SF Universe - Science Fiction News

The Mystery of the Red Seal Letters

by Cynthia on May 26th, 2008

A few days ago, people all over the net began receiving cryptic letters in the mail.  The envelopes contained sheets of paper covered in what appears to be text in an ancient language and everything is marked with a red seal with a TB logo.  Novelist JC Hutchins was one of the first to post about it and you can see a video and more detailed photos of the red seal letter here.

YesButNoButYes received a similar envelope with slightly altered contents.  You can see that item here. Comments on the post suggest that the text in this example is written in Akkadian Cuneiform.  You’ll find a third version at Cactus Pix, here.

Initial thoughts were that this was leading to an alternate reality game and eventually people were led to two websites, http://chishio.jp/ and revenantones.com.

Now, here’s where it gets way too cool.  If you visit Revenatones, you’ll see an empty chair like a cam waiting to turn on.  There’s also a countdown clock.  At certain times a “Gatekeeper” appears and you can log on to talk to her.  She’s not so nice though, and if you want to get past her you must be tricky.  Apparently no one has gotten past her yet.  She makes references to the “worthy” and demands to know why you’ve come to the website. 

And now, it’s my turn. 

I received this email:

Hi everyone,

Apologies for the mass mail-out, but Andrew and I combined our address books to get this out to as many people as possible. (If you know me – hi.  If you don’t, Andrew  * waves *).

Over the last week we’ve become consumed with the message and blog posts that have been appearing all over the web about a puzzle written in ancient languages.  People have been getting them in the mail -   there’s some mystery going on here, and we’re going to crack it.   We’ve started a blog at  http://www.bloodcopy.com, so if you have a chance, stop by and take a look.  Comments/criticism/ideas welcome, and if any of you have seen any of the strange writing anywhere, let us know as we’re trying to create a master list:

http://del.icio.us/bloodcopy

Thanks

Roger

Webmaster, bloodcopy.com
Skype: dixonbc

A visit to BloodCopy.com takes you to a Wordpress site that appears to be a fansite for people collecting red seal letter info and it has some cool video of The Gatekeeper.  Honestly, I think this new site isn’t a fan site at all, but another part of the red seal puzzle. 

But has the puzzle been solved?  Word is that it’s all part of a viral marketing campaign for the new HBO vampire series True Blood.  The show is based on the novels of Charlaine Harris, about a town where vampires and humans co-exist thanks to a Japanese made blood substitute.

What do you think?  Have you seen any signs of the red seal and True Blood in your travels around the Internet?  Know anyone who has gotten past “The Gatekeeper?”  She’s on in a few hours from now.  I think I’ll give her a try.

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POSTED IN: In the Works, True Blood