78 THE CHASE

CHAPTER 78 THE CHASE The street was empty. No people walking, no robots working, no automobiles driving. Roz looked to the sky, hoping to see Brightbill or Strutter. But what she saw was a fleet of white triangular airships. They were floating over the city, searching for the runaway robot, and they had just spotted her. "ROZZUM unit 7134, do not move!" Three robots zipped down from a ship on cables. They were RECOs 10, 11, and 12. Each held a rifle at his side, but they didn't fire their weapons, not yet. Their orders were to retrieve the target unharmed, if possible. Our robot's Survival Instincts blared like sirens in her head, and she burst away from the RECOs. She sprinted down the empty street and turned onto another empty street. All the streets seemed to be empty, but they wouldn't be empty for long. More and more big, bulky robots came zipping down to

第七十八章追捕街上空无一人。 没有人走路，没有机器人工作，没有汽车行驶。 罗兹望向天空，希望能看到布莱特比尔或斯特拉特。 但她看到的是一群白色的三角形飞艇。 他们漂浮在城市上空，寻找逃跑的机器人，他们正好发现了她。 “ROZZUM 7134单元，不许动！”三个机器人用缆绳从船上滑了下来。 分别是reco 10, 11和12。 每个人身边都拿着一支步枪，但他们没有开枪，还没有。 他们的任务是尽可能毫发无损地救出目标。 我们的机器人的生存本能像警笛一样在她的脑海里鸣响，她冲出了RECOs。 她冲过空荡荡的街道，拐进另一条空荡荡的街道。 所有的街道似乎都是空的，但他们不会空太久。 越来越多又大又笨重的机器人来到这里

join the chase. The RECOs moved like machines. Their target moved like an animal. The wild robot stayed low, gliding across the streets, darting around buildings, vanishing into the shadows. Her computer brain thought back to those games of hide-and-seek she had played on the farm. But this was no game. Roz never should have gone into that alley. She was halfway through it when RECOs appeared at both ends. There was only one direction to go. Using all the strength in her legs, our robot launched herself high into the air and she clamped onto the side of a building. Frightened faces peered out from a window. But Roz didn't want to frighten anyone! She just wanted to go home! The robot launched herself up and across the alley and clamped onto the opposite building. Back and forth she went, leaping between the buildings, climbing higher and higher, until she landed on a flat, lofty rooftop. The sky was filled with white airships. All at once, the ships turned toward Roz. Their engines buzzed as they closed in on our robot. But then came a strange swishing noise. Pigeons! Hundreds of them! Thousands of them! Wave upon wave of pigeons

加入追击。RECOs像机器一样移动。 他们的目标像动物一样移动。 这个狂野的机器人保持着低姿态，在街道上滑行，在建筑物周围飞奔，消失在阴影中。 她的电脑大脑回想起她在农场玩的那些捉迷藏游戏。 但这不是游戏。罗兹就不该去那条巷子。 她刚读到一半，RECOs就在两端出现了。 只有一条路可走。 利用她腿上所有的力量，我们的机器人将自己高高发射到空中，她夹在了一栋建筑的侧面。 惊恐的面孔从窗户向外窥视。 但是罗兹不想吓到任何人！她只想回家！机器人跳起来，穿过小巷，夹在对面的建筑物上。 她来来回回，在建筑物之间跳来跳去，越爬越高，最后降落在一个平坦、高耸的屋顶上。 天空中布满了白色的飞艇。 突然，两艘船转向了罗兹。 当他们接近我们的机器人时，引擎发出嗡嗡声。 但随后传来了一种奇怪的嗖嗖声。 鸽子!好几百只！成千上万的人！一波又一波的鸽子

streamed up from the streets and swarmed around the airships. Strutter had rallied her friends from every corner of the city. They had always hated airships, buzzing loudly, crowding the skies, forcing the birds to fly low. And now a city's worth of pigeons were finally unleashing their anger. As you'd expect, the airships fought back. Blazing beams of light flickered across the skyline and left charred feathers floating on the breeze. But the pigeons didn't retreat—they tightened around the ships, distracting them, confusing them. There was a deafening screech, little bodies fell, and a ship spiraled out of sight, leaving a trail of smoke behind it. Roz watched in horror as more pigeons and ships went down. She hollered for the birds to fly away, but they were lost in a fighting frenzy. Heavy feet thumped onto the roof. "ROZZUM unit 7134, do not move!" Roz didn't look. She just ran from the voice, leaped to the next rooftop, and kept on running. Our robot leaped up to a higher rooftop and then down to a lower one. Up and down she went, leaping from building to building, footsteps thundering behind her. But still, the RECOs did not fire their rifles.

从街上涌上来，簇拥在飞艇周围。 斯特拉特从城市的各个角落召集了她的朋友。 他们一直讨厌飞艇，它们嗡嗡作响，挤在空中，迫使鸟儿低飞。 现在整个城市的鸽子终于发泄了他们的愤怒。 正如你所料，飞艇反击了。 炽热的光束在天际线上闪烁，烧焦的羽毛在微风中漂浮。 但是鸽子并没有撤退——它们紧紧地围绕在船的周围，分散它们的注意力，迷惑它们。 一声震耳欲聋的尖叫，一个个小尸体纷纷倒下，一艘船盘旋着消失在人们的视线之外，身后留下一缕烟雾。 罗兹惊恐地看着更多的鸽子和船只坠落。 她大声叫着让鸟儿飞走，但它们在疯狂的战斗中迷失了方向。 沉重的脚步重重地踩在屋顶上。 “ROZZUM 7134单元，不许动！”罗兹没有看。 她只是从声音中跑开，跳到下一个屋顶，继续跑。 我们的机器人跳到更高的屋顶上，然后又跳到更低的屋顶上。 她上上下下，从一栋楼跳到另一栋楼，身后的脚步声震耳欲聋。 但是，RECOs仍然没有发射他们的步枪。

"Mama, I'm here!" Brightbill swooped alongside his mother as she ran. "What should we do?" "Brightbill, you must fly to safety!" hollered Roz. "It is too dangerous up here!" And then in a softer voice the robot said, "I cannot escape." "No! Mama! You've come so far, don't give up now!" But Roz was finished running. She slowed and stopped at the edge of the rooftop. The goose fluttered into her arms, and our friends held each other close. "You have been such a good son," said Roz. "You have saved my life so many times. But now you must save yourself and go on without me." "Will I see you again?" said Brightbill, wiping his eyes. "I do not think so," said Roz. They still had so much to say to each other. There simply wasn't any more time. So they said the only words that really mattered. "I love you, Mama." "I love you, son." Airships circled above. RECOs dropped onto rooftops.

“妈妈，我在这儿！”布莱特比尔在妈妈跑的时候猛扑到她身边。 “我们该怎么办？”“布莱特比尔，你必须飞到安全的地方！”罗兹喊道。 “这儿太危险了！”然后，机器人用一种更柔和的声音说：“我逃不掉。” “不!妈妈!你已经走了这么远，现在不要放弃！”但是罗兹已经跑完了。 她放慢了速度，在屋顶的边缘停了下来。 那只鹅扑扇着翅膀扑进了她的怀里，我们的朋友紧紧地拥抱在一起。 “你真是个好儿子，”罗兹说。 “你救了我很多次。 但现在你必须救自己，自己走吧。” “我还会再见到你吗？”布莱特比尔擦着眼睛说。 “我不这么认为，”罗兹说。 他们仍然有很多话要对彼此说。 时间已经不多了。 所以他们说了唯一重要的话。 “我爱你，妈妈。”“我爱你，儿子。” 飞艇在上空盘旋。侦察机落到了屋顶上。

Rifles pointed at our robot. A voice boomed, "ROZZUM unit 7134, do not move!" But Roz did move. She heaved her son toward the sky so that he could fly to safety, and in that instant a trigger was pulled. A blazing beam of light flashed onto our robot's leg. Damage Sensors flared as the leg turned bright orange and melted away. Poor Roz tried to keep her balance, but she was already toppling backward, off the roof. She seemed to hang in the air, sparkling in the sunlight, and then she fell down down down to the street below. As Roz was falling, she took one last look at Brightbill, soaring in the sky above. She watched him get smaller and smaller. Then everything suddenly went dark.

步枪对准了我们的机器人。 一个声音响起：“ROZZUM 7134单元，别动！”但罗兹确实动了。 她把儿子举向天空，好让他飞到安全的地方，就在那一刻，有人扣动了扳机。 一束耀眼的光闪到了我们机器人的腿上。 当腿变成亮橙色并融化时，损坏传感器突然爆发。 可怜的罗兹试图保持平衡，但她已经向后倾倒，从屋顶上掉了下来。 她似乎悬在空中，在阳光下闪闪发光，然后她掉了下来，掉到下面的街道上。 当罗兹坠落时，她最后看了一眼在天空中翱翔的亮比尔。 她看着他变得越来越小。 然后一切突然变黑了。