68 THE STATION

CHAPTER 68 THE STATION At the edge of town, where the houses stopped and the countryside began, was a small train station. Two platforms sat on either side of the tracks. Humans and robots were standing around, waiting for the next train to arrive. Nobody paid any attention to our robot as she calmly marched past. When Roz was safely out of sight, she slipped into the woods where Brightbill was hiding. The goose opened his mouth to speak, but the station bells started ringing. Speeding down the tracks was a passenger train. A whistle blew, the train gently braked, and a minute later it came to a smooth stop at the station. Passengers burst out of the train cars while others stepped aboard. The first nine cars were reserved for humans and had wide windows and comfortable seats. The only robots allowed in those cars were service robots, who brought food and drinks to the

第六十八章车站在城镇的边缘，房屋停止，乡村开始的地方，有一个小火车站。 轨道两侧各有两个月台。 人类和机器人站在周围，等待下一班火车的到来。 当我们的机器人平静地走过时，没有人注意到她。 当罗兹安全离开视线后，她溜进了布莱特比尔藏身的树林。 母鹅张开嘴想说话，但车站的钟声开始响了起来。 疾驰而下的是一列客运列车。 汽笛一响，火车轻轻地刹车，一分钟后平稳地停在车站。 乘客们从车厢里冲了出来，而其他人则上了车。 前九辆车是为人类保留的，有宽大的窗户和舒适的座位。 那些车里唯一允许的机器人是服务机器人，它们会把食物和饮料送到

human passengers. All other robots were confined to the windowless car at the end of the train. "Where's it going?" whispered Brightbill as he peeked out from the brush. "The sign says this is the express train to the city," whispered Roz. The goose turned to his mother. "We have to go past the city to get home. This train could save us a lot of time. We should hop on!" The robot turned to her son. "I do not think that is a good idea. It is too risky." "Ma, I watched you walk through town, and no one even noticed you. We'll be fine! Let's follow those robots into the last car, I'll find a hiding spot, and we'll be in the city before you know it!" Roz had questions. "How large is the city? Do you know where to go? What if we get lost?" "Relax, Ma. My pigeon friend, Graybeak, lives there. She'll be happy to help us." A voice called out from the loudspeaker, and the last couple of passengers hurried along the platform. "I'm going to check it out!" said Brightbill. With a quick flurry of wingbeats he fluttered out from the brush and onto the roof of the last train car. The

人类的乘客。所有其他的机器人都被限制在火车尾部没有窗户的车厢里。 “它要去哪儿？”布莱特比尔从灌木丛里探出头来，小声问。 “指示牌上说这是去城里的快车，”罗兹小声说。 母鹅转向他的妈妈。 “我们必须经过城市才能回家。 这列火车可以节省我们很多时间。 我们应该跳上去！”机器人转向她的儿子。 “我不认为这是个好主意。 这太冒险了。”“妈妈，我看着你走过小镇，甚至没有人注意到你。 我们会没事的！我们跟着那些机器人上最后一辆车，我会找到一个藏身之处，很快我们就能进城了！”罗兹有疑问。 “这个城市有多大？”你知道去哪儿吗？ 如果我们迷路了怎么办？”“放松,妈。 我的鸽子朋友格雷比克就住在那里。 她会很乐意帮助我们的。” 一个声音从扩音器里传来，最后几个乘客沿着站台匆匆而过。 “我要去看看！”布莱特比尔说。 他迅速地拍打着翅膀，从灌木丛中飞了出来，落到了最后一节火车车厢的车顶上。 的

goose lowered his long neck and looked through the open door. Then he looked back and waved for his mother to join him. A whistle blew and Brightbill waved faster. Roz had little choice, so she slipped out of the trees and marched onto the platform. "In here, Ma!" Brightbill pointed down to the doorway beneath him. Everything about this situation made our robot nervous. Her Survival Instincts were tingling. Roz looked up at her son on the roof. And then she stepped through the train door. But before Brightbill could flutter in behind her, the door slid closed and the train began to move.

鹅垂下长长的脖子，从敞开的门里往外看。 然后他回头，挥手让他的母亲加入他。 哨声响起，布莱特比尔挥得更快了。 萝丝别无选择，于是她从树林里溜出来，大步走向站台。 “在这儿，妈！”布莱特比尔指着下面的门口。 这一切都让我们的机器人感到紧张。 她的求生本能在刺激着她。 罗丝抬头看着屋顶上的儿子。 然后她跨进了车门。 但布莱特比尔还没来得及从她身后扑进来，车门就关上了，火车开动了。