"What am I doing here?" "That's the question, Jimi." "Why am I here and not elsewhere?" "Maybe Lisa needs Jimi and Jimi needs Lisa." "But love is something other than need or dependence." "Love is love and that's all." "You shouldn't expect anything in exchange." "But we..." "Are we still in love, Jimi?" "What's Lisa doing here?" "Lisa had been gone for a year and I was sailing on dark seas again." "Other times I'd gotten out." "But this time there were no stars to guide me." "Maybe it's never happened to you." "You wake up in the morning and all you want is to sink back into the darkness." "Preferably dreamless." "Anyway, not to start living again." "I don't know where you are right now." "But try to imagine;" "Your blood has grown thick." "Your thoughts lie on the ground like dead birds." "Your breath is suspended." "Okosama Starr could go fuck itself." "No point denying it:" "I was lost." "Now I'm sliding." "The program's loading data rush by the edge of my field of vision." "I sit here in this hotel room, and I wait." "The Indian virus hasn't been fed in yet." "Even though I know all this could kill me, I feel calm." "Besides, we're still on the runway, we haven't started to fly yet." "The Chelsea hotel, room 717." "Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and Ijust can't believe that it all began only two days ago." "Yes?" "Who are you?" "Who are you!" "You called me." "My name's Solo." "I found your number in my pocket and I called you, but I don't know you." "I don't even know what I'm doing here, I don't even know who I am!" " I don't remembera thing." " Let me see you." "You're the Italian who was at Chung Li's restaurant yesterday." " Very likely." " I gave you my number, remember?" "No." "I rememberthat phrase, you've said it to me before." "Listen, I don't know what you're on and I don't want to know." "If you want some fun with a hometown girl, call when you come down." " I only cost 50,000 akus." " Keep talking." "Keep talking, it's as if I've already heard you say it all." "I found you, Spaghetti," "Score one for me." "Wait!" "NORTHERN AGGLOMERATION THREE DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS" "Nirvana:" "the new game byJimi Dini set on the outskirts of the Agglomeration." "Directly into your minds from Okosama StarrGames." "I've got to go, Jimi." "It's best for both of us." "Life has started moving fast, and I don't understand anything." "All that mattered to me was that you were happy." "Only now I'm starting to wonderwho I am." "It's 8 p. m., Jimi." "Your house wishes you good evening and reminds you that you have 3 days from now to deliverthe new game to Okosama Starr." "Dinner is ready." "I'm not hungry." "You requested to dine at this hour." "The beer is chilled properly." "No, thank you." "Do you want me to draw your bath?" "I don't want to take a bath." "Turn on the TV." "Maybe you will want to take a bath later." "You're so stubborn!" "I don't know, I'll tell you when." "Turn on the TV!" "I am only trying to be useful." "Now you have less than 3 days to deliver Nirvana." "Fuck off." "Thank you." "If you decide to take a bath, let me know in advance," "I don't work miracles." "There's someone at the door." " Who is it?" " I'm the taxi driver." " Red Crow." " Let him in." "Sorry I'm late, the traffic's hell." "It's all right." "Here." "Liquid marijuana, premiercru." "All right." "Three vials." "I'd do anything to live uptown." "So whateveryou need..." "Anything..." "CR 610." "Red Crow six-one-zero, as they call me." "I prefer 610." "All right." "Hook me up to Nirvana." "Don't you want to take a hot bath first?" "I already said no!" "Hook me up to Nirvana and shut up." "Who are you?" "Who are you!" "You called me." "My name's Solo." "I had your number in my pocket..." "We've seen each other before." "Let me see you." "You're the Italian who was at Chung Li's restaurant yesterday." "I gave you my number, remember?" "All this has already happened." "There's something weird." "Someone's about to pop out." " See?" " I found you, Spaghetti." "I'm scoring this point." "Wait!" "I know what you're about to do." "You point your pistol, squeeze the triggerand shoot me." " How do you know?" " It's already happened!" "You've already come up the stairs, I was telling Maria." "You've already aimed your gun and killed me." "I've been dead before." "Then you know how it will end." "Score one for me." "I don't think so." "Shit!" "Solo!" "Come closer." "Let me see you." "Come closer." "What's going on?" "Now I get it." "How awful!" "Open the window." "Put your hand in your right pocket." "Read the note." "The note you're holding, read it." "Read the note!" "What's he doing?" "Who are you?" "I know someone's there." "What's he doing?" "Who's there?" "Tell me who you are." "I figured it out." "Speak to me!" "Let me know you're there." "Tell me I'm right." " Pick up the gun." " No, I won't." "I don't want to play." "Let me hear you, tell me your name, you must have a name!" "I knew it!" "I knew you were there!" "You made all this, didn't you?" "What the fuck's going on?" "I checked the circuits in yourconsole." " There's a virus, I'm sorry." " What virus?" "Yes, I heard." " What's itdone?" " It's infected the main character." "It's given him an awareness, now he's playing on his own and he's not responding to commands as if he had a life of his own." "Ofhis own, my ass!" "Do you know what it's like being a character in a videogame, Jimi?" "Your name'sJimi, right?" "You and me have got to talk." "I have to talk to you." "He knew he'd never get outof there, that his life was a copy of reality." "He looked me in the face from his game world, but reality can't stand being looked in the eye." "That's why the mind can't cope with it." "It's a nightmare, I don't want to stay here!" "I deliver my games." "One every year." "And they give me lots of money in exchange." "It's my life, it's all I know how to do." "It's the life you chose." "Who says it's real?" "Look around you." "I'm sure you've got lots of nice things, a nice house..." "What if everything you see didn't exist?" "If it was like here, if you were like me..." "You know the only thing I can't do in here?" "Stop playing." "But you can." "So stop playing." "If you can stop it means you're free." "Delete me, Jimi." "You still here?" " Know where Marrakesh is?" " The Arab neighborhood?" "Sure." "But I'm not going there, sir." "I'm sorry." "I'll pay double." "Why does someone like you wantto go to the outskirts?" "I'm going to the hotel El Rashid, will you take me?" "Can you spare something, sir?" "Move it, Red Crow, no standing in the pink zone." " I'll pay triple." " Just to the zone entrance." "Artists!" "Why me!" "It's as if you'd shut me up in one of yourworlds." "I know you wanted to make me happy, but to give happiness you have to be happy yourself." "I can't wait any longer, Jimi." "I'm fading, I wanted to tell you" "I'm going to Marrakesh, to Joystick." "When I spoke to him he was at the hotel El Rashid." "I know it's rough overthere, but maybe that's what I need, to be forced to keep my eyes open." "So please, don't look for me." "I'm not running away." "Let me go." "If I ever see you again, sir, I want to know why you do it." "Sir?" "You have unregistered software." " Is it yours?" " Yes, I'm a programmer." "Give me yourchip." "An off-limits night out in Marrakesh!" "Have fun sir." "A room?" "Did I hear properly, you want to rent a room?" "This is a hotel isn't it?" "You have rooms." "I want one." "As you wish, if it amuses you..." "But I must tell you the management takes no responsibility fordamage to belongings, to your person orto your mind within the hotel." "Payment in advance." "Okosama Starr." "Know a guy called Joystick?" "Never heard of him." "Think hard." "I heard he lives here." "And this girl..." "Ever seen her?" "Neverseen her." "Never had any Joystick here." " Still want a room?" " Yes!" "Forthe light, use yourcredit chip, electricity is not included in the price." "Solo!" "Here!" "I'm in Marrakesh, I don't know what I'm doing here." "At least you're not there bickering with your house." " feel better?" " Why'd you go out?" " Why do you ask?" " You're in phase two of the game." "Watch out fora mobster in a funny jacket." "Now there's a mobster?" "I can't take any more, delete me, please!" "It's not that simple." "In the Okosama Starrdatabank there's a copy ofNirvana." "They don'tcare, in 3 days they're releasing it and they'll sell millions of copies, whether I like itor not." "Excuse me, sir." "What...?" " What have you done?" " I killed the mobster." " That was a tourist!" " You said with a funny jacket!" "Are you nuts?" "Go away!" "If I can find Joystick, maybe I can delete you sooner." "Please..." "Please, delete me." "I'm going now." "Was it tenderness orcompassion?" "What did I feel for that being I'd created?" "I thought I'd made him laughable, but he didn't make me laugh atall." " What's that?" " The program virus is spreading." "Don't worry." "Joystick!" "I didn't find him, he found me." "What the fuck do you want from me?" "Nothing, I don't even know you!" "careful with that!" "Then why'd you ask about me?" "Yes sir, and so?" "Tell your boss I'm not paying forthat stuff, it was crap!" "Psychedelic, my ass!" "Wouldn't even load into the computer!" "I'm not paying, he's lucky I didn't put the kibosh on him!" "Okay, I hear you." "Just take it easy." "Before you stick that thing in my brain, tell me about Lisa." "She still here?" "Whaddaya mean Lisa?" "Who are you?" "Jimi." "Lisa must have mentioned me." "At times I think it'd be nice to dissolve in water, to slowly disappear in this warmth." "One day you'll come and find the tub full of water, you'll pull out the plug, the water will drain away and me with it." "I told her I was here in Marrakesh." "She wasn't here long, a month and a half, two at the most." "She was all mixed up when she came, looking for work, always talking about you." "She cried sometimes." "You have to eat if you want to sit here." "Then she got a job with a software cleaning firm." "But, you know how it is, bad pay, shitloads of electrosmog." "So one day she decided to go to Bombay City." " You finished yet?" " No." "Why Bombay City?" "Why did she go down there?" "She read about an Indian guru on a Hong Kong network." "She was glued to my computer fora week and then she left." "She left me a message from there, she said she was well." "Then nothing." "The Agglomeration is big." "Everything's gone foggy!" "Gota handkerchief?" "I can't see shit." "Thanks." "I have to be careful, humidity can send them haywire." " How long have you had them?" " Five years." "Here lots of people sell a kidney, a lung..." "Scalp prices are down, or I'd have sold that!" "Corneas get good money." "These black and white videocams are fucked." "Zonys are cool, the color implants are something else." "But they cost a fortune." "Another beer would be good." "Then tell me why you were looking for me." "Hello children!" "This is yourfriend, the Joker." "Here's the latest bulletin of dope available in Marrakesh forthe next two days." ""Synthetic Columbine"." "It's legal, it's plentiful, but it doesn't do shit." ""Rot Brain"." "That's legal too, but it's cut with something weird." "We have new games." " You interested?" " No, thanks." "There's "Blue Coke"." "Lord knows there is!" "Butwatch out." "It's good, but it kicks in fast." "you nod off on the spot," "If you're fucking, fine, but if you're on your bike, bummer!" "What do you get out ofit?" "And above all, what do I get?" "There's a lot of dirty money in the Okosama Starr databank." "Keep talking, don't turn around." "What's up?" "We got a Jap on ourtaiI, he was at the restaurant, he leftwhen we did." " No one knows I'm here." " Use yourcredit chip?" " Yes, why?" " Then they know you're here." "Keep talking about Okosama Starr, but don't look back." "The administrative subdirectory controls slush funds." "If we can get in, not only can we delete Nirvana, but we can transfer a wad of credit." " Still following us?" " Yes." "Go on, walk faster." "It's dirty money, no one'll protest." "Not officially anyway." " You gotaccess?" " level one." "Afterthat I need you to get in." "You sure the money's there?" "Yes." "Run!" "...it's illegal, it lingers in the central nervous system," "I took it a month ago and I still don't know where the fuck it is," "I'm changing more skin than shirts." "The navigator's bulletin is over, this is theJoker signing off." "Jimi San." "Stop!" "I'm a psychologist from Okosama StarrGames." "I've observed you for a month and I'm very concerned." "You have problems, Jimi San." "And I'm here to help you." "Why don't you deliver your new game?" "Give me back my badge, Jimi San." "You've taken something that's bummed you out." "I meet lots of strung-out tourists!" "Today's news is that they whacked a Sicilian near here." "What did I tell you?" "Ciao Maria, these are from Uncle Nick." "I see we have company." "So you finally showed up." "What an honor!" "Uncle Nick wants to talk to you, and doesn't like to be kept waiting." "Take care, Maria, and call Uncle Nick occasionally, he cares about you a lot." "Who the fuck is Uncle Nick?" "I don't know him." "He's famous here, he's the managing directorofthe mafia." "He must be in love with me, he sends me two pizzas every day." "Maybe I should change games." "What?" " I'd like to change my life." " Before you used another word." "You said "game"." "Afigure of speech." "I could have said change movies." "You could have, but you said change games." " Why did you say that word?" " I don't know." "Listen to me." "You and I don't exist." "Nothing around us exists." "Uncle Nick, the pizza, the wine, the house are an illusion." "We're both characters in a game." "You want to fuck?" "Ourfriend's linked up to some psychedelic shit, he's totally out of it, he's gone ballistic." "Thinks he's a psychologist." "He needs to relax." "I'll pay, but I want something really special." "We can hook up with a psychopathic Thai hooker." "Lasts at least 24 hours." "What do you say, Jimi?" " That's perfect for him!" " Don't do this to me, Jimi San!" "You're not going to leave me here!" "Help!" "I'm yourfriend." "Okosama is your family!" "Did you enjoy making love with me?" "Yes, I did." "But we're two mathematical calculations who have had sex." "It's disturbing, it's in your mind, but the sensations aren'tyours," "Jimi put them there." " Who's thisJimi?" " The creatorof the game." "Wanna freak out?" "I'm selling used paranoia, good as new, anxiety, phobias, the works." "Get away you loser!" "You sure?" "You look a little flat." "I'm so paranoid, I can't shake it." "Look at my scratches!" "I hearyou, but we're already paranoid enough." "Go away!" "I just love Japanese food!" "Let's get some sushi?" "Sushi?" "How gross!" "Sushi for her, none for me, I hate the stuff." " Eating raw fish..." " Hands up!" "Don't move." "I'll eat it." " It's good foryou!" " We're from the Yakuza." "We know you killed a Sicilian." " You're from the Italian mafia." " Then you know Uncle Nick!" "I've had it with Uncle Nick!" "I'm doing this for you." "Remember." "Unfortunately, you're in bad shape." " That is?" " You should change them." "You should get a pair of Zonys, two babycombo color implants, but they cost." "What did I tell you, Jimi?" "If we get into Okosama Starr your money worries are over." "Adatabank like that is equipped with mutant defenses." "It's not enough to know how to fly a console." "Rauschenberg, be careful, easy does it." "You need an extraordinary pilot, with lots of flying time under his belt," "someone with a superior level of awareness." "An angel who can soarthrough the web right into the Okosama Starr databank and hoverthere without getting his wings burned by Devils." "You're not just talking about anyone!" "Wait!" " Are you done?" " It's all falling apart here!" "What are Devils?" "Devils means "Destroying visual Illusions"." "defenses against intruders." "But a true angel can dodge them." "An angel like you?" "No, Jimi, I stopped flying." "John "Gandhi" Simpson, our master, dissolved last summer." "A Black devil frizzled his brain in the UPM databank." " I haven't flown since then." " He's scared shitless." "I'm done!" "Enough!" "Give me the lenses!" " I'll screw them back in, eh?" " I'm not scared shitless!" ""Gandhi" Simpson dissolved like a shooting star." "I was at the keyboard and I saw him vanish in a microsecond." "His cerebral activity is preserved in a UPM chip, they use it for research on artificial intelligence." "Him!" "And to think he hated the guts of all multinationals!" "Enough with this thing!" "Anyway, don't worry, we'll find someone." "Rauschenberg," "I need some credit chips, safe ones though." " So my friend doesn't use his." " You're in luck." "Afriend managed to link up with a restaurant cash register." "until they catch on..." "These already have stolen codes." "How much?" "200,000 a pop." "No big spending with these though." "Five." "Heard from Naima?" "Said she'd come, never showed." "Try at the Los Angeles Cafe." "Let's go look for her." "Go to the hotel and check out." "I'll pick you up in an hour." " How much are these chips?" "200,000 akus." "He's scared shitless." "They were all angels." "They sold out to the multinationals." "They come here for a off-limits nightout, something different." "Orto remember how they once felt." "Place is a dump." "But Naima comes here sometimes." "We have to find her." "Weren't you dead?" "Ignore him, let's find Naima and leave." "See?" "Those are electrodes." "'Sometimes they leave a mark." "I haven't been around, that's why..." "But now you're back." "No pointtrying to explain." "Can you lend me 500,000 akus?" "Here." "May Allah bless you." "Don't worry, we'll subtract it from my share." "No Racerwithout money, Joy." "No more credit." "That Racersucks, and you still bust my balls?" " Seen Naima?" " Ask the boss, he's out the back." "Come in." "George bet he can crack a bank in London." "See?" "Neuroelectronic link-up." "It's the favorite sport here on the outskirts." "Banned uptown." "The odds are 10 to 1." "Want to bet?" "No, right now, money-wise I'm testing negative." " I came to find Naima." " She's on the overpass." " You're not betting?" " No, thanks." "Mosquito, fuck off." "I want to dare you." "When George is done I want to surfthe web with you." "They say you were the best." " Let's see who's faster." " I don'tsurf." "He's scared, poor angel." "He saw his pal get his brain fried and now he's afraid." "Don't worry, we're leaving now." "Getyour hand off me!" "I don't surf with programmers from multinationals." "Who is it?" "It's me, alive again." " It was all fake." " Let me see you." "You're the Italian who was at Chung Li's restaurant yesterday." "That's me, we had a pizza together yesterday." " I don't remember." " I got killed to show you it was all fake." "Get a life!" "I don't know what you're on and I don't want to know." "If you want some fun with a hometown girl, call when you come down." " I only cost..." "50,000 akus, you told me!" " Excuse me, sir." " See this?" "It's the snappy-dresser I've already killed once!" "The othertime I killed you by mistake." "If I letyou go, does anything change in this fucking game?" " You bet it does!" " Then go!" "I found you, Spaghetti!" "Score one for me!" "Holy shit!" "I didn't want to kill the snappy-dresser!" "I did everything to change the game!" "But you're tough, like the guy with the purple hair!" "Nothing stops you, you're like a rottweiler!" "Don'tyou ever have doubts?" "All right, friend." "Let's discuss it calmly, without guns." "Enough, fuck this!" "We're from the Yazuka, you killed a Sicilian." "Fuck off, you and the Yazuka, I've had enough!" "I advise you not to go out." "I'm not scared of dying, what do I care." "But those bastards suck your brains out if a devil blocks you." "I don't want what's left of me after I die to be plugged into a multinational databank and be used to create new biological software." "I'd like to show them there's still an angel around who can fly up their ass and into their databanks." "If we find Naima maybe I can fly again." "Maybe." " That'd be perfect for us." " How do we do it?" "No problem." "Some ofthese burglar alarms have got bad mouths." " Do we really need it?" " What do you say?" "Naima's on the overpasses, you want to walk there?" "Pay, we'd better get going." "I am light transport unit Mary Ann." "Stay away, you bastards, or I'll zap you." "This one has a system with a shock of at least 2,000 volts." "I said to stay away, you asshole." "Don't try and touch me you motherfucker." "What the fuck are you doing?" "So you want to die?" "I'm packing 3,000 volts under my paint job." "Know what that feels like?" "Not now!" "Talk, talk, you piece of shit." " Try and touch me, you asshole." " I'll bust your ass." "Just reach out!" "You can open the door." "Why me?" " Don't you trust me?" " Why should I open it?" "Do you think I'd let you touch it if it weren't perfectly safe?" "Unbelievable!" "Unbelievable!" "I thought you trusted me, thatwe were friends, I guess not." "So you don't trust me." "All right, Jimi, as long as I know." "What a fucked-up world we live in!" "Now you see?" "You see it's all right?" "What you're doing is illegal." "Respect for property is the basis of free cohabitation." "I'm protected by transnational laws..." "Now I want to see if it keeps babbling bullshit!" "Well done, scumbag, you've got 15 seconds to get out before my security shock explodes underyourass." " Fifteen seconds." " Don't worry, it's bluffing." "Here's hoping." "Look." "He's armed!" "Fifteen seconds to go." "Good night." "Minus three two one..." " You were right, it was bluffing." " Bluffing..." "How the hell did I know?" "We were about to go sky high!" "I was scared shitless." "Me too." "It's strange that Naima isn't on line." "She's gotto be here, if she checks the web she'll see we want her." "When my eyes get tired, we'll change." "Confusion!" "Tension is growing!" "Solo?" " It's me." "Where are you?" " In the car with Maria." "She's asleep." "I was sick of doing the same thing so I went for a drive." "You've entered phase three ofthe game." "Watch out fororgan hunters." " What have you come up with now?" " It gets more complex as you go on." "Things have to happen orthe players get bored." " Those are the rules!" " But I'm here!" "You're there, cool as can be." "It's easy, right?" "It's easy?" "You told me to destroy my work, now I'm driving around like a jerk with a blind angel." " It's not easy for anyone!" " You did it for me?" " Who else?" " Let's call it off, then." "Forget it, friends like before." "I can't call it off, there are other people involved now!" "You asked me to delete you." "Sorry, maybe I was a little aggressive." "I didn't wantto fight, you're my only real friend." "real as in "reality"." "Let's not fight." "Truce." "Who were you talking to?" "No one, sometimes I have solo conversations." "Solo..." "What's this?" " It's a fax from the owner." " What does he want?" "More or less, because he's German he says: "Deadbeats, sons ofbitches, when I get you, I'll detach your balls, and make a pendant. "" "What bullshit!" "It's strange she had this picture taken, she's camera-shy." "It's the only one I have." "I'd change the glass, it's broken." "Were you together when she came to Marrakesh?" "I ask because she talked about you." "God knows what you think now!" "No sex, there was no involvement." "I prefer it cut and dry, wham bam thank you m'am." "See, they're not working." "They've shut down." "I can't see a thing." " What's up?" " We're in a blank spot." "We'd better camouflage ourselves." "Now we've become a phone call." "That'll do for now." "I'm cold." "Don't worry." "It's your metabolism slowing down, you'll get used to it." "Give him a blanket." "Is that better?" "Yes." "Loneliness." "That's what I feel in here." "And cold." "I'm only a phone call floating on hold." "or at least that's what I want them to think." "Loneliness and fog." "Is that how you feel when you're dead?" "Welcome travelers." "I'm Gazgaz of the Kuwait  Texasgazoline." "Insert your credit chip." "We acceptMoney Express, Mama Card," "Tokyo Blue Word, Fujamax, Italfive." "I advise you not to touch me before inserting yourchip." "Anti-vandalism measures." " We have one of those chips, right?" " Sure." "I don't like stopping around here." "What's wrong with this place?" "It's quiet, there's no one around." "No one likes living nearthe overpasses." "Besides, you can never relax, there are always eyes on you." "Tried to pull a fast one." "Your chip is second-rate counterfeit, now it's unusable and you've a tank full of acid  trichloro-ethylene." "Bon voyage, losers." "This has always worked!" "What's going on?" "What did you use as a chip?" "What did you use?" "Atampered chip, a false card, it always worked till now." "Why didn't you use one of the doctor's?" "Well?" " Answer me!" " I haven't gotthem any more!" "I sold them!" "I'm flat broke and I'm going blind." "How do I know that the money is there?" "That's if we manage to crack the databank!" "There was ready cash going and I took it." "You don't know what it means to go blind on the outskirts!" "You're an asshole." "What now?" "That stuff will blow the pistons." "So whatwill we do?" "I don't know!" "We detected you thanks to the report from the gas station where you are now." "In 6 minutes HelipoI unit No. 325 will be overyour heads." "Please do not resist, hit the ground and don't move." "Thanks." "Fantastic!" "Now whatdo we do?" "Why do you always ask me what to do?" "How the fuck do I know?" "Am I God?" "I'll solve the problem anyway, that's Naima." " Will you move it?" " See, you only have to wait." "I'd already latched onto you but I had to do this." "Goddam lucky I was passing this way." "This is the Christmas message from the President ofltalfood, reminding you to taste our new nuked-nosh rigatoni, because "you are what you eat"." "Good evening." "Only a few days till Christmas, and I'm happy to wish you all the best." "Since Italfood entered the government, it has been clearto everyone what we're trying to do." "Take that, Mr. President!" "The level of well-being in the country since I've been here has not... risen..." "This is due to the choice made by the administration I belong to." "Due to disturbances in the up-link, we interrupt this program." " Merry Christmas, Mr. President!" " Brilliant!" "How'd you do it?" "I use an Australian satellite and an Algerian one," "I have to do it in transit." "I'll go back on line, a Burmese hacker's looking for me." "I'll fix some coffee, then tell me why you wanted to see me." "I didn't sleep 3 nights over it." "Let's say we're in a game." "What's outside?" "The players." "Reality." "So who says they're not in a game too?" "Good question." "Well done." "Whatthe fuck's that?" "Look behind us." "Get outof the car." " Who are you?" " Organ hunters." "We prefer you alive, but if you make a fuss, dead will do." "We have a freezer." "They have a freezer." "Okay, guys!" "Jimi warned me I'd run into you." "I know your next move is to take us, cut us up and sell our organs on the black market, and I understand." "But try to follow my reasoning now, we're part of a game, there are people who enjoy setting us against each other." "They play with us." "So let's confuse them!" "Try to do something different." "Instead of killing us, let us go." "For once!" "Fora change!" "I don't think I convinced them." "I could do with the money, but I don'tsee why you're doing it." "Because, afterwards there's no turning back." "Are we safe with this weather?" "With what I spent on the instruments..." "You have a lotof equipment." "It's old." "Can you get it to work?" "I'm the best "hard-tech" in the Agglomeration." "I can make anything with electronic circuits work." "You just go beyond the instructions." "Actually, better if there are none." "Want some?" " What is it?" " Blue Coke." "So the angel's going to fly again?" "But promise you'll be my ground control." "They're using third generation Black Devils now, they're very fast." "We have to find a very subtle virus that dodges their codes." " One they can't identify." " Where do we get it?" " From yourfriend Avinash." " That's right, Avinash." "Let's go to Bombay City." "If I can stay awake." "What's wrong?" "Nothing." "The woman who was with me went down there a yearago and she nevercame back." "I fell asleep." "Well?" "How's itgoing?" "Good." "They're convinced we're a phone call." "Good." "For the moment that's fine." "So, my man..." "How are we?" "Still cold?" "It's better now." "You can't imagine how much I'd like to be in yourshoes." "Anyway, I'm here close to you." "Close to you." "We're going arm in arm." "Maybe someone really did lead me by the hand into this, and they'd decided from the start I had to go to Bombay City." "I had to close a circle, find an ending, like in a piece of music." "Lisa was waiting for me." "That stuff kicks in really hard." " I have to sleep." " Not here, in Bombay City." "I can't." " We're almostthere." " Who are they?" "Organ hunters." "The girl's tired, she's justtired." "Now they're after us because they think she's sick." "Naima, wake up." "Speak to me, have you always lived here?" " I don't know." " What do you mean..." " Where were you born?" " I don't remember." "You can't not remember!" "I only remember back to last year." "It was the cerebral hook-up." "Still here?" "Go bust someone else's balls!" "If you screw up the launch, you've had it." "That's what happened." "Her brain and the computer's shorted out, and it deleted her memory." "They operated, that's why she's got that hole in herforehead, but it didn't work, she can only insert artificial memories." "The girl's fine, we're all fine!" "We're healthy and we're having a great time." "Go bust someone else's balls!" "We're nearly there, little sister." "What's wrong with the girl?" " Nothing, she's just tired." " She hasn't slept for3 nights." "Too much to do uptown, huh?" "It's hot here." "Sure, we're nearthe city's boilers." "They heat up and we sweat." "These are the keys to the rooms, payment up front." "Do you think I print it myself?" "Do you realize how much you cost me?" "This will be fine." "The rooms are at the end of the hall." "Come, little one, time to sleep." "Fleeing from the tiger the man comes to the edge of a precipice." "Grasping hold of a branch he dangles over the ravine." "The tiger above sniffs at him," "He looks down and sees another tiger below watching him." "Then he looks atthe branch he is hanging from and sees that two little mice are gnawing it." "Then he looks to his right and sees a tiny plant with a strawberry that is red," "and ripe." "He reaches out and eats it." "The strawberry was very sweet." "And I was the one who needed to sleep!" " What time is it?" "4 p. m." " We have to look forAvinash." " I'll only be a minute." "I have to tell you something." "I need money, but I'm doing it for another reason too." "What's that?" "Karma Yoga." "Action." "To do everything as well as you can, even when it seems impossible." "That's what will change the world." "Whatever the reason is, I'm glad you're with us." "You really don't remember anything?" "Betterthatway." "I understand machines better." "I wanted to tell you..." "I can't be sure, because I don't remember, but I think you're the first person I like a little." "Maybe there was someone else." "But you're the first one I remember." "I'll wait upstairs." "How are things?" "I need a favorfrom you." "There's only one thing I care about;" "thatMaria believes me." "There must be a way to convince her." "I don't know if it's a good idea." "Rememberthe house where you wake up atthe start of the game?" "There's an exit, it's the one I use to make changes." "From there you can look out directly onto the program." "You can'tget out, obviously, butyou can see the game." " Where is it?" " It's thatold cupboard." "In the cupboard?" "Thanks, Jimi." "Joy and Avinash have worked together, they were together when "Gandhi" Simpson dissolved." "Now he's ashamed for him to see him without eyes." "Come." "There he is." "The old mechanic is always at work!" " Hi Blue." " He'sJimi, a friend." " What brings you to Bombay City?" " We need a virus." "A very subtle one they can't understand." "Joystick's going to fly again." "He needs money, he's in a bad way." "It isn't the time to fly, my friend." "And if you fly for money, you lose strength." "Put it in your pocket." "Put it in your pocket!" " He's asking ifhe gave us anything." " No!" "They have to search." "Tell him I'm a programmerforOkosama Starr and that you're my friends." "My chip." "He said you have to leave." "What's a programmerfrom Okosama Starr doing here?" " I don't know any more." " Good." "Take thatchip to Swamiji." "Try asking him forwhat you need." "They've given us access." "Everything okay, Jimi?" "Everything's fine." "Lisa!" "I'd like to have seen her just once more, to ask her if at leastshe's happy, if she found what she was looking for." "It had been a long time since I'd felt herso close." "And now we were in Bombay City, in the bowels of the Agglomeration," "where reason isn't needed and past, presentand future dance together." "Master, my friend has something foryou." "You'reJimi." "The Swami has something to show you." "He's wanted by all the police forces on the planet." "They inserted a transmitter into him and if his brain enters a phase of active thought, he can be traced immediately." "You've brought us software stolen from the Souchong Psycholab." "It'll help keep him in the REM phase until we manage to take out the transmitter." " So you keep him dreaming?" " Exactly." "If he dreams, he doesn't think and the transmitter isn't activated." "If he dreams he can't be detected." "BrotherJimi, why have you only come now?" "We need a virus." "We can leave an offering forthe Ashram." "That's twice you've called me Jimi, how do you know my name?" "We know a lot about you." "Everything Lisa told us." "She's here, isn't she?" "Not exactly." "We'll send everything you need to the Ganga hotel." "But now you and the Swami musttalk." "Lisa died four months ago." "She was already ill when she came." "She was here forsix months, we worked well and she was starting to be happy." "When her illness worsened we began to link up." "I downloaded chunks ofher life." "This is Lisa's memory." "Her fears, her desires, colors, smells." "It's an ayurvedic microchip." "You're the only person I feel I can give it to." "No computer can read it, you have to find a receiver." "A receiver?" "A human being with a port, your young friend has one over her eyebrow." "Know what happens to me when I die?" "I'm there and I waitfor it to start all overagain." "The worst thing is the anxiety I get." "I know it has to start again but I don'twant it to," "I'm there suspended between life and death." "Maybe something similar happens to the dead in yourworld." "They like staying to watch the living weep overthem." "They grow lazy, as if something's holding them back." "They lose the strength to begin again, they don't have it." "Then, as the living slowly forget them, orat least stop weeping overthem, you know, in time..." "At that point it doesn't make sense to stay, they get restless, the strength to begin again returns and they go in search of a new life." "You should set your Lisa free." "Let hergo." "It's not thateasy." " Whatare you doing there?" " Waiting for Maria." "I'm going to show her what's in the cupboard." "My Lisa, as you call her..." "I'd like to see her justonce more." "I'm here!" "It's her..." "I must be out of my mind, I don't know why I do certain things." "I nevergo to clients' houses, you ought to know." "Uncle Nick always warns me." "I hope I haven't made a dumb mistake." "Not'cos of you, it's just..." "There are some live-ones around, Shanghai Town is full of maniacs..." " ... with kinky ideas." " I'm normal." "I assure you." "Sitdown." "Are you comfortable?" "I wanted to tell you a story." "Astory?" "You don't want to fuck?" "It's as if I'd accepted." "See that cupboard?" "We'II leave the cupboard till the end." "Look at me." "What would you think if I told you that you're not a human being?" "That I've made a dumb mistake..." "It's a cerebral implant microchip." "I used them before, this is the first I've ever seen with human memories." "Technically there's no difference." "You know whatyou're asking me?" "What now?" "Let's see ifitworks." "If I tell you a date..." "March 21, last year." "It's the day I left." "I took all the money out of the bank, mine and yours." "I didn't know whether to leave you with that video or an empty bank account." "Enough!" " I don't like this." " Wait." ""The 29 Palms"." "The motel in the desert." "You were sad." "I tried to make you smile all evening." "You got up early in the morning and went fora walk in the desert." "When you came back, the sun was still low, the room was pink." "You said you'd seen a coyote, but I never believed you." " They haven't existed foryears." " But I saw thatcoyote!" "It was there in front of me." "But you can't understand. "Wild Side"." "The restaurant in Amsterdam." "I don't remember what we did that night." "Never mind, it was wonderful." "There was a Croatian rock group." "A lotof smoke." "No, fog." " Yes." " We walked along the canals." "That night I told you about Ignatius." "That's right." "Do you remember the barman's face?" "Yes." "He gave us the address of Dark Pink." "Nearthe Polish Quarter." "Where you did this for me." "Do me a favor." "Look in the cupboard." "What can happen?" "You'll see pants, pajamas." "Look inside." "Even though this seems really dumb." "You ready?" " And so?" " Sorry." "Our world ends here." "We're like two fish in an aquarium." "They make us think it's the sea, but..." "Jimi promised me he'll delete the game." "What game?" "Why this game, of course!" "It's late, if you don't want to fuck, I'll go." "I've got so much to do!" "Uncle Nick's coming to see me, the house is a mess, I still have to make dinner..." "Cut the crap." "You can't say you didn't see it." "Whatdid I see?" "You know all the visual stuff they can do these days?" "They can make anything seem real." "Who are you, anyway?" "Who says what I saw was real?" "It's all real." "It's your life that's fake." "Why are you doing this to me?" "Leave me alone." "Please." "Hey, friend!" "Feeling a little down." "Want to pump up your pressure, get nice and paranoid?" "We can swap." "It's not the first time I've done it, but I don't remember who it was with." "In a way, you'd done it with me." "How do Lisa's memories come to you?" "It'll be a while before they come out on their own." "For now, with a computer, you call up a detail and a window opens." "You made love with me, notwith her." "I'd like to ask you to remember a lot of things." "Not now." "That's right." "Not now." "We have to hurry, Jimi San." "Only one day till Christmas." "You'll see, Okosama Starr will be understanding with you." "I'm happy to have found you again, it would have been a defeat for me." "Luckily you've been using your credit chip again." "How did ltgo with the Thai psychopath?" " Did she mess with your mind?" " Mess with my mind?" "You don't know what those perverts did to me." "I can't close my eyes any more." "It's all branded in my mind." "I'll need therapy." "He has to stay alive!" "Do what you want,just do it quietly." "I'm an authorized sensoriaI stimulator, my chip's in order." "I can't see shit." "The bitch!" "'Can't see a thing." "The lousy bitch!" "I can't see a fucking thing!" "I'm meditating!" "What the fuck!" "Everything okay?" "And now I'm here." "The Chelsea hotel, room 717." "The Indian virus is working, I'm about to make my first flight." "It's December 23." "It's 2;30 in the afternoon." "If I don't delete Nirvana, tomorrow they'll make millions of copies." "I've lost too much blood, I can't make it." "I'm not a wimp." "It's justthat I can hardly see." "But I'm notscared, believe me." "Yes, I believe you." "So, now it's up to you." "Take us in." "The virus is transforming us." "We're a fax forthe Okosama Starr commercial office." " 'You scared, Jimi?" " A little." "Like on the shuttle for Tokyo?" "We had fun though." "Yes." "Now we're flying." "What can you see?" "I'm flying over a city at night." "It's the web." "Your mind pictures it as a city at night." "My compliments, you've a fine imagination." "I said you had a flair." "Hold tight now." "Now you're the fax finding its way to Okosama Starr." " I'm outside a laundry." " It's Okosama Starr." "Can you give me on the monitor what he's seeing?" "Get something more urgent than a fax." "A credit into the main account?" "Perfect." "Now we're entering Okosama Starr." "Don't forget, we've only gota few minutes to find what we're looking for." "I'm going in." "We're on line with the central observer." "Seven minutes from now." "From when you open that door, it knows you're an intruder." "Our virus is confusing it, but sooner or later, it'll find us." "It's a race against time,just as you can look into its circuits, it can read your brain and it'll try to block you." "That's why you have to be like water, that comes in, adapts to things, but then flows away." "All right?" "Go." "Select a door." "Excuse me." "I know you don't like to see me cry..." "It's a devil, a visual illusion, it's feeding on your memory." "...but since your mother left," "I think ofthe things I didn't tell her, that at times I'd have liked to caress herand I didn't." "Living with another person you end up taking a lot for granted." "Get out." "Come on, get out." "It's trying to hold you back, but we haven't got time." "I'd have liked to tell her I loved her more often." " Which door is it?" " I'm not receiving clearly." "I think the one in front of me." "Now I'm so lonely." "Where are you going?" "Don't leave me alone!" " We meet again, sir." " Red Crow." "You remember my handle." "You didn't bring me luck, they've taken away my license for dealing." "No more taxi." " You didn't tell them, did you?" " Don'tanswer him!" "Ignore him." "You're not real." "You're the one who's not real." "Someone with a job like yours doesn't just piss itaway." "He can read yourthoughts, you mustn't think about anything!" "Empty your mind, let the indication of another door come to you." "What are you going to do?" "You wantto buy my taxi?" "Ordo you want to live on the outskirts?" "You're throwing your life away." "The virus is disturbing it, it's opening." "It's having contorsions." "Where are you going?" "You have to try and create emptiness inside you." "It's faster, you have to refuse to play with it." "Stop thinking, all you have to do is receive." "Four minutes from now." "It's trying to find us." "No thoughts, Jimi." "No memories, nothing at all, just breathe." " I think that's it." " Okay then." "Try it." "At lastyou've found me." " I've been waiting for so long." " Fuck!" "It's not her, Jimi!" "I'm sorry, Jimi." "I know I made you suffer." "You were right, I shouldn't have left." "Empty the toughts out of your head, don'tthink of anything." " Maybe it's too late to tell me." " You're right." "I only evergave you problems." "It's the first time you've said it." "Why are you saying it now?" "Get out of there!" "That's not Lisa!" "It's not Lisa!" "Do you hear me, Jimi?" "It'll fry you if you stay." "It'll fry you if you stay!" "It's cruel to say it, but I didn't find anything anywhere else." "I already had what I wanted." "You don't know how often I thought of the time in London," "Amsterdam..." "It's hooked into him, we have to disconnect." " My birthday." " He believes her." " He's lapping it up." " Our last one together." "We have to disconnect him." "You came with the hologram we'd seen in London." "I bought it that day." "I wanted to surprise you." "You sat on the bed and you invited me to dinner." "I was wearing your black Sex Pistols sweatshirt." " I was having breakfast." " I told you it would be lovely." "But I wasn't happy." "I wanted to be happy, but I couldn't." "I was happy, when you went out I listened to a Massive disk." "I felt like a bitch, when you went out I took my photo and I smashed it." "By mistake..." "I told you it was a mistake." "I'm sorry, Jimi." "Is thattrue?" "In Lisa's memory it's very clear." "Theircomputer is trying to mess with you." " The Chinese restaurant was..." " That's not Lisa." "What you're seeing are your memories." "Lisa's are in my head." "Where are you going?" "I know I was wrong to leave, don't leave me alone." "I'm scared." "I'm sorry, it was only what you want to remember." "Let's look forthe directory." "Great!" "You're doing great!" "Now open a door, but you mustn'tchoose it, do it instinctively." "Found it." "We're in the directory." "Well done, you're a real angel." "Now you have to find the administrative sub-directory." "It must be that cube." "That's the hidden treasure, because it's not on the screen." "Holy shit!" "There's a fortune in here!" "Undeclared super-akus, it's as if they didn't exist." "This is the account number of the hotel El Rashid." "We can't make too big a transfer." "What I need for my eyes and..." "shall we make it 2,000 a head?" " Fine by me." " Then 2,500." "Done." " There's still a shitload left." " Wait." " I still have to delete Nirvana." " Yes, all right." "2,500 to the widow of John "Gandhi" Simpson." "Then let's give 1,000 to Dr. Rauschenberg." "Fujamax in Marrakesh, account 3768/01." "The Allemand Bank, 6372/11, Avinash, right?" "Then the Bombay City Ashram too." "And then toJuanita too." "She's a Mexican who now and then..." "Let's give her300." "She must be good." "There's still more, shall we leave it to them?" "No, let's burn it." "We could distribute it in every account in Marrakesh and Bombay City." "What do you mean, all accounts." "Why should people, maybe jerks, find money in theiraccounts?" " Betterthan leaving it here." " Right." "That's wild!" "All that money?" "Scattered to the winds, melted like snow in the sun, like rain overthe web!" "Something almost mystical." "Wait." "They've located us." "What the fuck are we waiting for?" "We have to get out of here." "Jimi, baiI out, they're coming after us." " I have to delete Nirvana." " We're rich!" "What do you care about deleting a game?" "They've activated the repression code." " All that money waiting for us!" " You can go." "They'll get you, you won't make it." "They're closing off the sectors." "You really want to stay?" "Karma Yoga!" "To do things that seem impossible." "Didn't you say it yourself?" "I know I won't convince you." "But remember"Gandhi" Simpson." "They need your brain." "Thanks, anyway." "At last I can buy the Zonys in color." "Thanks, angel." "Get in touch as soon as you can." " See you in the web." " Whenever you want." "I've still got something to ask you." "Did you really love me?" "Who did you ask?" "Lisa." "The answer is yes." "It's me, I deleted Nirvana." "No one will play with you any more." "I thought you'd left me here." "I promised you, didn't I?" "Wait." "What do I become when you delete me?" "A snowflake that falls nowhere in particular." "Jimi San, we know you're in there." "Listen to me, you've hurt us, but we can forget." "We can make a fresh start." "As if nothing has happened." "Then we won." "I trust you." "Yes, we won." "Can I come in?"