Lokiv

The final part of the meta puzzle is to discover the four names of Loki. The start of this final stage is given in the video awarded for completing the puzzles in Puzzle Box 4, and is the directory '/lokiv'.

It seems that the trail for each name starts with the hidden directory given at the end of the video each week that is awarded when all the puzzles have been solved.

The first week gave '/on_the_run', where Loki asked to be contacted (details on the Meta Puzzle page, which eventually led to the message about the 'murmuring rock project'. This has led solvers to believe that Loki's first name, or the name of the first Loki in the final video, is Lorelei or Loreley.

The second week gave '/collectionplate', where the number of white boxes that had been identified was recorded. Once all 36 of these had been found (nine per week) (details on the Collection Plate page, the page was replaced by a scrambled image. When reassembled, this image has been found to be the coat of arms of the Odessa Oblast (county). This has led solvers to believe that Loki's second name, or the name of the second Loki in the final video, is Odessa.

The third week gave '/more_answers', where the number of puzzles that had been solved was recorded. Once all 48 of these had been solved, the page was replaced by a word search of the solutions to all the puzzles (with an additional tetris-like drop down feature). When all the words are eliminated, one is left with the string '6B617261', which is the ASCII for 'kara'. This has led solvers to believe that Loki's third name, or the name of the third Loki in the final video, is Kara.

The fourth week gave '/roamingroaming', where an image of Loki with her glasses lowered was accompanied by a list of eight distances starting with '1. Mystery Spot CA', and the string 'TANLI'. The distances must be paired with the directions Loki gives in each video (in order of accessibility) when she lowers her glasses (where up = north, down = south, right = east and left = west) - the full sequence being right (hear the challenge video), up (box 1 real world clues video), right (box 1 complete video), down (box 2 complete video), left (box 3 complete video), down (box 4 real world clues video), left (box 4 complete video), down ('lokiv' directory video). Starting at the Mystery Spot near Santa Cruz in California and following the directions takes you to Atardecer en Donana, Spain; Bridgetown, Ireland; Warsaw, Poland; Tarnow, Poland; Dietzenbach, Germany; Bonnanaro, Italy; Blandinsville, Illinois; and finally Hardee, Mississippi. The letters TANLI are an anagram of Latin, suggesting making an anagram and translating from Latin (or vice versa). Hardee is an anagram of 'hedera', which is Latin for Ivy. This has led solvers to believe that Loki's fourth name, or the name of the fourth Loki in the final video, is Ivy.

Note that the game makers first added 'CA' after 'Mystery Spot' and the text 'Even the smallest places have names' to the page after about 24 hours, and then added a link to a map of the area around Hardee with an X on Hardee (but no other text) after another 12 hours or so.

The solution therefore appears to be 'Lorelei Odessa Kara Ivy'.

NOTE: This is the proper solution, however the prize is already rewarded. If you do not type it in exactly as above, you get a message:

To be fair, this contest is over and I've already awarded the prize. But please pay closer attention, try again, and help me reach my own Vanishing Point.

-L.O.K.I.

If you type in the correct solution you get:

You are not the first to guess our identity, but because you solved our puzzle, we want to tell you our secret.

There is no such person as Loki-or rather, she is four sisters who decided to be one extraordinary person.

Each of us has a unique talent:

Lorelei is our tinkerer. Clocks and counting, space and time: she is our genius.

Odessa is our performer, our actress and magician, the girl we send to dazzle and charm. Odessa goes to meetings: Loki gets promoted. It's very convenient.

Kara is our reader. With a love of history and a photographic memory, she gives us access to any fact figure, or event at a moment's notice.

Ivy is our spy. She's the girl you don't notice, the face you don't remember, and vanishing is what she does best. Ivy has gotten us out of more than one impossible situation.

Together, we have presented L.O.K.I. to the world. Our mask and super-hero, LOKI has allowed us each to be bigger than ourselves.

When we heard Microsoft and AMD were looking to give extraordinary prizes to exceptional people, we knew LOKI could never find a more perfect job. This, Odessa said, would be a trick we could never top. O, how we wanted this job! (And what clever, unfair, underhanded things we did to the other applicants to make sure we got it! But that's another story.) And once we got the job, we all agreed that Loki's greatest triumph would be her last.

We created the Vanishing Point to reward the smartest minds (and communities) on the planet - and still we underestimated you. We used our smarts and our guile, not to mention money and connections and countless hours of time-and still you humbled us. We knew the terrain and barely gave you a map-and that didn't stop you. We built puzzles that should have taken you days and you solved them in hours.

"Loki" is a genius: but you were far more brilliant. You were thought made fire. You were lightning.

Thank you for your work, your talent, and your dedication. It has been a privilege to witness: an honor and a delight.

For each of us to live, Loki had to die. Thank you, thank you beyond words for taking her to the Vanishing Point.

Lorelei
Odessa
Kara
Ivy

--That makes me mad though because I entered an alternate spelling for the first name days ago and I didn't see that. I found many resources with that alternate spelling. But anyway, it was fun :)