Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 All at once, everyone who had been heading toward the docks rushed back toward the street. People screamed. Parents scooped up their children. Cars slammed on their brakes. Jackson started to stand up to join the rush. His heart was beating a mile a minute. But then he squatted back down.

第十二章突然间，所有朝码头走去的人都向街上跑去。 人们尖叫起来。父母抱起他们的孩子。 汽车猛踩刹车。 杰克逊开始站起来，加入到人群中来。 他的心跳得很快。 但随后他又蹲了下来。

Earthquakes happen all the time, he reminded himself. There were more earthquakes here in Alaska than anywhere in the lower forty-eight states, even California. In the bush, the ground would suddenly start shaking. Trees would sway. Rabbits would dart out of their underground tunnels. Once, some jars of moose meat fell from their kitchen shelves and shattered on the floor. But that was the worst earthquake damage Jackson had seen. He braced himself against the parked car, expecting the earthquake to stop any moment. It didn't. The roaring got louder. The shaking got harder. Louder. Harder. Louder. Harder. The water in the harbor began to churn and froth, like an evil witch's brew. Waves sloshed across the bridge. Fishing boats in the harbor bounced around like toys. The Chena strained against its thick ropes.

地震随时都在发生，他提醒自己。 阿拉斯加的地震次数比美国本土48个州都要多，甚至比加州还要多。 在灌木丛中，地面会突然开始摇晃。 树木会摇摆。兔子会从它们的地下隧道里窜出来。 有一次，一些装驼鹿肉的罐子从他们厨房的架子上掉下来，摔得粉碎。 但这是杰克逊见过的最严重的地震破坏。 他靠在停着的汽车上，期待着地震随时会停止。 它没有。咆哮声越来越大。 摇晃得更厉害了。响亮。 困难。响亮。困难。港口里的水开始翻腾起泡沫，就像一个邪恶的女巫酿造的酒。 海浪拍打着桥。 港口里的渔船像玩具一样蹦来蹦去。 “中国号”紧绷着粗绳子。

Louder. Harder. Louder. Harder. The bridge was shaking so violently now that Jackson was bouncing up and down like a ball. His backpack slammed into his head over and over again. He braced himself against the car and glanced around for the other kids. Where had they gone? Hopefully off the bridge and back onto the street—which was where Jackson had to go. He managed to stumble to the street. But then he fell again. And this time it was impossible to stand back up. The earth seemed to be alive—rising and falling, twisting and rolling. Jackson felt like he was trying to crawl across the back of a furious, thrashing monster. Louder. Harder. Louder. Harder. Crash! The wooden building on the corner collapsed into a heap. Boom! A telephone pole fell to the ground, dragging down wires that sparked and hissed like flaming

响亮。困难。响亮。困难。 桥现在摇晃得很厉害，杰克逊像个球一样上下跳动。 他的背包一次又一次地撞到他的头。 他靠在汽车上，环顾四周寻找其他孩子。 他们去哪儿了？希望他能从桥上下来，回到街上——这是杰克逊必须去的地方。 他设法跌跌撞撞地走到街上。 但随后他又摔倒了。这一次，他再也站不起来了。 大地似乎是活的——上升和下降，扭曲和滚动。 杰克逊觉得自己像是在试图爬过一只狂怒的猛兽的背部。 响亮。困难。响亮。困难。 崩溃!角落里的木结构建筑倒塌成了一堆。 繁荣!一根电线杆倒在地上，把电线拖了下来，电线发出火焰般的嘶嘶声

snakes. Screams rose above the roar. And then came a sound so loud, Jackson was sure his ears would explode. WHHHOOOOSHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! People had stopped running and crawling and were staring back toward the loading dock. The Chena seemed to be sinking. And the buildings and docks were crumbling apart and sliding into the harbor. Jackson couldn't understand what he was looking at. Somehow the land was caving in, pouring into the harbor. But how was that possible? Jackson sat there on the ground, blinking hard. None of this could be real! But every time he opened his eyes, more of the waterfront was gone. The warehouse. The cannery. The cars and trucks. And it wasn't just the waterfront right in front of him. Looking up and down the coast, all the land along the water seemed to be melting away. Louder. Harder. Louder. Harder.

蛇。尖叫声盖过了咆哮声。 就在这时，传来了一个非常响亮的声音，杰克逊确信他的耳朵都要爆炸了。 WHHHOOOOSHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !人们停止了奔跑和爬行，回头盯着装货码头。 “中国号”似乎正在下沉。 建筑物和码头摇摇欲坠，滑向港口。 杰克逊不明白他在看什么。 不知怎么的，陆地开始下陷，涌进了港口。 但这怎么可能呢？ 杰克逊坐在地上，使劲眨着眼睛。 这一切都不可能是真的！但每当他睁开眼睛，就会发现更多的滨水区消失了。 仓库。罐头厂。 汽车和卡车。他面前的不只是海滨。 朝海岸上下望去，水边的所有土地似乎都在融化。 响亮。困难。响亮。困难。

Jackson slammed his eyes shut. He couldn't watch. He had to get away. And now, through his swirl of panic, all he could think of was Mom and Dad and Uncle Solly. He started crawling across the street. He'd made it halfway across when… CRACK! A massive gash opened in the ground right in front of him.

杰克逊猛地闭上了眼睛。 他无法观看。他必须离开。 现在，通过他的恐慌漩涡，他能想到的只有妈妈、爸爸和萨利叔叔。 他开始爬过马路。 他刚走到半路，就……啪！他面前的地上裂开了一道巨大的口子。