Townesville to Detachment A: Go ahead.
KCY.FRD6.WILL COPY YRS FRD1.GA.
CINCPAC to Detachment A; As requested we will copy your transmission to FRD1. Go ahead.
Koffler put the sheet of damp paper Howard had given him under his left hand, then pointed his index finger at the first block of five characters.
As his right hand worked the telegrapher's key, his index finger swept across the coded message. It is more difficult to transmit code than plain English, for the simple reason that code doesn't make any sense.
It took him not quite sixty seconds before he sent, in the clear, END.
FRD6.FRD1.VRF.
Detachment A, this is Townesville. I am about to send to you the material you just transmitted to me for purposes of verification.
FRD1.FRD6.GA
Townesville, this is Detachment A. Go ahead.
Koffler picked up a stubby pencil carefully.
We're running out of pencils, too. If something doesn't happen, if they don't send us some supplies, I'll be taking traffic from the Townesville and the Commander-in-Chief, Pacific by writing it with a sharp stick in the dirt floor.
After the message was received, Koffler handed it to Howard, who checked it against his original. Then Koffler began to write down the verification from Pearl Harbor.
The message informed both the Royal Australian Navy Coastwatcher Establishment and the Commander-in-Chief, Pacific, that Detachment A had observed, beginning at 1025 hours, a fleet of approximately ninety-six Japanese aircraft, consisting of approximately thirty Aichi D3A1 "Val" aircraft; ten Mitsubishi G4M1 Type 1 "Betty" Aircraft; fifteen Nakajima B5N1 "Kate" aircraft and approximately forty-one Mitsubishi A6M2 Model 21 "Zero" aircraft, flying at altitudes ranging from 5,000 to 15,000 feet, on a course which would probably lead them to Guadalcanal.
Howard wanted to make sure the message had been correctly transmitted. It took a little time.
FRD6.KCY ?????????
Detachment A. This is CINCPAC Radio. What's going on? We haven't heard from you in ninety seconds.
KCY.FRD6. FU FU.
CINCPAC Radio. This is Detachment A. Fuck You Twice.
"OK, Steve," Howard said. "Tell them we verify."
FRD6.FRD1.KCY. OK VRF. SB.
Detachment A to Townesville and Pearl Harbor. Verification is acknowledged. Detachment A is standing by.
FRD1.FDR6. SB TO COPY CODE.
FDR6. GA.
A minute later, Sergeant Stephen Koffler asked rhetorically, as he scribbled furiously, "what the hell are they sending us, the goddamned Bible?"
The message took three minutes to take down.
FDR1.FDR6. CLR.
Townesville to Detachment A. We have no further traffic for you at this time and are clearing this channel.
FDR6.FDR1. CLR.
Detachment A to Townesville. OK, Townesville, Good-bye.
KCY.FD6. FOLLOWING FOR COMMANDING OFFICER. PASS TO ALL HANDS. WELL DONE. NIMITZ. ADMIRAL.KCY CLR.
FRD6.KCY. GRBL. RPT.
Detachment A to CINCPAC Radio. Your last transmission was received garbled. Please repeat it.
KCY.FD6. FOLLOWING FOR COMMANDING OFFICER. PASS TO ALL HANDS. WELL DONE. NIMITZ. ADMIRAL.KCY CLR.
"I'll be goddamned," Sergeant Koffler said, and sent: FRD.6.KCY.CLR.
"Ian!" he called to the now completely sweat-soaked man pumping the generator. When he had his attention, he made a cutting motion across his throat.
"About fucking time!" Ian Bruce replied.
Steve handed the sheet of paper to Joe Howard.
"You think that's for real?" he asked.
"I can't imagine CINCPAC Radio fucking around," Howard said, seriously. "I'll be damned."
"What was the long code?" Steve asked.
Howard handed it to him.
Deeply regret am unable to relieve or reinforce at this time. Cannot overstate importance of what you are doing. Hang in there. Semper Fi. Banning.
"That's all there was?" Koffler asked.
"That's not enough?" Howard asked.
"You know what I meant," Koffler said. "I thought he was sending the goddamned Bible."
"That was all, Steve."
"Are we going to get out of here?"
"Until we got that 'Well Done' from the Commander-in-Chief Pacific, I thought so," Howard said. But when he saw the look on Koffler's face, he quickly added, "Just kidding, for Christ's sake."