Chapter 17

chapter seventeen When we finally get back on the road, the sun is starting to go down. Everything is drenched in a soothing, creamsicle orange and even the awful vines sparkle gold. It's beautiful. And we all must think so because, for a moment, we're all quiet. Except for Neon. Now that he's bandaged up, Neon has a lot more spring in his step. I mean, he's practically prancing! It's a whole lotta cute, a little bit out-of-control, and kinda painful.

第十七章当我们终于回到路上时，太阳开始下山了。 所有的一切都被一种柔和的橘色所浸透，甚至那些可怕的藤蔓也闪闪发光。 它是美丽的。我们都必须这么想，因为有那么一刻，我们都很安静。 除了氖。现在他已经包扎好了，他的步伐更加轻快了。 我是说，他简直是在跳跃！很可爱，有点失控，还有点痛苦。

Neon is exhausting—but the longer I'm with him, the more I'm sure that he's not evil. Evil monsters emit a stench, always. Blarg, Thrull, Ghazt—they all stank. Like how the smell of bad milk tells you "don't drink me!" the odor of evil practically screams "RUN FAR AWAY!" But Neon pretty much just smells like water balloons and magic markers. What if Winged Wretches aren't destined to be evil from the moment they're hatched? Maybe they just turn evil because they're raised to be evil? Or... maybe they have, like, a big "YOU'RE EVIL NOW!" party when they hit a certain age, like a quincea.era or a sweet sixteen....

霓虹灯让人筋疲力尽——但我和他在一起的时间越长，我就越确信他不是邪恶的。 邪恶的怪物总是散发出恶臭。 Blarg, Thrull， ghazt——他们都很臭。 就像坏牛奶的气味告诉你“不要喝我！”邪恶的气味几乎是在尖叫“跑远点！”但霓虹灯闻起来就像水球和魔笔。 如果长翅膀的可怜虫从出生的那一刻起就注定不是邪恶的呢？ 也许他们变坏是因为他们从小就被灌输邪恶的思想？ 还是……也许当他们到了一定年龄的时候，他们会举办一个大型的“YOU'RE EVIL NOW!”派对，比如成人礼。还是甜蜜的十六岁....

I'm thinking about important stuff like birthday parties and the nature of evil when we reach a railroad crossing. The tracks stretch out endlessly to the east and the west. "Ahh, yes," Johnny Steve says. "Now we are getting close." "He's right," Globlet says. "Look." Squinting, I see something in the sky—way, way off in the distance. It takes me a second to realize that they are Wretches—they're so far away they don't look any bigger than seagulls. There are a dozen of them, lazily circling in the sky, like buzzards.

当我们到达铁路道口时，我在想一些重要的事情，比如生日派对和邪恶的本质。 铁轨向东向西无限延伸。 “啊，是的，”约翰尼·史蒂夫说。 “现在我们正在接近目标。” “他是对的，”Globlet说。 “看。”我眯起眼睛，看到天空中有什么东西，在很远的地方。 我花了一秒钟才意识到他们是可怜虫——他们离得那么远，看起来并不比海鸥大。 有十几只，像秃鹰一样懒洋洋地在空中盘旋。

"We simply follow these tracks," Johnny Steve says, pointing. "Thataway." I look down at the train tracks. "Thataway" leads east. But I have to wonder.... Railroad tracks are like man-made rivers—you follow them long enough, and you'll always get someplace helpful. And I wonder what someplace helpful might lie in the other direction. There is a sign at the crossing. Moss has grown over it, and it's covered in caked-on dirt. I step toward it, reach out, and wipe it off. Beneath the grime, I see the words: Shady Side. Two miles west. Shady Side. That rings a bell. I've seen that name before... Of course. THE MAP! After the Monster Apocalypse, during the months when I was alone at the middle school—I spent endless hours poring over a map of Wakefield and all its surrounding towns and cities.

“我们只是跟着这些痕迹走，”约翰尼·史蒂夫指着说。 “朝那个方向。”我低头看着铁轨。 “那条路”通向东方。但是我想知道.... 铁路就像人造的河流——你沿着它们走得足够长，你总会到达一个有用的地方。 我想知道在另一个方向会有什么有用的东西。 十字路口有一个标志。 上面长满了苔藓，上面覆盖着一层结块的泥土。 我走向它，伸手把它擦掉。 在污垢下面，我看到了这样的字：背阴面。 往西两英里。阴暗的一面。 这听起来有点耳熟。我以前见过这个名字…… 当然可以。地图!怪物启示录之后，在我独自一人在中学的那几个月里，我花了无数的时间仔细研究韦克菲尔德及其周围所有城镇的地图。

I was looking for places where survivors might have ended up, like army bases. I didn't find any. But man, I looked at those maps for so long. I'd never forget a single town name. The reason I know the name Shady Side: it's on the same train line as Wakefield! If I follow these tracks west, I will GET BACK HOME.

我在寻找幸存者可能会去的地方，比如军事基地。 我没有找到。但是，我看那些地图看了太久了。 我从来不会忘记一个小镇的名字。 我之所以知道Shady Side这个名字是因为它和维克菲尔德在同一条铁路线上！如果我沿着这些足迹往西走，我就能回家了。