Day 146 - Code Story

Code Story

Matthew Ryan Fischer

The code came in. The code was reviewed and interpreted and decoded and reports were written and filed. The files were dated and stamped and recorded. There were meetings and analysis done. Those results were passed on to superiors and leaders and advisers.

The code came in from overseas. Agents had risked their lives, infiltrating the enemy and exposing themselves to discovery and torture or worse. The agents had been sent out knowing full well what the mission was. That was their choice. That was their duty. Still, their sacrifice had been tremendous. That sacrifice should be respected.

The war had been at a stalemate for years. Both sides played cloak and dagger and had spies and saboteurs everywhere. There were slow moving cold fronts and guerrilla fighting. It was a tedious effort – a chess game where one could never see the other side and never know what their next move was really leading towards.

Spies were captured and turned all the time. Codes were broken and reversed and revealed all in an effort to mislead and trick the others. A captured agent knew when to report in and when not to. A captured agent knew how to signal his compromise in a message if he was being forced to keep communications open. Part of the defensive strategy was learning how to interpret all the information and misinformation that came in. A double agent sometimes had to give information to each side. That was the hardest to recognize. Sometimes a message revealed a truth, but that was part of a larger plan of misdirection. Future plans were always more important that current plans. Future victories were more important that current setbacks. Lose a few thousand men now, but win a war later. That was a fair tradeoff.

A code came in and the code breakers saw the clear message – this message had been compromised. The agents on the ground were trying to send a warning. They did what they could. The code breakers reported what they could.

Then there was silence. No one asked questions. Nothing changed.

The code breakers were astonished. Did their superiors know? Did they listen to the reports? Protocol usually meant that superiors were always right and you didn’t ask questions. But lives were at stake. Countries were possibly at stake. Certain code breakers had less respect for certain superiors. Perhaps the messages had been lost or fallen on deaf ears. Perhaps the reports needed to be filed again. Perhaps, in the subtlest, most respectful way possible, the code breakers needed to repeat themselves.

And so they did. And then again, nothing. Silence.

The compromised codes kept coming in, warning of corruption and capture. The codes kept being returned, revealing too much.

No one understood or knew what was going on. Someone, somewhere was playing cat and mouse and had failed to tell anyone.