Part 41 (1/2)
They were responsible for the 17th and 18th floors which had a sole entrance and exit; controlled access This here the central coe tried toresulting in the minicrash of 1987 forced a re-examination of the practice and the subsequent installation of computer brakes to dampen severe market fluctuations
Hundreds of ed every day are recorded in the computers as are the international, futures and commodi- ties trades The dossiers on thousands upon thousands of compa- nies stored in the memory banks and extensive libraries were used to track investors, ownershi+p, offerings, filings and provide required inforuard desk while Joe h the offices and computer rooms Joe strolled down the halls, brilliantly lit fro fixtures The corridor walls were all solid glass, giving the impression of more openness than was really provided by the less, climate controlled, 40 sterile environ in the computer rooms
The temperature and humidity were optimized; the electricity content of air was neutralized both electrostatically and by nuclear ionization, and the air cycled and purified once an hour
In the event of a catastrophic power failure, which is not un- known in New York, almost 10,000 square feet was dedicated to power redundancy and battery backup In case of fire, heat sensors trigger the release of halon gas and suck all of the oxygen froe computers received the best care
Joe tested the handle on the door of each darkened roolass hallways Without the coht as well have been a House of Mirrors He noticed that the coether at the end of a hall next to the only co about the cleaning staff
”Hey guys, proble beardedinto the room ”His vacuum cleaner made one God awful noise, so we ca service,” Joe said offhandedly
The dark coService emblazoned across the back in bold red letters They watched hie barrel sized vacuu that noise, I hope”
”What's he doing now?”
”He's looking at us and, saying so”
”Why the hell would he”
The entire 46 story building instantly went dark and the force of the explosion rocked Tony froht on his belt and pressed a series of alarh the video ency power had not co He ran towards the sound of the blast and yelled
”hello? Hey?” he yelled nervously into the darkness
”Over here, hurry,” a distant pained voice begged
Tony slid into a wall and stopped He pointed his flashlight down one hall Nothing
”Over here”
He jumped sideways and pointed the bea into the air fros Tony saw that the explosion had shattered the glass walls into thousands of high velocity razor sharp projec- tiles The corpses had been pierced, stabbed, severed and oing to be sick right then
”Tony” A shrapnelled Joe squeaked from the mass of torn flesh ahead of his to turned to jelly as he bent over and gagged
”Help lass partitions as far as his light beaht into the room that exploded The computer equipment was in sha nizable features and pieces of his body were strewn about Tony suddenly vo his way down the hallway
”I gotta go get help,” Tony said choking He pushed against the wall to give him the momentum to overcome the paralysis his body felt and ran
”No, help ht waving madly The ele- vators They were out, too Maybe the phone on the console