She sucked at languages. She got her ass handed to her in combat training. The lie detector caught her out every single time.
‘Have you considered you may not be cut out for this line of work?’ her trainer asked.
She persisted. Cryptography was her elective for the summer term. They started with history. She took an interest, this subject her brain seemed to grasp.
She cracked the old keys and ciphers with ease. She created her own that no one could decode.
With tiny quills on the back of matchboxes her writing was neat, quick and accurate. She was top of the class.
Now they moved onto modern codes and communications. They were told about ones and zeros, number keys, millions of calculations per second.
A laptop was presented to each of them. Their task: write an unhackable piece of encryption.
After five minutes she raised her hand. The trainer approached her desk.
‘You’ve finished?’
She shook her head, ‘It keeps asking me to hit the ‘Any’ key, but I don’t see it anywhere.’

Written as part of Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writers. The challenge is to write a flash fiction story or poem in around 150 – 175 words, based on the weekly photo prompt. Thanks as always to the challenge host Priceless Joy. For more information visit HERE.
To read other stories based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.
59 responses to “SPY SCHOOL”
Hahaha. I did not see that coming!
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Glad it gave you a chuckle 🙂
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I remember the computer asking me the same question. I hope she gets on better with computers than I do.
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It’s not looking good so far.
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Ha. Very fun. 😀
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Thank you 🙂
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Ha! Maybe she needed to try the “ESC” key. She’s certainly not in CNTL.
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Ha, very good, I’m enjoying the comments on this one 🙂
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Well, there goes the job with Q….
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Unless all the computers stop working and we’re back to pen and paper! Thanks Trent.
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She may understand Any, but another class in abbreviations will be needed.
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Ha, good point!
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LOL. Guess she’s set to fail this one too.
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It’s just not meant to be 🙂
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Haha nice one! ESC is next!
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Ha, nicely done 🙂
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She may need an ALT career after all.
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Thanks Janet, some good comments on this one too! 🙂
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[…] Source: SPY SCHOOL […]
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Shame – born too late. She could come into her own if the security services need to plant an undercover agent among the street traders who write names on grains of rice?
Nice story.
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That’s true – there’s always a niche where her skills might be needed 🙂
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oh my!
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Apparently it’s a genuine question that IT support get sometimes 🙂
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A good one Iian
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Thank you
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She’s just an old fashioned girl.
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And no worse for that.
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I hate it when I suck at everything! I’m real good at talking your ear off! Is there a job for that?
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I’m sure there could be, even as a secret agent – chief negotiator or interrogation perhaps? 🙂
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My husband sometimes feels like he’s being interrogated. Hmmm.
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I hit enter too soon on my last response…I was going to say, picture me thinking about it … like that movie GREASE – where the principal is on the loud speaker at the end of the year for the seniors as they face commencement, “Who knows maybe you’ll be the future day Eleanor Roosevelt, or J. Edgar Hoover?” and flashes to the goofballs that had bad grades and they all were contemplate being amazing people. That was me a minute ago. Interrogator…hmmm. I could only find a video of what I’m talking about, in Spanish, https://youtu.be/G9zV6XLZOBE
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LOL! Great story, Iain!
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Thank you PJ, glad it gave you a laugh!
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What one might call a ‘blonde’ moment?
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I wouldn’t want to discriminate against blondes 🙂
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ha! CRAFT moment then. 🙂
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Haha! Good at cryptography, not so good at computers. Great zinger at the end.
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Thank you 🙂
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Good gag line Iain….always makes me smile.
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Thanks Michael, glad it raised a smile.
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Time for career change methinks! Nice one Iain.
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It’s not for everyone!
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Oh lol. Funny at themed there. A code she couldn’t crack.
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We’ve all had moments with computers, especially the older we get 🙂
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lol. True. I’ve been trying to teach my Mom to use her smartphone for the last 5 years or so, at least she can text okay now. I remember when she started working after staying home 2/3 of the time with my brothers and I. She didn’t know how to turn the computer on the first day of her job. We laughed so hard, but now I look back and think that must have been hard.
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One day I’m sure it will be us with some sort of new technology, and our kids will be laughing at us!
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Yes, I know. I think it already starts when you leave school. Have a good one Ian 🙂
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LOL…No ESC for poor she!
Never saw the end coming.
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🙂
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LOL. Oh dear, and she was going so well. Maybe a safe desk job might suit her?
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Stenographer perhaps?
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Clever writing, Iain! Loved the way you´ve stretched your imagination for this one. This will be one of those unforgettable reads for me. Brilliant. 🙂
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Thank you Tina, very kind.
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Ha ha! Didn’t see that comical twist coming. Really thought she had encrypted a code no one could hack. Nicely done, Iain.
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Sorry to let you down! She wasn’t cracked up to it after all 🙂
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🙂
Ellespeth
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Thanks 🙂
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Well there, she has a lot to learn 🙂
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She certainly does 🙂
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