Chapter 4

chapter four I'm pretty fast. Not bragging, just saying. Every grade always has "the fast kid." I was never "the fast kid" but I was "a fast kid." I used to be able to run from my house to the school bus stop, three blocks away, in ninety-nine seconds. The bus left at 7:12 a.m., and my dad always insisted I leave the house at 7:00 a.m. sharp. For no reason! I could have left at 7:10 and still made it to the bus stop with thirty- two seconds to spare! More, if the driver stopped off for a chocolate chunk muffin (which he usually did)! And do you have any idea just how much stuff I could get done between 7:00 and 7:10? Give me ten minutes and I'll write you a detailed list.

第四章我跑得很快。 不是吹牛，只是说说而已。 每个年级都有“跑得快的孩子” 我从来不是“跑得快的孩子”，但我是“一个跑得快的孩子”。 我曾经可以在99秒内从我家跑到三个街区外的校车站。 公共汽车早上7点12分出发，我爸爸总是坚持要我早上7点离开家。 锋利。没有理由！我本可以在7点10分离开，还能在32秒前赶到公共汽车站！如果司机停下来吃一块巧克力松饼（他通常都会这样做），那就更多了！你知道我在7点到7点10分之间能做多少事吗？ 给我十分钟，我给你写一份详细的清单。

But, you know what? None of that speed matters when you are— STUCK INSIDE A DOOM CART BEING DRAGGED BEHIND A GIANT OGRE. If I could get off, I could run. But I can't get off because the Rifter's chain has turned this DoomKart into a tiny version of a space shuttle re-entering Earth's atmosphere. Bits and pieces flying off, sparking, screeching,

但是，你知道吗？当你被困在一辆厄运车里，被拖在一个巨大的食人魔后面时，速度就无关紧要了。 如果我能下车，我就能跑了。 但我下不了车因为裂裂者的锁链把这辆末日卡丁车变成了重返地球大气层的小型航天飞机。 碎片飞溅，火花四溅，尖叫，

metal nearly melting. And I'm just stuck here along for the ride. I try to pay attention to where we are, where we're going, but it's all a blurry jumble of scenery. Suddenly— SHRIEEEK! The creature's monstrous howl. The Rifters must be closing in. And then, suddenly, a wooden shed ahead. The Ogre is stomping through an overgrown backyard. "YIKES!" I cry out, lifting the shield, just as— SMASH!

快要熔化的金属。而我却被困在这里。 我试着注意我们在哪里，我们要去哪里，但这一切都是一堆模糊的风景。 突然——SHRIEEEK !那怪物可怕的嚎叫。 裂谷党人一定在逼近。 然后，突然，前面有一个木棚子。 食人魔正穿过杂草丛生的后院。 “呀! !”我举起盾牌喊道，就像——砸！

The shed does serious damage. The steering wheel pops up and nearly takes off my left ear. My fancy new shield is busted up. My spear, slung over my back, snaps in half. But it's not all bad. Looking down I see that— "I'M FREE!" I shout. The chain is now hooked to the pedal—not my foot! Sure, I'm still inside a quickly disintegrating DoomKart—but at the very least, I'm not trapped.

这棚子损坏严重。 方向盘突然冒了出来，差点把我的左耳咬掉。 我漂亮的新盾牌坏了。 我的矛，挂在背上，断成两半。 但也不全是坏事。低头一看，我看到——“我自由了！”我喊。 链条现在钩在了踏板上——不是我的脚！当然，我还在一辆快速解体的末日赛车里——但至少，我没有被困住。

Now I just need a way off this thing. I need something I can jump to—something that will break my fall without, y'know, breaking me. Like a haystack. Or a bouncy castle. Or the world's most epic pillow fort. Unfortunately, within my immediate range of vision, I see no haystacks, no bouncy castles, and no epic pillow forts. But—hmm—I do spot something like a mound of oversized M&Ms. Globes of color: oranges and blues and faded greens. I realize it's better than any bouncy pillow haystack fort: "A ball pit!" Okay, ya germy pool of plastic, I think. Here I come! And with that, I hurl myself from the DoomKart...

现在我得想个办法摆脱这事。 我需要一个能让我跳起来的东西——一个能让我不摔下去而又不会把我摔断的东西。 像干草堆一样。或者一个充气城堡。 或者是世界上最壮观的枕头堡。 不幸的是，在我的视线范围内，我没有看到干草堆，没有充气城堡，也没有史诗般的枕头堡垒。 但是，嗯，我确实看到了一堆超大的m&m巧克力豆。 颜色的球体：橙色，蓝色和褪色的绿色。 我意识到这比任何有弹性的枕头干草堆堡垒都好：“球坑！”好吧，我想是塑料的细菌池。 我来了！说完，我从末日赛车上跳了下来……

DARING BOOMKART ESCAPE. This was a bad idea. I land in a heap and sink into the ball pit. I keep my eyes screwed shut, listening to the sound of the Ogres' trampling feet fading into the distance. My elbows and knees are scraped, my teeth seem to be vibrating, and I'm mostly positive I swallowed a bug... possibly a bird. But that's okay, 'cause.... "I'M ALIVE!" I cry out. "Alive! Alive and... I have no idea where I am!"

大胆的boomkart逃跑。这是个坏主意。 我摔成一堆，掉进了球坑里。 我紧闭双眼，听着食人魔的脚步声渐渐消失在远处。 我的手肘和膝盖擦伤了，我的牙齿似乎在振动，我很肯定我吞了一只虫子…… 可能是一只鸟。不过没关系，因为.... “我还活着!”我喊道。“活着!活着,… 我不知道我在哪里！”