银河系漫游指南国语 经典科幻文学:《银河系漫游指南》第22章3

经典科幻文学:《银河系漫游指南》第22章3  

He pointed down into the crater.
"Is that robot yours?" he said.
"No
" came a thin metallic voice from the crater
"I'm mine."
"If you'd call it a robot
" muttered Arthur. "It's more a sort of electronic sulking machine."
"Bring it
" said the old man. Arthur was quite surprised to hear a note of decision suddenly present in the old man's voice. He called to Marvin who crawled up the slope making a big show of being lame
which he wasn't.
"On second thoughts
" said the old man
"leave it here. You must e with me. Great things are afoot." He turned towards his craft which
though no apparent signal had been given
now drifted quietly towards them through the dark.
Arthur looked down at Marvin
who now made an equally big show of turning round laboriously and trudging off down into the crater again muttering sour nothings to himself.
"Come
" called the old man
"e now or you will be late."
"Late?" said Arthur. "What for?"
"What is your name
human?"
"Dent. Arthur Dent
" said Arthur.
"Late
as in the late Dentarthurdent
" said the old man
sternly. "It's a sort of threat you see." Another wistful look came into his tired old eyes. "I've never been very good at them myself
but I'm told they can be very effective."
Arthur blinked at him.
"What an extraordinary person
" he muttered to himself.
"I beg your pardon?" said the old man.
"Oh nothing
I'm sorry
" said Arthur in embarrassment. "Alright
where do we go?"
"In my aircar
" said the old man motioning Arthur to get into the craft which had settled silently next to them. "We are going deep into the bowels of the pla where even now our race is being revived from its five-million-year slumber. Magrathea awakes."
Arthur shivered involuntarily as he seated himself next to the old man. The strangeness of it
the silent bobbing movement of the craft as it soared into the night sky quite unsettled him.