26 THE PERFORMER

CHAPTER 26 THE PERFORMER Up in the sprawling oak, the goose egg was peeping and wobbling around its nest. "Mama! Mama!" said the egg. "I am not your mother," said the robot. The egg continued peeping and wobbling until nightfall, when the gosling inside settled down to sleep and the egg became quiet and still. The robot was about to settle into her own kind of sleep when she heard something in the underbrush below. Roz peered down from the branches and saw weeds rustling in the moonlight. A creature was crawling past. But the creature stayed low, hiding in the darkest shadows, so that Roz couldn't see who it was. Roz wasn't the only one watching. A pair of furry ears rose up behind a log. The ears belonged to a very hungry badger. He lay in wait as the shadowy creature came closer and closer, and when the time was right, the badger pounced.

第二十六章表演者在那棵伸展的橡树上，那只鹅蛋正围着它的窝偷偷地张望着，摇晃着。 “妈妈!妈妈！”蛋说。 “我不是你的妈妈，”机器人说。 蛋不停地窥视着，摇晃着，直到夜幕降临，里面的小鹅睡着了，蛋也安静下来了。 机器人正要进入她自己的睡眠，这时她听到下面的灌木丛里有什么声音。 罗兹从树枝上往下看，看到野草在月光下沙沙作响。 一个生物爬了过去。 但是那个生物一直很低，躲在最黑暗的阴影里，所以罗兹看不见它是谁。 并不是只有罗兹一个人在看。 一对毛茸茸的耳朵从一根圆木后面冒了出来。 耳朵属于一只非常饥饿的獾。 他躺在那里等着那个影子越来越近，等到时机成熟，獾猛扑过来。

You might expect a creature under attack to run for her life, or to defend herself, or at the very least to scream. But when the badger pounced, this creature just rolled onto her back, stuck out her tongue, and died. Not only was she dead, she was rotten, and the badger's face twisted with disgust. "Blecch! What a stench!" He pawed at the stinky corpse a few times and then gave up. "No, thanks," he grumbled to himself. "I'd rather eat beetles." And the badger hurried off to find a less disgusting meal. Had that mysterious creature been frightened to death? And how could her body possibly rot so quickly? Roz was confused. And the robot became considerably more confused an hour later, when the dead creature's ears began to flicker, her nose began to twitch, and she rolled onto her feet and went on her way as if nothing had happened. The robot's voice called down from the tree. "Are you alive or are you dead?" The creature's voice hissed up from the shadows. "Who's there? Why have you been watching me?" "What you just did was unbelievable," said Roz. "I could not look away."

你可能会认为受到攻击的生物会逃命，或者自卫，或者至少会尖叫。 但当獾猛扑过来时，这只动物只是滚到她的背上，伸出舌头，死了。 她不仅死了，而且腐烂了，獾厌恶地扭曲着脸。 “Blecch !好臭啊！”他抓了那具臭烘烘的尸体几下，就放弃了。 “不用了，谢谢。”他自言自语道。 “我宁愿吃甲虫。”獾急忙跑去找不那么恶心的食物。 那个神秘的生物是不是被吓死了？ 她的尸体怎么可能这么快就腐烂了？ 罗兹很困惑。一个小时后，机器人变得更加困惑了，这个死去的生物的耳朵开始颤动，鼻子开始抽动，她翻身站起来，若无其事地走了。 机器人的声音从树上传来。 “你是活着还是死了？”那怪物的声音从阴影里嘶嘶地传来。 “谁在那里?你为什么一直盯着我？”罗兹说：“你刚刚做的事情令人难以置信。 “我无法转移视线。”

"Unbelievable? Really?" The creature's voice seemed to be softening. "I thought perhaps I overdid it when I stuck out my tongue." "I was certain you were dead." "Oh, what a lovely thing to say!" "Were you dead?" "Well, of course not! Nobody can actually come back from the dead. It was just an act!" "I do not understand." "It's simple. I knew that if I played dead and really laid it on thick, that old badger would be so disgusted that he'd run off. And that is exactly what happened. We opossums are natural performers, you know." "So, you are an opossum." Roz's computer brain quickly retrieved any information it had on opossums. "You are a marsupial, and are nocturnal, and are known for mimicking the appearance and smell of dead animals when threatened."

“难以置信?真的吗?”那家伙的声音似乎变得柔和了。 “我想也许我伸出舌头的时候做得过火了。” “我肯定你已经死了。” “啊，你说得多好听啊！”“你死了吗？”“哦，当然不是！”没有人真的能死而复生。 那只是一场表演！”“我不明白。” “这很简单。我知道，如果我装死，装腔作势，那只老獾一定会厌恶得跑掉的。 事实就是如此。 你知道，我们负鼠是天生的表演者。” “所以，你是一只负鼠。”罗兹的电脑大脑很快就能检索到关于负鼠的任何信息。 “你是一种有袋类动物，是夜行动物，当受到威胁时，你会模仿死去动物的样子和气味。”

"It's true, death scenes are my specialty," said the opossum. "But I have a wide dramatic range, believe me." "I believe you." "Have you done any acting?" said the opossum. "I have not," said the robot. "Well, you should! You might enjoy it. You can start by imagining the character you'd like to be. How do they move and speak? What are their hopes and fears? How do others react to them? Only when you truly understand a character can you become that character…" The two odd creatures sat there, one in a tree, the other in the weeds, and talked about acting. The opossum went on and on about her various acting methods and her triumphant performances, and our robot absorbed every word. "But why do you pretend to be something you are not?" said the robot. "Because it's fun!" said the opossum. "And because it helps me survive, as you just saw. You never know, it might help you survive too." Soon, the robot's computer brain was humming with activity. Performing could be a survival

“是的，死亡场景是我的专长，”负鼠说。 “但相信我，我的戏剧范围很广。” “我相信你。”“你演过戏吗？”负鼠说。 “我没有，”机器人说。 “嗯，你应该！”你可能会喜欢的。 你可以从想象你想成为的角色开始。 他们如何移动和说话？ 他们的希望和恐惧是什么？ 其他人对此有何反应？ 只有当你真正理解一个角色时，你才能成为那个角色……”那两个奇怪的生物坐在那里，一个在树上，一个在杂草中，谈论着表演。 负鼠滔滔不绝地讲着她的各种表演方法和得意的表演，我们的机器人听着她说的每一句话。 “但是你为什么要装成你不是的样子呢？”机器人说。 “因为它很有趣！”负鼠说。 “正如你刚才看到的，因为它帮助我生存。 你永远不知道，它也可能帮助你生存下去。” 很快，机器人的电脑大脑开始活跃起来。 表演可以是一种生存

strategy! If the opossum could pretend to be dead, the robot could pretend to be alive. She could act less robotic and more natural. And if she could pretend to be friendly, she might make some friends. And they might help her live longer, and better. Yes, this was an excellent plan. Roz wasted no time and spoke her next words in the friendliest voice she could muster. "Madam marsupial, it would be a great honor and absolute privilege if you would kindly inform me of your name." Roz's friendly demeanor needed some work, but it was a start. "Yes, of course!" said the opossum. "My name is Pinktail. And you are?" Leaves gently shook as Roz climbed down from the tree. "It is a very lovely pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear Pinktail." A moment later, the robot stepped into the moonlight. "My name is Roz." "Oh my!" the opossum gasped. "You're the m-m-monster!" "I am not a monster. I am a robot. And I am harmless." "Harmless? Really? Well, you do seem rather gentle. And I heard someone say that you don't eat

策略!如果负鼠可以装死，机器人就可以装活。 她可以表现得不那么机械，更自然。 如果她能假装友好，她可能会交到一些朋友。 它们可能会帮助她活得更长、更好。 是的，这是个绝妙的计划。 罗兹没有浪费时间，用她能鼓起的最友好的声音说了接下来的话。 “有袋动物女士，如果您能告诉我您的名字，这将是我莫大的荣幸和绝对的特权。” 罗兹的友好风度还有待改进，但这是一个开始。 “是的，当然！”负鼠说。 “我叫粉红尾巴。你是谁？”当罗兹从树上爬下来时，树叶轻轻地摇晃着。 “我亲爱的粉红尾巴，认识你是一件非常愉快的事。” 过了一会儿，机器人走进了月光里。 “我叫罗兹。”“哦，天哪！”负鼠喘着气说。 “你就是那个怪物！”“我不是怪物。 我是一个机器人。我是无害的。” “无害吗?真的吗?嗯，你看起来确实很温柔。 我听人说你不吃东西

any food at all, which makes no sense, but hopefully it means you won't eat me?" "I will not eat you," said the robot. "I'm so glad to hear that," said the opossum. And a moment later, she too stepped into the moonlight. "It's nice to meet you, Roz." A weak smile appeared on Pinktail's pointy face. Roz thought things were going really well. But she didn't know what to say next. Neither did Pinktail. So the two friendly creatures just stood there together and listened to the crickets for a while. "Well, I should be on my way," said Pinktail at last. "Have a nice evening, Roz." "Have the nicest evening, Pinktail. I shall look forward to the pleasure of encountering you again in the future. Soon, I hope. Farewell." With that awkward good-bye, Pinktail slipped back into the weeds and Roz climbed back into the tree.

任何食物都可以，这说不通，但希望这意味着你不会吃我？”“我不会吃你的，”机器人说。 “我很高兴听到这个消息，”负鼠说。 过了一会儿，她也走进了月光里。 “很高兴见到你，罗兹。” 粉红尾巴尖尖的脸上露出一丝淡淡的微笑。 罗兹觉得事情进展得很顺利。 但她不知道接下来该说什么。 粉红尾巴也没有。所以这两个友好的生物就站在一起，听了一会儿蟋蟀的叫声。 “好了，我该上路了。”粉红尾巴终于说。 “祝你晚上愉快，罗兹。” “祝你晚上过得愉快，粉红尾巴。 我期待着将来能有幸再次见到你。 我希望很快。告别。”说完尴尬的告别，粉红尾巴溜回了草丛中，罗兹爬回了树上。