Shadowbolt Tower. Somewhere in here were Lighthooves, his biological weapons, and a couple dozen unicorns I had to get out of harm’s way. First, though, I had to find some stairs or an elevator. The tower hummed softly around me as I moved further into the building, Boo following warily behind. I didn’t know what defenses it might have inside, but I imagined that I was going to find out relatively quickly. I hurried down the hall I’d found behind the door; if this was going to work, then every second counted.
暗影螺栓塔。这里的某个地方有他的生物武器——光剑，还有几十只我不得不躲开的独角兽。不过，首先我得找到一些楼梯或电梯。当我继续走进大楼时，塔楼轻轻地在我周围嗡嗡作响，布小心翼翼地跟在后面。我不知道里面有什么防御措施，但我想我会相对较快地找出来。我急匆匆地沿着门后找到的大厅走下去;如果这样做有用的话，那么每一秒钟都很重要。
I reached another sealed door. Well, it’d worked for the last one... I cut a long slice, and a shrill scream split the air as wind blasted at me through the slit I’d carved. Boo covered her ears as I grimaced. Okay, this was unexpected! I made two more cuts, and the triangular slab of door blasted past me, bouncing off the floor as it flew back the way I’d come, spinning through the outer door and into open air. A gale blew through the hole it’d left, and even I had difficulty fighting the force of air. I moved in, braced myself against the hole, and extended a hoof to Boo. The pale mare took it and struggled to climb over me and into the large open space beyond.
我走到另一扇密封的门前。我切了一个长长的切片，刺耳的尖叫声划破了空气，风从我切开的切口吹向我。我做鬼脸时，布捂住了她的耳朵。好吧，真是出乎意料！我又切了两次，那扇三角形的门从我身边轰隆隆地走过，在地板上弹跳着，飞回我来的方向，旋转着穿过外面的门，进入户外。一阵狂风从它留下的洞里吹了进来，连我都难以抗拒空气的力量。我走了进去，紧紧地靠着那个洞，把蹄子伸向布。苍白的母马抓住它，挣扎着从我身上爬过去，爬进了远处的大空地。
I gave her one last push ahead and then pulled myself the rest of the way through. Boo worked her mouth, rubbing her ears, her mane and tail tangled about her head and haunches. We struggled farther away from the hole I’d sliced and the screaming air gusting out through it. “Yeah, I wasn’t expecting that either,” I said once we were clear, glad synthetic ears could handle the shriek.
我最后推了她一把，然后把自己撑过了剩下的路程。布揉着嘴，揉着耳朵，鬃毛和尾巴缠绕在脑袋和臀部。我们挣扎着离我切开的洞越来越远，呼啸的空气从洞中呼啸而出。"是啊，我也没想到会这样,"我说，一旦我们弄清楚了，我很高兴人造耳朵能承受这种尖叫声。
On the other side of the door was a catwalk; the interior of the tower was hollow, a massive empty shaft with the catwalk running around the outer wall. Conduits ran along the walls from the distant bottom to the top far above. Dim blue lights
在门的另一边是一个猫道;塔的内部是中空的，一个巨大的空竖井和围绕外墙的猫道运行。管道沿着墙壁从远处的底部延伸到远处的顶部。昏暗的蓝色灯光
provided cold illumination throughout the shaft. A few terminals lay against the wall, but I didn’t have time to try and hack my way through them. Made me wish that I’d brought P-21 along. I trotted to the edge of the catwalk and looked down. Below me I could see some kind of colossal weight suspended in the middle of the shaft. The weight blocked my view further down, but from the green glow, I could only imagine it was bad; the shaft must go all the way to the Core. Looking up, I saw more catwalks at regular intervals and another house-sized weight. Occasionally, crisscrossing bars reinforced the shaft.
给整个竖井提供了冷光照明。墙上有几个终端，但我没有时间试着黑进去。让我后悔没有带上P-21。我小跑到t型台的边缘，往下看。在我的下面，我可以看到一个巨大的重物悬挂在竖井的中央。重物挡住了我的视线，但是从绿色的光芒来看，我只能想象它是坏的;轴必须一直通到核心。抬头一看，我看到了更多定期出现的t型台和另一座房子大小的重物。有时，纵横交错的钢筋加强了轴。
Then I spotted, curled up against the wall by the terminals, three desiccated pegasus corpses. From their clothes, they appeared to have been civilians. I supposed that meant that nopony had come down this far in a very, very long time.
然后我发现了三具干枯的飞马尸体，蜷缩在墙上靠着末梢。从他们的衣着来看，他们似乎是平民。我想这意味着那匹小马已经走了很长很长的一段时间了。
“So… stairs. Stairs. Where are the…” I glanced at Boo and saw her examining an odd platform against the wall with a set of up and down buttons beside it. “Or, we can take the elevator. That’s good too.” I trotted over to her and stepped on, kicking the up button with a rear hoof. The platform hissed, whirred, and began to climb. “Good. We’ll get up there in no time. Easy peasy.”
"那么......楼梯。楼梯。哪里......"我瞥了一眼布，看到她正在检查靠墙的一个奇怪的平台，旁边有一套上下按钮。"或者，我们可以乘电梯。这也很好。"我小跑过去，踩上去，用后蹄踢了踢向上的按钮。平台嘶嘶作响，呼呼作响，开始往上爬。"很好。我们很快就能到达那里。小菜一碟。"
Wait, I didn’t just say that, did I?
等等我刚才不是这么说的吧？
“Warning! Unauthorized pony detected. Warning! Unauthorized pony detected,” an automated mare’s voice called out as crimson lights set in the walls began to flash bright red. Red bars appeared in my vision, and I drew Duty and Sacrifice, glad that Lighthooves had left them with Stratus. Suddenly, a crackling blue beam lanced down from above, the energy burning a hole in my barding and hide and searing the metal reinforcements beneath that. I nearly rolled right off the elevator platform as I got out of the path of the energy and spotted the hemispherical beam turret on the underside of a catwalk. Slipping into S.A.T.S., I put four rounds into it before something within exploded with a cloud of crackling blue smoke.
"警告！发现未经授权的小马。警告！"发现了未经授权的小马"，一个自动化的母马的声音喊道，墙上深红色的灯光开始闪烁着鲜红的光芒。在我的幻象中出现了红色的条纹，我画了责任和牺牲，很高兴把它们留给了斯特拉图斯。突然，一道蓝色的光束从上面劈劈啪啪地射了下来，能量在我的帐篷里烧了一个洞，隐藏起来，烧焦了下面的金属支架。我几乎从电梯平台上滚了下来，因为我走出了能量的轨道，发现了一个半球形的光束炮塔在一个猫步的下面。溜进s.a.t.s.，我向里面开了四枪，然后里面的东西爆炸了，冒出一团蓝色的烟。
One down, a whole lot more to go. The elevator was constantly carrying me closer to the targeting ranges of the turrets above, and I couldn’t take my time to pick them off at my leisure. Blue beams burned hotter than red, that was for sure. My spine ached, the burn plucking pain with my every movement, but I couldn’t stop. The elevator continued to rise, and on the bottom of every catwalk waited more beam turrets. I moved around as best I could in the limited space, pulling
解决了一个，还有很多。电梯不断地把我送到塔楼上方的目标范围，我没有时间把它们拿下来。蓝色的光束比红色的光束燃烧得更热，这是肯定的。我的脊椎疼痛，每一个动作都伴随着灼烧的疼痛，但我停不下来。电梯继续上升，在每一个通道的底部等待更多的梁塔。我在有限的空间里尽我所能地移动，拉动
Boo out of the sizzling paths of the beams while blasting turrets as soon as I was able. Far too soon, Duty and Sacrifice’s hammers fell on spent casings, and my inventory said I was out of spare rounds. I switched to the markspony carbine, but the lighter bullets weren’t nearly as effective at chewing through the turrets’ plating.
布走出铁板路的梁，同时炮塔爆炸尽快我可以。太快了，责任和牺牲的锤子落在废弹壳上，我的存货显示我没有多余的子弹了。我换成了马克斯潘尼卡宾枪，但是更轻的子弹几乎不能有效地咀嚼通过炮塔的镀层。
One magazine emptied, and I slapped another home without taking my eyes off those damned turrets. Every time we passed one catwalk, the ones above began to open fire on us. “It’s times like this that I really wish you could use a gun, Boo!” The blank covered her face as she cowered at the edge of the platform.
一本杂志倒空了，我没有把视线从那些该死的炮塔上移开就扇了另一个家。每当我们走过一次猫步，上面的人就开始向我们开火。"这种时候我真希望你会用枪，嘣!"当她蜷缩在平台的边缘时，空白遮住了她的脸。
Crack crack crack click click! went the carbine as I worked through my supply of 5.56mm ammunition. I could see the top of the shaft, but there were still a half dozen turrets between me and it. I drew Vigilance and braced myself. Vigilance was a fine weapon, but not at long range. I hissed as blue lines burned my body, trying to make each shot count before I got too close. One by one, the heavy rounds blew apart the blue beam turrets. Five. Four. Three. I became nervously aware that my supply of ammo was rapidly diminishing. I dropped into S.A.T.S. to pop the third turret. Two…
咔嚓咔嚓咔嚓！去卡宾枪，因为我工作通过我的供应5.56毫米弹药。我可以看到竖井的顶部，但在我和竖井之间还有半打炮塔。我提高了警惕，做好了准备。警惕是一种很好的武器，但不是远距离的。蓝色的线条灼伤了我的身体，我发出嘶嘶的声音，试图在我靠得太近之前让每一个镜头都有意义。沉重的炮弹一个接一个地炸开了蓝色的炮塔。五。四个。三个。我开始紧张地意识到我的弹药供应正在迅速减少。我跳进S.A.T.S.炸掉了第三座炮塔。二..。
Boo cried out as one of the beams hit near her, the mere heat of its passage scoring her pale hide and peppering her with flecks of melted lift platform. I immediately blasted the turret. One, but Vigilance was dry now, too. As the last turret swung its searing beam towards us, I focused my will and fired magic bullets. It was a hundred feet away. Seventy-five. Fifty.
当其中一道光束击中她的身边时，布大叫起来，光线的热度划过她苍白的皮肤，融化的升降平台的碎片不断地洒在她身上。我立即炮轰炮塔。有一个，但是警戒组织现在也干了。当最后一个炮塔向我们发出灼热的光束时，我集中了我的意志，发射了神奇的子弹。它在一百英尺之外。七十五。五十。
Finally, the blue hemisphere popped in a shower of sparks just as the elevator began to slow. I collapsed next to Boo. Psalm’s operative barding had gotten a few new holes in it. I examined Boo, checking her burns. “I really need a healing spell,” I muttered, digging through my inventory for some healing potions. The contents appeared more brown than purple, and I didn’t know what they’d do to her. Frowning, I tossed them over the edge. “Hopefully we’ll find something, okay Boo?”
最后，就在电梯开始慢下来的时候，蓝色的半球迸发出一阵火花。我倒在阿布身边。诗篇的有效的抵押已经得到了一些新的漏洞。我检查了阿布，检查她的烧伤。"我真的需要一个治疗咒语,"我咕哝着，从我的清单里翻出一些治疗药水。里面的东西看起来更像是棕色而不是紫色，我不知道它们会对她做什么。皱着眉头，我把它们扔到了边上。"希望我们能找到点什么，好吗?"
She sniffed and wiped her teary eyes with a hoof. I sighed and looked around; we’d reached the top of the shaft, and there was a solid dome above us with a single flight of stairs leading up to it. I drew my sword and advanced up the dimly lit, curving steps. We came to another door and another two desiccated bodies lying at the base of it, their coats and feathers marred by hideous burns.
她用蹄子吸了吸鼻子，擦了擦眼泪。我叹了口气，环顾四周，我们已经到达了通风井的顶部，在我们头顶上有一个坚实的圆顶，上面有一段通向圆顶的楼梯。我拔出剑，走上灯光昏暗、弯曲的台阶。我们来到另一扇门前，门底下躺着另外两具干尸，他们的皮毛被可怕的烧伤弄得斑斑点点。
The barding that remained suggested that they were surfacers. Celestia only knew where they’d come from or how they’d gotten this far only to die alone and in pain before a locked door with a terminal beside it. ‘System Locked; Contact Sysadmin’ glowed coldly beside the portal.
剩下的包皮说明他们是地面人。塞莱斯蒂亚只知道他们从哪里来，或者他们是如何走到这一步的，却在一扇紧锁的门前痛苦地死去，门旁边还有一个终端。"系统已锁定，联系系统管理员"在门口边冷冷地发着光。
Fortunately, I had a skeleton key. Cutting through the locks, I struggled to heave and shove against idle motors. They gave grudgingly but opened enough that Boo could squeeze through, followed by myself. Soon as I was through, the door, locks or no, slid closed once more. On the far side of the door was a hall filled with musty air and covered with a delicate layer of dust. I walked carefully along; there were no red bars on my E.F.S., but turrets didn’t appear until they decided to start shooting.
幸运的是，我有万能钥匙。切开锁，我挣扎着用力推挤闲置的马达。他们不情愿地给了，但是打开了足够的空间，Boo可以挤过去，我紧随其后。我一进去，门，不管有没有锁，都再次关上了。门的另一边是一个充满霉味空气的大厅，上面覆盖着一层精致的灰尘。我小心翼翼地走着，我的e.f.s上没有红色的栅栏，但是炮塔直到他们决定开始射击才出现。
Someday, I was going to have to find a PipBuck technician and sit on them till they explained slowly enough for me to understand how E.F.S. threat detection worked.
总有一天，我要找一个PipBuck的技术人员，坐在他们身边，直到他们慢慢地向我解释清楚e.f.s.威胁探测是如何工作的。
There were a few blue bars in sight, too, so I kept my clanking and clunking as silent as possible. My heavier hooves weren’t exactly made for stealth. Next time I saw Rover, I needed to find a way to make my legs interchangeable. When I had stealth augments, I got into combat. When I had combat legs, I needed stealth. That, or he just needed to come up with strong, silent legs. That wasn’t asking too much, was it? Okay, maybe a little…
眼前还有几条蓝色的铁条，所以我尽可能地让叮当作响的声音保持安静。我那重一点的蹄子不适合隐形。下一次我看到罗孚，我需要找到一种方法，使我的腿可以互换。当我有了隐形增强装置，我就参加了战斗。当我有战斗腿时，我需要秘密行动。或者他只是需要一双强壮，安静的腿。这要求不算过分吧？好吧也许有点..。
I really could have used a map or an indication of where the next set of stairs was. These rooms seemed used mostly for storage and were linked with identical, crisscrossing hallways. Filing cabinets filled with old paperwork, shelves with arcane and forgotten equipment, chemistry sets coated in dust… I never really was much of a scavenger. P-21 could have swept through in no time and had everything of value without disturbing the dust. Glory might have been able to actually use those chemistry sets to whip up something for Boo’s bad burns. Which Lacunae could have just healed. And Rampage wouldn’t have been any help with the salvage or the burn, but she would have said something obnoxious and funny. I sighed and leaned over, nuzzling Boo’s cheek. “I’m glad you’re here. I really miss my friends. Rampage was right about splitting up. Nothing good comes from it.”
我真的可以用一张地图或者指示下一个楼梯在哪里。这些房间似乎主要用作储藏室，并与相同的、纵横交错的走廊相连。文件柜里堆满了旧的文件，架子上放着神秘的、被人遗忘的设备，化学仪器上沾满了灰尘......我从来都不是一个真正的拾荒者。P-21可以在短时间内横扫一切，拥有一切有价值的东西而不会打扰尘埃。晨辉本来可以用这些化学设备来治疗布的严重烧伤。这个缺陷可能刚刚被治愈。而狂暴对打捞或烧毁没有任何帮助，但她会说一些令人讨厌和有趣的话。我叹了口气，弯下身子，用鼻子蹭了蹭布的脸颊。"我很高兴你在这里。我真的很想念我的朋友。分开是对的。它不会带来任何好处。"
Boo blinked, then gave a little baffled smile and nuzzled back. Then she sneezed. That simply stirred up more dust, causing more sneezes from both of
布眨了眨眼，然后带着困惑的微笑，用鼻子回应了一下。然后她打了个喷嚏。这只是激起了更多的灰尘，引起更多的喷嚏
us. Oh yeah, master of stealth, that was me.
我们。哦，是的，秘密行动的大师，就是我。
When we stopped, I saw that the dust covering of some papers tacked to the wall had fallen away enough that I could read some of them. ‘Support the Enclave. Support your own kind.’ I magically brushed more of the dust off the poster, covering my muzzle with a hoof, and revealed a teal pegasus with blazing yellow mane and eyes. Her gaze and smile were the kind of hard smirk I’d come to loathe: arrogant, intolerant, and cruel. Beneath her was printed ‘Support Lightning Dust for Councilor.’
当我们停下来的时候，我看到钉在墙上的一些纸上的灰尘已经脱落到我可以看到其中的一些了。支持飞地。支持你自己的同类我奇迹般地掸去了海报上更多的灰尘，用蹄子盖住了嘴巴，露出了一匹蓝绿色的飞马，鬃毛和眼睛都是亮黄色的。她的凝视和微笑是我讨厌的那种冷酷的傻笑:傲慢、不宽容、残忍。在她的下面印着"支持议员闪电粉尘"
There were other clippings beside it, and I exposed them one after the next. ‘Rainbow Dash storms out of emergency meeting after failure to obtain aid for surface.’ Another read ‘Has Rainbow Dash spit her bit? Experts fear for former Ministry Mare’s psychological health.’ Another read ‘Doctor Mephitis confirms surface unfit for pony survival, advocates quarantine of surface for pegasus health.’ That name rang a bell. I brushed off more papers with my magic. ‘Pound Cake named Councilor of Thunderhead. Promises to serve the pegasus people and lead proudly.’ ‘Princess Celestia sightings at S.P.P. hub dismissed as hoax.’ and ‘Doctor Mephitis appointed director of Shadowbolt Tower, named Pony of the Year.’
旁边还有其他的剪报，我一个接一个地把它们曝光。"彩虹冲出紧急会议，因为未能获得救援物资。"还有一条写着'彩虹·达什吐出了她的一部分吗？专家们担心前梅尔部长的心理健康另一篇文章写道:"梅菲蒂斯医生证实表面不适合小马生存，主张对表面进行检疫，以保证马匹的健康。"那个名字听起来很熟悉。我用魔法刷掉了更多的纸张。一磅蛋糕被命名为雷头镇议员。承诺为珀加索斯人民服务并自豪地领导他们塞莱斯蒂娅公主在S.P.P.hub的目击被否认为是恶作剧"梅菲蒂斯医生被任命为影螺塔的董事，年度最佳小马。"
That title came with the picture of a yellow pegasus stallion, smiling confidently as he eyed the camera in a decidedly smarmy manner. ‘Smart, rich, and single: the most eligible bachelor in the skies.’ and ‘Doctor Mephitis: returning to the surface risks countless pegasus lives. Rainbow Dash’s plans threaten to expose pegasus population to foreign diseases introduced by zebrakind.’ Zebras. That was why the name was familiar.
这个头衔还配有一张黄色飞马的照片，他自信地微笑着，用一种明显的谄媚的态度看着镜头。聪明，富有，单身:天空中最合适的单身汉和梅菲蒂斯博士:返回地面冒着无数飞马的生命危险。"RainbowDash的计划有可能使飞马种群暴露在斑马类引入的外来疾病之下。"斑马。这就是为什么这个名字很熟悉。
“You mother fucker!” I shouted, rearing up and slamming the wall with my hooves, all thoughts of silence forgotten. “You got away with it! You actually fucking got away with it!” My kick had disturbed more dust and exposed other articles. Given my propensity to run into ponies who should have been dead two centuries ago, I really hoped I ran into an undead or robotic Mephitis. Anypony who left thousands of zebras to starve in their camps deserved what I’d do to them. I glanced at the rest of the headlines but didn’t take the time to read them. Apparently, the doctor was named some kind of expert in diseases, claimed to be the Ministry of Peace’s finest virologist, and backed up the Enclave’s every word that the surface was rife with zebra and pony plagues. He’d been given awards. He’d been rich! One article named him one of the top five most pivotal figures
"你他妈的!"我叫喊着，猛地站起来，用我的蹄子狠狠地撞击着墙壁，所有沉默的想法都被遗忘了。"你侥幸逃脱了！你居然他妈的逃脱了!"我的脚踢起了更多的灰尘，把其他的文章也打了出来。考虑到我喜欢碰到两个世纪前就应该死掉的小马驹，我真希望我碰到的是不死族或机器人梅菲蒂斯。任何把成千上万的斑马留在营地里饿死的小马都活该受到我这样的对待。我粗略地浏览了其余的标题，但没有花时间去读它们。显然，这位医生被称为某种疾病专家，自称是和平部最优秀的病毒学家，并且证实了昂科雷地表面充斥着斑马和小马瘟疫的每一句话。他得过奖。他曾经很富有！一篇文章将他列为五大最关键人物之一
of the Enclave’s founding. He’d provided grotesque pictures of horrific zebra diseases for the public to ingest right as Rainbow Dash attempted to get the pegasi to clear the skies.
飞地的建立。当彩虹·达什试图让飞马座的人清理天空时，他为公众提供了可怕的斑马疾病的怪诞图片。
“You were nothing more than a two-bit murderer,” I snarled at his image.
"你只不过是个无足轻重的杀人犯,"我对他的形象咆哮道。
Boo whined and nudged my shoulder. I blinked at her and relaxed a little. “Right. Right. He’s not worth the time, and I don’t have any to waste.” I forced myself into the hall again, looking left and right and wondering which way would take me up. Then I glanced at Boo. “Say, Boo, which way do you think we should go?”
布呜呜地叫着，轻轻地推了推我的肩膀。我对着她眨了眨眼，放松了一下。"对。对。他不值得我浪费时间，我也没有时间可以浪费。"我强迫自己再次走进大厅，左顾右盼，不知道哪条路能把我带上去。然后我瞥了Boo一眼。"嘿，阿布，你觉得我们应该往哪个方向走?"
She blinked at me, and I waited, then she blinked again, and still I waited. I smiled. She smiled. Then, for a moment, I was sure she was going to understand me and pick a direction… but she only gave another soft little sneeze. I deflated a little. “Never mind, Boo. I guess we’ll go...” I trailed off as she started to sniff and then limped away. “That way.”
她对我眨了眨眼睛，我等了一会儿，然后她又眨了眨眼睛，我还是等着。我笑了。她笑了。然后，有那么一会儿，我确信她会理解我并且选择一个方向......但是她只是轻轻地打了一个小喷嚏。我有点泄气。"没关系，阿布。我猜我们会去......"我慢慢地走开，她开始吸鼻子，然后一瘸一拐地走开了。"那边。"
The stairs were located behind an old maneframe casing and a bookcase that’d fallen at an angle against it. Boo disappeared through the gap, and I frowned, carefully pushed the bookcase aside, and followed her up. This floor wasn’t quite as dusty as the one below, and the dim blue lights were a little brighter on this level. There was less garbage and more stuff… okay, the stuff was still garbage to me, but it was clearly important enough to somepony that they came down here to dust. There were mostly file cabinets and powered-down terminals. I found one sign that read ‘archives’ painted against the wall. Boo made a beeline down the hall and nuzzled at a door.
楼梯位于一个旧的帆布外壳和一个书架后面，书架是以一定的角度倒下的。布从缝隙中消失了，我皱了皱眉头，小心翼翼地把书架推到一边，跟着她走了上去。这层地板没有下面那层那么多灰尘，暗蓝色的灯光在这层楼上要亮一些。有更少的垃圾和更多的东西...好吧，这些东西对我来说仍然是垃圾，但它显然是重要的足以让一些小马，他们来到这里的灰尘。主要有文件柜和断电终端。我发现墙上有一个写着"档案"的牌子。布径直走过大厅，用鼻子蹭了蹭门。
“Mmm... there has to be one of them somewhere around here,” I muttered, following more slowly and checking one crate after another for the last thing I needed for my plan. No luck...
"嗯......这附近肯定有一个,"我咕哝着，慢慢地跟着，一个箱子一个箱子地检查，看看我的计划需要的最后一样东西。运气不好..。
I opened the door slowly to a room that showed signs of habitation. There was more clutter here, books lying around unshelved and papers arranged on tables. There were more pictures of the yellow 'doctor' on the walls, and better-preserved clippings of his life. I avoided reading them, as I was nauseated enough already. I really didn’t need to read his claims about surface parasite transmission, which apparently would contaminate the clouds. From my glances, he was wealthy, influential, and useful to an Enclave trying to find every excuse
我慢慢地打开门，进入一间显示有人居住迹象的房间。这里的杂物更多，书籍散落在没有架子的地方，纸张摆放在桌子上。墙上挂着更多的黄色"医生"的照片，还有保存得更好的关于他生平的剪报。我避免阅读它们，因为我已经够恶心了。我真的不需要阅读他关于表面寄生虫传播的声明，这显然会污染云层。从我的目光来看，他很有钱，很有影响力，对于一个试图找各种借口的昂科雷来说，也很有用
not to return to the surface... and I was getting really sick of constantly seeing him in front of me everywhere.
不要再回到地面上来了......我已经厌倦了总是看到他在我面前无处不在。
There were also Fancy Buck Cakes on the table, and a few empty wrappers along with some bottles of Sparkle-Cola. Boo, with all the swagger of a Wasteland scavenger, whipped one of the cakes off the table with her tail, caught the package in her teeth, ripped it open with a swing of her head, and set the ovoid snack cake flipping through the air. It fell into her open mouth, where it was masticated with pride. I myself had a bottle of Sparkle-Cola as I surveyed the rest of the room. Maybe it was the tent fort made out of a tarp in the corner, or the foalish drawings on the walls, but this struck me as a kid’s den. It’d happened all the time in 99; some fillies would take it upon themselves to claim some corner of the utility or storage level and make a name for themselves. In 99, we’d been the ‘Card Club’.
桌子上还有花式巴克蛋糕，一些空的包装纸和几瓶闪亮可乐。布大摇大摆地像一个荒地拾荒者，用尾巴从桌子上抽下一块蛋糕，用牙齿咬住包裹，摇头把它撕开，然后把卵形蛋糕在空中翻转。它掉进了她张开的嘴里，满是骄傲地咀嚼着。我自己也拿了一瓶闪亮可乐，环顾了一下房间的其他地方。也许是角落里用防水布搭起来的帐篷堡，或者是墙上的小马驹图画，但是这个让我觉得像个孩子的窝。这种情况在99年就经常发生;一些小姑娘会自己占用某个角落的实用程序或存储级别，并为自己命名。99年，我们是纸牌俱乐部。
I was just about to head on when I heard a snore from the fort, and not the snore of a colt or filly, either. My magic nudged the flaps of the tarp aside, and I was instantly hit by an uncoltish reek of Wild Pegasus. I saw a pale rump bearing a cutie mark of a camera and attached to a stallion curled up with a bottle of whiskey. I tugged it from his grasp… he could use it as a weapon, after all.
我刚要上路，就听见堡垒里传来一阵鼾声，也不是小马或小母马的鼾声。我的魔力把油布的挡板推到一边，我立刻被野马飞马不友好的臭气击中了。我看到一只带有照相机标志的苍白臀部，和一匹抱着一瓶威士忌蜷缩起来的种马相连。我把它从他的手里拽了出来......毕竟，他可以把它当作武器。
Okay. Maybe I took a long pull off it as well, to steady my nerves.
好吧。也许我也抽了很长时间，以稳定我的神经。
Unfortunately, my action had awoken the inebriate. He opened two bleary eyes, took one look at me, and shouted, “Don’t kill me! I didn’t know what the fuck he was going to do! Honest! Hail Neighvarro!” Then he focused somewhat, and I realized that I recognized his wrinkled, slept-in suit and his face, despite the stubble covering his chin. “Oh… hey, Babe.”
不幸的是，我的行为唤醒了醉意。他睁开两只模糊的眼睛，看了我一眼，喊道:"不要杀我！我不知道他要干什么！老实说！向邻居致敬!"然后他有些专注，我意识到我认出了他那皱巴巴的睡衣和他的脸，尽管他的下巴上有胡茬。"哦...嘿，宝贝。"
I knelt before him. “Chicanery? What are you doing here?” His eyes suddenly bulged. “What is it?” I imagined murder implants going off inside him… maybe a bomb. Then he blew, all right. He lurched forward and vomited down my front with impressive force.
我跪在他面前。""欺骗？你在这儿干什么?"他的眼睛突然鼓了起来。"这是什么?"我想象着他体内的植入物爆炸...也许是个炸弹。然后他爆炸了，好吧。他踉踉跄跄地向前走去，用惊人的力气呕吐在我的前面。
Wasn’t this such a lovely day?
今天天气是不是很好？
* * *
* * *
“I think he’s gone completely nuts,” the pale pegasus said hollowly, no longer suave with his brown mane slicked back. He’d had a taste of the real Wasteland,
"我觉得他完全疯了,"苍白的帕伽索斯虚弱地说，不再温文尔雅，棕色的鬃毛向后梳着。他体验过真正的荒原
and it wasn’t fun anymore. “When he sprang me, he just butchered his way through everypony right up to Stratus. Said that Stratus robbed him of something that he deserved. Then he pinned him to his own desk like a butterfly. Said either Neighvarro would kill you or you’d get killed by Neighvarro. Either way, it worked for him.”
一点都不好玩了。"当他跳起我的时候，他把每一匹小马都杀了个片甲不留，直到斯特拉图斯。说Stratus抢走了他应得的东西。然后他把他像蝴蝶一样钉在自己的办公桌上。他说要么邻居杀了你要么你被邻居杀了。不管怎样，这对他很有效。"
“Did he mention Stargazer?” I asked, finishing cleaning off my barding with articles on the medical bastard.
"他有没有提到观星镜?"我一边问，一边用那个医学杂种的文章结束了我的讨价还价。
Chicanery nodded, holding a bottle of Sparkle-Cola between his hooves. “After we got back here. Said he’d worked it all out, but with her dead it was ruined. But then he got even crazier. Not in the way I always thought, you know? I thought crazy was some villain going ‘bwa ha ha’ while blowing up the world. He said he wanted everypony to get exactly what they deserve. Then he kicked my ass out of... urp... out of Fabrication. That’s where he was getting the missiles ready before the power links to the Core blew up.” He gestured to the room. “End of the world stuff makes me nostalgic. Who knew?” he said mirthlessly.
奇卡纳里点点头，蹄间夹着一瓶闪亮可乐。"我们回到这里之后。他说他都想好了但是她死了，一切都毁了。但是后来他变得更加疯狂。不是我一直以为的那样，你知道吗？我认为疯狂就是一些坏蛋在炸毁世界的时候发出'bwahaha'的声音。他说他希望每匹小马都能得到他们应得的。然后他把我踢出了...制造业。在连接核心的电力系统爆炸之前，他正在那里准备导弹。"他指了指房间。"世界末日的东西让我怀旧。谁知道呢?"他苦笑着说。
I looked around the room. “Is this your base?” Maybe there was one of them around... nope...
我环顾了一下房间。"这是你的基地吗?"也许他们其中一个就在附近...没有..。
That brought a sad smile to his face as he gazed around at the scattered paper. “Yeah. Back when we were colts. Us and a few unicorns our age formed the Butt Brand Buckaneers, to help us find our… ah… well, that’s what we called our cutie marks. Anyway, seemed as good a place as any to wait and see who kills off whom first.”
当他凝视着周围散落的纸张时，脸上露出了悲伤的微笑。"是的。我们还是小马的时候。我们和几个我们这个年纪的独角兽组成了ButtBrandBuckaneers，来帮助我们找到我们的......啊......好吧，这就是我们所说的我们的可爱标记。不管怎样，这似乎是个不错的地方，可以等着看谁先杀谁。"
I closed my eyes and scribbled something on a piece of paper. “Do you have any of these lying around?” He narrowed his eyes, peered at it, and started to speak. “Don’t say it!” I blurted, now baffling the white stallion. “Lighthooves might be listening with your perceptithingy.”
我闭上眼睛，在一张纸上潦草地写着什么。"你这儿有这种东西吗?"他眯起眼睛，凝视着它，开始说话。"别说了!"我脱口而出，现在莫名其妙的白色种马。"灯塔可能正在用你的感知器收听。"
Chicanery wore a skeptical expression, “That’s either paranoid or genius. Either way, no, I don’t have one. They’d keep something like that on the fabrication level.” Figures. His eyes ran over my metal legs. “You don’t have a jamming device in all that?”
Chicanery带着怀疑的表情,"那要么是偏执狂，要么是天才。不管怎样，没有，我没有。他们会把这样的东西保留在制造层面上。"数字。他的眼睛扫过我的金属腿。"你们没有干扰装置吗?"
I frowned. “My augmentations aren’t exactly the same that Lighthooves is using. Mine are cobbled together with a repair talisman, two other sets of cyberpony
我皱起了眉头。"我的增强功能与lightthoves使用的功能不完全一样。我的还有一个修理护身符和另外两套赛博马
parts, and a suit of power armor. His are... I don’t know what. But they’re a damned bit better than mine.”
还有一套动力盔甲。他的...我不知道是什么。但它们比我的好多了。"
“Sounds like you need an upgrade,” he joked. It’d been a joke. I should have taken it like a joke.
"听起来你需要升级了,"他开玩笑说。这只是个玩笑。我应该把它当成一个玩笑。
Instead, I turned and slammed him into the wall with enough force to wipe that smile off his face. A little harder... “Don’t say that,” I growled as I glared. “Don’t even think it. I don’t want an upgrade. If there was a way I could have less metal and more me, I’d take it in a heartbeat... if I had one.”
相反，我转过身，用足够的力量把他撞到墙上，把他脸上的笑容抹去。再用力一点..."别这么说,"我怒视着他，咆哮着。"想都别想。我不想升级。如果有一种方法能让我拥有更少的金属，更多的自我，我会毫不犹豫地接受它......如果我有的话。"
He seemed to get my meaning, and I backed off a little. He rubbed his shoulder with a hoof. “Okay. Sorry. Really. I just... from the way Lighthooves made it sound, cyberponies are all ‘more is better’. More strength, more speed, more armor, bigger weapons... isn’t that the way of things?”
他似乎明白了我的意思，我稍稍后退了一步。他用蹄子蹭肩膀。"好吧。对不起。真的。我只是......从lightthoves发出的声音来看，赛博小马都是'越多越好'。更多的力量，更快的速度，更多的装甲，更大的武器......难道不是这样的吗?"
“It’s different,” I replied, shaking my head. “You can collect all the guns, armor, and stuff you want. At the end of the day, you can set them aside, if you’re lucky enough to be able to relax. I don’t ever get to stop being a cyberpony, though.
"这不一样,"我摇着头回答。"你可以收集所有你想要的枪支、盔甲和其他东西。在一天结束的时候，如果你足够幸运能够放松，你可以把它们放在一边。尽管如此，我永远都不能停止做一匹赛博马。
You have no idea what it’s like to walk all day and not have a sore hoof. I once ran fifteen miles, and I wasn’t even winded. Awesome? Sure, it was in one respect. But I don’t feel normal. I have trouble remembering what being tired feels like. What I have is an illusion of being a pony. Without that, I am so much less.”
你根本不知道整天走路却没有蹄子酸痛是什么滋味。有一次我跑了十五英里，甚至连气都没喘一下。棒极了？当然，这是在一个方面。但我觉得自己不正常。我很难记起疲劳是什么感觉。我只是幻想自己是一匹小马。没有这些，我的价值就会大打折扣。"
Chicanery stared at me with a new understanding. “The lies we tell ourselves to get through the day, I suppose.” He gave a little half smile. “So no way you’d ever take on more metal? Not even to be a big hero?”
骗子用一种新的眼光盯着我。"我想，那些我们为了度过一天而告诉自己的谎言。"他微微一笑。"所以你不可能再接触更多的金属了吗？连做个大英雄都不行吗?"
I sighed, really wanting to lie. “Only if the lives of thousands hung in the balance. Even then, I’d want to find another way. Any other way,” I said. I had to be honest; I’d take that next step. “I wonder if Lighthooves realizes how much he’s given up, augmenting himself.”
我叹了口气，真想撒谎。"除非成千上万人的生命悬而未决。即使那样，我也想找到另一种方法。还有别的办法吗,"我说。我必须说实话，我会采取下一步行动。"我想知道，莱特霍夫斯是否意识到自己放弃了多少东西，而是在增强自己。"
“Doubtful.” He stood, swayed, and looked at the papers. “If he did, he’d rationalize it. He was always a little too smart for us. I wanted to see if I could get a ‘farts lighting’ butt brand. He did research papers on the heroes of the Enclave and how they got their cutie marks.”
"不一定。"他站着，摇摆着，看着报纸。"如果他这么做了，他会为自己找借口。他对我们来说总是有点太聪明了。我想看看我是否能得到一个屁照明的屁股品牌。他研究了昂科雷的英雄们，以及他们是如何得到可爱的分数的。"
He gestured over to the table. “That’s all research he did for a dissertation for his
他指了指桌子。"这是他为自己的论文所做的全部研究
commission.” My gaze was drawn to some of the neatly arranged articles and clippings and picked out some prominent names in the headlines and captions. Lightning Dust. Rainbow Dash. Soarin. Spitfire. Pound Cake. Borealis. Zephyr. Touchdown, Dumbell, and Hoops. Mephitis. The name stuck like a thorn and I levitated one page and scanned the biography. It touted his charitable work with zebra POWs due to his childhood growing up in zebra lands. Well, that explained the name, at least. From the article, he sounded like a saint warning the pegasi that due to radiation and disease, the surface would be uninhabitable for generations. But I knew what he’d done at Yellow River. This article made the camp sound like the Society’s country club.
佣金。」我的目光被一些排列整齐的文章和剪报吸引住了，并在标题和说明中挑出了一些重要的名字。闪电尘埃。彩虹冲刺。飞天猴。喷火战斗机。蛋糕。北极熊属。西风。达阵得分，Dumbell，还有Hoops。恶臭属。这个名字像荆棘一样卡住了，我悬浮了一页，扫视了一下传记。它吹捧他的慈善工作与斑马战俘由于他的童年在斑马的土地上长大。这至少解释了他的名字。从这篇文章中，他听起来就像一位圣人警告飞马座，由于辐射和疾病，飞马座的表面将世世代代无法居住。但我知道他在黄河干了什么。这篇文章让这个夏令营听起来像是协会的乡村俱乐部。
Well, no time to waste on ponies long dead. “Wow. Sounds like he and Glory would have gotten along great as kids,” I said sarcastically. “Where is he setting up the missiles?” I guessed the answer was ‘up there’ and got that confirmed when he pointed up with a hoof.
没时间浪费在早就死了的小马身上。"哇。听起来他和晨辉小时候相处得很好,"我讽刺地说。"他在哪里部署导弹?"我猜测答案是"在那里"，当他用蹄子指向上方时，答案得到了证实。
“He converted the old Raptor arming and reloading facilities to launch them. It’s up past the living quarters, the barracks, and fabrication,” he said as he ran his hoof through his tangled mane. “I don’t know how he convinced the others to follow him, but they’re all cyborgs like you. The ponies in medical were taken up to the barracks to make the conversion, and they’ve been making them for the last twenty-four hours.”
"他改装了旧的猛禽战斗机的武装和重新装载设施来发射它们。它经过了生活区、兵营和制作区,"他一边说着，一边用自己的蹄子梳理着自己乱成一团的鬃毛。"我不知道他是如何说服其他人跟随他的，但他们都是像你一样的半机械人。医疗队的小马被带到营房进行改装，在过去的二十四小时里他们一直在改装。"
“Cyberponies might buy them some time, but not forever. Can he launch with the power from the Core cut off?” I asked, chewing my lip.
"网络小马可能会为它们赢得一些时间，但不会永远如此。如果核心的能量被切断，他还能发射吗?"我咬着嘴唇问道。
“No. The launchers he’s made have too much draw for the tower’s auxiliary power supplies,” Chicanery replied, and I let out the breath in relief as he went on, “He could probably fire them one at a time, but to do that they’d have to do everything manually; it’d take forever.” Finally, some good news. Storm Chaser would be glad to hear that. “You see, he wants to fire them all at once,” he rambled, and my good news feeling started going away. “That takes a lot of power to open all the doors and run the pumps and hydraulics and stuff...”
"没有。他制造的发射器对塔楼的辅助电源供应来说吸引力太大了,"奇卡纳里回答道，我松了一口气，他继续说道,"他可能一次只能发射一个，但要做到这一点，他们必须手动完成所有工作;这需要很长时间。"终于有好消息了。风暴追逐者会很高兴听到这个消息。"你看，他想一下子把他们都炒了,"他漫无边际地说，我的好消息感觉开始消失了。"打开所有的门，启动水泵、液压系统等等，都需要大量的动力......"
That other horseshoe dropping feeling was getting much too strong for me. “But without the power supply from the Core, there’s no way he can launch them all like that, right? Right?” I demanded, grinning hard to try and force the universe to make it so through the power of desperate thinking.
另一个马蹄铁掉下来的感觉对我来说太强烈了。"但是没有来自核心的电力供应，他不可能把它们全部发射出去，对吗？对吧?"我问道，咧着嘴笑着试图通过绝望思考的力量迫使宇宙这样做。
“No no. No chance at all,” he said and I relaxed. “That’s why he’s connecting them to the stable’s reactor.”
""不，不。一点机会都没有,"他说，我放松了下来。"这就是为什么他要把它们连接到马厩的反应堆上。"
“Stable?” I blinked, felt my eye twitch and my mane crawl. “What stable?”
"稳定?"我眨了眨眼睛，感觉我的眼睛抽搐，我的鬃毛在蠕动。"什么马厩?"
* * *
* * *
“Welcome to Stable 96,” he said as he led me through the heavy, rolling door and into the clean, familiar, comfortably claustrophobic halls of a stable. “Current population two hundred and sixteen unicorns, ninety-two earth ponies, and sixty pegasi.” All of the living, still-there stable dwellers wore achingly familiar stable barding, midnight blue PipBucks on their forehooves, and a glow of cleanliness. If I only had more time to talk and take in the stable. The occupants also seemed to completely ignore me save for curious glances when my attention was elsewhere.
"欢迎来到Stable96,"他一边说，一边带我穿过沉重的滚动门，进入一个干净的、熟悉的、舒适的、有幽闭恐惧症的马厩大厅。现有人口216只独角兽92匹地球小马六十飞马所有活着的、还在那里的马厩居民都穿着熟悉得令人心痛的马厩服，前蹄上是深蓝色的皮布巴克，脸上显得干净整洁。如果我有更多的时间谈谈，看看马厩就好了。这里的人似乎也完全无视我，只是在我的注意力转移到别的地方的时候好奇地瞟了我一眼。
I’d anticipated a few dozen unicorns, perhaps a hundred at the absolute most, living in slave-like conditions under pegasus overseers. I hadn’t expected families, elderly, and young all going through their lives. Worse, this was a stable gone right. There were no males being kept as breeding equipment in the back rooms of Medical. No life support systems barely holding together. Posters hung stating, ‘Respect diversity, genetic and personal.’ and showing a unicorn with a glowing horn, a pegasus with wings outstretched, and an earth pony with a wrench: ‘We are strongest when we work together.’
我原以为会有几十个独角兽，最多一百个，生活在飞马座监工的奴隶般的环境中。我没有想到家人、老人和年轻人都会经历他们的生活。更糟糕的是，这个马厩走上了正轨。在医疗中心的密室里没有雄性作为繁殖设备。没有勉强维持生命的系统。悬挂的海报上写着:尊重多样性、基因和个性画中有一只角发光的独角兽，一匹伸出翅膀的飞马，还有一匹扭着扳手的地球矮种马:"当我们一起工作时，我们是最强大的。"
Sadly, it seemed as if the demands of the Enclave had encouraged unicorns over the other pony races, but everywhere I looked I saw signs that this stable had been devoted to unity rather than population control. Most ponies wore sober expressions, talking in worried tones, and everypony except the foals seemed to realize something was very amiss. “I imagine that the Enervation hit you bad,” I said in low tones.
可悲的是，似乎昂科雷的要求鼓励了独角兽们超过了其他小马种族，但是我看到的每一处迹象都表明，这个马厩致力于团结而不是控制人口。大多数小马都表情严肃，用忧虑的语调说话，除了小马驹之外，每匹小马似乎都意识到有些不对劲。"我想你一定受到了很大的打击,"我低声说。
“Enerwut?” he asked blearily as he led me through the crowd, getting a few greetings from ponies as he passed.
"能量?"他带着我穿过人群，经过的时候得到了小马的几句问候，麻木地问道。
“The flesh-liquefying psychic scream that went off about half an hour ago?” I asked.
"大约半小时前发出的肉体融化的心灵尖叫?"我问道。
“Um, I was passed out,” he pointed out. “But I don’t see any liquefaction.”
"嗯，我昏过去了,"他指出。"但我没看到任何液化迹象。"
“You’re right…” I muttered, frowning. From simple proximity, everypony in here must have heard the scream, and I heard a few talking about how they had been sickened by it... but this was the closest point to the Core without being in the Core; shaken nerves or no, none of them seemed dead.
"你说得对......"我咕哝着，皱着眉头。这里的每一匹小马都听到了尖叫声，我听到一些人谈论他们是如何被尖叫声所恶心......但是这是离核心最近的地方，不管是不是惊慌失措，他们看起来都没有死。
Now was hardly the time, but I couldn’t help my interest. There were lots of places around the Core that weren’t affected by Enervation, even when they were right next door to it. I’d thought that it’d been due to the placement of the silver pest control rings, but it seemed to be more than that. All the places with vibrancy and life seemed resistant to the life-sapping energy, and they had more than just an absence of silver rings.
现在还不是时候，但我控制不住自己的兴趣。核心周围有很多地方没有受到能量效应的影响，即使它们就在核心附近。我还以为是因为银色的害虫防治戒指的位置，但事实似乎不止如此。所有这些充满活力和生命力的地方似乎都抵抗不了这种耗尽生命力的能量，而且它们不仅仅是没有银戒指而已。
These ponies were working together, not just cohabitating a space. Every settlement that cooperated and didn’t exclude seemed far more resistant to the effects of Enervation than those focused merely on survival. The Reapers, with their bright field of grass, brought together gangs from all across the Hoof to focus aggression and conflict into relatively harmless competition. The Collegiate worked together to protect and share knowledge. Even the Society had serfs and nobles working together; it wasn’t ideal, but it was better than out-and-out slavery. Megamart had the Finders working together in trade. Meatlocker’s ghouls banded together to maintain their sanity. Riverside, when I first saw it, had been a dying town, as had Rover’s people. Then, when they worked together, life had returned. It’d be easy to simply count that to economics, but it seemed like there was more to it. Even Chapel, which had nothing ‘special’ about it at all, kept the Enervation back with its inhabitants’ hope. The silver rings were a part of it, but it seemed like resistance to Enervation wasn’t simple cyberponification or a lucky lack of pest control talismans. It was something more… elusive. Something stronger. It was… It was…
这些小马在一起工作，而不仅仅是共处一个空间。每一个合作并且没有排除的解决方案似乎都比那些仅仅关注生存的方案更能抵抗衰弱的影响。收割者用他们明亮的草地，把来自霍夫各地的帮派聚集在一起，将侵略和冲突集中到相对无害的竞争中。大学生们共同努力保护和分享知识。甚至社会上也有农奴和贵族一起工作，这并不理想，但总比彻头彻尾的奴隶制要好。麦加玛特让芬德一家在贸易方面合作。肉食者的食尸鬼联合起来维持他们的理智。当我第一次看到它的时候，它和罗孚的人们一样，是一个濒临灭绝的小镇。然后，当他们一起工作时，生活又回来了。从经济学的角度来看，这个数字很容易计算，但似乎还有更多的内容。甚至连没有什么特别之处的小教堂，也保持着这里居民的希望。银戒指是其中的一部分，但似乎对衰弱的抵抗并不是简单的网络化作用，也不是幸运地缺乏防治害虫的护身符。那是更加...难以捉摸的东西。更强大的东西。那是...那是..。
It was something a smarter pony than me could have figured out.
这是一匹比我聪明的小马能想出来的办法。
I had a vague impression of a very disappointed little purple unicorn in my brain banging her head repeatedly against my skull, but I put it out of my mind as we moved to the social areas. The café off the arboretum could have been taken straight out of 99. I wondered if they had similar schools and activities. Did they have a food recycler, or were they dependent on food from outside the stable? How had they avoided the mistakes of 99? Did they follow the same three-shift protocol for their security or go with a day and night two-shift structure or an
我有一个模糊的印象，一个非常失望的紫色小独角兽在我的脑海中不断地敲打她的头撞击我的头骨，但是当我们移动到社交区域时，我把它抛在脑后。植物园旁边的咖啡馆可能是从99号公路直接开出来的。我想知道他们是否有类似的学校和活动。他们是否有食品回收商，或者他们是否依赖来自外面的食物？他们如何避免99事件的错误？为了安全起见，他们是否遵循同样的三班制协议，还是采用昼夜两班制结构
even crazier four-shift system? Ugh, if only the lives of tens of thousands weren’t on the line!
更疯狂的四班制？要不是成千上万的人命悬一线该多好啊！
Boo shied away from the others at first, but as we crossed the arboretum, the blank’s head snapped around to focus on a plate of freshly-made snack cakes. She trotted up to the table and extended her mouth towards one. The heavyset mare who’d sat down with the plate growled, “Hey you! Stay away from my cakes.” Boo blinked, and her eyes widened as the mare began to chow down on the plateful and gradually ate more and more slowly. “Stop that, you freak,” she grumbled. Boo didn’t move an inch. She just stared, her eyes growing moist as her lip started to quiver. “Don’t make me call the soldiers,” she warned, then chanced a look around and saw half the room glaring at her. “Um... Please?”
起初，布躲开了其他人，但是当我们穿过植物园时，那个空白的脑袋突然转过来，专注于一盘刚做好的小吃蛋糕。她小跑着来到桌前，把嘴对着其中一个人张开。那个端着盘子坐下来的胖胖的母马咆哮道:"嘿，你！离我的蛋糕远点。"布眨了眨眼睛，眼睛睁大了，这时母马开始大口大口地吃下一盘食物，并且慢慢地吃得越来越慢。"住手，你这个怪胎,"她嘟囔着。布一动不动。她只是瞪着眼睛，眼睛湿润起来，嘴唇开始颤抖。"不要让我叫士兵,"她警告说，然后突然环顾四周，看到半个房间都在瞪着她。"嗯......求你了?"
A moment later, with a plate of snack cakes balanced on her rump and one in her mouth, Boo followed after us. She’d somehow been able to weaponize cute.
过了一会儿，她的臀部上平衡着一盘点心蛋糕，嘴里叼着一块，布跟在我们后面。不知怎么的，她把可爱变成了武器。
I walked through the unfamiliar stable, continually taken aback by the bright lights and clean air, till we came to a door that read ‘Overpony’. Swallowing, I frowned, knowing that this wouldn’t be pretty. In the Overmare’s office, a half dozen ponies stood watching some monitors set in the wall. The things on the screens weren’t good at all. I saw Thunderhead, the smooth torus now lumpy and distorted from the impacts of the disintegration cannons. Hoarfrost was keeping her ships close to the tower and using her long range guns. Good. So long as she kept doing that… On other screens were images of cyberponies fighting off three times their number of normal Enclave troopers in the halls of the Tower.
我走过这个陌生的马厩，不断地被明亮的灯光和清新的空气吓了一跳，直到我们来到一扇门前，门上写着"Overpony"。吞咽，皱眉，我知道这样不好。在Overmare的办公室里，六匹小马站在那里看着墙上的监视器。屏幕上的东西一点都不好。我看到了雷霆岬，光滑的环面现在由于解体炮的冲击而变得凹凸不平、扭曲变形。霍尔弗罗斯特一直让她的船靠近塔楼，并使用她的远程炮。很好。只要她继续这样做......其他屏幕上是赛博小马在塔楼大厅里与三倍于它们正常数量的飞地士兵战斗的画面。
The six ponies turned and stared at me, most with bafflement and one with curious indifference, but from their expressions I picked out the Overmare. Her features were less ‘what the fuck’ and more ‘this isn’t good’. I approached the tan unicorn mare with the short, no-nonsense brown mane. “Overmare?”
六匹小马转过身来，盯着我看，大多数都困惑不解，其中一匹好奇地漠不关心，但从它们的表情中，我认出了那匹母马。她的面部表情不那么'他妈的'，而更多的是'这不好'。我走近那匹棕褐色的独角兽，它的棕色鬃毛短而直截了当。"Overmare?"
“Yes?” a distracted-looking unicorn mare said from the corner of the room.
"什么事?"房间角落里传来一匹看上去心不在焉的独角兽。
“No, this is the Overmare, Blackjack. Overmare Farsight,” Chicanery said as he trotted up to the pale butter-yellow unicorn mare with a dark brown mane spilling messily over her shoulders. She’d been the one with an indifferent expression, but, as I looked closer, I saw that her brown eyes were completely clouded over. “Mother, this is Blackjack. She’s a cyberpony from the surface.”
"不，这是海洋公园，黑杰克。"OvermareFarsight,"Chicanery一边说，一边小步走向那匹淡黄色的独角兽母马，一匹深棕色的鬃毛凌乱地披在她的肩膀上。她是那个表情漠不关心的人，但是，当我走近一看，我看到她的棕色眼睛完全被蒙上了阴影。"妈妈，这是黑杰克。从表面上看，她就像一匹赛博马。"
Her vapid expression turned more serious, adopting the troubled aspect I’d
她那索然无味的表情变得更加严肃，带着我那忧愁的神情
expected. “Ah. I see. She didn’t sound familiar.” She rose to her hooves, her PipBuck making little clicks as she walked around the gathered ponies and took her seat behind the desk. “And I take it that this is something serious with regards to the goings on in Thunderhead and up above in the Tower?”
期望。"啊。我明白了。她听起来并不熟悉。"她站起身来，在聚集的小马旁边走动，坐在桌子后面，身上的小鹿发出轻微的咔嗒声。"我认为，这是一件严肃的事情，关系到雷霆万钧和高塔上的事情?"
“Yes. And your son, Legerdemain,” I said with as much gravity as I could put in my voice. I sounded almost like Mom, actually.
"是的。"还有你的儿子，莱格德曼,"我尽可能严肃地说。实际上，我听起来几乎像妈妈。
She sighed and closed her eyes. “Please excuse us,” she said in quiet but firm tones. Without argument, the other ponies left. I felt myself straighten a bit, even if she couldn’t see me. When they’d left and the door had closed, she said, “So. Tell me. What do you have to do with my son and my stable?”
她叹了口气，闭上了眼睛。"请原谅我们,"她平静而坚定地说。没有争吵，其他的小马离开了。尽管她看不见我，我还是觉得自己挺直了身子。当他们离开的时候，门已经关上了，她说:"所以。告诉我。你跟我儿子和马厩有什么关系?"
“Well, I’m out to stop Lighthooves. He’s developed a biological weapon and a delivery system that can disperse it all across Equestria. Now Neighvarro is here to take it from him. I’m here to destroy both the plague and the means to spread it,” I said grimly. “If he tries to stop me, or tries to launch the plague, then I’ll have to stop him, too.” Probably the fatal sort of stopping.
"好吧，我是来阻止光剑的。他发明了一种生物武器和运载系统可以把它散播到整个Equestria。现在邻居来抢他的东西了。我来这里是为了消灭瘟疫和传播瘟疫的手段,"我冷酷地说。"如果他试图阻止我，或者试图发动瘟疫，那么我也必须阻止他。"可能是那种致命的停止。
“Lighthooves?” the mare asked in confusion.
"灯塔?"母马困惑地问。
Chicanery spoke up. “She means Legerdemain, Mother. That’s his code name. He’s... she’s telling the truth. He’s made a real mess of things.”
骗子们大声说道。"她的意思是骗术，妈妈。那是他的代号。他...她说的是实话。他把事情搞得一团糟。"
Her face fell, but from the solemn resignation on it, I suspected that she knew something like this was coming. “I’m sorry to hear that,” she replied quietly. She took a moment to be a mom, then returned to being the Overmare as she asked, “And your plans for my stable?”
她的脸沉了下来，但是从上面庄严的辞职信来看，我怀疑她知道这样的事情即将发生。"听到这个消息我很难过,"她平静地回答。她花了一点时间做了一个母亲，然后又回到了过去，她问道:"你对我的马厩有什么打算?"
“I’m… not sure.” I sighed. “Honestly, I didn’t even know there was a stable here. I’d thought there’d be a few dozen unicorn workers here. Maybe even a hundred. I had no idea that there was a stable.” I looked at the screens. “I’d planned to evacuate all of you on a Raptor.” Now I could hear the cracks appearing in my own plan.
"我......不确定。"我叹了口气。"说实话，我都不知道这里有马厩。我以为这里会有几十个独角兽工人。甚至可能有100个。我不知道那里有马厩。"我看着屏幕。"我计划用猛禽号疏散你们所有人。"现在我可以听到自己计划中出现的裂缝。
“I see. Well, Apple Bloom did what she did best: build a safe and secure living place for the residents of the tower,” the Overmare said evenly. “We are not, however, a true stable. A stable is meant to be an independent, self-sustaining community and habitat. We lack that independence. We are beholden to the Enclave, no matter which settlement manages us or what shape our door is.”
"我明白了。嗯，苹果布鲁姆做了她最擅长的事情:为塔楼里的居民建造一个安全可靠的生活场所。"然而，我们并不是真正的稳定国家。马厩意味着一个独立的、自给自足的社区和栖息地。我们缺乏这种独立性。我们受恩科雷的恩惠，无论哪个定居点管理我们，也无论我们的大门是什么形状。"
“So you’re prisoners?” I asked with a frown.
"所以你们是囚犯?"我皱着眉头问。
“In a very pleasant prison, but a prison none the less,” she said with a nod. “We’ve never been allowed to train with weapons, only to repair them in the fabrication labs. Fighting is strictly forbidden.” Which meant that they’d be easy pickings out in the Wasteland. Maybe I could put them with the Society, but I was already putting a burden on Grace with potential Thunderhead refugees. “The actual conditions under which we work vary from generation to generation. The current head of the tower lives in and works out of Neighvarro, so we’ve been fortunate to enjoy greater liberties than we’ve had in generations.”
"在一个非常舒适的监狱里，但仍然是一个监狱,"她点头说。"我们从未被允许接受武器训练，只能在制造实验室里修理武器。严格禁止打架。"这意味着他们很容易就能在荒原上找到猎物。也许我可以把他们与社会，但我已经把一个负担与潜在的雷头难民格雷斯。"我们工作的实际条件世代不同。目前这座大厦的负责人住在Neighvarro，在那里工作，所以我们很幸运地享有几代人以来最大的自由。"
I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “Now I don’t know what to do.”
我叹了口气，揉了揉脖子后面。"现在我不知道该怎么办了。"
“Did you think that by taking us away, you’d remove something that Thunderhead and the rest of the Enclave fight over?” she asked.
"难道你认为把我们带走，就可以消除雷暴族和其他部落争夺的东西吗?"她问道。
“No. Actually, I had a different idea for that. A way to stop Lighthooves and save Thunderhead from the Enclave. But I need to get up to where he’s holding the missiles,” I said, trying not to give specifics as I fidgeted, glad she couldn’t see me.
"没有。事实上，我有一个不同的想法。一个阻止光剑和拯救飞地雷头的方法。但我需要站起来，看看他把导弹藏在哪里,"我说，尽量不透露细节，因为我坐立不安，很高兴她看不见我。
She cocked her head, then smiled. “Oh. I see. Your plan involves doing something to the Tower itself. Something that might damage or even destroy our home.”
她抬起头，然后笑了。"哦。我明白了。你的计划包括对伦敦塔本身做点什么。一些可能破坏甚至摧毁我们家园的东西。"
I took a deep breath and then sagged. “Something like that. Now… I’m not sure. I just didn’t expect there to be so many ponies here.”
我深深地吸了一口气，然后松了一口气。"差不多吧。现在...我不确定。我只是没想到这里会有这么多小马。"
“So now you have a hard choice: do you take the homes of hundreds of ponies to save the lives of thousands, even when we did not do anything to deserve our loss?” Farsight asked with a cock of her head and a sad smile. “I don’t envy you the weight of such a decision, Blackjack.”
"所以现在你面临一个艰难的选择:即使我们没有做任何应该受到损失的事情，你还是要夺走数百匹小马的家园来拯救成千上万人的生命吗?"法塞特抬起头，带着悲伤的微笑问道。"我不羡慕你做出这样的决定，Blackjack。"
I closed my eyes. I didn’t have a second plan. Not one that would take care of the plague and those Raptors. “I’m sorry,” was all I could say.
我闭上了眼睛。我没有第二个计划。没有一个能对付瘟疫和那些猛禽的。"对不起,"我只能说这么多。
“Mmmm,” she said, then ran her hooves along her desk and pulled open a drawer with her magic. “I was not born blind, you know. When I was young, I had some of the sharpest eyes in the tower, and I was always peeking in on the soldiers in the barracks. But some of them decided, perhaps as a lesson, that they
"嗯,"她说，然后用她的蹄子沿着她的办公桌拉开一个抽屉用她的魔法。"你知道，我不是生来就瞎的。当我年轻的时候，我有一些塔里最锐利的眼睛，我总是偷看军营里的士兵。但是他们中的一些人决定，也许作为一个教训，他们
would give me a flashbang grenade. I suppose they thought it would startle me, or that I would get in trouble. They didn’t understand that I had no idea what a grenade was or that, after the stem was pulled, you must throw it away. I never saw again after that. It was hard, losing my sight. Unfair. Wrong. Even when the pair were dishonorably discharged, it didn’t bring my eyes back.” She pressed her lips together a moment. “I could have given up or turned bitter. Instead, I learned to listen and to see things through the perceptions of others. I became so adept at it that I was made Overmare when the last retired.”
会给我一个闪光弹。我想他们认为这会吓到我，或者我会惹上麻烦。他们不明白我根本不知道什么是手榴弹，也不明白在茎被拔掉之后，你必须把它扔掉。从那以后我再也没见过他。我失明了，真的很难受。不公平。错了。即使这两个人被不光彩地开除了，我的眼睛也没有回来。"她把嘴唇抿了一会儿。"我本可以放弃，或者变得痛苦。相反，我学会了倾听，并通过别人的感知来看待事物。我变得如此熟练，以至于上一个退休的时候我成了Overmare。"
“I am so sorry,” was all I could say, feeling lame and wrong. “I wish there was another way, but I can’t think of one. I have to save as many as I possibly can.”
"我很抱歉,"这是我唯一能说的话，感觉自己站不住脚，大错特错。"我希望还有别的办法，但我想不出来。我必须尽可能多地节省开支。"
“That is some small comfort,” she replied grimly as she pressed her lips together, then shook her head. “I do not know where we can go. Thunderhead, I’m told, is under attack. We know nothing of the surface. I fear stable ponies won’t last long out in the wilderness. This stable is all we know.”
"这算是一点小小的安慰吧,"她冷冷地回答，嘴唇紧闭着，然后摇了摇头。"我不知道我们能去哪儿。有人告诉我，雷锋队正在遭受攻击。我们对地表一无所知。我担心稳定的小马驹不会在荒野中坚持很久。我们只知道这个马厩。"
“Yeah. I didn’t last long when I’d stepped out of my sta…” I paused as a tiny purple mare pulled out a chalkboard, wrote 96 -> 99, and then smiled hopefully at me as she waved her hoof in vague encouragement. “I came from a stable whose population was… almost wiped out.” By me, I omitted. “There’s a hoofful of survivors left. It’s not nearly as nice as your stable is, but it is a standard Stable-Tec Stable. You’d have to share it with a group calling themselves the Steel Rangers, but I have a feeling that you two would have a lot to offer each other. They need ponies to run the stable and fix their weapons. You need a place to stay and ponies with experience fighting the Wasteland. The survivors there could show you all the ins and outs of the place, and you’d keep it alive.”
"是的。我没有坚持多久，当我走出我的座位......"我停顿了一下，一匹小小的紫色母马拉出一个黑板，写道96-99，然后满怀希望地微笑着，她挥动着她的蹄子，含糊地表示鼓励。"我来自一个人口几乎灭绝的马厩。"由于我，我省略了。"现在还有很多幸存者。它不像你的马厩那么好，但是它是一个标准的Stable-Tec马厩。你必须和一个自称钢铁骑兵的组织分享它，但是我有一种感觉，你们两个可以互相提供很多东西。他们需要小马来管理马厩和修理武器。你需要一个地方停留和小马与荒原战斗的经验。那里的幸存者可以向你展示这个地方的所有来龙去脉，而你会让它活下去。"
Her milky eyes widened in surprise, but then her face turned cautious. “And we would be free there? Not workers nor slaves?”
她那乳白色的眼睛惊讶地睁大了，但随后她的脸变得谨慎起来。""我们在那儿就自由了吗？不是工人也不是奴隶?"
“You’d have to work that out with Paladin Sugar Apple Bombs Stronghoof and the survivors, but I know Stronghoof would want a fair deal,” I assured her. “He’s that kind of pony.”
"你必须与圣骑士糖苹果炸弹斯特朗霍夫和幸存者，但我知道斯特朗霍夫会希望一个公平的交易,"我向她保证。"他就是那种小马。"
“I see. It seems I have a choice. Do I trust you, hope that you are correct, and hope my people will be willing and able to evacuate quickly, or try and stop you, throw my lot in with whoever is the victor in the tower, and maintain the status
"我明白了。看来我有得选了。我是否相信你，希望你是正确的，希望我的人民愿意并能够迅速撤离，或者试图阻止你，把我的命运交给塔里的胜利者，并保持现状
quo, at best?” she said evenly. She closed her filmy eyes and was quiet a moment. I really did not want to kill another stable. I really, really didn’t want that. Finally, she said, “It is better to dare and die for something better than it is to live a life prescribed by another. I’ll need a few minutes to contact section heads. How much time do we have?”
最多维持现状?"她平均地说。她闭上了朦胧的眼睛，安静了片刻。我真的不想再杀一个马厩。我真的，真的不想那样。最后，她说:"敢于为更好的东西而死，总比过别人规定的生活要好。"。我需要几分钟联系部门负责人。我们还有多少时间?"
“An hour. After that… I don’t know.” I couldn’t press the envelope past that. “You contact your heads. I need to check in and make some calls.”
"一个小时。在那之后......我不知道。"我没办法把信封压过去。"你们联系你们的头。我需要登记入住并打几个电话。"
She nodded and clicked her way to the door, talking in urgent and low tones. For a second, I worried she might be trying something, but my augmented hearing heard instructions being given for them to start preparing the population for evacuation.
她点点头，喀嚓喀嚓地走到门口，用紧急而低沉的声音说话。有那么一瞬间，我担心她可能在尝试什么，但是我增强的听力听到了指示，要求他们开始准备疏散居民。
First, via EC-1101 bouncing through the Enclave’s communication network like a pinball, I contacted Crumpets. Not that I doubted Paladin Stronghoof, but she seemed a little more grounded than the overenthusiastic stallion. It took me three tries before I made the connection and informed her that she should expect a few hundred new residents for Stable 99. She expressed doubt for a moment, saying that Wastelanders didn’t want to live and die in a metal hole in the ground under Steel Ranger supervision. When I filled her in on just who was moving in, she gave a soft ‘oh’ of surprise.
首先，我通过EC-1101像弹球一样在昂科雷的通信网络上跳来跳去，联系了Crumpets。我并不是怀疑圣骑士stronghof，但她似乎比过于热情的种马更踏实一些。我试了三次才联系上她，告诉她99号稳定区应该会有几百个新居民。她一时表示怀疑，说瓦斯特兰德尔不想在钢铁骑兵的监督下在地上的金属洞里生存和死亡。当我告诉她谁要搬进来的时候，她给了我一个轻轻的惊喜。
“I’ll pass it along. Thanks, Blackjack. I was starting to doubt if we’d ever have the numbers to run this place properly,” she answered before cutting the connection. Destination check. Now for transportation.
"我会转达的。谢谢你Blackjack。我开始怀疑我们是否有足够的人手来管理这个地方,"她回答，然后切断了电话。目的地检查。现在是交通问题。
Storm Chaser answered immediately. “So, General, how many passengers can you carry on those Raptors of yours?” I asked.
风暴追逐者立即回答。"那么，将军，你的那些猛禽机能载多少乘客?"我问道。
“A hundred give or take. These are warships, not passenger cargo carriers,” she said. “We might be able to go over that, but it would be hazardous.”
"差不多一百个吧。这些是军舰，不是客货运输船,"她说。"我们或许能够超越这一限制，但那将是危险的。"
“Right. Well, I have about four hundred ponies needing evacuation,” I replied. “I have a spot on the surface we can take them where they’ll be safe.”
"对。嗯，我有大约400匹小马需要疏散,"我回答。"我在地面上有一个点，我们可以带他们去安全的地方。"
“Four hundred?” the general asked surprise. “I always thought it was a few dozen unicorns. The reports never said they were in the hundreds.”
"四百?"将军惊讶地问。"我一直以为是几十只独角兽。这些报道从未说过它们有数百只。"
“There’s a whole stable here. Can you get them clear in an hour?” I asked.
"这里有一整个马厩。你能在一小时内把它们清理干净吗?"我问道。
“Not with the original plan,” she replied. “Taking the Castellanus down to one small door would be fine for a few dozen ponies. Trying to evacuate hundreds would take too long and be far too obvious. We’re going to need another ship, and a landing on the fabrication level to get them all on, all at once.”
"原来的计划不是这样,"她回答。"把卡斯特兰纳斯号放到一个小门里，放几十匹小马就可以了。试图疏散数百人需要太长的时间，而且太明显了。我们将需要另一艘飞船，并在制造层上着陆，让它们一次性全部装上。"
“Any others joined the cause?”
"还有其他人加入这项事业吗?"
“The Sleet is with us, but most of her fliers are fighting to get to Lighthooves. They’re bogged down. We’re trained for exterior operations, not room-to-room combat. Lighthooves’s cyberponies are pushing them back,” she said grimly.
"雨夹雪和我们在一起，但她的大多数飞行员都在奋力赶往Lighthooves。他们陷入了困境。我们接受的是外部作战训练，而不是房间对房间的战斗。莱特霍夫斯的赛博马正在把它们往回赶,"她冷冷地说。
I closed my eyes and asked the question I dreaded. “What about Thunderhead?”
我闭上眼睛，问了一个我害怕的问题。"那么Thunderhead呢?"
She hesitated several seconds. “It could be much worse. Hoarfrost is keeping close to the tower, so her precision is off, and she’s cut power twenty five percent to keep her guns from overheating. Once the tower is secure, though, and she moves closer to the city, it’s going to get ugly. She hasn’t seemed to notice our movements, but that won’t last.”
她犹豫了几秒钟。"情况可能会更糟。霍尔弗罗斯特一直靠近塔楼，所以她的精确度是关闭的，她切断了百分之二十五的电源，以防止她的枪过热。但是，一旦塔楼安全了，她就会搬到离城市更近的地方，事情就会变得很糟糕。她似乎没有注意到我们的行动，但这种情况不会持续太久。"
“And her fliers?”
"她的传单呢?"
“Dispatched to the city. I have no idea how much resistance they’re facing,” she answered.
"被派往城市。我不知道他们面临着多大的阻力,"她回答。
I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. “Be ready to extract the tower ponies in an hour. I’ll find some way to clear them for you.” I was admittedly a little iffy on the how at the moment, but I would figure something out.
我不确定我是否想知道。"一小时后准备把塔里的小马牵出来。我会想办法帮你清理的。"不可否认的是，我现在还不确定该怎么做，但我会想出办法的。
“Acknowledged.”
"承认。"
“Keep to the plan and try to figure some way to get another Raptor,” I instructed her. With everything going on, I hoped there still was a plan to keep to. I knew what I had to do, but if I messed up or failed, a lot of ponies were going to die. I’d be the biggest mass murderer in two centuries.
"按计划行事，想办法再找一架猛禽,"我指示她。随着一切的进行，我希望仍然有一个计划可以遵守。我知道我必须做什么，但是如果我搞砸了或者失败了，很多小马将会死去。我会成为两个世纪以来最大的杀人狂。
“Hey!” came a distant shout over the speaker, and then Rampage blurted, “Did I hear right? You need another Raptor?”
"嘿!"远处传来一声对讲话者的喊叫，然后狂暴脱口而出,"我没听错吧？你还需要一架猛禽吗?"
“Get away from the microphone you maniacal--” Storm Chaser began.
"离麦克风远点，你这个疯子——"风暴追逐者开始了。
“Hello? One should not interrupt maniacal monsters. It’s rude,” Rampage said indignantly. “You need a Raptor?”
"喂？一个人不应该打断疯狂的怪物。"这是不礼貌的,"狂暴的说。"你需要一只猛禽吗?"
“Yeah. One would be nice,” I said warily. “For an evacuation.”
"是的。一个就好了,"我小心翼翼地说。"为了疏散。"
“Can I crash it into something afterwards?”
"之后我能把它撞到什么东西上吗?"
“Blackjack,” the general warned ominously.
"黑杰克,"将军不祥地警告说。
“Sure. You get one, and it’s all yours once this stable is evacuated,” I replied. I swore I could hear Storm Chaser facehoof.
"当然。你得到一个，一旦这个马厩疏散完毕，它就是你的了,"我回答。我发誓我能听到风暴追逐者的脸蹄声。
“Sweet! No problem. I’m on it,” she said, squealing in delight.
"太好了！没问题。我正在处理,"她高兴地尖叫着说。
“Blackjack, you heard me say that Raptors are rare, didn’t you?” Storm Chaser sighed.
"黑杰克，你听我说过猛龙很稀有，对吧?"风暴追逐者叹了口气。
“She needs incentives in her life. Besides, I don’t have a clue how she can actually get one, but if she can, then it’s one less Raptor to shoot at the Castellanus, right?” I replied.
"她的生活需要激励。此外，我也不知道她怎样才能真正得到一架，但是如果她能得到的话，那么就少了一架猛禽机去射击Castellanus，对吧?"我回答。
She stammered a moment. “I… but… you… you’re insane. All of you surfacers are insane! Balefire bombs! Plagues! Madponies, the lot of you! You can’t just… just… crash a Raptor because it’s cool,” she whined plaintively.
她结结巴巴地说了一会儿。"我.....。.但是...你...你疯了。你们所有的表面活性者都是疯子！巴利火焰炸弹！瘟疫！疯女人，你们这些人！你不能只是......只是......撞毁一架猛禽，因为它很酷,"她哀怨地抱怨道。
“I guarantee you that Rampage will accomplish two things: she will get her hooves on a Raptor, and she will crash it into something. My suggestion is point her at the Blizzard or Sirocco and watch the show. In fact, film it so that I can watch too.”
"我向你保证，狂暴会完成两件事:她会把她的蹄子踩在猛禽上，而且她会把它撞向什么东西。我的建议是让她去看暴风雪或热风乐队的演出。事实上，把它拍下来，这样我也可以看。"
Storm Chaser was silent for a second, then muttered, “‘Go to the surface,’ he said. ‘They’re savage primitives,’ he said. ‘What could they possibly throw at us?’ Harbinger, you idiot.” She growled scornfully, then said, “I’ll be ready in an hour. Storm Chaser out.” Then she cut the connection.
"风暴追逐者"沉默了一会儿，然后喃喃自语道:"'到海面上去,'他说。"他们是野蛮的原始人,"他说。他们能向我们扔什么呢Harbinger，你这个白痴。"她轻蔑地咆哮了一声，然后说:"我一个小时后就准备好了。风暴追逐者退出。"然后她切断了连接。
She was a good pony, but she needed to be a little more practical. The last thing I did was send a message to Glory. “In the Tower. Fireworks in an hour. Stay safe. Boo’s okay. Hugs for P-21 and Scotch Tape.” My voice cracked a moment.
她是一匹不错的小马，但她需要更实际一点。我所做的最后一件事就是给晨辉传递了一个信息。"在塔里。一小时后放烟花。注意安全。Boo没事。P-21和透明胶带拥抱。"我的声音嘶哑了一下。
“Love you,” I said. The knowledge that the bombardment wasn’t ‘as bad as it could be’ didn’t help in the slightest with the worry bubbling up inside me. We’d
"我爱你,"我说。我知道这次轰炸并没有"可能的那么糟糕"，但这丝毫没有帮助，因为我内心的担忧正在冒泡。我们会的
split up to keep each other safe, but safety proved the least sure thing of all right now.
为了保证彼此的安全而分开，但现在安全是最不确定的事。
Overmare Farsight was waiting for me to finish, so I cut the connection before I started blubbering, opened that dusty closet in the back of my mind, threw all my anxiety and worry inside, and applied the Stable 99 motto. Not thinking about it, I faced her. “Sorry about that.”
因为OvermareFarsight在等着我完成，所以我在开始哭泣之前切断了联系，打开了我脑海深处那个尘土飞扬的壁橱，把我所有的焦虑和担心都抛进去，应用了Stable99的座右铭。不去想这件事，我面对着她。"很抱歉。"
“You say that frequently. I’m not very sure it’s healthy,” she answered, making me flush. “I’ve contacted the department heads, and I’ll announce the evacuation soon as you leave. Ponies will be upset enough as is, and I don’t want there to be trouble between you and them. Is there anything else?” She asked it calmly but with that serious authority that reminded me that time was wasting.
"你经常这么说。我不太确定它是否健康,"她回答，让我脸红了。"我已经联系了部门领导，你们一离开我就会通知大家撤离。小马已经够烦的了，我不希望你和它们之间有什么问题。还有别的事吗?"她平静地问道，但却带着严肃的权威，提醒我时间正在浪费。
I thought but only came up with three things. “Chicanery said that Lighthooves was using the stable’s reactor for power? Is there any way to cut it off?”
我想了想，但只想到三件事。"墨西哥裔美国人说，轻型火箭是用马厩的反应堆来发电的？有没有办法把它砍掉?"
She frowned. “The emergency reroute goes up the tower’s main conduit line. It would take hours to cut through the plating. We could just do an emergency shutdown of the reactor, but that would make meeting your evacuation deadline of an hour impossible and imperil the lives of the stable’s inhabitants. I don’t know if you noticed, but our tower lacks for windows.”
她皱起了眉头。"紧急改道沿着塔楼的主要管道线路进行。切开电镀层需要几个小时。我们可以直接紧急关闭反应堆，但这样就不可能在一个小时内完成疏散，还会危及马厩居民的生命安全。我不知道你有没有注意到，我们的塔楼没有窗户。"
“I saw,” I admitted. My eyes switched over to Chicanery, then back to her. “You’re Lighthooves’s mother. Why do you think he’s doing this?”
"我看见了,"我承认。我的目光转向了Chicanery，然后又回到了她身上。"你是莱特霍夫斯的母亲。你认为他为什么要这么做?"
The question made her slump. “I don’t know why you’re asking me this now of all times, but I also don’t know the answer. If you’d asked me a year ago, I would have told you he was a loyal and true member of the Enclave. That he wanted Thunderhead safe and independent but also recognized the need for Neighvarro. But over the last year, my son’s become… different. More driven. More intense and zealous for Thunderhead’s independence and what he called the ‘redemption’ of the Enclave.”
这个问题使她垂头丧气。"我不知道你为什么一直问我这个问题，但我也不知道答案。如果你在一年前问我，我会告诉你他是昂科雷的忠诚和真正的成员。他希望雷海德安全和独立，但也认识到有必要为邻居。但是在过去的一年里，我的儿子变得...不一样了。更有动力。更强烈、更热情地支持雷海德的独立，以及他所说的对昂科雷的'救赎'。"
“It was after he went down to the surface for the first time,” Chicanery added. “When he came back, he had a look in his eyes. I thought it was just the harsh environment down there, but when we met after he returned, I didn’t recognize him. He looked hollow inside. Of course, then he smiled and made his normal smug comments, and I was sure I was mistaken. Now… He’s always been a bit off, but this is too much, even for him.”
"那是在他第一次下到地面之后,"奇卡纳里补充说。"当他回来的时候，他看了看自己的眼睛。我以为是因为那里的环境太恶劣了，但当我们在他回来后见面时，我没有认出他来。他看上去内心空虚。当然，然后他笑了，发表了自以为是的评论，我确信我错了。现在......他总是有点不对劲，但这对他来说也太过分了。"
“Whatever happened to my son down there changed him forever, but as to just what it was, you would have to ask him. I don’t know,” Farsight said solemnly.
"不管发生在我儿子身上的事情永远地改变了他，但是至于到底发生了什么，你得问问他。我不知道,"法塞特严肃地说。
It was something to think about. Like with Dawn, I felt there was a similarity between the two of us that I wasn’t quite comfortable with. He was every bit as driven as I was, in his own way, but where the heck was he driving this train wreck to? “Well, you have your people to get ready, and I need to clear a path between here and that landing dock.”
这是一个值得思考的问题。就像《黎明》一样，我觉得我们俩之间有一种相似之处，让我感到不太舒服。他每一点都和我一样，以他自己的方式，但是他到底把这个火车残骸开到哪里去了呢？"好吧，你的人已经准备好了，我需要在这里和那个登陆码头之间开辟一条道路。"
“You’ll have to go through the barracks,” she said solemnly. “And my son has quite a few followers holed up in there.”
"你们必须穿过兵营,"她严肃地说。"我儿子在那里有不少追随者。"
Hmm. I drew Duty and Sacrifice. “I don’t suppose you have any bullets, do you?”
嗯。我画了责任和牺牲。"我想你应该没有子弹吧?"
“Bullets?” she asked with a baffled look.
"子弹?"她带着困惑的表情问。
Too much to hope for. Well, I could always just hit them with my sword. A lot. “How about...” I started, but, really, if they weren’t allowed weapons, they probably wouldn’t have them either. They’d be above with the hardware. “I don’t suppose you have any spark grenades, then?” I asked with a lame smile.
希望太多了。我可以直接用我的剑打他们。很多。"那么......"我开始问道，但是，说真的，如果不允许他们使用武器，他们可能也不会拥有武器。他们会在硬件方面做得更好。"我想你没有火花手榴弹吧?"我带着蹩脚的微笑问道。
The blind mare smiled.
那只瞎眼的母马笑了。
* * *
* * *
“I’m telling you, those hornheads are doing something down there!” a green stallion with white cyberaugmentation muttered. “There’s some kind of activity going on, and we should go check it out.” Without their augments matching their hide and with no hint of a seam or impression that the armor could come off, the transition from one to the other was a bit disturbing. Three of them were clustered at a junction, giving watchful looks down the side halls.
"我告诉你，那些角头龙在下面干了些什么!"一匹绿色的种马，带着白色的赛博增强器喃喃自语。"有某种活动正在进行，我们应该去看看。"没有与他们的皮肤相匹配的增强装备，也没有丝毫的裂缝或者盔甲可以脱落的痕迹，从一个盔甲到另一个盔甲的过渡有点令人不安。其中三个人聚集在一个交叉路口，警惕地看着旁边的大厅。
“Orders are orders. Next time those Neighvarro jackasses try and move up, we hit them from below. When they come at us, Fabrication will hit them from above,” a blue mare said sharply, then moved as if to touch an earbloom, but halted. She glanced over at a yellow stallion who pawed at his crotch. “What is wrong with you?”
"命令就是命令。下次那些邻居们再想往上爬，我们就从下面打他们。一匹蓝色的母马厉声说道，然后动了动，好像要碰一下耳朵，但是停了下来。她瞥了一眼一匹黄色的种马，它正在用爪子抓自己的胯部。"你怎么了?"
“I’m not sure if I still have a penis,” he muttered.
"我不确定我是否还有阴茎,"他喃喃自语道。
“It’s under the armor plates,” she replied, rolling her eyes.
"在装甲板下面,"她回答，转动着眼珠。
He poked down there some more. “I know that’s what he said, but how do I know it’s still there? I can’t feel it. I can’t feel anything!”
他又往下戳了几下。"我知道他是这么说的，但我怎么知道它还在那里？我感觉不到。我什么都感觉不到!"
The mare balked a moment. “Just… focus on the job at hand. We’ve got to keep those Neighvarro busy till the weapon systems are back on line,” she said in a huff.
母马停了一会儿。"只要......专注于手头的工作。我们必须让那些邻居忙碌起来，直到武器系统恢复正常,"她生气地说。
“I’m telling you, it’s too quiet back there! They’re up to something!” the green stallion snapped. “It’s too quiet! Everything’s too quiet.” Then he suddenly jumped. “Halt! Show yourself or I’ll fucking dust you!” he screamed as he whirled and his integrated beam guns and started strafing wildly down the hall for several seconds. He halted firing, then snapped, “I told you to show yourself!”
"我告诉你，后面太安静了！他们在搞什么鬼!"那匹绿色的种马崩溃了。"太安静了！一切都太安静了。"然后他突然跳了起来。"站住！快出来，不然我他妈的打死你!"他尖叫着，旋转着他的集成光束枪，在大厅里疯狂地扫射了几秒钟。他停止射击，然后厉声说道:"我叫你现身!"
A feather poked out into the hall, waving back and forth a second before Chicanery moved his pale head out. “Whoa. Peace, Babe. I’m unarmed.”
一根羽毛插进大厅，在奇卡纳里把他苍白的头伸出来之前前后摆动着。"哇。和平宝贝。我没有武器。"
“I should dust you to be sure,” the green stallion said, his eyelid twitching.
"我一定要给你掸掸灰尘,"那匹绿色的种马说，他的眼皮在抽搐。
“I’m telling you, it’s gone!” the yellow stallion wailed. “That box frigging gelded me!”
"我告诉你，它不见了!"黄色的种马嚎啕大哭。"那个该死的箱子把我给阉了!"
The mare snapped, “Will both of you shut up? You, stop looking for your balls and keep an eye for an enemy. And you, can’t you see he’s yellow on the E.F.S.? Go join Tempest.” She waited till the two turned away, then waved Chicanery forward. “You. What do you want?”
母马厉声说:"你们两个都闭嘴好吗？你，停止寻找你的蛋蛋，留意敌人。还有你，你没看到他在e.f.s上是黄色的吗？去参加暴风雨吧。"她一直等到两个人转过身去，然后挥手示意奇卡纳里向前走。"你。你想要什么?"
“Fame and fortune, Babe,” Chicanery replied as he trotted forward, wearing a ridiculous helmet with a camera in the middle and a microphone on a little wand jutting out to the side. “I’m a documentarian in Thunderhead. A bit of a film buff. I wondered if I could have a few words. Some embedded journalism, you might say.”
"名誉和财富，宝贝,"奇卡纳里一边小跑一边回答，他戴着一个可笑的头盔，相机在中间，一个小魔杖上的麦克风伸向一边。"我是《雷霆万钧》的纪录片导演。有点电影迷的感觉。我想知道我能不能说几句话。你可能会说，这是一种嵌入式新闻报道。"
“Now is a really bad time,” she said as she glanced at the two stallions. “In case you missed it, we’re under attack.”
"现在真不是时候,"她说着瞥了一眼那两匹种马。"如果你没注意到，我们正在遭受攻击。"
“Do you have your penis?” the yellow stallion asked the green one. “Are you sure you still have it?”
"你有阴茎吗?"黄色的种马问绿色的。"你确定你还留着吗?"
“And some of us aren’t handling it all that well,” she finished loudly. Chicanery walked closer, the embodiment of pony pleasantry.
"我们中的一些人并没有处理好这一切,"她大声地说。奇卡纳里走近了，这是小马开玩笑的化身。
“Yeah. I could tell. The last few ponies I’ve seen like you… well… I wanted to find out what it’s like from your point of view,” he said as he trotted right up to her, all smiles and confidence.
"是的。我看得出来。我最近见过的几匹像你这样的小马......嗯......我想从你的角度看看它是什么样子的,"他一边说着，一边朝她小跑过去，满脸微笑，充满自信。
“Me? I feel…” she blinked. “I shouldn’t be talking about this. I should be focusing on the fighting. I…” She rubbed her face. “I think I made a big mistake. I think… I don’t think I should have been made into this… this thing. I mean, I can smash power armor and kill with a thought… but I feel dead inside. It feels wrong.”
"我？我感觉......"她眨了眨眼。"我不应该谈论这个。我应该专注于战斗。我。。」她揉了揉脸。"我想我犯了一个大错误。我觉得...我觉得我不应该变成这样。我的意思是，我可以粉碎力量盔甲和杀死与思想...但我觉得内心死亡。这感觉不对。"
“Yeah. I can kill you dead with a thought!” the belligerent stallion sneered. “I can kill all of you! Fuck you if you think I can’t!”
"是的。我一个念头就能把你杀死!"好战的种马冷笑道。"我可以杀了你们所有人！如果你认为我做不到，那就去你妈的!"
That got a lot of flat looks before Chicanery said dryly, “Yeah. Sure you can. I noticed a lot of you have this little problem,” he said, making all three frown as he nodded his head behind him. “I mean, all of you seem to be a lot more stressed than usual.”
奇卡纳里干巴巴地说:"是啊。你当然可以。我注意到你们很多人都有这个小问题,"他说着，三个人都皱起了眉头，他把头放在身后。"我的意思是，你们所有人似乎都比平时压力大得多。"
“Wait,” the yellow stallion suddenly frowned at Chicanery. “How’d you get this far up? Somepony down below should have stopped you before you got here.”
"等等,"那匹黄色的种马突然对奇卡纳里皱起了眉头。"你是怎么爬到这么高的？在你到达这里之前，下面的一匹马应该已经阻止了你。"
“That is very true. And they did,” he said with a smile as he gave his tail a flick. Two bits of metal tied to the end glittered. Then the hallway filled with crackling energy that made Chicanery’s mane stand on end as two blue spheres of electricity expanded around him. The three cyberponies spasmed, then collapsed in heaps as Chicanery looked down, spreading his wings and letting the expended spark grenades thunk to the deck. “And that’s what happened to them.”
"的确如此。他们做到了。"他微笑着说，甩了甩尾巴。两块金属绑在一端闪闪发光。然后走廊里充满了噼啪作响的能量，使得奇卡纳里的鬃毛竖立起来，两个蓝色的电球在他周围扩展开来。这三个赛博矮人一阵痉挛，然后在奇卡纳里俯视的时候倒在地上，展开翅膀，让丢失的火花弹砰的一声落到甲板上。"这就是他们的遭遇。"
“It’s somewhat depressing that that’s the tenth time that’s worked,” I said as I approached from down the hall where Boo and I’d been watching. “I never get this far without shooting somepony or somepony shooting me.”
"有点沮丧的是，这已经是第十次起作用了,"我说，我从走廊尽头走过来，我和阿布一直在那里观看。"我每次走到这一步都会射杀一匹小马或者一匹小马。"
“I told you, Babe. I have no interest in harming them, these ‘overcharged spark capacitors in apple grenade housings’ aren’t gonna harm ‘em, and we’re not gonna harm ‘em now that they’re out. Why should they see me as a threat?” I snorted, levitated out some more cable I’d collected from below, and trussed
"我告诉过你，宝贝。我没兴趣伤害他们，这些'苹果手榴弹外壳里过载的火花电容器'不会伤害他们，我们也不会伤害他们，因为他们已经出来了。为什么他们要把我视为一个威胁?"我哼了一声，又从下面收集了一些电缆，然后把它们捆起来
them up like all the others we’d encountered. Just like the last nine, these three didn’t have a single weapon on them that didn’t go ‘zap zap’.
就像我们遇到的其他人一样。就像之前的九个一样，这三个人身上没有一件武器不会被"电死"。
“Still, I would have expected one of them to be a little more difficult,” I said with a scowl. “Getting past them just because you’re a smooth talker seems like… cheating.”
"尽管如此，我还是希望他们中的一个会更难一点,"我皱着眉头说。"仅仅因为你是个油嘴滑舌的人，就要绕过他们，这似乎是一种欺骗。"
“You’re just sore because the first time you tried to magic a grenade under them, they gusted it right back in your face,” he replied with a smirk.
"你只是很生气，因为当你第一次尝试在他们身下施魔法时，他们就把手榴弹往你脸上扔了回去,"他带着一丝嘲笑回答道。
“Maybe,” I admitted, stepping past them. Only a quick teleport spared me from being knocked out myself. The barracks looked like they were taken right out of Stable-Tec residential housing, only with a security checkpoint at both ends.
"也许吧,"我承认，从他们身边走过。只有一个快速的传送使我免于被击倒。兵营看起来像是从Stable-Tec住宅区搬出来的，只不过两端都有一个安全检查点。
Chicanery’s grin and silver tongue had dispatched more cyberponies than a whole flight of power-armored pegasi. I glanced at the knocked-out yellow stallion. “I’m guessing Lighthooves didn’t read them the fine print on becoming augmented.”
奇卡纳里咧嘴一笑，说话伶牙俐齿，派出的赛伯矮人比飞马座的全部动力装甲还要多。我瞥了一眼那匹被打昏的黄色种马。"我猜，在增强技术方面，莱特霍夫斯没有给他们解释清楚。"
“No. He just said it was a vital edge over Neighvarro,” Chicanery responded, then gestured to the unconscious trio. “Is this a normal cyberpony thing? Not being knocked out. I mean… more than half the cyberponies we’ve come across have been a few clouds short of a rainstorm.”
"没有。他只是说这是一个至关重要的优势相比邻居,"奇卡纳里回答，然后指了指无意识的三人。"这是一个普通的赛博马事件吗？没有被击倒。我的意思是......我们遇到的网络矮种马中，有一半以上都只是少得可怜的乌云。"
“I think it might be,” I replied with a small frown. “I’ve only been like this for a month, but another one I knew, Deus, wasn’t much better. Maybe it’d be different if it was just a hoof or even just a leg, but transforming a pony’s whole body all at once into a cyberpony seems to have some nasty side effects.” Like me trying to kill myself running all over the Hoof alone, or going into a balefire-burning prison. “Focus them on a fight and they can take it apart. Without that distraction…” Why did I get the feeling that, in a few weeks, Lighthooves’s cyberponies were going to be a big problem?
"我想可能是吧,"我皱着眉头回答。"我这样只有一个月，但我认识的另一个人，天王，也好不到哪里去。如果它只是一个蹄子，甚至只是一条腿，也许情况会有所不同，但是把一匹小马的整个身体一下子变成一匹赛博马似乎有一些令人讨厌的副作用。"就像我试图自杀，独自跑遍霍夫，或进入一个燃烧着篝火的监狱。"让他们专注于一场战斗，他们就能把它拆散。如果没有这些干扰......"为什么我有种感觉，几个星期后，lighthoves的网络小马就会成为一个大问题？
Whatever would a problem-free life be like? Was there really a time when my biggest problems were being stuck on the C shift and not getting laid?
没有问题的生活会是什么样子？真的有那么一段时间，我最大的问题就是在上c班的时候被困住，而且没有性生活吗？
“You seem pretty well-adjusted,” he commented.
"你看起来适应得很好,"他评论道。
“I’m a masochist, and I had help. A lot of it. From my friends, strangers, and a computer designed to help crazy ponies,” I replied irritably, scanning for red bars; there were far too many for it to be of much help to me. “The raw physical
"我是个受虐狂，有人帮我。很多。从我的朋友，陌生人，还有一台专门帮助疯狂小马的电脑那里,"我恼怒地回答，一边扫视着红色的栅栏;太多了，它帮不了我什么忙。"原始的身体状况
power it gives me is great, and I’d be dead without it, but it’s not life. I don’t have a heartbeat, Chicanery. Sometimes, I imagine that this is what it feels like to be a ghoul. If I could have my old body back, I’d take it in an instant, no matter how much weaker it was.”
它给我的力量是伟大的，没有它我会死，但这不是生活。我没有心跳了，奇卡纳里。有时，我想象这就是成为食尸鬼的感觉。如果我能找回我的老身体，我会立刻夺回它，不管它有多虚弱。"
“I wonder if…” he began, but then he trailed off. His eyes met mine and he averted his first.
"我想知道是否......"他开始说，但随后又慢了下来。他的目光与我相遇，避开了他的第一个目光。
“You wonder if your brother’s cybernetics made him do this,” I finished for him. He gave the smallest of nods, and I sighed. “It’d be a nice explanation, but he started this before I even left Stable 99. Something else prompted all this, and it doesn’t smell like your garden variety of crazy.” Understanding why wasn’t nearly as important as stopping him, but understanding why was what made it matter. I blinked and lowered my voice. “More red bars.”
"你想知道是不是你哥哥的控制论让他这么做的,"我替他说完。他微微点了点头，我叹了口气。"这是一个很好的解释，但是他在我离开Stable99之前就开始这么做了。还有别的原因促成了这一切，而且它闻起来也不像你那种普通的疯狂。"理解为什么没有阻止他那么重要，但是理解为什么才是最重要的。我眨了眨眼睛，压低了声音。"更多的红条。"
“Showtime,” he said as he spread his wings wide, allowed me to tie two more grenade pins to the end of his tail, then hid the blue-banded grenades under his wings. “Make sure my hat is straight, Babe,” he purred with a grin, making me scowl as I gave it a little nudge.
"表演时间到了,"他一边说，一边张开翅膀，让我在他尾巴的末端再系两个手榴弹别针，然后把蓝带手榴弹藏在他翅膀下面。"确保我的帽子是直的，宝贝,"他咕噜咕噜地笑着，让我皱起了眉头，我轻轻推了一下。
“Stop that,” I replied sourly, which only made him smile even more.
"别这样,"我酸溜溜地回答，这只会让他笑得更灿烂。
“Stop what?” he replied with a naughty smirk I’d worn far too many times myself. “Am I making you nervous?”
"停止什么?"他回答道，带着调皮的傻笑，我自己也穿过太多次了。"我让你紧张了吗?"
“No, you’re making me horny, and I have a stable to evacuate, a city to save, a marefriend to reunite with, and your brother to stop before tens of thousands die. I do not have time for a quickie,” I said before pointing down the hall. “Now go do your thing, oh silver-tongued one.”
"不，你让我很饥渴，我有一个马厩要疏散，有一个城市要拯救，有一个女朋友要团聚，还有你的兄弟要在成千上万的人死去之前停下来。我没有时间匆匆做爱,"我指着走廊说。"现在去做你的事吧，巧舌如簧的家伙。"
“Right. Right. That ‘real life’ thing,” he said with a sigh. “This is why I prefer pictures.” And he turned and started back down the hall while I waited with Boo.
"对。对。那是'现实生活'的东西,"他叹了口气说。"这就是我喜欢图片的原因。"然后他转身回到大厅，我和阿布一起等着。
“That stallion is either going to rut me or die trying,” I said, frowning and looking myself over. Something definitely felt off, but then, feeling off was normal for me right now. The blank tilted her head as I pursed my lips. “Do I smell funny to you, Boo?” I couldn’t really tell. My own sense of smell wasn’t exactly as sharp as it used to be. Boo blinked, then sneezed cutely, and I sighed and ruffled her mane. “That’s what I thought, Boo. That’s what I thought.”
"那匹种马要么让我发情，要么在尝试中死去,"我皱着眉头，仔细打量着自己。肯定有什么东西感觉不对劲，但是那时候，感觉不对劲对我来说是正常的。我噘起嘴唇，她茫然地歪着头。"你觉得我闻起来怪怪的吗，宝贝?"我真的不知道。我自己的嗅觉不像以前那么灵敏了。布眨了眨眼，然后打了个喷嚏，我叹了口气，弄乱了她的鬃毛。"我也是这么想的，波。我也是这么想的。"
A second later there came a crackle, and then silence, and then the air down the hall was filled with the zing of rapid-fire beams. I jumped to my hooves and started to peek around the corner when Chicanery raced past me. His tail smoked and his helmet blazed as he raced by, “Not chatty! Not chatty at all!” Boo, infinitely and sublimely practical, took off with him.
过了一会儿，传来一阵噼啪声，然后是一片寂静，接着大厅里的空气中弥漫着急速射出的光束的嗖嗖声。当奇卡纳里从我身边跑过时，我跳起来，开始在拐角处偷看。他的尾巴冒着烟，头盔冒着火，他冲过去说:"不多话！一点也不健谈!"布，无限的和崇高的实际，带着他离开了。
I peeked and spotted at least eight very pissed off cyberponies charging down the hall after him, and I reacted by following suit. Only, instead of simply fleeing, I levitated up the box of grenades, snagged two, and flicked off a half dozen stems all at once; then I raced after my friends. As the cyberponies came around the corner, some leaped, turned, and launched sideways off the wall after me; others stopped and poured on the beams and disintegration bolts. Only one of them happened to notice the little box I’d left behind.
我偷看了一下，发现至少有八只怒气冲冲的网络小马在大厅里追赶他，于是我也照做了。只不过，我没有简单地逃跑，而是把那盒手榴弹悬浮起来，抓住了两个，一下子弹掉了半打，然后我跟在我朋友后面跑。当赛伯矮种马来到拐角处时，一些马跳起来，转身，在我后面从墙上侧身发射;另一些马停下来，倒在横梁和瓦解螺栓上。只有一个人碰巧注意到我留下的那个小盒子。
Spark grenades were only supposed to be dangerous to cyborgs and robots, but a dozen of them going off at once sounded less like an electrical spark and more like lightning striking everywhere at once. My own eyes, ears, and legs failed, sending me skidding across the floor, but I stayed conscious. While my systems rebooted, I felt somepony shaking me. “I’m fine. My systems crashed.” At least, that’s what I hoped I said. I could feel my mouth moving at least.
火花榴弹被认为只对半机器人和机器人有危险，但是他们中的十几个同时爆炸听起来不像是电火花，而更像是闪电同时击中了所有地方。我自己的眼睛、耳朵和腿都失灵了，我在地板上打滑，但我仍然保持清醒。当我的系统重新启动时，我感觉到有小马在摇晃我。"我很好。我的系统崩溃了。"至少，我希望我是这么说的。我至少能感觉到我的嘴在动。
When things were back up and running, I looked back at the heap of twitching, groaning cyberponies. None of them were dead, but I had the feeling that all of them were regretting hooking computers to their brains. I stepped over the scorched forms, selected the closest room, and, without hesitation, levitated and bucked them one by one till the room was packed full. Once the doors closed, I Wonderglued the last two grenades to the floor and wired them to give the occupants an encore when they stepped out or if somepony stepped in to help.
当一切恢复正常后，我回头看了看那一堆颤动着、呻吟着的网络小马。他们都没有死，但我感觉他们都后悔把电脑连接到自己的大脑上。我跨过烧焦的表格，选择了最近的房间，毫不犹豫地把它们一个个悬浮起来，直到房间里挤满了人。一旦门关闭，我奇迹粘在地板上的最后两个手榴弹和有线他们给居住者一个安可当他们走出去或如果有小马进来帮助。
Chicanery mourned his scorched camera hat for a moment before tossing it aside. “Well, so much for that. I guess I can pretend to be searching for the bathroom while you club them over the head or something.”
奇卡纳里为他那顶烧焦了的相机帽子哀悼了一会儿，然后把它扔到一边。"好吧，那就到此为止吧。我想我可以假装在找卫生间，你可以用棍子打他们的头或者其他什么。"
Well, it was a plan. “What did you say to them?” I asked.
这是个计划。"你对他们说了什么?"我问道。
“I think I ran into where they were augmenting them,” he replied, then trotted back down the hall. “This way!”
"我想我跑到他们正在增加他们的地方,"他回答，然后小跑回到大厅。"这边!"
He led me to a much smaller cafeteria where six bemused unicorns stood around a machine that looked like Triage’s medical booth on Buck, Rage, and maybe a
他带我去了一家小得多的自助餐厅，六只困惑的独角兽站在一台机器周围，看起来就像Buck，Rage，也许还有一个
little Hydra. The normally pony-sized casing appeared almost Princess Celestia-sized. A pair of large rings in the middle sprouted four articulated mechanical claws. Hanging from rails overhead was a panoply of spare cyberpony parts. Legs. Wings. Eyes. Hearts. Rolls of synthetic hide. It’s a damned assembly line, I thought grimly.
小九头蛇。通常小马尺寸的弹壳看上去几乎和公主的尺寸一样。中间的一对大戒指长出了四个铰接的机械爪。头顶的栏杆上挂着一整套赛博马的零件。腿。翅膀。眼睛。红心。成卷的合成皮。这是一条该死的流水线，我冷冷地想。
Most disturbing of all were the bloody bins in the back corner. I didn’t look closely, but the smell… the very idea… sickened me. Augmenting a crippled pony was one thing, but mutilating a perfectly healthy pony under the belief that ‘stronger and faster’ was ‘better’ disturbed and angered me on a fundamental level. There was doing better, trying harder, and not giving up, and then there was hacking off a perfectly good limb to make a pony a more efficient killing machine.
最令人不安的是后面角落里的血桶。我没有仔细看，但那气味......那个念头......让我恶心。增加一匹瘸腿的小马是一回事，但是毁坏一匹完全健康的小马，因为相信'更强更快'更'好'，从根本上来说，这让我感到不安和愤怒。还有做得更好，更努力，不放弃，然后还有砍掉一个完美的肢体，使一匹小马成为一个更有效的杀人机器。
I picked through rows of talismans. Healing talismans. Levitation talismans. Beam talismans... ugh... where were the--
我在一排排的护身符中挑选。治疗护身符。悬浮护身符。光柱护身符...呃...在哪里--
“What’s going on out there?” one of the unicorns controlling the machine asked in a trembling voice. A pair of monitors glowed in the corner; one showed Thunderhead filled with swooping and shooting ponies, holes ripped in the wall of the city and smoke casting a haze. The other showed Raptors fighting with Raptors as pegasi swirled and looped around the tower. I guessed that the augmented weren’t the only ponies needing therapy after this. “We heard shooting and explosions and... who are you?”
"外面发生什么事了?"一只控制机器的独角兽颤抖着问道。一对显示器在角落里闪闪发光;其中一个显示的是雷头充满了俯冲和射击的小马，城市的墙上撕开了洞，烟雾投射出一片薄雾。另一张显示猛禽与飞马座的猛禽战斗，猛禽盘旋在塔内。我猜想在这之后需要治疗的不仅仅是增强型小马。"我们听到了枪声和爆炸声......你是谁?"
“Security. We’re getting ready to evacuate the stable. You’re not safe here anymore,” I said, and then I heard hoofsteps clomping behind me and turned; at the sight of three red-barred power-armored ponies, I raised my sword and prepared to teleport. “Blizzard or Sleet?” I shouted.
「保安。我们正准备撤离马厩。"你在这儿已经不安全了,"我说，然后我听到马蹄声在我身后响了起来，转过身来，看到三匹红色铁栅栏装甲的小马，我举起剑准备传送。"暴风雪还是雨夹雪?"我喊道。
The power-armored ponies took one look at me, and the officer in front snapped immediately, “Power down your weapons! It’s Blackjack! Power down! Now!” I relaxed as I saw bars turn blue. The officer reviewed her soldiers, then turned and faced me, pulling off her helmet. Twister’s lavender features came into view, and she gave a crooked smile. “I’d wondered why their reinforcements suddenly dried up.” Really, they needed name tags or something.
那些全副武装的小马看了我一眼，前面的军官立刻厉声说:"放下武器！是黑杰克！关掉电源！现在!"我放松了，因为我看到酒吧变成了蓝色。军官看了看她的士兵，然后转过身来，面对着我，脱下了她的头盔。托斯特的淡紫色的五官映入眼帘，她露出了一个歪歪扭扭的微笑。"我想知道为什么他们的援军突然干涸了。"真的，他们需要名牌什么的。
“Credit goes to Chicanery here and the stable’s supply of spark grenades,” I said with a wave of my hoof to the stallion.
"归功于这里的奇卡纳里和马厩提供的火花弹,"我对种马挥了挥蹄子说。
“Actually, they were ‘overcharged spark capacitors’ in conspicuously apple-shaped casings,” Chicanery said with an easy smile.
"实际上，它们是苹果形外壳中明显的'过载火花电容器',"Chicanery轻松地笑着说。
“Is this area secure?” Twister asked.
"这个地区安全吗?"图斯特问道。
“I might have missed a few, but every pegasus we neutralized should be tied up with cable behind us.”
"我可能漏掉了一些，但是我们击毁的每一匹飞马都应该用电缆绑起来。"
“Sweet. That’ll make shooting them in the head easy,” one of the pegasi laughed.
"太好了。这样射击它们的头部就容易多了,"飞马座的一个人笑着说。
Before I could take his head off, Twister snapped, “Ground that talk, soldier. Just because Hoarfrost and Afterburner have lost their minds doesn’t mean we stopped being ponies. Disarm and evacuate them as POWs. Understood, soldier?” Instantly, the ranks stiffened and saluted. “Good. Go round them up and get them to the loading dock in groups of no more than six. Last thing we want is a daring rescue.”
我还没来得及把他的头拧下来，图斯特就厉声说道:"别说了，士兵。仅仅因为霍尔弗罗斯特和加力失去了他们的头脑，并不意味着我们不再是小马。解除他们的武装，将他们作为战俘撤离。明白了吗，士兵?"立刻，队伍僵硬了，向他们致敬。"很好。把他们集合起来，把他们分成六人一组带到装货码头。我们最不希望看到的是一场大胆的救援。"
Well, that was one way to keep me from thumping a pony. I warned them about the spark grenade traps we’d left behind, then told Twister, “Overmare Farsight is getting the stable ready for evacuation. Are the Raptors ready for extraction?”
这是防止我撞到小马的方法之一。我警告他们我们留下的火花榴弹陷阱，然后告诉龙卷风,"OvermareFarsight正在为撤离做准备。猛禽准备好撤退了吗?"
Twister answered, “They can be here in five minutes, but the second we start to move, Hoarfrost is going to be all over us. Most of the fleet is either loyal or neutral. The former she’s keeping close to the Tower. The latter is spread out to stop any more missiles being fired, but they’re spread way too thinly. Lighthooves has at least ten times more fighters between here and Fabrication than he kept in the barracks, and he’s using them for something.”
龙卷风回答说:"他们可以在五分钟内赶到这里，但是我们一开始行动，霍尔弗罗斯特就会到处找我们。"。大多数舰队要么忠诚，要么中立。她把前者放在伦敦塔附近。后者分散开来是为了阻止更多的导弹发射，但是他们分散得太分散了。从这里到制造点之间有至少十倍于他在兵营里的战斗机，他在利用他们做些什么。"
“He’s using the stable’s reactor to power the launchers,” I said. “As soon as the stable is empty, we can shut it down. That’ll put everything on emergency power. Problem is, I really don’t think we have enough time. Lighthooves is desperate. If Neighvarro drags him down, he wants to go down bloody and to take as many of you with him as he can.” I glanced at Chicanery as his gaze dropped.
"他在用马厩的反应堆为发射器提供动力,"我说。"一旦马厩空了，我们就可以把它关掉。这样一来，所有的电力都会启动应急电源。问题是，我真的认为我们没有足够的时间。轻舟绝望了。如果邻居把他拉下来，他就要血腥地死去，尽可能多地把你们带走。"我瞥了一眼奇卡纳里，他的目光低垂下来。
“It’ll take days to fight up the central shaft to the fabrication level,” Twister replied, then looked at the machine. “Maybe if some of us hop in there…”
"这将需要几天的战斗，以制造水平的中心轴,"龙卷风回答，然后看着机器。"也许我们中的一些人跳进去......"
“No,” I replied sharply. “You don’t want to do that.”
"不,"我厉声回答。"你不会想这么做的。"
“If it’ll even the odds…” Twister began.
"如果赔率相等的话......"龙卷风开始说道。
I nearly jumped to my hooves. “Didn’t you hear me? You don’t want to become what that machine will make you! Sure, you’ll be faster. Sure, you’ll be tougher and stronger, too. You’ll also be that much less a pony. Ponies aren’t machines! You aren’t… things! Things to be butchered and replaced with metal. That device will take your heart and put a pump in its place!” That wasn’t adding the fact that this was something made by Lighthooves. Who knew what kinds of nasty things might be lurking in his designs?
我差点跳起来。""你没听见我说话吗？你不会想变成那台机器会让你变成什么样子！当然，你会更快。当然，你也会变得更加坚强。你也会成为一匹小马驹。小马不是机器！你们不是...东西！这些东西将被屠宰并用金属代替。那个装置会取走你的心脏，在它的位置放置一个泵!"这并不意味着这是一个由lighthoves制造的东西。谁知道在他的设计中潜伏着什么样的肮脏东西呢？
“But the things they’ve let you do...” she said, as if amazed that I objected.
"但是他们让你做的那些事......"她说，似乎对我的反对感到吃惊。
“You don’t get it, Twister. I’m the freak. I’m the odd cyberpony out.” I pointed to the side with a hoof. “Those ponies are the norm. I’ve met the original. Deus. He went through every moment of his life in agony and turned into a rapist just to feel normal. Another cyberpony is now a brain in a jar. A third is a pegasus who wants to kill everypony under the fucked-up premise of saving them. The fourth is a madpony with a biological weapon. The thing that let me do what I’ve done wasn’t some talisman, hunk of metal, or armored legs. It was my friends and my refusal to quit, no matter what, that kept me going.”
"你不明白，扭扭乐。我才是怪胎。我是外面那个奇怪的赛博小马。"我用蹄子指向一边。"那些小马是正常的。我见过原版。上帝。他在痛苦中度过了生命中的每一刻，为了感觉正常，他变成了一个强奸犯。另一个虚拟小马现在是罐子里的大脑。第三个是一匹飞马，他想在拯救他们的前提下杀掉每一匹小马。第四个是一匹带有生物武器的疯马。让我做我所做的事情的不是什么护身符，大块的金属，或装甲的腿。是我的朋友和我无论如何都不放弃的精神支撑着我前进。"
“Blackjack, maybe some of us are willing to pay that price. If it means saving my home, I’d happily give up half my body,” Twister replied, her face sober and serious. “I’d give my whole body.”
"黑杰克，也许我们中的一些人愿意付这个价钱。如果这意味着拯救我的家园，我很乐意放弃我的一半身体,"图斯特回答，她的脸严肃而严肃。"我愿意献出我的全身。"
“I know you would, Twister.” I put my hooves on her shoulders, looked her dead in the eyes, and said, with as much sincerity and emphasis as I could, “I know. And you might be able to at that. But what about afterwards? Is it worth your sanity? Would your loved ones really want you to become a half-mechanical monster just to stop him?” I dropped my gaze first. “I know you want to do everything to save your home. There’s nothing worse than seeing your home burn and being powerless to stop it. But this device was made during the war by ponies trying to do everything to save their home. In the end, they created monsters, and Equestria blew up anyway.” I pulled away from her, not daring to look her in the eye again, knowing she’d see my guilt. “I can’t make that call for you, though. All I ask is... if you do, please wait for me to leave the room.”
"我知道你会的Twister"我把蹄子搭在她的肩上，死死地盯着她的眼睛，尽可能真诚和强调地说:"我知道。你也许可以做到。但是之后呢？这值得你保持理智吗？你所爱的人真的希望你变成一个半机械怪物来阻止他吗?"我首先低下了目光。"我知道你想尽一切办法挽救你的家园。没有什么比眼睁睁看着自己的房子被烧毁却无力阻止更糟糕的了。但是这个装置是在战争期间由试图做任何事情来拯救他们的家园的小马制造的。最终，他们创造了怪物，但马术国还是爆发了。"我离开了她，不敢再看她的眼睛，因为我知道她会看到我的内疚。"不过，我不能为你打那个电话。我所要求的只是......如果你愿意，请等我离开房间。"
Twister didn’t reply for a second. Then she asked tersely, “Do you have an alternative?”
特维斯特一秒钟也没有回答。然后她简洁地问:"你还有别的选择吗?"
First things first. “Do you have one of these?” I asked, showing her the note and being careful not to see the words myself. When she opened her mouth to answer, I quickly interjected, “Don’t say what it is. Just yes or no.”
要事第一。"你有这个吗?"我问道，给她看那张纸条，小心翼翼地不让自己看到上面的字。当她张嘴要回答时，我很快插嘴说:"不要说是什么。只需要回答是或不是。"
She balked a moment, looking at me oddly, then shook her head. “There’s a half dozen of them on a Raptor, but I’m pretty sure they’re all in use. Those are pretty rigidly controlled, and scarce to boot.”
她犹豫了一会儿，奇怪地看着我，然后摇了摇头。"猛禽号上有六架，但我很确定它们都在使用中。它们受到相当严格的控制，而且难以启动。"
I deflated. “Yeah. Delicate, too. I smashed all the ones I might have salvaged below,” I said with a sigh, putting the note away. No doubt Scotch Tape could have gotten one for me, even if she’d needed Glory’s help. I thought a bit. Storm Front had said that there were two unofficial ways of getting in the tower. I’d used one… “Can you fly me up to the roof?”
我泄了气。"是的。也很脆弱。我把下面那些本来可以保存下来的都砸碎了,"我叹了口气说，把纸条收起来。毫无疑问，透明胶带可以给我买一个，即使她需要晨辉的帮助。我想了一下。风暴阵线说有两种非官方的方法可以进入大厦。我曾经用过一个......"你能带我飞到屋顶吗?"
She considered me for a long, sober minute. “Not in anything like a wagon, or carrying you. Lighthooves’s fliers are all over. We can barely handle them in the open air with superior numbers, and it’s dicey. We might be able to fight our way to the roof, but carrying the two of you would make us a huge fat target.”
她考虑了我很长时间，很清醒。"不是坐马车，也不是背着你。到处都是轻舟的传单。我们几乎不能在户外以优越的人数处理他们，这是冒险的。我们也许可以一路打到屋顶，但是带着你们两个会让我们成为一个巨大的靶子。"
I hissed softly through my teeth. If only I could teleport more than a dozen feet! There had to be a way, though. I stepped away and let my eyes pass over the racks of synthetic eyeballs, legs, lungs, hearts, wings, beam guns, hide…
我的牙齿发出轻轻的嘶嘶声。要是我能传送十几英尺就好了！不过肯定有办法的。我走开了，让我的眼睛穿过架子上的合成眼球，腿，肺，心脏，翅膀，光束枪，隐藏..。
Wings. My eyes stared at the dozens of metal-feathered wings dangling from their rack, each with a red talisman in the center joint, and I felt my blood run cold.
翅膀。我的眼睛盯着那几十只挂在架子上晃来晃去的金属羽毛翅膀，每只翅膀中间的关节处都有一个红色的护身符，我感到浑身冰凉。
No. I’d find another way. I wasn’t about to lose my other half. “Let me get a better look at the shaft between here and fabrication. Maybe I can fight through,” I said, trying to dredge up whatever optimism I had left. As we walked out, the pod’s doors lay wide open as if patiently waiting.
没有。我会另辟蹊径。我不想失去我的另一半。"让我更清楚地看看这里和制造之间的通道。也许我能挺过去,"我说，试图重拾我曾经的乐观情绪。我们走出去的时候，分离舱的门敞开着，好像在耐心地等待。
* * *
* * *
The vertical shaft rose up a thousand feet above the top of the barracks, ringed every hundred by a catwalk bristling with not just turrets but also cyberpony defenders. The base of the shaft was a nightmare landscape of twisted metal, heaps of glowing dust, and piles of luminescent slime. The air was filled with so many bolts and beams that I’d have been blinded if I had normal eyes. Boo cringed back, hiding behind me as the air crackled and snapped. Plates of armor
竖井高出营房顶部1000英尺，每隔100英尺就会有一圈人走猫步，不仅有炮塔，还有赛伯马的防御者。竖井的底部是一片噩梦般的景象:扭曲的金属，成堆的发光的尘埃，成堆的发光的粘液。空气中充满了这么多的螺栓和横梁，如果我有正常的眼睛，我已经瞎了。当空气噼啪作响时，布畏缩了回来，躲在我身后。盔甲甲
fallen from above or brought in from outside provided some cover, but this was a killing field nonetheless. Beam guns scorched the air, bolts fell in a rain of death, and one after the next, Enclave fell to their own.
从上面掉下来或者从外面被带进来，都提供了一些掩护，但这仍然是一个杀戮战场。光束炮烧焦了空气，螺栓在死亡的雨中落下，一个接着一个，昂科雷落到他们自己的手里。
As I stared at the chaos, I could see the major weakness in the attackers. This was a fight that called for Steel Ranger armor emplaced and dug in. A squad of missile launchers and grenade machine guns would have accomplished what a hundred magical-energy-weapon-armed ponies could not. Even Persuasion and a crate of grenades would be more useful. Instead, assaulting from below, all the attackers’ advantages were against them. Flight was suicide. What few magic and spark grenades they wielded had to be thrown, exposing the attacker to deadly fire. If any cyberponies were wounded or damaged, they flew higher up till they regenerated.
当我凝视着这片混乱时，我可以看到攻击者的主要弱点。这是一场需要钢铁骑兵装甲部署和掩护的战斗。一队导弹发射器和榴弹机枪就能完成一百匹装备魔法能量武器的小马所不能完成的任务。即使是《劝导》和一箱手榴弹也会更有用。取而代之的是，从下面进攻，所有攻击者的优势都对他们不利。飞行简直是自杀。他们手中仅有的几枚魔法手榴弹和火花手榴弹必须扔出去，使袭击者暴露在致命的火焰中。如果任何赛博小马受伤或受损，它们会飞得更高，直到再生。
Along one wall lay a conduit twice as large as my body and running straight up the tower. Its surface was scorched and blackened, but otherwise it was untouched. We didn’t even have the firepower to cut the electricity to the upper tower. My sword could probably cut through the plating, but in my head danced images of me exploding like the Core’s substations.
沿着一堵墙放着一条比我身体大两倍的水管，水管笔直地流向塔顶。它的表面被烧焦了，变黑了，但除此之外，它是完好无损的。我们甚至没有火力切断上层大楼的电力供应。我的剑也许可以切断电镀层，但在我的头脑中跳舞的图像，我爆炸像核心的变电站。
I watched in horror as ponies fell. Orders were shouted into the hurricane of chaos around us. Cries of pain and for help were lost on the winds of war. I stood there at a loss. In a battle of hundreds, what difference could one pony make?
我惊恐地看着小马摔倒。命令在我们周围混乱的飓风中呼喊着。痛苦的呼喊和求助的呼喊在战争的风中消失了。我不知所措地站在那里。在一场数百人的战斗中，一匹小马能有什么不同呢？
Out of any lines of fire in the stairwell, I sank down to my haunches and covered my face in my hooves, listening to the screaming. Boo curled up tight against me, and I put a hoof around her shoulders simply for somepony to hold on to. Finally, unable to bear the screams in the shaft any longer, I ran away into S.A.T.S. and sat there.
由于楼梯井里没有火线，我一屁股坐下来，用蹄子捂住脸，听着尖叫声。布紧紧地蜷缩在我身上，我在她的肩膀上放了一个蹄子，只是为了让小马能抓住它。最后，我再也无法忍受竖井里的尖叫声了，我跑进了S.A.T.S.，坐在那里。
“Not pretty, is it?” rasped a voice. In my vision, the Dealer appeared amid the frozen beams and bolts. He pushed back his battered cowpony hat and approached, walking through the glowing energy like a ghost. “My first fight, I was just like you are now. Just wanting to curl up and hide. ‘Course, that doesn’t help much, does it?”
"不好看，是吗?"一个声音刺耳地说。在我的幻象中,"商人"出现在结冰的横梁和螺栓之间。他把那顶破旧的牛仔帽往后一推，走了过来，像个幽灵一样穿过发光的能量。"我的第一场比赛，我就像你现在这样。只想蜷缩起来躲起来。"当然，这没什么帮助，不是吗?"
Desperately hoping that the magic of my PipBuck would carry my thoughts to him in S.A.T.S., I thought the words, “I don’t know what to do.”
我非常希望我的PipBuck的魔力能把我的想法带到他在S.A.T.S.的生活中，我想着这句话:"我不知道该怎么办。"
His tired eyes narrowed a bit. “Bullshit. You know exactly what you need to do.
他疲倦的眼睛眯了一下。"胡说。你很清楚自己需要做什么。
Precisely what you have to do.” He raised his foreleg, two cards wedged between hoof and pad by the corner. “You have to make a choice.”
这正是你必须做的。"他抬起前腿，两张卡片夹在蹄子和垫子之间的角落里。"你必须做出选择。"
“What are my choices?” I whispered mentally.
"我的选择是什么?"我在心里低声说。
“Option one... you lose. You get the hell out of here. Get your friends, leave the skies, and let the bodies fall where they may. Rest. Heal. Focus on another day,” he said before biting the card and turning it. I saw me, surrounded by the others, all holding on to each other as the skies burned above us and flaming pegasi tumbled down.
"第一个选择......你输了。你给我滚出去。带上你的朋友，离开天空，让尸体随他们去吧。休息。治愈。把注意力集中在以后的日子上,"他说，然后咬住卡片，转动它。我看见自己被其他人包围着，当天空在我们头顶燃烧，飞马座的燃烧着滚落下来时，所有人都紧紧抓住彼此。
I didn’t answer. I didn’t want to hear option two, and he knew it. “Option two...” and all he did was turn the card. On the far side was exactly what I knew would be. I wanted to look away, but I was frozen, staring at the thing I was terrified of.
我没有回答。我不想听第二种选择，他也知道。"选择二......"他只是翻了一下牌。远处正是我知道的那个地方。我想把目光移开，但是我僵住了，盯着我害怕的东西。
“I don’t want to,” I whispered, a foal’s protest. His eyes narrowed scornfully.
"我不想,"我低声说，小马驹的抗议。他轻蔑地眯起眼睛。
“Pick, or let somepony else pick for you. Lighthooves, Hoarfrost, or Dawn, probably. Only I doubt you’ll like their choice,” he replied tossing the cards in my face. “Either way, stop sitting here whimpering. You don’t have time to waste. Forty-five minutes, maybe less.”
"挑选，或者让别人为你挑选。可能是轻舟，白霜，或者黎明。只是我怀疑你会喜欢他们的选择,"他回答道，把牌扔到我脸上。"不管怎样，别坐在这里呜咽了。你没有时间可以浪费。45分钟，也许更短。"
“I don’t know if it will work. I don’t even know if it’s possible!” I protested, grasping at anything that’d make my choice easier.
"我不知道这是否行得通。我甚至不知道这是否可能!"我抗议着，想抓住任何能让我的选择更容易的东西。
“Steelpony is in your PipBuck, as am I. I can interface with it and help smooth things along,” he replied quietly. “I’ve been there when you’ve been worked on in the past. I know which files to use.”
"Steelpony是在你的PipBuck，我也是，我可以接口，并帮助顺利进行,"他平静地回答。"过去你接受治疗的时候，我也在场。我知道该用哪些文件。"
I left S.A.T.S. and stared out into the hazy chamber. I’d already given a few pounds of flesh. What were a few pounds more?
我离开了s.a.t.s，凝视着朦胧的房间。我已经付出了几磅肉。再多几磅算什么？
Only all that I had left.
只剩下我所剩下的一切。
“Ante up,” I whispered hollowly, not sure how many chips I had left to bet.
"下注吧,"我低声嘀咕着，不知道自己还剩多少筹码。
* * *
* * *
“Talk to me,” I said tensely, eyes clenched shut as I stood trapped inside a humming, whirring nightmare. Apparently the machine wasn’t used to having a
"跟我说话,"我紧张地说，眼睛紧闭着，陷入了一场嗡嗡作响、呼呼作响的噩梦之中。显然，这台机器不习惯有一个
cyberpony already inside, and the technicians were doing something to compensate. “That’s your talent. Talk! Tell me something. Anything.” The restraints around my neck, feet, torso, and tail didn’t help matters.
Cyberpony已经在里面了，技术人员正在做一些补偿。"这就是你的才能。说话！告诉我。什么都行。"我的脖子、脚、躯干和尾巴上的束缚并没有起到什么作用。
They’d had to pick the original Project Steelpony from my PipBuck in order to access ‘Shadowbolt Schematics’. The mechanical monster banged and buzzed for several minutes as it retooled itself for the changes. All I could hope was that the Dealer was able to guide the process so that I didn’t end up some kind of double-augmented freak. Apparently, there was quite a bit more stuff in the original file than the mass-produced units, not to mention that I had parts in me that weren’t in any file.
他们不得不从我的PipBuck中选择最初的Steelpony项目，以获得"Shadowbolt图表"。这个机械怪物为了适应这些变化而重新装备自己，撞击并嗡嗡响了几分钟。我所能希望的是，经销商能够指导的过程，使我不会最终成为某种双重增强的怪物。显然，原始文件中的内容比批量生产的文件要多得多，更不用说我体内有些部分不在任何文件中。
“Are you sure you don’t want us to put you under?” the technicians asked for the third time. “The process is automated and only takes a few minutes, usually, but in your case it might be quite a bit longer. There’s an anesthetic field on, but all the others were fully unconscious for this.”
"你确定不需要我们给你麻醉吗?"技术人员要求第三次。"这个过程是自动化的，通常只需要几分钟，但是对于你来说可能需要更长的时间。有一个麻醉区开着，但其他人都因此完全失去了知觉。"
I really wanted it, or maybe a nice memory orb to hide in till it was all over. The problem was that I was on limited time, and I had to get going and soon as I was finished. “I’m fine. Just get it done.” I took a deep breath. “Talk to me, Chicanery. Tell me something. Anything.” I felt the vaguest tugging on my hide between my shoulders and clenched my eyes shut. “Tell me about the founding of the Enclave.”
我真的很想要它，或者一个美好的记忆球，藏在里面，直到一切都结束。问题是我的时间有限，我必须马上出发，一旦我完成任务。"我很好。只要完成它就行了。"我深吸了一口气。""告诉我，骗子。告诉我。什么都行。"我感到两肩之间有一丝模糊的东西在拉扯我的皮，紧紧地闭上了眼睛。"告诉我关于飞地的建立。"
“Well, Babe, it’s not a pretty story. Bombs fell, everypony died. Even Cloudsdale. Heck, Cloudsdale got hit first. Don’t think that didn’t hurt,” he said grimly, then sighed. “Fact is, surface forces were annihilated, but since our cities are mobile, most escaped the initial carnage. We were still in big trouble, though, mostly due to a lack of food. There wasn’t much in the way of aeroculture back then. Most of the food was emergency military rations while everypony waited for the other horseshoe to drop and finish us off. But it never came. In those years, we had Rainbow Dash constantly trying to get help down below. She and Scootaloo were the loudest voices for that. There were lots of others, though, who wanted to take care of our own first.” He paused. “You okay?”
"好吧，宝贝，这不是一个好故事。炸弹落下，每匹小马都死了。即使是克劳斯代尔。见鬼，克劳斯代尔先被袭击了。不要以为那不疼,"他冷冷地说，然后叹了口气。"事实是，地面部队被消灭了，但由于我们的城市是流动的，大多数人逃过了最初的大屠杀。尽管如此，我们还是遇到了大麻烦，主要是因为缺少食物。当时没有太多的航空文化。大部分食物是紧急军粮，每匹小马都等着另一只马蹄铁掉下来把我们干掉。但是它从来没有来过。在那些年里，我们有彩虹达什不断试图得到帮助下面。她和斯库塔卢的声音是最响亮的。不过，还有很多人想先照顾好我们自己。"他停顿了一下。"你还好吗?"
I could feel things dripping along my sides; it didn’t hurt… but that didn’t make it anywhere close to okay. “Don’t ask that. Keep going! Why didn’t folks listen to Rainbow Dash?” Only a few minutes. Only a few... I could handle a few minutes. I could. I could!
我可以感觉到东西从我身体两侧滴落下来;这并不疼......但是这并没有让我感觉好到哪里去。"别问这个。继续走！为什么人们不听彩虹冲刺呢?"只有几分钟。只有几分钟...我可以应付几分钟。我可以。我可以！
So why did it feel like I was nailed to a floor right now?
那为什么我现在感觉像是被钉在了地板上？
“Well, part of it was that she was a Ministry Mare, not a general. She was always seen as Princess Luna’s mascot for the pegasi. Hell of a flyer and the only Ministry Mare with even a sliver of military background, but she wasn’t a soldier in many pegasi’s eyes. Just a glory hound and a dirt-kisser. So when Cloudsdale was wiped out, the same thing happened that happened now when Maripony blew up. Command structures were shattered. There was doubt and confusion. And along comes Rainbow Dash telling everypony we had to risk radiation and worse to help the surface. I think the military fliers resented it. They rallied together in opposition to her simply because she was a reminder of everything that had gone wrong--” He stopped as my body let out a wet and meaty crunch.
""嗯，部分原因是她是一个牧师，而不是一个将军。她一直被视为卢娜公主对飞马座的吉祥物。她是一位了不起的飞行员，也是唯一一位有一点军事背景的魔法部母马，但在飞马座的许多人眼里，她并不是一个战士。只是一个追求晨辉的人和一个肮脏的接吻者。所以当克劳斯代尔被消灭的时候，同样的事情发生了，就像现在马里波尼爆炸的时候一样。指挥结构被打破。有疑虑和困惑。彩虹·达什告诉每一匹小马，我们必须冒着辐射和更糟糕的风险来帮助它们浮出水面。我认为军方的飞行员对此很反感。他们聚集在一起反对她，仅仅是因为她提醒我所有的事情都出了问题——"他停了下来，我的身体发出湿漉漉的、多肉的嘎吱声。
“Keep talking!” I nearly screamed. If they put me out, then there was no telling if I’d wake before the evacuation took place. He didn’t, and I could feel things being done to my shoulders that felt as though pieces were being drilled in place. “Please!”
"继续说!"我几乎尖叫起来。如果他们把我赶出去，那么在疏散开始之前我是否会醒来就不得而知了。他没有，我能感觉到肩膀上有东西在动，好像有人在钻孔。"求你了!"
“Stress hormones are through the roof,” a technician said.
"压力荷尔蒙激增,"一位技术人员说。
Chicanery’s voice cracked a moment as he went on. “The public was more on her side though, so the military ran nonstop propaganda to undermine her. They claimed that the surface was contaminated with diseases and radiation. Sent down probes to show mutated life and fields of dead bodies. Anything and everything they could to discredit her. Then the eclipse happened. Folks thought it was the end of the world. Sun and moon coming together like they were going to hit. Kinda quaint now,” he said mirthlessly as the machine hummed. “With the social disruption following that… well… Finally it came down to a vote of all the settlements whether to cut off the surface permanently or open the skies up and help the surface. All kinds of experts gave their testimony about pros and cons… mostly cons. Most damning was Doctor Mephitis. He showed footage of diseased zebras eating each other. Sickened the whole room. Rainbow Dash told them all to go buck themselves, though, and took off on her own. The Enclave got its start there, based on the military.”
奇卡纳里接着说，他的声音响了一会儿。"不过，公众更支持她，因此军方不停地进行宣传，试图破坏她的声誉。他们声称表面受到了疾病和辐射的污染。发射探测器来显示变异的生命和死亡的领域。他们想尽一切办法让她名誉扫地。然后日食发生了。人们认为这是世界末日。太阳和月亮聚在一起，好像要撞上一样。现在有点奇怪了,"机器嗡嗡作响，他闷闷不乐地说。"随之而来的是社会的混乱......嗯......最后的结果是所有定居点投票决定是永久切断地面还是开放天空帮助地面。各种各样的专家都给出了他们关于正反两方面的证词......大部分都是反对意见。最要命的是梅菲蒂斯医生。他播放了病斑马互相吃对方的画面。使整个房间都感到恶心。然而，彩虹·达什告诉他们所有人要振作起来，自己出发了。依靠军队，昂科雷在那里开始了它的发展。"
At least it was working; listening to him was keeping my mind where it should be: not panicking. “Son of a mule,” I shouted. “Sick bastard probably accessed the cameras in his own prison camp!”
至少它起作用了;听他说话让我的思想保持在应有的位置:不惊慌。"骡子的儿子,"我喊道。"这个变态可能连上了自己战俘营的摄像头!"
“Hey. That’s my ancestor you’re talking about there,” Chicanery said in mock seriousness, “And by all accounts, he was a pretty serious doctor. I don’t know what you mean by prison camp. Yellow River was a hospital.”
"嘿。"你说的是我的祖先,"奇卡纳里假装严肃地说,"大家都说，他是一个相当严肃的医生。我不知道你说的集中营是什么意思。黄河是一家医院。"
“Wait. He was your--” I started to say when I opened my eyes… oh, that was wrong. In front of me, I saw two bloody metal hands reaching for my face, the ends tipped in hooked blades, tiny pincers, and a panoply of needles. The restraints about my neck stopped me cold as I clenched my eyes shut and did all I could not to teleport away. I really did NOT want to leave this midway. But then I felt the tugging around my ears and cheeks, and it was all I could do to do nothing as I felt the rubbing that made me want to scratch and scream all at once. When those hands pulled, nothing could stop me from seeing the bloody hide dangling from the steel fingers, because my eyelids were attached to it.
"等等。他是你的——"当我睁开眼睛的时候，我开始说......哦，那是错的。在我面前，我看见两只血淋淋的金属手伸向我的脸，两端插着钩状的刀片，小小的钳子，还有一大堆针。我紧闭双眼，竭尽全力不让自己瞬间移动，脖子上的束缚让我感到一阵寒意。我真的不想半途而废。但后来我感觉到耳朵和脸颊周围有力的拉扯，我什么也做不了，因为我感觉到摩擦让我想一下子抓一下，尖叫一下。当那双手被拉开的时候，没有什么能够阻止我看到那血淋淋的皮肤从我的钢铁手指上垂下来，因为我的眼睑依附在它上面。
“How is she still conscious? She should be having a heart attack right now,” I heard one technician say to another. I didn’t want to answer; I could feel my own blood dripping over my face. Then a clean hand returned with a plate of metal and pressed it to my face. “Alicorn modification. Seriously? Somepony decided to make augmentation designs for Celestia and Luna?”
"她怎么还有意识？她现在应该是心脏病发作了,"我听到一个技术人员对另一个说。我不想回答;我能感觉到我自己的血滴在我的脸上。然后一只干净的手拿着一个金属盘子回来，按在我的脸上。"Alicorn改造。真的吗？有人决定为天堂和月神做增强设计?"
Not them, but for whatever alicorns were created by Twilight’s potion, I suspected. After all, what was better than a flying magical pony but a flying magical bulletproof pony with beam guns? Or who knew, maybe there was a plot for cyberpony Princesses! At this point, I put nothing past Goldenblood. The metal plate was being fixed to my face, covering my muzzle and head before being screwed in place. I couldn’t blink. I had a disturbing realization that I wouldn’t ever blink again. Waves of magic rolled over me as the machine whirled and banged, augmenting me for the last time. Any more, and I’d be Dawn.
不是他们，而是我怀疑暮光之城的魔药创造出来的橡树果。毕竟，还有什么比会飞的魔法小马更好的呢？或者谁知道，也许有一个赛博马公主的阴谋！在这一点上，我没有放过金血王。这块金属板被固定在我的脸上，盖住我的口鼻和头部，然后才拧到位。我无法眨眼。我有一个令人不安的意识，我再也不会眨眼了。随着机器的旋转和撞击，一阵阵魔法滚过我的身体，最后一次增强了我的能力。再多的话，我就是道恩了。
“Whoa! Foreign biological material detected!” one of the technicians shouted.
"哇！检测到外来生物物质!"其中一个技术人员喊道。
“Don’t worry. The pod will flush it,” replied the other.
"别担心。"豆荚会把它冲走的,"另一个答道。
“It’s in her uterus,” the first snapped. “Dear skies above, I think she’s pregnant!”
"在她的子宫里,"第一个人厉声说道。"亲爱的上天，我想她怀孕了!"
What? I ignored the cutting, the whirring, the dripping, and the part of my brain that imagined what I’d look like when this was over and focused on that word. Pregnant. “That’s impossible! I have a contraceptive implant!” I shouted.
什么？我忽略了切割，呼呼声，滴水声，还有我大脑中想象着这一切结束后我会变成什么样子的那部分，专注于那个词。怀孕。"这不可能！我有皮下埋植剂避孕法!"我喊道。
“Check again!” a technician snapped.
"再检查一遍!"一个技术员崩溃了。
“Not from what my systems are showing. Looks like it implanted in the uterine wall recently. Hormone levels confirm,” the mare technician said. “I might be able to override. Do you want to keep it?”
"从我的系统来看，不是这样的。看起来像是最近植入子宫壁的。荷尔蒙水平确认,"母马技师说。"我也许可以推翻。你想留着它吗?"
Oh Celestia, she was asking me this now? Now?! I had parts of my body being rearranged, a weapon to destroy, an enemy to stop, a city to save, and… and… crazy would be easier than reality! Did I want to keep it? Was she serious?
哦，塞莱斯蒂亚，她现在问我这个？现在?！我身体的一部分被重新安排，一件武器被摧毁，一个敌人被阻止，一座城市被拯救，而且......而且......疯狂比现实更容易！我想留着它吗？她是认真的吗？
Did I? With everything going on, it really boiled down to a yes or no question. I had every reason to say no. Off the top of my head, I could think of six or seven good arguments as to why I shouldn’t have a foal, both now and ever. They were reasonable, smart reasons, but then, I never was a smart pony.
是吗？随着一切的进行，这真的可以归结为一个是或否的问题。我完全有理由拒绝。我一下子就能想出六七个好的理由来解释为什么我现在和以后都不应该养小马驹。这些理由很合理，很聪明，但是，我从来都不是一匹聪明的小马。
“Yes,” I muttered, then shouted, “Yes! Please, yes!”
"是的,"我喃喃自语，然后喊道,"是的！求你了，是的!"
“Attempting to override purge,” the mare said as I started to focus my magic to teleport out. It didn’t matter if I wasn’t completely put together. My priorities had been smashed in the knee with this new knowledge. If I had to, I’d tell Twister what to do, crawl to Thunderhead, and travel in any direction away from danger I could. Maybe see what LittlePip was up to. “There! It’s moving on to finishing up.”
"试图覆盖净化,"母马说，因为我开始集中我的魔法传送出去。就算我没有完全拼凑起来也没关系。我优先考虑的事情已经被这个新知识击碎了。如果有必要，我会告诉Twister该做什么，爬到Thunderhead，然后朝任何我能够远离危险的方向前进。也许可以看看小皮普在做什么。"那儿！它正在进入收尾阶段。"
“Thank you,” I said, wishing I could cry... but I didn’t have tears any more.
"谢谢你,"我说，希望我可以哭...但我没有眼泪了。
“What’s this? ‘Echo Cleanup Protocol’?” another technician asked as there was more hissing and whirring and doing something to my body. “Seriously? The parts are installed. What more is there to do?”
"这是什么？'回声清理协议'?"另一个技术员问道，因为我的身体发出了更多的嘶嘶声和呼呼声。"真的吗？零件已经安装好了。还有什么可做的呢?"
“Don’t ask me. It’d take me a year to get through all these designs and files. I think something in her PipBuck is guiding these, because I sure ain’t. Lighthooves used the pegasus production model. I have no clue what this ‘Eclipse’ model is supposed to be.” The pod around me whirred, then fell silent. A hiss of water blew over me, followed by a blast of warm air. Then the front of the pod opened with a hot, wet roll of steam, and I slowly stepped out.
"别问我。我得花一年的时间才能看完所有这些设计和文件。我认为她的PipBuck里有某种东西在引导这些，因为我肯定不是。莱特霍夫斯使用的是飞马生产模型。我完全不知道这种'Eclipse'模式应该是什么样的。"我周围的圆荚体嗡嗡作响，然后就沉默了。一阵水的嘶嘶声从我身上吹过，接着是一阵暖风。然后分离舱的前部打开了一个又热又湿的蒸汽卷，我慢慢地走了出来。
The half dozen Enclave soldiers, unicorn technicians, Twister, Chicanery, and Boo all gaped at me as I walked forward. My E.F.S. was installing drivers in the periphery of my vision. The only parts of me that could feel open air were my
当我向前走的时候，六个昂科雷士兵、独角兽技师、Twister、Chicanery和Boo都目瞪口呆地看着我。我的e.f.s正在我的视线范围内安装驱动程序。我身上唯一能感受到户外空气的部分就是我自己
mouth and under my tail. Every inch of me that remained was covered. I wanted to go to the technicians and find out for sure if they were certain I was pregnant, but I also needed to get to the roof, but I also... I also needed...
嘴巴和尾巴下面。我身上剩下的每一寸都被盖住了。我想去找技术人员，确定他们是否确定我怀孕了，但是我也需要去屋顶，但是我也...我也需要..。
I felt everything slipping away from me. This was wrong. All wrong! I’d given up enough of myself, hadn’t I? Was there anything left of me? Anything at all? “Mirror...” I croaked. It was the least of the things I wanted, but the easiest to supply. Baby steps.
我感到一切都从我身边溜走了。这是不对的。大错特错！我已经放弃了太多，不是吗？我还剩下什么吗？什么都没有？"镜子......"我低声说。这是我最不想要的东西，但却是最容易提供的。一步一步来。
Chicanery, naturally, spoke first as he trotted over to a mirror set up against the wall. Somepony had cracked it, clearly not happy with the results. “Are you sure?” Chicanery asked as he stood in front of it. “Don’t you want to know more about the ba--”
当他小跑到靠墙立着的一面镜子前时，狡猾的人自然先开口了。一些小马破解了它，显然对结果不满意。"你确定吗?"奇卡纳里站在它面前问道。"难道你不想知道更多关于......"
“Just give me the fucking mirror!” I shouted, reaching out with a hoof and throwing him aside. Then I saw the reflection and froze.
"把他妈的镜子给我!"我喊道，一边用蹄子把他推到一边。然后我看到了倒影，愣住了。
The mare in the mirror wasn’t me. She was coated head to hoof in black armor. The only sign that a flesh and blood pony lay within was a small opening around her mouth and two more for her red and black mane and tail. Angular red plates glowed softly where eyes should be. Black plates covered every other inch of her body, including her cutie mark. Even her horn had been plated in black steel. Between the plates, black cables ran like sinews under the plating. At her sides, a pair of black beam rifles pointed at her own reflection. Mentally, numbly, I toggled through the new commands on my E.F.S. and selected flight.
镜子里的那匹母马不是我。她从头到脚穿着黑色盔甲。有血有肉的小马躺在里面的唯一标志是她的嘴周围有一个小开口，还有两个开口是她红黑色的鬃毛和尾巴。有棱角的红色盘子在眼睛应该在的地方发出柔和的光芒。黑色的盘子覆盖了她身体的每一寸，包括她可爱的标记。甚至她的号角也镀上了黑钢。在盘子之间，黑色的电缆就像电镀层下面的筋一样。在她的身边，一对黑色的光束步枪指着她自己的倒影。我在脑子里麻木地切换着飞机上的新指令，选择了一架飞机。
Two wings, black as night itself and set with large red talismans in the middle of the wing joints, spread from her sides. The control planes resembled feathers, glimmering with tiny motes of red light along the metallic pinions. As the talismans powered up, I felt a sensation of levitation wash over me. I bowed my head, a dozen different reactions mixing and crashing through me. Slow laughter began to fill the room, low and tense and more than a little mad. Too late, I realized it was coming from me.
两只翅膀从她身体两侧展开，黑得像夜晚一样，翅膀关节中间有一个巨大的红色护身符。控制飞机就像羽毛一样，沿着金属羽翼发出微小的红光。随着护身符的启动，我感到一种飘浮的感觉冲刷着我。我低下头，十几种不同的反应混杂在一起，撞击着我。缓慢的笑声开始充满整个房间，低沉而紧张，甚至有点疯狂。太晚了，我意识到是我自己说的。
I screamed and whirled on the idling booth. I didn’t know if they read my intent or if I mentally smashed buttons in my rage, but the beam guns on my side cracked again and again as they blasted the booth. My sword swung wildly in great arcs before me. Metal parted, hoses sprayed, wires sparked, and I laughed. I howled as I ripped the machine apart, and then, when there was nothing left of
我尖叫着，在空转的电话亭上旋转着。我不知道他们是否看出了我的意图，或者我是否在愤怒中按了按钮，但是当他们炸开电话亭时，我身边的光束枪一次又一次地爆裂了。我的剑在我面前疯狂地大弧度摆动。金属裂开了，水管喷了水，电线冒了火花，我哈哈大笑。我一边嚎叫一边把机器撕成碎片，然后，什么都没有了
that horrid device to destroy, I sprayed and slashed and smashed my way through the rest of the room, pegasi and unicorns running for the exit or diving for cover.
那个可怕的毁灭装置，我喷啊，砍啊，砸啊，穿过房间的其他地方，飞马座和独角兽跑向出口，或者潜入掩体。
I’d just keep shooting and slashing till there was nothing left. That seemed like the right thing to do. Yeah. And I whirled, ready to continue my rampage till something finished me off, when I came face to face with Boo. The terrified mare hadn’t fled or jumped for cover. Her pale eyes were wide as she sat there, frozen before me. A part of me, the Reaper part of me, wanted to blast her to ash and cut down everypony else just because they were there. Boo should have been the first to run and hide. She deserved to die! They all did! I did!
我只是不停地射击，挥砍，直到什么都没有了。这似乎是正确的做法。是的。我转过身，准备继续我的狂暴，直到有什么东西结束了我的生命，这时我碰到了布。那匹受惊的母马并没有逃跑或跳起来躲避。她坐在那里，苍白的眼睛睁得大大的，凝固在我的面前。我的一部分，收割者的一部分，想要把她炸成灰烬，杀死其他所有的小马，仅仅因为他们在那里。布应该是第一个跑开躲起来的人。她该死！他们都这么做了！是我！
Then the blank stretched out a hoof and touched the side of my mouth. My cheek and lips were all I had left that weren’t covered in steel. I trembled, not sure what I’d do next, when she smiled, leaned in, and gave a little nuzzle. She tilted her head, scratched at an ear with her hoof, and then looked to me with her bright ivory eyes. “B... Buh...Baaa...” She paused, and then, “Bwackjack!” she said, her voice light and bright and everything I needed right now.
然后空白伸出一只蹄子，碰到了我的嘴边。我的脸颊和嘴唇是我仅有的没有被钢铁覆盖的东西。我浑身发抖，不知道接下来该怎么办。她微笑着，靠近我，用鼻子轻轻地蹭了我一下。她歪着头，用蹄子挠着一只耳朵，然后用她明亮的象牙色的眼睛看着我。"b.."啊......啊......"她停顿了一下，然后,"大怪物!"她说，她的声音轻盈明亮，我现在需要的一切。
I was Blackjack, and her reminding me of it was like cold Hoofington rain on my fury. I trembled as the rage that had given me power and action was robbed from me by simple kindness. That Boo had talked at all was a marvel that I’d ponder when the most important half hour of my life was past. Chicanery, Twister, and the others rose from behind crates and doors. Thankfully, I hadn’t killed anypony.
我就是黑杰克，她提醒我的时候，就像一场寒冷的胡芬顿雨淋在我愤怒的身上。我浑身颤抖，因为给予我力量和行动的愤怒被简单的善意夺走了。当我生命中最重要的半个小时已经过去的时候，布布的演讲真是一个奇迹。骗术、龙卷风和其他人从板条箱和门后站了起来。谢天谢地，我没有杀害任何小马。
“Are you... okay?” Chicanery asked, in lieu of ‘sane’, ‘safe’, or their opposites.
"你...没事吧?"芝加哥学派用安全或者他们的反义词来代替理智。
I shook my head. “I look like a comic book villain. All I need are spikes,” I muttered. Then I lifted my sword and brought it down where the beam guns met my body, cutting the weapons from me. Maybe it was stupid -- after all, I was out of bullets -- but I had to reclaim something of myself. Some small inch that wasn’t a replacement or addition. I turned to the spooked mare technician. “You’re sure I’m pregnant?” The mare gave a hesitant nod. “Is the baby okay?”
我摇了摇头。"我看起来就像漫画里的恶棍。我只需要钉子,"我喃喃自语道。然后我举起我的剑，把它带到光束枪碰到我身体的地方，从我身上切下武器。也许这很愚蠢----毕竟，我已经没子弹了----但我必须找回自我。一些不是替代品或附加物的小英寸。我转向吓坏了的母马技师。"你确定我怀孕了?"母马犹豫地点了点头。"孩子没事吧?"
She gave a little half smile. “Right now it’s a microscopic collection of cells implanted in your uterine wall. Hardly a foal.” Her smile disappeared. “I have no idea if you’ll be able to carry it to term, let alone give birth. You might be better off aborting it now. Odds of a miscarriage are high anyhow.”
她微微一笑。"现在，它是植入子宫壁的一系列细胞的微观组合。几乎没有小马驹。"她的笑容消失了。"我不知道你能不能把它生下来，更别说生孩子了。你最好现在就中止它。不管怎样，流产的几率很高。"
That would have been the safe, sane, and smart thing to do, certainly. It
这当然是安全、理智和明智的做法。它
happened from time to time in 99. Nopony would know if I did it... except for me.
发生在99年。如果是我干的，小马会知道的......除了我。
I’d taken so much out of this world. What would it be like to bring something into it?
我从这个世界上带走了那么多。把一些东西带进去是什么感觉？
“If that happens, it happens,” I muttered, not meeting anypony’s eyes. Right now I felt so close to Twilight that it hurt. When the pressure was off, would I change my mind? I couldn’t think straight about something so monumental. “How’d it happen? I thought I had a copper implant to prevent that.”
"如果真是这样，那就是这样,"我咕哝着，没有看到任何小马的眼睛。现在我觉得离《暮光之城》太近了，真的很疼。当压力消失后，我会改变主意吗？我无法直接思考如此重大的事情。"怎么会这样？我还以为我植入了铜片来防止这种情况呢。"
“I can only guess that your healing and repair talisman treated it like any other bit of shrapnel or bullet and digested it,” the mare answered, then sighed. “If we had the magic and a candidate, I’d suggest a surrogacy spell. You should be fine for a few months, but when the foal starts pressing against your reinforcements, it’s going to get really uncomfortable for both of you.”
"我只能猜测，你的治疗和修复护身符把它当作其他弹片或子弹一样对待，并消化了它,"母马回答，然后叹了口气。"如果我们有魔法和一个候选人，我建议使用代孕咒语。几个月内你应该会没事，但是当小马驹开始压迫你的增强部分时，你们两个都会感到非常不舒服。"
I nodded. Something to keep in mind. I stood and tried to take a more objective assessment of myself, examining at my legs and peering back. Somepony had laser-etched my cutie mark on to my flanks. It brought the ghost of a smile to my lips. I had no idea if I still had my cutie mark under that metal, but I could pretend that I did. “I don’t look like any cyberpony I’ve seen,” I said.
我点点头。有些事情要记住。我站起来，试图对自己做一个更客观的评价，检查自己的双腿，并回头凝视。有个小马用激光在我的侧腹部刻上了我可爱的印记。它使我的嘴角浮现出一丝微笑。我不知道那块金属下面是否还有我可爱的印记，但我可以假装我有。"我看起来不像我见过的任何赛博马,"我说。
“Talk to your PipBuck. It was running the show,” the mare technician said, clearly disgruntled. “The pod only used our stuff for parts. I’m not even sure what those are,” she said, pointing a wing at the glowing spots of energy on my wings. “Some sort of micro arcane energy repeaters or something. Levitation ruby talismans were incorporated to get you off the ground. And then somepony laminated it all black to make it match your legs. And I have no clue where that came from,” she said as she gestured towards my back.
"和你的皮伯克谈谈吧。它在操纵一切,"母马技师说，显然很不高兴。"逃生舱只用我们的东西做零件。我甚至不知道那些是什么,"她指着我翅膀上发光的能量点说。"某种微能量转发器什么的。悬浮红宝石护身符被纳入，让你离开地面。然后用一些薄片把它全部涂成黑色，使它与你的腿部颜色相配。我完全不知道这是从哪儿来的,"她指着我的背说。
“What?” I asked as I stretched around to see, and failing miserably. “What is it?”
"什么?"我边问边四处张望，结果一败涂地。"这是什么?"
Twister gave a concerned smile. “It says ‘Security’ along your back. And there’s this little caped pony icon etched on your shoulder.”
特维斯特露出关切的微笑。"你的背上写着'安全'。你的肩膀上还有一个小披着斗篷的小马图标。"
“Really?” I wanted to blink in surprise. At least I could smile still. Now I just had to get the memories of being in the pod scoured from my memor--... nope. Better to not think about it for now. I needed to get my head together, and something that the white stallion had said stuck with me. I pointed a hoof at
"真的吗?"我想惊讶地眨眼。至少我还能保持微笑。现在我只需要从我的记忆中清除掉那些关于在豆荚里的记忆----不。现在最好不要去想它。我需要振作起来，那匹白色种马说的话深深地印在了我的脑海里。我用蹄子指了指
Chicanery. “You said you’re related to that Doctor Mephitis guy?”
骗术。"你说你和那个叫梅菲蒂斯博士的家伙是亲戚?"
“Sure. He never married, but he had liaisons with some unicorns in the tower,” Chicanery answered, then rolled his eyes a little, “I mean, he was a great stallion. His biography is required reading for every schoolpony. But he did have a few little personal problems.”
"当然。他从来没有结过婚，但是他在塔里和一些独角兽有过接触,"奇卡纳里回答，然后转了转眼睛,"我的意思是，他是一匹很棒的种马。他的传记是每个小学生的必读书目。但他确实有一些个人问题。"
Right. Like leaving thousands of zebras locked up with turrets keeping them penned up while they starved and cannibalized each other. “You should visit this little place called Yellow River down on the surface. Might make you appreciate your ancestor in a whole new... light...”
对。比如把成千上万的斑马锁在塔楼里关起来，让它们挨饿，互相残杀。"你应该去地表上的一个叫黄河的小地方看看。可能会让你从一个全新的角度去欣赏你的祖先......"
Oh shit. It couldn’t be that simple, could it?
哦，该死。没那么简单，不是吗？
Okay. Thoughts organized. It was now time for some movement. “I need to get up to the top of the tower,” I said in a rush. I glanced at my wings, but for now I’d rely on four-legged locomotion till I didn’t have ceilings to smash into. I pointed a hoof at Twister. “You get that stable evacuated.”
好吧。思维有条理。现在是采取行动的时候了。"我需要到塔顶上去,"我急忙说。我瞥了一眼我的翅膀，但是现在我只能依靠四条腿的移动，直到我没有天花板可以撞进去。我用蹄子指着Twister。"马厩里的人都被疏散了。"
“On it,” Twister replied, then pressed the side of her head. “Blackjack is coming up. Big black-and-red cyberpony... alicorn... Look, you just can’t miss her. Don’t dust her.” Then she frowned at me and gestured behind her with a wing.
"在上面,"推斯特回答，然后按了按她的头的一边。"黑杰克就要来了。大黑红赛博马...阿里康...听着，你不能错过她。别给她掸灰。"然后她皱了皱眉头，用翅膀指了指身后。
“There’re stairs back that way. Pass the barricade and watch your head. They’ve got a lot more above us.” She paused, then turned to a soldier. “Flame Pinion? Could you escort her? Just in case? I really don’t want anypony shooting at her or her shooting at anypony she shouldn’t.”
"那条路后面有楼梯。穿过路障小心你的头。他们的地位比我们高得多。"她停了下来，然后转向一个士兵。"火焰小齿轮？你能护送她吗？以防万一？我真的不希望任何小马朝她开枪，或者她朝不该朝她开枪的小马开枪。"
“Great. A chaperone,” I said with a huff as I shook my head. Worst of all, it was probably a good idea. How depressing was that? “Let’s go.”
"太好了。一个监护人,"我摇摇头，气呼呼地说。最糟糕的是，这可能是一个好主意。多么令人沮丧啊？"我们走吧。"
Every second that passed, I could feel things flying further and further apart. Returning to the battle in the shaft, I looked around at the fighting and imagined the nightmare of trying to evacuate four hundred civilians through this battlefield.
每过一秒钟，我都能感觉到东西飞得越来越远。回到竖井里的战场，我环顾四周，想象着通过这个战场疏散四百名平民的噩梦。
“Can you do anything about this?” Pinion shouted as he joined the others in blasting away at the attackers above us. “You’re supposed to be some kind of cyber supermare!”
"你能做点什么吗?"当他和其他人一起向我们上面的进攻者开火时，皮尼奥大声喊道。"你应该是某种网络超级母马!"
There had to be at least a hundred above me. Maybe more! It’d take far more
至少有一百个人在我上面。也许更多！这需要更多的时间
time than I had to shoot my way through, provided I didn’t get dusted or gooped in the process. But a part of me wanted to help, badly. I pulled out my sword and levitated a half dozen plates of scrap metal. “Cover me and watch for falling catwalks.” Biting on the blade’s handle, I searched my E.F.S. for the new commands and toggled on flight. My wings hummed as the talismans charged up, and I felt as light as a weightless five-hundred-pound feather.
如果在这个过程中我没有被打扫干净或者被刺伤的话，我的时间要比我开枪的时间多得多。但是我内心的一部分非常想帮忙。我拔出我的剑，漂浮了半打废金属板。"掩护我，小心掉下来的猫道。"我咬着刀柄，搜索着我的e.f.s，寻找新的指令，然后开启飞行。随着护身符的充电，我的翅膀嗡嗡作响，我觉得自己轻如五百磅重的失重羽毛。
“All right, all of you,” I bellowed. “I’m Blackjack, and I’m giving you this one chance to give up, get the hell out of here, and save me a lot of frigging annoyance! Don’t make me come up there! I mean it!” Then I raised the plates so the crimson beams and disintegration bolts sparked and spattered away above me.
"好吧，你们所有人,"我吼道。"我是黑杰克，我给你一个机会放弃，离开这个鬼地方，省得我一堆烦恼！别逼我上去！我是认真的!"然后我把板块抬起来，深红色的光束和碎裂的闪电在我头顶上闪烁飞溅。
Having a little experience as a cyberpony, I knew better than to try flapping my wings. My augmentations were smarter than I was and would handle the movement far more effectively than I could. Given just how much was whirring and working inside those two complex wing assemblies, I counted this as a blessing. I focused on a direction... up there... and a speed... fast… and trusted my wings to get me there. What I didn’t know was just how fast ‘fast’ was.
作为一个有点经验的赛博马，我知道最好不要试图拍动我的翅膀。我的增强比我当时更聪明，能够比我更有效地处理运动。考虑到在这两个复杂的机翼组件内部运转和工作的程度，我认为这是一种祝福。我专注于一个方向......在那里......和一个速度......快......并相信我的翅膀能带我到那里。我不知道的是这个速度到底有多快。
This would have been a very good thing to know before I hurtled my way towards the underside of a catwalk. My plan had been to use the plates as shields and whatnot, but the fact was that I was moving much too fast for that. Faster...
这将是一个非常好的事情知道之前，我冲向我的方式向下的一个猫步。我的计划是用这些模板做盾牌之类的东西，但事实是我的速度太快了。快点..。
much faster than I’d anticipated... I found myself greeting the underside of the catwalk with my face, impacting with a resounding clang and a shower of sparks as I bounced and tumbled wildly, my ‘shield’ banging and flying every which way. I wasn’t exactly sure how many surfaces I bounced off... four, at least, one of which was a very surprised cyberpony, before I cut out my wings and let gravity take me to land in a heap on the floor with a great cloud of dust billowing around me. Just when I’d thought I was done, my shields clanged off my body, with the last spinning slowly atop my steel-clad horn.
比我预想的要快得多......我发现自己正在用脸迎接t型台的下面，伴随着响亮的铿锵声和一阵火花，我疯狂地翻滚着，我的'盾牌'砰砰作响，四处飞舞。我并不确定自己弹开了多少个平面......至少有四个，其中一个是一匹非常惊讶的赛博马，然后我剪掉了翅膀，让地心引力把我带到了地板上，周围扬起了一大片灰尘。就在我以为自己已经完成任务的时候，我的盾牌叮当作响，最后一个盾牌在我钢铁包裹的喇叭上缓缓旋转。
A tiny blue pegasus in my head bit her hoof to keep from laughing at me as the unicorn with the chalkboard was trying to figure out how the plates had landed on me. At least the little pink pony gave me a 9. Flying was for pegasi. I saw at least a dozen ponies staring at me, and above me the defenders burst out laughing. “That’s Blackjack?! What a joke!” was bellowed.
我头上的一匹小小的蓝色飞马为了不让自己的蹄子嘲笑我，咬了我一下，因为那只带着黑板的独角兽正在试图弄清楚这些车牌是怎么落在我身上的。至少那匹粉红色的小马给了我9分。飞马座喜欢飞行。我看到至少有十几匹小马在盯着我看，在我上方的防守队员突然大笑起来。"那是黑杰克?！真是个笑话!"被吼叫着。
“My baby brother can fly better than you!” called another.
"我的小弟弟飞得比你好!"叫另一个。
“Hey Blackjack! When this is over, me and the boys can give you a real flying lesson!” howled a third.
"嘿，黑杰克！等这一切结束了，我和孩子们可以给你上一堂真正的飞行课!"嚎叫了三分之一。
That lasted for all of a second, and then the Neighvarro pegasi stormed the catwalks in a blaze of gunfire, catching the defenders off guard so they were forced to retreat to the next ring of metal. I watched with surreal amazement as the power-armored ponies stood upside down on the catwalks, using the floor as cover as they drove the defenders back. The defenders’ gunfire was now far less concentrated and deadly, and the attackers had solid metal floor between them and the cyberponies rather than plates of scrap armor.
这种情况持续了整整一秒钟，然后飞马骑士在一阵炮火中冲进猫道，让守军措手不及，所以他们被迫撤退到下一个金属圈。我带着超现实的惊讶观看着那些穿着重甲的小马倒立在人行道上，用地板作掩护，把防守者赶回去。防御者的炮火现在远没有那么集中和致命，而且攻击者在他们和赛伯马之间有着坚固的金属地板，而不是一片片的碎盔甲。
“Brilliant! I never seen a distraction technique so well pulled off! I mean, you were spinning on all three axes at once. And the crying for your mommy? Wonderful,” Chicanery said as he trotted up with his camera helmet back on.
"太棒了！我从来没有见过一个分散注意力的技巧如此成功！我的意思是，你同时在三个轴上旋转。那哭着找妈妈呢？"太好了,"奇卡纳里一边说着，一边带上了他的照相机头盔。
“Did you fix that?” I asked sourly as I rose to my hooves, one plate still perched on the end of my horn, rotating briskly.
"你修好了吗?"当我站起来走向我的马蹄时，我不高兴地问道，一个盘子仍旧停在我的角的末端，轻快地旋转着。
“Oh yeah. No way I’m missing footage like this! I plan to live through this, and when I do--” there was a flash of silver, and I sheathed my sword before I turned and trotted for the exit. “Wait, what--” he began. Then the hat came apart and tumbled into his hooves. “My footage...” he whimpered. “Not cool.”
"哦，是的。我绝不会错过这样的镜头！我打算活下去，当我这样做的时候——"一道银光闪过，在我转身向出口跑去之前，我把剑收了起来。"等等，什么——"他开始说。然后帽子散开了，滚进了他的蹄子里。"我的镜头......"他呜咽着说。"一点都不酷。"
Outside, on the landing dock, the larger battle hit me like a storm. Raptors now maneuvered around the tower like great swooping birds of prey while wings of power armor battled teams of cyberponies swarming about the tower like angry bees and killer wasps. Only two Raptors fired at the city now, the rest busy battling Storm Chaser’s followers. As I stood there, the first wave of stable ponies began to rush out. Thankfully, property was light in stables, and most carried little more than a bundle of personal knickknacks. “This way into the Sleet! Hurry!” shouted a pegasus as he sought to direct the flow towards the landing hatch of the idling Raptor.
在外面的码头上，一场更大的战斗像暴风雨一样袭击了我。猛禽现在像猛禽一样盘旋在塔楼周围，而力量之翼则像愤怒的蜜蜂和杀人蜂一样与蜂巢里蜂拥而至的赛伯矮人战斗。现在只有两只猛禽向城市开火，其余的正忙着与风暴追逐者的追随者战斗。当我站在那里的时候，第一波稳定的小马开始奔跑出来。值得庆幸的是，马厩里的财产并不多，大多数只不过是一捆个人小玩意儿。"这条路通向雨夹雪！快点!"一匹飞马冲着空转猛禽号的着陆舱口喊道。
Above us extended the six large shield plates, and above that, where Raptors had once tied up for repairs, were service gantries and bays hanging like the branches of a dead tree. A ring of large, heavy doors ran about the tower by the branches, likely so that fabricated parts could be brought out to the ships. When the Enclave tried to shell them, they fell shut with booms I could hear even from down here. As soon as the Enclave flew past, swarms of cyberponies would pop
我们头顶上方是六块巨大的护盾板，在那之上，猛禽战机曾经用来修理的地方，是服务架和像死树枝一样悬挂着的海湾。一圈又大又重的门被树枝围绕着塔楼，很可能是为了把装配好的部件带到船上。当昂科雷试图轰炸他们的时候，他们被轰炸声关闭了，我甚至在这里都能听到轰炸声。飞地一飞过，成群的网络小马就会蹦出来
out and harass the soldiers from behind only to retreat when the greater numbers of soldiers rallied against them. If the doors were working, that was a bad sign. How long until the launchers were working again too?
从后面骚扰士兵，直到更多的士兵集结起来反对他们时才撤退。如果门还能用，那可不是什么好兆头。还要多久发射器才能再次工作？
“Would you look at that?” Chicanery said as he trotted out with his camera hat duct taped back together in a sticky gray cap. He caught me glaring at it and at once took it off and hugged it to his chest like he was protecting his foal. “No! I fixed it, Blackjack.”
"你看到了吗?"奇卡纳里一边说，一边小跑出去，他的相机帽子用胶带绑在一起，戴着一顶灰色的帽子。他抓住我瞪着它，马上把它拿下来，抱在胸前，好像在保护他的小马驹。"不！我修好了，黑杰克。"
“Tape my flight attempts, and I’ll unfix it,” I warned as I peered way up at the top of the tower. “That’s a long way up,” I muttered.
"给我的飞行尝试录音，我会解除它,"我在塔顶凝视远处时警告道。"那可是很长一段路,"我喃喃自语。
“Only three thousand feet,” he replied as he carefully put the hat on, smacked the wires with his wing, and then panned the battle. “Oh no...” he breathed.
"只有三千英尺,"他一边回答，一边小心翼翼地戴上帽子，用翅膀拍打着电线，然后转向战场。"哦，不......"他低声说。
I turned, saw which way he was looking, and then thought the exact same thing. Thunderhead rotated like an immense, ragged holey wheel of cheese that had been attacked by furious bloatsprites. The smooth, pristine torus was now mottled, twisted, and uneven. As I watched, a great swath of it began to sag. Like rainbow sherbet left out too long, it began to pull away from the rest of the city towards the cloud layer below. The metal supporting structure gave way with a shriek and plunged far below. I could now see into the smoke-filled structure; see the buildings within grotesquely elongated, holed, or melted.
我转过身，看到了他看的方向，然后想到了同样的事情。雷暴云像一个巨大、参差不齐的多孔奶酪轮子一样旋转着，遭到了狂暴的怪物的攻击。这个光滑的、原始的环面现在变得斑驳、扭曲、凹凸不平。就在我观察的时候，一大片地方开始下陷。就像彩虹冰冻果子露离开太久，它开始从城市的其他地方拉向下面的云层。金属支撑结构在一阵尖叫声中坍塌了，深深地陷在下面。我现在可以看到烟雾弥漫的建筑，看到建筑被奇异地拉长、穿孔或融化。
“I have to end this. Now. Help get that stable evacuated,” I said sharply as I stared up.
"我必须结束这一切。现在。帮忙疏散马厩里的人,"我抬起头，厉声说道。
“Oh, come on! I know you’re badass, but how can you end this?” Chicanery asked incredulously.
"哦，得了吧！我知道你是个坏蛋，但你怎么能结束这一切呢?"奇卡纳里怀疑地问道。
I whirled on him, levitated out a piece of paper, and snapped it open in front of his face. On it were the fifteen letters in four words that I was keeping away from Lighthooves. If he knew, he’d never let me get off this deck. Chicanery’s eyes widened as he scanned them again and again. “Brown rain,” he muttered, eyelid twitching, then turned to the stable ponies and rushed to where an elderly stallion was taking his time. “Quickly, Grandpa! Quickly! Get on the nice Raptor.” He rushed over, scooped the old stallion on his back, and trotted to the Raptor. “Let’s go. Trot lively! In we go!”
我转身朝他飞过去，拿出一张纸，在他面前啪地一声打开。上面有十五个字母组成的四个单词，我一直在远离Lighthooves。如果他知道，他不会让我离开这甲板的。奇卡纳里一遍又一遍地扫视着他们，眼睛睁得大大的。"褐色的雨,"他咕哝着，眼皮抽搐着，然后转向马厩里的小马，冲向一匹老种马。"快点，爷爷！快点！上漂亮的猛禽号。"他冲了过去，把那匹老种马抱在背上，小跑着来到猛禽号前。"我们走吧。小跑快跑！我们进去!"
I tucked the paper away. Amazing what those four words could do. I turned to
我把报纸卷起来。令人惊讶的是，这四个字竟然能做到这些。我转过身来
Boo. “You need to get on too, Boo. I don’t think I can fly you safely up there. I’m not sure I can fly me safely up there.”
嘘。"你也需要继续前进，波。我不认为我能把你安全地送上去。我不确定我能否安全地飞到那里。"
The mare cocked her head with a listening look that gave me a moment of hope, then smiled. “Bwackjack?”
母马扬起头，倾听着，给了我片刻的希望，然后笑了。"疯子杰克?"
“Raptor. Go. Get in, Boo!” I pointed at the open door with a wing. “Please?”
"猛禽。去吧。上车，嘘!"我用翅膀指着敞开的门。"求你了?"
She smiled and nuzzled my cheek again. “Bwackjack!”
她笑了笑，又用鼻子蹭了蹭我的脸颊。"怪人!"
“Yes! Blackjack! Blackjack wants Boo into the Raptor. Blackjack wants Boo safe! Please do what Blackjack asks, Boo,” I tried plaintively.
"是的！黑杰克！黑杰克要阿布进入猛禽。Blackjack想要Boo的安全！请按照Blackjack的要求去做，Boo,"我悲伤地试着说。
“Bwackjack! Bwackjack! Bwackjack!” Boo began to sing as she skipped around me. What in Equestria had gotten into her? She was acting like... well... like I did when I was a little filly.
"疯子！疯子！疯子!"布在我身边蹦蹦跳跳地唱起来。她到底是怎么了?Equestria？她的行为就像......嗯......就像我小时候那样。
I blinked at her and slumped a little, then showed her the paper. “Look! See? Go in the Raptor, Boo!” Boo leaned in, tilted her head far to the right, narrowed her eyes and stuck her tongue out the side of her mouth. “They have snack cakes in there!” I lied desperately.
我对她眨了眨眼，垂了下头，然后给她看了报纸。"你看！看到了吗？进入猛禽号，嘣!"布弯下腰，把头远远地向右倾斜，眯起眼睛，把舌头伸出嘴角。"里面有点心蛋糕!"我拼命地撒谎。
Her eyes widened in comprehension as she looked from the paper to me, back to the paper, back to me, then at the Raptor. Then she pointed her hoof at the paper and declared in glee, “Bwackjack!”
当她从报纸上看到我，再看到报纸，再看到我，然后又看到猛禽号时，她的眼睛顿时睁大了。然后她把蹄子指向那张纸，高兴地说:"真是个怪人!"
I slumped in defeat. “I’m not going to win this, am I?”
我失败了。"我不会赢的，对吧?"
She grinned up at me and gave me a hug and a cheek nuzzle. “Bwaaackjack...” Nope. Defeated. And she hadn’t even broken out the big eyes or pouty lip.
她冲我咧嘴笑了笑，拥抱了我一下，还用鼻子蹭了蹭我的脸颊。"bwaackjack..."不对。失败。她甚至还没有露出大大的眼睛和撅起的嘴唇。
At the very least, though, I could protect her better. In a few minutes, I had my operative armor on her and repaired to cover her. The respirator hissed as she stared at me, and I imagined her baffled expression. “Don’t look at me like that. If you’re coming with me, I don’t want you burned again. Burning bad. Owwie,” I said, trying to give her a smile. The Sleet lifted off and moved away as another ship arrived. For a moment, I felt a thrill of panic as I saw it was the Galeforce.
至少，我可以更好地保护她。几分钟后，我把我的手术盔甲套在了她身上，并且修理好来覆盖她。当她盯着我时，呼吸器发出嘶嘶声，我想象着她困惑的表情。"别那样看着我。如果你要跟我走，我不希望你再次被烧死。烧得很厉害。"哎呀,"我说，试图给她一个微笑。当另一艘船到达时，冰雹起飞并离开了。有那么一瞬间，我感到一阵恐慌，因为我看到了那就是伽利弗。
Then the door opened up, and it became clear that somepony had made a mess of the crew. A terrified Captain Crosswinds came galloping out of the carnage. The
然后门打开了，很明显有人把船员们弄得一团糟。一个惊慌失措的侧风队长从大屠杀中疾驰而出。这个
green stallion, clearly battered and with one eye swelling shut, was being ridden by a striped, bloodied, and cackling filly I knew quite well. “Hiyas, Blackjack!” she said to Boo, and then looked at me. “Who’s your badass friend?”
一匹绿色的种马，显然受了重伤，一只眼睛肿了，正被一匹我很熟悉的身上有斑纹、血迹斑斑、咯咯笑的小母马骑着。"嗨，黑杰克!"她对阿布说，然后看着我。"谁是你的坏蛋朋友?"
Great. Now my friends didn’t even recognize me. “Hello, Rampage.”
太好了。现在我的朋友们都认不出我了。"你好，狂暴。"
She blinked in shock, then burst into laughter atop the green stallion. “Blackjack? Is that... fuck me with a lollypop, it is you! What the fuck happened?”
她震惊地眨了眨眼，然后在那匹绿色的种马上放声大笑。"黑杰克？那是...拿棒棒糖干我，是你！到底发生了什么事?"
“Upgrades,” I muttered. “I don’t wanna talk about it. Today sucks.”
"升级,"我喃喃自语。"我不想谈这个。今天糟透了。"
“Damn. I think Big Daddy should give you leadership of the Reapers on looks alone,” she laughed, then regarded Boo. “And here we have Boojack,” Rampage said gaily. “Well, now my day is officially awesome.” She kept her hooves pressed firmly against the sides of the captain’s head as she stood on his back. “Do you like her?” she said, gesturing at the Raptor with her head. “I’m thinking of renaming her the Rampage, loading her up with beer and hookers, and becoming an earth pony sky pirate. Then, when I’ve had my fun, loading it up with all the explosives, balefire bombs, and magical waste I can and flying it right into this great big magic ball the Enclave say is unbreachable. What do you think?”
"该死。我认为老爹应该仅凭外表就让你领导收割者,"她笑着说，然后看了看Boo。"现在我们有Boojack了,"ramage高兴地说。"好吧，现在我的一天正式变得很棒了。"当她站在船长的背上时，她的蹄子紧紧地贴在他的头的两侧。"你喜欢她吗?"她说，一边用头指着猛禽。"我正在考虑给她重新命名为狂暴，给她塞满啤酒和妓女，然后成为一个地球上的天空中的小马海盗。然后，当我玩够了，把所有的炸药、火焰炸弹和魔法垃圾都装进去，然后把它们直接飞到这个巨大的魔法球上，昂科雷说这是无法破解的。你怎么看?"
“Get these unicorns to Stable 99 and have fun,” I replied, relatively sure the mare would grow bored with that idea, eventually. “How’d you get on board the Galeforce in the first place?”
"把这些独角兽送到Stable99去，玩得开心点,"我回答，相对肯定的是，母马最终会厌倦这个主意的。"你一开始是怎么登上Galeforce号的?"
“Stormy loaded me up in their big cannon, and I got to play ‘Fun with Ballistics’. I owe their gunner some oral sex for making that shot. Once I was on board, I cut, stomped, and smashed my way to the captain here. I might not be able to fly a Raptor, but he can. Isn’t that right, Breakwind?” Rampage asked, squeezing her hooves. The battered green stallion cried out in pain.
"史东蜜把我装进他们的大炮里，然后我就玩起了'弹道乐趣'。我欠他们的炮手一次口交。我一上船，就开始切割，跺脚，然后撞向这里的船长。我可能不会驾驶猛禽，但他会。对不对，霹雳风?"狂暴问道，挤压着她的蹄子。那匹受伤的绿色种马痛苦地叫了起来。
“She can’t die! I disintegrated her myself, and she came back!” Crosswinds shouted wildly. “Twice!”
"她不能死！我亲自解剖了她，她又回来了!"侧风疯狂地呼喊。"两次!"
“Yeah yeah. Blackjack is supposed to be helping me with that, but she’s got that whole ‘life is good’ shit going on,” Rampage said with a disdainful roll of her eyes. “He’s tried to sell out just about everypony he can to get me off his back. Pansy...”
"是的，是的。黑杰克本来应该是帮我的，但是她总是说什么'生活是美好的'之类的屁话。"。"为了摆脱我，他几乎卖掉了所有的小马驹。潘茜......"
“Please. I’ll be a good captain. I’ll go on the straight and narrow. I’ll feed orphans and widows. I’ll stop cheating on my mare and my mistress and my girlfriend if you’ll please get her off my back!” he begged.
"求你了。我会成为一个好船长的。我会循规蹈矩。我会喂养孤儿寡妇。我会停止欺骗我的母马，我的情妇和我的女朋友，如果你能让她离开我!"他苦苦哀求。
“Rampage,” I began.
"横冲直撞,"我开始说。
She snapped immediately, “Oh, don’t you ‘Rampage’ me, Blackjack. This shit lies like I regenerate. Trust me. I gave him a chance to play along with the ‘good pony’ routine. Twice. I got disintegrated for it. Twice. It hurt.” She growled between her teeth. “And he warned Hoarfrost what you’re doing, so now there’s a whole lot more shooting going on.”
她立刻厉声说,"哦，不要'横冲直撞'我，黑杰克。这狗屎谎言，就像我再生。相信我。我给了他一个机会，让他按照"好小马"的惯例来玩。两次。我因此被分解了。两次。这很痛。"她咬牙切齿地咆哮着。"他还警告了霍尔弗罗斯特公司你的所作所为，所以现在又有更多的枪击事件发生了。"
I frowned at the battered captain. “I’ll pay my taxes!” he pleaded. “I’ll resign my commission. I’ll acknowledge all those bast...er... um... those ‘potentially illegitimate offspring’ I’ve sired! I’ll fly to the surface and wash the hooves of poor wastelanders personally. Just please get her off me!”
我对那个被打得鼻青脸肿的船长皱起了眉头。"我会交税的!"他恳求道。"我会辞去我的职务。我要承认所有那些我生下来的"潜在的私生子"！我会飞到水面，亲自清洗可怜的废物的蹄子。请把她从我身上弄走!"
“I might be able to do that,” I began, levitating out a slip of paper, making his eyes widen in hope, “If you can get me one of these inside a minute.”
"我也许能做到,"我开始说，拿出一张纸条，使他的眼睛睁得大大的，满怀希望,"如果你能在一分钟内给我弄一张这样的纸。"
“I... you... that...” he stammered. “I can get you one! Half an hour, tops. We’ll yank ‘em right out of the turrets. You can have all six. Just get her off me.”
"我.....。."你...那个..."他结结巴巴地说。"我可以给你弄一个！最多半小时。我们要把他们从炮塔里拉出来。你可以把这六个都拿走。把她从我身上弄走。"
“Sorry. Not quick enough. Rampage, he’s all yours,” I said.
"对不起。还不够快。"狂暴，他是你的了,"我说。
“Nooo!” he wailed.
"不!"他嚎啕大哭。
“Oh, shut your mouth,” Rampage said as her hooves gave another squeeze. Then she turned to me. “So, Blackjack. Are you really... I mean, you said you had one...”
"哦，闭上你的嘴,"狂暴的马蹄再次挤压时说道。然后她转向我。"那么，黑杰克。你真的......我是说，你说你有一个......"
“If I can get what I need to make it work, sure.” I sighed, looking up. “At this rate, I might have to just cut one off a missile.”
"如果我能得到我需要的东西，当然可以。"我叹了口气，抬起头。"照这个速度，我可能只能切断一枚导弹了。"
“Do you think that, if I’m fast, I could get back and be here for it?” she asked.
"你认为如果我跑得快的话，我还能回来吗?"她问道。
“Probably not. I’m using it just as soon as I find one,” I replied with a smile. “You could come with me, but that’d require you to leave your ship in the hooves of somepony who probably doesn’t care about becoming a sky pirate.”
"可能不会。我一找到就用。"我微笑着回答。"你可以和我一起去，但是那需要你把你的船留在某个可能不在乎成为天空海盗的小马的蹄子里。"
Rampage screwed up her face with indecision. “Ehhh… decisions, decisions. Stay and do the right thing and become a sky pirate, or snap his neck and get what I want.” She let out a huff. “Boo? What do you think?”
狂暴的脾气犹豫不决，使她的脸扭曲起来。"呃......决定，决定。留下来做正确的事，成为一个天空海盗，或者扭断他的脖子，得到我想要的。"她怒气冲冲地说。"嘘？你怎么看?"
The blank pointed a hoof at me. “Bwackjack!”
空白指着我的蹄子。"怪人!"
“She can talk?” Rampage goggled. “Quick! Say ‘booger’! ‘Shit!’ ‘Harlot!’ ‘Batsuawa!’ ‘Trickle down economics!’ ‘Pink!’”
"她会说话?"暴跳如雷。"快！说"鼻屎"！"妈的!""妓女!""Batsuawa!"'涓滴经济学!'""粉红色！"'
“Bwa?” Boo tilted her head.
"波娃?"布歪着头。
“Rampage, we don’t have time for this,” I said flatly. “Are you coming or not?”
"狂暴，我们没有时间了,"我直截了当地说。"你到底来不来?"
“But... but... I have a Raptor now! Sky pirates! But a good chance of me getting killed,” she whined as she gestured from the ship to the top of the tower, clearly torn. Finally, she blurted, “That’s not fair, Blackjack!”
"可是......可是......我现在有一只猛禽了！空中海盗！但我很有可能被杀死,"她一边抱怨，一边从船上指向塔顶，显然被撕裂了。最后，她脱口而出,"这不公平，黑杰克!"
Given everything that had happened to me, I couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Today isn’t a fair day for anypony, Rampage. See to your ship. Sky piracy sounds better than dying to me, any day,” I said as I peered up again.
考虑到发生在我身上的一切，我忍不住笑了一下。"今天对任何小马来说都不是个好日子，狂暴。看好你的船。对我来说，天空盗版听起来总比死掉好，任何一天都好,"我再次凝视着天空说道。
“That’s because dying for you is actually easy,” she sulked, but there was a hint of doubt in her voice as well. She kicked Crosswinds in the ribs with her hindhooves. “Yah mule. Back to my ship. We’ll need to paint it bright red to make it go faster. Give it some extra guns. And spikes. It definitely needs some more spikes.”
"那是因为为你而死其实很容易,"她生气地说，但她的声音里也有一丝疑虑。她用后蹄踢着侧风的肋骨。"呀，骡子。回到我的船上。我们需要把它漆成鲜红色以使它跑得更快。给它一些额外的枪。还有尖峰。它肯定需要更多的峰值。"
I shook my head and looked at Boo, hoping she’d follow. Boo, however, waited patiently at my side. Finally I sighed and scooped her onto my back, positioned her, and activated my wings. Thankfully, she was no heavier than the rest of me. “Cover me,” I said to Flame Pinion before snapping my wings and taking flight.
我摇摇头，看着布，希望她能跟上来。然而，布耐心地在我身边等待着。最后我叹了口气，把她抱到我背上，放好她，启动了我的翅膀。谢天谢地，她并不比我其他部分重。"掩护我,"我对火焰小齿轮说，然后折断我的翅膀飞走了。
I’d been mistaken on my speed in the tower. I was no faster than Morning Glory, and there were plenty of other pegasi wheeling and darting twice as fast as me. Maybe it was the fact that they were pegasi and I, even with my augmentations, was still a unicorn. The levitation field remained steady, but I watched as my power supply dropped slowly before my eyes.
我在塔里的速度记错了。我的速度并不比牵牛花快，而且还有很多飞马，它们的飞行速度是我的两倍。也许是因为它们是飞马座，而我，即使有我的增大，仍然是一只独角兽。悬浮力场保持稳定，但我眼睁睁地看着我的电源慢慢地在我眼前消失。
In the air, the view of chaos was now complete. Raptor fought with Raptor as they moved in a deadly dance of maneuver and counter maneuver. I watched as
在空中，混乱的景象现在已经完全呈现。猛禽与猛禽战斗，因为他们的移动在一个致命的机动和反机动舞蹈。我眼睁睁地看着
the Castellanus, still trailing smoke from multiple holes in her plates, dove vertically towards the red-accented Sirocco. For a terrifying moment, I was certain that the Castellanus was in freefall as the ship blasted the spinning props atop the Sirocco with its front cannons. Then the Castellanus tumbled to the side, turned ninety degrees, and opened fire with its remaining ventral turrets, tearing great green gashes in the side of the Sirocco. As it plunged beneath its enemy, the Castellanus’s propellers blurred to life to slow its descent, its nose swinging up as it hovered in place and fired at the underside of its enemy. I had no idea how much damage it did, but, as I watched the Castellanus fall back into a horizontal position and pull away and the Sirocco return fire, I felt it was a little surreal to watch a giant war machine pirouetting so.
卡斯特兰纳斯仍然拖着盘子上多个洞冒出的烟，垂直向红色的热风飞去。在一个可怕的时刻，我确信卡斯特兰纳斯号是自由落体，因为这艘船用它的前炮轰击热风系统顶部的旋转道具。然后卡斯特兰纳斯滚到一边，转了九十度，用剩下的腹侧炮塔开火，在热风的一边撕裂出巨大的绿色裂口。当它潜入敌人的下方时，卡斯特兰纳斯号的螺旋桨为了减缓下降速度变得模糊不清，它的机头在原地盘旋，向敌人的下方开火，机头向上摆动。我不知道它造成了多大的伤害，但是，当我看着卡斯特兰纳斯回到水平位置，拉开，热风还击，我觉得看着一个巨大的战争机器如此旋转有点超现实主义。
All around me, pegasi wheeled, clashed, and wheeled again. The more maneuverable cyberponies did all they could to attack their enemies from any direction but the front. The power armor, on the other hoof, would move in paired formations flying towards each other, each blasting any cyberpony harassing the other wing. Then the two wings would veer off seconds before collision. As soon as they pulled apart from each other, the cyberponies reengaged, harassing their backs and wings. I saw what Twister meant about an open-air advantage. Out here, the cyberponies really had to work to pick off an enemy before another formation pulled in and blasted them out of the sky.
飞马座在我周围转来转去。机动性更强的赛博小马竭尽全力从前线以外的任何方向攻击敌人。另一只蹄子上的力量装甲，将以成对的编队飞向对方，每一个炮击任何赛博马骚扰对方的翅膀。然后两个翅膀会在撞击前几秒钟转向。一旦它们彼此分开，赛伯矮种马就会重新开始，骚扰它们的背部和翅膀。我明白了Twister所说的露天优势。在这里，赛博矮种马必须在另一个编队进入并把它们炸出天空之前干掉一个敌人。
Only now there were power-armored ponies fighting other power armor too. I had no idea how they identified each other. E.F.S.? But in this case, they did all they could to fight two-on-one. One would engage the enemy and the second would fly up from behind and rip open their wings with those cruel scorpion tails. It was a daring display of teamwork; if one’s partner fell too far away or behind, they were dead... or their partner was dead and they were next.
只不过现在还有强力装甲小马在和其他强力装甲作战。我不知道他们是怎么认出彼此的。E.f.s？但是在这种情况下，他们尽了最大的努力来对抗二对一。一个会与敌人交战，另一个会从后面飞起来，用残忍的蝎尾撕开敌人的翅膀。这是一次大胆的团队合作的展示;如果一个人的伙伴掉得太远或落在后面，他们就死了......或者他们的伙伴死了，他们就是下一个。
When we reached the branches with gantries and fabrication doors, one immediately lifted enough to expel a cloud of fliers at me, Boo, and the dozen or so power-armored fliers with us. “Hold on, Boo,” I shouted as I tried to go as fast up as I could. It would have been nice to know exactly how my flight worked. The levitation field was easy enough to understand. I’d seen robots with similar. But what was pushing me along? Did the wings have some sort of thrust talismans? Was it telekinesis? I had to flap my wings, so--
当我们到达树枝与架子和制造门，其中一个立即举起足够驱逐了我，布的传单云，以及十几个左右的电力装甲传单与我们。"等一下，阿布,"我喊道，尽量加快速度。如果能准确地知道我的航班是如何工作的就好了。悬浮力场是很容易理解的。我见过类似的机器人。但是，是什么推动着我前进？机翼是否有某种推力护身符？是心灵遥感吗？我不得不扇动翅膀，所以--
Two cyberponies darted up behind me like I’d observed before, only we weren’t their usual cup of tea; they’d never before encountered another cyberpony with a
就像我以前看到的那样，两匹赛伯矮种马在我身后飞奔而来，只不过我们不是它们平时喝的那杯茶;它们以前从未遇到过另一匹赛伯矮种马
hysterical pony flailing her rear hooves wildly and crushing the cyberpony’s throat in terror, nor had they had to deal with a flying unicorn cyberpony with a glowing sword flashing around behind her. They actually paced me for a little while, staring in bafflement as if unsure if I was an actual threat or not. Three seconds later, with agility I could only dream of, they flipped in the air and pointed their very deadly weapons right at the pair of us. I knew exact--
歇斯底里的小马疯狂地挥舞着后蹄，恐惧地碾碎了赛博马的喉咙，他们也不用对付一匹飞翔的独角兽赛博马，身后还有一把发光的剑在闪烁。他们实际上在我身上打了一会儿节奏，迷惑地盯着我，好像不确定我是不是一个真正的威胁。三秒钟后，他们以我做梦都想不到的敏捷，在空中翻转，用他们致命的武器对准我们两个。我非常清楚----
Then four Enclave power armor streaked past horizontally while precisely planting crimson beams at the pair. A second later, they were past and I was left spinning around wildly in their wake. When I came to a stop, Boo clung to my back like she was Wonderglued, and I was left with hundreds of ponies zipping and blasting around me. “Slow down!” I shouted, waving my sword in their general direction while a tiny blue pegasus in my head laughed at me. Pegasi moved, thought, and in general were too damned fast for me. Pegasuses and their cheating wings.
然后，四枚昂科雷强力护甲水平掠过，同时精确地将深红色的光束投射到这两人身上。一秒钟后，他们过去了，留下我在他们身后疯狂地旋转。当我停下来的时候，布紧紧地靠在我的背上，就像是被魔术粘住了一样，我被成百上千的小马围绕着。"慢点!"我大声喊道，朝着它们的方向挥舞着我的剑，同时一匹小小的蓝色飞马在我的头上嘲笑我。飞马座移动着，思考着，而且总的来说对我来说太他妈的快了。飞马座及其欺骗翅膀。
Still, time to get while the getting was good. I continued to climb, leaving the fight far below me. This high, I discovered several things: the air was growing thin and increasingly cold and windy. Every second I flew, my power supply dropped down bit by bit. As badass as I might have appeared, these wings gobbled up juice like crazy. There wasn’t an altimeter on my E.F.S., and I was so damn high that, as I looked about, I could see the horizon curving ever so slightly. The battle below became little flickering dots and larger flashing ovals. As I climbed, I watched the percentage of my power supply falling away: 50%. 40%. 30%... For once, I began to feel cold and struggled to breathe. Metal wasn’t the most insulative material, and I was covered in it. 20%. I could see the top of Shadowbolt Tower. I just had to fly a little further. 10%... A hundred feet. Fifty.
尽管如此，时间得到了，而获得是好的。我继续往上爬，把战斗远远地抛在身后。这么高，我发现了几件事:空气越来越稀薄，越来越冷，风越来越大。我每飞行一秒钟，我的电力供应就一点一点地下降。尽管我看起来像个坏蛋，但这些翅膀却疯狂地吞噬着果汁。我的飞行器上没有高度计，我的飞行高度太他妈高了，当我环顾四周时，我可以看到地平线微微弯曲。下面的战斗变成了闪烁的小点和更大的闪烁的椭圆形。当我爬升的时候，我看到我的电力供应下降了50%。40%.30%......这一次，我开始感到寒冷，呼吸困难。金属不是最绝缘的材料，我全身都是。20%.我可以看到影螺塔的顶端。我只需要再飞远一点。10%...100英尺。五十。
3%... The talismans on the wings pushing me through the air began to flicker. “No...” I groaned as I felt gravity start to pull me back down. I needed a few more feet. Just a few... it was so cold. So hard to focus. My metal limbs and wings flailed as the red light died.
3%......翅膀上的护身符把我推向空中，开始闪烁。"不......"我呻吟着，感觉到地心引力开始把我往下拉。我还需要几英尺。只有几个...太冷了。很难集中注意力。当红光熄灭时，我的金属肢体和翅膀摇摇欲坠。
The wings froze, and I began to fall.
翅膀冻住了，我开始往下掉。
Teleporting me was hard. Teleporting me with even more metal was challenging. Teleporting all that and Boo all at once was like trying to magically smoosh both of us simultaneously through a hoof-wide pipe a dozen feet long. Only the
传送我很困难。用更多的金属传送我很有挑战性。瞬移所有这一切和布一次就像试图魔术般地同时通过一个蹄宽十二英尺长的烟斗挤压我们两个。只有
knowledge I was about to fall miles to the earth below, and the primal and fundamental terror that accompanied that knowledge, allowed me to force a teleportation spell that got me to the top edge of the tower, and even then it was still so far that I was only able to hook my forehooves over the edge. My horn popped like a blown bulb, and I watched as my magic failed all at once. My sword, hovering beside me, tumbled away to the green Core far below. I saw it glitter for a moment in the sun, and then it was gone.
我知道自己即将坠落数英里之下的地球，伴随着这些知识而来的最原始和最根本的恐惧，让我能够施展一个瞬间移动的咒语，把我带到塔顶的边缘，即使那样，它仍然很远，我只能把我的前蹄钩到边缘。我的号角像一个爆炸的灯泡，我看着我的魔法一下子失败了。我的剑，在我身边徘徊，滚落到下面远处的绿色核心。我看见它在阳光下闪闪发光，然后就消失了。
Boo scrambled off my back and onto the icy roof. The blank bit my mane and hauled me over the lip, and I felt a phenomenal appreciation for earth ponies. My power supply flickered at 1%, and then my vision went dark. The howling wind fell silent. All I could feel was cold wind and cold metal. “Boo. Gems, Boo,” I rasped. “Gems. Please. I need power.” I started to shiver in the cold air.
布从我背上爬下来，爬上了冰屋顶。那片空白咬住了我的鬃毛，把我拽过了嘴唇，我感到自己对土地上的小马有一种非凡的欣赏。我的电力供应闪烁在1%，然后我的视力变暗。呼啸的风停了下来。我能感觉到的只有冷风和冰冷的金属。"嘘。"宝石，嘘,"我粗鲁地说。"宝石。求你了。我需要力量。"我开始在寒冷的空气中颤抖。
Something warm nudged my cheek, then draped itself over me. “I’m sorry, Boo,” I muttered, gasping for breath. The air was so thin here that I wondered if I was just going to pass out. I wasn’t even sure I had any gems left. Maybe way down in the bottom of my saddlebags, next to any other junk I happened to be carrying. My life support systems operated on a separate circuit, powered by my chest generator, but how long could I be up here before Boo or I perished?
有什么温暖的东西轻轻推了一下我的脸颊，然后又盖在我身上。"对不起，Boo,"我咕哝着，喘着粗气。这里的空气很稀薄，我不知道自己是否会昏过去。我甚至不确定我还有什么宝石。也许在我的鞍袋底部，旁边的任何其他垃圾我碰巧携带。我的生命维持系统在一个单独的电路上运行，由我的胸部发电机提供动力，但是在Boo或者我死之前我还能在这里呆多久？
I tried to move what muscle I had, but it was futile. I was more machine than meat now. I needed arcane energy to keep going. All I could do was lie here in the absolute silence. Well. At least I wasn’t here alone. No matter how hard or fast I tried to breathe, I couldn’t quite get enough air. I could only imagine what it was like for Boo. Even my sense of feeling began to fall away.
我试着移动我所有的肌肉，但是没有用。我现在更像机器而不是肉。我需要神秘的能量来继续前进。我所能做的就是躺在这里，绝对的寂静。好吧。至少我不是一个人来的。无论我多么努力或快速地呼吸，我都无法得到足够的空气。我只能想象阿布的感受。甚至我的感觉也开始消失了。
I could almost imagine I could hear singing.
我几乎可以想象我能听到歌声。
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
I lay in a proper dungeon. Stone walls on all sides. Heavy barred gate blocking the exit. My body ached with cold and wet as I sniffed and shivered. The only thing to mar the effect was an arcane camera set in the upper corner of the cell and the light that’d been on since I’d arrived.
我躺在一个合适的地牢里。四面都是石墙。沉重的栅门堵塞了出口。我的身体因为寒冷和潮湿而疼痛，我抽着鼻子打着寒战。唯一破坏这种效果的是一台设置在细胞上角的奥术摄像机，以及自从我来到这里以来一直亮着的灯。
“Goldenblood is dead,” a mare said, cold and hard and terrible. I shivered, turning to look up at the gate as a cold blue glow enveloped it and, after several clicks in the lock, opened it wide. There stood Princess Luna, though not the Princess I had seen before. This mare, older and harder and more imperious than
"金色的血液死了,"一匹母马说，冷酷，坚硬和可怕。我打了个哆嗦，转过头来看着大门，一道冷冷的蓝光笼罩着大门，敲了几下锁，大门打开了。站在那里的是露娜公主，虽然不是我以前见过的那位公主。这匹母马，年纪更大，更强壮，而且比它更专横
that playful and kind mare, glared down at me with contempt. “Goldenblood is dead, but I suspect his conspiracies are not,” she said in cold rage, eyes narrowed like blades.
那匹顽皮善良的母马，轻蔑地瞪着我。"金血王死了，但我怀疑他的阴谋没有死,"她怒气冲冲地说，眼睛眯得像刀片一样。
“I don’t know anything about Horizons,” I whispered. “I told you and Pinkie. I don’t...”
"我对地平线一无所知,"我低声说。"我告诉过你和平奇。我不......"
“I’m not just talking about Horizons. Everything he has done... everything he has touched... is suspect. Tainted. Poisoned. The secret projects. The liaisons in the O.I.A. The government itself. Everything!” she said, her last word bellowing like thunder and knocking me to my face. As I lay there, groveling on the cold hard stone floor, she continued, “I will not rest until everything he has ever done is laid open and bare. His association with the Ministry Mares. His work with the Ministry. His ‘back channels’ with the zebras. Nothing is certain anymore! Do you understand? Nothing!”
"我说的不仅仅是地平线。他所做的一切...他所碰过的一切...都是可疑的。被污染的。中毒了。秘密计划。O.i.a.的联络人。政府本身。所有的一切!"她说，她的最后一句话像雷声一样咆哮着，把我的脸打得稀巴烂。当我躺在冰冷坚硬的石头地板上时，她继续说道,"我不会休息，直到他所做的一切都被公之于众。他与政府部门的关系。他在魔法部的工作。他与斑马的"秘密渠道"。没有什么是确定的了！你明白吗？什么都没有!"
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty,” I whispered.
"对不起，陛下,"我低声说。
“Sorry?” Luna said in contemptuous tones. “Do you understand what is happening as we speak? The zebras have made the preposterous claim that we detonated a megaspell in their capital. That we dispatched an agent to Roam and committed an atrocity on their soil. They have produced doctored film of ravaged cities, deftly edited to appear to be their capital, and are broadcasting them throughout their empire, but why? Why tell such a blatant lie, given that our military reports all our megaspells accounted for, primed, and ready to be cast?” Her furious eyes glared down at me as she continued, cold as the winter sky, “Whence sprang this deceit? Is it a plot of Goldenblood? A ploy of the Caesar? The lives of tens of millions of my subjects are at stake, and the one pony I trusted more than any other has betrayed me!”
"对不起?"卢娜轻蔑地说。"你明白我们说话这会儿正在发生什么吗？斑马们荒谬地声称我们在他们的首都引爆了一个巨型盾牌。我们派了一个特工去Roam在他们的土地上犯下了暴行。他们制作了一部关于遭受破坏的城市的修改过的电影，经过精心编辑使之看起来像是他们的首都，并且在他们的帝国中播放这些电影，但是为什么呢？既然我们的军方报告说我们所有的巨人都已经找到了，准备好了，为什么还要撒这种弥天大谎呢?"她怒目而视地看着我，继续说着，像冬天的天空一样冰冷,"这种欺骗是从哪里来的？这是金色血液的情节吗？凯撒的策略？数千万臣民的生命危在旦夕，而我最信任的那匹小马却背叛了我!"
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” I repeated, averting my eyes to the silver glittering on her hooves. “I would do anything to... to take it all back!”
"对不起。"对不起,"我重复道，把目光转向她那闪闪发光的银色蹄子。"我愿意做任何事......来挽回这一切!"
“Anything?” she asked in a lovely, soft voice. Then, for a minute, she remained silent. When she spoke again, her voice was gentle. “Well, then. Do you wish a chance to redeem yourself?” she asked.
"有发现吗?"她用温柔可爱的声音问。然后，有一分钟，她保持沉默。当她再次说话时，她的声音很温柔。""那么，好吧。你希望有机会赎罪吗?"她问道。
“Yes, my Princess. Anything.”
"是的，我的公主。什么都行。"
The white moon on her chest plate flashed, then detached and in a burst of light
她胸牌上的白月亮闪着光，然后脱落，发出一阵光
transformed into a geometric, glowing white crystal the size of a pony’s eye. “Do you know what this is?”
变成了一个小马眼大小的白色几何晶体。"你知道这是什么吗?"
“That’s... that’s the EC-1101 megaspell matrix, Your Majesty.”
"那是...那是EC-1101兆斯派矩阵，陛下。"
“A megaspell you worked on. A megaspell that he may have compromised,” she said as she contemplated it with disgust. “Goldenblood could have conspired with any one of the ponies it is intended for. Twilight. Fluttershy. That judge. Even my sister. He could have orchestrated a coup quite easily with this.” Her teeth bared in frustration. “I should have it destroyed, but what if that is his plan? I cannot know for certain.” Then she lowered her eyes to me. “Therefore, I think we shall try something less predictable.”
"你做过的一个巨型机器人。一个他可能已经妥协的巨无霸,"她厌恶地看着这一切说。"金色血统可以和任何一匹它想要养的小马密谋。暮光之城。Fluttershy.那个法官。甚至是我的妹妹。他本可以轻而易举地策划一场政变。"她沮丧地露出了牙齿。"我应该把它销毁，但如果这就是他的计划呢？我不能肯定。"然后她垂下眼睛看着我。"因此，我认为我们应该尝试一些不那么容易预测的东西。"
“What do you wish, my Princess?” I rasped weakly.
"你有什么愿望，我的公主?"我有气无力地说。
“We shall bond your mind and soul to this megaspell. Your body shall be taken away for safekeeping. If for some reason this spell should ever be released, it will search out its intended, but you shall ensure that it returns to me. If you do not, your mind and soul shall evaporate slowly and steadily till they are no more. But!” she said sharply, and then smiled. “But if you are loyal, if you are true, and it returns to me, then I shall reunite your body, mind, and soul. And if no plot emerges and EC-1101 remains safe, my land and my people secure, then... then you shall be pardoned.”
"我们将把你的思想和灵魂与这个巨大的躯体结合起来。你的尸体将被带走妥善保管。如果由于某种原因这个咒语被释放，它会寻找它的意图，但是你要确保它回到我身边。如果你不这样做，你的思想和灵魂将慢慢地、稳步地蒸发，直到它们不复存在。但是!"她厉声说，然后笑了。"但是如果你是忠诚的，如果你是真诚的，如果它回到我身边，那么我将使你的身体、思想和灵魂重新团聚。如果没有阴谋出现，EC-1101仍然安全，我的土地和我的人民安全，那么......那么你将被赦免。"
Slowly, I pulled myself to my aching hooves and bowed my head to the floor. “I accept, Your Majesty. I accept,” I said, utterly sincere.
慢慢地，我把自己拉向疼痛的蹄子，把头低到地板上。"我接受，陛下。我接受,"我说，完全真诚。
Slowly, she backed away, and two stallions in dark purple robes entered, one short and stout, the other tall and thin. “Do it. I have to prepare for the Gala tonight. I’d cancel the damned thing, but it’s important to keep the pretense while we ferret out his conspirators. Once Pinkie is finished rounding up that Four Stars trash, she can scour the O.I.A. with my blessing.” Their hoods drew back as the unicorns, one blue and the other orange, stared at me with eyes full of stars. Then their horns flared and the world became white pain, and then nothing at all but white.
慢慢地，她后退了，两匹穿着深紫色长袍的公马走了进来，一匹又矮又胖，另一匹又高又瘦。"去做吧。我得为今晚的晚会做准备。我本想取消这件该死的事，但在我们查出他的同谋者时，保留这个借口是很重要的。一旦小手指完成了四星级垃圾的搜集工作，她可以带着我的祝福搜索o.i.a.。"独角兽们，一只蓝色的，一只橙色的，用满是星星的眼睛盯着我，他们的兜帽向后拉了拉。然后他们的角闪耀着，整个世界变成了白色的痛苦，然后什么也没有了，只剩下白色。
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
When thought returned, a few things had become apparent to me. One, I could breathe without feeling as if I were drowning. Two, I was being carried along by
当我回想起来的时候，一些事情变得清晰起来。第一，我可以呼吸而不会觉得自己快要淹死了。第二，我是被带着走的
somepony. Three, I was doomed to constantly experience the memories and experiences of other ponies any time I closed my eyes. Really, why couldn’t I have dreamed about a normal Equestrian life again?
某种东西。第三，每当我闭上眼睛的时候，我注定要不断地体验其他小马的记忆和经历。真的，为什么我不能再梦想一次正常的马术生活呢？
Still, I didn’t have time to waste. If anything, I might be too late. “Who’s there? Who is it? Boo? Pinion? Twister? Glory? Dusk? Boomer? Rainbow?” I then frowned. “It’s Lighthooves, isn’t it? You were watching through the Perceptitron. You sick monster! I’ll bite you to death!” I shouted, then snapped wildly against whoever carried me before they flung me off the top of the tower. I’d hit an artery! Maybe infection would finish him off!
尽管如此，我还是没有时间去浪费。如果说有什么不同的话，那就是我可能太迟了。"谁在那儿？是谁？嘘？小齿轮?？扭扭乐？晨辉？黄昏？布玛儿？彩虹?"然后我皱了皱眉。"这是光剑，不是吗？你在通过感知器观察。你这个恶心的怪物！我要把你咬死!"我大声喊道，然后疯狂地抓住那些背着我的人，在他们把我扔下塔顶之前。我会伤到动脉的！也许感染会杀了他！
A wing smacked me hard across the face. “Oh, you want to make this hard, do ya?” Wiggling as much as I could, I thumped my face against a metal flank. I thought I felt my steel-shod horn dig into something. “Take that! I’ll stop you, you bastard!”
一只翅膀狠狠地拍打着我的脸。"哦，你想让我难做，是吗?"我尽可能扭动身体，用脸撞击一个金属的侧腹。我觉得我感觉到我的钢铁蹄子戳进了什么东西里。"接招吧！我要阻止你，你这个混蛋!"
Then I was dumped to a floor and felt something spicy press against my mouth. I immediately closed my mouth around it, feeling it melt away and its magical goodness spreading throughout my body. My vision flickered, and my ears crackled as power returned and I blinked up at Mare Do Well. “Oh. It is you. Hi.”
然后我被推倒在地板上，感觉到有什么辣的东西压在我的嘴上。我立刻闭上了嘴，感觉它融化了，它神奇的美味散布在我的全身。我的视力闪烁，我的耳朵劈啪作响的权力回来，我眨着眼睛在马做好。"哦。就是你。嗨。"
“I could say the same thing, Blackjack,” she said in her low, synthetic voice. “You were right about Lighthooves spotting you on the Perceptitron, but he was going to leave you up here to freeze to death before finding out what’s on that damned piece of paper you keep showing ponies.” She frowned, withdrew another gemstone from a bag she had in wing, then shoved it in my mouth. “Bite me to death?” she asked wryly.
"我也可以这么说，黑杰克,"她用低沉而虚伪的声音说。"你说光剑在感知器上看到你是对的，但他打算把你留在这里冻死，然后才发现你一直给小马看的那张该死的纸上有什么。"她皱起眉头，从她带着的袋子里取出另一枚宝石，塞进我的嘴里。"把我咬死?"她挖苦地问。
I masticated furiously, absorbing the energy before swallowing. “Don’t laugh. I could probably do it,” I said with a smile. She offered me the bag, but when I tried to levitate it, my horn told me to fuck off. It was taking a vacation after that last port. A very long vacation. And it’d left me with a throbbing headache. “What’s going on? How long was I out?” Then, without further ado, I popped the bag over my mouth, hooked the drawstrings to my ears, and began to munch munch munch as I looked around.
我拼命地咀嚼，在吞咽之前吸收能量。"不要笑。我也许能做到,"我微笑着说。她把袋子递给我，但当我试图让袋子飘起来的时候，我的角告诉我滚开。在最后一个港口之后，它正在休假。一个很长的假期。这让我头痛欲裂。"怎么回事？我昏迷了多久?"然后，没有更多的麻烦，我砰的一声把袋子放在我的嘴上，把拉绳钩在我的耳朵上，开始咀嚼，当我环顾四周的时候。
We were in some kind of fancy office, but it had the impression of being used by a rather sloppy occupant. There were old posters of the Wonderbolts tacked to
我们在某种豪华的办公室里，但给人的印象是被一个相当邋遢的居住者占用了。那里贴着一些神奇螺栓的旧海报
the wood paneling. A large map of Equestria and the Zebra lands was spread out on a large table. On a different wall were some sort of complicated schematics of a huge mechanical sphere and a mushroom-shaped building, and a mouthwritten note ‘Don’t let Goldie lay one hoof on this project, Apple Bloom. I don’t care how much he claims he can help.’ A large list next to the desk read ‘Awesome Targets’ along with names and locations. Most of them sounded zebraish to me. Boo, with a tilt to her head, regarded several photographs of Ministry Mares arranged around the desk.
木镶板。一张大桌子上摊开了一张Equestria和斑马地的大地图。另一面墙上是一个巨大的机械球体和一个蘑菇形建筑的复杂图纸，还有一张口信:"苹果花，不要让戈尔迪影响这个项目。"。我不管他说他能帮多少忙桌子旁边的一个大清单上写着"可怕的目标"，还有名字和地点。我觉得他们大多数听起来像是西伯利亚人。布歪着头，看着桌子周围摆着的几张马尔斯的照片。
“You’ve only been unconscious a few minutes. Soon as you were sighted outside the tower, Lighthooves was talking about you, watching you on that Perceptitron. When he said you passed out up here, I nipped up the shaft and got you inside my office as fast as I could. Ascending several thousand feet in a few minutes is not a smart thing to do, Blackjack. The air pressure’s less than half what you’re used to.”
"你只昏迷了几分钟。一旦你被发现在塔外，光芒塔就在谈论你，在感知器上观察你。当他说你昏倒在这里的时候，我立刻关闭了电梯井，尽快把你带进了我的办公室。在几分钟内爬上几千英尺可不是什么明智之举，Blackjack。气压还不到你习惯的一半。"
“I’m a super badass cyberpony, laid low by cold, air pressure, and dead batteries. There’s something reassuring about that,” I said around a mouthful of slobbery gemstones. “Lighthooves?”
"我是一匹超级坏蛋赛博马，被寒冷、空气压力和废电池压垮了。这让我感到安心,"我满嘴流着口水的宝石说道。"灯塔?"
“Planning to launch every single missile in one go,” Rainbow Dash said, then grinned. “But I have a plan. All the power is being drawn up through an emergency conduit. You take your magical super-sharp sword and, in two swipes, he won’t be able to open a single door. What do you think?”
"计划一次性发射所有导弹,"彩虹·达什说，然后咧嘴一笑。"但我有个计划。所有的电力都是通过应急管道输送的。你用你那把神奇的超级锋利的剑，在两次猛击之后，他连一扇门都打不开。你怎么看?"
I thought it still sounded like a quick route to electrocution. Odd; I normally wasn’t the cautious mare. Not that it mattered here. “Yeah. About my magical super-sharp sword...” I muttered, looking away. “I kind of dropped it.”
我还是觉得这听起来像是电刑的捷径。奇怪，我通常不是那种谨慎的母马。这在这里无关紧要。"是的。关于我那把神奇的超级锋利的剑......"我喃喃自语，目光移开。"我好像把它弄掉了。"
“You dropped it?” Rainbow Dash rasped. “You... dropped... it? How do you drop something like that?”
"你掉了?"彩虹冲刺刀。"你...掉了...它？你怎么能扔掉这样的东西呢?"
“Well, when I teleported, I burned out my horn. My sword was being held out in case some cyberpony nipped in at me or Boo, and when my power ran out...
"嗯，当我瞬移的时候，我的喇叭烧坏了。我的剑被拔了出来，以防某种赛博矮种马扑向我或者Boo，当我的能量耗尽时..。
well... I dropped it!” I replied defensively. “Haven’t you ever just dropped something before?”
好吧......我把它掉了!"我防御性地回答。"你以前就没丢过什么东西吗?"
Rainbow sighed and shook her head. “That’s just sad,” she said as she lifted off and started to hover and pace in the air. “Okay. So we need a way to prevent forty missiles from launching. We could blow one up; that’d cause one heck of a
彩虹叹了口气，摇了摇头。"这太悲哀了,"她一边说一边离开，开始在空中盘旋和踱步。"好吧。因此，我们需要一种方法来阻止四十枚导弹的发射。我们可以炸掉一个，那会引起一场大灾难
mess, but there’s no guarantee that he couldn’t get the rest off. And he still has containers just full of his plague.” She tapped her chin. “Plus, we have to do something to help Thunderhead--”
一团糟，但不能保证他不能把剩下的弄出来。而且他还有装满瘟疫的容器。"她拍了拍下巴。"另外，我们必须做点什么来帮助雷霆海德——"
“Actually, I have a plan to deal with all those, too,” I said around a mouthful of gems. Boo pulled out a rainbow-colored wig and, after chewing on it a little, popped it on her head. As I continued to gorge myself like a hungry baby dragon, I fumbled with my bags and passed her the piece of paper. “Don’t read it out loud. No clue who might be watching.”
"实际上，我也有一个处理所有这些问题的计划,"我绕着满嘴的宝石说。布拔出一顶彩虹色的假发，咬了一会儿，戴在头上。当我继续像一条饥饿的幼龙一样狼吞虎咽时，我摸索着我的包，把那张纸递给她。"不要大声读出来。不知道谁可能在看。"
Rainbow Dash stared at it skeptically. “Blackjack, are you crazy? This is never going to work. Where the hell did you find one of these?”
彩虹·达什怀疑地盯着它。"黑杰克，你疯了吗？这是行不通的。你到底是从哪儿找到这个的?"
“In my adventures around Hoofington,” I said with a smile.
"我在胡芬顿的冒险经历,"我笑着说。
“But you can’t just use one! You have to have the authority to--” I silenced her as I raised my forehoof, jerked it to flip open the housing, and showed her my PipBuck. EC-1101 glowed obligingly on the screen. She stared a moment. “Oh, horseapples... but... Blackjack, do you know what it actually does?”
"但是你不能只用一个！你必须有权力——"我抬起前蹄，让她安静下来，猛地翻开房门，给她看我的皮伯克。Ec-11101在屏幕上闪闪发光。她凝视了片刻。"哦，马苹果......但是......黑杰克，你知道它实际上是干什么的吗?"
“No idea,” I admitted, putting the leg down. “I saw how a pony tried to get one to work, so I’ll do what she did. But whatever it is, I doubt plagues or Raptors will be a problem afterwards, right?”
"不知道,"我承认，放下腿。"我看到一匹小马怎样试图让一匹去工作，所以我会像她那样做。但不管是什么，我怀疑瘟疫或猛禽之后都会成为问题，对吗?"
“Maybe...” Rainbow Dash shook her head a little. “You still don’t have any way to target it.”
"也许......"彩虹·达什摇了摇头。"你仍然没有任何办法瞄准它。"
“I’ll need a talisman from one of his missiles, or maybe we can yank one from a turret,” I replied, extending my tongue to lap up the gems in the very bottom of the bag. That whole bag only got me about half charged; I’d definitely have to avoid long periods of flight if I could help it. I became aware that Rainbow had stopped pacing. “What?”
"我需要从他的导弹上取下一个护身符，或者我们可以从炮塔上取下一个,"我回答，伸出舌头舔着袋子底部的宝石。整个包只给了我一半的电量，如果可以的话，我一定要避免长时间的飞行。我意识到彩虹已经停止了踱步。"什么?"
“You’re a scary pony, you know that?” Rainbow Dash said with a shake of her head.
"你是一匹可怕的小马，你知道吗?"彩虹·达什摇摇头说。
I pulled the bag off my face, my mouth coated in a layer of glittery sweet gem dust. “Who? Me?” She sighed and shook her head as I licked the residue away, then I dropped my eyes. “Hope I’m not too scary. Honestly, look at me. What is Glory going to think?”
我把袋子从脸上拿下来，嘴里沾满了一层闪闪发光的宝石粉。"谁？我?"她叹了口气，摇了摇头，我把残渣舔干净，然后我低下了眼睛。"希望我不会太吓人。说实话，看着我。晨辉会怎么想?"
“Did you treat her differently when she resembled me?” Rainbow Dash asked.
"她长得像我的时候，你对她有什么不同吗?"彩虹·达什问。
“You don’t look like a bad villain from a B-rate film,” I countered.
"你看起来不像b级电影里的坏蛋,"我反驳道。
“True. But so long as your friends know you’re still you, you should be fine,” Rainbow Dash said.
"没错。但只要你的朋友知道你还是你，你就会没事的。"彩虹·达什说。
“I just wish my friends were here,” I muttered. “I know we had to split up, but...”
"我只是希望我的朋友在这里,"我喃喃自语。"我知道我们必须分开，但是......"
Rainbow Dash sighed and gazed at the pictures by the desk. “Welcome to the club. We have crumbled cookies and spilt milk.” She shook her head hard. “Anyway. Time’s wasting. What’s the plan?”
彩虹·达什叹了口气，盯着书桌旁的照片。"欢迎来到俱乐部。我们吃的是碎饼干，喝的是牛奶。"她使劲摇了摇头。"不管怎么说。浪费时间。计划是什么?"
“One second,” I said, putting the bag in my saddlebags and trotting to the desk, finding a piece of paper and a pencil. Then, closing my eyes, I scribbled out the instructions. Lighthooves might think I was unconscious, but he also might be watching through my eyes right now. When I finished, I folded it over and returned to Dash. “Boo?”
"等一下,"我说，把袋子放进我的鞍囊，小跑到书桌前，找到一张纸和一支铅笔。然后，我闭上眼睛，草草地写下了说明。他可能认为我昏迷了，但是他现在也可能正通过我的眼睛看着我。当我完成的时候，我把它折叠起来，然后回到Dash身边。"嘘?"
The blank pulled her head out of a file cabinet with a snack cake in her mouth. In a trice, she ripped open the package, flipped it in the air, and caught the cake in her mouth. Chewing happily, she trotted to us as I passed the paper to the purple-armored mare.
她的脑袋从档案柜里伸了出来，嘴里还叼着一块小吃蛋糕。过了一会儿，她把包裹撕开，在空中弹了一下，把蛋糕叼在嘴里。我把报纸递给那匹紫盔甲的母马时，她高高兴兴地朝我们小跑过来。
Dash unfolded it with her wings, then stared. “Whoa. Blackjack, you have terrible mouthwriting.” She scanned the list, nodding. “Okay. I can do that. And that. Annnnd probably that. But will your friend here be able to do her part? She seems kinda...”
达什用翅膀把它展开，然后凝视着。"哇。黑杰克，你的口信写得太糟糕了。"她点了点头，浏览着名单。"好吧。我能做到。还有那个。可能是吧。但是你这位朋友能做好她的工作吗？她看起来有点......"
“She’s fine,” I said, turning to Boo, hoping I was right. “Boo. Listen to me. You have to stay close to Rainbow Dash. She’s going to find something that’s very important, and you need to get it to me. Okay, Boo? I’m counting on you.” I stared into her eyes, trying to will her to understand me.
"她很好,"我说，转向阿布，希望我是对的。"嘘。听我说。你必须靠近彩虹冲刺。她会找到一些非常重要的东西，你必须把它交给我。好吗，波？我就指望你了。"我凝视着她的眼睛，试图让她明白我的意思。
She tilted her head. “Bwackjack?” Then she nuzzled my cheek and pulled her head back with glittering sparkles on her nose.
她歪着头。"疯子杰克?"然后她用鼻子蹭了蹭我的脸颊，把头往后拉，鼻子上闪闪发光。
I whirled to Rainbow Dash. “She’s good. She’s all over this!” I said with a grin.
我转向彩虹冲刺。"她很好。她对这件事很在行!"我咧嘴笑着说。
The most convincingest grin I ever grinned.
我笑过的最令人信服的笑容。
“Riiight,” Rainbow said skeptically. “Well, let’s get going. No time to waste before we do something completely stupid.” She started towards the door, but I hesitated. There was a small room to the side of the office, almost an alcove, that was clearly a media center of some kind. Six monitors were dark, but the seventh had an O.I.A. symbol aglow. Slowly, I approached, the ring icon flickered and disappeared, and something new appeared on the screen.
"对,"彩虹怀疑地说。"好了，我们走吧。在我们做出蠢事之前，没有时间可以浪费了。"她朝门口走去，但我犹豫了一下。在办公室的一侧有一个小房间，几乎是一个凹室，那显然是某种媒体中心。六个显示器是黑色的，但第七个显示器上有一个发光的o.i.a.符号。慢慢地，我走近，戒指的图标闪烁着消失了，屏幕上出现了一些新的东西。
>EC-1101 detected. Update routing data Y/N?
发现EC-1101。更新路由数据y/n?？
I stared at it as Rainbow Dash and Boo waited by the exit. “One second. I need to take care of something,” I said, and tapped the “Y” key. Once again I was treated to a digital light show as the information was transferred to my PipBuck. When the transfer ended, I saw that a navigation tag had been updated... but no matter which direction I turned, I couldn’t see where it was supposed to go. It said ‘Robronco HQ’, but... then I looked straight down and saw the little icon directly between my hooves.
我盯着它，看着彩虹冲刺和布在出口处等待着。"等一下。"我需要处理一些事情,"我说，然后敲了敲"y"键。我再一次看到了数字灯光表演，信息被传输到我的PipBuck上。当传输结束时，我看到一个导航标签被更新了......但无论我转向哪个方向，我都看不到它应该去哪里。上面写着"RobroncoHQ"，但是......然后我直接往下看，在我的蹄子之间直接看到了这个小图标。
Oh. Well, I was certainly dressed for a trip to the Core.
哦。我当然是为了去科尔旅行而打扮的。
“Hey, can you put me through to Glory?” I asked. “I want to see her again.”
"嘿，你能帮我接通晨辉吗?"我问道。"我想再见到她。"
“We don’t have time for this,” Rainbow Dash objected. “Any second he’ll have all those missiles loaded and be set to fire.”
"我们没有时间讨论这个,"RainbowDash反对道。"他随时都会把所有导弹装载好，然后点火。"
“You know what I’m going to do. Don’t you think Thunderhead deserves a little warning?” I asked.
"你知道我要做什么。你不觉得雷锋队应该得到一点警告吗?"我问道。
“And you can’t use your broadcaster because of the Perceptitron,” Rainbow grumbled as I tried to connect to Moonshadow’s lab. The screen flickered a few times, and then there was a ping and I saw the astronomy lab a wreck. Equipment lay scattered over the floor, and there was smoke in the room.
"因为感知器的缘故，你不能使用你的广播机,"彩虹抱怨着，我试图连接到月影的实验室。屏幕闪烁了几下，然后就响了一声，我看到天文实验室里一团糟。设备散落在地板上，房间里有烟。
“Glory! Moonshadow! Is anypony there?!” I shouted, but nopony answered.
"晨辉！月影侠！有小马吗?!"我喊道，但是没有小马回答。
“It looks like the science ministry got hit,” Rainbow Dash said grimly.
"看起来像是科学部受到了袭击,"彩虹冲击严厉地说。
I didn’t give up. “I know another pony who might answer.” I contacted Morningstar’s lab. I heard ponies talking in the background. “Hello! Is anypony there? Doctor Morningstar?” While the equipment had fallen over, at least there wasn’t as much smoke.
我没有放弃。"我知道还有一匹小马可能会接电话。"我联系了晨星公司的实验室。我听到背景里有小马在说话。"你好！那里有小马吗？晨星医生?"虽然设备倒塌了，但至少没有那么多烟雾。
Then a drop-dead gorgeous mare stepped into view of the monitor, and I just stopped thinking for a moment as her long, luxurious mane swayed back and forth and gorgeous eyes blinked slowly and sensually. She asked in a voice that melted butter, “Yes? What do you want? We are trying to save valuable research here!”
然后，一头迷死人的华丽的母马出现在显示器的视野中，我停止了思考片刻，她那长长的、华丽的鬃毛来回摆动，华丽的眼睛慢慢地、敏感地眨动着。她用融化了黄油的声音问道:"什么事？你想要什么？我们正在努力保存有价值的研究成果!"
“I... I...” Rainbow Dash thumped my rump with a clank and got my brain to engage, “I need to speak to Doctor Morningstar.”
"我.....。.我。。」彩虹·达什重重地拍了拍我的屁股，让我的大脑开始思考,"我要和晨星医生说话。"
“Yes. Yes. What do you want?” she said in the most beautiful irritation I’d ever seen, and then she looked to the side. “No, that sample first, then those! And don’t drop it again!”
"是的。是的。你想要什么?"她用我所见过的最美丽的愤怒说道，然后她向旁边看了看。"不，先拿那个样品，再拿那个！别再把它弄掉了!"
“D... Doctor!?” I stammered.
「。.医生我结结巴巴地说。
She let out a snort of disdain and severed the connection. I gave my head a hard shake. Apparently something had gotten loose. I reopened the connection, being rewarded with a posterior that nearly made me forget why I called again. “Doctor Morningstar. It’s me, Blackjack. Where is Glory?”
她轻蔑地哼了一声，切断了联系。我狠狠地摇了摇头。显然有什么东西松动了。我重新打开了连接，却得到了一个几乎让我忘记为什么再次打电话的后背。"莫宁斯塔医生。是我黑杰克。晨辉在哪里?"
She turned, arching a brow, then smiled. “Ah yes. I am not the only one who’s undergone some changes.” She put on the doctor’s, her, thick glasses and the effect snapped me out of my lust daze. “Better? Good. My pupil is at the office of emergency management. Terminal address MN1-TNDR1-EM1- Terminal six or seven.”
她转过身，拱了拱眉毛，然后笑了。"啊，是的。我不是唯一一个经历了一些变化的人。"她戴上医生的厚厚的眼镜，效果把我从欲望的茫然中拉了出来。"好点了吗？很好。我的学生在应急管理办公室。终端地址MN1-TNDR1-EM1-终端六或七
Perfect. “Thank you, Doctor. Are you evacuating?”
好极了。"谢谢你，医生。你们要撤离吗?"
“I won’t let my work be destroyed by military stupidity,” she declared with scorn that was gorgeous even with the glasses.
"我不会让我的作品因为军队的愚蠢而毁于一旦,"她轻蔑地宣称，即使戴着眼镜，这也是华丽的。
“Take it and as many researchers as you can to the Collegiate. Talk to Triage and Professor Zodiac. I’m sure they’ll welcome you and any research you have,” I said.
"把它和尽可能多的研究人员带到大学。和分诊医生和十二宫教授谈谈。我相信他们会欢迎你和你的任何研究,"我说。
“Is that so? Well then... thank you,” she said with a little surprise. “I will find some way to pay you back.”
""是吗？那么......谢谢你,"她带着一点惊讶地说。"我会想办法报答你的。"
“No need. I owe you. Good luck. And leave the killing joke behind,” I suggested before cutting the terminal and entering in the address he’d given me.
""没有必要。我欠你的。祝你好运。在切断终端并输入他给我的地址之前，我建议道。
The link opened, startling a pegasus stallion. “Who are you? Get off this connection!”
链接打开了，惊动了一匹飞马。"你是谁？离开这个连接!"
“My name is Blackjack!” I snapped. “Put Morning Glory on now!”
"我叫Blackjack!"我厉声说道。"现在就戴上牵牛花!"
“Blackjack?” Glory said from off screen. Then the gray mare rushed into view, knocking the stallion right out of his seat. The end of her mane was singed, and there was a bandage around her head and soot on her nose, but she was ten times more stunning to me than Doctor Morningstar had been. I couldn’t talk for several seconds as she took in my appearance. Her gaze immediately softened. “Oh, Blackjack...”
"黑杰克?"晨辉在银幕外说。然后灰色的母马冲进了视野，把种马从座位上撞了下来。她的鬃毛被烧焦了，头上缠着绷带，鼻子上沾着煤烟，但是对我来说，她比莫宁斯塔医生还要漂亮十倍。她看着我的样子，我有几秒钟说不出话来。她的目光立刻变得柔和起来。"哦，黑杰克......"
“Yeah. I got upgraded.” And to avoid talking and thinking about it, I rushed, “How is Thunderhead?”
"是的。我升级了。"为了避免谈论和思考这个问题，我急忙问道:"雷头公司怎么样?"
“Your warning saved more lives than I can count. There’ve been some casualties, but for the most part we’ve kept clear. The firing has slacked off a bit. Fortunately, we have somepony to manage this disaster.” And she moved back to let a mummy come before the terminal. Or at least, that’s what he looked like: a mummy in bloody bandages with two intense eyes.
"你的警告拯救了我数不清的生命。虽然有一些伤亡，但大多数情况下我们都保持清醒。火力已减弱了一点。幸运的是，我们有一匹小马来应对这场灾难。"然后她搬回来让一个木乃伊来到航站楼前。或者至少，他看上去就是这个样子:裹着血淋淋的绷带，双眼炯炯有神的木乃伊。
“Sky Striker?” I gasped. “How did you heal your injuries?”
"天空攻击者?"我倒抽了一口冷气。"你是如何治愈自己的创伤的?"
“I didn’t,” he rasped. “I’m slugging down a healing potion every ten minutes and trying not to move around much. What’s the situation?”
"我没有,"他粗声粗气地说。"我每十分钟就喝一次治疗药水，尽量不乱动。情况怎么样?"
“The Tower is being evacuated, and you should be ready to do the same for Thunderhead. Now’s the time, while the Enclave are fighting each other,” I said. “The Enclave want the tower and the plague more than they want you.”
"伦敦塔正在进行疏散，你也应该准备好对Thunderhead进行疏散。现在是时候了，因为昂科雷正在互相争斗,"我说。"昂科雷比起你更想得到塔和瘟疫。"
Sky Striker frowned. “Why evacuate now? We’re managing a decent resistance. I don’t know where they learned it, but those two earth ponies are driving them crazy with their mines and bombs. I think the Enclave are scared to put a hoof on the ground without it blowing up under them.”
天空前锋皱起了眉头。"为什么现在要撤离？我们正在应对一场体面的抵抗。我不知道他们是从哪里学来的，但是那两匹地球上的小马用它们的地雷和炸弹把他们逼疯了。我认为昂科雷害怕踏上土地而不被炸飞。"
In response, I showed the piece of paper. “Quiet. Don’t say it. Lighthooves might be listening in. But yes, I do, and I’m using it.” The shock was on everypony’s face, and I couldn’t meet Glory’s eyes. “I’m sorry, Glory. I know I said we’d save it... but...” The shock and horror was clearly etched on her face.
作为回应，我展示了那张纸。"安静。别说出来。轻型船可能正在监听。但是，是的，我知道，我正在使用它。"每个小马的脸上都充满了震惊，我无法看到晨辉的眼睛。"对不起，晨辉。我知道我说过我们会拯救它......但是......"她的脸上清楚地感受到了震惊和恐惧。
“You tried your best, Blackjack,” Sky Striker grumbled. “How much time do we have?”
"你已经尽力了，黑杰克,"天空前锋抱怨道。"我们还有多少时间?"
“Long as it takes for me to get what I need. Fifteen minutes?” I said lamely.
"只要我能得到我想要的。15分钟?"我一瘸一拐地说。
“That’s barely time to get under the cloud layer,” he grumbled.
他抱怨道:"这几乎不是到达云层下的时间。"。
Rainbow Dash leaned in. “There may be another way. Get every pegasus you can and push Thunderhead away from the tower.”
彩虹·达什靠过来。"可能还有别的办法。尽可能召集每一匹飞马，把雷霆头赶出塔楼。"
“Who--” Striker began.
"谁——"斯垂克开始问道。
“Time, remember?” I stressed.
"时间，记得吗?"我强调。
“You have seventy or eighty thousand pegasi. Thunderhead is ten miles away already. If you all fly pushing in the same direction, you might get clear.” She put a lot of emphasis on that ‘might’. “Eight hundred wingpower can drain a reservoir. Eighty thousand can certainly move a city.”
"你有七十到八万飞马。雷头已经有十英里远了。如果你们都朝着同一个方向飞行，你们可能会变得清晰。"她非常强调那种"可能"。"八百个翅膀的力量可以消耗一个水库。八万块钱当然可以搬动一座城市。"
“Right. Right! We’ll get on it. But again. The more time the better.” Then he pulled away, starting to bark orders as new bloodstains spread under his bandages. Glory moved back to the screen, and I gritted my teeth.
"对。没错！我们会处理的。但是，再说一遍。时间越长越好。"然后，当新的血迹在他的绷带下蔓延时，他开始大声命令。晨辉又回到了屏幕前，我咬紧牙关。
“I’m sorry,” I muttered, lowering my eyes. “I just wanted to save lives,” I said lamely.
"对不起,"我低下眼睛咕哝着。"我只是想拯救生命,"我一瘸一拐地说。
“Blackjack, you have! If you hadn’t come up here... with Stargazer dead... it would have been a bloodbath. And ultimately, we still would have lost. The Enclave would just bring a Thunderhead next time. Wouldn’t that be ironic?” she said with a smile full of tears. “Just do what you have to to bring this to an end. And Blackjack, I love you. No matter what you do or how you have to change, I love you. Just come back from this safely. Okay?”
"黑杰克，你赢了！如果你没有上来这里......观星者死了......那将会是一场大屠杀。最终，我们还是会输。昂科雷下次只会带来一个雷雨云。那不是很讽刺吗?"她含着泪笑着说。"尽你所能结束这一切吧。还有黑杰克，我爱你。不管你做了什么，或者你要如何改变，我都爱你。安全地从这里回来。好吗?"
“I’ll try. I love you,” I said, then cut the connections. I couldn’t cry, but I wished I could. Just one more way I was less equine than before. Laughter, tears, hunger, lust, pain... good or bad, they were things that made a pony a pony.
"我尽量吧。"我爱你,"我说，然后切断连接。我不能哭，但我希望我能哭。只是多了一个方面，我不再像以前那样马了。笑声，泪水，饥饿，欲望，痛苦...好的或坏的，这些东西让小马变成了小马驹。
And love. Love too.
还有爱。还有爱。
* * *
* * *
The elevator ride down took far longer than I anticipated. I nearly bounced on my hooves with impatience. I wanted this done. “Rainbow Dash? Lighthooves...
乘电梯下来的时间比我预计的要长得多。我几乎不耐烦地用蹄子跳来跳去。我想完成这件事。"彩虹冲刺？轻舟..。
when did he come up with this idea for using a bioweapon to discredit the Enclave?”
他是什么时候想到用生化武器来诋毁昂科雷的?"
“About a year ago. Why?” she asked.
"大约一年前。为什么?"她问道。
“After he returned from his first mission to the surface?”
"在他完成第一次任务返回地面之后?"
“His ‘mission’? He was just a rookie. Claimed he got lost in a feral lightning storm and took shelter in a surface ruin.” She shrugged. “It’s happened for generations. Every now and then a pegasus will be so damned curious they’ll nip down for a closer peek. Most are so horrified by what they see that they’re gung-ho backing up the Enclave’s isolation policy. A few stay down. That’s why they don’t give rookies power armor for their first few months. Why?” she repeated the question.
"他的'使命'？他只是个新手。声称他在一场狂暴的闪电暴风雨中迷路了，躲进了一处地表的废墟中。"她耸了耸肩。"这已经发生了好几代了。每隔一段时间，就会有一匹飞马非常好奇，它们会挤下来凑近看一眼。大多数人对他们所看到的非常震惊，以至于他们全力支持昂科雷的孤立政策。有几个人蹲下了。这就是为什么他们不给新手头几个月的动力装甲。为什么?"她重复了这个问题。
“Did you know he was related to Doctor Mephitis?” I asked.
"你知道他和梅菲蒂斯博士有关系吗?"我问道。
“No. Does it matter?”
"没有。这重要吗?"
“It did to him,” I said simply. Rainbow Dash just growled in annoyance. I’d been in the dark for months; she would get used to it.
"他就是这样,"我简单地说。彩虹破折号在烦恼中咆哮。我已经被蒙在鼓里好几个月了，她会习惯的。
As the elevator descended the shaft, the blue lights dimmed and flickered. “He’s using the emergency generators, too,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ve been doing everything I could to slow him down.”
当电梯下到电梯井时，蓝色的灯光变得暗淡和闪烁。"他也在使用应急发电机,"彩虹·达什说。"我一直在尽我所能拖延他。"
“Time to stop him,” I said, then smiled at her for reassurance. “Just keep to the plan. Get it and get it back to me.” She nodded, and I closed... I really wished I could close my eyes! “Dealer? Are you there, Echo?”
"是时候阻止他了,"我说，然后微笑着向她安慰。"按计划行事吧。把它拿回来还给我。"她点点头，我闭上了眼睛......我真希望我能闭上眼睛！"经销商？艾可，你在吗?"
“I’m here,” he replied, his voice small and ghostly.
"我在这里,"他回答，声音小而幽灵般。
“You know what I need?” I asked.
"你知道我需要什么吗?"我问道。
“Are you sure about this? Do you have any idea how many ponies you might kill?” he whispered in my ear.
"你确定吗？你知道你可能会杀死多少匹小马吗?"他在我耳边低语。
“Probably less than he will if all these missiles fly,” I countered. “Can you get it
"如果所有这些导弹都能飞起来的话，可能比他还要少,"我反驳道。"你能拿到吗
set up?”
陷害?"
“I can. Will you accept responsibility for those who die here?” he asked, his voice tense and on edge.
"我可以。你愿意为那些死在这里的人负责吗?"他问道，声音紧张而紧张。
I sighed. Kill one to save two. Don’t kill one and let two die. Which was the moral answer? Was there one? “Yes. Add it to the bill.”
我叹了口气。杀一个救两个。不要杀一个，让两个死去。道德上的回答是什么？有吗？"是的。把它加到账单上。"
“I’ll have it ready,” he answered simply.
"我会准备好的,"他简单地回答。
The lift reached its destination, and I stepped out first, walking across the floor of the central shaft to the stairs going down to the fabrication level. When I entered it, I saw a colossal chamber that I guessed was where those six large shields flared out. Below me was an entire self-contained factory. A smelter sat in one quarter, then large machines equipped with rollers and stampers and cutters. A machine shop in a second quarter had cyberponies welding and cutting. A third quarter was dominated by racks and racks of talismans and electrical equipment. The last section had a large transformer from which dozens of thick cables ran overhead to each door and launcher. The astringent whiff of ozone was in the air, and every now and then there was a loud snap and shower of sparks from the hanging lines.
电梯到达目的地后，我先走出电梯，穿过中央电梯井的地面，来到下到装配层的楼梯。当我进入时，我看到了一个巨大的房间，我猜那就是那六个大盾牌展开的地方。在我下面是一个完全独立的工厂。一个冶炼厂坐落在四分之一，然后是配备有滚子、压模和切割机的大型机器。第二季度的一家机械车间有电脑小马焊接和切割。第三季度主要是机架和机架的护身符和电气设备。最后一部分有一个巨大的变压器，几十根粗电缆架在每个门和发射器上。空气中弥漫着一股涩涩的臭氧气味，不时传来一声巨响，悬挂的绳索上火花四溅。
Above these four quarters, around the perimeter of the factory floor on elevated frames, sat the missiles. Each one looked to be forty or so feet long and five or six feet around. A large round intake sat atop the fuselage, and a pair of five-foot-long wings swept back two thirds of the way from the pointed nose. A pair of smaller wings were near the front of the missile, and a vertical wing towards the back gave me the impression more of a big sleek paper glider crossed with a dart than of a missile. I also wondered who in the zebra empire demanded all their equipment be striped. A little white pony in my head sniffed disdainfully.
在这四个区域之上，在工厂车间周围的高架上，放着导弹。每一个看起来都有四十英尺长，5到6英尺左右。机身上方有一个巨大的圆形进气口，一对五英尺长的机翼从尖尖的机头向后掠过三分之二的距离。在导弹的前部附近有一对较小的机翼，朝向后部的垂直机翼给我的印象更像是一架大型圆滑的纸质滑翔机，与飞镖相交，而不是导弹。我还想知道，在斑马帝国里，是谁要求所有的装备都要有条纹。我头上的一匹小白马轻蔑地抽着鼻子。
Each missile sat in a launch cradle, a half-tube with a vertical plate on the back, before a large metal door; barrels and spare parts were strewn haphazardly across the floor around them. The very doors the cyberponies were using to harass the Enclave. As I watched, one of them rolled up in three seconds to admit a half dozen fliers and then closed just as quickly. Each launch cradle rested on hydraulic pistons that kept it in place. In the very center of the huge space, hanging from the ceiling, was a lit round room with windows on in every direction. A large crane on a rail looped around the room, and from it dangled
每一枚导弹都放在一个发射架上，在一扇大金属门前面，发射架是一个半管状结构，背面有一个垂直的金属板;炮管和备件杂乱地散落在周围的地板上。正是这些赛博小马们用来骚扰昂科雷的大门。正如我所看到的，其中一个在三秒钟内卷起来，承认了半打传单，然后迅速关闭。每个发射支架都安装在液压活塞上，以保持发射支架的位置。在这个巨大空间的正中央，悬挂在天花板上的是一个灯火通明的圆形房间，每个方向都有窗户。一台巨大的起重机吊在栏杆上，在房间里转来转去，从栏杆上吊下来
huge plastic tanks attached to hoses that sloshed with bilious brownish contents, hoses that were being used to fill the warheads of the missiles.
巨大的塑料罐附着在软管上，里面装满了胆汁色的褐色物质，软管是用来装导弹弹头的。
I knew where I’d be if I were Lighthooves. I walked towards the center of that factory. As I passed, cyberponies halted their work and just stared. None of them took any shots, though. I didn’t know if it was because they were intimidated, tired, or had been ordered not to. Many looked stressed to the point of breaking, with shaking hooves and haunted stares. Many didn’t seem to have the full conversion others did, and I wondered if they’d been augmented against their will... thrown into the machine, cut to pieces, and made ‘stronger’.
我知道如果我是光剑，我会在哪里。我走向那家工厂的中心。当我经过时，网络小马停下了它们的工作，只是盯着看。但是他们没有一个人开枪。我不知道这是因为他们受到了恐吓，疲惫不堪，还是被命令不能这样做。许多人看起来压力很大，快要崩溃了，他们的蹄子颤抖着，眼神里充满了恐惧。许多人似乎没有其他人有的完全转化能力，我想知道他们是否违背自己的意愿被强化了......被扔进机器里，被切成碎片，变得更强壮。
“It’s her! We... we should... we should attack? Right?” a blue pegasus colt not much older than Scotch stammered as his eyes darted around the room.
"是她！我们...我们应该...我们应该进攻？对吧?"一匹比苏格兰人大不了多少的蓝色小马驹在房间里四处张望时结结巴巴地说。
“No. There’s been enough attacking. It’s time to talk,” I replied.
"没有。攻击已经够多了。是时候谈谈了,"我回答。
“Talk?” a mare hissed. “What is there to talk about?”
"谈话?"发出嘶嘶声的母马。"有什么好谈的?"
“You’re the enemy. All of you,” muttered a stallion, but at this point he could have been addressing me or the entire room from the way his augmented eyes swept the crowd.
"你是敌人。"你们所有人,"一匹种马喃喃自语，但此时此刻，他可能是在用增强的目光扫视人群的方式对我或整个房间的人说话。
“The real reason Lighthooves made you into what you are,” I said as I looked up at the control center. The pegasi began to murmur to each other, but they weren’t taking their eyes off of me. “He’s lied to you. This isn’t about plagues or Thunderhead or Neighvarro. This is about him. It’s always been about him.” Maybe it was the resigned note in my voice, or that I was the pony in the room with the least flesh remaining. One by one, red bars winked to blue, and I continued past them.
"真正的原因是lighthoves让你变成现在这个样子,"我抬头看着控制中心说。飞马座开始互相低语，但他们的眼睛没有离开我。"他骗了你。这不是关于瘟疫或者雷头或者邻居。这是关于他的。一直都是为了他。"也许是因为我的声音听天由命，也许是因为我是房间里那匹肉最少的小马。一个接一个，红条闪烁着变成了蓝条，我继续穿过它们。
A spotlight on the bottom of the control room suddenly painted me in its beam. “That’s far enough, Blackjack,” Lighthooves said over a loudspeaker. “I suppose this is the point of our climactic battle? Good versus evil? Light versus darkness? Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’m afraid that I’m pressed for time. The Enclave has attacked a helpless civilian target, and they shall pay dearly for it.”
控制室底部的一个聚光灯突然把我画在它的横梁上。"够了，Blackjack,"lighthoves通过扩音器说。"我想这就是我们决战的高潮吧？正义对抗邪恶？光明还是黑暗？很抱歉让你失望了，但我恐怕时间紧迫。飞地攻击了一个无助的平民目标，他们将为此付出昂贵的代价。"
I could almost read it like a script. “I went to Yellow River,” I called out to him. “But then, you wanted me to.”
我几乎可以像读剧本一样读它。"我去了黄河,"我对他喊道。"但后来，你希望我这么做。"
The light snapped off, and the door to the control room opened. Lighthooves emerged onto a landing. He still looked more flesh and blood than I, but, then again, the measure of a pony wasn’t in flesh and blood. “Yes, I know. I saw what you did. Your demonstration of physical prowess was most inspiring.”
灯突然灭了，控制室的门打开了。轻舟出现在一个平台上。他看起来仍然比我更有血有肉，但是，话又说回来，衡量一匹小马的标准并不是血有肉。"是的，我知道。我看到你做的事了。你对体力的展示是最鼓舞人心的。"
“I never really knew why you pointed me to it. That note you left wasn’t just for me, though. It was for anypony who came after you. You wanted somepony to see the camp and know what Mephitis did.” I activated my wings and kicked off the floor, levitating up toward him and setting off a murmur among the watching cyberponies. “But that wasn’t enough, was it? You knew that, even if Dusk or I went to Yellow River, the truth wouldn’t get out. They’d ignore it. Or bury it. Or bury you.”
"我一直不知道你为什么指给我看。不过你留的字条不只是给我的。这是给追杀你的人准备的。你想要一匹小马参观营地，知道梅菲蒂斯做了什么。"我激活了我的翅膀，踢开地板，向他飘来，在观看的赛博小马之间发出低语。""但这还不够，不是吗？你知道，即使黄昏或我去黄河，真相也不会泄露。他们会忽略它。或者埋了它。或者埋葬你。"
“History has ever been the servant of tyrants,” Lighthooves replied. “What hope has the truth against such odds?” His grandiose speech matched up with what Doctor Octopus had said. Melodramatic. Immature. I could stall him. Time was my greatest asset at this point. He gestured with his head at the control room and stepped in, with me following. While his back was to me, I flipped open my PipBuck and pushed a button. If he spotted my movement, he didn’t say anything. “So, did you put it all together?”
"历史一直是暴君的仆人,"莱特霍夫斯回答道。"在如此困难的情况下，真理还有什么希望呢?"他那浮夸的演讲与章鱼博士所说的一致。情节剧。不成熟。我可以拖住他。在这一点上，时间是我最大的财富。他用头指了指控制室，然后走了进来，我跟着他。当他背对着我的时候，我弹开我的PipBuck，按下了一个按钮。如果他发现了我的动作，他什么也没说。"那么，你把它们都拼凑起来了吗?"
Standing this close, he was a wreck. His eyes were sunken and bloodshot. “You tell me,” I replied. “You found out that you were descended from one of the Enclave’s heroes. The genius doctor who prevented the Enclave from making a terrible mistake and returning to the surface. And you took pride in that lineage. And somewhere in researching your ancestry, you found out about Yellow River. So at the first opportunity, you went down looking for it. To stand in the place where your ancestor stood.”
站得这么近，他简直是个废物。他的眼睛深陷，布满血丝。"你告诉我,"我回答。"你发现你是昂科雷英雄的后裔。这位天才医生阻止昂科雷犯下可怕的错误，重返地面。你为你的血统感到骄傲。在研究你的祖先的某个地方，你发现了黄河。所以一有机会，你就去找它。站在你祖先曾站过的地方。"
“As a descendant of Twilight Sparkle, I’m sure you can relate,” he replied, then smiled smugly. “Oh yes, I’ve done my own checks on you since we parted ways.” His eyes were calm, almost serene. Around the room, papers were thrown all over the floor. Tapes and memory orbs were cast across the controls like garbage.
"作为紫悦的后代，我相信你能理解,"他回答道，然后自鸣得意地笑了。"哦，是的，自从我们分道扬镳以来，我已经对你做了我自己的检查。"他的眼神平静，几乎是安详的。房间里到处都是报纸，扔得满地都是。磁带和记忆球像垃圾一样在控件上投掷。
“I can,” I said. “More than you know. I know that Twilight did some messed up things, too. Ignored people she shouldn’t have. Hurt people she shouldn’t have.” I narrowed my eyes. “Though I have to give Mephitis credit. He committed atrocity on a whole other scale.”
"我可以,"我说。"比你知道的还要多。我知道《暮光之城》也做过一些糟糕的事情。忽视那些她不该忽视的人。伤害了她不该伤害的人。"我眯起眼睛。"尽管我不得不称赞梅菲蒂斯。他犯下了另一种规模的暴行。"
The calm broke, and Lighthooves hissed at me, spittle spraying. “He left them! He took his ill-gotten gains and left them! Left them to starve! I saw the security footage the automated turrets left behind! Some of them lasted for months! Months!” he hissed at me, outrage etched in his face as his spittle speckled my visor.
平静被打破了，轻舟朝我嘶嘶地喷着唾沫。"他抛弃了他们！他拿走了他的不义之财，把它们留下了！让他们挨饿！我看到了自动炮塔留下的监控录像！有些甚至持续了几个月！几个月!"他对我发出嘶嘶声，当他的唾沫溅到我的面罩上时，他的脸上充满了愤怒。
I continued, calm and cool. “But he was a doctor. A virologist. And, most importantly, a pony the Enclave could use.” I watched the serenity settle over his face once more. “It’s one thing to argue about whether you should or shouldn’t return to the surface if it’s easy to do so. It’s another thing entirely if the surface is too deadly to risk,” I said, and we slowly started to circle around the edge of the control room.
我继续说着，平静而冷静。"但他是个医生。病毒学家。最重要的是，昂科雷可以使用一匹小马。"我又一次看到他脸上的平静。"如果返回水面很容易，那么争论是否应该返回水面是一回事。如果表面太致命而不能冒险，那就完全是另一回事了,"我说，然后我们慢慢地开始绕着控制室的边缘转圈。
“The Enclave has milked that propaganda for two hundred years. Two hundred,” Lighthooves said with a smile. “The wealth and fame they poured on him has been paid back ten thousand fold.”
"昂科雷200年来一直在利用这种宣传。两百,"莱特霍夫斯微笑着说。"他们给他带来的财富和名望，已经得到了一万倍的回报。"
“Chicanery told me that you worked out how many lives might have been spared if we’d gone back. Still, what could you do?” I continued. “Who could you tell? It wasn’t enough that you knew. You couldn’t just take that knowledge and be a better pony. Not you. No. You had to act,” I said as we walked. “You needed something they couldn’t ignore. Something nopony could ignore. You needed something so monstrously huge that it couldn’t be covered up. So you approached Rainbow Dash with a plan.”
"奇卡纳里告诉我，你算出了如果我们回去的话，可以挽救多少条生命。不过，你还能怎么办呢?"我继续说。""你能告诉谁？你知道还不够。你不可能仅仅利用这些知识成为一匹更好的小马。不是你。没有。你必须采取行动,"我边走边说。"你需要一些他们无法忽视的东西。任何小马都无法忽视的东西。你需要一个巨大到无法掩盖的东西。所以你带着一个计划接近彩虹冲刺。"
“She’s always been looking for a way to bring down Neighvarro. It wasn’t hard to convince her,” he replied with a tired, almost rueful smile.
"她一直在想办法扳倒邻居。说服她并不难,"他回答时带着疲倦的、几乎是悔恨的微笑。
“And for a time, you gathered the pieces. The plague. The delivery system. The targeting talismans. Everything you needed. But something changed. Something that meant the scandal wasn't enough. What was it?” I asked.
"有一段时间，你收集了所有的碎片。瘟疫。输送系统。目标护身符。你需要的一切。但是有些事情改变了。一些意味着丑闻的东西是不够的。是什么?"我问道。
He laughed quietly a moment. “I told you, Blackjack. I told everypony.” His wings reached down into the rumpled mat of documentation at our feet and swept up a few pages that he shook at me. “The Enclave found out what we were doing, and praised us.” Disgust dripped from every syllable. “They wanted to accelerate the plan. They wanted to distribute the virus to every corner of the surface, wipe out all hostile life, and, oh, then return!” He threw the pages in my face, and they swirled about us wildly.
他静静地笑了一会儿。"我告诉过你，黑杰克。我告诉了每一个人。"他的翅膀伸进我们脚下皱皱巴巴的文件垫，扫过几页纸，朝我摇晃。"昂科雷发现了我们的所作所为，并表扬了我们。"厌恶从每个音节滴落下来。"他们希望加快计划的实施。他们想把病毒散播到地球表面的每一个角落，消灭所有的敌对生物，然后，哦，再回来!"他把那几页纸扔到我脸上，它们疯狂地在我们周围旋转。
“So a scandal wasn’t enough. Defaming Mephitis wasn’t enough. You needed more. You wanted to bring down the Enclave,” I said as the papers fell around me.
"所以光有丑闻是不够的。诽谤梅菲蒂斯是不够的。你需要更多。你想毁掉昂科雷,"当报纸掉在我周围时，我说。
“Don’t tell me they don’t deserve it!” he hissed, marching over and smacking a control. One of the monitors lit up, showing a scavenger city being blasted by magical energy weapons. I watched a foal get disintegrated right before my eyes. To my shock, I saw LittlePip, tears streaking her face, trying to collect the dust. “I got that from a contact yesterday. They targeted children, Blackjack!”
"别跟我说他们不配!"他发出嘶嘶的声音，走过去，重重地打了一下控制杆。其中一个显示器亮了，显示一个拾荒城市被魔法能量武器炸毁。我眼睁睁地看着一只小马驹被分解。令我震惊的是，我看到小皮普泪流满面，试图收集灰尘。"我昨天从一个熟人那里得到的消息。他们的目标是儿童，黑杰克!"
I tore my eyes from the screen and returned my attention to Lighthooves. “You had it all set up. You weren’t going to create a scandal. You were going to create a crisis. After Maripony, things were unstable. There was fear and doubt. You were going to hand over all the evidence with every camera rolling, give yourself over to a huge trial, make Thunderhead the hero that saved the Enclave from Neighvarro’s mad agent.” I paused, we both stopped, and a vein began to tick in Lighthooves’s temple. “Only--”
我把目光从屏幕上移开，把注意力转向Lighthooves。"你都安排好了。你不会制造丑闻的。你要制造一场危机。在马里波尼之后，事情变得不稳定。有恐惧和怀疑。你要把所有的证据都交给摄像机，让自己接受一场大审判，让霹雳头成为拯救昂科雷的英雄，从邻居的疯子手中解救出来。"我停了下来，我们都停了下来，一条血管开始在Lighthooves的太阳穴上跳动。"只是——"
“Only you murdered the fucking councilor!” he roared at me, eyes wide. “Did she come to arrest you, only for you to slaughter her, or was her death planned in advance as a way to spite me? She might not have been a good politician, but she was a caring pony and a friend!”
"只有你谋杀了该死的议员!"他对我咆哮，眼睛睁得大大的。""她是来逮捕你的，只是为了让你杀了她吗?还是她的死是事先计划好的，是为了报复我？她也许不是一个优秀的政治家，但她是一匹有爱心的小马和一个朋友!"
“It wasn’t me who killed her, Lighthooves,” I said, knowing he wouldn’t believe me and not really caring anymore about whether he did. “But her death did fuck your plan, didn’t it? Stratus wouldn’t have investigated like the councilor would. He would have covered everything up. The last thing you wanted. So you fell to plan B: lure in the Enclave fleet and blow it to pieces. That would be a disaster far worse for them, and you could follow up with the plague at your leisure.”
"不是我杀了她，莱特霍夫斯,"我说，我知道他不会相信我，也不再关心他是否相信我。"但是她的死确实打乱了你的计划，不是吗？斯特拉图不会像议员那样调查的。他会把一切都掩盖起来。你最不想看到的就是。所以你落入了b计划:引诱飞地舰队并把它炸成碎片。对他们来说，那将是一场大得多的灾难，而且你可以在闲暇时继续研究这场瘟疫。"
“Yes,” he said, seemingly once more calm. “But the power draw was too much. It destroyed the substation power grid.”
"是的,"他说，似乎又恢复了平静。"但权力吸引力太大了。它摧毁了变电站的电网。"
“No. I destroyed the power grid,” I replied, my eyes locked with his. His were, at least, still flesh and blood. Still windows to a soul in torment. We both stopped our circling.
"没有。我摧毁了电网,"我回答，我的眼睛紧紧盯着他。他至少还是有血有肉的。仍然是痛苦中灵魂的窗户。我们都不再兜圈子了。
“You... how?!” he spluttered.
"你...怎么会?!"他语无伦次地说。
I smiled grimly. “You don’t know the whole story, Lighthooves. You don’t know
我冷冷地笑了笑。"你不知道整个故事，Lighthooves。你不知道
about Dawn, Cognitum, or the Tokomare. You’re not the princess… piece... thing on the board, you’re just a prawn too. Or are those horsies? Or maybe one of the castle thingies.” Okay, I really needed to learn the game if I was going to keep up with the chess analogies. “Point is that there is way more going on than just you and your personal issues!”
关于《黎明》、《认知》或者《Tokomare》。你不是公主...棋子...棋盘上的东西，你也只是一只对虾。或者那些是马？或者是城堡里的什么东西。"好吧，如果我想跟上国际象棋的类比，我真的需要学习这个游戏。"关键是，除了你和你的个人问题，还有很多事情要做!"
“I see. I must admit, I am boggled as to why you would side with Neighvarro--” he began.
"我明白了。我必须承认，我真搞不懂你为什么会站在邻居那边——"他开始说。
“I’m not siding with them!” I snapped, cutting him short. “You self-obsessed little colt; did it ever occur to you that there’s more sides to this than just you and your petty, bloody ego trip?” I asked, my words seeming to stun him more than mere blows. “You can make all the little speeches you want. I’m going to destroy this plague, those Raptors, and you. Possibly a great deal more, but definitely the first three,” I finished quietly.
"我没有站在他们那边!"我厉声说道，打断了他的话。"你这个自私自利的小家伙，你有没有想过，除了你和你那卑鄙的、血腥的自我之旅，这件事还有其他的方面?"我问道，我的话似乎不仅仅是一顿打击，而是使他大吃一惊。"你想说什么就说什么吧。我要摧毁这场瘟疫，那些猛禽，还有你。可能还有更多，但肯定是前三个,"我平静地说完。
For a second, there was doubt; for a second, I hoped sanity would prevail in the end. Then his features turned hard and skeptical. “Oh, are you? You seem so very certain you can. Well, I’m going to have to disappoint you. Those missiles are going to fly as far as they possibly can. I’m even sending a few to the zebras, just so they can enjoy the fun,” he said with a laugh that just made me feel fatigued. “With Project Steelpony, our own people will be safe, augmented and immune to the plague. Everypony will know the truth. All the lies will be swept away, and finally... it will be over.”
有那么一瞬间，我感到怀疑;有那么一瞬间，我希望理智最终会占上风。然后他的表情变得严肃而怀疑。"哦，是吗？你看起来很确定你可以。看来我得让你失望了。这些导弹将尽可能地飞得更远。我甚至送了一些给斑马，这样它们就可以享受这种乐趣了。"他笑着说，这让我感到很疲惫。"有了Steelpony项目，我们自己的人民将安全、强大并对瘟疫免疫。每个小马都会知道真相。所有的谎言都会被清除，最终......一切都会结束。"
“Why?” I asked tiredly, knowing the answer but hoping that somehow, some way, I was wrong. In my E.F.S., I saw two blue bars moving about; hopefully one was Boo. I put my forehooves on a chair in front of one of the terminals.
"为什么?"我疲惫地问道，虽然知道答案，但我希望不知怎么的，在某种程度上，我错了。在我的e.f.s，我看到两个蓝色的条移动，希望其中一个是Boo。我把前蹄放在其中一个终端前的椅子上。
“I told you! For truth! For their crimes!” he cried back at me.
"我告诉过你！为了真理！为了他们的罪行!"他也冲我哭了。
“Don’t give me that brahmin shit!” I snapped back. “Look at me! Look at what I’ve done to myself to stop you! No more lies! Tell me the truth!” Do it, I mentally screamed at him. He wanted to. “You owe me that much.”
"别跟我说那些婆罗门的屁话!"我反驳道。"看着我！看看我为了阻止你都对自己做了些什么！不要再说谎了！告诉我真相!"动手吧，我在心里冲他尖叫。他想这么做。"这是你欠我的。"
“Because I hate everything!” he snapped at me. “I hate the Enclave for its hypocrisy and lies. I hate Thunderhead for its mewling complacency. I hate the surface for its savagery and weakness. I hate the past for all that it’s done to us and I hate the future for all that it’s denied us. I hate every drop of blood in my being. But most of all, Blackjack, I HATE--”
"因为我讨厌一切!"他冲我发火。"我讨厌昂科雷的虚伪和谎言。我讨厌雷霆万钧的自鸣得意。我讨厌表面的野蛮和脆弱。我痛恨过去对我们所做的一切，我痛恨未来对我们所做的一切。我恨我身上的每一滴血。但最重要的是，黑杰克，我讨厌——"
And that was the point in which I threw the chair with all my strength right into his face. He flew clear across the room and smashed into the window hard enough to almost drive him through it. “You were going to say ‘you’, right?” I asked, and then I galloped straight at him, slightly enlarged steel-clad horn aimed right at his chest. He brought up all four hooves and caught my skull, deflecting me to the side. I smashed my shoulder into his chest, and together we went flying through the window. We tumbled in the air over the factory floor, and at least a hundred cyberponies stared up at us.
这就是我用尽全身力气把椅子扔到他脸上的时候。他飞快地穿过房间，狠狠地撞在窗户上，几乎要把他撞飞出去。"你是想说'你'，对吧?"我问道，然后我朝他飞奔过去，稍微扩大了一点的钢铁包裹的号角正对着他的胸部。他拉起我的四只蹄子，抓住我的头骨，把我偏向一边。我用肩膀猛撞他的胸部，我们一起飞过窗户。我们在工厂地板上空翻滚，至少有一百匹赛博小马在盯着我们。
“Doc Oc was right,” I said as I hovered... well, bobbled. “Immature and self-destructive as fuck.”
"奥克医生是对的,"我边说边在空中盘旋......好吧，断断续续的。"不成熟而且自我毁灭得像个混蛋"
Lighthooves swept his hoof at me. “Shoot her!” They all continued to stare up at him. “Kill her! A few more minutes and it will be done. Everything will be done!” Still not a one of them moved, and I smiled at him. “What... what are you doing?” he asked in bafflement.
轻舟用蹄子朝我扫过来。"开枪打她!"他们继续抬头看着他。"杀了她！再过几分钟就好了。一切都会搞定的!"他们一个也没有动，我朝他笑了笑。"你...你在干什么?"他困惑地问道。
“Mewling complacency?” a mare asked in an angry, low voice.
"哭哭啼啼的自鸣得意?"一匹母马愤怒地低声问道。
“You set all this up?” a stallion growled as he pointed his guns at Lighthooves. “You said this was for Thunderhead’s freedom!”
"这一切都是你安排的?"一匹种马咆哮着用枪指着Lighthooves。"你说这是为了让雷霆队获得自由!"
He slowly looked around. “How... you don’t understand. It had to be done!”
他慢慢地环顾四周。"怎么......你不明白。必须这么做!"
“You told me it was for my children,” another mare shouted. “Why?”
"你告诉我这是为了我的孩子,"另一匹母马喊道。"为什么?"
He stared at a sea of very angry cyberponies, then gaped at me. I flipped open the panel of my foreleg and showed him my broadcaster. “You wanted to confess your sins to the world? Well, now you have.” I’d forego burning off his cutie mark and branding him a Dashite. He didn’t deserve it. The cyberponies were falling apart. Without the lie of the nobility and necessity of this, the reality of what they’d sacrificed for him was coming home. I heard some ponies screaming in shock. Others wept, and some just sat there in stunned disbelief.
他盯着一大群愤怒的赛博小马，然后目瞪口呆地看着我。我弹开我前腿的面板，给他看我的播音员。"你想向世人忏悔你的罪过吗？好吧，现在你有了。"我宁愿放弃烧掉他可爱的标记，给他打上"达什特"的烙印。他不该受到这样的对待。赛博小马正在分崩离析。没有了高贵的谎言和这样做的必要性，他们为他牺牲的现实就是回家。我听到几匹小马惊恐地尖叫。有些人哭了，有些人只是坐在那里，难以置信地震惊。
I looked at him and saw a pony who’d lost everything. Everything. Such a waste. I turned to them. “You need to get out of here. Fly to the surface. Get to the Collegiate. Maybe... maybe somepony there can help you. But you can’t stay here.”
我看着他，看到了一匹失去了一切的小马。一切。真是浪费。我转向他们。"你得离开这里。飞向地面。去大学。也许...也许那里的小马能帮你。但你不能留在这里。"
“We can still kill him!” one yelled.
"我们还是可以杀了他!"其中一个喊道。
Another roared, “Let’s rip off the meat he’s got left!”
另一个吼道:"我们把他剩下的肉撕了吧!"
Lighthooves glared at me with utter hatred. “You did this. You all deserve this. Command: snapped strings.”
灯塔怒视着我，充满了极度的仇恨。"是你干的。这是你们应得的。命令:折断字符串。"
Suddenly, every cyberpony around me began to spasm and fall over. Some managed to cry out as they collapsed, gripping their chests with expressions of agony. I thought back to the scavenger in Tenpony. Blood spurted from their mouths as they jerked and shuddered. A few fired weapons as they expired, but in a matter of seconds, it was all over. With three words, he’d killed hundreds of ponies. Mothers, fathers, siblings... all dead.
突然，我周围的每一匹赛博马都开始抽筋，摔倒在地。一些人在倒下的时候大声喊叫，紧紧地抱着胸口，表情痛苦。我想起了Tenpony的拾荒者。血从他们的嘴里喷出来，他们抽搐着，战栗着。一些武器在它们过期的时候开火了，但是在几秒钟内，一切都结束了。仅用三个字，他就杀死了数百匹小马。母亲，父亲，兄弟姐妹...都死了。
A purple streak dashed through the air and slammed into Lighthooves, knocking him from the air and across the factory floor into heaps of stacked metal bars. “You monster! You murderer! I trusted you!” shouted Rainbow Dash as her hoof blows rained down. “You betrayed us all!”
一条紫色条纹从空中飞过，撞上了Lighthooves，把他从空中击落，穿过工厂的车间，撞成堆积如山的金属条。"你这个怪物！你这个杀人犯！我那么信任你!"当她的蹄子像雨点般落下的时候，她大叫着彩虹冲刺。"你背叛了我们所有人!"
“Betrayal is a matter of perspective,” Lighthooves spat back. “If I must finish this myself, so be it!” His wings snapped, and he pressed his attack, the two blurring through the air above the factory floor locked in dazzlingly swift aerial combat.
"背叛是一个观点问题,"莱特霍夫斯回嘴说。"如果我必须自己完成这件事，那就这样吧!"他的翅膀折断了，他发起了进攻，两个模糊的身影在工厂地板上空交织着令人眼花缭乱的快速空战。
“Boo!” I shouted as I rose to my hooves. If all the cyberponies were dead, then that meant that Hoarfrost’s ponies would be here in minutes. From the darkness, Boo trotted out. “Did she find one, Boo? Did she? Did she?” I asked with a desperate smile.
"嘘!"我一边喊，一边站起来。如果所有的赛博小马都死了，那就意味着霍尔弗罗斯特的小马会在几分钟内赶到这里。布从黑暗中小跑出来。"她找到了吗，布？是吗？是吗?"我带着绝望的微笑问道。
She beamed a smile, reached into her saddlebag, and pulled out a Fancy Buck Snack Cake. “Bwackjack!” she said cheerfully as she presented it to me. I slumped, really not having the time to search for one myself. I panned my eyes over to the racks of talismans, but there were dozens of different kinds, perhaps hundreds.
她露出微笑，把手伸进她的鞍囊，拿出一块花式巴克点心蛋糕。"怪人!"她给我看的时候兴高采烈地说。我摔倒了，真的没有时间自己去找一个。我的眼睛扫过架子上的护身符，但是有几十种，也许有几百种。
“That’s okay, Boo. That’s okay.” I rose, hoping I’d get lucky as Rainbow Dash and Lighthooves battled through the air. Lighthooves may have been augmented, but Rainbow Dash was the best flier in history as far as I knew. Maybe I’d find one in... then I saw Boo cupping something in her other hoof. It was a talisman about the size of a hoofball, white, and with a boresight on the front of it. I leaned in, grabbed her shoulders, kissed her hard, and then grabbed it with my mouth; I had to be careful not to bite down too hard, or it’d be lunch.
"没关系，阿布。没关系。"我站了起来，希望自己能够幸运地看到彩虹冲刺和轻舟在空中搏斗。轻舟可能被加强了，但是彩虹冲刺是我所知道的历史上最好的飞行员。也许我会找到一个在...然后我看到阿布在她的另一个蹄杯什么。这是一个有蹄铁大小的护身符，白色的，前面有一个瞄准镜。我弯下身子，抓住她的肩膀，用力地亲吻她，然后用我的嘴抓住它;我必须小心不要咬得太重，否则它就是午餐了。
“Bwa...” Boo said with a very baffled look on her face, then unwrapped the cake, popped it in her mouth, and ran after me.
"卜......"布带着困惑的表情说，然后打开包装，塞进嘴里，跟在我后面跑。
The pegasi moved almost too fast to follow. Rainbow Dash and Lighthooves streaked in purple and white lines around crackling power cables as each moved to strike the other with as much force as they could. Lighthooves had all the cyberpony control, strength, and resilience I did, but Rainbow Dash’s special armor more than once disappeared just before he struck only to blast him from literally out of nowhere. His lightning-fast counterattacks hammered the purple-laminated steel in a shower of sparks.
飞马座移动得太快，几乎无法跟上。彩虹冲刺号和轻舟号在噼啪作响的电力电缆周围划出紫色和白色的线条，每一条都在尽可能用力地撞击对方。但是彩虹·达什的特殊盔甲不止一次消失了，就在他发动攻击之前，他只是从一个不知名的地方把他轰了出来。他闪电般的快速反击在一阵火花中击中了紫色层压钢板。
I flew back up to the control room and found a terminal. I’d only seen this once, but I tried my best to remember everything she’d done. “Dealer, time to make this happen,” I said as I scrolled through the commands as best as I could remember them. Outside, Lighthooves and Rainbow Dash were just blurs of color. The talisman flashed red three times, then turned completely red as it was armed.
我飞回控制室，发现了一个终端。我只看过一次，但我尽力记住她所做的一切。"庄家，是时候实现它了,"我一边说，一边尽可能记住这些命令。在外面，Lighthooves和彩虹冲刺只是模糊的颜色。这个护身符闪了三次红光，然后装上武器就完全变红了。
Time’s up.
时间到了。
Suddenly, Lighthooves came flying through the window and slammed into me, and we bounced across the control room floor together. He flipped up while I rolled under the factory control terminals. The bright red talisman went bouncing out the control room door and into the factory.
突然，轻舟从窗户飞了出来，撞到我身上，我们一起跳过控制室的地板。当我从工厂控制终端下滚过去的时候，他高兴得跳了起来。鲜红色的护身符蹦蹦跳跳地从控制室的门进入了工厂。
“Boo! Get it!” I shouted as pulled myself to my hooves. If it broke on the way down... well... I’d just have to worry about that then.
"嘘！抓住它!"我一边喊着，一边使劲蹬着蹄子。如果它在下降的过程中坏掉了......那么......我只能担心这个了。
“Enough!” Lighthooves cried, his flesh bloody and his armor plates dented, and then he rose to his hooves and began slapping buttons as quickly as he could. “I’m ending this now!”
"够了!"轻骑兵哭了起来，他的身体血肉模糊，盔甲也凹了下去，然后他站起来，开始尽可能快地扣动扳机。"我要结束这一切!"
“Automated launch sequence activated,” said a cool recorded voice. With a whir, the doors began to rise one after another. “Fire one.” A launch cradle rose up at a steep angle as the end of the missile began to whir. Then the missile slid down the cradle, out the door, and into open air. A second later the end of it erupted in flame, and it whooshed out into the sky. “Fire two,” the speaker said calmly, the launcher already rising up.
"自动启动程序激活，说:"一个冷静的录音声音。随着一声呼啸，门开始一扇接一扇地升起。"开一枪。"当导弹发射结束时，一个发射架以一个陡峭的角度竖起来。然后导弹滑下摇篮，出了门，进入了户外。一秒钟后，它的末端在火焰中爆发了，它呼啸着冲向天空。"二号发射,"演讲者平静地说，发射装置已经升起。
“Stop them,” was all I could say to Rainbow Dash. With all the fighting going on
"阻止他们,"我只能对彩虹·达什说这么多。战争还在继续
outside, there was no way the Raptors would be able to intercept all of them in time. As the second missile slid down its cradle and the third one started to rise, she launched herself towards the open door. I flapped like an iron albatross towards the fourth.
在外面，猛禽没有办法及时拦截他们所有人。当第二枚导弹从底座滑落，第三枚导弹开始上升时，她朝着敞开的门发射了。我像一只沉重的信天翁一样飞向第四节。
Lighthooves rammed into me, and together we crashed into the fourth launcher. The impact from our bodies made the launch platform shriek and shift as it rose above us. The supports snapped off and the entire sling swung to the side. The missile began to slide down... and then I heard a crunch as the engine began to rev up. Together, we looked at the end of the launcher and saw that the nose of the missile had caught on the base of the door. “Launch error. Launch error,” the voice said calmly.
轻舟撞上了我，我们一起撞上了第四个发射器。我们身体的撞击使发射平台在我们头顶上方发出尖叫和移动。支架折断了，整个吊索向一边摆动。导弹开始滑落......然后我听到发动机开始转速的嘎扎嘎扎声。我们一起看着发射器的末端，发现导弹的前端卡在了门的底部。"发射错误。发射错误,"那个声音平静地说。
Far off to the west, I saw a brilliant explosion. If Rainbow Dash could get one missile, I had to trust that she could get two more.
在遥远的西方，我看到了一个灿烂的爆炸。如果彩虹·达什能得到一枚导弹，我不得不相信她能得到两枚。
Lighthooves rose, hatred etched deep in his features as he glared at me. All around us, sparks rained down as the missile in the cradle above started to smoke. “You don’t have to do this, Legerdemain,” I said as I stared into his stark features.
他怒视着我，怒火中烧。在我们周围，火花雨点般落下，上面摇篮里的导弹开始冒烟。"你没必要这么做，莱格德曼,"我盯着他那鲜明的面孔说道。
“I have lied. I have killed. I have betrayed,” he said simply. “I’ll fire off the rest of the missiles manually if I must, but I will see this ended.”
"我撒谎了。我杀了。我背叛了,"他简单地说。"如果有必要，我会手动发射剩余的导弹，但我会看到这一切结束。"
He turned and darted towards the fifth launcher. My horn wasn’t working at the moment, still very upset with me after my last teleportation attempt. Still, I had wings now. Jumping over bodies, I activated the levitation talisman enough to get me airborne, snapped my wings, and launched myself with forehooves outstretched at his back. He glanced over his shoulder at me and flattened to the ground so that I sailed straight over him, crashed into the floor, and bounced up into the missile cradle. My wings and hooves ripped into the delicate fuselage, soaking me in something smelling strongly of flamer fuel.
他转身冲向第五个发射器。我的喇叭此刻不工作了，在我最后一次尝试心灵运输后仍然对我感到非常沮丧。尽管如此，我现在有了翅膀。跳过身体，我激活了悬浮的魔力足以让我飞起来，折断我的翅膀，在他的背部伸出前蹄发射我自己。他越过肩膀瞥了我一眼，然后把身子贴在地上，这样我就可以直接飞过他，撞到地板上，然后弹到导弹发射架上。我的机翼和蹄子撕裂进了精致的机身，让我浸泡在一种带有强烈火焰燃料气味的东西里。
“This can’t end well,” I muttered.
"这不会有好结果的,"我喃喃自语。
Then the cradle suddenly tilted, and the missile began to slide down towards the edge. Trailing rainbow-tinted fluids, I ripped free and threw myself over the far side of the launcher just as Lighthooves made for launcher six. The ruined missile tumbled out into open air and, seconds later, I heard a resounding explosion. Plunging after Lighthooves, I dove once more as his hooves began
然后摇篮突然倾斜，导弹开始滑向边缘。尾随着彩虹色的液体，我挣脱出来，跳到发射器的另一边，就像lighthoves为六号发射器做的那样。毁坏的导弹滚落到空中，几秒钟后，我听到一声响亮的爆炸声。当他的蹄子动起来的时候，我又一次潜入水中
working the launch controls. He paused only long enough to deliver a double-hooved applebuck to my face, sending me flying back into the spent launcher behind me.
操作发射控制器。他只停了一会儿，朝我脸上发射了一枚双头苹果鹿弹，把我打飞回了身后用完的发射器里。
As the cradle started to lift, I kicked off with my hooves and snapped my wings once more. Crossing my forehooves in front of my face, I barreled right into the hydraulic lifts of launcher six and sheared them from the deck entirely. Hooves scraping, I scrambled out from beneath the launcher as it fell over, barely escaping being splattered. The wings and engine of the missile snapped off as it rolled from the cradle and across the floor towards the seventh launcher. Barrels marked ‘lubricant’ and ‘hydraulic fluid’ scattered before me, and Lighthooves looked up in time to see me charging at him. He darted into the air, over number seven and moving on to eight. The rolling missile slammed launcher seven and split, spewing more fuel across the launchers, the floor, and me.
当摇篮开始升起的时候，我用蹄子踢起来，再次折断了我的翅膀。穿过我的前蹄在我的面前，我高速进入液压升降机的发射六和剪切他们从甲板上完全。马蹄刮擦，我爬出下面的发射器，因为它跌倒了，勉强逃脱被喷溅。导弹的机翼和发动机啪地一声从支架上滚了下来，穿过地板朝第七个发射器飞去。油桶上写着润滑油和液压油，散落在我面前。他飞快地冲向空中，越过7号，然后继续前进到8号。滚动的导弹砰的一声打在发射器上，然后分裂开来，在发射器上、地板上和我身上喷射出更多的燃料。
Did I mention that the power cables snaking overhead sparked?
我有没有提到头顶上蜿蜒的电缆点燃了火花？
With a fluid hissing noise, a sheet of blue and orange flame spread across the factory floor. I launched myself into the air as the fire expanded towards me. Come on Boo, find that talisman. Come on Rainbow Dash, finish those missiles and get back to me.
伴随着液体的嘶嘶声，一片蓝色和橙色的火焰在工厂地板上蔓延开来。当火向我蔓延的时候，我把自己抛向空中。快点，布，找到那个护身符。快点，彩虹小飞，完成那些导弹，然后回来找我。
I flapped over seven and spotted him working on eight’s launch mechanism. Canceling my levitation, I fell like a ton of cyberpony. His wings cracked like a pile of twigs as I crashed down on him and rolled off, getting quickly to my hooves. Even though his wings now resembled crumpled paper, he didn’t slow in the slightest as he leapt into the air and brought all four metal hooves down on my head. My skull rang like a bell as it hit the floor, and for a second I was sure that I’d black out. But I couldn’t black out. I had an enemy to defeat and a nightmare to stop. As I shook it off, he once again beat on me with his lightning kicks and blows... but this time I was much more armored.
我拍了七下，发现他正在修理八号的发射装置。取消我的悬浮，我感觉就像一吨的赛博马。它的翅膀像一堆树枝一样啪啪作响，我扑倒在它身上，滚了下去，飞快地飞向我的蹄子。尽管它的翅膀现在看起来像是皱巴巴的纸张，但当它跃向空中，用四只金属蹄子踩在我的头上时，丝毫没有减速。我的头骨掉在地板上的时候像铃铛一样响了起来，有那么一秒钟我还以为自己昏过去了。但我不能失去知觉。我有一个敌人要打败，还有一个噩梦要停止。当我把它甩开的时候，他又一次用闪电般的拳脚打我......但是这一次，我的装甲更加坚固了。
I heaved myself to my hooves once more, reared up, lowered my head, and drove my armored horn straight at his chest. He reared up and brought his forehooves to my face… and then the ends of his hooves opened like flowers, three fingers and a thumb springing from each. He grabbed my face, latching down on my horn and jaw, and with a great heave used my own momentum to throw me over him and slam my back through a barrel of fuel that burst like a milk carton and with a resounding clang into the metal floor beneath. Bracing his
我再次抬起我的蹄子，抬起后腿，低下头，用我那装甲的号角直指他的胸膛。他站起来，把前蹄伸到我面前......然后他的蹄子像花朵一样张开，三个手指和一个拇指分别伸出来。他抓住我的脸，按住我的喇叭和下巴，用我自己的动力猛地把我推倒在他身上，把我的背摔进一桶燃料里，像牛奶盒一样破裂，砰地一声撞到下面的金属地板上。振作精神
hindlegs against my body, he started twisting my head far further than it was intended to turn.
后腿抵着我的身体，他开始把我的头扭得远远超出了原本的转动范围。
“I have to admit, thumbs are useful,” he said as sparks of pain broke through my usual numbness. Not a good sign.
"我不得不承认，拇指是有用的,"他说，我通常的麻木感顿时迸发出阵阵疼痛的火花。这可不是什么好兆头。
Wait. Did he put a design for thumbs in that damned conversion machine?
等等。他是不是在那台该死的转换机器上设计了一个大拇指？
Only one way to find out. I did something I hadn’t done in more than a week and tried to pop my fingers out. With a hiss, the casing around the ends of my forehooves peeled back, and two black hands emerged. Each grabbed his hindknees and pressed with all the torque they could muster. His legs gave way, and, robbed of his leverage, he stopped twisting my head off.
只有一个办法能知道。我做了一件一个多星期没做的事情，试着伸出我的手指。随着一声嘶嘶，我前蹄两端的外壳剥落了，两只黑色的手露了出来。每个人都抓住自己的后腿膝盖，竭尽全力地挤压。他的腿断了，失去了杠杆作用，他不再扭断我的头。
I fought my way to my hooves, and he kicked out of my grip with a powerful backflip, landing several feet away. “So what’s the plan? We keep fighting till Rainbow Dash arrives or the Enclave crash the party?” I asked.
我挣扎着走到我的马蹄前，他用一个有力的后空翻挣脱了我的抓地力，落在了几英尺之外。"那么，计划是什么呢？我们继续战斗，直到"彩虹冲刺"到来，或者"飞地"破坏聚会?"我问道。
“Actually, I’m betting that all those augments draw a lot more power than mine. In fact, I’m pretty sure you’ve burned through a lot of your reserves. Am I right?” he asked with a smirk.
"实际上，我敢打赌，所有这些增强都比我吸收了更多的能量。事实上，我很确定你已经耗尽了你的储备。我说的对吗?"他冷笑着问道。
Oh crap; he was right. I was down to a third again already! So I charged in, trying for a blow to his head to take him out in one hit... but one thing that hadn’t changed was his damnable agility. He deflected, he dodged, he did everything he could to keep me flailing wildly with my hooves while he calmly avoided me over and over again. This relatively low exertion wasn’t going to eat up my power, though. He was running out of time; any second, somepony else was going to join the party, and it wasn’t going to be anypony on his side. So why wasn’t he running to the next--
糟糕，他是对的。我已经降到三分之一了！所以我冲了进去，试图一拳打在他的头上，把他一拳打出去...但有一件事没有改变，那就是他那该死的敏捷。他转向，躲避，他尽一切可能让我疯狂地挥舞着我的蹄子，同时他冷静地一遍又一遍地避开我。不过，这种相对较低的运动量并不会消耗我的能量。他已经没有时间了，随时都会有其他的小马加入到聚会中来，而且不会有小马站在他那边。那他为什么不跑到下一个..
A pink pony in my head then pointed behind me with a worried expression. I chanced a glance and saw the spreading flames snaking closer and closer as pool after trail after splash of rocket fuel ignited. Then I met his eyes and saw his lips spread mockingly. “Or we can find out how fireproof you are, Blackjack.”
一匹粉红色的小马在我的头上，然后指着我的背后，带着忧虑的表情。我瞥了一眼，看到蔓延的火焰越来越近，一个接一个的池塘里的火箭燃料点燃了。然后我碰到他的眼睛，看到他嘲弄地张开嘴唇。"或者我们可以看看你有多防火，黑杰克。"
That was why! And I’d have to move away from the launcher to get away from the flames. He might get a little toasty, but he wouldn’t go up like a candle; he’d certainly still be able to launch this missile. But I couldn’t hit him, either, and in a few seconds it would be academic... and my self-extinguishing skills would be
这就是为什么！我必须离开发射器，才能远离火焰。他可能会觉得有点暖和，但他不会像蜡烛一样上升，他肯定还能发射这枚导弹。但是我也不能打他，几秒钟之内就会变成理论上的......我的自我熄灭技能就会变成
tested. Finally, in both desperation and frustration, I reared back to strike; he just smirked smugly, ready to dodge once again.
测试。最后，在绝望和沮丧中，我站起来反击;他只是得意地傻笑，准备再次躲闪。
My hooves fell on one of the barrels of lubricant, the cylinder rupturing and spraying us both with slippery black oil. “How fireproof are you?” I countered, grinning at him.
我的蹄子落在一个装润滑油的桶上，汽缸裂开了，向我们两个人身上喷出了滑溜溜的黑油。"你的防火性能如何?"我反驳道，对他咧嘴笑着。
He gaped at me, then flapped, slipped, and slid over to the wall next to the door and a large blue talisman mounted on it, me flapping, slipping, and sliding after him. He rammed his hooves against the talisman, and it immediately flashed to life. “Fire prevention measures, activated,” the mechanical voice said, and instantly white blobs fell all over the factory with heavy ‘flumps’. One landed right on top of the pair of us, chilling me instantly. I poked my head out of the snowdrift and looked at him as the pristine white quickly stained black around the both of us. He panted, staring back at me, just as filthy and exhausted. The fire was out, the snow steaming from where it’d extinguished the blaze.
他目瞪口呆地看着我，然后拍打着，滑了一下，滑到门边的墙上，墙上挂着一个巨大的蓝色护身符，我在他身后拍打着，滑动着，滑动着。他用蹄子猛撞护身符，护身符马上活了过来。"防火措施，启动,"机械声音说，立即白色的斑点落在工厂所有的重'翻滚'。其中一颗正好落在我们两人身上，立刻使我感到寒冷。我从雪堆里探出头来，看着他，原始的白色很快就在我们周围染上了黑色。他喘着气，回头看着我，同样脏兮兮，筋疲力尽。火熄灭了，大雪从扑灭火焰的地方冒着热气。
Having a few cubic yards of snow dumped on my head really helped cool my anger, too. “I’d really appreciate it,” I said as I tried to wiggle out of the snowdrift and just sank up to my chest, “if you just gave up now. Before this gets any more... ridiculous.”
把几立方码的雪倒在我的头上也真的帮助我平息了愤怒。"如果你现在就放弃的话，我会非常感激的,"我一边说，一边挣扎着从雪堆里爬出来，然后一头栽到胸前。在事情变得更加...荒谬之前。"
“I didn’t do all of this just to give up. Not for you. Not for anypony,” he muttered as he pulled himself free.
"我所做的一切不仅仅是为了放弃。不是给你的。不是给任何小马的,"他一边把自己拉出来，一边咕哝着。
“Come on,” I whined, still fighting to get myself up. “Let me do what I have to do. No more plague. No more missiles. And I might save Thunderhead, too.” I stared at him, begging him to accept.
"来吧,"我呜咽着，仍然努力让自己站起来。"让我做我必须做的事。再也没有瘟疫了。没有导弹了。我可能也会拯救雷霆队。"我盯着他，乞求他接受。
“Would you, after all you’ve done, after all you’ve been through, give up simply because your enemy asked you nicely?” he asked archly as he stood easily on the drift.
"在你做了这么多事情之后，在你经历了这么多事情之后，你会仅仅因为你的敌人好言相劝而放弃吗?"他轻松地站在雪橇上，狡黠地问道。
He had me there. “No,” I admitted. “Probably not.” Then I scooped up a load of snow between my hooves and packed it into a ball. “But if the battle for the future of the Enclave and the Wasteland comes down to a snowball fight, nopony is going to believe it.” Well, my friends might, but they were used to my... solutions.
他说服了我。"不,"我承认。"可能不会。"然后我用我的蹄子铲起一车雪，把它装进一个球里。"但是如果为了飞地和荒地的未来而进行的战斗变成了打雪仗，没有小马会相信的。"我的朋友可能会但他们已经习惯了我的...解决方案。
He stared at the ball as I drew my hoof back ‘threateningly’, then let out a snort.
当我"威胁性地"把蹄子拉回来时，他盯着球，然后哼了一声。
Then I started to laugh as well. Somehow, I doubted that the history textbooks were interested in moments such as this. “I don’t believe you,” he said after the laughter ended. “I kill hundreds... maybe thousands... and you... Blackjack. Why are you doing this? Don’t you care?”
然后我也开始笑了。不知为何，我怀疑历史教科书是否对这样的时刻感兴趣。"我不相信你,"笑声结束后他说。"我杀了几百个......也许几千个......而你......黑杰克。你为什么要这么做？你不在乎吗?"
“Of course I care! I know you’ve done wrong. So have I. Things that I deserve to be killed for. But since then, I’ve taken every chance I’ve gotten to do better and improve the world. So I can’t just be an executioner,” I answered. “I think you should pay for what you’ve done… but there’s so much good you could still do. Killing you’s a waste. It’s not punishment. It’s what you want.” That made his smile slide away.
"我当然在乎！我知道你做错了。我也是为了那些我该被杀的事情。但是从那以后，我抓住每一个机会去做得更好，改善这个世界。所以我不能只做一个刽子手,"我回答。"我认为你应该为你的所作所为付出代价......但你仍然可以做很多好事。杀了你是浪费时间。这不是惩罚。这是你想要的。"这使他的微笑消失了。
“You are a very strange mare,” he replied. “I think I would have been better off getting to know you instead of thinking of how best to use you.” He stood up and started towards the launcher again. “But sometimes, there is no second chance. Sometimes, execution is the best option. For everypony.”
"你是一匹非常奇怪的母马,"他回答。"我认为，与其考虑如何最好地利用你，不如去了解你。"他站起身，又朝发射器走去。"但有时候，没有第二次机会。有时候，执行是最好的选择。给每一匹小马。"
“Lighthooves...” I warned, then activated my flight and resumed kicking and clawing my way out of the snowdrift, my wings flinging little bits of slush everywhere. Damn it, why did pegasi get to walk on drifts like they were clouds?
"灯塔......"我警告道，然后启动了我的飞行程序，继续踢着，用爪子从雪堆里爬出来，我的翅膀上到处都是小小的雪泥。该死，为什么飞马座能像云一样在漂移物上行走？
“No, Blackjack. I’ve come too far and done too much to betray it all now,” he said as he started tapping the controls.
"不，黑杰克。我已经走了太远，做了太多的事情，现在不能背叛这一切,"他一边说，一边开始打开控制器。
Then the engine of missile four, jammed against the door and its launcher, activated and filled the factory with its incandescent thrust, and I didn’t hear anything but the roar of combustion. A sheet of fire washed over the ceiling, cable insulation igniting and flames spreading in a glowing fan. An immense cloud of steam formed instantly as the snow all but flashed away from the blast of flame overhead. Thick plumes of smoke obscured anything that wasn’t ablaze, and the heat was so intense that pieces of the metal roof began to melt. Cyberpony or not, I’d melt too. I screamed for Boo but had no idea if she heard me over the furious roar of the engine.
然后，四号导弹的发动机卡在门和发射器上，启动了，白炽的推力充满了整个工厂，我什么也没听到，只听到了燃烧的轰鸣声。一片火焰冲刷着天花板，电缆绝缘点燃，火焰在一个发光的风扇中蔓延。一团巨大的蒸汽云立刻形成了，雪几乎从头顶上的火焰中一闪而过。浓密的烟雾遮住了所有没有燃烧的东西，高温使得金属屋顶的碎片开始融化。不管是不是赛博马，我也会融化的。我为Boo尖叫，但不知道她是否听到了引擎的怒吼声。
Then the missile crushed itself like a tin can, ripped like foil, and exploded in a ball of fire that washed through the factory in a wave. All I could do was curl up in a ball, cover my mouth, and endure. An elegant white unicorn in my mind told me to hang in there. When the fireball passed, I slowly uncurled, tasting the chemicals in the air. A half dozen other missiles were on fire now, tangled and
接着，导弹像锡罐一样粉碎了自己，像锡箔一样撕裂，然后在一团火球中爆炸，像波浪一样冲过工厂。我所能做的就是蜷缩成一团，捂住嘴，忍受着。一只优雅的白色独角兽在我的脑海里告诉我要坚持下去。当火球经过时，我慢慢地舒展身体，品尝着空气中的化学物质。另外六枚导弹已经着火，缠绕在一起
twisted in their launch cradles. I slowly rose to my feet. “Lunch Errrr. Lunch Errrr,” the voice slurred.
扭曲在他们的发射摇篮里。我慢慢地站了起来。"午餐啊。午餐啊,"声音含糊不清地说。
“Boo?” I croaked out. “Boo!” I turned around, half terrified I wouldn’t see her and half terrified I would. I spotted the red bar first. Lighthooves was at the base of launcher seventeen, struggling with the hydraulic jack that would let the missile slide free. Slowly, I approached. He wasn’t handsome anymore. His white exterior was charred as black as mine. A dark hole in his chest still oozed blood. His mane was no more than reeking stubble, and the metal of his augments was warped. He attempted with his scorched fingers to connect wires from his chest to the motor. He slowly turned. One eye was cooked like an egg in his skull, and the other was an angry pit of rage.
"嘘?"我发出低沉的声音。"嘘!"我转过身，一半害怕看不到她，一半害怕看不到她。我先发现了红条。轻型火箭在十七号发射器底部，挣扎着用液压千斤顶让导弹自由滑动。慢慢地，我走近了。他不再英俊了。他白皙的外表像我一样被烧焦了。他胸口的一个黑洞还在渗血。他的鬃毛不过是发臭的胡茬，他身上的金属部分也弯曲了。他试图用烧焦的手指把胸部的电线接到发动机上。他慢慢地转过身来。一只眼睛在他的脑袋里像个鸡蛋一样被煮熟了，另一只眼睛里充满了愤怒。
“It’s over,” I said simply.
"结束了,"我简单地说。
“No. They... they have to suffer... they have to pay... I have to make them pay!” he rasped as his hands fumbled; he wasn’t used to using them like I was. I could hear the shouts of the Enclave approaching, orders for them to seize everything.
"没有。他们...他们必须受苦...他们必须付出代价...我必须让他们付出代价!"他的手在摸索，他不习惯像我一样使用它们。我能听到昂科雷的呼喊声越来越近，命令他们夺取一切。
“You don’t have the right,” I said solemnly.
"你没有这个权利,"我严肃地说。
“And you do?” he gasped as he lay there.
"你知道吗?"他躺在那里喘着粗气。
“No. Nobody does.”
"没有。没有人知道。"
He connected the wires to the motor, and slowly the cradle began to rise. “One more. I just need one,” he said as he smiled at me. “Unless you kill me.”
他把电线连接到马达上，慢慢地摇篮开始上升。"再来一杯。我只需要一个,"他对我微笑着说。"除非你杀了我。"
“I’m not an executioner,” I muttered, but this time, the words didn’t feel noble. They sounded cowardly and hollow. He was helpless, crippled, and probably mortally wounded.
"我不是一个刽子手,"我喃喃自语，但这一次，我觉得这些话并不高尚。他们听起来胆怯而空洞。他既无助又残废，可能还受了致命的伤。
“There’s a first time for everything,” he said as the cradle tilted further and further. A few more feet and more death would fly. Killing one helpless, crippled enemy to save thousands. It shouldn’t be this hard...
"凡事都有第一次,"当摇篮越来越倾斜时，他说。再走几英尺，就会有更多的死亡。杀死一个无助、残废的敌人，拯救数千人。不应该这么难..。
The sound of metal piercing metal filled the air once more.
金属刺穿的声音又一次充满了空气。
Slowly, I pulled my horn out of the machine that sat where his heart once lay, blood and cyberpony fluid washing down my face. The lift slowed, then halted.
慢慢地，我把喇叭从他的心脏曾经放置的机器里拔出来，血液和赛博马的液体从我的脸上冲下来。电梯放慢了速度，然后停了下来。
He smiled, his skin cracking and sending blood dripping down the sides of his face. “What was on the piece of paper?” he whispered. “The one you kept showing everypony?”
他微笑着，皮肤开裂，鲜血顺着脸颊两侧滴下。"那张纸上写的是什么?"他低声说。"就是你一直给大家看的那个?"
I fished it out and showed it to him. His remaining eye widened as it passed over the fifteen letters that spelled out those four little words, and then he smiled in honest happiness. “It’s over...” he breathed. Then the red bar winked out. Boo appeared, the Perceptitron perched on her head and the red-glowing talisman in her mouth. Without a word, I moved the former into my saddlebags and took the latter. I tapped the talisman, and it began to blink. I then set it in his hooves.
我把它捞出来给他看。他睁大了余下的眼睛，眼睛扫过十五个字母，拼出了这四个小字，然后他开心地笑了。"结束了......"他低声说。然后那根红色的棒闪了出来。布出现了，感知器停在她的头上，红色发光的护身符在她的嘴里。一句话也没说，我把前者放进我的鞍囊里，把后者拿了过来。我敲了敲护身符，它开始闪烁。然后我把它放在它的蹄子里。
I walked to one of the open doors, and then Neighvarro Enclave stormed into the tower from all other sides. “Save the missiles,” somepony ordered. Then they spotted me and Boo standing beside the door. “You! Blackjack! You and your… robot are under arrest! Surrender!” they bellowed at Boo, who cringed back, and me. Our utter lack of armament was likely the only reason we weren’t dusted then and there by fifty armored ponies.
我走到一扇敞开的门前，然后邻瓦罗昂科雷从四面八方冲进了高塔。"保护导弹,"有人命令道。然后他们发现我和布站在门边。"你！黑杰克！你和你的...机器人被捕了！投降吧!"他们冲着回敬我的Boo和我吼叫。我们完全没有武器装备，这可能是我们当时没有被五十匹装甲小马扫过的唯一原因。
“Surrender. You are weaponless, outnumbered, and injured,” an officer barked.
"投降吧。你们没有武器，寡不敌众，还受了伤,"一名军官咆哮道。
From somewhere outside I could hear the whir of a Raptor that was far too close.
从外面的某个地方，我可以听到猛禽的呼呼声，它离我太近了。
“You don’t have a chance,” he sneered.
"你没有机会,"他冷笑着说。
“I don’t need a chance,” I replied, showing him the paper. “I have a megaspell.”
"我不需要机会,"我回答，给他看报纸。"我有一个megaspell。"
The red talisman let out a beep and suddenly everything in the room jerked sideways towards the talisman as a purple aura surrounded the orb. The moment was all I needed to grab Boo and jump out of a perfectly good tower. Far below the city, I imagined a troupe of skeletal magical phantasms around a diamond saturated with arcane power for two hundred years. A glance at my PipBuck as we fell told it all.
这个红色的护身符发出一声哔哔声，突然，屋子里的一切都向这个护身符侧过来，一个紫色的光环环绕着这个球体。那一刻，我只需要抓住布，从一个完美的塔上跳下来。在城市的远处，我想象着一群骷髅般的魔幻剧团围绕着一颗浸透了两百年神秘力量的钻石。我们跌倒的时候，瞥了一眼我的PipBuck，一切都说明了。
>Hoofington Megaspell Complex
胡芬顿梅加斯佩尔建筑群
>Access Megaspell Chamber #8.
访问MegaspellChamber#8。
>Lock target: Target Talisman 12964-239-428J.
锁定目标:护身符12964-239-428J。
>Target Locked
锁定目标
> Cast Megaspell Y/N?
选角梅格斯佩尔？
Y Authorization EC-1101.
Y授权EC-1101。
Warning, Megaspell #8 at 125% arcane saturation. Do you wish to proceed Y/N?
警告:Megaspell#8有125%的神秘色彩。你希望进行y/n吗？
Y
Casting Megaspell: Implosion
选角:内爆
An orb of purple light flashed out from the middle of the tower, passing through everything as it expanded further and further. I had no idea how far it would go; I might have just killed the Hoof and all my friends in it. A flock of Enclave poured in on me as I spread my wings and tried to get away… and then I felt a jerk that stopped me in midair. For a moment, I wondered if I’d been speared by a power armor tail, but a glance back saw them hanging in midair as well, seemingly just as baffled as I was. Then a soft rushing noise filled the air... and it reminded me of the sound of the air blasting out of the tower. But this wasn’t blowing out. It was sucking in.
一个紫色的光球从塔的中央闪出来，随着它越来越大，穿过一切。我不知道事情会发展到什么地步，我可能已经杀死了霍夫和我所有的朋友。当我展开翅膀试图逃跑时，一群昂科雷蜂拥而至......然后我感到一阵痉挛在半空中阻止了我。有那么一会儿，我怀疑自己是不是被一个强力盔甲尾巴刺中了，但回头一看，它们也悬挂在半空中，看起来和我一样困惑。然后一个轻柔的声音充满了空气...它提醒我的空气爆破出塔的声音。但这不是吹出来的。它正在吸气。
With every bit of energy in my body, I tasked myself with flying away.
带着身体里的每一点能量，我命令自己飞走。
Still, I couldn’t help but look.
不过，我还是忍不住看了一眼。
A hazy purple field of energy permeating the air seemed to be drawing everything into it. The branches with their gantries and equipment shook wildly, and the whole tower began to sway. The noise and motion filled the air with a bassy groan I was sure would carry for miles. Vortices twisted into the open bay doors like hungry mouths, and I watched as the Neighvarro fliers closest to the Tower were sucked in. The Raptors struggled like the Seahorse caught in rapids.
一个模糊的紫色能量场渗透到空气中，似乎把所有的东西都吸进去了。带着架子和设备的树枝疯狂地摇晃着，整个塔开始摇晃。空气中充满了噪音和运动，发出一声低沉的呻吟，我相信这种呻吟会持续好几英里。漩涡像饥饿的嘴巴一样扭曲着进入敞开的海湾大门，我看着最靠近伦敦塔的邻居们被吸进去。猛禽们像海马在急流中挣扎。
With Boo clinging to my back, I only had thoughts of getting away. Below me, the cloud layer boiled and tore like moldy fabric, thick black clouds studded with rotting vegetable matter streaking up towards the Tower in foul gray chunks. I barely got my face covered in time before getting hit with a spray of noxious lumps of mushy plants and wet cloud. A few of the greasy, tumbling balls flashed to dust in front of me, struck by stray beams from the power-armored ponies on my tail. There was a megaspell going off, and they were still trying to kill me; I couldn't decide if that was dedication or insanity. Maybe both.
阿布紧贴着我的背，我只想着离开。在我脚下，云层像发霉的织物一样沸腾撕裂，厚厚的黑色云层上布满了腐烂的蔬菜，它们像灰色的大块头一样向塔楼飞奔而来。我几乎没来得及遮住脸，就被一团糊状植物和潮湿的云打中了。几个油腻的、翻滚着的球在我面前一闪而过，被我尾巴上那些穿着强力装甲的小马发出的散射光线击中。我不知道这是奉献精神还是精神错乱。也许两者都有。
Then another purple shell of magic radiated out from the tower, and when it hit
然后另一个紫色的魔法外壳从塔中发射出来，当它击中时
me, suddenly it felt like the world had turned on its side. I flapped my wings, trying to propel myself in the direction of ‘away’, and if felt as if I were once more trying to fly straight up. Then a deep gonging noise reverberated through the air, so massive-sounding that both I and my zealous pursuers chanced another glance back.
而我，突然觉得整个世界都翻了个面。我拍打着翅膀，试图推动自己朝着"远离"的方向飞去，仿佛我又一次试图向上直飞。接着，一种深沉的拱形声音在空中回荡，如此巨大的声响，以至于我和我那狂热的追求者又回头看了一眼。
The ring of doors and missiles was gone. So were the walls between the doors. Instead, a rumpled seam looped around the Tower where the fabrication level had been, with no gap between the parts of the Tower above and below. The world was still sideways, but the roaring wind cut off entirely; for a moment, silence prevailed. The Raptors seemed frozen in their positions, and silent clumps of cloud and fetid matter ‘fell’ past me with barely a whisper. I could see the Tower and the other spires of the Core exposed completely beneath me; not even the slightest wisp of vapor obscured the luminous boulevards below. Despite the broken buildings and sickly green glow, in an almost obscene way, it seemed... inviting. As I stared, everything seemed to hold its breath, even the city.
门环和导弹不见了。门之间的墙也是。取而代之的是，一条皱巴巴的缝隙环绕着塔楼的原先的制作层，塔楼的上下部分之间没有间隙。世界仍然是横着的，但是咆哮的风完全切断了;有一会儿，寂静占据了上风。猛禽们似乎被冻结在他们的位置上，一团团沉默的乌云和恶臭的物质从我身边掠过，几乎没有一点声音。我可以看到塔楼和其他塔尖完全暴露在我的脚下，甚至连最轻微的一缕水蒸气都没有掩盖下面明亮的林荫大道。尽管建筑物支离破碎，发出令人作呕的绿色光芒，但它看起来几乎是令人厌恶的。当我凝视的时候，一切似乎都屏住了呼吸，甚至是这座城市。
Then a groan, pained, tortured, and so low that it was more felt than heard, echoed across the valley. I watched the crease where the fabrication layer had been deepen and stared as it crept up and down the side of the tower. The groan grew into a wail as the building began to twist and warp before my eyes like a melting candle. The top drooped like a wilting flower for a few moments before the metal finally failed, and then all at once it was snapping and springing apart as the building disintegrated. A plate from the massive armored head reached out like an immense steel paw and caught one of the Raptors; in an instant, the warship shattered, the pieces joining the falling colossus. I only hoped it was the Blizzard and not the Castellanus.
接着是一声呻吟，痛苦的，折磨的，低沉的呻吟，在山谷中回荡。我注视着加工层加深的折痕，盯着它在塔的一侧上下爬动。当建筑物开始在我眼前扭曲变形时，呻吟变成了哀号，就像融化的蜡烛。在金属最终失效之前，它的顶端像一朵凋谢的花朵一样下垂了一会儿，然后随着建筑物的瓦解，它突然断裂并弹开了。巨大的装甲头上的一个盘子伸出来，像一个巨大的钢爪，抓住了其中一只猛禽;在一瞬间，战舰粉碎了，碎片连接着掉落的巨像。我只希望是暴风雪而不是卡斯特兰纳斯。
Something was wrong, though: the tower wasn’t falling down, it was falling in. The pieces wrapped around the middle where the fabrication level had been, and the sounds of tortured metal grew to a higher and higher scream as the pieces were compressed under the force of the magic... and then another pulse of purple emanated from the shell. As it passed through me, hooks of magic dug into every particle of my being... and we all started moving towards the center of the spell. “Oh no. No no no!” I shouted as I tried my best to flap away, ‘up’ when I seemed so much heavier to the new ‘down’.
然而，有些地方出了问题:塔不是倒下了，而是掉进去了。当这些碎片在魔法的力量下被压缩的时候，那些被包裹在制作层中间的碎片发出了越来越高的尖叫声......然后另一种紫色的脉冲从贝壳里发出来。当它穿过我身体的时候，魔法的钩子钻进了我身体的每一个细胞......我们都开始向咒语的中心移动。"哦，不。不，不，不!"当我看起来比新的"低"重得多的时候，我大喊着，尽我最大的努力拍打着翅膀离开。
I could now hear a tremendous rushing sound. Not of wind, precisely. Not the
我现在可以听到一个巨大的声音。准确地说，不是风。不是
high-pitched throaty scream of the vortexes I’d heard earlier. This noise was deeper, wetter, more like a current of water than air. As I struggled to move away and failed, I saw that all of us, fliers, Raptors, clouds, and even Thunderhead itself, had begun to orbit the crumpling sphere atop the Tower. The pull ripped away the clouds from more and more of Hoofington, pulling them towards the center of the valley in a great upward spiral, all to be compressed down around the sphere. “This is bad. This is very bad!”
我之前听到的漩涡的高音尖叫。这声音更深沉，更潮湿，更像是一股水流而不是空气。当我挣扎着离开的时候，我失败了，我看到我们所有人，飞行员，猛禽，云，甚至是雷暴头本身，已经开始围绕着塔顶上那个正在变形的球体旋转。拉力撕开了越来越多的Hoofington云层，把它们以一个巨大的向上螺旋的方式拉向山谷中心，所有的云层都被压缩在球体周围。"这太糟糕了。这太糟糕了!"
Another chorus of ripping metal filled the air, and I glanced back to see that the immense, collapsing sphere of metal rotated as well, and that as it moved it was slowly stretching and twisting the Tower below it. With a resounding crunch, the foundation gave way completely, and I watched in stunned amazement as the dangling length of the M.o.A. hub flew through the air, a massive length of steel looking like so much string. Another Raptor, straining to get away, was clipped by the end as it passed. The ship snapped in half, and immediately its debris was pulled inward as well. As I watched, the closer the pieces got to the sphere, the smaller they became, as if massive hooves squeezed them to fractions of their former size. In a few more seconds, both they and the dangling tower were gone, wrapped into the orb.
空气中弥漫着另一阵撕裂金属的合唱，我回头看了一眼，看到那个巨大的、坍塌的金属球体也在旋转，随着它的移动，它正在慢慢地拉伸和扭曲它下面的塔。随着一声响亮的嘎吱声，地基完全坍塌了，我惊讶地看着摇晃着的m.o.a.轴心在空中飞舞，一段巨大的钢筋看起来就像一根绳子。另一只猛禽正竭力挣脱，在经过时被尾部夹住。船突然断成两半，碎片立刻也被拉向内部。正如我所观察到的，这些碎片离球体越近，它们就变得越小，就好像巨大的蹄子把它们挤压到了以前大小的一小部分。几秒钟之后，他们和悬挂的塔都消失了，被包裹在球体里。
Now it wasn’t just rotten plants and clouds striking me. A storm of garbage and debris from the surface began to batter us as we struggled against the mighty pull. The weight of the debris and the force of its flight increased by the second. First papers, then tin cans and dead branches, then limbs of trees... I rotated to the side so that the heavier stuff smashed into me rather than Boo. Another chance glance behind me and... no...
现在打击我的不仅仅是腐烂的植物和乌云。当我们挣扎着抵抗巨大的拉力时，海面上的垃圾和碎片开始向我们袭来。碎片的重量和飞行的力量每秒都在增加。首先是文件，然后是锡罐和枯枝，然后是树枝......我旋转到一边，这样较重的东西撞到我而不是Boo。又一次机会在我身后瞥了一眼...不..。
Where the top of Shadowbolt Tower had been was a spinning sphere of purple magic pulling in air and debris from all across the Hoof. Now there were rusty wagons in the debris, parts of houses. I barely heard the screams of the fliers as their lighter frames were buffeted by the shrieking winds. I didn’t look for them; I didn’t want to see them meet the same fate as that Raptor. And damaged pieces of Thunderhead were being plucked off and pulled into the vortex...
暗影螺栓塔的顶部曾经是一个旋转的紫色魔球，把霍夫一带的空气和碎片吸进来。现在，残骸和部分房屋里都有生锈的马车。我几乎没有听到飞行员的尖叫声，因为他们的轻型机身受到了狂风的冲击。我没有去找他们，我不想看到他们遭遇和猛禽号一样的命运。和损坏的部分雷头被拉起来，进入漩涡..。
Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea...
也许这不是个好主意..。
A little purple unicorn pointed out that the best direction right now wasn’t away, it was towards the surface. Her orange friend told me to keep flapping, and a white unicorn told me not to give up and push harder. A pink pony pointed out
一只紫色的小独角兽指出，现在最好的方向不是离开，而是朝向地面。她的橙色朋友告诉我继续拍翅膀，一只白色的独角兽告诉我不要放弃，要用力推。一匹粉红色的小马指着我说
chunks of metal wagons and hunks of buildings heading for me, and a blue pegasus cheered me on as I looped and dodged the debris as best as I was able. The yellow pegasus just covered her face with a terrified squeak... and... and...
大块大块的金属货车和大块大块的建筑物朝我飞来，一匹蓝色的飞马为我欢呼，我尽我所能绕过残骸。黄色的天马刚刚用一声惊恐的尖叫盖住了她的脸...然后...然后..。
for some reason I imagined someone was eating popcorn as they watched things unfold!
出于某种原因，我想象有人在吃爆米花，看着事情发展！
If this continued, I might have taken care of Cognitum entirely by accident. I couldn’t worry about that at the moment, though; I was flying downward as quickly as I possibly could. That it was towards the Core didn’t matter; I was resistant to Enervation, and it hadn’t seemed to affect Boo when it spiked the first time. And neither of us was immune to whirling vortices of death! With painful slowness, I pulled us down to the rooftops of the highest of the black skyscrapers... but, given how pieces of them were now flying up towards that maelstrom above, I didn’t stop there. I started moving down between two of the obsidian-sided buildings--
如果这种情况继续下去，我可能完全是无意中照顾到了Cognitum。不过现在我还不能担心这个问题，我已经尽可能快地向下飞了。它朝着核心的方向并不重要;我对衰弱有抵抗力，而且它似乎没有影响到Boo的第一次尖刺。我们两个都不能免疫旋转的死亡漩涡！带着痛苦的缓慢，我把我们拉到了最高的黑色摩天大楼的屋顶上......但是，考虑到它们的碎片现在正飞向上面的漩涡，我并没有停在那里。我开始在两座黑曜石建筑之间往下移动--
And then another wave of purple magic swept out, and my direction reversed. No amount of flapping increased our distance from that sphere, and gravity seemed entirely impotent. I once again passed a standing skyscraper’s roof, though, and reached out with a hoof, popped out my fingers, and grabbed the metal rail that ran around the edge of the building. Boo began to slide off me with a scream, and I reached out with my other hand to grab her forehoof.
然后又一波紫色的魔法席卷而来，我的方向反过来了。拍动的次数并没有增加我们与那个球体的距离，重力似乎完全无效。然而，我又一次经过了一座矗立的摩天大楼的屋顶，伸出一只蹄子，伸出我的手指，抓住了围绕大楼边缘的金属栏杆。布尖叫着从我身上滑开，我伸出另一只手抓住她的前蹄。
If I’d been only half metal, I think I might have been torn in two. Now I was worried about Boo as she swung above me like a kite in a hurricane. I watched in stunned surrealism as small chunks of skyscrapers began to be pulled up towards that disk. The sturdy railing I was clasping for dear life started to bend...
如果我只是半个金属，我想我可能会被撕成两半。现在我很担心阿布，因为她就像飓风中的风筝一样在我头顶上摇摆。我目瞪口呆地看着一小块摩天大楼开始被拉向那个圆盘。我为了珍贵的生命而紧握的坚固的栏杆开始弯曲.....。
And then another purple wave swept through me, but this one was heading in, collapsing around the sphere. As it passed through us, I felt one last mighty yank, and then Boo and I slammed into the roof of the building. We lay in a heap, Boo shaking in pain and me holding her as I stared up at the mess above us. In seconds, the sphere collapsed around where the megaspell had activated, then revealed a shimmery, dark orb only a dozen feet across. The disk of debris twisting around it slowed, and the orb let out a thunderous crack. A solid white sphere of cloud and pouring rain expanded, spreading like an umbrella above me
然后另一个紫色的波浪席卷了我，但是这个波浪正朝着球体前进，在球体周围坍塌。当它穿过我们的身体时，我感觉到了最后一次强有力的猛拉，然后我和布砰的一声撞上了大楼的屋顶。我们躺成一堆，布疼得发抖，我抱着她，盯着上面的脏东西。几秒钟之内，球体就在巨型天体被激活的地方坍塌了，然后显示出一个直径只有十几英尺的闪烁黑暗的球体。环绕在它周围的碎片盘慢了下来，球体发出了一道雷鸣般的裂缝。一团白色的云朵和倾盆大雨在我头顶展开，就像一把伞一样
Then the orb, which I guessed was Shadowbolt Tower and everything else that’d been pulled in, fell to the earth trailing a great plume of hissing cloud and steam
然后那个球体，我猜是暗影螺栓塔和其他所有被拉进来的东西，拖着一大缕嘶嘶作响的云雾和蒸汽落到了地球上
behind it. The sphere shot past us into the middle of the Core, and suddenly the skyscraper we clung to leapt beneath us as the entire Core rumbled. The black towers swayed, some smashing into each other as the falling sphere impacted somewhere far below. Flame and dust fountained up from thousands of nooks and crevices, blasting up into the air in dirty gray jets that covered everything in a choking layer of particulates. The rooftop we were on gave way once, and again, and again as floor after floor pancaked beneath us. The walls of the skyscraper peeled away, sending Boo and me tumbling towards the streets below.
在它后面。球体从我们身边飞过，进入核心区中央，突然，我们赖以生存的摩天大楼从我们身下跃起，整个核心区隆隆作响。黑色的塔楼摇摇晃晃，有些相互撞击，坠落的球体撞击下面很远的地方。火焰和灰尘从成千上万的角落和缝隙中喷涌而出，喷射出灰色的脏喷流，覆盖着所有东西，形成一层令人窒息的微粒层。我们所在的屋顶一次又一次地坍塌，一层又一层楼在我们脚下平压。摩天大楼的墙壁剥落，我和布跌跌撞撞地走向楼下的街道。
I struggled for enough power to fly. To levitate. To do anything to prevent a bloody smack against the broken road below us. I clutched Boo close as my back slammed into strings of cables running from one building to the next, snapping them in my passing. Then again. Then again. Finally, Boo and I landed with a crash atop the rest of the rubble. Then, as if adding insult to injury, we were drenched in a cold, torrential rain. I stared, through the downpour, up the narrow canyon at the slit of now distant sky. The tiny black motes in it turned into pieces of buildings, chunks of wagons, and a barrage of all kinds of other debris falling down upon the Hoof. The shaking earth stilled for a moment, and then a deep, reverberating groan filled the city, a moan of something far below accompanied by a second, slighter tremble of the ground. Then it was gone, and the city filled with just the patter of falling debris and the hiss of rain.
我奋力争取足够的能量来飞行。漂浮。尽一切努力防止我们脚下破碎的道路遭到血腥的撞击。我紧紧地抓住布，我的背猛地撞上了从一座建筑到另一座建筑的一串串电缆，在我经过的时候折断了它们。然后又一次。然后又一次。最后，布和我坠落在其余的碎石上。然后，仿佛雪上加霜，我们被一场寒冷的倾盆大雨淋得浑身湿透。透过倾盆大雨，我凝视着狭窄的峡谷，望着远处天空的裂缝。里面微小的黑色尘埃变成了建筑物的碎片，大块的马车，以及各种各样落在霍夫身上的残骸的拦河坝。大地震动了一会儿，然后城市里响起了深沉的呻吟声，远处传来的呻吟声伴随着第二声轻微的地面颤动。然后它就消失了，整个城市充满了落下的碎片和雨水的嘶嘶声。
“In retrospect,” I said as I lay there atop a pile of rubble in the middle of the deadliest ruin in all the Wasteland, “maybe that wasn’t the very best idea I’ve ever had.”
"现在回想起来,"我躺在废墟上说,"也许那不是我有过的最好的主意。"废墟是废墟中最致命的废墟
Then Boo straightened, her ears twitching as the clouds of dust swirled around us. “What?” I panted, but then I heard it too. A whining of engines fighting a losing battle against gravity. I stared up as the rolling gas cloud parted to reveal the bow and plasma cannons of a Raptor plunging at us, straight at us down into the gap between the buildings, its shattered dorsal propellers sheared away and its supporting storm clouds nothing but tatters. Its edges ripped and tore at the sides of the skyscrapers in a scream of metal as it descended. I made out the name, Hurricane, across its bow. As I lay there, only one thought passed through my mind before the ship struck.
接着，布伸直了腰，耳朵抽搐着，周围尘土飞扬。"什么?"我气喘吁吁，但随后我也听到了。发动机与地心引力进行一场必败之战的哀鸣。我抬头凝视着滚动的气云分开，暴露出猛禽战斗机的弓和等离子炮向我们猛扑过来，直直地朝我们冲下来，穿过建筑物之间的缝隙，破碎的背部螺旋桨断裂了，支撑着暴风雨的乌云只剩下破碎的碎片。它的边缘撕裂并撕裂了摩天大楼的侧面，在它下降的过程中发出金属的尖叫。我在飓风的船头辨认出它的名字:飓风。当我躺在那里的时候，只有一个念头在我的脑海里闪过，然后船就撞上了。
Does that count as a boat?
这算船吗？
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. You have no idea how hard it was to get this chapter done and out. Holidays, finals, and other drama constantly pushed it back and pushed it back. But this is the end of the Homecoming Arc. Now there’s just the finale. I’d like to thank Hinds, Bro, and Swicked for helping me get this done without killing each other, or me, or me killing them...
(作者的笔记:。你不知道完成这一章有多难。节假日、期末考试和其他戏剧不断地把它推迟和推迟。但这是返校节弧线的终结。现在只剩下最后一幕了。我要感谢Hinds，Bro，和swiched，他们帮助我完成了这件事，而没有杀死彼此，或者我，或者我杀死他们..。
really, a lack of killing all around is good. I’m thankful for folks who took a peek ahead of time. I hope that it’s a good read.
真的，周围没有杀戮是好事。我非常感谢那些提前看了一眼的人们。我希望这是一本好书。
Edit: also, I know some folks may think Blackjack’s upgrades are a bit... much. Please bear with me three more chapters. I know what I’m doing... I hope.
编辑:还有，我知道有些人可能会认为Blackjack的升级有点...太多了。请再忍耐我三章。我知道我在做什么...我希望。
In other news, we will be going back sometime relatively soon and tightening up Mare Do Well in the second half and make a few other little tweaks to this arc before coming on to the finale. I also want to tell folks I finally got some what steady employment starting in January. Now it’s just a matter of hanging on till then. I’d like to thank everyone who sent me tips this month. They’re basically the only thing keeping my bills paid that this point. The temp work is... sigh... temp work. Anyway, thank you so very much, everyone who contributed. Some folks were uncomfortable when I named names, so just know I thank and appreciate you so much. If it wasn’t for you, I’m not sure I could have made it.
在其他的消息，我们将回到某个相对较快的时间和收紧马做得很好在下半场，并作出一些其他的小调整这一弧，然后进入决赛。我还想告诉大家，我终于在一月份找到了一份稳定的工作。现在只要坚持到那时就行了。我要感谢每一个这个月给我小费的人。它们基本上是唯一能让我的账单支付这一点的东西。临时工作是...叹气...临时工作。无论如何，非常感谢你们，每一个为此做出贡献的人。有些人不喜欢我说出他们的名字，所以我非常感谢和欣赏你。如果不是因为你，我不知道我能不能做到。
I also found out that Kkat read Horizons up to chapter sixteen and said it was okay... wildly off canon from what she planned... but good. So that’s good too. I will always be grateful for her for creating FoE and letting all of us play in her sandbox. I hope the Finale will meet with everyone’s enjoyment. Take care and I hope everyone will enjoy the last arc: Horizons.)
我还发现Kkat把《地平线》读到了第十六章，并且说这没什么......远远超出了她的计划......但是很好。所以这也很好。我将永远感激她创造了敌人，让我们所有人都在她的沙箱里玩耍。我希望大结局能让大家开心。保重，我希望每个人都能享受最后一道弧线:地平线