14 BOUNCING OFF THE WALLS

CHAPTER 14 BOUNCING OFF THE WALLS Alexander climbed up onto a nearby tree limb. "C'mon, Rip!" he yelled, climbing higher. Balloon goons filled the backyard. The group from the front circled around the house as dozens more glided in from the woods. The crowd of swaying monsters silently zeroed in on Rip. "No way!" said Rip. He swung his clown shoe but was no match for the balloons. They grabbed Rip and lifted him high in the air.

亚历山大爬上附近的一根树枝。 “来吧，里普！”他喊道，爬得更高了。 后院挤满了气球打手。 前面的这群人围着房子转，还有几十个人从树林里溜了进来。 那群摇晃着的怪物默默地把矛头对准了里普。 “不可能！”他挥舞着他的小丑鞋，但没有气球的对手。 他们抓住里普，把他举到空中。

"Salamander! Help!" he shouted. Alexander hugged his branch as the balloons carried Rip off into the woods. A moment later, Alexander dropped from the tree. WHO WILL SAVE RIP? Alexander's dad? NO. Wandered off wearing a blindfold. The nervous clown? NO. Ran away crying. Stanley the Steam Shovel? NO. Imaginary cartoon character. Alexander? YES! The only one around. Alexander trailed the balloon goons as they marched through the woods. Then he gasped.

“火蜥蜴!救命！”他喊道。 亚历山大抱着他的树枝，气球把利普带进了树林。 过了一会儿，亚历山大从树上掉了下来。 谁来拯救rip ？亚历山大的父亲吗? 否。戴着眼罩走了。 那个紧张的小丑？否。哭着跑开了。 蒸汽铲斯坦利？否。 想象中的卡通人物。 亚历山大?是的!唯一的一个。 亚历山大跟在气球打手后面穿过树林。 然后他倒吸了一口气。

Before him stood the largest bouncy castle ever built! It was the size of a real castle, with towers, battlements—even a drawbridge. Except the entire thing was made of rubber. The balloon goons dragged Rip into their bouncy fortress, leaving the drawbridge open. Alexander stepped onto the drawbridge. It wobbled slightly. He took a breath and entered the gate. It was dark inside. Alexander could hear a faint were breathing. There was no sign of Rip or any balloon goons. Walking was tricky, so Alexander tried jumping. The springy floor launched him up to the ceiling. He rebounded off a wall and bounced down the hallway.

在他面前矗立着有史以来最大的充气城堡！它和真正的城堡一样大，有塔楼、城垛，甚至还有吊桥。 只不过整个东西都是用橡胶做的。 气球打手们把里普拖进了他们的充气堡垒，吊桥敞开着。 亚历山大走上吊桥。 它微微摇晃着。他吸了一口气，进了大门。 里面很黑。亚历山大能听到微弱的呼吸声。 没有里普或气球打手的迹象。 走路很困难，所以亚历山大试着跳起来。 有弹性的地板把他推到天花板上。 他被一堵墙上弹了回来，顺着走廊弹了下来。

Alexander bopped his way through the maze of passageways. He got lost a few times but eventually found himself in the heart of the fortress. It was an enormous room with no ceiling just the blue morning sky. In the middle of the arena, a kid was tied to an inflatable post. Alexander leaped over. "Rip! You're alive!" Rip smiled. "Salamander! Untie me!" Alexander worked at the knots. "Why did they bring you to their fortress?" "Fortress?" Rip snorted. "This place is a factory! While you were

亚历山大跳跃着穿过迷宫般的通道。 他迷路了几次，但最终发现自己在堡垒的中心。 这是一个巨大的房间，没有天花板，只有清晨蔚蓝的天空。 在竞技场中央，一个孩子被绑在一根充气柱子上。 亚历山大跳了过去。“把!你还活着!”把笑了。 “火蜥蜴!解开我!”亚历山大在打结。 “他们为什么把你带到他们的堡垒？”“堡垒吗?”哼了一声。 “这地方是个工厂！”当你

playing hopscotch, they brought out a million baby balloon goons and forced me to blow 'em up. Once I ran out of breath, they tied me up." "Is that their secret?" Alexander asked. "They're building an army?" He loosened one knot, but there were dozens to go. "Just imagine: no pool toys! No bikes! And" he swallowed "no whoopee cushions! We have to stop them." The ground began to quiver. Alexander heard a low rumbling, like hundreds of basketballs being dribbled at once. An army of angry balloon goons swarmed in from all sides. The boys were surrounded.

玩跳房子游戏时，他们拿出了一百万个小气球，逼我把它们吹灭。 我上气不接下气，他们就把我绑了起来。” “这是他们的秘密吗？”亚历山大问。 “他们在组建军队？”他解开了一个结，但还有几十个结要解开。 “想象一下：没有泳池玩具！”没有自行车!“他吞下了”没有放屁垫！我们必须阻止他们。” 大地开始颤抖。 亚历山大听到一声低沉的隆隆声，好像同时有几百个篮球在运球。 一群愤怒的气球打手从四面八方蜂拥而至。 男孩们被包围了。