"All clear, samurai!"
After travelling on sea for a while, I have made it to a seaport in Japan as a regular civilian passenger. Apparently, Eren had recently managed to contact someone there, and in fact, he already had plans to send me there before I even arrived on Earth...
A former Republic citizen working for a private security company was tasked with finding me and allowing my enterance to the country if required. His name was Kazuki Abe. According to Eren, he had emigrated to Earth decades ago, to find a job and live there. But when the war came closer, he had felt remorse about having left his country and working for the enemy of the Republic.
In the end, he ended up betraying the Federation and contacting the Republic again after so many years.
After Kazuki and I met at the port, we casually walked to a silent backstreet to talk a bit more. I could not handle my curiosity, so I started asking questions right away.
"How did you manage to get a job in a security company? Didn't they do a background check and reject you because of your Republic citizenship?"
"They did a background check of course, but I was no longer a Republic citizen." the man said. "I had already managed to become a citizen of Japan and get an actual Japanese identity a while ago, so they didn't think much about it. Besides, the Republic and the Federation wasn't that bad towards each other back then. Also, back then, the company was a really small one, so they weren't involved with the government business anyway. Only a couple of years ago we started getting contracts from the government."
"I am surprised that you actually kept your ties with the Republic alive." I said.
"I... I must admit, I actually did not. But later, when the Federation and the Republic started taking up arms, things changed. There was a very important event that changed my mind forever." he said.
"What happened?" I asked.
"I... happened to catch a Republic infiltrator in action near a Federal Deep Space Network data building a few days before the war was declared. In that case, my orders was to eliminate the threat." he said.
"Well?"
"I reported the encounter, but I went there by myself to catch the infiltrator before the other security teams could get closer. I was closer than anyone else."
"Then? What happened?" This was getting way too interesting.
"The man tried to put up a fight, so I ended up shooting him dead." he said.
"And? Tell the whole story!"
"I found a few data storage devices on the man. Everything was going according to the action plans so far, but... when the other teams arrived, I couldn't bring myself to let them know about the devices." he said.
"Why?"
"We were never really told about what we were protecting, and naturally... I was a bit curious about what information about the Federation's business the man could dig up. I... simply wanted to see it myself." he explained.
"If this was found out, you could be imprisoned." I said.
"Yes, but no one found out." he said.
"So... What was on the devices?" I asked.
"The raw data was fetched very hastily, and most of it was, unsurprisingly, encrypted. Getting the correct decryption keys was almost impossible since they were dynamic keys. I could only decrypt some parts of it, but what I had seen was good enough for me to start doubting the morals of the Federation."
"SO WHAT WAS ON THE DEVICES!?" I asked.
The man stopped talking and looked deep into my eyes.
"Don't worry, you will see it with your own eyes... But to know more about that, I will need your help." Kazuki said. "I will give you access to the devices and the network, and if you can find out where the data fragment was fetched from, we can track it down to find the whole data block." he said.
"You basically want me to hack the network?" I said.
"No." Kazuki said. "We already have access, and we are already watching the network traffic. You simply need to pinpoint the data block using the fragment that was fetched."
"That sounds like a simple task. Why didn't you try it?" I asked.
"It isn't as simple as it sounds." he said. "The Federal Deep Space Network sends every piece of data through many channels to a single target. The data is encrypted, then split up, then every fragment is encrypted again. Then the data fragments are mixed up with garbage data, and every fragment is sent through another channel. When the data fragments and the decryption key arrives to the target, it is combined with the dynamic key in the target's own computer, and this allows the decryption of the whole data block that was sent."
"Eh?"
"So it is impossible to decrypt a single fragment if we don't know about the whole data package that was sent." he said.
I took my time trying to understand what he was talking about. Kazuki patiently waited for me before speaking again.
"I am sure you will understand better if you see it yourself." he said.
"Sure..." I said. "But wait. How come the Deep Space Network in Japan is still active after they left the Federation?"
"The Deep Space Network complex is Federation territory." he said. I couldn't quite get how the Federation could trust a 'traitor', but I didn't ask more about that. But Kazuki read my mind.
"It is a dirty business." he simply said.
"So... What is the plan? I am not an employee of your company... How am I going to get access to the network traffic?" I asked.
"I will handle that part." he said. "You just worry about the data."
"I want to know." I said.
"I will leave you at a hidden point near the building at night, and clear your way in by using various tricks." Kazuki said. "I will trigger a false alarm a few times through the night. When the security teams move, you must take the opportunity to sneak in. I can find and guide you once you are inside. Your only job is to get inside somehow, even if you trigger more alarms."
"What if we both get caught?" I asked.
"I thought about that as well." Kazuki said. "Come on, you have been doing great so far, and you know what you need to know. I don't want to spoil the rest of the experience!"
I hated the smirk on his face.