The Decipherment by Tehreem Ali

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  Stuck in the world of her thoughts, far from life, thirst and hunger pangs making her loose energy, without a single clue of how to get out of her mind – though it was as strange as it could be, Isabelle was left with no choice but to rely on whatever her mind was presenting her with. Besides, she had a long time to solve the mysterious code, considering the fact that she wasn’t getting out of her some time soon.

  The cryptologist within her was dying to work its mind on something that it did best: deciphering codes. Maybe, just maybe, the key to finding a way out was through this code, since it was what had come up in her consciousness.

  It was a snapshot from the article she had read about the robbery. Having a set of numbers and dates on it, it looked like a mesh of an unperceivable language.

  אפּירליזהג׳ייטסיג'ייבשוואטימשוואטסוואטגיסחפּגוימ[XIX III I]

  When she had first seen the code, Isabelle had tried many de-encryption techniques to decipher, but she had come up with nothing. Sometimes the grids, bases on which a code is built, had some fault in them which ultimately led to wrong encryption of a code. Isabelle had tried as many grids as she could, hoping that maybe if she got the right grid, she could break the code. From the look of it, it didn’t look like a simple code, or else its grid would be easy to trace.

  Isabelle had plenty time therefore, she decided to start from scratch; to use as many methods and formulae as she could remember to crack this code open. She had a strong feeling it would lead her to something or somewhere. Anything other than this cold, dark and lonely place would be better.

  But then again, it was her own mind she thought of as dark and lonely.

  The only thing she needed was to somehow enlarge the image of the thought in the portal which showed the code. It was too small for her to see properly. She wondered if she could empty the portal from the image and make it clearer. It was a far fetched idea, but she tried anyway. As Isabelle neared the portal, it took in her aura and glowed brightly – her thoughts, the subconscious, was draining her of her energy. She decided getting closer to it was not such a good idea anyway. She had to do something else to bring the image up close.

  Think. What can you do? This is your mind, remember? Think.

  Think!

  That was it. She had to think. Anything she formed in her thoughts would come to real form, thus giving her the control over what existed. She looked very closely in the portal and concentrated in the image of the code in it. She formed a complete replica of it in her thought. Thinking of it – in a bigger size though, soon bought the exact same image before her in material form. She had actually created something, bought it in existence just by giving it a single thought. The amazing power a mind possesses.