Free The Devil Delivered and Other Tales by Steven Erikson Page B

of a wheel that covers the valley, where within this circle are laid down spokes; this wheel that she sees sets now upon her lips the name giveth by the wise men who hunt no more: Medicine Wheel.
    The axle will turn. It will pierce the heart of heaven.
    … Ladon: Greek, a mythological dragon that encircles the Tree of Life.
    Net Happynews
    The formal entrance to the lifts leading down into the NUN Central Complex in Brussels was bioflicked yesterday at 5:10 P.M. local time. The dispersal agent is yet to be identified, but the toxic mix is confirmed as containing neurotoxins. Confirmed dead is at 175, including the suspect.
    At the moment, investigators are unable to explain how the terrorist managed to elude in-place detection systems.…
    Communications worldwide have been disrupted by joystick terrorists working in concert in behalf of Ladon Inc. and the Lakota Nation. “The in-built firewall defenses on com sats are notoriously outdated and ineffective,” said a NOACom representative on condition of anonymity.…
    Seized tanker attempting to enter San Francisco Harbor contained 212 New Jihad terrorists and weapons, including four SINJO-made tactical nukes. The New Jihad Organization is a nonreligious fanatic group (known colloquially as NERFs) with no known manifesto, although most members are recruited from refugee populations resettled from inundated Pacific islands.…
    Net
    LUNKER: This is getting out of hand, gentlemen.
    VORPAL: So there’s blood on our hands. We have killed, I admit it, but it was in the service of a greater good.
    LUNKER: You seem so sure of yourselves, but dammit, this isn’t the way it’s supposed to be.
    VORPAL: You must be kidding, Lunker. There’s some nasty trackers after us. We’re just trying to stay alive.
    LUNKER: Look, stop using weather sats for your pinballing. They’re big, and they come all the way down. If that’s not bad enough, wait till some unmapped hurricane rolls across some unsuspecting atoll.…
    VORPAL: Conventional options still exist. All right, I’ll slow down some, get more selective.
    LUNKER: Thanks. Where’s Blanc Knight?
    VORPAL: On the run. He started breaching Securicom Net Defenses, making haywire. He’s busted down every secure system on the line. Man, you wouldn’t believe the information spewing out.
    LUNKER: Bound for Ur reports NUN aircraft invading Lakota airspace, but being turned back by one helluva snowstorm. The word goes on and says the project’s ahead of schedule. Does that make any sense at all? Yeesh.
    VORPAL: Two unmanned spy-shuttles collided over Eastern Iowa. Crossed wires in the flight control data—don’t fret, no ground injuries. That storm’s circling the Hole right now, so I imagine NOAC will get the go-ahead for unilateral ground recce from NUN. Wonder what they’ll see?
    Entry: American NW, July 8, A.C. 14
    Sitting Bull crouched beside the hub of stones. The white sky made the prairie grass silver on the knoll, pewter in the valleys. The rifle sat on his lap, red-hawk feathers hanging straight down and slowly spinning.
    William walked up to the ancient ghost. “It was supposed to be a level playing field, Sitting Bull. Information was God, we rode the highway of His back. We rebelled against secrecy, but the revolution was illusory, wasn’t it.” He sat down beside the ghost. “All they did was change the meaning of words. Freedom meant forbidden. Access meant denial. Sitting Bull, I won’t accept the lie. They called the dead a living memory, but it isn’t. I’ve discovered that now.”
    The Lakota chief squinted skyward. “I have never been a follower, William. All those ghosts in your wake, it’s a path I can’t take.”
    “I don’t think God is inside liquid crystal,” William said. “I don’t think He superconducts, either. He doesn’t ride fiber optics. I’ve begun to believe our faith is misplaced, Sitting Bull. We don’t need more information. We need enlightenment.”
    Sitting Bull swung his