马格努斯055 - 档案号#0160311 - 乔丹·肯尼迪

讲述其进行除虫工作时遇到的几件怪事。

马格努斯档案馆本次讲述一位除虫师的故事，他证实了简·普伦蒂斯的死讯，并复述了几起发生在伦敦周遭，令人担忧的昆虫事件…

（Art by golden-dreamers-waltz@tumblur）
档案员 - 乔纳森·西姆斯；乔丹·肯尼迪 - 提姆·莱德萨姆
作者：乔纳森·西姆斯
导演：亚历山大·J·纽瓦尔
编辑：亚历山大·J·纽瓦尔，迈克·勒博
翻译/字幕：赞福德Zaphod(贝克的小号)


2楼附文字版

This post has been edited by 贝克的小号: 2022-11-26, 00:48

马格努斯055 - 档案号#0160311 - 乔丹·肯尼迪

讲述其进行除虫工作时遇到的几件怪事。

马格努斯档案馆本次讲述一位除虫师的故事，他证实了简·普伦蒂斯的死讯，并复述了几起发生在伦敦周遭，令人担忧的昆虫事件…

档案员 - 乔纳森·西姆斯；乔丹·肯尼迪 - 提姆·莱德萨姆
作者：乔纳森·西姆斯
导演：亚历山大·J·纽瓦尔
编辑：亚历山大·J·纽瓦尔，迈克·勒博
翻译/字幕：赞福德Zaphod

[CLICK]
[按钮声]
ARCHIVIST
档案员
Say it again, please.
请再说一次。

JORDAN
乔丹
Excuse me?
什么？

ARCHIVIST
What you just said, can you say it again, so I have it on tape?
你刚刚说的话，能不能重复一次？我好把它用磁带录下来。

JORDAN
Oh, okay.
噢，可以。

“Jane Prentiss is dead.”
“简·普伦蒂斯已经死了。”

ARCHIVIST
You’re sure. Completely.
对此你很确定。确信无疑。

JORDAN
Yeah. I watched the incineration.
是的。我亲眼目睹了火化全程。

ARCHIVIST
And there were no… complications?
而且没有任何…节外生枝的地方？

JORDAN
Like… what?
比如…哪种节外生枝？

ARCHIVIST
Surviving worms that escaped,
比如有漏网之虫，
uh, movement from the body during incineration,
呃，火化过程中尸体突然有动作，
noises from it, like screams or chanting,
尸体突然发出尖叫、吟唱之类的声音，
weird feelings, like a thousand tiny crawling
things are moving across your skin?
或者类似有一千条小虫子在你身上爬的诡异感觉之类的。

JORDAN
Wow! No, nothing like that.
我靠！没有，没有类似的事。
Just the smell, but, I mean, I’ll get to that.
只是那味道…我后面会说到的。

It went well. Nothing left but the ashes I gave to your friend.
过程很顺利。最后只剩下我交给你朋友的那罐骨灰。
Which I shouldn’t have, by the way, so keep it to yourself.
对了，这是违规的，所以别告诉别人。

ARCHIVIST
Of course. And thank you.
当然。谢谢你。

JORDAN
Sure.
不用谢。

ARCHIVIST
It’s been months, though.
不过，这已经是几个月以前的事了。
Why are you just looking to make your statement now?
你为什么现在才来做叙述？

JORDAN
It’s not really… it’s not just burning her body.
事情不是…不仅仅是把她的尸体烧毁那么简单。
I was also the one that was first called in
to deal with the nest in her old apartment.
最初接到电话，对付她旧公寓里那个马蜂窝的人也是我。

ARCHIVIST
Oh…
哦…

JORDAN
Yeah! But there are a few things I’ve been
thinking about, putting some pieces together,
是的！不过有几件事一直在我脑子里转悠，我慢慢把它们联系起来了，
and I thought, well, you guys should probably know.
于是我想，嗯，这些事大概应该让你们知道。

ARCHIVIST
Right. Well, start from the beginning, wherever you feel comfortable.
好的。嗯，从头开始说吧，你觉得从哪开始说比较合适就从哪开始。
Statement of Jordan Kennedy regarding…?
乔丹·肯尼迪的叙述，讲述…

JORDAN
Several weird things I’ve found while working in pest control.
我进行除虫工作时遇到的几件怪事。

ARCHIVIST
Statement taken direct from subject, 3rd November, 2016.
语音由叙述者直接录入，录入时间：2016年11月3日。

Statement begins.
叙述开始。

JORDAN (STATEMENT)
乔丹（叙述）
I’ve worked as an exterminator for the better part of 10 years now.
除虫师这行，我已经干了快十年。
I should say pest controller, really –
the BPCA generally advise against using the e-word.
其实应该说虫害控制师的，英国虫害控制协会建议我们不要用除虫师这个词。
They feel it sounds a bit too unpleasant, harms our public image.
他们说，这个名字不怎么讨喜，容易影响我们的社会形象。
I’ve never really minded.
我倒是没什么感觉。
I mean, I guess I could say killing things
is sort of exerting control over them,
这么说吧，杀灭的确可以说是一种控制手段，
but I’ve always felt that trying to sanitize my job is somehow a bit dishonest.
但我一直觉得，如此粉饰我的工作，怎么说呢，有些略失真诚。
Like trying to help people forget that what they’re actually doing is
换个称谓，好让我们忽略这件事的本质：
commissioning the deaths of creatures which
we’ve deemed too disgusting or unhealthy to live.
我们觉得某种动物太过恶心，或者有碍卫生，于是便剥夺它们生存的权利
It needs doing, don’t get me wrong, and I’m happy enough to do it,
别误会，我知道这件事的必要性，而且我也不排斥亲手执行，
but it isn’t my job to hold people’s hands
and make them feel better about it.
但我的工作不是和客户假惺惺地握手，让他们感到自我满足。

I’ve done places all over London –
我在伦敦各处都干过
mainly big commercial buildings where I have to work
at night, while all the bankers and the like have gone home.
业务集中在商务楼，在这种地方，我必须得等楼里的银行家们下班回家后挑灯夜战。
Setting traps, putting down poison boxes, the usual.
安置陷阱，布置毒盒，诸如此类的常规操作。
Residential homes don’t call me out quite as much
for rats and mice, especially if it’s a rental place.
普通民居，尤其是出租房，很少因为闹耗子之类的事呼叫我们。
Most landlords don’t bother paying out for
that sort of thing, or try to deal with it themselves.
大部分房东要么不想为这种事破费，要么就亲自处理。

Get a lot of calls about bedbugs, though.
Those little bastards the devil to get rid of,
不过倒是有很多人因为闹臭虫而呼叫我们。这些小东西可难处理了，
and of course come summer we have to deal with plenty of wasps nests.
当然了，每到夏天，也能接到很多马蜂窝的活。
Sprinkle in a generous handful of cockroaches,
ants, and occasionally even birds or foxes,
再加上零星几例蟑螂、蚂蚁，偶尔甚至还有鸟和狐狸这样的，
and you have a pretty good idea of what my working life consists of.
你就对我的工作情况有了大致的了解。
Pretty normal.
还是挺正常的。

Got my first weird call about five years ago.
第一次接到诡异业务，大概是五年前。
It was ants – or, so I was told. Down in Bromley.
到布罗姆利处理蚂蚁，至少，对方是这么跟我说的。
The house itself looked like a pretty standard suburban home.
房子是很普通的乡村住宅。
Maybe a bit more rundown than its neighbours, but nothing
particularly unusual about that, especially if they were calling me in.
可能比周围的建筑更破旧一些，考虑到他们需要我的帮助，这也正常。
There was no car in the driveway, and the
blinds were all drawn despite the summer sun.
门口车道上没车，虽然是炎炎夏日，所有的窗帘却都拉着。
It didn’t look like there was anyone home.
看起来，房子里没人。

I found out later that it had actually been one of the
neighbors that called me in, a woman named Laura Star,
后来我才知道，给我打电话的其实是住在隔壁的邻居，劳拉·斯塔尔，
but at that point I was still expecting to be met by someone at the house.
当时我还以为屋里会有人迎接我呢。
I knocked on the door, but obviously there was no answer.
我敲了敲门，当然了，没人应门。

Now, I always wear gloves when I’m on the job and when I noticed my hand,
I noticed a very faint sheen where the thin leather had touched the wood.
我工作时必戴手套，低头时我发现胶皮手套碰到木门的地方有一层淡淡的油光。
It seemed to be some sort of oily residue.
看起来像是某种油脂。
I was feeling less comfortable with the job by the second.
我对这趟活计愈发地感到反感。
I couldn’t hear anything from inside, so I knocked again.
屋里什么声音都没有，于是我又敲了敲门。
The woman who hired me had said to let myself in,
but I didn’t want to just waltz in unannounced.
打电话的女人说让我直接进屋，但我不想就这么大喇喇地不请而入。

After a few seconds of silence, I tried the handle,
and sure enough, the door opened.
又过了几秒钟，我在沉默中试着转动门把，门开了。
There were no lights on inside, and the place
seemed almost completely empty of furniture.
屋里没开灯，而且似乎空空荡荡，连件像样的家具都没有。
I could see faint movement on the wooden floor
as I looked around for the light switch.
我四处寻找开关时，注意到木地板上似乎有东西在动。
I found it quickly enough, and flicked it on to
reveal exactly what I’d expected. Ants.
没过一会我找到了开关，打开灯，映入眼帘的东西果然不出我所料。蚂蚁。
I just hadn’t expected that many.
我只是没想到会有这么多蚂蚁。
And there were so very many of them.
蚂蚁的数量太多了。
To this day I have never seen more ants inside a building at once.
直到今天，我也没见过哪间屋子里有那么多蚂蚁。
There must have been thousands carpeting
the floor and swarming over the walls.
地上就像盖了张蚂蚁做的地毯，墙上也密密麻麻爬满了蚂蚁，至少有几千只。

I drew my hand back from the light switch
as I noticed dozens of them crawling around it.
我发现开关旁边也围着几十只蚂蚁，连忙抽回了手。
Even the bulb seemed to be covered with them, causing
the light in the room to be covered with twitching shadow.
就连灯泡上都有一层蚂蚁，使得整间屋子笼罩在跃动的阴影中。
The house itself didn’t look much better.
房子本身也没好到哪去。
Wherever there was a gap in the ants I could see that same oily rot,
每当蚂蚁之间出现间隔，露出的必定又是那腐烂的油污，
and I couldn’t escape the idea that the building was somehow sick.
我不禁感到，这座房子就像是生病了。

Now, I’ve seen plenty of disgusting things in this job,
but I reckon that moment was one of the most intense.
嗯，干这份工作，我见过不少恶心的场面，但那次经历称得上是冠绝前后。
I fled briefly back to my van to decide on my next move.
我暂时逃回货车里，考虑下一步行动。
Normally, I’d leave out some poison bait for them to take back
to their colony, eliminating the problem at its source,
一般情况下，我会留一些毒饵让蚂蚁带回蚁巢，达到斩草除根的效果，
but an infestation that bad, well, that doesn’t come from nothing.
但这种规模的虫灾，可不是一朝一夕形成的。

I needed to get a sense of exactly what I was dealing with.
我得掂量一下，情况究竟有多严重。
Even from the road I could see a steady stream
flowing out the open door and over the step.
从房外路边，我都能清楚地看到，顺着前门门缝源源不绝地有蚂蚁爬到台阶上。
I kitted up with pesticide spray and headed in for a closer look.
我拿上杀虫剂，再次向房子进发，准备仔细看看。
I wouldn’t normally bother using spray on ants, but this wasn’t normal,
通常情况下，我不会用杀虫喷雾对付蚂蚁，但这不是通常情况，
and the formula I was using works on ants just fine.
况且，这套流程对蚂蚁当然也有效。
That said, I didn’t actually see any of them die.
话虽如此，我却没看到哪怕一只蚂蚁被喷死。
I wouldn’t have expected to immediately, anyway,
不过，我倒没期望蚂蚁会当场死亡，
and what was important is that wherever I sprayed,
they fled, clearing a path of discolored floor for me to walk.
重要的是，它们一被喷中就会逃开，为我在地板上清理出一条颜色诡异的通路。

It was slow going, but I got through most of the ground floor
like that, and didn’t see anything except more ants.
过程很缓慢，但我还是把一层清理了七七八八，除了蚂蚁外没看到别的东西。
No people, no furniture, nothing.
没有人，也没有家具，什么都没有。
At least until I reached the kitchen and saw the fridge.
直到我来到厨房，看到这里有个冰箱。

There was nothing else in that kitchen.
除冰箱之外，厨房里空荡荡的。
Even the sink had been removed, leaving just the water
pipes sticking out of the wall, like rusty, diseased bones.
就连水槽都已经拆了，只剩几根水管像生锈的病态骨头一样从墙里向外伸着。
But up against the far wall stood an old fridge.
但在最远处靠墙的地方，有一台冰箱。
Its once white-skin was now a jaundiced yellow,
曾经雪白的外壳已经变成了黄疸一样的颜色，
and I couldn’t quite shake the feeling that it was pulsing ever-so-gently.
而且我总觉得，那冰箱似乎在微微地颤动着。

Thick, black, massive ants swarmed from the crack in its door
蚁群像黑色的瀑布一般从冰箱门上的裂缝中倾泻而出
and I had no doubt that whatever was at the heart of this
incredibly unpleasant situation, it was going to be in that fridge.
毫无疑问，眼前这一切异象的核心，就在这冰箱之中。

So, I decided it was probably a good idea to
step outside for a cigarette before I opened it.
我想，打开冰箱前最好先出门抽根烟冷静一下。
The air outside seemed much fresher as I left the house.
从房子里出来，感觉外面的空气都要新鲜很多。
I walked a few yards away from the door,
so that I wasn’t too close, and then I lit up.
我往外走了几码，这样不会离房子太近，然后我点了根烟。
It was as I took the first drag that I saw a car pull up to the driveway.
正抽第一口时，我看到一辆车开到车道上。
It was a small red compact, and the license plate seemed to
indicate that it had only been bought the year before.
那是一辆红色小轿车，从车牌看，似乎是一年前刚买的。
But even so, I could see the rust starting bubble
the paint near the edges of the paneling.
但我却看到，车身周围的红漆已经开始生锈起褶了。

I watched as the door opened and a man stepped out.
车门打开，一个男人从车里走了出来。
He was tall, maybe six-and-a-half feet, but it was hard to
be sure of his shape inside the huge, brown suit he was wearing.
他个头高大，大概有六英尺半，但他穿着一身肥大的棕色西装，看不出体格。
He took one look at me, then the sign on the
side of my van that read “Kennedy Pest Control,”
他看了我一眼，又看了看我货车上的标志：“肯尼迪虫害控制”，
and his face began to crease with rage.
接着他的脸上写满了愤怒。

I took another drag on my cigarette.
我又抽了一口烟。
I was… uneasy about the whole situation, and was
waiting to see what the strange-looking man would do.
我…对眼前的形势感到十分不安，不过还是等待这个形象怪异的男人走出下一步。
He walked up to me, great strides that brought him close enough
that I could see the unhealthy gloss of sweat on his skin.
他迈开大步朝我走来，我已经能看清他脸上病态的汗渍。
Was everything here sick?
这里的一切是不是都病了？

He leaned in far closer than I was comfortable
with and demanded to know what I was doing.
他朝我弯下腰，我们之间的距离已经近得让我感到不适，然后他要求我说明情况。
I told him that the homeowner had hired me to take care of
an ant infestation, and I’d been doing a preliminary sweep.
我说房主雇我清除蚂蚁，我刚做完前期清扫。
He started to shake his head violently, saying that he was the homeowner,
that this was his house, and I had no business being there.
他狠狠摇了摇头，说他才是房主，又说我无权呆在这里。
Well, those weren’t his exact words.
嗯，这不是他的原话。
What he actually said was that I had no business
“applying my vile trade on his property.”
他的原话是，我无权“对他的财产行使我邪恶的行当。”

I was about to get out my phone and call the woman who hired me
我正准备拿出手机，给雇我那个女的打电话
when his hand shot out without warning and grabbed me by the throat.
他突然冷不丁抽出手抓住了我的喉咙，
He lifted me off my feet with a strength that terrified me,
他把我抓了起来，力量惊人，
and I was very glad that, even with the hood down,
my protective suit kept my neck covered.
值得庆幸的是，虽然摘下了帽子，我的防护服依然能遮住脖子，
I could feel his hand through the thick plastic.
隔着厚厚的塑料，我也能感到他的握力。
It was hot, like he was running some
incredibly high fever, and I started to panic.
他的手热得惊人，就像发着高烧，我开始怕起来了。

He held me there, almost a foot off the ground,
and my vision began to swim as he squeezed my throat.
我就这样双脚离地一英尺被他抓着，他揉搓着我的喉咙，我的意识开始游离。
As I struggled for breath, I flailed for something to fight him off with,
我挣扎着想要呼吸，双手胡乱抓弄着想找件武器，
and realized I was still holding my lighter.
这时我突然意识到，我还攥着打火机。
With a the degree of composure that,
looking back on it now, still surprises me,
现在回想起来，我都惊讶于自己当时的冷静，
I flicked the lighter on, and raised it to just below his arm.
我点燃打火机，举到他胳膊下面。

The result was a lot more dramatic than I expected.
结果比我想象的要剧烈得多。
His loose brown suit sleeve caught almost immediately,
and within a few moments, his whole arm was alight.
他松垮的棕色西服袖子立刻就烧着了，没过几秒钟，他整只胳膊都烧了起来。
He yelped and dropped me onto the ground.
他惨叫一声，把我扔在地上。
As he began to flail about, trying to stop the fire
spreading further across his body I staggered to my van.
火焰很快就开始向全身蔓延，他竭尽全力想要灭火，我踉踉跄跄地朝货车走去。
By then, it didn’t matter who the rightful owner
of that house was, I was done with that job.
这时，谁是房主已经不重要了，这活我不干了。

It was as I was climbing into the van that I smelled it.
爬进货车时，我闻到了那个味道。
It is the most disgusting thing I have ever encountered,
那是我闻过最恶心的味道，
halfway between sun-cured roadkill, stale sweat,
and rotten eggs, with just a hint of burning rubber.
像是被撞死的动物在太阳下暴晒的味道，混上汗液、臭鸡蛋还有一点烧焦橡胶的气味。
And underneath it all is that undefinable scent of sickness.
除此之外，还有一股味道，毋庸置疑，那是疾病的味道。
You know, that smell you get when you enter a room
where someone’s been ill for several days.
就是那种，走进有人卧床多日的病房时才会闻见的味道。
No matter what else it smells like, beneath it all
there’s that vague but undeniable whiff of disease.
不管那究竟是什么味道，掩藏在表面之下，若有若无的病态气息是千真万确存在的。
That’s what this man smelt like as he
desperately tried to extinguish his burning flesh.
这个极力想要扑灭身上火焰的人，散发出来的就是这种味道。

I drove away, trying not to gag, and I didn’t look back.
我极力压下呕吐，开着车头也不回地离开了。
I didn’t call the police, either as I felt they might not look too
kindly on me setting a man alight, even if he did attack me.
我没报警，虽然是他先袭击的我，我把他点着这个事放到警察那估计不会很好看。
I assume he didn’t file a report, either,
as no one ever turned up to question me about it.
我猜他应该也没报警，因为没人问过我这事。

So, that was the first time I encountered that smell.
所以，这就是我第一次闻到那种味道的经历。

ARCHIVIST
I see. And the other time was when you burned Jane Prentiss?
我明白了。另一次闻到这种味道，是简·普伦蒂斯火化的时候吗？

JORDAN (STATEMENT)
Not… just.
不…不止那一次。

I mean, I didn’t actually see her.
我的意思是，我并没有实打实地见过她。
The incineration was the first time I ever saw her in person.
第一次见到她本尊，就是她被火化。
But a couple of years ago, I was called in to deal with the wasp’s nest.
不过几年前，我接到过处理马蜂窝的电话。

That’s what the landlord had called it on the phone, at least
至少，房东在电话里是这么描述的
– apparently, it had injured one of his tenants earlier that day,
显然，他的一个房客当天被马蜂蜇伤了，
and I was the first pest control service
he had called that was free immediately.
而我是他找到的第一个能立刻上门的虫害控制师。
He didn’t tell me the name of the tenant,
though obviously I now know who it was.
他没告诉我房客的名字，不过，如今我已经知道那是谁了。
He didn’t give me any real details on the phone,
but he seemed happy to pay the emergency call-out charge,
他在电话里没有说明细节，但他很乐意支付紧急呼叫的费用，
so I bundled up my wasp gear and headed out to Prospero Road.
所以我收拾好对付马蜂的专用工具然后朝普洛斯彼罗路进发。

It was a bit strange to get a call about wasps at that time of year.
那个时节接到跟马蜂相关的活有点奇怪。
It was late February or early March, I think, and still quite cold.
当时好像是二月末三月初吧，天气还很冷。
Still, if it was a warm enough building,
they could easily be getting active.
不过，如果那栋楼很暖和的话，马蜂也有可能已经开始活跃了。
Regardless, I made sure to check over the thick suit I used for that
sort of job, to make sure there was no weakness or damage.
不论如何，我仔细检查过专用防护服，确保没有受损或薄弱的地方。
If they were aggressive enough to injure someone,
I wasn’t gonna take any chances.
如果马蜂已经开始伤人，我更不会冒任何风险。

The landlord’s name was Arthur Nolan.
房东名叫亚瑟·诺兰。
He was a short man with a constant scowl,
thinning white hair, and a well-chewed cigar.
他长着一头稀疏的白发，个子不高，永远面露愠色，嘴里总是嚼着一根雪茄。
It looked like his denim shirt had once contained
quite an athletic build, but it had long since sailed.
从他身穿的牛仔衬衫看来，他曾经也是个体格健壮的人，但那已是明日黄花。
He looked me up and down as I left my van,
and I saw his mouth twist briefly in irritation.
我从货车上下来时，他上下打量了我一番，然后恼火地噘了噘嘴。
Clearly, he wasn’t impressed.
很显然，他觉得我不咋地。

I gave him the usual talk through what was gonna happen,
按照流程，我给他讲了讲接下来要做的事，
and he nodded absently before pressing the keys to
flat four into my hands and pointing me towards it.
他心不在焉地点了点头，然后把4号房的钥匙塞到我手里，又指了指房间的位置。
If I needed anything, he said, he’d be in flat one, where he lived.
接着他说，有需要的话就去1号房找他，他住那里。
I advised him and the other tenants to stay out
the building while I was dealing with the wasps,
我说，我处理马蜂时，建议他和其他住户不要呆在楼里，
but he just grunted and told me again that he’d be in flat one.
但他只是闷哼一声，说可以去1号房找他。
The other tenants had apparently already left.
其他住户显然已经离开了。

I loaded up on insecticide and headed in.
我装好杀虫剂，走了进去。
It was a lot quieter than I expected.
里面比我预想得要安静得多。
By the time I was outside flat four, I would normally
have expected to be hearing the buzzing sound of wasps,
走到4号房门口时，我本以为会听到马蜂的嗡嗡声，
but the evening was quiet.
但我听到的只有寂静的夜。
I opened the door slowly – no sudden movements that might alarm
anything on the other side – but again the flat seemed to be empty.
我慢慢打开门，避免惊动里面的东西，但这间公寓似乎又是空的。

It looked like there’d been some chaos, though,
不过这里似乎发生过某种骚动，
with books and clothes strewn across the floor,
and a shattered TV screen in the corner.
地板上散落着衣服和书籍，角落里还有一台破碎的电视。
I found the ladder up into the loftspace in the center of the bedroom.
我在卧室正中看到一把通往阁楼的梯子。
It was quite small, and climbing in my
bulky suit was tricky, but I got up there.
梯子很小，穿着鼓鼓囊囊的防护服很难爬上去，但我还是挣扎着上去了。
Still no wasps, but it was very dark,
还是没看到马蜂，但上面很黑，
so I rooted around again until I found the switch to a single bare bulb.
于是我又四处寻找一番，最终找到开关，点亮了唯一一只灯泡。
The light was very faint, but enough to make out
a thick, pulpy lump up against the far wall.
灯光昏暗，但借着灯光还是能看到远方墙上有个柔软厚重的肿块。

It certainly didn’t look like any wasp’s nest I’d seen before.
这玩意可跟我见过的马蜂窝不太一样。
I mean, the shape was familiar enough,
but the texture of the surface was way off.
嗯，外形看起来还算熟悉，但质地实在差太多了。
It seemed a lot less papery than would have been normal,
那东西看着并不像普通马蜂窝那样干薄，
and the walls were less… regular, going off at
odd angles and making it kind of hard to look away.
墙壁也不那么…正常，那歪歪斜斜的怪异角度让人难以错开目光。
The whole thing was spongy, pocked with tiny holes,
and generally looking very unhealthy indeed.
那东西看起来像海绵一样布满了小孔，看起来确实非常不卫生。
And most disconcerting of all, there were still no wasps.
最令人不安的是，还是没看到马蜂。

None of this changed the job I had to do,
但这一切对我要做的工作没有影响，
so I figured I’d start off like any other wasp’s nest and see if it worked.
我心想，就按处理马蜂窝的方法试一下，看看能否奏效。
I reached forward, staying as far from this thing as the nozzle
would let me, and I pushed it into one of the larger holes.
我握住喷嘴伸出手，尽可能离这东西远一点，然后把喷嘴插进一个比较大的洞里。
It sank in with almost no resistance at all.
喷嘴没入洞中，几乎没有遇到任何阻力。
I took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger,
spraying the insecticide dust deep into the mass.
我深吸一口气，扣下扳机，把杀虫喷雾喷到那东西深处。

The effect was immediate.
效果是立竿见影的。
The whole thing started to pulse and spasm, the spongy flesh
of it throbbing and bubbling like some sort of vile putty.
那东西开始抽搐跳动，海绵一样的表面像腻子粉一样邪门地跃动。
It began to grow in size, blossoming out and
covering the rest of the nozzle, reaching out for me.
它开始涨大，裹住喷嘴，向外扩张，向我而来。
And then it began to… scream.
然后它开始…尖叫。
Not the sound of air escaping, or a buzzing that sounded like screaming,
不是空气快速流通的声音，也不是听起来像尖叫的翅膀嗡鸣声，
the weird nest thing was letting out a long, warbling cry of anger and pain.
那诡异的巢群发出了一声绵绵不绝的尖叫，叫声中混杂着愤怒和痛苦。

I dropped the pump and was down the ladder
so fast I almost fell into the flat below.
我扔下杀虫剂泵，飞速趴下梯子，差点一头摔进楼下的公寓。
I could still hear it as I reached the door to the corridor.
跑到通向走廊的门口时，我依然能听到那尖叫声。
I threw it open only to be confronted by the face of Arthur Nolan,
the landlord, staring at me with a look of disappointment.
我用力打开门，门外站着房东亚瑟·诺兰，他盯着我，脸上写满了失望。

He nodded and began to walk down the hall.
他点了点头，然后开始穿过大厅。
I followed him, desperate for answers, but he just ignored my questions
about what the hell was going on, about what that thing was,
我跟着他，要他给个说法，问他这到底是怎么回事，那鬼东西究竟是什么，
and kept walking down the stairs to his own flat.
但他对我的问题充耳不闻，只是走下楼梯走向他自己的房间。

At one point he shook his head and mumbled
something about hoping it wouldn’t get this far,
走到一半，他摇了摇头，低声说希望那东西不会蔓延这么远，
but he didn’t seem to be saying it to me.
但他好像并不是在对我说话。

As soon as the door opened I became aware
of how uncomfortably warm flat one was.
打开公寓门，我才意识到1号房里面暖得惊人，已经达到令人不适的程度。
The air was thick and dry, and made my throat feel a bit scratchy.
空气干燥而厚重，让我喉咙发痒。
The landlord continued to ignore my presence,
and walked over to an old armchair in the center of the room.
房东依然对我视而不见，径直走向房间正中的老旧扶手椅。
As he did so, he started to unbutton his denim shirt.
他一边走，一边开始解开牛仔衬衫的扣子。

More so than anything else that happened,
that was the thing that finally stopped me in confusion.
那天发生了许多事，不过，是这件事让我的脑子彻底丢了转。
I couldn’t understand what he was doing.
我完全无法理解他的行为。
As he sat down, his shirt flapped open, and I saw
what looked to be an intricate scar on his chest.
他解开了所有扣子，坐在椅子上，我看到他胸口上好像有个错综复杂的伤疤。
If I had to guess what it was, I’d have said it looked like a stylized flame,
but it also made me think of a face contorted in pain.
要我猜的话，那好像是一团经过艺术处理的火焰，但也有点像因为痛苦而扭曲的脸。

Time seemed to move slowly as he reached for the ashtray
on the arm of the chair, and picked up a pack of matches.
他把手伸向扶手上的烟灰缸，又拿起一盒火柴，时间的流逝似乎变慢了。
He struck one, and without even looking at me,
he gently pressed the small flame to the center of the scar.
他点着了一根火柴，看也没看我，轻轻地把细小的火苗放到伤疤正中。

His flesh caught fire immediately.
他的身体立刻就烧了起来。
The flames spreading across his body like rippling water.
火苗遍布他的全身，就像水面泛起波纹。
The armchair caught, then the floor, and then I was running
out of the building before the roiling inferno covered me as well.
扶手椅和地板接连起火，我在被炼狱吞噬之前逃离了建筑。
This time, I didn’t drive away.
这次，我没有开车离开。
I stood there and I watched it burn until the fire brigade arrived.
我站在原地，目睹整栋建筑熊熊燃烧，直到消防队赶来。

It was when the fire hit that attic space at the top floor,
where I knew that awful nest still sat.
最后火焰席卷到顶楼阳台，我知道，可怕的蜂巢就在那里。
That was when I smelled it: the same grotesque stench
that had come from that oily, fevered man three years before.
这时我闻到了：三年前，那个满身油光，身体发烫的男人身上散发的诡异恶臭。

At the time, I didn’t really connect the two.
那时，我并没将二者联系起来。
I was too busy trying to comprehend what had just happened.
我的大脑正忙着理解眼前的一切。

And when trucks from the ECDC showed up
to put me in quarantine, it slipped my mind entirely.
后来欧洲疾控中心的卡车来了，把我拉去隔离，这个念头也从我的脑海里溜走了。

They were surprisingly forthcoming about
Jane Prentiss and what had happened,
没想到他们开诚布公地讲了简·普伦蒂斯的事，还为我梳理了事情脉络，
and after an extensive debriefing, they actually offered me a job.
在详细解释完毕后，他们竟然给了我一份工作。

Apparently, disease control and pest control often go
hand in hand, and I’ve been working for them since.
显然，疾病控制和虫害控制总是不分家的，从那之后我就一直为他们工作。
Most of the job’s been mundane –
a couple slightly weird, but nothing like those two.
大部分工作都很普通，有几件怪事，但都和这两件事比不了。

ARCHIVIST
So why make your statement now?
你为什么选择当下这个节点作出叙述？

JORDAN
When I helped incinerate her body, I smelled it again.
协助火化她的尸体时，我又闻到了那个味道。
Like before.
跟以前一样。
Took me awhile to piece the two together, but I thought you should know.
我花了点时间才把这些线索联系起来，我觉得应该让你们知道。

ARCHIVIST
Are you saying there might be more out there like her?
你的意思是，也许存在和她一样的东西？

JORDAN
God, I hope not.
天哪，我希望没有。
I don’t know.
我也说不好。
The man from the ant house, he wasn’t like her, not at all.
蚂蚁房里的男人，和她不一样，完全不一样。

But that smell when they burned… I think they’re connected, somehow.
但他们烧起来时那股味道…我觉得他们之间肯定有，某种联系。
And that scares me.
这个想法让我感到害怕。

ARCHIVIST
Yes… yes, it rather scares me too.
是的…是的，我也深有同感。

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[按钮声]
ARCHIVIST
档案员
Mr. Kennedy’s statement has left me somewhat rattled.
肯尼迪先生的叙述让我感到些许不安。
While I am always glad of any further closure to the case of Jane Prentiss,
简·普伦蒂斯事件终于盖棺定论，对此我还是很欣慰的，
this seems to come with the rather serious caveat
that she might not have been working alone.
但这件事似乎预示着，她并非单兵作战。

No, that, that doesn’t sound right.
不，这、这么说不太对。
Jane Prentiss – or whatever this “flesh hive” was that took her
简·普伦蒂斯，或者说，这个占据她身体的“血肉巢群”
– does not seem like the sort of being that would work well with others.
不像是那种善于合作的东西。

The house in Bromley was torn down last year,
but Martin managed to locate the ownership records.
那座位于布罗姆利的房子去年被推平了，但马丁找到了房屋产权记录。
It was listed as belonging to John Amherst.
根据记录，房主是约翰·阿默斯特。
The dates aren’t entirely clear as to whether this was just before
or just after he apparently took charge of Ivy Meadows Nursing Home,
至于产权归于他名下，是在他接管常春藤草甸养老院之前还是之后，无从考证，
but there can be no doubt that it was the same person.
毫无疑问的是，这一定是同一个人。
All the ownership records from the ant house
lead to dead ends or deactivated bank accounts.
追查蚂蚁房的主人，遇到的都是死胡同和已经注销的银行账户。

It doesn’t sound like he’s another flesh hive… and yet…
他似乎并不是另一座巢群…但是…
No connection, except disease, and insects, and a foul smell when they burn.
二者之间除了疾病、昆虫，以及燃烧时散发恶臭之外，没有关联。
Jane Prentiss is dead. But this is a long way from over.
简·普伦蒂斯已经死了。但这件事还远远没完。

End recording.
录音结束。

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ARCHIVIST
档案员
Supplemental.
补充说明。

I… I don’t have much to report, actually.
我…其实我没什么可报告的。
It’s been Halloween week, which means the
research department is always inundated with statements.
这周是万圣节，研究部门被海量的叙述淹没了。
Most of them are patently false, but the volume means
that they’ve called in the archive to assist with the overflow.
大部分一眼就是虚假警报，但超量的叙述使得他们向档案馆申请协助。

It’s… been nice, actually.
其实，这还挺…令人愉快的。
Disproving piles of nonsense felt good, like real work,
驳倒成堆的假消息，感觉很不错，这才像是真正的工作，
not just driving myself to distraction with conspiracy theories and paranoia.
而不是被阴谋论和妄想症耍得团团转。
I even got a good night’s sleep.
我甚至好好睡了一觉。
I miss those days.
真怀念那些日子。

End supplemental.
补充完毕。

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