
- Clancy
The letter says, "the perplexities of the Dema horizon didn't occur to me until my ninth year." The band formed in 2009, so their ninth year is 2018.
988 12MOON 01[]
This moon signifies Tyler's birthday (1 December, 1988). This post was an image titled ba_dge.jpg and appeared to have the bottom of the FPE logo, with the following text.
IDENTIFIED AS
FAILED PERIMETER ESCAPE
BY DEMA COUNCIL
VIOLATION OF SECTION 15398642 14
OF VIALIST CODE OF CONDUCT
The numbers in this post also correspond to the numbers in the URL.
009 12MOON 29[]
This moon signifies the release of self-titled album, Twenty One Pilots. This image is of some vultures on a Tower of Silence with the caption d_e_ath__eat_E_rz.
011 07MOON 08[]
This moon signifies the release of Regional at Best. This image is from a cropped photo of the mathematician Andre Weil who, as part of a group of mathematicians called the Bourbaki group, introduced the mathematical symbol "∅" which has been used extensively by Twenty One Pilots in place of the letter "O". The original photo of Andre Weil shows him standing next to a child. The child, whose identity is unknown, is the one shown in the cropped version on Dmaorg. This file was called se__elf.jpg
013 01MOON 08[]
This moon signifies the release of Vessel. This entry is of a large map of what is presumed to be Dema. An early version of the file that was saved on the website also had a hidden compass. This corner also contained a Dema logo and "Sacred Municipality of Dema - United Vialists". This was since changed to just leave a torn corner in the upper left, with no hidden compass. At the center of the map, which is believed to be based on a tower of silence, are 9 circles, each with a name. These are (left to right, row by row) ANDRE, LISDEN, KEONS, NICO, REISDRO, SACARVER, NILLS, VETOMO, LISTO. These nine represent the bishops, with Clancy referring several times in his writing to a bishop called Keons. The names appear to be derived from Blurryface lyrics; e.g. AND REpeat yesterday's dance, aliVE TOMOrrow with the exceptions of NICO and LISBEN, which fit lyrics for "Stressed Out" and "Polarize" respectively with one letter changed; i.e. "wheN I GOt older..." "feeL IS DENial..." The new version of the map posted after the change (with the torn corner) fixes LISBEN's name to read LISDEN.
Underneath the map, which had the filename _ti_su_p.png was the following caption:
sev_ering__tiez gEt out. the compAss lies. they don't control you. get out. the compaSs lies. They don't control you. get out. the compass lIeS. they don't control yoU.get out. the comPass lies. they don't control you.
(The capitalized letters spell out EAST IS UP).
017 02MOON 12[]
This moon signifies the date of the Grammy Awards ceremony at which Twenty One Pilots were winners. This image features yellow lines and markings which tie in to 018 07MOON 01.
017 07MOON 07[]
This moon signifies the date The Hiatus began. This image was another letter from Clancy with the following text. Several of the letters were mising and these are in brackets. These missing letters spell out "you are still sleeping"
To refer to Dema as m[y] home has never felt accurate. Dema, t[o] me, has simply been the place that I’ve existed, or, the ‘slot’ they’ve put me in.
I’ve heard stories abo[u]t the ide[a] of “home,” and its depiction has always seemed warm f[r]om the storyt[e]llers’s de[s]cription.
[T]here was a romant[i]c ownership of the p[l]ace they inhabited that I admired, but cou[l]d never relate to.
Thi[s] place, my p[l]ace, however, s[e]ems devoid of the romance and wond[e]r that the old stories tell. But somewhere between the iron order and infallible [p]recis[i]on of Dema, a hum of wo[n]der exists. It’s this quiet wonder that my mind tends to [g]ets lost in.
This hope of discovery alone has birthed a new version of myself; A better version, I hope, that will find a way to experience what’s beyond these colossal walls.
- Clancy
017 07MOON 16[]
This entry is a GIF of a cheetah with the filename 3lurr.gif. The following letters appear in consecutive frames :
UNSTILLIDONTCKNOWOHISNREALINAMECDOOU?
Taking out the letters "NICO NICO" reveals "U STILL DON’T KNOW HIS REAL NAME DO U?", while also revealing the name Nico, who is presumed to be Blurryface.
017 07MOON 17[]
This entry is a halftone image of people looking over a cliff. These are later revealed to be the Banditos from the "Jumpsuit" music video. The image had the following caption.
__n_ot_myo_nly_fri_en d
The date (July 17, 2017) was the day of the 2017 Alternative Press Music Awards. At the show, Josh accepted the award for Most Dedicated Fan Base saying, "Tyler wishes he could be here. He's actually off severing ties with Dema."[1] This image had the filename 2018_514_3_8.jpg. When these numbers are assigned letters, they spell out TR_EN_C_H, the name of the album. An audio clip at was found using the name of the file at http://dmaorg.info/found/2018_514_3_8/clancy.html. When pitched up and reversed, the audio is heard to be Tyler Joseph saying "we are Banditos."
018 07MOON 01[]
This entry is a GIF of a vulture looking around, titled i.gif.
018 07MOON 01[]
This entry is another letter from Clancy. The filename is e_sr_eve_r.jpg. Backwards, the filename reads "reverse." This is what gave the clique the idea to reverse the audio file in 017 07MOON 17.
A lifeless light surrounds us each night. Never could I imagine that something so luminous could feel so dark. It’s this glow that reminds us of the dreamless existence we’ve been sentenced to. But what I call a sentence, others accept as normalcy.
How did they so efficiently eradicate the dreams within us?
When the bishops instituted Vialism as mandate, they effectively reversed the hope that many arrived with.
Am I the only one who realizes that we’ve been lied to? Am I the only one not afraid of the notion that the nine have hijacked our trust, and extinguished the hope that once motivated our existence?
We used to close our eyes and picture a better life, now this city is full of dry eyes caught in a trance of obedience, devoid of any trace of an identity. The only significant light I’ve seen has been in the eyes of those smeared - such a curious sight, to see bright eyes strangled by the darkness of bishop hands. As their penance fades, so dims their memory of something more.
My hope of something more is all I have in this rigid tomb, and I will not let it die.
- Clancy
When the image of the yellow markings from 017 02MOON 12 is underlayed on this image, the vertical line spells "we are banditos". The circled yellow numbers are each adjacent to a letter that is at that place in the alphabet. C is 3 because it is the third letter in the alphabet, for example. These letters, when unscrambled, spell out the word "trench."
018 07MOON 05[]
This entry is the same image used in the video for "Leave the City[1]". It is an image of a dark landscape with cloudy skies, much like how the weather of DEMA is described to be. It is titled _o_ut_.GIF.
018 07 MOON 05[]
This entry is another letter from Clancy. The white squares on the outer edges of the image correspond to the letters "WAKE UP". It is titled _he_a_vy_.jpg.
They’re asleep. The night took forever to arrive, and now we’re almost ready. We’ve studied the watchers and know that there’s no chance that we can step through unnoticed. So, instead of trying to hide ourselves, we’ll make sure that all of us are noticed.
It’s been one year since the last convocation, and tomorrow’s Annual Assemblage of Glorified will be the biggest spectacle this concrete coffin of a city has seen all year.
If we time it right, we’ll divert the attention of the watchers and finally take the step though.
We’ve had no contact, but we’re hoping the other side will be able to find a way in. We’re not sure of the breach location, but we are willing to risk being smeared in order to find it.
We know that we must go lower, and wait for the torches.
They’ve never seen anything quite like this, and by morning, everything will be different. I’m terrified and excited, all at the same time. They don’t control us.
- Clancy
Clancy names the following day as "one year since the last convocation." The next day, July 6th, also marked one year since the beginning of The Hiatus.
018 07MOON 06[]
This entry is a GIF of torches titled _they_ca_ntseeFCE300. #FCE300 is a hex shade of yellow.
018 07MOON 08[]
This entry is another letter from Clancy. It is titled _note.gif.
I’ve made it out.
I feel weightless. I know that place had always held me down, but for the first time, I can feel the levity that I had hoped for. It’s been three nights now, and my breathing has changed. It’s slower, and more full. It’s like the air out here is worth taking in.
I can see it back in the distance, and I’d be lying if I said that it wasn’t constantly on my mind. I wish I could turn that fear off, but maybe the further I go, the less that fear will affect me. I feel betrayed by what I assumed was home - if I ever end up back there, I won’t be able to look at it the same way.
They are asleep. They’re so sure that they know the truth, and carry on throughout their day with the same meaningless tasks. They’ve forgotten to look up, and to look outward, to understand that this isn’t about ‘in there.'
This is about ‘out here.’
This new world surrounds me. I used to think the walls back home were massive – these green cliffs engulf me, and place me right in the middle – Trench is quite precarious at times, and it’s easy to grow weary. But it’s real, and it’s true, and I’d much rather endure reality than to mindlessly be obedient to a life that someone else created for me. I’ve obsessed about this world for so long, that it feels more like home than anything I’ve experienced. Somehow, in this vast openness, I feel more protected than ever.
The landscape feels endless, and I’ve found myself walking for hours without any true evidence of getting further down. But I’ve seen plants and colors out here that I’m not sure I’ve witnessed before. There’s a beauty in the strangest places, and the curiosity of what’s next continues to motivate me.
I wonder who else is out here. If what I assumed inside is true, there’s got to be more like me. Sometimes I’ll feel a presence, or think I see something in my periphery, only to look up and see nothing. It’s just another thing that I’m afraid of that also excites me. It all just confirms all of the things that I hoped to be true for all of this time.
I am out here and I am very alive. I’m sometimes scared, but always discovering something new, and I will not stop. Cover me!
- Clancy
018 07MOON 08[]
This entry is an inverted halftone image of Tyler lying in a stream from the Jumpsuit music video. The shape of this photograph matches the shape of the paper's Clancy's latest letter was written on, leading us to the conclusion that it is written on the back. The file is titled 2_1_2.gif, which references the new double bars logo.
018 07MOON 18[]
This entry is another letter from Clancy, this time detailing the events of the "Jumpsuit" music video. The filename is unalone.gif.
I can’t believe what I just saw. I'm still trying to understand. This whole time I was sure I was all alone - a single soul in this vast unknown world. But a few days into this trek, I looked down to see a figure headed the same way I was. I’ve tucked myself in these caves and crevices, trying my best to keep hidden, but he was out in the open, making his exhausted journey right down the middle of Trench. I was curious enough to follow alongside the path with him. He seemed unaffected by the fear of the unknown - the fear that tends to cripple me. To him, the terrain seemed familiar, as if he had been out here before.
While lost in my curiosity, they appeared. I had heard about them back in Dema, but to my knowledge, the stories were merely myth. Ten, twenty, and then what seemed to be a hundred Banditos appeared upon the cliff, all looking down at him. He only stopped for a moment to look back up at them, and then continued on his way. His energy changed, and I wasn’t sure if he was frightened or encouraged by their ominous presence.
They warned him of what was about to come.
It was a blur. First seeing the figure, then the Banditos, only to now have my eyes opened to the oncoming Bishop upon a white horse drawing closer in the distance.
The figure halted, and waited. When the Bishop stopped, I was sure he looked up, directly at me, so I hid deeper back in a cave. The presence of the robed rider seemed to paralyze the man. He stood still as he was approached, powerless as the outstretched hands smeared his neck. I had never seen a Bishop possess power like this. Keons had always seemed gentle and warm - this Bishop, at least out here, seemed like something else.
So I ran, and I’ve been running for as long as my legs and lungs can handle. Maybe this note will be my proof that what I witnessed was not a dream. A million questions race through my brain. Am I not the only one traveling through Trench?
I’ll travel a little further, and maybe I’ll get a moment of rest tonight. I may have made a mistake, leaving. This spot, between two places, is beginning to feel like an endless and hopeless abyss. At least Dema is a place that I know, and at times like this, I miss a lot about what I know. This will all be much tougher than I imagined. Nothing out here is familiar. I’ve witnessed the presence of others for the first time today, and I feel more alone than ever. Cover me.
- Clancy
019 01MOON 22[]
This moon signifies the date that the "Chlorine" music video was released, the same day that this entry appeared. It is a typed letter from Clancy, saying that Keons found him and he is back in Dema. Some of the letters are doubled on top of each other and they spell ‘sodeepnedbayou’, which if played in reverse, says "we are banditos". The filename is 17-35.4527.jpg, which references chlorine's atomic number (17) and atomic mass (35.4527 g/mol).
I can’t face this page for long enough to write what I’m truly feeling. I am only wrought with more questions about what I assumed to be true, questions about what my own path is, and the question that has plagued me every night that I lie here, back in city: Did I give up?
The force I saw between him and his bishop seemed tense to me, and frightening. But the memory of that exchange has had time to fester and replay in my mind long enough that I’m questioning if I even remembered it correctly. I assumed the bishop was forcefully retrieving his subject, but now I wonder if the bishop was actually trying to save him, and he refused.
I stayed out there for five days after I watched it happen. I haven’t seen him since. Maybe he got away, and was still out in Trench with me. Maybe the bishop chased him down, and brought him home.
Home?
Did I just call this place home?
After all of the endless beauty that I saw out there, am I now convincing myself that I’m actually better off within these confines?
I admit, it was more difficult than I expected. Nothing could have prepared me for how much the ‘unknown’ can consume me. Vast landscapes and endless possibilities, yet coupled with endless danger. I became anxious. I became tired. I became hungry. Every step I took became harder than the last, jumping from jagged rocky step to step, or pulling myself through thick forest - it all became debilitating, and I was sure that I couldn’t go on.
Keons approached as the sun rose one morning. I wasn’t scared. I was relieved. After all that he had taught me, his presence was the most comforting moment that I had in days, and I couldn’t help but be happy to see him. In true Keons fashion, he wrapped his arms around me, then put his hands under my face, looked me in the eyes, and said, “Clancy, child, let’s go home.”
I’ve been here for a few weeks now, and while the routines of this world are comforting, and certainly easier than life out there, my mind keeps bouncing between the two places.
Which one is home? Are the bishops protecting us, and the torches upon the hilltops dangerous? Or is it the other way around? My dreams pull me from world to world, and I feel lost in between all of it.
There is still so much I do not understand.
- Clancy
Terminating Files[]
The website changed on Friday, April 2, 2021 at 3 p.m. Eastern Time.
At the top of the page, a line of text reading "//Terminating Files..." appeared, followed by a continually changing file name. The file name that followed was either the name of an actual image on the page (such as se__elf.jpg), zero to three dots, or text randomly generated by the website with a random ending such as .txt or .zip.[2] Below this line of text was a progress bar, which appears to have started its progression right as the website changed at 3 p.m. EST. The progress bar restarted from the beginning with every aforementioned file name that appeared above it, but fans quickly noticed that each time the bar reset it would go a little further in small increments. Utilizing the source code of the site, user Tree on the twenty one pilots Discord server was able to determine that a specific equation in the script, p=(e/to)*100, dictated how fast the progress bar was moving and user Jim_NotJosh'sDog calculated when it would reach 100%. In the equation, the value of "to" was equal to 259200 (or the amount of seconds in 72 hours), and the value of "e" increased by 1 every second and changed on every subsequent reload of the page. For example, if "e" was 94391, then the width of the progress bar, "p," and thus the percentage of completion, would be 36.4% [p=(94391/259200) x 100]. Assuming that "e" began counting from 1 on Friday, April 2 at 3 p.m. EST, it would reach 259200 and complete on Monday, April 5 at 3 .p.m EST.
The full site was inverted using a line of code, turning the page black and inverting all the images. The images that were already inverted on the original version of Dmaorg were replaced with inverted versions of themselves so that, once inverted again by the website, the inversions cancelled out and they looked the same. These images were the map of Dema (_ti_su_p.png, 013 01MOON 08), the black letter (_he_a_vy.jpg, 018 07 MOON 05), and the photo of Tyler in the river from Jumpsuit (2_1_2.gif, 018 07MOON 08). The map of Dema, interestingly, was made completely black and white. The original version was tinted slightly warm; this tint was removed in the Terminating Files black and white version.
Notably, the image with yellow lines (_.jpg from 017 02MOON 12) was inverted, but not to the deep blue that would be seen if the original yellow image were inverted. Instead, an image with red lines was used, causing the inverted image to appear with cyan highlights.
Account Terminated[]
On Monday, April 5, 2021, the official Blurryface Twitter (later X) account tweeted the following message:
THE NAMEOF THE NEWRECORD IS
SCALED AND ICY
"Scaled and Icy" is an anagram of "Clancy is dead." This new album title was associated with Twenty One Pilots' December 2020 standalone Christmas single titled "Christmas Saves the Year", the thumbnail of which had a hidden message which read "Sai Is Propaganda" (SAI in this case, many people believed, meaning Scaled and Icy).
The progress bar on Dmaorg.info reached 100%, and the webpage was replaced with a new page titled "Account Terminated". This new page consisted of white text on a black background above a Dema stamp. The text read:
The page you are looking for has been removed from our servers. The account was in violation of terms established by The Sacred Municipality of Dema, and deemed contraband material. Disciplinary action has been taken, and the offender no longer has access to this account. Further actions have been taken to ensure these violations will not occur again. Anyone attempting to access or share any contraband material will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the laws set forth by DMA ORG and The Sacred Municipality of Dema.
Infraction No. 3.12.1.14.3.25 9.19 4.5.1.4
(The infraction number is an A1Z26 cipher which can be decoded to "CLANCY IS DEAD.") Underneath this text is a simple white outline of the neon gravestones from the Dema map and the phrase "Sacred Municipality of Dema - United Vialists."
When hovered over with a mouse, the o in the word "offender" changed to an ø, and when clicked, one of three posters filled the page, in rotating order. All three posters featured Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun, posing. All of the posters had some variation of this message:
It all happens May 21st. Twenty One Pilots: Livestream Experience - the new album - Scaled and Icy.
The first poster featured a lineup of the vinyl and cassette versions of the album (which for artwork had a blue fire-breathing dragon, later revealed to be Trash the Dragon), next to a television which featured Tyler and Josh with the top half of their heads replaced with a silhouette of a man and a dragon, respectively. The second poster featured the same album lineup, with Tyler, Josh, and a dragon in the center. Josh was measuring the length of the dragon's head while Tyler, on the left, jumped above him, seemingly out of the TV, while a pink and blue light emanated from behind the dragon to the back of his clothing. The third poster had the album lineup and TV display from the first poster, along with Tyler, Josh, and the dragon in the center once more. Tyler and Josh stood back to back while the dragon's body wrapped around them. The color schemes of the first two posters were bright pink, bright blue, and bright yellow, while the color scheme of the third poster was the same but noticeably more desaturated than the others. All posters were stamped with logos that read "Good Day Dema," "A Production of DMA ORG," and "FPE - Feature Performance Event." In all posters, neither Tyler nor Josh smiled or frowned, but they had consistently neutral expressions. In addition, the A1Z26 cipher 3.12.1.14.3.25 9.19 4.5.1.4 is located at the bottom of each poster, and can be decoded to "Clancy is dead". This is the same number pattern as the infraction code on Dmaorg.info. On all three of the posters there is small print at the bottom which reads
Scaled And Icy and Twenty One Pilots-Livestream Experience is presented in association with DMA ORG and Good Day Dema. The views and opinions expressed on this program are those of The Sacred Municipliy of Dema and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the artist. Any content provided during this filmed performence event is property of DMA ORG.
Trash, the dragon in the album's artwork, had a unique pattern on its right wing, and Discord/Reddit user Occobo figured out that it was a map of Clancy Way in Genoa Township, Ohio. The meaning of this wasn't known entirely yet, but it was believed to be an intentional Easter egg.We can see Tyler standing in the road in the video from "Goner", upload to the band youtube channel in 2012. On the same wing, just above the pattern of Clancy Way, was the word "destroy" concealed between the scales. Some see "him" above this, which would make the full message "destroy him," but the general consensus is that "destroy" is the hidden message.
The cassettes in the poster also contained the titles of 6 songs from side 1, which are:
"Good Day"
"Choker"
"Shy Away"
"The Outside"
"Saturday"
"Never Take It"
Dmaorg Returns[]
On March 16, 2022, the webpage updated, removing the "Account Terminated" notice and replacing it with the prior content with the addition of a new post.
022 03MOON 16[]
This moon signifies the date that this entry was created, which also coincided with the 7th anniversary of the release of the Fairly Local music video. This update consisted of a new image file entitled "v-o-lds-ø-y.jpg", a map of the world of Trench, much larger than any seen previously. A compass on the image indicated that it was oriented with "East is up". The map consists of a large landmass, labelled "Continent of Trench" with the jumpsuit medallion at the top, to the east of the city of DEMA, located on a peninsula. A port near DEMA is labelled "Port Vial", presumably referencing Vialism. To the right of the map (south of the landmass) there is a small island called "Voldsøy". This is the name of a real Norwegian island and translates to "Violence Island" - a probable reference to lyrics from Migraine.
022 03MOON 17[]
On March 17, 2022 a new post appeared on the website, as well as the band releasing a teaser trailer for "The Outside" music video on social media, set to premier the following day.
The new post was a letter signed "Clancy", the first since the 019 01MOON 22 update over three years before. This new file was titled "is-ø-lat-ed.jpg", with "isolated" being a potential reference to the lyrics of Redecorate (scaled back and isolated) and the title of the album Scaled and Icy.
I haven’t had the ability to write for what seems like a lifetime. This deprivation is what weighed on me the most. Not the lack of food, or the change of scenery - they wouldn’t let me write anything down.
Well, at least not without them present …
I remember that day vividly. First, they let me out. Even though the hallway was still gray and drab, the new experience was a shock to my system - significantly different than usual captivity. I tried to match the rhythm of the nameless guard’s footsteps as we echoed down the long corridor. I followed close behind, as if I had no choice. Cold concrete encapsulated us and seemed to cast a spill of synthetic calmness. Obedience.
We arrived at a blue door. It was an odd contrast to this concrete maze. As I went through the doorway, I found myself in another typical gray Dema room. The only difference was who was waiting for me.
Four of them. Three of them were unknown to me, but one was clearly Keons. I knew his voice
They proposed an idea. A television show - or whatever it was. I had no idea that I was known outside of my cell, but they informed me that I had garnered notoriety for my schemes and outbursts. They wanted to use my face for the benefit of the city. They handed me a pen - a familiar instrument. Yet, they must be present when I use it. They wanted to manage my imagination and vision. Although shackled, at least I could create again.
Thus began the sessions.
Everyday my cell door would open. I followed the guard down the familiar hall, through the blue door, to sit down at the desk and chair. My designated creative space - perfectly centered under their watchful eye. Sometimes three, sometimes eight - not once were all nine present. He was never there. I would have felt it if he was.
At the end of the session, Keons would take my pen, gather my writings, and send me back. This went on for months.
What were we creating? I wasn’t sure. A variety show with songs and set pieces? Were the rulers of this stifled city actually attempting entertainment for its people? Everything I created had to be “for the benefit of the citizens of Dema” a phrase I heard often. I didn’t question them - I was happy to be out of my cell - and putting words to paper.
On the final day, I wrote the last line, I was asked to name it? The question caught me off guard. This seemed like a decision they would make.
Show Day: They dressed me up and asked me to smile a poor attempt at hiding my sleep deprivation. It was all so colorful, as if compensating for the grayness of the city.
It was a blur. Before I knew it, it was over, and I was back in my cell. I can only remember fragments - only blurred hallucinations of color and chaos - like a dream. The confusion of it all hangs overhead. What was it all for?
… but it wasn’t over
I guess it went well enough for them to request more of me. I was useful to Dema, and my creativity was exploited in new forms - They wanted me to be the entertainment at the Annual Assemblage of the Glorified - a performance at sea for the premiere citizens of Dema.
I knew those weren’t the real bishops on that ship.I’ll quicken the entry - I need to keep up with the Torchbearer.
During the performance, we were attacked by something in the water. I don’t know what possessed the creature to attack, but it was odd, and felt incredibly intentional. Many lost their lives in the attack, and I was thrashed through the bitter cold waves, yet somehow survived. Did this icy cold preserve me? Why was I spared? I am still so cold as I write.
This place feels foreign - nothing like Trench. From the frigid sea, the air here is somehow colder than the water that surrounds it. I have a strange feeling that this island will provide answers.
I must go.
- Clancy
022 03MOON 18[]
On March 18, 2022, another post was added to the site. This time it was an image titled "w-eap-ø-n.jpg". In the top left corner were a jumble of letter which unscramble to spell "SEIZE KEØNS". The image also featured illustrations of a person raising antlers over their head . Additionally, in an oval there was an upside-down figure, bound by the feet, with antlers over the middle of the body which resemble the sai logo. Underneath this image is the caption "ψυχή κινησις" which translates to "soul movement" or "psychí kínisi". On the rest of the image are lines of text which read
seize available vessel
at Voldsøy eastern cove
intercept bishops
glorious gone = available vessel
bishops control the available vessel!
intercept and seize
they will make you a weapon
3 hours later, a new file was uploaded. After releasing the music video "The Outside"
The file was titled 1619250308151109140519-Ø-919.jpg In the filename, let's split the numbers into alphabetical sequences, which is the word "psychokinesis". The name comes from a previous file that was uploaded on the same day.
The post in the file contains a new letter signed "Clancy".
What is this thing? This device? This gift? Some sort of neurological connection or expansion. Psychokinetic weapon?
This is absurd.
Why was this given to me? Why am I the only one that can weild it? Was this the reason that I survived? My mind is racing as I wait here on the rocks - staring off into the darkness. Waiting for our torches to be mirrored - the signal he told me to wait for.
It feels oddly familiar. Not the spikes in my hand, but the power it harnesses, I've felt it before. Is this also the source of those rumors I heard in the dark corners of the city? Legends and stories that I assumed were myth, inspired by children's nightmares - tales of what the bishops would use the bodies for. Those "honorable" citizens who acheived The Glorious Gone - referred to as available vessels.
It all begins to make sense.
The episodes I would have: the blood red vision, my dreams of flying, the out of body account of the rider in the river, the decaying hosts of the television show, the robed figures that commanded the doomed ship...
Had we all been "seized" by the bishops using this same technique? Is this where their power comes from? Are they immortal, or just feeding off the next body, giving their hosts a brief second-life? I am in my original life, why am I available to this control?
This whole time I thought I was battling my inner self. Was I actually under assault from something else? someONE else?
This small eerie island has made me a weapon. We both believe that we can use it to change the momentum of this war. Now, we must return to the mainland where they should be there to recieve is. We will destroy and rebuild. Though it's been years since he last spoke with them, I hope they have not lost faith in The Torchbearers plan.
But how could any of this have been planned
- Clancy
Dmaorg sends mail[]
On February 15, 2024, fans began to receive mail from DMA ORG. A red envelope was sent to fans who registered to receive such notification via email, limited to 1,500 users per person.
After opening the envelope, it was discovered that there were 4 pieces of paper containing messages from DMA ORG and Clancy.
024 02MOON 09[]
The letter contained four documents, the first of which was an investigation into Clancy and the Sacred Municipality of Dema, published by the Honorable Bishops of the Sacred Municipality of Dema, which states that
HTTP://DMAORG.INFO/FOUND/15398642_14/CLANCY.HTML
YOU HAVE RECENTLY ACCESSED INTERNAL DOCUMENTS PERTAINING TO CASE 15390642 14: [DELINQUENT] CLANCY VS. THE SACRED MUNICIPALITY OF DEMA IN THIS ONGOING INVESTIGATION, WE ARE URGING ANYONE WITH KNOWLEDGE OF THE WHEREABOUTS OF THE ACCUSED TO COME FORWARD WITH RELEVANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE CASE. IT IS REQUIRED THAT ALL INHABITANTS OF DEMA TO DO THEIR DUTY IN BRINGING ALL ENEMIES OF VIALISM AND ITS TEACHINGS TO SWIFT JUSTICE
- THE HONORABLE BISHOPS OF THE SACRED MUNICIPALITY OF DEMA
*
take excessive measures in attempting to correct or make
amends
for an error,
weakness, or problem.
The next document concerns outsiders who accessed links from DMA ORG without permission. DMA ORG states in transcription that
EVIDENCE
THIS DOCUMENT IS DESIGNATED AS EVIDENCE UNDER PERUSAL AND INVESTIGATION BY THE SACRED MUNICIPALITY OF DEMA AND DEMA ORGANIZATION. THIS DOCUMENT IS INTENDED FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE DISCLOSED OUTSIDE AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL WITHOUT PRIOR APPROVAL FROM THE AUTHORIZED BISHOP OF ITS DESIGNATED DISTRICT OR THE PRESIDING LEGAL AUTHORITY. THE INTEGRITY OF THIS DOCUMENT MUST BE MAINTAINED AT ALL TIMES TO ENSURE ITS ADMISSIBILITY THROUGHOUT THE INVESTIGATION.
which has the word Still alive in bold letters.
Also on this document was a handwritten note:
How did you find http://dmaorg.info/found/15398642_14/clancy.html???
The third document is a letter from Clancy's, in a similar form to those found on dmaorg.info. Until that letter was uploaded via that accessed links on February 28, 2024.
I'm not as scared as I used to be. Their mystery begins to fade as a method to defeat them becomes more clear. I no longer feel powerless. I can outsmart them. This new power of psychokinesis worked, and I believe it can work again. I stand here, looking down at the line where the water meets the sand - a starting line. All the while, knowing there is a finish line across the Strait. Their compass lies, but mine remains true. I've left embers of inspiration, I only hope whatever spark was left has grown to a torch, and together we create an inferno
[SIGNED] - Clancy
which has MERUOIENPEPA in bold letters.
The letters in bold are the second letters of the first two lines, and the ninth letter of the third. It then repeats throughout the rest of the letter. This was found to give a date: 2/29, Febuary 29.
The last document is map of Trench adds "Paladin Strait" to the area from "Voldsoy" as well as the circle for Keons now being hollow in the map of Dema.
024 02MOON 25[]
Clancy wrote an additional letter and uploaded it to dmaorg.info with 2 files on February 28, 2024, that announcing the release of their new single the following day (Febuary 29), "Overcompensate".
The file is named '_maniac_Clay' with letters arranged into word as 'i am Clancy' because the social media video of Clancy's story was released on February 22, 2024 (before the song was released the following week).
These campfires feel like home, as I stare deeply into them, finding more and more clarity. They tried to tell us we were different. But the flame that burns inside of me is the same fire I've found on the hilltops of Trench. The Banditos have lived their rebellion, and a resistance is growing inside the concrete walls - one powerful enough to burn out all of the stale teachings, and usher in true hope and a path to actual life. We march in the morning. The revolution shall arrive with the sun.
which has the word Follow the Torches in bold letters.
024 02MOON 28[]
The file is named '__cla_im00FFFF' where 00FFFF is the hex color code for Cyan, Took file name to be the word Claim Cyan and the anagram to be 'I am Clancy'. Including 00FFFF inverted to ff0000 which is Red used in Blurryface and Dema.
I found a way in. A way they'll never suspect, and a way they'll never understand. Everything about our cause is so hard for them to understand, but so close to the hearts of the glowing resistance. I can reach them all. I can recruit everyone with eyes that see beyond the horizon. I can teach them. They can learn what I've learned, and fly by all of the constructs Dema has placed in front of them. We will take it back.
which has the word Fly by in bold letters. This appears related to the first line of the chorus of "Overcompensate": "I fly by the dangerous bend symbol."
Dmaorg adds mystery domain[]
On June 20, 2024, Blurryface's X account added a new banner.
On the left is pictures made puzzle and on the right there are two counter-rotating arrows. With the words "Right in front of your eyes"
Until he posted on X that he sent a mysterious video with a sign of the Sacred Municipality of Dema, in which there was a mysterious sound followed by a mysterious sound. Then try to reverse it, it's the low Nico's voice speaking at the end of the song "Paladin Strait" and then the beep sound, which is the morse code for the word "Pages".
The pages are in the banner and on the left are pictures that form a puzzle, all of which are in the Digital Remains of Clancy album.
Including the video that there is violation code DMA-103.37, which 103.37 is the page numbers in the Digital Remains that follows from the banner that in right. by first part is arranged in a counter-clockwise arrow pattern, 103 and 37. Plus added domain of Dmaorg which is dmaorg.info/found/103_37/clancy.html.
entered that website, there is a password. The password comes from the pictures that are connected together. But the pages are arranged according to the arrow counterwise. The other part is the page number, which is 83 and 25 or 8325.
Until entering the password, there was a "Paladin Strait" music video that was edited down to 3:28 while preparing for release.
Further Reading[]
Google Doc created by members of the Discord Clique.