Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8 John and the guys all scrambled to their feet. John's heart pounded through his chest. But none of the guys ran. Somehow, John kept his boots glued to the ground. He stared in horror as the giant snake coiled its body. It was like a thick rope tying itself into a knot. John could see its muscles rippling under its scaly skin. Its head lifted higher and higher as its body coiled more

约翰和同伴们都爬了起来。 约翰的心怦怦直跳。 但是没有人逃跑。不知怎么的，约翰总是把靴子黏在地上。 他惊恐地看着那条巨蛇盘绕着身体。 它就像一根粗绳子打了一个结。 约翰可以看到它的肌肉在鳞片般的皮肤下荡漾。 它的头越抬越高，身体也越蜷曲

tightly. Soon it was almost as high as their chests. Its forked tongue was flickering in and out, like a candle flame in the wind. It seemed like a beast from one of Franny's fairy stories — a fire-breathing dragon, a monster from a dark, dripping cave. It was thicker than John's leg. From its nose to its tail, it had to be taller than Pa — six feet at least. Its skin was dull gold, and covered with black and white triangles. Its rattle was huge, with at least twenty bands — one for every year it had been alive, John had heard. This was an old snake. Shkshkshkshkshkshkshk "Don't move," Rex whispered. It was getting ready to strike, John knew. That's what a rattler does. It coils itself so it can spring forward when it attacks. A rattler that big could leap forward at least six feet, maybe more. These thoughts raced around and around in John's mind, like water spinning in a whirlpool.

紧。很快，它几乎和他们的胸膛一样高。 它分叉的舌头忽闪忽闪，就像风中的蜡烛火焰。 它看起来就像弗兰妮童话里的野兽——一条喷火的龙，一个从黑暗、滴水的洞穴里出来的怪物。 它比约翰的腿还粗。 从鼻子到尾巴，它必须比爸爸高——至少有六英尺。 它的皮肤是暗金色的，上面覆盖着黑白相间的三角形。 它的拨浪鼓很大，至少有二十个乐队——约翰听说，它每活一年就有一个乐队。 这是一条老蛇。“别动，”雷克斯低声说。 约翰知道，它正准备发动袭击。 这就是响尾蛇的工作。 它盘绕着身体，这样攻击时就能向前弹跳。 那么大的响尾蛇可以向前跃出至少六英尺，甚至更多。 这些想法在约翰的脑海里一圈又一圈地旋转，就像水在漩涡中旋转一样。

There was no way they could kill this snake! Maybe they could have if they had caught it when its head was just peeping out of its hole. But not like this. They'd need a cannon, or an army of soldiers firing rifles. Their stupid snake-killing weapons were useless now. This snake had more than enough venom to kill them all! But the guys weren't ready to surrender. Rex was standing there, his ax gripped tight in his hand. Peter held his hoe, ready to strike. Sven had his stick high in the air. John felt frozen. King Rattler was looking directly at him. Its deathly yellow eyes glowed. Its mouth opened wide. Needlelike white fangs glistened inside its sickly pink mouth. Hissssssssssssss

他们不可能杀死这条蛇！如果他们在它的头从洞里探出来的时候抓住它，也许他们就能做到。 但不是这样的。他们需要一门大炮，或者一群拿着步枪的士兵。 他们那愚蠢的杀蛇武器现在没用了。 这条蛇的毒液足以杀死他们所有人！但他们还没准备好投降。 雷克斯站在那里，手里紧紧攥着斧子。 彼得拿着锄头，准备动手。 斯文的球棒高高举起。 约翰感到浑身冰凉。拉特勒国王正直勾勾地看着他。 它死黄色的眼睛闪闪发光。 它的嘴张得大大的。针状的白色尖牙在它病态的粉红色嘴里闪闪发光。 Hissssssssssssss

John's entire body started to shake. He took a step back, not realizing he was right at the edge of the creek. His foot slipped, and suddenly he was slipping down the bank. He tumbled backward, landing in the water with a freezing splash. He barely had a chance to take a breath as the churning water grabbed hold of him and sent him rushing downstream.

约翰的整个身体开始颤抖。 他往后退了一步，没有意识到自己正站在小溪边。 他的脚滑了一下，突然他滑下了河岸。 他向后翻滚，落在水里，发出冰冷的水花。 他几乎没有机会喘口气，因为翻腾的水抓住了他，把他冲到了下游。

John couldn't swim — nobody he knew could swim. The water twisted and turned him, scraping him against the rocks as he was carried along. Water gushed into his mouth and up his nose. He tried to grab hold of rocks and sticks. Anything to slow himself down. But it was no use. John wasn't going to be killed by a rattlesnake. He was going to drown!

约翰不会游泳——他认识的人都不会游泳。 水把他扭来扭去，把他刮到岩石上。 水涌进他的嘴里，流到鼻子上。 他试图抓住石头和树枝。 只要能让他慢下来就行。 但是没有用。约翰不会被响尾蛇杀死的。 他要淹死了！