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unwilling to even consider such a possibility. "Soon we’ll have the information we need to bring Lanier and Renraku down."
    A smile crept back over her face as she tapped the datapad she was holding. "And Fuchi can be right there to pick up the pieces."

4
    In ancient times it was widely believed that knowing the name of something gave you control over that person or thing . People would have secret names known only to themselves and to their closest friends and family, and a " use name " they would tell to the world at large . In this way they protected themselves from enemies who might use magic against them . Now it is the twenty-first century . Magic has returned to the world and there is a new culture of people who guard their names . They hide behind so-called " street names " to conceal their true identities from the law and to keep their real names out of the massive computer systems keeping track of nearly everyone in the world . Even the pirate users of the computer Matrix, the deckers, make use of false names to cover their transactions . In the age of technology, true names have become more important than ever .
    —Mullins Chadwick, Monkeytribe: A Survival Manual for Erect Bipeds, Putnam-Izumo,
New York
, 2043
    I don’t know how long I keep driving, or where I drive to. I just need to get away from that place and the memories of the ghoul. My mind panics, but my body seems to know where it’s going, so I let it drive for a while. I’m some distance away—at least I think so—before I return to anything resembling rational thought and check out my surroundings.
    I realize that driving around in an open van loaded with full body bags is probably a very bad idea, so I find an out-of-the-way alley where I park the van and leave it behind. I wonder if the body-snatchers or ghouls will find it again and try and make use of the bodies remaining inside. I’m tempted for a moment to find some way of blowing the whole van sky-high, creating a funeral pyre for those unknown people who fill the black vinyl bags. It’s a useless idea because I don’t have any means to do so and an explosion would be a sure way of attracting unwanted attention. In the end I just leave the van behind with a silent prayer that the spirits of its occupants are at rest.
    Jamming my hands into my pockets, I walk carefully out of the alley, looking all around me for any signs of trouble. It’s still night and the city is alive all around me. I can see more lights and activity a few blocks ahead, along what looks like the main drag, the streets lit by the glow of neon signs, street lamps, and holograms flickering from badly tuned projectors in store fronts. The night air is cool, and the light on the street is inviting enough for me to head toward it. I pass through the shadows and cut through an alleyway to reach the strip.
    The alley is filled with the heavy smell of food cooking. My stomach rumbles loud enough to be heard in the narrow alley, and I realize I have no idea how long since I last ate, but it seems like it must have been a long time. Thoughts of noodles and rice and vegetables fill my thoughts and make my mouth water.
    I turn out of the alley and look into the scratched armor-plas window of a shop displaying some cheap trideo sets among all the other electronic junk for sale. One set is showing a piece of softcore pornography, the naked holographic figures writhing in slow motion through the static while the other set is tuned to a news channel where a plastic talking-head speaks in an evenly pitched, cheerful voice that sounds happy to tell you about the worst atrocities. I stop for a moment to watch.
    "Locally, the stock market reports another active day of trading in which the Dow is up some seven points. Renraku Computer Systems stock continues to maintain the strongest increase following the company’s release of their latest algorithms for the development of sophisticated Matrix interface experiences. These algorithms