Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15 They didn't look very evil. They were dull gray, with six stubby rocket tubes gathered into a bundle and mounted onto a trailer with very large tires. Each was the size of a small tractor. Paul and Mr. Leon spotted a Nazi soldier nearby, leaning against a tree, smoking a cigarette. Mr. Leon picked up a rock. At first Paul thought he was going to throw it at the soldier. But instead,

第十五章他们看起来不太邪恶。 它们是暗灰色的，六根粗短的火箭管捆成一捆，装在一辆拖车上，上面有很大的轮胎。 每一个都有一辆小拖拉机那么大。 保罗和利昂发现附近有一个纳粹士兵，靠在一棵树上抽着烟。 里昂先生捡起一块石头。 起初保罗以为他要把它扔向那个士兵。 但相反,

Mr. Leon threw it in the other direction, into the woods. The rock hit with a loud crack. He quickly picked up another one, and threw it toward the same spot. And then a third and a fourth. The four rocks hitting sounded like the footsteps of a very large person. Which was the idea. The guard tossed his cigarette and headed over to investigate, gripping his machine gun. Mr. Leon and Paul waited until the guard was out of sight and scurried over. Mr. Leon took a quick look at the Nebelwerfers. "They're loaded," he said. Even if the Nazis weren't expecting the Allied invasion tonight, they were prepared for an attack. Paul could see the round tips of the rockets sticking out of the ends of the launching tubes. Mr. Leon had already cut the yellow cake of C- 3 into small pieces. In the low light, the pieces almost looked like madeleines.

里昂先生朝另一个方向扔去，扔进了树林。 岩石砰的一声击中。 他迅速捡起另一个，扔向同一个地方。 然后是第三个，第四个。 四块石头撞击的声音听起来像是一个非常高大的人的脚步声。 这就是我的想法。卫兵把烟扔了，拿着机关枪走过去调查。 里昂先生和保罗一直等到警卫走远了，才匆匆赶了过来。 莱昂先生迅速地看了一眼尼伯维尔人。 “他们很有钱，”他说。 即使纳粹没有预料到今晚盟军的入侵，他们也做好了进攻的准备。 保罗可以看到火箭的圆形尖端从发射管的末端伸出来。 里昂先生已经把黄色的C- 3蛋糕切成了小块。 在昏暗的光线下，这些蛋糕看起来几乎像玛德琳蛋糕。

They were each going to plant the C-3 in five Nebelwerfers. Mr. Leon gave Paul six pieces of C-3, in case he dropped one. Heart pounding, Paul reached into a barrel on the first Nebelwerfer. He felt like he was sticking his hand down the throat of a serpent; he half expected it to get chomped off. He moved down the row, quickly sticking a piece of the C-3 in each one. In moments he was finished. And so was Mr. Leon. They had done it! Now, when the Nazis tried to fire them at the Allies, these deadly weapons would be blown to pieces. Paul felt almost weak with relief. Within the hour, they'd be safe at the castle, safe and sound. Maybe Victor would be awake. They were creeping back across the field when the sky filled with the sound of a distant whine. Paul knew the noise all too well: A plane was coming across the channel.

他们每个人都要把C-3放在五辆尼伯维尔车上。 里昂先生给了保罗六枚C-3炸弹，以防他掉了一枚。 保罗的心怦怦直跳，把手伸进第一个尼伯维尔的桶里。 他觉得自己就像把手伸进一条蛇的喉咙里；他几乎料到它会被咬掉。 他沿着这排移动，迅速地在每个人身上都粘上了一块C-3。 不一会儿，他就完了。 里昂先生也是如此。他们成功了！现在，当纳粹试图向盟军开火时，这些致命的武器会被炸成碎片。 保罗松了一口气，几乎感到虚弱。 一小时之内，他们就会安全抵达城堡，安然无恙。 也许维克多会醒着。 当他们爬着穿过田野时，天空中充满了远处的哀鸣声。 保罗对那声音太熟悉了：一架飞机正飞过海峡。

But this wasn't one plane. Paul looked up. Hundreds of large planes were flying toward them, crowded so close together it seemed their striped wings were touching. They were larger than the bombers Paul was used to seeing. It had to be the paratroopers! Excitement rose up in Paul, but it quickly turned to dread. Because now the Nazis knew that the Allies were attacking them. A siren blared. Explosions roared from the cliffs as the Germans' big cannons—antiaircraft guns—blasted at the planes. And now there were Nazi soldiers everywhere, even popping up out of the ground. Paul realized he and Mr. Leon were near the entrance to an underground bunker. Soldiers rose up, like enormous ants boiling out of the dirt.

但这不是一架飞机。 保罗抬起头来。数以百计的大飞机向他们飞来，挤得如此之近，仿佛它们的条纹翅膀互相碰在一起。 它们比保罗以前看到的轰炸机要大。 一定是伞兵！保罗兴奋起来，但很快就变成了恐惧。 因为现在纳粹知道盟军正在攻击他们。 汽笛响了。当德国人的大型大炮——高射炮向飞机开火时，悬崖上传来轰鸣的爆炸声。 现在到处都是纳粹士兵，甚至从地下冒出来。 保罗意识到他和利昂先生正靠近一个地下掩体的入口。 士兵们站了起来，就像巨大的蚂蚁从泥土中沸腾起来。

Paul looked around in horror. There was no way they could escape now. Mr. Leon reached into his bag. He pulled out what looked like a black apple. It was a grenade. "We need to get these soldiers away from here," he said. "I'm going to try to get one of those

保罗惊恐地环顾四周。 他们现在已经没有办法逃跑了。 里昂先生把手伸进包里。 他拿出一个看起来像黑苹果的东西。 那是一颗手榴弹。“我们需要让这些士兵离开这里，”他说。 “我要试着得到一个

Nebelwerfers to blow. Get ready to hit the dirt and cover your ears." He pulled the pin from the top of the grenade and tossed it. It landed in front of one of the Nebelwerfers. "Get down, Paul!" Mr. Leon cried. Paul threw himself to the ground and pressed his hands to his ears as the grenade exploded. KABOOM! But that was just the beginning. The air seemed to shatter as one of the Nebelwerfers blew apart. KABOOM! It worked! The grenade must have triggered the C-3! Soldiers scattered, clearing the way for Mr. Leon and Paul to rush back toward the hedgerow. But now came a new sound, an explosion from the sky. Paul looked up in horror and saw a plane in flames. It must have been hit by one of the Nazi

尼伯维尔不喜欢吹。准备着地，捂住耳朵。” 他拔出手榴弹顶端的别针，扔了出去。 它落在了一个尼伯维尔人的前面。 “下来，保罗！”利昂先生叫道。 手榴弹爆炸时，保罗扑倒在地，双手捂住耳朵。 大爆炸!但这仅仅是个开始。 当一个尼伯维尔人被炸得粉碎时，空气似乎粉碎了。 大爆炸!它工作!肯定是手榴弹触发了C-3！士兵们四散开来，为李昂和保罗向树篱冲去扫清道路。 但现在传来了一个新的声音，一声爆炸声从天空传来。 保罗惊恐地抬起头，看见一架飞机着火了。 它一定是被纳粹分子击中的