22 THE WOLVES

CHAPTER 22 THE WOLVES The attack happened at dusk. Seven beastly shapes bounded over the fence and into the pasture. Old Annabelle had wandered off from the herd, and now she made an easy target. The Herding Machine saw the wolves coming and rolled in their direction. But the hunters were clever. They split up, darted past the clunky machine, and surrounded their target. The wolf pack was led by a large male. His name was Shadow, and it was easy to see why. He was quick and quiet and covered in dark fur, except for a long, pale scar that streaked across his body like a comet. Shadow locked eyes with the cow, distracting her with his fierce gaze. And when his pack was in position, he said, "Attack!" The wolves lunged, snapping their jaws at the cow's skinny legs. Annabelle kicked and hollered, "Stay away from me, you brutes!" She was a big

第二十二章狼袭击发生在黄昏。 七个野兽的身影跳跃着越过篱笆，进入了牧场。 老安娜贝尔从兽群中走散了，现在她成了一个容易对付的目标。 放牧机器看到狼群来了，就朝他们的方向滚去。 但是猎人很聪明。 他们分头跑过那台笨重的机器，包围了他们的目标。 狼群由一只大公狼带领。 他的名字叫影子，这很容易理解。 它敏捷而安静，全身都是黑色的皮毛，只有一条长长的、苍白的伤疤像彗星一样划过它的身体。 影子盯着奶牛，用他凶狠的目光分散了她的注意力。 当他的狼群就位后，他说：“进攻！”狼猛扑过去，咬住了牛的细腿。 安娜贝尔又踢又叫，“离我远点，你们这些畜生！”她是个大

animal, but the wolves knew what to do. They kept biting her, kept taunting her, kept wearing her down. The herd watched from afar. They cried out to their friend—they wanted to help, but they were too frightened to move. Well, reader, you can guess who came to the rescue. Footsteps thundered across the pasture and Roz leaped into the fight. Had she swung her fists or kicked her feet, the wolf pack might have fled. But the robot wasn't programmed to be violent. All she could do was awkwardly defend the cow. Roz felt teeth chomping her arm, she felt claws slashing her chest. Her pain sensors flared and she howled, "Leave us alone!" The robot's booming voice startled the wolves, and in that instant she pried one of them away. Then Annabelle landed a hard kick, and another wolf tumbled backward into the grass. More help was coming. The other cows had finally found their courage, and the angry herd was on the march. The wolves had missed their chance. Shadow gave a frustrated grunt, and the pack retreated. They dashed through the pasture, leaped over the fence, and disappeared into the trees. The robot activated her headlights, and shafts of

动物，但狼知道该怎么做。 他们不停地咬她，不停地嘲弄她，不停地折磨她。 鹿群远远地看着。 他们向他们的朋友喊着——他们想帮忙，但他们太害怕了，动弹不得。 好吧，读者，你可以猜到是谁来救他了。 牧场上响起了雷鸣般的脚步声，罗兹也加入了战斗。 如果她挥一挥拳头或踢一踢脚，狼群可能就会逃走。 但这个机器人并没有被编程为暴力。 她所能做的就是笨拙地保护奶牛。 罗兹感到牙齿在咬她的手臂，她感到爪子在割她的胸膛。 她的痛觉传感器突然亮了起来，她嚎叫道：“别烦我们！”机器人低沉的声音吓了狼，就在那一刻，她把其中一只狼撬开了。 然后安娜贝尔狠狠地踢了一脚，另一只狼倒在草地上。 更多的援助来了。其他的牛终于鼓起了勇气，愤怒的牛群开始行军。 狼群失去了机会。 黑影沮丧地哼了一声，狼群撤退了。 他们冲过牧场，跳过篱笆，消失在树林里。 机器人打开了她的前灯，和轴

light beamed out from her eyes. While the herd crowded around, Roz carefully examined Annabelle's injuries. "I need to clean and dress these bite wounds," said the robot. "But you will be okay." "Of course I'll be okay," the cow panted. "I'm old, but I'm feisty. Those wolves don't scare me." Anabelle talked tough, but there was no mistaking the fear in her eyes. All the cows were afraid. They knew that if the wolves attacked again, their next victim might not be so fortunate.

她的眼睛闪闪发光。 当鹿群围拢过来时，罗兹仔细检查了安娜贝尔的伤势。 “我需要清洗和包扎这些咬伤，”机器人说。 “但你会没事的。”“我当然会没事的，”母牛喘着气说。 “我老了，但我很有活力。那些狼吓不倒我。” 安娜贝尔说得很强硬，但她眼中的恐惧是显而易见的。 所有的奶牛都很害怕。他们知道如果狼群再次袭击，下一个受害者可能就没这么幸运了。