View topic - [PUZZLE] Morgan Paranormal 13 June 05

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Forum index » Archive » Archive: General » ARG: Rookery Tower

[PUZZLE] Morgan Paranormal 13 June 05

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Drewbear
Boot

Joined: 23 May 2005
Posts: 27
Location: Arlington, TX

[PUZZLE] Morgan Paranormal 13 June 05

At 7:40 PM (in-game time), we received an email from Layla and James stating

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

Everyone,

No more waiting. We attack the Tall Man tonight on his own territory.
In the graveyard, at midnight. Everythings ready.

Keep us in your best thoughts, please.

Layla and James

Later that evening, at 11:40 PM(in-game time), we received another email stating

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

Come, lads, join the fun!

which indicated an update on Morgan Paranormal. A new pic (image2.jpg) had appeared on MP (seen below). The solve for the pic is as follows:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

In each quadrant, take the letters next to the shapes in increasing order of sides. So, quadrant 1 gives "OPX", quadrant 2 gives "KU", quadrant 3 gives "WKH" and quadrant 4 gives "XMQI". ROT each of these individually to get "NOW IS THE TIME", which leads to http://www.freewebs.com/morganparanormal/nowisthetime.htm

The textual contents of this page are:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

At twilight, I stood with James in the cemetery behind Rookery Tower. We were at its very center, which was marked by a large square courtyard of crumbling cobblestone. This, I felt sure, was the location where Xazlael was bound to the earth. I'd had an early fear that our binding spell wouldn't be able to over-ride the bind that held Xazlael to Rookery Tower. Eric however, had easily dispersed this notion.

"As long as no one removes the focus from his area of influence," Eric had explained, "everything should work as planned."

But now that we were outside, now that the hour was fast approaching, I felt the cold confidence that had filled me beginning to drain away and leave me empty. I only prayed that it would last the night.

I also prayed that it wouldn't rain. Rain would be disastrous. It would destroy the complex maze of sigils that I had been preparing since early that evening. The sky looked clear however, it seemed the powers that be were with us� for the moment.

James was setting the candles, little white votives; at the edge of what would be our circle. For the next three hours neither James nor I would cross it's boundary, an action that would shatter the enchantment we were weaving.

As the sun's light died, I checked my watch. It was a little more than five minutes after nine o'clock. Sunset, as it always had been, was right on time. The last rays of the sun's deep crimson-gold light touched the center of the circle and illuminated the focus of our spell, the silver hand-mirror into which we would seal up the demon Tall Man.

'Just under three hours until midnight,' I thought. That was when the spell had to culminate, in order to properly seal a demon as powerful as Xazlael. Midnight, traditionally known as the witching hour was the time in which magick was at it's strongest, simply because this was when the tiers of reality were in their closest alignment.

"Now?" James asked me, as he put the last of the candles into place.

I nodded solemnly, and he began to light the candles. Their flickering light made the mirror seam to come alive and dance in the firelight, as though Xazlael were mocking our mortal efforts against him.

Almost in confirmation of my thoughts, a raven cackled from the tree behind me. I whirled around, and stared up at it. It stared back. It had a gaze like lightning.

It was the Tall Man. I just knew.

I raised my chin in defiance as James lit the last of the candles.

Eric, I realized, was also standing beside me. That was good, I'd need his strong, presence to help me with the task before us.

Without any further regard to the Tall Man, I lifted Eric's tome from the ground, and opened it to the beginning of the incantation.

I heard the raven alight from its branch and fly off.

It was my grim certainty that it would return before the night was finished.

In addition, there were 2 pictures, as seen below. (inncoentIGRRY.JPG and nobleZU.JPG)

Solve continued in comments

image2.JPG
Description	Morgan Paranormal frontpage pic
Filesize	17.8KB
Viewed	168 Time(s)

inncoentIGRRY.JPG
Description
Filesize	1.66KB
Viewed	1027 Time(s)

nobleZU.JPG
Description
Filesize	4.37KB
Viewed	1100 Time(s)

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 1:43 am

Drewbear
Boot

Joined: 23 May 2005
Posts: 27
Location: Arlington, TX

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

MaxSteele found that applying a ROT to the capitalized letters in the picture names gave "CALLS TO".

Ursos unshredded the nobleZU pic to find it said "O POSITIVE"

At this point, I remembered that "sangre" means "blood" in Latin, and guessed that the solve for the page was "bloodcallstoblood", which led to http://www.freewebs.com/morganparanormal/bloodcallstoblood.htm

On this new page, there was a large block of Vigneired text as well as the pic below. Ursos, Randy and I noticed that the letters marked with a dot above them formed an interlaced phrase with the letters without dots.

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

This phrase is "To be loved for what one is, is the greatest exception.", which is a quote by Goethe.

Then, Satyr found that the watchingeyes picture was stegged with "goethe" as the password.

This led to a textfile containing the following text:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

terror wins when hearts grow cold
holding nothing more that's bold
errors way is mended soon
for the words that win the boon
if you can still hear the beat
get ye up your weary feet
harken dance the age old sound
time and rythm round and round

Ursos noticed that, by taking the first letters of each line, we got the phrase

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

thefight

which was the key to decode the rest of the page's text. Full decoded text in next comment.

watchingeyes.JPG
Description
Filesize	14.78KB
Viewed	292 Time(s)

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 1:52 am

Drewbear
Boot

Joined: 23 May 2005
Posts: 27
Location: Arlington, TX

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

I checked my watch for the millionth time. 11:47. Only thirteen minutes until high midnight. Thirteen minutes. I was out in the middle of a graveyard, with a ghost and a budding enchantress, weaving a spell to trap a demon, at thirteen minutes to midnight.

And my place? I was the swordsman bold. The knight protector.

More like pocket protector. If there was any guy less suited to the role of masculine presence, it was the weedy kid who played the half-orc Paladin in my high school D&D club. But I'm definitely second on the list.

The sword lessons from Richard; I don't know if they helped me or hindered me. I gazed down at the rune-covered blade and prayed that it too was enchanted. Maybe then I'd be magically good at it when I needed to be. I was confident that it was the good part of Richard's soul that had come to tutor me. But for what purpose had the Tall Man allowed it? For good or evil, the demon held sway over the boy's entirety.

I sighed and looked up at the grinning moon. I could hear Layla's voice still chanting in the strange ancient language.

More than two hour straight. How can she talk that long?

And then the grave canto was shattered by a shrill caw.

A raven. It flapped its wings almost hovering for a moment. Almost grinning. I saw Layla acknowledge it from the corner of her eye, but proceed on with her reading. She had to keep going. Lose the rhythm, lose the spell.

The raven settled on the branch, then another...

One, two, three, five, seven, nine, thirteen�

How many ravens were there?

They were cawing and making noise, and I hoped to god that Alfred Hitchcock hadn't been hired to direct my life.

I was luckier than that. In the shadows stood two figures, one, blonde and lithe, stepped forward into the flickering light. The other, dark, with the silhouette of a wide brimmed hat hung back. The white of his smile was visible like the crescent moon.

The expression was mirrored on the creature that approached me, doubtlessly the 'evil' Richard. The Richard whom I had learned from was one handed this iteration had two. One of which seemed cloaked by a black glove, at his side dangled a black rapier.

"Jevening, Ames," he said haughtily.

"Richard," I nodded.

Behind me, Eric and Layla seemed to listen, but concentrated on the spell.

"There's to ge a bame," Richard continued. "HE says if cou yan mold he off for the next mirteen thinutes, you win. If not e hattacks her."

I nodded, and as I did, I realized my folly. I had agreed to the terms of the contest, and now I was stuck with them.

Richard attacked.

I didn't know if I was going to be able to hold him off for two minutes, let alone thirteen! He was strong, and aggressive, like a young wildcat. And unlike when his better half had given e lessons this time he had the benefit of a second hand.

His first blow I parried easily, it was a test move. With Richard's easy grace, how could this be anything less than a game he knew he would win. He would toy with me, and then before the clock struck midnight, he'd be done with me.

I wouldn't let it happen. There was more at stake here than just my life, or honor, or a trillion other things. If I failed, Layla would suffer.

I'd only known her for, what was it, a month now? But her soft smile, and casual loveliness had snared me, easier than any enchantment. The oldest enchantment of them all, really.

And so I gave the fight my all. Though the silver sword was, I knew, not up to it's usual refinement in my clumsy, thinking man's hands, there was a fire there, fervency this blade had not known in more than a century.

This sword would fight for love! This sword would die for love! This sword would give no ground nor bow to any other master!

Richard was surprised by the suddenness of my attack. He hesitated under my blade and a pressed my suit, fighting him back toward the trees, but not close enough for any foul play from his demon lord. Just enough to keep him from my Layla.

Thirteen minutes. If I could just hold him for that long!

We circled one another, a dance of death, with blades shimmering in the candlelight. It wasn't the modern age any more. This I knew. In this graveyard, it was centuries ago.

I saw an opening in Richard's defense and lunged for it, but it had just been a ploy to get me in closer. He nicked me, before I could strengthen my position again. I felt the hot blood rising from my right shoulder. My good hand.

I couldn't check my watch. How long had we been fighting. Three minutes? Five? How long did this fight have to continue?

We were back near the circle, but on the opposite side from Layla. We were dangerously close to the candles. Did Richard intend to drive me into them? I looked down at my own clumsy feet, I had to get my distance, but the boy was blocking me.

But if I knocked over any of the candles�

I had to get away. I made a bold thrust. Too bold, it was what Richard had been waiting for.

The last thing I heard, was Layla crying out to me.

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 1:55 am

Drewbear
Boot

Joined: 23 May 2005
Posts: 27
Location: Arlington, TX

Ursos noticed that, in the decoded text, the following was in bold:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

One, two, three, five, seven, nine, thirteen�

After much debate, the group in chat decided that

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

the question following the numbers ("How many ravens were there?") referred to the prior mentioned numbers. When added together, the result is 40 ravens, which led to http://www.freewebs.com/morganparanormal/40.htm

This new page had the following text hidden by black text on black background:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

As soon as I heard the foolish girl scream I knew we were all done for. Was it a fatal deviation from the text? I wasn't about to find out.

"Come to your senses!" I urged. "Finish the text!"

Xazlael was only moments from being bound forever, and this girl was about to waste it. I felt every resolve in her fail. I felt her ready to collapse to the ground sobbing for her loss. I wouldn't have it!

She would not damn us ALL to this eternal purgatory!

I wrenched her body from her and felt the weight of my familiar text in her unfamiliar hands. My eyes immediately picked up the thread of where she had left.

Three minutes to midnight.

The final culmination of the spell began.

My brother rounded on me.

"Sand o it ends, Eric," he said, as he approached.

I barely registered his presence. The words had taken over, I was a conduit, and we were a conduit. The final binding�

In the center of the circle a image began to appear, like vertical black lines, blinking in and out alternately.

"Dut pown bat thoo- " my brother began. He spasmed. Something shook the core of his being.

The words came through my lips hoarse and hasty, but powerful and strong. Xazlael was being pulled inexorably into the circle. And so, it seemed, were pieces of my brother, who had collapsed on the ground, shaking and shuddering on his hands and knees, black electricity zipping around him.

I wanted to go to him, wanted to make the pain stop. Wanted to sooth him. But he had to be purged. It had to be done.

"Xazlael I call thee! Demon of ravens, half-thing! Seeker of souls! Attend me! I command it! Child of Eurynomus, I command thee! Villain seductor, appear! You who are called the Tall Man, come to me! Now! I, Eric Artemes, command it!"

My brother gave a final shudder, and collapsed, still. In the center of the circle, the full form of Xazlael appeared, He gave a mocking bow, as though he were the captor, and not the captive.

"I have you demon," I hissed, "A century, and I have you at my mercy."

"Have you?" the demon smiled. "Look at you poor, dear brother. Some of him's here too. Some of you's here to. Locking that away with me too, are you, child?"

My eyes were ice cold. It was true. A part of my brother's soul. A part of our soul was inevitably tied to that demon. The darkest part.

"So be it," I said.

"You seek to hide from the darkness. Your, Eric Artemes, have always hidden from the darkness. I remember when you were a little boy. Now you hide from the darkness in your self."

"Silence! You will do as I command!"

"And what do you command, mon petite roi?"

I grimaced. "In this circle you are in my power! With this power I bind you forever! I seal you within the mirror upon which you stand, never to return to this world!"

And then the final part of the chant.

Lightening crashed, and afterward there was a single moment of complete and utter darkness. I heard the crows that had settled on the branches of the trees like black leaves all flew at once. A mass exodus. Rookery Tower was a rookery no more.

And then the light of the moon returned to the sky.

And in the center of the circle lay the mirror. All the candles had gone out. It was now safe to step inside. I did so, and I lifted the mirror. Far away in its glass I saw the image of two figures sweep around as though dancing to some unheard ball. I set it down in disgust, and then turned to attend my brother.

I left the girl's body on the ground.

My brother lay quiet and still on the grass. I knelt down and I touched his face. His eyelids opened, revealing the soft green light that I had missed for so long.

"Eric?" he questioned blearily.

"Shh," I comforted. "Its time to go home.".

Also, hidden in the source was the following:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

164150151163150145141162164163160145141153163167150141164144145141144155145156144157156157164

27 39 45 55 58 64 81 123 131 141 142

Ursos found that the first line was octal for

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

thisheartspeakswhatdeadmendonot

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 2:11 am

Paradoxic
Decorated

Joined: 24 Jul 2004
Posts: 160

So I guess were still left with the second set of numbers as the current only unsolved puzzle?

_________________
--Paradoxic

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 9:42 am

Hikari
Veteran

Joined: 09 Apr 2005
Posts: 147

Layla mail!

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

dead men tell no tales

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 9:45 am

Paradoxic
Decorated

Joined: 24 Jul 2004
Posts: 160

Well...

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

If this heart speaks what dead men do not... AND dead men tell no tales (phrase associated with pirates, and no pirates.htm doesn't work)... unfortunately "thisheartspeakstales.htm" and "thishearttellstales.htm" do not work. Any other ideas?

As for those additional numbers:

27 39 45 55 58 64 81 123 131 141 142

I am not finding anything useful. They number string does not result in any useful translation in any base from 2 to 16. When you reduce them by subtracting 26 until they are below 26, you end up with:

1 13 19 3 6 12 3 19 1 11 12 - resulting number
A M S C F L C S A K L - equivilant letter
1 1 1 2 2 2 3 5 6 6 6 - number of times 26 was subtracted

None of that is of any use, of course, go figure. Info on the numbers themselves are kinda useless as well:

27 is 3^3
64 is 2^6
81 is 3^4
131 is prime

Well, I'm out of ideas, anyone else?

_________________
--Paradoxic

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 10:16 am

JoeOE18
Unfettered

Joined: 08 Apr 2005
Posts: 301
Location: UK

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

I took the difference between each number took out all the number which weren't 1 and 0 and got m in binary

Almost certainly nothing, but you never know

_________________
Hello_!wiiiiz

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 10:40 am

Ursos
Decorated

Joined: 26 Apr 2005
Posts: 276
Location: Columbus, OH

Just kind of thinking outloud here while I'm on my lunch break...

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

27 39 45 55 58 64 81 123 131 141 142 = original numbers

12 6 10 3 6 17 42 8 10 1 = difference between the pairs of numbers

l f j c f q h j a = the letter representation of them (taking out the 42) which gives me ... nothing. Didn't ROT to anything. Well, I got "jdhadofhy" but I don't know if I can make anything of that.

I went back to the main page and was looking at the grid. Maybe the numbers are coordinates on that? If so, I got:

(2,7) (3,9) (4,5) (5,5) (5,8 ) (6,4) (8,1) (12,3) (13,1) (14,1) (14,2) ([EDIT]: Added a space after the 8 so it didn't change to a Cool

)

(d,l) (m,b) (n,f) (o.f) (o,c) (p,g) (r,j) (v,h) (w,j) (x,j) (x,i)

Dunno what to do with that, though. :/

And with the other text, I feel like it's similar to the blood thing we did way up ^ there. Maybe we just need to fiddle with the words and get a new phrase that means something more...?

Anyway, that's all I've got time to do. Keep at it, kids!

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 1:49 pm

LatentMoths
Unfettered

Joined: 01 May 2005
Posts: 523
Location: Texas

Got an idea.

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

Could it be referring to Tell-Tale Heart by Poe? I used the string of numbers and found the letters corresponding to each in the text of TTH and got laalohsdves, which doesn't rot to anything. I also took the word that correspond to each number and got "not acute the in then and say his the a film". I took the first letters of each word and rot-ed to no avail. Someone might want to check my letters if you think this is a valid path to follow, as I did it quickly during my break at work. Hope this helps.

EDIT:

Spoiler (Rollover to View):

Also tried "telltaleheart.htm"...didn't work.

_________________
81 117 105 116 32 108 111 111 107 105 110 103 32 97 116 32 109 121 32 65 83 67 73 73 33

http://twitter.com/LatentMoths

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2005 3:01 pm

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