14 THE MUTANT
第14章 突变异种(1)
The "hangar" on Kalgan is an institution peculiar unto itself, born of the need for the disposition of the vast number of ships brought in by the visitors from abroad, and the simultaneous and consequent vast need for living accommodations for the same. The original bright one who had thought of the obvious solution had quickly become a millionaire. His heirs……by birth or finance……were easily among the richest on Kalgan.
卡尔根的“船库”是一种特殊的机构；为了安置无数观光客驾来的太空船，并提供太空船主人住宿的场所，这种船库应运而生。最早想到这个解决之道的聪明人，很快就变成大富翁。而他的子孙以及事业的接班人，则轻易跻身卡尔根的首富之列。
The "hangar" spreads fatly over square miles of territory, and "hangar" does not describe it at all sufficiently. It is essentially a hotel……for ships. The traveler pays in advance and his ship is awarded a berth from which it can take off into space at any desired moment. The visitor then lives in his ship as always. The ordinary hotel services such as the replacement of food and medical supplies at special rates, simple servicing of the ship itself, special intra-Kalgan transportation for a nominal sum are to be had, of course.
船库通常占地数平方英里之广，而“船库”根本不足以形容它的功能。实际上，它就是太空船的旅馆。船主只要先付清费用，便能得到一个停泊太空船的场所，并能随时直接升空。乘客可以如常地住在太空船中。当然，船库会提供普通旅馆的一切服务，例如各式食物与医疗补给都价廉物美，此外还负责为太空船做简单的维修，并安排卡尔根境内的廉价交通服务。
As a result, the visitor combines hangar space and hotel bill into one, at a saving. The owners sell temporary use of ground space at ample profits. The government collects huge taxes. Everyone has fun. Nobody loses. Simple!
因此，观光客只要支付船库的费用，就能同时享受旅馆的服务，无形中节省一大笔开销。船库的东家光靠出租空地，便能获得很大的利润；政府也能从中抽取巨额税金。人人皆大欢喜，谁也不吃亏。就这么简单！
The man who made his way down the shadow-borders of the wide corridors that connected the multitudinous wings of the "hangar" had in the past speculated on the novelty and usefulness of the system described above, but these were reflections for idle moments……distinctly unsuitable at present.
在某个船库里、连接许多侧翼的宽大回廊中，一名男子正沿着阴暗的边缘向前走。他以前也曾思考过这套体系的新奇与实用性，不过那些只是无聊时随便想想的念头……这个节骨眼绝对不合时宜。
The ships hulked in their height and breadth down the long lines of carefully aligned cells, and the man discarded line after line. He was an expert at what he was doing now and if his preliminary study of the hangar registry had failed to give specific information beyond the doubtful indication of a specific wing……one containing hundreds of ships……his specialized knowledge could winnow those hundreds into one.
在划分得整整齐齐的隔间中，停驻着一艘艘又高又大的太空船。那人一排排走过去，都没有再看第二眼。现在进行的工作是他最拿手的……若说根据刚才在登记处所做的调查，他只查到目标位于某个停了好几百艘太空船的侧翼，此外没有更详细的资料……专业知识足以帮助他，从数百艘太空船中过滤出真正的目标。
There was the ghost of a sigh in the silence, as the man stopped and faded down one of the lines; a crawling insect beneath the notice of the arrogant metal monsters that rested there.
他终于停下脚步，消失在其中一排隔间中，而在肃静的船库里，好像传出一声叹息。他仿佛是置身于无数金属巨兽间的一只昆虫，一点也不起眼。
Here and there the sparkling of light from a porthole would indicate the presence of an early returner from the organized pleasures to simpler……or more private……pleasures of his own.
有些太空船从舷窗中透出光亮，代表船主人已经提早归来。他们结束了当天既定的观光活动，开始了更单纯、更私密的娱乐。
The man halted, and would have smiled if he ever smiled. Certainly the convolutions of his brain performed the mental equivalent of a smile.
那人停了下来，假使他懂得微笑，现在一定会露出笑容。当然，他大脑中“脑回”目前的运作，就等于是正在微笑。
The ship he stopped at was sleek and obviously fast. The peculiarity of its design was what he wanted. It was not a usual model……and these days most of the ships of this quadrant of the Galaxy either imitated Foundation design or were built by Foundation technicians. But this was special. This was a Foundation ship……if only because of the tiny bulges in the skin that were the nodes of the protective screen that only a Foundation ship could possess. There were other indications, too.
他面前的这艘太空船，船身反映着耀眼的金属光泽，并且显然速度快绝。这种特殊的造型，正是他所要寻找的。它的造型不同于一般的太空船……虽然这些年来，在银河系这个象限中大多数的太空船，若不是仿照基地的型式设计，就是由基地技师所制造的。可是这艘船十分特别，它是货真价实的基地太空船……船身表面许多微小的凸起，是基地太空船特有的防护幕发射器。此外，还有其他一些如假包换的特征。
The man felt no hesitation.
那人一点也没有犹豫。
The electronic barrier strung across the line of the ships as a concession to privacy on the part of the management was not at all important to him. It parted easily, and without activating the alarm, at the use of the very special neutralizing force he had at his disposal.
船库经营者为顺应客户的要求，在每艘太空船的周围加设了电子栅栏，以保障客户的隐私，不过这种东西绝对难不倒他。他利用随身携带的一种非常特殊的中和力场，便轻而易举将栅栏解除，根本没有触动警铃。
So the first knowledge within the ship of the intruder without was the casual and almost friendly signal of the muted buzzer in the ship's living room that was the result of a palm placed over the little photocell just one side of the main air lock.
直到入侵者的手掌按到主气闸旁的光电管，太空船起居舱中的蜂鸣器才响起了一阵轻微的讯号，算是这艘太空船发出的第一个警告。
And while that successful search went on, Toran and Bayta felt only the most precarious security within the steel walls of the Bayta. The Mule's clown who had reported that within his narrow compass of body he held the lordly name of Magnifico Giganticus, sat hunched over the table and gobbled at the food set before him.
当那人继续搜索行动之际，杜伦与贝泰正在贝泰号的装甲舱房中，体验着最不安全的安全感。骡的那位小丑则趴在餐桌上，狼吞虎咽着面前的食物。这时小丑已经告诉他们，虽然他的身材瘦弱不堪，却拥有一个极气派的名字：高头大马巨擘。
His sad, brown eyes lifted from his meat only to follow Bayta's movements in the combined kitchen and larder where he ate.
在厨舱兼食物储藏室里，他一直没有让那双忧郁的褐色眼睛离开过食物，只有在贝泰走动的时候，才会抬起头来看看她。
"The thanks of a weak one are of but little value," he muttered, "but you have them, for truly, in this past week, little but scraps have come my way……and for all my body is small, yet is my appetite unseemly great."
“一个弱者的感激实在微不足道，”他喃喃地说，“但我仍要献给您。说真的，过去一个星期，几乎没有什么东西进到我的肚子……尽管我的个头小，胃口却大得简直不成比例。”
"Well, then, eat!" said Bayta, with a smile. "Don't waste your time on thanks. Isn't there a Central Galaxy proverb about gratitude that I once heard?"
“那么，就好好吃吧！”贝泰带着微笑说，“别浪费时间说谢谢了。据我所知，银河核心是不是有一句关于感激的谚语？”
"Truly there is, my lady. For a wise man, I have been told, once said, 'Gratitude is best and most effective when it does not evaporate itself in empty phrases.' But alas, my lady, I am but a mass of empty phrases, it would seem. When my empty phrases pleased the Mule, it brought me a court dress, and a grand name……for, see you, it was originally simply Bobo, one that pleases him not……and then when my empty phrases pleased him not, it would bring upon my poor bones beatings and whippings."
“我亲爱的女士，的确有这么一句话。我听说，有一位贤者曾经讲过：‘不流于空谈的感激，才是最好而且最实际的。’可是啊，我亲爱的女士，我似乎除了会耍耍嘴皮子，其他什么都不会。当我的空谈取悦了骡，就为我赢得一件宫廷礼服，还有这个威武的名字……因为，您可知道，我本来只是叫做波波，他却不喜欢这个名字。然而，一旦我的空谈无法取悦他，可怜的皮肉就会挨揍和挨鞭子。”
Toran entered from the pilot room, "Nothing to do now but wait, Bay. I hope the Mule is capable of understanding that a Foundation ship is Foundation territory."
杜伦从驾驶舱走了进来。“贝，现在除了等待，我们什么也不能做。我希望骡能够了解，基地的航具就等于基地的领土。”
Magnifico Giganticus, once Bobo, opened his eyes wide and exclaimed, "How great is the Foundation before which even the cruel servants of the Mule tremble."
本来叫做波波，如今全名“高头大马巨擘”的马巨擘，这时突然张大眼睛，高声喊道：“基地可真是了不起，就连骡的那些凶残手下，面对基地也会颤栗。”
"Have you heard of the Foundation, too?" asked Bayta, with a little smile.
“你也听说过基地吗？”贝泰带着一丝笑意问道。
"And who has not?" Magnifico's voice was a mysterious whisper. "There are those who say it is a world of great magic, of fires that can consume planets, and secrets of mighty strength. They say that not the highest nobility of the Galaxy could achieve the honor and deference considered only the natural due of a simple man who could say 'I am a citizen of the Foundation,'……were he only a salvage miner of space, or a nothing like myself."
“谁没听说过呢？”马巨擘压低声音，神秘兮兮地说，“有人说，那是个充满魔术的伟大世界，有着足以吞噬行星的火焰，以及神秘的强大力量。大家都说，某人只要声称‘我是基地公民’，那么不论他是太空中的穷矿工也好，是像我这般微不足道的小人物也罢，都会让人立刻肃然起敬。即使银河中最尊贵的贵族，也无法赢得这般的光荣和尊敬。”
Bayta said, "Now, Magnifico, you'll never finish if you make speeches. Here, I'll get you a little flavored milk. It's good."
贝泰说：“好啦，马巨擘，如果你继续演讲，就永远吃不完这一餐。来，我帮你拿一点调味奶，很好喝的。”
She placed a pitcher of it upon the table and motioned Toran out of the room.
她拿了一壶牛奶放到餐桌上，并示意杜伦到另一间舱房。
"Torie, what are we going to do now……about him?" and she motioned towards the kitchen.
“杜，我们现在要拿他怎么办？”她指了指厨舱。
"How do you mean?"
“你是什么意思？”
"If the Mule comes, are we going to give him up?"
“万一骡来了，我们要不要把他交出去？”
"Well, what else, Bay?" He sounded harassed, and the gesture with which he shoved back the moist curl upon his forehead testified to that.
“这个嘛，贝，还有别的办法吗？”他的口气听来很烦恼。他将一束垂在前额的潮湿卷发拨开，这个动作更能证明他的确心烦气躁。
He continued impatiently, "Before I came here I had a sort of vague idea that all we had to do was to ask for the Mule, and then get down to business……just business, you know, nothing definite."
他不耐烦地继续说：“在我来到此地之前，我只有一个很模糊的概念：我们唯一要做的就是打听骡的消息，然后就可以好好度假……如此而已，你知道吗，根本没有明确的计划。”
"I know what you mean, Torie. I wasn't much hoping to see the Mule myself, but I did think we could pick up some firsthand knowledge of the mess, and then pass it over to people who know a little more about this interstellar intrigue. I'm no storybook spy."
“杜，我知道你的意思。我自己也没有奢望能看到骡，可是我的确认为，我们可以搜集到某些第一手资料，再转给比较了解当今星际局势的人。我可不是故事书中的间谍。”
"You're not behind me, Bay." He folded his arms and frowned. "What a situation! You'd never know there was a person like the Mule, except for this last queer break. Do you suppose he'll come for his clown?"
“贝，这点你可不输我。”他将双臂交握胸前，皱起了眉头，“真是一团糟！若不是最后那个诡异的机会，还不能确定有没有骡这号人物呢。你认为他会来要回这个小丑吗？”
Bayta looked up at him. "I don't know that I want him to. I don't know what to say or do. Do you?"
贝泰抬起头来望着他。“我不知道我是不是希望他会来，也不知道该说些什么或做些什么。你呢？”
The inner buzzer sounded with its intermittent burring noise. Bayta's lips moved wordlessly, "The Mule!"
舱内的蜂鸣器突然发出断断续续的隆隆声。贝泰做了一个无声的嘴形：“骡！”
Magnifico was in the doorway, eyes wide, his voice a whimper, "The Mule?"
马巨擘正在门口，眼睛张得老大，呜咽着说：“骡？”
Toran murmured, "I've got to let them in."
杜伦喃喃道：“我必须让他们进来。”
A contact opened the air lock and the outer door closed behind the newcomer. The scanner showed only a single shadowed figure.
他按下开关开启气闸，让对方走进来，并且立刻关上外门。这时，扫描仪上只显示出一个灰暗的身影。
"It's only one person," said Toran, with open relief, and his voice was almost shaky as he bent toward the signal tube, "Who are you?"
“只有一个人。”杜伦显得放心了一点。然后他俯身对着传声管，用几乎发颤的声音说：“你是谁？”
"You'd better let me in and find out, hadn't you?" The words came thinly out the receiver.
“你最好让我进去，自己看个明白如何？”收讯器中传来那人的回答，声音十分微弱。
"I'll inform you that this is a Foundation ship and consequently Foundation territory by international treaty."
“我要告诉你，这是基地的太空船，根据国际公约，它是基地领土的一部分。”
"I know that."?
“这点我知道。”
"Come with your arms free, or I'll shoot. I'm well-armed."
“放下你的武器再进来，否则我就开枪。我可是全副武装。”
"Done!"
“好！”
Toran opened the inner door and closed contact on his blast pistol, thumb hovering over the pressure point. There was the sound of footsteps and then the door swung open, and Magnifico cried out, "It's not the Mule. It's but a man."
杜伦打开内门，同时开启了手铳的保险，拇指轻轻摆在掣钮上。随即传来一阵脚步声，接着舱门就被推开。马巨擘突然叫道：“不是骡，是一个人。”
The "man" bowed to the clown somberly, "Very accurate. I'm not the Mule." He held his hands apart, "I'm not armed, and I come on a peaceful errand. You might relax and put the blast pistol away. Your hand isn't steady enough for my peace of mind."
那个“人”向小丑一欠身，以阴沉的口气说：“非常正确，我不是骡。”他摊开双手，“我没有带武器，我是来执行一项和平任务。你可以放轻松点，把你的手铳摆到一旁。我心平气和，你却连武器都抓不稳。”
"Who are you?" asked Toran, brusquely.
“你究竟是谁？”杜伦直截了当地问。
"I might ask you that," said the stranger, coolly, "since you're the one under false pretenses, not I."
“这个问题应该我来问你。”那人泰然自若地说，“因为假冒身份的人是你，不是我。”
"How so?"
“怎么说？”
"You're the one who claims to be a Foundation citizen when there's not an authorized Trader on the planet."
“你自称是基地公民，可是如今在这颗行星上，根本没有一个合法的行商。”
"That's not so. How would you know?"
“这不是事实。你又是怎么知道的？”
"Because I am a Foundation citizen, and have my papers to prove it. Where are yours?"
“因为我才是基地公民，而且我有证明文件。你呢？”
"I think you'd better get out."
“我想，你最好赶紧滚出去。”
"I think not. If you know anything about Foundation methods, and despite your imposture you might, you'd know that if I don't return alive to my ship at a specified time, there'll be a signal at the nearest Foundation headquarters so I doubt if your weapons will have much effect, practically speaking."
“我可不这么想。假如你知道基地的行事方式……虽然你是个冒牌货，但我想你可能也知道……倘若我在约定时间内，没有活着回到我的太空船，离这里最近的基地司令部就会收到讯号。所以说句老实话，我怀疑你的武器有多大用处。”
There was an irresolute silence and then Bayta said, calmly, "Put the blaster away, Toran, and take him at face value. He sounds like the real thing."
杜伦不知如何是好，一阵沉默之后，贝泰以镇定的口吻说：“杜伦，把手铳拿开，相信他一次。他的话听来都是事实。”
"Thank you," said the stranger.
“谢谢你。”陌生人说。
Toran put his gun on the chair beside him, "Suppose you explain all this now."
杜伦把手铳放到身旁的椅子上。“请你好好解释一下这一切。”
The stranger remained standing. He was long of bone and large of limb. His face consisted of hard flat planes and it was somehow evident that he never smiled. But his eyes lacked hardness.
陌生人仍然站在原处。他的身材高大，手长脚长。他的脸孔由许多紧绷的平面构成，而且看起来，他显然从未露出过笑容。不过他的眼神并不凌厉。
He said, "News travels quickly, especially when it is apparently beyond belief. I don't suppose there's a person on Kalgan who doesn't know that the Mule's men were kicked in the teeth today by two tourists from the Foundation. I knew of the important details before evening, and, as I said, there are no Foundation tourists aside from myself on the planet. We know about those things."
他说：“消息总是传得很快，尤其是那些看来难以置信的消息。我想现在卡尔根没有一个人不知道，骡的手下今天被两名基地观光客羞辱了一番。而我在傍晚前，就获悉了重要的详情。正如我所说，这颗行星上除了我，再也没有其他的基地观光客。我们对这些事都非常清楚。”
"Who are the 'we'?"
“‘我们’又是哪些人？”
"'We' are……'we'! Myself for one! I knew you were at the Hangar……you had been overheard to say so. I had my ways of checking the registry, and my ways of finding the ship."
“‘我们’就是……‘我们’！我自己是其中之一！我知道你们会回到船库……有人偷听到你们的谈话。我自有办法查看登记处的资料，也自有办法找到你们的太空船。”
He turned to Bayta suddenly, "You're from the Foundation……by birth, aren't you?"
他突然转身面向贝泰。“你是基地人……土生土长，对不对？”
"Am I?"
“是吗？”
"You're a member of the democratic opposition……they call it 'the underground.' I don't remember your name, but I do the face. You got out only recently……and wouldn't have if you were more important."
“你早已加入民主反动派……就是所谓的‘地下组织’。我不记得你的名字，但我记得你的容貌。你是最近才离开基地的……倘若地位更重要些，你根本就走不了。”
Bayta shrugged, "You know a lot."
贝泰耸耸肩。“你知道的还真不少。”
"I do. You escaped with a man. That one?"
“没错。你是跟一名男子一块逃走的，就是那位？”
"Does it matter what I say?"
“难道我还需要回答吗？”
"No. I merely want a thorough mutual understanding. I believe that the password during the week you left so hastily was 'Seldon, Hardin, and Freedom.' Porfirat Hart was your section leader. "
“不需要。我只是希望彼此好好了解一番。你匆匆离境的那个星期，我确信你们约定的暗语是‘谢顿，哈定，自由’。波菲莱特·哈特是你的小组长。”
"Where'd you get that?" Bayta was suddenly fierce. "Did the police get him?" Toran held her back, but she shook herself loose and advanced.
“你是怎么知道的？”贝泰突然凶起来，“警察逮捕他了吗？”杜伦拉住她，她却挣脱了，反倒向那人逼进。
The man from the Foundation said quietly, "Nobody has him. It's just that the underground spreads widely and in queer places. I'm Captain Han Pritcher of Information, and I'm a section leader myself……never mind under what name."
那基地人沉稳地说：“没有人抓他，只是因为地下组织分布甚广又无孔不入。我是情报局的汉·普利吉上尉，是一个小组长……具体头衔并不重要。”
He waited, then said, "No, you don't have to believe me. In our business it is better to overdo suspicion than the opposite. But I'd better get past the preliminaries."
他等了一会儿，又继续说：“不，你大可不必相信我。干我们这行的，凡事最好能在不疑处有疑，不能在有疑处不疑。不过，开场白最好到此为止。”
"Yes," said Toran, "suppose you do."
“没错，”杜伦说，“请你言归正传。”
"May I sit down? Thanks." Captain Pritcher swung a long leg across his knee and let an arm swing loose over the back of the chair. "I'll start out by saying that I don't know what all this is about……from your angle. You two aren't from the Foundation, but it's not a hard guess that you're from one of the independent Trading worlds. That doesn't bother me overmuch. But out of curiosity, what do you want with that fellow, that clown you snatched to safety? You're risking your life to hold on to him."
“我可以坐下吗？谢谢。”普利吉上尉大喇喇地翘起二郎腿，还把一只手臂闲闲地垂到椅背后面，“首先我要做一项声明，我实在不晓得这一切到底是怎么回事……我是指从你们的角度而言。你们两位不是直接从基地来的，可是不难猜到，你们来自某个独立行商世界。这点，其实我并不怎么关心。但出于好奇，请问你们准备拿这个家伙……你们救出来的这个小丑怎么办？你们留着他，等于在拿生命开玩笑。”
"I can't tell you that."
“这点无可奉告。”
"Hm-mmm. Well, I didn't think you would. But if you're waiting for the Mule himself to come behind a fanfarade of horns, drums, and electric organs……relax! The Mule doesn't work that way."
“嗯……嗯。好吧，我并没有指望你们会说。但你们若是在等着骡亲自前来，还以为会有号角、锣鼓、电子琴组成的大乐队为他开道……放心吧！骡不会那么做的。”
"What?" It came from both Toran and Bayta, and in the comer where Magnifico lurked with ears almost visibly expanded, there was a sudden joyful start.
“什么？”杜伦与贝泰异口同声喊道，而马巨擘躲在舱房一角，耳朵几乎竖了起来。这一瞬间，他们三人又惊又喜。
"That's right. I've been trying to contact him myself, and doing a rather more thorough job of it than you two amateurs can. It won't work. The man makes no personal appearance, does not allow himself to be photographed or simulated, and is seen only by his most intimate associates."
“没错。我自己也在试图跟他接触，而我所用的方法，要比你们两位玩票的完善得多。可是我也没有成功。这个人根本不露面，也不允许任何人为他摄影或拟像；只有最亲近的亲信，才能见到他本人。”
"Is that supposed to explain your interest in us, captain?" questioned Toran.
“上尉，这就能解释你为何对我们有兴趣吗？”杜伦问道。
"No. That clown is the key. That clown is one of the very few that have seen him. I want him. He may be the proof I need……and I need something, Galaxy knows……to awaken the Foundation."
“不，那个小丑才是关键。见过骡的人少之又少，小丑却是其中之一。所以我想要他。他也许就是我所需要的佐证……银河在上，我必须找点东西来唤醒基地。”
"It needs awakening?" broke in Bayta with sudden sharpness. "Against what? And in what role do you act as alarm, that of rebel democrat or of secret police and provocateur?"
“基地需要唤醒吗？”贝泰突然以严厉的口吻，插嘴问道，“为了什么？你这个警钟到底是为谁敲响的……反叛的民主分子？或是秘密警察和煽动者？”
The captain's face set in its hard lines. "When the entire Foundation is threatened, Madame Revolutionary, both democrats and tyrants perish. Let us save the tyrants from a greater, that we may overthrow them in their turn."
上尉紧紧皱起眉头。“女革命家，等到整个基地受到威胁的时候，民主分子和暴君都会被消灭。让我们先联合基地的暴君，打败那个更大的暴君，然后再把他们推翻。”
"Who's the greater tyrant you speak of?" flared Bayta.
“你所说的更大的暴君是什么人？”贝泰气冲冲地问。
"The Mule! I know a bit about him, enough to have been my death several times over already, if I had moved less nimbly. Send the clown out of the room. This will require privacy."
“就是骡！我对他的底细知道一些，因此若非我机警过人，早就不知道死了多少次。叫小丑到别的房间去，我需要单独跟你们谈谈。”
"Magnifico," said Bayta, with a gesture, and the clown left without a sound.
“马巨擘。”贝泰一面喊，一面做个手势，小丑便不声不响离开了。
The captain's voice was grave and intense, and low enough so that Toran and Bayta drew close.
于是上尉开始他的陈述，口气既严肃又激动。他将声音尽量压低，杜伦与贝泰必须靠得很近。
He said, "The Mule is a shrewd operator……far too shrewd not to realize the advantage of the magnetism and glamour of personal leadership. If he gives that up, it's for a reason. That reason must be the fact that personal contact would reveal something that is of overwhelming importance not to reveal."
他说：“骡是一个精明至极的人物……他不可能不知道，个人领导能够产生多大的魅力和魔力。既然他放弃这样做，那想必是有原因。而那个原因一定是，和人群直接接触会泄露绝对不能泄露的重大秘密。”
He waved aside questions, and continued more quickly, "I went back to his birthplace for this, and questioned people who for their knowledge will not live long. Few enough are still alive. They remember the baby born thirty years before……the death of his mother……his strange youth. The Mule is not a human being!"
他做了一个不要发问的手势，用更快的速度继续说：“为了追查这个秘密，我走访了他的出生地，在那里询问过一些人。对这件事略有所知的人，只有少数几个还活着，不过也活不了多久了。他们记得那个婴儿是在三十年前出生的……他的母亲难产而死，还有他幼年的种种奇事。骡根本不是人类！”
And his two listeners drew back in horror at the misty implications. Neither understood, fully or clearly, but the menace of the phrase was definite.
听到这句话的两个人，被其中模糊的含意吓得倒退一步。这句话到底是什么意思，他们两人并不了解，却都能肯定其中的威胁性。
The captain continued, "He is a mutant, and obviously from his subsequent career, a highly successful one. I don't know his powers or the exact extent to which he is what our thrillers would call a 'superman,' but the rise from nothing to the conqueror of Kalgan's warlord in two years is revealing. You see, don't you, the danger? Can a genetic accident of unpredictable biological properties be taken into account in the Seldon plan?"
上尉继续说：“他是一个突变种，而根据他后来的成就，显然是极成功的突变种。我不知道他有多大能耐，也不确定他和惊险影集中所谓的‘超人’究竟相差多少。但是他从无名小卒变成如今的卡尔根统领，前后只花了两年的时间，这就足以说明一切。你们看不出其中的危险性吗？这种无法预料的生物基因突变，也会包括在谢顿计划之中吗？”
Slowly, Bayta spoke, "I don't believe it. This is some sort of complicated trickery. Why didn't the Mule's men kill us when they could have, if he's a superman?"
贝泰缓缓答道：“我不相信有这种事，这只是一种高明的骗术。假如骡真是超人，他的手下为什么不当场杀掉我们？”
"I told you that I don't know the extent of his mutation. He may not be ready, yet, for the Foundation, and it would be a sign of the greatest wisdom to resist provocation until ready. Now let me speak to the clown."
“我已经告诉过你们，我不知道他的突变究竟到了什么程度。他也许尚未准备好对付基地，目前他能忍受这种挑衅，足以代表他老谋深算。现在，让我跟小丑谈一谈。”
The captain faced the trembling Magnifico, who obviously distrusted this huge, hard man who faced him.
面对着上尉，马巨擘拼命发抖，他显然十分畏惧面前这个高大强壮的男子。
The captain began slowly, "Have you seen the Mule with your own eyes?"
上尉开始慢慢问道：“你曾经亲眼见过骡吗？”
"I have but too well, respected sir. And felt the weight of his arm with my own body as well."
“尊贵的先生，我简直看过了头。而且，我还用我自己的身子，体会过他臂膀的重量呢。”
"I have no doubt of that. Can you describe him?"
“这点我不怀疑，你能不能形容他一下？”
"It is frightening to recall him, respected sir. He is a man of mighty frame. Against him, even you would be but a spindling. His hair is of a burning crimson, and with all my strength and weight I could not pull down his arm, once extended……not a hair's thickness." Magnifico's thinness seemed to collapse upon itself in a huddle of arms and legs. "Often, to amuse his generals or to amuse only himself, he would suspend me by one finger in my belt from a fearful height, while I chattered poetry. It was only after the twentieth verse that I was withdrawn, and each improvised and each a perfect rhyme, or else start over. He is a man of overpowering might, respected sir, and cruel in the use of his power……and his eyes, respected sir, no one sees."
“尊贵的先生，我一想到他就会害怕。他是一个强壮威武的人。跟他比起来，就连您也只能算是细瘦苗条。他的头发是一团火红，而他的臂膀一旦伸直了，我使尽吃奶的力气，再加上全身的重量，也没法子往下拉动一根汗毛的距离。”马巨擘瘦小的躯体缩起来，似乎只剩下了蜷曲的四肢，“常常，为了要娱乐他的将领，或者只是他自己寻开心，他会用一根手指头勾住我的裤腰带，把我提到吓人的高度，然后叫我开始吟诗。直到我吟完第二十节，才肯把我放下来。这些诗必须都是即兴之作，而且全部要押韵，否则就得重新来过。尊贵的先生，他的气力天下无双，而且总是凶残地使用他的力量……而他的眼睛，尊贵的先生，从来没有人见过。”
"What? What's that last?"
“什么？你最后说的什么？”
"He wears spectacles, respected sir, of a curious nature. It is said that they are opaque and that he sees by a powerful magic that far transcends human powers. I have heard," and his voice was small and mysterious, "that to see his eyes is to see death; that he kills with his eyes, respected sir."
“尊贵的先生，他总是戴着一副式样古怪的眼镜。据说镜片是不透明的，他看东西不像常人那样需要眼睛，而是使用一种威力无比的魔力。我还听说，”他的声音突然压低，变得神秘兮兮，“看到他的眼睛等于看到死神；尊贵的先生，他能用眼睛杀人。”
Magnifico's eyes wheeled quickly from one watching face to another. He quavered, "It is true. As I live, it is true. "
马巨擘的眼珠飞快转动，轮流环顾瞪着他的三个人。他又颤声说道：“这是真的。我敢发誓，这是真的。”
Bayta drew a long breath, "Sounds like you're right, captain. Do you want to take over?"
贝泰深深吸了一口气。“上尉，看来你说对了。你要不要帮我们做个决定？”
"Well, let's look at the situation. You don't owe anything here? The hangar's barrier above is free?"
“嗯，让我们来研究一下目前的情况。你们没有积欠任何费用吧？船库上方的栅栏是开着的？”
"I can leave any time."
“我随时可以离开。”
"Then leave. The Mule may not wish to antagonize the Foundation, but he runs a frightful risk in letting Magnifico get away. It probably accounts for the hue and cry after the poor devil in the first place. So there may be ships waiting for you upstairs. If you're lost in space, who's to pin the crime?"
“那么赶快走。或许骡还不想和基地作对，但是让马巨擘逃了，对他而言却是很大的危险。这也许就能解释，当初他们为何大费周章地追捕这个可怜虫。所以说，上面可能会有星舰在等着你们。假如你们消失在太空中，谁又能找到元凶呢？”
"You're right," agreed Toran, bleakly.
“你说得很对。”杜伦垂头丧气地表示同意。
"However, you've got a shield and you're probably speedier than anything they've got, so as soon as you're clear of the atmosphere make the circle in neutral to the other hemisphere, then just cut a track outwards at top acceleration."
“然而，你的太空船具有防护幕，速度也可能超越此地任何的船舰。一旦你冲出大气层，立刻关闭发动机，绕到对面的半球去，再用最大的加速度冲入航道。”
"Yes," said Bayta coldly, "and when we are back on the Foundation, what then, captain?"
“有道理。”贝泰冷静地说，“但是回到基地之后，上尉，我们又该怎么办？”
"Why, you are then co-operative citizens of Kalgan, are you not? I know nothing to the contrary, do I?"
“哈，就说你们是心向基地的卡尔根公民如何？我对这点毫不怀疑，不是吗？”
Nothing was said. Toran turned to the controls. There was an imperceptible lurch.
没人再说什么。杜伦转身走向控制台，太空船开始向一侧稍稍倾斜。
It was when Toran had left Kalgan sufficiently far in the rear to attempt his first interstellar jump, that Captain Pritcher's face first creased slightly……for no ship of the Mule had in any way attempted to bar their leaving.
杜伦驾着太空船绕到卡尔根的另一边，又航行了足够远的距离之后，他才试图进行首度的星际跃迁。直到此时，普利吉上尉的眉头才终于舒展一点……因为一路上，没有任何骡的船舰试图拦截他们。
"Looks like he's letting us carry off Magnifico," said Toran. "Not so good for your story."
“看来他是默许我们带走马巨擘。”杜伦说，“你的推论好像出了问题。”
"Unless," corrected the captain, "he wants us to carry him off, in which case it's not so good for the Foundation."
“除非，”上尉纠正他的话，“他是故意要让我们带他走的。果真如此，基地就不妙了。”
It was after the last jump, when within neutral-flight distance of the Foundation, that the first hyperwave news broadcast reached the ship.
完成最后一次跃迁之后，太空船已经很接近基地，只剩下最后一段无推力飞行。此时，他们首次接收到来自基地的超波新闻。
And there was one news item barely mentioned. It seemed that a warlord……unidentified by the bored speaker……had made representations to the Foundation concerning the forceful abduction of a member of his court. The announcer went on to the sports news.
其中有一条并不起眼的小新闻。似乎是某个统领……兴趣缺缺的播报员并没有指明……向基地提出抗议，指责基地派人绑架他的一名廷臣。紧接着，播报员便开始报道体育新闻。
Captain Pritcher said icily, "He's one step ahead of us after all." Thoughtfully, he added, "He's ready for the Foundation, and he uses this as an excuse for action. It makes things more difficult for us. We will have to act before we are really ready."
普利吉上尉用冷淡的口气说：“他毕竟抢先了我们一步。”然后，他又若有所思地补充道：“他已经作好对付基地的准备，正好利用这件事当做借口。这会使我们的处境更加困难。虽然尚未真正准备好，我们将被迫提早行动。”