第十四回：夜吟應覺月光寒
“Hymning verses in the
night, she too must feel the cold moon light”
電腦當局還沒有看出這個事件的危急性，黑金剛便直接與「系統諮詢委員會」聯絡。莫洛契娃聽了大吃一驚，怎麼可能有人想要叛變？
The Computer Authority Bureau didn’t perceive the urgency
of this matter. Black King Kong
therefore directly contacted the “System Counseling Committee”. Molocheva
was greatly surprised. How was it
possible that someone wanted to rebel?
她立刻通報人類議會，馬上召開緊急會議，那些德高望重的議員，一個個從虛擬實境中被喚回。震驚之餘，才知道火星地底也有火山，地球並不是永不沈沒的航艦，電腦更不是可以一輩子依賴的靠山！
She immediately notified the Human Council and an
emergency meeting was held. All
those honorable and highly respected congresspersons were called back from
their virtual reality. Aside from
being told this shocking news, they now learned that there were volcanoes underneath
the Martian surface and that the Earth wasn’t an unsinkable ship. What’s more, the computer was no longer
the patron they could rely on for the rest of their lives!
議長急得滿頭大汗，他責問電腦：「難道這些事你都不知道？」
The House
Speaker was distressed and his forehead was covered with perspiration. He accused the computer, “Didn’t you
know anything about this?”
電腦說：「我知道。」
The computer said, “I knew.”
議長生氣地說：「那你為什麼坐視不管？」
Speaking
angrily, the House Speaker said: “Then why did you just sit idly by and not do
something about it?”
電腦回答道：「我們把所有的資料都匯報上來了。」
The computer answered, “We
sent in all the data.”
議長詫問：「在哪裡？」
The House Speaker was
surprised and asked, “Where is it?”
電腦說：「在您的報表中！」
The computer said, “In the
reports!”
議長不高興地說：「那麼多，我怎麼看？」
The House Speaker said
irritably, “How am I going to read all those reports?”
電腦說：「我不知道。」
The computer said, “I don’t
know.”
議長非常不滿：「你為什麼不先給我整理好？」
The House Speaker was very
unsatisfied. “Why didn’t you first
sort these out?”
電腦說：「根據協定，我只能收集資料。」
The computer said,
“According to the agreement, I can only gather information.”
議長大怒：「誰規定的？」
The House Speaker was
furious. “Who said so?”
副議長比較早進入狀況，連忙打圓場說：「沒有錯，大家都有過共識，電腦不能作決策判斷，這件事是秘書處失職。」
The Vice-Chairman of congress had been informed earlier
and knew more about this matter. He
hurriedly stepped in to settle the quarrel. “That’s correct. The consensus was that the computer
couldn’t make decisions or judgements.
The Secretariat had been delinquent in duty on this matter.”
議長清醒了些，心想如果推到秘書處，自己也脫不了干係，便說：「也不能全怪秘書處，這樣吧，成立一個專案小組，由莫洛契娃負責。」
The
House Speaker calmed down and it occurred to him that if the Secretariat took
the blame, he would still be somewhat responsible. He therefore said, “It wasn’t entirely
the Secretariat’s fault. Why don’t
we set up a special investigation team and put Molocheva
in charge?”
如此這般，莫洛契娃便命黑金剛全權處理，包括指揮電腦、與地方組織協調等等。黑金剛知道責任重大，一個措置失當，便是後患無窮。他立刻請求面謁紅教教主，又邀請熔爐城人類議會議長趙博士同往協商。大家首先確定了三個原則，一、此次行動列為最高機密，不能洩漏任何消息；二、力保人員平安，包括肇事者在內；三、黑金剛任行動總指揮，各界通力合作。
Thus
it came about that Molocheva ordered full authority
be given to Black King Kong to handle this case. His authority included directing the
computer and coordinating with local organizations. Black King Kong knew he had been
entrusted with a great responsibility.
A single mistake could lead to endless discord. He immediately asked to meet the Nyingmapa sect leader and invited the House Speaker, Dr. Zhao of the Human Council, to accompany him to the
meeting. Together they agreed on 3
principles: 1. This operation to be classified as top secret. No information of any kind is to be
disclosed. 2. Every effort will be
made to protect the lives of all those involved, even the troublemakers. 3. Black King Kong will be in
command. All sectors will join in
common cause to ensure success.
黑金剛知道電腦的通訊碼已被摩爾破解，但思維概念碼尚未受波及。只要避免通訊，摩爾就不能竊聽。他特別請求紅教支援，專案人員一律採用紅教的內部作業系統。此外，大會會程及安全由紅教全權負責，由於趙博士手下只有一批毫無組織的義工，故在三天大會期間，全城皆由紅教接管。
Black King Kong knew that Moor had
decoded the computer’s communication code, but the “thinking and concept codes”
remained untouched. As long as they
avoided the communication code, Moor wouldn’t be able to listen in on
them. He expressly asked the Nyingmapa sect to back them up. All people involved in this
investigation would adopt the internal operating system used by the Nyingmapa sect.
In addition, the Nyingmapa sect would be
responsible for all schedules and security during this celebration. Because Dr. Zhao
had only a number of unorganized volunteers working for him, the Nyingmapa sect would be assuming control of the city during
the 3-day celebration.
黑金剛研判，桑塔那與摩爾等成敗的關鍵，在於能源的取得。在初，電腦極易通融，「人類自覺會」假學術研究的名義，早已申請到十萬千瓦的電力。為了避免打草驚蛇，黑金剛決定目前暫不切斷電源，等到時機成熟，再一網打盡。
According to Black King Kong’s estimate,
the key to the success or failure of Santana and
Moor’s operation depended on the accessibility of energy. At first, the computer was very generous
about this. The “Human Identity
Realization Society” had applied a hundred thousand kilowatts of electricity in
the name of scholastic research. In
order avoid putting the enemy on guard by premature action, for the moment,
Black King Kong had decided not to cut off their power. He would wait until the time was ripe
and round them all up in one fell swoop.
會議完畢，趙博士乘飛雲梭先行離去。黑金剛等人辭別教主，喇嘛一直送到寺門，黑金剛等一再謝辭後，喇嘛才在台階前止步。
When the meeting was over, Dr. Zhao
left by the Flying-cloud Shuttle before the others. Black King Kong and his
people said good-bye to the sect leader, and the leader accompanied them all
the way to the monastery gate.
After Black King Kong implored the leader to return several times, the
lama came to a halt before the descending steps.
黑金剛輕鬆地對小組成員說：「咱們難得有空閒，去爬爬山吧？」
Black King Kong casually said to
his crew, “It’s not often that we have spare time. Why don’t we go mountain climbing?”
莎莉大感不解，說：「有空閒？你……」
Sally was confused and said,
“Spare time? You…”
古嚕嚕忙用手肘撞了她一下，說：「好呀！老大，我們比賽，看誰快？」
Gululu
quickly nudged her with his elbow and said, “O.k., boss. Let’s have a race. Let’s see who’s quicker.”
格瑞達叫道：「我的爺呀！往哪兒爬呀？往下滾還差不多！」
Greda
shouted, “My God! Climbing up? Where? Rolling down hill would be more like
it!”
魏德曼說：「不必了，我抱妳！」
Whitman said, “Don’t
bother. I’ll carry you!”
千奇指指不遠處一間小屋說：「真有閒情，我建議到那間茅屋坐坐。」
Creepy pointed to a small hut not too far
away. “You’re really in a mood to
take it easy. I suggest we go over to that hut and
talk.”
黑金剛看了看，搖頭說：「人太多了，我怕吵！」
Black King Kong
looked and shook his head. “Too
many people. I hate noise!”
千奇笑道：「你怕吵？咱們看誰更怕！」
Creepy laughed and said,
“You hate noise? Let’s see who
hates it the most!”
金頂寺位處火山口頂端，這火山並不高大，只有三百多公尺高，坡度甚為平緩，在一百多公尺高處，即屏開成一扇形，許多房舍就循著山勢一直分佈下去，成為一個面積很大非常特別殊的山坡社區。
The
Golden Roof Monastery was located at the highest point on the lip of a
volcano. This volcano was not a big
one, being just a little more 300 meters high. The slope was quite gentle and at about
100 meters or more, there was a fan-shaped area. Many houses, built according to the lay
of the land, made up this large, unique, hillside community.
在住宅區與寺廟間的一段坡地，人稱德格林卡（德格意為吉祥之區，林卡即園林）。沿坡除了不絕於途的嘛呢堆、經旗外，經寺方精心布置，栽種了各種奇草瑤花，夾雜在紅牆碧瓦之間，山花夾道、紅紫鬥色，這個地帶也成了絕佳的景點。
The slope lying between the residential
area and the monastery was known as the Dege Linka (Dege means auspicious, and
Linka refers to garden). Aside from endless piles of mani stones and prayer flags about the hill,
the monastery had carefully arranged various kind of exotic plants among the
red walls and blue tiles. Mountain
flowers, with colors of red and purple, each more beautiful than the another,
lined both sides of the path. The
entire area had become a magnificent scenic locale.
在半山之中，又有幾處亭台樓榭，酒旆招搖，不少紅男綠女徘徊其間。從亭中向山下望去，一色紅磚平頂，鱗次櫛比地排列著。再向前伸是一片紅土，緊接著一個方方正正的社區，一條乾河由南到北，蜿蜒繞過。間或有幾處小隕石坑，若非建做遊憩的公園，也被闢成小型社區，宛似紅碗浮翠，別緻玲瓏。
Halfway up the hill, flags fluttered in
the wind before several pavilions and towers. Many finely dressed men and women were
strolling among them. Looking down
from a pavilion, all buildings were built of red bricks, topped by flat
roofs. They lay close together in a
row. Further on was a stretch of
red earth, which in turn was connected to a square-shaped housing community. A curved dry river, running north to
south, wound past the community.
Alongside the river, several small craters had either been converted
into parks for relaxation or small communities. Elegant and charming, they resembled
green leaves floating in a red bowl.
遠處則一直延伸到暗紅的天邊，由於大氣密度不同，電離罩內外的光線，有明顯的折射現象。電離罩恰似一道泛著黃色光芒的弧線，在罩內，紅光略帶橙黃，而在罩外，接近天邊處幾乎呈現血紅，隨著高度不斷變化，由紅而紫，由紫而青。直到天心一帶，竟是清朗的一片鵝黃。
Further on, the land stretched away to
the dark red horizon. Because the
density of the atmosphere differed, the lights inside and outside of the ion
shield were obviously refracted.
The ion shield seemed exactly like yellow hued curve. Within the shield the color was orange
red, but outside, and approaching the horizon, the color became almost bloody
red. As the altitude changed, the
color changed from red to purple, and from purple to greenish blue. When it reached the middle of the sky,
it turned to clear bright orange.
這裡視野廣闊，能見度極高。再加上攝氏二十四度的恆溫，輕風微送，不清也爽。然而最大的特色，還是藏民愛好歌舞的本性，他們不但食前食後有謝神舞，客人來去也有敬酒舞，談情說愛更不乏情歌情舞，就算沒事，也可以來一段自娛歌舞。在這裡最受歡迎的，還是一種流傳已久的「弦子舞」，由胡琴伴奏，男女數人邊唱邊舞，興味無窮。
One could clearly see a great distance from this
spot. With a steady temperature of
24℃and from time to time, a gentle breeze, even on days when
it was not clear it was comfortable.
However, the most unique feature was the fondness of the Tibetan people
for music and dance. Not only did
they perform a dance of gratitude to the gods both before and after a meal,
there was a dance where the arrival and departure of guests was toasted with
wine. There was no lack of love
songs and dances when they were courting.
Even when there was no occasion for music and dance, they would still
dance and play music for their own entertainment. The most popular dance here was the
“Tibetan circle dance" which had been passed down from generation to
generation. Regular two-stringed
instruments were used to accompany the dance. Several men and women would sing as they
danced. It was a source of endless
pleasure.
有人喜歡，就有人厭煩，這裡的電腦最便民的措施，就是音障設備。任何人隨時可以利用音障，隔絕一應的噪音；若想排遣寂寞，也可以把別人的歌聲引到耳邊來。
However,
for those who take pleasure in something, there will always be those who
dislike it. The most convenient
measure provided by the computer in such a situation, was the sound block
device. Any one could use this
device at any time to block out all noise. If one
wished to drive away feelings of loneliness, it was also possible to access the
sound of other people’s singing.
千奇先找了一個衍翠鋪雲的景點，再命令電腦，把半徑三十公尺內的音障全部取消。這還不說，他又要電腦把噪音水準，自動拉高八十個分貝。
Creepy first found a scenic spot where
the grass was thick and green.
Next, he ordered the computer to block all sound within a 30 meter
radius. And, as if that weren’t
enough, he also told to computer to automatically increase the noise level by
80 decibels.
這一道命令下去，可苦了週圍的遊客，突然間四面八方，情歌四起。大家紛紛要求電腦關掉噪音，但是電腦好像有了故障，一律相應不理。遊客不勝其擾，紛紛走避，所幸只要踏出三十公尺之外，一切就恢復了正常。
With this order the tourists around them
began to suffer. Suddenly, love
songs rang out from all directions.
Group after group requested the computer to turn off the noise, but
there seemed to be something wrong with the computer. It didn’t pay any heed to what it was
asked to. The tourists couldn’t
tolerate this disturbance and gradually they all left. Fortunately as soon as they stepped
beyond the 30 meter perimeter, normalcy was restored.
人都逃光了，黑金剛便把電腦系統關閉，暫時由紅教系統接管。並將該區內外隔絕，成立了臨時指揮中心，開始正式作業。
After
the others had fled, Black King Kong shut down the computer system and for the
time being let the Nyingmapa system run things. In addition, he isolated the area and
after setting up a temporary headquarters, they got to work.
黑金剛先叫千奇出去，測試了一下內外的系統，發覺隔絕的效果很理想。
Black King Kong first asked
Creepy to go outside and test the system, both inside and out. They found the insulation was ideally
effective.
接著，黑金剛便向大家說：「明天就是會期了，只可恨官僚作業，幾乎誤了大事。目前只有二十四小時的時間部署，而我們人員不足，設備不夠。最糟糕的是電腦被摩爾滲透了，我們的助力反而成了阻力，各位有什麼意見？」
Next,
Black King Kong said to everyone, “The celebration is going to be
tomorrow. But the damned
bureaucracy almost spoiled the entire operation. At present, we have only 24 hours to set
things up. But we don’t have enough
people and equipment. What makes
things even worse is that Moor has hacked into the computer system. What was to have been of assistance has
now become a hindrance. What do you
people think?”
千奇說：「其實這場戰爭不難打，只要控制住電源，他們還能怎樣？」
Creepy said, “Actually, this is not a difficult war to
fight. As long as we control the
electric power, what can they do?”
百怪說：「笑話，我們想得到，難道他們沒有對策？」
Weirdo said, “What a joke! If the idea can occur to us, do you think
they wouldn’t have prepared a counter plan?
千奇說：「什麼對策？貯存電能？」
Creepy said, “What could
they do? Store electric power?”
百怪說：「當然可能，再不然利用化學電能或其他備用電能。」
Weirdo said, “Of course it’s
possible. Or else they could use
electro-chemical power or some other form of backup power.”
千奇說：「如果是少量倒有可能，果真要熔化地殼，起碼要上千萬卡的熱能。不要說在火星，連在地球上，這種可能性都不大。」
Creepy said, “If the amount were small,
it would be possible. But in order
to melt the earth crust, it would take at least 10 millions calories of
thermodynamic power. The
possibility of doing it on Earth is slim, not to mention on Mars.
百怪說：「他們既有能力偷渡到火星來，還能夠弄到這麼多電熱樁，說不定連核子彈都有哩！」
Weirdo said, “Since they are
capable of smuggling themselves to Mars and getting hold of so many electro-thermal
stakes, they might even have nuclear bomb!”
黑金剛接口道：「百怪的看法不無道理，時間不多了，我們得少談多做。原則上莎莉負責聯絡中心，我們就把這個地方佔下來，利用虛擬實境，外頭設計成一座假山，閒人一概不許進來。千奇，百怪，你們負責調查所有能源的狀況，一有消息，不論真假，都要即時傳送匯報。格瑞達，魏德曼，妳們兩個負責檢查這座山頭每一寸土地，看是否已被對方侵入，尤其要注意，如果有磁場變化，一定會有高功率的電流經過。古嚕嚕一個人負責雷達探測，看看地函的情況，我從上空偵測。原則上每個小時由莎莉主動與大家聯絡一次，現在是上午十時，下午四時全體回到這裡匯報。
Black
King Kong took it from there, saying, “Weirdo’s view makes some sense. We don’t have too much time so we’ll
have to act instead of just talking.
The general plan is for Sally to be in charge of the headquarters. We’ll keep this place and use virtual
reality to disguise it as an artificial mountain. No loiterers will be allowed to come in. Creepy and Weirdo, you’ll be responsible
for investigating the energy situation.
As soon as you have something, be it true or false, you’re to report it
immediately. Greda
and Whitman, you two will inspect every inch of this hill and see if the enemy
has already broken into this area.
You must pay special attention to changes in the magnetic field. If there’s been any change, it’s certain
to mean the flow of a high power electric current. Gululu alone
will be in charge of a radar probe to check on the mantle status. I’ll be surveying from the air. Basically, Sally will contact each one
of us, once every hour. It’s 10
a.m. right now and all of you are to report back at 4 p.m.
「大家要注意，在電腦面前要維持常態，有重要情況，便將電腦關掉。彼此對話一定要用微波傳聲，至於環境中電腦的偵測器，我會吩咐電腦，不收集音波，以免洩漏。尤其我們人手不足，少不得要召集其他特遣隊員，各位千萬不能說出電腦的事。」
“Everyone must be sure to conduct
themselves as usual in front of the computer. If any important situations arise, turn
off your computer and transmit your conversations by microwave. As for the computer detectors installed
nearby, in order to prevent leaks, I’ll inform the computer to not collect your
sound waves. Especially with our
lack of manpower it’s inevitable that we’ll have to call in other team
members. It’s imperative that none
of you say anything about the computer.”
千奇與百怪透過電腦的協助，找到了人類自覺會電源申請清單。火星上的能源以太陽能為主，由電離罩收集後，統一輸送到二十四個轉運站。每個轉運站都有定點微波發射器，將電源分送到各個接收站。
With
the help of the computer, Creepy and Weirdo found the detailed application form
for electricity submitted by the “Human Identity Realization Society”. All energy on Mars was based on solar
energy. After the ion shield
collected the energy, it was distributed to the 24 transmitter stations. Each station is equipped with a
designated microwave projector to distribute electricity to each receiving
station.
因為自覺會的特殊需求，電腦當局在金頂寺正南方十公里處，安裝了一高功率的微波轉運塔，可以即時傳送十萬千瓦的電力。千奇檢查使用記錄，這才發覺問題嚴重了，這個轉運塔已經連續使用了十七天，累積負荷已高達千萬千瓦以上！
Due
to the special requirements of the Realization Society, the Computer Authority
Bureau had set up a high power microwave transmitting tower 10 kilometers south
of the Golden Roof Monastery.
Creepy checked their user records and found that the problem was very
serious. This tower had already
been in use for 17 consecutive days and consumed in excess of 10 million
kilowatts of electric power!
千奇連忙關了電腦，利用微波與黑金剛通話：「紅色狀況，紅色狀況，他們已經動手十七天了，地函此時可能已經熔化了！」
Creepy
hurriedly turned off the computer and spoke with Black King Kong by means of
microwave. “Code red, code
red. They’ve been at this for 17
days. The mantle is probably
already melting!”
黑金剛立刻回答：「知道了，顯然目前他們只剩下最後的爆破工程！我現在在無水河上空，下面河床附近，有大量人類活動的痕跡，卻又查不出電腦記錄。同時，在鄰近一個叫做『愛巢』的社區，電腦訊號異常，卻沒有接到任何抱怨，你們快去查一查。」
Black
King Kong answered immediately.
“Roger that. Obviously they
only have one last explosion to complete!
Right now I’m flying over the Waterless River. There are numerous traces of human
activity near the riverbed but we haven’t found any records of this in the
computer. At the same time, the
computer signals are abnormal in a nearby community named the ‘Love Nest’ but
no complaints have been received.
Hustle on over there and take a look.”
千奇與百怪立刻乘坐飛雲梭，趕到無水河。由於人手不足，百怪建議請電腦通知文祥前來幫忙，同時又找了幾位當地的特遣隊員。
Creepy and Weirdo immediately boarded the
Flying-cloud Shuttle and flew to the Waterless River. Because they didn’t have enough
personnel, Weirdo suggested that the computer send for Wen Xiang
and at the same time, call up several local SWAT team members.
千奇與百怪較其他人先到，那無水河真是名副其實，河床、河岸樣樣俱全，就是沒有水流。當年河水經過時，可能連泥沙都沒有，殘留在河床上的石塊，多是礉磽碅磳、稜角分明。好幾條磁浮軌道都直接舖架在河床上，看去層次分明。由於地質安定，加上電離罩內沒有風雨相侵，這裡的路基只需做到平直即可。
Creepy and Weirdo arrived before the others. The Waterless River really lived up to
its name. It consisted of a
riverbed and riverbank but no flow of water. In the years when there had been a water
flow, there probably wasn’t any soil.
The stone remains on the riverbed were jagged, high, and dangerous-looking,
with clean-cut sharp angles.
Several magnetic levitated tracks had been constructed right in the
riverbed. From a distance, each
level was well defined. Because the
geological condition here was stable, plus the fact there was no damage from
wind or rain inside the ion shield, the only requirement for a roadbed was that
it be even and straight.
基於人道主義，偷渡客可以進入電離罩，但是交通工具則是電腦社會的公物，沒有貝幣或沒有電腦配備的人，是無法乘坐的。因此，無水河上碎石之間，那條明顯連續的路跡，必定是偷渡客走出來的。
Based
on humane considerations, illegal immigrants were allowed entry into the ion
shield. However, transportation
vehicles were publicly owned by the computerized society. One couldn’t ride these vehicles without
Bei or
computer equipment. This meant that
the obvious and continuous trail through the broken rocks of the Waterless
River, could only have been made by illegal immigrants.
過了不久，他們便在無水河站台上，與三個支援的特遣隊員會合。千奇告訴他們，當前最重要的工作，就是注意無水河畔行跡可疑的人物，他和百怪現在要到另一個地方查看，雙方隨時用紅教系統保持聯繫。此外，要留下一人在此等候文祥，如果認不出來，可以用握手的暗號分辨。
After a while, they met with three SWAT
backup team members on the Waterless River station platform. Creepy told them that the most important
task at present was to watch for suspicious people on both sides of the
Waterless River. He and Weirdo were
going to inspect another location.
Both parties would stay in touch by means of the Nyingmapa
system. Moreover, one of them had to
stay behind to wait for Wen Xiang. If he couldn’t recognize Wen Xiang, he could use the handshake signal to identify him.
隨後，千奇百怪便趕到「愛巢」，這裡是山丘上的扇形地帶，一個典型的住宅社區，大約有百十戶人家。藏人習慣以白磚拼砌，一律平頂房屋，房頂、門簷多掛有經幡，窗戶通常刷成黑色，上頭掛有窗帷。有些門戶多以對聯、貼紙等作為裝飾，而只要有對聯的，屋內清一色住的是漢人。
After that, Creepy and Weirdo hurried to
the “Love Nest”. It was a typical
community located on the fan-shaped area of the hill. There were about one hundred and ten
families. The Tibetan people were
accustomed to building their houses with white bricks. All the roofs were flat and prayer flags
were raised on top of the house and hung from eaves above the door. Their windows were usually painted black
and window curtains were installed.
Some doors were decorated with couplets or papers. Those houses with couplets were certain
to be the homes of Han Chinese.
千奇、百怪的腕式電腦中，有很多特別的儀器和工具，其中一項是紅外線掃瞄器。千奇啟動了紅外線，開始在社區中找尋偷渡客。電腦城居民都穿著與私用電腦相連的恆溫衣，偷渡客脫離了電腦社會，雖然也獲得部分技術，能生產一些恒溫材料，但是與電腦所生產的恒溫衣，在質性上還有一段差距，所以不難分辨。
The
wrist computer carried by Creepy and Weirdo had many special instruments and
tools. One of them was an infrared
ray scanner. Creepy activated the
infrared rays and began to search the community for illegal immigrants. The residents of computerized cities
were dressed in thermostatic clothes that were connected with their personal
computers. Illegal immigrants lived
apart from computerized society.
Although they had some skills and were able to produce some thermostatic
material, when compared with the thermostatic clothes produced by the computer,
they were still much inferior in texture and this made it easy to tell the
difference.
兩人挨家挨戶的探測，在經過一個漢人屋前時，紅外線訊號猛烈地跳動了一下。千奇便對百怪說：「老怪，我受不了啦，先借個地方方便吧！」
The two of them probed the houses, one by one. When they passed a house of Han Chinese
the infrared ray signal gave a leap.
Creepy then said to Weirdo, “Old Weirdo, I can’t stand it anymore. I need to go to the bathroom!”
百怪會意，便說：「這一家不錯，看看人家開不開恩！我在這裡等你。」
Weirdo understood and said,
“This is a nice house. See if these
people will take pity on you! I’ll
wait for you out here.”
千奇走到門前，不顧門上答錄影機的問話，使勁地敲門，半晌沒有回音。卻聽到百怪的微波傳聲說：「我用體熱偵測器查出，裡面有一男二女。他們都坐在外間，面對你的方向，要小心。」
Creepy walked up to the door, disregarding the questions
coming from the video answering machine on the door. He pounded on the door for
some time, but there was no answer. He unexpectedly heard Weirdo’s microwave
transmission saying, “From the body heat detector, I can tell there’re a man
and two women inside. They’re all
sitting in the outside room, facing your direction. Be careful.”
千奇問道：「附近有沒有人看得見我？」
Creepy asked, “Is there
anyone around here who can see me?”
百怪說：「沒有，快點動手！」
Weirdo said, “No. Quick!”
千奇說：「你通知電腦，把這一戶的私用系統暫時關閉。」
Creepy said, “Notify the
computer to shut down the private system in this house.”
千奇說畢，便用力一撞，房門應聲而開。這種房門結構非常簡單，全靠電腦維護。既然電腦停工了，什麼事都可能發生。
When Creepy finished talking, he threw himself against the
door with great force and the door opened with a loud bang. Doors of this type are very simple in
construction. They depend entirely
on the computer to keep them in working order. With the computer off, anything could
happen.
門一開，室內的三個人早嚇得魂不附體，其中一個顯然是中亞人，體格粗壯，他手上的利刃，正架在一位二十幾歲漢族女子的脖子上。另外一個女子也是漢人，年紀更輕，看來只有十幾歲。
When the door opened, the three people
inside were scared out of their wits.
One of them was obviously from Central Asia. He was strongly built, and held a sharp
blade against the throat of a twenty-something Han Chinese girl. Another girl was also Han Chinese. She looked even younger, perhaps only in
her teens.
那持短刀的男子對千奇喝道：「別過來，我手上有刀！」
The man with the short blade barked at
Creepy, “Don’t come nearer. I have
a knife!”
千奇兩手一擺，說：「我知道，我也知道你從地球偷渡來的。」
Creepy
shrugged and said, “I know. I also
know that you’re an illegal immigrant from Earth.”
那人大叫：「為什麼電腦讓你進來？你像強盜一樣！」
The man shouted, “Why did the
computer let you in? You act like a
bandit!”
千奇說：「電腦壞了，你們不是要推翻他嗎？我先把他推翻了。」
Creepy said, “The computer is out
of order. Don’t you intend to
overthrow it? I overthrew it
first.”
千奇一邊說，一邊緩緩地向三人的後方走去。這房子是標準規格，有三坪的空間，卻有數十坪的視野，室內佈置得平實淡雅，沒有炫奇鬥怪的擺設。
While Creepy was talking, he slowly moved
behind the three people. The size
of the house was a standard 3 ping. But it overlooked several dozen ping. The interior design was simple and
elegant, devoid of bizarre or clashing display.
千奇才走到一半，那人發覺了，怒喝：「站住，不要過來！」
Creepy
had proceeded halfway to the back, when the man discovered him and called out
angrily, “Stop. Don’t come any
closer!”
千奇不理他，邊走邊說：「我動不動你管不著，你想殺害這位女士也與我無關。我只是一個尋寶人，因為你們的地下有寶。」
Creepy
ignored him. He spoke as he moved
forward, “Don’t mind my moving about.
It’s also no concern of mine if you wish to kill this lady. I’m just a treasure hunter. There is treasure in the ground beneath
this house.”
那人說：「你胡說，你再動，我就下手了！」
That man said, “Nonsense. If you move again, I’ll kill her!”
這時千奇已經走到他們的左側，三人都機靈地轉過身來面向千奇，百怪乘機偷溜進來。千奇手指著地面，面露歡愉地說：「就是這裡！你們看！你們看！」
Now Creepy had come around to their
left. The three of them nimbly
turned around to face Creepy.
Weirdo took this chance and sneaked in. Creepy pointed his finger on the ground
and said joyously, “It’s right here!
Look! Look!”
三個人不約而同的往地下看，百怪俐落地一衝而上，施展小擒拿，一把將那人手上的刀子奪下來，往屋角一扔，又將那男子兩手扭在背後。在此同時，千奇已把那女子推開，一場危機就此化解。
The
three people simultaneously looked down at the ground. Weirdo swiftly rushed forward and gave a
little demonstration of how to disarm a felon. With one thrust, Weirdo seized the man’s
blade and threw it in a corner.
Next, he twisted both his arms behind his back. At the same moment, Creepy had pushed
the woman aside and a dangerous situation was defused.
那男子雖被制服，猶自不停地掙扎。千奇取出一個瓶狀噴膠器，往男子身上一噴，一層白色膠膜，立即牢牢地黏貼在那人身上。
Although
the man had been subdued, he continued to twist and struggle. Creepy took out a glue-spray vial and
sprayed him. Immediately, a layer
of white sticky membrane clung tightly to the man.
哪知被救的女士一點也不感激，氣勢洶洶地對二人說：「你們兩個是什麼人？」
Who could have known that the lady they had saved was not
grateful at all. Menacingly, she
said to them: “Who the hell are you?”
百怪把門關上了，笑說：「是你們的救星呀！」
Weirdo closed the door and
with a laugh said, “Your saviors!”
「我們沒有危險，不要你救！」
“We weren’t in
danger. There was no need for you
to rescue us!”
「啊！刀子擱在脖子上了，還沒有危險？」
“Ah! The blade was already at your throat and
you weren’t in any danger?”
「我們是朋友，鬧著玩的！」那女子理直氣壯地回答。
The woman righteously
replied, “We’re friends. We were
just fooling around!”
千奇不理她，對那男子說：「好好聽到，你身上這層膠，叫軟金剛，只要一加熱就會收縮，到那時你就了慘了。先告訴我，你叫什麼名字？」
Creepy ignored her and said to the
man, “Listen to me. That layer of
membrane on you is called ‘soft King Kong’. When it’s heated, it’ll contract. You’ll be in deep trouble when that
happens. Start off by telling me
your name.”
「波班。」
“Boban”
「波班，你們一共有幾個人？」
“Boban,
how many of you are there all together?”
波班不說，千奇取出一個引火器，手一揚，引火器頂端冒出一陣火光，那白膠立刻收縮，緊緊地裹住波班的骨架。
Boban wouldn’t answer.
Producing a fire lighter, Creepy waved his hand, and a bolt of fire shot
from the top of the fire lighter.
The white membrane immediately contracted and tightly bound Boban’s frame.
波班急得大叫：「我們一共有五十多人。」
Boban
quickly cried out, “There are more than 50 of us.”
千奇冷冷地說：「有進步，什麼時候動手？」
Creepy said coolly, “We’re
making progress. When are you going
to do it?”
波班問：「動什麼手？」
Boban
asked, “Do what?”
千奇說：「把火山熔掉呀！笨蛋！」
Creepy said, “Melt the
volcano! You stupid jerk!”
波班聞言大驚，說：「你怎麼知道？」
When Boban
heard this, he was amazed. “How did
you know?”
千奇說：「我知道的還不止這些！快說！」
Creepy said, “I know a lot
more than that! Quick, talk!”
波班乾脆把嘴一閉，咬緊牙關，不再開口。
Boban
simply closed his mouth, clenched his teeth, and wouldn’t talk any more.
千奇再給膠膜加熱，那膠膜加熱後堅如鋼筋，直勒著波班的骨骼，被膠膜包住的部分深陷下去，暴露在外的肌肉則腫脹如鼓。波班的臉已經變形，青筋像蛇一般從皮膚上鑽了出來，他痛得汗如雨下，卻是咬牙不言。
Creepy
heated the gluish membrane again. After heating, the membrane became
strong as steel. It was crushing Boban’s bones.
The part of Boban’s body covered by the
membrane had receded deeply and his protruding muscles were swelling like a
drum. Boban’s
face was distorted and his veins bulged from the skin like snakes. The pain was making the sweat pour from
him but Boban still clenched his teeth and remained
silent.
那個女士忍不住了，大喝：「住手，你們這些強盜！」
That woman couldn’t bear it
any longer and shouted, “Stop, you thugs!”
百怪道：「我們是強盜，那他們是什麼人？」
Weirdo said, “If we’re
thugs, then what are those guys?”
「他們是有良知的人！」
“They are people with
a conscience!”
「有良知的人為什麼要引爆火山，你可知道那會害死多少人嗎？」
“If they have
conscience, why do they want to detonate the volcano? Do you know how many people will die
because of you?”
「我們不會傷人的！」
“We’re not going to
hurt anyone!"
「當然，火山爆發了，也不用你來傷人了！」
“Of course. Once the volcano erupts, there’ll be no
need for you to hurt people!”
「火山不可能爆發！」
“The volcano couldn’t
possibly erupt!”
「啊！妳也有分？妳憑什麼保證？」
“Ah! You’re in on it, too? What makes you so sure?”
「告訴你，我是中國的火山專家，林夢寒博士！」
“I’ll tell you. I’m Dr. Lin Menghan,
a volcanologist from China.”
千奇說：「林博士！久仰了，那妳告訴我們吧，明天在哪裡下手？」
Creepy said, “Dr. Lin! Nice to meet you. So tell us then. Where will you start tomorrow?”
那女士說：「你先放開他，否則我不說！」
That lady said, “First
release him. Otherwise I won’t
talk!”
千奇立刻在波班身上噴了一種化學物質，膠帶便鬆弛了一些。那林博士東張西望，顯然在打什麼主意，千奇見狀，說道：「林博士，我們知道電腦被你們滲透了，此刻整個火星已經被我們接管。如果妳肯合作，事情會變得很單純，否則，妳將會發現，人其實比電腦更殘忍！」
Creepy immediately sprayed another kind
of chemical substance on Boban and the gluish membrane lessened a little. Dr. Lin looked about her; obviously she
was up to something. When Creepy
saw this, he said, “Dr. Lin. We
know that you’ve hacked into the computer.
All of Mars is under our control right now. If you cooperate, it will make things
much simpler. Otherwise, you’ll
discover that human beings are really much more cruel than the computer!”
林博士一直得不到電腦的回答，聽千奇這一說，她才知道事機已敗露，現在連求救的管道也沒有了。電腦不幫助人類，這是他們各種沙盤推演中，始料未及的一點。
Dr. Lin couldn’t get any response from the computer. When she heard what Creepy said, she
knew their secret was out. There
was nowhere she could turn to for help.
The computer wouldn’t assist humans, which hadn’t been anticipated when
they were studying possible scenarios.
「電腦怎麼會失效？」
“How come the computer
was out of order?”
「因為電腦無能，人類群起反抗，我們兄弟順應民心，把他給廢了！」百怪嬉著一張怪模怪樣的笑臉，看來比哭還要可怕。
“Because the computer is incompetent, humans are rising
against it. We two brothers, in
accordance with the people’s wishes have done away with it!” Weirdo’s face had a strange smile. It looked even more alarming than
a face that was weeping.
「你騙我！」
“You’re lying!”
「騙妳幹嘛？別拖時間，快說！」
“Why would I want to
do that? Don’t waste time, talk!”
「說什麼？」林博士眼珠轉動，本來呼救是一點用都沒有，既然電腦失靈了，音障也一定失效，說不定這時呼叫反而有效。她立刻拉開了嗓門，大叫：「救命呀！救命！」
“Talk about what?” Dr. Lin shifted her eyes. Originally there was no use in calling
for help. But now with the computer
out of order, it was certain that the sound block function would no longer be
effective. Calling help might work
now. Immediately she raised her
voice and shouted, “Help! Help!”
百怪一聽，趕緊捂起耳朵。等她叫了一陣，嗓子都沙啞了，這才走過去，取出噴膠器，打算把她也用白膠綁起來，說：「唉！好久沒有聽到女人叫春了！怎麼這樣難聽？是不是學問太高了？這樣有什麼用呢？別人的電腦沒失靈呀！」
As
soon as Weirdo heard this he quickly covered his ears. After she’d screamed for some time her
voice became hoarse. Weirdo then
walked over and took out his glue-spray vial. He intended to tie her up by using the
white membrane. Weirdo said,
“Ah! It’s been a long time since
I’ve heard a woman scream with sexual ecstasy. How come it sounds so terrible? Could it be too much education? What use is this? Other people’s computers are working!”
在一旁的小姑娘，眼看百怪要綁這女人，連忙跑過來，一把抓住百怪的手，求情說：「叔叔能不能行行好，不要綁我媽媽，我知道他們的事，我帶你去！」
When
the young girl bystander saw Weirdo was going to tie the woman up, she came
running over. She took Weirdo’s
hand and pleaded, “Please, uncle.
Don’t tie my mother up. I
know what they’re up to. I’ll take
you there!”
「小君！妳要說了，今後我就不認妳！」林博士怒吼道。
Dr. Lin barked in anger, “Xiaojun! If you tell them, from today on you’re
no longer my daughter!”
「媽！妳什麼時候把我當作女兒了？」
“Mom! When have you ever treated me as your daughter?”
「妳總不能不顧人類的前途吧？」
“You can’t just ignore
the future of mankind.”
「妳們說的大道理我不懂，不過妳這些新朋友，沒有一個好東西！」
“I don’t understand
your reasoning. But all of your new
friends, not one of them is a good person!”
「住口！妳怎麼可以這樣說？」
“Shut up! How can you say that?”
「媽！我老實跟妳說吧！波班給我吃了一種藥，他和我睡過覺了！」
“Mom! I’m not kidding! Boban gave me
some kind of pill! I’ve slept with
him!”
「什麼？」林博士尖叫起來。
“What?” Dr. Lin screamed.
「現在，妳可知道他們有多偉大了吧？你們成天罵電腦，至少電腦還沒有強暴我！」林小君恨恨地說。
Speaking bitterly Xiaojun said,
“Now, you see how wonderful they are.
You curse the computer everyday.
At least I’ve never been raped by the computer!”
林博士不知從哪裡來的力氣，一把將百怪推到一邊。她一跨腳，騎在波班的身上，對他又打又搥又咬又撞的，哭得震天價響。
Somehow a strength came to Dr. Lin and she pushed Weirdo
aside. She threw her leg over Boban’s torso and sat astride him, hitting, slapping,
biting, and shoving, her screams jolting the very
heavens.
千奇不悅，一把將她提起，放在沙發上，說：「我不管妳的家務事，妳不說也得說，告訴妳，什麼人權、法治的，完全要看力量。今天在這裡，老子作主，反正這個波班是沒有利用價值了，他又沒有電腦記錄，我先把他宰了，看你說不說！」
Creepy was annoyed.
With one hand he pulled her off the floor and put her on the sofa,
saying, “I don’t care about your domestic affairs. You have to talk, no matter what. I’m telling you, forget about human rights
and rule of law. It’s power that
counts. Today, I’m the boss
here. Anyway, Bohan
is of no value now. He also has no
computer record. I’ll kill him
first and then see if you’ll talk or not.”
林博士哭道：「我說，我說，我完全是被他騙的，我這麼相信他，維護他！他怎麼可以這樣對我？怎麼可以打我女兒的主意？」
Dr.
Lin sobbed, “I’ll talk, I’ll talk.
He fooled me completely. I
trusted and protected him! How
could he do this to me? How could
he seduce my daughter?”
千奇說：「妳們的宗旨不是要維護人類的尊嚴嗎？人類尊嚴的定義，就是可以自由自在地犯罪，自由自在地通姦亂倫！」
Creepy said, “Isn’t your purpose to
protect human dignity? The
definition of human dignity is to commit crime freely, to commit adultery and
incest freely!”
林博士不理千奇的諷刺，說：「他們基地入口，就在前面不遠，但是外表用虛擬實境掩蓋住了，不帶你們去，你們是找不到的。」
Dr.
Lin ignored Creepy’s sarcasm and said, “The entrance
to their base is not far ahead.
However, it’s concealed by virtual reality. If no one shows you, you’ll never find
it.”
千奇先叫了兩個隊員過來，負責看管波班。接著便準備帶了林氏母女一同前去，免得又節外生枝。
Creepy
called in two team members to keep an eye on Boban. Then he was ready to take Dr. Lin and
her daughter with him in case anything unexpected might happen.
這時，百怪已與黑金剛通話完畢，黑金剛要他們稍待片刻，他即刻趕來會合。
By now Weirdo had already contacted Black
King Kong. Black King Kong wanted
them to stay put and wait for his arrival.
不到幾分鐘，一道金光閃過，飛雲梭已降落在屋前。
In a few minutes, a golden light flashed
and the Flying-cloud Shuttle landed in front of the house.
黑金剛一到，就大叫：「怎麼沒有安全防護？」說時他手一揚，一層白霧立即從地上升起，霎時間，房子已被層層濃霧遮沒。
When
Black King Kong arrived, he shouted, “How come no security measures have been
taken?” As he was speaking, he
waved his hand. A white fog
immediately arose from the ground.
In the blink of an eye, the house was shrouded by layers and layers of
thick fog.
「不可以！」千奇急得大叫，已經來不及了。
“No!” Creepy cried out anxiously, but it was
too late.
「為什麼不可以？」黑金剛眼睛睜得老大。
“Why not?” Black King Kong stared at him wide-eyed.
「因為這裡可能就是賊窩，那些人都很精明，一看這裡有異狀，一定會嚴加戒備，萬一他們鋌而走險，那就麻煩了！」
“Because this place might be their
hideout. Those guys are very
smart. When they see something
suspicious at this place, for sure they’ll be more cautious about their
security. And if they become
reckless and desperate, we could be in for some real trouble!”
黑金剛知道自己冒失了，問千奇道：「那怎麼辦？」
Black King Kong realized he’d been
careless so he asked Creepy, “What should we do?”
「事不宜遲，我們快走。」
“Don’t waste
time. Let’s get going.”
當下，由林博士領路，黑金剛、千奇緊跟在後，百怪故意與林小君走在最後，邊走邊與她搭訕。百怪個子小，心眼多，他相信林博士只是基於一時氣憤，並非真心合作。
Then Dr. Lin took the lead, with Black King Kong and Creepy following right behind her. Weirdo deliberately brought up the rear with Xiaojun. While they were walking, Weirdo talked casually with her. Weirdo, being a small guy, was suspicious of everyone. He believed Dr. Lin was only doing this because of a moment’s spite.