66 THE PARENTS

CHAPTER 66 THE PARENTS The Juggernaut was sinking. That massive floating vessel, that mighty industrial structure, was slowly being swallowed by the sea. As water flooded the station, fires were washed out and steam hissed into the air. The main platform disappeared beneath the waves, and then only the buildings and towers still stood above the surface. Soon, they'd also disappear, and the entire station would be lost. On the roof of the control tower, below the twinkling stars, Roz was speaking with the geese. She explained that a fleet of cleanup robots was coming to stop the poison tide and remove it from the ocean. At least that's what the humans had promised. For now, though, the deep-sea mining robot kept working, and the poison tide kept flowing.

第六十六章父母那艘巨轮正在下沉。 那艘巨大的浮船，那巨大的工业结构，正在慢慢地被大海吞没。 当水淹没车站时，火被冲灭了，蒸汽嘶嘶地飘向空中。 主平台消失在海浪下，只有建筑物和塔楼还在水面上。 很快，他们也会消失，整个空间站都会消失。 在控制塔的屋顶上，在闪烁的星星下，罗兹正在和鹅们说话。 她解释说，一队清理机器人即将到来，以阻止毒潮并将其从海洋中清除。 至少这是人类的承诺。 不过，就目前而言，深海采矿机器人还在继续工作，毒潮也在继续流动。

"The humans told me to go home," said Roz. "But I cannot let the poison tide destroy more of the ocean while we wait for the cleanup robots to arrive. And so, in a moment, I will dive down to the mining site, and I will try to stop the mining robot." Brightbill anxiously flapped his wings and squawked, "Ma, you've done enough! Do you really need to take more risks? The island needs you! Your family needs you! I need you!" "Brightbill, you have not needed me since you were very young," said Roz. "Back then, caring for you is what gave my life purpose. Now that you are grown, I have another purpose: to protect the island and the ocean and all of the wilderness. "This reminds me of someone I met on my travels,"

“人类让我回家，”罗兹说。 “但我不能让毒潮破坏更多的海洋，而我们却在等待清理机器人的到来。 所以，过一会儿，我就会潜入采矿现场，试图阻止采矿机器人。” 布莱特比尔焦急地拍打着翅膀，尖声叫道：“妈妈，你做得够多了！你真的需要冒更多的风险吗？ 这个岛需要你！你的家人需要你！我需要你！”“布莱特比尔，你很小的时候就不需要我了，”罗兹说。 “那时，照顾你是我人生的目标。 现在你长大了，我有了另一个目标：保护岛屿、海洋和所有的荒野。 “这让我想起了我在旅行中遇到的一个人。”

Roz continued. "I met an octopus whose whole purpose in life is to take care of her eggs. She will spend her very last breath watching over them, and before they hatch, she will die. She will never meet her own children, and yet her love for them is already so strong that she will sacrifice herself to protect them. If necessary, I am ready to sacrifice myself to protect what I love as well." In a soft voice, Brightbill said, "I think I understand. I would do anything to protect our goslings." "So would I," said Glimmer. "It's funny—not long ago, parenthood wasn't even on my mind. And these days, our goslings are all I can think about. As we speak, I can feel myself being pulled back to them, like gravity." "Those are your instincts telling you that it is time to go home," said Roz. "And I agree." "We'll wait for you, Ma!" said Brightbill. "And then we'll all go home together!" "I would love that," said Roz. "But this could take hours or days or weeks or longer. I simply do not know what will happen down at the mining site." Brightbill sniffled and wiped his eyes. "Ma, I'm worried that our goslings won't get to meet you." "Do not worry!" said Roz in a cheerful voice. "I know the situation seems impossible, but your mother is quite good at dealing with impossible situations."

警察仍在继续。“我遇到过一只章鱼，它一生的全部目的就是照顾自己的卵。 她会用最后一口气守护它们，在它们孵化之前，她就会死去。 她永远见不到自己的孩子，但她对他们的爱已经如此强烈，以至于她愿意牺牲自己来保护他们。 如果有必要，我也准备牺牲自己来保护我所爱的东西。” 布莱特比尔轻声说：“我想我明白了。 我愿意做任何事来保护我们的小鹅。” “我也是。”格里姆说。 “这很有趣——不久前，我甚至还没有考虑过为人父母的问题。 这些天，我满脑子都是小鹅。 就在我们说话的时候，我能感觉到自己被拉回到他们身边，就像地心引力一样。” 罗兹说：“你的直觉告诉你，是时候回家了。” “我同意。”“我们等你，妈妈！”布莱特比尔说。 “然后我们一起回家！”“我很乐意，”罗兹说。 “但这可能需要几个小时、几天、几周甚至更长时间。 我根本不知道采矿现场会发生什么。” 布莱特比尔抽了抽鼻子，擦了擦眼睛。 “妈，我担心我们的小鹅们见不到你了。” “别担心！”罗兹用欢快的声音说。 “我知道这种情况看起来不可能，但你妈妈很擅长处理不可能的情况。”

A little smile appeared on Brightbill's face. Then he and Glimmer hopped onto the robot's shoulders. "I love you, Mama," said Brightbill. "I love you, son," said Roz. "I love both of you. Now go tell my grandgoslings I love them too." Our friends hugged each other. Brightbill and Glimmer lifted up on the breeze. Roz dove off the station and into the sea.

布莱特比尔的脸上露出一丝微笑。 然后他和格里姆跳上了机器人的肩膀。 “我爱你，妈妈，”布莱特比尔说。 “我爱你，儿子，”罗兹说。 “我爱你们两个。现在去告诉我的孙辈们，我也爱他们。” 我们的朋友互相拥抱。 亮比尔和微光乘着微风飘了起来。 罗兹从车站跳入海中。