科幻文学作品网 经典科幻文学:《宇宙尽头的餐馆》第9章3

经典科幻文学:《宇宙尽头的餐馆》第9章3  

“OK
” muttered the bird morosely and flapped off into the dust again.
Zaphod watched its departure in bewilderment.
“Did that bird just talk to me?” he asked Marvin nervously. He was quite prepared to believe the alternative explanation
that he was in fact hallucinating.
“Yes
” confirmed Marvin.
“Poor souls
” said a deep
ethereal voice in Zaphod’s ear.
Twisting round violently to find the source of the voice nearly caused Zaphod to fall off the building. He grabbed savagely at a protruding window fitting and cut his hand on it. He hung on
breathing heavily.
The voice had no visible source whatever – there was no one there. Nevertheless
it spoke again.
“A tragic history behind them
you know. A terrible blight.”
Zaphod looked wildly about. The voice was deep and quiet. In other circumstances it would even be described as soothing. There is
however
nothing soothing about being addressed by a disembodied voice out of nowhere
particularly if you are
like Zaphod Beeblebrox
not at your best and hanging from a ledge eight storeys up a crashed building.
“Hey
er…” he stammered.
“Shall I tell you their story?” inquired the voice quietly.
“Hey
who are you?” panted Zaphod. “Where are you?”
“Later then
perhaps
” murmured the voice. “I am Gargravarr. I am the Custodian of the Total Perspective Vortex.”
“Why can’t I see…”
“You will find your progress down the building greatly facilitated
” the voice lifted
“if you move about o yards to your left. Why don’t you try it?”
Zaphod looked and saw a series of short horizontal grooves leading all the way down the side of the building. Gratefully he shifted himself across to them.
“Why don’t I see you again at the bottom?” said the voice in his ear
and as it spoke it faded.
“Hey
” called out Zaphod
“Where are you…”
“It’ll only take a couple of minutes…” said the voice very faintly.
“Marvin
” said Zaphod earnestly to the robot squatting dejectedly next to him
“Did a… did a voice just…”
“Yes
” Marvin replied tersely.