Really Warped! Tales from the Dark Web

Episode 1: A Killer Mistake

The Obsession of a Dark Web Murderer!

Meet “Sarah”. Well, that’s what I’m going to call her. She was a “brand-aware influencer and businesswoman” with “all the world her stage”. Her Instagram page was the “talk of the interweb” and she was the envy of all her insta-rivals. But all that changed when her obsession to maintain that squeaky clean image led her to take matters into her own hands, hiring the wrong dark-web assassin to put the chop on a blagging blogger trolling her beautiful story. Her intention? To get rid of that pesky troll living under the bridge, who was threatening the security of her near-white, little insta-world. But, of course, she opened the proverbial “can-of-worms” that would have the most catastrophic consequences.

Sarah’s instagramming was the be-all and end-all to her. She had worked tirelessly to build up her reputation, following and diva-like image from the ground up, investing untold hours and a small fortune in cosmetic surgery to make it all seem like reality. And it was paying off in spades. Her following was booming, with big-brand clients from around the world clamouring to use her to back their bling. But Sarah’s success didn’t come without its challenges. Her rival influencers were always there, sniping and bitching, trying to replicate her secret sauce and undermine the value of her work. But there was one troll in particular that was proving to be a real pain in her ass.

Despite Sarah’s best efforts to compete pretty, this troll resorted to the lowest form of figurative speech to undermine her influence. He was spreading false rumours about her brand power, spreading damaging disinformation about her personal life, and even gaslighting her clients to turn them against her. Sarah was at her wit’s end. She knew she had to do something, and fast, to protect her reputation and brand. And so, she turned to the dark web.

Sarah was new to the dark web. She didn’t know her way around the seedy underbelly of the internet and had never used it before to get what she wanted. But, this time was different. She scoured the dark web for days using tools like VPNs and Tor, looking for anyone who would help her. And that’s when she found him – a self-titled hitman, who used the moniker: “the Reaper”. He seemed like the perfect candidate. He was “professional”, and “efficient”, and promised to get the job done quickly and discreetly. Sarah thought she’d found the right man for the job.

After a few weeks of negotiations, Sarah finally agreed to the hitman’s price. She wired him the money (in Bitcoin, of course) and waited anxiously for any news of her dirty troll’s demise.

A few days later Sarah saw the news about the extermination of her internet troll. “The Reaper” had lived up to his name, splattering the troll’s ruthless and bloody death all across Instagram. She thought that all her troubles were over, breathed a sigh of relief and because it felt like she could finally relax. But that sense of calm was short-lived. Almost straight away she started receiving threatening messages and calls from an unknown number. At first, she dismissed them, thinking they were just random prank calls. But as time went on, the calls and messages became more frequent, dark and disturbing.

Sarah’s heart would race every time her phone would ring, and she would get a deep sense of dread whenever she opened her inbox. In the messages, vicious and chilling with precise detail and excellent grammar, the sender taunted Sarah about the murder of the troll and went on to describe in gory detail exactly what would happen to her next. Sarah was terrified. She sensed her life was in real danger. She had no idea who was behind the messages, but she had a sinking feeling that it had something to do with “the Reaper”.

The situation escalated quickly. The sender started sending pictures of Sarah’s apartment, her car, her precious cat, and even photographs of her modelling for her Insta, videos of her videoing herself completing the latest viral challenge on TikTok. It was clear that someone was watching her every move, and Sarah was living in fear. She thought about calling the police, but she was in too deep and she’d have to reveal her involvement in the troll’s death. She also feared that if the hitman found out that she had gone to the authorities, he would come after her with a vengeance. Sarah was trapped in a spiralling nightmare of her own making, and there seemed to be no way out.

Sarah’s life had become a living ordeal, and she was captured in a world of fear and paranoia. She was constantly looking over her shoulder, wondering where “the Reaper” was lurking in the shadows, ready to strike her down with all of his hatred. Sarah knew that she needed to take drastic action if she wanted to get out of this alive.

She hired a team of security experts to protect herself, but it was too little, too late. The hitman she had hired on the dark web was still out there planning to take a pound of flesh, and he was getting more anxious for payment day by day. He had become obsessed with Sarah and was willing to do whatever it took to get to her. Sarah’s once glittering life had turned into a battlefield, and she felt like she was fighting for her very survival.

Sarah could no longer sleep soundly at night, knowing that “the Reaper” was stalking her, hunting her and preying on her every move. She was afraid to leave her home, and when she did, she was always on high alert, looking for any signs of danger. Sarah’s life had been turned upside down, and she didn’t know how to get it back.

Sarah was fighting for her life, but it was a losing battle. Inevitably, the night came when “the Reaper” took his chance and broke into her flat while she was out, hiding in a closet to wait for the perfect moment to begin his bloodletting. When she got home all seemed normal. She ate, watched TV, and sipped her favourite champagne before going off to bed, to sleep it all off. That’s when “the Reaper” snuck out of his hiding spot, crawling across her bedroom floor, like a shadow, and brutally butchering poor Sarah with a meat cleaver, leaving her dismembered body scattered around the blood-soaked apartment. 

“The Reaper” had claimed his pound of flesh – Sarah’s lifeless body parts strewn around the abode with pools of blood showering down from the fixtures and fittings. The assassin disappeared into the night, leaving behind a trail of death and misery.

The next morning, the wreckage of Sarah’s lifeless corpse was discovered by her distraught security team. They were far too late to save her, and the killer had left no traces of DNA or forensic evidence. The police launched a manhunt, but no clue where to start or why anyone would do this to Sarah. Her family and friends were devastated by her loss, and they couldn’t understand why anyone would want to harm her. They didn’t know the lengths she’d go to for Instagram. It had become her obsession and that had led to her savage slaughter.

Sarah’s “tragic story” serves as a cautionary tale to anyone who thinks they can get away with using the dark web for illegal purposes. Sarah’s story is might be a total fantasy, but you never know who you’re dealing with online. The dark web can be a dangerous place, filled with some unsavoury characters who live to troll and, maybe even, try to kill.