“I simply cannot imagine why the pegasus ponies would schedule a dreadful downpour this evening and ruin what could have been a glorious sunny day.“
"我简直无法想象，为什么帕伽索斯的小马会安排今晚一场可怕的倾盆大雨，毁掉本来应该是一个美好的晴天。"
The Fleur floated whisper-quiet through the air as we cut our way through the clouds, the wet vapor coating everything in a layer of shininess. Occasionally, we passed into a dip in the upper surface of the clouds and broke into open sky. Scotch Tape and P-21 ignored Glory’s warnings against staring at the sun, marveling at the amazing azure that arched overhead. For me, on the other hoof, looking up produced a feeling much like looking down. I envied both of them; they’d shaken 99’s agoraphobia far more quickly than I, if they’d ever had it to begin with. Boo also seemed quite impressed by the sun and stretched out her hoof as if she could nudge the glowing orb aside. Of course, then we would plunge into the clouds once more. It was definitely for the best, though, as we’d spotted at least one Raptor off to the northwest.
当我们穿过云层时，芙蓉悄悄地在空气中传来耳语，潮湿的水汽把一切都笼罩在一层光亮之中。偶尔，我们会经过云层的上层，然后冲进开阔的天空。透明胶带和P-21无视晨辉关于不要盯着太阳看的警告，惊叹于头顶上拱形的迷人的天空。另一方面，对于我来说，抬头看上面产生了一种很像低头看的感觉。我羡慕他们两个;如果他们一开始就患有广场恐惧症的话，他们摆脱这种恐惧症的速度要比我快得多。布似乎也对太阳印象深刻，伸出她的蹄子，好像她可以把发光的球体推到一边。当然，然后我们会再次坠入云端。不过，这绝对是最好的结果，因为我们在西北方向发现了至少一架猛禽。
As we were crossing another of the cloud valleys, my attention turned to Lancer, who was keeping to himself by the rail. I trotted over, and I noticed him leaning away a little more with every step I took. “Oh, stop. I’ve already got my curse cooties all over you,” I teased as I sat down beside him. That certainly didn’t cheer him up, so I commented on the sky. Sure, looking up gave me problems, but if I just stared down the valley at the horizon... “Celestia, that’s beautiful,” I said as the sun washed over us. Then I glanced back over at him and saw his indifferent shrug. “You don’t think so?”
当我们穿过另一个云谷时，我的注意力转向了独守铁轨的兰瑟。我小跑过去，注意到他每走一步，身子就向后倾斜一点。"哦，别说了。我已经把我那该死的虱子弄得到处都是了,"我在他身边坐下时开玩笑地说。这当然没有让他高兴起来，所以我对天空发表了评论。当然，仰望天空给我带来了问题，但是如果我只是凝视着地平线上的山谷......"天堂，太美了,"当太阳洒落在我们身上时，我说。然后我回头看了他一眼，看到他无所谓的耸肩。"你不这么认为吗?"
“It’s the sun. I’ve seen it before,” he commented quietly, then met my skeptical gaze. Huffing softly, he rolled his eyes. “Do you think your pegasi keep our homelands cloud-covered as well? Sun. Moon. Stars. I’ve seen all the skies have to offer.” He turned away, but then added, “It is… nice.”
"这是太阳。我以前见过,"他平静地说，然后迎着我怀疑的目光。他轻轻地喘了口气，转了转眼珠。"你以为你的飞马座也能把我们的家园遮得严严实实吗？太阳。月亮。星星。我已经看到了所有的天空。"他转过身去，然后补充说,"这里......很不错。"
“Right. Nice,” I said, feeling the awkwardness grow. To spare him, I averted my eyes. “So, what are they like? Your lands, I mean.”
"对。"很好,"我说，觉得尴尬越来越大。为了不伤害他，我转移了视线。"那么，他们是什么样的人呢？我是说你们的土地。"
“Save your breath, Maiden. I have no wish to speak with you. I hate and despise everything you are,” he growled. P-21 and Glory looked over at us as he began to build up steam. “You are the ruination of everything you come in contact with. You… did you see what you just did? You kill Goddesses!”
"省省吧，少女。我不想和你说话。我讨厌和鄙视你的一切,"他咆哮道。P-21和晨辉看着我们，他们开始发起进攻。"你是你接触到的一切的毁灭者。你...你看到你刚才做了什么吗？你杀了女神!"
“That wasn’t my kill, Lancer,” I countered, frowning at him. “The Stable Dweller got the Goddess. I was just along for the ride.”
"那不是我的猎物，枪骑兵,"我反驳道，皱着眉头看着他。"马厩居民得到了女神。我只是随机应变。"
“Yes! Along! Wherever you are, death and destruction follow!” he said, then looked around, his eyes widening. “I want to land. Let me off.”
"是的！继续！无论你在哪里，死亡和毁灭都会随之而来他说，然后环顾四周，睁大了眼睛。"我想着陆。让我下车。"
“You get off when we’re clear of any Raptors. If we drop below the cloud layer, we’ll be visible for miles,” Glory said, trotting up and looking around at the Fleur. “I talked to Storm Front during the Gala about it. Raptor radar is tuned to detect high-density objects like dragons, flying tanks, mountains, and missile casings. If they get a return off the Fleur, they’ll hopefully chalk it up to two-century-old radar systems and write it off as a glitch.”
"当我们离开猛禽号的时候你就可以下船了。如果我们降落在云层之下，几英里之外都能看见我们,"晨辉说着，小跑起来，环顾了一下花儿号。"我在晚会上和风暴前线谈到了这件事。猛禽雷达可以探测高密度物体，如龙、飞行坦克、山脉和导弹外壳。如果他们从芙蓉号上得到回报，他们希望能把这归咎于两个世纪前的雷达系统，并把它当作故障一笔勾销。"
“They could not detect our Tempest,” Lancer sneered at her. Oh… that didn’t sound good.
"他们察觉不到我们的暴风雨,"兰瑟冷笑着说。听起来不太妙。
“That was a myth,” Glory countered with a sweep of her hoof. “Living storms do not exist.”
"那是个神话,"格洛里用蹄子扫了一下，反驳道。"活的风暴是不存在的。"
“Keep telling yourself that,” Lancer replied with a smug look. “You ponies had your ‘Thunderheads’. We awakened the storm itself.”
"继续告诉你自己吧,"兰瑟得意地回答。"你们这些小马有你们的'雷头'。我们唤醒了风暴本身。"
“Do you have anything like that now?” I interjected. “Or is this a two-century-old prickwaving dickfight of who had the deadliest toys?”
"你现在有这样的东西吗?"我插话道。"或者这是一场有两个世纪历史、挥舞着刺的老二大战，关于谁拥有最致命的玩具?"
He cooled a bit, seemingly caught between discretion and arrogance. “Well, Thunderheads still exist,” he commented with false levity.
他有点冷静下来，似乎夹在谨慎和傲慢之间。"好吧，霹雳头仍然存在,"他假装轻浮地评论道。
“Right…” I turned to Glory. “And these were…”
"对......"我转向晨辉。"这些是......"
Glory sighed, rubbing the bridge of her muzzle with a wingtip. “According to some conspiracy nuts, balefire bombs weren’t the only megaspells in the zebra
格洛里叹了口气，用翼尖摩擦着她的鼻梁。"根据一些阴谋论者的说法，芭蕾火焰炸弹并不是斑马线上唯一的巨型动物
arsenal. Only the most prolific. There were rumors… myths… war stories… right before the end that the zebras had used megaspells to create super talismans that… well… had excessive effects. Whole mountains that would advance on pony positions. Living storms and cyclones. Behemoths of vegetable matter.” She then glared at Lancer and tapped his chest. “But they were just stories. They’re used as plot devices in our war dramas!”
军火库。只有最多产的。有传言......神话......战争故事......就在结尾之前，斑马用巨盾创造了超级护身符......嗯......产生了过度的效果。整座山都会在小马的位置上前进。活生生的风暴和龙卷风。植物物质的巨兽。"然后她瞪了兰瑟一眼，拍了拍他的胸口。"但它们只是故事。他们在我们的战争戏剧中被用作情节设备!"
“The superweapons of your side still exist. Why do you suppose that ours do not?” he retorted with a scowl. “Ponies were right to attack first before we could deploy them offensively. The elemental forces were encased within the greatest talismans ever created, and those could then be smuggled into your greatest cities or fired on missiles into the heart of your lands.”
"你们那边的超级武器仍然存在。为什么你认为我们的不是呢?"他皱着眉头反驳道。"小马在我们进攻之前先发起攻击是正确的。元素的力量被包裹在有史以来最伟大的护身符之中，然后这些可以被偷运到你们最伟大的城市，或者向你们土地的中心发射导弹。"
“Oh, so the ability to devastate an entire city wasn’t enough? What could your mega talismans do that your balefire bombs couldn’t?” Glory asked with a roll of her eyes.
"哦，那么毁灭整个城市的能力还不够吗？你的巨型护身符能做什么，而你的气球火焰炸弹做不到呢?"晨辉转着眼珠问道。
“Go off more than once while not targeting us,” Lancer retorted grimly. “A Tempest would tear your clouds apart and break your control of the weather. A Behemoth could prowl through your forests, hiding like a hillock during the day and savaging your towns by night. A Colossus would walk over your armies, resisting any megaspell you threw at it. And when the war was over, we could use them to reconstruct and rebuild.”
"在不瞄准我们的情况下不止一次地爆炸,"兰瑟冷冷地反驳道。"暴风雨会撕裂你的云层，打破你对天气的控制。一只巨兽可以潜行在你的森林里，白天像个小山丘一样躲藏起来，到了晚上就开始攻击你的城镇。一个巨像会走过你的军队，抵抗你扔给它的任何巨石。战争结束后，我们可以用它们来重建和重建。"
“But… why?” I asked, pleading for him to see the madness of it all.
"但是......为什么?"我问道，恳求他看清这一切的疯狂。
“We knew that the balefire deterrent wasn’t going to last! Someday you’d have all your megaspells ready, and you’d attack. And you did!” he snapped, pointing a hoof at her. “In an instant, Roam was gone! The fire still burns! You liquefied the Atori Islands in minutes! Millions dead, and the radioactive slag is still toxic today! And that, by our accounts, was from just one megaspell! You turned the sun against us! Why would we not turn the sky and land itself against you?”
"我们知道，巴雷火的威慑力量不会持久！总有一天，你会准备好所有的巨无霸，然后开始进攻。而你做到了!"他厉声说，用蹄子指着她。"刹那间，Roam消失了！火还在燃烧！你在几分钟内液化了阿托里群岛！数百万人死亡，放射性熔渣至今仍有毒！而且，根据我们的描述，那只是来自一个megaspell！你让太阳反对我们！我们为什么不让天空和土地反对你呢?"
“And you have one of these… mega-talismans?” I asked lightly, afraid that the Legate was going to move up several orders of magnitude in importance very quickly. Maybe it was something in my eyes. Maybe it was something in my tone. But Lancer seemed to realize very quickly that I was shifting my priorities against the Remnant.
"你有这种......超级护身符吗?"我轻轻地问道，生怕特使很快就要提升几个数量级的重要性。也许是我眼睛里的什么东西。也许是因为我的语气。但兰瑟似乎很快就意识到，我正在转移对抗例外人的优先权。
“…no.” He said the word like he was extracting a tooth. “Father sent
"...没有"他说这个词就像在拔牙一样。"父亲派人来的
representatives back to the homeland to find one. We’d not made more than a dozen before the spells struck. If we’d had another year…”
代表回到国土安全部去找一个。在咒语发作之前，我们做了不超过一打。如果我们还有一年......"
“We’d have had some other horrifying superweapon to terrorize you with,” I replied... but maybe we wouldn’t have. Maybe Twilight would have resigned… maybe Rarity and her other friends with her. Maybe the war effort would have collapsed. Maybe one of the zebra weapons would bite them in the ass. Something had to break, sooner or later. I scowled at him. “You guys weren’t any different from ponies. Always looking for that one thing that would let you win. That one advantage. That one… whatever… that’d let you kill more ponies than zebras. You used dragons. We made Raptors. We made power armor. You made armor piercing bullets. We made megaspells. You made balefire bombs. We made Thunderheads. You made Tempests.” I hissed sharply through my teeth. “It’s annoying.”
"我们应该有一些其他可怕的超级武器来恐吓你,"我回答...但也许我们不会有。也许暮光已经辞职...也许稀少和她的其他朋友与她。也许战争的努力会失败。也许斑马的武器会咬他们的屁股。有些东西迟早要被打破。我皱着眉头看着他。"你们和小马没什么不同。总是在寻找一件能让你赢的事情。这是一个优势。那个...不管怎样...它能让你杀的小马比斑马还多。你用的是龙。我们制造了猛禽。我们制造了强力盔甲。你做了穿甲弹。我们做了megaspels。你做了火焰炸弹。我们做了霹雳头。你制造了暴风雨。"我的牙齿发出嘶嘶的声音。"这很烦人。"
“Yes, well, you’ve never had to deal with a pony who defies everything thrown at her,” Lancer countered.
"是的，好吧，你从来没有和一匹小马打过交道，它什么都不怕,"兰瑟反驳道。
“Excuse me?” I asked, my eyes widening.
"你说什么?"我睁大眼睛问道。
“You always win,” he said with a scowl.
"你总是赢,"他皱着眉头说。
“I do not… always… win…” I muttered, glaring back at him. The tension inside me began to grow more acute. I looked over at my friends, but even they seemed unsure how to respond. That made the wires in my head draw even tighter, and then Lancer laughed harshly.
"我不......总是......胜利......"我喃喃自语，回瞪着他。我内心的紧张情绪开始变得更加尖锐。我看着我的朋友们，但即使是他们似乎也不知道该如何回应。这使得我脑子里的电线越来越紧，然后兰瑟粗声大笑起来。
“Oh, please. Deus faced you, and now he serves you. Sanguine opposed you, and now he’s dead. The Harbingers brought all they could, and you’ve fought them off time and time again. You just survived a balefire bomb!” he declared. “What more can be thrown at you?”
"哦，拜托。上帝面对你，现在他服侍你。桑吉反对你，现在他死了。"先驱者"带来了他们所能带来的一切，而你一次又一次地与他们战斗。你刚刚躲过了一次爆炸!"他宣称。"还能向你扔什么呢?"
“I don’t always win!” I shouted at him, springing atop him and yelling in his face. “I only survived the bomb because of my friend, and I lost her! I saved my stable only to have to kill it! Beating Sanguine didn’t bring Priest back! I broke the link, then had to kill forty helpless children.” Every win came at a price, and honestly, looking back, it sometimes made me wonder if I’d been right to win at all.
"我并不总是赢!"我冲他大喊，跳到他身上，对着他的脸大喊大叫。"因为我的朋友，我才从炸弹中幸存下来，而我失去了她！我救了我的马厩却不得不杀了它！打圣吉尼并没有把牧师带回来！我打破了这种联系，然后不得不杀死四十个无助的孩子。"每一场胜利都是有代价的，说实话，回想起来，有时候我会怀疑自己是不是真的赢了。
I wanted to rage! Damn this body! Pant! Gasp! I wanted a heartbeat to thunder! I
我想发怒！该死的身体！喘气！喘气！我想听到雷鸣般的心跳声！一
wanted to feel like something other than a machine. Suddenly, I realized his face was screwed up in pain as my metal hooves ground his body into the deck. Just as quickly, I backed off. “Sorry…” I muttered. “I just… I don’t always win. Not… not like you think.”
想感觉自己不是一台机器。突然，我意识到当我的金属蹄子把他的身体压在甲板上时，他的脸因疼痛而扭曲起来。同样迅速地，我后退了。"对不起......"我喃喃自语。"我只是......我并不总是赢。不是...不是你想的那样。"
He glowered at me but was apparently uninjured. “I hate you,” he growled. “I hate all of you,” he said as he glared at each of us on the ship. “Especially you,” he added with a look at me. I sighed and dropped my eyes; oh, well. He wasn’t the first. Then an unexpected voice spoke up.
他怒视着我，但显然没有受伤。"我恨你,"他咆哮道。"我恨你们所有人,"他说，同时怒视着船上的每一个人。"特别是你,"他看着我补充道。我叹了口气，垂下了眼睛;哦，好吧。他不是第一个。这时，一个意想不到的声音响了起来。
“Let’s take this topic off Blackjack. You want to talk about hate?” P-21 asked casually as he stepped up towards the larger zebra. Lancer seemed surprised by P-21’s advance. “I know a thing or two about hate. You know what I’ve hated? I hated seeing a dozen helpless zebras, some of them children, being gunned down by a coward. I hated seeing him shoot the pony who’d saved their lives, and his, in the back. I hated and will always hate any world in which fuckers like him could get away with that.”
"让我们把这个话题从黑杰克上移开。你想谈论仇恨吗?"P-21一边走向大斑马一边漫不经心地问道。兰瑟似乎对P-21的前进感到惊讶。"我对仇恨略知一二。你知道我讨厌什么吗？我讨厌看到一打无助的斑马，其中一些是小孩，被一个懦夫枪杀。我讨厌看到他射杀那些救了他们性命的小马，还有他的，在背后。我憎恨并且永远憎恨任何一个像他这样的混蛋可以逍遥法外的世界。"
Oh Celestia, they were doing this now? “Coward?! How da--” Lancer began, and then P-21 swung his head around and smashed Persuasion across Lancer’s face. The surprised zebra fell down, looking at him in shock and rage. But there was no bellowing rage in P-21, only a cold hatred I hadn’t seen in weeks.
哦，塞莱斯蒂亚，他们现在这么做了？"胆小鬼?！兰瑟开始了，然后P-21把头转过来，把《劝导》砸在兰瑟的脸上。惊讶的斑马跌倒了，看着他在震惊和愤怒。但是P-21没有怒吼，只有几个星期没见过的冷酷的仇恨。
“You are a coward. You’re afraid of everything. You kill from hiding where you can’t be seen and from a distance where you won’t be hurt. You’re afraid of Blackjack, what she can do and what she represents. You’re afraid of powers beyond your control. You’re afraid of your own father. You’re afraid of everything, but most of all you’re afraid to admit it,” he said as he looked down at Lancer.
"你是个懦夫。你什么都怕。你杀人是因为你躲在一个看不见的地方，杀人是因为你躲在一个远离伤害的地方。你害怕黑杰克，害怕她能做什么，害怕她代表什么。你害怕你无法控制的力量。你害怕你自己的父亲。你害怕一切，但最重要的是你不敢承认。"他低头看着兰瑟说。
“You came to m--” he began again, but he was again silenced by a blow from Persuasion. This time the zebra blocked the barrel with his hoof, but he still closed his mouth and stepped back.
"你来找我了——"他又开始说话，但又被《劝导》的一记重击压住了嘴。这次斑马用蹄子挡住了桶，但他还是闭上了嘴往后退了几步。
“Glory went to you,” P-21 snapped, “on the off chance you were behind Blackjack’s disappearance. She was desperate. I wanted to implant a grenade rectally and watch you try and get it out,” P-21 seethed, then glanced at me for a moment. “Blackjack might be able to forgive you. Blackjack lets go of shit that I can’t even imagine. But I don’t forgive you, Lancer. I saw a coward murder
"晨辉属于你,"P-21厉声说,"万一你是黑杰克失踪的幕后黑手呢?"。她绝望了。我真想直接往里面植入一枚手榴弹，看着你试图把它取出来。"P-21怒气冲冲地看着我，然后瞥了我一眼。"Blackjack可能会原谅你。黑杰克放弃了我无法想象的东西。但我不会原谅你的，枪骑兵。我看到一个懦夫杀人
more than a dozen of his own kind, including his own mother and sister, in cold blood because he was too afraid to do the right thing and tell whoever gave that order to go fuck himself. Or simply let them live and then lie about it. You’re a coward and a murderer and I don’t expect that that will ever change.”
十几个他自己的同类，包括他自己的母亲和妹妹，冷血，因为他太害怕做正确的事情，告诉谁下令去他妈的自己。或者干脆让他们活着，然后撒谎。你是个懦夫，是个杀人犯，我不指望这一点会改变。"
Lancer looked like he was about to explode, but P-21 didn’t look away. “You… have no idea…” the zebra said, searching for words.
兰瑟看上去就要爆炸了，但P-21没有转过头去。"你......不知道......"斑马一边说，一边寻找着词语。
P-21 actually smiled a little. “Oh? You think that I don’t know what it’s like to be afraid? I’ve been afraid almost every damned day of my life. Afraid for my life. Afraid for the life of someone I care for. Someone I love. So afraid that I wanted to die just so I wouldn’t have to deal with the fear anymore. And yeah. I hated it too. Hated it and everything that made me scared. Everything that hurt me was my enemy, and everything hurt me.” He glanced at me again, then back at the zebra. “But hate doesn’t make the fear go away, and it doesn’t make you strong. It makes you mean. And that doesn’t get you anything but pain and misery.”
P-21实际上微笑了一下。"哦？你以为我不知道害怕是什么感觉吗？我这辈子几乎每天都在害怕。担心我的生命安全。害怕我关心的人的生命。一个我爱的人。如此害怕我想死，这样我就不用再面对这种恐惧了。是的。我也不喜欢。讨厌它和所有让我害怕的东西。所有伤害我的东西都是我的敌人，所有的东西都伤害我。"他又瞥了我一眼，然后回头看了看斑马。"但是仇恨不会驱散恐惧，也不会让你变得强大。这让你变得刻薄。除了痛苦和不幸，你什么也得不到。"
He pointed a hoof at me. “That mare that you hate so much? The one you accused of winning all the time? She’s gone through stuff that I can’t even imagine, and suffered things that I know nopony should. And she will always do what is right. Right for her friends. Right for ponies. Right for zebras. Even right for hellhounds. No matter how much it hurts her or how afraid she is. And sure, she fucks up. But she keeps moving ahead. And as long as she can keep going, I can too. No matter how afraid I am.”
他用蹄子指着我。"你那么讨厌的那匹母马？就是那个你一直说赢的人？她经历了一些我无法想象的事情，也经历了一些我知道不该经历的事情。她总是做正确的事。为了她的朋友。小马的权利。适合斑马。甚至对地狱犬来说也是如此。不管她受到多大的伤害，也不管她有多害怕。当然，她搞砸了。但是她一直在前进。只要她能坚持下去，我也能。不管我有多害怕。"
I stared at P-21 as he walked away from Lancer, turning his back on the zebra. Lancer bored a shooty look into his back as the blue stallion walked over to Scotch Tape and gave her a firm hug. I felt a little lightheaded after that and stepped between them. “We’ll get you down right away,” I said to Lancer.
当P-21从枪骑兵身边走开时，我盯着他，背对着斑马。兰瑟无聊地朝他的背后瞥了一眼，这时那匹蓝色的种马走到ScotchTape跟前，给了她一个坚定的拥抱。在那之后，我感到有点头昏眼花，于是走到他们中间。"我们马上把你弄下来,"我对兰瑟说。
“Don’t do me any favors out of pity,” he snapped, his eyes full of rage as he glared at the smaller stallion. Finally, he turned away. “He speaks truthfully… that’s what is so intolerable. I’ve been afraid of my father every second I’ve known him. Afraid of his approval and what it would mean. Afraid of his disappointment. Afraid of his wrath.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “Do you… do you ever think of those you killed, Blackjack?”
"不要出于怜悯而帮我任何忙,"他厉声说道，怒目圆睁地盯着那匹较小的种马。最后，他转过身去。"他说的是实话......这是让人无法忍受的。我认识我父亲的每一秒钟，我都害怕他。害怕得到他的认可，害怕这意味着什么。害怕他的失望。害怕他的愤怒。"他闭上眼睛，摇了摇头。"你...你有没有想过你杀死的那些人，Blackjack?"
“You could say that,” I replied. “Especially the ones that were my fault. Killing
"你可以这么说,"我回答。"特别是那些是我的错。杀戮
someone in self-defense is one thing, but someone dying because of a choice I made… I can’t ever forget those. And I hope I never do.”
有人自卫是一回事，但有人因为我的选择而死...我永远不会忘记那些。我希望我永远不会这么做。"
“I see,” he muttered. “Your friend was right. It was cowardly of me to slay my own people. One should never kill the helpless.”
"我明白了,"他喃喃自语。"你的朋友是对的。我屠杀自己的人民是很懦弱的。一个人决不应该杀害无助的人。"
I closed my eyes, the ghostly tune of a song returning to memory. I’d thought I’d forgotten, but now I could hear it as if I were singing it once again. Hush now, quiet now… “You’re not the only one who’s done that. And you’re right… we never should.” Even if they were crazy.
我闭上了眼睛，回忆起一首歌曲幽灵般的旋律。我以为我已经忘记了，但是现在我可以听到它，仿佛我又在唱它。安静，安静......"你不是唯一一个这么做的人。你是对的......我们永远不应该这样做。"即使他们很疯狂。
For a moment, he was quiet, and then he said, as he looked off at the clouds, “Father has a balefire bomb.”
有那么一会儿，他安静了下来，然后他看着天上的云说:"爸爸有一个火焰炸弹。"
“I know,” I replied. “Xanthe told me.”
"我知道,"我回答。"桑特告诉我的。"
He glanced at me. “I was… proud… we had it. When we dragged it out of that silo, stabilized it… I was thrilled. A weapon to end the evil city and the Maiden all at once. But… he never really said he was going to use it on the city. It was implied, but he talked about others. Your Goddess. This Red Eye and his army. Something called the S.P.P. up in the skies. And now, after you two battled, I’m questioning everything he’s told me and what I did for him. And that is what I hate you for most of all. Making me doubt.” For a moment he just stared out at the passing clouds. “I wish that I had been stronger when we first met. I think I could have caused far less harm.”
他瞥了我一眼。"我......很骄傲......我们拥有它。当我们把它从筒仓里拖出来，稳定下来的时候......我很兴奋。一个可以同时结束邪恶城市和少女的武器。但是...他从来没有说过他会在城市里使用它。这是暗示，但他谈到其他人。你的女神。这个红眼睛和他的军队。一种叫做s.p.p的东西在天空中出现。而现在，在你们争吵之后，我开始质疑他告诉我的一切以及我为他所做的一切。这就是我最恨你的地方。让我怀疑。"有那么一会儿，他只是凝视着过往的云彩。"我希望我们第一次见面时，我能更坚强一些。我想我本可以造成更少的伤害。"
“Yeah, but if you’d come with us then, you’d have been dragged through a world of misery and angst. Trust me. You’re better off. And you and I would have had sex eventually, and that would have complicated things with Glory, and--” I started to say when he actually chuckled.
"是的，但是如果你那时和我们一起去的话，你会被拖入一个充满痛苦和焦虑的世界。相信我。你最好离开。你和我最终会发生性关系，那会让晨辉的事情变得复杂，而且——"当他咯咯笑的时候，我开始说。
“Maiden, no offense, but your horn aside, you’re missing far too many stripes for us to ever be intimate,” he said with an actual honest smile. It looked good on him.
"少女，没有冒犯的意思，但是撇开你的号角，你失去了太多的条纹，我们从来没有亲密过,"他说与一个真实的微笑。他戴着很好看。
“Oh, really? ‘Cause back at the Society, you didn’t seem to mind. Besides,” I said with a smirk, “ever hear of body paint?” Well now, that was quite a look of surprise!
"哦，真的吗？因为在协会里，你似乎并不介意。"此外,"我傻笑着说,"你听说过人体彩绘吗?"现在，这是一个相当惊讶的表情！
A smack to my backside made me yip, and I turned and grinned sheepishly at
我背上挨了一巴掌，吓得尖叫起来。我转过身，羞怯地咧嘴笑了笑
Glory. “Oh! Um! Hi. We were…” Don’t say sex.
晨辉。"哦！嗯！嗨。我们..."别说性。
“Talking about sex,” Glory finished as she walked up next to me and sighed. “What am I going to do with you?” In the short term, the answer was apparently ‘smile at her and nuzzle her neck’.
"说到性,"晨辉说完，走到我旁边，叹了口气。"我该拿你怎么办?"在短期内，答案显然是"对她微笑，用鼻子蹭她的脖子"。
“Well, you were off to a good start,” I replied, glancing towards my rear.
"好吧，你开了个好头,"我回答，朝我的后面看了一眼。
Lancer’s smile had been replaced by wariness. “I don’t think the legends of the Maiden could cover this part. My mother told me many stories, but none of them mention the Maiden getting her hindquarters paddled.”
兰瑟的微笑已经被谨慎所取代。"我不认为少女传说能涵盖这一部分。我妈妈给我讲了很多故事，但是没有一个提到少女的后腿受到了划动。"
An image of Princess Luna entered my mind, and I snickered. Scotch Tape and P-21 approached, though, and the filly asked Lancer, “Can you tell me more about zebras? I mean, I heard a few things, but most of the lessons in the stable were about how you were all bloodthirsty barbarians that ate young fillies.”
露娜公主的形象进入了我的脑海，我窃笑起来。然而，苏格兰胶带和P-21走近了，小雌马问Lancer:"你能告诉我更多关于斑马的事情吗?"？我的意思是，我听到了一些事情，但是马厩里的大多数教训都是关于你们是如何成为嗜血的野蛮人，吃小雌马的。"
Scotch Tape looked up at P-21 and gave his foreleg a nudge. He glanced at Lancer, turned away, and finally sighed and said grudgingly, “I have to admit, I’m a little curious about the zebras as well.”
苏格兰胶带抬头看着P-21，用肘轻推了一下他的前腿。他瞥了一眼兰瑟，转过身去，最后叹了口气，勉强地说:"我得承认，我对斑马也有点好奇。"
Scotch Tape smiled up at her father proudly, then asked Lancer, “Do you have a Wasteland there?”
苏格兰胶带骄傲地微笑着看着她的父亲，然后问兰瑟:"你们那里是不是有一片荒原?"
“Now… wait.” Lancer frowned. “I am a warrior, not a storyteller.”
"现在......等等。"兰瑟皱起了眉头。"我是一个战士，不是一个讲故事的人。"
“Be both,” I suggested. “Can’t hurt to branch out, can it?”
"两者都要,"我建议道。"伸展一下也没什么坏处，不是吗?"
He seemed to weigh the choice between telling us and blowing us off, then answered, “Fine. I suppose I can tell you about our people. Better than hearing just your pony propaganda.
他似乎在告诉我们和放我们鸽子之间权衡了一下，然后回答说:"好吧。我想我可以告诉你我们的人。总比只听你的小马的宣传好。
“Ours is a different sort of Wasteland. Your Wasteland is stark, cold, and empty. Ours is harsh and wild. Equestria did many terrible things during the war. There are still places where the megaspells rage. A pillar of fire that wanders a shattered plain of glass, seeking out any intruders. A city that traps the minds of any who sleep within its limits in endless dreams. There are many other places where industrial works still poison the land. There are mines deeper and more vast than any valley, gouged into the earth and now filled with pollutants. And beasts… some native and others introduced during the war… they stalk and hunt
"我们的世界是另一种不同的荒原。你们的荒原是荒凉的，寒冷的，空旷的。我们的是残酷和野蛮的。战争期间，小马国做了许多可怕的事情。还有一些地方是巨人们愤怒的地方。一个火柱，徘徊在破碎的玻璃平原，寻找任何入侵者。这座城市将任何沉睡在其极限内的人的思想困在无尽的梦境中。还有许多其他地方的工业工厂仍在污染土地。这里有比任何山谷都更深、更广阔的矿井，它们深入地下，现在充满了污染物。还有野兽......有些是战争期间引进的，有些是本地人......他们跟踪和狩猎
us. The cities are too dangerous or contaminated to live in. And, of course, the tribes constantly bicker and fight.”
我们。这些城市太危险或者被污染了，不适合居住。当然，这些部落也不断地争吵和战斗。"
“Some things never change,” I muttered.
"有些事情永远不会改变,"我喃喃自语。
“No,” he said harshly. “Some things should not change. Some change should not be allowed.” Lancer met my eye again. “My mother told me stories when I was young of the good times. Before the war, when the twelve and one tribes worked in unity to survive and prosper. But all that changed.”
"不,"他严厉地说。"有些事情不应该改变。有些改变不应该被允许。"兰瑟又遇到了我的目光。"我年轻的时候，妈妈给我讲过一些美好时光的故事。在战争之前，十二个部落为了生存和繁荣而团结一致。但这一切都改变了。"
“Twelve and one?” I asked with confusion.
"十二加一?"我困惑地问。
“I doubt you want to hear the story,” he said with a flush. But we did. Soon, we’d moved over by the wheel so that Scotch Tape could steer while she listened. I didn’t know why Scotch Tape was our designated pilot, but she seemed to be handling steering well enough; we hadn’t hit any mountains yet. We’d even opened a little trapdoor so that Rampage could listen in as she pedaled below.
"我怀疑你是否想听这个故事,"他脸红地说。但我们做到了。很快，我们就在方向盘旁边移动，这样透明胶带就可以在她听的时候控制方向。我不知道为什么苏格兰胶带是我们的指定驾驶员，但她似乎驾驶得很好，我们还没有碰到任何山。我们甚至打开了一个小暗门，这样当她在下面骑自行车的时候，狂暴就可以听到里面的声音。
“Once, there were the sun and the earth. Both were lonely, but they could not be together for long. Many times the sun came and made love to the earth, and when he did, life was born. Twelve times they coupled, and each time a new tribe was born. But then the moon saw their lovemaking and waited till the sun was away. The moon was wicked and pale, for his illumination was not nearly as bright, and so he took the earth by force. From the coupling one tribe was born, along with all the beasts and monsters that hunt under the cover of the darkness. When the sun saw what the moon had done, he was outraged, and from then on chased the moon across the skies so he would never get another chance. But occasionally the moon would lay a trap for the sun, and all the world would turn dark as they battled. But each time, the sun would be victorious and continue the hunt.”
"从前，有太阳和地球。两个人都很孤独，但他们不能在一起太久。太阳多次来到地球上，与地球做爱，当他这样做的时候，生命诞生了。他们结合了十二次每次都有一个新的部落诞生。但是这时月亮看到了他们的做爱，等到太阳落山。月亮是邪恶和苍白的，因为他的照明几乎没有光亮，所以他采取了大地的力量。一个部落就这样诞生了，所有的野兽和怪物都在黑暗的掩护下狩猎。当太阳看到月亮的所作所为时，他被激怒了，从那时起，他就在天空中追逐月亮，这样他就再也没有机会了。但是，偶尔月亮会为太阳设下陷阱，当他们战斗时，整个世界都会变得黑暗。但每一次，太阳都会胜利，继续捕猎。"
Glory looked over at Scotch Tape with an expression of worry before the filly quipped, “Is this story a little too saucy for you?” Flushing, Glory returned her attention to Lancer. I gave her a little nuzzle. She gave my ear a little bite. Ah, good times. If only Lacunae could have been here to share them… “The twelve tribes are the children of the sun. The one are the children of the moon. Each coupling, the land gave rise to the tribe. The Achu were born of the high and fiery mountains. The Propoli in a village. The Carnilia on a fertile
晨辉望着透明胶带，脸上露出担忧的表情，小姑娘打趣道:"这个故事对你来说是不是有点太俏皮了?"法拉盛，晨辉把她的注意力回到了枪骑兵身上。我用鼻子蹭了她一下。她轻轻地咬了一下我的耳朵。啊，好时光。"十二个部落是太阳的孩子。其中一个是月亮的孩子。每一次结合，土地就产生了部落。阿楚人出生在又高又烈的山上。村子里的普罗波利。卡尼利亚在一片肥沃的土地上
plain. The Mendi in a deep wood.” I couldn’t help but smile at his tone as he seemed to get into it. “The Zencori were born on a wind, the Atori on the islands, and the Eschatik in the deserts. Even the southern snows birthed the Sahaani, and the ice has always borne the springs of steaming water heated by their passions. The swamps birthed the Orah and the jungles the Tappahani. The final two, the Logos and the Roamani, were sired in a library and on a battlefield.”
平原。深林中的门第。"我忍不住对他的语气笑了笑，因为他似乎已经进入状态了。"Zencori出生在风中，Atori出生在岛上，Eschatik出生在沙漠里。即使是南方的雪也孕育了Sahaani，冰川总是承载着因热情而加热的热气腾腾的泉水。沼泽孕育了奥拉人和塔帕哈尼人的丛林。最后两个，Logos和Roamani，是在图书馆和战场上改造的。"
“Wait. Sired?” Glory asked skeptically. “I’m pretty sure that violates every code of conduct in every library I’ve ever been in.”
"等等。臣服?"格洛里怀疑地问道。"我敢肯定，这违反了我去过的每个图书馆的所有行为准则。"
“Nah. All the best libraries have got great orgies going on,” Rampage drawled sarcastically from below. “You just have to fuck really quietly.”
"没有。所有最好的图书馆都有很棒的纵欲狂欢,"下面的狂暴者冷嘲热讽地慢吞吞地说。"你只需要悄悄地做爱。"
That made us all laugh, and Lancer sighed. “It is a story. Believe it or don’t. The story doesn’t care.” He snapped his tail and then smirked. “Or can you ponies tell me your origins with greater veracity?”
我们都笑了，兰瑟叹了口气。"这是一个故事。信不信由你。这个故事不在乎。"他甩了甩尾巴，然后傻笑起来。"或者你们这些小马能更真实地告诉我你们的出身吗?"
He had us there. I had no clue where ponies came from. Everything was rather fuzzy prior to the Princesses. “Ah…” I looked at Glory, and she gave a little shrug. “Not so much.”
他说服了我们。我不知道小马是从哪里来的。在公主之前，一切都很模糊。"啊......"我看着晨辉，她耸了耸肩。"没有那么多。"
“Then accept the story, or I can be silent,” he said with a frown. “I’m likely making mistakes all over. I can’t tell stories like Mother, starting everything with ‘that reminds me of a funny story.’”
"那就接受这个故事，否则我可以保持沉默,"他皱着眉头说。"我可能到处都在犯错误。我不能像母亲那样讲故事，每件事都以"让我想起一个有趣的故事"开头。"'
“No no. Go on,” I said, mollifying him a little.
""不，不。"去吧,"我说，稍微安慰了他一下。
“For a time, the twelve tribes lived and spread all across the land. They worked together to fight the many beasts of the wilderness, but unlike ponies, we did not seek to tame nature. We respected its might. In the homeland, once, were great tracts of wilderness as far as a zebra could walk in a year. But then the tribes encountered the children of the moon. The Propoli invited them into their village. The Mendi healed their wounds. The Tappahani cooked a fine banquet, the Atori danced, and the Zencori told stories to the newcomers. But the children of the moon remained aloof, mysterious, and arrogant. They claimed they had a power greater than all the twelve tribes put together, and that the twelve were to be slaves of the one. Thus, the twelve went to war with the one.
"有一段时间，这十二个部落生活在这片土地上。他们一起与荒野中的许多野兽作斗争，但与小马不同，我们不寻求驯服自然。我们尊重它的力量。在故乡，曾经是大片的荒野，一只斑马一年能走多远。但是后来这些部落遇到了月亮的孩子。普罗波利号邀请他们到村子里去。门迪人治愈了他们的伤口。塔帕哈尼煮了一顿丰盛的晚宴，阿托里人翩翩起舞，禅宗人给新来的人讲故事。但是月亮上的孩子们仍然是冷漠、神秘和傲慢的。他们声称他们拥有比十二个部落加在一起还要强大的力量，而这十二个部落将成为一个部落的奴隶。于是，十二个人开始了与一个人的战争。
“For generations they battled, for the children of the moon were numerous, but
他们世世代代为月亮的儿女争战
cold. Hard. And they had learned many foul magics to bind spirits and souls. Their armor would not fail and their weapons could not break. Even in death, their mightiest warriors fought on. They enslaved and killed the twelve in a mad pursuit of their dark powers. Their lies turned tribe against tribe for a time, and nearly destroyed the twelve. But the twelve rallied, united, and pushed back. In their desperation, the one tribe called down the power of the stars themselves… madness. For the stars came. They fell all across the land, shattering the great and dark cities of the one tribe and the armies of the twelve. But when it ended, the twelve remained and the one had broken. The twelve cried for blood, but the earth begged the twelve for mercy, for although they were sired violently, they were still her children. The one tribe was marked; all who bore their blood would have their stripes marked in glyphs of warning. And thus the one tribe was named Starkatteri, ‘star branded’, and shunned.”
冷的。用力。他们还学会了许多邪恶的魔法，用来捆绑灵魂和灵魂。他们的盔甲不会失效，他们的武器也不会断裂。即使在死亡面前，他们最强大的战士仍在战斗。他们奴役并杀害了这十二个人，疯狂地追求他们的黑暗力量。他们的谎言曾一度使部落对抗部落，并几乎摧毁了十二个部落。但是十二人重振旗鼓，团结一致，奋力反击。在他们的绝望中，一个部落叫下了星星们自己的力量...疯狂。因为星星来了。它们遍布大地，摧毁了一个部落的黑暗城市和十二个部落的军队。但是当它结束的时候，十二个人留了下来，而另一个已经断了。十二个人哭着要血，但大地向十二个人乞求怜悯，因为尽管他们是粗暴地生下来的，他们仍然是她的孩子。其中一个部落被标记了;所有带有他们血液的人都会被标记上警告的条纹。因此，有一个部落被命名为Starkatteri，被打上了'明星烙印'，因此被避之唯恐不及
“What tribe is the Legate?” I asked, curious.
"特使是什么部落?"我好奇地问。
Lancer opened his mouth, then closed it again, frowning. “He is one of the last Achu.”
兰瑟张开了嘴，然后又闭上了，皱着眉头。"他是最后的阿楚人之一。"
“He is not,” Rampage said below, her voice becoming oddly accented. “He does not fight like an Achu.”
"他不是,"下面的声音说，她的声音变得奇怪地带有口音。"他不像阿楚人那样战斗。"
“He claims he is Achu! Who are you to deny that, Proditori?” Lancer snapped.
"他声称自己是阿楚！你凭什么否认这一点，普罗迪托里?"兰瑟厉声说道。
“Does that mean you are Achu as well?” P-21 asked. All this talk made me want to say ‘bless you’.
"这是否意味着你也是阿楚?"P-21要求。所有这些谈话让我想说'上帝保佑你'。
Again, the question made him grimace. “No… blood passes from mother to child, not father to child. I am Zencori.” I thought of telling him that his mother was alive, but decided against it for now. Still, storytelling was a big improvement over killing people. “My tribe were wanderers and storytellers. We sought the lore of the world. Many came and settled in Equestria long before the war.”
这个问题又让他做了个鬼脸。"不......血是母亲传给孩子的，不是父亲传给孩子的。我是真克利。"我本想告诉他他的母亲还活着，但是现在我决定不告诉他。尽管如此，讲故事比杀人还是有很大的进步。"我的部落是流浪者和说书人。我们寻求世界上的知识。许多人在战前很久就来到Equestria定居了。"
“Why did the zebras fight the war?” Glory asked. “I’ve never heard your side before.”
"斑马为什么要打仗?"晨辉问道。"我从来没有听过你的说法。"
The question seemed to shock him. “You want to know?” he asked, looking from one to the next, as if he’d never seen ponies interested in it before. “Our people were not ruled by immortal royalty. We elect a Caesar from the tribes. All
这个问题似乎使他感到震惊。"你想知道吗?"他问道，从一匹看到另一匹，好像他以前从没见过对它感兴趣的小马。"我们的人民没有受到不朽的皇室的统治。我们从各部落中选出一位凯撒。所有
thirteen tribe elders get a vote, and no tribe could have consecutive Caesars.”
十三个部落的长老有投票权，没有一个部落可以拥有连续的凯撒
“Wait, even the evil tribe of star and moons gets a vote?” I asked, surprised.
"等等，连星星和月亮的邪恶部落都有投票权?"我惊讶地问道。
“Of course. They are a tribe. A cursed, evil, conniving tribe that none would trust, but a tribe. Their elders used their vote to protect their people from the wrath of the twelve. Better to keep one’s wicked in the open where they can be watched than to force them from sight where they can be forgotten and allowed to plot in the shadows,” Lancer said quite matter-of-factly.
"当然。他们是一个部落。一个被诅咒的，邪恶的，阴险的部落，没有人会相信，但是一个部落。他们的长辈利用他们的选票来保护他们的人民免受十二人的愤怒。与其强迫他们远离视线，让他们被遗忘，让他们在阴影中策划阴谋，还不如把他们的邪恶暴露在公开场合，让他们被监视。"。
He continued, “The Last Caesar was elected amidst great controversy. There were four tribes with strong candidates, and each had three votes. It was the Starkatteri who decided the election, which did the Roamani candidate no favors. Thus the Last Caesar was terribly weak when he came to power. There was even talk of breaking tradition and re-voting with only two candidates, but tradition is tradition. The Roamani are soldiers, one and all. They have fought against dragons, the Mokele, and other great beasts and reptiles. They did not take the disrespect well.
他继续说:"最后的凯撒是在极大的争议中当选的。有四个部落有强有力的候选人，每个部落有三张选票。是星卡特里决定了这次选举，这对罗阿马尼的候选人没有任何好处。因此，最后的凯撒上台时非常虚弱。甚至有人说要打破传统，只有两名候选人重新投票，但传统就是传统。罗阿马尼人是士兵，全都是。他们曾与龙，莫克莱人，以及其他巨大的野兽和爬行动物作战。他们不能接受这种不尊重。
“When some Atori bandits captured a boat full of pony tourists and demanded a ransom, the Last Caesar insisted that the Roamani would handle it. But the Atori lived on islands, and it took much time for the Roamani army to board ships and make the journey. It was a terrible mistake. A band of a half dozen Achu warriors, or even Atori fighters, would have sufficed. But the Last Caesar wanted glory and respect. Your Princess grew impatient and sent in the flyers you call the ‘Wonderbolts’. They succeeded in freeing the hostages, but four of the pegasi died. It was a terrible blow to the Last Caesar. There was even talk of holding a special election to replace him. But tradition is tradition, and he remained. He treated the pony interference as a terrible insult to our people and demanded that the trade agreements we signed with your people be suspended.”
"当一些阿托里强盗劫持了一艘满载小马游客的船并要求赎金时，最后的凯撒坚持让罗马尼人来处理。但阿托里人生活在岛上，罗阿马尼军队花了很长时间才登上船只，开始了这段旅程。这是一个可怕的错误。一队半打的阿楚战士，甚至阿托里战士，就足够了。但是最后的凯撒需要晨辉和尊敬。你的公主变得不耐烦了，她发了一些传单，你们称之为"神奇闪电"。他们成功地解救了人质，但是飞马座的四个人死了。这对最后的凯撒是一个可怕的打击。甚至有人说要举行一次特别选举来取代他。但是传统就是传统，他保留了下来。他把小马的干涉视为对我国人民的可怕侮辱，并要求暂停我们与贵国人民签署的贸易协定。"
“So, wait, that’s why the war started? One zebra’s bruised ego?” Scotch Tape blurted.
"那么，等等，这就是战争爆发的原因？一匹斑马受伤的自尊心?"透明胶带脱口而出。
“It was more complicated than that,” I said. “Equestria was also being pushed into it by nobles and businessponies who would never actually have to fight a war.” This earned me my own surprised looks. “What? I saw it in a memory orb.”
"事情比那更复杂,"我说。"贵族和商人也推动了小马国的发展，因为他们实际上永远不需要打仗。"这为我赢得了惊讶的表情。"什么？我在一个记忆球里看到的。"
“Cheating unicorns,” Rampage muttered below.
"欺骗独角兽,"狂暴在下面喃喃自语。
“For us, the war began with your Princess. When she seized a coal shipment, it was a great insult to our people. An insult the Last Caesar used to call for war. At first, only one tribe answered him: the Roamani. They are a martial tribe, what many think of when they think of the war. Duty and sacrifice are their creed. The other tribes abstained from war at first, but as the fighting dragged on, the Propoli eventually joined as well. They were a powerful and influential tribe. With them came the Carnilia and the Atori. Still, even while we were at war, our mightiest tribe, the Achu, and our most respected, the Mendi and Logos, spoke against the war,” Lancer said, speaking more now than I ever imagined he could. He had a certain rhythm and tone that was just pleasing to listen to.
"对我们来说，战争是从你们的公主开始的。她扣押了一批运煤船，这是对我国人民的极大侮辱。这是最后的凯撒号召战争的侮辱。起初，只有一个部落回答了他的问题:罗马尼部落。他们是一个军事部落，当他们想到战争的时候会想到什么。责任和牺牲是他们的信条。起初，其他部落放弃了战争，但随着战斗的持续，普罗波利最终也加入了进来。他们是一个强大而有影响力的部落。随他们而来的是卡尼利亚人和阿托里人。尽管如此，即使在我们处于战争状态时，我们最强大的部落，阿楚部落，以及我们最受尊敬的门迪部落和罗格斯部落，仍然反对这场战争。"兰瑟说，他现在说的话比我想象的还要多。他有一定的节奏和音调，听起来很悦耳。
“There were zebras who protested the war?” I said in shock.
"有抗议战争的斑马?"我震惊地说。
“Proditor,” Rampage said from below over the squeak of the wheels.
"普罗迪托,"在车轮吱吱作响的声音中，兰帕德从下面说道。
“Many, though few declared it so brazenly as the Proditor. There were Equestrian sympathizers throughout the conflict. Thousands of Mendi, Eschatik, and Zencori were arrested for their support of the enemy. But you see, the sun is sacred to us. Many zebras, especially ones who had made Equestria their home, saw your Princess Celestia as the incarnation of the sun. They questioned the wisdom of fighting against her. In fact, the fighting had become so terrible that the Last Caesar was nearly forced to surrender by the other tribes,” he said as he bowed his head. “Then the sun was ambushed by the moon.”
""很多人，虽然很少有人像制片人那样厚颜无耻地说出来。在整个冲突过程中都有马术支持者。数以千计的门迪人、埃斯查提克人和赞克里人因支持敌人而被捕。但是你看，太阳对我们来说是神圣的。许多斑马，特别是那些把小马国当作自己家的斑马，把你们的公主看作是太阳的化身。他们质疑与她作战是否明智。事实上，战斗已经变得如此可怕，以至于最后的凯撒几乎被其他部落迫使投降,"他低下头说。然后太阳被月亮埋伏了
“You mean Luna taking over?” I asked, remembering the dream memory of Littlehorn. The dreams of Psalm were now more like memory orbs; I remembered experiencing them, but the experience was no longer so raw and personal.
"你是说卢娜接手?"我问道，想起了Littlehorn的梦境记忆。诗篇的梦现在更像是记忆的球体;我记得经历过它们，但这种经历不再那么原始和个人化。
He nodded, raising his head up with a glare. “The Princess of the Moon, the Maiden of the Stars; when we heard she was assuming control, it was the greatest gift to the Last Caesar. There are tales about the moon and stars’ evil back to our creation. From the actions of the Starkatteri to the horrors of the Maiden.” He gave me a very skeptical look. “The first Maiden of the Stars blackened the world while she was challenged by Celestia. To be fighting her was… intoxicating. It brought all the tribes fully into the war. Even the Mendi reluctantly joined, though they constantly called for peace.”
他点点头，抬起头，怒目而视。"月亮的公主，星星的少女;当我们听说她掌权时，这是给最后一个凯撒的最好的礼物。有关于月亮和星星对我们造物的邪恶的传说。从斯塔卡特里号的行动到少女号的恐怖。"他非常怀疑地看了我一眼。"第一位星星少女在被天堂挑战的时候把全世界都熏黑了。和她战斗是...令人陶醉的。它使所有部落全面参战。甚至连门迪人也不情愿地加入了，尽管他们一直在呼吁和平。"
“I never really understood that. How could Nightmare Moon keep the sun from
"我从未真正理解这一点。恶梦的月亮怎么能阻止太阳
rising? Does the sun really just go away?” Scotch Tape asked with a small frown.
上升？太阳真的就这么消失了吗?"透明胶带皱着眉头问道。
“No no,” Glory replied, matter-of-factly. “The sun and the moon orbit this world, as do the planets, due to the fundamental attraction of magic. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna just gave the sun and moons little nudges to keep them moving on time. Since they’ve… gone… the length of days and nights has varied year by year. The moon is much closer than the sun, even though they look about the same size. When the moon and sun are in the right position, the moon blocks out the sun. Position the moon just right, and it can darken a large area of the world.” She grimaced. “The first time we saw that… well… it was unsettling, to say the least.”
"不，不,"晨辉实事求是地回答。"由于魔法的基本吸引力，太阳和月亮围绕着这个世界旋转，行星也是如此。塞勒斯蒂娜公主和露娜公主只是轻轻推了一下太阳和月亮，让它们按时移动。自从它们......消失以来......白天和黑夜的长度每年都在变化。月亮比太阳近得多，尽管它们看起来大小差不多。当月亮和太阳处于合适的位置时，月亮就挡住了太阳。月亮的位置恰到好处，它可以使世界上一大片地区变暗。"她做了个鬼脸。"我们第一次看到这个......嗯......至少可以说，令人不安。"
“When the Maiden of the Stars took over the war, the twelve tribes united. It was no longer about bruised pride; this was a war of good triumphing over evil. With her ascension, the Last Caesar gave greater orders and passed sweeping laws more radical than any before in the Empire. Always, the justification returned to defeating the armies of the Maiden. The establishment of the ministries, the weapons produced, and the megaspells… all became further justification. And as the death toll rose, it seemed impossible to surrender.” He sighed and frowned. “Truthfully, many felt the war glorious. Virtuous.”
"当星中少女接管战争时，十二个部落合并了。这不再是一场伤痕累累的骄傲战争，而是一场正义战胜邪恶的战争。随着她的升天，最后的凯撒下达了更大的命令，通过了比以往任何一个帝国都更激进的法律。战胜少女军队的正当理由总是回来了。政府部门的建立，武器的生产，以及巨型的......所有这些都成为了进一步的理由。随着死亡人数上升，投降似乎是不可能的。"他叹了口气，皱起了眉头。"说实话，很多人都觉得这场战争很光荣。有道德。"
“What about trying to abduct Celestia?” I asked, almost using the word ‘assassinate’.
"试图绑架Celestia怎么样?"我问道，几乎用了'暗杀'这个词。
“We did not try to abduct her!” he retorted. “The Mendi, Celestia, and the one mare called Flutterbye all worked to bring an end to the conflict. They were attempting to help her defect!”
"我们没有试图绑架她!"他反驳道。"门迪、塞莱斯蒂娅和一匹名叫弗鲁特拜的母马都在努力结束这场冲突。他们是想帮助她改过自新!"
“Defect? Celestia?” P-21 asked skeptically.
"缺陷？塞莱斯蒂亚?"P-21怀疑地问。
“Yes. She knew her mistake years after it was made. If she had left with us and denounced the Maiden, then Equestria would have abandoned the war. A peace could have been negotiated between her and the twelve tribes that would have bypassed the Last Caesar entirely!” Lancer said heatedly. “The war would have been over!”
"是的。她知道自己的错误是在多年以后犯下的。如果她和我们一起离开，告发了少女，那么小马国就会放弃战争。她本可以和十二个部落达成和平协议，完全绕过最后一个凯撒!"兰瑟激动地说。"战争就结束了!"
“Funny. Our histories say you attempted to assassinate her,” Glory countered, and I groaned.
"有意思。我们的历史记载说你企图暗杀她,"晨辉反驳道，我呻吟起来。
“Equestrian propaganda,” Lancer said with a wave of his hoof, “something that your Ministry of Image excelled at.” Glory bristled, and even P-21 frowned at the thought of Celestia betraying her sister and abandoning Equestria to ‘save’ it.
"马术宣传,"兰瑟挥动着他的蹄子说,"这是你们的形象部所擅长的。"光荣竖起了鬃毛，甚至P-21也对塞莱斯蒂娅背叛她的妹妹，抛弃Equestria去"拯救"它的想法皱起了眉头。
I couldn’t say which was true. Celestia hadn’t looked like she’d been all that willing to be taken, but the zebras also hadn’t been outright trying to kill her, from what I’d seen. I supposed the exact truth would never be known, unless somepony decided to ask Celestia’s ghost. I started to ask another question to head off the argument, but then I saw Boo’s ears twitch.
我不能说哪个是真的。塞勒斯泰拉看起来并不是那么愿意被带走，但据我所知，斑马也并没有直接试图杀死她。我认为确切的真相永远不会被知道，除非有人决定去问塞莱斯蒂亚的鬼魂。我开始问另一个问题来平息争论，但是我看到阿布的耳朵在抽搐。
I froze, watching her. Her ears flicked again, and she frowned, looking at the clouds around us. “Shh!” They continued to argue as Boo’s frown turned fearful. “Shut up!” I snapped, cutting off their squabbling. “Stop pedaling!” I said briskly down into the guts of the ship. Rampage frowned up at me, but she stopped. The propellers and wings slowed, then went silent.
我呆住了，看着她。她又竖起耳朵，皱起眉头，看着我们周围的云朵。"嘘!"他们继续争论着，布皱着眉头变得可怕起来。"闭嘴!"我厉声说道，打断了他们的争吵。"别踩了!"我轻快地说，深入到船的内部。狂暴对我皱起了眉头，但她停了下来。螺旋桨和机翼慢了下来，然后就安静下来了。
“What is it, Blackjack? We’re still hours from the lightning rods,” Glory said in confusion. I reached out hoof and silenced her. Boo’s ears were still twitching as her pale eyes peered out at the clouds. She cringed… and at once I was on my hooves and scanning the clouds myself. Nothing… but they knew the range of E.F.S.
"怎么了，黑杰克？我们离避雷针还有几个小时,"晨辉困惑地说。我伸出蹄子让她安静下来。当布苍白的眼睛凝视着云朵时，她的耳朵还在抽搐。她畏缩起来......我立刻用蹄子扫视着云朵。什么都没有...但他们知道e.f.s的范围。
I froze, and the silence deepened. Every ear twitched, and more than a few eyes looked at me with blatant skepticism. I couldn’t hear anything as inertia carried us through swirling mist. Only Boo’s skittish nature and my own creeping mane gave any indication that anything at all was amiss…
我愣住了，沉默加深了。每只耳朵都在抽搐，不止几只眼睛带着明目张胆的怀疑态度看着我。我听不到任何声音，因为惯性带着我们穿过了旋转的薄雾。只有布的易受惊的天性和我自己爬行的鬃毛给出任何迹象，任何事情都是错误的..。
That was good enough for me. “Lancer. Put your cloak on Glory. Now.”
这对我来说已经足够了。"枪骑兵。把你的斗篷披在晨辉上。现在。"
She scowled. “Blackjack, if you’re worried about detection, we should put it on you!”
她皱起了眉头。"黑杰克，如果你担心被发现，我们应该给你戴上!"
This was simultaneously with Lancer saying, “I do not take orders from…”
与此同时，枪骑兵说:"我不接受......的命令。"
“Put it on her, now,” I commanded as the clouds began to thin. We were drifting into a gap. Lancer gave one last defiant look, then pulled out his cloak and draped the shimmery garment over Glory. When the blue gemstone clasp was closed, she seemed to blur away from sight.
"现在给她戴上,"云层开始变薄时，我命令道。我们渐渐进入了一个缺口。兰瑟最后挑衅地看了一眼，然后脱下斗篷，把闪闪发光的衣服披在晨辉身上。当蓝色宝石扣环合上时，她仿佛从视线中模糊了。
Scotch Tape reached out with a hoof to where Glory had stood. “Ooooh,” she
透明胶带的蹄子伸向晨辉曾经站过的地方。"噢,"她说
giggled as the ‘air’ bunched up under her hoof.
当空气聚集在她的蹄子下面时，她咯咯地笑起来。
“Scotch Tape, stop poking m--” Glory said as we broke into another open gap between clouds. On our left, barely beyond range of my E.F.S., was the long, dark form of a Raptor. Dozens of black specks, wings of power armor, flew in wedge-shaped formations next to the long, lean, lethal machine. Beyond it, I could make out a second Raptor. I could barely hear the hum of their motors, somehow muffled from detection. Nothing so big should be so quiet.
"透明胶带，别戳我——"晨辉说着，我们打开了云层之间的另一个空隙。在我们的左边，刚刚超出我的e.f.s的射程，是一架又长又黑的猛禽机。几十个黑色的斑点，动力盔甲的翅膀，以楔形编队飞行旁边的长，瘦，致命的机器。除此之外，我还能辨认出第二架猛禽。我几乎听不到他们马达的嗡嗡声，不知怎么的，被探测到了。没有什么比这更大的事情应该如此安静。
“Blackjack!” Scotch Tape warned. I glanced behind me and saw two more on the other side of the Fleur, one even closer than the first I’d seen. It appeared filled from one end to the other with red bars. I slowly leaned out, looking down at the silently swooshing props of a Raptor below us. I looked up past the balloon to see a half dozen beam turrets pointing down at the tiny Fleur. Two above. Two below. Two to the left. Two to the right. We were flying smack dab in the middle of a wing of Raptors, any one of which could reduce the Fleur to kindling.
"黑杰克!"透明胶带警告。我瞥了一眼身后，在花儿的另一边又看到了两个，一个比我第一次看到的更近。它似乎从一端到另一端充满了红色的条纹。我慢慢地探出身子，低头看着我们下面一架猛禽战斗机的支柱。我透过气球往上看，看到六个大炮塔正对着小小的芙蓉号。以上两点。下面两个。左边两个。右边两个。我们正好飞在一群猛禽的机翼中间，任何一只猛禽都会使芙蓉号化为火种。
I closed my eyes briefly and then looked back. From the cloud bank behind us burst the twin muzzles of a great warship’s forward energy cannons, the dark thunderclouds to either side of the following hull trailing streamers of white. The quiet propellers flung off chunks of cloud as it closed in behind us. Maybe my luck would have them all be completely blind to the ancient giant purple airship flying through the air in front of them.
我短暂地闭上眼睛，然后回头看了看。从我们身后的云层中，一艘大战舰的前进能量炮的两个炮口爆裂开来，乌云密布，尾随着一条条白色的飘带。静静的螺旋桨抛出大块的云块，云块在我们身后靠近。也许我的运气会让他们完全看不见在他们面前空中飞行的古老的巨大的紫色飞艇。
That hope was cut off by the wings of black power armor moving in slowly and deliberately from all sides.
这个希望被黑色动力装甲的翅膀从四面八方缓慢而谨慎地移动切断了。
Rampage popped her head out of the hatch and glanced around. “Huh,” was all she said before dropping back down belowships. “Down worry, I got this!” she shouted. The wheels below began to shriek as the propellers buzzed behind us and the Fleur’s wings began to flap wildly. A minute or so and we’d be in the clouds. Hopefully that would do something…
狂暴从舱门里探出头来，环顾四周。"哈,"她只说了这么一句，然后就回到了地下。"别担心，我能搞定!"她喊道。下面的轮子开始尖叫，螺旋桨在我们身后嗡嗡作响，芙蓉的翅膀开始疯狂地拍打着。再过一分钟左右，我们就会在云端了。希望这能有所帮助..。
Then the clouds ahead of us exploded as another Raptor, facing us nose-on, gunned its engines and leapt out of the clouds like a massive sea beast lunging for its prey. The wind from its speed blowing us back was the only thing that prevented the Fleur from smashing itself to pieces against the great ship’s armor. Spinning wildly, the Fleur pirouetted out of control. The four Raptors to our sides began to circle, turning inward to present bank after bank of energy
然后，我们前面的云层爆炸了，另一架猛禽机迎着我们的方向，开足马力冲出云层，就像一头巨大的海洋野兽扑向它的猎物。风以它的速度把我们吹回来，这是唯一能阻止百合号撞上这艘大船的盔甲而粉身碎骨的东西。芙蓉疯狂地旋转着，旋转失去了控制。我们两侧的四只猛禽开始盘旋，转向内部呈现一个又一个能量银行
weapons. The one to our rear glided to a halt while the one before us turned like an implacable wall in the sky, ‘Castellanus’ painted in imposing stenciled letters on the bow in front of the thunderclouds. There were so many red bars in my E.F.S. that I turned the damned thing off.
武器。我们后面的那个滑行着停了下来，而我们前面的那个就像天空中一堵不可调和的墙，在雷雨云前面的船头上用印刷字体写着"卡斯特兰纳斯"。我的e.f.s里有那么多的红色条纹，我把那该死的东西关掉了。
I reached out and felt my hoof connect with solid air. “Ow! Blackjack, I…”
我伸出手，感觉到我的蹄子与坚实的空气相连。"噢！黑杰克，我..。。」
I grabbed Glory and pulled her close. “Whatever you do, do NOT get out from under there. Remember what Sunset tried to pull. These guys are likely to go crazy if they see you, so stay under there, understand?”
我抓住晨辉，把她拉近。"不管你做什么，千万不要从下面出来。还记得日落号试图拉。这些家伙要是看到你，可能会发疯的，所以呆在下面，明白吗?"
“Y… okay,” Glory stammered.
"y.."好的,"晨辉结结巴巴地说。
“What are you going to do?” Scotch Tape asked as I walked past her towards the bow of the airship. As I passed Boo, I tugged off her captain’s hat and set it atop my head.
"你打算怎么办?"当我从她身边走向飞艇的船头时，苏格兰胶带问道。当我经过Boo的时候，我拽下她的队长帽子，把它放在我的头上。
“Let me down! I’m not with them!” Lancer began to shout when P-21 grabbed him around the neck.
"放我下来！我和他们不是一伙的!"当P-21抓住他的脖子时，枪骑兵开始大叫。
“Unless you want them to drop you, shut your mouth,” the blue stallion said, then looked to me. “Trust Blackjack. She knows what she’s doing.”
"除非你想让他们放弃你，否则闭上你的嘴,"蓝色种马说，然后看着我。"相信黑杰克。她知道自己在做什么。"
That made one of us who thought that.
这让我们中的一个有了这样的想法。
I walked up to the prow and looked up at the Raptor across our bow. The breeze from her props caught my mane as I stood upright, put one hindhoof on the rail, and rested my left foreleg on my hind knee. I levitated out my sword as I examined the massive Raptor and took in her name. Dozens, possibly hundreds, of beam weapons from power armored ponies all pointed right at me as I switched on my broadcaster and turned it to the channel that had gotten me in trouble at the Rainbow Dash Skyport.
我走到船头，抬头望着船头对面的猛禽号。当我直立起来，把一个后蹄放在栏杆上，左前腿放在我的后膝上时，来自她道具的微风抓住了我的鬃毛。当我检查巨大的猛禽时，我挥舞着我的剑，把她的名字记了下来。当我打开广播，把它调到在RainbowDashSkyport给我带来麻烦的频道时，几十个，甚至几百个来自强力装甲小马的光束武器都指向我。
“Raptor Castellanus,” I said formally as I pointed my starmetal sword at the colossal machine. “This is Captain Blackjack of the airship Fleur. Heave to and prepare to be boarded!”
"猛禽卡斯特兰纳斯,"我正式地说，同时把我的星金属宝剑指向这个庞大的机器。"我是飞艇Fleur的黑杰克船长。停船，准备上船!"
* * *
* * *
“To be honest, this really wasn’t what I expected at all,” I admitted as I sipped a
"说实话，这真的不是我所期望的,"我一边啜饮一边承认
cup of rather bland steamy brown water, but, given that my host could have thrown me in a cell or simply reduced me and my friends to crackling clouds of rapidly dissipating meat vapor, I kept my beverage opinions to myself. “I mean, I know I told you I was going to board, but I didn’t expect you to actually let me.”
但是，考虑到我的主人可能会把我关进牢房，或者只是把我和我的朋友们减少到肉蒸气的噼啪作响的云层中，我还是保留了对饮料的看法。"我的意思是，我知道我告诉过你我会上船，但我没想到你真的会让我上船。"
“Occasionally, the unexpected is the most expedient,” the general said as she inspected some papers on her desk. Of course, I’d only been let on board unarmed, and I had two guards watching me. To the general’s credit, though, she knew how to pick them. Twister and Boomer flanked me, the two Neighvarro Enclave I’d be least likely to kill. The brown stallion had swapped his missiles for beam guns, too.
"有时候，意想不到的事情是最权宜之计,"这位将军在查看桌上的一些文件时说。当然，我只有在没有武器的情况下才被允许上船，而且有两个警卫看着我。不过，值得赞扬的是，她知道如何挑选他们。托斯特和布玛站在我旁边，我最不可能杀死的两个邻居。这匹棕色的种马也把他的导弹换成了光束枪。
General Storm Chaser reminded me a lot of Mom: mature, intelligent, and giving me the feeling that if I didn’t watch myself I’d be in far more trouble than I’d like. The gray pegasus mare with the white mane watched me with a steady gaze that said that she knew more than I’d prefer her to. Her office on the Castellanus was comfortable and tasteful, with everything neatly organized on shelves rather than in heaps. The pictures of ponies on her desk suggested a family. Children, certainly. She wore only her dark purple Enclave uniform; if I killed her, my friends would be vaporized. The Enclave were all over the Fleur, and all I could hope was that while I was here there wasn’t a Rainbow Dash sighting. The Castellanus had apparently been tracking the Fleur for more than an hour before they’d swept in to catch us. Wood might not have had much of a radar profile, but my cybernetic body had been a red flare to their sensors.
风暴追逐者总是让我想起妈妈:成熟，聪明，给我一种感觉，如果我不注意自己，我会遇到比我想象的更多的麻烦。那匹白鬃毛的灰色母马目不转睛地看着我，说她知道的比我希望她知道的要多。她在卡斯特兰纳斯的办公室舒适雅致，所有的东西都整整齐齐地摆在架子上，而不是堆成一堆。她桌上小马的照片表明她们是一家人。当然是孩子。她只穿着深紫色的昂科雷制服;如果我杀了她，我的朋友们就会蒸发。飞地遍布整个Fleur，我唯一的希望就是我在这里的时候没有看到彩虹冲刺号。显然，卡斯特兰纳斯号在冲进来抓住我们之前，已经跟踪弗勒号一个多小时了。伍德可能没有多少雷达资料，但我的控制论身体已经成为他们的传感器的红色闪光。
“I’ve received several interesting reports of the goings on down below. The Enclave military wing may not have as extensive an information base as our intelligence wing out of Thunderhead, but we’re not blind. We’ve been keeping apprised of things going on below for generations now. Generally from afar, of course; less risk of entanglement.” She sipped her cup of tea slowly, then sighed, staring at the curls of vapor rising from it before glancing up at me. “Unfortunately, now it seems the surface is insisting on entanglement with us.”
"我收到了下面发生的一些有趣的报告。飞地军事部门可能没有我们在Thunderhead的情报部门那么广泛的信息基础，但是我们不是盲目的。我们世世代代都在了解下面发生的事情。当然，一般都是远距离，纠缠的风险较小。"她慢慢地呷了一口茶，然后叹了口气，凝视着从杯子里升起的一团团水汽，然后抬头看了看我。"不幸的是，现在看来，表面上似乎坚持与我们纠缠不清。"
“I don’t have any issues with the Neighvarro Enclave,” I said defensively.
"我对邻里昂科雷没有任何意见,"我辩解道。
“I can vouch for her, ma’am,” Twister said respectfully. The general gave the mare a long stare, and she drew herself more rigid. “Sorry, ma’am…”
"我可以为她担保，夫人,"特维斯特恭敬地说。将军长时间地盯着母马，母马的神情更加僵硬了。"对不起，女士......"
Storm Chaser dropped her eyes back to the neatly organized papers. “Testimony
追风暴的人把目光重新投向那些整齐排列的报纸。"证词
from the Maripony facility just before detonation suggests otherwise,” she said as she reached over for a clipboard with a wing. She looked at it a moment. “Blackjack, aka Security. Stable mare. Appeared in the wastelands roughly two months ago. First identified by ‘DJ Pon3’.” She flipped a page. “Prioritized by Enclave Intelligence as an alpha level threat following a megaspell discharge at Miramare Air Station. There’s a memo that you might have had contact with a Spike Observation squad, but no confirmation.” Her eyes glanced at Twister, who stood so straight that I imagined that not even a balefire bomb could knock her over. “Reprioritized as a gamma level threat two weeks later. There’s a note that you might be an asset to Intelligence. Re-emerged at a surface skirmish in which you destroyed the Pre-war battleship Celestia.” She glanced up at me from over the top of the clipboard. “Impressive.”
她一边说，一边伸手去拿一个带翅膀的剪贴板。她看了一会儿。黑杰克，又名安全。稳定母马。大约两个月前出现在荒地上。首先由'DJPon3'识别。"她翻了一页。"在米拉马雷空军基地发生巨大射击后，被飞地情报部门优先列为阿尔法级威胁。有一个备忘录说你可能和一个斯派克观察小组有联系，但是没有确认。"她的眼睛扫了一眼Twister，他站得那么直，以至于我想象不出哪怕是一个芭蕾火焰炸弹也无法将她击倒。"两周后重新确定为伽马级威胁。有一个提示说你可能对情报部门有用。在你们摧毁战前战列舰塞莱斯蒂亚的地面冲突中重新出现。"她从剪贴板上方抬头看了我一眼。"印象深刻。"
“Yeah. Blackjack does things like that,” Boomer chuckled. The general’s eyes locked on him, and he coughed. “Sorry, ma’am.”
"是的。黑杰克就是这么玩的,"布默笑着说。将军的眼睛盯着他，他咳嗽起来。"对不起，夫人。"
I flushed a little. “I had help. And I cheated…”
我脸红了一下。"我有帮手。我作弊了......"
“You won,” Storm Chaser replied, then returned to the clipboard. “Disappeared for several days and was redetected by Neighvarro intelligence assets at the Fluttershy Medical Center while we investigated the fate of an intelligence squad we sent to spy on the Volunteer Corps’s activities. You were in possession of several unidentified cybernetic augmentations and in the company of an alpha priority target tentatively identified as a Rainbow Dash clone. Mane clippings proved inconclusive.”
"你赢了,"风暴追逐者回答，然后回到剪贴板。"失踪了好几天，在我们调查派去监视志愿兵团活动的情报小组的命运时，被Fluttershy医疗中心的邻居情报人员再次发现。你们拥有几个不明的控制增强装置和一个初步确认为彩虹Dash克隆的阿尔法优先目标。马鬃剪报被证明是不确定的。"
“She… changed back. The spell wore off. Killing joke; it’s fickle stuff,” I said as I gave the best bullshitting grin I could manage.
"她......变回来了。咒语消失了。杀人笑话;这是变化无常的东西,"我一边说，一边尽力咧嘴一笑。
She stared at me without comment for a long second that had my grin sliding off my face like soft tar. Heck, now I was standing more at attention! Then her eyes returned to the clipboard. “Next reported at Yellow River where you helped extract three Neighvarro troopers investigating allegations of a biological weapon. You confirmed these allegations.” She stopped and then read slowly, with emphasis, “Allowed Neighvarro troopers to report this information.” She looked at me sharply. “Given your association with one Morning Glory, third child of Sky Striker, I’m surprised. I would have expected you to side with her by default.”
她一言不发地盯着我看了很长时间，我的笑容像沥青一样从脸上滑落。见鬼，现在我站得更专心了！然后她的眼睛又回到了写字板上。"接下来报道说，在黄河，你协助营救了三名邻居骑兵，调查有关生化武器的指控。你证实了这些指控。"她停了下来，然后慢慢地读了起来，强调道:"允许邻居骑警报告这些信息。"她用锐利的目光看着我。"考虑到你和天空冲锋队的第三个孩子牵牛花的关系，我很惊讶。我还以为你会默认站在她那边呢。"
“Bioweapons are wrong. Those things killed my stable.” With my help. “If I can’t stop him, you’d have to.” She didn’t reply, but I got a feeling that she was pleased by my answer as she read on.
"生物武器是错误的。那些东西杀死了我的马厩。"在我的帮助下。"如果我不能阻止他，你就必须阻止他。"她没有回答，但是当她继续读下去的时候，我感觉她对我的回答很满意。
“Possible presence at the Rainbow Dash Skyport; unconfirmed. Re-encountered by the squad you helped in Yellow River. Encountered the synthetic being known as Dawn and fought her and a zebra Behemoth class tank... in hoof to hoof combat?” She paused again and looked at Boomer with an arched brow. “Is that right, Corporal?”
"可能出现在RainbowDashSkyport;未经证实。被你在黄河里帮助的小队再次遇到。遇到了被称为黎明的合成人，并与她和一辆斑马巨兽级坦克进行了一场蹄对蹄的战斗她又停顿了一下，挑起眉毛看着布默。"对吗，下士?"
“Yes ma’am. I mean, I know tanks don’t have hooves, but she beat it. No clue how, but she did,” Boomer confirmed with an eager nod.
"是的，夫人。我的意思是，我知道坦克没有蹄子，但是她战胜了它。不知道是怎么回事，但她做到了,"布玛尔迫不及待地点了点头，确认道。
I flushed, waving a hoof as I tried to set the record straight. “Technically I lost. I only survived because the tank was being controlled by the brain of a stallion who raided my stable and tried to kill me…” I trailed off and waved my hoof at her clipboard. “Look, that report doesn’t really… there’s a lot of stuff you’re missing…”
我满脸通红，挥动着一只蹄子，试图澄清事实。"严格来说，我输了。我之所以能活下来，是因为坦克被一匹种马的大脑控制着，那匹种马袭击了我的马厩，想要杀了我......"我慢慢走开，挥动着我的蹄子在她的笔记板上。"听着，那份报告并没有......你漏掉了很多东西......"
She was silent till I shut up, then only answered with an “I see,” before looking back down. “Next report at the Grimhoof Army Base where you helped confirm Thunderhead’s acquisition of several long range cruise missiles. Killed one of the three who attempted to accost the clone. Let the other two return to report.” The general tapped her chin with a wingtip as she gazed at the paper. Then she went on without looking at me, “Final appearance was at the Maripony facility immediately prior to the detonation of a suspected Mark III ‘Chernobog’ class balefire bomb. Presumed dead along with High General Harbinger and the surface terrorist known at LittlePip, aka the Stable Dweller.” She reached over with a wing and lifted a clipboard that was as thick as mine. “Since you’re here, I suppose we’ll have to wait and see if those other two are actually alive or not.”
她一直沉默着，直到我闭上了嘴，然后只回答了一句"我明白了"，然后回头看了看。"下一次报道是在格里霍夫陆军基地，在那里你帮助确认了雷霆队获得了几枚远程巡航导弹。杀死了三个试图与克隆人搭讪的人中的一个。让另外两个人回去报道。"当她盯着报纸时，将军用翼尖拍了拍她的下巴。然后她没有看我，继续说道:"最后一次出现是在一枚疑似MarkIII'Chernobog'级balebfire炸弹爆炸前夕，在马里波尼设施。推测死亡的还有海格将军和已知的地面恐怖分子小匹普，也就是马厩居民。"她伸出一只翅膀，拿起一块和我一样厚的剪贴板。"既然你在这里，我想我们只能等等，看看另外两个人是否真的还活着。"
“Pip might be. Harbinger… isn’t,” I replied, feeling a little sickly as I remember him being torn to pieces. “I saw him get killed prior to the bomb going off.”
"皮普可能会。"先驱者......不是,"我回答，当我记得他被撕成碎片时，我感到有点病态。"我看到他在炸弹爆炸前被杀了。"
“I see. Was the balefire bomb an attempt by this LittlePip, Red Eye, Thunderhead, or the entity known as the Goddess to assassinate the leader of the Enclave military and decapitate our command apparatus?” Storm Chaser’s cool tone reminded me of when I’d asked Lancer if he had a mega-talisman.
"我明白了。这个巴雷火炸弹是由红眼、雷头、小pip或者被称为女神的实体企图刺杀昂科雷军事领袖并斩首我们的指挥机器吗?""风暴追逐者"冷静的语气让我想起了我问兰瑟是否有一个巨大的护身符时的情景。
I could withhold, lie, or tell the truth. As General Chaser looked me in the eye, I
我可以隐瞒，撒谎，或者说出真相。当Chaser将军看着我的眼睛时，我
had the distinct feeling that the first two were extremely risky. “The Goddess was using LittlePip to get some sort of black magic. LittlePip turned the tables and used the bomb to kill the Goddess and the book. I don’t think the Goddess intended LittlePip to live, but she got distracted. Your High General was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
明显感觉前两个极其危险。"女神利用小匹普施展某种黑魔法。小皮普扭转局面，用炸弹杀死了女神和书。我不认为女神打算让小匹普活着，但是她分心了。你们的大将军只是在错误的时间出现在错误的地点。"
“I see.” She set LittlePip’s clipboard down and then set mine next to it. “Well, if you see her again, congratulate her on causing more havoc in the Enclave command structure than we’ve endured in a century and a half. High General Harbinger’s death, the Triumphant being severely damaged, the loss of two other generals aboard the four Raptors destroyed, and the loss of two colonels has thrown the whole chain of command straight into a cyclone. Half the remaining leadership is busy pointing at anypony else to blame while covering their tails, a quarter is claiming they’re the legitimate heads of the military now, and the remainder are actually doing their jobs. I’ve got three councilors blaming me for not physically stopping the High General from going in there, or for not demanding that he take a whole Raptor squad with him.” She folded her hooves on the desk before her as she looked at me evenly. “And, according to you, there’s a rogue intelligence element with a bioweapon pointed right at the Enclave’s citizens from one of our most secure and sensitive military facilities. You’ll forgive me if I’m a little skeptical that all of this is just one big coincidence.”
"我明白了。"她放下小匹普的剪贴板，然后把我的放在旁边。"好吧，如果你再见到她，恭喜她给昂科雷的指挥结构造成了一个半世纪以来最大的破坏。最高指挥官哈宾格的死亡，胜利号被严重破坏，四架猛禽号上的另外两名将军的损失被摧毁，两名上校的损失使整个指挥系统直接陷入旋风。剩下的一半领导人忙于指责其他人，同时掩饰自己的缺点，四分之一的人声称他们现在是军队的合法领导人，其余的人实际上在做他们的工作。有三个议员指责我没有亲自阻止大将军进入那里，或者没有要求他带上一整队猛禽战斗机。"她把蹄子叠在面前的桌子上，平稳地看着我。"而且，据你所说，有一个带着生化武器的流氓情报分子正从我们最安全、最敏感的军事设施之一指向昂科雷的公民。如果我有点怀疑这一切只是一个大巧合，请原谅我。"
“Yeah. I know. But sometimes life is like that,” I replied with as much levity as I could manage. “I’m sure if LittlePip had known you were going to come in unannounced, she… nope, actually I don’t think she could have managed it more perfectly. Maybe she might have gotten the Triumphant too. But really, she didn’t know. Unless she did know and removed that memory so the Goddess couldn’t read it… she is scary good like that.” I grinned sheepishly at the general’s flat gaze. “What? I’m telling you, it probably wasn’t intentional.”
"是的。我知道。但有时生活就是这样,"我尽可能轻松地回答。"我敢肯定，如果小皮普知道你会不请自来，她......不，事实上，我不认为她能做得更完美。也许她也获得了胜利。但事实上，她并不知道。除非她知道并删除了那段记忆，这样女神就看不到了......否则她就是那么厉害。"我不好意思地看着将军的目光，咧嘴笑了。"什么？我告诉你，这可能不是故意的。"
“Forgive me if I’m not reassured.” She finished off her cup and set it beside the teakettle and hotplate. She looked at my clipboard again, silently reading it, then glanced at me once more. “Blackjack. You’ve put me in an awkward situation where I’m going to have to creatively interpret my orders. Officially, I’m to bring you, and anypony involved in the Maripony attack or associated with such people, to a secure facility for interrogation. Or summarily execute you.” I could teleport behind her and use her for cover… The general then gave a little smile. “Well, I’m not going to do that.”
"如果我不放心，请原谅。"她喝完了杯子，把它放在茶壶和电炉旁。她又看了看我的笔记板，默默地读着，然后又瞥了我一眼。"黑杰克。你把我置于一个尴尬的境地，我必须创造性地解释我的命令。官方的说法是，我要把你，以及任何参与袭击马里波尼的人，或与这些人有关的人，带到一个安全的审讯场所。或者立即处决你。"我可以传送到她身后，用她做掩护......将军微微一笑。"好吧，我不会那么做的。"
You could feel the tension drain out of the room. “Thank you, ma’am,” Twister blurted.
你可以感觉到房间里的张力在流失。"谢谢你，女士,"龙卷风脱口而出。
“I understand. I wouldn’t want to try to execute somepony I’d fought with either, Sergeant,” the general replied.
"我明白。我也不想处决和我打过仗的小马，中士。"。
“No, that’s not it, ma’am,” Twister replied.
"不，不是这样的，夫人,"特维斯特回答。
“I’d rather tackle a Talon squad naked than try and force Blackjack to do anything,” Boomer replied.
"我宁愿光着身子对付一队塔龙，也不愿强迫黑杰克做任何事,"布玛儿回答说。
“Naked and unarmed…” Twister agreed.
"赤身裸体，手无寸铁......"托斯特表示同意。
“And covered in barbecue sauce,” Boomer added.
布玛儿补充说:"还要涂上烧烤酱。"。
“I’m not that bad…” I muttered. “I mean, that one time I was half psychotic from lack of sleep. I’d have to really work to kill a half dozen pegasi now.” The three of us were drawing some very uncertain looks from the general.
"我没那么坏......"我喃喃自语道。"我的意思是，有一次我因为缺乏睡眠而有点精神错乱。我现在得真正努力才能杀死半打飞马座。"我们三个人引起了将军非常不确定的目光。
“Be that as it may, you seem like a pony who wants to avoid as much death as possible in this situation. If it wasn’t for you, Lighthooves could have deployed his bioweapon at his leisure, and you’ve helped us in the past. Right now, with our leadership so fractured, would be an opportune time for him to attack.
"尽管如此，你看起来就像一匹小马，想在这种情况下尽可能地避免死亡。如果不是因为你，莱特霍夫斯可以在闲暇时使用他的生化武器，而你过去也曾帮助过我们。现在，我们的领导层四分五裂，正是他发动攻击的好时机。
Autumn Leaf will be mopping things up on the ground. My mission is dealing with Lighthooves, his weapon, and Shadowbolt Tower. Will you assist us?”
秋叶将拖地上的东西。我的任务是处理光剑，他的武器和暗影闪电塔。你会帮助我们吗?"
I rubbed my neck nervously. “That depends on what you had in mind.”
我紧张地搓着脖子。"这取决于你的想法。"
“From all our reports, you’re a superb combat specialist. If you can help us seize the tower, we’ll be able to avoid engaging the city directly,” the general said. “I’d like you on the vanguard raiding the tower and neutralizing its defenders. Once the biological weapon is under our control, disabled, or destroyed you’d be free to go.”
"从我们所有的报告来看，你是一个一流的战斗专家。如果你能帮助我们占领塔楼，我们就能避免直接与城市交火。"。"我希望你率先突袭塔楼，消灭塔楼的防御者。一旦生化武器在我们的控制之下，你就可以自由行动了。"
“Neutralize. You mean kill,” I replied.
"中和。你是说杀了他,"我回答。
“That is the standard euphemism,” the general replied with a little bit of amused confusion. Her lips curled up a little. “Would you prefer ‘take out’? ‘Eliminate’? ‘Terminate’?” It still tasted sour to me. “What is it? You’ve killed before. In fact, according to your dossier, you’re rather effective at it.”
"这是标准的委婉说法,"将军回答时带着一点有趣的困惑。她的嘴唇微微翘起。"你喜欢'外卖'吗？消除？'终止'?"我仍然觉得它是酸的。"这是什么？你以前杀过人。事实上，根据你的档案，你在这方面相当有效。"
“Exceptionally,” Boomer agreed.
"作为例外,"布玛尔同意了。
I frowned back at him, then returned my attention to the general. “Just because I’m good at it doesn’t mean I like it. I’m not as good as you think I am, anyway. I… I don’t want to hurt people,” I said, looking down. “I’m Security. Not ‘Soldier’. Security saves ponies.”
我也向他皱了皱眉，然后把注意力转回到将军身上。"仅仅因为我擅长并不意味着我喜欢它。反正我也没你想的那么厉害。我。.我不想伤害别人,"我低头说。"我是保安。不是士兵。安全保障能拯救小马。"
The general didn’t answer for a moment, then asked coolly, “I see. So security defends, whereas soldiers attack?” When I nodded, she pursed her lips a moment, pressing her hooves together before her mouth as she studied me. “Interesting. Do you think I am attacking Shadowbolt Tower because I want to, or because I am trying to defend my people against a pernicious threat that you are familiar with?” When I didn’t answer, she gave a little smile. “I assure you, it would be much simpler to simply attack Thunderhead, take the populace hostage, and demand Lighthooves’s surrender while summary executions begin. That was Harbinger’s plan before mission creep set in.”
将军沉默了一会儿，然后冷静地问道:"我明白了。所以安全是防御，而士兵是进攻?"我点点头，她抿了一会儿嘴，用蹄子在嘴前挤压着，打量着我。"有意思。你认为我攻击暗影螺栓塔是因为我想这么做，还是因为我试图保护我的人民免受你所熟悉的有害威胁?"我没有回答，她微微一笑。"我向你们保证，在即决处决开始之前，简单地攻击雷头城，抓住民众作为人质，并要求莱特霍夫斯投降要简单得多。这是Harbinger在任务蠕变开始之前的计划。"
Okay. Neighvarro definitely slipping on my scale. “I get it. I do. It’s just a lot more offensive than I’m comfortable with,” I admitted.
好吧。邻居绝对是我的对手。"我明白了。我知道。只是这种行为让我感到很不舒服,"我承认。
“I see,” she replied calmly, with a small smile. “If only you’d been born a pegasus.”
"我明白了,"她平静地回答，带着一丝微笑。"要是你生来就是飞马就好了。"
I blinked in confusion. “What’s that?”
我困惑地眨了眨眼。"那是什么?"
“Nothing,” she said as she dropped her hooves to the desktop. “I am a soldier. One of the few command officers with actual combat experience. While many see us as attackers, the reality is that a soldier’s life is to defend. If we existed to kill and slaughter, we’d be little different than the raiders who infest your surface. If we wanted to simply kill ponies, we could do so with impunity.” She paused, then asked with a small smile, “Have you known any soldiers?”
"没什么,"她一边说，一边把蹄子放在桌面上。"我是一名士兵。少数几个有实战经验的指挥官之一。虽然很多人认为我们是攻击者，但事实上，一个士兵的生命是用来防御的。如果我们的存在是为了杀戮和屠杀，那么我们和那些侵入你们表面的掠夺者没有什么不同。如果我们想简单地杀死小马，我们可以不受惩罚地这样做。"她停顿了一下，然后微笑着问道:"你认识什么士兵吗?"
“A few,” I said, thinking of the Marauders. I could see her point. None of them had been bloody butchers… well, maybe Doof, and Applesnack I honestly didn’t know. Twist… Psalm… Big Macintosh… They hadn’t been fighting to kill. They’d fought to protect their homeland. Their Princess. Their family. “I see your point, and I apologize. I’m just… not a soldier.”
"有几个,"我说，心里想着掠夺者。我明白她的意思。他们没有一个是血腥的屠夫...好吧，也许是杜夫和苹果黑我真的不知道。扭曲......赞美诗......大麦金塔......他们不是为了杀戮而战。他们为保卫祖国而战。他们的公主。他们的家庭。"我明白你的意思，我道歉。我只是...不是一个士兵。"
“We’ll have to disagree on that,” Storm Chaser said with a sigh and a small frown. “The Enclave needs ponies like you. We’ve got far too many who are
"我们不得不在这个问题上有分歧,"风暴追逐者叹了口气，微微皱了皱眉。"昂科雷需要像你这样的小马。我们有太多这样的人了
eager to attack. High General Harbinger was a symptom of a disease, and after Maripony… I don’t know what the Enclave will be like in the coming months.”
急于进攻。高将军预兆是一种疾病的症状，在马里波尼之后......我不知道昂科雷在未来几个月会是什么样子。"
My ears drooped; I felt like I’d disappointed her. Why should it matter, though? I wasn’t a pegasus or a soldier. “Sorry,” I muttered. She waved her hoof like it was no matter. Then I frowned, “It’s also something else, though… it feels like…” I faltered.
我的耳朵耷拉着，我觉得我让她失望了。但这又有什么关系呢？我既不是飞马也不是士兵。"对不起,"我喃喃自语。她挥动着蹄子，好像这没什么大不了的。然后我皱起了眉头,"这也是别的东西，虽然......感觉就像......"我结结巴巴地说。
The general frowned at me, but gestured with a wing for me to continue. “Feels like what?”
将军朝我皱了皱眉头，但是做了个手势让我继续。"感觉像什么?"
But I didn’t have time to finish, as the doors to the office were opened with a loud bang. Two mares and a stallion, all dressed in the same dark purple uniforms, stormed in. The mares were red and blue and looked enough alike to be related. The green stallion hung back, his black mane cut short and a trimmed black mustache curled above his top lip. “Is this her?” the red mare with the orange-and-yellow-striped mane demanded. “Is this the terrorist scum that killed the High General?” Her orange eyes blazed at me as she answered her own question. “I’ll drop you back in that irradiated grave!”
但我没有时间说完，办公室的门砰地一声打开了。两匹穿着同样深紫色制服的母马和一匹种马冲了进来。母马是红色和蓝色的，看起来很像是亲戚。那匹绿色的种马向后垂着，黑色的鬃毛剪得很短，修剪整齐的黑色小胡子卷曲在上唇上方。"是她吗?"长着橙黄色条纹鬃毛的红色母马要求道。"这就是杀死总司令的恐怖分子渣滓吗?"她回答自己的问题时，橘色的眼睛向我闪烁着光芒。"我要把你扔回那个被辐射过的坟墓里!"
“Enclave directive 122639J demands immediate and summary execution of all parties affiliated with the intentional death of party leadership,” the blue mare said with a smug smile, her lovely face framed by her lavender and ivory mane. Her wingtip curled down and pulled a beam gun from her holster as she said coolly, “This will only take a moment.”
"昂科雷指令122639J要求立即和即决处决所有与蓄意谋杀党领导人有关的人,"这匹蓝色的母马自鸣得意地笑着说，她可爱的脸上挂着淡紫色和象牙色的鬃毛。她的翼尖弯曲下来，从枪套里拔出一把射线枪，冷静地说:"这只需要一会儿。"
Indeed it would. Smash red feathers, grab her as a shield, ram the blue one, crush her head, throw red at green. Finish both if need be. Twister and Boomer looked from the general to the trio. “Don’t kill them, Blackjack,” the general snapped, making all three of them pause. The general clenched her jaw as she rose behind her desk. “Captains Afterburner, Hoarfrost, and Crosswinds... your timing couldn’t be more ironic. How dare you interrupt my interrogation?”
的确如此。粉碎红色的羽毛，抓住她作为一个盾牌，撞击蓝色的，碾碎她的头，扔红色在绿色。如果需要的话，两个都做完。托斯特和布玛尔从将军看到了三人组。"别杀他们，黑杰克,"将军厉声说道，让他们三个都停了下来。将军站在办公桌后面，咬紧牙关。"加力船长、白霜船长和侧风船长......你选择的时机真是讽刺。你怎么敢打断我的审问?"
The three stiffened somewhat. The green stallion still smiled a little, though it was hard to see beneath his mustache. “My apologies, General. As soon as we were aware that one of the terrorists from Maripony survived, Captains Afterburner and Hoarfrost both insisted on seeing you,” he said with amused tones. “There’s four others who are very keen to know what you’ll do with her.”
这三个人有些僵硬。绿色的种马仍然微笑着，虽然很难看到他的胡子下面。"对不起，将军。当我们得知有一个来自Maripony的恐怖分子活了下来，加力队长和霍尔弗罗斯特队长都坚持要见你。"还有四个人非常想知道你会怎么处置她。"
“Yes. A pity that information couldn’t have waited till the interrogation was
"是的。遗憾的是，这些信息不能等到审讯的时候才提供
complete, Captain Crosswinds,” the general snapped.
"完成了，侧风队长,"将军厉声说道。
“I’m going to cook you. I’m going to light your pretty little ship on fire and watch you dirtsiders burn or jump for what you did to the High General,” Afterburner said with a grin. I could have dropped her with five magic bullets through her head, so her menacing expression lost some of its edge.
"我要把你煮了。我要点燃你们漂亮的小船，看着你们这些肮脏的人为你们对大将军所做的一切付出代价。"加力咧嘴笑着说。我本可以用五颗魔法子弹打穿她的脑袋，这样她那恐吓的表情就失去了一些优势。
“The law is patently clear on the matter, General Storm Chaser,” Hoarfrost said primly. “As are your orders.”
"法律在这个问题上非常明确，追风将军,"霍尔弗罗斯特拘谨地说。"这是你的命令。"
“Captain Hoarfrost, if you bite that weapon, it’s you who will be summarily killed, by me,” the general replied, making the pale blue mare freeze. The two power-armored ponies turned and directed their weapons at the three, to their surprise. Afterburner hissed through her teeth as the general pinned her with a glare and continued. “I understand that you are upset. All of you had a… personal… relationship with the High General. Right now I am ordering you to set that aside and to conduct yourselves with the duty and professionalism the Enclave expects of its officers! Is that understood?”
"霍尔弗罗斯特上尉，如果你咬了那把武器，你就会立刻被我杀死,"将军回答道，让那匹淡蓝色的母马冻僵了。两匹强壮的装甲小马转过身来，用武器瞄准了这三匹马，出乎它们的意料。加力的嘶嘶声透过她的牙齿，因为将军用一个刺眼的目光钉住她，并继续。"我知道你很难过。你们都有一个。.私人的...与总司令的关系。现在我命令你们把这个问题放在一边，以昂科雷所期望的职责和专业精神行事！明白了吗?"
The three seemed to weigh the order a moment, and that was when I understood just how soft General Chaser’s position was. Maripony hadn’t just destroyed ships. It had shaken the Enclave badly. The well-oiled military rulers had just been reminded that they could die. They’d come to the Wasteland, been touched by it, and now knew that the Wasteland was coming for them. The trio of captains finally stiffened at attention, but Afterburner kept her eyes locked on me. If she’d been a unicorn, I had no doubt that she’d be lighting me on fire with her mind. “Yes, General,” the three said solemnly.
这三个人似乎权衡了一下这个命令，这时我才明白查泽将军的立场有多软弱。马里波尼不仅摧毁了船只。它严重地震动了昂科雷。运转良好的军事统治者刚刚被提醒，他们可能会死。他们来到了荒原，被它感动了，现在他们知道了荒原是为他们而来的。三位船长终于立正变得僵硬起来，但是加力一直盯着我。如果她是一只独角兽，我毫不怀疑她会用她的思想点燃我。"是的，将军,"三个人严肃地说。
“Now get back to your posts, immediately. We’re on high alert, and you won’t do your ships any good if you’re here!”
"现在马上回到你们的岗位上去。我们处于高度戒备状态，如果你们在这里，对你们的船就没有任何好处了!"
“She killed the High General! Everypony knows it!” Afterburner raged as she glared at me. “I swear, Stable Dweller, if it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to see everything you love burned to ashes.”
"她杀了大将军！每个小马都知道!"她怒视着我，加力燃烧着。"我发誓，马厩居民，如果这是我做的最后一件事，我会看到你所爱的一切被烧成灰烬。"
I should have just kept my yap shut, but for once not being the not-smart pony made it impossible to resist. “One, I just love the flame motif you’ve got going on here. Really. Well done,” I said as I approached her with a smile. “Two. I’m the ‘Security’ stable mare. Not the ‘Stable Dweller’.”
我本应该闭上我的嘴，但是这一次，我不是一匹不聪明的小马，这让我无法抗拒。"首先，我很喜欢你这里的火焰主题。真的。干得好,"我微笑着走近她时说。"两个。我是"保安"马厩里的马。而不是'马厩居民'。"
She rolled her eyes. “Pfft. Security. Stable Dweller. Whatever!” Her gaze narrowed. “I’m going to see you pay for what you’ve done!”
她翻了翻白眼。"噗。保安。稳定居民。随便啦!"她眯起眼睛。"我要让你为你的所作所为付出代价!"
Was it a bad sign when I was more mature than a ‘captain’ in the Enclave?
当我在昂科雷比"船长"更成熟的时候，这是一个不好的信号吗？
“You three are dismissed. Are you going to leave on your own, or am I going to have to have you escorted out?” Storm Chaser challenged.
"你们三个可以走了。你是自己走呢，还是要我把你送出去?"风暴追逐者受到挑战。
Captain Afterburner opened her mouth, but Hoarfrost, having returned her beam pistol to her holster, covered the red pony’s mouth with her wing. “We’ll be leaving. Come along, Sister. And we’ll be filing a full report, immediately, General.” Afterburner seemed like she wanted at least a few more threats and bit down hard on her sister’s wingtip. The blue pegasus just shivered and smiled, her wings poofing a little. She looked at me. “Oh, incidentally, Blackjack? I find it very hard to believe that the Rainbow Dash clone you are so attached to isn’t with you. I’ll be keeping a very close eye out for her.”
加力船长张开了嘴，但霍尔弗罗斯特把手枪放回枪套后，用翅膀捂住了小红马的嘴。"我们要走了。来吧，修女。我们会立即提交一份完整的报告，将军。"加力似乎她希望至少有更多的威胁，并咬下了她妹妹的翼尖硬。蓝色的飞马只是颤抖着微笑，她的翅膀飞舞着。她看着我。"哦，顺便说一句，黑杰克？我发现很难相信你如此依恋的彩虹破折号克隆没有和你在一起。我会密切注意她的。"
“You do that,” I countered, just as coldly. The pair turned and walked out, Afterburner starting to argue aloud as soon as they cleared the door. The green stallion grinned, saluted Storm Chaser, and followed them. As the door closed, I could hear him laughing.
"你去吧,"我同样冷淡地反驳道。两人转身走了出去，加力开始大声争论刚刚清除门。绿色的种马咧嘴一笑，向风暴追逐者致敬，然后跟着他们。当门关上时，我能听到他的笑声。
“So! You were saying?” I brightly asked the general as she sat down hard behind the desk and rubbed a temple with a wingtip.
"那么！你刚才说什么?"我愉快地问将军，她硬坐在桌子后面，用翼尖摩擦着太阳穴。
“Those three… why couldn’t they have been assigned to Autumn Leaf?” The general shook her head. “I have until one of them gets on a radio, so we’ll have to wrap this up quickly.”
"那三个......为什么不能分配给秋叶呢?"将军摇了摇头。"我必须等到他们中的一个上了无线电，所以我们必须尽快结束这件事。"
“They seem awfully young, and not quite what I pictured a captain in the Enclave to be,” I said delicately.
"他们看起来非常年轻，不像我想象中在昂科雷的船长,"我婉转地说。
“Well bred,” Twister said sarcastically.
"很有教养,"龙卷风讽刺地说。
“That’s enough, Sergeant. They’re still your superior officers.” She tapped a button. “Captain Racewind? Delay the three captains however you can. Jammed hatches. Stuck cargo. Be creative and don’t let them anywhere near a radio.”
"够了，中士。他们仍然是你的上级军官。"她轻轻按了一下按钮。"拉斯温德船长？尽可能拖延三位舰长。舱门卡住了。卡住的货物。要有创造力，不要让他们靠近收音机。"
“Yes ma’am. Please disregard any fire alarms you hear,” a stallion said through a speaker.
"是的，夫人。请忽略你听到的任何火灾警报,"一匹种马通过扬声器说。
She frowned at me, then leaned back. “They were all extremely, inappropriately, close to the High General. If they hadn’t been out here getting ready for operations, they would have been at Maripony. That would have been quite a burr out of my feathers. All three are from military families, all three are privileged, and none of them have been in serious combat. Oh, but they want to.”
她朝我皱了皱眉，然后向后靠了靠。"他们都非常、不恰当地接近总司令。如果他们没有在这里为行动做准备，他们可能已经在Maripony了。那会让我毛骨悚然的。这三个人都来自军人家庭，都享有特权，他们都没有经历过真正的战斗。哦，但他们想这么做。"
“Raiders with Raptors,” I sympathized, and shivered.
"猛禽突袭机,"我同情地颤抖着。
“Apt analogy.”
"恰当的类比。"
I looked back at the door, then gestured towards it with a hoof. “Was that intentional? That whole fire… ice… thing. I mean, seriously?”
我回头看了看门，然后用蹄子指了指门。"这是故意的吗？那整个火...冰...的事。我是说，真的吗?"
She gave a mirthless smile. “Oh yes. They’ve been like that since they were fillies. Twins, you know. Absolute terrors. I know their father.” She sighed again. “And thanks to their connections, they’re now in charge of the Sirocco and the Blizzard. Given how much they shower their crews with bonuses, I can only hope they’ll follow orders and stay in position.”
她苦笑了一下。"哦，是的。它们还是小母马的时候就这样了。双胞胎，你知道。绝对恐怖。我认识他们的父亲。"她又叹了口气。"多亏了他们的关系，他们现在负责热风和暴风雪。考虑到他们给自己的机组人员发放了大量奖金，我只能希望他们服从命令，坚守岗位。"
“And the stallion? What’s his deal?”
""那匹种马呢？他是怎么回事?"
“Crosswinds? Less blatant nastiness and more callous amusement. He doesn’t have the seriousness his position warrants, but he was remarkably proficient at ferreting out information for the High General. As a reward, he was bumped to being put in charge of the Galeforce.” She sighed and leaned forward, frowning at me. “They’re what I’m trying to prevent. The Enclave is not a clubhouse for overprivileged idiots to play with war machines.”
"侧风？不那么明目张胆的污秽，而更多的是冷酷无情的娱乐。他并不认为自己的立场是严肃的，但他非常擅长为大将军搜集情报。作为奖励，他被提升为加勒福斯的负责人。"她叹了口气，身子前倾，对我皱着眉头。"我正在努力阻止这些事情发生。昂科雷不是特权过高的白痴玩战争机器的俱乐部。"
“I hope you’re right,” I answered. Had those three not made an appearance, I might have signed on. As it was, I couldn’t. I didn’t have a soldier mentality… maybe I could have been, if it had been an army commanded by Storm Chasers, but I had an inkling that there were more Harbingers in the Enclave than there were Storm Chasers. “Now… about stopping Lighthooves. I can’t be your soldier. But I do want to help, and maybe I can in a way outside the Enclave.” We were short on time, so I’d have to cut to the proverbial chase.
"我希望你是对的,"我回答。如果那三个人没有出现，我可能已经签约了。事实上，我做不到。我没有士兵的心态...也许我可以成为一名士兵，如果那是一支由风暴追逐者指挥的军队的话，但是我有一种暗示，在昂科雷地有比风暴追逐者更多的先驱者。"现在......关于阻止轻舟。我不能做你的战士。但我确实想帮忙，也许我可以在飞地以外的地方帮忙。"我们时间不多，所以我不得不开门见山地说了。
“I see.” She narrowed her eyes a little as she considered me. “What did you have in mind, then?”
"我明白了。"当她想到我的时候，她眯起了眼睛。"那么，你有什么想法?"
“What about contacting Thunderhead’s government directly? Work with them to
"那么直接联系Thunderhead的政府呢？和他们一起工作
close him down?” I suggested, and the general frowned thoughtfully. “Now that the High General is dead, you have a chance to engage in good faith without him calling ponies traitors and stuff like at the Skyport.”
关闭他?"我提议，将军若有所思地皱起了眉头。"既然大将军已经死了，你就有机会进行诚意的交易，而不会让他把小马叫做叛徒之类的东西，比如在飞机场。"
The general stared at me, then rubbed the bridge of her muzzle. “Clearly your dossier is incomplete. It didn’t mention that you have a tendency to listen in on highly classified diplomatic exchanges.”
将军盯着我，然后抚摸着她的鼻梁。"很明显你的档案不完整。报告没有提到你倾向于监听高度机密的外交往来。"
“I have a way for getting into systems,” I said with a small smile. I wasn’t as sharp as my sword, but even I knew better than to mention EC-1101. If it really came down to it, I might be able to simply turn off the tower’s defenses.
"我有办法进入系统,"我微笑着说。我没有我的剑那么锋利，但即使是我也知道最好不要提到EC-1101。如果真的到了那一步，我也许可以简单地关闭塔楼的防御系统。
“I can see that. But as for your suggestion, if Lighthooves has gone completely off course, what makes you think Thunderhead can bring him back? Even assuming that they’re willing to try.” The general shook her head. “There’s no guarantee that they’ll be any more capable than we are. Meanwhile, Lighthooves could launch at any second.”
"我看得出来。但是对于你的建议，如果轻骑兵已经完全偏离了轨道，你凭什么认为雷头能把他带回来？即使假设他们愿意尝试。"将军摇了摇头。"不能保证他们比我们更有能力。与此同时,"光剑"随时都可能发射。"
That comment made a niggling little connection in my head. I frowned as I thought a little about the smug pony launching an attack while the Enclave was disorganized. “I’m not sure he will, General. I think he’s waiting for you. In fact, I bet he’d give everything up to his own people at this point.”
那句话在我脑子里引起了一点小小的联想。当我想到自鸣得意的小马在飞地无组织的时候发动袭击时，我皱起了眉头。"我不知道他会不会，将军。我想他在等你。事实上，我敢打赌，此时此刻，他会把一切都交给自己的人民。"
“Excuse me?” she asked with a frown. A beeping began to ring somewhere above us, but the general ignored the shrill notes.
"你说什么?"她皱着眉头问道。我们头顶上的某个地方开始响起一阵哔哔声，但是将军没有理会那刺耳的声音。
“Look. Lighthooves and Thunderhead have one thing right: long term, they’re going to win. You just lost a bunch of ships, and unless I’m missing something, you can’t replace them. A first strike biological attack on all the other settlements would work against him. Think about it. He’d be the ultimate villain. Thunderhead would be guilty by association.” I tapped my forehooves together. “But what if he’s stopped by Thunderhead? Gives everything up. Makes his impassioned speech about how he did it for the long term survival of the pegasus people… in front of all the cameras?”
"你看。和Thunderhead有一点是对的:从长远来看，他们会赢。你刚刚损失了一堆船，除非我漏掉了什么，否则你无法替代它们。对所有其他定居点发动第一次生物攻击将对他不利。想想吧。他会成为终极反派。雷霆万钧将因牵连而被判有罪。"我拍了拍前蹄。"但是如果他被雷霆队拦下了呢？放弃一切。在所有的摄像机面前发表慷慨激昂的演讲，讲述他是如何为了飞马座人民的长期生存而做这件事的?"
“You’re suggesting that this is nothing more than a self-sacrificing PR stunt?” the general asked in low, skeptical tones.
"你的意思是，这只不过是一场自我牺牲的公关噱头?"将军用怀疑的语调低声问道。
“Sure. Thunderhead can’t win a shooting war. You have the ships and the firepower. But what if he can influence enough settlements to shift the civil
"当然。雷霆万钧不可能赢得一场射击战。你有飞船和火力。但是，如果他能够影响足够的和解，改变民事
authority? Your Enclave is a democracy, right? So what if everyone votes to back the government that just stopped one of their own from going too far?”
权威？你的飞地是一个民主国家，对吗？那么，如果所有人都投票支持刚刚阻止自己人走得太远的政府，又会怎样呢?"
“That vote would never happen. The military wouldn’t allow it,” she said quickly, but then her eyes narrowed. “Ah…”
"这种投票永远不会发生。军方不会允许的,"她迅速地说，但随即眯起了眼睛。"啊......"
“Right. Folks realize that their democracy isn’t. Then your choice would be to either hand over control to Thunderhead or risk a civil war,” I said, hoping that this wasn’t all just desperate guesswork. A little purple unicorn in the back of my mind gave a prim nod. Lighthooves was too smart… too smooth… to just be a classical villain.
"对。人们意识到他们的民主不是。那么你的选择就是要么把控制权交给Thunderhead，要么冒着爆发内战的风险,"我说，希望这不只是孤注一掷的猜测。一只紫色的小独角兽在我的脑海里一本正经地点了点头。光剑太聪明了......太圆滑了......不可能只是一个经典的反派角色。
“Unless you’re wrong and he is going to use the bioweapon. It’d take us years to clean up the mess. The famine alone would be intolerable,” General Chaser said with a frown.
"除非你错了，他会使用生化武器。我们得花好几年才能收拾好这个烂摊子。光是饥荒就让人无法忍受,"查泽将军皱着眉头说。
“My guess is that he will if you attack Thunderhead. A plan B. Then Thunderhead takes him down, and Thunderhead becomes the vital food source to address the famine. They’re the ones with the extra food. Thunderhead is a hero. And if you do too much damage, Neighvarro looks like the villain.” Lighthooves wanted to save his home. I had to believe that. If he just wanted death, then all I was doing was getting ponies killed.
"我的猜测是，如果你攻击雷头，他会的。B计划。然后雷头公司把他放倒，雷头公司成为解决饥荒的重要食物来源。他们有多余的食物。雷头是个英雄。如果你造成太大的破坏，邻居看起来就像是坏人。"轻舟想要拯救他的家园。我必须相信这一点。如果他只是想要死，那么我所做的一切就是把小马弄死。
General Storm Chaser closed her eyes. “Ordinarily, I’d prefer to take time and work something out, but Maripony has thrown everything into the air. You saw Afterburner and Hoarfrost. Some of the Enclave leadership is convinced that Thunderhead was behind the balefire bomb. Originally, we were going to destroy Red Eye’s army below and then call for unity. Put some of our own security in Thunderhead and winnow out the bombs. I can only hope that Autumn Leaf uses some discretion until I get finished in the east.”
风暴追逐者将军闭上了眼睛。"通常情况下，我宁愿花点时间想想办法，但是马里波尼把一切都抛到了九霄云外。你看到了加力和霍尔弗罗斯特。昂科雷的一些领导人确信，Thunderhead公司是这枚弹药炸弹的幕后黑手。原来我们是要在下面消灭红眼的军队，然后号召大家团结起来。在Thunderhead安排一些我们自己的安全人员并清除炸弹。我只能希望秋叶在我完成东方之前能够谨慎一些。"
“Then that’s his plan C. I bet that if you contacted him, you could work out a deal. Lighthooves wants Thunderhead to survive. As long as he gets that, he’s won.” But that led me to a disturbing thought. What if he offered to trade the weapon to the Neighvarro for Thunderhead’s survival? Storm Chaser might be decent, but I had no problem imagining what a pony like Afterburner or Hoarfrost would do with a biological weapon: they’d use it. Even if it could infect pegasi now.
"那么这就是他的计划c。我敢打赌，如果你联系他，你可以达成一笔交易。光头希望雷头能存活下来。只要他能做到这一点，他就赢了。"但这让我产生了一个令人不安的想法。如果他提出用武器交换邻居来换取雷霆头的生存呢？风暴追逐者可能还不错，但是我可以毫不费力地想象一下像加力或者霍尔弗罗斯特这样的小马会用生物武器做什么:他们会使用它。即使它现在可以感染飞马座。
Crap.
该死。
“Interesting,” Storm Chaser mused. “I’d planned on a surgical strike. Five Raptors doing long range, pinpoint strikes on the tower’s air defenses, with a picket line to intercept the missiles. Odds are seventy to eighty-five percent, depending on how lucky we get with our deployment and if he fires them one at a time or in volleys. Once they’re down, we storm the tower and Thunderhead. Make sure it stays under our control this time.” She closed her eyes again and sighed.
"有意思,"风暴追逐者沉思道。"我计划进行外科手术式的打击。五架猛禽机进行远程精确打击塔楼的防空系统，并设立了拦截导弹的纠察线。可能性是七十到85%，这取决于我们在部署中的运气如何，以及他是一次发射一发还是齐射。一旦他们倒下，我们就冲进塔楼和霹雳头。这次一定要确保它在我们的控制之下。"她又闭上眼睛，叹了口气。
“Even if you got most of them, all it would take is one missile getting through. This disease makes ponies eat other ponies. I saw it happen to my stable. I had to gas all of them before they ate the Wasteland,” I said as seriously as I could, hoping she believed me.
"即使你击中了大部分目标，也只需要一枚导弹穿过。这种疾病使得小马吃其他小马。我亲眼看到它发生在我的马厩里。我不得不在他们吃荒地之前给他们放毒气,"我尽可能严肃地说，希望她能相信我。
The beeping stopped. “General, they’re off ship. Ten minutes before they’re aboard their vessels,” the stallion said through the terminal speakers.
哔哔声停止了。"将军，他们下船了。在他们登上飞船前十分钟,"这匹种马通过终端扬声器说。
“I can do it, General,” I promised.
"我能做到，将军,"我答应他。
She sighed. “Very well. Given that you seem to have lost both fliers, I’d like to assign the sergeant and corporal here. You’ve worked together in the past.”
她叹了口气。"很好。既然你的两张传单都丢了，我想指派这里的中士和下士。你们过去一起工作过。"
I looked at the two power-armored pegasi for a long minute. They hadn’t blabbed about Glory being Rainbow Dash. I nodded once to the general.
我盯着那两个有动力装甲的飞马看了很长时间。他们并没有说晨辉就是彩虹冲刺。我向将军点了点头。
“Great. Well, at least we won’t have to worry about hellhounds,” Boomer muttered.
"太好了。"好吧，至少我们不用担心地狱犬了,"布默咕哝道。
“Don’t be so sure. You wouldn’t believe some of the rumors coming out of R&D about some intelligence programs. I’ve heard stories that there’ve been hounds spotted in Neighvarro,” Twister replied.
"不要这么肯定。你不会相信从研发部门传出的关于某些情报项目的谣言。我听说在Neighvarro发现了猎犬。"。
“Yeah, yeah. Nopony’s crazy enough to bring one of those things up here,” Boomer chuckled.
"是的，是的。"没有小马会疯狂到把那些东西带到这里来,"布默笑着说。
“You’ve got five minutes to get on the Fleur. We’ll need some StealthBucks to hide our energy signatures from the lightning rods. Otherwise, you’ll have to leave your armor and energy weapons behind,” I said to the pair, then turned a questioning expression to the general. She considered a moment, then nodded. The pair looked at each other and immediately ran for the door.
"你有五分钟的时间去拿那个鸢尾花。我们需要一些隐形钱来隐藏我们的能量信号以躲避避雷针。否则，你们将不得不把你们的装甲和能量武器留在身后,"我对他们说，然后转向将军一个质疑的表情。她想了一会儿，然后点了点头。两个人互相看了看，然后立刻跑向门口。
“Sweet! Field work!” laughed Boomer.
"太好了！野外工作!"布玛儿笑了。
“I got my bag packed just in case we got permission!” Twister said happily. Well, I supposed most Enclave soldiers weren’t detached for ‘special missions’ as often as they.
"我把行李打包好了，以防万一我们得到许可!"特维斯特高兴地说。嗯，我猜想大多数飞地士兵不像他们那样经常被派去执行"特殊任务"。
Then I remembered… If she was still here… “Also… we’re going to need one more pony…”
然后我想起来...如果她还在这里..."还有...我们还需要一匹小马..."
* * *
* * *
She was an absolute wreck, even after two weeks. They don’t have unicorn medics, I reminded myself as I carefully carried her upon my back and a duffel bag of Dusk’s belonging in my jaws. My telekinesis wasn’t up to levitating it all, and it’d take too long to let the others transfer her; if only Lacunae were here. Not just for her confidence… she’d also been telekinetically stronger than me!
即使过了两个星期，她仍然精神崩溃。他们没有独角兽医生，我一边提醒自己，一边小心翼翼地把她背在背上，嘴里还叼着一个《黄昏》杂志的行李袋。我的心灵遥感不足以使这一切飘浮起来，而且要让其他人把她转移过来需要很长时间;要是空隙在这里就好了。不仅仅是因为她的自信......她还有着比我更强大的意念力！
A little orange earth pony and a little white unicorn in my head told me to buck up and stick it out. I had to be stronger and tougher now, and while there was nothing wrong with missing her, there was no point in me tearing myself down over it. Then the pair started quibbling over if I needed to be stronger or more enduring…
一匹地球上的橙色小马和一只白色的独角兽在我的脑海里告诉我要振作起来，坚持到底。我现在必须变得更加强壮，更加坚强，虽然想念她没有什么错，但是我也没有必要为此而伤心。然后他们开始争论我是否需要变得更强壮或更持久.....。
Soul jars were weird.
灵魂罐子很奇怪。
Aboard the Fleur, Glory was still out of sight. Any stuff we’d had had been thrown all over the deck; the Enclave version of a ‘search’, I supposed. Boomer and Twister were coming with their power armor deactivated; they’d have to reactivate it once we were past the lightning rods, but at least they’d be able to bring it along. We were also bringing Dusk’s armor, which had already been shut down; apparently its repair talisman could repair the faceplate. Rampage saw my injured burden and immediately got a look I didn’t like at all. I directed P-21 to head her off with a toss of my head, though I wasn’t sure just what he’d do if she tried to press the issue and ‘help’ her pain.
在花儿号上，晨辉仍然看不见。所有我们扔在甲板上的东西，我猜是飞地版的'搜索'。布玛儿和龙卷风的能量装甲被关闭了，他们必须在我们通过避雷针后重新激活它，但至少他们可以带着它一起来。我们还带来了黄昏的装甲，它已经关闭;显然，它的修复护身符可以修复面板。狂暴看到我受伤的负担，马上看到一个我一点也不喜欢的表情。我命令P-21轰炸机一头撞向她，尽管我不确定如果她试图强调这个问题并"帮助"她减轻痛苦，他会怎么做。
“They thrashed the pedal system,” Scotch Tape complained as I set the bag down on the deck.
"他们撞坏了踏板系统,"苏格兰胶带抱怨说，我把袋子放在甲板上。
“It’s okay,” I said as I looked at Twister and Boomer.
"没关系,"我看着图斯特和布玛儿说。
“What?” the brown pegasus stallion frowned. “Do y’all expect us to push this thing all the way to Thunderhead?”
"什么?"那匹棕色的飞马皱起了眉头。"你们都指望我们把这东西一路推到雷锋山吗?"
I smiled a little wider.
我笑得更大了一点。
“Come on, Turkey. Like back in basic. Hup one. Hup two,” Twister said as she flew to the back of the Fleur. The pair began to flap their wings hard, and the ship moved off at an even quicker pace than when Rampage had been pedaling! The power armor paced us as we moved back into the clouds, but it finally veered off as I carried our disabled passenger down below to the old cabins. Whatever those three captains had planned, we’d deal with it another day.
"来吧，土耳其。就像基础训练时那样。再来一杯。"再来两杯,"推斯特边说边飞到芙蓉号的后面。两人开始使劲扇动翅膀，飞船以比狂暴骑行时更快的速度离开了！当我们回到云层中时，能量盔甲在我们身后踱来踱去，但当我把我们的残疾乘客抬到下面的老船舱时，它终于转向了。不管那三个船长有什么计划，我们都改天再处理。
There wasn’t much space, but it’d be more comfortable than being on deck while P-21, Rampage, and Scotch gathered up our belongings and put them away. The clouds were becoming so thick that it started to feel like I’d just stepped out of a cold shower. I ducked into one of the cabins that was relatively intact, kicked the junk on the floor aside, and then used my telekinesis to slide her onto the bed.
虽然空间不大，但总比在P-21、狂暴和苏格兰人收拾我们的东西并把它们收起来的时候呆在甲板上舒服。云层变得越来越厚，我开始感觉自己好像刚从冷雨中走出来。我躲进一间相对完好的小屋，把地板上的垃圾踢到一边，然后用我的心灵遥感把她推到床上。
Dusk groaned, half of the dark pegasus’s head bandaged up. Given what I’d nearly done to her… The air beside me shimmered, and Glory appeared. “Oh sweet Celestia!” she said as she took the cloak off. “She should have been in a hospital. A real hospital. What happened to her?”
黄昏呻吟着，半个黑暗的飞马头上缠着绷带。鉴于我几乎对她做了什么......我身边的空气微微发亮，晨辉出现了。"哦，亲爱的塞莱斯蒂亚!"她边说边把斗篷脱下来。"她应该去医院的。真正的医院。她怎么了?"
“Me,” I replied. “This is what I did at Yellow River. I tore off her helmet with my metal fingers,” I said shamefully. “She got off easiest. The rest didn’t survive.”
"我,"我回答。"我在黄河就是这么干的。我用金属手指扯掉了她的头盔,"我羞愧地说。"她最容易脱身了。其余的没有幸存下来。"
Glory went through her usual cycle of emotions for when I screwed up. Anger that I’d hurt her family, acknowledgement that at the time I’d been half out of my mind, and acceptance of these new facts. I was lucky she wasn’t throwing me through a wall again. “I should have sat on you rather than let you run off alone. At least sent Rampage with you,” Glory said as she began to dig out healing potions and trickled them into the unconscious mare’s mouth, waiting for her to swallow before giving her more. “You shouldn’t let her see you, Blackjack.”
当我搞砸的时候，晨辉经历了她通常的情绪周期。因为我伤害了她的家人而感到愤怒，因为我承认当时自己几乎失去了理智，并且接受了这些新的事实。我很幸运，她没有再把我扔到墙上去。"我应该坐在你身上，而不是让你一个人跑掉。至少让你暴跳如雷,"晨辉说，她开始挖出治疗药剂，慢慢地滴进昏迷的母马的嘴里，等她吞下去再给她更多。"你不应该让她看到你，Blackjack。"
Yes, I supposed that seeing her near killer might cause a bad reaction. I wanted to apologize… but really, what could I say? Dusk. Boing. Those survivors who’d stuck it out in 99’s reactor maintenance area. How did I apologize to them? After the second potion was empty, Dusk let out a groan, and one violet eye opened
是的，我猜想看到她接近凶手可能会引起不良反应。我想道歉......但说真的，我能说什么呢？黄昏。Boing.那些在99号反应堆维护区坚持下来的幸存者。我怎么向他们道歉的？第二瓶药水喝完后，黄昏发出一声呻吟，一只紫罗兰色的眼睛睁开了
up. “Who...” Dusk groaned, then looked up at Glory. “Rainbow Dash?”
向上。"谁......"黄昏呻吟着，然后抬头看着晨辉。"彩虹冲刺?"
“It’s me. Morning Glory,” Glory said as she moved between me and her sister.
"是我。牵牛花,"晨辉在我和她姐姐中间走动时说。
“Buh… must be drugged…” she said weakly. “Can’t be.”
"呃......一定是被下药了......"她虚弱地说。"不可能。"
Glory sighed. “When I was young, I used your secret Wingboner magazines for illustrations for my health and biology presentation. I got an A-, and you got grounded for a month.” I fought the urge to snicker as she huffed and muttered, “I would have gotten an A, but I didn’t know that Playmare wasn’t a noteworthy source.” …Huh?
晨辉叹了口气。"当我年轻的时候，我使用你的秘密Wingboner杂志为我的健康和生物演示插图。我得了a-，你被禁足一个月。"我努力克制着自己不去偷笑的冲动，她生气地嘟囔着,"我本来可以得a的，但是我不知道Playmare不是一个值得注意的来源。"什么？
Dusk’s lip curled a little. “Oh yeah… it is you…” She raised a hoof and brought it down in a limp smack atop Glory’s head. “That’s fer getting me grounded…” she mumbled as she blinked up at her sister. “That’s… a much better disguise…” Dusk muttered softly. “Where’re we going? And why do you look like Rainbow Dash?”
黄昏的嘴唇微微翘起。"哦，是的......是你......"她抬起一只蹄子，一瘸一拐地拍打着晨辉的头，把它放了下来。"是她让我被禁足的......"她一边对着妹妹眨眼一边喃喃自语。"这是......一个更好的伪装......"黄昏低声说。"我们要去哪儿？为什么你看起来像彩虹冲刺?"
Glory smiled and took her sister’s hooves between her own. “We’re going home. We’re going to get you fixed up. And I have things to tell you… about Father… and Mother…” Glory shielded me from Dusk’s sight with a wing, then smiled at me and glanced at the door. I nodded, kissed her cheek, and stepped out. They had a lot of catching up to do.
晨辉笑了，把她姐姐的蹄子夹在自己的蹄子里。"我们要回家。我们会把你治好的。我还有事情要告诉你......关于父亲......和母亲......"晨辉用一只翅膀挡住了黄昏的视线，然后对我微笑，瞥了一眼门。我点点头，吻了吻她的脸颊，然后走了出去。他们有很多事情要做。
I moved out into the hall and helped clean up some of the mess… Well, I collected the mess into piles for other ponies to clean up. I didn’t find anything valuable. There were some old newspapers with pictures of Rarity at some social event alongside a dashing-looking gray-maned stallion sporting a monocle. I caught sight of a certain scarred individual accompanied by the dusky lavender pegasus Eclipse in the background. The caption under the yellowed picture read ‘Princess Luna a no show at the Canterlot Garden Party.’
我搬到大厅里，帮忙清理一些乱七八糟的东西......嗯，我把这些乱七八糟的东西收集起来，让其他的小马来清理。我没找到任何有价值的东西。有一些旧报纸上刊登了一些稀有的社交活动照片，旁边是一匹长着灰色短发、神气活现、戴着单片眼镜的种马。我看到背景中有一个伤痕累累的人，旁边还有暗紫色的飞马月蚀。这张泛黄的照片下的说明是"露娜公主缺席坎特罗花园派对"
By Ace Buckley- It’s the society season in Canterlot, when all the nobles trot out to Canterlot for their parties de rigors, charity auctions that don’t address the people needing help, and other social gatherings that are only important to ponies whose lives revolve around the getting and not getting of invitations. One has to wonder a great deal about an event like this. How do they eat all that caviar? Is it possible to bore a pony to death with endless prattle? Can association with the urbane cretins passing for aristocracy drive a pony to madness? And, most importantly, what grave crime could Equestria’s most
现在是Canterlot的社交季节，所有的贵族都跑到坎特罗特参加他们的聚会，参加不针对需要帮助的人的慈善拍卖，以及其他只对小马重要的社交聚会，他们的生活围绕着得到和没有得到邀请。人们不得不对这样的事件产生很大的疑问。他们是怎么吃那么多鱼子酱的？有没有可能用没完没了的唠叨来烦死一匹小马？与彬彬有礼的白痴相比，贵族会让小马发疯吗？最重要的是，小马国最严重的犯罪
humble investigative journalist have committed to be assigned to such an event and ordered to write an article documenting every excruciating detail?
卑微的调查记者已经承诺被分配到这样的事件，并被命令写一篇文章记录每一个痛苦的细节？
Really, Rarity, you have been putting on a little extra padding, but did I truly deserve this? Fortunately for me, this column is going up before those trolls at the Ministry of Image can polish, nip, tuck, remove, edit, and redact all my wonderful words. There’s nothing like a weekend print deadline to really slip past the gatekeepers in the final frenzied rush.
说真的，稀世，你有点太夸张了，但我真的是罪有应得吗？对我来说幸运的是，这篇专栏文章将在图像部的那些怪人能够修饰、整形、除去、编辑和编辑我所有精彩的文字之前发表。没有什么比周末印刷的最后期限更能在最后的狂热冲刺中逃过看门人的眼睛了。
So what did yours truly notice at the most ahem-ahem social gathering in all of Equestria? Well, there were plenty of fine, overpriced garments on mares who, quite honestly, couldn’t pull off the twentysomething look if they had a zebra stealth cloak, an old picture, and a Flash Industries projector. Lots of stallions compensating for… honestly, most of these folks are so rich that if they can’t afford male ‘enhancement’ spells they wouldn’t be here, but clearly there’s some reason for all the fancy frivolity. The new money was in full swing; rest easy knowing Equestria’s finest profiteers are doing well. So plenty of movers, shakers, editors, and newspaper owners who will go unnamed were in attendance doing what they always do: little to nothing worth as much as they imagine. So I’ll spare you the more odious details.
那么，在全Equestria最激动人心的社交聚会上，你真正注意到了什么？老实说，如果他们有一件斑马隐形斗篷，一张旧照片，和一个闪光灯工业投影仪，他们就不能穿上二十多岁的样子。老实说，这些人中的大多数都非常富有，如果他们无法负担男性增强法术的费用，他们就不会来到这里，但是很明显，这些花哨的小花招都是有原因的。新的资金正在如火如荼地流动;不用担心，小马国最优秀的奸商们都表现得很好。因此，许多有影响力的人物、有影响力的人物、编辑和报纸所有者，他们将不知名地出席会议，做着他们一直在做的事情:没有他们想象的那么有价值。所以我就不跟你说那些可恶的细节了。
The canapés were okay.
煎饼还不错。
But do you know what struck me as I listened to a portly gentlequus complain about ‘the declining state of affairs’, nodding my head spastically at appropriate times to feign interest? The party was missing some of its usual A list material. No Ministry Mares; for the first time ever, Madame Marshmallow Buns didn’t grace us with her genteel presence. Pinkie Pie, ever one to crash formal and stuffy events with party cannons and spot arrests, was also a notable absentee. Applejack, who’s never far from family members raking in bits right, left, and center, has been a no-show for months now. One would expect Rainbow Dash to pop in to an event with little thought and mass public exposure, but the skies are clear. And while no one has expected Twilight Sparkle to do anything social for the last four years, Fluttershy almost always makes an appearance where she can make appeals on behalf of the widowed, orphaned and maimed. After all, if she doesn’t, how will the audience nod sympathetically and then ignore her?
但是你知道当我听到一个肥胖的绅士抱怨'事态的恶化'，在适当的时候不时地点点头假装感兴趣的时候，什么让我感到吃惊吗？这次聚会缺少了一些常见的一流材料。没有事工母马;有史以来第一次，棉花糖包夫人没有用她优雅的仪态来装饰我们。曾经在正式场合和乏味的活动中被派对大炮和当场逮捕的平奇派，也是一个值得注意的缺席者。苹果白兰地从来没有远离过他的家庭成员，无论是右边，左边还是中间，他已经好几个月没有露面了。人们可能会认为彩虹冲刺会突然出现在一个没有多少思考和大规模公开曝光的事件中，但天空是晴朗的。虽然在过去的四年里没有人指望紫悦做任何社交活动，但是小红毛几乎总是出现在那些她可以代表那些寡妇、孤儿和残疾人发出呼吁的地方。毕竟，如果她没有，观众怎么会同情地点头，然后忽略她呢？
But you know who’s really been gone? No, not Princess Celestia. I know. I know. It’s been four years since that mess that got Big Macintosh killed, and she’s still
但你知道谁真的离开了吗？不，不是塞莱斯蒂亚公主。我知道。我知道。自从大麦金托什死于那场混乱已经过去四年了，她仍然
in that school of hers. No. It’s the other alicorn. The big alicorn. The one who’s supposed to be sitting in seats of power and making the grand speeches and cutting ribbons, launching ships, and running the country. The dark one.
在她的学校里。没有。是另外一只独角兽。大角羊。他应该坐在权力的宝座上，发表宏大的演说，剪彩，下水航行，管理国家。暗黑使者。
Where the heck is Princess Luna?
露娜公主到底在哪里？
It’s been nine years since Luna assumed the throne, and I can count the number of appearances she’s made this year on my hooves. Oh, there’s always the obligatory fifteen minutes she spends at the G3. We might get treated to a canned Hearth’s Warming Eve broadcast. But getting the mare herself to show up to any kind of social gathering is like trying to raise the sun or get an article like this past a gauntlet of Image editors: impossible for all but the most exceptional of ponies.
露娜登基已经九年了，我可以用我的蹄子数她今年出场的次数。哦，她总是在G3上度过必不可少的15分钟。我们可能会收听到一段录制的壁炉温暖前夜的广播。但是让母马自己出现在任何形式的社交聚会上就像试图抬起太阳或者让这样一篇文章通过图像编辑的挑战:对所有人来说都是不可能的，除了最特别的小马。
Now, I know what you’ll say. Oh, she’s a Princess. She doesn’t have to leave the palace. She’s probably far too busy. Well, if she is busy, nopony can say what exactly she’s busy with, because so few ponies have access to the Princess. Thirteen requests by yours truly this year for an interview have been denied by the Royal Guard with no reason given. Sixty-four requests through the M.o.I. were also turned down. I’ve spoken with dozens of other journalists who have had similar experiences: denials, refusals, or ‘scheduling conflicts’.
现在，我知道你会说什么。哦，她是个公主。她不必离开宫殿。她可能太忙了。好吧，如果她很忙，没有小马能说出她到底在忙什么，因为很少有小马能接近公主。今年皇家卫队毫无理由地拒绝了本人提出的十三项采访请求。通过m.o.i提出的64项请求也被拒绝。我和其他几十个有类似经历的记者交谈过:否认、拒绝或者日程安排冲突。
The lights are on in the palace, but there’s nopony answering the door.
宫殿里的灯亮着，但没有小马应门。
Somepony is getting work done there, but you’d be hard pressed to find out who it is. Is the Princess deep in conference with her Ministry Mares, or is it, as some have alleged, that the Princess meets with them only to approve specific projects and proposals? We don’t know. Is she working closely with generals to win the war or simply passing on instructions through bureaucrats? We don’t know. What is Princess Luna actually doing to run the country?
一些小马正在那里完成工作，但你会很难找出它是谁。是公主深入与她的部马里斯会议，还是像一些人所说的，公主会见他们只是为了批准具体的项目和建议？我们不知道。她是与将军们密切合作以赢得战争，还是仅仅是向官僚们传达指令？我们不知道。卢娜公主到底是如何管理这个国家的？
We don’t know.
我们不知道。
So this is Ace Buckley’s report from the Canterlot Garden Party. Very boring. Okay canapés. No Ministry Mares. No Princesses. And if this is my last printed article, let me say this, Ministry Mare Fatflanks: you can silence, censure, and fire me, but don’t think that by getting me assigned to the Canterlot ‘social pages’ you can stop Ace Buckley from asking the hard questions.
这是埃斯·巴克利来自坎特罗花园党的报告。非常无聊。好的，我们走。没有部门母马。没有公主。如果这是我发表的最后一篇文章，让我这样说，法特弗兰克部:你可以沉默，谴责，解雇我，但不要认为通过把我分配到坎特罗的社交页面，你可以阻止埃斯巴克利提出尖锐的问题。
I smiled as I glanced at the yellowed picture of an emaciated-looking earth pony stallion. He was completely bald, and his eyes were concealed behind round,
我微笑着瞥了一眼那张发黄的照片，照片上是一匹瘦弱的土地上的种马。他光秃秃的，眼睛圆圆的,
dark glasses. His jaw was covered in stubble, and I had no problem imagining him reeking of booze. From the sneer of his lips and the scowl of his brow, I imagined his favorite line to be something on the nature of ‘Fuck you. Give me the damned story!’. Best of all was the rumpled, ill-fitting tuxedo he’d been crammed into and the way he had each forehoof clenched around the neck of a well-dressed mare and stallion who seemed to be verging on asphyxiation. ‘Ace Buckley, social pony’ read the caption at the end of the article.
墨镜。他的下巴满是胡茬，我毫不怀疑地想象着他满身酒气。从他嘴唇的嘲笑和眉头的皱纹，我猜想他最喜欢的台词应该是'操你妈的'。把那该死的故事给我.最棒的是他塞进去的那件皱巴巴的、不合身的燕尾服，以及他紧紧握住一匹穿着考究的母马和种马脖子的方式，这匹母马和种马似乎快要窒息了。"艾斯·巴克利，社交小马"文章结尾的说明。
There were other papers strewn along the floor, most of them too smudged to be legible. I squinted and tilted my head as I made out Rarity’s name.
还有其他的文件散落在地板上，大部分都模糊不清，难以辨认。我斜着头，眯起眼睛看了看珍妮的名字。
Rarity,
珍品
I’m so sorry to hear about the difficulties you’ve had recently with Sweetie Belle and Blueblood. I’m afraid he hasn’t abated his mudslinging one bit; it might not make it into the papers, but word is getting around. However, he has something new. He claims that he has some exclusive stable reserved for the finest ponies. I was skeptical at first, but he’s getting the attention of some exceptionally well to do ponies. The price tag is an extravagant ten million bits per reserved seat.
我很遗憾听到你最近和甜心贝儿和蓝血儿之间的矛盾。恐怕他的诽谤一点也没有减少，这件事可能不会上报，但是消息已经传开了。然而，他有一些新的东西。他声称他有一个专门为最好的小马准备的马厩。一开始我还有点怀疑，但是他引起了一些特别有钱的小马的注意。每个预定座位的价格是一个奢侈的一千万比特。
I’m skeptical about anything involving him, but Vanity has confirmed, if grudgingly, that this ‘Redoubt’ exists. He has stated it lies somewhere in the Hoofington region, is protected by magics far older than most, and will withstand even the strongest megaspells. May I be blunt? I know your finances are not excessive, no matter what the common slob may believe. If you wish it, I will procure additional spots for you, your sister, and your parents. I hope that you will
我对任何与他有关的事情都持怀疑态度，但是《虚荣》已经证实了这个"堡垒"的存在，尽管这个证实有些勉强。他说它位于Hoofington地区的某个地方，受到比大多数古老得多的魔法保护，甚至能抵御最强大的巨冈。恕我直言？我知道你的财务状况并不过分，不管这个普通的懒汉相信什么。如果你愿意，我会为你、你姐姐和你父母争取更多的名额。我希望你会
But the letter was unfinished. I could only assume that the author was the ‘Fancy Pants’ who’d once owned the Fleur. I thought about what had happened to Rarity. How she died in Canterlot, her hoof fused to a window... I wished she’d escaped to some remote stable with Fancy Pants or Vanity... I wished as many ponies as possible had survived that mess. I knew better...
但是这封信还没有写完。我只能假设作者就是那个曾经拥有花朵的"花裤子"。我想到了发生在罕有身上的事。她是怎么死在Canterlot的，她的蹄子粘在了窗户上......我希望她逃到了某个偏僻的马厩，和"花哨的裤子"或者"虚荣"在一起......我希望尽可能多的小马在那场混乱中幸存下来。我更清楚..。
I sighed, Lacunae’s memory walking into my thoughts as casually and gently as the mare herself once did. For an instant, she’d been Twilight. I’d wanted to tell her about Big Macintosh. Wanted to let her know that she had a child, if via Marigold. I wondered… would she have been proud of me? Or would she have covered her face in embarrassment at her barbarian descendant? Pure Twilight…
我叹了口气，空隙的记忆走进我的思绪，就像那匹母马自己曾经做过的那样随意而温柔。有那么一瞬间，她成了暮光之城。我想告诉她关于大麦金托什的事。想让她知道她有个孩子，如果是通过万寿菊的话。我在想......她会为我感到骄傲吗？或者她会不会因为自己的野蛮后裔而尴尬地捂住脸？纯粹的暮光..。
gone. Lacunae… gone. As if she’d never existed, like she’d insisted.
消失。缺口...消失了。就好像她从来没有存在过，就像她坚持的那样。
“You idiot,” I sniffed. “I miss you, so you existed. Damn it…” I wished she was here. With her magic and wisdom and silent confidence and… just… here!
"你这个白痴,"我嗤之以鼻。"我想你，所以你存在。该死..."我希望她在这里。用她的魔法和智慧，无声的自信，还有......就在......这里！
“Are you all right?” Lancer said from behind me, making me start. I needed to put a bell on him!
"你没事吧?"兰瑟从我身后说，让我开始。我得在他身上装个铃铛！
“I think this is the first time you’ve snuck up behind me without shooting me,” I said as I turned to look at him. “What’s up?”
"我想这是你第一次悄悄地走到我身后而没有朝我开枪,"我转过身看着他说。"怎么了?"
“You said you’ve killed ponies who didn’t deserve it,” he said as he walked into the cabin I was ‘cleaning’. “How did you… How…?” Clearly, he wasn’t sure how to ask the Maiden this.
"你说你杀了不该死的小马,"他走进小屋时说，我正在'打扫'。"你怎么...怎么...?"很明显，他不知道该怎么问少女这个问题。
“Did I go on?” I prompted. He bit his lip and nodded. “I almost didn’t. But then a friend told me something I’ll never forget. You make your life about making up for that death. You devote yourself to doing the right thing and helping as many as you can. And you hope… hope as hard as you can… that when you die, you’ve made up for a tenth of the life you took.” I sighed, rubbing the back of my head. “Unfortunately, I am not the smartest or safest of ponies to be around. Maybe there is something to your Maiden story.”
"我说完了吗?"我提示道。他咬着嘴唇点了点头。"我几乎没有。但是后来一个朋友告诉我一些我永远不会忘记的事情。你的生活就是为了弥补死亡。你致力于做正确的事情，尽你所能帮助更多的人。你希望......尽你所能地希望......当你死的时候，你已经弥补了你夺走的生命的十分之一。"我叹了口气，抚摸着后脑勺。"不幸的是，我不是周围最聪明或最安全的小马。也许你的少女故事里有些东西。"
“Perhaps. I do not know. You still scare me,” he admitted. Maybe there was something about candor that was a zebra thing.
"也许吧。我不知道。你还是让我害怕,"他承认道。也许有些关于坦诚的东西是斑马的东西。
“Why did your father order you to kill them? What did your mother do?” I asked quietly.
""你父亲为什么命令你杀他们？你妈妈是做什么的?"我平静地问道。
“I…” he opened his mouth, then closed it and thought a moment. “I cannot say for certain anymore. Since that duel, nothing is certain. We were told that they were cowards who spread falsehood and lies. But now… now I cannot recall Mother saying anything about Father before she fled. His other wives said nothing, but simply agreed with his claim.”
"我.....。。」他张开嘴，闭上嘴，想了一会儿。"我不能再肯定了。自从那次决斗之后，没有什么是确定的。我们被告知他们是散布谎言和谎言的懦夫。但是现在...现在我不记得母亲在逃跑之前说过任何关于父亲的事情。他的其他妻子什么也没说，只是简单地同意了他的要求。"
“Other wives?” I asked with a grin.
"其他妻子?"我咧嘴笑着问。
“Yes,” he said baldly. “Is that a problem?”
"是的,"他直截了当地说。"这有问题吗?"
“No. It’s just…” I couldn’t help myself, “How many wives?”
"没有。只是..."我情不自禁地问,"有几个老婆?"
“Eleven, now,” he answered.
"十一，现在,"他回答。
“Wow,” I murred. “Wonder how he finds time to sleep.”
"哇,"我低声说。"不知道他是怎么挤出时间睡觉的。"
He shook his head. “Father is a great warrior. He has slain dragons with his bare hooves. Conjugal duties are hardly taxing.” Lancer looked towards the window, frowning. “The day before she fled… they hunted a balefire phoenix… a great and dangerous prey. Something happened, but I know not what. Only that when Mother returned, she said she’d done something terrible. Then she left with my little sister and begged me to come with her. I refused. Two days later, Father returned and said that Mother had tried to kill him. When I told him she’d asked me to leave with her, he sent me to kill all the traitors.”
他摇了摇头。"父亲是个伟大的战士。他用光秃秃的蹄子杀过龙。夫妻间的义务几乎不费力。"兰瑟朝窗户望去，皱着眉头。"在她逃跑的前一天......他们猎杀了一只凤凰......一只巨大而危险的猎物。发生了一些事，但我不知道是什么。只是当妈妈回来的时候，她说她做了一件可怕的事情。然后她和我的小妹妹一起离开了，请求我和她一起走。我拒绝了。两天后，父亲回来了，说母亲想杀了他。当我告诉他她要我和她一起离开时，他派我去杀掉所有的叛徒。"
I sat on the ruined bed, facing him. “Lancer, do you know anything about the zebras around the Hoof? What is your father planning?”
我坐在废弃的床上，面对着他。"Lancer，你了解蹄子周围的斑马吗？你父亲在计划什么?"
“I do not know,” he answered quietly. “Most of those at the far camps are the Brood. They are… terrifying. They come from no tribe. They barely speak at all, and yet they have the knowledge of veteran warriors. No fear. No questioning. They obey Father’s every wish.”
"我不知道,"他平静地回答。"远处营地的大部分人都是布鲁德夫妇。他们是...可怕的。他们不属于任何部落。他们几乎不说话，但是他们有经验丰富的战士。无所畏惧。毫无疑问。他们服从父亲的每一个愿望。"
“But where did they come from? I thought they might be from your homeland,” I ventured.
""可是他们是从哪里来的呢？我想它们可能来自你的祖国,"我大胆地说。
He shook his head firmly. “The passage across the strait is perilous. Only a few small ships will risk a megalodon swallowing the vessel. It would take a year to ferry the numbers he has found.” He closed his eyes. “For the last year, Father has frequently gone out alone. He says there was an ancient prize to be had in the Hoof. A weapon which would allow us to sweep the valley clear. For a time, I thought he meant the balefire bomb… yet that was found far from the city. Then, one day, he emerged from the tent looking more overjoyed than I’d ever seen him. He said half of it had been unsealed. Then, one night, he laughed long into the night. He said it was the beginning of the end.”
他坚定地摇了摇头。"海峡两岸的通道是危险的。只有少数几艘小船会冒着巨齿鲨吞噬这艘船的危险。他发现的数字需要一年时间才能摆脱。"他闭上了眼睛。"去年，父亲经常一个人出去。他说在霍夫有一个古老的奖项。一件能让我们把山谷清理干净的武器。有一段时间，我还以为他指的是那枚火焰炸弹......然而那枚炸弹是在远离城市的地方发现的。然后，有一天，他从帐篷里出来，看起来比我见过的任何时候都要高兴。他说其中一半已经解封了。然后，一天晚上，他笑到深夜。他说这是结束的开始。"
Well, that certainly sent chills down my spine. “Did he ever elaborate?” I asked, hopeful. From somewhere, I heard the long low growl of Hoofington thunder. A deep, bassy growl that seemed to be welcoming me home.
这真是让我毛骨悚然。"他有没有详细说明过?"我满怀希望地问道。不知从什么地方，我听到了胡芬顿雷鸣般的低沉隆隆声。一声低沉的咆哮似乎在欢迎我回家。
“No. But soon after, he went alone into a bunker in the southeast, near Grimhoof. I am not sure if it was zebra or pony in origin. It was hidden beneath an empty
"没有。但不久之后，他独自进入了Grimhoof附近东南部的一个地堡。我不确定它是来自斑马还是小马。它被藏在一个空洞的下面
warehouse. We waited outside the star-marked door. For hours he was inside. Then he emerged with a dozen of the Brood. Some of the warriors protested, and Father had them killed on the spot. Since then, whenever Father leaves, he comes back with more of the Brood. Dozens. Hundreds. ‘A gift of Four Stars’ he calls them.”
仓库。我们在有星星标记的门外等候。他在里面呆了好几个小时。然后他和十几个布鲁德一起出现了。一些战士提出抗议，父亲当场就把他们杀死了。从那以后，无论父亲什么时候离开，他都会带着更多的魔龙军团回来。几十个。成百上千。他称之为'四星礼物'。"
“Four stars? What four…” but then I remembered something Boing had said. They’d been camped outside a bunker with four stars on the door. Those events were thankfully blurry for me, but I thought there might have been one somewhere else, too. Inside the foundation of some building in the midst of construction. And Bottlecap had talked about a bunker up north. I’d thought she’d been talking about my stable… “Can you wait just a minute, please?” I’d have loved to ask Lacunae this right now… Instead, I flipped open my broadcaster and thought of who I could bug. Pinkie Pie had mentioned something about them too, hadn’t she? Bad ponies…
"四颗星？什么四......"然后我想起了波音说过的话。他们在一个门上挂着四颗星的地堡外扎营。谢天谢地，这些事件对我来说都很模糊，但我觉得可能在其他地方也有一个。建筑中部某建筑物的地基内部。而Bottlecap曾经说过北边有一个地堡。我还以为她是在说我的马厩......"你能稍等一下吗?"我很想现在就问Lacunae这个问题......相反，我打开播音员，想着我可以窃听谁。平奇·派也提到过他们，不是吗？坏小马。
I found the right terminal address and established the connection. “Security to Watcher. Security to Watcher. Come in you big, handsome, purple guy.” There was a hiss of static, followed by a click, and the connection went dead. Instantly fear ran through me. Was the Enclave, or somepony else, trying to raid Spike’s cave? I peered down at the PipBuck screen. ‘Connection manually interrupted, MASEBS Tower #19.’
我找到了正确的终端地址并建立了连接。"保安呼叫观察者。保安呼叫守望者。进来吧，你这个又大又帅又紫的家伙。"有一阵静电噪音的嘶嘶声，接着是咔嗒一声，然后连接就断了。我立刻感到恐惧。是飞地，还是别的什么小马，想袭击斯派克的洞穴？我凝视着PipBuck的屏幕。"连接手动中断，梅塞布斯塔19号"
What? Manually? Somepony out there was dicking with me. I smiled sweetly. “Dealer? Dealer? I need your help.” I looked around. So often he just appeared. New fears bubbled up inside me. First Lacunae, now Dealer? “Dealer? Come on…”
什么？手动的？外面有个小马在耍我。我甜甜地笑了。"经销商？经销商？我需要你的帮助。"我环顾四周。他经常就这样出现。新的恐惧在我心中涌起。先是缺陷，现在又是毒贩？"经销商？来吧......"
“I’m here,” he rasped slowly. I peered around again, but I couldn’t see him.
"我在这儿,"他慢吞吞地说。我再次环顾四周，但我看不到他。
“Are you okay?” I asked in concern.
"你还好吗?"我担心地问。
“Just tired. EC-1101 wasn’t meant to be crammed into so small a PipBuck. It’s been a strain. Hopefully you’ll get… well… nevermind. What’s wrong?” he muttered in my ears.
"只是累了。Ec-1101并不打算塞进这么小的一个PipBuck。压力太大了。希望你能...好吧...算了。怎么了?"他在我耳边喃喃自语。
“I need to know about ‘Four Stars’. I wanted to ask Spike, but somepony is blocking the connection. Can you do something about it? With EC-1101?” I asked, for some reason my eyes being drawn up. Lancer was giving me that
"我需要了解'四星级'。我想问斯派克，但有个小马挡住了连接。你能做点什么吗？用EC-1101?"我问道，不知为什么，我的眼睛被拉了起来。兰瑟给了我这个
funny expression again. “Yeah, I talk to things only I can see and hear. Wacky, huh?”
又是奇怪的表情。"是的，我对着只有我能看到和听到的东西说话。很古怪，是吧?"
“That is a word for it…” he replied as his ears folded back.
"这是一个词......"他回答说，他的耳朵向后收起。
Dealer was silent for a long minute. “Try now.”
庄家沉默了很长时间。"现在就试试吧。"
“Security to Watcher. Come in,” I said, now with no joking around. There was a distant flash through the portholes; miles off, but still a bit too close for my comfort. The thunder rolled through the clouds.
"保安呼叫观察者。"进来吧,"我说，现在不开玩笑了。从舷窗里传来一道遥远的闪光，离我好几英里，但离我还是有点太近了。雷声穿过云层。
Fortunately, almost immediately a deep, ominous voice growled out. “Blackjack! You’re alive? This is great! I’ve been frantic since Maripony. I haven’t been able to contact anyone! Someone is blocking me out of the MASEBS, and my remote links are all compromised. I’m blind here!” The voice made Lancer’s mane and tail stand nearly upright.
幸运的是，几乎立刻传来一个低沉的、不祥的声音。"黑杰克！你还活着？这太棒了！我从马里波尼回来后就发疯了。我联系不上任何人！有人把我挡在了MASEBS之外，我的远程连接也被破坏了。我瞎了!"这声音使枪骑兵的鬃毛和尾巴几乎直立起来。
If the Enclave thought that LittlePip and I were terrorists, and knew we’d associated with Spike, it wouldn’t be hard for them to put two and two together and try to cut off Spike. Maybe even draw the dragon out with worry. “The Enclave is going nuts right now. The Stable Dweller accidentally killed the head of their military, as well as a whole bunch of other important ponies. I don’t know what they’re going to do, but it appears like they’ve tried to cut off access to the MASEBS network.” I paused and added, “The Stable Dweller is all right, Watcher. She survived too.”
如果昂科雷认为小匹普和我是恐怖分子，并且知道我们和斯派克有联系，那么对他们来说，把两件事联系起来并试图阻止斯派克就不难了。也许甚至可以用担心把龙引出来。"昂科雷现在正在发疯。马厩居住者意外地杀死了他们的军队首领，以及一大堆其他重要的小马。我不知道他们会怎么做，但看起来他们试图切断对MASEBS网络的访问。"我停顿了一下，又补充说:"马厩居民还不错，守望者。她也活了下来。"
I heard the breath let out in a great gust. “Thank Celestia. Thank you, Security.” There was a pause, and the deep growling was replaced by the tinny synthetic voice. “I’ll keep working to break through their interference. They must have done something at Tenpony to have this kind of access. I hope DJ Pon3 is all right.”
我听见呼吸在一阵狂风中呼出。"谢谢塞莱斯蒂亚。谢谢你，保安。"停顿了一下，低沉的咆哮声被细小的人造声音所取代。"我会继续努力，突破他们的干扰。他们肯定在Tenpony做了什么才能获得这种渠道。我希望DJPon3没事。"
“Me too,” I said, now wondering if I should… ugh… no. I had my own crisis to worry about. “The Stable Dweller can handle it. Listen. I need to ask you a question. Does the word ‘Four Stars’ mean anything to you?”
"我也是,"我说，现在想知道我是否应该......呃......不。我自己也有危机需要担心。"稳定居民可以应付得来。听着。我要问你一个问题。'四星'这个词对你来说有什么意义吗?"
“That’s two words,” Spike and Lancer replied simultaneously. I rolled my eyes and then gave the stink eye to the one I could see.
"那是两个词,"斯派克和兰瑟同时回答。我转了转眼睛，然后用恶狠狠的眼神看着我能看见的那个人。
“Before the war, Four Stars was a transportation company. Big connections.
"战前，四星是一家运输公司。庞大的关系网。
They were plugged into the import business. Pinkie Pie was dead set on taking them down. She started with a raid in Manehattan, but they were going to storm every holding from Hoofington to Las Pegasus,” Watcher replied.
他们参与了进口业务。平奇·派下定决心要拿下他们。她从Manehattan的一次突袭开始，但是他们将冲击从Hoofington到拉斯帕伽索斯的每一个据点。"。
“Why?” I asked, glancing over at Lancer. The Fleur began to creak as the wind picked up outside.
"为什么?"我问道，瞥了一眼兰瑟。随着外面的风越刮越大，芙蓉开始咯吱作响。
“Zebra sympathizers. A whole network of ponies who ended up helping the enemy. Major players. Right before the bombs fell, Pinkie focused on them. I don’t know if it was the raid that set off the attack or not. They had built bases of operations all over Equestria, smuggling in weapons and even enemy soldiers. Funny thing is… nopony is sure who owned it. Maybe Pinkie or somepony in the M.o.M. knew.”
"同情斑马的人。一大群小马最终帮助了敌人。主要参与者。就在炸弹落下之前，平奇把注意力集中在他们身上。我不知道是不是这次袭击引发了这次袭击。他们在Equestria各地建立军事基地，走私武器，甚至偷运敌军士兵。有趣的是...没有小马能确定它是谁的。也许作案手法里的小手指或者小马知道。"
I frowned. Bases all over Equestria. Bunkers hidden in buildings under construction. “Why four stars? And do you know if they were connected to the O.I.A. or Goldenblood?” After all, the O.I.A. did seem to be the Ministry of Secret Underhoofed Deeds.
我皱起了眉头。遍布Equestria的军事基地。隐藏在建筑物中的地堡。"为什么是四星？你知道他们是否和o.i.a.或者Goldenblood有关吗?"毕竟，o.i.a.看起来确实像是秘密地下行动部。
“I don’t know. I never heard Goldenblood mention them. I think…” Spike was silent a moment, then went on, “Wait. I do remember something. I remember way back, when Twilight first travelled to Ponyville, she thought Nightmare Moon was going to return. Nopony seemed to believe her at the time. Twilight found a passage in one of her books, right before we left Canterlot. It said ‘The four stars shall help with her escape,’ or something like that. And then Nightmare Moon showed up the very next day.” He trailed off a moment. “It was when we first met the pony gang. That’s why I could recall it…”
"我不知道。我从没听金血王提起过他们。我想......"斯派克沉默了一会儿，然后继续说,"等等。我确实记得一些事。我记得很久以前，当《暮光之城》第一次来到Ponyville的时候，她认为恶梦之月会回来。当时，小马驹似乎相信她的话。就在我们离开坎特罗特之前，暮光在她的一本书里找到了一段话。上面写着'四星会帮助她逃跑'之类的话。第二天噩梦之月就出现了。"他拖延了一会儿。"那是我们第一次见到小马帮的时候。这就是为什么我能回忆起来......"
If I could give hugs through a radio link… “And you’re positive that these folks were working with zebras? And they named their company after something that set Nightmare Moon free?” I frowned as I regarded Lancer, to see if he thought that was as messed up as I did. From the bafflement and disgust on his face, I thought so. “Well, thanks for telling me that. How are you doing?”
如果我能通过无线电联系拥抱他们......"你确定这些人和斑马一起工作？他们的公司就是以让噩梦之月重获自由的东西命名的?"我皱起了眉头，看看他是否也像我一样认为那是一团糟。从他脸上的困惑和厌恶来看，我想是的。"嗯，谢谢你告诉我这些。你怎么样?"
“I was chewing my claws till you called. I knew Litt- er, the Stable Dweller was in the area of Maripony, and… well… I’m just glad to hear from anyone right now. The Enclave have control over the EBS now, so I’m struggling just to network spritebots together and carry a signal.”
"在你打电话来之前，我一直在咬我的爪子。我知道Litt-er，马厩定居者在Maripony地区，而且......嗯......我只是很高兴现在收到任何人的来信。昂科雷现在已经控制了EBS，所以我只能努力将spritebots连接在一起并传输信号。"
“Well, keep your eyes open, and watch out for her as soon as you can, Watcher. I
""好吧，睁大你的眼睛，尽快地注意她，守望者。一
got my own mess to deal with out east. I’ll try to check in soon. I want to know what’s going on as much as you do,” I said, looking gravely at Lancer.
东部还有我自己的烂摊子要处理。我尽快联系你。我和你一样想知道发生了什么事,"我说，严肃地看着兰瑟。
“Take care of yourself, Security. Watch out for your friends,” Spike said, then cut off.
"保重，保安。"当心你的朋友,"斯派克说，然后切断了电话。
“That makes no sense,” Lancer said sharply. “When I saw the stars on the door, I thought it was simple pony decoration. But this Watcher… setting the Maiden free! No zebra would do such a thing.”
"这没有道理,"兰瑟尖锐地说。"当我看到门上的星星时，我以为这只是简单的小马装饰。但是这个守望者...释放了少女！没有斑马会做这种事。"
I frowned. There was something not coming together. “The zebras wouldn’t have known about the four stars reference. That was a pony myth. And the ponies wouldn’t have known about the Maiden of the Stars… that was a zebra myth.” There didn’t seem to be any overlap, except for one. “Lancer, what did the Starkatteri tribe do during the war?”
我皱起了眉头。有些东西没有联系起来。"斑马不可能知道四星的含义。那只是小马的神话。而且小马也不会知道星星少女...那是斑马的神话。"似乎没有任何重叠，除了一个。"枪骑兵，战争期间斯塔卡特里部落做了什么?"
The question clearly disturbed Lancer. Stark lightning threw his face into sharp relief as the thunder boomed seconds later. “The Starkatteri were laborers. They toiled in mines and factories. They were forbidden from fighting in the war. They suffered and died in toxic, poorly ventilated conditions instead.”
这个问题显然使兰瑟感到不安。随着几秒钟后雷声隆隆，斯塔克的闪电使他的脸突然变得清晰起来。"斯塔卡特里号是劳动者。他们在矿山和工厂里辛勤劳动。他们被禁止参战。他们在有毒、通风条件差的环境中遭受折磨，最终死亡。"
“But would the Last Caesar have used them and their dark knowledge?”
"但是最后的凯撒会利用他们和他们的黑暗知识吗?"
The question insulted him. “Absolutely not!”
这个问题侮辱了他。"绝对不行!"
I stared at him. “Are you certain? Without a doubt?” I glared into his eyes as the storm played in the distance. There was doubt there before he dropped his gaze. “There were two wars being fought,” I muttered as I slowly walked towards the windows. “The first one was the war we all knew. Soldiers and weapons and battle and megaspells. But there was a second war being fought, too. A hidden war. Goldenblood on one side… somepony else on the other. Secrets and lies… using the battle between your people and mine to cover what they were doing.”
我盯着他。""你确定吗？毫无疑问?"当暴风雨在远处肆虐时，我瞪着他的眼睛。在他垂下目光之前，还有些疑惑。"发生了两场战争,"我一边慢慢走向窗户，一边喃喃自语。"第一个是我们都知道的战争。士兵，武器，战斗，巨型细胞。但同时也发生了第二次战争。一场不为人知的战争。一边是金色的血，另一边是矮种马。秘密和谎言......利用你我之间的战争来掩盖他们的所作所为。"
“What are you saying, Blackjack?” he asked, clearly shocked.
"你在说什么，黑杰克?"他问道，显然很震惊。
“I’m saying that the war that we all thought was fought over borders and resources… someone used it. They used you, and they used us for their own ends.” I stared out at the flashes of the gathering storm. “What if the last war… didn’t end?”
"我的意思是，我们都认为是为了边界和资源而战的战争......有人利用了这场战争。他们利用你们，利用我们达到他们自己的目的。"我凝视着正在聚集的暴风雨的闪光。"如果上次战争......没有结束呢?"
“It ended! Your spells! Our bombs! It is finished!” he cried out as he stepped beside me. “Even the Remnant admits that, if in hushed tones. The last order is simply a reason to go on.”
"结束了！你的咒语！我们的炸弹！已经结束了!"他走到我身边，大声喊道。"即使是例外人也承认，如果用低沉的语调。最后一道命令只是继续下去的一个理由。"
“I’m not sure. Since I left Stable 99, I’ve been running into the past more and more. Something bad happened then, and it’s been like an oozing wound ever since. The more I learn, the more relevant that secret war feels. Secrets and lies and old ponies not quite dead.” Through gaps in the clouds, I could see flickers of a distant green glow and just make out the black towers biting the clouds.
"我不确定。自从我离开Stable99，我就越来越多地回到过去。然后发生了一些不好的事情，从那以后就像一个渗出的伤口。我了解的越多，就越觉得这场秘密战争有意义。秘密、谎言和老马还没有完全消失。"透过云层的缝隙，我可以看到远处闪烁的绿色光芒，只能看到黑色的塔尖顶着云层。
What was it? Security saves ponies, but from what? What was the peril that scratched at my mane and whispered in my ears? Goldenblood’s Project Horizons? Lighthooves’s plague? The Legate’s balefire bomb? Cognitum in the Core? Why couldn’t I have enemies that I could just face? Opponents to battle and overcome? The Enclave… the Goddess… Red Eye… Remnant… Brood of Coyotl… I wanted to rage! Damn this body! I needed to feel pissed off!
那是什么？安全保障拯救小马，但是从哪里拯救呢？是什么危险抓我的鬃毛，在我耳边低语？金色血液的地平线计划？轻舟的瘟疫？特使的巴勒火炸弹？核心中的认知？为什么我就不能面对敌人呢？对手要战斗，要战胜？飞地......女神......红眼睛......考约特的残余......种族......我想发怒！该死的身体！我需要感到愤怒！
“Come at me, you motherfuckers!” I screamed, slamming my hooves against the window and splintering the glass. “Come on! Face me!” I yelled, rearing again and smashing my hooves till the glass shattered and cold, rainy wind blew in. “I’ll kill you! I’ll smash you to pieces!” I bellowed towards that distant green glow as I kicked again and again, knocking out the window frame in my fury. The thunder rumbled before me, and to me it was the laughter of that distant spire and my enemies. “Face me! Fight me! You Goddesses-damned motherfuckers!”
"来啊，你们这些混蛋!"我尖叫着，用蹄子狠狠地敲打着窗户，玻璃碎了。"来吧！面对我吧!"我大叫起来，又站起来，摔碎了我的蹄子，直到玻璃碎了，冷冷的，下雨的风吹进来。"我要杀了你！我要把你碎尸万段!"我朝着远处发出的绿光吼叫着，一次又一次地踢着，愤怒地把窗框踢翻了。雷声在我面前隆隆作响，对我来说，那是远处尖塔和敌人的笑声。"面对我吧！跟我打！你们这些该死的混蛋!"
“Maiden!” Lancer shouted. I stood right at the brink of the hole I’d kicked in the side of the airship, and at the word I glared back at him. The Maiden glared back at him with a rage that made him step back in fear and awe. Bringer of chaos. Destroyer of people. That was me. “You cannot fly,” was all he said.
"少女!"枪骑兵喊道。我站在飞艇侧面被我踢出的洞的边缘，听到这个词，我瞪了他一眼。少女怒视着他，愤怒使他在恐惧和敬畏中后退了一步。混乱的带来者。人类的毁灭者。那就是我。"你不能飞,"他只说了这么一句。
It would be nice if my body had some kind of calm down mode. But in that terrified yet respectful expression in his eye, I saw that I really was on the verge of something bad. I sat, slumping before the hole as the cold rain spat in at me. I regarded the distant towers of the Core, wishing I could destroy them with my glare alone, before I hung my head. Defeated. Impotent. And I could hear the black towers laughing.
如果我的身体有某种平静下来的模式就好了。但是从他那恐惧而又尊敬的眼神中，我看出我真的处在一个糟糕的境地的边缘。我坐在那里，一屁股坐在洞口，冰冷的雨水喷了我一身。我注视着远处的核心塔，希望在我低下头之前，我可以单独用我的目光摧毁它们。失败。阳痿。我能听到黑色的塔楼在笑。
The door opened and P-21 and Rampage ran in. They viewed me and the hole
门开了，P-21和狂暴跑了进来。他们看着我和那个洞
I’d bashed and Lancer. “Um, if you want to throw him off the ship, the deck is right up there.”
我狠狠地揍了他一顿，还打了兰瑟。"嗯，如果你想把他扔下船，甲板就在那边。"
“I… don’t. I’m not,” I said as I covered my face. “I’m just… it’s been a long day. Sorry.”
"我.....。.不要。我没有,"我捂着脸说。"我只是......今天太累了。对不起。"
“Right,” P-21 said as he looked at me, then at Lancer. “Well, don’t make that hole any bigger. It’s an old airship.” He turned and walked out. Rampage glared at Lancer and said something in Zebra, then pointed her hoofclaws at her face, then at him, before she backed out. A second later, her head popped back around the doorjamb, repeated the gesture, and slowly withdrew a final time.
"是的,"P-21看着我说，然后又看着Lancer。"好了，别把那个洞弄大了。这是一艘旧飞艇。"他转身走了出去。狂暴怒怒视着兰瑟，用斑仔的话说了些什么，然后用蹄爪指着她的脸，然后又指着他，最后她退了出去。过了一会儿，她的头又绕过门框，重复了这个动作，然后最后一次慢慢缩回去。
“Your friends are concerned about you,” Lancer said. And him too.
"你的朋友很关心你,"兰瑟说。还有他。
“Sorry,” I said, a word that was a bit threadbare for me. “I’m just… really sick of this place. I hate it more than you do, I think.” He didn’t approach me as I sat before that hole. “So. What are you going to do?”
"对不起,"我说，这个词对我来说有点俗套。"我只是......真的很讨厌这个地方。我想，我比你更讨厌它。"当我坐在那个洞前时，他没有接近我。"所以。你打算怎么办?"
He thought a moment, then answered, “I don’t know. My whole life has been the Remnant. My whole reason for living was to make Father proud. Now… I do not know. But I do not wish to follow in your wake, Maiden. I know that much.”
他想了一会儿，然后回答说:"我不知道。我的一生都是为了残余者。我活着的全部理由就是要让父亲感到骄傲。现在...我不知道。但是我不想跟随你的脚步，少女。我知道这一点。"
He deserved a chance. “What if I told you that your mother and little sister were still alive?”
他应该得到一个机会。"如果我告诉你，你的母亲和小妹妹还活着呢?"
“What?” he hissed in shock.
"什么?"他吓得发出嘶嘶声。
“Glory got to them before they died. They’re still alive. Both of them.”
"晨辉在他们死之前就降临到他们身上了。他们还活着。他们俩都是。"
“W…why didn’t you tell me sooner!?” he demanded, shocked.
"w..你为什么不早点告诉我?"他震惊地问道。
“One day ago, you tried to kill me. Two days ago, you were your father’s right-hoof zebra,” I said as I jabbed a hoof at him. “And you shot me in the face, I might add! So don’t get indignant that I didn’t let you know you didn’t finish the job. For all I knew then, you’d go back and kill them just to get back in with your father!”
"一天前，你想杀了我。两天前，你还是你父亲的右蹄斑马。"我一边用蹄子戳他一边说。"而且你还朝我脸上开了一枪！所以不要因为我没有让你知道你没有完成任务而生气。我当时就知道，你会回去杀了他们，只是为了回到你父亲身边!"
He drew back. “I apologize. You’re right.” I watched him think a moment, and then he replied. “If... if I could see them again? Well, I’d apologize. And then I would listen to whatever she wished to tell me… better than I did before she
他往后退了退。"我道歉。你说得对。"我看着他想了一会儿，然后回答。"如果...如果我能再见到他们？我很抱歉。然后我会倾听她想告诉我的任何事情......比我在她之前做的更好
left.”
左边。"
I approached him, keeping my eyes locked on his. “I like your mom. She’s weird, but I like her. So if I tell you where she is, and you do something bad to her, I promise you that I will show you just how much a Maiden of the Stars I can be. Do you understand? I am sick of being responsible for good ponies dying.”
我走近他，目不转睛地盯着他。"我喜欢你妈妈。她很奇怪，但我喜欢她。所以如果我告诉你她在哪，而你对她做了什么坏事，我向你保证，我会让你知道我能成为多好的星际少女。你明白吗？我已经厌倦了照顾那些快死的好马。"
“I understand,” he answered at once, with complete conviction as opposed to fear.
"我明白,"他立刻回答，完全相信，而不是害怕。
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “She’s in the town of Chapel. Right across the river from the Core in the southwest.”
我闭上眼睛，深吸了一口气。"她在教堂镇。就在科尔河对面的西南部。"
“I see,” he replied, unable to hide his shiver. Then he turned and started towards the door. Then he paused and regarded me with an odd smile. “Thank you, Blackjack.” He bowed his head to me, then walked out.
"我明白了,"他回答，无法掩饰他的颤抖。然后他转身朝门口走去。然后他停顿了一下，用一种奇怪的微笑打量着我。"谢谢你，黑杰克。"他向我低下头，然后走了出去。
I walked to the hole and peered out. The towers were gone behind the clouds, but the thunder still rolled. It was more distant now, sullen sounding. “I’m coming. Just you wait.”
我走到洞边，向外张望。塔楼已经消失在云层后面，但雷声还在继续。现在距离更远了，听起来闷闷不乐。"我来了。等着瞧吧。"
* * *
* * *
We settled down on the outskirts of Hoofington to let Lancer off. We weren’t far from Stockyard, where I’d once killed monster lizard things. How far off that felt… when big animals were a threat. I’d promised that we would let him off before the assault, and hopefully he’d go and make up for his mistake back at Brimstone’s Fall.
我们在Hoofington郊区安顿下来，让Lancer离开。我们离屠宰场不远，我曾经在那里杀死过蜥蜴怪兽。当大型动物成为威胁时，这种感觉是多么遥远。我答应过他，我们会让他在攻击之前离开，希望他能回到硫磺城弥补他的错误。
The inhabitants of the farthest west settlement in the valley were all gathered up on the hillside. There were more than thirty ponies and easily a dozen brahmin. More than a few stared in awe, while the rest were wary. We had to be quite a sight… if only Lacunae were here to finish off the image of wacky weirdness that was our group. All blue bars. Stockyard had gotten the same treatment as Brimstone’s Fall when Sanguine had been searching for me. Either he hadn’t gotten everypony, though, or newcomers had moved in. Either way, better than more death in the Wasteland.
山谷中最西边定居点的居民都聚集在山坡上。有三十匹小马和一打婆罗门。有不少人敬畏地盯着看，而其他人则小心翼翼。我们必须成为一道亮丽的风景线......如果只有拉古奈在这里完成我们这一组古怪怪诞的形象就好了。都是蓝色的条纹。当桑吉尼一直在寻找我的时候，斯多基德得到了与硫磺会坠落相同的待遇。不过，要么他没有买到所有的小马驹，要么就是新来的人搬进来了。不管怎样，总比荒原上更多的死亡要好。
Lancer stepped out into the rain. I’d seen so much more of him than Lancer the
兰瑟步入雨中。我看到他比看到枪骑兵要多得多
Killer. Lancer the Storyteller. Maybe even Lancer the Friend. All I could hope was that he’d continue in a direction away from his father and the Remnant. That was all I could ever hope for.
杀手。说故事的长矛兵。甚至可能是朋友兰瑟。我只希望他能离开他的父亲和例外人。这是我唯一的希望。
Dusk joined us on deck. The bandaged mare could barely stand. Glory supported her every step and kept a wing around her. Another mare who’d once tried to kill her sister… she kept her eyes turned away from me, and I couldn’t blame her for that. Much as I wished it, Yellow River wasn’t all that far in the past.
黄昏来到甲板上与我们会合。缠着绷带的母马几乎站不起来。晨辉支撑着她的每一步，在她身边保持着一只翅膀。另一匹母马曾经试图杀死她的妹妹......她一直把目光从我身上移开，我不能因此责怪她。尽管我多么希望，黄河在过去并不是那么遥远。
“Here,” I said to the zebra as I levitated over his invisibility cloak. It was useful, to be sure, but it was his.
"这里,"当我悬浮在斑马的隐形装置上时，我对斑马说。当然，这是有用的，但这是他的。
He contemplated it a moment soberly, the rain hissing around us. “No. You hold on to it for now. I think it will be more useful to you where you are going than it will be to me.” He glanced over at P-21. “I believe it will be good for me to hide less. Yes?”
他冷静地想了一会儿，雨水在我们周围嘶嘶作响。"没有。你暂时保管好它。我认为，你要去的地方比我去的地方更有用。"他扫了一眼P-21。"我相信少隐藏一点对我有好处。什么事?"
“Maybe,” P-21 said as he held Scotch Tape between his hooves. “Just be careful. Don’t be so eager you turn around and become Blackjack. She gets shot a lot.”
"也许吧,"P-21一边用透明胶带夹着蹄子一边说。"小心点。不要这么急切，你转身就变成了黑杰克。她经常中枪。"
“By my friends too, oddly enough,” I said with a little smirk.
"我的朋友也是，真奇怪,"我带着一丝得意的笑容说。
“I will try to keep things in moderation,” Lancer replied.
"我会尽量让事情适度,"兰瑟回答。
“Remember,” I told him. “Make up for it. Help, however you can.” And I didn’t add for him not to make me regret my leniency. I didn’t need to. He walked away from the Fleur, heading east. Maybe to a better life. He paused and turned back, smiling at me.
"记住,"我告诉他。"弥补一下。尽你所能帮助他们。"我并没有为他添油加醋不让我后悔我的宽大处理。我不需要。他离开了Fleur，向东走去。也许是为了更好的生活。他停顿了一下，转过身来，朝我微笑。
Suddenly Boo trotted out after him with that ridiculous captain’s hat on her head. What the heck was she doing? She moved right up next to him and plopped the hat atop his ears. “Boo...” I began with a helpless smile.
突然，布头上戴着那顶可笑的船长帽，跟在他后面跑了出来。她到底在干什么？她走到他旁边，把帽子扑通一声放在他的耳朵上。"嘘......"我带着无助的微笑开始了。
“Fucking move,” I heard on the wind, caught by my augmented hearing. The voice was tense and angry. I turned my head, glaring up at the settler ponies with a small frown. My eyes picked out several weapons... not unusual. The ponies were all still blue on my E.F.S.
"去你妈的,"我听到风声，被我增强的听力捕捉到了。那个声音既紧张又愤怒。我转过头，微微皱着眉头，怒视着那两匹定居者的小马。我的眼睛发现了几件武器...并不罕见。我的e.f.s上的小马还是蓝色的。
But there was a weapon not pointed at me.
但是有一件武器没有对着我。
“Get down!” I shouted, a blast of lightning cutting the sky and flooding the hillside with its harsh glare while the boom drowned out everything but the sharp crack of a hunting rifle. I stormed up the muddy hillside, giving the shooter something far more pressing than taking shots at Lancer to think about. Cursing as loudly as I could at the gathered settlers, I fired my own guns into the air. They screamed and ran for the shelter of their buildings.
"趴下!"我大声喊道，一阵闪电划破天空，山坡上闪着刺眼的光芒，而隆隆声淹没了一切，只留下猎枪的尖锐声响。我冲上泥泞的山坡，给枪手一些比朝枪骑兵开枪更紧迫的事情去思考。我尽可能大声地咒骂聚集在一起的定居者，向空中开了枪。他们尖叫着跑向他们建筑物的避难所。
I slowed and stopped, my muddy body sliding slowly back down towards the Fleur. “Is everyone okay?” I called back.
我放慢了速度，停了下来，浑身泥泞，慢慢地向芙蓉河滑去。"大家都没事吧?"我回了电话。
“We’re fine. Lancer almost pulled a Blackjack,” Rampage drawled as she helped him to his hooves.
"我们很好。兰瑟几乎拉出了一张黑杰克牌。"拉着他的蹄子，拉格拉长了声音。
“I’m a thing now?” I asked with a frown.
"我现在是个东西了?"我皱着眉头问。
“Sure. It’s what happens when you’re so in love with the Wasteland that you get your head blown off,” Rampage said with a smirk. “I’m thinking of patenting it. Maybe making shirts. ‘I pulled a Blackjack and lived to tell about it.’ Kinda catchy.”
"当然。这就是当你如此热爱这片荒原，以至于你的脑袋被炸掉时所发生的事情。"我正在考虑申请专利。也许是做衬衫。"我玩了一把黑杰克，活了下来。"还挺上口的。"
If Boo hadn’t fouled their shot… “Ha ha,” I said as I turned to Lancer. “You should have your cloak back.”
如果布没有犯规他们的投篮..."哈哈,"我说，我转向兰瑟。"你应该把你的斗篷拿回去。"
“No. It was a good lesson,” he replied soberly. “I should remember to always be vigilant. Perhaps this will make me a better survivor.” He adjusted the hat atop his head and then smiled down to Boo. “Thank you for your gift.”
"没有。这是一个很好的教训,"他冷静地回答。"我应该时刻保持警惕。也许这会让我成为一个更好的幸存者。"他整了整头上的帽子，然后笑了下来，嘘。"谢谢你的礼物。"
She just beamed back at Lancer. I had to wonder why she’d darted out just then. If she hadn’t... I had images of his smiling face exploding. “Just take care of yourself,” I said with a small smile.
她只是微笑着回到了Lancer。我不得不想知道她刚才为什么突然跑了出去。如果她没有......我有他的笑脸爆炸的图像。"好好照顾自己,"我微笑着说。
He nodded and once more moved off through the long grass, this time ducking down so that, in a few seconds, all but the hat disappeared. It moved off like a shark fin till it too disappeared from sight.
他点点头，又一次穿过长长的草丛向前走去，这一次他低下头，几秒钟后，除了帽子以外，其他的东西都消失了。它像鱼翅一样飞走了，直到从视线中消失。
I frowned up at the hill. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to have a few words.”
我在山上皱起了眉头。"现在，如果你不介意的话，我有几句话要说。"
* * *
* * *
We never found out which of the settlers had fired the shots. A few condemned
我们一直不知道是哪个定居者开的枪。一些人被宣判有罪
the gunfire as cowardly, but nopony gave up the shooter. There were a half dozen hunting rifles, and I couldn’t spank the owners of all six. The settlers were more shocked that I’d gotten so upset over attempts to ‘off a stripe’. Lancer was ‘just a zebra’. Apparently they’d thought I was going to do it, till I let him go. When they thought that I wasn’t listening, I heard more than a few angry mutters about stripelovers. They didn’t know how I heard their every word.
开枪很懦弱，但nopony供出了凶手。那里有六支猎枪，我不能打那六支的主人。定居者们更震惊的是，我竟然对试图"去掉条纹"的行为感到如此沮丧。枪骑兵只是一只斑马。显然他们以为我会这么做，直到我放他走。当他们认为我没有在听的时候，我听到了不止一些愤怒的抱怨声。他们不知道我是怎么听到他们说的每一个字的。
I’d been happy to see a settlement of ponies. I’d assumed that that was a good thing.
我很高兴看到一个小马的定居点。我以为这是件好事。
Twister and Boomer stayed with the Fleur while I tried to lecture them about doing better. Not all zebras were the same. Not all of them meant harm. My words were wasted as I was given sullen nods and angry glares.
托斯特和布玛儿留在芙蓉身边，我则试图教训他们如何做得更好。不是所有的斑马都是一样的。并不是所有人都有恶意。我的话白费了，因为他们阴沉地点了点头，怒目而视。
“Let’s just go, Blackjack,” Glory said. Since it was clear that my lecture wasn’t going to be accompanied by a body count, the settlers were scattering back to their afternoon routine.
"我们走吧，黑杰克,"晨辉说。很明显，我的讲座不会伴随着死亡人数的统计，定居者们回到了他们下午的日常工作中。
As we re-boarded the Fleur, I found a rail and slumped against it. There wasn’t a sign of the settler ponies. They had had their fill of Security, and I had had my fill of them. The only ones I could see were the brahmin, approaching the Fleur with dull curiosity.
当我们重新登上百合号时，我找到一根栏杆，靠在栏杆上。没有移民小马的迹象。他们受够了安全，我也受够了安全。我唯一能看见的是婆罗门，他带着迟钝的好奇心走近芙蓉。
“Ahem,” one said as his heads looked up at me.
"咳,"其中一个说，他的头抬起来看着我。
“We just wanted to say sorry ‘bout the shots at yer friend,” the other head said lowly.
"我们只是想对你朋友的遭遇说声对不起,"另一个头低声说。
“Yeah, sorry,” agreed the first one.
"是的，对不起,"第一个人同意了。
“Thanks,” I answered with a small smile. “Do they treat you okay here?”
"谢谢,"我微笑着回答。"他们对你还好吗?"
“Oh, sure,” nodded the first. “Ponies is good folks… more or less. Milk and cheese brings more caps than meat and leather. So they watch out fer us.”
"哦，当然,"第一个点头。"小马是好人......或多或少。牛奶和奶酪比肉和皮革带来更多的帽子。因此，他们为我们提供了保护。"
“Good. Good,” I said, gritting my teeth as I felt unsteady once again.
"很好。很好,"我说，咬紧牙关，感到又一次站不稳了。
“Take care ‘o yerselves,” the second head said as he moved away. “Yer good folks too…”
"你们自己保重,"第二个脑袋一边走一边说。"你们也是好人..."
“Thanks,” I croaked as the Fleur’s bag filled with lifting gas began to rise into the air. I buried my face in my hooves. Good folks? If they were good folks, and we were good folks, then why did good folks keep doing bad things? Any good feelings I’d had at Lancer agreeing to do better had been robbed by the muleheadedness of a bunch of bigots who couldn’t see anything wrong with killing a zebra just because he was a zebra! I ground my teeth and sulked till Glory hooked my collar with her wing and led me belowdecks to an intact cabin.
"谢谢,"当芙蓉装满提升气体的袋子开始升到空中时，我低声说。我把脸埋在蹄子里。好人？如果他们是好人，而我们是好人，那为什么好人还要继续做坏事呢？我在兰瑟同意做得更好的任何好的感觉都被一群顽固不化的人抢走了，他们看不到杀死一只斑马有什么错，只是因为它是一只斑马！我咬紧牙关，生着闷气，直到晨辉用翅膀钩住我的衣领，把我带到甲板下完好无损的船舱。
We lay together on the bed; there wasn’t any sex. After Lacunae’s death and Lancer being shot at by ‘good folks’, I couldn’t be further from the mood. She was just with me. Helping me deal with it. As always.
我们一起躺在床上，没有做爱。在Lacunae的死亡和Lancer被'好人'射杀后，我的心情不能再远了。她只是和我在一起。帮我解决这个问题。一如既往。
“Blackjack. When was the last time you slept?” Glory asked me as she brushed my cheek.
"黑杰克。你上次睡觉是什么时候?"当她轻抚我的脸颊时，晨辉问我。
“I dunno… twenty four hours ago,” I muttered.
"我不知道......24小时前,"我喃喃自语。
“You need to sleep,” Glory reminded me.
"你需要睡觉,"晨辉提醒我。
I closed my eyes. “Yeah…” I knew that too. But I didn’t want to. I wasn’t tired… and besides…
我闭上了眼睛。"是啊......"我也知道。但我不想这么做。我不累...而且..。
To sleep… and maybe to dream. That was the trick. For in sleep, what dreams would come?
去睡觉...也许去做梦。这就是诀窍所在。因为在睡梦中，什么样的梦会出现？
* * *
* * *
I didn’t sleep. There were too many things to do in the meantime. Too many things that could go wrong. Lancer’s parting gift had one benefit: it would hide me from the energy sensors of the lightning rods well enough, so no need shut down and plug into Rampage. Anything else that might set them off was given to me and hidden under the cloak as well: Pew-Pew, PipBucks, and the energy supplies from the three suits of power armor had all been put in my saddlebags. We’d thought that deactivating the armor would be enough, but better safe than sorry. I dolefully chewed on one of Glory’s cyberpony cakes. I might not have felt tired, but a little sustenance couldn’t hurt.
我没有睡觉。与此同时，有太多的事情要做。太多的事情可能会出错。兰瑟的临别礼物有一个好处:它可以很好地将我从避雷针的能量传感器那里隐藏起来，因此不需要关闭并插入狂暴。其他任何可能引爆它们的东西都给了我，也藏在了斗篷下面:皮尤，皮波克，还有那三套能量装甲的能量供应都已经装进了我的鞍囊。我们认为关闭装甲已经足够了，但还是小心为上。我悲伤地咀嚼着晨辉的一块塞伯马蛋糕。我可能不会觉得累，但吃点东西也无妨。
In seconds, we were in the skies of Hoofington, and even as a unicorn, I could feel the difference. The clouds far away had been white, fluffy, ephemeral things. These clouds swirled like dark waters. Lightning flickered deep in the depths,
几秒钟之内，我们就到了Hoofington的天空，即使是作为一只独角兽，我也能感觉到不同。远处的云朵曾经是白色的、蓬松的、短暂的东西。这些云像黑水一样盘旋着。闪电在深处闪烁,
and thunder growled every few minutes. I felt like I was trapped beneath the Celestia once again, despite the fact I could breathe. The saturated clouds soaked everything, and we had water streaming off the balloon and the deck within minutes. The clouds were moved by strange breezes I couldn’t quite pin down. While Boomer and Twister pushed, Glory made constant adjustments against the heavy, drab gray clouds she’d packed against the hull to ensure that as much of the Fleur as possible was covered.
每隔几分钟就有雷声轰鸣。我感觉自己又一次被困在天堂之下，尽管我可以呼吸。饱和的云层浸透了一切，几分钟之内，水就从气球和甲板上流走了。奇怪的微风吹动了云朵，我无法确定。在布玛儿和特维斯特推进的时候，晨辉不断地调整自己的姿势，以适应她在船体上布置的沉重、单调的灰色云层，确保弗勒号尽可能多地被遮盖住。
“I hate these skies,” I heard Boomer mutter.
"我讨厌这些天空,"我听到布玛儿低声说。
I hated them too.
我也讨厌他们。
Suddenly, the clouds parted, and we saw a bright yellow glow blinking and flickering in the gloom. It was a colossal black needle perhaps fifty feet long hanging down from an immense black storm cloud. Glory hurriedly finished making a shell of cloud between the deck and balloon, then ducked inside, out of view, as the winds carried us towards it. Only narrow holes let us see out at the ominous spire.
突然，云层散开了，我们看见一道明亮的黄色光芒在黑暗中闪烁。这是一个巨大的黑色针，大约五十英尺长，从一个巨大的黑色暴风云上垂下来。晨辉匆匆忙忙地在甲板和气球之间做了一个云壳，然后在风把我们带向它的时候，躲进去了，看不见了。只有窄洞才能让我们看到不祥的塔尖。
“Damned crosswind! Why’d it kick up now?” Twister complained. The Fleur groaned as the two forces of wind and pegasi fought over it. We were going to pass by the rod far closer than I liked. Every second made the needle grow larger and larger. Yellow lightning flickered along the black metal, and every now and then a bolt leapt off of the blinking talismans and crackled through the surrounding storm clouds. At the top, where the metal connected to the cloud, I could see clusters of cameras peering out in the storm clouds. Celestia only knew how they could see anything.
"该死的侧风！为什么现在突然冒出来了?"扭扭乐抱怨道。当风和飞马座的两股力量在争夺它的时候，弗勒尔呻吟着。我们将要经过的杆远比我喜欢的更近。每过一秒钟，针就长得越来越大。黄色的闪电沿着黑色的金属闪烁着，不时有一道闪电从闪烁的护身符上跳下来，劈啪作响地穿过周围的暴风云。在顶部，金属连接到云层的地方，我可以看到成群的摄像机在暴风雨云层中向外窥视。塞莱斯蒂亚只知道他们怎么能看到任何东西。
We passed a stone’s throw from the lightning rod, blinking talismans the size of my head flooding the inside of the shell with a harsh glare. I only hoped that Glory’s work had made us resemble just another cloud. I watched as a band of lightning crackled off the nearest talisman and stretched towards us a moment with flickering fingers, as if reaching for us. We might just get blasted by accident. Then the bolt thudded down the shaft and discharged off the tip in a yellow fork.
我们经过避雷针一箭之遥的地方，闪烁的护身符像我的头那么大，用刺眼的目光充斥着贝壳的内部。我只希望晨辉的工作让我们像另一朵云。我注视着一道闪电从最近的护身符上劈啪作响，闪烁的手指向我们延伸了片刻，好像要到达我们这里。我们可能会不小心被炸死。然后，螺栓砰的一声顺着轴向下，用一把黄色的叉子把顶端卸了下来。
“I really hate these skies,” Boomer amended.
"我真的很讨厌这些天空,"Boomer补充道。
I could also appreciate General Chaser’s problem of attacking the tower. Any motion would have to be above the cloud layer. It would be suicide to try and
我也很欣赏Chaser将军攻击塔楼的问题。任何运动都必须在云层之上。如果你试图去做这件事，那就是自杀
take a Raptor through these clouds. They would have to travel through open air, easily detected and targeted by the tower’s defenses. Lighthooves would have time to prepare, and he could send missiles on flight paths where the Raptors were more spread out.
带一只猛禽穿过这些云层。他们必须穿过露天，很容易被塔楼的防御系统发现和锁定。轻型飞机有时间准备，他可以在猛禽更分散的飞行路线上发射导弹。
“Take us up,” I said, wanting to avoid another brush with a lightning rod.
"把我们带上去,"我说，想避开另一根避雷针。
The balloon hissed as Scotch Tape pulled a lever, and we lifted up. The dark clouds began to lighten a touch, and Glory flew back out and continued to work on the cloud layer. Suddenly the Fleur lurched and groaned. Dozens of pink orbs showered down onto the deck. “Take cover!” I yelled as one tumbled down and struck me right on the head. It burst open. “I’m hit! Is anyone else hurt?!”
透明胶带拉动了操纵杆，气球发出嘶嘶声，我们升了起来。乌云开始变亮，晨辉飞回来继续在云层上工作。突然，芙蓉蹒跚地呻吟起来。几十个粉红色的球体倾泻在甲板上。"找掩护!"我大声喊道，一个人滚了下来，正好砸在我的头上。它爆开了。"我中弹了！还有人受伤吗?"
“Calm down, Blackjack,” Glory called from above. “We just hit an apple tree is all.”
"冷静点，黑杰克,"晨辉从天而降。"我们只是撞上了一棵苹果树。"
I blinked and picked up one of the mushed pink globs. It was… vaguely… appleish. I heard rustling above us, and then brown branches flopped off to the side of the ship. They resembled ropey tendrils studded with the fleshy pink globs. “That’s an apple tree?” P-21 said skeptically, and Scotch Tape appeared a little insulted.
我眨了眨眼睛，拿起一个黏糊糊的粉色地球仪。这是...含糊的...苹果味。我听到上面有沙沙的声音，然后褐色的树枝啪地一声掉到船边。它们就像是镶满肉质粉红色球体的柔软卷须。"那是一棵苹果树?"P-21持怀疑态度地说，而ScotchTape似乎受到了一点侮辱。
It was an apple tree… if an apple tree had been made to float. Where the trunk should be was an immense, swollen, oval sac much like the gasbag of the Fleur. Atop it were hundreds thin branches with filmy leaves attached. The ‘roots’ of the tree, and the fruits growing off them, acted as ballast. “That’s not an apple tree,” Rampage declared flatly.
这是一棵苹果树...如果一棵苹果树被做成可以漂浮的话。树干所在的地方是一个巨大的、肿胀的、椭圆形的囊，很象花儿的气囊。树顶上有数百根细细的树枝，上面粘着薄薄的叶子。树的"根"和从树上长出的果实充当了压舱物。"那不是苹果树,"狂暴直截了当地说。
“It is too,” Glory said, defensively. “A lot of our food is grown on top of the S.P.P. towers, but we couldn’t begin to feed all our people with such a small area… so we turned to cloud farming.” We skimmed along the cloud layer, Glory pulling the viewing slits into windows now that we were above the lightning rods. I took a bite of a cloud apple and nearly gagged. It was like eating glass… barely any taste at all. Like faintly apple-flavored paste.
"这也是,"晨辉防守地说。"我们的很多食物都是在s.p.p.塔楼顶上种植的，但我们无法在这么小的地方养活所有人......所以我们转向了云端农业。"我们飞快地掠过云层，晨辉把观测缝隙拉进了窗户，现在我们在避雷针的上方。我咬了一口云苹果，差点吐了出来。就像吃玻璃一样...几乎没有任何味道。就像淡淡的苹果味的糊状物。
“Takes really wet clouds to sustain cloud crops, though,” Twister said. “You need lots of water and cloud cover. But Thunderhead’s always got the clouds for it; no need to irrigate with the S.P.P. at all.” She sounded a little jealous. We were floating through a veritable orchard of ‘trees’, all bobbing on top of the clouds. They weren’t so much rigid wood as flexible fibers, and so they yielded for our
"不过，需要非常潮湿的云层才能维持云层作物的生长,"托斯特说。"你需要大量的水和云层。但是雷霆万钧总是得到乌云的庇护，根本不需要用s.p.p来灌溉。"她听起来有点嫉妒。我们漂浮在一片名副其实的"树林"中，所有的树木都在云层顶部上下浮动。它们与其说是坚硬的木材，不如说是柔韧的纤维，因此它们为我们的
passage with barely a problem.
通过几乎没有问题。
The tops of the clouds had a strange terrain to them. There were hills and valleys filled with the bizarre floating biomass. All of the plants sported some sort of gasbag. Cloud wheat was thousands of balloon-sized clumps with pale yellow grain on top and long roots on the bottom, like bobbing heads. There were cloud potatoes… that didn’t seem much different from their apples. Cloud corn was similar to wheat, except the ears all had their own bubbles to tug them upright. “That is so weird,” I remarked as we passed spidery bean plants.
云的顶部有一块奇怪的地形。那里有山丘和山谷，充满了奇异的漂浮的生物质。所有的植物都装着某种气囊。云麦是成千上万的气球大小的团块，顶部有淡黄色的纹理，底部有长长的根，像是上下摆动的脑袋。有云土豆...看起来和他们的苹果没什么不同。云玉米和小麦很相似，只不过它们的耳朵都有自己的气泡把它们拉起来。"这太奇怪了,"当我们经过蜘蛛般细长的豆类植物时，我说。
There was more than just plant life up here, though. There were ponies working, too. I could make out a half dozen teams of pegasi loading crops onto skywagons in the late afternoon light. The area up here was so large, though, that I didn’t have any fear of them spotting us from so far off.
不过，这里不仅仅有植物生命。还有小马在工作。在傍晚的阳光下，我能辨认出半打的飞马座团队正在将作物装载到空中马车上。上面的区域是如此之大，以至于我并不担心他们从那么远的地方发现我们。
“Where’s…” I began to ask, but as I turned I saw that everypony was staring at it.
"在哪儿......"我开始问，但当我转过身来时，我看到每匹小马都在盯着它。
Shadowbolt Tower.
暗影螺栓塔。
It was utterly impossible to miss. The tower was a black hexagonal shape rising out of a massive, dark, green-lit pit of clouds. It had to be the tallest structure ever built. Each segment had talismans at every level, blinking bright blue. Shielding talismans? Levitation? Magic had to be the only way such a feat of engineering was possible. The tower didn’t taper off, it widened. The higher I gazed, the bigger and more elaborate the tower became. At the top was a massive blue dome, like a jeweled scepter. There were long, black fingers stretching out into the air, landing docks for Vertibucks, Raptors, and Thunderheads, I supposed. Where the tower started to widen, each side I could see of the hexagon bore an enormous panel decorated with the winged rainbow lightning bolts of the M.o.A.
这是绝对不可能错过的。这座塔是一个黑色的六边形的形状，从一个巨大的、黑暗的、绿色的云层中升起。它必须是有史以来最高的建筑。每个部分在每个水平都有护身符，闪烁着明亮的蓝色。屏蔽护身符?？悬浮？魔术一定是这样一个工程壮举成为可能的唯一途径。塔不是逐渐变窄，而是变宽了。我凝视得越高，这座塔就变得越大越精致。在顶部是一个巨大的蓝色圆顶，像一个宝石权杖。黑色的长手指伸向空中，我猜想那里是眩晕战机、猛禽战机和雷电战机的降落码头。在塔开始变宽的地方，我可以看到六边形的每一边都有一块巨大的镶板，上面装饰着带翅膀的彩虹闪电。
“Wow. That’s really… really… big,” I muttered weakly. It seemed to stretch for another mile up into the sky, but I couldn’t be sure.
"哇。真的...真的...很大,"我虚弱地咕哝着。它似乎又向天空延伸了一英里，但我不能确定。
“That is the Equestrian Air Command. Shadowbolt Tower. The one target that, thanks to the Core’s anti-missile beam technology, never got destroyed. And they tried,” Glory said proudly.
"这就是马术空军司令部。暗影螺栓塔。由于Core的反导弹光束技术，这个目标从未被摧毁。他们努力了,"晨辉骄傲地说。
Twister and Boomer were less impressed. “Y’all could refit the entire fleet with
托斯特和布玛尔对此并不感冒。"你们可以把整个舰队改装成
the metal in that thing.”
里面的金属
“One, lots of it is the same ceramic as the rest of the Hoof. Two, you could easily get that metal by trading with the surface for scrap metal,” Glory retorted.
"第一，很多都是和霍夫的其他部分一样的陶瓷。第二，你可以很容易地通过交易表面的废金属,"晨辉反驳道。
“That’s gonna be a much harder cat to swing after Maripony,” my hearing caught Twister mutter.
我的听力捕捉到了Twister的喃喃自语:"在Maripony之后，那只猫会更加难以摆动。"。
“Where’s Thunderhead?” I asked, peering at all the fluffy white globs above the cloud layer. Lots of it seemed to be gathering and holding stations. Others were cloud… factories? Well, they had to create those fluffy cloud terminals somehow! I looked for a tire-shaped cloud but couldn’t see… “Um… Blackjack?” Glory said as she smiled and pointed past the cloud factories at a huge, curved wall of white slightly above us. It was so large, I’d dismissed it as simply the background. “Welcome to Thunderhead.”
"雷头在哪儿?"我问道，凝视着云层上方蓬松的白色地球仪。好像有很多人在聚集和等候。还有一些是云...工厂？那么，他们必须以某种方式创造那些蓬松的云终端！我寻找轮胎形状的云彩，但是看不到......"嗯......黑杰克?"格洛里边说边微笑着指着云工厂旁边略微高过我们头顶的一堵巨大的白色弧形墙。它是如此之大，以至于我简单地把它当作背景而不屑一顾。"欢迎来到霹雳头。"
We’d finally, truly, left the Wasteland.
我们最终，真的，离开了荒原。
 
Footnote: Maximum Level Reached.
脚注:已达到的最高水平。
 
Author's Notes:
作者笔记:
(Author’s notes: Whew. Well, when moving and job plans fall through then there’s always getting the next chapter out. We’re now into the enclave arc, where we get to see the consequences of Operation: Cauterize out east. I still don’t know what’s going to be happening with work and the like, so every bit donated is especially appreciated right now. I’m going to start temping soon if I can’t find somewhere to teach.
(作者的笔记:。那么，当搬家和工作计划落空，那么总有得到下一章出来。我们现在进入了飞地弧，在那里我们可以看到行动的后果:烧焦东部。我仍然不知道工作和类似的事情会发生什么，所以现在每一点捐赠都特别值得感谢。如果我找不到地方教书，我很快就要开始做临时工了。
Huge thanks to Hinds, Bro, and Hidden Fortune for getting this done in record time. Seriously. Four hours. New record for this year. Check out Hidden Fortune’s fic Treasure Hunting if you have the time. It will be worth your time. Huge thanks to Kkat, as always, for making this awesome world for us to explore and enjoy. Huge thanks to folks who leave feedback. It’s greatly appreciated. I hope to have the next chapter out soon. Finally, time to leave the wasteland!)
非常感谢Hinds，Bro和HiddenFortune在创纪录的时间内完成了这项工作。说真的。四个小时。今年的新纪录。如果你有时间的话，可以去看看《隐藏的命运》中的太平洋寻宝游戏。你的时间是值得的。非常感谢Kkat，一如既往，为我们创造了这个令人敬畏的世界，让我们去探索和享受。非常感谢留下反馈的人们。非常感谢。我希望下一章尽快出版。最后，是时候离开这片荒原了!)