Infoquake Read Online Free Page B

L-PRACG policy maker had seemed like an attractive option. Fiefcorps were a place to build up a nest egg until something real came along. How quickly everything changed after the hive! All it had taken
for her to sell out her governmentalist ideals, Jara thought with bitterness, was the flattery of rich, handsome, intelligent men like Natch.

    Jara rubbed her eyes and came back to the present moment, but
she could not dislodge Natch's obfuscating lenses. The plan might work
because it's so ridiculous, thought Jara. Who would suspect the industry has
sunk so low that one of its finest is willing to sow panic in the streets with Pharisee terrorism rumors? Who would suspect Natch has anything to gain by it?
    And if someone did find out-if the Council or the Cooperative or
the drudges or the Patel Brothers caught wind of the true source of
these rumors-Primo's would probably still crown them number one.
An independent valuation system couldn't afford to be swayed by the
vagaries of law or politics.
    Natch stopped pacing, making Jara uneasy. "I only see two potential problems," he said. "One, the rumors might not generate enough
flak in the marketplace to faze the Patels. They might still launch
NightHawk on schedule. Two, Primo's might find some undiscovered
flaw in one of our programs and penalize us for it."
    "What about the other fiefcorps?" asked Jara.
    "Who? Lucas Sentinel? PulCorp? Prosteev Serly?" Natch gave a
dismissive flip of the hand. "I've already checked their launch schedules. Nothing."
    Horvil frowned. He had been silent for some time now, listening
to Natch's maddening logic and making quiet calculations of his own.
Jara wondered if he had enough functioning brain cells this early in the
morning to fully comprehend the magnitude of Natch's scheme.
"There's one more problem," said the engineer.
    "Which is?"
    "What if these rumors spook more than just the Patel Brothers?
The Pharisees have killed people with these terrorist attacks before.
What if we spark too much panic? I mean, we're all connected"-the
engineer waved his hands around in the air as if he could scoop up mol ecule-thick multi bots and subaether transmissions with his fingers"and so we're all vulnerable. There could be another black code attack
any day now. Everyone knows that. The Council might really be
gearing up for another assault. What if we cause too much panic?
There might be a rush on the Vault. People might stop trading. The
whole financial system could collapse."

    Natch grinned as if he relished the possibility. "Small chance," he
said. Was that a note of disappointment in his voice? "Come on,
Horvil! A few rumors shut down the financial system? People aren't
that gullible. Besides, the Council will quash the rumors long before
that happens."
    "And what-what if the Pharisees do actually launch an attack that
day?"
    "Horv," laughed the fiefcorp master, "I'm not responsible for what
those lunatics do. The only one I'm responsible for is me. Let them do
their worst. No matter what happens, the markets will still be there on
November 2nd. Trust me."

    Jara stared gloomily at the three-dimensional flowchart she had constructed on the coffee table. The flowchart towered mightily over her
head, information layered on top of information like a ziggurat. She sat
back and surveyed her handiwork. The names of people Jara had
known all her life were lined up on a tier of data labeled GULLIBLE.
Other names-friends, relatives, old lovers and companions-were
skewered on holographic arrows labeled HARD SELL and SOFT SELL.
Her own mother's name stood on an out-of-the-way parapet with the
caption UNTRUSTWORTHY.
    This is what you've always wanted to do, isn't it? Jara told herself.
Strategic analysis for a biollogic fie/corp. Managing timetables, scheduling
product launches, assigning resources ... right?
    Monday was nearly over, and she still hadn't gotten any sleep. Jara
suddenly realized she had been staring at the