a SOUP - March 2023
First Year Chaos
- The Puzzled Dragon

"Silence pressed upon his ears as he soared over a strange, dark, foggy landscape. He could only see ten feet around him, so that as he sped through the water new scenes seemed to loom suddenly out of the oncoming darkness: forests of rippling, tangled black weed, wide plains of mud littered with dull, glimmering stones."

-- Harry Potter's first experience in swimming in the Great Lake

The Black lake was a Mystery to almost everyone at Hogwarts, except perhaps the professors and Harry Potter. Here we find a boat that has landed on the shore of Hogwarts, with one less First Year. Who took them from the boat? What happened? Your task is to decipher the message in the bottle that was left on shore.


Decode the following message using Fractionated Morse Cipher


EGJUFAUSCGJTLSWYCBTGLNSQHCHCVCKROGLOHIMTGHHC
KPJWPOAYQHCTZLCFLRAWFBSVICSLGJTCWPFRNSLTZAWPQ
ZOLWVOTPQEZWRAHOMTPPLPCSWYRBGGLAXVOGPLSWYCK
GPLHCTVVIFDHOLICLXAGZPFDVQEZCGMXAGCWPDZSCIJGJ
TVLKYJTVP



Prizes

First place: 8 jewels + 10k
Second place: 6 jewels + 10k
Third place: 3 jewels + 5k

Send in your completed entry to SOUP account by March 21st at 11:59 PM HEX with the subject "Puzzling Things".

Entries that have found all of the words will receive one ticket for the prizes above.

All entries that show an honest attempt will receive 1 Participation Jewel.

Only one prize will be awarded per user per issue. Should the randomizer select the same user more than once, they will be awarded the first prize selected, and any subsequent prizes will be redrawn among the non-winners for that issue.

Good luck!