The virtual passage led Ariel from the secondary host of the building to the central computer system. From here she could access all of the main systems of the target with only a minimal lag from the limited bandwidth of the back-door connection. While the limited pipeline to "squeeze" programs and commands was a problem, it was nothing compared to the difficulties of cutting through the ice protecting the main system from the outside. Ariel began a scan-assessment of the system just as she had from the access node. The silvery mirror reappeared and shimmered in the air as the system's specs scrolled across it. Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the best decker in the sprawl? Ariel thought to herself with a grin. Her eyes widened at the sight of the security specifications on the system. Holy ghost, it would have taken a blow torch to cut through that much ice. The rest of the specs were equally impressive. Apparently the Mr. Johnson had known what he was talking about when he said the target site had some very sophisticated systems running on it. The facility's computing power was way out of spec for what Ariel knew of Mandala Technologies. They were an up and coming software corp, but their ice was some of Fuchi's best. Mandala must be working on something requiring a lot of computer horsepower, which meant cutting-edge tech, which translated to nuyen for Ariel. She was sorely tempted to scan through the databanks for files that might contain valuable pay data she could sell on the underground market-Milo and some other fixers were always willing to fence good hot data-but Ariel was a professional and paydata wasn't what she'd been hired to find. She had a team depending on her. She hadn't let them down yet and she wasn't going to start now. The remainder of the security specs were online, and Ariel breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of them. The security in the facility was top of the line, but it was still controlled by the central computer and the security subroutines. Many corporations, understanding the potential vulnerability of their systems to invasions like the one Ariel was carrying out, had moved away from trusting their computer systems to safeguard their important installations. Advances in human-machine interface allowed human operators to take the role of central controller for a security system, plugging into the security grid and in effect "becoming" the building. They "felt" all of the input of the security sensors through a closed-circuit simsense feed, and they could "move" any of the building's security systems as easily as raising an arm to swat a fly. Best of all, such systems were virtually impregnable to decker subversion because the human operator could recognize nuances no computer could match, and the two operating systems were largely incompatible. Fortunately for deckers everywhere, such systems were extremely costly to implement and maintain. Human operators still got tired, sick, or bored and had to be relieved at regular intervals, paid, fed, and given vacation time and raises. Computers didn't care about any of those things, nor could they be bribed, bought, or blackmailed. Computers also didn't have opinions about what they saw or heard from day to day and didn't abscond with important company secrets. Brain-rigged security systems were still reserved for very specific facilities that needed a "human touch" but where the corporate controllers were willing to entrust a single person as the all-seeing eyes and ears of their facility. Since the building's computer was in control of all of the security systems, Ariel could access and control them through her link to the computer system. The security subroutines were of course protected by access barriers and more ice, but Ariel had cut through enough ice in her time to know what to do. A wave of her wand and a pinch of fairy dust produced a ring of old-fashioned skeleton keys that jingled pleasantly (an added sensory touch Ariel was quite proud of). A complex matching algorithm ran, and one key presented itself at the top of the ring in the silver fairy's hand. Ariel stepped over to the chrome-and-circuit-covered wall of the host system and inserted the key into the slot that appeared there.

Gently, gently, she thought as she manipulated the code to match the system access. The wall shifted and flatscreen images appeared on it. Images of the darkened and empty parking area outside the building and of the lobby, the corridors, and the underground parking garage and the vehicles in it. Another screen filled with information on the current status of the security systems in place throughout the building. Success! Looking over the displays, Ariel could see that her intrusion had not triggered any alarms so far. She was dimly aware of the breathing and pulse rate of her physical body, hidden away in a safe-house kilometers from the target site. Her senses were focused totally on the virtual world and what was happening there. A few commands to her cyber-deck sent out a looped playback of the quiet scene outside the building and among the corridors into the central security processor. The loop would continue to display that image for as long as Ariel wanted to, blind and deaf to the events about to happen. The loop would eventually trigger an internal alert in the system's self-diagnostic, but if the Hammermen were around long enough to worry about that, something far worse than a simple internal alert would happen first. Now, a check through the internal sensors. Ariel checked the internal readings of the security system, and was surprised by what she found. Hmm, internal systems and cameras in the lower level are mostly offline. Only the systems in one lab space are working, and they're feeding into an isolated datastore. Ariel shifted her attention to the recording systems for the basement-level lab, which were sending data into a protected archive in the computer system. They're putting out a lot of data, she thought, examining the datastore. Must be a couple hundred megapulses at least. Probing carefully with all of her sensor programs, Ariel approached the datastore, looking for a way to access the datastream flowing into it without giving away her presence in the computer system. The data could provide some valuable information on the location of the target her team was seeking as well as on the status of the facility. There didn't seem to be many people in the upper levels of the facility, so Ariel had to assume that whoever was home was in the lab where the datastream originated. She keyed her transmitter. "Hammer," the deep voice replied to her signal. "I'm into the security system, external and internal cameras and detects are neutralized and I figure they'll stay that way for a good twenty minutes. I've got an active data feed from a basement-level lab. Suspect that is the location of our target. I'm attempting to access the data." "Good work, Trouble. Proceed with caution. We're just a couple minutes out." "Roger that." Time to open this baby up, she thought. Ariel waved her magic wand, and the Matrix responded to her commands. She carefully peeled away layer after layer of access to the datastore, using her route through the command system to justify her actions to the computer's security. Time slowed to a crawl as she focused solely on the task before her. In a matter of moments that seemed like hours, Ariel accessed the datastore and examined the data-stream. It was a huge volume of data focused on a single individual. It contained physiological and neurological data of every imaginable kind: vital signs, galvanic response, brainwaves, blood chemistry, neurochemistry, pupil dilation, capillary flow, respiration, all carefully measured and digitized responses to stimulus flowing from the computer system to the test subject and back again. This has got to be our boy, Ariel thought as she looked in amazement at all of the data. She could hardly imagine why anyone would want such detailed information on anyone, but it wasn't hers to ask. Whoever their target really was, he was important enough to two corporations to want to hold on to him and to be willing to pay the Hammermen's fees to get their hands on him. Suddenly, the datastream from the lab fluctuated strangely. What the hell…? Ariel thought just before the whole system went crazy. A surge of data from the input stream struck the datastore like a thunderbolt. The entire collection of files