Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 Dex felt that he was floating gently, drifting through the air like a feather. It was very dark and quiet. The tornado must have carried him high into the clouds. But then Dex started to spin, faster, faster, faster. And now he felt like he was falling. He reached out, grasping frantically, as though he could grab hold of a star, or a cloud. Dex's eyes flew open.

第十二章戴克斯觉得自己在轻轻地飘着，像一根羽毛一样在空中飘浮。 四周很黑，很安静。 一定是龙卷风把他卷到了云端。 然后德克斯开始旋转，越来越快，越来越快。 现在他觉得自己在往下掉。 他伸出手，疯狂地抓着，好像他能抓住一颗星星或一片云。 德克斯的眼睛一下子睁开了。

And he realized that the spinning was only in his mind. He was in Dr. Gage's SUV, crumpled across the backseat. The windows were gone. The airbags had opened. There was a huge hole in the roof. Carefully he moved his arms and legs. He put his hand on his chest, feeling his pounding heart. Was he actually alive? He felt like he'd been in a blender, his body beaten to a pulp. But somehow no part of him had been crushed or broken or torn open. The tornado had moved on. Dex could hear it in the distance, its roar faded to a distant moan. He sat up, wincing in pain as he spat out mouthfuls of dirt and grit. He wiped away the layer of mud and snot and blood that covered his face. And slowly the world around him came into focus. It was no world he recognized. It was as if he had crash-landed on a distant planet. Instead of

他意识到旋转只是在他的脑海里。 他在盖奇医生的SUV里，蜷缩在后座上。 窗户都不见了。安全气囊打开了。 屋顶上有一个大洞。 他小心地移动着胳膊和腿。 他把手放在胸口，感受着怦怦直跳的心脏。 他真的还活着吗?他觉得自己像在搅拌机里，身体被打成了浆。 但不知何故，他的身体没有被压碎、破碎或撕裂。 龙卷风继续移动。德克斯可以在远处听到它的声音，它的吼声渐渐消失，变成了远处的呻吟。 他坐了起来，痛苦地皱起了眉头，吐出了一口口的泥土和沙砾。 他擦去脸上的一层泥、鼻涕和血。 慢慢地，他周围的世界变得清晰起来。 这不是他所认识的世界。 就好像他在一个遥远的星球上迫降了。 而不是

grass, the ground was covered with glass and pulverized wood and metal. Instead of mountains, there were hills of tangled debris. The trees looked like skeletons, stripped of their leaves and branches and even their bark. He was still in the parking lot of Peter's Garage. The car hadn't flown so far after all. It made no sense that he hadn't been killed. But nothing made sense. The garage building was now a heap of crushed concrete. Smashed cars were scattered all around. One had been wrapped around a tree. Downed electrical wires hissed like fiery snakes. A tricycle hung from the branch of a naked tree. Slowly the fog lifted from Dex's mind, and he realized what else was wrong: Dr. Gage wasn't in the car. "Dr. Gage!" Dex cried out. He looked all around, his blood turning to ice when he spotted him.

草地上，地上满是玻璃，碎木头和碎金属。 这里没有山脉，只有成堆的碎片。 这些树看起来像骷髅一样，叶子和树枝都被剥光了，甚至树皮也被剥光了。 他还在彼得车库的停车场里。 汽车毕竟没有飞那么远。 他没有被杀说不通。 但一切都说不通。车库大楼现在是一堆碎混凝土。 被砸碎的汽车到处都是。 其中一个包裹在一棵树上。 倒下的电线像火蛇一样嘶嘶作响。 一辆三轮车挂在一棵光秃秃的树上。 慢慢地，德克斯头脑中的迷雾消散了，他意识到还有什么地方出了问题。 盖奇不在车里。”博士。 计!”德克斯喊道。他环顾四周，发现他时，他的血都结冰了。

Dr. Gage was sprawled on the ground just a few yards away. He wasn't moving. Dex's stomach lurched, and a numb feeling spread through him. He climbed out of the SUV through a shattered window. Part of the chain-link fence was attached to the bottom of the car. That's what had saved them from being sucked into the sky, Dex realized. The fence had anchored them to the ground. Dex staggered over to Dr. Gage and fell to his knees. Dr. Gage's brown skin had turned ashy gray. With shaking fingers, Dex felt his cheek, which was cold and clammy. But his chest was moving. "Dr. Gage," Dex choked. To his relief, Dr. Gage's eyes fluttered open. He stared at Dex with reddened eyes. "Dex," he rasped. "You made it. You made it." "We both did."

盖奇医生躺在几码外的地上。 他没有动。德克斯的胃一阵痉挛，一种麻木的感觉传遍全身。 他从一扇破碎的窗户里爬了出来。 铁链栅栏的一部分固定在车底。 德克斯意识到，这就是他们没有被吸进天空的原因。 篱笆把他们牢牢地拴在地上。 德克斯摇摇晃晃地走到盖奇医生跟前，跪倒在地。 盖奇医生棕色的皮肤变成了灰白色。 德克斯用颤抖的手指摸了摸他又冷又湿的脸颊。 但他的胸部在动。”博士。 盖奇，”德克斯哽咽道。让他松了一口气的是。 盖奇睁大了眼睛。 他红着眼睛盯着德克斯。 “德克斯。”他粗声说。“你做到了。 你做到了。”“我们都是。”

But then Dr. Gage shut his eyes again. "Dr. Gage! Dr. Gage." He didn't answer. Dex could see he was badly hurt. There was a pool of blood spreading under his right leg. What should he do? Who could help them? Dex's mind whirled, as though the tornado winds were spinning his thoughts. All he knew was that he was alone. His city was gone. And Dr. Gage was dying. If he were a tough SEAL, Dex would carry Dr. Gage on his back and march through the wreckage all the way to St. John's hospital. But Dex was not a battle-toughened SEAL. He was an eleven-year-old kid who couldn't even hit a baseball. He had no team of warriors by his side. He barely even had any friends. Dex sat down on the cold, wet ground and closed his eyes. He wanted to curl up and

但盖奇医生又闭上了眼睛。 “盖奇博士!盖奇博士。”他没有回答。 德克斯看得出他伤得很重。 他的右腿下有一滩血。 他该怎么办呢?谁能帮助他们呢? 德克斯的思想在旋转，好像龙卷风的风在旋转他的思想。 他只知道自己孤身一人。 他的城市消失了。和博士。 盖奇快要死了。如果德克斯是一名强悍的海豹队员，他会带着他的。 盖奇骑在背上，穿过废墟一路向圣。 约翰的医院。但德克斯并不是一个久经沙场的海豹突击队员。 他当时只有11岁，连棒球都不会打。 他身边没有勇士。 他几乎没有朋友。 德克斯坐在冰冷潮湿的地上，闭上了眼睛。 他想蜷缩起来

disappear. But his mind drifted to the stories Jeremy had told him about SEAL training. He could practically feel his big brother's hand on his shoulder, smell his breath, hear his voice speaking quietly in the darkness. "They barely let you sleep. You're running for miles every day, swimming in that freezing ocean until your body is numb. It's constant pain. Every minute I wanted to quit." "Why do they make it so hard?" Dex had asked. "Because the whole point is to show you that you are stronger than you ever imagined. As a SEAL, there will be times when you are terrified, lost, bleeding. But you can't just quit. The guys on your team are depending on you. Your country is counting on you. And so no matter how you feel, you need to find the strength to complete your mission." Dex still hadn't really understood. But now, sitting in this wrecked parking lot, it started to dawn on him.

消失。但他的思绪又转到了杰里米给他讲的海豹突击队训练的故事上。 他几乎能感觉到哥哥的手放在他的肩膀上，闻到他的气息，听到他在黑暗中轻声说话的声音。 “他们几乎不让你睡觉。 你每天跑几英里，在冰冷的海洋里游泳，直到你的身体麻木。 这是持续的痛苦。我每时每刻都想放弃。” “他们为什么把它弄得这么难?”德克斯问。 “因为重点是要告诉你，你比你想象的要强大。 作为一名海豹突击队员，你会有恐惧、迷失、流血的时候。 但你不能就这么放弃。你队里的人都指望着你呢。 你的国家指望着你。 所以不管你感觉如何，你都需要找到完成使命的力量。” 德克斯仍然没有真正理解。 但现在，坐在这个破败的停车场里，他开始明白了。