CONFIDENTIAL REPORT
EYES ONLY FOR: Jackson Purchase President Reginald Philips
SUBJECT: Identification of WTR Spy within the JP - Initial Report
FROM: Brigadier General Nathan Taylor, Director, Strategic Security Agency
Mr. President,
I would like to begin my report by applauding the diligent efforts of the state troopers. Although counterintelligence is not part of their normal duties, they have exceeded all my expectations and are to be commended for their diligent work.
We have been able to successfully identify a WTR infiltrator in the USECO Complex (full identification withheld from this report for security purposes). He is a maintenance man and grounds keeper at the facility. He was able to listen in on the side discussions and report what he heard to his handler in the WTR.
The man was recruited through leverage on his mother who lived in Western Tennessee. His handler told him his elderly mother would be taken care of if he helped them; but if not, they couldn’t guarantee her safety. In the end, the man had felt like he had no choice but to cooperate.
The man’s biggest concern is now for the safety of his mother and he hopes his handler did not learn that he has been caught. I believe this situation could present us with an opportunity. We could allow the man to continue providing information, but in reality he would be working for my new intelligence service. Such an arrangement would allow us to pass disinformation along and also hopefully allow us to learn about the WTR intelligence network. It is risky, but in my judgment worth the gamble.
We have unfortunately been able to learn little about the WTR handler. What we have gathered indicates a highly trained professional in espionage tradecraft and operational security. Full identification of this individual will be one of the primary objectives of the above operation.
The infiltrator also has information indicating that he is not the only recruited spy within the JP. He does not possess any information specific enough to identify these individuals, but we are opening cases and using his information to build subject profiles.
Sir, I will continue to keep you informed of the above situations as they develop. As always I welcome your thoughts and guidance.
Respectfully,
ORIGINAL SIGNED
Brigadier General Nathan Taylor
ORIGINAL SIGNED
President Reginald Philips with the words "See me ASAP!" written in the president's hand.
*******
CONFIDENTIAL REPORT
EYES ONLY FOR: Jackson Purchase Senior Council Officials and Military Commanders - Further Dissemination is Unauthorized Without Written Approval of the Undersigned
SUBJECT: Intelligence Situation Report
FROM: Brigadier General Nathan Taylor, Director, Strategic Security Agency
The Strategic Security Agency over the last month has been monitoring short wave radio transmissions using local trusted volunteers. Each was given particular bandwidths to monitor and report on what they heard of interest. Although my expectations were low, I have been surprised by the amount of radio traffic and the information they gathered.
It is apparent that what we would describe as the civilized world is now limited to the Southeast Asian nations with Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, and New Zealand as the world’s leaders in every area. Although South America and Africa were spared widespread nuclear bombardment, they were behind Southeast Asia in development and production. N-Day appears to have set off a fresh wave of continent-wide violent chaos in Africa which continues even now.
North America, Europe, Northern Asia, China, India, and Southwest Asia are now largely nuclear wastelands where little lives and any hope for recovery is probably unknown decades in the future. Fortunately, the nuclear fallout clouds and debris were limited to the central part of the northern hemisphere and have dissipated more quickly and easily than anyone could have predicted before N-Day.
The majority of the radio traffic we have intercepted is from the Southeast Asia Basin or from Spanish broadcasts in Latin and South America, but there were some other surprising signal sources. Although the southern edge of Canada near the Great Lakes and Vancouver took direct nuclear hits, most of the rest of the country was left untouched. The people there appear to have utilized their natural resources and ingenuity to form communities similar to the JP, despite their obvious disadvantages of extreme weather and isolation.
We are also regularly monitoring transmissions from something called The Alaskan Free State which gives indications of a functioning highly developed government of its own.
I have carefully considered the pros and cons of attempting to make official shortwave radio contact with these elements in Alaska and Canada, but could not see the benefit since we are too far away to help each other or provide practical information. I decided to let our radio operators talk to counterparts in these areas, but any sort of diplomatic relations are unnecessary and probably ridiculous, given the circumstances.
There are also radio transmissions from within the United States, but these are mostly pitiful in their loneness and abject despair. Others are often frightening in their threats of violence or proud proclamations of despicable deeds. There are also some indications of militant organized tribal groups forming to the west. These groups are aggressive and appear bent on conquest and destruction. I have forbidden the radio operators from communicating with any of these sources. We don’t know how dangerous these elements are, but the less they know about the JP, the better.
The radio operators have on occasion picked up bits and pieces of information about something called ‘Continuity of Government,’ possibly in Colorado. We know that before the war, the United States had post-nuclear war contingency plans to save key government leaders and continue the government. We do not know for certain if there are remnants of the American government holed up in some mountain fortress, or if this is a false hope. Regardless, the information is so limited as to make it nearly useless.
The radio broadcasts have further emphasized how fortunate the JP was compared to the rest of the country. All the major cities in the United States took at least one direct nuclear hit, and many more than one. Following the attacks, the nuclear fallout drifted east with the prevailing winds and weather patterns. All the major cities near the JP were to the east, north, or south. The closest city to the west hit by a nuke was Wichita, and it only sustained a smaller strike resulting in almost no fallout settling in the JP.
Although people in the JP still occasionally show signs of mild radiation sickness, this is nothing compared to the reports we've heard of piles of decayed bodies in the streets and cities across America. In short, the situation outside the JP, especially in high population density areas, is dire.
We cannot count on any outside help and may need to be prepared to defend what we have. Fortune has smiled upon us to date, but we cannot gamble the lives of our families on the hope that she will continue to do so.
We are surrounded by enemies and death. Retreat is impossible. We must prepare ourselves for the worst to come.
Respectfully,
ORIGINAL SIGNED
Brigadier General Nathan Taylor
YOU ARE READING
Glimmer of Hope (Land of Tomorrow Book 1)
Science-FictionFollowing a nuclear holocaust, Nathan Taylor and his family face grim choices in order to stay alive. Fleeing deadly radiation, plague and desperate men, Nathan, an army officer, leads his wife and their two teenage sons away from chaos and madness...
