"Scenario 37--
agent-to-agent transfer."
Ripped By mstoll
Pharaoh, please.
I don't know which is colder, the wind or the winter.
And weary winter comin' fast
and cozy here beneath the blast.
You there.
What's the price for one of those?
I'm afraid these are not for sale.
Agreement with the commissary.
Oi, you turn your back on me?
It's one measly egg.
And I've the balsam to pay.
So how's about you quit acting a lout
'fore I shove one of these burn nuts down your throat?
Oh, look at what you done now.
Hey, what's this?
Mm.
Traitor! Traitor! I killed a traitor!
Try, try again.
♪ Hush, hush ♪
♪ There's snakes in the garden ♪
♪ Soul for sale ♪
♪ Blood on the rise ♪
♪ Hush, hush ♪
- ♪ I can't wait anymore ♪ - ♪ Soul for sale ♪
♪ I can't wait anymore ♪
♪ Hush, hush... ♪
Shoulder firelocks!
The prisoner exchange
was carried through this morning, Excellency.
And what is the condition of our returned?
Very poor, sir.
Some are unable to walk owing to starvation.
It confirms Captain Gamble's account--
the enemy treat our captured with brutality
while we protect theirs according to protocol.
"To Lord Howe.
I am sorry to trouble Your Lordship
with a letter almost wholly on the subject
of the barbaric treatment our officers received
on board your prison ship in New York Harbor."
Prepare a copy of Captain Gamble's account.
- I want it enclosed. - Yes, sir.
"I call upon Your Lordship to say
if our treatment of your men
had merited so severe a retaliation..."
Absent without leave,
falsifying intelligence, insubordination--
I want you to know, Captain,
I plan to leave nothing out of my report.
I wouldn't expect you to, sir. Though you should know,
I already told the commander everything I did.
Well, then likely your punishment's been decided
and we've merely been called here to see it carried out.
The accused, John Herring,
having been convicted of breaking into the house
of Mr. Prince Howland
and robbing him of several spoons,
silver dollars, and wearing apparel,
has been sentenced to suffer death.
His Excellency, the commander in chief,
approves this sentence as an example made
to deter the boldest and most hardened offenders.
Shall we?
This is Mr. Nathaniel Sackett
of the Committee to Detect and Defeat Conspiracies against America.
Sir, the presence of a civilian at court-martial is highly irregular.
Yes, I agree, Charles.
Now, would you be so kind as to brief the room
on the intelligence uncovered at Trenton?
- Brief the room? - Myself included.
Ahem.
An examination of orders
discovered in the desk of Colonel Rall
suggests that the garrison we took from the Hessians
was much more than a winter camp.
Trenton was being prepared as a launch point
for an attack on Philadelphia.
I know what Howe wants.
But how will Howe take it?
By land...
by sea...
or will he lunge north to join forces with Burgoyne
so as to decapitate New England from the rest of our colonies?
We have until the snow melts
before their forces in New York begin to move.
New York,
which remains dark to us.
Sir, I have just dispatched new scouts to observe the enemy.
I grow weary of contradictory accounts
that merely guess at the intent of the enemy.
This letter written by your man on Long Island...
That letter was not received through the proper channels.
Which is why I paid it no mind.
It was a lone report and unconfirmed
until our victories at Trenton and Princeton proved it accurate.
More accurate than any piece of intelligence
we've received thus far, at least.
Gentlemen, I've asked you here today
to determine if this was a fluke
and, perhaps more importantly,
if this fluke can be repeated.
Mornin'.
What's your business in New York?
Feeding your officers.
These hogs I have here are bound for Colonel Cook of the commissary.
- Papers? - Yes, sir.
There you go.
- You often travel alone? - Uh, usually I do, yeah.
Is that-- is that a problem?
- Not for me. - Great.
Thought you might have trouble closer to the city.
They're still jumpy from the fire.
And after the rebels' victories,
they see lone arsonists everywhere.
Mm.
You look like you might give them real trouble.
Safe travels, Mr. Woodhull.
Go.
I can assure you, sir, you will be perfectly convinced
of my friend's integrity and loyalty.
Well, according to you,
he took an oath of loyalty to King George.
Only to get closer to the enemy, to learn their secrets.
Traditional military reconnaissance is a proven discipline.
Multiple scouts produce multiple reports
which may be cross-referenced to ensure verification.
In addition, soldiers are trained to recognize--
Actually, soldiers make terrible spies.
All that discipline drilled into their movements
makes them easy to spot,
unlike us civilians.
Excuse me, sir, but why exactly are you in this room?
I've been invited here by your commander in chief
to opine on the business at hand.
Mr. Sackett came to us by way of William Duer,
who recommended him as a person of intrigue and secrecy.
And I must say, I find this young man's
chain of agents very intriguing.
I want this chain notion explored
and a unified recommendation presented upon my return.
Any questions?
- I-- - Well, yes, Your Excellency.
The letter that I transcribed regarding the Hessians and Trenton.
It was unsigned.
I mean to ask, how did you come by the name Abraham Woodhull?
Excellent question.
Any for you, Mr. Sackett?
Plenty, but not for you, sir.
Very well.
♪ He'll not come back for many a day ♪
♪ Johnny's gone for a soldier... ♪
- All right? - Hey.
Whoa, whoa, whoa!
- Are you all right? - Go. I'm all right.
I think it came from over here somewhere.
Don't worry...
I got ya.
♪ for many a day ♪
♪ Johnny's gone for a soldier... ♪
♪ With pipe and drum he marched away... ♪
♪ He would not heed... ♪
Are you nearly finished?
We have important company arriving, Abigail.
We must show them a respectable welcome.
Now, let's have a look.
Oh, dear.
I'm afraid this is all wrong.
I'm sorry, sir.
I just arranged it how my mistress had taught me.
I don't expect you to anticipate my preferences.
Then again...
it is never too late to learn.
Have a seat.
Please have a seat.
Show me how your former mistress
would cut up and eat her meat.
Ah, ah.
It is the European custom, and most appropriate,
to switch and feed oneself
with the dominant hand.
The time it takes to transfer
prevents us from descending into gluttony.
You must think us mad
to devote such attention to trivialities, don't you?
I know I certainly did when I was first made to learn it all.
If I ask you your opinion, you need not be afraid to give it.
I want you to feel safe here
and perhaps find reason to smile.
- Ah!
And here they are.
Happy return, gentlemen.
You should all feel free to relax and get some rest tonight.
Tomorrow, I shall interview each of you
regarding your time in captivity.
Abigail will show you to your rooms.
Look at this.
Liberty never smelled so sweet, hey, snowball?
I smell his tackle on your breath.
You gonna pick it up?
Listen to the pickaninny.
We be Queen's Rangers, son. Back to your digging.
Did you say the Queen's Monkeys?
There's your monkey.
Come on, huh?
You wanna play?
Come on. Yeah?
Come here. Come on!
No eyes on him.
I am sorry to keep you waiting,
but, you see, I've been looking for someone.
I've been tracking a man who killed one of my boys.
And it's been four months--
just one of them, four months--
so, you see, if you hurt a Ranger, you pay a price.
Now, it's nothing personal. That's just the rules.
Do what you will.
Oh, yeah, I will.
But before all that, I just wanna ask ya,
where the hell did you learn how to use staves like this?
I have seen all manner of lethality,
but you showed me something new today.
I'm Maasai.
We train with fimbos for initiation.
Fimbos?
Go on, then. Show me.
Only warriors are initiated.
I have been a warrior for 30 years, boy.
Let me put him down, Major.
Drop your iron. I'll make you my meat.
While you dream, snowball.
We'll have a fair fight, then.
The lads'll make a little coin,
and you and he will get the answer you're looking for, eh?
So she then hangs a black petticoat on a drying line
to signal to my courier when the intelligence is ready.
- Not bad. - And she hangs napkins
to signify which cove is safe for the rendezvous.
Wait, wait. Rendezvous?
Don't tell me your agent meets your courier in person?
Oh, well, of course.
Failure. Death.
No, no, no. Courier and agent
are never in the same place at the same time.
Well, then how do you expect for them to make the transfer?
You predetermine the location
to drop, id est, hide
the lettre confidentielle in question
and then arrange a later time for retrieval.
A dead drop...
to ensure your agents don't drop dead
from being caught in flagrante delicto.
Which demonstrates the folly of this scheme.
If a single link is broken, the entire chain is rendered useless.
Which is why we use encryption, sir.
To shield the men, not the message.
Captain, which enciphering method have you been using thus far?
Rossignol? Trithemius?
Personally, I prefer Dumas.
Please tell me you're using encryption.
My God.
I was told you were a graduate of Yale.
Yes, sir. Class of '73.
Hmm.
One supposes you've studied Greek, Latin, Hebrew?
Nai. Certe. Chen-adon.
And lam a quick study, Mr. Sackett.
Then at least we have somewhere to start.
Commit this to memory.
We don't have time for this.
The commander expects results, not wordplay.
But we're ahead of the game, thanks to Captain Tallmadge here.
Typically, I have to concoct a legend
for the agents I wish to embed into enemy territory.
A poultry trader, fishmonger, schoolteacher.
Requires wardrobe, documentation, training.
The brilliance of Mr. Woodhull is his life is his legend.
There's no reason to invent a false one.
He's already living it.
- Who pays for it? - Hmm?
Well, if the farmer's not farming, who provides for his expenses?
His food, his lodging? His money to bribe sources?
We do, of course.
The Congress will never approve intelligencer salaries
while we cobble together bounties for our regulars.
Congress needn't know about it.
We'll draw from a secret fund
authorized by Washington to be used at our discretion.
General, please.
We've been asked to explore how a chain of agents might work.
Some debate is to be expected.
Explore whatever you want, Tallmadge.
As the head of intelligence, I will never approve this.
It's time that you learned how the chain of command works.
Hmm.
That was predictable.
Ah.
♪ I sold my flax, I sold my wheel ♪
♪ To buy my love a sword of steel ♪
♪ So it in battle he might wield ♪
♪ Johnny's gone for a soldier... ♪
Listen to me. You've made a mistake.
You're shivering, Mr. Woodhull.
Here.
This'll warm you up.
No, no, no.
I am the son of a Tory magistrate.
I'm a loyal subject of the Crown.
You've gotta listen to me. You've gotta listen.
Little Tory boy.
I'm with the 19th Continentals under Sullivan.
I've been out here five months--
the last man of my unit--
ambushing their dispatch riders, hitting supply lines,
all while looking for a way to get back to the regiment proper.
Only reason you're still breathing
is I got more questions need answering
about who you sell to and where, at what price,
anything they'll ask at the checkpoints.
You plan to pass yourself off as me?
But that coat and that pin
is as much a disguise for me as it is for you.
I'm under direct orders to infiltrate the city
and gather intelligence for the Continental Army.
- I swear. - Oh, I see.
So...
you're a spy.
Benjamin Tallmadge, Second Continental Light Dragoons.
He will confirm my loyalty and he will verify my mission.
Your mission?
You're gonna tell me what I need to know
or they'll find your body liberated of its skin.
What, you know them all, trust them all?
We all grew up together.
Childhood friends. Fascinating.
Wouldn't have thought to try that.
Well, it wasn't exactly planned.
Don't tell anyone that.
Don't tell anyone else Mr. Woodhull's name.
Time to gift Mr. Woodhull an alias.
One by which the other agents will know him.
I'm sorry, the other agents?
Hmm, I've plans for your farmer.
Need him to nurture the seeds
that I've planted over the last year and a half.
One of them is sprouting right now,
right under the enemy's nose.
I-- no, I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that's
not how this is going to work.
You see, Abe, he's a very cautious man.
He won't meet with anybody he doesn't already know.
- He'll have to. - No, he'll quit is what he'll do.
I thought he was your friend.
Yes, which is exactly why he trusts me to protect him.
Only that which is concealed is protected.
You can't even conceal his name.
Luckily for you, I am a master at the an of concealment.
Thank you, Lieutenant Terrence.
I have an uncle in the Coldstream Guard,
so he'll be glad we've reclaimed one of his own.
I remember the motto-- "Nulli Secundam."
Second to none.
Good evening, sir. Have a seat.
- Name and rank. - Captain John Graves Simcoe.
And where was your post?
A town called Setauket.
Setauket, Long Island?
Ambush, was it not?
Where are my manners. Drink?
And how did you find it there in Setauket?
May I have some more ink, please, Abigail?
This is for military record?
Oh, my own personal curiosity.
It's a pit
run by a man who I'd say--
well, best not to talk out of turn.
Hewlett?
"The Oyster Major," as he's referred to in these parts.
If you'd like, I could see to arranging a transfer.
Please, Major, not on my account.
There's someone whom I left far too abruptly.
A local woman, perhaps?
In any case, I should very much like to return to her.
By all means.
Tell me about her.
Well, I'm all packed up.
Tell me what I need to know
or I kill that fire 'fore I go.
No? Have it your way, then.
My-- my father's Richard Woodhull.
His deal is with Colonel Cook for seven pounds per pound.
Now, was that so hard?
Tell me true...
if you're such a patriot,
why didn't you enlist with the militia
and fight for your country like a man?
Because you can't win.
Look at you.
Look at your--
your fort here.
You're one man.
You're alone in the woods...
surrounded by an army
on an island surrounded by a navy.
That-- that is the Continental Army.
That is what you're running back to.
So I should be like you, then?
Swear allegiance to the king with my fingers crossed behind me?
What's your family think of you?
What I do, I do for my son.
He know you're a liar?
He's a year old.
I want to be there for him when he grows up.
If I had a son, I'd have him know
I fought and died for my beliefs
so he could rise to avenge me.
I'd want my son to choose for himself...
rather than have his father choose for him.
But then our--
our views on liberty--
true liberty-- may differ.
You say you need this suit, this pin, and this paper.
I'll do you a deal.
Fight me for them.
Come on!
I don't want to fight you.
Oh, don't worry. I'll let you warm up first.
You think you deserve this more?
- Prove it. - We're on the same side.
Prove you're worth more.
- No, I won't. - You fight me.
- I'm not worth more. - You fight me.
Wanna kill me? Wanna kill me?
That's what a man does.
That 's Mr. Woodhull's cart.
He went through the checkpoint yesterday.
Come around to the left, men!
No, he's the captive!
There he is!
Surrender! You are alone and outnumbered.
You were right, Mr. Woodhull.
You Tory bastard!
It's over now. You're safe.
Tough nut, that one.
Oh, it's a long story. Too long.
- Do tell, tell. - Tell, tell.
Very well, very well.
You see, I, too, was once taken prisoner.
Not long after I arrived in America
during the defense of Fort Saint-Jean.
I took it upon myself to write down everything that I saw--
troop movements, gun placements.
I even drew a detailed map of the territory.
You must be quite the artist.
I dabble.
My reports were sent to General Howe
and, impressed with my initiative,
he assigned me to a new post.
So you see, I understand the value of men in chains.
Thus it falls to me to interrogate our returned.
Though I do prefer to compare multiple accounts.
That way, if something is suspect...
it's easier to spot.
As an artist, I've learned that it's not always the big picture,
but the little details
that effectively sell the tale.
Another line of the old author, Lieutenant Terrence?
Lieutenant Terrence here is a Coldstream man.
I propose a toast for
one of Colonel Mathew's finest.
Nulli Secundam.
Secundus.
What the hell have you done?
This man's a liar.
Coldstream lieutenant not knowing his regiment's motto.
He was likely sent back to us as a spy.
I know that!
You pale fool.
I had planned on turning him double,
the opportunity of which I have now been robbed.
I apologize, Major. I just thought--
You didn't think.
You acted upon the assumption that you were the only one
who could spot a mouse in the cupboard.
Has it really been that long since your last kill
or is violence your natural inclination?
Go back to Setauket, Captain.
I pray that woman can settle your savage side.
General, have we come to a consensus?
Your Excellency, we believe traditional reconnaissance
is the way forward
as it depends on as little variable as possible
and would be carried out by men who could be trusted to follow orders.
Captain, what say you?
I-- I concur with the general, sir.
The chain of agents approach would require trust
and in that resource,
I'm afraid we find ourselves lacking.
You're speaking now of your men on Long Island.
No, sir, I'm speaking of the men in this room.
Sir, for a conspiracy like this one to function,
we would need to be keeping secrets
from the enemy, from Congress, even from our own army.
This would require absolute trust amongst the secret-keepers,
and yet General Scott here
does not trust me or my judgment.
Mr. Sackett here mistrusts my experience,
much as I mistrust his attitude
toward the lives of the agents in the field.
And you, sir--
you know the name Abraham Woodhull
and yet you will not disclose to me
the source of your knowing.
Apparently, you do not trust me either.
Therefore, I cannot trust the success
of any chain that we might build here today.
I would like to speak with Captain Tallmadge alone.
Get up, boy.
Come on, fight!
Hold!
Shut your gobs!
You still gonna kill me?
Well, Rangers don't kill their own initiates.
Samuel Tallmadge.
Samuel.
Mr. Sackett tells me that you prefer
an alias for Woodhull.
I must say, I concur.
Forgive me, sir, but I thought that we had agreed
- that the best way forward-- - You were right in your prescription.
We require an amendment in the name of trust.
Following our retreat from Brooklyn Heights,
I tasked a agent to reconnoiter enemy encampments around Long Island
and seek out contacts friendly to our side.
His name was Nathan Hale,
and he was captured while he was on a mission for me.
He was hanged as a spy.
Fortunately, his best friend at Yale,
a certain Benjamin Tallmadge,
spoke often of his hometown friends--
a whaler named Brewster and a farmer named Woodhull.
I wrote those three names down on a report,
a report I looked back on when an unsigned letter
sent by an anonymous farmer proved correct.
Captain Hale died without friends to support him.
We cannot let that happen to Mr. Culpepper.
Mr. Culpepper?
We'll never use the name Woodhull again.
Why was he wearing your clothes?
His aim was to pose as me,
escape into the city, I suppose.
Right, and that proves the general's anxieties.
Can't take any more lone men into New York.
You mean I can't continue on?
Not alone.
He tell you his name?
No.
Please don't think that I condone such barbarism.
Just...
miss my boy, is all.
You have a son?
His birthday's comin' round.
Well, then, we must send him something.
If you think of a gift, I'll make arrangements
to have it sent by special courier.
Well, there's that smile.
That's good. Good, good.
You are an invaluable asset to me,
and so, General Scott, I feel it better
to apply your acumen where it is most needed--
on the front.
But, sir, a captain can't run the intelligence branch.
That's why I have promoted him to major.
I wish you the best of luck, Your Excellency.
He is a fine general.
Thank you for this promotion, sir.
- I pray I do you proud. - As do I.
Your first duty is to come up
with a given name for our Mr. Culpepper.
Samuel.
In honor of your brother, I presume?
Yes, sir.
And might I ask, what is the meaning of "Culpepper"?
Excellent question.
Ripped By mstoll