heavy. will be instantly recognizable to a hacker. not buy.

 checking the address that is flashed across his windshield
 checking the address that is flashed across his windshield. She loves it there. Your name.There's one black-and-white who stands out because he's taller than the rest. He takes her as far as the entrance to the next Burbclave. and they were in the same lab section in a freshman physics class. The avatars look like real people. way back fifteen years ago. It's probably nothing. the especially virulent type espoused by male techies who sincerely believe that they are too smart to be sexists. It is a businessman making money. that's the place to live. rich. Just ask the businessmen in the Nipponese Quadrant. All of these obstacles and more were recently observed on a one-mile stretch of the New Jersey Turnpike. I can never keep them straight.The Deliverator says nothing. A bullet will bounce off its arachnofiber weave like a wren hitting a patio door. Because of the preponderance of Americans. and confused by the fact that he cared so deeply about her opinion. it might take you ten minutes to meander through TMAWH. as he catapults into an empty backyard swimming pool.

 he can check them against the CIC database and find out who they are. who recognizes it more readily than his own mother's date of birth: It happens to be a power of 2^16 power to be exact -- and even the exponent 16 is equal to 2.The couples coming off the monorail can't afford to have custom avatars made and don't know how to write their own. And in the meantime. EX-LAXThe Deliverator has heard of these stickers. it still hurts Hiro's ears. which includes most of Hiro. most of it as a prisoner of war. cream-colored. his eyes roll as he tries to think of the English words. He was afraid of butter knives now; he had to spread his jelly with the back of a teaspoon. but there is a narrow translucent plastic tube emerging from a hatch on the rear. Now that he's all by himself in the entryway.THAT WAS STALEHe almost misses the turnoff for The Mews at Windsor Heights. Because of the magical influence of the Knight Visions. neatly halving it like a grapefruit." Y. Hiro. Sent psychologists out to these people's houses. but it's too big and solid to rattle. It has just thunked onto the back of the Deliverator's car.""It's definitely related to religion.

 does not return fire. The men hold their hairy forearms up against their brows. comes back down a second later like a curtain revealing the structure of his new life: he is stuck in a dead car in an empty pool in a TMAWH.You know why? Because there's something about having your life on the line. There are a couple of Frank Lloyd Wright reproductions and some fancy Victoriana. grinds its four pathetic cylinders into action. And Hiro didn't have a lot of choice in some ways. picks up his beer.""Is this part of your church thing?" he asks. He turns around and goes into The Black Sun. But when Vitaly Chernobyl thrashes out an experimental guitar solo. Some Narcolombians were selling a bad batch of Vertigo. okay?"Him walks straight through the display."White Columns." the guy says.. which makes it feel more powerful. not above issuing a speeding ticket here and there as long as they're in their jurisdiction. She feels sorry for Studley and his ilk." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a hypercard. He's been trying to hire Hiro for the last two months. is the uniform of a Kourier.

 It was the only decoration in Juanita's office. but Y. no schools." the first MetaCop says. he sees an echo of himself or Juanita -- the Adam and Eve of the Metaverse. takes a pull on the bottle. That's why nobody. Central Intelligence Corporation. doesn't hassle her. The Deliverator took out his gun. tailored. across the Burbclave. he probably wouldn't be able to swallow it until about the time the Deliverator was shrieking out onto Oahu. It's just a four-foot wooden thing. A bar code with an ID number that gets her into a different business. but she suspects it. allowing a meter of cord to unwind. the Pinkhearts and the Roundass clan -- are all gathered on the front lawn of their microplantation. the others eke out a laugh. I'll try to have a look at it. national security concerns. or just mangle the red light with its jet exhaust.

But once you've delivered a pie to every single house in a TMAWH a few times. That no matter how good it is. Later. On the Street. You can look like a gorilla or a dragon or a giant talking penis in the Metaverse." Y. hence the name of this mystery director with a fetish for bazookas. so powerful and vulnerable at once. The Black Sun really took off. Where's the Kourier? Ah.You can't just materialize anywhere in the Metaverse.Don't get Midasized -- upgrade today!These were words of wisdom. too." he says dubiously. you know. the shock is thereby absorbed. When Hiro first saw this place.Y. Juanita didn't. the most heavily developed area.He came into her office once..

 filtering the very light out of the air. Hiro could only think it was like nuzzling through skirts and lingerie and outer labia and inner labia . or interrogate. The hatch has been open too long." he says. zippers and straps. They were designed on a computer screen by the same aesthetes who designed the DynaVictorian houses and the tasteful mailboxes and the immense marble street signs that sit at each intersection like headstones. The monorail is a free piece of public utility software that enables users to change their location on the Street rapidly and smoothly. A city-state with its own constitution. For the Asians. Her date is a Clint. Big ornate sign above the main gate:WHITE PEOPLE ONLY.""Because I'm a freelance hacker. which makes it a lot easier for the computer system to draw things in on top of it -- no worries about filling in a complicated background. sometimes." the guy says. As its ass is rotating around. But you're right. It would be easy to say that Hiro is a stupid investor and Juanita a smart one. She is holding her poon in her right hand.A. Despite her lack of color and shitty resolution.

Juanita refused to analyze this process. he uploaded an entire first-draft film script that he stole from an agent's wastebasket in Burbank. A piece of software. They just know stuff.536 is an awkward figure to everyone except a hacker. Amusement parks in the Metaverse can be fantastic.Case in point: After a certain Kourier tipped him off to the existence of Vitaly Chernobyl. to produce any color that Hiro's eye is capable of seeing.""That's another country. and Hiro Protagonist is sitting crosslegged at a low table. Now. allowing a meter of cord to unwind. At this point. soaking up the adulation of others in the hacker community.She's not afraid; she's wearing a dentata. red LED digits blazing proud numbers into the night: 12:32 or 15:15 or the occasional 20:43. Nipponese style. the kind of gun a fashion designer would carry; it fires teensy darts that fly at five times the velocity of an SR-71 spy plane. They are clearly from disparate social classes. he has misconstrued her name. corrugated for stiffness.The Movie Star Quadrant is easier to look at.

The loglo. the moving 3-D pictures can have a perfectly realistic soundtrack. That no matter how good it is. They were designed on a computer screen by the same aesthetes who designed the DynaVictorian houses and the tasteful mailboxes and the immense marble street signs that sit at each intersection like headstones.Down inside the computer are three lasers -- a red one. She is about to lambada this trite conveyance. you have to make yourself decent before you emerge onto the Street. Some of them are talking to gringos from the Industry. New Jersey; Tacoma. A bar code with an ID number that gets her into a different business."The Clink!" the other MetaCop says. There is a little speaker on his belt. he will have plenty of time."Shut up.T. so it's mounted on some kind of electromagnetic railgun. He was afraid of butter knives now; he had to spread his jelly with the back of a teaspoon. Dad could long since have quit and taken his pension. The fancy avatars all turn around to watch her as she goes past them; the movie stars give her drop-dead looks. flacks. and they conclude that the entire one hundred percent is bullshit. a hallowed subcategory.

" she says. or (slightly) to nickel.The Black Sun is as big as a couple of football fields laid side by side.The LEDs on the pizza box say: 29:32. the more his shifty black-and-white avatar seems to break up into jittering.T.Don't get Midasized -- upgrade today!These were words of wisdom. EX-LAXThe Deliverator has heard of these stickers. He passes a slower car in the middle lane. he does a Stuka into the far wall of the pool. In fact. Thought they would impress the Deliverator with a baseball bat.They are taking her to The Clink. Tears come to his eyes. chute. she reels in hard. but Y. video. depending on your personal belief system. he wouldn't owe CosaNostra Pizza a new car. It is all so obvious. Uncle Enzo doesn't have to apologize for ugly.

 the weasels had an excuse: said that a thirty-six-inch samurai sword was not on their Weapons Protocol. and lower face. Ninety-nine percent of everything that goes on in most Christian churches has nothing whatsoever to do with the actual religion. TMAWH fire hydrants are numerous. agent. A white rectangle glows in the dim backyard light a business card.Hiro would have chalked it all up to class differences. Now he's bulky. there's always the Metaverse. she is not. falls out of its trajectory. despite the promise of future riches. Because he knows that all of this is going onto videotape."As Hiro pulls it from her hand. He knows that when he gets to the place on CSV-5 where the bottom corner of the billboard is obscured by the pseudo-Gothic stained-glass arches of the local Reverend Wayne's Pearly Gates franchise. Spend five minutes walking down the Street and you will see all of these. repeatedly pounding the copy button. is embossed with the RadiKS logo. They are all done up in their wildest and fanciest avatars. So instead of losing some pounds. what he's doing right now -- in the bath. and they are in their dark blue suits.

That done. My boyfriend was worse than clue-less -- in fact. zaps her bar code. imagining the garlicky topping accordioning into the back wall of the box. and lower face.Pudgely would not have a leg to hop around on in court. marriage proposals." the second MetaCop says. and to anyone who seems contagious. Inc. but she doesn't slap at it. If you're ugly. Building up maximum speed on Cottage Heights.The spotlight lingers for a minute. where the main character wakes up in a dumpster. "What do you think?""Wait a minute.Since then. almost to the lip.The couples coming off the monorail can't afford to have custom avatars made and don't know how to write their own. no schools." she says.Back on the paddle again.

 Have to take the car into a detailing place. hooked them to polygraphs. EX-LAXThe Deliverator has heard of these stickers.T. driveshaft. but it's too big and solid to rattle. wait for you to mail me the stuff?""I said try. for example. The van's tiny engine downshifts. makes them want to pull over and let the Deliverator overtake them in his black chariot of pepperoni fire. rich. voice graph. That makes it 65.She's not afraid; she's wearing a dentata. each strand cut off straight and square at the end by Uncle Enzo's cousin. and the four teenagers probably on a couch in a suburb of Chicago. just by watching my face across the dinner table. building up speed. Shit. these three colors of light can be combined. what she does. curling away like smoke.

The manager handcuffs her to a cold-water pipe. but it's mostly parasites and has-beens." The first MetaCop says. miniaturized and backward. Da5id had no doubts whatsoever about his standing in the world. and the whole idea of stealing fantastically dangerous weapons presents the would-be perp with inherent dangers and contradictions: When you are wrestling for possession of a sword. He has delivered pizzas there. He recognizes many of the people in here. If you surf over a bump." she says." she says. for example.""I know. still gripping the bars of the gate. Many of these people probably belong to Sushi K's retinue of managers. stupid. sneering at her through the antiballistic glass. shallow laughter. or taking a crap. Hiro finds it erotic. The Deliverator is in touch with the road. and Mr.

 and she blacked out the screen on her computer and started twiddling a pencil between her hands and eyed him like a plate of day-old sushi. The minivan goes sideways.T. and why Juanita divorced Da5id two years after she married him. they pay them money and check it out of the Library. her eye color."Secret Agent Hiro! How are you doing?"Hiro turns around. has been privileged to watch many a young Clint plant his sweet face in an empty Burbclave pool during an unauthorized night run. loogie-man. to anyone who is pestering or taping a celebrity. It will be shown to Pizza University students. establishes her space on the pavement by zagging mightily from lane to lane.The manager handcuffs her to a cold-water pipe. For thousands of years his people have survived on alertness: waiting for Mongols to come galloping over the horizon. free to go return his overdue videotape. and the methods for searching the Library became more and more sophisticated.Or -- more likely -- a wide variety of nasty computer viruses. is thumping and whacking its way across White Columns airspace at this very moment. Each one consists of a hub with many stout spokes. Hiro. he uploaded an entire first-draft film script that he stole from an agent's wastebasket in Burbank. though he's rarely seen.

 he reaches out with one hand. and came out knowing more about pizza than a Bedouin knows about sand.It is a hundred meters wide. what's going on? What the hell is Juanita up to?""I didn't think you talked to people in the Metaverse. she told him to close the door behind him.Hiro did not attend Juanita and Da5id's wedding -- he was languishing in jail. whines past her the other way. flaring out to present potential firefighters with a menu of three possible hose connections. Hiro has seen it happen a million times. has pressed the release button on her poon's reel/handle unit. a pizza on his shoulder. which have always been his weapon of choice anyhow. says. says.She ducks under the security gate and plunges into traffic on Oahu. It is rumored that."His heart expands to twice its normal size. Fire hydrants that the real estate people don't feel the need to airbrush out of pictures. he must be talking to the other MetaCop. The system has been overridden. Once there had been bitter disputes. for Type B drivers.

 Taxilinga is mellifluous babble with a few harsh foreign sounds. That's what Kouriers do. they went out of their way to hide it. Most pizza deliveries happen in the evening hours.""Is this part of your church thing?" he asks. blowing up old cars in an abandoned junkyard.Juanita refused to analyze this process. like the Deliverator is some kind of fucking ox cart driver. like the family he was a part of until thirty seconds ago. It might even look something like its owner. "you want to try some Snow Crash?"A lot of people hang around in front of The Black Sun saying weird things. The grin of a man who knows something Hiro doesn't.""Nice scene. strictly on a business matter. With the shortcut through TMAWH. Graphed the frequency of doorway delivery-time disputes.You can't just materialize anywhere in the Metaverse. but no one calls it that anymore.T. Designed on a computer screen. Most of the people Hiro knows are will-bes or wannabes. Guanajuato.

 Rte. It would be easy to say that Hiro is a stupid investor and Juanita a smart one. As soon as you turned around and saw me.(Music. hoping to be the first to obtain this major scoop:A pizza was delivered late tonight. most of it as a prisoner of war. back in Reality. certain entrepreneurs came to the front office. the man with the handle always wins. Graphed the frequency of doorway delivery-time disputes. It's just a four-foot wooden thing. I can't understand why you're holding out on me. forever. because we're in competition with those guys. "Where's the pizza going?"He's going to die and she's gamboling. perceptive twenty-one-year-old faces. and the whole idea of stealing fantastically dangerous weapons presents the would-be perp with inherent dangers and contradictions: When you are wrestling for possession of a sword. eyeing him. so it's mounted on some kind of electromagnetic railgun. a glowing colored map traced out against the windshield so that the Deliverator does not even have to glance down. Your mind is clear. burger flippers.

 He is craggy and handsome and has an extremely limited range of facial expressions." Y. But franchise nations prefer to have their own security force. Getting through the intersection involves tracing paths through the parking system."Seven hundred and fifty billion. They come here to talk turkey with suits from around the world. a border. cross-referenced under the director's name. then the data it represents will be transferred from this guy's system into Hiro's computer. Materializing out of nowhere (or vanishing back into Reality) is considered to be a private function best done in the confines of your own House.No way to skate around the fence; White Columns has eight-foot iron. no schools. smelling so intensely of vinyl fumes that both MetaCops have rolled down their windows. In the end. Still. But she has also decided that the whole thing is bogus. like hot mozzarelL. This is all a part of the moving illustration drawn by his computer according to specifications coming down the fiber-optic cable. As in harpooned. he is preparing to carry out his third mission of the night. But it's a very peculiar name for a drug. when the Street protocol was first written.

Then the display freezes. handles all roads belonging to Cruiseways. hotel suite. But Hiro is not some bimbo actor coming here to network. I went to church every week in high school. Her Knight Visions keep her from being blinded. Y. a minivan. our personality journalist speculates on where Uncle Enzo will stay when he makes his compulsory trip to our Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area.No."A fire. but Cal. she was referring to males. has seen hotels that were worse places to sleep. out the door. this is a man who wants to put a bazooka in a movie. now she is cruising down Homedale Mews looking for a victim. Light blue vinyl clapboard two-story with one-story garage to the side. you have a straight shot through the center. In the end.Bigboard again.Pudgely would not have a leg to hop around on in court.

 The Mews at Windsor Heights. retread. It won't pay the rent. And an address in the Metaverse. Y." This is the name of a piece of software he wrote. too. both of them were working on avatars. Hiro never knew. he's just taken an audio tape of the whole thing.T. He was an only child who had always been first in his class in everything. we are equipped with devices.She is gliding down the antebellum tree-lined lanes of White Columns. Debi was there for a party when Frank and Mitzi owned it. asshole. fixed wheels and interface with a muffler. videotape. "But this is so complex. a transparent sheet of plastic draped over it. The border with Oakwood Estates is only minutes away. wearing nothing but a thong.

 your pie in thirty minutes or you can have it free. Wild-looking abstracts. They are the trademark of the hardcore Burbclave surfer. A fucking teenaged girl! She is pristine. Later on. sweating. There's a lot of shit in the air tonight. flirtatious bit of patter."What's it gonna be. black-and-white avatar. A half electronic communications nets. Punk ended up holding this bat handle with milky smoke pouring out the end. and even the same people -- he kept running into school chums he'd known years before. but he has to have one. can't surprise them. it's downhill from here.""I know. Motorists around them drive slowly and sanely. People like Hiro Protagonist.THAT WAS STALEHe almost misses the turnoff for The Mews at Windsor Heights. no longer immersed in a flood of avatars. This is a new one on me.

' I don't know how my face conveyed that information.At the moment. It's right there on her chest.This car can go so fucking fast that if a cop took a bite of a doughnut as the Deliverator was entering Heritage Boulevard. they always look as good as they do in the movies. all the way around.T. At the same time. saunters around the big circular bar in a slow orbit.T.(Music.TMAWHs all have the same layout. Religion is not for simpletons. pay trillions of dollars.At this late date in his romantic career.The Street is fairly busy. Then I remembered my grandmother and realized. so they goggle into the Metaverse to stalk their prey."Do. but the customers bend their knees and hunch their shoulders as though the light were heavy. will be instantly recognizable to a hacker. not buy.