From: pel@maximo.enet.dec.com (Phillip E lujan)
Subject: STORY: Knightsrun
Date: 29 Dec 92 21:40:29 GMT
Hello, everyone...
I've been lurking around here for a little while, enjoying the stories,
and I thought I'd make a little offering of my own. Yes, I would enjoy
comments, criticism (no flames please), or just to chat with someone else
who shares a common interest. Nuff said, here's the story...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
KNIGHTSRUN
He'd know in a minute if it was going to work.
Johannes smiled to himself as he wired up the explosives to the
detonators. Forty-five seconds until the whole works went up in
smoke. After that, the land-grubbing industrialists would have a
hard time getting power from this dam, that was for sure.
Last block of plastique; last wire crimped to detonator; insert,
and run. 30 seconds to reach cover; enhanced nervous system
driving clone-tissue boosted muscles to reach incredible speeds.
Diving behind the improvised barricade with milli-seconds to spare.
Then the world exploded.
------------------------------------------------------------------
DATELINE NEWS -- 24 DECEMBER 2042 -- DATELINE NEWS
Hey, hey, hey, Merry Xmas Eve to you all out there, this is
Chip Carson with the dateline news. Flash and Boom! The
Hudson River Hydroelectric Plant has just been bombed; no
details have yet been released, but it wouldn't surprise me
if the Greeners were behind this latest attack... Other
eco-terrorist actions recently have included the new strain
of algae that's clogging Greater New York's sewer system and
the 'plastic pellets' now littering the Potomac River...
Seems that most of these attacks are centered on waterworks
of some kind, or maybe it's just coincidence... Chip Carson,
signing off; remember, no eco-terrorism means we're not
polluting enough! Bye bye and buy bonds... something from
the late, great TwenCen!
------------------------------------------------------------------
The room was dark. Amid the clutter which littered the floor,
a dark shape on a futon stirred.
"Hangover, level one, execute," said a voice.
A few minutes pass. "Damn," the voice mutters. "What's wrong
with the bleedin' voice-recog?"
The shape makes its way to the wall, where an old-fashioned light
switch is mounted. The switch is flipped two or three times, with
no results. Finally, the figure moves over to a low table and
strikes a match. Lighting the stub of a candle, the young man
that is revealed stretches, then checks his 'deck. A small backup
power supply sits underneath the device.
** LOCAL POWER GRID DISRUPTED **
** SYSTEM OPERATING ON BACKUP POWER SUPPLY **
** WARNING **
** POWER LOW : MINIMAL USE RECOMMENDED **
'Yeah, no shit,' he thinks. 'Let's get some power routed this
way; I've got a run to make.'
------------------------------------------------------------------
Blackness, a few points of light scattered around, everything
blurry.
** RENORMALIZATION ALGORITHMS ADJUSTING **
Faint, blue letters at the outer edge of vision. Stars approaching
your face, streaks of light rushing at you.
** RENORMALIZATION ALGORITHMS ADJUSTED **
** INTERFACE SUPERIMPOSITION EXECUTING **
The 'stars' are now visible as lights of varying intensities, and
the streaks are lightbeams connecting the stars - until the stars
are replaced by castles, the streaks by roads. A fantasy land
stands revealed before you.
** LOCAL ACCESS ACCEPTED. WELCOME, STARKNIGHT. **
Seen from afar, a large castle sits atop a metaphorical hill:
DataComm, the satellite linkup. The knight in his armor spurs
his steed to approach. Coming close, he spies telltale signs of
watchful guard. Raising his right hand, he says, "Lower the
drawbridge!"
>> ACCESS DATACOMM : SIGMA ALPHA, PRIORITY ONE <<
** WORKING ACCESS PROCEDURE **
A guard leans his head out of the gatehouse and asks, "Where from,
Good Sir Knight?"
** ACCESS ACCEPTED : PASSWORD, PLEASE : **
>> EXECUTE WORMWORD : ALEPH NULL DELTA LAMBDA <<
The knight leans forward and states: "My background is my own to
tell, when I should have a wish to do so. My business here is
with your castle's lord."
** WORMWORD RESPONSE : PASSWORD FOUND **
** PASSWORD LOCKED INTO SYSTEM **
"Oh, aye," responds the guard. "Right this way, Sir Knight."
The knight enters a room containing several doors, and chairs to
sit upon. A guard stands before each door, save the one the knight
entered through. Several other cyber-selves sit in chairs, waiting
for their turn to pass through to the datastores beyond.
The knight mutters, "Well, so far, so good. That ICEbreaker got
me through the outer walls; now, it's up to me."
>> EXECUTE SEQUENCE 1 2 DELTA ECHO : TARGET ALL <<
** SEQUENCE EXECUTED : NO MATCH FOUND **
"Damn, no-one close enough for an easy match. Maybe..."
>> EXECUTE DOPPELGANGER : TARGET rensvaal : REFIT : REAPPLY <<
** TARGET rensvaal REFITTED TO LOWER OS STATUS **
** UNABLE TO MAINTAIN CAMOUFLAGE MORE THAN 30 SEC **
"OK, let's go for it..." The knight rises to his feet, surrounded
by a shimmering light. The guard at the door stands back to let
him pass...
He finds himself in a large room, with a cross dominating the far
wall. A portly man, dressed as a Catholic priest, approaches.
"Yes, sir, may I help you?"
The knight speaks easily. "No, Father, I would hold vigil here,
and seek to wring an answer from heaven with my entreaties..."
** DATALINK : DATACOMM 7 **
** PLEASE ENTER ACCESS PRIORITY : **
>> EXECUTE SCRAMBLE ACCESS : JOVE TITAN EROS <<
The priest began to frown. "You would refuse the good offices of
a man of the cloth, Sir Knight? Perhaps you are not as pious as
is seemly..."
** WARNING : ICE NOW IN OPERATION **
** ANALYSIS : LOW-LEVEL PROGRAM : CODED AS WATCHDOG **
>> ACCESS EXECUTE LOUDMOUTH : SIGMA 5 <<
>> EXECUTE SHIELD : EXECUTE SWORD > WATCHDOG <<
"I WILL NOT HEED YOUR BLANDISHMENTS, SPAWN OF SATAN!!" screams the
knight. Quickly drawing his sword, he runs the priest through,
to be rewarded by a shriek, a gout of blood, and the sight of the
priest collapsing, changing into a dog-like beast.
Quickly, then, the knight steps forward to the altar. Kneeling
before the marble slab, he prays. "Dear lord, allow me to find
myself in the fortress of my enemy..."
** ACCESS TO DATALINK ACCEPTED **
** DESTINATION : **
>> TAITO-MITSUBISHI : CENTREX <<
** WORKING **
Blurred streaks of light carry the knight to a new palace. As before,
he finds himself in a temple, although this one is a Shinto shrine.
The knight quickly changes his garb for that of a ronin.
>> EXECUTE MUSASHI : SHELL <<
** MUSASHI PERSONA ACTIVE **
The ronin bows to the priest at the temple, then turns and walks through
the stone arch. Beyond, a dirt road stretches into the distance. The
ronin pauses, considering; he should probably seek the information he
wants first, so as not to waste valuable time. He walks to a nearby village.
>> SHIFT NODE : TENGU:: <<
** NODE TENGU:: **
"Iie, Ronin-sama, we have not that information," says the village's headman.
"But a messenger passed by here with the data you seek... He was on his way
to Tokyo." The ronin turns and leaves.
>> SEARCH OPLOG : FIND terminus <<
** WORKING : terminus MESSAGE MOVED : TOKYO:: **
The ronin approaches Tokyo, his swords at his side. This will not be easy,
he knows, but he welcomes the challenge to his skills. Rumours abound
about the quality of the guards at the Tokyo complex. Approaching the castle,
he scouts the territory.
>> EXECUTE ACCESS SCAN : DETECT MODE <<
** WORKING **
'All approaches well guarded; I shall have to bluff my way in,' determines
the ronin. He walks toward the front gate, determined to enter.
>> ACCESS TOKYO : <<
** WELCOME TO TOKYO:: : PASSWORD : **
"I seek employment with your lord," states the ronin. "Allow me to pass."
>> EXECUTE WORMWORD : RHO EPSILON DELTA <<
** WORMWORD EXECUTION DENIED : LOCKED BY ICE OGRE **
Up close, the ronin can see that the guards are not men, but ogres. 'This
would account for the rumours,' he thinks. The ogres close in, menacingly.
>> EXECUTE BLIND : LEVEL DELTA TAU <<
>> SHELL EDIT WORMWORD : <<
>> COMBINE CRACKER | FILE:SWORD > KATANA <<
>> SAVE : EXIT <<
>> EXECUTE KATANA > OGRE <<
The ronin draws his katana, angling it to catch the light of the sun.
A brief flash confuses the ogres for a split-second, giving the ronin
time to strike down one of them. As the ronin faces off against the
second ogre, he hears running footsteps from the castle.
** ALARM CONDITIONS DETECTED **
** ICE CONSTRUCTS APPROACHING **
------------------------------------------------------------------
In the smoking rubble, nothing stirs.
Large blocks of concrete, steel beams and various twisted pieces of
machinery cast eerie shadows in the half-light of the emergency lamps.
Patterns swirl in the blackened smoke; the scents of ozone and cordite
mingle in the air.
In the smoking rubble, nothing stirs.
Save for a slight rhythmic pulsing of one pile of rubble, all is still.
Perhaps some piece of machinery still functions, serving no useful
purpose: such is the way of machines.
In the smoking rubble, nothing stirs.
Then the pulsing seems to get more intense, until a figure arises through
the heaped-up bits of concrete, machinery, etc. A human figure, moving
where nothing could have survived.
In the smoking rubble, something stirs...
------------------------------------------------------------------
'Best to finish this quickly,' thinks the ronin. A quick, practiced
gesture brings a bluish tinge to his katana, and he strikes at the ogre
with practiced ease...
>> SHELL EDIT KATANA : <<
>> INCLUDE FILE:FREEZE <<
>> SAVE : EXIT <<
>> EXECUTE KATANA > OGRE <<
** EXECUTING **
As the katana strikes the ogre, it seems to slow down. The ronin strikes
again, then passes the paralyzed ogre on the run.
>> EXECUTE TRACKER : TARGET terminus <<
** EXECUTING : WARNING : CYCLE TIME SLOWED **
>> RESTORE KATANA : REMOVE FREEZE <<
** KATANA RESTORED : CYCLE TIME INCREASING **
The ronin finds himself inside his enemies fortress, even if only in the
courtyard of the Oyabun's castle. It's farther than he expected to get.
A small dog leaps out from behind him, and runs through a doorway. The
ronin follows his dog...
** ICE CONSTRUCTS STILL APPROACHING **
** ANALYSIS INDICATES : WATCHDOG BLOODHOUND TIGER **
'Hunting constructs,' thinks the ronin. 'Best to take them out, rather than
running.' He considers for a moment, then readies his bow.
>> SHELL EDIT ARROW : <<
>> INCLUDE FILE:POSTMAN:ADDRESS <<
>> INCLUDE FILE:RANDOMIZE <<
>> CLONE 1000 <<
>> SAVE : EXIT <<
>> EXECUTE ARROW > ICECONSTRUCT : DELAY VISIBLE (3) <<
As the ronin draws an arrow, three creatures burst into view. Two dogs
and a tiger rush into the courtyard. The ronin fires his arrow, which
turns into a flight of small birds, each singing a different tune. The
attacking animals appear confused, so the ronin steps back out of sight.
Hearing a soft growl, the ronin turns to find the small dog waiting in a
doorway. Stepping through, he is greeted by the sight of a large rack of
scrolls. As the dog pulls one of the scrolls from the rack with his teeth,
a large samurai steps into view, his katana drawn.
** ICE CONSTRUCT NOW IN CURRENT LOCATION **
** ANALYSIS INDICATES UNKNOWN TYPE **
** PRIMARY STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS : ACTIVE **
** SECONDARY STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS : LETHAL **
Recognizing a worthy foe, the ronin prepares for battle. He gestures, and
again his katana glows with a blue light. Gripping the weapon in both hands,
he waits for his foe to move...
>> RESTORE KATANA : INCLUDE FREEZE <<
>> KILL TRACKER <<
>> EXECUTE PARRY : THEN EXECUTE KATANA > ICECONSTRUCT **
** WORKING **
The samurai-construct was fast. The ronin barely had a chance to parry its
first blow, and completely missed his counter-attack. 'Must be an AI,' he
thought. 'Time to change tactics.'
>> CODE ICECONSTRUCT > SAMURAI <<
>> SHELL EDIT KIAI : <<
>> INCLUDE FILE:LOUDMOUTH <<
>> INCLUDE FILE:CONFUSION:SCRAMBLE <<
>> SAVE : EXIT <<
>> LOOP : EXECUTE PARRY : THEN EXECUTE KATANA > SAMURAI <<
** WORKING : CYCLE DELAY 13 COUNTS **
A few more blows are parried by the ronin; his sword is beginning to chip.
The samurai begins to wind up for a death-blow.
>> BREAK LOOP : EXECUTE KIAI > SAMURAI <<
** WORKING **
As the samurai's sword begins to descend, the ronin lets out a great
shout. "KIAI!" The samurai misses his stroke, and staggers back,
confused. Wasting no time, the ronin rains blows on his foe...
** ANALYSIS INDICATES SAMURAI CONFUSED **
** SUGGESTED ATTACK : KATANA **
>> LOOP : EXECUTE KATANA > SAMURAI : BREAK ON ICEDESTRUCT <<
** WORKING **
Shortly, the samurai is no more, slain by the ronin's fierce blows. The
ronin staggers over to the rack, retrieves the fallen scroll, and glances
briefly at the writing within. Wrapping the scroll around an arrow, he
fires it out of a window towards a lone figure in the fields.
>> MAIL FILE:MESSAGE terminus : ADDRESS NULL : CODE peasant <<
The samurai begins to stir on the floor behind the ronin. 'Time to leave,'
he thinks.
** WARNING : ICE REFORMING **
>> EXECUTE CHOIRSOFANGELS : NODES FILE:LUCIFER <<
And then the ronin was no more. The samurai, peering through the eyes of
an incredibly sophisticated machine, saw a brief flash as the ronin appeared
simultaneously at over 10000 net locations, with a surprisingly non-musical
sound:
"Thhphhpbbbttttt!"
------------------------------------------------------------------
In a room lit only by a candle, a young man sits hunched over his cyberdeck.
Swearing, pounding the casing with one hand, he finally achieves some
success; the lights come back on. Checking the real-time display on his
'deck, the young man groans.
"I'm late; Toshiro's gonna hang me out to dry."
Nevertheless, the young man plugs the optical cable into the jack behind
his right ear, and activates the 'deck. A few seconds later, he begins
to move to a rhythm only he can hear; the beat of cyberspace. Hands play
the keys as if they were a musical instrument.
Occasionally, he speaks aloud:
"No, that's not it... Try another path... AH HA! Right where Toshi said it
was!"
More time passes. The young man speaks again:
"Bloody nippers, forcing everyone into their bleedin' fantasy world...
Huh? This must be it... That nipper in the window just shot this to me..."
Fingers tap on keys, electronic/neural impulses combine, and the man jacks
out of the net. Trembling fingers pull a datacard out of the write slot.
The same hands pour three fingers of a dark amber liquid into a glass.
The glass is set down empty.
"Dante, my boy, what have you gotten into?"
------------------------------------------------------------------
Out of the rubble comes a man in torn and tattered clothes. The scrapes
and scratches don't bother him; his other wounds are a slight annoyance.
He knows that there is a place where these things can be treated; he must
get there to announce his triumph to the General.
Things were going according to plan...
------------------------------------------------------------------
All rights reserved. All characters, especially Starknight and Dante, are my
own inventions, and should bear little to no relation to reality.
Sean Roberts, 29 Dec 1992
------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, what do you think?
From: pel@maximo.enet.dec.com (Phillip E lujan)
Subject: Knightsrun: part 2
Date: 5 Jan 93 21:01:32 GMT
Well, everybody, here it is. Part 2 of Knightsrun, hot off of my terminal.
Please note that the characters have a life of their own; I just write down
what they do and say, so Johannes seems to be becoming a major character (he
was originally included to set the stage, but his plotline seems to be
developing into a major part of the story...)
Disclaimer: Anything in the following that appears to be an opinion is a
figment of your imagination.
------------------------------------------------------------------
KNIGHTSRUN
Part Two
------------------------------------------------------------------
Out of the rubble comes a man in torn and tattered clothes. The
scrapes and scratches don't bother him; his other wounds are a
slight annoyance. He knows that there is a place where these
things can be treated; he must get there to announce his triumph to
the General.
Things were going according to plan...
------------------------------------------------------------------
A short while later, in the Chatsubo:
"I'm not handing over the data unless I'm paid, Toshi." The
speaker leans back into his seat, dim light flowing across his
broad Amerind features. The amber fluid in his glass threatens
to spill over the sides; perhaps he has already had a few drinks.
"Dante, my friend, you know you'll be paid. I don't have the
credit transfers with me, of course, but the other matter has
been taken care of, as promised." The second man, a Nipponjin
dressed as a courier, looked nervously around the bar. His thin
mustache twitched as he recalled the extent of the favors he had
had to pull in to clear Dante's record with the rest of the
Brotherhood. "The Mafioso are moving on our operations in GNY
again. The information in that file MIGHT be enough to slow them
up, so we can consolidate... We've expanded too quickly, and
don't really have the resources to counter their moves right now."
"I don't give a bloody rat's arse what the data might mean to
the survival of your 'influence' in Greater New York, Toshiro-san.
You're all a bunch of bloody crooks, but you Yaks pay better than
the wogs do; besides, I owed you that after my little escapade
with the Daihatsu Bank ICE."
Toshiro smiled at the memory. "Yes, I remember the panic when
their central system paid everyone 4 times in a one-week period.
It's too bad you couldn't have left without trying to skim some
of the floating profits, though."
"Right," growls Dante. "What else was I supposed to do? A guy's
gotta EAT, Toshi. They had millions, I was just tryin' to skim
a measly hundred thousand or so..."
------------------------------------------------------------------
** LOCAL ACCESS ACCEPTED : WELCOME, STARKNIGHT **
The pennants fly over the various castles, signifying their
allegiance. The knight moves towards one castle with a green
banner. He passes through, with only a nod at the guard... he
is well known here.
Inside the castle, he walks down a short corridor, entering a
small room. Another knight awaits him there. "What news,
Starknight?"
The knight with the star on his shield answers. "The information
has been retrieved and passed on to the messenger. I shall expect
payment within the week." He turns and leaves the room.
------------------------------------------------------------------
A tattered figure makes its way through the poorer section of town,
seeking the place where he can be healed of his hurts. Wary eyes
watch for signs of weakness in this place, so he is careful.
There comes a time when he must choose between taking a dark alley
or going the long way around. His hurts decide for him, and he
turns into the alley, senses alert for any trouble. A faint noise
from up ahead gives him a split-second warning.
Enhanced neural connections fire up neuro-chemical production sites
in the brain. Reflexes honed to the tenth of a millisecond allow
the battered figure to barely dodge the swing of the baseball bat.
Crouching in a defensive posture, the tattered man hears the crunch
of a footstep behind him.
The punk with the bat swings at the tattered man's head. He drops
beneath it, executing a leg sweep followed by a side kick. His
large foot connects with the punk's head; the hapless ganger drops
like a sack of rice to the cracked and weathered pavement. The
tattered man turns to the other ganger, just in time to receive a
knife between his ribs...
------------------------------------------------------------------
Where most of the figures here are shining representations, we see
a shadow moving. Hard to detect, still the ghostly figure drifts
among the bright stars of this arena. The ghost comes up to one
of the shining ones, and makes as if to speak...
** LOCAL ACCESS ACCEPTED : WELCOME, VIRGIL **
>> QUERY USERS : FIND STARKNIGHT <<
The knight in shining armor listens to what the shadow has to say,
then follows him out of the area. When they are safely ensconced
in a private area, the ghost takes on solid form: that of an older
man, with white hair, clutching a scroll under one arm. His dress
is of Ancient Greek origin.
Starknight speaks. "Well, my friend, we have done well. Did you
receive your payment yet?"
"No, the bloody nips want to look at the data first before they
pay me. How about you; did you get what you want?"
The young knight smiles. "My sources will pay me when they find
out how much my help is worth. I shall contact you again if I
need your assistance on a run; you are a worthy backup man. I
wonder why you do not make your own netruns for profit, though;
you seem perfectly capable."
A sour expression crosses Virgil's face. "I used to be a lot like
you, my lad. Full of myself, sure that nothing could touch me on
the Net. But one of these days, you may find yourself in the same
situation I got into: no backup, locked into a hostile system, and
facing down Black ICE. I got out alive, but I lost something...
my edge, the quality that made me a hot netrunner. Now, I'd rather
make my money semi-legally, and leave the hard stuff to people like
you, who still have what it takes."
Grinning at the complement, Starknight turns to leave. "I shall
see you on the nets, then..." He fades from view as he walks out
the door.
"Not if I can bloody help it," mutters the old man, who then fuzzes
out as his operator disconnects.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Toshiro moved quickly through the maze of streets in GNY's Little
Tokyo district. The scents, sights and sounds of holoarcades,
simstim shops, and older, more fleshly diversions combined in a
never-ending swirl of sensory confusion. His implant threads kept
him moving in a random fashion, peering in windows and otherwise
looking for a tail.
After a time, the slight Nipponjin walked into one of the simstim
shops. With an imperious gesture to the clerk to follow, he chose
a booth at random. The clerk came to help him with the simstim
'trodes, and started a bit when Toshi revealed a tatoo of a blue
chrysanthemum.
"I need a change of clothing, something suitable for an executive,
and a long coat," said the Yakuza agent. "Also, I shall require
the use of a telephone. There is 1000 nuyen on this card; what is
not required for the purchase is yours."
Toshiro turned on the simstim set, and lost himself in an induced
fantasy while the clerk left to do his bidding.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Johannes grinned, even with the pain of the knife in his chest.
The ganger, seeing this, turned to flee, but the cyber-enhanced
terrorist caught him in a few steps. Johannes' large hands took
hold of the punk at shoulder and thigh; his augmented muscles
barely strained at the effort of tossing the punk headlong into
the brick wall of the building next to him. The ganger fell,
senseless.
Gritting his teeth, the eco-warrior pulled the knife from his
chest and staunched the bleeding with his opponents' shirts. He
continued down the alley to a certain door, which he knocked upon
in a rhythm taught to him by the general. The door opened, and
the battered warrior fell inside...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
All rights reserved. All characters, especially Starknight and
Dante, are my own inventions, and should bear little to no relation
to reality.
Sean Roberts, 5 Jan 1993
------------------------------------------------------------------
From: pel@maximo.enet.dec.com (Phillip E lujan)
Subject: Knightsrun: Part 3
Date: 4 Feb 93 21:28:07 GMT
As promised, here is part 3 of Knightsrun... I had a few other ideas, but
have decided to save them for part 4; it'll let me get a little farther ahead.
I was looking at my printouts, and I noticed that part 1 is substantially
longer than part 2 - I'll try to keep them more consistent, but sometimes the
muse is with me, sometimes she's on vacation...
==============================================================================
KNIGHTSRUN
Part Three
==================================================================
On a dusty street, two gunfighters face off against each other.
The first, clad in black clothing, narrows his blue eyes against
the glare of the sun. His opponent, in non-descript dun leathers,
makes a move for the Colt Peacemaker holstered low on his right
hip. The black-clad man drops his left hand down in a blurringly
fast cross-draw...
** SEQUENCE RESET VIA EXTERNAL CONTROL **
Toshiro opens his eyes to spot the clerk from the simstim shop.
"I have done as you asked. Here is the clothing and a telephone;
there is a jack in the corner. I assumed you wished a secure
line."
The Yakuza fixer accepted the package from the clerk. Inside was
a gray business suit (Italian, he noted thoughtfully), a tan
London Fog trenchcoat, and a small telephone. Dressing quickly,
he plugged the phone's fiberoptic cable into the wall jack.
Dialing a number known only to a few people, he waited through the
ringing with growing impatience.
"Moshi moshi," said the voice at the other end.
"Moshi moshi, Tatsu-san. This is Toshiro. May I speak with
Kawanaga-sama?"
"Hai, Toshiro-sama. He has been expecting your call. One moment
please."
After a brief wait, a deep voice speaks. "What news, Toshiro?"
"The cowboy will not release the data to us without the rest of
his payment, Oyabun. I reminded him of the favors you have used
on his behalf, but he is adamant."
"Do what must be done, Toshiro. We must have the information in
that file; the Mafioso are too well organized. They must be
receiving information from Taito-Mitsubishi about our operations.
Also, I need to know how access was gained to our files in the
secure database. Can this 'cowboy' find that out for us?"
"Iie, Oyabun. He will not dig that deeply; he is afraid of the
ICE. However, I may be able to make contact with the one who ran
the infiltration for us this last time - although I have heard he
is unreliable, he is very good."
"Do what you must, Toshiro."
"Hai, Kawanaga-sama."
A frown crossed Toshiro's face as he left the simstim booth.
Dante's stubbornness could get them both killed. And how was he
to contact the rogue net-runner he had employed? No-one knew
who he was, beyond his net presence. 'Ah, well,' he thought. 'I
shall just leave a message with the Greeners, as I did before...'
=================================================================
Dante walked through the Sprawl, thinking about what Toshiro had
said at their meeting. Making a decision, he headed back to the
Chatsubo for a quick talk with Ratz.
"Ja, what can I do for you, Dante?" asked the one-armed bartender.
"I need you to hold a package for me, Ratz. I'm worried that the
Yaks might try to nick it from me. It's worth a hundred nuyen if
you'll hold it, safely." Dante slid a crumpled 100 nuyen note
across the bar, along with a small package.
"Sure. Anything else?"
"No, that should cover it... Oh, and if Toshiro asks, I left just
after he did, and didn't come back." The large Amerind turned to
leave.
"Dante, just one question. Why do you have an Englisher accent
when you are obviously a Native American?"
Dante turned briefly at the door. "I was raised in bloody London,
wasn't I?" He exited into the night air.
=================================================================
Pain. Hot and burning, like a knife between the ribs. 'This is
the damnedest dream,' he thought. Then: 'Wait a minute, I did get
knifed - that punk in the alley caught me off guard.' He realized
he had spoken when he heard a familiar voice.
"That's right, Johannes. You've been recovering. But now you're
capable of reporting, so report, soldier!"
Johannes opened his eyes. The man seated there was nearly as large
as Johannes, and wearing tan pants, a dark green shirt, and black
combat boots. The hilt of a combat knife peeked out from behind
a canvas web belt on the left side; a holstered pistol was on the
right. Johannes smiled as the familiar figure shifted in its seat.
"General. Good of you to come and see me."
"We know you succeeded in destroying the dam; how could we not?
Half of the city was blacked out, it seems. What about the other
matter?" The General leaned forward, intent on the answer.
"The evidence was planted where it was supposed to be, General.
The police should come up with the conclusions we want them to."
"Good. Rest now, get your strength back. I may have another task
for you soon." The General left the room. Johannes leaned back
on his pillow, and wondered why they wanted the Yakuza to take the
blame for the destruction of the dam...
=================================================================
DATELINE NEWS == 01 JAN 2043 == DATELINE NEWS
Hey there, newshounds! Chip Carson, your fave reporter,
with all the news that's hot to trot... The latest on the
Hudson River Dam party is that the body of one of the
security guards at the dam was pulled out of the rubble
today... How's that for a New Year's Surprise! Also
found was an unidentified body, which our deep hidden sources
claim to be that of a Yakuza enforcer. What the hell was
a Yak doing at that dam? We'll keep an eye on the sitch
for ya; tell ya more tomorrow! I'm Chip Carson for Dateline
News, and you're not!
=================================================================
** LOCAL ACCESS ACCEPTED: WELCOME, STARKNIGHT **
The armored knight moves purposefully along the path to the local
temple. There, he enters the open doors and proceeds to a small
side chapel, where he kneels before the altar.
A blur, a shift of backgrounds, and the knight is now standing
outside an obviously high-tech structure. His armor shimmers
and is replaced by a stylized space-suit that still has the
appearance of plate armor. He approaches the entrance of the
matrix-construct.
** WARNING: ICE DETECTED **
** ANALYSIS: WATCHDOG **
<< EXECUTE CODEBREAKER >>
The knight is approached by a large, robotic guard dog at the
entrance. Unswerving, the knight continues on his path, saying
"Good dog, nice dog," as he does so. After a short time, the
dog begins to wag it's robotic tail, and allows the knight to
pass.
** PASSWORD ACCEPTED: WELCOME TO NASA **
The knight passes through the door, into a large chamber. Many
doors lead from this chamber, each with an iconic symbol. The
knight/spaceman chooses one with an icon of the Earth and passes
through. Beyond is a long hall with more doors, more icons. He
seeks out one with a picture of North America, then one beyond
that which shows the Northeastern United States. In this room, he
finds a number of data packets. He searches, then finds one that
shows the Hudson River Dam; the date is current.
<< EXAMINE CURRENTLY SELECTED >>
The data packet is opened, revealing high-quality orbital pictures
of the Hudson River Dam and surroundings. The knight looks at
each of the views in turn, shaking his head at the destruction
revealed.
<< EXECUTE FADEAWAY >>
The knight gradually vanishes from the chamber.
==================================================================
Dante shook his head in frustration. He was sure Toshi had put a
couple of Yak thugs on his trail, intending to retrieve the disk
he hadn't turned over to the agent earlier. So far, he'd been
unable to spot them, though; they were either very good, or he was
starting at shadows for nothing.
'Why'd the Yaks want that data anyway,' he mused. He'd looked at
it, and it seemed to be nothing but a corporate security file on
eco-terrorist activities over the last few months... important to
law-enforcement agencies, or maybe the UN, but hardly of interest
to the Yakuza.
'Unless,' he suddenly thought, 'the Yaks think that the ecoteurs
are actually working for the Mafia. But that's nuts! Greeners
don't take orders from the mobs... although their actions have
damaged the Yaks in the past, they've burned the wogs, as well.'
So intent was he on his musings, Dante didn't hear the voice of
Chip Carson coming from a gangers radio, until the newsnetter
mentioned that the body of a Yakuza enforcer had been found at
the site of the dam bombing...
"Damn! I've got to get home, now!" Unaware that he was speaking
out loud, Dante hailed a ricksha for the ride to his apartment.
=================================================================
Toshiro walked through the run-down urban area where the Greeners
headquarters could be found. As he walked, he was aware of his
surroundings... better men than he had disappeared from areas
like this one, only to turn up as black-market body parts. There
was a thriving organlegging trade, and a good market for second-
hand cyberware.
A soft pulsing from the watch on his wrist alerted him to the
presence of someone in close proximity behind him. Toshiro
decided to let the tail know he'd been spotted, so he stopped
abruptly.
"OOOFF! Hey, watch it!" came the voice from behind. Toshi turned
to size up the situation. A boy of sixteen or seventeen, of mixed
Nipponjin and gaijin ancestry, was standing there. Torn denims
over thin legs, an oversized t-shirt with the legend 'Traumatic
Environment' in both English and Japanese, hair cropped short and
the kanji for 'Fuck you' shaved in the sides.
"What do you want, boy?" Toshi asked in a menacing tone.
"Nothin'; just walkin' along when YOU run into me..."
Insolence, disrespect, perhaps fear. Good. "You were going to
try to pick my pocket, neh?"
"Maybe, maybe not... What's it to ya?"
Toshi smiled, and reached for his wallet. At the move, the boy
started, but didn't run. Better and better. "Here. Take this
card - it contains funds in the amount of 100 nuyen. Be at the
address on the card, tonight, if you would like to earn more."
"Yeah, well, I might do that..." As the boy ran off, Toshi shook
his head. The younger generation these days. He continued on to
his destination.
At the Greener building, he looked around, then slipped a datadisc
into a slot beside the door. It would be better if he were not
seen entering this building. He then continued on his way.
=================================================================
All rights reserved. All characters, especially Starknight and
Dante, are my own inventions, and should bear little to no relation
to reality.
Sean Roberts, 4 Feb 1993 (spr@abo.dec.com)
==================================================================
From: pel@maximo.enet.dec.com (Phillip E lujan)
Subject: Knightsrun 4 (finally...)
Date: 12 Mar 93 18:17:00 GMT
KNIGHTSRUN
Part Four
==================================================================
In the shabby apartment, a light blinks on the console of a cyber-
deck. Contrasting with the generally dingy atmosphere, the 'deck
is shining and new, with many expensive attachments: an
uninterruptible power supply; a voice-recognition module; infra-
red broadcast unit for local device control; and a holo-projector.
It seems out of place in these surroundings; it looks like this
'deck should be sitting in a corporate computer security station.
Dante enters the room and notices the blinking light. Going to
the 'deck, he types in a command.
** SYSTEM ACTIVE: YOU HAVE MAIL **
<< READ MAIL >>
The holo-projector hums to life, projecting the computer-generated
image of Starknight, the netrunner persona. "Greetings to you,
Virgil. I have uncovered certain information which might be of
interest, regarding the run we made on Taito-Mitsubishi. Those
who hired me for the run did so through the Greeners, who have
been accused of acting with the Yakuza to destroy the Hudson River
Dam."
The hologram shifts to views of the wreckage of the dam, followed
by shots of the damage caused by the flooding. The voice keeps on
speaking. "I have run an extensive analysis on the damage caused,
and the ecological damage would be unacceptable for the Greeners.
Besides, they would be more likely to target a nuclear plant, as
there were no species endangered by the Hudson Dam."
The hologram becomes the image of Starknight again. "I propose
that we make a run into the net, seeking out information on who
might wish to destroy the dam and lay the blame on another. This
information could be of great use to both your employers and mine.
I am certain that they would reward us for anything we could dig
up..."
** END OF FILE **
"Naive kid... thinks the world runs on bloody gratitude." Dante
thinks for a moment, then reaches for the 'deck.
<< SEND MAIL: MIFUNE >>
<< Toshi: Have a lead on new information. Standard terms.
Meet me at the Chat for original packet; will accept part
of payment as show of faith. Dante. >>
"There. That ought to get some interest stirred up." He pauses,
then begins to break down his cyberdeck setup.
==================================================================
In a dark alley, a man awaits someone.
He is constantly alert, this man; shrouded in shadow as he is, he
still maintains the vigilance of a criminal... or a soldier. No
unnecessary moves or sudden starts; no sounds above that of his
rhythmic breathing.
A short time later, his patience is rewarded. At the mouth of the
alley, a limousine arrives; a sharply dressed man gets out. He
cautiously moves down the alley.
"Stop," comes a whisper from the shadows. "Open your coat."
The young man slowly unbuttons his expensive suitcoat, then opens
it. Underneath is a shoulder holster, containing a 10mm semi-
automatic. The chrome surface of the weapon glints sullenly in
the half-light of the alley.
"Now the shirt," comes the whisper. The young man again obeys,
not knowing what kind of weapon might be trained on him from the
shadows. Underneath the shirt, a tanned chest shows no sign of
surgery or implants.
"Good..." comes the whisper. "My agent has managed to penetrate
the organization; the proof you requested is in the news. I have
received the payment we agreed upon. Our business is concluded."
"Wait!" the young man exclaims. "My employers would like to hire
you to perform another task, now that you have proven yourself..."
"What task?" comes the harsh whisper.
As he buttons up his shirt, the young man allows a trace of a smile
to cross his face. "We would like your agent to discredit the
organization he has infiltrated by linking them with the Yakuza.
We will pay one million dollars for this task."
"Five million... in corporate stock. Half now, half on delivery."
"Deal."
==================================================================
Toshiro checked with his service, then headed for the Chatsubo. On
his arrival, he looked around for Dante. Seeing that the Amerind
'decker wasn't present, he took a seat at one of the booths in the
back of the bar. Ratz, knowing his tastes, sent over a pot of tea.
Dante arrived about ten minutes later. Waving to Toshi, he leaned
over the bar and spoke to Ratz briefly, collecting a bottle, glass,
and a small packet from the bartender. He then made his way back
to the booth.
He tossed the packet on the table in front of Toshi. "There. The
data your superiors wanted. Have you got something for me?"
Toshi unfolded his laptop, inserted the disk, and quickly skimmed
through the file. "Yes... this appears correct. I believe we
agreed upon 25 thousand nuYen?" He slid a credcard across to the
'decker.
"Yeah, that's right. Now... about this other matter. That cowboy
you hired to run into Taito/Mitsubishi thinks that dam bombing was
intended to cause some trouble for both you and the Greeners, and
wants to do some digging. He also wants me to back him up. IF we
can come up with some solid evidence as to who is behind this, how
much is it worth to you?"
The Yakuza agent thought for a moment. "In dollars or nuYen?"
"Corporate stock. I've got to think about the future, Toshi."
"Well," Toshi began slowly, "solid evidence would be worth at least
100,000 nuYen... call it 2500 shares of Nissan/Bell stock at todays
market rates. Nissan/Bell is the only stock we could reliably pay
in, so don't complain about that... You can always trade it for
whichever stocks you want, later."
"I assume the pay scale goes up depending on the amount and quality
of evidence we find?"
"Of course, my friend. May I ask why you are doing this?"
"Stupid bloody kid thought you'd be *grateful* if he went out on
his own and got the data for you... Maybe I haven't got the edge
anymore, but I don't want to see him lose his. And that's just the
kind of thing that might happen to the silly sod if I'm not there
to back him up." Dante splashed three fingers of bourbon into his
glass and sipped at it.
Toshi smiled, then finished his tea and slipped out of the Chat.
===================================================================
** YOU HAVE MAIL **
<< read mail >>
** To Starknight:
I've spoken with my contact. Payment is 100000+ nuYen in
corporate stock, depending on what we dig up. I have a safe
house with a secure access to work from; I recommend that we
both access the net from my location, as this will eliminate
lag between our commands. I have the feeling this is going
to be a rough run; bring everything you'll need, especially
your ICEbreakers. Rdir25$%@@^&ahfdghie;sSITidoha\"ATHEI
Virgil **
The flickering holo-display brings a blue tinge to the face of the
teenage boy sitting before the cyberdeck. His pale eyes widen as
he absorbs the content of the message. "Last line... garbled trans
or encryption?"
He gnaws on his lower lip for a moment, then says to thin air:
"It must be an encrypted message. Wonder what the key is?"
Something seems to strike him, and he types furiously for a few
seconds.
<< library search: keywords: virgil, classical, greek, scroll >>
** SEARCH COMPLETE: The Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri
Virgil is the 'spirit guide' for the author during a tour
of the three classic realms of the afterlife: Heaven
(Paradisio), Limbo (Purgatorio), and Hell (Inferno). **
<< decode 'Rdir25$%@@^&ahfdghie;sSITidoha\"ATHEI' -Purgatorio >>
** decoded string: 1075 Avenue of the Americas
Apartment 352
Knock twice, then ring **
He nods, then begins to shut down his equipment.
==================================================================
Johannes looks up as someone enters the room, carrying a telephone.
"What is it?"
"Phone call for you... It's the General."
"Thanks. Hello, General."
"Johannes. How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine, sir. Why do you ask?"
"I need to speak with you, privately. Can you meet me at The
Briefing Room in an hour?"
Johannes took a quick inventory of himself, and answered, "Of
course I can, sir. In an hour. I'll be there at my usual table."
"Good. See you in an hour."
The cyberterrorist hung up the phone, then got up from the bed.
Moving to a small dresser by the window, he began to dress.
==================================================================
On the door, the faded gold numbers read 352. A hand raps once,
twice, and then moves to the doorbell, pressing firmly.
After a short time, the door opens. The teenager moves inside and
turns around as the door closes. Dante and the boy stand there for
a moment, sizing each other up. Then the teenager offers his hand.
"Hi. David Mason; I go by Starknight. You must be Virgil."
"Name's Dante Two Bears. Blame my Ma and Da for that. Yes, I run
by the name of Virgil. I take it you figured out the allusion and
the code key." Dante shakes the boys hand, then indicates a door
leading out of the room. "There's space in there for you to set up
your 'deck; I didn't know what you wanted in the way of furniture."
"That's cool, as long as there's a low table to set up on; I don't
use a chair or nothin' like that." David moves into the room, then
begins to take his gear out of his shoulder bag.
Dante's eyes widen as he sees the equipment. "Nice gear, that...
Looks like a Nissan/Bell C3035, except for the extended case."
The blond teener looks over his shoulder. "It is a C3035, but I've
made some mods to it... The extended case is just there to hold
them. I got better response time, extra analysis processing, and
a parallel signal line over a standard 'deck. 'Course, I only just
got this 'deck 'bout two weeks ago; before that, I was using an old
Hyundai NetDodger. That sucked, hard... but I managed to get one
good run in that paid enough to buy this one, and the hardware to
mod it."
"You built your own upgrades, hmmm? Used to do that myself, until
I figured out that there were experts who could do a better job.
Anyway, get set up, then we'll do a little light snooping to get
used to each others style. I figure we won't make the actual run
until tomorrow..."
"Cool." The teener bends back over his 'deck, making connections
to the peripherals...
==================================================================
All rights reserved. All characters, especially Starknight and
Dante, are my own inventions, and should bear little to no relation
to reality.
Sean Roberts, 9 Mar 1993
==================================================================
From: pel@maximo.enet.dec.com (Sean Roberts)
Subject: Knightsrun, Part 5 (at long last)
Date: 19 Apr 93 21:41:02 GMT
Sorry this took so long, folks... I seem to be adding about 5 days each time,
so expect part 6 about 24 May. NOT!!! Actually, I'm gonna try and wrap this
up in part 7, before I lose this job on 18 June, so I'll try and write a bit
faster.
'Nuff said... On to the story!
===============================================================================
KNIGHTSRUN
Part Five
==================================================================
In a crowded room, a number of teenagers from all walks of life
mingle, talking about various subjects of interest only to them-
selves. Clusters of boys surround the attractive girls, vying for
their attention in a timeless dance of flirting and put-downs. A
refreshment table stands in disarray at the far side of the room.
"Excuse me... Could you all take your seats, please?" A young
woman of about 25 stands at the podium. She instantly has the
attention of all the boys in the room; her husky contralto seems
to promise unspeakable delights. Even some of the girls take a
second look; her slender form is clad in traditional Japanese garb.
A crimson silk kimono, patterned in gold thread with dragons and
tigers, is tied around her narrow waist with a brilliant yellow
obi. She is made up in the manner of a geisha, the pale makeup
accenting her rich, brown, almond shaped eyes. The pearls which
decorate her hair pins are worth more money than these children
care to think about.
After everyone is seated, she smiles and continues. "Thank you,
ladies and gentlemen..." The titles cause an amused titter to run
around the room. "You have all been asked to attend by a member of
our organization because they felt you had something to offer us.
In return, you will be well rewarded for your efforts. First, I
must ask anyone who has any doubts about performing acts which are
frowned upon by the legal authorities to leave. Now."
For a few seconds, nothing happens... then one boy, about thirteen,
gets up and leaves. No one else moves.
"Very well, then. Let me tell you a little about the organization
which we belong to. It is a group of Japanese businessmen, who are
concerned with the future of our two great countries. We are not
above breaking the law to ensure that things will continue to go
smoothly for both Nippon and the United States...
"I am, of course, talking about the Yakuza."
==================================================================
The blond teenager sat cross-legged in front of his cyberdeck,
concentrating on the run he was about to make. Blue eyes gazed
unseeing at a selection of ROMchips. Every 5 seconds or so, he
breathes in, then slowly exhales.
"Are you ready?" The deep voice of his host comes from the door.
Slowly, he reaches out, gathers up several chips, and slots them
into the receptacles on the front of the 'deck.
"Sure, Dante... Just doing some meditation to prepare. We can
start anytime." The Amerind cyberjock disappears from the living
room, followed in a few seconds by his voice.
"Jacking in... now."
Starknight plugs the fiber-optic cable into the jack behind his
right ear and hits the power switch on his 'deck.
** RENORMALIZATION ALGORITHMS PROCESSING **
** LOCAL ACCESS ACCEPTED: WELCOME, STARKNIGHT **
The knight looks around the countryside, spotting a familiar figure
nearby. "Well, Virgil... Shall we proceed?"
"Follow my lead if you can, child..." The image of the ancient
Greek philosopher heads down the road towards a large castle.
==================================================================
"Follow my lead if you can, child..." says Dante's icon. The
target looms off in the distance, a Greco-Roman temple. Inside,
Dante knows there is nothing too dangerous, but there are enough
different tricks and traps to get a feeling for the boy's style.
In a short while, they stand on the portico of the temple, before
the main entrance. Dante's icon for the portal is a beaten bronze
door. "You're on, boy. Open it up."
<< ECHO ALL : starknight TO virgil >>
He moves aside to allow the knight access to the portal, and keeps
an eye on the young 'deckers icon. The armored knight moves up to
the door, and examines it. A faint bluish glow springs to the
knights hands, and he raps thrice on the door.
** WELCOME TO OMEGASOFT : PASSWORD? **
<< EXECUTE SCANNER >>
** LOGIN FRONT-END : LOW-LEVEL SECURITY : NO ICE **
<< EXECUTE KNOCK >>
The portal swings wide on the third knock, and the knight steps in,
followed by Virgil. The room is small, with no apparent exits. A
mirror on the far wall begins to show demos for new products. "Now
what?" asks the knight.
"You're the hotshot netrunner, you tell me," challenges Virgil.
Starknight examines the area, then looks significantly at the bell
pull next to the mirror. "Let's see what this does..."
** OMEGASOFT SALES : ACCOUNT, PLEASE? **
<< EXECUTE ERRBREAK : SIM LINENOISE >>
<< EXECUTE TRACE : EXECUTE PATHBREAKER ON TRACE >>
** WORKING **
For a few seconds after the knight pulls the bell rope, the face of
a young woman appears in the mirror. Then the knight speaks a few
words, and the face fuzzes out. A bright red spark flies from his
sword hilt and vanishes into the mirror.
** TRACE CONNECTED : EXECUTING PATHBREAKER **
** PATH OPENED TO NODE sales1 **
<< CHANGE NODE sales1 >>
Then the mirror glows bright red for a moment, quickly becoming too
bright to look at. When Virgil's eyes clear, he sees a door where
the mirror used to be. Starknight gestures him through, then steps
through himself.
The pair finds themselves in a somewhat larger room. The young
lady whose face they saw in the mirror is here, seated before
another mirror. She pays no attention to the two figures. "These
guys are cheap," Starknight comments. "It wouldn't take much more
memory to run a program with some real capabilities, instead of
that salesgirl daemon."
"Shut up and find a way out of here," Virgil replies. "They do a
security sweep in here every few minutes."
"Touchy, aren't you?" Without waiting for a reply, the knight
draws his sword and waves it in a circle above his head. A wave
of red light spreads outward from it.
<< EXECUTE LINKLOC >>
** WORKING **
When the red wave touches the walls, two doors are revealed. One
appears to be a normal door; the other is plastered with a skull-
and-crossbones, a radiation sign, and a high-voltage warning.
Starknight grins. "I'll bet there's something *very* interesting
behind that door..."
==================================================================
Greater New York - one of the few major cities in the US to survive
the economic crashes of '96, '99, '05, and '13 intact. Even more
than that, the city had actually thrived... Only a handful of such
places still existed in Corporate America, mostly because they had
strong corporate backing. The corps touted a 'newer, better city'
where 'inner city areas will be revitalized...'
Somehow, it never worked out quite that way. Oh, sure, nobody had
to live in rat and roach infested firetraps; the corps took care of
that by rebuilding the buildings in modern fashion. Rent was kept
low, purposefully, and the inhabitants of these areas given the
chance to qualify for jobs. Most of them, however, soon fell back
into the old pattern of using illegal means to gain their wealth.
After all, it was much more profitable to sell designer drugs to
people looking for a thrill than it was to work at a job 8 to 12
hours a day - albeit somewhat more risky.
About the time that the corps were realizing that the plan to take
advantage of a large pool of unskilled labor wasn't going to bear
fruit, some bright boy had an idea. Noting the large quantity of
requests for financial assistance that were coming out of the low
income areas, he dreamed up Corporate Assistance Zones. If the
resident wanted assistance from a corp, he would agree (in writing)
to live in a CAZ, eat supplied foods, watch corp programming, and
enter his impressions into the net... Sort of an instant feedback
for new corp ideas that could be piped directly to their HQ.
Not a bad idea, but this evil genius took it one step further. To
the corporate heads, he also gave the idea that these areas could
be used to test new chemicals, drugs, etc. After all, the locals
would have to sign a form to live there; if they bothered to read
it, they would find that they were signing away their lives. Not
that most of them would care, anyway.
Typically, the people in the CAZones didn't really care what was
being done to them; let the bleeding hearts get up in arms about
'violating civil rights'. Hey, the U.S. Government had collapsed;
at least the corps would feed and shelter them.
==================================================================
Out along the edge of the Hormel CAZone is where the bars are. All
of them have signs proudly proclaiming, 'We Serve Hormel Products!'
All but one, that is. The only sign on this place (which has no
windows) is one proclaiming the name.
"THE BRIEFING ROOM" Black letters on a khaki background. One low
power light to show the sign up at night. Grey painted cinderblock
walls, with a blackened steel door. No other external signs.
Up to this somewhat imposing building comes a large figure in camo
fatigue pants, a black t-shirt, and mirrorshades (at night, no
less). Pulling something out of his pocket, he inserts it next to
the door. A brief flash of red shows the presence of a laser
scanner. The door opens, and he steps inside.
Inside the door, Johannes moved to his usual table, then spent a
few minutes scanning the room. As usual, it was hard to spot the
far corners, due to the dim light. Several of the regulars made
some signal that they had noticed his entry. That's the kind of
place it was. You just didn't go and talk to someone unless they
knew you and signalled you or had arranged to meet you there.
Those violating this unwritten code found themselves occupying
space in the local body banks.
As Johannes continued to scan the room, someone walked up next to
him. The scent of perfume and the clinking of glass alerted him
to the presence of the waitress. "Tsingtao... make it two. I'm
expecting a friend."
When he turned back to where the waitress had been, he spotted the
General. Sitting right there across from him. Johannes started.
"How do you DO that?!?!?"
"Long hours of practice, soldier... Can't let you cyborg types
think you can outdo an old man. Just remember: Age, skill and
treachery will outdo youth and cybernetics every time..."
"Well, if you insist, General. I still think you have some kind
of stealth device, though. Why'd you want to meet me?"
"I've got a new mission for you. How's our in with the Greeners?"
The robust older man leans forward, intent on the answer.
"It's fine, sir... They've accepted me as one of their own. Why
do you ask?"
"You're going to have to put in some serious work on this mission,
Johannes... We need to link the Greeners with the Yakuza. Hard
evidence, enough to discredit the Greeners."
Johannes thought for a second. "It won't do the Yaks any good,
either... Corp security agencies look twice as hard for eco-
terrorists as they do for anything else. The Yaks might find that
operating in GNY has become too expensive when we pull this off.
What's the payoff?"
"A million in corporate stock for you, soldier. Four for me, less
whatever expenses we incur. Can you do it?"
"You realize that this is going to take a while to accomplish."
Just then, the waitress returned with two beers. Having paid her,
Johannes slid one of the beers over to the General. "I think so;
just don't expect anything overnight."
The General looked at the label on the bottle, and made a face.
"Why do you drink this horse-piss?"
Johannes smiled. "'Cause they don't brew Red, White and Blue
anymore..."
===================================================================
All rights reserved. All characters, especially Starknight and
Dante, are my own inventions, and should bear little to no relation
to reality.
Sean Roberts, 19 Apr 1993
==================================================================
Sean Roberts
spr@abo.dec.com
Disclaimer: DEC doesn't let me know what their opinions are, or I'd tell
everyone on the net.
Back to the index for this section
Back to the Tea Bowl