Graded Dinner Mouse

Yeva is left home alone and must find a way to entertain herself.

Seated on the shores of Lake Lovalus, Rharne serves as the home of the Lighting Knights, the Thunder Priestesses, and the Merchant's guild. This beautiful trade city is filled with a happy and contented people who rarely need an excuse to party.

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Yeva
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Dinner Mouse

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14 Ymiden 715


“Momma, you don’t understand,” Yeva raced after the taller woman, leaping over the family dog and consequently smacked her shoulder into the door frame, books and papers and pencils scattering across the marred floor causing Hestia to stop.

“Yeva, we go over this every ten-trial-”

“I know, I know, but I’m sooo close to a break through, and I was going to study at the medical center,” Now without anything in her hands, she clung to her mother, “This is all Isaac’s fault. He stole Kaa’s food; why shouldn’t he watch the house tonight?”

“Isaac has a family now,” Hestia’s hand was gentle when she pulled away, but her eyes were stern, “I’m not going to ask him to leave his new wife, home alone. Not when all this madness happening.”

The crimes. A suspected serial killer, even, “What about me!”

Hestia groaned and headed towards the coat rack, removing a green cloak, “Petyr will be home in a couple breaks-”

‘That’s rich,’ she rolled her eyes when her mother wasn’t looking, and ‘listened’ as she defended her plan, ‘Come home, grab a change of clothes and run off to some harlot’s house, you mean?’ Her brother had about as much intention of doing as he was told as a… as, well, Petyr. The middle child and the prodigal son. Many might have believed that the youngest sibling was dotted upon, a right to the only daughter who had survived a duo of brothers, but no.

It couldn’t have been further from the truth, and when Momma said no, Momma meant no.

Yeva begrudgingly collected her dropped supplies, pouting at the diagram of insects and hand handwritten list of bite symptoms. She was supposed to be meeting with a Lightning Priestess to how to cauterize an open wound today! “This is so unfair!”

“I’ll see you after work. Stay safe,” Hestia flashed a cheeky smile and slipped past the front door, “Love you.”

The door shut, and Yeva was left alone.
Last edited by Yeva on Thu Aug 15, 2019 3:28 pm, edited 4 times in total. word count: 347
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Yeva
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Posts: 712
Joined: Thu May 16, 2019 1:23 am
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Re: Dinner Mouse

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14 Ymiden 715


llwatchawtfeclocklnisksundialcirbetimersool

Yeva smacked her books on the table, organizing them by interest. Medicine, anatomy, linguistics, cryptography. The latter would be most useful for her current situation, and with Kaa expecting his next meal, she knew she needed to crack the code soon. She grabbed that book first, and began to turn to the index, words fading from her lips as she read. It wasn't runes, but related to common letters.

She searched the word 'alphabet' and flipped through the pages, skimming them. Atbash Cipher?

Yeva began to read:
The atbash cipher is a simple substitution cipher from ancient times; it reverses the alphabet such that each letter is mapped to the letter in the same position in the reverse of the alphabet (A -> Z, B -> Y).
Was that it? Brows furrowed, finger running along the text:
The Atbash cipher has also been associated with various forms of mysticism. In modern times, it is referred to as a reverse alphabet code. The atbash cipher is trivial to crack, once you realize that you're dealing with a substitution cipher, and is highly vulnerable to letter frequency analysis. It's primary modern application is puzzles and games.
Letter frequency analysis?

Yeva hummed as she reviewed the puzzle, less convinced the more she read. Knowing her brother, she very much doubted he would go to such lengths in order to hide a field mouse from her. It had to be simpler. She had to think, but not overly so. He always told her she made things more difficult than they needed to be. She needed to dumb herself down, but how?

Consider the coder. Isaac had a basic Rharne education, he wasn't interested in a secondary language outside of Rakahi, and that had no written form. It had to derived from their own tongue, it had to be simple. These historical ciphers could be it, but more than likely, the answer was in the text. She scoured over each letter individually, leaning close. There was a commonality. There were words. Yeva snatched a piece of parchment and patted her own pockets for a pencil. Furiously, she began to jot her findings.

watch. clock. sundial. timer.

llwatchawtfeclocklnisksundialcirbetimersool


All these words were related to... Time... time... Running out of time?

Yeva rolled her eyes, it seemed her brother thought himself clever.

They would see who was the clever one.

llwatchawtfeclocklnisksundialcirbetimersool

llwatchawtfeclocklnisksundialcirbetimersool
word count: 401
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Yeva
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Re: Dinner Mouse

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14 Ymiden 715


Yeva pulled out the kitchen drawer and retrieved a small hourglass, shifting it back and forth in her hand as she thought. He had included all those words related to time, but had it meant anything outside of a clever joke on her brother's part? Probably not. After hunting down every single watch, sundial, and hourglass in their home (which, wasn't many) she didn't feel any closer to her solution. When balanced upon a wobbly chair, she had looked for little nooks and crannies he could have hidden her, but all she had found was a couple copper nel that had fallen behind a disheveled bookshelf. Outside, it began to rain, the light of the windows fading as fat clouds obscured the sun. The world was turning grey, her textbooks becoming harder to read.

She had thought, hoped, she would have found something else. A notched on one of the clocks, or a message written with reference to precise time frames. Her brother might not have considered this, but not all messages were written. Yeva had heard (and was dying to witness) an entire code system revolving around knotted braid work in one's hair, a means to relay hidden messages in public. Just like the secret language of fans.

Begrudgingly, the red head sat back down in front of the paper.

She had copied and struck out the words she knew. That left the following:

llawtfelniskcirbesool

It meant nothing, and yet it had to. She took out the vowels, she put them back. She removed the consonants without luck. Yeva spaced out each letter, jumbled them and groaned. So close, she could feel it. There was no way Isaac could have been smarter than her - older, yes, but smarter?

The front door open and closed, the sound of popping cork right behind it, "Hooooome," A mop of strawberry blond hair peeked into the kitchen and Petyr grinned. Pushing back a wave of curls, his smoke green eyes looked sleepy. In fact, from his disheveled clothing and stained shirt, he had been drinking all day, "What'r ya doing?"

"Go away, Petyr."

"Ouch," he fumbled, clutching his broken heart, shattered by a callus sister too preoccupied with her own business to care for her family. Or so he whined. Yeva had stopped listening when he pretended to swipe his hand at her, making her flinch. He laughed and then walked around her chair, using her shoulder to lean on. He was purposefully being annoying, "This one's easy. I know the answer."

"No you don't."

"I do," he took a swig, "Here, have a drink and it'll come to you." He waved the bottle her direction and she shoved him off her.

"Goooo away," Yeva kept nudging him, hoping he'd just disappear into his room, or out the door, but he snorted and pressed his fingers on the page. A twist of his wrist, and her scrawled message was upside down. As he was leaving the room, he laughed.

"You need a different perspective, Yee."

"That's not my name," she shouted, sighing as the sound of his boots thudded up the stairs. He was so annoying.

Yet when she looked down at the page, her mouth dropped.
word count: 547
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Yeva
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Re: Dinner Mouse

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14 Ymiden 715


llawtfelniskcirbesool

A different perspective.

Of course.

"No!" Yeva pushed her chair back and jumped to her feet. Was he serious? Petyr, overhearing her reaction, was laughing from the hallway as she wrote the letters one by one. But this time - backwards.

loosebricksinleftwall

loose bricks in left wall

The aspiring cryptographer ran around the room, patting the slab of clay and stone. Pat. Pat. Pat. She pulled a family portrait from the wall, stumbling under the weight of its frame and continued to smack the structure. Pat. Pat. Pat. A dog on a scent, she tried to pry away at the adobe, stopping once to lit a lantern and brightened the room. Pat. Pat. Pat. Their actual dog lifted his head to eye her and yawned, curling back on the rug as she paced around the room, running her hand back and forth along the wall. Moving her hand alongside the fireplace mantle, Yeva wedged her fingers along a chipped block, gasping when it gave a wiggle, "I think I found it!" she tenderly pulled it free with tense hands, her breath exploding from her chest when it came free, "I did it!"

Her brother's mocking voice was an echo down the hall, "Woo!"

Peeking into the opening, Yeva slide her hand cautiously inside until her fingers brushed against a smooth surface. She began to pull it free and turned the contained over in the light. A glass jar mostly used for handmade cremes or poultices with a lid tightly secured. Inside, she heard a small squeak and felt a pain of regret, peering inside at the tiny mouse that would now be offered to her snake. It made her heart hurt, seeing its tiny little nose twitch and sniff inside, recoiling when it saw her face, "I'm so sorry," she sighed, her victory not so sweet, and tried not feel guilty when she took the jar to her room.

It would hurt her heart, but she had solved the puzzle and at least Kaa would have his fill.
Last edited by Yeva on Wed Jan 29, 2020 4:50 pm, edited 1 time in total. word count: 343
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Re: Dinner Mouse


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Thread Review

Yeva

Yeva
Skill Points: +10 (cannot be used for magic).
Magic XP: None.

Renown: None.

Injuries/Overstepping: None.
Wealth Points: None.
Loot: None.

Skill Knowledge:
  • Cryptography: How to Crack an Atbash Cipher
  • Cryptography: Atbash Cipher: Vulnerable to Freq. Analysis
  • Cryptography: Consider Code Origin
  • Cryptography: Messages Aren't Always Written
  • Research: Refer to Appendices
  • Animal Husbandry (Reptilian): The Diet of a Ball Python
Non-Skill Knowledge:
  • none requested.
Notes: n/a.

Yeva acts fairly young for her age here. The interaction with her mother was endearing to see. As was the scene with Petyr. Both are great NPCs who seem like lively spirits, which gives a hint of where Yeva came from.

You're very skilled at writing out details involving linguistics and language, combining it with in-world immersion such as Yeva's logic involving her brother Isaac and his specific capabilities involving those things.

Favorite line:
Her brother's mocking voice was an echo down the hall, "Woo!"

Great job and enjoy your rewards!

PM me if you have any questions, issues or concerns.

Total Word Count: 1702 words.
Review Request Link: viewtopic.php?p=123159#p123159
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word count: 191
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