Chapter 21: The Search Ends

第二十一章寻找结果

101

Trevize found himself in a complete state ofdisbelief. He had recovered from the odd euphoria he had felt just beforeand after the landing on the moon a euphoria, he now suspected,that had been imposed on him by this self-styled robot who now stoodbefore him.

崔维兹感到自己完全无法置信。他已从那种奇异的欣快感中清醒过来——现在他怀疑，着陆前后所出现的那阵欣快感，就是此时站在眼前、自称机器人的这个人，不知如何注入他心灵的。

Trevize was still staring, and in his now perfectly sane and untouchedmind, he remained lost in astonishment. He had talked in astonishment,made conversation in astonishment, scarcely understood what he said orheard as he searched for something in the appearance of this apparent man,in his behavior, in his manner of speaking, that bespoke the robot.

崔维兹仍凝视着前方。尽避此刻他拥有绝对清明的神智与未受干扰的心灵，还是惊讶得不知所措。他在惊讶状态中讲话，在惊讶状态中应答，因此几乎不知所云，也几乎不晓得对方讲些什么。因为，他正忙着打量这个明明是人类的人物，试图从他的举止或谈吐中，找出他是机器人的蛛丝马迹。

No wonder, thought Trevize, that Bliss had detected somethingthat was neither human nor robot, but, that was, in Pelorat's words,"something new." Just as well, of course, for it had turned Trevize'sthoughts into another and more enlightening channel but even thatwas now crowded into the back of his mind.

怪不得宝绮思刚才侦测到的讯息，崔维兹想，既不属于人类也不属于机器人，而是裴洛拉特所说的“新东西”。这样当然也好，因为这使崔维兹的思路转移到另一个更具启发性的管道——只不过这个管道现在也被其他思绪挤进了心灵的暗角。

Bliss and Fallom had wandered off to explore the grounds. It hadbeen Bliss's suggestion, but it seemed to Trevize that it came after alightning-quick glance had been exchanged between herself and Daneel. WhenFallom refused and asked to stay with the being she persisted in callingJemby, a grave word from Daneel and a lift of the finger was enough tocause her to trot off at once. Trevize and Pelorat remained.

宝绮思与菲龙已逛到别处去探险，虽然这是宝绮思的主意，但崔维兹注意到，那似乎是她与丹尼尔飞快交换一个眼色后的结果。菲龙本来拒绝离开，想要留在这个她坚称是健比的人物身边，但丹尼尔只不过严肃地吐出一个字，并举起一根指头，她便乖乖走开了。现在，只剩下崔维兹与裴洛拉特留在原处。

"They are not Foundationers, sirs," said the robot, as though that explained it all. "One is Gaia and one is a Spacer."

“她们不是基地人，阁下，”那机器人说，仿佛这句话就能解释一切。“其中一位是盖娅，另一位是个外世界人。”

Trevize remained silent while they were led to simply designed chairsunder a tree. They seated themselves, at a gesture from the robot,and when he sat down, too, in a perfectly human movement, Trevize said,"Are you truly a robot?"

机器人引领他们来到一株树下，那里有几张式样简单的椅子，一路上崔维兹一言不发。机器人先招呼两位基地人就坐，等到他也以无异常人的动作坐下来，崔维兹才问道：“你真的是机器人吗？”

"Truly, sir," said Daneel.

“真的是，阁下。”丹尼尔说。

Pelorat's face seemed to shine with joy. He said, "There arereferences to a robot named Daneel in the old legends. Are you named inhis honor?"

裴洛拉特的脸孔显得喜孜孜的，他说：“在古老传说中，许多地方都提到一个叫丹尼尔的机器人，你是为了纪念他而取这个名字？”

"I am that robot," said Daneel. "It is not a legend."

“我就是那个机器人，”丹尼尔说：“那不是传说。”

"Oh no," said Pelorat. "If you are that robot, you would have to bethousands of years old."

“噢，不可能！”裴洛拉特说：“如果你就是那个机器人，你应该有好几千岁了。”

"Twenty thousand," said Daneel quietly.

“两万岁。”丹尼尔以平静的口吻说。

Pelorat seemed abashed at that, and glanced at Trevize, who said,with a touch of anger, "If you are a robot, I order you to speaktruthfully."

裴洛拉特似乎不知所措，只好向崔维兹望去，后者带着些许怒意说：“如果你是机器人，我就要命令你说实话。”

"I do not need to be told to speak truthfully, sir. I must do so. You are faced then, sir, with three alternatives. Either I ama man who is lying to you; or I am a robot who has been programmed tobelieve that it is twenty thousand years old but, in fact, is not; orI am a robot who is twenty thousand years old. You mustdecide which alternative to accept."

“我不需要别人命令我说实话，阁下，我必须这么做。所以说，阁下，如今你面对着三种可能性。第一　，我是人类，而我向你们说谎：第二，我是机器人，被设定成相信自己有两万岁，事实上并非如此；第三，我是机器人，而我的确两万岁了。你必须自己决定接受哪一种。”

"The matter may decide itself with continued conversation," saidTrevize dryly. "For that matter, it is hard to believe that this isthe interior of the moon. Neither the light" he looked up as hesaid that, for the light was precisely that of soft, diffuse sunlight,though no sun was in the sky, and, for that matter, no sky was clearlyvisible "nor the gravity seems credible. This world should havea surface gravity of less than 0.2g."

“继续谈下去自然会分晓。”崔维兹冶冶答道。“话说回来，我很难相信这里是月球的内部。不论是光线——”他说着抬起头来。头上的光线正是柔和、漫射的日光，虽然天上根本见不到太阳，甚至连有没有天空都看不清楚。“——或重力似乎都不真实，这个世界的表面重力应该不到O.2g。”

"The normal surface gravity would be 0.16g actually, sir. It isbuilt up, however, by the same forces that give you, on your ship, thesensation of normal gravity, even when you are in free fall, or underacceleration. Other energy needs, including the light, are also metgravitically, though we use solar energy where that is convenient. Ourmaterial needs are all supplied by the moon's soil, except for the lightelements hydrogen, carbon, and nitrogen which the moon doesnot possess. We obtain those by capturing an occasional comet. One suchcapture a century is more than enough to supply our needs."

“其实，正常的表面重力应该是0.16g，阁下，但此地的重力经过放大。你的太空船能产生重力感，不论在自由下落或加速时都维持不变，使用的便是这种人工重力。其他的能量需求，包括光能在内，也全都靠重力供应。不过若在方便使用太阳能的场合，我们就会使用太阳能。我们所需的物质皆由月球土壤供应，只有轻元素除外——例如氢、碳、氮，这些是月球所没有的。为了取得轻元素，我们偶尔得捕捉一颗彗星，一个世纪只要捕捉一颗，就足以满足我们的需求。”

"I take it Earth is useless as a source of supply."

“我想地球无法提供任何资源。”

"Unfortunately, that is so, sir. Our positronic brains are as sensitiveto radioactivity as human proteins are."

“不幸正是如此，阁下。与人类的蛋白质一样，我们的正电子脑对放射性也很敏感。”

"You use the plural, and this mansion before us seems, large,beautiful, and elaborate at least as seen from the outside. Thereare then other beings on the moon. Humans? Robots?"

“你一直使用复数代名词，而我们眼前这座宅邸，似乎非常壮观、美丽、精致——至少外面看来如此。所以月球上应该还有其他生灵，人类？还是机器人？”

"Yes, sir. We have a complete ecology on the moon and a vast andcomplex hollow within which that ecology exists. The intelligent beingsare all robots, however, more or less like myself. You will see none ofthem, however. As for this mansion, it is used by myself only and it isan establishment that is modeled exactly on one I used to live in twentythousand years ago."

“是的，阁下。我们在月球上有完整的生态，存在于一个广大而错综复杂的洞穴中。然而此地的智慧生灵都是机器人，每个都跟我差不多，不过你一个也见不到。至于这座宅邸，它只供我个人使用，内外建筑完全仿照我在两万年前的住所。”

"Which you remember in detail, do you?" .

“你对那个住所的记忆巨细无遗，是吗？”

"Perfectly, sir. I was manufactured, and existed for a time howbrief a time it seems to me, now on the Spacer world of Aurora."

“百分之百，阁下。我是在奥罗拉那个外世界出厂的，也在那里住过一段日子——如今对我而言，那是多么短暂的时间。”

"The one with the……" Trevize paused.

“就是那个有……”崔维兹说到一半突然打住。

"Yes, sir. The one with the dogs."

“是的，阁下，就是那个有许多野狗的世界。”

"You know about that?"

“你知道那件事？”

"Yes, sir."

“是的，阁下。”

"How do you come to be here, then, if you lived at first onAurora?"

“那么，如果你最初住在奥罗拉，又怎么会来到这里？”

"Sir, it was to prevent the creation of a radioactive Earth that Icame here in the very beginnings of the settlement of the Galaxy. Therewas another robot with me, named Giskard, who could sense and adjustminds."

“阁下，为了防止地球产生放射性，我在人类殖民银河之初就来到这里。当初跟我一起来的，还有个名叫吉斯卡的机器人，他能感知和调整人类的心灵。”

"As Bliss can?"

“跟宝绮思一样？”

"Yes, sir. We failed, in a way, and Giskard ceased to operate. Beforethe cessation, however, he made it possible for me to have his talentand left it to me to care for the Galaxy; for Earth, particularly."

“是的，阁下。就某方面而言，我们并未成功，吉斯卡甚至因故终止运作。然而，在临终之前，他设法让我具备了他的能力，并将整个银河，特别是地球，交给我来守护。”

"Why Earth, particularly?"

“为什么特别是地球？”

"In part because of a man named Elijah Baley, an Earthman."Pelorat put in excitedly, "

“部分原因，是由于一位名叫伊利亚·贝莱的人，一位地球人。”

He is the culture-hero I mentioned sometime ago, Golan."

袭洛拉特兴奋地插嘴道：“他就是我提到过的那位文化英雄，葛兰。”

"A culture-hero, sir?"

“文化英雄，阁下？”

"What Dr. Pelorat means," said Trevize, "is that he is a person towhom much was attributed, and who may have been an amalgamation of manymen in actual history, or who may be an invented person altogether."

“裴洛拉特博士的意思，”崔维兹说：“是说这个人集众多功绩于一身，可能是许多真实历史人物的综合体，也可能根本是个虚构人物。”

Daneel considered for a moment, and then said, quite calmly, "Thatis not so, sirs. Elijah Baley was a real man and he was one man. I donot know what your legends say of him, but in actual history, the Galaxymight never have been settled without him. In his honor, I did my bestto salvage what I could of Earth after it began to turn radioactive. Myfellow-robots were distributed over the Galaxy in an effort to influence aperson here a person there. At one time I maneuvered a beginning tothe recycling of Earth's soil. At another much later time, I maneuvereda beginning to the terraforming of a world circling the nearby star,now called Alpha. In neither case was I truly successful. I could neveradjust human minds entirely as I wished, for there was always the chancethat I might do harm to the various humans who were adjusted. I was bound,you see and am bound to this day by the Laws of Robotics."

丹尼尔思索了一下，然后以相当平静的口吻说：“事实并非如此，阁下，伊利亚·贝莱真有其人，他也不是什么综合体。我不知道你们的传说如何描述他，但是在真实历史中，假使没有他这个人，银河可能始终未曾开拓。由于受到他的感召，在地球产生放射性之后，我尽全力抢救这个世界。我的机器人伙伴分布银河各处，适时地以渐进方式去影响人类。我曾策动过一个翻新地球土壤的计划，过了很久之后，我又策动了另一个计划，试图改造邻近一颗恒星所属的一个世界，那颗恒星现在叫阿尔发，这两项计划都不算真正成功。我从来不能全然随意调整人类的心灵，因为那些被我调整过的人，总是有可能受到伤害。我受到机器人三大法则的束缚，懂了吧——直到今天依然如此。”

"Yes?"

“呃——”

It did not necessarily take a being with Daneel's mental power todetect uncertainty in that monosyllable.

即使一个普通人类或普通的机器人，完全欠缺丹尼尔的精神力量，也能察觉这个单音代表的疑问。

"The First Law," he said, "is this, sir: `A robot may not injurea human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come toharm.' The Second Law: `A robot must obey the orders given it byhuman beings except where such orders would conflict with the FirstLaw.' The Third Law: `A robot must protect its own existence, aslong as such protection does not conflict with the First or SecondLaw.' Naturally, I give you these laws in the approximationof language. In actual fact they represent complicated mathematicalconfigurations of our positronic brain-paths."

“第一法则，”他说：“阁下，是这样的：机器人不得伤害人类，也不得因为不采取行动而使人类受到伤害。第二法则是：除非违背第一法则，否则机器人必须服从人类的命令。第三法则是：在不违背第一法则及第二法则的情况下，机器人必须保护自身的存在。当然，我是用近似的语言对你们叙述这些法则，实际上，那是我们正电子脑回路中复杂的数学组态。”

"Do you find it difficult to deal with those Laws?"

“你发觉这些法则碍手碍脚吗？”

"I must, sir. The First Law is an absolute that almost forbids the useof my mental talents altogether. When dealing with the Galaxy it is notlikely that any course of action will prevent harm altogether. Always,some people, perhaps many people, will suffer so that a robot must chooseminimum harm. Yet, the complexity of possibilities is such that it takestime to make that choice and one is, even then, never certain."

“必定如此，阁下。第一法则毫无转圆余地，几乎全然禁止我使用精神力量。在处理银河问题的过程中，不太可能每一步都不会造成伤害，总是有些人或许多人因而受苦，因此身为一个机器人，必须选择伤害最小的做法。然而，由于情势过于复杂，我必须花许多时间才能做出抉择，即使有了决定，也不可能绝对确定。”

"I see that," said Trevize.

“我能了解。”崔维兹说。

"All through Galactic history," said Daneel, "I tried to amelioratethe worst aspects of the strife and disaster that perpetually madeitself felt in the Galaxy. I may have succeeded, on occasion, and tosome extent, but if you know your Galactic history, you will know thatI did not succeed often, or by much."

“在漫长的银河历史中，”丹尼尔说：“天灾人祸从未间断，我一直试图减轻这些灾祸造成的危害。某些时候，就某种程度而言，我可算是有些成就，但如果你熟悉你们银河的历史，就会知道我的成功例子不多，影响也不够深远。”

"That much I know," said Trevize, with a wry smile.

“这点我还知道。”崔维兹带着一抹苦笑说。

"Just before Giskard's end, he conceived of a robotic law thatsuperseded even the first. We called it the `Zeroth Law' out of aninability to think of any other name that made sense. The Zeroth Law is:

“我和吉斯卡悟出了另一个机器人法则，它甚至凌驾第一法则之上。我们将它称为‘第零法则’，因为想不到有什么更合适的名称。第零法则的内容是：

`A robot may not injure humanity or, through inaction, allow humanityto come to harm.' This automatically means that the First Law mustbe modified to be: `A robot may not injure a human being, or, throughinaction, allow a human being to come to harm, except where that wouldconflict with the Zeroth Law.' And similar modifications must be madein the Second and Third Laws."

机器人不得伤害人类整体，也不得因为不采取行动而使人类整体受到伤害。这自然意味着第一法则必须修正为：除非违背第零法则，机器人不得伤害人类，也不得因为不采取行动而使人类受到伤害。而第二、第三法则也必须做类似的修正。”

Trevize frowned. "How do you decide what is injurious, or notinjurious, to humanity as a whole?"

崔维兹皱起眉头。“但对于人类整体而言，何者有害，何者无害，你又如何决定？”

"Precisely, sir," said Daneel. "In theory, the Zeroth Law was theanswer to our problems. In practice, we could never decide. A humanbeing is a concrete object. Injury to a person can be estimated andjudged. Humanity is an abstraction. How do we deal with it?"

“一点都没错，阁下。”丹尼尔说：“理论上，第零法则可以解决我们的问题；实际上，我们永远无法做出决定。人类是个具体的对象，对一个人构成的伤害不难估量判断；人类整体则是抽象的概念，我们应该如何对待处理呢？”

"I don't know," said Trevize.

“我不知道。”崔维兹说。

"Wait," said Pelorat. "You could convert humanity into a singleorganism. Gaia."

“慢着，”裴洛拉特说：“你可将人类整体转变成单一有机体，例如盖娅。”

"That is what I tried to do, sir. I engineered the founding ofGaia. If humanity could be made a single organism, it would becomea concrete object, and it could be dealt with. It was, however, notas easy to create a superorganism as I had hoped. In the first place,it could not be done unless human beings valued the superorganism morethan their individuality, and I had to find a mind-cast that would allow that. It was a long time before I thought of the Laws of Robotics."

“这正是我试图进行的工作，阁下，盖娅的创建就是我一手策划的。假如能让人类整体形成单一的有机体，它就会变成具体的对象，这样便有办法处理了。然而，创造一个超有机体的工作，没有想像中那么简单。首先，除非每个人将这个超有机体看得比自身更重，否则绝对不可能成功。因此，我必须寻找一个适合的心灵模型，找了很久之后，我才想到机器人法则。”

"Ah, then, the Gaians are robots. I had suspected thatfrom the start."

“啊，那么盖娅人都是机器人。打从一开始我就怀疑这点。”

"In that case, you suspected incorrectly, sir. They are humanbeings, but they have brains firmly inculcated with the equivalentof the Laws of Robotics. They have to value life, really value it. And even after that was done, there remained a seriousflaw. A superorganism consisting of human beings only is unstable. Itcannot be set up. Other animals must be added then plants thenthe inorganic world. The smallest superorganism that is truly stable isan entire world, and a world large enough and complex enough to have astable ecology. It took a long time to understand this, and it is only inthis last century that Gaia was fully established and thatit became ready to move on toward Galaxia and, even so, that willtake a long time, too. Perhaps not as long as the road already traveled,however, since we now know the rules."

“这件事情，你的怀疑并不正确，阁下。他们都是人类，不过在他们大脑中，根深柢固地烙印着等同于机器人法则的概念。他们必须尊重生命，真正尊重——即使做到这一点，依然存在一个严着的缺陷。一个仅有人类的超有机体并不稳定，根本无从建立，其他的动物必须加进来——接着是植物，跟着是无机世界。真正稳定的最小超有机体，其实就是个完整的世界，唯有世界才足够庞大、足够复杂，得以拥有稳定的生态。我花了很久时间才了解这个道理，而直到最近一个世纪，盖娅才完全发展成功，准备向盖娅星系的目标迈进。纵使如此，那也需要很长的时间。不过，或许不会像来时路那般漫长，因为我们已经知道规则。”

"But you needed me to make the decision for you. Is that it,Daneel?"

“可是你需要我替你做出决定。对不对，丹尼尔？”

"Yes, sir. The Laws of Robotics would not allow me, nor Gaia, to makethe decision and chance harm to humanity. And meanwhile, five centuriesago, when it seemed that I would never work out methods for gettinground all the difficulties that stood in the way of establishing Gaia,I turned to the second-best and helped bring about the development ofthe science of psychohistory."

“是的，阁下。机器人法则不允许我，或是盖娅，做出为人类整体带来风险的决定。另一方面，五个世纪以前，我以为建立盖娅的重重困难绝不可能克服，于是我退而求其次，协助人类发展出心理史学这门科学。”

"I might have guessed that," mumbled Trevize. "You know, Daneel, I'mbeginning to believe you are twenty thousand years old."

“我早就该猜到这一点。”崔维兹咕哝了一句，又说：“你知道吗，丹尼尔，我开始相信你的确有两万岁了。”

"Thank you, sir."

“谢谢你，阁下。”

Pelorat said, "Wait a while. I think I see something. Are you partof Gaia yourself, Daneel? Would that be how you knew about the dogs onAurora? Through Bliss?"

裴洛拉特说：“等一等，我想我悟出了一件事。你自己是不是盖娅的一部分，丹尼尔？是不是因为这样，你才知道奥罗拉上有野狗群？经由宝绮思？”

Daneel said, "In a way, sir, you are correct. I am associated withGaia, though I am not part of it."

丹尼尔说：“就某方面而言，阁下，你说得完全正确。我与盖娅的确有联系，不过我不是它的一部分。”

Trevize's eyebrows went up. "That sounds like Comporellon, the worldwe visited immediately after leaving Gaia. It insists it is not part ofthe Foundation Confederation, but is only associated with it."

崔维兹扬起眉毛。“听来跟康普隆的情形差不多，就是我们离开盖娅后，首先造访的那个世界。康普隆坚持自己不是基地联邦的一部分，只不过跟联邦有某种联系。”

Slowly, Daneel nodded. "I suppose that analogy is apt, sir. Ican, as an associate of Gaia, make myself aware of what Gaia is awareof in the person of the woman, Bliss, for instance. Gaia, however,cannot make itself aware of what I am aware of, so that I maintain myfreedom of action. That freedom of action is necessary until Galaxia iswell established."

丹尼尔缓缓点了点头。“我想这个类比很恰当，阁下。由于与盖娅保持联系，我得以知晓盖娅所知晓的事物——例如经由盖娅的化身，宝绮思。然而，盖娅无从知晓我所知晓的事物，因此我得以保有行动自由。在盖娅星系实现之前，我有必要保有这种行动自由。”

Trevize looked steadily at the robot for a moment, then said, "Anddid you use your awareness through Bliss in order to interfere withevents on our journey to mold them to your better liking?"

崔维兹凝视这个机器人片刻，然后又说：“你是否利用你的精神感应，透过宝绮思，来干预我们这趟旅程中的际遇；好让我们依照你的理想行动？”

Daneel sighed in a curiously human fashion. "I could not do much,sir. The Laws of Robotics always hold me back. And yet, I lightened the load on Bliss's mind, taking a small amount of added responsibility onmyself, so that she might deal with the wolves of Aurora and the Spacer onSolaria with greater dispatch and with less harm to herself. In addition,I influenced the woman on Comporellon and the one on New Earth, throughBliss, in order to have them look with favor on you, so that you mightcontinue on your journey."

丹尼尔像人类一样，古里古怪地叹了一口气。“我做不了太多，阁下，机器人法则总是将我紧紧束缚。不过，我还是减轻宝绮思心中的重担，将少量的额外负担揽在自己身上。这样，她在面对奥罗拉的恶犬与索拉利的外世界人时，才能更当机立断，并减轻自己受到的伤害。此外，我还藉由宝绮思影响了两位女性，一位在康普隆，另一位在新地球上。我让她们对你充满好感，你才能继续你的旅程。”

Trevize smiled, half-sadly. "I ought to have known it wasn't I."

崔维兹微笑了一下，有一半算是苦笑。“我早该知道不是由于我的缘故。”

Daneel accepted the statement without its rueful self-deprecation. "On the contrary, sir," he said, "it was you in considerable part. Each of thetwo women looked with favor upon you from the start. I merely strengthenedthe impulse already present about all one can safely do under thestrictures of the Laws of Robotics. Because of those strictures andfor other reasons as well it was only with great difficulty that Ibrought you here, and only indirectly. I was in great danger at severalpoints of losing you."

丹尼尔未理会这句话中的自卑低调。“正好相反，阁下，”他说：“你扮演了重要的角色。那两位女性一开始就对你有好感，我只是提升了她们既有的冲动——在机器人法则的严格限制下，我顶多只能这么做。由于这些限制，以及其他一些因素，我必须历经干辛万苦，才能将你引领至此，而且必须以间接迂回的方式。前后好几次，我都险些失去了你。”

"And now I am here," said Trevize. "What is it you wantof me? To confirm my decision in favor of Galaxia?"

“现在我来了，”崔维兹说：“你想要我做什么？确定我选择盖娅星系是正确的决定？”

Daneel's face, always expressionless, somehow managed to seemdespairing. "No, sir. The mere decision is no longer enough. I broughtyou here, as best I could in my present condition, for something farmore desperate. I am dying."

丹尼尔一向毫无表情的脸孔，此时竟然显得有些绝望。“并非如此，阁下，如今仅是决定已经不够。我以目前自己能力范围内最佳的方式引你前来，是为了一件比这急迫无数倍的事——我快要死了。”

102

Perhaps it was because of the matter-of-fact way in whichDaneel said it; or perhaps because a lifetime of twenty thousand yearsmade death seem no tragedy to one doomed to live less than half a percentof that period; but, in any case, Trevize felt no stir of sympathy.

或许因为丹尼尔将这件事说得稀松平常；也或许因为他已经两万岁，对注定活不过其千分之五的凡人而言，他的死亡似乎不像是个悲剧，总而言之，这句话未激起崔维兹的同情心。

"Die? Can a machine die?"

“死？机器会死吗？”

"I can cease to exist, sir. Call it by whatever word you wish. Iam old. Not one sentient being in the Galaxy that was alive when Iwas first given consciousness is still alive today; nothing organic;nothing robotic. Even I myself lack continuity."

“我的存在可以终止，阁下，随便你用什么词汇称呼它。我已经老了，在我接受意识之初生活在银河各处的各个生灵，如今没有任何一个还活着，有机生命与机器人都没有。甚至我自己也无法不朽。”

"In what way?"

“怎么说？”

"There is no physical part of my body, sir, that has escapedreplacement, not only once but many times. Even my positronic brain hasbeen replaced on five different occasions. Each time the contents of myearlier brain were etched into the newer one to the last positron. Eachtime, the new brain had a greater capacity and complexity than the old,so that there was room for more memories, and for faster decision andaction. But……"

“我身体中的有形零件，阁下，没有一个未曾更换，还不只换过一次，而是许多次。就连我的正电子脑，也在不同情况下更换过五次。每一次，原先脑中全部内容都蚀刻到新脑之中，连一个正电子也不放过。每一个新脑的容量与复杂度，都比原先的正电子脑增加许多倍，因此提供更多的记忆空间，使我能更迅速地决断与行动。可是——”

"But?"

“可是？”

"The more advanced and complex the brain, the more unstable it is,and the more quickly it deteriorates. My present brain is a hundredthousand times as sensitive as my first, and has ten million timesthe capacity; but whereas my first brain endured for over ten thousandyears, the present one is but six hundred years old and is unmistakablysenescent. With every memory of twenty thousand years perfectlyrecorded and with a perfect recall mechanism in place, the brain isfilled. There is a rapidly declining ability to reach decisions; an evenmore rapidly declining ability to test and influence minds at hyperspatialdistances. Nor can I design a sixth brain. Further miniaturization willrun against the blank wall of the uncertainty principle, and furthercomplexity will but assure decay almost at once."

“越是先进、复杂的正电子脑就越不稳定，而且老化的速率越快。我现在的脑子与最初那个相比，灵敏度高出十万倍，容量高出千万倍。但是我的第一个脑子持续了一万年，而目前这个用了六百年便老朽不堪。过去两万年来每一项记忆的精确纪录，加上完美的回唤机制，将这个脑子全部装满。如今，我进行决策的能力急遽衰退，而衰退得更迅速的，则是在超空间距离外测试与影响心灵的能力。而且我也无法再设计第六个脑子。更进一步的微型化，势必遇到测不准原理的障壁；而复杂度再增高的结果，则一定会几乎立刻崩溃。”

Pelorat seemed desperately troubled. "But surely, Daneel, Gaiacan carry on without you. Now that Trevize has judged and selectedGalaxia "

裴洛拉特似乎感到极度困惑。“不过，丹尼尔，即使没有你，盖娅当然仍能继续发展。既然崔维兹已做出决断，选择了盖娅星系……

"The process simply took too long, sir," said Daneel, as alwaysbetraying no emotion. "I had to wait for Gaia to be fully established,despite the unanticipated difficulties that arose. By the time a humanbeing Mr. Trevize was located who was capable of makingthe key decision, it was too late. Do not think, however, that I tookno measure to lengthen my life span. Little by little I have reducedmy activities, in order to conserve what I could for emergencies. WhenI could no longer rely on active measures to preserve the isolation ofthe Earth/moon system, I adopted passive ones. Over a period of years,the humaniform robots that have been working with me have been, one byone, called home. Their last tasks have been to remove all references toEarth in the planetary archives. And without myself and my fellow-robotsin full play, Gaia will lack the essential tools to carry through thedevelopment of Galaxia in less than an inordinate period of time."

“但这个过程实在花了太长时间，阁下。”丹尼尔仍未显露任何情绪，“当初不论遇到多少始料未及的困难，我都必须等到盖娅发展成功。而等我找到崔维兹先生——一个能做出关键性抉择的人——那时已经太迟了。不过，别以为我没设法延长寿命，我一点一点减低自己的活动，将能力留着应付紧急状况。当我无法再依靠积极作为保持地／月双星的隔离状态时，我转而采取消极的做法。经过许多年，与我共事的人形机器人被我一一召回大本营，他们回来之前的最后一项任务，就是将各行星的地球档案取走。没有我自己与其他机器人的鼎力襄助，盖娅便失去建立盖娅星系最主要的工具，因此在未来很长一段时间内，盖娅星系都将无法建立。”

"And you knew all this," said Trevize, "when I made my decision?"

“而当我做出决定的时候，”崔维兹说：“你已经知道这一切。”

"A substantial time before, sir," said Daneel. "Gaia, of course,did not know."

“许久以前便知道了，阁下。”丹尼尔说：“当然，盖娅并不知情。”

"But then," said Trevize angrily, "what was the use of carryingthrough the charade? What good has it been? Ever since my decision, Ihave scoured the Galaxy, searching for Earth and what I thought of as its secret……not knowing the secret was you in order that I mightconfirm the decision. Well, I have confirmed it. I know now that Galaxiais absolutely essential and it appears to be all for nothing. Whycould you not have left the Galaxy to itself and me to myself?"

“那么，”崔维兹气冲冲地说：“跟我打这种哑谜有什么用？究竟有什么好处？在我做出决定后，我就在银河中东奔西跑，找寻地球以及我所认定的关于地球的秘密”——却不知道那个秘密就是你。而我那样做，是要为我的决定寻找佐证。好啦，我已经确定了，我现在知道盖娅星系是绝对必要的——看来我是白忙一场。你为何不能让银河自由发展，也让我自由自在？”

Daneel said, "Because, sir, I have been searching for a way out,and I have been carrying on in the hope that I might find one. I thinkI have. Instead of replacing my brain with yet another positronic one,which is impractical, I might merge it with a human brain instead; ahuman brain that is not affected by the Three Laws, and will not onlyadd capacity to my brain, but add a whole new level of abilities aswell. That is why I have brought you here."

丹尼尔说：“因为，阁下，我一直在寻访一个解决之道，而且始终抱着希望坚持下去。如今，我认为已经找到答案。我放弃了再换个正电子脑的念头，因为那是不切实际的，反之，我准备将我的脑子与人脑合并。一个不受机器人法则影响的人脑，不但可以增加我的脑容量，还能使我的能力达到一个新境界。我引领阁下来到此地，就是为了这个缘故。”

Trevize looked appalled. "You mean you plan to merge a human braininto yours? Have the human brain lose its individuality so that you canachieve a two-brain Gaia?"

崔维兹显得惊骇不已。“你的意思是，你计划要将一个人脑并入你的脑中？让那个人脑丧失独立性，以构成一个双脑的盖娅？”

"Yes, sir. It would not make me immortal, but it might enable me tolive long enough to establish Galaxia."

“是的，阁下。这样虽然不能使我永生，却可能让我有足够的时间建立盖娅星系。”

"And you brought me here for that? You want myindependence of the Three Laws and my sense of judgment made part ofyou at the price of my individuality? No!"

“而你引我来到这里，就是为了这个目的？你要我牺牲独立性，成为你的一部分，这样你就能像我一样不理会三大法则，还能拥有我的判断力？办不到！”

Daneel said, "Yet you said a moment ago that Galaxia is essentialfor the welfare of the human……"

丹尼尔说：“然而你刚才说过，盖娅星系对人类福祉是绝对必要……”

"Even if it is, it would take a long time to establish, and I wouldremain an individual in my lifetime. On the other hand, if it wereestablished rapidly, there would be a Galactic loss of individualityand my own loss would be part of an unimaginably greater whole. I would,however, certainly never consent to lose my individuality while the restof the Galaxy retains theirs."

“即使如此，它也需要花很长的时间建立，因此在我有生之年，我应该能一直维持独立性。反之，若是它很快就建立起来，整个银河都将失去独立性，相形之下，我个人的损失形同沧海一粟。可是，当整个银河还保有自我的时候，我绝不要丧失自己的独立性。”

Daneel said, "It is, then, as I thought. Your brain would not mergewell and, in any case, it would serve a better purpose if you retainedan independent judgmental ability."

丹尼尔说：“那么，这与我预料的一样。你的大脑不适于与我合并，而且，你若是保有独立判断的能力，无论如何将更有助益。”

"When did you change your mind? You said that it was for merging thatyou brought me here."

“你什么时候改变心意的？你说你引我到这里来，就是为了进行合并。”

"Yes, and only by using the fullest extent of my greatly diminishedpowers. Still, when I said, `That is why I have brought you here,' please remember that in Galactic Standard, the word 'you' representsthe plural as well as the singular. I was referring to all of you."

“是的，而且我将大不如前的能力尽数施展，才达成了这个目的。话说回来，我刚才说的是：‘我引领阁下来到此地，就是为了这个缘故。’请记住，在银河标准语中，‘阁下’不但代表单数，也可以代表复数，我指的是你们全体。”

Pelorat stiffened in his seat. "Indeed? Tell me then, Daneel,would a human brain that was merged with your brain share in all yourmemories all twenty thousand years of it, back to legendary times?"

裴洛拉特僵凝在坐位上。“真的吗？请告诉我，丹尼尔，人脑和你的脑子合并俊，可以分享你全部的记忆吗？两万年来所有的记忆，一直上溯到传说时代？”

"Certainly, sir."

“当然，阁下。”

Pelorat drew a long breath. "That would fulfill a lifetime search,and it is something I would gladly give up my individuality for. Please let me have the privilege of sharing your brain."

裴洛拉特深深吸了一口气。“那将实现我一生的梦想，为这种事我甘愿放弃独立性。请把这个权利让给我，让我分享你的脑子。”

Trevize asked softly, "And Bliss? What about her?"

崔维兹轻声问道：“宝绮思呢？她怎么办？”

Pelorat hesitated for no more than a moment. "Bliss will understand,"he said. "She will, in any case, be better off without me aftera while."

裴洛拉特只迟疑了一下子。“宝绮思会理解的。”他说：“反正没有我，她的日子会更好过——一段时间之后。”

Daneel shook his head. "Your offer, Dr. Pelorat, is a generous one,but I cannot accept it. Your brain is an old one and it cannot survivefor more than two or three decades at best, even in a merger with myown. I need something else. See!" He pointed and said, "I've calledher back."

丹尼尔却摇了摇头。 “你的提议非常慷慨，裴洛拉特博士，可是我无法接受。你的脑子太老了，顶多只能再持续二、三十年，即使跟我自己的合并，也无法延续它的寿命。我需要另一个人选——看！”他伸手一指，说：“我把她叫回来了。”

Bliss was returning, walking happily, with a bounce to her steps.

宝绮思正踩着轻快的步伐，愉悦地朝这里走来。

Pelorat rose convulsively to his feet. "Bliss! Oh no!"

裴洛拉特像是抽筋一样蹦起来。“宝绮思！不成！”

"Do not be alarmed, Dr. Pelorat," said Daneel. "I cannot useBliss. That would merge me with Gaia, and I must remain independent ofGaia, as I have already explained."

“不用惊慌，裴洛拉特博士。”丹尼尔说：“我不能用宝绮思，否则我将与盖娅合并，而我已经解释过，我必须独立于盖娅之外。”

"But in that case," said Pelorat, "who……"

“可是这样的话，”裴洛拉特说：“谁……”

And Trevize, looking at the slim figure running after Bliss, said,"The robot has wanted Fallom all along, Janov."

崔维兹望着跑在宝绮思后面的那个小小身形，脱口而出：“这机器人打一开始就只想要菲龙，詹诺夫。”

103

Bliss returned, smiling, clearly in a state of greatpleasure.

宝绮思微笑着走回来，显然心情万分愉悦。

"We couldn't pass beyond the bounds of the estate," she said,"but it all reminded me very much of Solaria. Fallom, of course, isconvinced it is Solaria. I asked her if she didn't think that Daneelhad an appearance different from that of Jemby after all, Jembywas metallic and Fallom said, 'No, not really.' I don't know whatshe meant by 'not really.'"

“我们无法走出这块属地的范围，”她说：“不过这里处处使我想起索拉利，菲龙当然确信这里就是索拉利。我问过她，难道她没想到丹尼尔的外表和健比不同——毕竟，健比全身裹着金属。菲龙却说：‘下，不见得。’我不知道她说的‘不见得’是什么意思。”

She looked across to the middle distance where Fallom was now playingher flute for a grave Daneel, whose head nodded in time. The soundreached them, thin, clear, and lovely.

她向站在不远处的菲龙望去，菲龙正在为表情严肃的丹尼尔演奏笛子，丹尼尔和着拍子频频点头。笛声也传到他们这里，听来是如此纤细、清晰而美妙。

"Did you know she took the flute with her when we left the ship?" askedBliss. "I suspect we won't be able to get her away from Daneel for quitea while."

“你们知不知道，当我们离开太空船的时候，她把笛子也带在身上？”宝绮思问。“我猜会有好一阵子，我们无法将她从丹尼尔身边拉开。”

The remark was met with a heavy silence, and Bliss looked at the twomen in quick alarm. "What's the matter?"

回答这句话的是凝重的沉默，宝绮思突然紧张起来，望着两位男士说：“怎么了？”

Trevize gestured gently in Pelorat's direction. It was up to him,the gesture seemed to say.

崔维兹朝裴洛拉特一指，似乎是说由他负责解释。

Pelorat cleared his throat and said, "Actually, Bliss, I think thatFallom will be staying with Daneel permanently."

于是裴洛拉特清了清喉咙，说：“事实上，宝绮思，我想菲龙会永远留在丹尼尔身边。”

"Indeed?" Bliss, frowning, made as though to walk in Daneel'sdirection, but Pelorat caught her arm. "Bliss dear, you can't. He's morepowerful than Gaia even now, and Fallom must stay with him if Galaxia isto come into existence. Let me explain and, Golan, please correctme if I get anything wrong."

“真的？”宝绮思皱着眉头，似乎准备走向丹尼尔，裴洛拉特却抓住了她的手臂。“宝绮思吾爱，你不能去。即使是现在，他的能力也比盖娅强大，而且菲龙若不留下，盖娅星系永远无法实现。让我来解释——葛兰，如果我说错了什么，请你随时纠正。”

Bliss listened to the account, her expression sinking into somethingclose to despair.

宝绮思听着裴洛拉特的叙述，脸色越来越难看，最后露出近乎绝望的神情。

Trevize said, in an attempt at cool reason, "You see how it is,Bliss. The child is a Spacer and Daneel was designed and put togetherby Spacers. The child was brought up by a robot and knew nothing elseon an estate as empty as this one. The child has transductive powerswhich Daneel will need, and she will live for three or four centuries,which may be what is required for the construction of Galaxia."

崔维兹试图诉诸理性，他说：“你看得出这个道理，宝绮思。这孩子是外世界人，丹尼尔则是由外世界人设计制造的：这孩子由机器人带大，生长在一个和此地同样空旷的属地，对外界的一切一无所知。这孩子拥有转换能量的本事，丹尼尔需要借着这项异禀，而且她的寿命长达三、四个世纪，也许恰好是建立盖娅星系所需的时间。”

Bliss said, her cheeks flushed and her eyes moist, "I suppose thatthe robot maneuvered our trip to Earth in such a way as to make us passthrough Solaria in order to pick up a child for his use."

宝绮思双颊泛红，泪汪汪地说：“我猜，我们这趟前往地球的旅程，是那个机器人一手策划的。他还故意让我们经过索拉利，以便带个孩子给他。”

Trevize shrugged. "He may simply have taken advantage of theopportunity. I don't think his powers are strong enough at the momentto make complete puppets of us at hyperspatial distances."

崔维兹耸了耸肩。“他也许只是见机行事。我不信他的能力现在仍那么强大，在超空间距离外，还能将我们变成百依百顺的傀儡。”

"No. It was purposeful. He made certain that I would feel stronglyattracted to the child so that I would take her with me, rather thanleave her to be killed; that I would protect her even against you whenyou showed nothing but resentment and annoyance at her being with us."

“不，那是计划好的。他使我对这孩于产生强烈的好感，确定我会把她带在身边，不会眼睁睁看她遭到杀害。他也知道，虽然你对于带她同行这件事，表现的始终是愤怒和厌烦，但我为了保护她，会不惜和你发生冲突。”

Trevize said, "That might just as easily have been your Gaian ethics,which Daneel could have strengthened a bit, I suppose. Come, Bliss,there's nothing to be gained. Suppose you could take Fallomaway. Where could you then take her that would make her as happy as sheis here? Would you take her back to Solaria where she would be killedquite pitilessly; to some crowded world where she would sicken and die;to Gaia, where she would wear her heart out longing for Jemby; on anendless voyage through the Galaxy, where she would think that everyworld we came across was her Solaria? And would you find a substitutefor Daneel's use so that Galaxia could be constructed?"

崔维兹说：“你那样做，我想，可能只是出于你们盖娅的道德感，而丹尼尔可使它再增强一点。算啦，宝绮思，没有更好的结局了。假如你能将菲龙带走，你要带她到哪里去，才能使她像在此地这般快乐？你准备带她回索拉利，让她惨遭无情的杀害吗？带她到某个拥挤的世界，让她水土不服因病而死？带她去盖娅，让她因为想念健比而肝肠寸断？带她永远在银河中流浪，让她以为我们遇到的每个世界，都是她的故乡索拉利？此外，你能替丹尼尔找到建立盖娅星系的替代人选吗？”

Bliss was sadly silent.

宝绮思伤心得说不出话来。

Pelorat held out his hand to her, a bit timidly. "Bliss," he said,"I volunteered to have my brain fused with Daneel's. He wouldn't take itbecause he said I was too old. I wish he had, if that would have savedFallom for you."

裴洛拉特一只手伸向她，显得有点心虚的样子。“宝绮思，”他说：“我曾自愿让丹尼尔和我的脑子合并，他拒绝接受，因为他说我太老了。我多么希望他能接受，如果这样能让菲龙留在你身边。”

Bliss took his hand and kissed it. "Thank you, Pel, but the pricewould be too high, even for Fallom." She took a deep breath, and triedto smile. "Perhaps, when we get back to Gaia, room will be found in theglobal organism for a child for me and I will place Fallom in thesyllables of its name."

宝绮思抓住他的手吻了一下。“谢谢你，裴，不过那样代价未免太高了，即使是为了菲龙。”她深深吸了口气，又勉强挤出一丝笑容。“也许，等我们回到盖娅，可以在那个全球有机体中，找到一个位置容纳我自己的孩子——我会把‘菲龙’放在孩子的名字里。”

And now Daneel, as though aware that the matter was settled, waswalking toward them, with Fallom skipping along at his side.

现在，丹尼尔好像知道事情已顺利解决，正朝他们走过来，菲龙则跟在他身边蹦蹦跳跳。

The youngster broke into a run and reached them first. She said toBliss, "Thank you, Bliss, for taking me home to Jemby again and for takingcare of me while weeeere on the ship. I shall always remember you." Thenshe flung herself at Bliss and the two held each other tightly.

然后，那孩子开始奔跑，抢先跑到他们面前。她对宝绮思说：“宝绮思，谢谢你带我回家和健比团圆，也谢谢你在太空船上照顾我，我永远不会忘记你。”说完她就投入宝绮思怀里，两人紧紧互相拥抱。

"I hope you will always be happy," said Bliss. "I will remember you,too, Fallom dear," and released her with reluctance.

“我希望你永远快乐。”宝绮思说：“我也会永远记得你，亲爱的菲龙。”然后依依下舍地将她松开。

Fallom turned to Pelorat, and said, "Thank you, too, Pel, for lettingme read your book-films." Then, without an additional word, and after atrace of hesitation, the thin, girlish hand was extended to Trevize. Hetook it for a moment, then let it go.

菲龙转向裴洛拉特，说：“我也要谢谢你，裴，谢谢你让我读你的胶卷书。”然后她稍微迟疑了一下，什么话也没说，将纤细秀丽的手掌伸向崔维兹，崔维兹握了一会儿才松开。

"Good luck, Fallom," he muttered.

“祝你好运，菲龙。”他喃喃说道。

Daneel said, "I thank you all, sirs and madam, for what you havedone, each in your own way. You are free to go now, for your searchis ended. As for my own work, it will be ended, too, soon enough, andsuccessfully now."

丹尼尔说：“我也要向诸位致意，谢谢你们各自所做的努力。现在你们随时可以离去，因为你们的探索已经结束。至于我自己的工作，同样将很快结束，而且必能成功。”

But Bliss said, "Wait, weeare not quite through. We don't know yetwhether Trevize is still of the mind that the proper future for humanityis Galaxia, as opposed to a vast conglomeration of Isolates."

宝绮思却说：“慢着，我们还有一事未了。我们还不知道，崔维兹是否仍然认为人类的理想未来是盖娅星系，而不是孤立体组成的庞大混合体。”

Daneel said, "He has already made that clear a while ago, madam. Hehas decided in favor of Galaxia."

丹尼尔说：“刚才，他已经说得很清楚，女士，他已经决定支持盖娅星系。”

Bliss's lips tightened. "I'd rather hear that from him. Whichis it to be, Trevize?"

宝绮思噘了一下嘴。“我宁愿听他亲口说——你的决定是什么，崔维兹？”

Trevize said calmly, "Which do you want it to be, Bliss? If I decideagainst Galaxia, you may get Fallom back."

崔维兹平静地说：“你希望我如何决定，宝绮思？假使我决定反对盖娅星系，你就有机会把菲龙要回来。”

Bliss said, "I am Gaia. I must know your decision, and its reason,for the sake of the truth and nothing else."

宝绮思说：“我是盖娅，我必须知道你的决定和背后的原因。这是为了了解真相，没有任何其他目的。”

Daneel said, "Tell her, sir. Your mind, as Gaia is aware, isuntouched."

丹尼尔说：“告诉她吧，阁下，盖娅晓得你的心灵未受干扰。”

And Trevize said, "The decision is for Galaxia. There is no furtherdoubt in my mind on that point."

于是崔维兹说：“我的决定是支持盖娅星系，这一点，我心中再无疑虑。”

104

Bliss remained motionless for the time one might taketo count to fifty at a moderate rate, as though sheeeere allowing theinformation to reach all parts of Gaia, and then sheesaid, "Why?"

宝绮思静默了好一阵子，时间大约可以用普通速度从一数到五十，彷佛是要让这个讯息传到盖娅各个部分。然后她才说：“为什么？”

Trevize said, "Listen to me. I knew from the start that there eere twopossible futures for humanity Galaxia, or else the Second Empire ofSeldon's Plan. And it seemed to me that those two possible futures eeremutually exclusive. We couldn't have Galaxia unless, for some reason,Seldon's Plan had some fundamental flaw in it.

崔维兹答道：“听我说。我一开始就知道人类的未来有两种可能——若非盖娅星系，便是谢顿计划中的第二帝国，而我觉得这两个可能的未来是互斥的。除非由于某种原因，谢顿计划具有根本缺陷，否则不会有盖娅星系的出现。

"Unfortunately, I knew nothing about Seldon's Plan except for the twoaxioms on which it is based: one, that there be involved a large enoughnumber of human beings to allow humanity to be treated statistically asa group of individuals interacting randomly; and second, that humanitynot know the results of psychohistorical conclusions before the resultsare achieved.

“不幸的是，除了它所根据的两个公设，我对谢顿计划的内容一无所知。第一个公设是，涉及的人口数目必须足够庞大，使得整体可被视为一群随机互动的个体，因而能以统计方法处理。第二个公设是，在目标尚未达成之前，人类不得预知心理史学的结论。

"Since I had already decided in favor of Galaxia, I felt I must besubliminally aware of flaws in Seldon's Plan, and those flaws could onlybe in the axioms, which eere all I knew of the plan. Yet I could seenothing wrong with the axioms. I strove, then, to find Earth, feelingthat Earth could not be so thoroughly hidden for no purpose. I had tofind out what that purpose was.

“由于我已决定支持盖娅星系，我觉得自己一定下意识地察觉到谢顿计划的漏洞，而漏洞只可能在公设上，因为那是我对该计划唯一知晓的部分。然而，我又看不出那两个公设有任何问题。因此我努力寻找地球，我觉得地球不会无缘无故隐藏得那么彻底，我必须找出它躲藏起来的目的。

"I had no real reason to expect to find a solution once I found Earth,but I was desperate and could think of nothing else to do. Andperhaps Daneel's desire for a Solarian child helped drive me.

“我没有真正指望在我发现地球之后，就能得到一个满意的答案。可是我走投无路，根本想不到其他的办法——不过我受到的驱策，也可能来自需要一个索拉利儿童的丹尼尔。

"In any case, we finally reached Earth, and then the moon, and Blissdetected Daneel's mind, which he, of course, was deliberately reachingout to her. She described that mind as neither quite human nor quiterobotic. In hindsight, that proved to make sense, for Daneel's brain isfar advanced beyond any robot that ever existed, and would not be sensedas simply robotic. Neither would it be sensed as human, however. Peloratreferred to it as `something new' and that served as a trigger for`something new' of my own; a new thought.

“无论如何，我们终于抵达地球附近，又飞到月球上空。不久宝绮思侦测到丹尼尔的心灵，当然，当时他故意将心灵向宝绮思敞开。她将这个心灵描述为并非完全是人类，也不完全是机器人。现在看来，这种说法很有道理，因为丹尼尔的脑子远远超越任何机器人，感测起来并非只是机器人的心灵，不过仍有异于人类。裴洛拉特将它称为‘新东西’，这种说法触发了我自己的一点新东西，也就是一个新的想法。

"Just as, long ago, Daneel and his colleagueeeorked out a fourthlaw of robotics that was more fundamental than the other three, so Icould suddenly see a third basic axiom of psychohistory that was morefundamental than the other two; a third axiom so fundamental that noone ever bothered to mention it.

“正如同许久以前，丹尼尔和同伴悟出了更基本的第四个机器人法则，我忽然想到心理史学还有第三个公设。它比其他两个公设基本得多，因此过去人人都懒得提到它。

"Here it is. The two known axioms deal with human beings, and they arebased on the unspoken axiom that human beings are the only intelligentspecies in the Galaxy, and therefore the only organisms whose actionsare significant in the development of society and history. That is the unstated axiom: that there is only one species of intelligence in the Galaxy and that it is Homo Sapiens . If there were ‘something new,' if there were other species of intelligence widely different in nature,then their behavior would not be described accurately by the mathematics of psychohistory and Seldon's Plan would have no meaning. Do you see?"

“听好了，已知的两个公设都以人类为对象，两者皆植基于一个未曾言明的公设：人类是银河中唯一的智慧物种，因此唯有人类这种生物的行动，在发展社会与历史的过程中举足轻着。这个隐性公设可归纳如下：银河中只有一种智慧物种，亦即现代智人。假使银河中有什么新东西，假使那是一种本质迥异的智慧物种，其行为便无法以心理史学的数学精确描述，谢顿计划因此就会变得毫无意义。你们懂了吗？”

Trevize was almost shaking with the earnest desire to make himselfunderstood. "Do you see?" he repeated.

崔维兹极其希望别人了解这番话，激动得几乎全身发抖。“你们懂了吗？”他又着复一次。

Pelorat said, "Yes, I see, but as devil's advocate, old chap……"

裴洛拉特说：“懂，我懂了。但是身为一个吹毛求疵的人，老弟——”

"Yes? Go on."

“什么？继续啊。”

"Human beings are the only intelligences in theGalaxy."

“在整个银河中，人类正是唯一的智慧物种。”

"Robots?" said Bliss. "Gaia?"

“机器人呢？”宝绮思说：“盖娅呢？”

Pelorat thought awhile, then said hesitantly , "Robots haveplayed no significant role in human history since the disappearanceof the Spacers. Gaia has played no significant role until veryrecently. Robots are the creation of human beings, and Gaia is thecreation of robots and both robots and Gala, insofar as theymust be bound by the Three Laws, have no choice but to yield to humanwill. Despite the twenty thousand years Daneel has labored, and the longdevelopment of Gaia, a single word from Golan Trevize, a human being,would put an end to both those labors and that development. It follows,then, that humanity is the only significant species of intelligence inthe Galaxy, and psychohistory remains valid."

裴洛拉特思索了一下，然后以迟疑的口吻说：“在人类历史上，自从外世界人消失后，机器人就没扮演过重要角色。而盖娅在最近之前也未曾扮演过重要角色。机器人是人类创造的，盖娅是机器人创造的——而机器人与盖娅两者，既然都受到三大法则的限制，除了屈服于人类的意志，根本就没有其他选择。纵使丹尼尔奋斗了两万年，纵使盖娅发展了那么长的时间，但只要葛兰·崔维兹这个人类说的一句话，就会立刻葬送两者无数的心血。由此可知，人类仍是银河中唯一的重要智慧物种，因此心理史学依然有效。”

"The only form of intelligence in the Galaxy……" repeated Trevizeslowly. "I agree. Yet we speak so much and so often of the Galaxy that itis all but impossible for us to see that this is not enough. The Galaxyis not the universe. There are other galaxies."

“银河中唯一的重要智慧物种——”崔维兹慢慢着复着这句话。“这点我同意。可是我们一天到晚将银河挂在嘴边，所以几乎无法察觉这样考虑并不周详。银河不等于宇宙，宇宙中还有许多其他的星系。”

Pelorat and Bliss stirred uneasily. Daneel listened with benigngravity, his hand slowly stroking Fallom's hair.

裴洛拉特与宝绮思不安地挪动了一下。丹尼尔则专心聆听，严肃的表情透出几许祥和，一只手缓缓抚着菲龙的头发。

Trevize said, "Listen to me again. Just outside the Galaxy are theMagellanic Clouds, where no human ship has ever penetrated. Beyond thatare other small galaxies, and not very far away is the giant AndromedaGalaxy, larger than our own. Beyond that are galaxies by the billions.

崔维兹继续道：“听我说下去。银河近旁就有麦哲伦云，没有任何人类的船舰曾到过那里。再往外一点还有许多小型星系，而巨大的仙女座星系距离也不太远，它比我们的银河系还要大。除此之外，宇宙间另有数十亿个星系。

"Our own Galaxy has developed only one species of an intelligence greatenough to develop a technological society, but what do we know of theother galaxies? Ours may be atypical. In some of the others perhapseven in all there may be many competing intelligent species,struggling with each other, and each incomprehensible to us. Perhapsit is their mutual struggle that preoccupies them, but what if, in somegalaxy, one species gains domination over the rest and then has time toconsider the possibility of penetrating other galaxies.

“我们的银河中，只发展出一种有能力建立科技社会的智慧物种，但我们对其他星系了解多少？我们这个星系可能是个特例，也许在某些星系，甚至所有其他星系中，存在着许多互竞的智慧物种，彼此间一直在明争暗斗，而每一种我们都毫无概念。大概因为他们忙着彼此斗争，因而无暇顾及其他，但假如在某个星系中，某种物种取得了领导地位，而有时间考虑侵入其他星系的可能性，那又会怎么样？

"Hyperspatially, the Galaxy is a point and so is all theUniverse. We have not visited any other galaxy, and, as far as we know,no intelligent species from another galaxy has ever visited us butthat state of affairs may end someday. And if the invaders come, theyare bound to find ways of turning some human beings against other humanbeings. We have so long had only ourselves to fight that we are usedto such internecine quarrels. An invader that finds us divided againstourselves will dominate us all, or destroy us all. The only true defenseis to produce Galaxia, which cannot be turned against itself and whichcan meet invaders with maximum power."

“就超空间而言，银河只是一个点——整个宇宙也是如此。我们从未造访过其他星系，而且根据我们的了解，也没有其他星系的智慧物种来过我们的银河——但这种局面也许有一天会改变。若有侵略者来到，他们必定能找到挑拨人类内斗的方法。长久以来，我们的敌人都是自己人，我们习惯了这种自相残杀。处于如此四分五裂的状况，我们必将被侵略者完全征服，或是被尽数消灭。唯一真正的防御战略，就是形成无法由内部突破的盖娅星系，遇到侵略者来犯时，我们才能发挥最大的力量。”

Bliss said, "The picture you paint is a frightening one. Will we have time to form Galaxia?"

宝绮思说：“你描绘的情景非常可怕，我们还来得及建立盖娅星系吗？”

Trevize looked up, as though to penetrate the thick layer ofmoonrock that separated him from the surface and from space; as thoughto force himself to see those far distant galaxies, moving slowly throughunimaginable vistas of space.

崔维兹抬头向上望，视线仿佛穿透厚层的月岩，直达月球表面与星际空间；彷佛努力想要见到无数正在不可思议的鸿蒙太空中缓缓运动的遥远星系。

He said, "In all human history, no other intelligence has impingedon us, to our knowledge. This need only continue a few more centuries,perhaps little more than one ten thousandth of the time civilizationhas already existed, and we will be safe. After all," and here Trevizefelt a sudden twinge of trouble, which he forced himself to disregard,"it is not as though we had the enemy already here and among us."

他说：“据我们所知，在古往今来的人类历史中，从未有其他智慧生物侵犯我们。这种情形只需再持续数个世纪，也许只要人类文明历史万分之一的时间，我们便能高枕无忧。毕竟，”讲到这里，崔维兹突然感到一阵痛心的忧虑，但他强迫自己置之不理。“此时此刻，似乎还没有敌人潜伏在我们之间。”

And he did not look down to meet the brooding eyes of Fallom hermaphroditic, transductive, different as they rested,unfathomably, on him.

菲龙——这个懂得转换能量、雌雄同体的异类，此刻正望着他，眼神深不可测。崔维兹并未低头迎向那对出神的目光。

【全文完】