第九章
A footnote in Kahler's work (The Tirolian Compaign, Fantomadiscs, third issue,2083, scr.1099) refers those interested in Garudan psychism [sic] to a series of twentieth-century autobiographical novels written by a young anthropologist recording his attempts to enter into various states of altered reality through the guidance of an Yaqui Indian "man of power." And while La Pea is willing to concede that there is some justification for Kahler's recommendation, he points out that the Garudans required nothing in the way of extrinsic agents to attain "non-ordinary states." Unless, however, one views the planet's atmosphere in this regard. It is hoped that the much-awaited translations of Haydon's texts will shed light on this continuing controversy.
卡勒的著作（《泰洛星战役》——发表于《凡托玛碟环》2083年第三期，编号1099）中，一条脚注提及：对嘎鲁达“心灵论”[原文如此]有兴趣的人应参考二十世纪某位年轻的人类学学者撰写的系列自传体小说，小说记录了他通过一位雅基族印第安“能者”的引导，尝试进入各种另类现实状态的事件。尽管拉必承认卡勒的推荐有一定道理，但他指出，嘎鲁达人进入“非寻常状态”时无需任何形式的外媒。不过，仍可将这颗星球的大气层视为这个角色。希望饱受期待的海顿经文译本能将这个争论不绝的话题阐明。
Taken from the "Imminent Immaterial" column of Psycho-physics Digest
——摘自《心理物理学摘报》一刊中“灵质之临（或另种译法：紧迫之无谓）”专栏
Garuda. Kami and Learna had told them what to expect. A mostly cold and barren world of steppes and tundra, with vast frozen regions and glaciated mountain ranges. What little there was in the way of flora and fauna was principally confined to a narrow band of equatorial forestland of evergreen analogues. There were two seasons, wet and dry; Garuda was in the latter now, and that, Kami explained, would account for the differences in fur coloration the Sentinels would notice among members of his and Learna's tribe. The Garudans, who numbered in the thousands, were not, generally speaking, offworlders. Some, however, had volunteered for mining work on Rhestad-system moons after the arrival of the Zentraedi generations ago, and later on, the Masters' clones. But most Garudans feared the thought of having to leave the planet, and had little tolerance for the breathing harnesses life anywhere else would require. Their society was a simple one, organized along the lines of any hunter-gatherer group; however, they were anything but nomadic, and kept domesticated animals and raised some crops. Religion was of a decidedly individual variety, with each clan answering to a different totem, and each member his or her own shaman. Oddly enough, neither Kami nor Learna had the slightest knowledge of history in the sense that most of the Sentinels, including Burak and Lron, understood the term. Unlike the Karbarrans, or Praxians for that matter, the Garudans seemed to live entirely in the present. This is not to say that they were a complacent group-they were certainly devoted to securing a free future for their world-but at the same time, they could supply no answers to questions concerning their racial past.
嘎鲁达。卡米和莱亚娜已经告诉过他们该期待些什么。在这个寒冷贫瘠的世界上，绝大部分地貌是干草原、苔原、大片冻土和冰川山脉。这里的动植物群很少，基本都聚集在赤道附近狭窄的常绿林地带。它只有两个季节，雨季和旱季；而嘎鲁达星正处在旱季，而且，卡米解释道，这就是哨兵们所注意到的他和莱亚娜所属部族的成员产生毛色差别的原因。嘎鲁达人，总数约有几千人，一般而言，他们并不是在外漂泊的民族。尽管在几代人之前，曾有一些人，自愿前往若斯达星系的几颗卫星进行采矿；那是天顶星人到达嘎鲁达之后的事，随后，又降临了统治者的克隆部队。但绝大多数嘎鲁达人对离开这颗星球的想法感到惧怕，而且很难忍受那些在此必须佩戴呼吸器械的外星球人。他们的社会组织十分简单，以共同猎采的组织相联系；然而，他们并不是游牧民族，这些人豢养家畜，种植庄稼。宗教具有完全的个体差异性，每个部族都回应不同的图腾，而部族里的每个人都是自己的萨满（注：原始部落与原始宗教中，能与神灵沟通的人）。奇怪的是，不论卡米还是莱亚娜，都对“历史”一无所知，而哨兵同盟的绝大多数人，包括伯拉克、勒荣，多少了解一些这个词的含义。就此而言，和卡巴拉人、普拉西斯人不同，嘎鲁达人看起来仅仅活在当下。这并不是说他们是个自足的族群——为了保障这个世界未来的自由，他们的确很投入——但与此同时，对这个种族的过去所提的任何问题，他们都给不出答案。
This enigma had become something of a preoccupation with Cabell during the four months the Sentinels had remained grounded on Praxis. Cabell was different than the Masters in this regard. Those who had ousted the Tirolian regime after the Great Transition were more interested in expansion and conquest than in the accumulation of knowledge; to the Elders and their subordinate Triumvirates, knowledge of the past presented something of an impediment to change. They had their gaze fixed on the day after tomorrow, on issues of uncontested rule, ultimate power, and selective immortality.
在哨兵同盟搁浅在普拉西斯的那四个月里，这个谜样的世界就已经占据了卡贝尔的心思。不过，卡贝尔和统治者们的意图是不同的。那些在“大转变”时期后撤销了泰洛政体的人们，对扩张和征服的兴趣要胜过知识累积；对长老会以及下属的各个三位一体组织而言，了解历史代表阻碍变革。他们将目光聚集在明日之后，关注的是不容异议的律制、至高无上的权力以及有选择性的永生这类问题。
The rest of the Sentinels, though, saw Garuda more in terms of its tangible challenges, and foremost among these was its very atmosphere: though Earthlike in composition, it was essentially toxic to all but the planet's indigenous life-forms. There were one or two exceptions to this, but only Veidt and Sarna among the Sentinels qualified. Surface scans verified the presence of dozens of varieties of airborne spores and microorganisms whose chemistry Jean Grant likened to certain laboratory-produced psychotropic drugs. According to Cabell-based on what he had gleaned from Zor's notes-the vulpine beings' mental processes were linked to the planet itself in a kind of submolecular partnership. Life-forms incapable of entering into this long-established microcosmic symbiosis were not, however, simply ignored or exempted; rather, they were sensed as potentially disturbing to the ecological balance and consequently counterattacked by those same microorganisms responsible for the Garudans' nonordinary psychic states.
然而，哨兵中的其他人更注重嘎鲁达世界那些实实在在的挑战，首当其冲的便是它的大气层：尽管成分和地球大气相仿，但对于非本星球土著的生命形式来说，基本上都有毒性。或许有一两个例外，但哨兵中只有维特和莎娜够这个资格。表面扫描证实了有数十个品种的孢子和微生物散播在空气中，吉英·格兰特将其化学特性比作某种实验室制造的精神疾病治疗药物。按卡贝尔的观点——基于他所搜集的佐尔笔记——这些狐形生命的精神活动与这个星球自身在亚分子层面有合作，互相联结。然而，那些没有能力进入这个早已建立的微观世界共生体的生命形式，并非简单地被忽略或被置之不理，而是被感知为破坏这里生态平衡的潜在威胁，从而遭到这些要为嘎鲁达人不寻常的精神状态负责的微生物的反击。
It had therefore fallen upon the med group to outfit the landing party with transpirators and resp canisters. But if logistics was about to hamper the operation's effectiveness, the Sentinels could take some comfort in the fact that the Invid had also fallen prey to the planet's proprietary nature. In fact, their presence on Garuda was essentially restricted to the hemispherically shaped hives they had erected in those areas where Zor's Flower of Life seedlings had taken root. The crop was a mutant but bountiful one, and it was believed that Garuda provided largely defoliated Optera with much of its needed supply of nutrient. With Karbarra liberated, the Regent had lost his mecha factories; now the Sentinels meant to strike him at the gut level, destroying as many of Garuda's orchards and "farms" as they could.
因此，为着陆队装备防毒衣和防毒面具的任务就落到了医疗队的身上。不过，要是说物资要求会阻碍行动效率的话，那么哨兵们会对因维人已经沦为这个星球自身占有欲的牺牲品这个事实感到欣慰。实际上，他们在嘎鲁达上的活动范围基本上限制在那些半球形的蜂房中，而蜂房都建立在佐尔的生命之花种子扎根的那些地区。这些植株虽是变异的品种，但产量很高。据信，嘎鲁达为大量灭植后的奥普特拉供给了其所需的营养剂。卡巴拉解放之后，瑞金特便失去了机甲工厂；现在哨兵同盟将打击他的肠胃，尽可能摧毁更多的嘎鲁达果园和“农场”。
Rick, Lisa, Cabell, Rem, Jack, Karen, Burak, Kami, Learna, Gnea, Lron, and Crysta made up the drop group, with members of the Skull and Wolff Pack escorting the shuttle down. The SDF-7 would remain in orbit to deal with Invid transport vessels, known to make frequent runs between Garuda and Optera. Wolff and Grant shared the fortress command. Janice would be keeping an eye on Tesla. Veidt and Sarna had elected to stay behind, and Bela was apparently determined to help Teal with the infant Baldan.
瑞克、丽莎、卡贝尔、雷、杰克、凯伦、伯拉克、卡米、莱亚娜、妮雅、勒荣和克里斯塔组成了着陆队，由骷髅中队和沃尔夫战队的成员负责护送穿梭机落地。SDF-7将保持在轨道上，应对因维人的运输船，已知它们在嘎鲁达和奥普特拉之间频繁往来。沃尔夫和格兰特共同指挥堡垒。贾妮斯将看守泰斯拉。维特和莎娜被推选留在后方，而贝拉显然已决定给缇尔和婴孩鲍丹帮忙。
The landing party was certain that the SDF-7's arrival in Garudaspace had not gone undetected by the Invid; the shuttle landing would probably be monitored as well. So rather than risk immediate engagement or present any of the hives with an easy target, they opted to put down in the relatively unpoliced tribal sectors, close to Kami and Learna's village. Unexpectedly, they found themselves encircled by battle-ready troops nevertheless-even before the shuttle's landing gear made contact with the surface.
着陆队能肯定SDF-7到达嘎鲁达空间时已经被因维人探测到；穿梭机着陆也可能会被监视。因此，为避免立刻交火或者被蜂房当成活靶子，他们选择在相对无警戒的部族区降落，靠近卡米和莱亚娜的村子。然而，他们没料到的是，穿梭机的落地装置甚至还没碰到地面，自己已经被做好战斗准备的部队团团围住。
Kami had neglected to mention that some of Garuda's protectors were Tirolian Bioroids.
卡米忘记告诉大家，嘎鲁达的保卫者中，有泰洛生化人。
Kami and Learna consequently made certain they were the first to deplane, figuring their mere appearance would defuse the situation. It did so-and more. Within minutes, half of Kami's tribe had emerged from the trees to surround the shuttle and celebrate the return of their friends. The air was suddenly charged with joyous sounds-excited barking to Rick's ears-and Kami and Learna were embraced, jostled, and hoisted up on countless shoulders. With elaborate ritual, the two returnees threw off their breathing gear and pranced about, engaging in impromptu dances, shamanic steps of power.
于是，卡米和莱亚娜明确了首先下船的人是他俩，估计仅靠他们的外形就能使事态平息。确实如此——还不止如此。几分钟后，卡米部族的人来了一半，他们从树林钻出，围住穿梭机——瑞克听来是欢呼的犬吠声——卡米和莱亚娜被他们不停拥抱、推来搡去之后，又被举到了人群数不清的肩头上。经过一番缜密的仪式之后，两位归乡客扔掉了自己的呼吸面罩，腾空欢跃，跳起了即兴的舞蹈，步伐里充满了萨满巫师般的力量。
Rick radioed the Skull and Wolff contingents to put down along the perimeter of the shuttle's rough strip, checked the integrity of his environment suit and transpirator, and followed Lisa out of the pilots' cabin to take part in the merriment. An hour later, he and the rest of the landing party were in the village's wooden longhouse powwowing with the leaders of Kami's tribe. Severed heads of Hellcats, Scrim, and Odeon Inorganics dangled from the roof tie-beams.
瑞克用无线电通知骷髅中队和沃尔夫战队在穿梭机周围的土道上着陆，他检查过自己的隐形服与呼吸面罩是否完好之后，跟着丽莎走出了驾驶室，参与到这欢庆之中。一小时后，他同着陆队的其他人一起，在村子的长条形木屋中，与卡米部落的领导们一起开着帕瓦大会（注：原意是北美土著的盛宴、舞蹈仪式，现代英语中又指作战会议和政治会议。）几个地狱猫、斯奇姆兽和奥迪昂兽的头颅晃悠地悬挂在屋顶的横梁上。
Also present were a number of the Bioroid pilot clones-androgynous-looking shaggy-haired humanoids with pointed features and exotic eyes. One of the clones-these Tiresian lost boys-was explaining to Cabell in a nasal, almost synthesized voice how they had come to ally themselves with the Garudan cause. They wore no breathing gear, and were apparently immune to the spores.
会上还有几个生化人克隆战士——他们有着人类外形，样子不男不女，头发蓬松，尖脸庞，眼神奇异。其中的一个克隆人——这些被忘却的泰洛男孩——正用着自己近乎合成声调的浓重鼻音向卡贝尔解释着自己是如何成为嘎鲁达盟友的。
"The Masters left us here to police this world. But when the Invid arrived, communication with Tirol and the clone-masters became impossible. Our Hoverships destroyed, all ties with Tirol cut, we began to understand the concept of freedom, the loneliness that springs from abandonment..."
“机器人统治者把我们留下来维持这个世界的治安。但当因维人到来之后，和泰洛还有克隆人首领的通讯就不行了。我们的气垫船都被摧毁了，与泰洛德所有联系也切断了，我们开始理解了自由的概念，理解了由遗弃而生的孤独感……”
"So you joined the Garudans in their fight," Cabell finished, astonished.
“于是你们就加入了嘎鲁达人的斗争，”卡贝尔替他说完，十分震惊。
"We thirst for freedom, just as they do."
“我们渴望自由，就和他们一样。”
"Remarkable," the old man mused, his own voice distorted by the mask's filters."Absolutely remarkable." He hadn't been so astounded since learning from Lang that Miriya Parino had borne a child; and the revelation gave him some hope that the Masters' clones were actually capable of revolt.
“不寻常，”老人沉思自语，面罩的过滤器扭曲了他的音调。“绝对不寻常。”自打他从朗那里得知米莉娅·帕丽诺生了个小孩之后，还没有这般震惊过；这意外的发现给了他些许希望：统治者的克隆人们实际上还是有能力反抗的。
Rick took advantage of a momentary silence to motion to the trophy heads."What's the situation here· Do the Invid run patrols through this sector·"
瑞克利用了这片刻的沉默，指向那些战利品头颅。“这里的状况如何？因维人在这个区域有巡逻吗？”
The tribal chief answered him."Their Inorganics patrol, but only when they wish to intimidate us, or gather up laborers for the farms. They don't seem to regard us as a threat-even with the firepower our comrades supply," he added, indicating the clones,"but I assure you that all Garuda is ripe for rebellion."
部落酋长回答：“他们派无机兽巡逻，不过只是在他们希望恐吓我们的时候，要不就是为农场拉壮丁的时候。他们似乎不把我们当成威胁——即使我们的战友们装备有武器。”他补充道，这话指的是那些克隆人，“但我向你保证，整个嘎鲁达反抗的时机已经成熟了。”
"You mean, they're using your people on the farms·"
“你是说，他们在农场里使用你的人？”
"Lately, yes. And in the labor camps near them."
“最近，是这样的。就在他们附近的劳工营。”
Lron and Crystal grunted, alarming some of the Garudans present. They were keeping a wide circle around the ursine XTs, and a wider one yet around Burak, whose mask only added to an already demonic aspect.
勒荣和克里斯塔咕哝着，让会场里的一些嘎鲁达人警觉起来。他们与外星熊人保持着距离围成一圈，而围着伯拉克的圈子就更大了，面罩让他魔鬼般的面容更加恐怖。
Rick could see that the news came as a shock to Kami and Learna also.
瑞克能看出卡米和莱亚娜也被这个消息震惊了。
"So much for surgical strikes from the ship," Max said.
“那就不用考虑让那艘船展开外科手术式打击了。”麦克斯说道。
Rick regarded the chief for a moment. He found that he was not yet accustomed to seeing Garudans without then-breathers; omnivores they might be, but there was a ferocity to their muzzles he wasn't all that comfortable with. Outwardly, the chief resembled Kami, but there was a solemnness to his aspect that was absent in the younger Garudan.
瑞克对这位酋长打量了片刻。他感到自己还是不太习惯嘎鲁达人不戴呼吸器的样子；他们可能是杂食动物，但长着一副凶残的尖嘴，这让瑞克一直都很不舒服。从外表看，酋长和卡米挺像，但他有着一份年轻嘎鲁达人所缺乏的庄重。
"What about mecha·" Lisa wanted to know."Scouts, Shock Troopers·"
“那些机甲呢？”丽莎想知道，“侦察机，突击骑兵机？”
"Only when their transport ships arrive," the chief told her."They patrol near the farms to protect the nutrient shipment while it is being loaded. Rarely do they venture into tribal sectors."
“只在它们的运输船队到达的时候出现，”酋长告诉她。“他们在农场附近巡逻，在装货的时候，保护那些营养品。他们很少冒险来部落的地盘。”
Rick watched the chief gnaw at a hunk of meat one of the women had offered him."Is there any regularity to the shipments·"
瑞克看着酋长啃着一位女性奉上的大块肉排。“运货有什么规律吗？”
The chief exchanged a few sentences with Kami in the Garudan tongue. The Sentinel translated."Approximately every three standard months." This was changed every so often in an attempt to foil what was an extensive underground network at work on Garuda. But the Invid never managed to keep anything secret for very long.
酋长同卡米用嘎鲁达语交谈了几句。哨兵翻译道：“大约每三个标准月一次。”为了遏制嘎鲁达四通八达的“地下”网络，这规律有时也会改变。但因维人从来不会把秘密保守太长时间。
"And when did the last shipment leave·"
“上次运货是什么时候离开的？”
"One month ago."
“一个月之前。”
Rick grinned beneath his transpirator mask."That means we're in the clear for the moment. Even if they've already communicated with their fleet, reinforcements could take weeks to get here."
瑞克在呼吸面罩后面笑了。“那就是说我们现在安全了。就算他们同舰队联系过，增援部队也要几个星期之后才能到。”
"The closest farm is about one hundred miles from here," Learna said, without being asked."Kami and I know that area well."
“最近的农场，距离这里大约一百英里。”还没有人问她，莱亚娜就说道。“卡米和我对那里很熟。”
"An aerial recon," Max suggested.
“空中侦察，”麦克斯建议。
"No," Rick said."I don't think we should tip our hand just yet. We'll go in on Hovercycles first. Take a quick look around before we plan an assault. Just because mecha haven't been observed doesn't mean they're not in there."
“不，”瑞克说。“我认为我们此刻还不能露底牌。我们还是先派气垫摩托去。在计划攻击之前，先扫视一下情况。只是没看到机甲而已，并不意味着不存在。”
"I agree," Rick heard Jack say behind him.
“我同意。”瑞克听到杰克在他身后说。
Karen nudged Jack with her elbow for butting in."Sir·" she then said to Lisa, hoping Jack would learn by example.
凯伦用胳膊肘捅了一下杰克，提醒他插话失礼。“长官？”然后，她向丽莎请示，希望杰克能学着她的样。
"Go ahead, Karen."
“说吧，凯伦。”
"I was just wondering what exactly happened to the first Invid troops that landed here-before the hives were built, I mean."
“我就是想知道，着陆在这里的第一批因维军队——蜂房建立之前，我是说——他们究竟发生了什么事？”
Again, Kami and the chief exchanged a few words.
又一次，卡米和酋长交谈了几句。
"They went mad," the Garudan leader said evenly."Then they died."
“他们都疯了，”嘎鲁达首领平静地说。“之后他们都死了。”
The recon team-Rick, Lisa, Jack, Karen, Rem, and Kami as scout-left the village shortly before dawn, sticking close to the northern fringe of Garuda's preternaturally quiet forest. They had traveled seventy-five miles by the time Rhestad rose-a massive oblate field of crimson that did little to warm the land. The two villages they passed en route had already been informed of the mission. Worried about attracting any undue attention to themselves, Rick had requested that the Garudans simply go about their business; but there was obviously too much excitement in the air for that. For sometimes miles at a stretch, Rick would see them crouched along the paths the Hovercycles cut through the woods, silent and feral, vulpine eyes aglow in the eerie morning light.
侦察队——瑞克、丽莎、杰克、凯伦、雷和侦察员卡米——在黎明前不久离开了村庄，紧贴着嘎鲁达超自然的静谧森林的北侧边缘行进。在若斯达——这个无法温暖大地的猩红色扁圆太阳——冉冉升起的时候，他们已经走了七十五英里。他们途中路过两个村子，也都已经接到通报，得知了这项任务。瑞克担心队伍会吸引来不正常的关注，他请求嘎鲁达人只要做自己平常的事情就好；但显然空气里还有太多的激动之情了。有时，一连几英里，瑞克都能看到他们在气垫摩托开出的林间小道边蹲伏着，沉寂又充满野性，狐狸眼珠在阴森的晨光里闪闪发亮。
At mile eighty-five the team encountered its first Inorganic patrol-a pack of Hellcats a dozen strong, roaming the forest like some fiendish pride of saber-tooths. Kami had spotted them and passed the word; the Hovercycles were shut down and concealed. It was understood by now that the Inorganics were more than marauders or Robopolice units; they functioned as the remote eyes and ears for the Invid living computers, which in turn directed the scientists or command troops. Engagement, therefore, even if it ended in victory, would have only served to alert the hive to the team's position; so they lay as still as they could, pressed close to the chilled ground until the pack had moved through.
在八十五英里处，队伍首次遭遇了无机兽巡逻队——由十余个地狱猫组成，在森林里漫步，有着剑齿虎一般凶残的骄傲。卡米发现了他们，立刻给大家传话；气垫摩托车关闭动力并掩蔽起来。现在都知道无机兽的角色不只是扫荡队或者机器警察，他们还有充当因维活体计算机远程耳目的功能，之后还会引导科学家或者部队前来。因此，同它们交火的话，哪怕是最终能获胜，也只会给蜂房以警报，暴露小队位置。他们便一动不动地趴着，紧紧贴在冰冷刺骨的地面上，直到巡逻队走过。
Rick and Lisa were on their stomachs, side-by-side, environmental suits adjusted to mimic the colors and textures of the area's fernlike ground cover. Rick had his arm flung protectively across his wife's back, and was gazing at her through the helmet's bubble-shield. Her eyes returned the wrinkled look his own were trying to convey. It was the first time he and Lisa had been out together in a long while, and if this wasn't exactly anyone's idea of an ideal date or the "closeness" Lisa had in mind during their most recent heart-to-heart, at least they were together. And somehow-though Rick would have been at a loss to explain it-he felt more assured with Lisa beside him. At the same time her presence had a kind of calming effect, because no matter what they might have to face, he was freed from having to worry about where she was or what dangers she might have otherwise been facing alone. Here, he had some measure of control over her situation-their situation.
瑞克和丽莎并排趴着，隐形服作了调整，接近于该地区蕨类植被的色彩和纹路。瑞克的手臂保护性地搭在妻子的背上，透过头盔的透明罩凝视着她。她眉头紧锁回看了瑞克一眼，瑞克心想自己的表情也正是这样。这是他和丽莎在这很久一段时间里第一次共同外出。就算这并不是大家印象中的理想约会方式或者上次谈心时丽莎脑海里那个“亲密”的概念，至少他俩还在一起。而且出于某些原因——让瑞克解释的话，会让他不知所措——他觉得有丽莎在身边会更有信心些。同时，她的存在本身就具有一种镇静效应，因为不论他们将面对什么，他都无需为她在哪里或者她将独自面临什么危险而担心。在这里，他多少能控制她的处境——他俩的处境。
Moving more cautiously after Kami gave the all-clear sign, the team took another hour to cover the last fifteen miles. They had portions of the enormous hive in sight for five of those miles, but didn't get an unobstructed view of the thing until they were almost on top of it. It sat in the center of an ancient impact crater, in a veritable forest of Optera trees, a dome-shaped structure with a base almost ten miles around, composed entirely of what appeared to be organic facets or geodesies; in fact, the hive had the look of something grown rather than erected. Four mile-high cattaillike antenna towers were positioned at cardinal points around the hive's oddly "bubbled" base.
卡米发出“安全”的信号之后，队伍的行动更加谨慎，他们又花了一小时，完成了最后十五英里。在五英里的路程里，他们都能看见巨大蜂房的局部，不过直到他们几乎登到蜂房顶部高度的时候，他们才算是不受阻挡的看到了这东西的全貌。它坐落在一个古代冲击陨坑的中央，在一片真正的奥普特拉树林里，这个穹顶结构联同接近十英里周长的底座，全都由类似有机质的刻面与交错线组成；实际上，蜂房看来更像生长出的而不是建造出的。四英里高的猫尾形的天线塔位于蜂房“冒泡”的地基周围四个基本方位点上。
Through field glasses, Rick could discern Garudan slaves gathering mutated fruits from the trees. Huge containers of these were being conveyed to the hive itself by Invid soldiers in specially outfitted suits, often piloting Hovercarts of various design. Tracking the carts' movements ultimately enabled Rick to discover one of the hive's tunnellike transport corridors.
瑞克从双筒小型望远镜里观察到，嘎鲁达奴工们正在从树上采集变种果实。因维士兵们身穿特制的装备服，其中不少人还操纵着各种样式的气浮货车，将一个个巨大的果实容器送到蜂房里。靠着追踪货车的动向，瑞克最终找到了蜂房上一个隧洞般的输送通道。
"What happens later on·" Rick whispered to Kami, who had stooped down to ask for the binoculars."Are the workers taken into the hive·"
“又有什么情况？”卡米弯下腰要了瑞克的望远镜，随后，瑞克轻声问他，“工人们被带进蜂房了吗？”
"No," he said, bringing his muzzle close to the helmet's audio pickups."The labor camp lies about two miles from here." Kami pointed out the direction.
“不，”他回话，尖嘴靠近头盔的拾音器。“劳工营在离这儿两英里之外的地方。”卡米指出了方向。
"Are you certain there are no Garudans inside the hive·"
“你确定蜂房里面没有嘎鲁达人吗？”
Kami shook his head."Not certain." The hives were the only places on the planet impervious to Garudan Sendings and out-of-body flights; but the Invids' continued presence on world in general had confused things. The clouds and wind were full of sinister whisperings.
卡米摇头。“不确定。”这颗星球上，只有蜂房才能对嘎鲁达人的“传信”和出窍飞行免疫；但总体而言，因维人的持续存在给这个世界还是带来了困扰，风云之间传递着凶险的耳语。
"Then we've gotta find out," Rick said, turning around to motion the others forward.
“那我们得弄清楚。”瑞克说。转身挥手，让其他人前进。
Jack remained behind as rear guard, while the rest of the team began to work their way over the low ridge that was the crater's rim and down into the basin itself. It was warmer here, Rick realized without having to check the suit's sensor displays; redolent, too, he imagined, as the Optera tree forests on Praxis had been. They were closing on the edge of the cultivation area now, and it was time for Kami to go it alone.
杰克留在后面防卫，其余队员则越过陨坑边缘的低坎，朝下方盆地前进。这里更暖些，瑞克不用检查外套上的感应显示便意识到了这点；而且也很芬芳，他的脑海中映现出了普拉西斯星上的曾有的奥普特拉树林。现在他们已经接近了种植区的边缘，该轮到卡米单独上阵了。
"Don't take any chances," Rick cautioned him. He checked his chronometer."One hour. If you're not back by then, we're moving out."
“别心存侥幸，”瑞克提醒他。他察看了自己了计时器，“一小时，要是你到时候不回来，我们就撤走。”
"I'll get word back to you from the camp if anything happens."
“要是发生什么事情，我会从营地里给你们传话的。”
The underground, Rick reminded himself.
“地下”网络，瑞克提醒自己。
"Just see that it doesn't," Rem said.
“不会有什么事的，你看吧。”雷说道。
Karen and Lisa wished Kami luck, and he started to move off.
凯伦和丽莎祝卡米好运，随后他便出发了。
Then all at once a small mountain was growing under their feet. Rick thought for a moment that this might be how the bulb-canopied Optera trees pushed themselves from the ground. Lisa and the others had been knocked off their feet, but he was still riding the rise up, arms outstretched like a high-wire walker. Elsewhere he could see two more humps beginning to form. Kami yelled something incomprehensible, just before Rick leaped and caught hold of a network of vinelike tendrils encasing the canopy-bulb of the nearest tree. He was dangling ten feet above the ground now, looking down on his teammates and wondering why they had their weapons drawn, when a triple-clawed Scout pincer suddenly slammed into the tree not a foot from his head. The bulb split open like an overripe melon, showering him with viscous green gop and what he took to be seeds.
突然间，他们的脚下隆起一座小山包。瑞克片刻后弄明白了，这就是那些长着球冠的奥普特拉树丛破土而出的过程。丽莎和其他人都已被震倒在地，但他依然还追着上升的势头，双臂张开，仿佛走钢丝一般。他能看到别处还有两个隆起正在形成。卡米喊叫着一些无法理解的话语，而后瑞克跃起，牢牢抓住最近那棵树笼在球冠上藤蔓般的网状卷须。现在，他吊在离地面十英尺的高度晃荡，往下瞧着队友们，正想着为何他们抽出了武器，突然间一个三爪螯击侦察机猛挥过来，正拍在树上离在他头部不足一英尺的地方。球冠一分为二，像个熟过头的甜瓜，绿色粘液以及他认为是种籽的东西淋了他一身。
Lisa and Karen, meanwhile, were firing charges at the crab-ship, trying to position themselves for a shot at the mecha's scanner, a pouting red mouth low down on the ventral surface of its armored head. But the Scouts who had joined the first were advancing, and the two women were forced to hurl themselves out from under a pair of cloven feet. One mecha was stomping the ground, trying to pulverize them, even while Rem and Kami were stinging its ladybug-shaped carapace with Wolverine fire.
而这时丽莎和凯伦正向着蟹形机开火，努力想击中这架机甲的扫描器——在它带护甲的头面部下方，那个嘟起的红嘴便是。但又有侦察机加入了最先的同伙，它们正向前逼近。两个女子头顶上出现了一双三瓣大脚板，她俩被迫跳开。有架机甲用力跺着地面，丝毫不顾雷和卡米用金刚狼步枪不断刺痛它那瓢虫般的身躯，只想把她们踩成肉泥。
Rick disentangled himself before the first Scout could strike again, dropping, tucking, and rolling out of harm's way, and somehow managing to come up with his weapon raised. He nailed his giant assailant in the knee joint and brought it down in an earsplitting crash; then put a second shot through its scanner, and ducked for cover as the thing blew up.
瑞克赶在第一架侦察机再度袭来前脱了身，他滑下地，抱膝翻滚避开了危险，起身时还举起了武器。他把这把大火力枪顶在膝盖上，一枪击中敌人，发出了震耳欲聋的坠地声；随后他又朝扫描器补了一枪。瑞克刚刚蹲下找个掩护，那家伙就爆炸了。
The force of the blast threw one of the other Scouts hard against the trees, where it stumbled and fell after ripping open half-a-dozen bulbs. Rem saw to it that the ship didn't get up, lancing it open from crotch to scanner. Rick had been left dazed and temporarily deaf from the explosion, but he came to in time to see the remaining mecha raising its left foot to smash Karen and Lisa, who had also been leveled by the blast. He ran up behind the Scout, as if preparing to clip it behind the knee, and emptied his handgun straight up into the underside of the ship's rear tapered head armor, eliciting a cascade of energy bolts and a muffled roar that decapitated the ship, spilling its Invid pilot to the ground. Kami and Karen holed the creature, even though it was probably already dead, and moved quickly to Lisa's side. Rick did likewise, suddenly terror-stricken. Her suit was torn open; she was bloodied and unconscious.
气浪将一个剩下的侦察机推进树丛，它跌跌撞撞，弄破了五六个球冠，最终倒地。雷干掉了这架战机，从裆部一直到扫描器开膛破肚。瑞克在爆炸之后暂时耳聋，头晕目眩，好在他及时恢复清醒，看到了仅存的那只机甲正抬起左脚，要踩扁也被爆炸震倒在地的凯伦和丽莎。他奋力追到侦察机身后，好像要在它膝盖后面发力猛击，他的手枪对准它后脑尖垂的头部铠甲底下放空了子弹，引发了一连串的能量球爆发，一阵闷响让这架战机身首异处，机舱内的因维驾驶员跌落地上。卡米和凯伦也没管给这家伙可能早已没了命，还是给它身上开了不少洞，随后朝丽莎一侧快速跑去。瑞克也跑了过去，突然间，他被恐惧击中。她的防护服已经撕扯开了，她在流血，失去了知觉。
"We've got to get her back to the cycs!" Rick said, looking up at his teammates. But all he got in return was a look of resignation. Rick saw Kami and Karen toss their weapons aside. He whirled around, still in a crouch, in time to see more than a dozen Invid soldiers emerging from the orchard to surround their patch of green-stained ground.
“我们得把她送回摩托那儿去！”瑞克说，抬头望着他的队友。但他得到的回应则是放弃的表情。瑞克看到卡米和凯伦把武器摆向一旁。他蹲着转过身来，刚好看到十多个因维士兵从果园出现，包围了他们那一片绿迹斑斑的地方。
"Throw your weapon down," one of the Praxian-size soldiers said in Tiresian, brandishing an evil-looking rifle/cannon and gazing down at Rick through an elongated helmet.
“扔下你的武器。”一名同普拉西斯人身材相仿的士兵用泰雷西亚语说，他挥舞着一把样子丑恶的步枪或是炮管，目光透过拉长的头盔，向下紧盯着瑞克。
Rick did so, just as an officer came shouldering its way through the circle. It regarded Lisa a moment, then swung its snout toward Rick.
瑞克照做了，这时一名军官从人群中挤了出来。他看了丽莎片刻，又转头把尖嘴对向瑞克。
"The hive has been expecting you," it announced.
“蜂房一直都在期待你们的到来。”它向他们宣告。
"Our Regent has said that he finds your race most curious, and now I understand why. You are a little more like worms than I'd imagined, and indeed there is the stench of death about you."
“我们的摄政王曾说，他发现你们的种族非常令人好奇，而现在我明白了原因。你们比我想象的更有点像蠕虫，而你身上也的确发出了死亡的腐臭。”
The interior of the hive was greenhouse-hot, but the scientist's voice was cold and analytical. Rick, Rem, Kami, and Karen had been marched at gunpoint through the same entrance Rick had spied from the crater rim. There, their helmets and transpirators had been removed. One of the soldiers had carried Lisa in over his shoulder. She was still unconscious, groaning every so often in her delirium. Rick was being kept from her side. Kami, already succumbing to the hive's artificial atmosphere, had been shackled and dumped in a corner.
蜂房内部是个温室——热，但那位科学家的声音冷酷理性。瑞克、雷、卡米和凯伦被枪口押送，走进了瑞克在陨坑边缘看到的那个入口。进入蜂房后，他们的头盔和呼吸器都被摘除了。一个士兵用肩膀把丽莎扛了进来。她还是不省人事，不时呻吟两句胡话。瑞克被阻止无法到她那一侧。卡米，已经被蜂房内的人工空气打垮，上着镣铐，被扔在角落里。
"That smell is the stink of your own soldiers' blood," Rick snarled at the scientist, gesturing to his green-smeared suit.
“那是你们自己士兵的血腥臭气，”瑞克对科学家怒吼，伸手指着自己身上绿色血污的防护服。
"The cornered creature's final attack," the Invid said to his white-robed group of barefoot assistants, in Tiresian for Rick's benefit."The being uses words as weapons."
“困兽犹斗啊，”因维人对他的一组光脚的白袍助理们说道，用的是泰雷西亚语，好让瑞克听懂。“这些生物把语言当武器。”
"What do you want with us· Why didn't your soldiers kill us·"
“你想要我们做什么？为什么你的士兵没杀了我们？”
The scientist's snout sensors twitched, as if he was sniffing the air."Perhaps we shall. But there is some information we require first. It would save us much bother if you'd simply agree to answer our questions-it might even save your lives."
科学家的吻喙传感器抽动着，仿佛在嗅着空气。“也许我们会这么做。但我们先需要些信息。如果你只要同意回答我们的问题的话，会让我们双方都少些麻烦——也许还能救你们的命。”
Rick snorted."Dream on, slug."
瑞克不屑一顾地答话：“做梦去吧，鼻涕虫。”
"As I thought," the scientist directed over his shoulder. He studied Rick a moment, then began to move down the line, pausing in front of Kami."You were one of the Garudans selected by Tesla for the Regent's zoo, were you not·"
“跟我想的一样。”科学家扭过头去。他研究了一会儿瑞克，之后开始挨个观察，在卡米面前停住。“你是泰斯拉为摄政王动物园挑选的嘎鲁达人之一，不是吗？”
Kami leaned in as if to whisper something and snapped at the Invid's face, missing it by inches. Just as suddenly, a soldier threw a stranglehold on Kami from behind; in his weakened state, the Garudan was easily subdued.
卡米身体前倾，好像要在他耳边说点什么，然后朝因维人的脸猛咬过去，结果偏了几英寸。同样突然地，一名士兵从卡米身后勒颈抱摔，由于卡米状态虚弱，这个嘎鲁达人被轻易地制服了。
The scientist shrugged it off and continued his appraisal of the group, leering, Rick thought, at Karen, and puzzling for a moment over Rem."Why, you're Tiresian." he said at last, and whirled through an excited turn to face his group."We have a marvelous opportunity here to accomplish something invaluable for the realm. For the record," he added, looking to Rick,"where are the Robotech Masters·"
科学家蔑视地耸耸肩，继续打量这队俘虏。色迷迷的，瑞克心想，他看凯伦的时候，而且看雷的时候困惑了一阵子。“啊，你是个泰雷西亚人。”他最后说道，兴奋地转过身来，面向他的小组。“我们在这里有了个绝好的机会，为王国取得一个无价的成就。要记录在案，”他看着瑞克，又补充道，“机器人统治者在哪里？”
Rick beetled his brows."The Masters·"
瑞克双眉凸起。“统治者？”
"Yes. Where is the Protoculture matrix·"
“是的。史前文化母体在哪里？”
Rick groaned. The thing had become a thorn in the galaxy's side."I don't know what you're talking about."
瑞克一声叹息。这玩意儿已经成为银河系边侧的一根尖刺。“我不知道你在说些什么。”
"That is hardly the response we require to justify sparing your lives, Earther. Be reasonable; you have Protoculture-fueled ships, Protoculture-based weapons...How did you come by these if not through contact with the Masters or the matrix· Unless, of course, the Flowers of Life grow on your homeworld..."
“那可不是我们能合理地让你们活命的回答，地球人。通情达理一点；你们有燃烧史前文化的飞船，基于史前文化的武器……如果不通过与统治者或者母体的接触，你们怎么能获得这些？除非，当然了，生命之花在你们的母星生长……”
Rick fought to keep his surprise from registering. So that's what they're after, he thought, and recalled something Roy Fokker had told him almost ten years ago about the warning Lang had inadvertently keyed in the SDF-1-Zor's warning about the Invid! The Tirolian knew!-he knew the Invid would eventually go in search of the matrix. Cabell's words to Lang rang in Rick's ears: You must destroy the Invid here, destroy them while you still can!
瑞克尽力不显露出自己的惊讶。那么说，这就是他们追寻的东西，他想，接着他又回忆起差不多十年以前罗伊·福克告诉他朗无意间在SDF-1上按出的那个警告——佐尔关于因维人的警告！那个泰洛人早就知道！——他知道因维人有朝一日会来找寻母体。卡贝尔对朗说的话，言犹在耳：“你们必须在这里消灭因维人，趁着还有能力的时候消灭他们！”
"I see something in your eyes, Human," the scientist was saying."You know something."
“我从你眼中看到了点东西，人类。”科学家开口说。“你知道些东西。”
Rick tightened his lips to a thin line.
瑞克双唇抿紧，成了一条细线。
"Then perhaps your dreams will tell us what we wish to know." The Invid waved a hand at the soldiers."Take the Humans outside."
“那么或许你们的梦境会告诉我们想知道的事情。”因维人朝士兵们挥了下手。“把人类带到外面去。”
"You can't!" Kami bit out, his windpipe pinced in the soldier's grip. Others had stepped in to take hold of Rick, Karen, Rem, and Lisa."They'll die!"
“你不能这样！”卡米咬牙反对，他的喉头被士兵捏住。其余人已经上前抓住瑞克、凯伦、雷和丽莎。“他们会死的！”
"Yes," the scientist said matter-of-factly,"they probably will."
“是的，”科学家以一种实事求是的语气说，“他们有可能会死。”
《沙丘》六部曲合集
《波西杰克逊》系列合集
《猎魔人》合集
卡勒的著作（《泰洛星战役》——发表于《凡托玛碟环》2083年第三期，编号1099）中，一条脚注提及：对嘎鲁达“心灵论”[原文如此]有兴趣的人应参考二十世纪某位年轻的人类学学者撰写的系列自传体小说，小说记录了他通过一位雅基族印第安“能者”的引导，尝试进入各种另类现实状态的事件。尽管拉必承认卡勒的推荐有一定道理，但他指出，嘎鲁达人进入“非寻常状态”时无需任何形式的外媒。不过，仍可将这颗星球的大气层视为这个角色。希望饱受期待的海顿经文译本能将这个争论不绝的话题阐明。
Taken from the "Imminent Immaterial" column of Psycho-physics Digest
——摘自《心理物理学摘报》一刊中“灵质之临（或另种译法：紧迫之无谓）”专栏
Garuda. Kami and Learna had told them what to expect. A mostly cold and barren world of steppes and tundra, with vast frozen regions and glaciated mountain ranges. What little there was in the way of flora and fauna was principally confined to a narrow band of equatorial forestland of evergreen analogues. There were two seasons, wet and dry; Garuda was in the latter now, and that, Kami explained, would account for the differences in fur coloration the Sentinels would notice among members of his and Learna's tribe. The Garudans, who numbered in the thousands, were not, generally speaking, offworlders. Some, however, had volunteered for mining work on Rhestad-system moons after the arrival of the Zentraedi generations ago, and later on, the Masters' clones. But most Garudans feared the thought of having to leave the planet, and had little tolerance for the breathing harnesses life anywhere else would require. Their society was a simple one, organized along the lines of any hunter-gatherer group; however, they were anything but nomadic, and kept domesticated animals and raised some crops. Religion was of a decidedly individual variety, with each clan answering to a different totem, and each member his or her own shaman. Oddly enough, neither Kami nor Learna had the slightest knowledge of history in the sense that most of the Sentinels, including Burak and Lron, understood the term. Unlike the Karbarrans, or Praxians for that matter, the Garudans seemed to live entirely in the present. This is not to say that they were a complacent group-they were certainly devoted to securing a free future for their world-but at the same time, they could supply no answers to questions concerning their racial past.
嘎鲁达。卡米和莱亚娜已经告诉过他们该期待些什么。在这个寒冷贫瘠的世界上，绝大部分地貌是干草原、苔原、大片冻土和冰川山脉。这里的动植物群很少，基本都聚集在赤道附近狭窄的常绿林地带。它只有两个季节，雨季和旱季；而嘎鲁达星正处在旱季，而且，卡米解释道，这就是哨兵们所注意到的他和莱亚娜所属部族的成员产生毛色差别的原因。嘎鲁达人，总数约有几千人，一般而言，他们并不是在外漂泊的民族。尽管在几代人之前，曾有一些人，自愿前往若斯达星系的几颗卫星进行采矿；那是天顶星人到达嘎鲁达之后的事，随后，又降临了统治者的克隆部队。但绝大多数嘎鲁达人对离开这颗星球的想法感到惧怕，而且很难忍受那些在此必须佩戴呼吸器械的外星球人。他们的社会组织十分简单，以共同猎采的组织相联系；然而，他们并不是游牧民族，这些人豢养家畜，种植庄稼。宗教具有完全的个体差异性，每个部族都回应不同的图腾，而部族里的每个人都是自己的萨满（注：原始部落与原始宗教中，能与神灵沟通的人）。奇怪的是，不论卡米还是莱亚娜，都对“历史”一无所知，而哨兵同盟的绝大多数人，包括伯拉克、勒荣，多少了解一些这个词的含义。就此而言，和卡巴拉人、普拉西斯人不同，嘎鲁达人看起来仅仅活在当下。这并不是说他们是个自足的族群——为了保障这个世界未来的自由，他们的确很投入——但与此同时，对这个种族的过去所提的任何问题，他们都给不出答案。
This enigma had become something of a preoccupation with Cabell during the four months the Sentinels had remained grounded on Praxis. Cabell was different than the Masters in this regard. Those who had ousted the Tirolian regime after the Great Transition were more interested in expansion and conquest than in the accumulation of knowledge; to the Elders and their subordinate Triumvirates, knowledge of the past presented something of an impediment to change. They had their gaze fixed on the day after tomorrow, on issues of uncontested rule, ultimate power, and selective immortality.
在哨兵同盟搁浅在普拉西斯的那四个月里，这个谜样的世界就已经占据了卡贝尔的心思。不过，卡贝尔和统治者们的意图是不同的。那些在“大转变”时期后撤销了泰洛政体的人们，对扩张和征服的兴趣要胜过知识累积；对长老会以及下属的各个三位一体组织而言，了解历史代表阻碍变革。他们将目光聚集在明日之后，关注的是不容异议的律制、至高无上的权力以及有选择性的永生这类问题。
The rest of the Sentinels, though, saw Garuda more in terms of its tangible challenges, and foremost among these was its very atmosphere: though Earthlike in composition, it was essentially toxic to all but the planet's indigenous life-forms. There were one or two exceptions to this, but only Veidt and Sarna among the Sentinels qualified. Surface scans verified the presence of dozens of varieties of airborne spores and microorganisms whose chemistry Jean Grant likened to certain laboratory-produced psychotropic drugs. According to Cabell-based on what he had gleaned from Zor's notes-the vulpine beings' mental processes were linked to the planet itself in a kind of submolecular partnership. Life-forms incapable of entering into this long-established microcosmic symbiosis were not, however, simply ignored or exempted; rather, they were sensed as potentially disturbing to the ecological balance and consequently counterattacked by those same microorganisms responsible for the Garudans' nonordinary psychic states.
然而，哨兵中的其他人更注重嘎鲁达世界那些实实在在的挑战，首当其冲的便是它的大气层：尽管成分和地球大气相仿，但对于非本星球土著的生命形式来说，基本上都有毒性。或许有一两个例外，但哨兵中只有维特和莎娜够这个资格。表面扫描证实了有数十个品种的孢子和微生物散播在空气中，吉英·格兰特将其化学特性比作某种实验室制造的精神疾病治疗药物。按卡贝尔的观点——基于他所搜集的佐尔笔记——这些狐形生命的精神活动与这个星球自身在亚分子层面有合作，互相联结。然而，那些没有能力进入这个早已建立的微观世界共生体的生命形式，并非简单地被忽略或被置之不理，而是被感知为破坏这里生态平衡的潜在威胁，从而遭到这些要为嘎鲁达人不寻常的精神状态负责的微生物的反击。
It had therefore fallen upon the med group to outfit the landing party with transpirators and resp canisters. But if logistics was about to hamper the operation's effectiveness, the Sentinels could take some comfort in the fact that the Invid had also fallen prey to the planet's proprietary nature. In fact, their presence on Garuda was essentially restricted to the hemispherically shaped hives they had erected in those areas where Zor's Flower of Life seedlings had taken root. The crop was a mutant but bountiful one, and it was believed that Garuda provided largely defoliated Optera with much of its needed supply of nutrient. With Karbarra liberated, the Regent had lost his mecha factories; now the Sentinels meant to strike him at the gut level, destroying as many of Garuda's orchards and "farms" as they could.
因此，为着陆队装备防毒衣和防毒面具的任务就落到了医疗队的身上。不过，要是说物资要求会阻碍行动效率的话，那么哨兵们会对因维人已经沦为这个星球自身占有欲的牺牲品这个事实感到欣慰。实际上，他们在嘎鲁达上的活动范围基本上限制在那些半球形的蜂房中，而蜂房都建立在佐尔的生命之花种子扎根的那些地区。这些植株虽是变异的品种，但产量很高。据信，嘎鲁达为大量灭植后的奥普特拉供给了其所需的营养剂。卡巴拉解放之后，瑞金特便失去了机甲工厂；现在哨兵同盟将打击他的肠胃，尽可能摧毁更多的嘎鲁达果园和“农场”。
Rick, Lisa, Cabell, Rem, Jack, Karen, Burak, Kami, Learna, Gnea, Lron, and Crysta made up the drop group, with members of the Skull and Wolff Pack escorting the shuttle down. The SDF-7 would remain in orbit to deal with Invid transport vessels, known to make frequent runs between Garuda and Optera. Wolff and Grant shared the fortress command. Janice would be keeping an eye on Tesla. Veidt and Sarna had elected to stay behind, and Bela was apparently determined to help Teal with the infant Baldan.
瑞克、丽莎、卡贝尔、雷、杰克、凯伦、伯拉克、卡米、莱亚娜、妮雅、勒荣和克里斯塔组成了着陆队，由骷髅中队和沃尔夫战队的成员负责护送穿梭机落地。SDF-7将保持在轨道上，应对因维人的运输船，已知它们在嘎鲁达和奥普特拉之间频繁往来。沃尔夫和格兰特共同指挥堡垒。贾妮斯将看守泰斯拉。维特和莎娜被推选留在后方，而贝拉显然已决定给缇尔和婴孩鲍丹帮忙。
The landing party was certain that the SDF-7's arrival in Garudaspace had not gone undetected by the Invid; the shuttle landing would probably be monitored as well. So rather than risk immediate engagement or present any of the hives with an easy target, they opted to put down in the relatively unpoliced tribal sectors, close to Kami and Learna's village. Unexpectedly, they found themselves encircled by battle-ready troops nevertheless-even before the shuttle's landing gear made contact with the surface.
着陆队能肯定SDF-7到达嘎鲁达空间时已经被因维人探测到；穿梭机着陆也可能会被监视。因此，为避免立刻交火或者被蜂房当成活靶子，他们选择在相对无警戒的部族区降落，靠近卡米和莱亚娜的村子。然而，他们没料到的是，穿梭机的落地装置甚至还没碰到地面，自己已经被做好战斗准备的部队团团围住。
Kami had neglected to mention that some of Garuda's protectors were Tirolian Bioroids.
卡米忘记告诉大家，嘎鲁达的保卫者中，有泰洛生化人。
Kami and Learna consequently made certain they were the first to deplane, figuring their mere appearance would defuse the situation. It did so-and more. Within minutes, half of Kami's tribe had emerged from the trees to surround the shuttle and celebrate the return of their friends. The air was suddenly charged with joyous sounds-excited barking to Rick's ears-and Kami and Learna were embraced, jostled, and hoisted up on countless shoulders. With elaborate ritual, the two returnees threw off their breathing gear and pranced about, engaging in impromptu dances, shamanic steps of power.
于是，卡米和莱亚娜明确了首先下船的人是他俩，估计仅靠他们的外形就能使事态平息。确实如此——还不止如此。几分钟后，卡米部族的人来了一半，他们从树林钻出，围住穿梭机——瑞克听来是欢呼的犬吠声——卡米和莱亚娜被他们不停拥抱、推来搡去之后，又被举到了人群数不清的肩头上。经过一番缜密的仪式之后，两位归乡客扔掉了自己的呼吸面罩，腾空欢跃，跳起了即兴的舞蹈，步伐里充满了萨满巫师般的力量。
Rick radioed the Skull and Wolff contingents to put down along the perimeter of the shuttle's rough strip, checked the integrity of his environment suit and transpirator, and followed Lisa out of the pilots' cabin to take part in the merriment. An hour later, he and the rest of the landing party were in the village's wooden longhouse powwowing with the leaders of Kami's tribe. Severed heads of Hellcats, Scrim, and Odeon Inorganics dangled from the roof tie-beams.
瑞克用无线电通知骷髅中队和沃尔夫战队在穿梭机周围的土道上着陆，他检查过自己的隐形服与呼吸面罩是否完好之后，跟着丽莎走出了驾驶室，参与到这欢庆之中。一小时后，他同着陆队的其他人一起，在村子的长条形木屋中，与卡米部落的领导们一起开着帕瓦大会（注：原意是北美土著的盛宴、舞蹈仪式，现代英语中又指作战会议和政治会议。）几个地狱猫、斯奇姆兽和奥迪昂兽的头颅晃悠地悬挂在屋顶的横梁上。
Also present were a number of the Bioroid pilot clones-androgynous-looking shaggy-haired humanoids with pointed features and exotic eyes. One of the clones-these Tiresian lost boys-was explaining to Cabell in a nasal, almost synthesized voice how they had come to ally themselves with the Garudan cause. They wore no breathing gear, and were apparently immune to the spores.
会上还有几个生化人克隆战士——他们有着人类外形，样子不男不女，头发蓬松，尖脸庞，眼神奇异。其中的一个克隆人——这些被忘却的泰洛男孩——正用着自己近乎合成声调的浓重鼻音向卡贝尔解释着自己是如何成为嘎鲁达盟友的。
"The Masters left us here to police this world. But when the Invid arrived, communication with Tirol and the clone-masters became impossible. Our Hoverships destroyed, all ties with Tirol cut, we began to understand the concept of freedom, the loneliness that springs from abandonment..."
“机器人统治者把我们留下来维持这个世界的治安。但当因维人到来之后，和泰洛还有克隆人首领的通讯就不行了。我们的气垫船都被摧毁了，与泰洛德所有联系也切断了，我们开始理解了自由的概念，理解了由遗弃而生的孤独感……”
"So you joined the Garudans in their fight," Cabell finished, astonished.
“于是你们就加入了嘎鲁达人的斗争，”卡贝尔替他说完，十分震惊。
"We thirst for freedom, just as they do."
“我们渴望自由，就和他们一样。”
"Remarkable," the old man mused, his own voice distorted by the mask's filters."Absolutely remarkable." He hadn't been so astounded since learning from Lang that Miriya Parino had borne a child; and the revelation gave him some hope that the Masters' clones were actually capable of revolt.
“不寻常，”老人沉思自语，面罩的过滤器扭曲了他的音调。“绝对不寻常。”自打他从朗那里得知米莉娅·帕丽诺生了个小孩之后，还没有这般震惊过；这意外的发现给了他些许希望：统治者的克隆人们实际上还是有能力反抗的。
Rick took advantage of a momentary silence to motion to the trophy heads."What's the situation here· Do the Invid run patrols through this sector·"
瑞克利用了这片刻的沉默，指向那些战利品头颅。“这里的状况如何？因维人在这个区域有巡逻吗？”
The tribal chief answered him."Their Inorganics patrol, but only when they wish to intimidate us, or gather up laborers for the farms. They don't seem to regard us as a threat-even with the firepower our comrades supply," he added, indicating the clones,"but I assure you that all Garuda is ripe for rebellion."
部落酋长回答：“他们派无机兽巡逻，不过只是在他们希望恐吓我们的时候，要不就是为农场拉壮丁的时候。他们似乎不把我们当成威胁——即使我们的战友们装备有武器。”他补充道，这话指的是那些克隆人，“但我向你保证，整个嘎鲁达反抗的时机已经成熟了。”
"You mean, they're using your people on the farms·"
“你是说，他们在农场里使用你的人？”
"Lately, yes. And in the labor camps near them."
“最近，是这样的。就在他们附近的劳工营。”
Lron and Crystal grunted, alarming some of the Garudans present. They were keeping a wide circle around the ursine XTs, and a wider one yet around Burak, whose mask only added to an already demonic aspect.
勒荣和克里斯塔咕哝着，让会场里的一些嘎鲁达人警觉起来。他们与外星熊人保持着距离围成一圈，而围着伯拉克的圈子就更大了，面罩让他魔鬼般的面容更加恐怖。
Rick could see that the news came as a shock to Kami and Learna also.
瑞克能看出卡米和莱亚娜也被这个消息震惊了。
"So much for surgical strikes from the ship," Max said.
“那就不用考虑让那艘船展开外科手术式打击了。”麦克斯说道。
Rick regarded the chief for a moment. He found that he was not yet accustomed to seeing Garudans without then-breathers; omnivores they might be, but there was a ferocity to their muzzles he wasn't all that comfortable with. Outwardly, the chief resembled Kami, but there was a solemnness to his aspect that was absent in the younger Garudan.
瑞克对这位酋长打量了片刻。他感到自己还是不太习惯嘎鲁达人不戴呼吸器的样子；他们可能是杂食动物，但长着一副凶残的尖嘴，这让瑞克一直都很不舒服。从外表看，酋长和卡米挺像，但他有着一份年轻嘎鲁达人所缺乏的庄重。
"What about mecha·" Lisa wanted to know."Scouts, Shock Troopers·"
“那些机甲呢？”丽莎想知道，“侦察机，突击骑兵机？”
"Only when their transport ships arrive," the chief told her."They patrol near the farms to protect the nutrient shipment while it is being loaded. Rarely do they venture into tribal sectors."
“只在它们的运输船队到达的时候出现，”酋长告诉她。“他们在农场附近巡逻，在装货的时候，保护那些营养品。他们很少冒险来部落的地盘。”
Rick watched the chief gnaw at a hunk of meat one of the women had offered him."Is there any regularity to the shipments·"
瑞克看着酋长啃着一位女性奉上的大块肉排。“运货有什么规律吗？”
The chief exchanged a few sentences with Kami in the Garudan tongue. The Sentinel translated."Approximately every three standard months." This was changed every so often in an attempt to foil what was an extensive underground network at work on Garuda. But the Invid never managed to keep anything secret for very long.
酋长同卡米用嘎鲁达语交谈了几句。哨兵翻译道：“大约每三个标准月一次。”为了遏制嘎鲁达四通八达的“地下”网络，这规律有时也会改变。但因维人从来不会把秘密保守太长时间。
"And when did the last shipment leave·"
“上次运货是什么时候离开的？”
"One month ago."
“一个月之前。”
Rick grinned beneath his transpirator mask."That means we're in the clear for the moment. Even if they've already communicated with their fleet, reinforcements could take weeks to get here."
瑞克在呼吸面罩后面笑了。“那就是说我们现在安全了。就算他们同舰队联系过，增援部队也要几个星期之后才能到。”
"The closest farm is about one hundred miles from here," Learna said, without being asked."Kami and I know that area well."
“最近的农场，距离这里大约一百英里。”还没有人问她，莱亚娜就说道。“卡米和我对那里很熟。”
"An aerial recon," Max suggested.
“空中侦察，”麦克斯建议。
"No," Rick said."I don't think we should tip our hand just yet. We'll go in on Hovercycles first. Take a quick look around before we plan an assault. Just because mecha haven't been observed doesn't mean they're not in there."
“不，”瑞克说。“我认为我们此刻还不能露底牌。我们还是先派气垫摩托去。在计划攻击之前，先扫视一下情况。只是没看到机甲而已，并不意味着不存在。”
"I agree," Rick heard Jack say behind him.
“我同意。”瑞克听到杰克在他身后说。
Karen nudged Jack with her elbow for butting in."Sir·" she then said to Lisa, hoping Jack would learn by example.
凯伦用胳膊肘捅了一下杰克，提醒他插话失礼。“长官？”然后，她向丽莎请示，希望杰克能学着她的样。
"Go ahead, Karen."
“说吧，凯伦。”
"I was just wondering what exactly happened to the first Invid troops that landed here-before the hives were built, I mean."
“我就是想知道，着陆在这里的第一批因维军队——蜂房建立之前，我是说——他们究竟发生了什么事？”
Again, Kami and the chief exchanged a few words.
又一次，卡米和酋长交谈了几句。
"They went mad," the Garudan leader said evenly."Then they died."
“他们都疯了，”嘎鲁达首领平静地说。“之后他们都死了。”
The recon team-Rick, Lisa, Jack, Karen, Rem, and Kami as scout-left the village shortly before dawn, sticking close to the northern fringe of Garuda's preternaturally quiet forest. They had traveled seventy-five miles by the time Rhestad rose-a massive oblate field of crimson that did little to warm the land. The two villages they passed en route had already been informed of the mission. Worried about attracting any undue attention to themselves, Rick had requested that the Garudans simply go about their business; but there was obviously too much excitement in the air for that. For sometimes miles at a stretch, Rick would see them crouched along the paths the Hovercycles cut through the woods, silent and feral, vulpine eyes aglow in the eerie morning light.
侦察队——瑞克、丽莎、杰克、凯伦、雷和侦察员卡米——在黎明前不久离开了村庄，紧贴着嘎鲁达超自然的静谧森林的北侧边缘行进。在若斯达——这个无法温暖大地的猩红色扁圆太阳——冉冉升起的时候，他们已经走了七十五英里。他们途中路过两个村子，也都已经接到通报，得知了这项任务。瑞克担心队伍会吸引来不正常的关注，他请求嘎鲁达人只要做自己平常的事情就好；但显然空气里还有太多的激动之情了。有时，一连几英里，瑞克都能看到他们在气垫摩托开出的林间小道边蹲伏着，沉寂又充满野性，狐狸眼珠在阴森的晨光里闪闪发亮。
At mile eighty-five the team encountered its first Inorganic patrol-a pack of Hellcats a dozen strong, roaming the forest like some fiendish pride of saber-tooths. Kami had spotted them and passed the word; the Hovercycles were shut down and concealed. It was understood by now that the Inorganics were more than marauders or Robopolice units; they functioned as the remote eyes and ears for the Invid living computers, which in turn directed the scientists or command troops. Engagement, therefore, even if it ended in victory, would have only served to alert the hive to the team's position; so they lay as still as they could, pressed close to the chilled ground until the pack had moved through.
在八十五英里处，队伍首次遭遇了无机兽巡逻队——由十余个地狱猫组成，在森林里漫步，有着剑齿虎一般凶残的骄傲。卡米发现了他们，立刻给大家传话；气垫摩托车关闭动力并掩蔽起来。现在都知道无机兽的角色不只是扫荡队或者机器警察，他们还有充当因维活体计算机远程耳目的功能，之后还会引导科学家或者部队前来。因此，同它们交火的话，哪怕是最终能获胜，也只会给蜂房以警报，暴露小队位置。他们便一动不动地趴着，紧紧贴在冰冷刺骨的地面上，直到巡逻队走过。
Rick and Lisa were on their stomachs, side-by-side, environmental suits adjusted to mimic the colors and textures of the area's fernlike ground cover. Rick had his arm flung protectively across his wife's back, and was gazing at her through the helmet's bubble-shield. Her eyes returned the wrinkled look his own were trying to convey. It was the first time he and Lisa had been out together in a long while, and if this wasn't exactly anyone's idea of an ideal date or the "closeness" Lisa had in mind during their most recent heart-to-heart, at least they were together. And somehow-though Rick would have been at a loss to explain it-he felt more assured with Lisa beside him. At the same time her presence had a kind of calming effect, because no matter what they might have to face, he was freed from having to worry about where she was or what dangers she might have otherwise been facing alone. Here, he had some measure of control over her situation-their situation.
瑞克和丽莎并排趴着，隐形服作了调整，接近于该地区蕨类植被的色彩和纹路。瑞克的手臂保护性地搭在妻子的背上，透过头盔的透明罩凝视着她。她眉头紧锁回看了瑞克一眼，瑞克心想自己的表情也正是这样。这是他和丽莎在这很久一段时间里第一次共同外出。就算这并不是大家印象中的理想约会方式或者上次谈心时丽莎脑海里那个“亲密”的概念，至少他俩还在一起。而且出于某些原因——让瑞克解释的话，会让他不知所措——他觉得有丽莎在身边会更有信心些。同时，她的存在本身就具有一种镇静效应，因为不论他们将面对什么，他都无需为她在哪里或者她将独自面临什么危险而担心。在这里，他多少能控制她的处境——他俩的处境。
Moving more cautiously after Kami gave the all-clear sign, the team took another hour to cover the last fifteen miles. They had portions of the enormous hive in sight for five of those miles, but didn't get an unobstructed view of the thing until they were almost on top of it. It sat in the center of an ancient impact crater, in a veritable forest of Optera trees, a dome-shaped structure with a base almost ten miles around, composed entirely of what appeared to be organic facets or geodesies; in fact, the hive had the look of something grown rather than erected. Four mile-high cattaillike antenna towers were positioned at cardinal points around the hive's oddly "bubbled" base.
卡米发出“安全”的信号之后，队伍的行动更加谨慎，他们又花了一小时，完成了最后十五英里。在五英里的路程里，他们都能看见巨大蜂房的局部，不过直到他们几乎登到蜂房顶部高度的时候，他们才算是不受阻挡的看到了这东西的全貌。它坐落在一个古代冲击陨坑的中央，在一片真正的奥普特拉树林里，这个穹顶结构联同接近十英里周长的底座，全都由类似有机质的刻面与交错线组成；实际上，蜂房看来更像生长出的而不是建造出的。四英里高的猫尾形的天线塔位于蜂房“冒泡”的地基周围四个基本方位点上。
Through field glasses, Rick could discern Garudan slaves gathering mutated fruits from the trees. Huge containers of these were being conveyed to the hive itself by Invid soldiers in specially outfitted suits, often piloting Hovercarts of various design. Tracking the carts' movements ultimately enabled Rick to discover one of the hive's tunnellike transport corridors.
瑞克从双筒小型望远镜里观察到，嘎鲁达奴工们正在从树上采集变种果实。因维士兵们身穿特制的装备服，其中不少人还操纵着各种样式的气浮货车，将一个个巨大的果实容器送到蜂房里。靠着追踪货车的动向，瑞克最终找到了蜂房上一个隧洞般的输送通道。
"What happens later on·" Rick whispered to Kami, who had stooped down to ask for the binoculars."Are the workers taken into the hive·"
“又有什么情况？”卡米弯下腰要了瑞克的望远镜，随后，瑞克轻声问他，“工人们被带进蜂房了吗？”
"No," he said, bringing his muzzle close to the helmet's audio pickups."The labor camp lies about two miles from here." Kami pointed out the direction.
“不，”他回话，尖嘴靠近头盔的拾音器。“劳工营在离这儿两英里之外的地方。”卡米指出了方向。
"Are you certain there are no Garudans inside the hive·"
“你确定蜂房里面没有嘎鲁达人吗？”
Kami shook his head."Not certain." The hives were the only places on the planet impervious to Garudan Sendings and out-of-body flights; but the Invids' continued presence on world in general had confused things. The clouds and wind were full of sinister whisperings.
卡米摇头。“不确定。”这颗星球上，只有蜂房才能对嘎鲁达人的“传信”和出窍飞行免疫；但总体而言，因维人的持续存在给这个世界还是带来了困扰，风云之间传递着凶险的耳语。
"Then we've gotta find out," Rick said, turning around to motion the others forward.
“那我们得弄清楚。”瑞克说。转身挥手，让其他人前进。
Jack remained behind as rear guard, while the rest of the team began to work their way over the low ridge that was the crater's rim and down into the basin itself. It was warmer here, Rick realized without having to check the suit's sensor displays; redolent, too, he imagined, as the Optera tree forests on Praxis had been. They were closing on the edge of the cultivation area now, and it was time for Kami to go it alone.
杰克留在后面防卫，其余队员则越过陨坑边缘的低坎，朝下方盆地前进。这里更暖些，瑞克不用检查外套上的感应显示便意识到了这点；而且也很芬芳，他的脑海中映现出了普拉西斯星上的曾有的奥普特拉树林。现在他们已经接近了种植区的边缘，该轮到卡米单独上阵了。
"Don't take any chances," Rick cautioned him. He checked his chronometer."One hour. If you're not back by then, we're moving out."
“别心存侥幸，”瑞克提醒他。他察看了自己了计时器，“一小时，要是你到时候不回来，我们就撤走。”
"I'll get word back to you from the camp if anything happens."
“要是发生什么事情，我会从营地里给你们传话的。”
The underground, Rick reminded himself.
“地下”网络，瑞克提醒自己。
"Just see that it doesn't," Rem said.
“不会有什么事的，你看吧。”雷说道。
Karen and Lisa wished Kami luck, and he started to move off.
凯伦和丽莎祝卡米好运，随后他便出发了。
Then all at once a small mountain was growing under their feet. Rick thought for a moment that this might be how the bulb-canopied Optera trees pushed themselves from the ground. Lisa and the others had been knocked off their feet, but he was still riding the rise up, arms outstretched like a high-wire walker. Elsewhere he could see two more humps beginning to form. Kami yelled something incomprehensible, just before Rick leaped and caught hold of a network of vinelike tendrils encasing the canopy-bulb of the nearest tree. He was dangling ten feet above the ground now, looking down on his teammates and wondering why they had their weapons drawn, when a triple-clawed Scout pincer suddenly slammed into the tree not a foot from his head. The bulb split open like an overripe melon, showering him with viscous green gop and what he took to be seeds.
突然间，他们的脚下隆起一座小山包。瑞克片刻后弄明白了，这就是那些长着球冠的奥普特拉树丛破土而出的过程。丽莎和其他人都已被震倒在地，但他依然还追着上升的势头，双臂张开，仿佛走钢丝一般。他能看到别处还有两个隆起正在形成。卡米喊叫着一些无法理解的话语，而后瑞克跃起，牢牢抓住最近那棵树笼在球冠上藤蔓般的网状卷须。现在，他吊在离地面十英尺的高度晃荡，往下瞧着队友们，正想着为何他们抽出了武器，突然间一个三爪螯击侦察机猛挥过来，正拍在树上离在他头部不足一英尺的地方。球冠一分为二，像个熟过头的甜瓜，绿色粘液以及他认为是种籽的东西淋了他一身。
Lisa and Karen, meanwhile, were firing charges at the crab-ship, trying to position themselves for a shot at the mecha's scanner, a pouting red mouth low down on the ventral surface of its armored head. But the Scouts who had joined the first were advancing, and the two women were forced to hurl themselves out from under a pair of cloven feet. One mecha was stomping the ground, trying to pulverize them, even while Rem and Kami were stinging its ladybug-shaped carapace with Wolverine fire.
而这时丽莎和凯伦正向着蟹形机开火，努力想击中这架机甲的扫描器——在它带护甲的头面部下方，那个嘟起的红嘴便是。但又有侦察机加入了最先的同伙，它们正向前逼近。两个女子头顶上出现了一双三瓣大脚板，她俩被迫跳开。有架机甲用力跺着地面，丝毫不顾雷和卡米用金刚狼步枪不断刺痛它那瓢虫般的身躯，只想把她们踩成肉泥。
Rick disentangled himself before the first Scout could strike again, dropping, tucking, and rolling out of harm's way, and somehow managing to come up with his weapon raised. He nailed his giant assailant in the knee joint and brought it down in an earsplitting crash; then put a second shot through its scanner, and ducked for cover as the thing blew up.
瑞克赶在第一架侦察机再度袭来前脱了身，他滑下地，抱膝翻滚避开了危险，起身时还举起了武器。他把这把大火力枪顶在膝盖上，一枪击中敌人，发出了震耳欲聋的坠地声；随后他又朝扫描器补了一枪。瑞克刚刚蹲下找个掩护，那家伙就爆炸了。
The force of the blast threw one of the other Scouts hard against the trees, where it stumbled and fell after ripping open half-a-dozen bulbs. Rem saw to it that the ship didn't get up, lancing it open from crotch to scanner. Rick had been left dazed and temporarily deaf from the explosion, but he came to in time to see the remaining mecha raising its left foot to smash Karen and Lisa, who had also been leveled by the blast. He ran up behind the Scout, as if preparing to clip it behind the knee, and emptied his handgun straight up into the underside of the ship's rear tapered head armor, eliciting a cascade of energy bolts and a muffled roar that decapitated the ship, spilling its Invid pilot to the ground. Kami and Karen holed the creature, even though it was probably already dead, and moved quickly to Lisa's side. Rick did likewise, suddenly terror-stricken. Her suit was torn open; she was bloodied and unconscious.
气浪将一个剩下的侦察机推进树丛，它跌跌撞撞，弄破了五六个球冠，最终倒地。雷干掉了这架战机，从裆部一直到扫描器开膛破肚。瑞克在爆炸之后暂时耳聋，头晕目眩，好在他及时恢复清醒，看到了仅存的那只机甲正抬起左脚，要踩扁也被爆炸震倒在地的凯伦和丽莎。他奋力追到侦察机身后，好像要在它膝盖后面发力猛击，他的手枪对准它后脑尖垂的头部铠甲底下放空了子弹，引发了一连串的能量球爆发，一阵闷响让这架战机身首异处，机舱内的因维驾驶员跌落地上。卡米和凯伦也没管给这家伙可能早已没了命，还是给它身上开了不少洞，随后朝丽莎一侧快速跑去。瑞克也跑了过去，突然间，他被恐惧击中。她的防护服已经撕扯开了，她在流血，失去了知觉。
"We've got to get her back to the cycs!" Rick said, looking up at his teammates. But all he got in return was a look of resignation. Rick saw Kami and Karen toss their weapons aside. He whirled around, still in a crouch, in time to see more than a dozen Invid soldiers emerging from the orchard to surround their patch of green-stained ground.
“我们得把她送回摩托那儿去！”瑞克说，抬头望着他的队友。但他得到的回应则是放弃的表情。瑞克看到卡米和凯伦把武器摆向一旁。他蹲着转过身来，刚好看到十多个因维士兵从果园出现，包围了他们那一片绿迹斑斑的地方。
"Throw your weapon down," one of the Praxian-size soldiers said in Tiresian, brandishing an evil-looking rifle/cannon and gazing down at Rick through an elongated helmet.
“扔下你的武器。”一名同普拉西斯人身材相仿的士兵用泰雷西亚语说，他挥舞着一把样子丑恶的步枪或是炮管，目光透过拉长的头盔，向下紧盯着瑞克。
Rick did so, just as an officer came shouldering its way through the circle. It regarded Lisa a moment, then swung its snout toward Rick.
瑞克照做了，这时一名军官从人群中挤了出来。他看了丽莎片刻，又转头把尖嘴对向瑞克。
"The hive has been expecting you," it announced.
“蜂房一直都在期待你们的到来。”它向他们宣告。
"Our Regent has said that he finds your race most curious, and now I understand why. You are a little more like worms than I'd imagined, and indeed there is the stench of death about you."
“我们的摄政王曾说，他发现你们的种族非常令人好奇，而现在我明白了原因。你们比我想象的更有点像蠕虫，而你身上也的确发出了死亡的腐臭。”
The interior of the hive was greenhouse-hot, but the scientist's voice was cold and analytical. Rick, Rem, Kami, and Karen had been marched at gunpoint through the same entrance Rick had spied from the crater rim. There, their helmets and transpirators had been removed. One of the soldiers had carried Lisa in over his shoulder. She was still unconscious, groaning every so often in her delirium. Rick was being kept from her side. Kami, already succumbing to the hive's artificial atmosphere, had been shackled and dumped in a corner.
蜂房内部是个温室——热，但那位科学家的声音冷酷理性。瑞克、雷、卡米和凯伦被枪口押送，走进了瑞克在陨坑边缘看到的那个入口。进入蜂房后，他们的头盔和呼吸器都被摘除了。一个士兵用肩膀把丽莎扛了进来。她还是不省人事，不时呻吟两句胡话。瑞克被阻止无法到她那一侧。卡米，已经被蜂房内的人工空气打垮，上着镣铐，被扔在角落里。
"That smell is the stink of your own soldiers' blood," Rick snarled at the scientist, gesturing to his green-smeared suit.
“那是你们自己士兵的血腥臭气，”瑞克对科学家怒吼，伸手指着自己身上绿色血污的防护服。
"The cornered creature's final attack," the Invid said to his white-robed group of barefoot assistants, in Tiresian for Rick's benefit."The being uses words as weapons."
“困兽犹斗啊，”因维人对他的一组光脚的白袍助理们说道，用的是泰雷西亚语，好让瑞克听懂。“这些生物把语言当武器。”
"What do you want with us· Why didn't your soldiers kill us·"
“你想要我们做什么？为什么你的士兵没杀了我们？”
The scientist's snout sensors twitched, as if he was sniffing the air."Perhaps we shall. But there is some information we require first. It would save us much bother if you'd simply agree to answer our questions-it might even save your lives."
科学家的吻喙传感器抽动着，仿佛在嗅着空气。“也许我们会这么做。但我们先需要些信息。如果你只要同意回答我们的问题的话，会让我们双方都少些麻烦——也许还能救你们的命。”
Rick snorted."Dream on, slug."
瑞克不屑一顾地答话：“做梦去吧，鼻涕虫。”
"As I thought," the scientist directed over his shoulder. He studied Rick a moment, then began to move down the line, pausing in front of Kami."You were one of the Garudans selected by Tesla for the Regent's zoo, were you not·"
“跟我想的一样。”科学家扭过头去。他研究了一会儿瑞克，之后开始挨个观察，在卡米面前停住。“你是泰斯拉为摄政王动物园挑选的嘎鲁达人之一，不是吗？”
Kami leaned in as if to whisper something and snapped at the Invid's face, missing it by inches. Just as suddenly, a soldier threw a stranglehold on Kami from behind; in his weakened state, the Garudan was easily subdued.
卡米身体前倾，好像要在他耳边说点什么，然后朝因维人的脸猛咬过去，结果偏了几英寸。同样突然地，一名士兵从卡米身后勒颈抱摔，由于卡米状态虚弱，这个嘎鲁达人被轻易地制服了。
The scientist shrugged it off and continued his appraisal of the group, leering, Rick thought, at Karen, and puzzling for a moment over Rem."Why, you're Tiresian." he said at last, and whirled through an excited turn to face his group."We have a marvelous opportunity here to accomplish something invaluable for the realm. For the record," he added, looking to Rick,"where are the Robotech Masters·"
科学家蔑视地耸耸肩，继续打量这队俘虏。色迷迷的，瑞克心想，他看凯伦的时候，而且看雷的时候困惑了一阵子。“啊，你是个泰雷西亚人。”他最后说道，兴奋地转过身来，面向他的小组。“我们在这里有了个绝好的机会，为王国取得一个无价的成就。要记录在案，”他看着瑞克，又补充道，“机器人统治者在哪里？”
Rick beetled his brows."The Masters·"
瑞克双眉凸起。“统治者？”
"Yes. Where is the Protoculture matrix·"
“是的。史前文化母体在哪里？”
Rick groaned. The thing had become a thorn in the galaxy's side."I don't know what you're talking about."
瑞克一声叹息。这玩意儿已经成为银河系边侧的一根尖刺。“我不知道你在说些什么。”
"That is hardly the response we require to justify sparing your lives, Earther. Be reasonable; you have Protoculture-fueled ships, Protoculture-based weapons...How did you come by these if not through contact with the Masters or the matrix· Unless, of course, the Flowers of Life grow on your homeworld..."
“那可不是我们能合理地让你们活命的回答，地球人。通情达理一点；你们有燃烧史前文化的飞船，基于史前文化的武器……如果不通过与统治者或者母体的接触，你们怎么能获得这些？除非，当然了，生命之花在你们的母星生长……”
Rick fought to keep his surprise from registering. So that's what they're after, he thought, and recalled something Roy Fokker had told him almost ten years ago about the warning Lang had inadvertently keyed in the SDF-1-Zor's warning about the Invid! The Tirolian knew!-he knew the Invid would eventually go in search of the matrix. Cabell's words to Lang rang in Rick's ears: You must destroy the Invid here, destroy them while you still can!
瑞克尽力不显露出自己的惊讶。那么说，这就是他们追寻的东西，他想，接着他又回忆起差不多十年以前罗伊·福克告诉他朗无意间在SDF-1上按出的那个警告——佐尔关于因维人的警告！那个泰洛人早就知道！——他知道因维人有朝一日会来找寻母体。卡贝尔对朗说的话，言犹在耳：“你们必须在这里消灭因维人，趁着还有能力的时候消灭他们！”
"I see something in your eyes, Human," the scientist was saying."You know something."
“我从你眼中看到了点东西，人类。”科学家开口说。“你知道些东西。”
Rick tightened his lips to a thin line.
瑞克双唇抿紧，成了一条细线。
"Then perhaps your dreams will tell us what we wish to know." The Invid waved a hand at the soldiers."Take the Humans outside."
“那么或许你们的梦境会告诉我们想知道的事情。”因维人朝士兵们挥了下手。“把人类带到外面去。”
"You can't!" Kami bit out, his windpipe pinced in the soldier's grip. Others had stepped in to take hold of Rick, Karen, Rem, and Lisa."They'll die!"
“你不能这样！”卡米咬牙反对，他的喉头被士兵捏住。其余人已经上前抓住瑞克、凯伦、雷和丽莎。“他们会死的！”
"Yes," the scientist said matter-of-factly,"they probably will."
“是的，”科学家以一种实事求是的语气说，“他们有可能会死。”