MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories

Episode: The Unexplained Vol. II
Date: January 29, 2026
Host: John Allen (MrBallen, Ballen Studios)

Episode Overview

In this gripping episode, MrBallen recounts three chilling tales of mysterious disappearances and unexplained phenomena. Listeners are taken on a journey from rural Brazil, deep into the haunted forests of Vermont, and finally, into the desolate wilderness of Alaska. Each story unravels unsettling events that defy logic and leave families—and authorities—desperate for answers.

Story 1: The Yellow Smoke

[Starts: ~08:27]

Key Points & Narrative

• Setting: Rural shack in Brazil, August 19, 1962. The Marfa da Silva family, led by Rivellino and his sons, live in poverty, far removed from society.
• Strange Intruder: Raimundo, age 12, sees a shadowy figure on all fours dart across the kitchen floor. Rivellino, the father, locks the door, and the family listens in terrified silence as unsettling voices from outside begin to discuss Rivellino by name, threatening to kill him.
• Night of Terror: The family huddles together as the voices persist through the night. Rivellino attempts to maintain calm, insisting they stay put until sunrise.
• Mysterious Disappearance: At dawn, Rivellino investigates with a knife for protection, first checking the kitchen and then stepping outside. He disappears and is never heard from again.
• Supernatural Encounter: Raimundo, breaking his father’s instructions, sees his dad step outside into a cloud of swirling yellow smoke, surrounded by floating, spinning cylinders emitting the smoke. As Raimundo chases after him, the smoke and objects vanish—so does his father.
• Discovery: Six months later, Rivellino’s skeleton is found in a rock crevice, despite earlier searches in the same area turning up nothing.
• Lingering Mysteries: The family, police, and town are left with baffling unanswered questions—the strange figure, the disembodied threatening voices, the supernatural smoke and cylinders, and ultimately, how Rivellino’s body ended up in that spot.

Notable Quotes

• On the moment of terror:
  “Suddenly Raimundo heard a strange sound… this dark figure on all fours quickly kind of maneuvering across the ground out of sight.” (MrBallen, 10:12)
• On unexplained voices:
  “Whoever was out there… was talking about Rivellino specifically… ‘if Rivellino comes out here, we're going to kill him.’” (MrBallen, 13:24)
• On the supernatural sighting:
  “He saw his dad stepping into this huge cloud of yellow smoke. And amidst this smoke were these, like, cylindrical objects… spinning around… spitting out the smoke.” (MrBallen, 17:36)
• On the enduring mystery:
  “Nobody has any idea what any of that stuff is. All we know is Rivellino disappeared and six months later turned up dead in that crevice.” (MrBallen, 19:10)

Story 2: The Bennington Triangle

[Starts: ~23:09]

Key Points & Narrative

• Location: Bennington Triangle, Vermont—an area infamous for mysterious disappearances and rumored hauntings.
• Background: The “Triangle” centers on the abandoned town of Glastonbury, now wild and desolate. Legends tell of the Bennington Monster, an eight-foot-tall creature said to roam the forests.
• Disappearance of Carl Herrick (1943):
  • Hunters Carl Herrick and cousin Henry are separated during a deer hunt.
  • After searching, Henry finds Carl’s body three days later: face down, with only minor scratches, rifle found loaded 70 feet away, and large bear tracks nearby.
  • Official Cause: Carl died of chest compression; a rib punctured his lung. The theory is a bear attacked, but the evidence (minor scratches, strange circumstances, and bear behavior) does not fit.
• Unanswered Questions:
  • Why was Carl’s rifle far from his body?
  • Why did he approach a wounded bear without his weapon?
  • Most importantly, black bears don’t kill by squeezing; they maul.
• Dark Suggestions:
  • The circumstances hint something other than a bear—a possibly unknown or supernatural creature—could be responsible.

Notable Quotes

• On the area’s reputation:
  “Bennington Triangle… apparently one of the most haunted places in America… alarming number of unexplained disappearances… dozens of sightings of the so-called Bennington Monster.” (MrBallen, 23:24)
• On Carl’s fate:
  “The official cause of death was baffling. Carl apparently was squeezed to death to the point where his rib broke and punctured his lung.” (MrBallen, 27:11)
• On the mystery:
  “Black bears don’t squeeze people to death… This is the first time in the history of black bears that a black bear squeezed a person to death, or something else squeezed Carl.” (MrBallen, 27:48)
• Final pondering:
  “What kind of an animal is one, so strong it can squeeze a man’s chest… and happens to be roaming around the Bennington Triangle? Makes you wonder.” (MrBallen, 28:22)

Story 3: Incommunicado

[Starts: ~32:33]

Key Points & Narrative

• Setting: Alaskan wilderness, 2018. Vladimir Kostenko, a deeply religious and ascetic 41-year-old, sets out to stay alone in a remote cabin.
• Preparation: Refuses to bring a gun or bear spray, trusting only in God for protection. Brings minimal supplies.
• Communication: The friend (Dmitri), who owns the cabin, requires Vladimir to check in regularly via text from a mountaintop with cell service. Updates occur every couple of days, then suddenly cease after six weeks.
• Worries: Months pass without word. Dmitri flies over the cabin, sees Vladimir alive—he emerges, waves, and collects the supplies dropped from the plane.
• Further Silence: Two more months pass with no contact. Another flyover reveals no smoke from the chimney and undisturbed snow—ominous signs.
• Search: Authorities are reluctant to search due to weather and lack of certainty. Dmitri, frustrated, charters a helicopter and finds the cabin immaculate—no signs of struggle, plenty of food and firewood, but Vladimir is gone. The cabin is boarded up from outside.
• Bizarre Details: Vladimir has labeled firewood with phrases such as “frankincense, aroma, do not burn.” No clues to his fate.
• Investigations and Theories: Russian-American communities and authorities speculate he may be alive somewhere (false sightings in Hawaii and Oregon), but his disappearance remains unsolved—his last known image that flyover wave.

Notable Quotes

• On the stark setting:
  “Here he was, standing on this desolate road in the Alaskan wilderness, watching as the taxi driver drove away...” (MrBallen, 32:49)
• On Vladimir’s faith:
  “He said, nope, I don’t need any of that because the only thing I need is God. God is going to protect me.” (MrBallen, 34:01)
• On the puzzling disappearance:
  “At some point, Vladimir, for reasons completely unknown, just decided to board up the cabin and disappear into the Alaskan wilderness…” (MrBallen, 43:15)
• On the enduring mystery:
  “The final image of Vladimir… taken from inside of Dimitri’s plane… That is the final image… We don’t know what happened after this image.” (MrBallen, 44:40)

Memorable Episode Moments

• Chilling Atmosphere: MrBallen’s narrative style brings a sense of intimacy and dread to each story, making every account feel personal and immediate.
• Theme of the Unknown: All three stories share a sense of unresolved, eerie phenomena—themes of trust, faith, and logic clashing with the inexplicable.
• Closing Reflection:
  "All the family has to go off of is the final image…" (MrBallen, 44:37)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Story 1 – The Yellow Smoke: 08:27–19:46
• Story 2 – The Bennington Triangle: 23:09–31:37
• Story 3 – Incommunicado: 32:33–45:36

Tone & Storytelling

MrBallen’s delivery is intimate, suspenseful, and methodical. He engages listeners with vivid details, rhetorical questions, and a tone that blends empathy for the victims with awe at the inexplicable. The stories are related in a matter-of-fact yet captivating manner, turning complex mysteries into unforgettable tales.

This episode leaves listeners haunted by open-ended questions, inviting them to ponder the strange, dark, and mysterious—long after the stories end.