F12 The Puzzling Puzzle / by Gaelan Kelly

One Cold afternoon in December…

Fiona has been poisoned!

Blindfolded taste test!

Tasted things that start with these letters: N, T, L, A, P, A. A word scramble?

and in A PLANT there was found a piece of the puzzle…

Puzzle piece V!

Front of puzzle piece V

Back of puzzle Piece V

Five little soldier boys going in for law, one got into chancery and now there are four.

That verse sounds familiar! To the library!

And in the stacks, shelved under mystery, was a piece of the puzzle…

Puzzle piece IV!

Front of puzzle piece IV

Side of puzzle piece IV

hsiw csyv GPYI pmi hllt mr xli JMVI xlex ger rsx FYVR

Back of puzzle piece IV

A Caesar cipher (it was counter 4 BTW)

“Does your CLUE lie deep in the FIRE that can not BURN”

Yes it does!…

Puzzle piece number III!

Front of puzzle piece III

Back and side of puzzle piece III

A riddle! “Three there were, Blades of pine. Master, Fire, Moon and yet another of Iron. And on the older was a snake the rhyme of which, pine leave did…”

the sword points to the leaves

Raking away it’s covering…

Puzzle piece number II!

Front of puzzle piece II

Back of puzzle piece II

-.. --- --. / -... . -..

And under DOG BED lay…

Puzzle Piece number I!

The black spot?

All the pieces of the puzzle are found!

All five pieces of the puzzle, now to fit them together!

There is a place where more oft leads to less, seek the key hidden deep in the ice. Open locked secrets yearning to be free that are hid under the...

…A place where more oft leads to less!

Seek the key hidden deep in the ice!

Open locked secrets yearning to be free that are hid under the...

But…

But… when you apply heat! The final clue reveals itself!

…under the Christmas tree!

Thermalchromatic paint hides the last clue.

Chained and locked but we have the key!

The Antidote!

The End.

By Gaelan Kelly

… Hey dad, can you do another one next year only harder?

Portrait of the artist