瘋狂作家

The Crazy Writer

1/109

「哦，天哪，發生了什麼！發生了什麼？！怎麼回事？怎麼回事？」潛水艇驚呼道。

“O h, my goodness, what’s happening! What’s happening?! What’s going on? What’s going on?” exclaimed Submarine.

2/109

「有誰見過這樣的情況嗎？」奶牛問。

“Has anyone ever seen anything like this before?” asked Cow.

3/109

「在我所有的生命中，我從未見過這樣的情況，」野獸回答。

“I’ve never seen anything like this in any of my lives,” replied Beast.

4/109

「喵！我告訴過你這個世界不是真實的！這裡的人也不是真實的。他們就像木偶！」普西拉說。

“Miaow! I told you this world wasn’t real! And the people here aren’t real either. They’re like puppets!” said Puscilla.

5/109

「但他們剛才還是真實的，即使有點奇怪，」傻瓜說。「而且我胃裡的食物告訴我它也是完全真實的。」

“But they were real just a minute ago even if they were a bit weird,” said Eejit. “And the food in my stomach is telling me it’s completely real, too.”

6/109

「普西拉，我想你的問題讓他們普西拉式地崩潰了，就像你說的那樣，」布倫希爾德說。

“Puscilla, I think your question Puscilla-kaputted them, just as you said it would,” said Brunhilda.

7/109

「不只是我！如果有人讓他們普西拉式地崩潰，那是我們所有人一起！」普西拉反對道。「記得嗎，我們都輪流說‘我是我’，然後他們立刻都凍結在自己的貓咪姿勢中。」

“It wasn’t just me! If anyone Puscilla-kaputted them, it was all of us put together!” Puscilla objected. “Remember, we all said,’I am me’ in turn and immediately afterwards they froze all in their own pussy-poses.”

8/109

「這說得還算委婉，」傻瓜說。「他們不只是凍結。更像是他們變成了假人，一個精確的蠟像複製品。」

“That’s putting it mildly,” said Eejit. “They haven’t just frozen. It’s more like they’ve transformed into mannequins, an exact wax copy.”

9/109

「是的，普西拉的問題與此無關。」野獸為他的朋友辯護。「除了女服務員誤解我們之外，問問題並沒有直接導致任何事情發生。她似乎不明白這意味著什麼。她也不明白‘我是我’的意思。」

“Yes, Puscilla’s question has nothing to do with it.” Beast stuck up for his friend. “Nothing happened as a direct result of her asking the question except that the waitress misunderstood us. She did not seem to get what it meant. And she did not understand what ‘I am me’ means either.”

10/109

「親愛的朋友，這是我聽過你說過的最長的解釋，」傻瓜說。「而謎團的關鍵就在你剛才說的話中，雖然我不知道確切在哪裡。」

“My dear friend, that’s the longest explanation I have ever heard you give,” said Eejit. “And the key to the mystery lies somewhere in what you just said, although I don’t know where exactly.”

11/109

「就是這樣，」普西拉說。「為什麼他們不理解這個問題，為什麼他們覺得說出最簡單的短語如此困難？」

“That’s it,” said Puscilla. “Why don’t they understand the question and why do they find it so difficult to say the simplest phrase?”

12/109

「但是普西拉，」布倫希爾德說，「你在那之後問了另一個問題，完全讓女服務員不知所措。連我一開始都不明白。記得嗎？你說，‘你覺得呢，你是在扮演別人的角色，還是有人在扮演你的角色？’你是什麼意思？」

“But Puscilla,” said Brunhilda, “you asked another question after that which completely threw the waitress. Even I did not understand it at first. Remember? You said, ‘What do you think, are you playing the role of another and is someone playing your role instead of you?’ What did you mean by that?”

13/109

「我在這一切開始時就說過，這裡的人讓我想起木偶，彷彿他們被別人控制，他們的行為不是自發的。」

“I said back when all this started that the people here reminded me of puppets as if they were being controlled by someone else and their actions weren’t self- motivated.”

14/109

「這是一個有趣的問題，甚至是哲學性的，」傻瓜說。「也許如果我們能找到答案，我們就能理解他們出了什麼問題，這裡到底發生了什麼。不過如果你想想，這是一個合理的問題，可以問任何一個真正的人。」

“It is an interesting question, philosophical even,” said Eejit. “Perhaps if we can discover the answer to it, we’ll understand what’s wrong with them and what’s going on here in general. If you think about it though, it’s a reasonable question to ask any real person.”

15/109

「真的嗎？如果有人問你這個問題，傻瓜？」潛水艇問。

“Really? What if someone had asked you that question, Eejit?” asked Submarine.

16/109

「我肯定得好好想想，我不確定我會知道怎麼回答。」

“I would definitely have to think very hard and I’m not certain I would know how to answer.”

17/109

「那你呢，普西拉，你認為自己是個木偶嗎？」布倫希爾德問。「我不是想冒犯。我是說，當然你是真實的，只是我不明白你在這裡做什麼。你怎麼會在這裡？你從哪裡來？」

“And what about you, Puscilla, do you think of yourself as a puppet?” asked Brunhilda. “I don’t mean to offend. I mean, of course you are real it’s just I don’t understand what you are doing here. How did you end up here? Where did you come from?”

18/109

「我不知道。我不記得。而你們也不知道或記得你們是怎麼到這裡的，不是嗎？」

“I don’t know. I don’t remember. And you don’t know or remember how you ended up here, either, do you?”

19/109

「我們沒有時間進行哲學思考和回憶，」奶牛說。「事實是，在我們都輪流說‘我是我’之後，一切都立刻凍結了。」

“We don’t have time for philosophy and reminiscing,” said Cow. “The fact of the matter is that everything froze immediately after we all took turns to say, ‘I am me’.”

20/109

「問題是為什麼？」潛水艇說。「到底發生了什麼？哦，看！

“The question is why?” said Submarine. “What happened exactly? Oh, look!

21/109

那是什麼？」

What’s that?”

22/109

潛水艇站在女服務員後面，突然發現女服務員頭後有一個編織的東西，像辮子一樣突出。它發出微弱的白光，這就是為什麼潛水艇之前沒有注意到。她走到女服務員那裡，觸摸那個發光的物體，才發現它不是由任何有形物質製成的，辮子似乎是某種能量形式。同樣令人驚訝的是，辮子在女服務員的肩膀之間結束，融入一條細藍光，垂直向下延伸，而不是在地板上留下光點，似乎消失在地面中。潛水艇把手穿過藍光，但光沒有在她的皮膚上閃耀，而是穿過她的手，從另一邊出來。

Submarine, who was standing behind the waitress, suddenly spotted something woven resembling a plait protruding from the back of the waitress’ head. It was giving off a white glow although quite faintly, which was why Submarine had not noticed it earlier. She went up to the waitress and touched the glimmering object only to discover that rather than being made of any tangible substance, the plait appeared to be some kind of energy form. No less surprising, the plait which came to an end between the waitress’ shoulders merged into a fine blue ray of light which traveled downwards in a vertical line, and rather than leaving a spot of light on the floor seemed to disappear into the ground. Submarine put his hand through the blue ray but rather than glaring on her skin, it passed through her hand and came out the other side.

23/109

朋友們開始檢查其他假人，結果發現他們都有同樣的辮子，轉化為藍色光束。然後朋友們互相檢查，但沒有人顯示出類似的跡象，唯一的例外是女王，她的頭髮編成了一條真正的辮子。

The friends set about examining the other mannequins, who all turned out to have the same kind of plait that transformed into a ray of blue light. The friends then studied each other but none of them showed any sign of having anything similar, the only exception being the queen whose hair was woven into a real plait.

24/109

「我們怎麼會一開始沒注意到這個？」女王驚訝地問。

“How could we not have noticed this straight away?” asked the queen in surprise.

25/109

「我們被他們的不動和蠟像外觀震驚得無法注意到其他東西，」傻瓜回答。

“We were too stunned by their immobility and waxy appearance to notice anything else,” Eejit replied.

26/109

「所以，你是說這些發光的東西只有在他們變成假人時才出現？」潛水艇問。

“So, you’re saying that these glowing things only appeared when they became mannequins?” asked Submarine.

27/109

「喵！我敢打賭他們活著的時候沒有這種東西，」普西拉說。「如果有的話，我肯定會注意到。空服員在我們周圍轉來轉去，我們肯定會注意到。」

“Miaow! I bet my tail they did not have anything like that while they were still alive,” said Puscilla. “I would definitely have noticed if they did. The stavardess was hovering around us turning this way and that. We would surely have noticed.”

28/109

「對。所以，這一切意味著什麼？」布倫希爾德問。「我完全不知道，女王，」野獸回答。

“Right. So, what does this all mean?” asked Brunhilda. “I have absolutely no idea, my queen,” replied Beast.

29/109

「我也不知道，」傻瓜說，這次他找不到其他話可說。「那我們該怎麼辦？」潛水艇問。

“Me neither,” said Eejit, who on this occasion could find nothing else to say. “So, what are we going to do?” asked Submarine.

30/109

「我們去城裡四處走走，好好看看，」女王說。

“Let’s take a wander around the town and take a good look at things,” said queen.

31/109

他們離開咖啡館，沿著街道走去。建築物和周圍的物體看起來和往常一樣，唯一的不同是樹上的葉子完全靜止，沒有一絲波動。空氣中沒有一絲風或其他運動。一切都死一般的寂靜。他們沿途遇到的假人「路人」似乎都有同樣的特徵，一條發光的辮子消失在地面中。

The left the cafe and set off down the street. The buildings and surrounding objects all looked the same as usual, the only difference being that the leaves on the trees hung completely still without the tiniest waver. There was not a breath of wind in the air or any other movement. All was deathly silent. The mannequin ‘passers-by’ they met along the way all appeared to have the same attribute, a luminous plait which disappeared into the ground.

32/109

不久之後，朋友們遇到了一個更奇怪的物體。它是一個矩形，或者說是一種結構，周圍有一道半米寬的黑色條紋。矩形的邊緣沿著地面和天空的全寬延伸，視線所及。這條帶子看起來像是一條黑色條紋，但實際上是一個切斷一切穿過它的虛空。地面上是一個無底洞，天空和邊緣上是一個張開的黑洞。就像是一條空間和它穿越的一切被切掉並扔到無處。

A little while later, the friends came across an even stranger object. It was a rectangle, or rather a construct of some kind with a black stripe running around it half a meter wide. The sides of the rectangle extended as far as the eye could see both along the ground and across the full breadth of the sky. The band only looked like a black strip, but it was in fact a void that cut through everything that crossed its path. Across the ground it was a bottomless pit, across the sky and sides, a gaping black hole. It was as if a strip of space and everything that it crossed had been cut away and thrown into nowhere.

33/109

整個演員團隊小心翼翼地探頭進入地面的虛空，注意不要讓手或頭越過虛空的區域。什麼也看不出來。傻瓜扔進一顆小石子，無聲地沉入虛無。這次，沒有什麼可討論的，因為當大腦面對超出任何概念理解的事物時，它真的無話可說，所以團隊只是站在邊緣，警覺地沉默著。野獸是第一個顯示出勇氣的人。他試探性地將一根樹枝推入黑色的空洞。由於樹枝沒有發生不好的事情，野獸決定自己跳過深淵，幸運的是，深淵並不寬，他安全地落在另一邊。團隊的其他成員雖然害怕，但還是跟著他過去了。

The entire casting crew peered into the void in the ground careful not to allow a hand or a head to cross over into the area of the void. It was impossible to make anything out. Eejit threw in a pebble which sank into the nothingness without a sound. This time, there was nothing to discuss since when the mind is confronted with things that are beyond any conceptual understanding, it genuinely finds itself with nothing to say and so the team just stood at the edge in alarmed silence. Beast was the first to show daring. He tentatively pushed a branch through the black emptiness. As nothing untoward happened to the branch, Beast decided to jump across the abyss himself, which thankfully was not very wide, and he landed safely on the other side. The rest of the team were afraid but followed on after him.

34/109

回頭看，他們都鬆了一口氣。再次仔細檢查這個結構，朋友們發現了一個奇怪的細節。切入附近建築物的空白條紋實際上並沒有侵蝕磚塊。條紋兩邊留下的碎片可以被整齊地重新排列。事實證明，結構內的空間並沒有被摧毀，而只是被撕裂。然而，這一發現並沒有解釋任何事情，這一現象看起來並不因觀察而顯得不那麼奇怪。

Looking back, they all sighed with relief. Examining the construct again, this time more carefully, the friends discovered a curious detail. The empty strip that cut into the nearby building had not in fact eaten away at the bricks. There were fragments remaining on either side of the strip which could have been neatly realigned. It turned out that the space inside the construct had not been destroyed so much as just torn apart. Nonetheless, this discovery did not explain anything, and the phenomenon appeared no less strange for having made the observation.

35/109

朋友們決定繼續前進。不久之後，他們聽到了聲音和尖叫聲。他們立刻朝著聲音傳來的方向出發。走到街區的盡頭，他們發現自己在一個小廣場上。廣場的一邊有一家書店，許多人在奔跑，是真實的活人。

The friends decided to move on. After a while, they heard noises and what sounded like screams. They immediately set off in the direction the noises were coming from. Having walked to the end of the block they found themselves in a small square. There was a bookstore on one side of the square and there were lots of people rushing about, real, living people.

36/109

有些人跑進書店，片刻後手裡拿著一本書重新出現。其他人在廣場上徘徊，試圖躲避一個看起來非常討厭的人影，這個人影在追趕他們。這是一個相當邋遢、看起來瘋狂的年輕人，手裡抱著一堆書，追著其他人大喊，

Some were running into the store reappearing moments later with a book in their hands. Others were milling about the square trying to dodge a very odious- looking figure who ran about pursuing them. The figure was a rather disheveled, wild-looking youth who was carrying a pile of books and chasing after the others screaming,

37/109

「我要把你們全寫進去！你們怎敢在沒有我允許的情況下讀我的書！我會買下每一本，你們等著瞧！」

“I will write you a-a-ll! How dare you read my books without my permission! I’m going to buy up every copy, you’ll see!”

38/109

這個瘋狂的年輕人追上了他的其中一個受害者，經過一番掙扎，從她手中搶走了書。受害者尖叫著跳起來，跑回書店。沒有人注意到朋友們出現在現場，奔跑、尖叫和尖叫不斷。混亂和混亂中偶爾站著靜止的假人，無法知道為什麼廣場上的一些人是活的，而另一些不是。

The wild-looking youth caught up with one of his victims and after a struggle ripped the book she was holding from her grip. The victim leapt up with a screech and ran back into the bookstore. No one paid any attention to the fact that the friends had appeared on the scene and the running about, screaming and screeching continued unceasingly. Amidst the general chaos and confusion there stood the occasional motionless mannequin and there was no way of knowing why some of those in the square were living and others were not.

39/109

「喵！我認識他！」普西拉喊道。「他是我的角色之一！」「你的角色之一？」其他人驚訝地說。

“Miaow! I recognize him!” shouted Puscilla. “He’s one of my characters!” “One of your characters?” The others were astonished.

40/109

「是的，來自我的一本書。他是一個瘋狂的作家，那些是他的讀者。」

“Yes, from one of my books. He’s a crazy writer and those are his readers.”

41/109

「現在事情開始變得更有意義了，」傻瓜說。「所以這就是為什麼他們是活的！我們至少可以假設你的角色是活的，因為他們是你的，因為你也是活的。」

“Now things are beginning to make more sense,” said Eejit. “So that’s why they are living! We can at least assume that your characters are living because they are yours and because you are also alive.”

42/109

「看起來是這樣。這裡的其他角色都不是我的，他們都是假人。雖然我仍然不明白為什麼會這樣。」

“Looks like it. None of the other characters here are mine and they are all mannequins. Although I still can’t understand why that should be the case.”

43/109

「普西拉，也許你應該去處理一下你的作家，」布倫希爾德建議道。「他為什麼要製造這麼多麻煩？」

“Puscilla, perhaps you should go and do something about your writer, then” suggested Brunhilda. “Why is he causing all this trouble?”

44/109

團隊跑上前，圍住了瘋子。

The team ran up and stood around the madman.

45/109

「年輕人，我可以問你一件事嗎？只需要一分鐘，」普西拉說。「你是讀者嗎？」

“Young man, can I ask you something? It’ll only take a minute,” said Puscilla. “Are you readers?”

46/109

「我們？不，從來沒有。」

“What us? No, never.”

47/109

「好吧，我在聽，只是要快點。」「你寫什麼？」

“Okay, I’m listening, only be quick.” “What do you write about?”

48/109

「我寫的是現實如何運作。」「那它是如何運作的？」

“I write about how reality works.” “And how does it work?”

49/109

「我怎麼會知道？」

“How should I know?”

50/109

「你怎麼能寫一本你不知道的東西的書？」

“How can you write a book about something you don’t know?”

51/109

「書自己寫的。我只是敲鍵盤。還有其他事嗎？我很忙！非常忙！」作家顯然已經失去耐心。

“The book writes itself. I just hammer away at the keyboard. Anything else? I’m busy! Very busy!” The writer had clearly run out of patience.

52/109

「拜託，拜託，再給我一點時間！」普西拉繼續努力分散他的注意力。「你為什麼不讓你的讀者讀你的書？」

“Please, please, just a moment more!” Puscilla continued her efforts to distract him. “Why are you forbidding your readers from reading your books?”

53/109

「為了阻止他們發現現實是如何運作的。一旦他們發現了，就不會再對任何事情感興趣，也不會想讀其他東西。」

“To stop them from finding out how reality works. Once they find out, nothing will interest them anymore and they won’t want to read anything else.”

54/109

「但你現在就阻止他們讀書了！」

“But you’re stopping them from reading as it is!”

55/109

「我阻止他們讀我的書，這樣他們就不會停止想讀其他東西。」

“I’m stopping them from reading my book so that they won’t stop wanting to read anything else.”

56/109

「你對寫作的看法很不尋常，我甚至會說是矛盾的。」傻瓜加入了談話。「我們可以快速看一下你的書嗎，因為我們不是讀者？」

“You have an unusual, I would even say paradoxical approach to the writer’s craft.” Eejit joined in the conversation. “Is it all right for us to take a quick look at your book, as we’re not readers?”

57/109

「好吧，只是你們不會從我這裡得到它。嘿，你！等等！」瘋狂的作家突然向前跳，開始追一個剛從書店跑出來的女孩。

“Yes, all right, only you won’t get it from me. Hey, you! Wait!” The crazy writer suddenly leapt forward and started chasing a girl who had just run out of the store.

58/109

他追上她，抓住她的書，開始從她手中搶走。女孩頑固地抓住它，尖叫著讓他停下。然後野獸跑到作家那裡。

He caught up with her, grabbed hold of her book and started tearing it away from her. The girl held onto it stubbornly squealing at him to stop. Then Beast ran up to the writer.

59/109

「等一下，親愛的，那不是對待女士的方式。」野獸自己抓住書，匆忙翻閱頁面，卻發現它們都是空白的。

“Wait a minute, dear boy, that’s no way to treat a woman.”Beast grabbed hold of the book himself and hurriedly flicking through the pages only to discover that they were all blank.

60/109

「但裡面什麼都沒有！」野獸驚訝地喊道。「完全是空的！」

“But there’s nothing in it!” exclaimed Beast in surprise. “It’s totally empty!”

61/109

「這些混蛋會試著從空白頁面中學習！」作家喊道。「我試著把信息減到最少！」

“These bastards will try and learn from a plain page!” shouted the writer. “I try and keep the information to a minimum!”

62/109

「好吧，這已經不能再少了！」

“Well, you couldn’t get any more minimum than this!”

63/109

「太好了！現在別煩我。」作家正準備再次追逐，但我們的團隊把他圍在一個緊密的圈子裡。

“Excellent! Now leave me alone.” The writer was about to launch into another pursuit, but our team surrounded him in a tight circle.

64/109

「陛下，」奶牛對布倫希爾德低聲說，「你注意到活人沒有藍光辮子嗎？」

“Your Majesty,” Cow whispered to Brunhilda, “have you noticed that the living don’t have the plait with the blue ray?”

65/109

「是的，」女王回答，「但你在我們以前的活人熟人身上也看不到。我想問他一些關於這個的事情。」

“Yes,” the queen replied, “but you could not see it in our former living acquaintances either. I want to ask him something about that.”

66/109

「年輕人，」女王對作家說，「你不覺得奇怪嗎，這裡有些人活著並在移動，而同時，其他人像假人一樣靜止不動？」

“Young man,” said the queen to the writer, “does it not seem strange to you that some of the people here are alive and moving while, at the same time, others stand motionless like mannequins?”

67/109

「什麼假人？」作家喃喃道。

“What mannequins?” the writer muttered.

68/109

「好吧，看，」布倫希爾德說，指著離他們最近的假人。「你怎麼解釋這個？」

“Well, look,” said Brunhilda and pointed to the mannequin standing nearest to them. “How do you explain that?”

69/109

「解釋什麼？」

“Explain what?”

70/109

「解釋為什麼他站在那裡不動。」「你指的是誰？站在哪裡？」

“Explain why he is standing there not moving.” “Who do you mean? Standing where?”

71/109

「就在這裡，」女王說，帶著作家走到附近站著的假人面前。「還有另一個，還有一個。」

“Right here,” and the queen and led the writer up to the mannequin standing nearby. “And there’s another one and another.”

72/109

「你在玩什麼把戲？那裡什麼都沒有！」作家真的感到困惑。

“What are you playing at? There’s nothing there!” The writer was genuinely perplexed.

73/109

「對——對——對，」女王說，她現在也感到困惑。「普西拉，」女王說，「你要問你的問題嗎？」

“Ri--i-ight,” said the queen who was now just as confused. “Puscilla,” the queen said, “are you going to ask your question?”

74/109

「是的，只是我希望不會讓他貓咪崩潰。」「讓我們看看。反正他這樣對我們也沒用。」

“Yes, only I hope it won’t catty-kaput him.” “Let’s see. He’s no use to us like this anyway.”

75/109

「好吧，喵。嘿，你！你知道你是誰嗎？」普西拉問已經被眼前情況震驚的作家。

“O-catty-kay. Hey, you! Do you know who you are?” Puscilla asked the writer who was already stunned by what was happening.

76/109

「當然！沒有人比我自己更了解我自己！」作家傲慢地宣稱。

“Of course! No-one knows me better than I know myself!” the writer declared arrogantly.

77/109

「所以，你是你嗎？」

“So, you, are you?”

78/109

「我不明白，你想說什麼？」「你能說‘我是我’嗎？」

“I don’t understand, what are you trying to say?” “Can you say, ‘I am me’?”

79/109

「我還是不明白這個問題，」作家說，顯然非常困惑。

“I still don’t understand the question,” the writer said, clearly very puzzled.

80/109

「我們有這個遊戲，你看。我們每個人輪流說‘我是我’，然後你也要重複，就這樣。」

“We have this game, you see. We are each going to say, ‘I am me’ in turn and then you have to repeat it too, that’s all.”

81/109

「我不明白這個問題，」作家繼續說，但團隊已經開始施展他們的「魔法」。當他們在圈子裡繞了一圈後，普西拉再次轉向作家。

“I don’t understand the question,” the writer continued but the team had already begun casting their ‘spell’. As soon as they had gone around everyone in the circle, Puscilla turned to the writer again.

82/109

「現在輪到你了。你是你嗎？」

“Now it’s your turn. Are you you?”

83/109

「我不明白……」作家還沒說完，他就猛地一震，然後凍結，完全被蠟覆蓋。正好同樣的事情發生在他附近的讀者身上，他們本來在跑來跑去，但現在突然停下來，彷彿被凍結在畫面中一樣。然後突然間，他們都長出了一條帶有光線的辮子。

“I don’t under...” Before the writer could finish his sentence, he gave a jolt and then froze becoming completely covered in wax. Exactly the same thing happened to his readers who had been running about nearby but now came to an abrupt standstill as if caught in a freeze-frame. And just as suddenly, they all grew a plait with a ray of light extending from it.

84/109

「現在這些都貓咪崩潰了！」普西拉哀嘆道。

“And now these are all catty-kaput!” Puscilla lamented.

85/109

「不用擔心，」女王說。「我確信這只是暫時的。

“Not to worry,” said the queen. “For some reason, I’m certain it’s temporary.

86/109

他們稍後都會恢復正常。無論如何，當他們活著的時候，我們也不會從這些人身上得到任何有用的東西。」

They’ll all de-kaput later. Anyway, we would not have got anything useful out of these ones when they were living either.”

87/109

「這本書的書名是什麼？」傻瓜問。「讓我看看……《衝浪超現實》。我想知道這意味著什麼？」

“What’s the title of this book?” asked Eejit. “Let’s see… ‘Surfing Trans-reality’. And what might that mean, I wonder?”

88/109

「我們現在永遠無法知道了，」奶牛說。「頁面是空白的。」

“We’ll never know now,” said Cow. “The pages are blank.”

89/109

「不！這太過分了！這一切都太貓咪怪異了！這無法理解！」「還有我的想像力，」野獸補充道。

“No! This is too much! This is all moggy-monstrous! It defies comprehension!” “And my imagination,” added Beast.

90/109

「還有我的沉浸感，」潛水艇插話道，然後問她最喜歡的問題，「我們現在該怎麼辦？」

“And my immersion,” Submarine chipped in before asking her favorite question, “what are we going to do now?”

91/109

「我們繼續前進，」女王說。

“Let’s move on,” said the queen.

92/109

於是他們沿著同一條街繼續走下去，因為似乎沒有必要轉向其他地方。對我們的朋友來說，情況並沒有好轉，他們很快又遇到了那個黑色結構。這次他們更大膽地跳過深淵，繼續前行。不時地，他們遇到靜止的假人，令所有人驚訝的是，其中一些他們以前見過。朋友們遇到的下一個驚喜更令人震驚。他們發現自己回到了之前去過的同一家咖啡館，儘管他們一直沿著主街直走，從未轉彎。

And with that they carried on down the same street as there seemed little point in turning off anywhere. Things were not getting any better for our friends, who soon found themselves coming across the black construct again. This time they jumped more boldly across the abyss and continued on their path. From time to time, they came across motionless mannequins, and to everyone’s surprise, some of them they had seen before. The next surprise our friends encountered was even more astounding. They found themselves back at the same cafe they had visited earlier despite the fact that they had walked in a straight line continuously never having turned off the main street.

93/109

似乎最好進去看看。他們進去後看到的東西再次讓他們陷入輕微的震驚。內部保持不變，假人也一樣，只是這次，他們採用了不同的姿勢。在某些情況下，假人的姿勢只有輕微的改變，但變化仍然明顯可見。朋友們沒有再互相詢問問題，匆匆走向出口，再次沿著街道朝著之前的方向走去。

It seemed best to go in. What they saw once they were inside plunged them once more into a mild state of shock. The interior remained unchanged and the mannequins were all the same too, only this time, they had adopted different poses. In some cases, the mannequin’s pose was only marginally altered but the change was distinctly noticeable nonetheless. Without asking each other any more questions, the friends hurried toward the exit and once again made their way down the street heading in the same direction as before.

94/109

他們加快腳步，迫不及待地想知道答案，第三次經過那個結構，重新出現在廣場的書店旁。廣場不再是之前的混亂，而是充滿了已經熟悉的假人，由同一個瘋狂的作家帶領。在這裡，所有人物的姿勢都明顯改變了。

Quickening their step impatient with curiosity, they passed the construct for the third time and reappeared by the bookstore at the square. Instead of the former chaos, the square was filled with the already familiar mannequins led by the same crazy writer. Here, too, the poses of all the figures had quite clearly changed.

95/109

「我看不出來，」傻瓜說。「也許他們移動得太慢了，我們看不出來。讓我們觀察他們。」

“I can’t make it out,” said Eejit. “Maybe they’re moving too slowly for us to spot it. Let’s watch them.”

96/109

團隊坐在長椅上，仔細觀察假人，但沒有發現絲毫動靜。朋友們已經疲憊不堪，沉默地坐了很長時間。最後，傻瓜開口了。

The team sat down on a bench and observed the mannequins attentively but did not detect the slightest movement. Already tired and deflated, the friends sat in silence for a long time. Eventually, Eejit spoke.

97/109

「有一個可怕的想法折磨著我。這是不可思議的，但似乎沒有其他合理的解釋。」

“There’s one terrible thought that torments me. It’s unthinkable and yet there can be no other feasible explanation.”

98/109

「沒必要嚇我們！」潛水艇說。「事情已經夠奇怪了！」

“There’s no need to scare us!” said Submarine. “Things are weird enough as it is!”

99/109

「說吧，快說出來！」奶牛說。「還有什麼比我們現在看到的更不可思議？」

“Go on, out with it!” said Cow. “What could be more incredible than what we are looking at already?”

100/109

「你知道我們在哪裡嗎？」「在哪裡？在哪裡？」

“Do you realize where we are?” “Where? Where?”

101/109

「在電影裡。」

“In a movie.”

102/109

「什麼電影？你說‘我們在電影裡’是什麼意思？你為什麼這麼說？」其他人紛紛向他提問，只有女王保持著一貫的冷靜。

“What movie? What do you mean ‘we’re in a movie’? Why do you say that?” The others bombarded him with questions with the exception of the queen who maintained her usual dispassionate composure.

103/109

「更具體地說，我們在一個停止轉動的膠片上，」傻瓜繼續說。「你見過膠片嗎？它由一幀幀的畫面組成，中間有空白條分隔。每個後續畫面中都捕捉到微小的變化。看起來我們的膠卷停止轉動，電影中的所有角色都停下來了。我們是唯一在走動的人。你明白我的意思嗎？」

“More specifically, we’re on a film strip that has stopped turning,” Eejit continued. “Have you ever seen a film strip? It’s made up of individual frames separated by blank strips. Minor changes are captured in each subsequent frame. It looks like our film roll has stopped turning and all the characters in the movie have come to a standstill. We’re the only ones walking about. Do you understand what I’m getting at?”

104/109

團隊的其他成員張口結舌地盯著傻瓜。只有女王開口。

The other members of the team stared at Eejit open-mouthed. Only the queen spoke.

105/109

「你說得對。這是難以理解的，但事實就是如此。」

“You’re right. It’s unfathomable but that’s how it is.”

106/109

「但作家和他的寵物呢？」奶牛問。「為什麼他們能在畫面中移動？」

“But what about the writer and his pets?” asked Cow. “Why were they able to move about in the frame?”

107/109

「這有點難解釋，」傻瓜說。「可能是因為一部電影可以在另一部電影中發生。但這不重要。猜猜現在最重要的問題是什麼。」

“That’s a little harder to explain,” said Eejit. “It’s probably because one movie can take place inside another. But that’s not important. Guess what the most essential question is now.”

108/109

「是什麼？快告訴我們。」

“What is it? Go on, tell us.”

109/109

「現在的關鍵問題是我們如何讓膠卷再次轉動？」

“The critical question now is how we get the film roll moving again?”

瘋狂作家

The Crazy Writer

瘋狂作家

The Crazy Writer

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