Chapter 6: Cipher

A tense silence fell over the ruined vault chamber. Elias Crane still stood beside the deposit box labeled with his own name, the same one the mysterious woman desperately wanted to open. Now, as the dust settled from the explosions and gunshots, they found themselves in a quiet standoff.

"… …"

"… …"

For a moment, neither spoke.

"Honestly," the woman finally said, breaking the silence, "the moment I saw you at the plaza pretending to be me—hopping into Claw's van—I concluded you must be nuts."

"Glad that little misunderstanding's resolved?" Elias asked wryly.

"It's not resolved—you've just confirmed you're out of your mind."

Elias lifted his hands in mock surrender. "So you still don't believe I'm Elias Crane. Yet you came here specifically to steal from an Elias Crane deposit box. You must have done some homework—don't you know what the real Elias Crane looks like?"

She shook her head. "I didn't bother investigating the box's owner. I have no idea what he looks like."

That was… unexpected. Elias grimaced. He'd never realized how hard it would be to prove he was himself.

"But it doesn't matter who you are," the woman continued. "If you can get this box open, I can give you answers."

She crossed her arms, glaring at the stubborn mechanical lock. "If it were an electronic panel, I'd crack it in a few minutes. But an 8-digit mechanical combination lock? We don't have that kind of time."

She glanced at Elias. "So I don't care if you're the real deal or just some two-bit impostor. If you can open it, you're my partner."

"Deal." Elias extended a hand, deciding for now to play along. He wasn't getting anywhere trying to convince her first; plus, he did want to know why she'd saved his life more than once.

"How should I address you?" he asked.

"Just call me Cipher."

They shook briefly. Elias couldn't help noting how most people in this dream had strange nicknames, from "Claw" to "Cipher," but he pressed on.

"All right. We need a plan," Cipher said, tapping the metal dial.

Elias inhaled, thinking through every possible date connected to him. "Let's try significant milestones—birthdays, anniversaries—one by one."

***

Elias racked his brain for any date that might fit the 8-digit format. Cipher spun the combination wheels each time, but none worked. He was running out of important birthdays, old addresses, dog microchip IDs—everything.

"Mom's birthday… didn't work, huh?" Elias muttered, frustrated.

Cipher shook her head. "Maybe we try your grandma's birthday?"

"I… actually don't know that," Elias admitted.

Cipher shot him an exasperated look. "You realize I'm being sarcastic, right? You've had me try your entire family tree—some of them from centuries ago, apparently. The next step is what—your pet goldfish's hatch date?"

Elias waved a hand dismissively. "Trust me, it has to be a date. I have this habit—eight digits, year-month-day. I'm certain that's what I would use if I set the combination."

She gave him a skeptical stare. "You're assuming the logic of a guy named Elias Crane."

He threw up his hands. "For the last time—I am Elias Crane! Now shush, you're messing up my concentration."

"Wow, you're really immersed in this role," Cipher murmured, half amused. "But all the birthdays you're spouting are from, what, ages ago? And here we are in the year 2624. Ever heard of continuity?"

Elias clenched his eyes shut. His mind whirled with possibilities. No matter how outlandish it seemed, the code had to exist somewhere in his memory—because, as he'd heard countless times, dreams can't include knowledge you don't possess. If this deposit box belonged to him, the code had to be locked away in his subconscious.

Clack.

Suddenly, the power flickered back on. The alarm system engaged with a deafening wail:

WEE-OO, WEE-OO, WEE-OO!

"Damn it!" Elias hissed, kicking the steel box in frustration.

"Hurry!" Cipher shouted, nearly drowned out by the blaring siren. The lights spun red, casting frantic shadows across the vault. "We don't have much time left before the cops storm in!"

Elias's nerves frayed. He glanced at his watch:

[00:41:27]

He had exactly 33 seconds until 00:42, when the entire dream would reset anyway. The howling alarm, the claustrophobic gloom, Cipher's angry demands—everything rattled him, and his head felt like it was about to explode.

"You said you could do this!" Cipher yelled.

"Stop talking!" Elias barked back, pressing both hands to his temples. His skull pounded from the combined noise of sirens and fear.

His thoughts spun wildly, memories flickering like a montage, searching for a final hidden date.

A swirl of recollections whirled faster and faster. Then, something lurched in his mind.

"I… once had a crush on a girl," Elias mumbled, voice trembling.

"Spare me your romance drama!" Cipher shouted over the alarms.

"It was in high school—she sat next to me—"

"I! Don't! Care!"

"I'd rather not say this either!" Elias roared back. "But I'm doing it for you!" He pointed at the unyielding lock. "19990707! That's her birthday!"

Elias felt the last shred of his pride burn away. He'd never told a soul about that date, yet here he was, shouting it to some killer stranger in a bank vault at the end of the world.

"Do it!" he cried.

Cipher quickly dialed 19990707, rapped the latch, and—

…Nothing.

The alarm blared on.

WEE-OO, WEE-OO!

[00:41:47]

"Wrong code!" she yelled. "We're nearly out of time!"

"Then try 20150609!" Elias clutched his head, panic rising. "That's… the day I confessed, or—"

Cipher's voice was raw from shouting. "Good grief, enough with the personal details—just give me the digits!"

She spun the wheels again, slammed the lock.

Still nothing.

Elias's vision blurred. His chest tightened.

He peered at Cipher's contorted face, her eyes brimming with anger and betrayal.

"Liar," her gaze seemed to say.

[00:41:56]

A wave of dizziness crashed over Elias, the sirens echoing around him, the red lights strobing. He heard Cipher call him a "fraud" or "impostor" or something like that. Then—

[00:42:00]

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

A searing white light burst forth, devouring everything in its path…

***

Midwinter.

Early dawn.

Elias's bedroom lay neat and quiet.

He opened his eyes, staring at the faint light sneaking through the curtains.

Just like that—00:42 a.m. in the dream had come and gone, and once again, he was jettisoned back into the real world.