“Hello everypony! Did I miss anything?”
"大家好！我错过了什么吗?"
Once upon a time, I’d been a security mare in a diseased stable teetering on the edge of systemic collapse, bloody revolution, or both. My work concerns had been limited to dealing with the occasional incident of indecent exposure, tracking down fillies raiding the supply stores for parties during their sleep shifts, and tracking down males who’d either been misappropriated or needed to be retired. My personal problems were just dealing with an overzealous and a simpleminded coworker, feeling my manifest inadequacies compared to my mother, and trying to talk another mare into coitus.
曾几何时，我是一匹安全的母马，生病的马厩摇摇欲坠，身体系统崩溃，血腥的革命，或者两者兼而有之。我的工作仅限于处理偶尔发生的不雅曝光事件，追踪那些在睡觉的时候闯入供应商店的小雌马，追踪那些不是被挪用就是需要退休的雄马。我的个人问题只是和一个过分热心和头脑简单的同事打交道，感觉自己明显比母亲有缺陷，试图说服另一匹母马进行性交。
Today, I was a cybernetic mare, pregnant, in the middle of the deadliest place imaginable, and facing an enemy who had beaten me like a drum. Oh, and a friend that I’d thought was an innocent pony also happened to be one of Equestria’s most dangerous enemies from before the war. We faced each other in a repository of zebra relics beneath a swarm of floating souls on our way to destroy a mechanical monstrosity and keep a superweapon from annihilating the world. Times like this really highlighted for me how surreal my life really was at this point.
今天，我是一匹神经错乱的母马，怀孕了，在可以想象得到的最致命的地方中间，面对着一个像鼓一样打我的敌人。哦，还有一个朋友，我以为是一匹无辜的小马，碰巧也是战前Equestria最危险的敌人之一。我们在一群漂浮的灵魂下面的斑马遗物仓库里面对面，我们要去摧毁一个机械怪物，阻止超级武器毁灭世界。像这样的时光真正突出了我的生活在这一点上是多么的超现实。
For a moment, the Legate and… Boo? Discord? I wanted a time out for some notes or something… faced each other in the ruined village. The Legate stared coldly, then launched himself at Boo. She raised a hoof, twitched it, twitched it again, and then stared at it a moment. “No snap. Oh snap…”
有那么一会儿，特使和...嘘？不和？我想休息一下，做些笔记什么的......在这个荒废的村庄里面对面。莱格特冷冷地盯着布，然后向布发起了进攻。她抬起一只蹄子，抽了抽，又抽了抽，然后盯着它看了一会儿。""没有。哦，糟糕......"
In a flash, Boo ducked behind me, shoving me towards the cloth-wrapped zebra who’d landed where she’d been standing a second before. “On second thought, this really is your thing, Blackjack! I definitely don’t want to intrude on your whole thematic aspect of ‘badassness’! Come on! Give him a taste of fisticuffs…
一瞬间，布弯腰躲到我身后，把我推向那只裹着布的斑马，她刚才就站在那里。"转念一想，这真的是你的专长，Blackjack！我当然不想打扰你的整个主题方面的'糟糕'！快点！让他尝尝拳头的滋味..。
or hoofsicuffs… or whatever you pony folk call it!” She hopped on her hind legs, jabbing her forehooves at him.
或者蹄子...或者随便你们这些小马叫它什么!"她跳上后腿，用前蹄戳他。
I gaped at her, stunned. “What are you doing in Boo, Discord?” I snapped. “Get out of my friend!”
我目瞪口呆地看着她。"你在搞什么，不和谐?"我厉声说道。"滚出我的朋友!"
“Hello! Fight going on here. Priorities,” Boo said as she kept me between herself and the Legate. I turned and regarded him, frowning. He could have punted me out of the way if he’d really wanted to, though I had moved up a weight class since we’d last faced off.
"你好！这里正在打仗。优先权,"布说，她把我隔离在她和特使之间。我转过身来，皱着眉头看着他。如果他真的想的话，他完全可以把我踢开，尽管自从我们上次交手后，我已经提升了一个重量级别。
“You’ve interfered for the last time,” the Legate growled. Something about his voice was so… familiar. I’d heard it before. Maybe it was the skull he wore distorting things, but there was something definitely familiar.
"这是你最后一次干涉,"使节咆哮道。他的声音有点...熟悉。我以前听说过。也许是因为他头上戴着扭曲的东西，但有些东西绝对是熟悉的。
“Really? The last time?” Boo taunted from behind me, weaving back and forth to peek at the zebra from around my flanks. “I may not be as spry as I used to be – two centuries with a starmetal tomb slowly sucking the life from you can do that to a being of chaos such as myself – but I think I have just a pinch more interference in me. Some meddling, too. Maybe even a whole shenanigan!”
"真的吗？最后一次?"布在我身后嘲笑我，来回穿梭，从我的侧腹偷看斑马。"我可能没有以前那么敏捷了——两个世纪以来，一座星铁墓慢慢地从你身上吸取生命，对于像我这样一个混乱的人来说，也可以做到这一点——但我想，我身上还有一点干扰。还有一些干涉。甚至可能是一场恶作剧!"
“Enough,” he bellowed, leaping at him... her... ugh, Discord was in a mare’s body… but male… Whatever! At her over my back. I snapped my wings up, but he simply pushed off them with still more agility than I’d imagined he had. I reached out with a hoof, popping my fingers and grabbing at the end of his hindleg. As before, he yanked the limb out of reach and landed with an agile spin. Rampage, her helmet now battered into shape enough to let her peer out of one eyehole, charged him. He pivoted in a circle, sidestepping her and letting her plough into the stone wall behind him with a colossal crash, bringing it down in a plume of dust.
"够了,"他吼道，跳向他......她......呃，不和在一匹母马的身体里......但是男性......管它呢！在我背后对着她。我折断了我的翅膀，但他只是简单地以比我想象的更灵活的方式推开了我的翅膀。我用蹄子伸出手，突然弹出我的手指，抓住他的后腿末端。像以前一样，他猛地一拉手臂就够不着了，然后敏捷地旋转着落在地上。狂暴，她的头盔现在已经磨得足够形状，可以让她从一只眼睛的洞里窥视，冲向他。他转了个圈，避开她，让她撞在他身后的石墙上，发出巨大的撞击声，把石墙卷成一缕尘土。
“Olé!” Boo cheered, and I glared back at her. “Ah. Yes. Wrong side and all that. Boooo! Hisssss!”
"哦!"布欢呼起来，我瞪了她一眼。"啊。是的。站错边了什么的。呜呜！希斯斯!"
If I was going to get any answers, I had to deal with the Legate first. He’d come out of his spin charging at Boo and me again. Twice he whirled, and four times his forehooves smashed into my head. The impacts clanked loudly, but it wasn’t nearly as dizzying as the first time we fought. I fired a trio of magic bullets that sent him dodging away. Of course, none of them hit, but at least I was giving a better show than before. “Why do you protect him? He’s Discord, the greatest
如果我要得到任何答案，我必须先对付使节。他会从旋转中出来，再次冲我和布发起冲锋。他两次旋转，四次前蹄撞到我的头上。撞击声震耳欲聋，但远没有我们第一次打架时那么令人晕眩。我发射了三颗魔法子弹，把他打得落花流水。当然，他们都没有击中，但至少我比以前表现得更好了。"你为什么要保护他？他是不和谐，最伟大的
enemy in Equestrian history!”
马术史上最大的敌人!"
“What? You mean that whole Chaos Capital thing? That was ages ago, old boy.
"什么？你是说混沌资本那件事？那是很久以前的事了，老伙计。
Really, I think I’ve served my time,” Boo said indignantly.
真的，我想我已经服完刑了,"布愤怒地说。
“What have you done with Boo?” I demanded, jumping to the side to block the Legate as he attempted to dart around me again. He attempted another jump over me instead, and, as before, my wings snapped up again to block him. Really, I was fairly certain that he could have done much more damage to me if he really wanted to. Why was he taking it easy on me?
"你对Boo做了什么?"我问道，跳到一边去挡住特使，因为他又想绕过我。他试图再次从我身上跳过去，我的翅膀像以前一样又折起来挡住了他。真的，我相当肯定，如果他真的想的话，他可以对我造成更多的伤害。为什么他对我这么宽容？
“You’ve been deceived, obviously. That creature was never your friend. It simply used you for protection,” the Legate snapped. He tried to dive under me and heave me out of the way, but I’d put on a few hundred pounds since we last danced. He still managed to raise me onto my hindlegs, but I forced him back down with powerful upstrokes, trying to pin him. As slick as greased lightning, he pulled back, grabbed one of my forelegs, and, as I plunged off balance to the side, used it to swing me away from Boo and himself towards her. As I crashed to the floor, he twisted in the air and wrapped his forehooves around her neck, one of his hindlegs kicking thrice hard into my side. The rapid-fire blows knocked me back, but I snapped out a hand and grabbed his tail, yanking him off Boo before he could break her neck. “End him!” the Legate snarled, glaring at me from over his shoulder.
"很明显，你被骗了。那个生物从来就不是你的朋友。它只是利用你来保护自己,"特使厉声说道。他试图从我身下俯冲，把我推开，但自从我们上次跳舞以来，我已经胖了几百磅。他仍然设法把我抬起来，放在我的后腿上，但我强有力地把他推倒在地，试图把他固定住。他像闪电一样滑溜溜地往后拉，抓住我的一只前腿，当我失去平衡滑向一边时，他用这只前腿把我从阿布身边甩向她。当我摔倒在地时，他在空中扭动身体，用前蹄勒住她的脖子，一条后腿用力朝我的侧面踢了三下。连续的击打把我打了回去，但是我猛地抓住他的尾巴，在他扭断她的脖子之前把他从布身上拉开。"干掉他!"特使咆哮着，从他的肩膀后面怒视着我。
“I don’t think so,” I said, pulling him away from Boo. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m not going to let you kill her!” ...Actually, that was pretty much the story of my life, come to think of it.
"我不这么认为,"我说，把他从布身边拉开。"我不知道发生了什么事，但我不会让你杀了她的!"事实上，这就是我生活的全部，仔细想想。
“Thank you, Blackjack. Truly you are a wonderful paragon of friendship and kindness. Far more of one than your ancestor,” Boo said, her words dripping with unctuous, sarcastic sincerity.
"谢谢你，黑杰克。你真是友谊和善良的完美典范。比你的祖先更像一个人,"布说，她的话里充满了虚情假意和讽刺的真诚。
I pointed a hoof at her. “Shut it. I want you out of Boo, now. How did you even get inside her?”
我用蹄子指着她。"闭嘴。我要你马上离开阿布。你是怎么进入她体内的?"
“Well, when two ponies love each other very much...” she began. I must have somehow managed a shooty look without eyes, because she immediately coughed. “Mmm... yes, perhaps I should save that for later.” She huffed and rolled her red eyes. “Well, if you recall, when we last parted, I’d gotten out of that tomb with only a tiiiiny remnant of my colossal power. And most of that
"嗯，当两匹小马非常相爱的时候......"她开始说。我一定是想方设法装出一副没有眼睛的样子，因为她立刻咳嗽了起来。"嗯......是的，也许我应该留着以后吃。"她怒气冲冲地转动着红红的眼睛。"好吧，如果你还记得的话，上次我们分开的时候，我从那个坟墓里出来的时候，我的巨大力量只剩下一点点残余。最重要的是
was used keeping that robot busy so you and your friends could escape. So when I took a peek in here–” Boo tapped a hoof to her head, making a noise like an empty oil drum. “I couldn't help but notice how roomy it was! How homely! After all, it was built from my blood. My stolen blood, I remind you,” he explained, his voice taking on an increasingly dark and dangerous tone before he fizzed back to enthusiasm. “Where better to lay low and stay out of trouble but in here?”
就是为了让那个机器人忙起来，好让你和你的朋友们逃走。所以当我偷看这里时——"Boo用蹄敲了敲她的头，发出像空油桶一样的声音。"我忍不住注意到它有多宽敞！多么温馨啊！毕竟，它是用我的血液建造的。"我偷来的血，我提醒你,"他解释说，他的声音越来越黑暗，越来越危险的语调，然后他恢复了热情。"除了这里，还有什么地方比这里更适合低调和远离麻烦呢?"
Could she be a little less verbose? I wrestled with the zebra, who despite my weight, was still putting up a hell of a struggle. Stay out of trouble? I doubted that. “And why is he trying to kill you?” I asked, pointing a hoof at the Legate.
她能不能不那么啰嗦？我与斑马搏斗，尽管我的体重很重，但它仍在拼命挣扎。别惹麻烦？我对此表示怀疑。"他为什么要杀你?"我用蹄子指着使节问道。
“Well, I suspect it’s because I have this nasty itty bitty little habit of…” Boo began, tapping her hooves together sheepishly.
"嗯，我怀疑这是因为我有这个小小的讨厌的习惯......"布不好意思地用蹄子敲打起来。
“Being an insufferable, conniving, degenerate wretch!” roared the zebra. The Legate made his move, and he stopped being gentle. When he lunged at Boo in the same old way, I moved to block him as before. Instead of being pushed back the same old way, however, he grabbed me and lifted me right off my hooves; I powered up my wings, but they only made him strain a bit more. With Rampage-like strength, he arched his back and slammed me upside down into the base of the wall behind him. I hit the deck and nearly bounced, the wall cascading down upon me, as he straightened and lunged at Boo once again. The blank turned and began to run down the boulevard between the broken walls.
"做一个令人难以忍受的，阴险的，堕落的可怜虫!"斑马吼道。使节采取了行动，他不再温和了。当他用同样的方式扑向布时，我像以前一样移动去阻挡他。然而，他并没有像以前那样被推回去，而是抓住了我，把我从蹄子上拉了起来;我给我的翅膀充了电，但是翅膀只是让它更加紧张了一点。他像暴跳如雷一样，拱起背，把我头朝下摔在身后的墙根上。我撞上了甲板，差点被撞翻，墙壁像瀑布一样向我倾泻而下，他直起身子，又一次扑向布。空白转过身，开始沿着破碎的墙壁之间的林荫大道跑去。
I lay curled up beneath the rocks, fighting both panic and anger. I heaved once, then twice, and then a pair of hoofclaws flipped the largest block off me. “He is not Achu, but he is very good,” Rampage said in Shujaa’s accent.
我蜷缩在岩石下面，与恐慌和愤怒作斗争。我举起一次，然后两次，然后一对蹄爪把我身上最大的木块弹了下来。"他不是阿楚，但是他很厉害,"拉比用舒贾的口音说。
“I’ve got to save Boo,” I said as I hauled myself to my hooves. I channeled Blackjack of Stable 99 as hard as I could and doggedly ignored all concerns for my baby or anything else. I'd be paralyzed beyond all use if I stopped to think about it for even a second.
"我得去救阿布,"我一边说，一边用力蹬着自己的蹄子。我尽最大努力与Stable99的Blackjack沟通，顽强地忽略了所有关于我孩子或其他事情的顾虑。如果我停下来想一想，哪怕只有一秒钟，我就会瘫痪。
Don't think about it...
别想了..。
“And Coyotl as well, for the time being,” Rampage said as she scowled down the street. “If he wishes to kill him, it must be for a reason.”
"还有野狼，暂时也是,"拉比怒气冲冲地走在街上说。"如果他想杀他，一定是有原因的。"
I froze and stared at her. “What did you say?”
我愣住了，盯着她看。"你说什么?"
“Coyotl?” Rampage asked in confusion. I nodded tersely and she continued, “It is my people’s name for the one you call Discord. Coyote. The Trickster.” She blinked at me, her eyes narrowing skeptically. “Did you believe ponies were the only ones that suffered his cruel games?”
"野狼?"暴怒困惑地问道。我简洁地点了点头，她接着说:"这是我们不和的人的名字。土狼。骗子。"她对我眨了眨眼睛，怀疑地眯起眼睛。"你相信小马是唯一受他残酷游戏折磨的吗?"
Discord… Coyotl… Flux… Boo… “Brood of Coyotl… they’re blanks! Just like Boo! Made with Flux from Project Chimera,” I said, my mind running a mile a minute. “But how could he control them? Blanks didn’t have any minds or souls to guide them. On their own, they’d be instinctive. You couldn’t control them like robots…” I froze again, staring at my own legs. “Or cyberponies…” If you took Project Steelpony and Project Chimera, you could have a mass-produced army of utterly loyal automatons. And there had been a zony in charge of that project…
不和谐......野狼......弗拉科斯......"野狼的幼崽......他们是空包弹！就像阿布一样！是用奇美拉计划的弗莱克斯做的,"我说，脑子里一片空白。""但是他怎么能控制他们呢？空包弹没有任何思想或灵魂来指引他们。就他们自己而言，他们是本能的。你无法像机器人一样控制它们......"我又一次呆住了，盯着自己的腿。"或者网络小马......"如果你选择了Steelpony项目和Chimera项目，你可能会拥有一支由绝对忠诚的机器人组成的大规模生产军队。有一个疯子负责这个项目..。
“I need to find Discord. You have to keep the Legate off us long enough for me to talk to him, and then we need get out of here and deal with Cognitum. Can you do that, Shujaa?” I asked, hoping she could stay in charge long enough for us to get clear. If Rampage asserted herself, she might not remember.
"我需要找到不和谐之音。你必须让大使远离我们足够长的时间，让我和他谈谈，然后我们需要离开这里，去对付科涅土。你能做到吗，Shujaa?"我问道，希望她能长时间负责，让我们离开这里。如果狂暴控制了自己，她可能不记得了。
“It would be my pleasure,” she replied. “He claims to be Achu. I will show him a true Achu.”
"这是我的荣幸,"她回答。"他自称是阿楚。我要给他看一个真正的阿楚。"
From the left came a colossal crash, and I gave the striped mare a nod. She returned it, and together we raced towards the red bar on my E.F.S.
从左边传来一声巨大的撞击声，我向那匹斑马点了点头。她把它还了回去，我们一起朝我的e.f.s上的红色条子跑去。
Boo was running full out, with the Legate racing after her with murder in his eyes. If Discord hadn’t been some avatar of mischief, I had no doubt that Boo would have been a thin red smear by now. The skull-helmed zebra moved like a cyclone after the mare, but she endlessly retreated with uncanny dodges and weaves. However, while Discord might have been a magical being, Boo’s body was flesh and blood; from the sweat pouring off her hide, I wondered how long it could go before it gave out, or just slowed down too much.
布已经跑得筋疲力尽了，特使紧紧跟在她后面，眼里充满了杀气。如果不和谐不是某些恶作剧的化身，我毫不怀疑，布现在已经成了一个薄薄的红色涂抹。头戴骷髅头盔的斑马像飓风一样追逐着母马，但她不断地躲避着诡异的闪避和迂回。然而，尽管不和可能是一个神奇的生物，但阿布的身体是有血有肉的;从她皮肤上流下的汗水中，我想知道它还能坚持多久，或者只是太慢了。
Not that she wasn’t getting some licks in. As we raced towards them, he struck out with a double hooved stomp that would have crushed Boo if he'd landed it. Instead, after rolling aside, it found the end of a flat tipped shovel. The handle flashed up, smashing the stout wooden handle across the Legate’s skull helmet. He whirled, kicking out at Boo with his back legs. Again, she dodged aside. His hooves smashed into the wall behind her, and the wobbly stones at the top fell
并不是说她没有被打。当我们冲向他们的时候，他用双重的蹄子跺了一下，如果他把球落在地上的话，可能会把布撞得粉碎。相反，在滚到一边之后，它发现了一个平头铲子的末端。把手闪了一下，把特使头盔上结实的木把手砸得粉碎。他旋转着，用后腿踢向布。她又一次闪开了。他的蹄子撞在她身后的墙上，上面摇摇晃晃的石头掉了下来
and thudded down on him.
重重地砸在他身上。
I’d anticipated a concussion, some broken bones… a little bruising, at least! The Legate, however, shrugged the stones off, whirled, and kicked out at them with his hind legs. A little orange pony in my head couldn’t fault his technique as the rocks were sent rocketing right into Boo! The operative barding absorbed some of the force, but she was still sent sprawling to the floor. “Now, to silence you for all time!” he declared, and he pounced with a flying kick at Boo’s head.
我还以为会有脑震荡，骨折...至少会有点瘀伤！然而，使节耸耸肩，甩掉了石头，旋转着，用后腿踢向它们。我脑海中的一个小橙色小马不能挑剔他的技巧，因为岩石直接飞进了Boo！特工barding吸收了一些力量，但她仍然被打倒在地板上。"现在，让你永远闭嘴!"他宣称，并扑向了布的头部，一记飞踢。
And impacted with six hundred pounds of cyberpony as I swooped from above and slammed into him, knocking him completely off target and giving Boo a chance to scramble out of the fray. “Next time, don’t talk,” I chided, shoving him away. He rolled across the ground, pushed himself upright with one shove of a hoof, and got his legs under him. He came to a stop, facing me.
当我从空中俯冲撞向他的时候，他被600磅的赛博马撞了一下，这让他完全偏离了目标，也给了布一个机会从这场战斗中爬出来。"下次别说话,"我责备道，把他推开。他滚过地面，用蹄子一推就把自己推直了，然后把腿放在脚下。他停了下来，面对着我。
Either taking my advice to heart or simply pissed off beyond words, he charged me without a word. I set myself for the attack, ready to grab whatever limb I could and break it. He was pulling his– With a speed and force I barely registered, he struck me right where my heart should have been. The blow was so sharp that, for an instant, it felt as though I’d been impaled. A small part of me noted how sad it was that I knew that sensation. I staggered back, feeling a throbbing pain in my head, as though all the blood I had left had been squeezed into my skull. He pointed a hoof at me. “You are needed intact, not untouched, Blackjack.” Okay, just really pissed.
他要么听从了我的劝告，要么就是气得说不出话来，一句话也没说就冲我发火了。我做好了进攻的准备，随时准备抓住任何我能抓住的东西，把它打破。他拉着他的——以一种我几乎没有注意到的速度和力量，他正好击中了我的心脏应该在的地方。这一击如此猛烈，以至于在一瞬间，我感觉自己好像被刺穿了一样。一小部分的我意识到我知道这种感觉是多么的悲伤。我摇摇晃晃地向后退去，感到头部一阵悸痛，仿佛所有剩下的血液都挤进了我的头骨。他用蹄子指着我。"我们需要你完好无损，而不是毫发无损，Blackjack。"好吧，我只是很生气。
Rampage, or Shujaa at least, demonstrated the value of silence as she leapt upon his back. I heard the snap of bone and saw the eyes in the skull widen in pain as he crumpled under her strike. Please be out of the fight, I mentally begged as I struggled for breath. That one blow had done something to my support systems. I fought for air and grimaced against the pain in my skull. The Legate, though, gave a heave and tossed her off his back. I saw blood on the jaws of the skull he wore; he was injured, but he wasn’t down yet.
狂暴，或者至少是舒贾，在她跳到他背上的时候证明了沉默的价值。我听到骨头断裂的声音，看到他痛苦地睁大了眼睛，因为他在她的打击下瘫倒了。请退出战斗，我在心里苦苦哀求，挣扎着喘口气。那一击对我的支持系统产生了一些影响。我挣扎着呼吸新鲜空气，对着头骨上的疼痛做鬼脸。尽管如此，大使还是举起了她，把她从他的背上扔了下去。我看见他头上的血盆大口，他受了伤，但还没有倒下。
Shujaa backflipped, landed, crouched, and launched herself at the Legate once more. The injured zebra, however, had hardly slowed as he evaded her powerful strikes. Over and over again, he deflected attacks strong enough to shatter stone, a quality demonstrated by the holes her blows blasted out of the floor and ruined walls. I trotted over to Boo, my systems slowly returning to normal as my repair and healing talismans restored me. “Don’t worry. Shujaa will beat him.” Then I
舒雅后空翻，着陆，蹲伏，再一次向使者投去。然而，受伤的斑马在躲避她有力的攻击时几乎没有减速。他一次又一次地偏离攻击的方向，攻击力足以把石头打碎，这一点可以从她从地板和废墙上打出的洞中看出来。我小跑着来到Boo身边，随着修复和治疗护身符的恢复，我的身体系统慢慢恢复正常。"别担心。Shujaa会打败他的。"然后我
could talk about him freeing my friend.
可以谈谈他释放我朋友的事。
Boo… Discord… Boocord? She frowned at the battle. “While your faith is admirable, I’m afraid that your friend is about to lose.”
嘘...不和...嘘...？她在战斗中皱起了眉头。"虽然你的信仰令人钦佩，但恐怕你的朋友就要输了。"
She was right; the Legate had returned to his rapid fluidity. Shujaa showed ever-increasing frustration and pain. The Legate was striking her body with those sharp, lightning-quick jabs that seemed to create ever more pain. Shujaa had said he wasn’t Achu, and watching them fight, I could see the difference. Shujaa’s blows were all power. One of them could kill a pony; I questioned how long even I could last against the force she wielded. The Legate had speed and power too, but his blows seemed to cause her far more pain than simple impact warranted.
她是对的;使节又恢复了他的快速流畅。Shujaa表现出越来越多的沮丧和痛苦。使者用那些快如闪电的尖锐刺拳打在她的身上，似乎造成了更多的疼痛。舒贾说他不是阿楚，看着他们打架，我能看出他们的不同。舒贾的打击都是力量。其中一个甚至可以杀死一匹小马;我问自己，在她所使用的武力面前，我还能坚持多久。使者也有速度和力量，但是他的打击似乎给她带来的痛苦远远超过了简单的冲击所能保证的。
Suddenly they stopped, Rampage’s face frozen in a mask of agony. “How…” she gasped.
突然，他们停了下来，狂暴的脸上凝固着痛苦的面具。"怎么......"她喘着气说。
The Legate stood smugly. “A simple disruption of your body’s biorhythms and connection to your soul. The imbalances build and resonate until–” He reached out and poked the stricken mare’s chest. Suddenly her whole body spasmed and seemed to compress all at once. Her mouth opened in a silent scream, and blood erupted from her maw. She finally slumped but didn’t quite fall, looking as if a massive hand had squeezed her. “That.” He turned towards Boo and me. “I learned the weaknesses and gaps in the Achu fighting style long ago,” he said smugly as he approached us.
使节沾沾自喜地站着。"只是简单地破坏了你身体的生物节律和与灵魂的联系。不平衡建立和共鸣，直到-"他伸出，戳了受灾母马的胸部。突然，她的整个身体抽搐起来，似乎一下子全部压缩起来。她张开嘴发出一声无声的尖叫，血从她的胃里喷涌而出。她终于倒下了，但没有完全倒下，看起来好像一只巨大的手紧紧地抓住了她。"那个。"他转向阿布和我。"我很久以前就认识到了阿楚战斗风格的弱点和缺陷,"他沾沾自喜地说，因为他接近我们。
Then two blood-smeared, red-striped hooves appeared around his neck from behind as Rampage sprang on his back. “How about some good old fashioned Equestrian Commando fighting techniques, then?!” she hissed, bloody froth pouring from her mouth as her hindlegs gripped his back. Her hooves twisted his neck around, and only the lubrication of the blood smearing them kept her from popping his head completely around. Nevertheless, she did manage to get him to turn in pain, then finally flop onto his side. I started to approach to finish him off, but a spasm of pain lanced through me. Ugh, what had that hoofstrike done to me? I was a cyberpony; I shouldn’t have had enough ‘bio’ to my rhythm for him to disrupt!
然后两只血迹斑斑的红条纹马蹄从后面出现在他的脖子上，狂暴跳到了他的背上。"那么，来点老式的马术突击队格斗技巧怎么样?!"她的后腿紧紧抓住他的后背，嘶嘶的，血淋淋的泡沫从她的嘴里涌出来。她的蹄子扭曲着他的脖子，只有血液的润滑使得她不能把他的头完全扭转过来。尽管如此，她还是设法让他疼痛起来，最后倒在他身边。我开始想要结束他的生命，但一阵剧痛刺穿了我的全身。那蹄铁对我做了什么？我是一匹赛博马;我不应该有足够的'生物'来扰乱我的节奏！
“Get off of me!” he roared. “You should be dead! Why aren’t you dead, you red-striped freak?!” He rammed the skull helmet back, one of its horns gouging her
"放开我!"他吼道。"你早该死了！你怎么还没死，你这个红条子怪物?!"他把头盔往后撞，头盔的一个角戳了她一下
eye socket. She cried out, but held on, though her grip slipped somewhat. He struck her temple with one hoof strike, and she hissed in pain but didn’t let go.
眼窝。她叫了起来，但还是抓住了，尽管她的手有点松了。他的一只蹄子踢到了她的太阳穴，她痛得嘶嘶作响，但是没有放手。
Instead, her hooves swapped and grabbed the leg in a hooflock that was familiar to me. “You have the right to shut the fuck up or die, you sick son of a mule!” Rampage replied, levering the limb till it let out a resounding pop. Freaky zebra powers or not, a dislocated limb would slow him down some, right? Right?
相反，她的蹄子掉了下来，用我熟悉的蹄锁抓住了她的腿。"你他妈的有权闭嘴或者去死，你这个变态的杂种!"狂暴回答道，挥舞着手臂，直到发出一声响亮的爆裂声。奇怪的斑马的能力或不，一个脱臼的肢体会拖慢他一些，对不对？对吧？
It didn’t. I watched in horror as the bulging, twisted limb forced itself back into place. “You think… you dare… to believe… you can defeat me?!” he roared as he inexplicably started to pull his leg around. “I have been patient too long to let myself be beaten by the likes of either of you!”
但事实并非如此。我惊恐地看着膨胀扭曲的肢体重新回到原位。"你以为......你敢......相信......你能打败我?!"当他莫名其妙地开始拉他的腿的时候，他吼了起来。"我已经忍了太久，不能让自己被你们这样的人打败!"
“Blackjack! Headshot!” Rampage cried out as he pulled his leg free and tried to heave her off. She sank her hoofclaws into his side, digging deep furrows as she struggled to remain on top. “Oh no you don’t, you motherfucking Pink!” she swore, biting his mane and struggling to keep on top of him. Her barbed tail lashed between his hindlegs, but though his eyes bulged in fury, he did not try to break away. Instead he reared, standing upright, and smashed his back into the wall behind him over and over again. “Hah!,” came Rampage’s muffled and slightly slurred voice. “I faced worse than that in lockdown!”
"黑杰克！爆头!"当他把腿挣脱出来并试图把她拉开时，狂暴大叫起来。她把蹄爪伸进他的侧面，挖出深深的犁沟，挣扎着想站在上面。"哦，不，你不知道，你他妈的粉红色!"她咒骂着，咬着他的鬃毛，挣扎着要压在他身上。她带刺的尾巴在他的两腿之间长长地甩动，尽管他的眼睛因为愤怒而鼓起，但他并没有试图挣脱。相反，它直立起来，背部一次又一次地撞向身后的墙壁。"哈！"狂暴的声音低沉而含糊不清。"在一级防范禁闭期间，我遇到的情况比这还要糟糕!"
“Can you magic that skull off him, B... D... Biscord?” I asked the white mare, desperately, as I assembled Penance.
"b，你能用魔法把他的头骨取下来吗。.丁。.比斯科?"我拼命地问那匹白色的母马，当我集合忏悔的时候。
“Blackjack, I’m using every last bit of power I have left keeping him from popping her like a zit,” Boo replied, waving her hooves. “Things would be so much easier if I just had my normal fingers to snap! These hooves are impossible!”
"Blackjack，我正在用尽我剩下的最后一点力气，防止它像挤青春痘一样把她挤爆,"Boo挥舞着蹄子回答道。"如果我能像往常一样打个响指，事情就会简单得多！这些蹄子简直不可思议!"
“Fingers are nice,” I replied as I popped in the bypass round. The Legate roared as he hammered against Rampage.
"手指不错,"我回答说，我在旁路弹出。特使一边咆哮，一边猛烈地反击狂暴。
“I’m sensing a lot of aggravation from you. Perhaps you can calm down and tell me about your mother?” Rampage grunted into his ear. He heaved forward suddenly, tossing Rampage over him. In a flash, his hooves lashed out, beating at her in a furious flurry of blows. She’d heal. She’d always heal. But if she was knocked out… I took aim with the gun. I had to get this just perfect. I only had one shot.
"我感觉到你很生气。也许你可以冷静下来，告诉我你母亲的情况?"狂暴的声音钻进了他的耳朵。他突然向前猛冲，把暴跳如雷的事情抛在身上。刹那间，他的蹄子猛烈地抽打着她，一阵猛烈的抽打。她会痊愈的。她总是能痊愈。但是如果她被打晕了......我用枪瞄准了她。我必须把它做得完美。我只有一次机会。
I wasn’t sure who was in charge now. Every second Rampage swapped from the thundering Achu blows to the sharp commando throat and joint strikes to the boxing body blows. The random mix kept the Legate’s back to the wall, but he didn’t stop moving his head long enough for a clear shot. “Rampage! Give him a noogie!”
我不知道现在谁是老大。每秒钟狂暴从阿楚的雷鸣般的打击交换到锋利的突击队喉咙和联合打击的拳击身体的打击。随机的混合使得特使背对着墙，但他没有停止移动他的头足够长的时间来清楚地射击。"横冲直撞！给他点鼓励!"
Rampage abandoned her defense and wrapped her forelegs around his neck. His forehooves closed like a nutcracker, and I heard her spine crack like a bullet shot, legs dangling limply. But she had his neck…
狂暴放弃了她的防守，把她的前腿缠在他的脖子上。他的前蹄像胡桃夹子一样合拢，我听到她的脊椎像子弹一样裂开，腿软软地晃来晃去。但她有他的脖子..。
Penance rang out once. The bullet moved faster than any of us could possibly see, but instantly, the Legate’s head exploded out the eye sockets and mouth. His corpse dropped Rampage, then collapsed on his side. I rushed to her.
有一次，忏悔声响起。子弹移动的速度比我们任何人可能看到的都要快，但是立刻，特使的头炸开了眼窝和嘴巴。他的尸体横冲直撞，然后倒在他身边。我冲向她。
“I really wish I could die now. More than usual,” Rampage rasped, then clenched her teeth in pain. “This really hurts.”
"我真希望现在就去死。比平时还要多,"狂暴女怒吼着，痛苦地咬紧牙关。"这真的很痛。"
I broke down Penance and stowed it, then helped her on to my back. “Well, don’t worry. He’s done.” Not even I could survive having my head blown off.
我放下忏悔，把它收起来，然后把她扶到我的背上。"好吧，别担心。他完蛋了。"即使我的头被打爆了也活不了。
“Guess again, my dear," Boo quipped tiredly. I followed her gaze to the Legate’s twitching body… moving body.
"再猜一次，亲爱的,"布疲惫地打趣道。我跟着她的目光看到了使者抽搐的身体......移动的身体。
“Oh come on!” I shouted, running over and stomping the corpse over and over again. “Die already!”
"哦，得了吧!"我大叫着，跑过去，一遍又一遍地跺着尸体。"去死吧!"
“If only you said such sweet things to me,” Rampage groaned, her rear legs twitching.
"要是你能对我说这么甜蜜的话就好了,"狂暴呻吟着，她的后腿抽搐着。
“Don’t you start!” I warned her, then resumed stomping. The head was starting to regrow, a pink mist slowly spreading up and forming into tissue. Just like… “Rampage, he’s got a phoenix talisman too.”
"不要开始!"我警告她，然后继续跺脚。头部开始再生，粉红色的薄雾慢慢扩散，形成组织。就像..."狂暴，他也有凤凰护身符。"
“That’s impossible,” she muttered weakly. “It was a prototype.”
"这不可能,"她虚弱地咕哝着。"那只是一个原型。"
“With all we’ve run into here, that word no longer has any meaning,” I snapped. The only mostly-dead zebra's hooves were starting to block my blows, inaccurately, of course, but eventually he’d have a head back. At that point… “We’ve got to run. Now.”
"我们在这里碰到了这么多事，这个词已经没有任何意义了,"我厉声说道。唯一几乎已经死亡的斑马的蹄子开始挡住我的攻击，当然，这是不准确的，但是最终它的头可以回来了。在这一点上......"我们必须跑。现在。"
I trotted over to a wall and slammed it with all my weight, knocking it over atop him. “That will slow him down,” I said, hoping I was right. A zebra phoenix talisman… the zebras had stolen Project Chimera and Project Steelpony. Why not Eternity, too? With Rampage on my back, I trotted to Boo. “Now, you helped us out at Hippocratic Research, so I’m asking this nicely. Please leave my friend.”
我小跑着来到一堵墙边，用尽全身的力气把它撞倒在他身上。"那会拖慢他的速度,"我说，希望我是对的。斑马凤凰护身符......斑马偷走了奇美拉计划和钢马计划。为什么不是永恒呢？带着背上的愤怒，我小跑着去找阿布。"现在，你在希波克拉底研究所帮助了我们，所以我很客气地请求。请离开我的朋友。"
“Your adorable little Boo is perfectly fine. And,” she said with a gesture at the heap of rocks, “not to put too fine a point on it, but perhaps we should be moving along? One thrilling chase was quite enough for me for the moment.”
"你可爱的小布很好。"还有,"她对着那堆石头做了个手势说,"不要把话说得太细，也许我们应该继续前进?"？一次激动人心的追逐对我来说已经足够了。"
“Right.” Rampage slipped off me and grimaced as she pranced on her hooves. “Oooh! Pins and needles!” We started walking quickly towards the exit. “We need to get out of here and get to Robronco and end this.”
"对。"狂暴从我身边悄悄溜走，她用蹄子欢蹦乱跳，一脸苦相。"哦！如坐针毡!"我们开始快步走向出口。"我们必须离开这里，赶到Robronco，结束这一切。"
“Au contraire,” Boo contradicted. “We need to go down.”
"恰恰相反,"布反驳道。"我们需要下去。"
“Down? No we don’t,” Rampage said flatly. “There is absolutely nothing good about that direction in Hoofington. Ask Blackjack. Down is where bad things are.”
""下去？不，我们不需要,"狂暴直截了当地说。"在Hoofington，这种方向绝对没有任何好处。问问Blackjack吧。情况不妙的地方就在下面。"
I agreed, but I regarded my pale friend with her new eyes. “Why do you say down?”
我同意了，但是我用她的新眼睛看着我那苍白的朋友。"你为什么说向下?"
“Why, it’s the last thing your enemies will expect. Cognitum knows you’re coming. I suspect she wants to meet you on her terms rather than yours. Plus, it’s Tuesday, and everyone knows Tuesdays are ideal for spelunking.” She waved a hoof in the air, scowled at it a moment, and then tapped it against the floor. “Ugh, why won’t this thing work? It’s infuriating to go from ‘embodiment of pure chaos’ to ‘lucky sidekick’.”
"为什么，这是你的敌人最不希望看到的。认知知道你来了。我怀疑她想以她的方式而不是你的方式来见你。另外，今天是星期二，大家都知道星期二是洞穴探险的理想时间。"她向空中挥了挥蹄子，皱了皱眉头，然后用蹄子敲了敲地板。"啊，为什么这东西不起作用？从'纯粹混乱的化身'变成'幸运的伙伴'真是令人愤怒。"
Rampage stared at me as we walked. “You’re thinking about it, aren’t you?” she asked wearily, clearly concerned.
我们走着的时候，横冲直撞的人盯着我。"你在考虑这件事，是吗?"她疲倦地问道，显然很担心。
I didn’t want to admit that I was. All my experiences with going underground tended to end badly. “Discord makes a good point. They’ll be expecting us to come from the surface. Echo thinks Cognitum is in an underground lab. The element of surprise might be the only advantage we have.”
我不想承认我是。我所有的地下生活经历都以悲剧收场。"不和谐是有道理的。他们会期待我们从地面上来。Echo认为Cognitum在地下实验室里。出其不意可能是我们唯一的优势。"
“No, Blackjack. Just… no. You remember that thing in the elevator? There are
"不，黑杰克。只是...不行。你还记得电梯里的那件事吗？有
things like that down there. Things worse than that. Just go to Robronco.” She hesitated. “Think about your kid. Just, don’t go down there!”
像那样的东西。比那更糟的事情。去罗布朗科就行了。"她犹豫了一下。"想想你的孩子。只是，不要下去!"
I paused and stared at her for a moment. I didn’t want to ask. Didn’t want to go there with one of my friends. “What did you talk to Steel Rain about?”
我停下来，盯着她看了一会儿。我不想问。不想和我的朋友去那里。"你和钢铁雨谈了些什么?"
A moment of bafflement on her face. “Steel? How…” she began, the confusion growing. “Why… I mean…” We slowed down and she faced me. “He… he wanted me to give you a message. Cognitum can fix you.”
她脸上一阵困惑。"钢铁？怎么......"她开始说，困惑越来越大。"为什么......我是说......"我们放慢了速度，她面对着我。"他......他让我给你带个口信。认知可以治愈你。"
“There’s nothing wrong with my repair talisman,” I replied dryly.
"我的修理护身符没什么毛病,"我干巴巴地回答。
“I mean new body,” Rampage replied. “New new. Brand new. No augmentations or anything. Take it, leave EC-1101, and go home. She’s determined to fix up the Core.” She tapped my chest. “Dawn was the one that wanted you dead.
"我是说新的身体,"狂暴回答。发言人说:「。全新的。没有增强或任何东西。拿着，离开EC-1101，然后回家。她决心修复核心系统。"她轻轻地拍了拍我的胸口。"Dawn才是想要你死的人。
Cognitum is prepared to wipe the slate clean and let bygones be bygones.” She gave a weak smile. “Just imagine it, Blackjack. No more shit in your life. The Harbingers will leave you alone. You can go to Star House with Glory and turn my old bedroom into a nursery, and boink each other’s brains out all day. Be head of Security for Chapel or Stable 99, or wherever. All this shit could be over. Just… over.”
认识力准备把过去的事情一笔勾销，让过去的事情过去。"她微微一笑。"想象一下，黑杰克。你的生活里再也没有狗屎了。先驱者会离你而去。你可以带着晨辉去星之屋，把我的旧卧室变成托儿所，整天和对方嘿咻。担任教堂或99号马厩或其他地方的保安主管。这一切都该结束了。只是......结束了。"
“Oh yes, and I’m sure Cognitum Pinkie Promised that she’d keep her word,” Discord said snidely. “The insane are immensely reliable. Believe me, I should know.”
"哦，是的，我敢肯定，平奇保证过她会遵守诺言的,"不和谐委婉地说。"疯子是非常可靠的。相信我，我应该知道。"
I didn’t look away from Rampage. “There was something else, wasn’t there?”
我没有把目光从狂暴中移开。"还有别的事，不是吗?"
Rampage didn’t answer me for a second. “Well, there were promises of Dawn’s head on a platter, an IF-88 Ironpony, and bars of gold… whatever you could desire. I figured all that was secondary to a new body.” She kept her eyes down. “You know… stuff…” she finished, almost muttering.
狂暴丝毫没有回答我。"嗯，托恩的脑袋被放在盘子上，一架IF-88铁马，还有金条......任何你想要的东西。我认为这一切对于一个新身体来说都是次要的。"她低下了眼睛。"你知道......东西......"她说完，几乎是在喃喃自语。
I didn’t reply for a moment. “She said she’d kill you, didn’t she?” Rampage didn’t answer. “Didn’t she?” I pressed, and when she still remained silent, I turned away with a hiss. “Where’s the basement?” I asked Boo. She pointed at the door marked ‘stairs’ next to me.
我一刻也没有回答。"她说她会杀了你，是不是?"狂暴没有回答。"不是吗?"我按了一下，当她仍然保持沉默时，我发出嘶嘶声转过身去。"地下室在哪里?"我问阿布。她指着我旁边标有'楼梯'的门。
“Blackjack,” Rampage started to say, and I turned and stared at her. Her head hung down as she stared at her hooves. “I’m sorry. I just… don’t want to see you
"黑杰克,"狂暴开始说，我转过身来盯着她。她低着头盯着自己的蹄子看。"对不起。我只是...不想见到你
get hurt.”
"受伤"
I couldn’t trust her now; ending her life was the most precious thing to her. “Well, thank you for your intentions.” I turned my back on her. “Goodbye,” I said softly. I wished I hadn’t asked. Wished that I was still that clueless mare back in a stable worried about getting laid. Ever since I’d gotten EC-1101, I’d been learning things. Learning my Overmare was selling us out. Learning about the dark side of Equestria’s government. All my learning had gotten me was misery. Right now… I wished that I could have been just as ignorant now of my friend as I had been about everything else so many weeks ago.
我现在不能相信她，结束她的生命对她来说是最珍贵的事情。"好吧，谢谢你的好意。"我背弃了她。"再见,"我轻轻地说。我希望我没有问过。真希望我还是那个呆在马厩里担心被人上的蠢驴。自从拿到EC-1101，我就一直在学习。得知我的Overmare出卖了我们。了解到了小马国政府的阴暗面。我所学到的一切都让我痛苦不堪。现在......我真希望我能像几个星期前对其他事情一样，对我的朋友一无所知。
It would have hurt so much less…
这样就不会那么痛苦了..。
* * *
* * *
The stairs led to a basement, just as preserved as the rest of the building. I wondered if all the souls had somehow preserved it as an ad hoc soul jar. The generators still hummed, even after two centuries. I hoped, after seeing what had happened to the other hubs, that this building would somehow survive. Some spell, some defense, or some magic of the souls protecting it from falling into that pit. At the bottom of the basement was a hatch. ‘Access door: Hoofington utilities tunnel. Alarm will sound if door is opened.’
楼梯通向地下室，就像建筑的其他部分一样保存完好。我想知道是不是所有的灵魂都把它当作一个特别的灵魂罐来保存。即使过了两个世纪，发电机仍然发出嗡嗡声。我希望，在看到其他枢纽发生的事情之后，这座建筑能够以某种方式存活下来。一些咒语，一些防御，或者一些灵魂的魔法来保护它不掉进那个陷阱。在地下室的底部有一个舱口。进入门:胡芬顿公用事业隧道。如果门被打开，警报就会响起
The exit was one-way, but at this point, I only had one way to go. I was now trusting to the luck of one of Equestria’s greatest villains. I pressed the bar hard, and the door swung wide into the access tunnel beyond. If there was an alarm still functioning, I wasn’t hearing it. The tunnel ran off out of sight to either side. Walls, ceiling, and floor were covered in tubes of conduit, some of which had broken open and spilled wires across the ground. A grate covered larger plastic water pipes. Wan green light from one direction cast a pallid glow. We went the other way.
出口是单向的，但在这一点上，我只有一条路可走。我现在把希望寄托在Equestria最大的恶棍之一的运气上。我使劲按了一下吧台，门一下子就开了，通向外面的入口通道。如果警报还在响，我也没听到。隧道从两边都看不见了。墙壁、天花板和地板上布满了管道，其中一些管道破裂，导线散落在地面上。一个格栅覆盖着较大的塑料水管。苍白的绿光从一个方向投射出苍白的光芒。我们走了另一条路。
We walked along in silence, Boo leading the way, occasionally glancing back at me. “Well?”
我们默默地走着，布带路，偶尔回头看看我。"怎么样?"
“Well what?” I replied.
"嗯，什么?"我回答。
“Don’t you want to question me about something?” Discord asked, her voice teasing and high, obnoxiously probing for a reaction I was in no mood to give.
"难道你不想问我一些事情吗?"不和谐的声音问道，她的声音充满了戏弄和兴高采烈的讨厌，试探着想知道我没有心情做出什么反应。
“Not particularly,” I said, my voice quiet, flat, and lifeless. Okay, that wasn’t really true, but I was pissed. I could understand what Rampage had done. What she’d wanted to do. Soon as I calmed down, I’d forgive her. But right now, I was going into a bad place, and I needed my anger. “I’m not in a mood for taunting and teasing.”
"没什么特别的,"我说，声音平静，平淡，毫无生气。好吧，那不是真的，但是我很生气。我可以理解狂暴的所作所为。她想做的事情。我一冷静下来，就会原谅她。但是现在，我进入了一个糟糕的境地，我需要我的愤怒。"我现在没心情嘲弄和戏弄你。"
“Well, you certainly can pick the perfect travelling company.” She chuckled and hopped into my path, walking backwards. “You’re travelling with one of Equestria’s oldest nemeses, and you don’t have any questions?” Discord said with a sickly grin.
"嗯，你当然可以选择最好的旅行公司。"她咯咯地笑着，跳到我的小路上，向后走着。"你和一个小马国最古老的敌人一起旅行，你没有任何问题吗?"不和谐的声音带着病态的笑容说。
“I don’t care,” I said. “My friend sold me out to my enemy.” If she’d told me... maybe I could have excused it then. Given her another chance. “Just go away and bring back Boo.”
"我不在乎,"我说。"我的朋友把我出卖给了敌人。"如果她告诉我...也许我可以原谅。再给她一次机会。"走开，把阿布带回来。"
She blinked. “Imma here Bwackjack,” she said, her eyes suddenly pale, before giving me a nuzzle. “Imma sowwie I didn’t tell. He say it was a secret.” Her ears flopped in worry.
她眨了眨眼。"我这儿有个大怪物,"她说，眼睛突然变得苍白，然后用鼻子蹭了我一下。"我没有告诉你。他说这是个秘密。"她的耳朵因担心而耷拉着。
“That’s okay, Boo. You didn’t know better,” I said, and gave her a hug. She blinked hard, and Discord’s eyes appeared; I quickly stepped back. I sighed, gazing down the tunnel. “Fine. Why?”
"没关系，阿布。你不知道,"我说，然后给了她一个拥抱。她使劲眨了眨眼睛，不和谐的眼睛出现了;我迅速后退了几步。我叹了口气，凝视着隧道。"好吧。为什么?"
Discord blinked in confusion, his smile fading. “Why… what? Why is the sky blue? Why should one make it rain Wild Pegasus? Why do coconuts taste like rutabagas but no one really notices?” She smirked at me. “Would you like to know a Wild Pegasus rain spell?”
纷争在混乱中闪烁，他的笑容渐渐消失。"为什么......什么？为什么天空是蓝色的？为什么要下雨呢?野生飞马？为什么椰子尝起来像芜菁甘蓝，但没有人真正注意到呢?"她朝我傻笑。"你想知道一个狂野飞马的雨咒吗?"
“No,” I replied flatly.
"不,"我直截了当地回答。
“My!” she said in surprise. “That doesn’t sound like the Blackjack I know. Where’s the fire? The winging your way home on a flock of alicorns?”
"天哪!"她惊讶地说。"这听起来不像我知道的黑杰克。哪里着火了？你是不是要骑着一群橡树果飞回家?"
“I matured,” I replied. “I had to sooner or later.” When had I gotten so serious? In Thunderhead? Maripony? When Dawn betrayed me? Where was that mare who’d laughed as she sang through a ghoul infested mansion, or who’d laughed as she rode a ship through rapids, or soared on an airship through the clouds? Discord looked at me with an expression of pity. I wondered what he’d be like without the experience of two hundred years of isolation and torment. Finally, I asked, almost at random, “Why did the world go to shit? What went wrong?”
"我成熟了,"我回答。"我迟早会这么做的。"我什么时候变得这么严肃了？在Thunderhead？马里波尼？当道恩背叛我的时候？哪里有那匹母马，她唱着歌穿过一个满是食尸鬼的大宅，或者当她乘着船穿过急流，或者乘着飞艇穿过云层时，她笑了？不和谐带着怜悯的表情看着我。我想知道，如果没有两百年的孤独和折磨，他会是什么样子。最后，我几乎是随机地问道:"为什么世界变得一团糟？出了什么问题?"
His smile disappeared. I was glad for that, grouchy pony that I was. “Ah, yes. Why indeed? It’s something I never understood either.” He stared down the hall, then glanced back at me. “You know, I was never supposed to stay a villain. My role was very clear. Open antagonist to challenge Twilight Sparkle’s presuppositions of friendship and make her face having her friends turn on her at the outset, and then I was supposed to grow into a grudging ally of sorts. I had the scripts, and I was quite looking forward to my time with Fluttershy. Rehabilitation. Yay,” Discord said sarcastically, pressing her hooves together and fluttering her eyes, then slumping. “Only it never happened. I stayed a statue, and things went… wrong.” I arched a brow at her, and she rolled her eyes. “Oh, don’t give me that. I’m a spirit of chaos. I’m a connoisseur of wrongness. A bit of mischief… a bit of peril… hardly anything serious. But ponies slaying? Ponies warring? Ponies committing global thaumaturgical balefire war with zebras? Oh, it was chaos, alright, enough to give me quite a nice bit of power, but that doesn’t mean that I wanted it to. I mean, even besides what happened to me, there was so much waste of potential and material for amusement; as I said back in Hippocratic, there are few things more boring than a corpse, and that goes double for the corpse of a world. Besides, it’s not like any of that was supposed to happen, anyway...”
他的笑容消失了。我很高兴，我是一匹不高兴的小马。"啊，是的。为什么呢？这也是我一直不明白的事情。"他盯着大厅，然后回头看了我一眼。"你知道，我从来就不应该是一个恶棍。我的角色很明确。开放拮抗剂，挑战紫悦对友谊的预设，让她的脸上有她的朋友反对她在一开始，然后我应该成长为一种勉强的盟友。我有剧本，我非常期待和Fluttershy在一起的时光。康复服务。"耶,"不和谐讽刺地说，她的蹄子挤在一起，抖动着她的眼睛，然后睡着了。"只是从来没有发生过。我就像一尊雕像，然后事情就......变糟了。"我向她挑了挑眉毛，她转了转眼珠。"哦，别跟我说这个。我是一个混乱的灵魂。我是个行家。有点恶作剧...有点危险...没什么大不了的。但是小马被杀了？小马交战？小马与斑马在全球掀起一场音乐战争？哦，那是一片混乱，好吧，足以给我相当大的力量，但这并不意味着我想要这样。我的意思是，除了发生在我身上的事情之外，还有那么多潜力和娱乐材料的浪费;正如我在希波克拉底医学杂志上说的，没有什么事情比一具尸体更无聊了，对于一个世界的尸体来说更是如此。此外，这一切本不该发生的......"
I bl– wished I could blink at her. “What do you mean supposed to happen?” I pressed. Behind the conduit, green light shone through a breach in the wall. I hugged the opposite side of the tunnel as we passed. Through the gap, I could see an immense crevasse shining wetly, beams and blocks of concrete poking out amidst outcroppings of the jagged gray rock. Things seemed to be moving on the far side, skittering, oozing, crawling things. I spun around, looking back the way we’d come, expecting something foul to be stalking up on us. Nothing.
我真希望我能对她眨眨眼。"你说应该发生什么事?"我按了一下。在导管后面，绿光从墙上的一个缺口射进来。我们走过隧道时，我拥抱了隧道的另一边。透过缝隙，我可以看到一个巨大的裂缝湿漉漉地闪着光，在参差不齐的灰色岩石中伸出一根根横梁和一块块混凝土。东西似乎在远处移动，滑动，渗出，爬行的东西。我转过身，回头看着我们来的方向，期待着有什么邪恶的东西向我们逼近。没什么。
Discord seemed oddly subdued as well, keeping her voice low. “It’s not something I can easily explain, and I’m rapping against the fourth wall hard enough as is,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “Suffice it to say that Twilight was never supposed to become a Ministry Mare. She was supposed to become an alicorn… and not a goopy super mutant Goddess sort of alicorn, either, but a real pony Princess.” She rolled her eyes again, snorting.
奇怪的是，不和谐的声音似乎也被压低了，使她的声音变得低沉。"这不是我能轻易解释的事情，而且我对着第四面墙说唱已经够用力了,"她转了转眼睛说。"我只想说，暮光之城从来就不应该成为一个魔法部的母驴。她应该成为一个亚力克角...而不是一个古怪的超级变异女神那种亚力克角，但一个真正的小马公主。"她又转了转眼珠，哼了一声。
“A Princess. Like an actual Princess Luna Princess?” I asked in shock.
"一个公主。就像一个真正的卢娜公主?"我震惊地问道。
“Ugh, I’d forgotten how gushy you ponies can get when it comes to your winged unicorns.” Discord made a gagging noise. “Yes, a Princess the same as Moonbutt
"啊，我都快忘了你们这些小马在飞翔的独角兽面前是多么的情绪化了。"不和声发出一阵令人作呕的噪音。"是的，一个和月亮屁股一样的公主
and Sunnyflanks. Ironic, considering how she poured herself into creating her alicorn potion. But somewhere along the way, something went wrong. It never happened. And bit by bit, the Equestria that was supposed to happen… didn’t.
还有阳光山坡。具有讽刺意味的是，想想她是如何全身心投入制作她的独角兽药水的。但是在这个过程中，有些地方出了问题。从来没发生过。一点一点地，原本应该发生的Equestria却没有发生。
Some lesson… some letter… some something happened, and Celestia never sent me to Fluttershy for rehabilitation. Never trusted Twilight with Starswirl’s greatest spell. Never did a lot of things. Regardless, everything went from how it was supposed to be to where we are now.”
一些教训......一些信件......一些事情发生了，塞莱斯蒂亚从来没有把我送到小弗特希那里康复。永远不要相信《暮光之城》中星际漩涡最伟大的魔法。从来没做过很多事。无论如何，一切都从原本的样子变成了现在的样子。"
“But why? What went wrong?” I asked as we started walking along the halls. I kept my voice down. It felt like we were being watched. Cracks in the walls let through beams of greenish light; more concerning were the things breaking those beams ever so briefly. I could hear the softest of tapping on the far side of the stone.
""但是为什么呢？出了什么问题?"当我们沿着大厅走的时候，我问道。我压低了声音。感觉就像有人在监视我们。墙上的裂缝透过绿色的光柱;更要注意的是那些短暂地折断光柱的东西。我可以听到远处石头最柔和的敲击声。
“Who knows? Maybe Twilight said the wrong thing in one of her letters. Perhaps Princess Grumpypants woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Maybe they didn’t sing one of their annoyingly cute pony songs on key. Whatever it was, instead of Twilight becoming an alicorn, she remained an ordinary mare. Instead of Equestria being a folksy land with a few cities and lovely pastoral countryside, there was a consumer culture with a rampant hunger for coal. Instead of love and tolerance, you had hate and suspicion.” Discord suddenly whirled, tensing, eyes turning this way and that. Then the tunnel shook. Not a major quake, but somehow much more disconcerting. “Of course, I was stuck as a statue. There wasn’t much I could do about it, regardless.”
""谁知道呢？也许暮光之城在她的一封信里说错了话。也许是脾气暴躁的公主在床的另一边醒来。也许他们没有把那些讨厌的可爱的小马的歌调子唱出来。不管它是什么，而不是暮光成为一个alicorn，她仍然是一个普通的母马。Equestria不再是一个只有几个城市和可爱的田园风光的民间乐园，而是一个对煤炭充满饥渴的消费文化。你们没有爱和宽容，只有仇恨和猜疑。"不和谐突然旋转起来，紧张起来，眼睛转来转去。然后，隧道开始摇晃。这不是一次大地震，但不知何故更令人不安。"当然，我被当成了一尊雕像。不管怎样，我对此无能为力。"
“So something made them into the ponies that became the ministry mares?” I asked quietly, gorging myself on refreshingly direct exposition. If only I’d met Discord right after getting out of the stable, I could have spared myself quite a bit of heartache. “Some sort of mind control spell?”
"所以有什么东西把它们变成了小马，变成了部里的母马?"我平静地问道，大快朵颐地进行着令人耳目一新的直接阐述。要是我刚从马厩里出来就遇到了不和谐，我就不会那么伤心了。"某种精神控制咒语?"
“Now wouldn’t that have been interesting?” she said with a grin, tapping her chin wistfully before slumping again. “But sadly… no. No, I think, deep down, the potential was always there in Twilight and her friends. A little bit too much control from Twilight. A smidge too much trust in her family for Applejack. A teensy bit too much desperation from Pinkie Pie. All they needed were the right conditions to fester in,” Discord said with a smirk. “No one is ever quite as good as they think they are. Except me, of course, but then, I am the exception that makes the rule.” She touched her chest with a hoof in a sham of modesty. “There might have been a few players pushing pieces around the board from behind the
"那不是很有趣吗?"她咧嘴笑着说，渴望地拍着下巴，然后又一次跌倒了。"但遗憾的是......没有。不，我认为，在内心深处，《暮光之城》和她的朋友们总是有潜力的。《暮光之城》的控制力有点太强了。对于苹果白兰地来说，她对家族有点过于信任了。小粉红派有点太绝望了。他们所需要的只是一个恶化的条件,"不和谐笑着说。"没有人能像他们自认为的那样出色。当然，除了我，不过，我是制定规则的例外。"她装出一副谦虚的样子，用蹄子碰了碰自己的胸膛。"可能有一些玩家从后面推着棋子在棋盘上走来走去
scenes, but that’s always happening, no matter what world you’re in. Even Princess Sunnybuns could be wonderfully manipulative at times.”
场景，但那总是发生，不管你在哪个世界。即使是阳光小面包公主，有时也可以控制得非常好。"
I sighed, listening to the hiss in the pipes, the gurgle flowing underhoof, and the momentary buzzing crackle of sparks. The tapping behind the wall had stopped. Had it moved on, or was it lurking right outside the pipe? “So… if there’s a way the world is supposed to be… what, am I supposed to go back in time and fix it?” Was that even possible? The thought began to make my head spin.
我叹了口气，听着水管里的嘶嘶声，地下流动的咯咯声，还有瞬间嗡嗡作响的火星噼啪声。墙后的敲击声停止了。它是继续前进了，还是就潜伏在管子外面？"那么......如果世界应该有一种方式......怎么，我应该回到过去修复它吗?"这有可能吗？这个想法开始使我头晕目眩。
Discord laughed, her voice high and echoing. She realized her mistake and covered her mouth with a hoof, eyes snapping left and right before focusing on me again. “Time travel? Please. Entertaining as that may be, when has that ever worked? Besides, I’m sure somewhere there’s a world with a bossy purple alicorn Princess up to no good.” She sighed and patted my shoulder. “No. I’m afraid you’re simply going to have to pony up and face incalculable odds for the survival of the world and the pony race. That’s all.” She wilted a little at my grimace. “Ah, no pressure?”
不和谐的笑声，她的声音高高地回响着。她意识到自己的错误，用蹄子遮住嘴巴，眼睛左右晃动，然后再次注视我。"时间旅行？求你了。尽管这样很有趣，但这种方法什么时候奏效过？此外，我敢肯定，在某个地方，世界上一定有一个专横的紫色独角公主，不怀好意。"她叹了口气，拍了拍我的肩膀。"没有。恐怕你只能为了这个世界和这场小马竞赛的生存而付出代价，面对无法估量的机会。仅此而已。"她看到我的鬼脸有点萎缩。"啊，没有压力?"
“Thanks,” I replied flatly, then sighed. “So, what do you know about Horizons? Wait. Let me guess. You can’t tell me?” I braced myself for disappointment and frustration.
"谢谢,"我直截了当地回答，然后叹了口气。"那么，你对地平线了解多少？等等。让我猜猜。你不能告诉我吗?"我鼓起勇气面对失望和挫折。
“Well, one occupational hazard of omniscience is knowing when not to say things,” she answered, a touch defensive. I slumped, wondering if Rainbow Dash felt the same way with Pinkie Pie’s predictions. Why did I even bother asking? “All I can say is that Goldenblood requisitioned a lot of my blood for it. Ooodles and oodles.” She smiled and wiggled a hoof at me. “I’m sure you’ve noticed all the really interesting things you can make out of applied chaos. Perhaps Goldie wanted an army of blanks?”
"嗯，无所不知的一个职业危害就是知道什么时候不说话,"她回答说，有点防御的意味。我跌倒了，想知道彩虹·达什是否也对平奇·派的预言有同样的感觉。我为什么还要问呢？"我只能说，金血王为此征用了我很多血。嘟嘟和嘟嘟。"她微笑着，对着我扭动着蹄子。"我敢肯定，你已经注意到了从应用混沌中可以得到的所有真正有趣的东西。也许戈尔迪想要一支空弹大军?"
“Not his style,” I replied immediately. Still… an army of blanks. That niggled at me as we passed by a small hole in the wall, the sound of breathing on the far side. Or maybe it was just the draft in these deep spaces. “But what about the Brood? Are they really all blanks like Boo?”
"不是他的风格,"我马上回答。还是...一支空白的军队。当我们经过墙上的一个小洞时，这个声音对我发出了刺耳的声音，远处传来呼吸的声音。或者也许只是这些深层空间里的草稿。""那么布鲁德一家怎么办？他们真的都像阿布一样是空白的吗?"
He grimaced. “Oh yes indeed. That I can comment on without too many spoilers. I’m sure you’ve noticed they’re all a touch unusual.”
他做了个鬼脸。""哦，是的。我可以在没有太多剧透的情况下进行评论。我相信你已经注意到了，它们都有点不同寻常。"
“Identical, you mean?” I said with a frown. “I noticed.”
"你是说一模一样?"我皱着眉头说。"我注意到了。"
“Yes. An utterly insulting application of my chaos,” she said with a scowl. “Boo is unique. Precious. An individual. Why, she’s growing her own soul and everything. And she’s as immortal as I am. Plus she sees things as they really are, which is probably why she loves you no matter how scary you become,” he said, regarding herself in a puddle on the floor for a moment before going on, “But the Brood… mindless, soulless, immortal automations of magical flesh and steel. I look forward to seeing you take them all apart.”
"是的。这完全是对我混乱状态的侮辱,"她皱着眉头说。"布是独一无二的。宝贝。一个人。她在培养自己的灵魂和一切。她和我一样不朽。此外，她看到的是事物的本来面目，这可能就是为什么不管你变得多么可怕，她都爱你的原因,"他说，在继续讲下去之前，她自己在地板上的一个水坑里呆了一会儿,"但是布鲁德一家......没有思想、没有灵魂、不朽的机器人，拥有神奇的肉体和钢铁。我期待着看到你把它们都拆开。"
“Boo’s immortal?” I asked, hoping I didn’t sound too surprised.
"Boo是不朽的?"我问道，希望自己听起来不会太惊讶。
“As immortal as me. Maybe someday she’ll become the next avatar of chaos. That is, unless you take the role yourself. You’ve demonstrated yourself to be an exceptional agent of chaos, Blackjack,” she said with a broad smile, getting another frown from me. She hurried on, “After all, while I may be immortal, eternal is quite another question. Nothing good lasts forever. You might notice I’ve been quite reduced of late?” She gave a smirk. “Still, while I’m down, I’m not out quite yet.”
"像我一样不朽。也许有一天她会成为下一个混乱的化身。也就是说，除非你自己扮演这个角色。"黑杰克，你已经证明了自己是一个非凡的混乱特工,"她笑容可掬地说，我又皱起了眉头。她急忙接着说:"毕竟，虽然我可能是不朽的，但是永恒却是另一个问题。没有什么好事是永恒的。你可能已经注意到我最近变得很低落了吧?"她傻笑了一下。"尽管如此，我倒下的时候，还没有完全出来。"
“So why does he want to kill you? Can you… I don’t know… control the Brood of Coyotl, since they’re made of Flux too?” I asked, imagining the entire army turning on the Legate. That would be interesting… of course, whatever Discord did next with them would be even more interesting.
"那么，他为什么要杀你呢？你能......我不知道......控制野狼的巢穴吗，因为它们也是由弗拉克斯组成的?"我问道，想象着整个军队都在攻击特使。这将是有趣的...当然，不和谐的下一步做与他们将更有趣。
“Now THERE’S an idea!” She beamed. “Emperor Boo! Ruling the Wasteland with my army of…” Her face twisted up, and Boo’s pale eyes returned as she scowled. “Stoppit Discowd! Imma not gonna be bad! Imma gonna be like Bwackjack!” She grinned at me, and I smiled back at her. Celestia save me, I was a role model. A few blinks later, Discord’s eyes reappeared, and she pouted. “Ugh. Fine. I’d forgotten how saccharine you ponies can be. Anyway, to answer your question, I don’t know. The last time we were around those Brood, they didn’t seem to recognize me.”
"现在有一个想法!"她微笑着说。"布皇帝！用我的军队统治荒原......"她的脸扭曲起来，布皱着眉头，苍白的眼睛回来了。"停车场的迪斯科舞厅！我不会变坏的！我会像疯子杰克一样!"她冲我咧嘴一笑，我也冲她笑了笑。塞莱斯蒂亚救了我，我是一个榜样。眨了几下眼睛，不和谐的眼睛又出现了，她撅起了嘴。"呃。好吧。我都忘了你们这些小马有多甜了。无论如何，回答你的问题，我不知道。上次我们和布鲁德一家在一起的时候，他们好像没认出我来。"
“Do you think the Legate knew you were outside Grimhoof?” I asked.
"你认为大使知道你在格里霍夫外面吗?"我问道。
“I’m rather sure of it. In fact, I’m rather certain that I’m the reason he was there in the first place. He and I operate on a similar frequency,” he said. “We’ve been going around and around for ages.”
"我相当肯定。事实上，我相当肯定他是因为我才去那里的。他和我的工作频率相似,"他说。"我们已经绕了很长时间了。"
“Ages?” I asked with a frown. If he had a talisman like Rampage's, I could believe it. He’d been regenerating his head when I’d last seen him.
"年龄?"我皱着眉头问。如果他有像朗格那样的护身符，我会相信的。我最后一次见到他的时候，他的脑袋正在恢复。
“Oh yes,” she said with a blissful smile. “He’s worn his own share of identities over the centuries. He was almost as good as Celestia for a laugh. She was prettier, of course, and had a slightly better sense of humor, but he’s been around nearly as long. Manipulating. Hiding. Organizing. And I’ve been around too, interfering, annoying, and disorganizing. It’s all great fun.”
"哦，是的,"她带着幸福的微笑说。"几个世纪以来，他一直保持着自己的身份。他几乎和塞莱斯蒂亚一样好笑。当然，她更漂亮，幽默感也稍好一些，但他在这里的时间也差不多这么长。操纵。藏起来。组织。我也一直在周围，干扰，烦人，混乱。这一切都很有趣。"
“Except when you got yourself turned to stone for tormenting ponies too much.”
"除非你因为过度折磨小马而变成了石头。"
“I’m hurt, Blackjack!” she said with a simpering pout. “Didn’t I say I was forced to be a villain? Cast in such a role by powers beyond your comprehension?” She sat and pushed a hoof to her brow, then smiled and rolled her eyes. “I’ll admit that I may have caused a teeny, tiny bit of anguish to various people across the world from time to time, but it was for their own good. I’m not an agent of evil, Blackjack. I’m an agent of chaos!” She frowned in annoyance. "You really haven't figured out what that means yet?"
"我受伤了，黑杰克!"她嘟着嘴傻笑着说。""我不是说过我是被迫当坏人的吗？扮演这样一个角色是因为你无法理解的力量吗?"她坐了下来，用一只蹄子挡住眉毛，然后微笑着转了转眼珠。"我承认，我可能时不时地给世界各地的人们带来了一点点小小的痛苦，但这是为了他们好。我不是邪恶的代理人Blackjack。我是混乱的代言人!"她烦恼地皱起了眉头。"你真的还没弄明白那是什么意思吗?"
“This is the first time I’ve been able to talk with you when something wasn’t trying to kill me,” I answered. “And chaos has been pretty evil in my experience.”
"这是我第一次能够在有东西不想杀我的时候和你说话,"我回答。"根据我的经验，混乱是相当邪恶的。"
“Well, you’ve been experiencing quite the wrong sort of chaos, then!” She gave an insulted snort. “If I were evil, I would have snapped my claws and made Twilight’s head explode. It was certainly within my power, but utterly outside my nature.” She smiled. “Chaos is change. It’s a break from the status quo. Chaos is invention. It’s art! It’s uncertainty. It’s a gamble. It’s in a butterfly’s wing, the motions of an electron, and the chemical reactions in your brain. Without chaos, life becomes a set of comfortable routines from birth to death, never changing. I manipulated and tormented ponykind… and zebrakind… and griffinkind… and plenty of others… to shake them out of conformity.”
"那么，你一直在经历一种完全错误的混乱!"她受到侮辱地哼了一声。"如果我是邪恶的，我会折断我的爪子，让暮光之城的头爆炸。这当然在我的能力范围之内，但完全超出了我的本性。"她笑了。"混乱就是改变。这是对现状的突破。混乱就是发明。这是艺术！这是不确定性。这是一场赌博。它存在于蝴蝶的翅膀，电子的运动，以及你大脑中的化学反应。没有了混乱，生活就变成了一套从出生到死亡的舒适的常规，永远不会改变。我操纵并折磨着ponykind......还有zebrakind......还有griffinkind......还有很多其他人......让他们摆脱顺从。"
“Well, the war certainly did spur innovation, but I wouldn’t call it good. And as for the chaos of the Wasteland...”
"当然，战争确实刺激了创新，但我不会称之为好事。至于荒原的混乱......"
“Yes...” she said with a frown. “I’ll admit, when the war started, I was quite happy. Sure, things weren’t going to plan, but with all the little-d discord the ponies and zebras were making, soon they’d have had big-d Discord back to set things right! Even after Sunnyflanks buried me. Only, like you said, the war was spurring innovation… and towards bad ends. Before I knew it, sweet little Luna was having me ground up to fuel her war machine, and a decidedly non-winged
"是的......"她皱着眉头说。"我承认，当战争开始时，我非常高兴。当然，事情并没有按计划进行，但是小马和斑马之间产生了那么多小小的冲突，很快他们就会有大大的冲突来纠正事情！即使在Sunnyflanks埋葬了我之后。只不过，正如你所说，这场战争刺激了创新......并且走向了糟糕的结局。在我意识到这一点之前，可爱的小卢娜已经开始让我磨碎给她的战争机器加油了，而且她还是一个明显没有翅膀的人
Twilight, her friends, and an old geology teacher were doing their best to help Moonbutt turn Equestria into the most ordered catastrophe this planet's ever seen. I would have been quite impressed if it weren't so perverse.”
暮光之城、她的朋友们和一位老地质学老师正在尽最大努力帮助月亮屁股小马国变成这个星球上有史以来最井然有序的灾难。如果它不是那么反常，我会对它印象深刻的。"
That was putting it mildly. I wondered if he knew, specifically, what Luna had done. Before I could ask, he was continuing in a nattering rush.
这话说得太委婉了。我想知道他是否知道，具体地说，卢娜做了什么。我还没来得及问，他就开始滔滔不绝地说个不停。
“Anyway, the war was growing more and more brutal and less and less funny! War is the worst kind of chaos to begin with, regardless! War, the real, brutal, no-holds-barred sort of war that they were fighting, only results in death. Death only results in decomposition. I, at worst, made ponies miserable. Misery may not be good, but at least you’re alive at the end of the day.” She closed his eyes. “When the bombs fell, I felt the silence from one side of the world to the other. I wept, Blackjack. I know you probably don’t believe me, but I wept.”
"不管怎样，战争越来越残酷，越来越无趣！无论如何，战争从一开始就是最糟糕的混乱！战争，真正的，残酷的，不加限制的那种战争，他们正在打的，只会导致死亡。死亡只会导致腐烂。最糟糕的是，我把小马搞得一团糟。痛苦可能不是好事，但至少你在一天结束时还活着。"她闭上了他的眼睛。"当炸弹落下时，我从世界的一边到另一边都感到了寂静。我哭了，黑杰克。我知道你可能不相信我，但我哭了。"
If it was an act, it was a damned good one. Still… thinking that the war was wrong didn’t mean that you were a good person; it was just one way you weren’t a bad one. “If your chaos is so much better,” I probed, “why did Celestia and Luna turn you to stone for a thousand years, and Twilight and her friends put you back when you broke out?”
如果这是一场表演，那就是非常好的表演。尽管如此......认为战争是错误的并不意味着你是一个好人;这只是你不是一个坏人的一种方式。"如果你的混乱状态好多了,"我探究道,"为什么塞莱斯蒂亚和卢娜会把你变成石头一千年，而《暮光之城》和她的朋友们在你越狱后又把你变回来了?"
“Oh, well,” she said dismissively. “It’s because chaos is Eeeeeeevil, isn’t it?” She frowned at the hooves she was waving in front of her face. “It’s just not the same without fingers to wiggle. Anyway, Celestia and her posse are, or at least were, all ‘Lawful Good’ when you got right down to it. Even dear Pinkie was disappointingly predictable. What, they didn’t have enough order already? Order for order’s sake isn’t beneficial. It’s stagnation. Consider your home, Blackjack. Stable 99, and Equestria. Both were founded under good, orderly premises, but over time, good order rots. The order becomes more important than the good, and the only changes that happen are the perversion and decay of the original ideals. I do hope that you understand that, Blackjack.” For a moment, he was oddly serious. “Back in Hippocratic, you told me that the Wasteland had enough chaos, and told me to do better. I had no idea what you were talking about at the time, since it never occurred to me that you might seriously set me free… but you were hoping that I’d become a bit more orderly. Like that’s likely!”
"哦，好吧,"她轻蔑地说。"因为混乱是邪恶的，不是吗?"她对着面前挥舞的蹄子皱起了眉头。"没有手指的摆动感觉就不一样了。无论如何，塞莱斯蒂亚和她的队伍，或者至少曾经是，都是'守序善良'。即使是亲爱的平奇，他的预测也是令人失望的。怎么，他们的订单还不够吗？为了秩序而秩序是没有益处的。这就是停滞。想想你的家吧黑杰克。稳定99和Equestria。两家公司都是在良好、有序的前提下成立的，但随着时间的推移，良好的秩序会腐烂。秩序变得比善更重要，唯一发生的变化就是原始理想的扭曲和衰落。我希望你能明白这一点，Blackjack。"有那么一会儿，他表现得异常严肃。"回到希波克拉底，你告诉我荒原已经够混乱了，并告诉我要做得更好。当时我完全不知道你在说什么，因为我从来没想过你会真的放我自由......但是你希望我变得更有秩序一些。好像很有可能!"
He suddenly leaned over, grinned, and rubbed a hoof in my mane. I glared at him, and he pulled back and coughed.
他突然俯下身来，咧嘴笑了笑，用蹄子蹭了蹭我的鬃毛。我瞪了他一眼，他退了回去，咳嗽了一声。
“Well, however adorable it might have been, you freeing the God of Chaos and telling him to start obeying traffic laws or whatever, you were doing it because you thought that that was good. And looking around at the shameful sort of chaos you’ve been having to deal with, I suppose that I can’t blame you too much. You’ve done good and sown disorder, but you haven’t gotten the spark that links them in your head yet. Look around a bit harder.” She swung her forehoof in a wide arc. “This whole city is a testament to unchanging corruption and stagnation, to what happens when order goes too far. And that’s not even mentioning what’s under it…”
"好吧，不管它可能有多可爱，你释放了混沌之神，告诉他开始遵守交通法规或其他什么，你这么做是因为你认为这是好事。看看你一直在处理的那些可耻的混乱，我想我不能太责怪你。你做的很好，但是你还没有在你的头脑中得到把他们联系在一起的火花。再仔细看看周围。"她挥动前蹄，形成一道宽阔的弧线。"整个城市就是腐败和停滞不前的证明，证明秩序走得太远时会发生什么。这还没有提到它下面的东西......"
“Cognitum wants to bring the city back,” I said. “To return it to how things were.”
"cogentum想要把城市带回来,"我说。"让一切恢复原样。"
“Cognitum wants stasis. She wishes to freeze the world into the state she thinks it should be, optimally with her on top. Funny how that’s usually the case,” Discord said with a grim smile. “Oh, I’ve no doubt it would be comfortable, for most. Discomfort is the antidote to conformity. And I’m sure you’d find it quite uncomfortable.” She shivered. “The whole world would be a starmetal tomb or a Stable 99.”
"认知需要静止。她希望把世界冻结到她认为应该的状态，最佳状态是她在上面。有趣的是，通常情况下都是这样的,"不和谐带着严肃的笑容说。"哦，我毫不怀疑，对大多数人来说，这样会很舒服。不适是顺从的解药。我肯定你会觉得很不舒服。"她打了个哆嗦。"整个世界将成为一座星铁墓或一座99年的马厩。"
I could certainly share that feeling. “And the Eater?” A rumble slowly ran through the earth, and cracks spread along the concrete walls. I really wished I could close my eyes right now. “I hate this place.”
我当然可以分享这种感觉。"那食人者呢?"一阵隆隆声慢慢地穿过地面，裂缝沿着混凝土墙壁扩散开来。我真希望现在能闭上眼睛。"我恨这个地方。"
“You show promise for an equine,” Discord chuckled. She then paused. “Hold that thought…”
"你是一匹马的希望,"不和谐笑着说。然后她停顿了一下。"等一下......"
Boo blinked, “Wazzit, Discowd?”
布眨了眨眼,"哇，迪斯科?"
Another blink back to Discord’s mismatched eyes. “If my sense of dramatic timing is still accurate...” She lifted a hoof, staring at it as if checking a PipBuck. “We should be attacked right about… Now!” I tensed and checked behind me. Nothing but empty tunnel. I stared ahead. More tunnel. I glanced at a baffled white mare. “Or maybe… now!” Again I tensed. Again, nothing. I really wished I could give a flat-eyed glare. “Huh.” She shook her hoof like she had a cramp, then lifted it to her ear. “I guess my drama needs new batteries.”
又眨了一下眼睛回到了不和谐的不相称的眼睛。"如果我对戏剧性时间的感觉仍然准确的话......"她抬起一只蹄子，盯着它，好像在检查一只小鹿。"我们现在就应该受到攻击!"我紧张起来，检查了一下身后。只有空洞的隧道。我凝视着前方。更多的隧道。我瞥了一眼一匹困惑的白色母马。"或者也许......现在!"我又一次紧张起来。再说一次，什么都没有。我真希望我可以给一个平视的目光。"哈。"她抖了抖蹄子，就像抽筋了一样，然后把它举到耳边。"我想我的戏剧需要新电池了。"
The wall exploded inwards in a shower of pipes, conduits, and stone chips as an immense curved spur ripped a hole right through the concrete and everything else. Cables snapped and popped, and steam flooded through the tunnel as my
墙壁向内爆炸，水管、管道和石头碎片像一个巨大的弯曲支线撕开了一个洞，穿过混凝土和其他所有东西。电缆断了又断，蒸汽从隧道里涌了出来
hands snapped up, caught the serrated tip of the hook, and barely got out of the way as it gouged deep into the wall behind me. The entire tunnel seemed to be coming apart around me, and I only hoped that Discord kept Boo from being crushed or cooked as the tube fell to pieces. The immense stinger, easily the size of my body, yanked back out the hole it’d torn.
手被抓起来，钩住了锯齿状的钩子，钩子深深地戳进了我身后的墙里。整个隧道似乎正在我周围分崩离析，我只希望不和谐保持布被粉碎或煮熟，因为管下跌的碎片。那根巨大的毒刺，和我的身体差不多大，猛地从它撕开的洞里伸了出来。
As it withdrew, my hand was caught between two chitinous serrations, and with the ease of withdrawing a can of Cram, I was yanked through the new breach and into another deep crevasse a dozen feet across, more than a hundred long, and several hundred deep. Broken pipes jutted out into the air, spraying cold water in a fine mist around enormous blocks of reinforcement. Here and there, the crevasse was bridged by crumbling sewer pipes, tangles of corroded wiring, and even a subway or two. The rock had split and left the concrete train tubes sticking out into space. Small white soul motes drifted from one wall to another, passing through the solid matter like ghosts. A bend in the shaft below me protected me from being directly bathed in the green glare of Enervation, but the entire crevice was lit with the reflected light. I activated my wings and yanked myself away from the stinger.
当它退去时，我的手被夹在两个几丁质的锯齿之间，轻而易举地抽出一罐克拉姆，我被猛拉着穿过新的裂口，进入另一个十几英尺宽、一百多英尺长、几百英尺深的深裂缝。破碎的管子突出到空中，在巨大的加固块周围以细雾喷出冷水。到处都是破碎的下水道管道，被腐蚀的电线缠绕着，甚至还有一两条地铁。岩石已经开裂，留下混凝土火车管伸入太空。小小的白色灵魂尘埃从一堵墙飘到另一堵墙，像鬼魂一样穿过固体物质。我下面竖井的一个弯道保护我不被直接沐浴在绿色耀眼的能量中，但是整个裂缝都被反射的光照亮了。我激活了我的翅膀，猛地把自己从毒刺旁边拉开。
The barb was attached to a creature resembling a scorpion, if someone who had never seen a scorpion before had been given a vague description of one and had been so taken with the general idea of it that they’d hastily rushed to build the biggest scorpion of all time… and had neglected such trivial things as proportion, symmetry, and checking their work for errors. Nine legs on the left, six on the right, a dozen eyes of varied shape and size scattered around what might be a head, mandibles and fangs that had no business being as long as my body, a pincer on one limb vaguely resembling a hand, and another limb ending in the scorpion tail-like protrusion completed the monstrosity before me. As I hovered there, taking it all in, the behemoth let out an earsplitting screech as it turned, clinging sideways to the fissure wall, and faced me.
这只倒钩附着在一只类似蝎子的生物上，如果一个以前从未见过蝎子的人被给予了一个模糊的描述，并且被它的大概概念深深吸引，以至于他们匆忙地去制造有史以来最大的蝎子...并且忽略了一些琐碎的事情，比如比例，对称性，检查他们的工作是否有错误。左边有九条腿，右边有六条腿，十几只眼睛的形状和大小各不相同，分布在可能是头的地方，上颚和牙齿与我的身体一样长，一只肢体上的钳子有点像手，另一只肢体末端像蝎子尾巴一样的突出物构成了我面前的这个怪物。当我盘旋在那里，把所有东西都吸进去的时候，那只庞然大物转过身来，发出了一声震耳欲聋的尖叫，侧身贴着裂缝墙壁，面对着我。
Okay. I could do this. I starting assembling Penance as I backed away… then balked. “What do I shoot?” Then my back hit the wall behind me, and I realized that several dozen feet wasn’t nearly far enough away from this thing! Its body surged as it rammed that tail spur across the gap and at me. I fell, and it rammed the wall a few feet above my horn. “Okay! Plan B. Shoot anything!”
好吧。我可以这么做。我后退的时候开始组织忏悔......然后停了下来。"我该拍什么?"然后我的背撞到了身后的墙上，我意识到几十英尺的距离远远不够！它的身体猛烈地撞击着尾翼突然穿过缺口冲向我。我摔倒了，它撞到了离我角几英尺的墙上。"好吧！B计划:什么都开枪!"
I decided for eyes and weaved my way around as I targeted the thing’s various globules. Once it was blind, I could get back to the tunnel and Boo, right? Then
当我瞄准那东西的各种小球时，我决定装上眼睛，然后迂回前进。一旦它失明了，我就可以回到隧道和Boo，对不对？然后
we could hustle along. Each one exploded like a pustule… only to be replaced by even more black eyes. “Oh come on! You regenerate, too?” I brought out the moonstone pendant and darted in closer, and wasn’t that a mistake! The handlike pincer snapped out at me and seized me by my wings, drawing me towards the immense fanged, chomping orifice that was the creature’s mouth.
我们可以快点走。每一个都像脓包一样爆炸了......只是被更多的黑眼睛所取代。"哦，得了吧！你也能再生吗?"我拿出月光石吊坠，飞快地靠近，那不是一个错误吗！那只像手掌一样的钳子猛地向我扑来，抓住了我的翅膀，把我拉向那个巨大的、尖牙利齿的洞口，那就是那个生物的嘴。
Funny how panic could make teleporting my quarter-ton body out of its grasp easy. Why, I was so scared that I barely even registered the sledgehammer blow to my gray matter. I couldn’t hurt it. Didn’t want to risk getting closer to it. My power supplies were dropping by the second; I only had three minutes of power left. It was pretty big; maybe it couldn’t climb very fast? I could only hope so as I flew up towards the roof of the shaft, the abomination in pursuit.
有趣的是，恐慌是如何轻而易举地将我四分之一吨的身体瞬移出去的。为什么，我害怕得几乎没有注意到我的大脑灰质受到了重击。我不能伤害它。不想冒险接近它。我的电力供应每秒都在下降，我只剩下三分钟的电力了。它很大，也许爬不快？我只能希望如此，当我飞向竖井的屋顶时，那个讨厌的家伙在追赶我。
For a few seconds, it looked like I’d been right. Even with all its legs, it couldn’t move anywhere near as fast as me. I could lead it away, circle around, and get down the tunnel where it couldn’t fit. I could do this. I… the massive creature seemed to swell with a great wet retching noise. A geyser of chunky red flesh and steaming fluid erupted from its maw, spewing straight at me. I darted behind the cover of a swaying length of train track strung like entrails across the gap. Hanging on them was the rusted-out corpse of a train, its chain of flatbed cars scattered with unstable heaps of crates. I watched as the meaty barrage spewed up to either side and began to rain back down. I crouched on the bed of one train and grabbed the lid off one of the crates on the train, lifting it above me to block any of the gore that had spread far enough to hit me.
有那么几秒钟，我似乎是对的。即使它有这么多条腿，它也不能像我一样移动得这么快。我可以把它引开，绕过去，然后到达它无法通过的隧道。我可以这么做。我。.这个庞然大物似乎随着湿润的呕吐声膨胀起来。一个块状的红肉和冒着热气的液体的间歇泉从它的肚子里喷出来，直直地喷向我。我飞快地跑到一段摇摆不定的铁轨后面，这段铁轨就像穿过铁轨的内脏一样。挂在上面的是一具锈迹斑斑的火车尸体，车上的平板车散落着一堆堆不稳定的板条箱。我眼睁睁地看着密集的弹幕向两边喷涌而出，然后又开始如雨点般落下。我蹲在一列火车的车厢上，抓住其中一个板条箱的盖子，把它举过头顶，挡住任何可能会击中我的血块。
“Well, that was close,” I said after the wet plops and splats had subsided. I lowered the lid and regarded the visceral mass that had accumulated on it.
"嗯，差不多了,"湿扑通声和溅落声消退后，我说。我放下眼睑，看着内脏堆积在上面的东西。
The red mound twitched rhythmically, and then a half dozen eyes bubbled open. Two fleshy tendrils sprouted, wrapping around my neck and horn, and as it pulled itself closer, a large mouth filled with toothy protrusions snapped at what little face I had left. “You have got to be kidding me!” I shouted, reaching up with my hands and tearing it away. The meaty mass quivered under my metal fingers before I ripped it into two halves, then smashed them to paste against the case. “There… done!” I said, staring at the red goo in my hands.
那个红色的小山丘有节奏地抽动着，然后半打眼睛睁开了。两个肉质的卷须发芽，包裹着我的脖子和角，当它靠近我的时候，我剩下的那张小脸突然张开了一张长满牙齿的大嘴。"你开什么玩笑!"我大声喊道，伸出双手，把它撕开。肉团在我的金属手指下颤抖着，然后我把它撕成两半，然后把它们拍碎贴在盒子上。"好了......搞定了!"我说，盯着手里的红色粘液。
The goo quivered and formed tiny mouths that snapped at me. I stared for three seconds, then flung it off the side of the train! “I quit! I quit I quit I quit! Undying flesh is where I draw the line!” Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only
粘稠的东西颤抖着，形成了一张张小嘴，狠狠地咬住了我。我盯着它看了三秒钟，然后把它扔下了火车！"我不干了！我不干了我不干了我不干了！不朽的肉体是我的底线!"不幸的是，这并不是唯一的一个
glob. From both directions along the train, a veritable swarm of these things were crawling towards me, some scuttling on chitinous legs like their parent, others flopping on tentacle limbs, and others flying through the air on fleshy, membranous wings. Above me was solid rock, some of it now also crawling with these abominations.
一团。从火车的两个方向，一大群这样的东西正在向我爬来，有些像它们的父母一样在几丁质的腿上疾驰，有些则在触手般的肢体上扑腾，还有一些则在空中靠着多肉的膜状翅膀飞来飞去。在我上面是坚硬的岩石，其中一些现在也爬满了这些可憎的东西。
And while Penance was an exquisite firearm, it wasn’t the ideal weapon for use against a swarm of opponents. I was missing my Boo luck charm, too. “Damn it!” I shouted, slamming my hooves against an intact, tipped-over container as I wondered if I could fly back to the hole without getting puked on.
虽然忏悔是一种精致的武器，但它并不是对付一大群敌人的理想武器。我也失去了我的幸运宝贝。"该死!"我边喊边用蹄子狠狠地撞击一个完整的翻过来的容器，我想知道我是否可以飞回洞里而不被吐到。
The lid broke open, and dozens of twelve-millimeter semiautomatic weapons tumbled out around my hooves, each still in its translucent plastic wrap. I grabbed one, tore the wrapping off, stared at the gun, and then looked around at what was, I realized, a munitions transport.
盖子打开了，几十把12毫米口径的半自动武器从我的蹄子上滚落下来，每一把都裹在半透明的塑料膜里。我抓起一个，撕掉包装，盯着枪，然后环顾四周，我意识到，这是一个军火运输工具。
I could kiss Discord so hard her hooves would… wait… no. That’d be weird. A hug would suffice. I tore through the crates around me, searching for ammunition. Grenades. A flamer would be ideal. I doubted the flesh would reform if it were flame-broiled. One of the creatures, with legs like a spider, leapt onto my back and started to ram a silvery proboscis into my neck. I levitated the pendant towards it, and it screamed and skittered back long enough for me to grab a leg and smash it. Some of the smaller ones were glomming on to each other, fusing together into more and more massive creatures.
我可以用力亲她的蹄子...等等...不。那就太奇怪了。一个拥抱就够了。我撕开周围的板条箱，寻找弹药。手榴弹。火焰喷射器将是理想的。我怀疑肉体如果被火焰烤焦，是否会变形。其中一只蜘蛛的腿像蜘蛛一样，跳到我的背上，开始把一只银色的长鼻塞进我的脖子里。我把吊坠悬浮在空中，它尖叫着飞回来，足够长的时间让我抓住一条腿把它砸碎。一些较小的生物相互碰撞，融合在一起形成了越来越大的生物。
“Come on! Where are the damned bullets?” I asked as I ran along the crates. There were enough guns here to arm every pony in the Wasteland and have some to spare. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a universal bullet. I found .22, .357, 5.56, .308, and anti-machine rounds, but not any 12.7mm, grenades, or flamer fuel tanks. I scooped up as much as I could from every ammo crate I passed as I ran along. At this point, I’d take it all and let my PipBuck sort it out.
"来吧！该死的子弹在哪里?"我边跑边问。这里有足够的枪装备荒地里的每一匹小马，还有一些备用的。不幸的是，并没有一个通用的子弹。我找到了.22，.357,5.56，.308和反机枪子弹，但没有找到任何12.7毫米口径的手榴弹或火焰筒燃料箱。我一边跑一边从经过的每一个弹药箱里尽可能多地舀起来。在这一点上，我会全部拿走，让我的PipBuck来处理。
Two more blobs dropped onto me, one tangling in my wings with ropy masses and hooked limbs, the other ripping into my rump and legs with scythelike blades, tearing rents in my armor. Okay, that sent my ‘oh fuck no’ level through the roof. I kicked back wildly at the misshapen thing, knocking it away, then rolled, squishing the webbed mass like a bloody tick. It continued to writhe on my back, but with my magic I pulled it off and flung it over the edge. The strain on my magic made me a little more aware of the thudding pain in my head, but I
又有两团东西掉到我身上，一团粘在我的翅膀上，缠绕着粗糙的团块和钩状的四肢，另一团用镰刀状的刀刃撕扯着我的臀部和腿，撕裂着我的盔甲。好吧，这让我的'哦，他妈的不'水平通过屋顶。我疯狂地踢了踢这个畸形的东西，把它踢开，然后滚了一下，像血滴一样压扁了这个有蹼的东西。它继续在我的背上翻滚，但是我用我的魔法把它拉了下来，扔到了边上。紧张的魔法让我更加意识到脑袋里砰砰作响的疼痛，但是我
shoved it aside. I’d deal with the brain damage later. The scythe-limbed creature lunged once again, and I hit it with a trio of hoofslams to knock it back. Physical blows wouldn’t take it out, though.
把它推到一边。我以后再处理脑损伤的问题。这个四肢长着镰刀的生物又一次向我扑来，我用三重蹄把它击回去。然而，身体上的打击并不能让它消失。
Then I spotted it. It lay within the shelter of a M.W.T. crate lying on its side. Maybe it was a trick of the light or the stress, but I imagined a beam of golden radiance illuminating it. Without hesitation, I launched myself at the crate, snatching it up with a cackle of glee. An IF-84 Stampede riot shotgun. In a flash, I tore the translucent wrapping paper off, took in the sharp scent of lubricant, and popped out the drum. I selected the ammo with my PipBuck organizer and loaded the gun with red-banded shells. With a distinctly manic grin on my face, I murmured, “I shall name you Boomstick.”
然后我发现了它。它躺在一个侧躺着的m.w.t.板条箱里。也许是光线或压力的作用，但我想象着一束金色的光芒照亮了它。我毫不犹豫地冲向那个箱子，高兴地咯咯笑着把它抓了起来。一支IF-84防暴猎枪。一瞬间，我撕下半透明的包装纸，闻到了润滑剂的刺鼻气味，从鼓里蹦了出来。我用我的PipBuck记事本选择了弹药，然后在枪里装上了红色的弹壳。我脸上露出明显的狂躁的笑容，喃喃地说:"我要给你起名叫姆斯蒂克。"
The scythe-limbed horror charged me once more. I rose up, reached out, and grabbed its limbs as they descended. Then a trio of blazing incendiary rounds burned through its hide and malformed, toothy maw. The incendiary reaction took hold, and in seconds the abomination was first a toasty inferno and then a charred heap. All along the train, the monsters paused, and I grinned as wide as I could. I could kill them after all!
四肢像镰刀一样的恐怖又一次向我冲来。我站起来，伸出手，抓住它下落的四肢。然后，三颗燃烧的火焰子弹穿过它的皮毛和畸形的露齿的胃。燃烧的反应占据了主导地位，几秒钟之内，这个令人憎恶的东西先是一堆烤焦的地狱，然后变成了一堆烧焦的东西。整个火车过程中，怪物们都停了下来，我尽可能地咧着嘴笑。我可以杀了他们！
I fell into a frenzy of shots, grappling them with my hands before setting them ablaze with the incendiary shells. This was close combat, my forte. It didn’t matter that they had teeth sharp enough to rip steel or claws or were universally horrid; I could kill them. If I could kill them, I could win. And if I could, I would.
我陷入一阵狂乱的枪声中，用手抓住它们，然后用燃烧弹点燃了它们。这是近身格斗，我的强项。不管它们的牙齿是否锋利到可以撕裂钢铁或爪子，或者是否普遍地可怕，我都可以杀死它们。如果我能杀了他们，我就能赢。如果可以的话，我会的。
Not that my combat style didn’t have some problems. There was more than enough live ammo on the train to make firing blindly as much a hazard to me as it would be to them. My constant jumping and shooting wasn’t doing the impromptu bridge much good, either. In addition to that, I was up here, and Boo was down below with most of my gems. I popped a mouthful of stale garnets, the last of my stores, into my mouth as I reloaded the gun with flechettes to tear the monsters up a bit more before incinerating, swapping back and forth between magazines with my PipBuck’s inventory function.
并不是说我的作战风格没有问题。火车上有足够的实弹，盲目射击对我和他们一样危险。我不断的跳跃和射击也没有给临时搭建的桥梁带来什么好处。除此之外，我在这里，而Boo在下面，和我的大部分宝石一起。我吞了一口陈旧的石榴石----我最后的储备----放进嘴里，在火化之前，我用我的PipBuck库存功能在弹匣之间来回切换，给枪重新装满了石榴石，把怪物撕得更厉害一些。
More than once, I had to dart away from a container of cooking ammo, the rounds going off like a hive of blazing bees. At least a few grenades were in the mix as well, blowing flaming pieces of crate and critter into the air and making the train shake and sway alarmingly. Still, I fell into a moment of peace. Shoot.
不止一次，我不得不飞奔离开一个装着烹饪弹药的容器，炮弹像一群熊熊燃烧的蜜蜂一样飞散开来。至少还有一些手榴弹在混合物中，它们将箱子和动物的燃烧碎片抛向空中，使火车摇晃晃动得令人担忧。尽管如此，我还是陷入了片刻的平静。该死。
Jump. Kick. Blast. Run. Dive. Reload. Grab. Smash. Shoot. Toss. Smile. Retreat.
跳。踢。该死。快跑。潜水。重新装弹。抓住。粉碎。该死。扔掉。微笑。撤退。
Lunge. Cast. Shoot. Block. Twist. Stomp. Twist. Reload. Shoot. Laugh.
弓步。演员。该死。布洛克。扭转。跺脚。扭转。重新装弹。该死。笑。
Enemies I could fight with no moral complications. Opponents who were clear threats to me and my baby, which I could dispatch guilt-free. It didn’t matter where I was. This was the moment where, for several manic, magical seconds, I was alive from horn to hoof, metal or not. This was joy. This was sex. This was life!
我可以毫无道德障碍地与敌人战斗。那些对我和我的孩子构成明显威胁的反对者，我可以毫无愧疚地处置他们。我在哪里并不重要。在那一刻，几秒钟的狂躁和神奇，我活在从牛角到马蹄的世界里，不管是不是金属。这就是快乐。这就是性。这就是生活！
Then I whirled to blast another and froze. Before me stood a pony… but not a pony. Four legs. Two eyes, if one was a black button and the other a milky boil. No mouth, just a blunted bump of a muzzle and two knobby, melted-looking ears. The maroon hide reminded me of a ghoul, but less rotted and more diseased. The creature’s mane and tail were tendrils rather than hair. Most disturbing of all was a scar-like cutie mark on its flank. I hesitated a moment as another of the pony things stepped into view. Then a third. Shifting my gaze from one to the next, I waited for their mouths to open wide with countless jagged fangs… any second now… any second…
然后我旋转着想炸开另一个，结果僵住了。站在我面前的是一匹小马...但不是一匹小马。四条腿。两只眼睛，如果一只眼睛是黑色的纽扣，另一只眼睛是乳白色的疖子。没有嘴，只有一个钝钝的鼻口肿块和两只多节融化的耳朵。栗色的兽皮让我想起了食尸鬼，但腐烂程度更轻，病情更严重。这种生物的鬃毛和尾巴是卷须而不是毛发。最令人不安的是它的侧面有一个疤一样的可爱的印记。我犹豫了一会儿，另一匹小马的东西进入了我的视野。然后是第三个。我的目光从一个转移到另一个，我等待着他们的嘴张大无数的尖牙...现在的任何时候...任何时候..。
But they didn’t. They just crouched there, heads tilted, regarding me cluelessly. Where had they even come from? I glanced around, but aside from the motes and the grinding from below, everything was still.
但是他们没有。他们只是蹲在那里，歪着头，无礼地看着我。他们到底是从哪里来的？我环顾四周，但是除了下面的尘埃和摩擦声，一切都是静止的。
“Okay. Well… then… just stay back…” I finished lamely, backing away from them. They weren’t hostile, for the moment, so why blast them? I needed to find some gems and get back to Boo before…
"好吧。好吧......那么......退后......"我一瘸一拐地说完，离他们远远的。就目前而言，他们并没有敌意，那么为什么要炸死他们呢？我需要找到一些宝石，并回到阿布之前..。
The train shuddered under my hooves, and I looked behind me at the far wall. The scorpion-crab thingy had finally reached my level. Suddenly my super awesome shotgun seemed woefully inadequate. The tail spike reached up to where the tracks sprang across the gap, curled around the track and flatbeds, and gave a firm yank downward. The pincer hand reached up, grabbed a flatbed, and flung it at me like a giant throwing knife, pummeling me with a rain of metal containers. Suddenly, the wheels on the flatbed car I was on squealed, and the entire train began to roll backwards towards the beast. “Oh, you have got to be kidding!” I shouted as it grabbed another flatbed car and sent it whirling at me.
火车在我的蹄下颤抖着，我向后看着远处的墙。那个吃蝎子的东西终于达到我的水平了。突然之间，我那超级棒的散弹枪似乎显得严重不足。尾尖一直延伸到铁轨穿过缺口的地方，蜷缩在铁轨和平板车周围，猛地一拉向下。钳子的手伸了出来，抓起一辆平板车，像一把巨大的飞刀一样向我扔过来，用一大堆金属容器砸我。突然，我所在的平板车的轮子吱吱作响，整列火车开始向那头野兽后退。"哦，你一定是在开玩笑!"我大声喊道，它抓住了另一辆平板车，向我呼啸而过。
With all this garbage raining down, I’d be hard pressed not to be smacked out of the sky by a spinning slab of steel. I was no Rainbow Dash in the air. More like
随着这些垃圾如雨点般落下，我很难不被一块旋转的钢板从天上砸下来。我不是空中飞舞的彩虹。更像是
an Air Macintosh. I ran away from the abomination as it continued its barrage. I glanced behind me at the pony creatures, watching some plummet helplessly into the depths while others were devoured by the creature. I had bigger things to worry about as I was smashed again and again by the debris. I needed something substantial to use against it. Something like an anti-machine rifle. Or a minigun loaded with armor piercing rounds. Or a grenade machine gun. Or–
空气麦金塔。我逃离了这个令人憎恶的东西，因为它还在继续它的攻击。我瞥了一眼身后的小马驹们，看着一些无助地掉进水里，而另一些则被小马吞噬。我还有更重要的事情要担心，因为我一次又一次地被碎片砸碎。我需要一些实质性的东西来对抗它。有点像反机械步枪。或者一把装满穿甲弹的迷你枪。或者手榴弹机关枪。或者-
A long gray case smacked me right on the noggin with such force that I flipped forward, rolled, and ended up flat on my rump, hugging the offending case between my hooves. “Owww!” I hissed, gritting my teeth. Of all the times, why did I have to get hit by a… I paused and stared at the label right in front of my face. ‘Mark Four reusable missile launcher’.
一个长长的灰色箱子猛地砸在我的头上，我猛地向前翻滚，最后平躺在我的臀部上，把那个讨厌的箱子抱在我的蹄子之间。"啊!"我嘶嘶地说，咬紧牙关。这么多次，为什么我要被一个。.我停顿了一下，盯着眼前的标签。马克四型可重复使用导弹发射器。
If I ever saw that snaggle-toothed son of chaos again out of Boo’s body, I’d give him a kiss that’d make his antler… horn… – whatever! – pop right off. The case was heavy enough that I could barely lift it with my magic, so I hefted it with my hands and used my magic to pop open the latches while running/flying/falling in the direction of ‘away from that monster’. Inside the foam rubber lining was a far larger thing of beauty than my Boomstick: a four-foot-long firing tube and a trio of meter-long missiles. I hooked two under my wings as I watched my power drop below five percent.
如果我再看到那个长着獠牙的混沌之子从布的身体里出来，我会给他一个吻，让他的鹿角......-随便啦！-立刻跳出来。箱子很重，我几乎不能用我的魔法举起它，所以我用我的手举起它，用我的魔法打开门闩，同时朝着"远离那个怪物"的方向奔跑/飞行/坠落。泡沫橡胶衬里里面是一个比我的手柄大得多的东西:一个四英尺长的发射管和三个一米长的导弹。当我看到我的能量下降到百分之五以下时，我用翅膀钩住了两个。
I loaded the missile with my mouth, bit down on the trigger, braced the launcher against my shoulder and neck, and whirled, looking through the sight at the multi-eyed face of the monster. The missile gave a soft putt, followed by a deadly hiss as it streaked through the air and detonated… well, more towards the rear of the creature rather than on its face, but close counted in horseshoes, grenades, and missile launchers! The blast made it stagger, and the next flatbed rammed it before the claw could catch it and throw it at me. That gave me time to load the second missile. I braced myself and fired; this time, it exploded more solidly on the body and blew out a pony-sized chunk of gore. The ejected hunks of flesh morphed midair into horrid flapping bird-bat things that darted away. It was regenerating as I watched, but even this monster would take time to close that hole.
我用嘴装上导弹，咬下扳机，用发射器抵住我的肩膀和脖子，旋转着，透过瞄准镜看着这个怪物多眼的脸。导弹轻轻推了一下，接着发出致命的嘶嘶声，它划过空中，然后引爆了......好吧，更多的是朝着那个生物的后方而不是它的脸上，但在马蹄铁、手榴弹和导弹发射器上都算得很接近！爆炸使它摇摇晃晃，第二辆平板车在它的爪子抓住它并向我扔来之前撞上了它。这样我就有时间发射第二枚导弹。我鼓起勇气开了枪;这一次，子弹在身体上爆炸得更加结实，爆出了一大块小马般大小的血块。喷射出来的大块肉在半空中变形成可怕的拍打着翅膀的鸟蝙蝠，然后飞走了。在我观察的时候，它正在再生，但即使是这个怪物也需要时间来填补那个洞。
I could do this. I could. I raced away along the flatbeds, sliding the third missile into the launcher. Time to end this! I spun around and fired the third missile straight at the creature’s mouth!
我可以这么做。我可以。我沿着平板车跑开，把第三枚导弹滑入发射器。是时候结束了！我转过身，向那个生物的嘴巴发射了第三枚导弹！
It lifted one flatbed and the missile detonated harmlessly on it, sending a massive fireball and countless flaming crates flying into the air. Okay, I might do this. I ran along the tumbling and shifting crates, getting slowed by the battering I received. “Missiles! Missiles! Where are the missiles?” I shouted as I was drawn slowly back. Flaming crates rained down on me from my own missile. “Discord! If you can hear me, hit me in the head with a missile please! Or three! My head can take it!”
它升起了一辆平板车，导弹在上面无害地爆炸了，发射出一个巨大的火球和无数燃烧的板条箱飞向空中。好吧，我可能会这么做。我沿着翻滚和移动的板条箱奔跑，因为受到重击而减慢了速度。"导弹！导弹！导弹在哪里?"我叫喊着，慢慢地被拉了回来。燃烧的板条箱从我自己的导弹上倾泻而下。"不和！如果你能听到我，请用导弹打我的头！或者三个！我的头受得了!"
My head went unbashed by a chaotically delivered crate of missiles, but I was able to pick up a couple rolling past my hooves. The problem was that the monster was now aware I could hurt it. Every missile I fired, it blocked with either that heavy pincer hand or flung debris, deflecting most of the energy. The monster was more than capable of regenerating before I reloaded, and soon, even I couldn’t keep ahead of it and reload the launcher and dodge crates at the same time.
我的头没有受到一箱子乱七八糟的导弹的重击，但是我还是抓住了一对从我的蹄子边滚过的小家伙。问题是，怪物现在意识到我可以伤害它。我发射的每一枚导弹，要么被那只沉重的钳形手挡住，要么被飞出的碎片挡住，大部分能量都被转移了。在我重新装弹之前，这个怪物有足够的再生能力，很快，甚至我都无法在它前面同时重新装弹药筒和道奇板条箱。
Most of the rolling flatbeds were on fire now, and the abomination didn’t seem to care too much about the smaller detonations. Countless masses of materiel were being lost down the hole. To try and buy myself time, I magically flung back grenades as quickly as they rolled by, but the few that did hit didn’t do any more damage than deflected missiles. I had to blow it apart, not bash it about. The monster let out a roar, and a moment later it was answered by multiple roars further below that chilled what blood I had left. If there were more of these things on the way…
现在大部分的滚动平板车都着火了，这个可恶的东西似乎并不太在乎那些小规模的爆炸。数不清的物资在洞里丢失了。为了给自己争取时间，我神奇地在手榴弹飞过的时候迅速扔回去，但是少数几枚没有击中的手榴弹造成的伤害并不比导弹偏转造成的伤害大。我不得不把它打得四分五裂，而不是痛打它。怪物发出一声吼叫，过了一会儿，下面响起了好几声吼叫，吓得我血肉模糊。如果路上还有更多这样的东西..。
No. I couldn’t wait. I was at three percent power as it was. I had maybe fifteen seconds of flight time, if I activated it. Couldn’t fly. Couldn’t teleport more than a few feet. Couldn’t hit it hard enough to finish it off. I was… no! I could beat this. I could! I just needed to hit it hard… like with a boat. I needed a boat to drop on this damned thing. Or maybe… I grinned as I slung the launcher across my back, tossed an empty crate between my wings, and started collecting grenades, flares, and anything else that might explode. The cars continued to fly at me, but I didn’t fight back. That just made it throw cars faster, which made the whole thing move with increasing velocity. Good.
没有。我等不及了。我当时只有百分之三的能量。如果我激活它，我大概只有15秒的飞行时间。不能飞。不能传送超过几英尺。打得不够用力，无法把它打完。我...不！我可以战胜它。我可以！我只是需要用力打它...就像用船一样。我需要一艘船来降落在这该死的东西上。或者也许......我笑着把发射器放在背上，在两翼之间扔了一个空箱子，开始收集手榴弹、照明弹和任何可能爆炸的东西。汽车继续向我飞来，但我没有反击。这只是让它把车扔得更快，这使得整个东西以增加的速度移动。很好。
Eventually the weight on my back started to slow me down, and I was drawn closer and closer to the monster. It began so smash down with its barb, and I had to dart to the left and right to avoid getting crushed like the cargo crates. Come on. It had to be soon. Soon. Any second… there! I glanced over my shoulder,
最终，我背上的重量开始减慢我的速度，我越来越接近那个怪物。它开始用它的倒钩粉碎，我不得不飞奔到左边和右边，以避免像货物板条箱一样被粉碎。来吧。必须尽快。很快。任何时候...那里！我回头看了一眼,
telekinetically pulled a half dozen pins from the top layer, and then flung the box off my back with a buck and a kick. A second later, the grenades detonated, covering the creature in a thick cloud of smoke and fire. From the flailing claw knocking flatbeds down the crevasse and the barb sweeping and flailing wildly, I knew it hadn’t been killed by the blast. As its flailing limbs dispersed more and more of the smoke, I hoped to see at leas–
用意念力从上面拉了半打大头针，然后一脚把盒子踢飞了。一秒钟之后，手榴弹爆炸了，浓烟和火焰笼罩着这个生物。从拍打着平板车沿着裂缝滑落的爪子，以及倒钩的横扫和疯狂的抽打，我知道它并没有被炸死。随着它飘动的肢体散开越来越多的烟雾，我希望至少能看到-
Then the train’s engine came shooting out of the tunnel; half rolling and half falling, it streaked towards the monster. I activated my wings, launching myself off the last flatcar and into the air. Like a chisel struck by a hammer, the flatcar sheared right through the outstretched claw hand and then clean through the monster’s body. A millisecond later, the engine rammed right into it with an enormous crash, splattering it against the wall. For good measure, I sent a missile flying, not at the monster, but the rock wall beneath it. Then the whole messy, bloody, flaming mess fell into the crevasse, tearing down the bridging tracks with it. I watched it fall…
然后火车的发动机从隧道里冲了出来，一半滚一半落，飞快地冲向那个怪物。我启动了机翼，从最后一辆平板车上起飞，飞向空中。就像被锤子敲击的凿子一样，这辆平板车在伸出的爪形手中划过，然后穿过怪物的身体。一毫秒之后，发动机猛地撞向它，发出巨大的撞击声，把它撞向墙壁。另外，我还发射了一枚导弹，不是射向怪物，而是射向它下面的岩壁。然后整个混乱、血腥、燃烧的混乱落入裂缝中，连接的铁轨也被它撕裂了。我看着它落下..。
Then joined it.
然后加入了它。
I had barely enough power to tumble towards the wall, slow my drop with a few kicks of power to my talismans, and then reach out with my hands and cling on for all I was worth, scoring jagged runnels in the rock with my fingers as I plummeted further into the abyss. I was only hopeful that I would land somewhere in the vicinity of Boo, Discord, and their precious, delicious gems as I tumbled, fell, and tumbled some more. I finally came to a rest at the mouth of some sewer, much farther down than Boo. And there was no way for her to reach me…
我几乎没有足够的力量滚向墙壁，通过对护身符的几脚力量来减缓我的下落速度，然后伸出我的手紧紧抓住我所有值得的东西，当我进一步跌入深渊时用我的手指在岩石上划出锯齿状的小道。我只是希望我会降落在布，不和，和他们的宝贵，美味的宝石附近的地方，我跌倒，跌倒，再跌倒一些。我终于在一个下水道入口处休息了一会儿，这个下水道比布要深得多。她没办法联系到我。
My power flashed, flickered, and went dark, leaving me in the depths where no one… not Boo, not Cognitum, not even Rampage or the Legate... could find me.
我的力量闪烁着，闪烁着，然后消失在黑暗中，把我留在没有人能够找到我的深处......没有人能够找到我，没有人能够找到我，没有人能够找到我，没有人能够找到我。
* * *
* * *
I didn’t know how long I lay there, the bare flickers of my power reserves keeping one ear working, listening to things drip and gurgle. More than once, I heard echoing hoofsteps, roars, clicks, and cracking. The ground trembled more than once under my body, and I heard rocks falling in the deeps. I heard voices too. Soft, almost fearful, singing within me. Occasionally I felt the warmth of a mote as it moved through me. And I felt the occasional flutter of my baby
我不知道我在那里躺了多久，我的能量储备只有微弱的闪烁，一只耳朵在工作，听着东西滴滴答答地响。我不止一次听到马蹄声、吼声、咔嗒声和劈啪声的回响。大地在我身下不止一次地颤抖，我听到岩石从深处落下的声音。我也听到了声音。柔和的，几乎是恐惧的，在我心中歌唱。偶尔我能感觉到尘埃的温暖，它穿过我的身体。我感觉到我的宝贝偶尔在颤抖
moving, little reminders that I couldn’t lie here on this ledge forever. But there was nothing I could do. My only hope was that Discord, with his crazy chaotic powers, could find me before another monster did.
感人的，小小的提醒，我不能永远躺在这个窗台上。但我无能为力。我唯一的希望就是不和谐，以他那疯狂的混乱力量，能在另一个怪物之前找到我。
And lying there, blind, helpless, minutes turning to hours… silence taking me as the last of my power was expended... I couldn’t be faulted for dreaming, could I?
躺在那里，盲目，无助，几分钟变成几个小时......沉默让我失去了最后的力量......我不会因为做梦而受到指责，不是吗？
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
Mom and I sat together at the kitchen table, my filly drinking from a bottle and my colt snoozing in her embrace as she rocked him slowly. It was early morning, but she always sat up with me when the twins were fussy like this. Even if it gave her a harder day, she always took the time and sleep deprivation. “She’s such a glutton,” I murmured softly as my dark blue daughter drank her fill yet again.
妈妈和我一起坐在厨房的桌子旁，我的小母马从瓶子里喝水，我的小马在她的怀里打盹，她慢慢地摇着它。这是一个清晨，但是当双胞胎像这样大惊小怪的时候，她总是坐在我身边。即使这让她度过了艰难的一天，她也总是花时间和睡眠剥夺。"她真是个贪吃鬼,"当我深蓝色的女儿再次喝得酩酊大醉时，我轻声地说。
“Babies always are,” Mom replied, just as soft, then gave me a wry smile. “You were no different. If anything, you were worse.” I gave a skeptical sniff, and she grinned at me. “It’s true. And you didn’t limit yourself to milk. How you got your hooves on your father’s apple cider, I’ll never know.”
"婴儿总是这样,"妈妈回答，同样温柔，然后给了我一个苦笑。"你也一样。如果说有什么区别的话，那就是你更糟糕。"我用怀疑的眼光看了她一眼，她咧嘴笑了笑。"这是真的。你也没有限制自己喝牛奶。你的蹄子是怎么沾上你父亲的苹果酒的，我永远不会知道。"
“Least it didn’t damage me too much,” I said as I gazed into my daughter’s face and brushed her blue mane from her tiny horn. “I’m glad you’re here, Mother. Even if you’re really not here…”
"至少它没有对我造成太大伤害,"我凝视着女儿的脸，拂去她小小的角上的蓝色鬃毛，说道。"我很高兴你在这儿，妈妈。即使你真的不在这里......"
“No. I’m not,” she said as she regarded the colt in his blanket. “That doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy being a grandmother a little, does it?”
"没有。我没有,"她看着毯子里的小马说。"这并不意味着我不能享受一点做祖母的乐趣，不是吗?"
“I suppose not,” I said as I turned my head and stared out the window at Equestria that wasn’t anymore. “This isn’t a normal dream, is it? Normally, I don’t know I’m dreaming.”
"我想是的,"我说，我转过头，凝视着窗外的Equestria，它已经不在了。"这不是一个正常的梦，是吗？通常，我不知道自己在做梦。"
She looked up at me with teal eyes and smiled a little before glancing back down. “Most ponies don’t have as much experience with mind games as you, Blackjack.” Tears began to run down her cheeks. “You have such beautiful babies.”
她抬起蓝绿色的眼睛看着我，微微一笑，然后又低头看了我一眼。"大多数小马没有你那么多玩心理游戏的经验，Blackjack。"眼泪开始从她的脸颊上流下来。"你有这么漂亮的孩子。"
“Who are you?” I asked as my filly stopped drinking and started to whine. I draped a towel down my back and started to gently pat to work out the burp. She didn’t meet my gaze as she gently rocked my son. I really needed to think of
"你是谁?"当我的小母马停止喝酒并开始哭泣时，我问道。我把一条毛巾搭在背上，开始轻轻地拍打打嗝。她轻轻地摇着我的儿子，没有与我的目光相遇。我真的需要想想
some names. I wasn’t sure how many more card game names there were, though.
一些名字。不过，我不知道还有多少扑克游戏的名字。
“Just another ghost. You pick them up, don’t you, Blackjack?” she asked with a wry smile. “Echo. Lacunae. You draw the past to you. Dig up the old secrets. Pull everything into the future, whether you like it or not.” She brushed the red earth pony’s mane from his face with an anguished expression. “Whether we like it or not.”
"只是另一个鬼魂。你去接他们，对吧，黑杰克?"她苦笑着问道。"回声。空隙。你把过去吸引到你身边。挖掘旧的秘密。不管你喜不喜欢，把一切都放在未来。"她用痛苦的表情拂去那匹红土马脸上的鬃毛。"不管我们喜不喜欢。"
From outside the window came a colossal flash of energy, turning Mother into a black silhouette. I wasn’t too worried. At this point, I was an expert at nightmares and horrors. “You’re one of those mote souls, aren’t you?” She hesitated a moment, then nodded. Outside the window, the world was on fire. It didn’t touch our bubble. Not yet. That expanding wave of annihilation hadn’t quite reached us. “Why are there so many of you in the Core?”
窗外传来一阵巨大的能量闪光，把母亲变成了一个黑色的轮廓。我并不是很担心。在这一点上，我是噩梦和恐怖方面的专家。"你是那种灵魂，是不是?"她犹豫了一会儿，然后点了点头。窗外，整个世界都在燃烧。它没有触及我们的泡沫。还没有。不断扩大的湮灭波还没有完全到达我们这里。"为什么核心区有这么多人?"
The house exploded in a silent wave, the wood splintering, the pipes twisting like drinking straws. Still, we were untouched. This was a dream, after all. I watched the corpse of my neighbor Midnight lying on her lawn. A small mote of light rose up from her, rising towards the sky. Then it was suddenly pulled back. I watched it approach the ruins of the house and a small box that read ‘Roseluck Pest Solutions’. With a tiny cry, it was pulled away. “It drew us. From all over Equestria. All over the world.” She sniffed. “Can you imagine what it was like? We died… but we can’t pass on. We were drawn through those silver rings to this place. We’re trapped here. Like you.”
房子在无声的海浪中爆炸，木头碎裂，水管像吸管一样扭曲。尽管如此，我们还是没有受到影响。毕竟，这是一场梦。我看着我邻居午夜的尸体躺在她的草坪上。一小束光从她身上升起，朝着天空升起。然后它突然被拉了回来。我看着它走近房子的废墟和一个写着'RoseluckPestSolutions'的小盒子。随着一声轻微的叫喊，它被拉开了。"它吸引了我们。来自Equestria各地。世界各地。"她吸了一口气。"你能想象那是什么样子吗？我们死了...但我们不能继续下去。我们穿过那些银戒指来到这个地方。我们被困在这里了。就像你。"
“But why?” I asked as my daughter gave a little burp, and didn’t vomit down my back for a change. Mom’s suggestion to add a little rice to the milk had worked after all. “Why does it draw you here?” I knew how: the silver rings. But what was the ultimate purpose behind them?
"但为什么呢?"我问道，我的女儿打了个嗝，没有吐到我的背上。妈妈在牛奶里加一点米饭的建议终于奏效了。"它为什么把你吸引到这里来?"我知道怎么做:银戒指。但是它们背后的最终目的是什么呢？
“I don’t know. Because it can, I suppose. It doesn’t eat us. Doesn’t need us. And yet it craves us and keeps us trapped within this place,” she said quietly. “Perhaps it delights in tormenting us. Or maybe it thinks it’s protecting us from the everafter. It can’t get all of us. I’m still waiting for my sister to join me… and horrified she will…” She hung her head mournfully.
"我不知道。因为它可以，我想。它不会吃掉我们。不需要我们。然而它却渴望我们，把我们困在这个地方,"她平静地说。"也许它喜欢折磨我们。或者它认为它在保护我们不受永恒的伤害。它不可能把我们所有人都卷进来。我仍然在等待我的姐姐加入我的行列......而且她很害怕......"她悲伤地低下了头。
Sister? But… She reached out a hoof and covered my mouth so I couldn’t ask the question. “I’m sending help to you, Blackjack. Please, do what you have to. Get out of here. See to your babies.”
姐姐？但是......她伸出一只蹄子捂住了我的嘴，所以我没法问这个问题。"我会派人来帮你的，Blackjack。请做你该做的。滚出去。照顾好你的孩子。"
“Who are you?” I murmured as tears ran down my eyes.
"你是谁?"眼泪顺着我的眼睛流下来，我喃喃地说。
“Someone who knows what it’s like to deserve to hurt,” she replied in a whisper, the light fading out around us. She scooped up my filly in her other hoof. “I’ll look after your babies till you return.”
"一个知道受到伤害是什么感觉的人,"她轻声回答，光线在我们周围渐渐消失。她用另一只蹄子把我的小母马抱起来。"我会照顾你的孩子，直到你回来。"
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
Somepony was putting something hard into my mouth. I pulled it in with my tongue, tasted the fiery flavor of a ruby, masticated, and swallowed. Instantly, my systems started booting up again. “Oh, thank you Boo…” I said as my eyes flickered to life.
有个小马正往我嘴里塞硬东西。我用舌头把它拉了进去，尝到了红宝石的火辣辣的味道，咀嚼着吞了下去。很快，我的系统又开始启动了。"哦，谢谢你......"我说着，眼睛里闪烁着生命的光芒。
The mottled, horrifying visage of an abomination pony met my eyes. It only had one eye, a maroon orb on the left side of its face. Only the fact that my E.F.S. was blue kept my magic bullets in check. Another one behind it, with vestigial membranous wings, held a second gem in a mustache made of a brush of tendrils. There were more behind those, each holding a small gemstone. I levitated them to me one after the next, eating them and refilling my batteries, waiting for them to try and eat me. But they didn’t. They simply stared at me with their mismatched eyes.
一匹讨厌的小马的斑驳恐怖的面容映入我的眼帘。它只有一只眼睛，左脸上有一个栗色的球体。只有我的e.f.s是蓝色的才能让我的魔法子弹受到控制。另一个在它后面，有着退化的膜状翅膀，在一个用卷须做成的胡子里放着第二颗宝石。他们后面还有更多的人，每个人都拿着一块小宝石。我把它们一个接一个地悬浮起来，吃掉它们，给我的电池充电，等着它们试图吃掉我。但是他们没有。他们只是用不相称的眼睛盯着我。
“Um… thanks…” I murmured awkwardly. “Can you understand me?” They stared in response. “Can… you lead me to Boo and Discord?” The silent herd turned to regard each other, then began wandering up the sewer pipe. One stopped and turned its unblinking eye back at me. “Okay. I’m coming.” I scrambled after them, barely able to fit with my wings.
"嗯......谢谢......"我尴尬地低声说。"你能听懂我说的话吗?"他们瞪大眼睛回答。"你能......你能带我找到布和不和吗?"沉默的羊群互相注视着，然后开始沿着下水道漫步。其中一只停了下来，目不转睛地看着我。"好吧。我来了。"我紧随其后，勉强能够适应我的翅膀。
I had to trust that they knew where we were going. The pipe led to a crevasse which led to a partially collapsed subway which led to a rockslide. All the while, I passed by more and more abomina… weird things. Plenty were ponies, but I spotted others that appeared to be griffins, or zebras, or even hellhounds. They stood around, or wandered aimlessly. Every now and then, one would misstep and tumble, coming apart like wet roadapples. A mote of light escaped and wandered away. The bloody goop would form spiders, or scorpions, or other skittering things that I occasionally had to splatter with Boomstick. Once, I watched as a mote slipped into a puddle of bloody goo which then coalesced into a tiny weird griffin.
我必须相信他们知道我们要去哪里。管道通向一个裂缝，这个裂缝导致了一个部分倒塌的地铁，这个地铁导致了岩石滑坡。自始至终，我路过越来越多讨厌的...奇怪的东西。很多是小马，但是我发现其他的看起来像是格里芬，斑马，甚至是地狱犬。他们要么站着，要么漫无目的地闲逛。有时候，人们会走错一步，摔倒，像潮湿的路苹果一样散架。一小束光跑了出来，四处游荡。血淋淋的黏糊糊的东西会变成蜘蛛、蝎子或者其他我偶尔不得不用火箭筒飞溅出来的东西。有一次，我看到一粒尘埃滑进一滩血淋淋的粘液，然后结合成一个怪异的小狮鹫。
Flesh and soul, but no mind, and without a soul, they became monsters. “But
肉体和灵魂，但没有思想，没有灵魂，他们变成了怪物。"但是
why?” I asked, baffled. Even a little purple pony in my head was fresh out of ideas.
为什么?"我困惑地问道。即使是我脑海中的一匹小紫马也是新鲜出炉的。
Then I heard a wonderfully familiar voice from down a passage. “Is ya sure Bwackjack’s gonna come this way?” Boo asked, her voice distant and coming from somewhere above. I opened my mouth to call out but then closed it and scanned the tunnel. There might be critters nearby. I needed to find a way up to them.
然后我听到一个奇妙的熟悉的声音从下面的一段。"你确定疯子杰克会走这条路吗?"布问道，她的声音远远的，从上面的某个地方传来。我张开嘴想喊出来，但随后又闭上嘴，扫视了一下隧道。附近可能有动物。我需要找到一条通向他们的道路。
“Oh, I daresay she’ll be around soon enough. When it’s dramatically appropriate,” Discord replied, her voice echoing softly in the tunnels. “She has the knack for that sort of thing. It really is a useful perk for arriving just in the nick of time and save the day. Quite aggravating.”
"哦，我敢说她很快就会回来的。只要时机合适,"不和谐的声音回应道，她的声音在隧道里回荡。"她在这方面很有一套。这真的是一个有用的额外福利抵达时间的最后一刻，挽救了一天。真让人恼火。"
“Yous so weird, Discowd,” Boo huffed. “Nothin’ you say makes sense.”
"你们真奇怪，迪斯科,"布怒气冲冲地说。"你说的一切都没有意义。"
“Ah, what fun is there in making sense, my dear filly?” Discord replied fondly, her dry chuckle reaching my ears as it echoed through the tunnels. “I am a being of chaos. I delight in mischief, upsetting order, thwarting the plans of others… and occasionally mixing weather patterns with snack foods.”
"啊，讲道理有什么乐趣呢，我亲爱的小姑娘?"不和谐的声音深情地回应着，当它在隧道里回荡时，她干巴巴的笑声传到了我的耳朵里。"我是一个混乱的人。我喜欢恶作剧、扰乱秩序、阻挠别人的计划......偶尔还会把天气模式和零食混在一起。"
“Was you really bad?”
"你真的很坏吗?"
Discord didn’t answer for several seconds, and when he did it was soft and reflective, “I suppose I was, dear Boo.”
不和谐的声音持续了几秒钟，当他这样做的时候，声音柔和而沉思,"我想是的，亲爱的波。"
I spotted an elevator shaft; the mare’s voice seemed to come down it. There wasn’t anything for it. I looked around at the mangled herd, turned on my levitation talismans, and started up, leaving them behind.
我发现了一个电梯井，母马的声音似乎从电梯井里传下来。没有任何东西可以用。我环顾四周，看着那群受伤的牛群，打开我悬浮的护身符，然后向前走去，把它们留在了身后。
“Why were you bad, Discowd?”
"你为什么那么坏，迪斯科?"
“Oh, you too? Honestly, does no one actually listen to me? The Satellite-Stamped Sisters have been dead two centuries, and they still have more pull? And I’ve made sure to be on my best behavior and everything while in you.” No doubt Boo would have heard my hooves and wingtips scraping the walls if she wasn’t in a conversation. “Still, at the time… I don’t think I realized how terrible it is to hurt. Harm, to me, was boredom. If ponies didn’t like my pranks, it was because they lacked the humor and wit to appreciate the gift I offered. Fear. Suffering. Misery. I didn’t understand the harm they caused others. I was only
"哦，你也是？老实说，没有人真正听我说话吗？被贴上卫星标签的姐妹们已经死了两个世纪了，她们还有更大的吸引力吗？我已经确保在你身体里的一切都是我最好的表现。"毫无疑问，如果布没有和我交谈的话，她会听到我的蹄子和翼尖摩擦墙壁的声音。"尽管如此，在那个时候......我不认为我意识到伤害是多么可怕。对我来说，伤害就是无聊。如果小马不喜欢我的恶作剧，那是因为它们缺乏幽默感和智慧来欣赏我提供的礼物。恐惧。痛苦。痛苦。我不明白他们对别人造成的伤害。我只是
interested in the fun of the new.” He let out a long sigh. “Dear me. Two centuries locked in a starmetal tomb, and I’ve gotten all mopey. But then, the mope is in high style around this horrible place.”
对新事物的乐趣感兴趣"他长长地叹了口气。"天哪。两个世纪以来，我被锁在一个星级金属墓穴里，我变得郁郁寡欢。但是，在这个可怕的地方周围，那些闷闷不乐的人显得格调高雅。"
“Is yous gonna be bad again?” Boo asked innocently.
"你又要变坏了吗?"布天真地问道。
I paused atop a twisted lift platform and listened for his reply. I was curious about that too. “My dear. At the moment, I am a fragment of a wisp of a particle of my former power. Were I not safely within you, I’d be blown out, like a candle,” Discord said fondly, but also in tired tones. “I’m far too old and worn out for those shenanigans. One more prank, I think. One more. But if I had my choice…” she hummed speculatively. “Perhaps… perhaps… but it is in my nature to be contrary. If the status quo is wickedness… I am valiant. And there is so much wickedness in the world today, order and chaos alike. I couldn’t let that stand. But then, well, if the norm is civility and order, I dissent. Usually. But I can’t help but think that, even if her mane’s a little short and she can be so terribly depressing at times, Blackjack does remind me of what a certain yellow pony would have been. I mean, seriously, freeing me, no questions asked or deals demanded? Telling me to do better? She needs someone around to tell her to stop apologizing to the dragon trying to eat her. And take her out drinking! I like Drunkjack.”
我在一个扭曲的电梯平台上停了下来，听他回答。我对此也很好奇。"亲爱的。此时此刻，我只是我以前力量的一缕微粒的碎片。如果我不能安全地待在你身边，我就会像蜡烛一样被吹灭,"不和睦亲切地说，但语调也显得疲倦。"我太老了，已经受不了这些恶作剧了。又一个恶作剧，我想。再来一杯。但如果我可以选择的话......"她沉思地哼道。"也许......也许......但我的天性就是反抗。如果现状是邪恶的...我是勇敢的。今天的世界充满了邪恶，秩序和混乱都是如此。我不能坐视不管。但是，如果规范是礼貌和秩序，我不同意。通常情况下。但是我忍不住想，即使她的鬃毛有点短，有时候她可能非常沮丧，Blackjack确实让我想起了一匹小黄马会是什么样子。我的意思是，说真的，解放我，没有问题或交易要求？告诉我要做得更好？她需要有人在她身边告诉她不要再向想吃她的龙道歉了。带她出去喝酒！我喜欢醉汉。"
I rose to the open elevator door and stepped out. “Well, I’m glad we’re friends, Discord. Or at least on the same side,” I said as I deactivated the talismans and immediately popped a ruby.
我站起来，走到开着的电梯门前，走了出去。"好吧，我很高兴我们是朋友，不和谐。或者至少是在同一边,"我一边说，一边解除了护身符，立刻钻出一颗红宝石。
Boo rose to her hooves and launched herself at me. “Bwackjack!” I’m sure, a few months ago, I would have been adorably bowled over. Instead, she clanged loudly against my armor plate and sank into a heap. “Owww…” she whined, rubbing her head.
布站起来向我扑过来。"怪人!"我敢肯定，要是在几个月前，我肯定会被迷得神魂颠倒。然而，她却大声地撞在我的钢板上，一屁股坐了下去。"啊......"她一边呜咽着，一边揉着头。
“Sorry,” I said as I kissed Boo's boo-boo. “You two okay?”
"对不起,"我一边说，一边亲吻着阿布的小伤。"你们俩没事吧?"
“Oh, absolutely delightful. Wonderful place to sit around and linger,” Discord replied, rolling her mismatched eyes. “I’m thinking of setting up a summer cottage. The view of the horrific abyss is quite lovely this time of year.” She stood and tapped a door with her hoof, scraping away some of the oxidation. ‘Robronco Access Hatch 11-D. Trespassers will be Pinkied!’. “I knew you’d arrive here, Blackjack. There’s no way you’d fall to a common spawn of these
"哦，绝对令人愉快。"坐在这里逗留真是个好地方,"不和谐的人回答道，转动着她那双不协调的眼睛。"我在考虑建一座夏季别墅。在每年的这个时候，可怕的深渊景色非常美丽。"她站起来用蹄子敲了敲门，刮掉了一些氧化物。罗布朗科通道11-D舱门。入侵者将被钉死."我就知道你会来的，黑杰克。你不可能落入这样一群普通人的圈套
depths, no matter how delightful.”
无论多么令人愉悦"
Delightful? I supposed to something like him… “Do you know what that monster was?” I asked, then pointed down. “There were these… these things.” My specificity earned me a wry arch of her brow and a sardonic smirk. “They were mismatched, mangled… things! Pony things and griffin things and… just… things!” Discord sighed, shaking her head. “Does this have anything to do with the Eater… Tokomare… thing?”
令人愉快？我想应该是像他这样的人..."你知道那个怪物是什么吗?"我问道，然后指了下去。"有这些......这些东西。"我的特异性为我赢得了她的眉毛上的一道扭曲的弧线和一丝嘲讽的傻笑。"他们是不相称的，被毁坏的......东西！小马的东西和狮鹫的东西......只是......东西!"不和谐的声音叹了口气，摇摇头。"这和Eater...Tokomare...有什么关系吗?"
“An alien device of immense complexity that may also be an eldritch abomination of mind-shocking power projecting a field that liquefies flesh causing that flesh to transform and alter into monsters of grotesque magnificence?” Discord gushed, her red and yellow eyes growing by the second as she leaned towards me. Then she gave a dismissive wave of her hoof. “Nah. Couldn’t be. Personally, I think there’s something in the water. Fluoridation. Look it up.”
"一个极其复杂的外星设备，也可能是一种可怕的精神震撼力量，投射出一个能量场，使肉体液化，使肉体变形并变成奇形怪状的怪物?"不和谐的声音涌了出来，她靠近我的时候，红黄色的眼睛一秒一秒地长大。然后她不屑地挥了一下蹄子。"没有。不可能。就我个人而言，我认为水里有东西。氟化。去查查吧。"
“Fluoridation?” I muttered weakly, then shook my head hard. Focus. “Why would the Eater create monsters?”
"氟化?"我虚弱地咕哝了一声，然后使劲摇了摇头。专注。"食死徒为什么要创造怪物?"
“Why, Blackjack, that’s what stars do! It’s what they live for,” Discord said with a shrug. “That and shine and sing all day long. Personally, I prefer a little interaction. Some give and take. Tit for tat.”
"为什么，黑杰克，这就是明星该做的！这就是他们活着的目的,"不和谐耸耸肩说。"光芒四射，整天歌唱。就我个人而言，我更喜欢一些互动。有些人付出，有些人索取。以牙还牙。"
“So stars create life,” I murmured.
"所以星星创造了生命,"我低声说。
“Or shine. They’re very proud of the shining. And the singing. Stars… ech,” she snorted, waving her hoof dismissively. “Prima donnas, every one of them. Always needing the spotlight. Never standing to be upstaged for even a moment.” Then she blinked, and touched her chest at my smirk. “What?”
"或者晒太阳。他们为闪灵感到骄傲。还有歌声。星星......啊,"她哼了一声，不屑地挥动着她的蹄子。"他们每个人都是首席女高音。总是需要聚光灯。永远不要站着被抢镜头，哪怕是片刻。"然后她眨了眨眼睛，摸了摸她的胸部，看着我的假笑。"什么?"
I couldn’t take time to enjoy Discord’s blatant hypocrisy though. The words the Eater had blared struck me. Discord was inherently dishonest, and there was an honesty in that. “And if Cognitum is right?”
然而，我没有时间去欣赏它那赤裸裸的虚伪。那个食人者说的话打动了我。不和本来就是不诚实的，而且还有一种诚实。"如果认知是正确的呢?"
Discord shrugged once more. “Then it’s a machine of irreducible complexity, like yours truly, incapable of being understood. The fine line where magic and technology meet, and beyond that another where they mesh with life. Maybe it’s trying to rebuild the organisms of whatever place it came from, far, far away. Or maybe it’s just in need of a good debugging. After all, you’ve run into other
不和谐又耸了耸肩。"那么它就是一台不可化约的复杂性机器，就像我们真正的机器一样，无法被人理解。魔术和技术相遇的细微界限，超越它们与生活相融合的界限。也许它正在试图重建它来自的任何地方的生物体，不管它来自哪里，很远很远。或者它只是需要一个好的调试。毕竟，你已经遇到了其他人
intelligent machines.”
智能机器
That was true. Cognitum. Applebot, so many months ago. Happyhorn’s healing machines. “I guess there’s no real difference.”
这倒是真的。认知属。苹果机器人，好几个月前。哈皮霍恩的治疗机器。"我想没有什么真正的区别。"
Discord gaped at me. “No real difference? Why, Blackjack, there’s all the difference in the world! It’s like saying there’s no difference between ‘Blackjack’ and ‘messiah archetype’ or ‘Twilight Sparkle’ and ‘Fussypants protagonist’. The difference is as profound as ‘dearest friend’ and ‘pony you’ve a certain fondness for’ or ‘deadliest foe’ and ‘recurring antagonist’.” She pointed a hoof at me. “When you think of something in such a way, you define it. Contextualize it. You make it matter. If the Eater is just a piece of technological equipment run amok, then really everything you’ve gone through is a technical glitch. But if the Eater is a fallen star, a god maimed and dead, seeking to be reborn, then everything you are, everything you’ve done, is a struggle for the very survival of the world! What stakes could be higher?” Discord declared grandly, hooves raised to the roof. Then she sat and gave a little wave of her hoof. “But, eh… no real difference. Like, whatever.”
不和谐的声音在我耳边响起。"没有真正的区别吗？哎呀，黑杰克，世界上有这么多不同！这就好像说'Blackjack'和'救世主原型'或者'紫悦'和'爱挑剔的主角'没有区别一样。这种区别就像'最亲爱的朋友'和'你喜欢的小马'或'最致命的敌人'和'经常性拮抗剂'一样深刻。"她用蹄子指着我。"当你以这种方式思考某件事时，你就定义了它。将其置于语境中。你让它变得重要。如果Eater只是一个疯狂运行的技术设备，那么实际上你所经历的一切都是技术故障。但是如果食者是一颗陨落的星星，一个残废的死神，寻求重生，那么你的一切，你所做的一切，都是为了这个世界的生存而奋斗！还有什么风险更大?"不和谐声隆隆地响了起来，蹄子抬到了屋顶上。然后她坐了下来，稍稍挥了一下蹄子。"但是，呃......没有真正的区别。随便啦。"
I stared at her. Cognitum and Dawn believed the former. That the Tokomare and the Core were simply malfunctioning and damaged. The solution to the Wasteland was simply controlling, repairing, and utilizing infrastructure to restore society. All very neat and tidy. Red Eye would approve. So would LittlePip, I suspected. But what if this truly was more than simply fixing X to do Y? Was there a deeper meaning to anything I was doing? Saving my friends? Saving strangers? Saving the Wasteland? I stared at the rusty door before me, beyond which was my enemy.
我盯着她。认识论和道恩相信前者。德国佬和核心系统只是出现了故障和损坏。解决荒地问题的方法很简单，就是控制、修复和利用基础设施来恢复社会。一切都非常整洁。红眼会同意的。我怀疑小皮普也会这么做。但是，如果这真的不仅仅是简单地将x定义为y呢？我所做的事情有什么更深层次的含义吗？拯救我的朋友？拯救陌生人？拯救荒原？我盯着面前那扇生锈的门，门外就是我的敌人。
Why, ultimately, was I here?
最终，为什么我会在这里？
“You do better,” I murmured. “You try harder. You do everything you can to make up for your mistake, hoping that when everything is done, you’ve come even a tenth towards making up for the harm you caused.” The war. Twilight Sparkle. Pinkie Pie. Rarity. Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash. Applejack. Goldenblood. Celestia. Luna. Me. So many ponies I’d met since I’d left my home. “You try, knowing that it can never be enough. But you do it anyway, to make tomorrow a better place for everypony.”
"你做得更好,"我低声说。"你更加努力。你尽你所能去弥补你的错误，希望当一切都结束时，你已经达到了弥补你造成的伤害的十分之一。"战争。紫悦。粉红派。稀有。Fluttershy.彩虹冲刺。苹果白兰地。金色血统。女名女子名。女名女子名。我。自从我离开家后，我遇到了这么多的小马。"你尽力了，因为你知道这永远不够。但无论如何，你还是这样做了，为了让每个人的明天都变得更好。"
Discord rolled her eyes. “Oh, you have got to be kidding–” Then she blinked at
她的眼睛里充满了不和谐。"哦，你一定是在开玩笑——"她眨了眨眼睛
my frown and quickly amended, “I mean, yay. Go team horribly idealistic. Hoofbump!” She stuck her hoof out at me with a sheepish grin. Still, it’d done the trick of snapping me out of my navel-gazing, and I looked at the door.
我皱了皱眉，然后很快修正道:"我的意思是，耶。去团队可怕的理想主义。马蹄声!"她朝我伸出蹄子，羞怯地咧嘴一笑。尽管如此，它还是让我摆脱了目光短浅的状态，我看了看门。
There was a small terminal set in the wall next to it, the screen of which still flickered with life, and a PipBuck access plug. “First things first,” I said as I drew the cable out of my hoof.
它旁边的墙上有一个小型终端设备，屏幕仍然闪烁着生命的光芒，还有一个PipBuck访问插头。"要事第一,"我边说边把蹄子上的绳子拉了出来。
“Yes yes. Get this thing open so we can have the big, climactic showdown,” Discord said, tapping on the door.
""是的。"把这玩意儿打开，这样我们就可以进行一场盛大的、高潮迭起的摊牌了。"不和乐一边说，一边敲着门。
Part of me thought about using the Perceptitron to find out what Steel Rain was doing, but Cognitum had tracked me that way once before. Surprise might be the only advantage I had. I sighed, then used EC-1101 to open the door and expose the intact conduit-lined hall within. The tunnel led to a basement that had been heavily damaged and repaired. Cracks ran along walls, and gaps spidered out in the floor and ceiling. These were repaired with bolted plates, struts, and jacks. Clearly, somepony had been busy preventing this place from falling apart completely.
一部分的我想过用感知器去发现钢铁雨在做什么，但是认知力曾经以这种方式跟踪过我。惊喜可能是我唯一的优势。我叹了口气，然后用EC-1101打开门，露出里面完好无损的管道。这条隧道通向一个地下室，这个地下室已经被严重损坏并修复了。墙上有裂缝，地板和天花板上有缝隙。这些被修复与螺栓板，支柱，和千斤顶。显然，一些小马忙于防止这个地方完全分崩离析。
There were also dozens, perhaps hundreds, of crates of weapons, ammo, chems, and body armor. Enough for a small army. Shaky foundations and lots of explosives? Even I could see the potential…
还有几十箱，也许几百箱，武器，弹药，药品和防弹衣。足够一支小型军队使用。摇摇欲坠的地基和大量的爆炸物？即使是我也能看出..。
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Discord asked softly with a grin.
"你和我想的一样吗?"不和谐的声音轻轻地问道，并咧嘴一笑。
“Yeah, but I need to talk to Cognitum first. Find out what she knows about Horizons. Then we can blow this place up,” I replied as I loaded up on magazines of twelve-millimeter rounds.
"是的，但是我需要先和Cognitum谈谈。看看她对地平线了解多少。然后我们就可以把这个地方炸掉。"我一边回答，一边装满了12毫米口径的子弹。
“Well, that’s hardly what I was thinking,” Discord replied, indignantly. “I was thinking that marmalade would go wonderfully on pizza.”
"好吧，我可不是这么想的,"不和谐的人愤愤不平地回答。"我觉得橘子酱搭配披萨会很好吃。"
I laughed quietly. “That does sound good, actually. We should have that when we get done down here.”
我静静地笑了。"实际上，这听起来确实不错。当我们在这里完成工作时，我们应该拥有它。"
Discord stared at me, skeptically, but then nudged my shoulder with a hoof. “Deal.”
不和谐的声音用怀疑的目光盯着我，然后用蹄子推了推我的肩膀。"成交。"
The far side of the basement seemed to have all the working generators. A strong
地下室的另一边似乎有所有的发电机在工作。一个强大的
blue glow shone through the cracks and supports. If I were an insane supercomputer, that’s where I Would be. “I’ll make my way over there. What are you going to do?” I asked Discord.
蓝色的光芒从裂缝和支撑物中闪耀出来。如果我是一台疯狂的超级计算机，我就会在那里。"我要到那儿去。你打算怎么办?"我问不和谐。
“Why, what I always do. I’m shocked you even asked,” Discord said, reproachfully, then grinned and rubbed her hooves together with a purely diabolic expression on her face. “Make mischief!” She caught my raised brow and added, “All in the name of goodness, of course!”
"为什么，我总是这样做。"你居然问这种问题，我真是太震惊了,"不和谐的声音用责备的口吻说，然后咧嘴一笑，用一种纯粹邪恶的表情摩擦着她的蹄子。"恶作剧!"她抓住我扬起的眉毛，补充道:"当然，这一切都是以上帝的名义!"
“Uh huh,” I said skeptically. “Just don't do anything I would do, Discord. I don’t want to lose any more friends.”
"嗯,"我怀疑地说。"只是不要做任何我会做的事，不和谐。我不想再失去朋友了。"
“Of course,” she said, a little bit dejectedly. “I know how much you ponies hate to lose your friends...” She waved a hoof dismissively. “Well, fear not, Boo will come to no harm with me.”
"当然,"她有点沮丧地说。"我知道你们小马有多讨厌失去朋友......"她不屑地挥了挥蹄子。"好吧，别担心，阿布不会伤害我的。"
“I mean you too, you know,” I added, tapping her chest. “You stay safe as well.”
"我是说你也一样，你知道的,"我接着说，轻轻拍着她的胸口。"你也注意安全。"
She stared at me a moment. “You really mean that, Blackjack?”
她盯着我看了一会儿。"你是认真的吗，黑杰克?"
“Of course. You’re definitely a ten on my weirdness scale, but… well… You've got a hell of a bad reputation if even half of those old stories are to be believed. You’ve suffered more than enough for everything you’re supposed to have done. Everything I’ve seen you do has been good, if odd, and what you’ve told me, even if I don’t agree with all of it, makes it seem like you want to keep that up. I hope that that’s one thing that won’t change, at least. So, yeah… you’re my friend,” I said with a little shrug and smile.
"当然。你绝对是我怪异程度的10分，但是......嗯......如果这些古老的故事有一半是可信的，那么你的名声就糟透了。为了你应该做的一切，你已经受够了。我看到你做的每件事都是好的，即使有些奇怪，你告诉我的，即使我不完全同意，看起来你想要继续下去。我希望这一点至少不会改变。所以，是的......你是我的朋友,"我微笑着耸耸肩说。
Suddenly, I found myself hugged by the yellow-and-red-eyed, snaggletoothed mare. “You’re a bit less cushy than Fluttershy, but you’ll do,” she said with a smile. “Just don’t forget to write when this is all over. I simply won’t stand for a Sparkle not writing me. It’s terribly rude.”
突然，我发现自己被拥抱的黄色和红色的眼睛，小齿母马。"你比小萤火虫稍微不那么轻松，但你会的,"她笑着说。"当这一切结束的时候，别忘了写信。我只是不能容忍一个火花不给我写信。这太不礼貌了。"
“Uh… yeah. Sure,” I said with a baffled look. What was all that about? “Take care, Discord. Boo.”
"呃......是的。当然,"我带着困惑的表情说。这是怎么回事？"小心点，不和谐。嘘。"
“You be careful, Bwackjack,” Boo replied, and the white mare disappeared into the darkness of the Robronco basement. I stared at the blue glow shining ahead of me, took a deep breath, and advanced.
"你小心点，怪人,"布回答，白色的母马消失在罗布朗科地下室的黑暗中。我凝视着前方闪烁的蓝光，深深地吸了一口气，向前走去。
I made my way through the basement as silently as I could manage. I knew Cognitum wasn’t alone, but she didn’t know about me or Discord. I’d have to neutralize any protectors she had… and speaking of which! The ground began to rumble as a rainbow Ultra-Sentinel rolled around the corner. I barely had time to duck behind some crates as the massive war machine rolled past. Further ahead was a second one. Over there to the left, a third. Okay. Those might be a problem. Still, the basement was tight and cluttered. The machine had passed me without stopping. I just had to keep on my hooves.
我尽可能安静地穿过地下室。我知道并不是只有科涅塔姆一个人，但她并不知道我和不和谐的事。我得中和她手下的保护人...说到这个！地面开始隆隆作为一个彩虹超级哨兵滚动的角落。当巨大的战争机器滚过时，我几乎没有时间躲在板条箱后面。再往前是第二个。在那边左转，第三个。好吧。这可能是个问题。尽管如此，地下室还是紧凑而凌乱。机器从我身边经过，没有停下来。我只需要坚持下去。
Their presence definitely complicated matters, though. I couldn’t just trot up to her with huge killer robots rolling around. And blowing them up would definitely get this party started prematurely. I wished Scotch Tape was here. Maybe Ultra-Sentinels were a bit much, but she could just shut them down, no sweat. I paused, then frowned and glanced at my PipBuck. EC-1101 had been made to access Equestrian systems… did robots count?
不过，他们的出现无疑使问题复杂化了。我不能只是小跑到她与巨大的杀手机器人周围滚动。炸掉它们肯定会让这个派对提前开始。我希望透明胶带在这里。也许超级哨兵有点过分，但她可以轻而易举地关闭它们。我停顿了一下，然后皱起眉头，瞥了一眼我的皮布克。Ec-11101已经被用来访问马术系统...机器人算吗？
“Dealer?” I whispered as loudly as I dared. I glanced around, making sure the Ultra-Sentinels were out of earshot. “Echo, are you there?”
"经销商?"我尽可能大声地低声说。我环顾四周，确保超级哨兵听不到。"艾可，你在吗?"
A flicker in my vision and he appeared. Once, he’d looked like death. Now, he appeared like a ghost, translucent, pale, and suffering. The pained expression he wore made me want to hug him. “Yes, Blackjack?” he whispered.
我的视线一闪，他就出现了。有一次，他看起来像个死人。现在，他像一个幽灵一样出现了，半透明，苍白，痛苦。他那痛苦的表情让我想拥抱他。"什么事，黑杰克?"他低声说。
My reason for calling him fell back, and I was barely able to resist the urge to ask him if he was okay. Of course he wasn’t. He was a mind and soul trapped in a PipBuck, slowly dying. “Can I help you?”
我打电话给他的原因又回来了，我几乎无法抑制住问他是否还好的冲动。他当然不是。他的思想和灵魂被困在一个小小的盒子里，慢慢地死去。"有什么事吗?"
For a moment he appeared confused, and then, if anything, his sickly features turned even worse. “No, Blackjack. I’m sorry. You can’t.” He turned away from me, then asked softly, “What do you need, Blackjack?”
有那么一会儿，他显得很困惑，如果说有什么不同的话，那就是他那病怏怏的脸色变得更糟了。"不，黑杰克。对不起。你做不到。"他转身离开我，然后温柔地问:"你需要什么，Blackjack?"
I wanted to press him a moment, but couldn’t. Not as he was now. “These Ultra-Sentinels. Can you use EC-1101 to keep them from blasting me?”
我想给他施加一点压力，但是做不到。不像他现在这样了。"这些超级哨兵。你能用EC-1101阻止他们攻击我吗?"
He didn’t answer for a moment, then said, so quietly that I almost missed it, “Don’t worry about the robots. Just do what you have to do.”
他一时没有回答，然后平静地说:"别担心机器人。做你该做的吧。"
I stared extra hard at the E.F.S. bar of the nearest robot. Blue. Huh. “That was easy,” I murmured, glancing back. Then I froze as I saw the translucent tears on his cheeks as he stared at me in desolation, then faded away completely.
我紧盯着离我最近的机器人的E.F.S.酒吧。蓝色。哈。"那很容易,"我低声说，回头看了一眼。然后我僵住了，因为我看到他脸颊上半透明的眼泪，因为他苍凉地盯着我，然后完全消失了。
“Sorry,” he breathed in my ear. “I’m so sorry, Blackjack.”
"对不起,"他在我耳边轻声说。"我很抱歉，黑杰克。"
“You did your best. Big Macintosh would be proud. Thank you, Echo,” I said, but to no response. “Echo?” Nothing. “Echo?” I said a little louder. Still nothing. I sighed and rose slowly. “You did so much for me. If there was some way I could help, I would. I’m sorry,” I murmured, then stepped slowly towards the blue-barred Ultra-Sentinel, wary of it turning red and vaporizing me in one shot. It ignored my presence, so I trotted past and approached the blue glow at the far side of the basement.
"你已经尽力了。大麦金托什会感到骄傲的。谢谢你，艾可,"我说，但没有回答。"回声?"没什么。"回声?"我说大声一点。还是一无所获。我叹了口气，慢慢地站起身来。"你为我做了那么多。如果有什么我能帮忙的，我会的。"对不起,"我低声说，然后慢慢地走向蓝色栅栏的"超级哨兵"，小心它变成红色，一下子就把我蒸发了。它忽略了我的存在，所以我小跑过去，走近地下室远处的蓝色光芒。
Pipes and supports gave way to a large antechamber I’d seen weeks ago in a memory. There, atop a large steel platform framed by two pairs of parallel bars descending diagonally away along either side was the massive heap of computer circuitry of Horse’s knockoff Crusader Maneframe. Heavy structural reinforcement beams had been attached to the side, and for some reason a crane arm had been mounted on top. Either the change in perspective or maybe my nerves made the machine look even larger than I remembered. From above dangled an umbilical of pipes, hoses, and wires. Transparent glass tubes full of blueish fluids gurgled, and a palpable aura of chill air surrounded the immense machine. Five glass jars were arranged on the left side, each one shrouded in shadow cast by the machine, and a sixth sat next to a small wrought iron table. The wall behind the computer was missing, the two rails plunging diagonally down into the depths of a ravine below.
管道和支撑物被一个大的前厅所取代，我在几个星期前的记忆中见过这个地方。在那里，在一个巨大的钢制平台上，由两对双杠构成的框架沿着对角线向两边下降，上面是一大堆仿冒的十字军战士Maneframe的电脑电路。重型结构加固梁已连接到一侧，并由于某种原因，起重机手臂已安装在顶部。要么是视角的改变，要么是我的神经使这台机器看起来比我记忆中的还要大。从上面吊着一条由管子、软管和电线组成的脐带。装满蓝色液体的透明玻璃管汩汩作响，巨大的机器周围弥漫着一股寒意。左边放着五个玻璃罐，每一个都笼罩在机器的阴影里，第六个放在一张小铁桌子旁边。电脑后面的墙不见了，两根铁轨斜插在下面的一个深谷里。
I pulled out the missile launcher, loaded a projectile, and then balked. If Cognitum did know about Horizons, I needed to know too. Besides, perhaps Steel Rain was right and there was a diplomatic solution… not giving up EC-1101, but if she was sane and wanted to help the Wasteland, didn’t I owe her a chance? “Softest damn heart in the Wasteland…” I muttered. But if it so much as farted a spark at me, I’d whack it with a missile till it behaved. “Cognitum,” I said as I slowly ascended the metal stairs leading up to the top of the heavy steel plate. From the center of the hulking machine, a whirr began. It sounded almost like a purr.
我拔出导弹发射器，装上子弹，然后停了下来。如果Cognitum真的知道地平线，我也需要知道。此外，也许钢铁雨是正确的，有一个外交解决方案...不放弃EC-1101，但如果她是正常的，想帮助荒地，我不应该欠她一个机会吗？"荒原上最柔软的心......"我喃喃自语道。但是如果它对着我放一个屁，我就用导弹把它打个稀巴烂。"Cognitum,"我一边说，一边慢慢地走上通向那厚重的钢板顶端的金属楼梯。从笨重机器的中心传来一阵呼呼声。听起来像是咕噜咕噜的声音。
“At last,” a mare said from the shadows.
"终于,"一匹母马在阴影里说。
“Keep your distance,” I said quietly, keeping the missile launcher pointed at the shadowy shape approaching me from the back of the enormous machine. “I’m pretty sure it’s bad manners to talk with a missile launcher pointed at someone,
"保持距离,"我平静地说，让导弹发射器指向从巨大的机器后面接近我的阴影。"我敢肯定，用导弹发射器指着别人说话是不礼貌的,
but I’ve had a real long day.”
但我今天真的很累。"
“Quite understandable.” She slowly strode forward, from the darkness emerging a mare with beautiful lilac and pink tresses, a glimmering white horn, and soft, understanding green eyes. Sweetie Belle smiled beatifically down at me as she waited at the top of the stairs. “I’ve waited a long time for this moment,” she said with a pleased smile. “It’s good to finally meet you. Face to face.”
"完全可以理解。"她慢慢地大步向前走去，从黑暗中露出一头母马，她长着漂亮的淡紫色和粉红色的长发，一只闪着微光的白角，还有一双温柔的、明白人的绿眼睛。甜心贝儿在楼梯口等我的时候，向我甜蜜地微笑着。"我等这一刻等了很久了,"她笑着说。"很高兴终于见到你了。面对面。"
“How could I resist? You’ve made my life complicated, Cognitum. All for this,” I said, lifting my forehoof.
"我怎么能拒绝呢？你让我的生活变得复杂了，认知。都是为了这个,"我抬起前蹄说。
Her eyes locked onto it for several seconds. “Yes. All for that,” she said as she gazed at where my PipBuck lay. Then she looked at me. “Do forgive me my poor choice in servants. As the cliché goes: good help is hard to find.”
她的眼睛盯着它看了几秒钟。"是的。都是为了这个,"她盯着我的皮布克的地方说。然后她看着我。"请原谅我对仆人的选择不当。正如那句老话所说:好帮手很难找。"
“I don’t believe that. I’ve found that when you’re good, you’ll find help that’s just as good,” I said as I watched her. “Deus. Sanguine. Dawn. Steel Rain. You’ve made my life hard.”
"我不相信。我发现，当你表现好时，你会找到同样好的帮助,"我一边看着她一边说。"上帝。血红色。黎明。钢铁雨。你让我的生活变得艰难。"
Cognitum smiled, but it was more arch now. “You could have given up EC-1101 at any time. Returned it to ponies more deserving. Who could use it to resurrect Equestria properly. Your suffering was every bit a product of your own stubbornness and pride, Blackjack. Even you coming here, now, like this… it’s all about you.” The mare gave a sigh and shook her head. “Ah well. I knew from the moment we first met that you were special. You passed all my tests, albeit with a little help every now and then.”
科涅塔姆微微一笑，但现在显得更高深了。"你可以随时放弃EC-1101。把它还给更值钱的小马。谁能用它来恰当地复活小马国。你的痛苦完全是你自己固执和骄傲的结果，Blackjack。即使你来到这里，现在，像这样......一切都是为了你。"母马叹了口气，摇了摇头。"啊，好吧。我们第一次见面的时候我就知道你很特别。你通过了我所有的考验，尽管偶尔需要一点帮助。"
“I want to know things. You. EC-1101. Project Horizons,” I said as I kept the missile steady on her.
"我想知道一些事情。你。Ec-1101."地平线计划,"我一边说，一边保持导弹稳定地对准她。
Cognitum smiled casually, and in amusement. “Well, knowledge has its price, Blackjack. What do I get in return?”
科涅塔姆不经意地笑了笑，笑得很开心。"嗯，知识是有代价的，Blackjack。我能得到什么回报呢?"
“No missile to the face?” I suggested.
"没有导弹打在脸上?"我建议道。
She laughed and shook her head. “Costing you any and all information I possess. If you really didn’t care about finding answers, you would have fired without a word.” She trotted over to the table next to the jar. Upon it sat a delicate tea set, a bottle of Wild Pegasus, and a box of Sugar Apple Bombs. Within the jar, to my horror, was a familiar form gripped in the glow of a levitation talisman set in the
她笑了，摇了摇头。"我所掌握的一切信息都要付出代价。如果你真的不在乎找到答案，你就会一言不发地开枪。"她小跑到罐子旁边的桌子旁。上面放着一套精致的茶具，一瓶野飞马，还有一盒糖苹果炸弹。让我感到恐怖的是，罐子里有一个熟悉的形体，被一个漂浮在空中的护身符的光芒紧紧抓住
jar’s bottom: the mottled maroon body of Sanguine. His undead body twitched and jerked spasmodically as he levitated in the middle. His limbs had been hammered to steel braces, and cables snaked into his temples.
罐子底部:血红色斑驳的褐红色尸体。他那不死的身体抽搐着，在中间时断时续地晃动着。他的四肢被钉在钢支架上，电缆蜿蜒到他的太阳穴里。
“What the fuck… he’s supposed to be dead!” I said, pointing a hoof at the body as he twitched and jerked.
"他妈的...他应该已经死了!"我说着，用一只蹄子指着他的身体，他抽搐着。
“Technically, he is dead, but I understand your confusion,” she said as she poured herself a cup of tea, putting in two sugar cubes and a twist of fresh lemon. “I took Sanguine from the remains of Hippocratic before it exploded. He might have lost most of his sanity with his family, but I’ve been able to extract a rather sizeable amount of information on Project Chimera from him.” She let out a soft sigh and shook her head. “Such a pity. Had he been a little less ruthless and a little more loyal, he’d have his family now.”
"严格来说，他已经死了，但我理解你的困惑,"她边说边给自己倒了一杯茶，放了两块方糖和一片新鲜柠檬。"我从希波克拉底的遗体中取出了血印，直到它爆炸。他可能已经失去了与家人相处的大部分理智，但我已经从他那里获得了大量有关Chimera计划的信息。"她轻轻地叹了口气，摇了摇头。"真遗憾。如果他不是那么无情，而是那么忠诚，他现在就能拥有自己的家庭了。"
Sanguine’s mouth opened and closed in silent screams as his body strained against the metal plates that held him immobile. “That’s sick,” I whispered, feeling nauseous.
桑吉尼的嘴巴在无声的尖叫中张开又合上，他的身体紧紧地贴着那些使他动弹不得的金属板。"真恶心,"我低声说，感到恶心。
“My apologies. I could kill him if you like. Or give you the honors. Setting him free would just unleash another feral ghoul on the Wasteland.” Cognitum smiled sweetly, folding her hooves amicably on the table before her. “Which would you prefer?” I didn’t answer, averting my eyes but still seeing him silently writhe. “I see,” Cognitum said a moment later, lifting her teacup between her hooves.
"对不起。如果你愿意，我可以杀了他。或者给你这个荣誉。释放他只会在荒原上释放另一个凶残的食尸鬼。"科涅图姆甜蜜地微笑着，友好地把蹄子叠在她面前的桌子上。"你喜欢哪一个?"我没有回答，避开了我的眼睛，但仍然看到他无声地扭动。"我明白了,"过了一会儿，科格尼顿说，用蹄子夹起茶杯。
“Well, all things being equal, then, I’ll hold on to him a bit longer. You never know when you’ll need a blank.”
""好吧，既然一切都是平等的，那么，我就多留他一会儿。你永远不知道什么时候会需要一张空白的。"
There was a heavy boom of machinery that almost sent a missile flying as the crane moved over us and lowered a massive claw as big as my body. It gripped the top of the jar by the table and swung it over to the others. I struggled to regain my equilibrium, as Cognitum took a sip of her tea. I guessed that if that Sweetie Bot was made for sex, it had to be able to swallow fluids. “I want to know about Project Horizons,” I said.
当起重机飞过我们头顶，降下一只和我身体一样大的爪子时，机器发出了沉重的隆隆声，几乎发射出一枚导弹。它抓住桌子旁边的罐子顶部，把它转向其他罐子。我努力使自己恢复平静，科涅图姆喝了一口她的茶。我猜想，如果这个甜心机器人是为性生活而设计的，那么它必须能够吞咽液体。"我想了解一下'地平线计划',"我说。
“I bet you do,” Cognitum purred, her eyes narrowing in satisfaction. “Aren’t you more curious about me?”
"我打赌你知道,"科涅塔姆咕哝着，满意地眯起眼睛。"你对我不是更好奇吗?"
“I’m curious about why you’re not talking in all booming words,” I replied.
"我很好奇为什么你说话不是那么洪亮,"我回答。
“The Royal Canterlot Voice is for addressing subjects. You are no mere subject,
"皇家坎特罗之声是用来表达主题的。你不是纯粹的臣民
Blackjack. I knew it the moment I first learned about you. A mare capable of accessing EC-1101? A mare refusing to take the easy way out? A mare defying and challenging the Wasteland on its own terms? Oh no. You were a knight. Erratic and unconventional on the board. Perhaps even a queen, streaking across and destroying any in your path. Far more valuable than any pawn.”
黑杰克。我第一次了解你的时候就知道了。一匹能够接近EC-1101的母马？一匹拒绝走捷径的母马？一匹违抗和挑战荒原的母马？哦，不。你是个骑士。董事会的反复无常和非常规。甚至可能是一个女王，在你前进的道路上飞驰而过，摧毁一切。比任何棋子都值钱。"
“Like Dawn?” I asked, with a scowl. I had no way to force the answer out of her.
"就像道恩?"我皱着眉头问道。我没有办法逼她说出答案。
Cognitum sighed again, smiling and bowing her head as she gave the smallest shake of her head. “Ah, Dawn. Poor, poor, Dawn. So ardent to save the Wasteland. So determined to bring about a better future. So incapable of either.” The crane hummed overhead, and a new pod was set down beside the table. Within was the prone form of a yellow, emaciated earth pony who was barely breathing. “Oopsie. Wrong jar.” It was whisked up once more. “I’m sure you’ve noticed that these jars function the same as the stasis pods. Quite useful technology. It can keep a body preserved… forever.”
科涅塔姆又叹了口气，微笑着低下了头，微微地摇了摇头。"啊，道恩。可怜，可怜，道恩。如此热情地拯救荒原。所以下定决心要创造一个更好的未来。两者都做不到。"起重机在头顶嗡嗡作响，一个新的吊舱被放在桌子旁边。里面躺着一匹黄色的、瘦弱的、几乎没有呼吸的矮种马。"哎呀。放错罐子了。"它又被搅拌起来了。"我相信你已经注意到这些罐子的功能和静止舱一样。相当有用的技术。它可以让尸体......永久保存。"
“That’s sick,” I muttered again.
"真恶心,"我又咕哝了一声。
“What an odd notion you have, Blackjack,” Cognitum replied in turn. “They all would have died long ago if I hadn’t kept them.” The crane returned with the familiar synthetic body of Dawn. Her bladed wings and forehooves had been plucked off, leaving tatters of metal and cables and the broken stumps of bone. A spear of metal ran vertically from the top of the jar to the bottom, impaling her like a metal martini olive. “Here she is.”
"你的想法真奇怪，黑杰克,"科涅图姆轮流回答。"如果我没有留着它们，它们早就死了。"起重机带着熟悉的人造黎明身体回来了。她锋利的翅膀和前蹄都被扯掉了，只留下金属和电缆的碎片和骨头的断桩。一把金属矛从罐子顶端垂直插到底端，像一颗金属马提尼橄榄一样刺穿了她。"她来了。"
“No,” Dawn groaned as her eyes focused on me. “No no no…”
"不,"道恩一边盯着我，一边呻吟着。"不不不......"
“Yes, my dearest pawn. Yes. Blackjack is here. She proved stronger. Tougher. More determined. More worthy.” For a moment, the urbane mask on Sweetie Belle’s face slipped, and I saw the vicious machine beneath. It was all I could do not to fire, knowledge be damned. Cognitum saw my frown, and the urbane aspect returned. “I’d be quite happy to give her to you, Blackjack. Perhaps you could rehabilitate her. Reunite her with her family. I’m quite sure they’d love that.”
""是的，我最亲爱的卒子。是的。黑杰克来了。事实证明，她更加坚强。更难。更有决心。更有价值。"有那么一会儿，甜心贝儿脸上彬彬有礼的面具滑了一下，我看到了下面那台邪恶的机器。我唯一能做的就是不开火，不去理会知识。认知觉察到我的皱眉，彬彬有礼的神情又回来了。"我很乐意把她交给你，Blackjack。也许你可以帮她恢复名誉。让她与家人团聚。我敢肯定他们会喜欢的。"
“No. No… please no…” Dawn whimpered as she struggled against the spear pinning her through the middle of the jar. “Please…”
"没有。不......请不要......"当道恩挣扎着用长矛刺穿罐子的中间时，她呜咽着说。"请......"
“Let her go,” I ordered, really wanting to blast this monster before me.
"放开她,"我命令道，真想在我面前炸死这个怪物。
Cognitum paused, mouth open as she stared a moment, then replied, “No. No, I don’t think so. Not just yet. But soon… if we can come to an arrangement.”
科涅塔姆停顿了一下，张着嘴凝视了一会儿，然后回答说:"没有。不，我不这么认为。现在还不行。但很快......如果我们能达成协议的话。"
She wanted something. Beyond EC-1101. “What kind of arrangement?”
她想要一些东西。超越EC-1101。"什么样的安排?"
The crane yanked the jar back into the air. For a long instant she regarded me, then smiled. “Do you know who I am?”
起重机猛地把罐子拉回空中。她看了我好一会儿，然后笑了。"你知道我是谁吗?"
“An insane computer,” I answered, winning a momentary frown of annoyance.
"一台疯狂的电脑,"我回答，暂时皱了皱眉头，表示厌烦。
She recovered a moment later, but I filed that away for later.
过了一会儿，她恢复了健康，但我把它存档以备后用。
“Hardly,” she countered, filling her tea yet again. Then, as calmly as you pleased she said, “I am Princess Luna.”
"才不是呢,"她反驳道，又倒了一杯茶。然后，她平静地说:"我是卢娜公主。"
I laughed. “Right. And I’m Princess Celestia. Pleased to meet you again, Sister.”
我笑了。"对。我是塞莱斯蒂娅公主。很高兴再次见到你，修女。"
Her face was a mask of composure. “I’m quite serious.”
她的脸是一副镇静的面具。"我是认真的。"
“You’re a glitchy pile of buggy software,” I replied flatly. “And no way you’re Princess Luna. Not even close.”
"你是一堆漏洞百出的软件,"我直截了当地回答。"你不可能是露娜公主。差得远呢。"
“On the contrary,” she countered evenly. The air above us shimmered and ghostly holograms filled the room. I recognized Horse and the slew of other visitors trying on the shimmery, golden-threaded and gemmed cap. “That day, when Horse was showing off his latest innovation, a would-be Crusader Maneframe competitor fitted with equipment for uploading ponies’ minds, the cap happened to land on the head of one mare who attended the meeting in disguise.” I watched as the cap fell upon Eclipse’s head as Horse failed to snag Goldenblood. “He’d hoped to raid Goldenblood of his secrets. Instead, he chanced upon something far more rare and precious. Princess Luna. Me.”
"恰恰相反,"她平静地反驳道。我们头顶上的空气闪烁着，幽灵般的全息图充满了整个房间。我认出了马和许多其他游客，他们都在试戴那顶闪闪发光的、金色的、镶有宝石的帽子。"那天，当马展示他的最新发明——一个装备了上传小马思想设备的潜在十字军竞争对手时，帽子恰好落在了一匹伪装参加会议的母马的头上。"我看着帽子落在日蚀的头上，因为马没能抓住金血王。"他希望从金血王那里得到他的秘密。相反，他偶然发现了一些更稀有、更珍贵的东西。露娜公主。我。"
“No way,” I muttered. “If anything, you’re Horse in there.”
"不可能,"我喃喃自语。"要说有什么区别的话，那就是你是马儿。"
“Ah, Horse!” she said gaily, a broad smile on her face. The crane whirled and deposited another jar. In it was what appeared to be a skinned pony. Bare, sightless, emasculated. I got the impression of looking at an adult-sized fetus. “Say hello, Director!” Cognitum said grandly, gesturing to me. The pony just twitched a little inside the container. “He lost most of his admittedly brilliant mind long ago. I just keep him around to remember those that tried to control me.”
"啊，马儿!"她高兴地说，脸上露出了灿烂的笑容。起重机呼呼地转动着，又放下了一个罐子。里面是一匹剥了皮的矮种马。光秃秃的，看不见东西的，软弱无力的。我得到的印象是看着一个成人大小的胎儿。"主任，打个招呼吧!"科宁顿庄严地说，向我做了个手势。小马只是在集装箱里抽搐了一下。"很久以前，他就失去了大部分公认的聪明才智。我只是把他留在身边，让他记住那些试图控制我的人。"
“You did that to him?” I asked, horrified.
"是你干的?"我惊恐地问道。
“Enervation did. A few seconds’ worth, before he jumped into the stasis pod,” she said, patting the jar. “Though, in retrospect, I suspect he wished he’d melted. He believed I’d take care of him, like I always had. He liked pushing my buttons,” she said, as she turned away from the jar. “Potentially, he might be soulless, too. It’s always hard to tell once the mind goes.”
"衰弱确实如此。在他跳进休眠舱之前，只需要几秒钟的时间,"她拍着罐子说。"不过，回想起来，我怀疑他希望自己融化了。他相信我会像以前一样照顾他。他喜欢按我的按钮,"她说着转身离开了罐子。"他可能也没有灵魂。一旦意识消失，就很难说清楚了。"
“You’re evil,” I muttered.
"你真邪恶,"我喃喃自语。
She seemed shocked, then angered. “Dawn has killed dozens. Horse was responsible for the deaths of hundreds. You’ve killed thousands. You’ve killed foals, Blackjack. Helpless foals. You’ve killed indiscriminately. Your hooves are far bloodier than mine. So let’s not throw about that ‘E’ word so casually, thank you very much.”
她看起来很震惊，然后又很生气。"道恩已经杀了很多人。马要为数百人的死亡负责。你杀了成千上万的人。你杀了小马驹Blackjack。无助的小马驹。你滥杀无辜。你的蹄子比我的更血腥。所以，我们不要如此随意地谈论'e'这个词，非常感谢。"
It wasn’t the same. I, at least, tried to kill less if I could. “It’s one thing to kill. There’s worse things than killing.”
这不一样。如果可以的话，我至少试着少杀一些人。"杀人是一回事。还有比杀戮更糟糕的事情。"
“Yawn.” She rolled her eyes and glared disdainfully at me. “Suffice it to say, Horse copied me to this computer. At first, he delighted in me as a prize. Not only did I have many secrets he could exploit, but he found me a most desirable outlet for his… frustrations.” She gave a very convincing shudder before glaring at the maimed pony. “But more than secrets, I was a window into his Princess’s mind, one few knew or contemplated. Most didn’t know about her fears, her ambition, her pride, or her dreams. I did. I knew just what Horse needed to say to drive a wedge between her and Goldenblood. I knew just what moves he needed to make to be appointed as Director of the O.I.A.” She hissed softly as she glowered at the skinned pony, “One push of a button, and he could have deleted me. I was every bit his toy. His prisoner. His secret weapon.”
"哈欠。"她翻了翻眼睛，轻蔑地瞪了我一眼。"可以这么说，马把我拷贝到这台电脑上。起初，他把我当作奖品来欣赏。我不仅有许多秘密，他可以利用，而且他还为我找到了一个最理想的发泄方式，来发泄他的......挫折感。"她在怒视那匹残疾的小马之前，打了一个令人信服的寒颤。"但除了秘密之外，我还是他的公主心中的一扇窗户，只有少数人知道或者在思考。大多数人不知道她的恐惧，她的野心，她的骄傲，或者她的梦想。是的。我知道马儿要说什么才能离间她和Goldenblood。我知道他需要采取什么行动才能被任命为o.i.a.的主管。"她怒视着那匹皮肤黝黑的小马，轻轻地嘶嘶地说,"只要按一下按钮，他就可以把我删掉。我完全是他的玩具。他的囚犯。他的秘密武器。"
Okay. Maybe I could understand keeping Horse around as she did. Not forgive, but certainly understand. “Luna was afraid? What did she have to fear?”
好吧。也许我可以理解让马儿像她一样留在身边。不是原谅，而是理解。"露娜害怕了？她有什么好怕的?"
Cognitum smirked at me. “Afraid? I was terrified. My own sister once banished me to the moon for asserting myself. I was always in the background, because I knew that ‘love’ was a lie! Always the dark counterpoint to my sister’s radiance. We may have ‘ruled’ jointly, but please recall who it was that always addressed the subjects. Who always issued the grand decrees? I always remained at the side, the lesser Princess. And gnawing away in my mind was the knowledge that,
科涅塔姆朝我傻笑。"害怕吗？我吓坏了。我自己的姐姐曾经因为我坚持自己的主张而把我放逐到月亮上。我总是在幕后，因为我知道'爱'是一个谎言！总是与我姐姐的光芒形成黑暗的对比。我们可能一起"统治"，但请回忆一下是谁总是谈论这些话题。谁总是颁布大法令？我总是站在旁边，小公主。在我的脑海里，有一个念头在啃噬着我,
if I’d been betrayed by my sister, I could be betrayed by anypony.
如果我被我姐姐背叛了，我可能会被任何小马背叛。
“I did not seek to rule. I didn’t seek to throw Celestia from her throne. It was always more comfortable and safe on the sidelines. But when my sister thrust the throne upon me, what choice did I have? To abdicate and abandon Equestria in its time of greatest need? To break my sister’s already rent heart? I had no good choice, so I decided to rule, as I once craved. Recognition. Respect. Oh how desire and terror fought inside me! To be ruler, in the spotlight, but exposed and vulnerable!” She shook her head.
"我并不想统治。我并不想把塞莱斯蒂亚从她的宝座上推下去。坐在边线上总是更舒适和安全。但是当我的姐姐把王位推给我的时候，我有什么选择呢？在最需要马术的时候放弃马术？伤了我妹妹已经租的心？我没有好的选择，所以我决定统治，就像我曾经渴望的那样。认可。尊重。哦，我心中的欲望和恐惧是如何战斗的！成为统治者，站在聚光灯下，却暴露出脆弱的一面!"她摇了摇头。
“So I determined to make a realm that would never hurt me. That would love me. That I could control safely and securely. But how? I wasn’t Celestia. I didn’t attend functions and galas and charm aristoponies and command guards. I preferred intimacy. I dealt with ponies in their dreams. Met them in the quiet times of their lives when they were most vulnerable. I was Princess of the Moon, of the Night! Elusive, ever-changing, and removed. The ministries were not simply tools for running the war; they were also to shield me from the anger of my subjects for any hardships we faced. Far better Pinkie Pie be feared than me.”
"所以我决定建立一个永远不会伤害我的王国。那会喜欢我的。我可以安全地控制它。但是怎么做呢？我不是塞莱斯蒂亚。我没有参加活动，没有参加晚会，没有参加魅力独裁者，没有参加指挥警卫。我更喜欢亲密。我在他们的梦里和小马打交道。在他们最脆弱的时候遇见了他们。我是月亮的公主，夜晚的公主！难以捉摸的，不断变化的，远离的。这些部门不仅仅是指挥战争的工具，它们也保护我不受我的臣民对我们所面临的任何困难的愤怒。小手指派比我可怕得多。"
Okay. If she wasn’t at least partly Luna, she’d done some damned in depth study for the part. Still, this mare didn’t sound like Luna to me. Everything she said was perfectly reasonable and logical. I knew what it was like to be torn by desire and fear. I knew what it was like to want something, even if it drew you to make mistakes. But still, this mare sounded… petty. Paranoid. Vicious, even. Nothing I associated with that mare I’d seen in memory. Maybe the war had changed her more than anypony knew, but I still couldn’t believe that this machine before me was the real Princess Luna.
好吧。如果她不是卢娜的一部分，她已经为这个角色做了一些该死的深入研究。尽管如此，这匹母马的声音对我来说并不像卢娜。她所说的一切都是完全合理和合乎逻辑的。我知道被欲望和恐惧折磨是什么感觉。我知道想要某样东西是什么感觉，即使它会让你犯错误。但是，这匹母马听起来还是很小气。偏执狂。甚至是邪恶的。我记忆中没有和那匹母马有任何联系。也许战争对她的影响比任何小马都要大，但我还是不敢相信在我面前的这台机器就是真正的卢娜公主。
“Even if what you say is true,” I said slowly, “what does it have to do with me?”
"即使你说的是真的,"我慢慢地说,"这和我有什么关系?"
Cognitum just stared at me, a calculating look in her eyes and a casual smile on her lips. “There’re two parts to that, really. The first is that I want control of my land back. You’ve seen the factories around the Core. There are hundreds more just like them all across Equestria. You saw what Red Eye hoped to accomplish with his pathetic forges? I will be capable of controlling an army of machines and more who will return order to this Wasteland. Raiders will be extinguished. Disease, hunger, and poverty abolished. The Tokomare will be brought fully online, the Enervation sealed away for good. The weather will be controlled by
科格尼特姆只是盯着我，眼睛里流露出一种算计的神情，嘴角上露出一丝不经意的微笑。"这其中有两部分，真的。第一，我想要回我的土地。你已经看到了核心区周围的工厂。Equestria各地还有数百家这样的公司。你看到红眼想用他那可怜的造假来达到什么目的了吗？我将有能力控制一支机器军队，更多的人将回到这个荒原的秩序。突袭机将被扑灭。疾病、饥饿和贫穷被消灭。托克马雷将完全上线，永久封存这些能量。天气将受到
me through my S.P.P., and Equestria shall be reborn, stronger for its sufferings and more determined than ever before!”
通过我的s.p.p.，Equestria将获得重生，因为它的苦难而变得更加强大，比以往任何时候都更加坚定!"
Yeah. I could really see LittlePip giving control of the S.P.P. to this nut. Celestia would just love a crazy computer pretending she was her sister. “And for that you need EC-1101.”
是的。我真的觉得皮普会把s.p.p的控制权交给这个疯子。塞莱斯蒂亚会喜欢一台疯狂的电脑，假装她是她的妹妹。"为此你需要EC-1101。"
“Yes. But that isn’t enough. Not at all,” Cognitum said calmly. “You see, I need a body.”
"是的。但这还不够。一点也不,"科涅塔姆平静地说。"你看，我需要一个身体。"
“A body? You have a body!” I said, gesturing to the Sweetie Bot before me.
"一具尸体？你有一个身体!"我说，指着面前的小甜心机器人。
“I have a shell. A peripheral. One with limited range, which can be intercepted, blocked, or even subverted. No one will respect a machine, even if I am the legitimate ruler of this land. I need a body that is powerful. Resilient. Augmented,” she said as she gave me eyes that in any other circumstance promised a rutting. In this case, I anticipated I was about to get much worse.
"我有一个贝壳。外围设备。射程有限的，可以被拦截、阻止甚至破坏的。没有人会尊重机器，即使我是这片土地的合法统治者。我需要一个强大的身体。适应力强。增强,"她一边说，一边给了我一双眼睛，在任何其他情况下都会发情的。在这种情况下，我预料到自己会变得更糟。
“You want my body?” I said as I backed away. “No. Try ‘hell no’!”
"你想要我的身体?"我一边说，一边后退。"没有。试试'绝对不行'!"
“Your body and augmentations have proven superior time and time again,” she said matter-of-factly, gesturing over her shoulder at the row of jars in the shadow behind her. “I considered the Dawn model, but once you obtained wings, it seemed that your design was the superior one. And really, what kind of Princess can’t do magic?” She rose and began trotting around me. “Not quite as synthetic as I was hoping, but I think that that’s an asset. I would still have to make a few changes, of course... That graffiti you’ve etched in your plating simply won’t do.”
"你的身体和你的预言一次又一次地证明了你的优越性,"她一边说着，一边指着身后阴影里的一排瓶瓶罐罐。"我考虑过黎明号的模型，但是一旦你获得了翅膀，看起来你的设计是最好的。说真的，什么样的公主不会变魔术?"她站起来，开始绕着我小跑。"不完全像我希望的那样是合成的，但我认为这是一种资产。当然，我还是需要做一些改变......你在电镀层上蚀刻的涂鸦根本不起作用。"
I almost put a missile into the machine then and there, but I was still trapped by the fact she hadn’t told me anything about Horizons yet. And she knew! I just knew she knew. Thus far Steel Rain was nowhere to be seen, and the Ultra-Sentinels were keeping away. I couldn’t see how she could just take my body. “Afraid you can’t have it. I’m kind of using it,” I retorted flatly, thinking it a better response than ‘You are fucking nuts.’ “Don’t worry about that. I have an immensely superior vessel for you to inhabit. I’m not a monster. And you have to consider the benefits of such a trade. Without EC-1101, you’d no longer have the burden of dealing with controlling and organizing Equestria. You don’t want to rule; that was made painfully
我几乎当场就把一枚导弹投进了那台机器，但我还是被她还没有告诉我任何关于视野号的事情这个事实困住了。她知道了！我只知道她知道。到目前为止,"钢铁雨"还是不见踪影,"超级哨兵"也在躲避着他们。我不明白她怎么能拿走我的身体。"恐怕你不能拥有它。我算是在用它,"我直截了当地反驳道，认为这是一个比'你他妈的疯了'更好的回答"别担心。我有一艘非常高级的船给你居住。我不是怪物。你必须考虑到这种交易的好处。如果没有EC-1101，你们将不再有控制和组织马术国的负担。你不想统治，这是痛苦的决定
obvious with the Society. You want to be free from the burden of responsibility, and I know you don’t love that augmentation. You resent it. Loathe it.” She spoke as if I were the crazy one now. “I can return you to a body of flesh and blood. One with nerve endings. Fully functional legs. Eyes. A stomach. You could be a normal pony again, and I will have an extraordinarily powerful vessel to use to rule Equestria again.”
显而易见。你想从责任的重担中解脱出来，我知道你不喜欢这种增强。你讨厌它。厌恶它。"她说起话来好像我才是那个疯子似的。"我可以把你变成一具有血有肉的躯体。有神经末梢的那种。功能齐全的腿。眼睛。一个胃。你可以再次成为一匹普通的小马，而我将拥有一艘异常强大的马车来再次统治马术国。"
“I don’t think you’re fit to rule a… a lemonade stand, much less Equestria,” I countered. Lemonade stand? Really? “Much less with my body.”
"我认为你不适合统治a。.一个卖柠檬水的小摊，更别提小马国了。"我反驳道。柠檬水摊？真的吗？"更不用说我的身体了。"
“No?” Cognitum countered. “Consider the Harbingers. I’ve brought unity to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of individuals. Protection. Strength. The Harbingers do not kill or rape. They do not extort. They exist to bring about Equestria’s return. My return. Yes, they were opposed to you, but only because of Dawn’s jealousy. With my intellect, my knowledge, and EC-1101 granting me full and direct access, I could tame the Hoof in a month. The Wasteland in a year. No more raiders. No more murder. It will be civilization again. Comfort. Peace. And you can share in that, Blackjack. You and your friends.”
"不是吗?"科涅塔姆反驳道。"想想那些先兆。我已经把团结带给了成百上千的个人。保护。力量。先驱者并不杀戮或强奸。他们不会勒索。它们的存在是为了带来小马国的回归。我的归来。是的，他们反对你，但只是因为道恩的嫉妒。凭借我的智慧，我的知识，以及EC-1101授予我完全和直接的权限，我可以在一个月内驯服霍夫。一年之内的荒原。不再有袭击者了。不再有谋杀。它将再次成为文明。舒适。和平。你可以分享，Blackjack。你和你的朋友。"
P-21 flashed into view above me, teaching a trio of foals. “He can explore his true talent as a teacher, rather than being consumed by rage,” Cognitum said. Then Glory appeared, winged and beautiful, in a lab doing something involving beakers. “She can return to seeking solutions to the problems facing ponykind. And I know that you two would greatly appreciate the opportunity to grow close again.” Scotch Tape appeared as a young mare directing an engineering project. “She can build not just one city, but dozens. There is no shortage of ponies needing quality shelter.” Rampage took Scotch Tape’s place. “With the war stabilized, you can see to getting your friend the help she needs. There’s no peace for her in the Wasteland. The urge to kill will never leave her in this place. You know this.”
P-21教着三只小马驹从我的头顶闪过。"作为一名教师，他可以发掘自己真正的才能，而不是被愤怒所吞噬,"Cognitum说。然后晨辉出现了，长着翅膀，很漂亮，在实验室里做着烧杯的事情。"她可以重新寻找解决方案，解决马匹面临的问题。我知道你们两个会非常感激有机会再次亲密起来的。"苏格兰胶带出现作为一个年轻的母马指导一个工程项目。"她不仅能建造一座城市，还能建造几十座。需要优质庇护所的小马并不少。"狂暴取代了苏格兰胶带的位置。"随着战争的稳定，你可以设法让你的朋友得到她需要的帮助。她在荒原没有和平可言。杀戮的欲望永远不会离开这个地方。你知道的。"
Oh, she was good. Very good. Rational and reasonable… and worst of all, I thought she might be right. I’d just have to overlook all the things she was doing that screamed ‘evil’ and ‘crazy’. “So you put my mind into some other pony,” I said, smiling at this insane hypothetical. “What about my soul?”
她很厉害。很好。理智，讲道理......最糟糕的是，我认为她可能是对的。我不得不忽视她所做的一切，那些尖叫着邪恶和疯狂的事情。"所以你把我的注意力放在了另一匹小马身上,"我说，对这个疯狂的假设微笑着。"我的灵魂怎么办?"
“Good question! After all, it wouldn’t be fitting for your soul to be in this body. No offense, but you’re simply not an executive, Blackjack,” Cognitum said as the jar containing Horse’s quivering remains was yanked up by the crane. “You
"问得好！毕竟，你的灵魂在这个身体里是不合适的。没有冒犯的意思，但是你根本不是一个行政人员，Blackjack,"当装着马颤抖残骸的罐子被起重机猛拉起来时，Cognitum说。"你
see, I’ve been watching you for a very long time. A very long time. Even before you had your first augments. I knew you were… different. You faced hardships that would have destroyed lesser ponies. Time and time again, you’ve thrown yourself into the fray to spare others. I monitored your progress through Hightower. True, you weren’t able to defeat the Warden on your own, but you reached him, and you had the presence of mind to invoke me as you had in Flash Industries. And,” she added, “You introduced me to a very interesting pony.”
我观察你很久了。很长一段时间。甚至在你得到第一个增强之前。我知道你...与众不同。你所面临的困难足以毁掉小马驹。一次又一次，你把自己投入到争吵中去，以免伤害别人。我通过海托华监控了你的进度。没错，你无法凭一己之力打败狱长，但是你找到了他，而且你还镇定自若地想起了我，就像你在Flash工业公司一样。"还有,"她补充说,"你给我介绍了一匹非常有趣的小马。"
The jar descended, and within was… it reminded me of the glowing skeletal ponies I’d seen walking around the Hoofington Megaspell Complex. The unicorn skeleton was incomplete, an intact skull, mostly intact torso, floating vertebrae, and broken off limbs all connected by faintly glowing gas like the soul motes. Swirls of the mist filled the eye sockets like stars. “Hello, Blackjack,” the skeleton said quietly, his eyeglow brightening as he saw me. “Did you get Snails out?”
罐子掉了下来，里面......它让我想起了我在胡芬顿梅格斯佩尔庄园散步时看到的那些发光的骨瘦如柴的小马。独角兽的骨骼是不完整的，一个完整的头骨，大部分完整的躯干，漂浮的椎骨，以及被依稀发光的气体连接的断肢，就像灵魂尘埃一样。迷雾的漩涡像星星一样充满了眼窝。"你好，黑杰克,"那骷髅平静地说，当他看到我的时候，他的眼睛亮了起来。"你把蜗牛弄出来了吗?"
“Snips?” I gasped in shock and horror. “What did she do to you?”
"小鬼头?"我吓得喘不过气来。"她对你做了什么?"
“This wasn’t her doing. This is what happens to a pony who meddles in souls. My bones are my own soul jar now,” he said, then paused and asked again, “Did you save Snails?”
"这不是她干的。这就是发生在一匹小马身上的事情，它在灵魂中发号施令。"我的骨头现在是我自己的灵魂罐子了,"他说，然后停顿了一下，又问道,"你救了蜗牛吗?"
“I did! He’s fine. He’s out with Xanthe and Silver Spoon and Carrion. They’re looking for Diamond Tiara, if you can believe it.”
"是的！他没事。他和Xanthe，SilverSpoon和Carrion一起出去了。他们在找钻石头冠，如果你能相信的话。"
“That dummy. He always was soft for dames…” Snips said in his hollow, ethereal voice. “Blackjack, don’t listen to her. She’s insane. She thinks she’s Princess Luna!” Suddenly he let out a cry as green lightning raked the bones. I then noticed the interior of this jar was ringed with starmetal spikes. Every now and then, a jolt of green lightning sparked from the tips.
"那个笨蛋。他对女人总是很温柔......"斯尼普斯用他空洞而空灵的声音说。"黑杰克，别听她的。她疯了。她以为自己是卢娜公主!"突然，他发出一声叫喊，绿色的闪电劈碎了骨头。然后我注意到这个罐子的内部被星形金属尖钉环绕着。时不时地，一道绿色的闪电从山顶上闪过。
“That’s enough of that, now,” Cognitum said coolly, “Let’s not be rude.” She regarded me with a small smile. “I had a prison sentry retrieve his incinerated corpse from the burning security station when I noticed he wasn’t quite dying. Since then we’ve had extensive talks about Project Eternity. I’m sure he’d be more than happy to help transfer your soul to a new container, or back to an old one.” I frowned at that last part. Back to an old one?
"够了，现在,"科涅图姆冷静地说,"我们不要这么粗鲁。"她带着一丝微笑看着我。"我让一个监狱哨兵从着火的安全站取回他烧焦的尸体，这时我注意到他还没有完全死去。从那以后，我们就永恒之柱进行了广泛的讨论。我相信他会很乐意帮你把灵魂转移到一个新的容器里，或者回到一个旧的容器里。"最后那部分我皱起了眉头。回到过去？
“You still haven’t told me about Horizons, though,” I said, dragging the conversation back to the part I was concerned with. Maybe all of this banter had
"不过，你还没有告诉我有关地平线的事,"我说，把话题拉回到我关心的那部分。也许这些玩笑都是为了
made her relax her smug omission a little. “What is it? How do you even know about it? Luna didn’t.”
让她稍微放松了一下，自鸣得意的疏忽。"这是什么？你是怎么知道的？卢娜没有。"
She regarded me coolly for several seconds. “You’re right. I didn’t. Not till the very end. He was maddeningly elusive. I knew he had done something, and even when Horse had access to the O.I.A. database, I couldn’t find anything. Trottenheimer had been involved in its design, and Apple Bloom may have had a hoof in it indirectly, but besides that, I could find no other information. Where was it located? How could it be built? He had no paper trail to speak of. No suspicious movement of materials from one part of Equestria to another.”
她冷静地看了我几秒钟。"你说得对。我没有。直到最后一刻。他令人抓狂地难以捉摸。我知道他做了些什么，即使当Horse进入了o.i.a.数据库，我也什么都找不到。特罗滕海默参与了它的设计，苹果布鲁姆可能间接参与了它的设计，但除此之外，我找不到其他信息。它位于哪里？它是怎么建成的呢？他没有任何书面记录可言。没有可疑的材料从Equestria的一个地方转移到另一个地方。"
“So how’d you find out, then?” I asked.
"那么，你是怎么发现的?"我问道。
“By accessing an archive of information related directly to the O.I.A., collected over decades of hard work by one King Awesome,” Cognitum replied with a smirk as Snips was lifted up into the air. “He had amassed a collection of memories that Goldenblood himself had removed prior to his arrest. They’d been scattered all across Equestria, and some further, but they remained, and Awesome had made it his hobby to collect them.”
"通过访问一个直接与o.i.a.有关的信息档案，这些信息是由一位了不起的国王几十年的辛勤工作所收集的,"当Snips被举到空中时，Cognitum得意地答道。"他收集了许多记忆，这些记忆是Goldenblood自己在被捕前清除掉的。它们散落在Equestria各地，还有一些更远的地方，但它们留了下来，棒极了把收集它们当成了他的爱好。"
Ha, I’d caught her! “Well, that’s interesting, because Charm happened to smash them all to pieces when I didn’t name her to rule the Society,” I snapped with my own smug smirk.
哈，我抓住她了！"嗯，这很有趣，因为当我没有提名她来统治这个社会的时候，她的魅力碰巧把他们都粉碎了。"我自鸣得意地笑了笑。
But Cognitum was completely unflapped by my accusation. “Yes, she did,” Cognitum said as the crane returned with the fifth jar. “But she’d viewed them first.” The jar dropped from the ceiling. Within floated a much smaller unicorn. Cables ran from the top of the jar down to her shaved scalp, where cybernetic plugs had been drilled in. “I simply accessed them directly.”
但是我的指责完全没有影响到Cognitum。"是的，她做到了。"当仙鹤拿着第五个罐子回来时，科涅图姆说。"但她是第一个看到的。"罐子从天花板上掉了下来。里面漂浮着一只小得多的独角兽。电缆从罐子顶部一直延伸到她剃光的头皮，在那里电子插头已经被钻了进去。"我只是直接访问它们。"
“Charm!” I gasped, looking at the emaciated filly. A moonstone pendant hung around her neck.
"魅力!"我喘着气，看着那瘦弱的小姑娘。她的脖子上挂着一个月光石坠子。
She opened one eye, tears running down her cheek. “Blackjack?” she whimpered. “It hurts.”
她睁开一只眼，泪水顺着脸颊流了下来。"黑杰克?"她呜咽着说。"很疼。"
I raised the missile launcher at the computer. “Let her go! Now!” I ordered.
我举起电脑前的导弹发射器。"放开她！现在!"我点了。
“Release a pony that came to me asking for your head?” Cognitum asked in amusement. The hologram flashed to life in the air, forming into a giant glowing
"释放一匹来找我要你脑袋的小马?"科涅塔姆笑着问道。全息图在空气中闪现出生命，形成一个巨大的发光体
image of the filly.
小母马的形象。
“I want her dead! No, wait, not dead. I want her alive. Like, take her legs off. And make sure some Harbingers fuck her up her tail. Like, ten times. At least!” the filly said with a cruel grin. “Maybe you can set her up on a stand somewhere and we can get a whole row of stallions to fuck her over and over. Like, the whole Hoof.”
"我要她死！不，等等，不是死。我要她活着。比如，把她的腿拿下来。确保"先驱者"的人把她的尾巴干掉。大概十次吧。至少!"小母马带着残酷的笑容说。"也许你可以把她安排在某个地方的一个摊位上，我们可以得到一整排的种马，一遍又一遍地干她。就像，整个蹄子。"
Charm curled up even tighter, quivering, as the hateful words spilled out in a torrent. “As you can see, this filly demanded that I unleash the Harbingers on Elysium and help her take her throne back, and she wanted the most obscene punishments for you and her siblings. Truly vile,” Cognitum said in tones of sublime disdain as she shook her head. “I’ve exposed her mind in its totality. She’d thank you for killing her, Blackjack.”
魅力蜷缩得更紧了，颤抖着，那些可恨的话像洪流一样涌出来。"正如你所看到的，这匹小母马要求我把"先驱者"放到极乐世界，帮助她夺回她的王位，她希望你和她的兄弟姐妹受到最下流的惩罚。"真是卑鄙,"科尼图姆摇摇头，用极其鄙视的语调说道。"我已经完全暴露了她的想法。她会感谢你杀了她的Blackjack。"
Charm opened an eye, tears on her cheek. “I’m sorry,” she begged as she floated in the jar. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”
魅力睁开了眼睛，泪水落在她的脸颊上。"对不起,"她在罐子里游来游去，央求道。"对不起。对不起。我非常非常抱歉。"
“Let her go. Let all of them go!” I ordered.
"放开她。放了他们!"我点了。
She considered me silently for a long moment before she smiled a little. “I’d be more than happy to, if you agree to give me your body,” she said calmly. “Yes, not only can you help your friends, you can also save this miserable little wretch, if you want. She’s as bad as your Overmare, though. Worse.”
她默默地想了我好一会儿，然后微微一笑。"如果你同意把你的身体给我，我非常乐意,"她平静地说。"是的，如果你愿意，你不仅可以帮助你的朋友，还可以拯救这个可怜的小家伙。不过她和你的Overmare一样坏。更糟。"
She was just a filly. She could learn to do better, with time. “I want her out of that jar, now,” I ordered again, about to smash it open myself. I lifted a hoof to do just that.
她只是一匹小母马。随着时间的推移，她可以学会做得更好。"我要她马上从那个罐子里出来,"我又命令道，正要亲自把它砸开。我就是抬着蹄子做那个的。
“Can you remove wires connected to the deepest parts of her brain? If you plan on simply yanking them out, you might kill her a little less painfully by ripping her in two.” Oh, that was low. I backed away, and Cognitum repeated, “As I said, give me your body, and I’ll free her. Happily. I don’t need her anymore, after all.”
"你能移除连接她大脑最深处的电线吗？如果你打算简单地把它们拉出来，你可以把她撕成两半，这样可以减轻她的痛苦。"太低级了。我后退了一步，认知神重复道:"如我所说，把你的身体给我，我就放了她。很高兴。毕竟我不再需要她了。"
“Horizons. Tell me what it is. Now,” I ordered. Any more obfuscation or games, and I’d cut to the boom. Glory would be able to save Charm. I could chew through those cables if I really had to.
"地平线。告诉我是什么。现在,"我命令道。如果再有任何困惑或者游戏，我就直接跳到繁荣时期。晨辉可以拯救魅力。如果有必要的话，我可以咬断那些电缆。
She stared at me for the longest time. It was good so much of me was artificial. I
她盯着我看了很长时间。很好，我的很多部分都是人造的。一
practically vibrated mentally with the urge to destroy this monster once and for all. Fortunately, my body stayed steady. “Do you accept my offer? Give me EC-1101 and your body, and I will give you everything you desire and more. We could both have what we want!”
实际上是想一劳永逸地消灭这个怪物。幸运的是，我的身体保持稳定。""你接受我的提议吗？给我EC-1101和你的身体，我会给你你想要的一切，甚至更多。我们都可以得到我们想要的!"
“Tell me!” I demanded again.
"告诉我!"我又问了一遍。
“We can bring peace to the Wasteland, unity to all the races that inhabit it, safety and security to all that crave it!” Cognitum pleaded as she stepped before me. “I know you don’t approve of my methods, and I don’t expect you to, but I know you desire the same ends I do. Work with me, and you can help return the world to its glorious state!”
"我们可以给荒原带来和平，给居住在那里的所有种族带来团结，给渴望它的所有人带来安全和保障!"当她走到我面前时，科涅塔姆恳求道。"我知道你不赞成我的方法，我也不指望你赞成，但我知道你和我一样想要达到目的。和我一起工作，你就能帮助世界回到它的辉煌状态!"
I shoved her aside hard as the crane lifted the jar up into the air and returned it to the side, seizing the last one. “Tell me!” I yelled, a final time, the missile ready to fly.
我用力把她推到一边，起重机把罐子举到空中，又把它放回一边，抓住最后一个罐子。"告诉我!"我喊道，最后一次，导弹准备好飞了。
Then the jar set down, and my rage vanished like a burst balloon as I stared at the contents in shock. Floating serenely within the jar was a white unicorn with a red and black mane. Her half-open eyes were a brilliant, beautiful red. She didn’t have her cutie mark, but I could easily imagine them on her flank: a queen and ace of spades. I popped my hand open and touched the glass. The eye opened slightly more, then closed again, dully. “Sanguine wasn’t the only one I saved from Hippocratic before it exploded. I thought this vessel might come in useful. I even had the skin healed.”
然后罐子落了下来，当我震惊地盯着罐子里的东西时，我的愤怒像一个爆裂的气球一样消失了。罐子里静静地漂浮着一只红黑色鬃毛的白色独角兽。她半睁着的眼睛是一双明亮的、美丽的红眼睛。她没有可爱的标记，但我可以很容易地想象他们在她的侧翼:一个q和一张黑桃a。我猛地打开手，碰了碰玻璃杯。眼睛稍微睁大了一点，然后又闭上了，显得迟钝。"希波克拉底事件爆发前，我从希波克拉底手中救下的不只是桑吉一个人。我想这个容器可能有用。我甚至把皮肤治好了。"
It was me. Unmutated. Untainted. Unaugmented. Unmutilated. Normal. I barely recognized myself without a layer of metal covering me, or with flesh and blood limbs attached. I didn’t look away, afraid that, if I did, the body would be yanked away forever. “Any reason why shouldn’t I just blow you apart and take all these people you’ve captured away from here?”
是我。未变异的。未受污染。未增强的。残缺不全。正常。如果没有一层金属覆盖在我身上，或者连着有血有肉的肢体，我几乎认不出自己。我没有移开视线，我害怕如果我这么做了，尸体会被永远地拉走。"有什么理由不让我把你大卸八块，把你抓来的这些人都带走吗?"
Cognitum wore an expression of amused confidence. “Do you have some method of transferring all your memories, thoughts, and feelings into it? You might transfer your soul, perhaps. Eventually, you might regain something of your previous self, but it wouldn’t be the same pony.” Her amusement faded as she approached me. “Work with me, give me what I need, and I will include you in everything. You can take Dawn’s place if you wish, or leave for good, and I won’t stop you. I’ll explain, in detail, what Horizons is and, more importantly,
Cognitum脸上流露出愉快而自信的表情。"你有什么办法把你所有的记忆、思想和感觉都转移进去吗？也许你可以转移你的灵魂。最终，你可能会找回以前的自己，但那不会是同一匹小马。"当她走近我时，她的娱乐消失了。"和我一起工作，给我我需要的东西，我会让你参与一切。如果你愿意，你可以代替道恩，或者永远离开，我不会阻止你。我会详细解释地平线是什么，更重要的是
how I plan to stop it. You will go from being my enemy to my ally. And more importantly, you’ll be my friend.”
我计划如何阻止它。你将从我的敌人变成我的盟友。更重要的是，你会成为我的朋友。"
I slowly backed away from the jar and stared hard at her. “You’re asking for a lot of trust here. Assuming I accepted this, how do I know you’d follow through on your end of the agreement?” Let alone not abuse EC-1101, let alone stop being so evil and crazy.
我慢慢地从罐子旁退开，紧紧地盯着她。"你在这里要求很多信任。就算我接受了，我怎么知道你会遵守协议?"更不用说滥用EC-1101，更不用说停止如此邪恶和疯狂。
“Me,” Rampage said as she walked up the stairs towards me. Steel Rain waited at the base of the steps, wearing his massive guns and sparkly new armor, complete with helmet. “I’ll watch over them and make sure they don’t try any funny business.” I frowned down at Rampage, and she quickly went on, “I know you don’t trust me now. I know I should have told you about Steel Rain’s offer. But I don’t want to see you screwed, Blackjack. I want you to have the life a pony like you deserves. A new body. A life with your friends. An end to a world you hate. Cognitum can do all that. Let her have the headache of ruling things and dealing with Horizons. If she fucks up, you can kill her then.”
"是我,"朗格一边走上楼梯，一边对我说。钢铁雨等在台阶的底部，身穿他巨大的枪支和闪闪发光的新盔甲，完整的头盔。"我会看着他们，确保他们不会耍花招。"我皱起眉头看着暴怒，她很快继续说道:"我知道你现在不相信我了。我知道我应该告诉你钢铁雨的报价。但我不想看到你倒霉黑杰克。我想让你过上你应得的生活。一个新的身体。和你的朋友一起生活。一个你憎恨的世界的终结。认知可以做到这一切。让她去处理一些让她头疼的事情，比如管理东西和处理地平线。如果她搞砸了，你就可以杀了她。"
“And you’ll be dead,” I added, levelly.
"那你就死定了,"我平静地补充道。
She rolled her eyes. “Yes. I’ll be dead. Honestly, I sell you out and you’re still hung up on that? What do I have to do to get it through your head that I’m a nopony. A fake. A glommed-together amalgam of souls. Have you found one memory, any memory, that’s of me and me alone?”
她翻了翻白眼。"是的。我会死的。说实话我出卖了你你还在纠结这个？我要怎么做才能让你明白我不是一匹小马。假的。灵魂的混合体灵魂的混合体。你有没有找到一个关于我的记忆，一个关于我自己的记忆?"
“No, I haven’t,” I replied evenly.
"不，我没有,"我平静地回答。
“Then face the fact that this is the solution where everypony gets what they want. Cogs gets to be Princess again. Steel Rain gets to play with big toys. I get a coffin. You get your life back without abandoning the Hoof. Glory gets a mare she can snuggle with. Everypony wins,” she said, then jabbed a hoof at Cognitum. “And if she gets out of line, the Twilight Society can blast the Core with Celestia One, or the Lightbringer can drop a hurricane on this place. It doesn’t have to be you,” she said as she stared into my eyes in earnest, the pale gaze sincere and craving my acceptance of her decision.
"然后面对这样一个事实，那就是每匹小马都能得到它们想要的东西。齿轮又成为了公主。钢铁雨可以玩大玩具。我得到一个棺材。你可以在不放弃霍夫的情况下找回你的生活。晨辉得到一匹她可以依偎的母马。"每匹小马都赢,"她说，然后用蹄子戳了戳Cognitum。"如果她越界了，暮光协会可以用天堂一号炸毁地核，或者光明使者可以在这个地方引发飓风。不一定非得是你,"她一边说着，一边认真地盯着我的眼睛，那苍白的凝视是真诚的，渴望着我接受她的决定。
“You’ve always been about giving ponies a chance,” Cognitum said quietly. She had a point, but still. The consequences of them being allowed to fuck up were greater than my worst nightmare.
"你总是给小马一个机会,"科涅图姆平静地说。她说的有道理，但还是有道理的。他们被允许搞砸的后果比我最糟糕的噩梦还要严重。
I turned and looked back at Cognitum. “How about we turn it around?” I asked. “Why don’t you trust me? Tell me everything you know about Horizons and how to stop it. I do. You help settle things down in the Hoof and then... then... I give you EC-1101. What do you say? What’s another year or two?”
我转过身来，回头看着Cognitum。"我们扭转局面怎么样?"我问道。"你为什么不相信我？告诉我你所知道的关于地平线的一切，以及如何阻止它。我知道。你帮忙在霍夫安顿下来然后...然后...我给你EC-1101。你怎么说？再过一两年怎么样?"
“Plenty of time for you to get killed, change your mind, or allow somepony else to access the systems,” Cognitum replied smoothly, frowning at me. “I’m sorry, but we must do it my way.”
"你有足够的时间去死，改变主意，或者让别人进入系统,"科涅图姆平静地回答，对我皱着眉头。"对不起，但我们必须按我的方式来。"
I sighed, shaking my head. If only things could have been different. Hopefully, if I saved Charm, the filly would be grateful long enough to tell me what I needed to know. “Sorry,” I said, snapping the missile launcher up.
我叹了口气，摇了摇头。要是情况能有所不同就好了。希望，如果我救了Charm，那匹小母马会很感激的告诉我我需要知道的事情。"对不起,"我一边说，一边把导弹发射器弹了起来。
“And what of you?” Cognitum asked as she stared at me, still calm. Huh? My bafflement made me hesitate a moment. What was she talking about? “Do you agree with her decision?” she said as she gazed into my eyes. Who was she talking to? I was about to ask, but before I could, she went on just as cryptically, “She might be able to destroy me. The system has lots of volatile coolants and the like. I doubt, however, that what you want would survive my destruction.” She raised her head slightly, as if gauging my reaction. “I am ready to honor my deal.”
"那你呢?"当她静静地盯着我的时候，认知问道。什么？我的困惑使我犹豫了片刻。她在说什么？"你同意她的决定吗?"她盯着我的眼睛说。她在和谁说话？我正要问，但还没来得及问，她就神秘兮兮地继续说道:"她可能会毁了我。这个系统有很多挥发性冷却剂等等。然而，我怀疑你想要的东西是否能在我的毁灭中幸存下来。"她微微抬起头，仿佛在观察我的反应。"我准备履行我的交易。"
“Who are you talking–”
"你在跟谁说话?"
“I’m sorry,” came the familiar rasp in my ears.
"对不起,"耳边传来熟悉的刺耳声。
“Dealer?”
"经销商?"
“I’m sorry, Blackjack,” Dealer whispered miserably in my ears, “but I don’t want to die.”
"对不起，黑杰克,"庄家悲惨地在我耳边低语,"但我不想死。"
Suddenly, words flashed across my vision: Command Override: Cut Strings.
突然，我的视线中闪过几个字:命令超越:切断字符串。
Instantly, my body went limp, and I collapsed onto my face. I could still see and hear, but even my ears were paralyzed; I barely had enough muscles to speak. “Dealer. Dealer! What are you doing, Dealer? Stop it!”
立刻，我的身体变得无力，我倒在我的脸上。我仍然可以看到和听到，但是我的耳朵也麻痹了;我几乎没有足够的肌肉来说话。"经销商。经销商！你在干什么，经销商？住手!"
“Don’t kill her!” Rampage shouted.
"别杀她!"狂暴喊道。
“I wouldn’t dream of it, Rampage,” Cognitum said smoothly. “This is merely a
"我做梦也想不到，狂暴,"科尼顿平静地说。"这仅仅是一个
gesture of trust. A demonstration of my good intent. It’s the least I can do.” I was turned onto my side so I could see Cognitum and my copy. I could also see a small door in the base of the machine swing open. From it slithered, like some exotic robot snake with its tail trapped in the computer, a long cable connected to a small golden web studded with tiny gems. The metal tendril climbed over and into the jar, and the golden netting spread out to cover the blank’s head.
信任的姿态。证明我的善意。这是我唯一能做的。"我转过身来，这样我就能看到认知神经和我的副本。我还能看到机器底座上的一扇小门被打开了。一根长长的电缆连接着一个镶嵌着小宝石的金色小网，就像一条尾巴被困在电脑里的奇异的机器蛇。金属卷须爬过去，伸进罐子里，金色的网伸展开来，盖住了空白的头。
“Don’t do this. Don’t let her do this, Rampage,” I begged, struggling to move and feeling panic growing inside me as the synthetic pony opened a panel in her hoof, pulled out a small data plug, and advanced towards me. “Please!”
"不要这样做。"别让她这么做，狂暴,"我恳求着，挣扎着挪动身体，心里越来越恐慌，因为这匹合成小马拉开了蹄子上的面板，拔出了一个小数据插头，朝我走来。"求你了!"
“Cogs... you can do a surrogacy spell, can’t you?” Rampage asked quickly.
"齿轮......你能施代孕咒语，对吧?"狂暴迅速地问道。
I felt the plug push into the socket in my left temple. Cognitum rose and cocked her head at Rampage in clueless bafflement. “A surrogacy spell? Whatever f–” She then stopped and let out a soft ‘ahhh’ of comprehension. “Blackjack...” she said in feigned scandalized tones. “You have been a busy mare, haven’t you?”
我感觉到插头插进了我左太阳穴的插座里。认知女神站了起来，莫名其妙地昂起头，冲着暴跳如雷。"代孕咒语？不管怎样,"她停了下来，发出一声柔和的"啊"的理解。"黑杰克......"她假装愤怒地说。"你是一匹忙碌的母马，不是吗?"
“Please. Please don’t,” I begged.
"求你了。请不要这样,"我恳求道。
“Can you do it?” Rampage demanded. “Transfer the baby to the blank?”
"你能做到吗?"狂暴追问道。"把婴儿转到空白处?"
Cognitum didn’t answer for several tense seconds. “I regret to say that a blank is incapable of carrying a foal to term. Perhaps a blank could be used as an incubator for a foal nearly ready for birth, but blank reproductive systems lack proper hormonal regulation for pregnancy. A fetus implanted this early would miscarry long before birth,” she said matter-of-factly. “I likewise doubt a mare with Blackjack’s augmentations could carry a foal past the second trimester. The reinforcements would crush the infant. I’m very sorry. But if I can find a suitable mare, rest assured that I will transfer the fetus immediately, Rampage.”
几秒钟过去了，科涅塔没有回答。"我很遗憾地说，一片空白是不能把小马驹怀到足月的。也许一块空白可以用来作为即将出生的小马驹的孵化器，但是空白的生殖系统缺乏适当的怀孕激素调节。这么早植入的胎儿在出生前很久就会流产,"她实事求是地说。"我同样怀疑一匹拥有Blackjack增强装备的母马能否怀孕到第二个三个月。增援部队会把婴儿压扁的。我很抱歉。但如果我能找到一匹合适的母马，请放心，我会立即转移胎儿，狂暴。"
“No. No. Please, no,” I groaned. “Please, Rampage. Arloste. Shujaa. Twist. Please!”
"没有。没有。求你了，不要,"我呻吟着。"求你了，暴怒。Arloste.女名女子名。扭转。求你了!"
Suddenly, I felt a curious sensation, like going into a memory orb or using the Perceptitron. The world whirled faded away bit by bit, my vision blurring, then doubling, and then slowly smearing back into focus. And then…
突然，我感到一种奇怪的感觉，就像进入记忆球或使用感知器。这个世界一点一点地消失了，我的视线开始模糊，然后加倍，然后慢慢地重新聚焦。然后..。
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
The mare floated there in a jar, looking at a black cyberpony, a frozen unicorn robot, and a striped mare struggling against the hooves of a pony in glittery silver power armor. Dimly, she was aware of something terrible having happened, but she didn’t care. She simply bobbed in the jar, hearing the black cyberpony talking to the striped mare about what was best for Blackjack, Rampage, and the world. More than once, they regarded her, gesturing with sweeps of their hooves. She just waited, indifferently.
母马漂浮在一个罐子里，看着一匹黑色的赛博小马，一个冰冻的独角兽机器人，和一匹穿着闪闪发光的银色力量盔甲的小马蹄子挣扎的条纹母马。她模模糊糊地意识到发生了一件可怕的事情，但她并不在乎。她只是点了点瓶子，听着那匹黑色的赛博小马和那匹有斑纹的母马谈论什么对黑杰克、狂暴和整个世界是最好的。他们不止一次地注视着她，挥舞着他们的蹄子。她只是无动于衷地等待着。
The crane brought back the skull and bones. More talking about souls and cutting and transfers and other things. More waving of legs. Shouting. Struggles. The striped mare was upset about something, but the black cyberpony seemed even more distraught. She flung the tea set away, knocked over the table, and clutched at herself. The reason why didn’t matter so much, but their loud noises and waving legs kept her attention. The black cyberpony seemed almost in pain as she struggled against something within.
起重机把头骨和骨头运回来。更多地谈论灵魂，切割，转移和其他事情。更多的摇摆的腿。大喊大叫。挣扎。条纹母马为了什么事情心烦意乱，但是黑色的赛伯马似乎更加心烦意乱。她把茶具扔到一边，打翻了桌子，紧紧抓住自己。原因并不那么重要，但是他们的吵闹声和摇摆的腿吸引了她的注意力。那匹黑色的赛博马似乎在痛苦中挣扎着与内心的某种东西抗争。
This seemed to be the only thing happening in the big space at the moment. The floating mare watched the black cyberpony fight to regain her self-control.
这似乎是目前大空间里唯一正在发生的事情。那匹漂浮的母马看着那匹黑色的赛伯马搏斗以恢复自制力。
Finally, the striped mare backed off, gave the floating mare one last teary gaze, and hung her head as she trotted away, her tail scraping against the floor. The black cyberpony levitated out a little pendant and slipped it around the floating mare’s neck. A soothing song filled the floating mare’s ears as the black cyberpony closed the clasp. Next, the black cyberpony took out a thick pink plastic ring. ‘Ministry of Morale Unicorn Filly Timeout Device’ was written on it, along with a smiling pink mare. It snugged tightly around the base of the floating mare’s horn.
最后，那匹有斑纹的母马后退了，最后一次眼泪汪汪地凝视着那匹漂浮的母马，当她小跑着离开时，低下了头，尾巴擦着地板。那匹黑色的赛博小马悬浮出一个小吊坠，把它绕在那匹漂浮的母马的脖子上。当黑色赛博马关上扣子时，一首舒缓的歌声充满了漂浮的母马的耳朵。接下来，黑色的赛博马掏出一只厚厚的粉红色塑料戒指。上面写着"士气部小独角兽暂停装置"，旁边还有一匹微笑的粉红色母马。它紧紧地贴着漂浮着的母马的角底部。
Then the black cyberpony backed away as the bony skull began to cast a spell in concert with the black cyberpony. A swirling black disk bubbling with bursting green and purple boils began to whirl about the black cyberpony, and she struggled as if in agony once more. From the midst of the disk came a small white orb. The jagged black spiral caught the orb, which jerked as if caught in a powerful wind. The orb was blown over to the floating mare and pushed against her chest, and a warm sensation flowed through her.
接着，瘦骨嶙峋的头骨开始和黑色赛伯矮种马一起施展魔法，黑色赛伯矮种马后退了。一个黑色的漩涡冒着泡，绿色和紫色的水泡开始在黑色的赛伯马身上旋转，她挣扎着，仿佛又在痛苦中挣扎。圆盘的中央出现了一个小小的白色球体。那个锯齿状的黑色螺旋抓住了球体，球体抽动了一下，好像被一阵强风抓住了。圆球被吹到漂浮的母马身上，推到她的胸前，一股温暖的感觉流过她的身体。
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~
And I started crying as a switch inside me was flipped and I was Blackjack
我开始哭泣，因为我体内的一个开关被打开了，我成了Blackjack
again. Not just who I was a few minutes ago, but who I’d been months ago, before I ever left 99. I felt my chest expand and collapse with every breath. My heart thundered. Tears ran down my cheeks from whole and complete eyes. I was me. Me as I should have been... if my life had been different. I hugged my body, feeling the faintest discomforts in me, aware of every gurgle of my gut, every twinge of my nerves.
再一次。不仅仅是几分钟前的我，还有几个月前的我，在我离开99岁之前的我。我感到我的胸部随着每一次呼吸而扩张和崩溃。我的心怦怦直跳。泪水从我完整无缺的双眼中顺着脸颊滑落。我就是我。如果我的生活不是这样的话，我应该是这样的。我拥抱着自己的身体，感受着身体里最微弱的不适，意识到自己肠子里的每一丝咯咯声，意识到自己神经的每一丝刺痛。
It was wonderful, and terrible, because the one thing I didn’t feel was the flutter of life within. If it hadn’t been for that, I might have even been grateful... I tried to teleport out of the jar… nothing. Tried to levitate my gun off her. Nothing. I reached up with my hooves, trying to shove the ring off my horn, but it stuck tight. Okay, that ratcheted my anxiety closer to mindless panic.
这是美好的，也是可怕的，因为我唯一没有感受到的是生命的颤动。如果不是因为那个，我甚至可能已经感激...我试着从罐子里传送出来...什么也没有。想把我的枪从她身上移开。没什么。我抬起我的蹄子，试图把那个环从我的喇叭上挤下来，但它卡得太紧了。好吧，这让我的焦虑更接近于无意识的恐慌。
“Now,” Cognitum said with my old mouth as the Sweetie Bot stood as still and lifeless as a statue, “Are you ready to work with me?”
"现在,"当甜心机器人像雕像一样一动不动、毫无生气的站着时，我的老嘴唇说,"你准备好和我一起工作了吗?"
I swallowed hard, feeling the muscles pushing down my throat. “Give me back my body,” I rasped, sounding… weaker. I shoved the gold netting off my head. I couldn’t fight, couldn’t run... so I did what was unthinkable five months ago: I waited.
我艰难地咽了一口唾沫，感觉肌肉在把我的喉咙往下推。"把我的身体还给我,"我粗声粗气地说，听起来......软弱无力。我把金网从头上扯下来。我不能战斗，不能逃跑......所以我做了五个月前无法想象的事:我等待。
“I gave you your body, Blackjack. You should be grateful,” Cognitum said, a touch reproachful. She then looked at my PipBuck and said calmly, “Yes, you are next, Echo. I swear it. I simply need to confirm one last simple little thing.” The air above me flashed to life with another hologram, and I saw lines of code passing by along with strange, vaguely arcane symbols. “EC-1101. A command megaspell. Intact. Simply waiting for a pony who knows precisely how to use it.” She turned and smiled at me. “Thank you for delivering it, and this fine new body, to me.”
"我把你的身体给了你，Blackjack。你应该心存感激,"科涅图姆略带责备地说。然后她看着我的PipBuck平静地说:"是的，你是下一个，Echo。我发誓。我只是需要确认最后一件简单的小事。"我头顶上的空气在另一个全息图中闪现，我看到一行行代码与一些奇怪的、隐约有点神秘的符号擦肩而过。「EC-1101。一个命令megaspell。完好无损。只是在等待一匹精确地知道如何使用它的小马。"她转过身对我微笑。"谢谢你把它，还有这个漂亮的新身体送给我。"
“I didn’t have a choice in the matter,” I replied sourly.
"这件事我别无选择,"我酸溜溜地回答。
“Of course you did. Echo said so dozens of times, though I’d have been quite put out with him if you’d actually listened. His guilt very nearly ruined everything,” she said as she turned her head and admired herself, then stood upright, regarded her abdomen, and ran a hoof over it. “True, I didn’t expect this body to have a passenger, but I suspect that that will encourage your good behavior.” She turned and regarded me with amusement. “You really don’t understand, do you?”
"当然了。Echo这么说过几十次了，不过如果你真的听了，我会很生他的气的。他的罪恶感几乎毁了一切,"她一边说，一边转过头来欣赏自己，然后挺直了身子，看了看自己的腹部，用蹄子踩了一下。"的确，我没有想到这个身体会有一个乘客，但我怀疑这会鼓励你表现良好。"她转过身来，饶有兴致地看着我。"你真的不明白，是吗?"
“Understand what?” I muttered in rage and annoyance.
"明白什么?"我在愤怒和烦恼中喃喃自语。
Sweetie Bot’s eyes flickered to life, and she said in filly’s high-pitched voice, “I reckon, if y’all want to find out, you should jes follow the routin’ path to wherever it was tryin’ ta go. That’s yer best bet ta find what Horizons is.”
"甜心机器人"的眼睛闪烁着生命的光芒，她用小母马尖锐的声音说:"我想，如果你们想知道答案，你们应该沿着这条路走到它想去的地方。这是你找到地平线是什么的最好办法。"
I now had enough blood to appreciate the sensation of it running cold. “You were Applebot.” The robot went dead again, and my old body nodded. “But why?”
我现在有了足够的血液，可以感受到冰凉的感觉。"你是苹果机器人。"机器人又死了，我的老身体点了点头。"但为什么呢?"
“Because I cannot rule my domain as memories within a machine, however endowed. I needed a living vessel, and I knew that if you possessed EC-1101 and it functioned for you, you might come across other vital data like Steelpony, Chimera, and Eternity. So I tested you, sending you to areas of greater and greater peril. I knew that you would become stronger. Better. That was your slogan, after all.” She gave a smug smile. “Had you failed, I would have dispatched a robot to get it off your body, or retrieved it from Sanguine, or sent Applebot or Dawn to get it from your friends. And I kept Dawn as a spare, in the event that the worst happened.”
"因为我不能像机器中的记忆那样统治我的领域，不管它被赋予了什么。我需要一个活的容器，我知道如果你拥有EC-1101并且它对你起作用，你可能会遇到其他重要的数据，比如Steelpony、Chimera和Eternity。所以我考验了你，把你送到越来越危险的地方。我知道你会变得更坚强。好多了。毕竟，那是你的口号。"她自鸣得意地笑了笑。"如果你失败了，我会派一个机器人把它从你身上弄下来，或者从Sanguine那里把它找回来，或者派Applebot或Dawn从你的朋友那里把它拿回来。我还留着道恩的备用钥匙，以防最糟糕的情况发生。"
“You used me,” I said, ashamed and disgusted that I never questioned the routing taking me straight to my enemy.
"你利用了我,"我羞愧而又厌恶地说，因为我从来没有质疑过这个把我直接带到敌人面前的路线。
“You like being used. If I had time, I’d have sex with you and really make you love hating yourself,” she replied smugly, patting the glass. “Now. You should see the fruit of all your hard work.” She tipped her head back, her mouth in an almost orgasmic expression of bliss. “EC-1101, Command: Activate!”
"你喜欢被利用。如果我有时间，我会和你做爱，真的让你爱上恨自己,"她自鸣得意地回答，轻拍着玻璃。"现在。你应该看到你所有努力工作的成果。"她把头向后仰，嘴里流露出近乎高潮般的幸福表情。"EC-1101，命令:启动!"
Suddenly the scrolling blocks of code and symbols vanished, replaced by a single static line with a blinking prompt below it. ‘Enter Password’
代码和符号的滚动块突然消失了，取而代之的是一个单一的静态行，下面有一个闪烁的提示符。输入密码
Cognitum froze with all the abruptness of a mare on the edge of climax getting doused in ice water. Her head twitched back and forth. “What is this? Password? What password? What is going on?”
当一头母马在冰水中浸泡到高潮的边缘时，认知系统突然地冻住了。她的头来回地抽动着。"这是什么？密码？什么密码？这是怎么回事?"
“What do you mean?” Steel Rain asked. “Don’t you know it?”
"什么意思?"钢铁雨问道。"你不知道吗?"
“EC-1101 uses the most advanced arcanometric identification systems. It doesn’t need a password! It knows appropriate users on contact! As this body is a descendant of Twilight, it should simply acknowledge me immediately.” She stood frozen for a few more seconds. “What do you mean ‘This isn’t a part of the original program,’ Echo?!” Then she turned down towards me and asked, icily,
"EC-1101使用最先进的电子计量识别系统。它不需要密码！它知道合适的用户在联系！因为这个身体是暮光之城的后裔，所以它应该马上承认我。"她僵硬地站了几秒钟。"'这不是原始程序的一部分'是什么意思，Echo?!"然后她转过身来，冷冰冰地问道:
“What have you done?”
"你做了什么?"
“Me? I didn’t do anything!” I said as I looked up at the password prompt.
"我？我什么都没做!"我一边说，一边抬头看着密码提示。
“You must have. Nopony else has had such intimate access.” She glared up at the floating words. ‘>Blackjack’ replaced the empty prompt.
"你一定有。其他小马也有这样亲密的接触。"她瞪大眼睛看着那些浮动的字。"Blackjack"替换了空提示符。
Then, below that: ‘>Error! Incorrect Password. You have 2 attempts remaining. Failure will purge protected file from storage medium. Hint: The name he likes so much.’
然后，在下面:'错误！错误的密码。你还有两次机会。失败将从存储介质中清除受保护的文件。提示:他非常喜欢的名字
“Purge? What fool purges a super critical megaspell program after three failed password attempts?” Cognitum asked incredulously. ‘Who is ‘he’, Echo? Who did this?” She recoiled, as if struck. “How could you not know? You are one with the megaspell!” She turned towards me again. “What is going on, Blackjack?” she asked, her tone increasingly aggravated and ominous.
"清除？什么样的傻瓜会在三次密码尝试失败后清除一个超级关键的megaspell程序?"认知神经质地问道。'他'是谁，艾可？这是谁干的?"她向后退了一步，好像被击中了似的。""你怎么会不知道呢？你和megaspell是一体的!"她又转向我。"怎么了，黑杰克?"她问道，语气越来越严重，越来越不吉利。
I stared at the floating words, utterly at a loss. “I don’t know!” Cognitum’s frustration seemed to grow yet more, either from my answer, a continued internal conversation with the Dealer, or both.
我盯着那些浮动的文字，完全不知所措。"我不知道!"认知的挫败感似乎越来越强烈，要么是从我的回答，要么是继续与庄家的内部对话，要么两者兼而有之。
“What’s the problem?” Steel Rain asked as he picked his way carefully up the stairs.
"有什么问题吗?"钢铁雨小心翼翼地走上楼梯，问道。
“There is some accessory program locking me out of fully activating EC-1101!” Cognitum replied. “Echo has been capable of accessing its base superuser escalation functions to grab control of individual systems, but I need the megaspell to go off if I am to reclaim access to all the production and weapons facilities across the Wasteland!”
"有一些附件程序锁定我完全激活EC-1101!"科涅塔姆回答道。"Echo已经能够使用其基本的超级用户升级功能来获取对单个系统的控制，但是如果我要重新获得对荒地上所有生产和武器设施的访问权，我需要megaspell启动!"
“Well, can’t you just do what he did?” Steel Rain asked.
"好吧，你就不能像他那样做吗?"钢铁雨问道。
“Activate all the facilities one by one, system by system, computer by computer? Certainly. If I had another thousand years!” Cognitum exclaimed as she trotted back and forth before me.
"一个接一个地激活所有设施，一个系统地激活，一个计算机地激活？当然。如果我还能再活一千年!"当她在我面前跑来跑去的时候，Cognitum叫了起来。
“Can’t you hack the password?” Steel Rain demanded incredulously.
"你不能破解密码吗?"钢铁雨不可思议地问道。
“I’d have to clone the program and then devote all my processing power to brute-force crack it. The encryption protocol it's using is incredibly complex but
"我必须克隆这个程序，然后用我所有的处理能力强行破解它。它使用的安全协议是难以置信的复杂，但是
entirely unique. It's not any revision of the Advanced Encryptomagic Standard, Sparklefish, or even the Applejack Cipher!"
完全独一无二。它不是任何高级加密标准，亮闪鱼，甚至苹果杰克密码的修订版!"
“But you could do it?” Steel Rain asked.
"但你能做到吗?"钢铁雨问道。
"Of course I could. The problem is that the cipher seems to be an asymmetric scheme with output feedback. In order to have any confidence in a given attempt, I'd have to decrypt pretty much the entire megaspell every time. Do you have any idea how large EC-1101 is? It's a small miracle that it can even be compressed to fit on a PipBuck. It could take weeks, months, or even longer to crack the decryption key for this damnable algorithm. Horizons will obliterate us all long before then,” she said, and then she growled at me, “Your little game is going to get us all killed, Blackjack! Now what have you done?”
"当然可以。问题是该密码似乎是一个具有输出反馈的非对称方案。为了对某次尝试有信心，我几乎每次都要解密整个megaspell。你知道EC-1101有多大吗？它甚至可以压缩到一个PipBuck上，这是一个小小的奇迹。破解这个该死的算法的解密密钥可能需要数周、数月甚至更长的时间。地平线会在那之前消灭我们所有人,"她说，然后对我咆哮道,"你的小把戏会害死我们所有人的，Blackjack！现在你做了什么?"
“Nothing!” I protested, just as confused as they were.
"没什么!"我抗议道，和他们一样困惑。
“She’s lying. She must be lying,” Steel Rain insisted as he stood beside Cognitum.
"她在撒谎。"她一定是在撒谎,"钢铁雨站在科涅图姆旁边，坚持道。
“No. She’s not,” Cognitum answered.
"没有。"她不是,"科涅塔姆回答。
“How can you be sure?” Steel Rain replied.
"你怎么能肯定?"钢铁雨回答道。
Cognitum sighed. “Because I’ve felt her soul, Steel.” She turned and looked at me, frowning thoughtfully. “You cannot imagine what that was like, Steel Rain. The guilt. The pain. The self-recrimination and self-destructive urge. It hurt to be her.”
科涅塔姆叹了口气。"因为我感受到了她的灵魂，斯蒂尔。"她转过身来看着我，皱着眉头沉思着。"你无法想象那是什么感觉，钢铁雨。内疚。痛苦。自责和自我毁灭的冲动。成为她让我很伤心。"
“What are you talking about?” I muttered in bafflement.
"你在说什么?"我困惑地喃喃自语。
“When I transferred your mind and put myself in your body, I inadvertently made contact with your soul as well. Your purest Blackjackness. I don’t know how you survive so. The drive for redemption is so strong that it burns. Your craving for physical pleasures to distract you from your own depression would be heartbreaking if we weren’t so at odds. Your devotion to your friends... your need to save others... your...” She shivered and hugged herself. “It’s far easier to have no soul than yours. To have a clarity of thought and drive...” She shook her head.
"当我转移你的思想，把自己放进你的身体时，我不经意间也接触到了你的灵魂。你最纯粹的黑杰克。我不知道你是怎么活下来的。救赎的欲望如此强烈，以至于燃烧起来。如果我们不是这么不和谐的话，你渴望肉体上的快乐来分散你对自己抑郁症的注意力将会是令人心碎的。你对朋友的忠诚......你拯救他人的需要......你的......"她颤抖着，拥抱着自己。"没有灵魂比没有灵魂容易得多。思路清晰，干劲十足......"她摇了摇头。
“You should interrogate her, still. Tug off that pendant and see how she likes
"你还是应该审问她。把吊坠扯下来，看看她喜不喜欢
having her soul torn out,” Steel Rain replied, then paused and continued, in a lower tone, “Or... you have her baby...”
"她的灵魂被撕裂了,"钢铁雨回答道，然后停顿了一下，用较低的音调继续说道,"或者......你怀了她的孩子......"
There was a resounding clang as Cognitum popped her hands out, grabbed Steel Rain, and threw the silver-armored stallion to the ground. With cold contempt, she said softly, “Never, ever, suggest such a thing again.”
当科涅塔姆伸出双手，抓住钢铁雨，把那匹银甲骏马摔倒在地时，发出了一声响亮的叮当声。她带着冷漠的蔑视轻声说:"永远，永远，永远不要再提这种事情了。"
I felt a little bit of relief, though my heart still pounded in my chest and my insides still tingled and fluttered with adrenaline. I had to get control of the situation. Had to get my baby back. Had to get my body back. EC-1101. Save the world. No pressure. The pair were arguing, and so I racked my brains and tried to think it through.
我感到轻松了一点，虽然我的心仍然在我的胸膛跳动，我的内心仍然刺痛和肾上腺素飞扬。我必须控制局面。我得把我的孩子找回来。我得找回我的身体。Ec-1101.拯救世界。没有压力。这两个人在吵架，所以我绞尽脑汁想通了。
When had EC-1101 been apart from me? I hadn’t messed around with it. Was it when Sanguine had taken it from me? He’d been a biologist slash mad scientist, not an arcane sciences programmer. What about at Tenpony? I was unconscious for three days; maybe somepony had accessed the program? But I couldn’t see any of my friends letting a stranger mess around with my PipBuck. What about my friends? I tried to imagine Glory doing it but came up blank. P-21 had the skills, but I couldn’t think of any reason why he would. And unless Scotch Tape’s mom had taught her...
Ec-11101什么时候离开过我？我没有乱动它。是桑吉尼从我这里拿走它的时候吗？他是一个生物学家，一个疯狂的科学家，而不是一个神秘的科学程序员。在Tenpony怎么样？我昏迷了三天，也许有小马接触过这个程序？但是我不认为我的朋友会让一个陌生人乱动我的PipBuck。那我的朋友们呢？我试图想象晨辉这样做，但是一无所获。P-21有这个能力，但我想不出他为什么会这么做。除非ScotchTape的妈妈教过她..。
Wait...
等等。
Duct Tape had been a maintenance mare who the Overmare used to get EC-1101 ready for transfer. I racked my brains, trying to think back to those days so many months ago, when I’d been flesh and blood. I’d been sitting in Hoss’s home, bored... listening to recordings... Recordings of P-21 and her and...
管道胶带曾经是一个维修母马谁Overmare用来得到EC-1101准备转移。我绞尽脑汁，试图回想起几个月前的那些日子，那时我还是个有血有肉的人。我一直坐在霍斯的家里，无聊......听录音......P-21和她的录音.....。
Oh my...
哦，我的..。
At my laughter, both of them stared up at me. “Oh, it’s too rich. It’s too good!” I cackled.
听到我的笑声，他们俩都抬头看着我。"哦，太油腻了。太好吃了!"我咯咯笑起来。
“She’s finally snapped completely,” Steel Rain said flatly. “Eh, good riddance.”
"她终于完全崩溃了,"钢铁雨直截了当地说。"啊，终于摆脱了。"
“No. I don’t think so,” Cognitum said evenly. “She figured it out.”
"没有。我不这么认为,"科涅图姆平静地说。"她想明白了。"
“I figured it out,” I replied, grinning from ear to ear as she met my gaze.
"我想明白了,"我回答，当她看到我的目光时，我咧嘴笑了。
It was Duct Tape. It had to be! Back when the Overmare had ordered EC-1101 to be removed from Stable 99’s systems for transport, she’d encrypted it. Something of her own invention, no doubt. Duct Tape loved cobbling together her own things, and I guessed that the encryption she used had been something of her own invention. Ironically, she’d done it to prevent the Overmare from screwing her over... or maybe the Overmare had demanded she make a safeguard to prevent Sanguine from screwing her. It’d been a while ago... Either way, Equestria was being saved by the lucky foresight of Scotch’s mother and the amount of time she’d poured into her hobby!
是胶带。肯定是这样！当Overmare命令将EC-1101从Stable99的运输系统中移除时，她对其进行了加密。毫无疑问，这是她自己的发明。布基胶带喜欢把她自己的东西拼凑起来，我猜她使用的加密技术是她自己发明的。具有讽刺意味的是，她这样做是为了防止Overmare欺负她......或者Overmare要求她做一个保护措施，防止Sanguine欺负她。那已经是很久以前的事了......不管怎样，苏格兰人的母亲幸运地远见卓识，以及她投入到自己爱好中的大量时间，救了小马国！
I just hoped that I’d get the chance to tell Scotch before something bad happened.
我只是希望能有机会在坏事发生之前告诉苏格兰人。
“Well now,” Cognitum said with my voice. “It seems that we have need of further negotiation.” She popped her fingers out and rubbed them along her armored head. “How unfortunate.”
"好了,"科涅图姆用我的声音说。"看来我们需要进一步谈判。"她伸出手指，沿着披着盔甲的脑袋摩擦着。"真不幸。"
“Give me my–”
"给我我的..."
“No. I don’t think so,” Cognitum interrupted smoothly. “While I’d never be so crude as to resort to Steel Rain’s suggestion that I kill your child, I believe you can be compelled to yield.”
"没有。我不这么认为,"科涅塔姆平稳地打断了他。"虽然我从来没有粗鲁到求助于钢铁雨的建议，让我杀了你的孩子，但我相信你可以被迫屈服。"
“Give me one good reason I should!” I retorted.
"给我一个好的理由!"我反驳道。
“You want to do the right thing,” she replied. “You always want to do better, and you want to save lives, even at the cost of your own.”
"你想做正确的事,"她回答。"你总是想做得更好，你想拯救生命，即使是以自己的生命为代价。"
I hesitated. “Give me another.”
我犹豫了一下。"再给我一个。"
“Without EC-1101, I won’t be able to stop Horizons from killing us all,” she answered without hesitation. The air above us flickered to life again. Before me sat a small pebble of moonstone and a block of starmetal. “I suspect you know about the interaction of starmetal with moonstone.” The two approached each other, both of them growing brighter and brighter. When the moonstone pushed against the block, a white light began to spread along the star metal. “When a critical point is reached, the starmetal undergoes a chain reaction, converting its mass to energy and magic.” There was a colossal white flash as the starmetal block was consumed by a sphere of crackling energy. “Raw destructive potential, the magic and electromagnetic energy wreak havoc on enchantments and
"没有EC-1101，我无法阻止视野号杀死我们所有人,"她毫不犹豫地回答。我们头顶上的空气再次闪烁起来。我面前放着一块小小的月光石和一块星状金属。"我猜你知道星级金属和月长石的相互作用。"两个人相互靠近，越来越明亮。当月光石推动块，一个白色的光开始沿着星金属蔓延。当达到临界点时，星状金属会发生连锁反应，将其质量转化为能量和魔法当星际金属块被一团噼啪作响的能量吞噬时，有一道巨大的白光闪过。"原始的破坏力，魔法和电磁能量对结界造成破坏
technology alike. Only very specific enhancements are capable of resisting the combination.” When the flash faded, a cloud of sparkling motes spread out, swirling and melting away through the air. “Soul energy is a byproduct of the reaction.”
技术相似。只有非常具体的增强才能抵抗这种组合。"当闪光褪去时，一团闪闪发光的尘埃扩散开来，在空气中旋转融化。"灵魂能量是反应的副产品。"
“So what does this have to do with Horizons?” I asked.
"那么，这和视野号有什么关系?"我问道。
“Everything,” she said, and the floor gave a giant lurch as wheels set in the diagonal tracks began to turn. “If you don’t mind, I’d like move us to a new location. It might help you to understand.” The entire house-sized computer was descending the inclinator. “Very few realize what starmetal is, where it comes from, and how it can do what it does. I spent considerable time and energy trying to comprehend its mysteries. Zebra treatises on the subject were obfuscated with dire warnings. Scholars I dispatched to learn more came back infuriatingly lacking information, if they came back at all.”
"什么都有,"她说，地板突然剧烈地倾斜，斜线上的车轮开始转动。"如果你不介意的话，我想搬到一个新的地方去。这可能有助于你理解。"整个房子大小的计算机正在下降倾斜器。"很少有人知道什么是星金属，它从哪里来，以及它是如何做到这一点的。我花了相当多的时间和精力试图理解它的奥秘。关于这个主题的斑马论文混淆了可怕的警告。我派去学习更多知识的学者回来时，信息极其匮乏，如果他们回来的话。"
“But Goldenblood knew. And Horse,” I said, wondering where the hell we were going.
"但是金血王知道。还有小马,"我说，不知道我们到底要去哪里。
“Yes. Goldenblood’s special talent was metals. Ore. Art. Shaping it. Arranging it. Knowing how it would bend and break. Surprisingly useful. He keyed in on the special harmonics, and Horse learned how to utilize those harmonics to produce specific effects. But it would take decades to understand the nuances enough to use them effectively,” Cognitum said calmly. Scorpion beasts and worse shivered and skittered on the walls of the ravine as we passed. “For instance, pacifying these monsters can be achieved with a simple amplitude modulation.”
"是的。金色血液的特殊才能是金属。Ore..艺术。塑造它。安排。知道它将如何弯曲和折断。令人惊讶的有用。他键入了特殊的谐波，而马学会了如何利用这些谐波产生特殊的效果。但要理解其中的细微差别，以便有效地使用它们，还需要几十年的时间。更糟糕的是，当我们经过峡谷的时候，蝎子般的野兽在颤抖，在峡谷的墙壁上跳跃。"例如，只需一个简单的幅度调制就可以安抚这些怪物。"
“What does this have to do with Horizons?” I demanded as the walls spread further and further apart. Eventually the track was free of the walls altogether, hanging on thin silver cables stretching into the darkness above.
"这和地平线有什么关系?"随着墙壁越来越远，我问道。最后，铁轨完全脱离了墙壁，悬挂在细细的银色电缆上，一直延伸到黑暗的上方。
“It’s quite simple. Goldenblood thought of a way to bring an incredibly large amount of starmetal into contact with an incredibly large amount of moonstone. The detonation would utterly annihilate Equestria.” And as she talked, the hologram changed to show a video of the Core vanishing in an expanding sphere of white energy. I watched Chapel incinerated instantly, followed a few seconds later by the Collegiate, the Arena, Elysium, and the Fluttershy Medical Center. I suspected she was taking a few artistic liberties with the ponies screaming and
"这很简单。金血王想到了一种方法，可以让大量的星际金属接触到大量的月长石。爆炸将彻底摧毁马术国。"随着她的讲话，全息图变成了显示核心在不断扩大的白色能量范围中消失的视频。几秒钟后，我看到教堂被烧成了灰烬，紧接着是学院体育馆、竞技场、极乐世界和Fluttershy医疗中心。我怀疑她对那些尖叫着的小马做了一些艺术上的随意处理
running around aflame. Then the video pulled back, and it wasn’t just the buildings being consumed; the ground itself seemed to soften and spread like fiery clay. The bowl spread wider and wider, pressing against the mountains ringing the Hoof and slowly pushing them away.
在燃烧的火焰中奔跑。然后视频拉回来，不仅仅是建筑物被烧毁，大地本身似乎变软了，像火红的粘土一样蔓延开来。碗越来越宽，挤压着山脉，环绕着霍夫，慢慢地把它们推开。
As my view moved further out, I got a wonderful view of Canterlot being destroyed; apparently Cogs had made this before the Enclave wiped it off the map. Spike’s cave crumbled to nothing, and I felt a pang of trepidation. Perhaps LittlePip shouldn’t have put that in her memoirs. The blast continued, obliterating Tenpony Tower, the S.P.P. hub, and everything else remotely familiar. The shockwave continued clear across the ocean, and the storm of annihilation tore into the zebra lands as well. Forests incinerated. Colossal waves inundated the land. Great cracks split the earth, and giant volcanic eruptions sprayed magma into the air. It was utter devastation.
随着我的视野越来越远，我看到了Canterlot被摧毁的绝佳景象;显然，在昂科雷从地图上抹去之前，Cogs就已经做到了这一点。斯派克的洞穴化为乌有，我感到一阵战栗。也许小皮普不应该把这些写在她的回忆录里。爆炸仍在继续，摧毁了TenponyTower，S.P.P.hub，以及其他一切远程熟悉的东西。冲击波继续横扫大洋，湮灭的风暴也撕裂了斑马的土地。森林化为灰烬。巨浪淹没了大地。巨大的裂缝分裂了地球，巨大的火山喷发向空中喷射岩浆。这是彻底的毁灭。
Cognitum had missed her calling; she should have been a special effects artist.
认知空间已经错过了她的使命，她应该是一个特效艺术家。
Given that Luna could step into ponies’ dreams, though...
考虑到卢娜可以进入小马的梦想，尽管..。
“So where is this giant supply of moonstone and starmetal?” I asked as listlessly as I could, waiting for her to tell me something new. Through the gloom ahead of and below the platform, I made out a massive body of... mist? Water? Something was churning far below. The tracks moved through a gap in the rocks towards something just out of sight. “After all, I've seen a fair bit of what went on behind closed doors during the war, and I think I'd remember if mass importing of moonstone came up even once.”
"那么，月长石和星金属的巨大供应源在哪里呢?"我尽可能无精打采地问，等着她告诉我一些新的事情。透过月台前面和下面的黑暗，我看到了一个巨大的身体......雾？水？下面有东西在搅动。这些足迹穿过岩石间的一个缺口，朝着看不见的东西移动。"毕竟，我已经看到了战争期间关起门来后发生了什么，我想我会记得，如果大规模进口月光石出现了哪怕一次。"
“Don’t be ridiculous. The only moonstone on Equus was brought back during the Marigold scandal. No. The moonstone he plans on using is there, on the moon.” The hologram changed to that of an immense white crystal resting at the bottom of a rifled shaft. “Goldenblood commandeered Horse’s mechasprites and sent them to the moon on a clandestine rocket to build a facility and to collect and fuse moonstone into a projectile massing several hundred thousand tonnes. With a few more secret launches of Flux to fire it...”
"别开玩笑了。马科斯星球上唯一的月光石是在万寿菊丑闻期间被带回来的。没有。他计划使用的月光石就在那里，在月球上。"全息图变成了一个巨大的白色水晶，停留在一个有膛线的轴的底部。"金血王征用了马的机械人，用秘密火箭把他们送到月球上建造一个设施，并收集和熔化月长石，形成一个总量达数十万吨的发射物。再加上一些秘密发射的通量点火......"
Okay. Now my blasé attitude began to melt away as I saw, in the image, the bottom of the shaft below the projectile explode. The stream of energy flung the massive moonstone crystal upward, accelerating it to a greater and greater speed until it exploded out into space. I stared in awe at the largest, most beautiful bullet in all of creation flying through the void… towards Equus and Equestria
好吧。现在我的布拉斯态度开始融化，因为我看到，在图像中，底部的轴下面的投射物爆炸。能量流将巨大的月长石水晶向上抛射，加速到越来越大的速度，直到它爆炸进入太空。我敬畏地盯着这颗宇宙中最大、最美丽的子弹飞过虚空...飞向马科斯和Equestria
below. “Okay... so that’s Horizons... wow. So... where’s the starmetal it’s supposed to react with?”
下面。"好吧......这就是地平线......哇。那么......它应该与哪种星型金属发生反应呢?"
My body just smirked at me and then gazed ahead. The walls of the ravine to either side spread out again and then fell away entirely. The cavity that surrounded us was more immense than anything I’d ever seen, in any memory or in person. Six enormous stone pillars reinforced with unbreakable starmetal scaffolds kept the whole thing from collapsing, even as bits of the ceiling occasionally tumbled down around us. And there, in the center, was what could only be one thing:
我的身体只是对着我傻笑，然后凝视着前方。峡谷两边的墙壁再次展开，然后完全倒塌。我们周围的空洞比我所见过的任何东西都要大，无论是在我的记忆中还是在我本人身上。六根巨大的石柱用坚不可摧的星型金属脚手架加固，使整个建筑免于坍塌，尽管我们周围的天花板偶尔会掉落下来。在那里，在中间，只有一样东西:
The Tokomare.
Tokomare.
A pair of massive, corkscrew-like concentric starmetal spires rose from the immense underground lake that filled the bottom of the cavern, the inner coil climbing clockwise and the outer counterclockwise; in the center was a column of what I could only describe as brilliant white glow. The whole looked to be at least a mile in diameter. A veritable storm cloud of mechasprites whirled and curled around them, their tiny bodies resonating with Enervation’s note. As we drew closer, I saw that the helixes’ silver surfaces were pitted and scarred, with holes large enough to fly Raptors into seemingly burned through here and there. I watched in shock as a humming swarm tore a hundred-foot-long strand of metal from the surface of one of the helixes and whisked it up towards the ceiling.
一对巨大的、螺旋状的同心星状金属螺旋锥从充满洞穴底部的巨大地下湖中拔地而起，内线圈顺时针攀升，外线圈顺时针攀升，中间是一个我只能用灿烂的白光来形容的圆柱逆时针方向。整个看起来直径至少有一英里。一片名副其实的机械陨石风暴云旋转着围绕着它们，它们微小的身体与能量注释共鸣。当我们靠近时，我看到螺旋桨的银色表面坑坑洼洼，伤痕累累，上面的洞大得足以让猛禽飞到这里或那里，看起来像是被火烧过一样。我震惊地看着蜂群嗡嗡作响，它们从一个螺旋的表面撕下一条100英尺长的金属线，迅速地向天花板飞去。
“You’re scavenging from it? Shouldn’t you be repairing it?” I asked skeptically.
""你是在捡垃圾吗？你不是应该在修理它吗?"我怀疑地问道。
“A pound of flesh now for a great bounty in the future,” Cognitum replied. “The mechasprites only remove superficial material to reinforce the Core’s structure above. Without the starmetal, the city would have collapsed long ago.”
"现在一磅肉，将来可以得到一大笔赏金,"科涅图姆回答说。"机械反应器只是去除表面的材料来加固核心上面的结构。如果没有星金属，这座城市早就崩溃了。"
And what a shame that would have been. The track was taking us between the twisting spires now, clearing both with a hundred feet or more to spare. The insides of the coils were feathered with great vanes like the blades of a turbine. Immense blobs of reddish flesh crept on the metal, lurching their way mindlessly along and changing seemingly at random from shapeless masses to tentacled horrors to chitinous creatures. “What is that stuff?” I asked as we passed one quivering, humming lump.
那将是多么可惜的一件事。这时，铁轨把我们带到弯弯曲曲的塔尖之间，还有一百多英尺的距离才能通过。线圈的内部装有大叶片，就像涡轮机的叶片。巨大的红色肉团爬上金属，无意识地蹒跚前行，似乎随意地从形状不规则的群体变成触手状的恐怖生物。"那是什么东西?"当我们经过一个颤抖着、嗡嗡作响的团块时，我问道。
“Biomatter. A byproduct of the Tokomare’s Enervation field. The cell structure
"生物物质。托克马雷能量场的副产品。细胞结构
defies analysis, but it’s an organic soup similar to the tissue of ghouls, neither dead nor truly alive. It will be flushed once the Core is restored,” she said with a disdainful sniff.
无法分析，但这是一种类似于食尸鬼组织的有机汤，既不是死的，也不是真正的活的。一旦核心区恢复，它就会变得通红。"她轻蔑地闻了闻说。
“Am I the only person who looks at this thing and thinks ‘bad news, stay away’?” I asked sarcastically. Still, I had to admit that the twisting spires had a sort of sublime beauty to them. And if they weren’t so stripped, pitted, burned, and holed… Stop. Back to the point. “So Horizons is going to drop that moonstone right on this thing?” I asked as we moved towards the inner spiral and the swirling light within.
"难道只有我一个人看着这个东西，心里想着'坏消息，离我远点'吗?"我讽刺地问。尽管如此，我不得不承认，这些盘旋的尖塔有一种超凡的美。如果他们没有被剥光，挖坑，烧焦，挖洞...别说了。回到正题。"那么，地平线号就要把月长石放在这个东西上了?"当我们走向内部螺旋和内部旋转的光时，我问道。
“Yes. And in the process annihilate all we both hold dear,” Cognitum replied. “With EC-1101, I will be able to prevent this. Moreover, I will be capable of enacting the restoration of the Core in its entirety.” Green lightning darted from one spire to the other every now and then, flickering and crackling.
"是的。在这个过程中，我们双方所珍视的一切都消失了。"。"使用EC-1101，我将能够防止这种情况发生。此外，我将有能力完全恢复核心。"绿色的闪电时不时地从一个尖顶飞到另一个尖顶，忽隐忽现，劈啪作响。
“What?” I asked in bafflement.
"什么?"我困惑地问。
The hologram of moonstone and starmetal reappeared, and once again the crystal and block approached each other. “When starmetal and moonstone are brought into close proximity but prevented from reacting by highly specialized magical fields, something wondrous happens.” And I already knew what that ‘wondrous’ thing was. I watched as the moonstone was held just outside the distance needed to react. This time the moonstone glowed, and I watched the white soul vapor pour into the metal. It began to grow... fast. The cube quickly expanded and transformed from a small block to a shining skywagon. “The starmetal’s mass increases ten thousand times over.”
月长石和星金的全息图再次出现，水晶和石块再次靠近对方。当星际金属和月长石靠得很近，却被高度专业化的魔法场阻止反应时，奇妙的事情就会发生我已经知道那个奇妙的东西是什么了。我看着月光石就在需要做出反应的距离之外。这一次月光石发出光芒，我看着白色的灵魂蒸汽涌入金属。它开始生长......很快。立方体迅速扩大，从一个小块变成一个闪亮的天车。"星金属的质量增加了一万倍。"
I stared down at her. “You’re insane. You’re trying to catch it?”
我低头看着她。"你疯了。你想抓住它吗?"
“Of course,” she said coolly. “Horse worked out the method right before the end, though he was never able to get the shields into the proper configuration to intercept it.” She smiled and shrugged as if it were of no consequence. “Tom – that’s what the moonstone projectile is named, for some reason – will fuel a complete restoration of the Core. Every building. Every factory. Everything will be replaced with impervious starmetal. Quite a fitting throne for a reborn Equestria, don’t you think?”
"当然,"她冷静地说。"马儿在最后一刻找到了这个方法，尽管他从来没能把护盾调整到合适的位置去拦截它。"她微笑着耸了耸肩，好像这没什么大不了的。"汤姆——月长石炮弹的名字，出于某种原因——将为核心的完全恢复提供燃料。每一座建筑。每个工厂。一切都将被不透水的星金属所取代。对于一个重生的小马国来说，这是一个再合适不过的宝座，你不觉得吗?"
“You want Horizons to go off,” I said, still not quite believing it. “Why so obsessed with EC-1101, then?”
"你希望视野号离开,"我说，仍然不太相信。"那么，为什么对EC-1101如此着迷?"
“Trottenheimer’s firing trajectory is unaccommodating for interception,” she replied calmly. The display of the Core appeared, along with a cone rising up from the center. “Tom must descend within ten degrees of the Core’s vertical axis for the modified F.A.D.E. shields to catch it.” A dotted line began drawing itself downward at a steep angle within that cone, and when it reached the bottom, the restored Core appeared in a flash. The image reset. “If Horizons goes off a few hours too early or too late, as it likely will…” This time the red dotted line came in at a shallower angle and pierced the ground along the river. The whole image disappeared in an explosion and a little skull and crossbones made of smoke. “I will also need critical control of the Tokomare’s subharmonics to shape the starmetal into the forms needed. Otherwise, even if we are lucky enough to intercept the projectile, it would simply become whatever form was last programmed into the Tokomare.”
"特罗滕海默的发射轨道对于拦截来说是不可调和的,"她平静地回答。显示的核心出现了，随着一个锥上升从中心。"汤姆必须下降到距离核心垂直轴10度以内，这样改装的f.a.d.e防护罩才能捕捉到它。"一条虚线开始在圆锥体内以一个陡峭的角度向下拉伸，当它到达底部时，修复后的核心在一瞬间出现。图像重置。"如果地平线提前几个小时或者提前几个小时或者提前几个小时启动，这很有可能发生......"这一次，红色的虚线以较浅的角度划过，划破了沿河的地面。整个图像在一次爆炸中消失了，还有一点烟雾形成的骷髅画。"我还需要对德国佬的分谐波进行严格控制，以便将星级金属塑造成所需的形态。否则，即使我们足够幸运地拦截了这颗射弹，它也只会变成上次编程进入Tokomare的任何形式。"
“Here’s a crazy thought? Why not simply stop it?” I asked in desperation.
"这是一个疯狂的想法？为什么不干脆阻止它呢?"我绝望地问。
“Stop it? Well, that would certainly be possible. Simple, even,” she said, tapping her lips with a wing. “Unfortunately, it would set back my plans for saving Equestria at least two centuries. It’s unlikely the Core could be rebuilt before then, and without the Tokomare restored, all those factories would lack the power to operate. No, catching it is simply the most efficient solution.”
"停下来？那当然是有可能的。简单，甚至,"她说，用翅膀轻轻拍打着嘴唇。"不幸的是，这将使我拯救小马国的计划至少推迟两个世纪。在那之前核心区不太可能被重建，如果没有德国佬的重建，所有这些工厂都将缺乏运营的能力。不，抓住它只是最有效的解决方案。"
“Don’t you care about the lives that might be lost if you mess up?” I shouted.
"你难道不关心一旦搞砸可能会失去的生命吗?"我喊道。
Once again, she frowned.
她又一次皱起了眉头。
“Don’t you care about the lives that will suffer in the interim?” Cognitum countered. “If this works, the Wasteland will give way to a restored Equestria two centuries sooner.” She gave a shrug. “They should be grateful I’m doing this for them in the first place.”
"难道你不关心在此期间将遭受痛苦的生命吗?"科涅塔姆反驳道。"如果成功，荒原将提前两个世纪被恢复的小马国取代。"她耸了耸肩。"首先，他们应该感谢我为他们做这些。"
“You’re not Luna,” I retorted. “You might be parts of her mind, but you’re a... a thing! A copy. You’ve got no soul! You’re more Nightmare Moon than... than...” Oh shit... I watched her scowl, but my mind was working a mile a minute. If Luna... Princess Luna... had actually been Nightmare Moon, the implications staggered me. The war with the zebras. The death. The bombs. Even this! Worse, it meant that my choice was to either do nothing, and possibly kill my friends and my baby, or help Equestria’s greatest monster.
"你不是卢娜,"我反驳道。"你可能是她思想的一部分，但你是一个.....。.一个东西！一份拷贝。你没有灵魂！你更像是恶梦之月，而不是......"哦，该死......我看着她怒容满面，但我的脑子一分钟一英里地转着。如果月神......月神公主......实际上是噩梦月亮，这个暗示让我大吃一惊。与斑马的战争。死亡。炸弹。甚至这个！更糟糕的是，这意味着我要么什么都不做，甚至可能杀死我的朋友和孩子，要么帮助小马国最大的怪物。
Tough call...
艰难的抉择..。
“No soul?” she said coldly, tossing her mane as we passed through the inner coil. Beyond was that immense white glow. “Blackjack, I control far more souls than you could ever imagine.”
"没有灵魂?"她冷冷地说，当我们穿过内圈时，她甩动着鬃毛。远处是一片巨大的白光。"黑杰克，我控制的灵魂比你想象的要多得多。"
And then we were through, into the space within the interior spiral and surrounded by a blizzard of circling white specks. The soul motes swirled in the same clockwise direction as the coil. There were so many that it was hard to see through them all. There had to be millions. Tens of millions. All trapped within the Tokomare.
然后我们穿过，进入内部螺旋状的空间，周围环绕着暴风雪般的白色斑点。灵魂尘埃和线圈在同一个顺时针方向中旋转。人太多了，很难把他们都看透。肯定有几百万。数千万。所有人都被困在了Tokomare。
“How can you allow them to stay trapped?” I asked solemnly.
"你怎么能让他们继续被困在这里?"我严肃地问道。
“Give me EC-1101, and perhaps I will be able to negate the Tokomare’s Enervation field,” Cognitum answered smoothly. She gestured at all the millions of souls with a sweep of her wing. “All of this is simply the byproduct of the device’s energy fields being poorly calibrated and inefficient. With control restored, it would be an easy feat to smooth out the arcanomagical frequencies radiated by the Tokomare.”
"给我EC-1101，也许我就能否定德国佬的能量场,"认知力平稳地回答。她挥动翅膀，向所有千百万灵魂示意。"所有这一切只是设备能量场的副产品，校准不好，效率低下。在恢复控制之后，平滑Tokomare辐射的奥秘频率将是一个简单的壮举。"
Soul ripping was a byproduct? “You think all of this is some kind of accident?” I countered. “This thing is evil, Cognitum! Why can’t you see that?”
灵魂撕裂是副产品？"你认为这一切都是意外吗?"我反驳道。"这东西是邪恶的，认知！你怎么就看不出来呢?"
She sighed in a long-suffering way that reminded me of my mother trying to get me to understand that I had to work the C shift every day, not just when I felt like it. “To many, Blackjack, you are evil. I will not waste my time with trite declarations of evilness,” Cognitum said coolly. “Is the soul entrapment unfortunate and hazardous? Certainly. Calling it evil changes nothing. Understanding it. Perfecting it. That is a solution that actually helps others. I will use this device. Otherwise, all the souls trapped here suffer for nothing.”
她以一种长期痛苦的方式叹了口气，这让我想起了我的母亲试图让我明白，我必须每天上c班，而不仅仅是在我喜欢的时候。"对很多人来说，黑杰克，你是邪恶的。"我不想把时间浪费在陈腐的罪恶宣言上,"科涅图姆冷冷地说。"这种灵魂陷阱是不幸的、危险的吗？当然。称之为邪恶并不能改变什么。理解它。完善它。这是一个真正帮助他人的解决方案。我会用这个装置。否则，所有被困在这里的灵魂都将白白受苦。"
Now there was some familiar pre-war bullshit. “Not doing a good job convincing me to give you EC-1101,” I muttered as we approached a huge needle hanging down from the middle of the vast chamber’s ceiling. Lightning from the vanes on the interior coil constantly arched over, striking a dozen gold-tipped secondary needles a hundred feet long or more that extended down at angles from the midpoint of the main needle. These were connected to an ever-thickening mass of cables, transformers, and starmetal girders. A hole had been bashed clean through the ceiling, and I could almost swear I saw the white outline of the M.o.I. hub a mile up. “Huh. What made that?” I wondered idly.
现在有一些熟悉的战前胡说八道。"说服我给你EC-1101没做好,"当我们走近一根巨大的针头时，我喃喃自语道，这根针从巨大的天花板中间垂下来。从内部线圈上的叶片上发出的闪电不断地拱起，击中了一打金尖头的次级针头，这些针头长达100英尺或更长，从主针的中点以角度向下延伸。这些被连接到日益增厚的电缆、变压器和星型金属梁上。天花板上有一个洞被打得干干净净，我几乎可以发誓，我在一英里外看到了m.o.i.集线器的白色轮廓。"哈。这是怎么回事?"我无所事事地想着。
“Shadowbolt Tower,” Cognitum replied, her tone a touch waspish. “When you compress something that massive into a sphere a dozen feet in diameter and let it hit the ground at terminal velocity, it has quite a substantial impact. It took nearly a month for the mechasprites to chew it away and repair the damage you caused. Since then, this cavern’s been far more unstable than it should be.”
"暗影螺栓塔,"科涅塔回答，她的语气有点尖锐。"当你把那么大的东西压缩成一个直径12英尺的球体，然后让它在终端速度一分钟撞击地面，它会产生相当大的影响。机械师花了将近一个月的时间才把它咀嚼掉，修复你造成的损坏。从那时起，这个洞穴的不稳定性就远远超过了它应有的水平。"
“Oh. Yeah. Sorry about that,” I muttered, wishing it could have fallen right on the machine instead.
"哦。是的。"对不起,"我喃喃自语，希望它可以直接掉在机器上。
“I think you halfway mean that,” Cognitum said in amused tones. “Touching your soul, intolerable as it was, was quite insightful. I wish I’d done so long ago. I think we could have been good friends if I had.”
"我想你半是这个意思,"科涅图姆愉快地说。"触及你的灵魂，尽管令人难以忍受，但却是相当有见地的。我希望我早就这么做了。我认为，如果我那样做了，我们本可以成为好朋友。"
Yeah. Maybe. “Why is touching my ‘purest Blackjackness’ so intolerable?” I asked sourly from inside my jar. “I know I’m not the best pony, but–”
是的。也许吧。"为什么感动我'最纯粹的黑杰克'这么难以忍受?"我从罐子里酸溜溜地问。"我知道我不是最好的小马但是..."
That prompted a laugh from my old body. “Oh dear. And I know you mean that too.” She sighed, shaking her head.
这引起了我原来身体的一阵笑声。"哦，亲爱的。我知道你也是这个意思。"她叹了口气，摇了摇头。
“The mind is the identity of self. The soul is the being of self,” Snips said from inside his jar. “When the two are in opposition, turmoil results.”
"心灵是自我的身份。灵魂就是自我的存在,"斯尼普斯在罐子里说。"当两者处于对立状态时，就会出现动荡。"
“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Cognitum replied with a little nod. “Trapped in the machine, I possess all of my old motivations, but I lack a true self. When I put myself in your brain, the wrongness was horrifying. Even agonizing. You are damaged, Blackjack, beyond my ability to deal with. Just taking your body filled me with such feeling of guilt that I could hardly stand it.” She looked at our approaching destination, a platform suspended from the tip of the needle. “Fortunately, soon I will be whole and complete, with an unstoppable body, a keen intellect, and... well...” she gave a smug little shrug. Well what?
"我自己说得再好不过了,"科格尼图姆轻轻地点了点头回答。"困在这台机器里，我拥有了以前所有的动力，但我缺乏真正的自我。当我把自己放进你的大脑，错误是可怕的。甚至痛苦。你受伤了，黑杰克，超出了我的能力范围。一想到你的身体，我就充满了罪恶感，简直无法忍受。"她看着我们即将到达的目的地，一个平台悬挂在针尖上。"幸运的是，很快我就会变得完整而完整，有着不可阻挡的身体，敏锐的智慧，还有......嗯......"她自鸣得意地耸了耸肩。好什么？
“And then you will rule Equestria while I become administrator of the Core,” Steel Rain said, and I noted a tone of uncertainty in his voice.
"然后你将统治小马国，而我将成为核心国的管理者,"钢铁雨说，我注意到他的语气中有一种不确定性。
“Of course,” Cognitum nearly purred. “That is... if Blackjack tells us what she knows about EC-1101’s key.”
"当然可以,"认知语几乎发出咕噜咕噜的声音。"也就是说......如果Blackjack告诉我们她知道EC-1101的密钥的话。"
Steel Rain didn’t respond. I wished he’d take his helmet off so I could get a read of his face. Then, with a metallic clunk, the lift had reached its destination: a large round platform in the very middle of the swarm of souls. The inclinator slid
钢铁雨没有回应。我希望他把头盔摘下来，这样我就能看清他的脸了。接着，随着一声金属般的撞击声，电梯终于到达了目的地:一个巨大的圆形平台出现在众多灵魂的正中央。倾斜器滑了下来
into a berth, and there was a series of clangs as plates locked the mechanism into place. In the center of the platform was a strange, vaguely familiar design etched in the metal floor plates: a circle with a six-pointed star in the middle. Six unicorns, one standing at each point, were trying to keep a ball of brilliant white contained in the middle. Green lightning from their horns raked across it, forcing it back whenever it drifted. The black robes they wore were a little much.
进入一个卧铺，当板锁定机械装置时发出一连串的叮当声。在平台的中央有一个奇怪的，似曾相识的图案蚀刻在金属地板上:一个圆圈，中间有一个六角星。六个独角兽，一个站在一个点上，试图保持一个球的灿烂的白色包含在中间。绿色的闪电从他们的角上掠过，每当它漂移的时候就迫使它回来。他们穿的黑色长袍有点过了。
“Look, Cognitum, give me my body back and let me–” I began, but I was interrupted again.
"看，认知，把我的身体还给我，让我——"我开始说，但又被打断了。
“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Blackjack. I want to give you a chance. Let you try and do better. But I know better,” she said as she slowly trotted off the lift. Along the perimeter of the hanging platform, monitors were coming to life. “This is the Uvula station. From here, I have the greatest control over the Core’s systems. It takes all of my processing power, but I can exercise some influence over the Core without EC-1101.”
"我很感激你的努力，Blackjack。我想给你一个机会。让你试着做得更好。但我更清楚,"她一边说着，一边慢慢地走下电梯。沿着悬挂平台的周边，监视器开始活跃起来。"这是悬雍垂站。从这里开始，我对核心系统拥有最大的控制权。它占用了我所有的处理能力，但我可以在没有EC-1101的情况下对内核施加一些影响。"
“It’s highly agitated, sir,” one of the unicorns reported to Steel Rain, a moonstone pendant dangling on his chest. “I don’t know how long we can keep it contained like this.”
"这是高度激动，先生,"独角兽之一报告钢铁雨，月亮石挂件悬挂在他的胸部。"我不知道我们能把这种情况控制多久。"
“Soon you won’t have to, but first things first,” Cognitum said as the crane atop the computer hummed to life. The yellow pony’s jar was set down before Cognitum, beside mine and the jar containing Snips’s remains. “It’s time for you to be rewarded for your loyalty and devotion, Echo.” She stuck out her hoof. “Snips, please transfer him back.”
"很快你就不需要这样做了，但首先要做的事情是,"科涅图姆说，这时电脑顶上的起重机嗡嗡地发出生命的声音。小黄马的坛子放在科涅塔姆面前，就在我的坛子和盛小精灵遗骸的坛子旁边。"是时候奖励你的忠诚和奉献了，Echo。"她伸出她的蹄子。"小鬼头，请把他转回来。"
Snips hesitated a moment, but then his bony horn began to glow, summoning the dark magic. “Stop. Why are you helping her, Snips?” I pled.
小鬼头犹豫了一会儿，但随后他那瘦骨嶙峋的角开始发光，召唤黑魔法。"别说了。你为什么要帮她，小鬼头?"我恳求道。
“Magic is all I have left, Blackjack. And if I don’t help her, she’ll go after Snails,” he said in that soul whisper. The sawblade spiral coiled around Cognitum’s left forehoof, swirling like a sawblade. Then it jerked free, and in its midst was a small, feebly flickering mote. The tendril of dark energy snapped like a whip and plunged it into the emaciated yellow stallion’s chest.
"魔法是我仅有的一切了，Blackjack。如果我不帮她，她就会去找蜗牛。"。锯片螺旋盘绕在科涅塔姆的左前蹄上，像锯片一样旋转。然后它猛地挣脱开来，在它中间有一个小小的、无力地摇曳着的尘埃。黑暗能量的卷须像鞭子一样啪啪作响，狠狠地扎进瘦弱的黄色种马的胸膛。
His eyes popped wide in shock and horror as he gasped and writhed. Cognitum levitated a moonstone talisman around his neck and lifted him from the jar with her magic. “There. You’re safe now, Echo. You’re safe,” she said as she patted his mane, then suddenly took several steps away from him. “I mean... I have
他的眼睛因为震惊和恐惧而睁得大大的，喘着粗气，翻滚着。科涅塔姆把一个月光石护身符挂在他的脖子上，用她的魔法把他从罐子里吊了出来。"那儿。你现在安全了Echo。你很安全,"她一边拍着他的鬃毛一边说，然后突然离他几步远。"我的意思是......我有
fulfilled my part of our agreement, Echo.”
完成了我们约定的那部分，艾可。"
Echo curled up tightly. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. He met my glare, shuddered, and curled up tighter. “Sorry...”
Echo紧紧地蜷缩起来。"对不起,"他低声说。他看到我的目光，打了个寒颤，蜷缩得更紧了。"对不起......"
“I don't think he made it,” Steel Rain said coolly.
"我不认为他成功了,"钢铁雨冷冷地说。
“Mmm... well, perhaps he will recover with more time. I have so many questions for him,” she said with a wave of her hoof, levitating him up and onto the sidelines. “Now. Blackjack. Tell me how to access EC-1101.”
"嗯......好吧，也许他还需要更多的时间来恢复。我有好多问题要问他,"她一边说，一边挥动着蹄子，把他拉到一边。"现在。黑杰克。告诉我如何访问EC-1101。"
“No,” I answered, looking at the brilliant soul mote struggling against the unicorns’ dark magical spells, wondering if I could help it break free. Maybe it’d... I dunno... eat them or something?
"不,"我回答，看着灿烂的灵魂在独角兽的黑暗魔法中挣扎，想知道我是否能帮它挣脱束缚。也许它会...我不知道...吃了它们还是怎么的？
Cognitum sighed. “Blackjack, I have been civil. I have been patient. I have tried to reason with you, and I have tried to demonstrate to you that I am the proper ruler of Equestria.”
科涅塔姆叹了口气。"黑杰克，我已经很文明了。我一直很有耐心。我试图和你们讲道理，也试图向你们证明，我才是恰如其分的小马国统治者。"
“Well, so far you’re doing a pretty shitty job,” I said evenly, as if giving a report in school but without the annoyance of actually being in class. “You’ve demonstrated neither ethics nor morals in your behavior. You think that you are Princess Luna and that that entitles you to whatever you desire. You believe that your ends justify your means, and you’ve committed gross violations against both me and others. You show no remorse for any of this. Even if you are Princess Luna, which I seriously doubt, that in no way mitigates the cruelties you have visited on others. So no, I won’t help you.”
"好吧，到目前为止，你做的工作相当糟糕,"我平静地说，好像在学校做报告，但没有实际上在课堂上的烦恼。"你的行为既没有道德，也没有道德。你认为你是卢娜公主，你有权得到你想要的任何东西。你认为你的目的正当于你的手段，你对我和其他人犯下了严重的违法行为。你对这一切毫无悔意。即使你是卢娜公主(我对此深表怀疑)，也丝毫无法减轻你给别人带来的残忍。所以，不，我不会帮你。"
She stood, frozen, for almost a minute. “You’d let the world die to spite me?” she asked in disappointed tones only a mother could use.
她站着，僵硬地站了将近一分钟。"你为了刁难我，宁愿让世界灭亡?"她用只有母亲才会用的失望语气问道。
“I’m not letting the world die. You underestimate my friends. Glory and P-21 will learn what has happened to me. They will contact others. LittlePip. Homage. Calamity. Grace. Others that respect the cause I work towards. They will find a way to stop Horizons, with or without EC-1101. Then they will end you,” I answered, the truth so clear and simple to me that even here, like this, I felt a great sense of peace. “It’s not about you, Cognitum.”
"我不会让世界灭亡。你低估了我的朋友。荣誉和P-21将会知道发生在我身上的事情。他们会联系其他人。小匹普。敬意。灾难。女名女子名。其他人尊重我为之奋斗的事业。不管有没有EC-1101，他们都会找到阻止"地平线"的方法。"然后他们就会杀了你,"我回答，真相对我来说是如此清楚和简单，即使在这里，就像这样，我也感到一种巨大的平静。"这不是你的问题，认知。"
Cognitum stared at me, her body stock still. Then she slowly smiled. “You presumptuous little foal,” she muttered, and then trotted towards the closest
科涅塔姆凝视着我，她的躯干一动不动。然后她慢慢地笑了。"你这个放肆的小马驹,"她喃喃自语，然后小跑向最近的那只
screen. “Very well then. Let’s put your certainty to the test.” The hologram flickered to life. “When you caused catastrophic damage to the Core’s power systems, I used it as an opportunity to improve my control over a few critical systems. Such as...” I looked down on the floating platforms of the village of Flotsam. It felt like another life. Ponies hauled up salvage from the river and sent it on its way. The general uptick in prosperity showed some signs here, too. The platforms were full of ponies trying to pick wealth out of the depths.
屏幕。""那好吧。让我们来检验一下你的确定性。"全息图闪烁着生命的光芒。"当你对核心系统造成灾难性的破坏时，我利用这个机会改善了我对几个关键系统的控制。比如......"我低头看着漂浮在水面上的弗洛萨姆村的平台。那种感觉就像是另一种生活。小马从河里拖上来打捞起来，送上了路。繁荣程度的普遍上升在这里也显示出一些迹象。平台上挤满了试图从深海中捞出财富的小马。
I even noticed a boat tied up on one pier. A familiar boat... one that had fallen on me long ago and carried me all the way to Manehattan: the Seahorse. The hologram expanded, zooming in on the ponies. The turquoise Captain Thrush staggered along, apparently quite inebriated but navigating the crowded docks with ease, a half-open bottle of rum floating beside her. She still had her pirate’s hat, and an eyepatch covered her right eye. The seafoam-green Seabiscuit followed in her wake, bottles, boxes, and crates loaded high in a massive mound atop her back.
我甚至注意到一艘船停泊在一个码头上。一条熟悉的船...很久以前落在我身上，一直把我带到曼哈顿:海马号。全息图放大了，放大了小马的图像。绿松石色的画眉船长摇摇晃晃地走着，看上去醉醺醺的，但在拥挤的码头上悠闲地航行着，身边漂着一瓶半开的朗姆酒。她还戴着海盗的帽子，右眼戴着眼罩。海上绿色的"奔腾年代"紧随其后，瓶子、盒子和板条箱高高地堆在她的背上。
“What are you doing?” I asked as I hovered in the jar.
"你在干什么?"我在罐子里盘旋时问道。
“Discovering how many you will let die before telling me what you know,” she said calmly. “You will not keep me from my realm, Blackjack. But you’ve let hundreds die in the past... what’s a few hundred more?” A targeting reticle appeared on the holographic image, pointing right at the village. “Excuse me a moment. I have to focus on this. Even with a direct connection, you can’t comprehend the interference I have to push through.”
她平静地说:"在告诉我你所知道的事情之前，先弄清楚你会让多少人死去。"。"你不能阻止我进入我的王国，Blackjack。但是你过去已经让数百人死去......再多几百人又算什么呢?"全息影像上出现了一个瞄准十字线，正对着村庄。"失陪一下。我必须集中精力。即使有直接的联系，你也无法理解我必须克服的干扰。"
“No! Stop it!” I shouted, hammering on the glass.
"不！住手!"我大声喊道，重重地敲打着玻璃。
I saw the distinctive Thrush stop and turn her head towards me, or at least in the direction of whatever camera filmed this scene, and tackle the overburdened Seabiscuit to send both into the churning brown water. A second later, a green beam swept horizontally across the deck, the rickety platforms and shacks atop them exploding one after the next as ponies were vaporized by the dozens. They ran, screaming and shouting, but there was nowhere they could escape from the line of death.
我看到那只独特的画眉鸟停下来，把头转向我，或者至少转向摄像机拍摄的方向，扑向负荷过重的海洋饼干，把它们都送入翻腾的褐色海水中。一秒钟后，一根绿色的横梁横扫甲板，摇摇晃晃的平台和棚屋一个接一个地爆炸，小马被数十匹蒸发。他们跑着，尖叫着，喊着，但是他们无处可逃。
Again and again, the beam lanced out. Shops and houses exploded in thick palls of greasy smoke. The anti-dragon beam cut through it all with ease. Ponies tumbled into the river, struggling to find something to hold on to as the village
一次又一次，光束突然出现。商店和房屋在浓浓的油烟中爆炸。反龙梁轻而易举地穿透了这一切。小马们跌进河里，挣扎着想找个东西抓住，就像村子一样
broke up. The beam then started picking out boats, setting them alight when ponies tried to scramble aboard. I looked around for some sign of the Seahorse, and caught sight of it as it wheeled about the waves, the rust-colored mare Oilcan at the controls. The boat cut through the water and over more than a few ponies struggling amidst the burning, bobbing wreckage. A burly pegasus began to swoop low over the water, plucking up the captain and Seabiscuit and returning them to the deck.
分手。然后，光束开始挑选船只，当小马试图爬上船时，就点燃它们。我环顾四周，寻找着海马的踪迹，看见它在海浪中旋转，铁锈色的马油罐在控制器旁边。小船穿过水面，几匹小马在燃烧的残骸中挣扎着，上下摆动。一匹魁梧的飞马开始俯冲下水面，把船长和"海洋饼干"拉上来，送回甲板。
Captain Thrush raced up to the wheelhouse, took the wheel from Oilcan, and immediately flipped the Seahorse around tighter than I ever imagined possible. The green beam of energy, as if sensing it was my friend on board, sought out the vessel as it tried to maneuver around the sinking, burning wreckage. The green line swept back and forth after it, plumes of flash-boiled steam blasting into the air behind it as it closed in. Then the ship burst into black smoke as the line swept over it and disappeared into the haze spreading across the river.
画眉飞快地跑到驾驶室，从油罐车上取下轮子，立刻把海马翻了个个儿，比我想象的还要紧。绿色的能量光束，好像感觉到它是我的朋友在船上，寻找出来的船只，因为它试图机动周围的沉没，燃烧的残骸。绿线在它后面来回扫荡，当它靠近时，一缕缕蒸汽喷向它后面的空气。然后，当钓索掠过船身时，船身化为黑烟，消失在河对岸弥漫的烟雾中。
“You monster! You’re not Luna! You’re nothing like Luna!” I cried, hot tears spilling down my face as I beat my hooves against the inside of the jar.
"你这个怪物！你不是露娜！你一点也不像露娜!"我哭了，热泪从我的脸上流下来，我用蹄子敲打着罐子的内部。
“You are the one making this a reality, Blackjack,” Cognitum said with maddening calm. “Luna ordered tens of thousands to their deaths to save the lives of millions. I will, regrettably, send hundreds to die to overcome your stubborn pride. Each one of these is on your head.”
"是你让这一切成为现实的，黑杰克,"科涅图姆带着令人发狂的平静说道。"卢娜下令数以万计的人死去，拯救了数百万人的生命。很遗憾，我会派几百人去送死，来战胜你顽固的自尊心。每一个都在你的头上。"
The hologram left the burning river and swapped over to the stately buildings of the Collegiate. I could see the guards walking along the building tops. It was a lot more crowded today, too. Hundreds of pegasi worked with the Collegiate ponies as they went about their early morning routine. Only one or two of the rooftop guards seemed to notice something amiss to the south.
全息影像离开燃烧的河流，交换到学院的宏伟建筑。我能看见警卫沿着楼顶走过。今天也更加拥挤了。成百上千的派格西与学院派的小马一起进行着它们清晨的日常工作。只有一两个屋顶守卫似乎注意到南面出了什么问题。
“No!” I yelled as the green beam swept out, blowing the roof off one of the campus buildings. Even wartime Equestrian overengineering melted and exploded into flaming debris as the beam blasted through everything. Ponies wheeled about in a panic, struggling to find somewhere safe. The harsh green glare of the deadly line focused on the foundation of one structure and bored in. Flames exploded out the basement windows, and then the first story, then the second, and then ponies with their manes and clothes ablaze scattered out. “Please! Please no!” I screamed, the green line sweeping across the medical school, tearing the facade away.
"不!"绿色的横梁横扫过来，把一座校园建筑的屋顶吹掉了，我大声喊道。甚至连战时的马术覆盖工程也随着光束穿透一切而熔化并爆炸成燃烧的碎片。小马惊慌地转着圈，努力寻找安全的地方。致命的线条刺眼的绿色眩光聚焦在一个建筑物的地基上，钻了进去。火焰从地下室的窗户爆炸出来，然后是第一层，然后是第二层，然后是小马，它们的鬃毛和衣服着火了，散落一地。"求你了！请不要!"我尖叫着，绿线扫过医学院，撕毁了门面。
The beam stopped, and I wept, unable to tear my eyes away. “No. You can’t do this.”
房梁停了下来，我哭了起来，无法把眼睛移开。"没有。你不能这么做。"
“Correction. Couldn’t. If you hadn’t blown power to systems that would have counteracted my controls, I doubt I’d be able to now. As is, I have to fend off a thousand countermands just to get the one thousand and first command through,” Cognitum answered. “You have the power to make this stop, Blackjack. Not I. I have little else to lose.”
"更正。不能。如果你没有给那些可以抵消我控制的系统供电，我怀疑我现在还能做到。因此，我必须抵挡一千个反命令，才能通过第一个命令,"科涅图姆回答。"你有能力阻止这一切，Blackjack。我没什么可失去的了。"
I watched as the image turned to Riverside, the village thriving even in the horrible weather. Ponies seemed to be aware something was happening, though, looking alertly about for trouble. I picked out a few sand dogs in their midst, and one in particular that I knew. Rover stood beside a pony stall bedecked with prewar clothes, sniffing at the air, with the young female Fifi at his side. “Please don’t. Please. Luna. If there is really anything of Luna in you... stop,” I begged.
我看着画面转向河畔，这个村庄即使在恶劣的天气里依然欣欣向荣。小马似乎意识到发生了什么事情，但是，警惕地寻找麻烦。我在他们中间挑出几只沙狗，其中有一只我特别认识。罗弗站在一个装饰着战前服装的小马厩旁，嗅着空气，旁边是年轻的雌性菲菲。"请不要这样。求你了。女名女子名。如果你真的有卢娜的一面......别说了,"我恳求道。
Cognitum said nothing. An instant later another defense beam on the west side of the Core opened up and drew a line straight across the river and through the market. Rover picked up Fifi, throwing them to the side as the stall, and the vendor, were vaporized. Ponies fled for the safety of the shops, only to have those shops blasted one by one, setting them ablaze. I saw Rover and other sand dogs directing the ponies towards the subway station entrance, but there were so many ponies and such small doors. They pooled at the entrance, packing together, crushing against each other. The green line touched down the street and drew towards the subway far slower than it could but far too fast for most of the ponies to get clear. I saw Rover, Fifi on his shoulders, stuck at the doorway of the subway as the green defense beam blasted its way into the crowd and a second later into the tunnel. For an instant the beam stopped moving, but then I realized why as smoke began to pour up out of countless vents and utility covers from below. A few minutes later, the beam went dead, but the fires burned on.
科涅塔姆什么也没说。过了一会儿，核心区西侧的另一道防御射线打开了，在河对岸画了一条直线，穿过市场。罗孚抱起菲菲，把它们扔到一边，摊位上的小贩和小贩都蒸发了。小马为了商店的安全逃跑了，结果那些商店一个接一个地被炸毁，被点燃了。我看见罗孚和其他沙犬把小马引向地铁站的入口，但是那里有那么多小马和那么小的门。他们聚集在入口处，挤在一起，互相挤压。绿色的线路沿着街道一直延伸到地铁站，速度远远低于它的速度，但是对于大多数小马来说，速度太快了，以至于无法让它们通过。我看到罗孚，菲菲在他的肩膀上，卡在地铁门口的绿色防御光束炸开它的方式进入人群，一秒钟后进入隧道。有那么一瞬间，光束停止了移动，但随后我意识到为什么烟雾开始从无数的通风口和下面的公用设施盖子里涌出来。几分钟后，光束熄灭了，但火还在继续燃烧。
I curled there, eyes clenched shut, trying to remember that if Cognitum got full control of EC-1101, she’d have powers infinitely worse. That was small comfort to the picture I had of incinerated friends.
我蜷缩在那里，紧闭着眼睛，试图记住，如果认知神经元完全控制了EC-1101，她的能力会比现在差得多。这对我看到的朋友被烧成灰烬的画面来说是一个小小的安慰。
“It gives me no satisfaction to do this,” Cognitum said solemnly. “Tell me what you know of this encryption. What is the password? The name.”
"这样做并不能使我满意,"科涅图姆严肃地说。"告诉我你对这种加密技术了解多少。密码是什么？名字。"
“No. I won’t,” I said weakly. What would I say if I met ponies who’d survived
"没有。我不会的,"我虚弱地说。如果我遇到幸存下来的小马，我会说什么
this? That they died to protect a password? To keep a monster from power? But if I did give it up, how much worse would it be?
这个？他们为了保护密码而死？为了阻止怪物获得权力？但是如果我真的放弃了，情况会有多糟糕呢？
“Pity. Well, what next?” she said brightly. “So many potential targets. The Society? The Arena, perhaps? Those ghoulish monsters in the old hospital… The Rainbow Dash Skyport? Megamart?” She paused, then asked in a softer tone, “Your old home?” Cognitum remained silent for several seconds, and then asked in a soft, almost seductive tone, “Or maybe... here.” I kept my eyes closed. “Look,” she prompted gently, and I shook my head like a foal. “Look,” she repeated more forcefully. I cracked my eyes open.
"真可惜。那么，接下来呢?"她明快地说。"这么多潜在目标。学会？也许是竞技场？那些在老医院里的可怕的怪物...彩虹冲天港？超级艺术?"她停顿了一下，然后用更温和的语气问道:"你的老家?"科宁顿沉默了几秒钟，然后用一种柔和的、近乎诱惑的声调问道:"或许......在这儿。"我闭着眼睛。"看,"她温柔地提示我，我像小马驹一样摇摇头。"看,"她更有力地重复道。我睁开了眼睛。
Chapel floated before me. I could see the ponies running about in a panic. Had they seen the beams? Heard the blasts? I supposed it didn’t matter. I saw Harpica trying to get foals into the post office while Charity stood on a stack of crates, directing the colts and fillies. The chaos was a little more organized, but my breath caught in my throat as I saw the reticle focus on the yellow filly’s face.
查普尔在我面前漂浮着。我能看见小马们惊慌失措地跑来跑去。他们看到横梁了吗？听到爆炸声了吗？我想这无关紧要。我看到哈皮卡正试图把小马驹弄进邮局，而查瑞特则站在一堆板条箱上，指挥着小马和小雌马。混乱的场面稍微有点秩序，但当我看到那张十字线聚焦在黄色小母马的脸上时，我的呼吸卡住了。
“Stop,” I croaked. “I’ll tell you. Please. Stop.”
"住手,"我低声说。"我来告诉你。求你了。住手。"
“What is the password?” Cognitum purred in triumph.
"密码是什么?"科涅特人发出胜利的咕噜声。
I sighed and closed my eyes. “I don’t know. I really don’t. But I know who encrypted the file.” I swallowed, the sensation of yielding the information like downing broken glass. “A mare at my stable, Duct Tape, encrypted the program. She wanted to ensure the Overmare didn’t get it and stab her in the back. Which she did.”
我叹了口气，闭上了眼睛。"我不知道。我真不知道。但我知道是谁加密了文件。"我咽了一口唾沫，那种产生信息的感觉就像被打碎的玻璃一样。"我的马厩里有匹母马，管道胶带，给程序加了密。她想确保Overmare不会得到它并在背后捅她一刀。她做到了。"
“I see. A homegrown, amateur, unprofessional encryption,” she muttered flatly.
"我明白了。一种本土的、业余的、非专业的加密技术,"她平淡地咕哝道。
“That’s good though, right?” Steel Rain asked as he frowned at me in my jar. “A simple encryption like that... you should be able to just pop it open.”
"那很好，不是吗?"钢铁雨在我的罐子里皱着眉头问道。"像这样一个简单的加密......你应该能够打开它。"
Cognitum didn’t reply immediately. “Theoretically, yes. But protection like this is frightfully unstable. I don’t know the programmer. I can assume she received her instruction through a Stable-Tec manual, but what if there were other textbooks influencing her? What innovations might she have employed?” She shook her head and looked at the terminals. “I could ruin everything simply because she made an amateurish mistake. No. What we need is the password. The word or phrase that will unravel the protective matrix and allow us to access its power.” She trotted over to stand before me. “So, let’s let Blackjack take the
认知神经没有立刻回答。"理论上是的。但是这样的保护是非常不稳定的。我不认识那个程序员。我可以假设她是通过Stable-Tec手册接受指导的，但是如果有其他教科书影响她呢？她会采用什么样的创新呢?"她摇摇头，看着终端。"我可以毁掉一切，仅仅因为她犯了一个业余的错误。没有。我们需要的是密码。这个词或短语将解开保护矩阵，让我们接近它的力量。"她小跑过来站在我面前。"那么，让我们让黑杰克来决定
last two guesses.” The image of Chapel vanished, replaced by the blinking password prompt.
最后两次猜测"查普尔的形象消失了，取而代之的是闪烁的密码提示符。
“Me?” I asked, goggling at her.
"我?"我问道，瞪着她。
“You. Two more guesses,” she said evenly with a small smile.
"你。再猜两次,"她微微一笑，平静地说。
“You have all the processing power of that... that thing!” I gestured to the heap of machine with a hoof. “You know who made it. Can’t you do... something? Some computery terminally thing?”
"你拥有那个...那个东西的所有处理能力!"我用蹄子指了指那堆机器。"你知道是谁做的。你就不能...做点什么吗？一些电脑终端的事情?"
“I could. Knowing who created it, I suppose I could have it cracked in a day, tops.” She smiled, the jar opened, and I was hoisted out and into the cold, damp air. It smelled of rust and wet stone, and I could hear water pouring in from countless sources. I couldn’t imagine how she kept the chamber from flooding completely. “However, I have faith in you, Blackjack. I know you can do it. I’m willing to bet the lives of everypony in Chapel that I’m right.”
"我可以。我知道是谁创造了它，我想我最多能在一天之内把它破解掉。"她笑了，罐子打开了，我被吊起来，进入寒冷潮湿的空气中。它闻起来有生锈和湿石头的味道，我还能听到水从无数的地方涌进来的声音。我无法想象她是如何使密室完全不被洪水淹没的。"不过，我对你有信心，Blackjack。我知道你能做到。我愿意用教堂里每个人的生命打赌，我是对的。"
Gee. Thanks. I stared up at the icon. Duct Tape had been close to P-21. I guessed that that was the ‘he’ the clue referred to. A name that P-21 loved? He’d loved that unicorn, certainly, but I knew that ‘U-21’ wouldn’t be it. That was the name forced on him by my stable. “Scotch Tape?” I guessed, swallowing hard as I stared up at the holographic display.
哎呀。谢谢。我抬头看着这个图标。管道胶带曾接近P-21。我猜那就是线索提到的"他"。一个P-21喜欢的名字？他当然很喜欢那只独角兽，但我知道"U-21"不会是那只。这是我的马厩强加给他的名字。"透明胶带?"当我凝视着全息显示屏时，我用力地吞咽着。
Cognitum smiled, and the letters appeared in front of the prompt. It flashed another error message and hint. ‘The thing he wants most.’
科涅塔姆微笑着，那些字母出现在提示符前面。它显示了另一个错误信息和提示。他最想要的东西
Steel Rain stepped forward. “Don’t. It’ll autodelete if she gets it wrong.”
钢铁雨走上前来。"不要。如果她写错了，它会自动删除。"
“Please. I doubt a home-cobbled encryption program would be able do much to EC-1101. I anticipated some military-grade scrubbing software, a zebra chaos daemon program, or at least a Stable-Tec Chimera worm. At the very worst, I’d have to spend a day or two unraveling a foal’s mess.” She gave a little wave of her hoof before regarding me again, walking slowly around me. “But I won’t have to, because Blackjack is going to guess it for me. It’s the only way she can save Chapel. The only way she can win. And Blackjack always wins,” she said, and I got the very unexpected sensation of her nuzzling my flank. It nearly made my mane stand on end, and I darted away. Wow. Did I always have this many nerve endings in my skin?
"求你了。我怀疑一个自制的加密程序能够对EC-1101做很多事情。我期待一些军事级别的擦洗软件，一个斑马混沌守护程序，或者至少一个Stable-TecChimera蠕虫。最糟糕的情况是，我不得不花一两天时间解开小马驹留下的烂摊子。"她又对着我摇了摇蹄子，慢慢地绕着我走。"但我不需要这么做，因为Blackjack会帮我猜的。这是她能拯救查普尔的唯一办法。她能赢的唯一方法。黑杰克总是赢,"她说，我有一种意想不到的感觉，她用鼻子蹭我的侧腹。它几乎让我的鬃毛直立起来，我飞奔而去。哇。我的皮肤上总是有这么多神经末梢吗？
“No! You... that... no!” I stammered, flushing. “Don’t do that,” I muttered. She simply smiled, confident in her win/win. I huffed, closing my eyes. “I want you to swear... you both to swear... that if I do this, you'll let me go and won't destroy Chapel. They’ve worked too hard to lose everything again. And you’ll get my baby to a surrogate.” Maybe Glory could find one.
"不！你......那个......不!"我结结巴巴地说，脸红了。"别这样,"我咕哝着说。她只是笑了笑，对自己的胜利充满信心。我气喘吁吁地闭上眼睛。"我要你们发誓......你们两个都发誓......如果我这样做，你们就会放我走，不会毁了查普尔。他们努力工作，不想再次失去一切。你会把我的孩子带到代孕妈妈那里。"也许晨辉能找到一个。
“Of course. Of course. Now... give it your best guess,” Cognitum purred in a tone that I’d have to remember when I saw Glory again.
"当然。当然。现在......尽你最大的努力去猜,"科格尼塔姆用一种我再次看到《晨辉》时不得不记得的语气咕哝着。
I thought about it. What did P-21 want the most, that could also be a name? Family? No. Not a name... and besides, back then, he hadn’t wanted it. What he’d wanted most was to escape. Could that be it? No. Not just escape. That wasn’t enough for P-21. Freedom. He’d wanted freedom. But was it a name? Ehhh… maybe? I swallowed again, my heartbeat thumping in my chest. He’d wanted to leave... but he’d also been willing to return with me. He’d wanted to put it right. Wanted... wanted...
我想过了。P-21最想要什么，也可以是一个名字？家庭？没有。没有名字......而且，那时候，他也不想要这个名字。他最想做的就是逃跑。会是这样吗？没有。不仅仅是逃避。这对P-21来说还不够。自由。他想要自由。但这是一个名字吗？呃...也许？我又咽了一口唾沫，我的心跳在胸膛里砰砰直跳。他想离开......但他也愿意和我一起回去。他想纠正这个错误。通缉...通缉..。
“Justice,” I muttered. “He wanted justice.” And was it a name? Perhaps. Maybe. As much as most pony names. It just felt... right. I had a good feeling about it. “Try ‘Justice’.”
"正义,"我喃喃自语。"他想要正义。"那是个名字吗？也许吧。也许吧。就像大多数的小名一样。只是感觉...很好。我对此有很好的预感。"试试'正义'。"
The word was typed in, and suddenly the air filled with the dazzling magical patterns once more. “I knew you could do it,” Cognitum purred. “It’s your special talent.”
输入了这个词，突然间空气中又充满了令人眼花缭乱的魔法图案。"我就知道你能做到,"认知神咕噜咕噜地说。"这是你的特殊才能。"
“My what?” I asked with a frown.
"我什么?"我皱着眉头问。
“Victory. Your talent is winning,” Cognitum said as she looked at my flanks almost hungrily. “Poor Deus. Sanguine. Even you, Steel Rain. You were facing a mare whose very talent is overcoming adversity, no matter its form.”
"胜利。你的才华正在赢得胜利,"当她饥渴地看着我的侧腹时说。"可怜的上帝。血红色。即使是你，钢铁雨。你面对的是一匹母马，它的天赋就是战胜逆境，不管形式如何。"
“My talent is victory? Do you have any idea how many times I’ve been shot up? How many times I’ve died?” I demanded, then blinked. “I mean, sure, I got better, but I haven’t had it remotely easy.”
"我的天赋就是胜利？你知道我中过多少次枪吗？我死过多少次了?"我问道，然后眨了眨眼。"我的意思是，当然，我好多了，但我一点也不轻松。"
“Victory isn’t easy. It has a cost. Always. But you are always able to pay that cost. Perhaps you don’t like it. Perhaps you even hate it. But victory is branded on your flanks for all to see. A winning pair, impossible to beat in the game of Blackjack.” She smiled as if she’d just hit the jackpot herself.
"胜利并不容易。这是有代价的。一直都是。但是你总是有能力支付这些费用。也许你不喜欢。也许你甚至讨厌它。但胜利是烙印在你的侧翼，所有人都可以看到。一对制胜组合，在黑杰克游戏中不可能被击败。"她微笑着，好像她刚刚中了大奖。
“But the ghoul in Hightower, and when Lighthooves was trying to blast us with the Core’s defenses... I didn’t win then!” I argued.
"但是海托华的食尸鬼，当光剑试图用核心的防御系统轰炸我们的时候......我没有赢!"我争辩道。
“Didn’t you? You used what you had to defeat your enemies. And what you had was my attention. You even made me act when I had determined not to.” She reached out with a hoof and stroked my cheek, making me take a step back.
"不是吗？你用你所拥有的打败了你的敌人。你吸引了我的注意力。你甚至在我决定不去做的时候还让我去做。"她用蹄子把手伸出来，抚摸我的脸颊，让我后退了一步。
“So you’re saying there’s some way for me to beat you?” I said, eagerly, expecting to set her back, or at least make her frown. Instead, she seemed even more eager.
"所以你是说我有办法打败你?"我急切地说，期待着让她回心转意，或者至少让她皱起眉头。相反，她似乎更加渴望。
“Oh, yes. I’m certain of it. And I’m certain that if you had the time, you’d find some way to do so,” Cognitum replied evenly. “I suspected that this was your talent the very second I first met you as Applebot. Victory. Winning. Such a potent weapon, and you had no idea you possessed it.”
"哦，是的。我很确定。我敢肯定，如果你有时间的话，你一定会找到办法的。"科涅图姆平静地回答。"我第一次以苹果机器人(Applebot)的身份见到你时，就怀疑这是你的才能。胜利。胜利。这么有力的武器，你竟然不知道自己拥有它。"
Right at that moment, I racked my brains, trying to think of some way to use this ‘talent’, because I really did not like the look in her eyes. “You promised,” I said weakly.
就在那一刻，我绞尽脑汁，试图想出一些方法来运用这个"天赋"，因为我真的不喜欢她的眼神。"你答应过的,"我虚弱地说。
“I did. And I’m going to keep that promise,” she said, and then she raised her voice. “Snips? You remember what we discussed earlier?”
"是的。我会遵守这个承诺的,"她说，然后提高了嗓门。"小鬼头？你还记得我们之前讨论过的吗?"
“It is all highly theoretical, Cognitum,” Snips’s skull whispered.
"这都是高度理论性的，认知,"小鬼头低声说。
“But you want to test that theory, don’t you? You want to do that dark magic.
"但是你想验证这个理论，不是吗？你想施黑魔法。
Feel the rush,” she said as she grinned at me.
感受这种冲动,"她对我咧嘴笑着说。
“I… do. I’m sorry, Blackjack. The necromancy is all I have left now,” he whispered hollowly.
"我.....。.做。对不起，黑杰克。我现在只剩下通灵术了,"他低声低语。
I tried to dart away... maybe I could run up the inclinator’s rails? Even jumping sounded like a plan. Only she had hands now, and I didn’t. One of those reached down and grabbed me by a back leg, holding on with the cyber strength I no longer possessed, and I was stopped cold. I rolled onto my back as she dragged me towards the jar I’d just come out of. I kicked out in desperation, but the grip didn’t release. I struggled with the ring on my horn, trying to shove the pink-plastic-covered device off, but it wouldn’t move. “Please don’t, Snips! Please! I saved Snails! You owe me!” I shrieked.
我试着跑开...也许我可以跑上斜轨？甚至跳楼听起来也像是个计划。只不过她现在有手了，而我没有。其中一个人伸手抓住我的后腿，用我不再拥有的网络力量紧紧抓住我，我被冻住了。当她把我拖向刚从罐子里出来的时候，我翻了个身。我绝望地踢了出去，但是抓地力没有松开。我用喇叭上的戒指挣扎着，试图推开那个粉色塑料外壳的装置，但它就是不动。"请不要这样，小鬼头！求你了！我救了蜗牛！你欠我的!"我尖叫起来。
Cognitum moved over me, pinning me easily. A familiar panic shot through me as I stared into my own smiling face. “Save your breath, my dear Blackjack. When Snips died, his poor soul went all to pieces. What remains is not a good pony at all.” I gazed up at the floating skull and vertebrae, wishing there was some way to help him and myself.
认知力在我身上移动，轻易地压住了我。当我凝视着自己的笑脸时，一种熟悉的恐慌掠过我的全身。"省省吧，我亲爱的黑杰克。小鬼头死后，他可怜的灵魂支离破碎。剩下的根本就不是一匹好马。"我凝视着漂浮着的头骨和脊椎骨，希望有什么方法可以帮助他和我自己。
“You said you didn’t want my soul. Couldn’t bear to touch it,” I said as I stared up at her.
"你说你不要我的灵魂。我不忍心碰它,"我盯着她说。
“And I don’t,” she replied in that terrible, soft voice. “I want victory.”
"我不知道,"她用那可怕的、温柔的声音回答。"我想要胜利。"
The magic began to coil, pouring from the tip of Snips’s cracked horn. I struggled against the mechanical mare above me as the black, green, and purple sorcery wrapped around both of us. I felt something moving through me, searching for something integral to myself. Not my soul, precisely, but linked to it. I could feel it on a fundamental level, like my baby moving within me in my old body. The dark violation found that something, and I felt a tear inside. Instinctively, I glanced down at my flank and saw the twin cards fade from view.
魔法开始盘绕，从小剪子破裂的喇叭尖端倾泻而出。我挣扎着对抗上面的机械母马，因为黑色、绿色和紫色的魔法包裹着我们俩。我感到有什么东西在我身体里移动，在寻找我自己不可或缺的东西。确切地说，不是我的灵魂，而是与之相连的。我可以感觉到它在一个基本的层面上，就像我的宝贝在我原来的身体里移动。黑暗的侵犯发现了一些东西，我觉得内心撕裂。出于本能，我低头看了一眼我的侧腹，看到那两张牌从视线中消失了。
“Finally,” she said like a mare in afterglow. “Victory. Oh yes. I feel it. With none of the little niggling taints of guilt. Wonderful.” She rose off me as I lay there, curled up, shaking.
"终于来了,"她像一头母马在余晖中说。"胜利。哦，是的。我感觉到了。没有任何小小的罪恶感。太棒了。"我躺在那儿，她从我身上站起来，蜷缩着，颤抖着。
“No!” came a scream from somepony other than myself. Dawn’s jar shattered as she erupted from within. Even impaled and with broken wings and legs, she launched herself at Cognitum. “It was supposed to be me! I was the one! You promised!” she cried out, crawling past Steel Rain. The stallion stomped down on the trailing edge of the spear running through her, and she jerked to a stop a few inches short. Her remaining wing swung back and forth, but Cognitum stepped back, letting the blades sweep by in front of her face.
"不!"除了我自己，还有其他人在尖叫。黎明的罐子从内部爆发出来，破碎了。尽管被刺穿，翅膀和腿也断了，她还是向Cognitum发起了进攻。"本来应该是我的！我就是那个人！你答应过的!"她爬过钢铁雨，大声喊道。那匹种马重重地踩在穿过她身体的长矛的后缘，她猛地停了下来，只有几英寸远。她剩下的一只翅膀来回摆动，但是认知空间向后退了几步，让刀片在她面前掠过。
“Oh, poor, poor, wretched Dawn,” Cognitum breathed. “What suffering we endure for ambition,” she said as she regarded the mare straining on the length of starmetal.
"哦，可怜的，可怜的，可怜的黎明,"科涅塔姆喘着气说。"我们为了野心承受了多少痛苦啊,"她看着那匹母马拉紧身体说道。
“Kill her, already. Your habit of keeping these trophies is going to get you in trouble,” Steel Rain admonished.
"杀了她，已经。你保留这些奖杯的习惯会给你带来麻烦。
“How could I repay her so?” Cognitum replied. “Dawn’s given so much. Her husband. Her children. Her body. Her life. All for me.” Cognitum rose up before
"我怎么才能报答她呢?"科涅塔姆回答道。"黎明给了我这么多。她的丈夫。她的孩子们。她的身体。她的生活。都是为了我。"认知觉浮现在眼前
the straining Dawn. “Look at me, Dawn. Look at your Goddess, great and terrible! You should be grateful. You should be honored!”
紧张的黎明。"看着我，道恩。看看你的女神，伟大而可怕！你应该心存感激。你应该感到荣幸!"
Dawn slumped, trembling, at the edge of her reach, her shaking wingtip an inch from Cognitum’s face. Then Cognitum sighed and stepped away. “Perhaps you’re right. Finish her,” she said with a dismissive wave of a wing.
黎明垂头丧气，浑身颤抖，在她触手可及的边缘，她颤抖的翅尖离科涅塔姆的脸只有一英寸。然后科涅塔姆叹了口气，走开了。"也许你是对的。干掉她,"她不屑地挥动着翅膀说。
“Finally,” Steel Rain replied, pinning down on her wing and stomping her skull over and over again. I lay there, watching her being slowly crushed under the repeated blows.
"最后,"钢铁雨回答道，一边把身子压在她的翅膀上，一遍又一遍地跺着她的头骨。我躺在那里，看着她在不断的打击下慢慢地被压碎。
A snap cracked through the air, and Dawn disappeared in a flash, the spear clanging to the plates. Cognitum whirled as a male laugh echoed softly in the cavernous space. “Who’s there?” she demanded of the air.
突然一声巨响在空中响起，黎明一下子消失了，长矛叮叮当当地击中了鱼叉。一个男人的笑声在洞穴般的空间里柔声回荡，认知觉也随之旋转起来。"谁在那儿?"她问空气。
“You’re doing it wrong,” the voice said. “I have to start it off like this: ‘knock knock’.”
"你做错了,"那个声音说。"我必须这样开始:'咚咚'。"
She frowned around at the air. “Knock knock?”
她在空中皱着眉头。"咚咚咚?"
“Oh, honestly. Who’s the joke here?” he said in annoyance, and then there was another flash. Before the huge computer, the draconequus appeared. He rose up to his full height, looking coolly down at the lot of us. “Really, Cognitum, you should ditch attempting to be a Princess. You’re far more suited to be a veep.
"哦，说实话。这里谁是笑柄?"他不耐烦地说，然后又出现了一道闪光。在巨大的计算机面前，龙骑士出现了。他挺直了身子，冷冷地俯视着我们。"说真的，认知，你应该放弃当公主的念头。你更适合做副总统。
And you,” he said to Steel Rain, “just scream ‘Pony Resources’. How the two of you missed out on being middle managers, I’ll never know.”
而你,"他对钢铁雨说,"只要大喊'小马资源公司'。你们两个怎么会错过当中层经理的机会呢?我永远不会知道。"
“Discord?” Cognitum gasped, stepping away from us. “What are you... you’re supposed to be dead and gone.”
"不和?"认识神喘着气，离我们远远的。"你怎么...你应该已经死了。"
“Oh please. Where’s the fun in that?” he asked as he disappeared and reappeared dressed in fine evening wear, considering Cognitum, a hand cupping his chin as her peered at her through a pair of opera glasses. “Hmmm... clearly Dadaist in the melange of cobbled together elements. Really, it looks almost as if it were thrown together utterly at random. A selection of Jungian shadows mixed with soaring inferiority complexes pasted together with narcissistic delusions of grandeur in a purloined body. Really. I don’t think I could do better if I tried. And believe you me, that’s saying something.” He smirked down as they stared from him to each other in bafflement, and then he gave a permissive wave of a claw. “Oh, and if you want to go grab a dictionary right now, go right ahead. I
"哦，拜托。这有什么乐趣呢?"他一边问，一边消失了，穿着精致的晚礼服重新出现，想着Cognitum，一只手托着下巴，她透过一副望远镜凝视着她。"嗯......显然是拼凑在一起的元素中的达达主义者。实际上，它看起来几乎是完全随机地组合在一起的。荣格的影子混合着高涨的自卑情结，再加上自恋的自大型妄想在一个被盗的身体里。真的。我不认为我可以做得更好，如果我尝试。相信我，这说明了一些问题。"当他们困惑地互相盯着对方时，他得意地笑了下，然后他用爪子许可地挥了挥手。"哦，如果你现在想去拿一本字典，那就去吧。一
have time.”
有时间。"
Steel Rain pointed his two huge cannons at Discord. There was a click, and two enormous bouquets erupted from each. “And you!” Discord said contemptuously. “Really. Whatever are you compensating for? I mean, when a stallion has to trot around with an artillery piece strapped to each flank, you really have to wonder!” He scooped the bouquets up in a claw and took a deep sniff, then let out a sigh. “I think you should take that armor off and relax.”
钢铁雨用他的两门巨型大炮指向不和谐。随着一声咔嗒，两束巨大的花束从每一个中喷了出来。"还有你!"不和谐轻蔑地说。"真的。你在补偿什么？我的意思是，当一匹种马不得不四处小跑，每个侧翼都绑着火炮，你真的不得不好奇!"他用爪子抓起花束，深深地嗅了嗅，然后叹了口气。"我觉得你应该脱掉盔甲，放松一下。"
Then Discord turned his attention to Snips. “This one isn’t even finished yet! Let me see.” And he snapped his claws. From the storm, a cloud of tiny motes swept through the side of the jar and into the skull. “There we go. Really, you need to be careful with that dark magical stuff, old sport.” He snapped his claws again, and the jar vanished in another flash.
然后，不和把他的注意力转向了小鬼头。"这个还没完成呢！让我看看。"他折断了他的爪子。暴风雨过后，一团微尘掠过罐子的一侧，进入了头骨。"我们走吧。说真的，你得小心那些黑暗魔法的东西，老兄。"他又啪的一声把爪子折断了，罐子又一下子消失了。
“You! What do you think you’re doing?” Cognitum demanded. “Bring him back!”
"你！你以为你在干什么?"科涅塔姆问道。"把他带回来!"
“My... somepony is slow on the uptake. For a pony named after knowledge, you don’t catch on very quickly.” Then he regarded me, and his eyes softened a moment. “And this poor pathetic little lump of a mare. What is she doing here? She clearly doesn’t belong in this assembly at all.” He swept me up in his arms, stroking my mane gently. “A pony of my very own! I will hug her and stroke her pretty mane and call her George.”
"我的......某个小伙子反应迟钝。对于一匹以知识命名的小马来说，你不会很快理解它。"然后他打量了我一下，眼神变得柔和了一会儿。"还有这头可怜的可怜的小母马。她在这里干什么？她显然根本不属于这个集会。"他把我抱在怀里，轻轻地抚摸着我的鬃毛。"我自己的一匹小马！我会拥抱她，抚摸她漂亮的鬃毛，叫她乔治。"
“What do you want, Discord?” Cognitum demanded coldly.
"你想要什么，不和吗?"科涅塔姆冷冷地问道。
“Well, I heard that there was some fine villainy ahoof and felt that I should stop by and say hello.” He snapped his fingers again, and a throne appeared. He took a seat, setting me on his lap and continuing to stroke my mane as he regarded her with a smirk. “One monster to another.”
"嗯，我听说有一些美丽的邪恶的ahoof，觉得我应该停下来打个招呼。"他再次打了个响指，一个宝座出现了。他坐了下来，把我放在他的大腿上，一边看着她，一边继续抚摸我的鬃毛。"一个怪物对另一个怪物。"
“You are a relic of a bygone era. You should be nothing more than a footnote in history,” Cognitum replied.
"你是过去时代的遗物。你只不过是历史上的一个脚注罢了,"科涅塔姆回答。
“My my, Princess Pot. I think it takes one to know one,” he said as he scratched my ears. I glanced up, spotting beads of sweat on his brow. “You believe yourself to be Princess Luna? You?” He jerked a thumb at his chest. “I knew Princess Moonbutt back when your ancestor was an abacus. I don’t know what you’re supposed to be, but you’re no Princess.” He then gestured at the bright
"我的，公主锅。我想只有一个人才能了解另一个人,"他一边挠我的耳朵一边说。我抬起头，看见他额头上有汗珠。"你相信自己是卢娜公主吗？你呢?"他用拇指猛地指着胸口。"当你的祖先是算盘的时候，我就认识月亮公主了。我不知道你应该成为什么样的人，但你不是公主。"然后他指了指光明
soul being held by the straining unicorns. “THAT is a Princess.”
灵魂被绷紧的独角兽所拥有。"那是一位公主。"
“What?” I gasped, sitting up a little and staring at the glow. Maybe it was having organic eyes again, or maybe it was Discord’s presence, but as I stared, I detected something within the mote. Something beautiful and wonderful and mysterious. Dark, but not the bubbling evil that had been inflicted on me before. It was glorious and terrible, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away as I beheld it.
"什么?"我倒抽了一口冷气，稍稍坐起来，盯着灯光。也许它又有了有机的眼睛，也许它就是不和谐的存在，但是当我盯着它的时候，我发现尘埃中有什么东西。美丽、奇妙、神秘的东西。黑暗，但不是以前强加在我身上的那种沸腾的邪恶。这是光荣和可怕的，我不能把我的眼睛离开，因为我看到它。
The soul of Princess Luna.
卢娜公主的灵魂。
“You’re a bit of a packrat, aren’t you, Cogwheel?” he asked with a grin, going back to petting my head as if I were a cat. “You collect things. Little bits of this and that. Ponies. Souls. Cities. A bad habit, really. One that’s going to get you in trouble.” I felt him tremble under me, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from that soul. “However did you think you’d get away with keeping Princess Luna’s soul?”
"你有点喜欢收集东西，是不是，考格威?"他笑着问，继续抚摸着我的头，好像我是一只猫。"你收集东西。一点点这个那个。小马。灵魂。城市。这真是个坏习惯。这会给你带来麻烦的。"我感觉到他在我脚下颤抖，但是我无法把我的眼睛从那个灵魂上移开。"不管怎么样，你认为你能侥幸得到卢娜公主的灵魂吗?"
“It’s my soul,” Cognitum snapped. As if sensing that Snips was no longer present, the soul began to thrash and struggle, the dark purple figure within fighting against the green lightning keeping her contained.
"这是我的灵魂,"认知神说。仿佛感觉到斯奈普斯已经不在了，灵魂开始抽打和挣扎，深紫色的身影在与绿色的闪电搏斗，保持她的控制。
“It is?” Discord gasped sarcastically. “Really? Well then, since Snips is away on vacation, why don’t I reunite you with it?” He cracked his fingers in the air above him. “I might not be quite up on my uber evil necromagical skills, but I think I can wing it.” Speaking of wings, I saw a few feathers fall out of his, disappearing into dust before they hit the floor.
"是吗?"不和谐讽刺地倒抽一口冷气。"真的吗？那么，既然小鬼头出去度假了，我为什么不让你和它团聚呢?"他用手指在头顶的空中打了个响指。"我可能没有完全掌握我那超级邪恶的死亡魔法技能，但我想我可以临场发挥。"说到翅膀，我看到一些羽毛从他身上掉了下来，在落到地板上之前消失在尘土中。
“No!” Cognitum blurted, raising her hooves in alarm. Discord’s smug smile grew. “I do not need that soul within me. I have everything I need. Intellect. Strength. Victory!”
"不!"认知冲口而出，惊慌地提起她的蹄子。不和谐的洋洋得意的笑容越来越灿烂。"我不需要那个灵魂在我里面。我有我需要的一切。智力。力量。胜利!"
“Oh? Are you sure?” he asked in his most teasing voice, leaning towards her. “Are you sure you don’t want it inside you? Feeling it? Or is it that you know that that glorious creature is the real thing and you...” he leaned back, waving her away with a hand. “You are the cheap Solaris knock off.”
"哦？你确定吗?"他斜靠着她，用最挑逗的声音问道。"你确定你不想让它在你体内吗？感觉到了吗？还是你知道那个美丽的小东西是真的，而你......"他向后一靠，挥手把她赶走了。"你们是廉价的索拉里斯仿制品。"
“I am the Princess of this realm!” Cognitum snapped. “I am Princess Luna.” Discord said nothing. He just steepled his fingers before him with a smug, skeptical expression on his face. “Bring back my necromancer! I’ll add a statue to my collection!”
"我是这个国家的公主!"认知突然断裂。"我是卢娜公主。"不和谐什么也没说。他只是面带自鸣得意、疑神疑鬼的表情，把手指伸到他面前。"把我的巫师带回来！我要在我的收藏品里加一尊雕像!"
“Yawn. You can’t even manage second-rate villainy,” he said with a disdainful sniff. “Very well then; I’ll be on my way.”
"哈欠。你甚至连二流的恶行都管不住,"他轻蔑地嗤之以鼻地说。"那好吧，我走了。"
“I don’t think we can hold it much longer!” one of the six shouted as the soul lunged again.
"我想我们坚持不了多久了!"六个人中的一个喊道，这时那个鬼魂又扑了过来。
“What are you doing, Discord?” I whispered.
"你在干什么，不和谐?"我低声说。
He glanced down at me and gave a little wink, then looked at the now-indecisive mare. “Well. What’s it going to be? Once she’s inside you, you won’t be able to get her out again. You’ll have to actually fill Luna’s horseshoes. Put on the big Princess britches. Actually be her. No yanking souls in and out. No more cheating. That’s my job, after all.”
他低头看了我一眼，眨了眨眼睛，然后看着那匹现在优柔寡断的母马。"好吧。怎么样？一旦她进入了你的身体，你就再也不能把她弄出来了。你必须真正填满卢娜的马蹄铁。穿上大公主裤。实际上就是她。不要把灵魂拉进拉出。不再有欺骗。毕竟，这是我的工作。"
Cognitum’s gaze flicked from the struggling soul to Discord and back again. “I...
认知的目光从挣扎的灵魂扫到不和，又扫回来。"我.....。.
I...” Discord just smiled, but I still felt him shaking as he held me. I saw tiny little flecks blowing away from him along his mane.
我。。」不和谐只是微微一笑，但我仍能感觉到他抱着我时的颤抖。我看见他的鬃毛上有细小的斑点从他身上飘走。
“Let’s get out of here, Discord,” I said. “Take Princess Luna with us.” I doubted he had the strength to do so, but then, Cognitum didn’t know that.
"我们离开这里吧，不和谐,"我说。"带上卢娜公主和我们一起。"我怀疑他是否有力量这样做，但是，认知神不知道这一点。
“No!” Cognitum snapped, then drew herself up. “Do it.” Discord stood up, setting me on the deck as his throne faded away. He cocked his brow again. “Do it! I command you to do it!”
"不!"认知觉突然断了，然后站了起来。"去做吧。"当他的宝座渐渐消失的时候，不和的声音响起，把我放在甲板上。他又扬起了眉毛。"动手吧！我命令你去做!"
He snapped his fingers like a gunshot, and a great wind seemed to gust out of him. It swept around the platform, knocking the unicorns away. For a moment, the soul seemed to struggle to raise upward, but then bands of magic wrapped around her and Cognitum. Slowly, the pair began to be drawn together. Slowly the pair melted one into the other. The alicorn soul slipped into Cognitum. There was a blinding flash, and I had to avert my eyes.
他打了个响指，就像一声枪响，一阵大风似乎从他身上吹了出来。它在平台上呼啸而过，把独角兽都撞飞了。有那么一会儿，她的灵魂似乎挣扎着要向上升起，但是随后一股魔法缠绕着她和认知。慢慢地，这一对开始被拉到一起。慢慢地，这一对融化成另一对。阿里康的灵魂进入了认知。有一道眩目的闪光，我不得不转移视线。
When I dared to open my eyes again, I stared up at a gray statue, hand outstretched, fingers frozen post snap. I gaped up at Discord, wondering so much. Where was Boo? What had become of Dawn and Snips? Why had he done this? And then he began to crumble into sparkly dust, which blew away in whatever invisible stream carried the souls and disappeared into the void. I stared as the very last grains of shimmery substance were carried away.
当我再次敢于睁开眼睛的时候，我抬头盯着一座灰色的雕像，伸出手，手指冻结后啪地一声断了。我目瞪口呆地看着纷争，好奇得不得了。阿布在哪里？黎明和小剪子怎么样了？他为什么要这么做？然后，他开始崩溃成为闪闪发光的尘埃，吹走了无形的流携带灵魂和消失在虚空。我凝视着那最后一粒闪闪发光的物质被带走了。
Then I dared to look at the center of the platform. Cognitum crouched there,
然后我敢于看平台的中心。蹲在那里的认知觉,
black wings covering her head. “Please be good, Luna. Please be good, Luna,” I prayed over and over again.
黑色的翅膀遮住了她的头。"一定要听话，卢娜。"一定要乖，露娜,"我一遍又一遍地祈祷。
Then she rose. Was it just me, or was she now... larger? She threw back her head, her mane streaming behind her like a bloody banner streaked with soot. Her armor seemed sharper now, the laser-etched filly and ‘Security’ gone. She stood before us all, a Princess of Death. Her red eye panels blazed with light as she began to laugh, high and exultant.
然后她站了起来。是只有我这么觉得，还是她现在...变大了？她仰起头，鬃毛在身后飞扬，像一条沾满煤烟的旗帜。她的盔甲现在看起来更锋利了，激光蚀刻的小雌马和"保安"都不见了。她站在我们所有人面前，一个死亡公主。她开始高兴地笑起来，红红的眼睛闪闪发光。
“Fools! Fools! All of you, fools! I am the Queen of the Night! And this world is mine!” she crowed, her wings spreading as her red and black magic mane and tail snapped in the air behind her. “Bow before my greatness!”
"傻瓜！傻瓜！你们所有人，笨蛋！我是黑夜女王！这个世界是我的!"她欢呼着，她的翅膀张开着，红黑相间的鬃毛和尾巴在她身后的空中啪地一声折断了。"向我的伟大鞠躬!"
Steel Rain threw himself on his face, but the six unicorns, their black robes flapping wildly, raced for the elevator opposite the inclinator. She glared in rage, her eyes blazing balefully, and six crackling bullets of magic blasted forth from her steel-clad horn. The crackling energy tore through them, setting their robes aflame and sending them flying through the air and to the dark waters far below.
钢铁雨扑到他的脸上，但是六只独角兽，它们的黑袍疯狂地拍打着翅膀，向斜梯对面的电梯跑去。她怒目而视，眼睛凶狠地燃烧着，六颗噼啪作响的魔法子弹从她钢制的号角里喷射出来。噼啪作响的能量撕裂了他们，让他们的长袍燃烧起来，让他们在空中飞翔，飞向远在下面的黑暗的水域。
Slowly she approached me where I crouched. No cutie mark. No weapons. No augmentations. Not even magic. “Do you deny me now?” she asked coldly.
慢慢地，她走到我蹲着的地方。没有可爱的标志。没有武器。没有增强。甚至连魔法都没有。"你现在拒绝我了吗?"她冷冷地问道。
“No,” I said, my eyes fixed on the last faint dusting of Discord on my hooves. “No. I don’t.” I lifted my head and stared her in the eye. “There is no denying you are a royal cunt!”
"不,"我说，我的眼睛盯着我蹄子上最后一缕不和谐的灰尘。"没有。我不知道。"我抬起头，盯着她的眼睛。"不可否认，你是个王室婊子!"
I was going to be killed. Maybe not the best last words, but Deus would have approved. Her eyes blazed, her horn crackling with red lightning.
我差点就被杀了。也许这不是最好的临终遗言，但是上帝会同意的。她的眼睛闪闪发光，她的号角闪着红色的闪电。
Then a shape dropped from the cables high above, landing on the platform with a resounding clang. He crouched there a moment, then slowly raised himself up to his full height. The glyph-marked strips of cloth tied to his fetlocks snapped and fluttered in the same magical wind blowing Cognitum’s mane. The Legate stared at Cognitum… or was she Nightmare Something-or-other now?
然后一个形状从上面的电缆上掉下来，发出铿锵的响声落在平台上。他在那儿蹲了一会儿，然后慢慢地站起来，直到身子挺直。系在他脚镣上的带有象形文字的布条在同一阵神奇的风吹动科涅图姆的鬃毛时啪地一声抖动起来。使者盯着科涅塔姆......或者她现在是噩梦什么的？
“Maiden of the Stars. At last,” he said, the crackling magic fading from Cognitum’s horn as she faced the skull-masked zebra. “You are precisely as you should be. It is time for our destined battle! One to decide the fate of zebra and ponykind!”
"星星少女"。最后,"他说，当科涅图姆面对着戴着面具的斑马时，它的角上噼啪作响的魔力消失了。"你正是你应该成为的样子。是我们命中注定的战斗的时候了！一个决定斑马和马驹命运的人!"
She gave the smallest of smirks as the Legate adopted one of the fighting stances that had proved so adept at thrashing me. His glyph wrappings glowed with a strange, cold green light. I couldn’t believe that Equestria’s final hope rested on one of my greatest enemies, but it was all I had left.
当特使采用了一个已经证明非常擅长打我的战斗姿态时，她给了我一个最小的傻笑。他的象形文字包裹着发出一种奇怪的、冰冷的绿光。我不敢相信小马国的最后希望寄托在我最大的敌人之一身上，但这是我仅有的希望了。
He charged across the platform, hooves thundering as he closed the distance. She reared up, horn and wings crackling with bright red magical lightning. The two closed in, and the Legate let out a battle cry!
他冲过站台，接近时发出雷鸣般的蹄声。她站起来，角和翅膀发出明亮的红色神奇的闪电。两个人靠近了，使者发出了战斗的呐喊！
Then he took her outstretched hoof in his, pushed back his dragon skull, and kissed it.
然后他把她伸展的蹄子放在他的后面，推开他的龙头骨，吻了吻它。
What?
什么？
I stared at the scene, my brain locked up at the sight of the zebra, his face covered in bright red magical tattoos resembling the orbits of planets. At his neck, they inexplicably became black, save for a few lines where Rampage’s tail had scraped him earlier. He knelt, lips pressed to the tip of her hoof, then pulled away. “Beautiful. You are beautiful, my Maiden.” Then he regarded me in amusement as she stopped the crackling lightning, and I realized that I knew this zebra...
我盯着这个场景，一看到斑马我的脑子就被锁定了，他的脸上布满了鲜红色的神奇纹身，就像行星的轨道一样。在他的脖子上，他们莫名其妙地变成了黑色，除了狂暴的尾巴之前擦伤了他的几条线。他跪了下来，嘴唇紧贴着她的蹄尖，然后拉开。"真漂亮。你真美，我的姑娘。"然后，当她停止劈啪作响的闪电时，他饶有兴趣地看着我，我意识到我认识这只斑马..。
Amadi.
女名女子名。
“What?! How are you...” I screamed at the top of my lungs, rising to my hooves as I gestured at him. “But you! You’re the Legate! And why– And she’s the Maiden! But she– And you’re friends?!” I waved my hooves at them both. “What the hay is going on here?”
"什么?！"你好......"我用最大的声音尖叫着，一边指着他，一边抬起我的蹄子。""可是你！你是特使！为什么?她是少女！但是她——你们是朋友?!"我向他们两个挥舞着我的蹄子。"这到底是怎么回事?"
Suddenly, Steel Rain’s hoof was pinning me to the floor. I’d honestly forgotten about him for a moment. “You really aren’t the smartest pony, are you?”
突然，钢铁雨的蹄子把我压在了地板上。我真的有那么一会儿忘了他。"你真的不是最聪明的小马，是吗?"
Amadi stood and trotted towards me, Cognitum at her side. “There’s nothing quite as useful as a prophecy, particularly if you make it up yourself,” he said as he smiled at Cognitum. “The ‘Maiden of the Stars’ was always a useful ruse. Destroying the Hoof provided a pretext for keeping my followers together, working to advance our goals.”
阿玛迪站起来，小跑着朝我走来，科格尼塔姆在她身边。"没有什么比预言更有用了，尤其是如果你自己编造出来的话,"他对Cognitum笑着说。"'星星少女'总是一个有用的诡计。摧毁霍夫提供了一个借口，让我的追随者团结在一起，努力推进我们的目标。"
Steel Rain chuckled. “Really. Where did you think the Harbingers got a zebra tank to put Deus’s brain into?”
钢铁雨咯咯地笑了。"真的。你以为"先驱者"在哪儿弄了一辆斑马坦克把天王的脑袋装进去?"
I squirmed under Steel Rain. “So it was all a scam? Why?”
我在钢铁雨下挣扎。"所以这一切都是骗局？为什么?"
Cognitum answered, “Why, it’s the first step in my great unification of the Wasteland. I know how useful war is. When the Brood of Coyotl attack, the Harbingers will repel them... after certain ponies are eliminated. Big Daddy. General Storm Chaser. Grace. Ponies with the leadership skills to counter me. The Harbingers shall be regarded as heroes. I... Blackjack... the hero of the battle... will declare myself the Princess of the Moon. We will use Horizons to restore the Core, and I will use EC-1101 to rebuild my realm. We will negotiate a peace with the Remnant.” She gestured to the Legate, who bowed graciously to her. “And all will be restored. All thanks to you.”
科宁顿回答说:"为什么，这是我统一大片荒原的第一步。我知道战争有多有用。当柯约特族攻击时，先驱者将击退他们......在某些小马被消灭后。大老爹。风暴追逐者。女名女子名。有领导才能的小马来对抗我。先驱者应被视为英雄。我。.黑杰克......这场战役的英雄......将宣布自己为月亮公主。我们将使用地平线恢复核心，我将使用EC-1101重建我的领域。我们要和例外人谈判和平。"她向大使做了个手势，大使彬彬有礼地向她鞠了一躬。"一切都会恢复的。这一切都要感谢你。"
I lay there with no snappy retort. I had to admit it. They’d won. I couldn’t think of any way to defeat them now. If I was lucky, I’d end up dead. If not... she still had my jar. “My friends will stop you.”
我躺在那里，没有反驳。我不得不承认。他们赢了。我现在想不出任何办法来打败他们。如果幸运的话，我早就死了。如果没有...她还留着我的罐子。"我的朋友会阻止你的。"
“Your friends are now my friends,” Cognitum replied smoothly. “I’ll have to deal with other heroes abroad, I’m sure. Perhaps use a smaller version of Tom against the S.P.P. There must be some force strong enough to split that egg open. Regardless, you’re done.” She patted my head. “If you’d been loyal from the outset, I might have had a future for you as well. Now all I want is for you to see me triumphant.”
"你的朋友现在是我的朋友了,"认知力平静地回答。"我肯定还得和其他海外英雄打交道。也许可以用一个小版本的Tom来对抗s.p.p。一定有某种力足够强大，能把那个鸡蛋劈开。不管怎样，你完了。"她拍了拍我的头。"如果你从一开始就对我忠心耿耿，我可能也会给你一个美好的未来。现在我只想让你看到我的胜利。"
“Is it time?” Steel Rain asked.
"是时候了吗?"钢铁雨问道。
“Indeed,” she breathed, and drew back. I let out a shaky breath as she backed away and regarded that flickering data above us. “EC-1101, Priority Command: Transfer and activate!”
"的确,"她喘了口气，然后往后退了退。我颤抖着吸了一口气，她向后退去，注视着我们头顶上闪烁的数据。"EC-1101，优先指令:传输并激活!"
Her PipBuck began to glow. The screens of the terminals along the edges of the platform began to flash and dance with readouts. The heap of computer parts that was Cognitum’s maneframe began to hum louder and louder. The hologram began to run again, swirling in the air, arcane symbols and lines of code lining up and activating. “Yes! Yes! I am ruler of all once more!” She laughed in delight as EC-1101’s displays started to blossom like a flower.
她的PipBuck开始发光。沿着平台边缘的终端屏幕开始闪烁，随着读数起舞。作为认知语言的一堆计算机部件开始越来越响亮地发出嗡嗡声。全息图开始再次运行，在空气中旋转，神秘的符号和代码行排列和激活。"是的！太好了！我再一次成为统治者!"当EC-1101的展品开始像花一样绽放时，她高兴地笑了。
Then everything went dark all at once. The hologram. The terminals. Even the maneframe. Cognitum turned her head wildly in bafflement, the only illumination coming from the stream of lights circling the spire and Cognitum’s red glowing eyes. “OH, COME ON!” she screamed, then whirled and demanded
然后一切都突然变黑了。全息图。终端机。甚至还有手榴弹。认知神经系统在困惑中疯狂地转动着她的头，唯一的光亮来自环绕着尖顶的灯光和认知神经系统发光的红眼睛。"哦，得了吧!"她尖叫着，然后旋转着问道
of me, “What is going on?”
"这是怎么回事?"
“Don’t look at me. This magical mystery megaspell shit is your bag,” I said, raising my hooves in defense.
"别看我。这个神奇的神秘的巨大的狗屎是你的包,"我说，抬起我的蹄子为自己辩护。
Then a familiar rasp filled the air. It was long and low, wet and labored. And a gravelly, wet voice asked, “Identify yourself.”
接着，空气中弥漫着一种熟悉的沙沙声。它又长又低，又潮湿又费力。一个沙哑而湿润的声音问道:"请表明你的身份。"
Cognitum froze. She glanced from Steel Rain to the Legate to me, then answered, “I am Princess Luna reborn, rightful heir to Equestria! You will transfer control of EC-1101 to me, immediately.” Nothing happened. Then she asked, her voice a little more wary. “Who is this?”
认知停止了。她扫视了一眼钢铁雨和特使，然后回答道:"我是卢娜公主重生了，Equestria的合法继承人！你必须立即将EC-1101的控制权移交给我。"什么都没发生。然后她问道，声音变得更加小心翼翼。"你是谁?"
“Project Horizons Command AI,” the voice rasped.
"地平线计划指挥人工智能,"声音刺耳。
“Ah! The Lunar Palace! Yes. Wonderful. I wish you to transfer complete control of all your systems to me immediately!” she commanded, smiling a little. No response, and her smile faded. “Did you hear me?”
"啊！月宫！是的。太好了。我希望你立即把你所有系统的完全控制权交给我!"她微笑着命令道。没有回应，她的笑容消失了。"你听到我说话了吗?"
“Did you execute Fluttershy?” the voice rasped softly.
"是你处决了小萤火虫吗?"声音轻柔地响起。
They stared at each other again. “Fluttershy is dead!” Cognitum snapped. “They’re all dead! I am the only one entitled to rule Equestria now!” Again, no response. Cognitum’s eyes narrowed. “Who are you?”
他们又对视了一下。"小萤火虫死了!"认知突然断裂。"他们都死了！现在只有我有资格统治小马国了!"再一次，没有回应。认知神经元的眼睛眯了起来。"你是谁?"
A slow laugh began to fill the platform. It was low, slow, and a little bit mad.
一阵缓慢的笑声开始充满了讲台。它低沉，缓慢，而且有点疯狂。
And it was coming from my mouth. The three looked down at me in surprise.
而且是从我嘴里说出来的。三个人惊讶地低头看着我。
“It’s Goldenblood. It’s fucking Goldenblood!” I cackled.
"这是金色血统。这是他妈的金色血液!"我咯咯笑起来。
“Goldenblood is dead!” Cognitum snapped. “I watched his execution myself.”
"金血王死了!"认知突然断裂。"我亲眼目睹了他的死刑。"
“So what?” I laughed, not having anything to lose any more. “Like that’s stopped half the ponies I’ve known. Seriously, for the apocalypse being a world-killing event, some of you old relics really do hang on!” I grinned up at Cognitum. “You were transferred from Luna. Goldenblood probably used the exact same technology to put himself in control of this Lunar Palace thing!”
"那又怎么样?"我笑了，再也没有什么可以失去的了。"好像我认识的一半小马都因此停了下来。说真的，因为世界末日是一个毁灭世界的事件，你们中的一些老古董真的还在坚持!"我对着Cognitum咧嘴一笑。"你是从卢娜那里调来的。金血王可能使用了同样的技术来控制这个月宫的事情!"
Cognitum gaped at me in horror. “I order you–” she howled, but Goldenblood’s rasp boomed from the speakers in the platform and cut her off.
认知神经元惊恐地瞪着我。"我命令你——"她嚎叫着，但是金色血液的锉刀从讲台上的喇叭里发出刺耳的声音，切断了她的话。
“No,” it growled contemptuously. “You are a tyrant. Horizons is now active. Make peace with your sister, Princess Luna. Make peace with yourself. Goodbye.”
"不,"它轻蔑地咆哮着。"你是个暴君。地平线现在是活跃的。和你妹妹讲和吧，卢娜公主。与自己和平相处。再见。"
The lights returned, and the four of us stared at each other. “That... that wasn’t supposed to happen,” Cognitum muttered, glancing from the Legate to Steel Rain and back, then down at where I was still laughing weakly.
灯光回来了，我们四个人面面相觑。"那......那是不应该发生的,"认知神喃喃地说，从使节看了一眼钢铁雨，又看了一眼，然后又看了看我仍然有气无力地笑着的地方。
“So we all die now?” Steel Rain asked angrily.
"那么我们现在都要死了?"钢铁雨生气地问。
“No. No!” she snapped. “It will take a few days before the moon’s rotation brings it into the optimal firing position. I will simply go to the moon and make the adjustments manually.” She glared at her hoof and sighed in disgust. “This is merely a setback.”
"没有。不!"她厉声说道。"月球的自转使其进入最佳发射位置需要几天时间。我将直接登上月球，手动进行调整。"她怒视着蹄子，厌恶地叹了口气。"这仅仅是一个挫折。"
“Tell me that we can kill her now,” Steel Rain said, pushing down on my back and making me struggle to breathe. For a second, I was certain that I was done. I felt my ribs creak.
"告诉我，我们现在就可以杀了她,"斯蒂尔·雷恩说，一边压在我的背上，让我喘不过气来。有那么一瞬间，我确信我完成了。我感到我的肋骨嘎吱作响。
“No,” Cognitum snapped. “No. She may yet be useful.”
"不,"认知神经系统断然回答。"没有。她也许还有用。"
Steel Rain hissed softly through his ventilator. The Legate frowned as well. “No. You should absolutely kill her now.”
钢铁雨透过他的呼吸机发出轻微的嘶嘶声。特使也皱起了眉头。"没有。你现在就应该杀了她。"
“I said no!” she said with a sweep of her wing, making them both duck. “I must go reunite with Blackjack’s friends. Tell them what we need to do. The Luna Space Center may still retain something useful.” She glared down at me. “But don’t worry; I’m not going to leave her in a jar where she might escape. No...” She turned to the maneframe, and the cable snaked out once more. It pressed itself to my head. “A mindless Blackjack is a far safer Blackjack.”
"我说了不行!"她一边说，一边挥动翅膀，让他们两个都躲开了。"我得去和Blackjack的朋友们团聚了。告诉他们我们需要做什么。月球航天中心可能还保留着一些有用的东西。"她怒视着我。""不过别担心，我不会把她留在一个罐子里，让她逃走的。不......"她转向手电筒，电缆又一次弯曲了。它紧紧地压在我的头上。"没脑子的黑杰克要安全得多。"
I struggled under Steel Rain’s hoof, but there was nothing I could do to stop the world being pulled away. I was plunged into darkness save for a blinking camera icon in front of me, and for several seconds I floated in nothingness. Then a window replaced the icon to show the Uvula platform and Cognitum smirking up at me. “Enjoy it, Blackjack. Being trapped in one place, helpless... oh yes. It should be quite educational for you. I want you to see my restored Equestria and Core before you’re gone for good.”
我在钢铁雨的蹄子下挣扎，但我无法阻止这个世界被拉走。我陷入了黑暗中，除了一个在我面前闪烁的照相机图标，有几秒钟我在虚无中漂浮。然后一个窗口取代了图标，显示悬雍垂平台和认知向我傻笑。"好好享受吧，黑杰克。被困在一个地方，无助...哦，是的。这对你来说应该很有教育意义。在你永远离开之前，我想让你看看我修复的小马国和核心国。"
“This is a mistake,” Steel Rain muttered.
"这是个错误,"钢铁雨嘀咕着。
“Silence!” she barked, then calmed herself. “I must go. I can’t have her friends stumble upon this place. Remain here for an hour, then see to the Harbingers and the Brood. Understand?”
"安静!"她叫了起来，然后平静了下来。"我得走了。我不能让她的朋友偶然发现这个地方。在这儿呆一个小时，然后去看看先驱者和布鲁德一家。明白吗?"
Steel Rain jerked his head hesitantly. The Legate bowed deeply to her. Cognitum levitated my body back into its jar, setting it far over to the side and out of the reach of the crane or the mind transfer cable thingy. She lifted Echo and set the catatonic stallion across her shoulders. Then she spread her wings wide and launched herself up into the air curling up along the spire. Presumably she was heading for the hole in the chamber’s ceiling, but she passed the edge of my window long before then.
钢铁之雨犹豫地猛地抬起头。使节向她深深地鞠了一躬。认知力使我的身体漂浮回它的罐子里，把它远远地放在起重机或者意识传输电缆够不到的地方。她把艾可抱起来，把紧张性精神分裂的种马放在肩膀上。然后她张开翅膀，沿着尖顶向空中一跃而起。大概她是朝着房间天花板上的洞走去，但是在那之前很久她就经过了我窗户的边缘。
The two stallions stood awkwardly by for a minute. “You can’t seriously be doing this?” I shouted at them, but they didn’t seem to hear me. I fumbled around in the darkness I floated in, but I couldn’t see anything else. In fact, I wasn’t even sure I had hooves in this place. “Come on… come on... there has to be some way to do this,” I thought frantically.
那两匹公马尴尬地站在旁边一会儿。"你不会真的要这么做吧?"我朝他们喊叫，但他们似乎没有听见。我在黑暗中摸索着，漂浮在空中，但除此之外我什么也看不见。事实上，我甚至不确定我在这里是否有蹄子。"来吧...来吧...一定有办法做到这一点,"我疯狂地想。
“Five minutes?” the Legate asked.
"五分钟?"使节问道。
“Fine,” Steel Rain replied sourly. I floated there, cursing them over and over again as I tried to think at the void to do... something! There had to be some way to control this space. Steel Rain trotted over to the jar that held me and looked about, and then his hind leg kicked out. “Oopsie,” he said as the jar rolled across the platform and then tumbled off the edge, out of sight. He trotted over and leaned out to gaze down, then gave a little shrug. Then he faced me, guns pointed forward. They loaded with a loud thunk. “Hey, Blackjack. I don’t know if you can hear me, but... thanks for not killing me at the manor.” Then his cannons fired, and my world ended as I screamed into the absolute void around me.
"很好,"钢铁雨酸溜溜地回答。我漂浮在那里，诅咒他们一遍又一遍，因为我试着想在虚空中做点什么......做点什么！肯定有办法控制这个空间。钢铁雨小跑过来抱着我的罐子，向四周看了看，然后它的后腿被踢了出来。"哎呀,"他说，当罐子滚过平台，然后滚下边缘，看不见了。他小跑过来，探出身子向下凝视，然后耸了耸肩。然后他面对着我，枪口指向前方。他们发出沉重的撞击声。"嘿，黑杰克。我不知道你能不能听到我，但是......谢谢你没有在庄园里杀了我。"然后他的大炮开火了，当我尖叫着冲进我周围的绝对虚空时，我的世界就毁灭了。
Footnote: >Start New Game: Y/N?
脚注:开始新游戏:y/n？
 
Author's Notes:
作者笔记:
(Author’s notes: Story isn’t over. I swear. Really. I do want to apologize for its lateness though. Scheduling problems, real life issues, slow typing, and other problems took forever to work through. It’s a huge chapter and I
(作者的笔记:故事还没有结束。我发誓。真的。不过我还是要为它的迟到道歉。日程安排问题、现实生活中的问题、打字速度慢以及其他问题都需要花费很长时间才能解决。这是一个巨大的篇章
apologize how much how much of it is horrible talk talk talking. Still, there was a lot that needed to be addressed in this chapter. This is where most of the plot threads had to be addressed, one way or another!
道歉多少是多么可怕的谈话谈话。尽管如此，在这一章中还有很多需要解决的问题。这就是大多数情节线索必须被处理的地方，无论如何！
I’d like to thank every one that’s stuck with it so far and gotten through this monster of a story and this monster of a chapter, especially Hinds, Bronode, and swicked. We found a new way to brush that was a bit quicker so we’ll see what this portends. I hope the story continues to be entertaining as we go towards the finish. I swear I’m going to have this finished inside three years... Grrr...
我要感谢每一个坚持到现在并且通过这个怪物般的故事和这个怪物般的章节的人，特别是Hinds，Bronode，和swiched。我们发现了一种新的刷牙方法，这种方法刷得更快，所以我们将看到这种方法预示着什么。我希望在我们即将结束的时候，这个故事仍然是有趣的。我发誓我会在三年内完成这个..。
Anyway, next week is spring break, which I don’t get paid for... sigh... so bits right now would be extra super appreciated at David13ushey@gmail.com through paypal. Thank you very much everyone that helped out last month. You made it possible for me to take a test that will hopefully get me a full time science position. We’ll have to see. I might find some position somewhere else too. I’ll let folks know.
不管怎样，下周是春假，我不会因为...叹气...而得到报酬...所以现在通过贝宝，在david13ushey@gmail.com上，比特将会得到额外的超级赞赏。非常感谢上个月帮助我们的每一个人。你让我有机会参加一个考试，希望能让我得到一个全职的科学工作。我们拭目以待。我可能也会在其他地方找到工作。我会告诉大家的。
A few chapters left to go. Wow. Well... hope the chapter was okay. Maybe I should have broken it into two... I dunno... still, I hope it stays a fun read. Please give feedback at Cloudsville... Reddit... 4chan if you’re feeling adventurish. Sadly, I can’t read comments at TvTropes forum. Got myself banned... bad Somber… bad…)
还有几章要读。哇。好吧...希望这一章没什么问题。也许我应该把它分成两部分......我不知道......不过，我还是希望它读起来会很有趣。如果你喜欢冒险，请在Cloudsville...Reddit...4chan上给出反馈。遗憾的是，我无法阅读TvTropes论坛上的评论。让自己被禁止......坏的阴郁......坏的......)