經典科幻文學:《 再見 多謝你們的魚》第38章1
Chapter 38
Crowds thronged as close as they could to the giant silver craft, which wasn’t very. The immediate perimeter was fenced off and patrolled by the tiny flying service robots. Staked out around that was the army, who had been completely unable to breach that inner perimeter, but were damned if anybody was going to breach them. They in turn were surrounded by a cordon of police, though whether they were there to protect the public from the army or the army from the public, or to guarantee the giant ship’s diplomatic immunity and prevent it getting parking tickets was entirely unclear and the subject of much debate.
The inner perimeter fence was now being dismantled. The army stirred uncomfortably, uncertain of how to react to the fact that the reason for their being there seemed as if it was simply going to get up and go.
The giant robot had lurched back aboard the ship at lunchtime, and now it was five o’clock in the afternoon and no further sign had been seen of it. Much had been heard more grindings and rumblings from deep within the craft, the music of a million hideous malfunctions; but the sense of tense expectation among the crowd was born of the fact that they tensely expected to be disappointed. This wonderful extraordinary thing had come into their lives, an now it was simply going to go without them.
Two people were particularly aware of this sensation. Arthur and Fenchurch scanned the crowd anxiously, unable to find Ford Prefect in it anywhere, or any sign that he had the slightest intention of being there.
How reliable is he? asked Fenchurch in a sinking voice.
How reliable? said Arthur. He gave a hollow laugh. How shallow is the ocean? he said. How cold is the sun?
The last parts of the robot’s gantry transport were being carried on board, and the few remaining sections of the perimeter fence were now stacked at the bottom of the ramp waiting to follow them. The soldiers on guard round the ramp bristled meaningfully, orders were barked back and forth, hurried conferences were held, but nothing, of course, could be done about any of it.
Hopelessly, and with no clear plan now, Arthur and Fenchurch pushed forward through the crowd, but since the whole crowd was also trying to push forward through the crowd, this got them nowhere.
And within a few minutes more nothing remained outside the ship, every last link of the fence was aboard. A couple of flying fret saws and a spirit level seemed to do one last check around the site, and then screamed in through the giant hatchway themselves.
A few seconds passed.
The sounds of mechanical disarray from within changed in intensity, and slowly, heavily, the huge steel ramp began to lift itself back out of the Harrods Food Halls. The sound that accompanied it was the sound of thousands of tense, excited people being completely ignored.
Hold it!
第38章
人羣聚集在離那巨大的銀色飛船儘可能近的地方，其實那也不算近。臨時的邊界周圍有那些小型的飛行機器僕人在巡迴警戒。外面一圈是軍隊的警戒區，他們完全沒有能力衝進裏面區域的能力，而且如果有人要衝進去的話，他們就會受到譴責。再外面一層是警察的警戒線，雖然還搞不清楚而且還在爭論他們到底是來保護公衆免受軍隊傷害，還是來保護軍隊免受公衆衝擊，還是來保證巨型飛船的外交豁免權並且避免它領到停車罰單的。
裏面的警戒線正在被解除。軍隊不安地騷動起來，看起來他們到這裏的目的好像就是站起來走掉，對這個情況他們不知道該作何反應。
午飯時間那個巨大的機器人已經蹣跚地走進了飛船，現在已經五點了，再也沒有它的任何跡象。但是有很多聲音——更多的摩擦聲和隆隆聲從飛船的深處傳來，一百萬可怕的機械故障匯合成的音樂；但是人羣產生了緊張的期待感，這種感覺來自一個事實，那就是他們緊張地期待着機器人給他們帶來的失望。這個奇妙而特別的東西進入了他們的生活，現在要丟下他們就那麼走了。
有兩個人特別清楚這種感覺。阿瑟和芬切琪的目光焦急地在人羣中尋找，在哪兒都看不到福特·長官，也看不到任何他有一點點要來的跡象。
“他可靠嗎？”芬切琪用低落的聲音問。
“他可靠嗎？”阿瑟說，他發出一聲空洞的笑聲，“海水淺嗎？”他說，“太陽冷嗎？”
機器人的交通工具的最後一部分正在被搬進飛船，警戒線剩下的最後一點已經堆在坡道下面等着要搬進去。坡道周圍警戒着的士兵沒有來由地萬分緊張，命令被呼來喝去地傳達，緊急會議被召集，但是當然了，沒有任何事情可以對之產生影響。
阿瑟和芬切琪放棄了希望，而且也沒有明確的計劃，開始向前擠着穿過人羣，但是由於整個人羣也在努力向前擠着穿過人羣，他們的努力毫無用處。
又過了幾分鐘，飛船外面什麼都沒剩下了，警戒線的每節鏈子都搬進船了。幾個飛行的電鋸和一個水平儀在對這裏做最後的檢查，然後自己也尖叫着鑽進了巨大的艙門。
幾秒鐘過去了。
飛船裏傳來的雜亂的機械聲變得尖銳，慢慢地、沉重地、那個巨大的鋼鐵坡道開始從哈羅德食品館中擡起來。伴隨着這個聲音的是完全被無視的幾千人緊張而興奮的聲音。
“等一下！”
