While walking through the Seaton hallways after class, you spot something glinting near the hydroponics... You find a small, black flash drive half-tucked under a bench. Curious, you pick it up and give a half-smirk to your friend “Obviously, the most responsible thing to do is plug it into the nearest computer and see what's on it, right?” you joke, giving it a playful twirl between your fingers.
Scratched into the casing in tiny letters is the string:
dohalclyulclytpuk
Plugging it in out of curiosity, a plain prompt pops up on the screen asking for a two-digit passcode.
After cracking the first password, the screen glitches briefly before revealing a new challenge A fresh prompt appears asking for another two-digit passcode. There is a hint given in the prompting... "Of course remember that X always marks the spots!" Just below it, a file named `not_a_map_at_all.txt` is now accessible, waiting for your curiosity. You open it and what looks like a bunch of random characters fills the screen in one long line.
Something feels off... maybe X really does count for something after all?.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIIxlgcuQRU starts playing from the speakers as a new file quietly appears on the desktop.
This one is called `hahahamapslol.txt` The previous message fades, and a new one takes its place “Let's see how sharp your eyes really are. How many Xs can you find?” You open the file expecting something obvious, but instead you're greeted with dozens of jagged rows of symbols, letters, and noise Somewhere in the chaos, maybe a pattern awaits?
All you know is that the number of Xs you will count will be your new three-digit passcode.
As soon as you enter the code, a distorted guitar riff blasts from the speakers as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jOk8dk-qaU starts playing. The file that appears next is called `nomore_xfiles.txt` and the prompt now reads: "Words fall apart. Count what remains." You open the file to find strings of text on each line, all chopped up by hyphens like some kind of broken encrypted sentence machine. It looks like nonsense... until you realize each chunk might be a standalone word?
Your task is simple... Count up every "word" in the file. The total the number of separate word fragments will be the next four-digit code.
No new file this time, as the same file bounces back onto the screen like it’s eager for your attention. A cheerful message pops up... “Every first letter counts so don’t miss a single one!” You peer at the hyphen-separated words, knowing each first letter holds a secret number. After all, each letter’s a little number friend waiting to be hugged into the sum!
Find all those letters, turn them into ASCII values, and add them up. That sum will give you the six-digit code needed to move forward
One last flicker and the same file appears again.
It's familiar now, like an old friend.
Now you notice that each line ends with a number.
The prompt message now starts... “Not all lines pull their fair share. Only the lines that add up deserve to be heard!”
You read the next instructions carefully:
For each valid message in the file add the 1st character to a string and output the secret message as your answer.
For example:
Given the Message: AFQ-WDdiODu|10466
AFQ uses A * F = 65 * 70 = 4550
WDdiODu|10466 uses W * D = 87 * 68 = 5916
Sum of the two words is 10466
The sum matches the number at the end of the line, so we keep the line and store the A!
Do this for every line in order and those chosen letters might spell out something special Maybe even a cute little phrase? The final passcode? You'll know it when you see it!