The San Jacinto will gradually maneuver into Mars' low orbit for a trial period before full deployment. As the mothership steadily increases its speed and altitude, all systems remain operational. Lübeck felt he could finally step away for some rest—though his shift had long since ended—but as captain, the weight of responsibility compelled him to monitor every critical phase.
圣哈辛托号将会逐步飞行抵达火星低轨道上试航一段时间,然后才会正式部署,随着母舰的速度和高度逐渐增加,各项系统也在正常运转,吕贝克觉得自己可以离开休息了,其实早过了他下班的时间,只是作为舰长,重任在肩,自己必须跟踪每一个重要环节.
Returning to his living quarters, Brittany was already asleep. The dim nightlight cast a faint glow over the outline of her body, still lying on the bed. Lübeck took a quick hot shower to wash away the day's fatigue, then returned to bed. Lying beside Brittany, he gazed at her cheek and listened to her peaceful breathing. He thought about how she had woken alone this morning and would sleep alone tonight, with only his brief visit at noon to keep her company. It felt as though both their days had been stolen from them.
回到自己的居住舱,布列塔尼已经睡了,房间里暗淡的指引灯光,微微照亮她常躺在床上的体态轮廓.吕贝克简单冲了个热水淋浴,冲刷掉这一整天的疲劳,然后回到床上,躺在布列塔尼的身边,看着她的脸颊,倾听着她平静地呼吸,想想今天一早上,她是一个人孤独地醒来,晚上她又是一个人孤独地睡去,只有中午自己抽空陪了她一会儿,感觉这自己和她的一天仿佛都被偷走了一样.
Lübeck placed his hand on her shoulder, gently caressing her skin, her collarbone, her chest, as if to make up for the companionship he had failed to give her.
吕贝克把手放在他的肩头,轻轻抚摸她的肌肤,她的锁骨,她的胸,似乎要弥补对她亏欠的陪伴.
Lübeck wanted to wrap his arm around her shoulders and hold her as she fell asleep, but feared his elbow might press against her chest and restrict her breathing. So he slid his hand down to encircle her waist, only to find his forearm seemed to press against her abdomen and hinder her breathing. Finally, he shifted downward, resting his arm across her hips and thighs, his cheek gently pressed against her shoulder. Breathing in the scent of her body, he felt that this way, he could compensate for more time spent with her in sleep.
吕贝克想要搂着她的肩陪她入睡,可是又怕自己的肘部压迫她胸腔的呼吸,于是把手往下搂着她的腰,好像前臂也压迫她腹部的呼吸,最后只好自己往下挪挪,把手臂搭在她的胯与大腿,自己的脸颊轻轻贴在她的肩头,呼吸着她身体的气息,似乎这样就可以在睡眠中补偿她更多陪伴时间.
The spacecraft's sleeping quarters no longer feature viewing ports. This is a warship—defense takes precedence. Inside the cabin, only lights simulate alternating day and night to prevent disrupting the human body clock. Yet this confined space seems to push people further apart.
飞船的卧室不再有观景窗了,这是战舰,防御是首要的,舱室内只有灯光模拟交替的昼夜,以免人体生物钟乱掉,不过这幽闭的空间似乎更加推进了人与人之间的距离.
When someone walks beside you, the cherished moments spent with a loved one seem to reappear in your thoughts. Like autumn sunlight, they are warm and radiant. In the garden, plants busily bloom and bear fruit, striving to extend their future in the last moments of the season.
当身边有了陪伴自己的人,思绪中那些被爱人陪伴的美好,仿佛又会重现.那是秋日的阳光里,温暖而又灿烂,花园里的植物们都在忙着开花结子,赶在最后的时光里设法延续自己的未来.
Bees and various insects, too, were busy partaking in the final feast amidst the afternoon's brilliant light, darting and dancing among blossoms of every hue.
蜜蜂与各种昆虫,也在这午后的灿烂中忙着参加最后的盛宴,在不同颜色的花朵之间穿梭飞舞,
"Erich,"
her soft call in the warm autumn sunlight,
"埃里希,"
温暖的秋日阳光里,那是她的轻声呼唤,
"Erich, I'm here."
"埃里希,我在这里,"
Lübeck followed the sound, parting the wild, overgrown wormwood and purple and yellow flowers. There lay Ruth in the grass, her long skirt tightly wrapped around her legs to keep insects at bay, accentuating her slender frame. The air, thick with the fragrance of the fields, was punctuated by the occasional buzz of insects' wings flitting past. Raising her arm to shield her eyes from the sun, Ruth saw Lübeck had found her and whispered softly to him,
吕贝克循着声音,拨开疯长的蒿草,紫的黄的花朵,是露丝躺在草丛中,长裙紧紧包裹着她的双腿,以免虫子骚扰,这样更显出她纤细的身体.充斥的田野芬芳的空气中不时飞过昆虫翅膀的嗡嗡声在身边一闪而过,露丝抬起胳膊遮住阳光,见吕贝克找到了自己,便轻声对他说,
"Ah, I'm tired. I need to rest for a bit. Wait here for me, don't wander off," she said, closing her eyes. Beside her lay the basket she always carried slung around her waist, filled with the sweet roots she'd dug up, still covered in soil—some already dry, others still damp. Inside were also some blackberries she'd picked by breaking off branches, which had been the children's snack back then.
"啊,我累了,休息一会儿,你先在这等我,别乱跑,"说完闭上了眼睛,身边放着她一直挎在腰间的篮子,里面装着她挖到的甜根,还带着泥土,有的已经干了,有的还湿润.里面也有一些黑莓,是她带着树枝折下来的,就是那个时候孩子的零食.
Lübeck lay beside her, picking ripe blackberries, wiping them on her sleeve before popping them into her mouth. She savored their subtle tartness and sweetness while gazing up at the drifting white clouds in the blue sky. A gentle breeze carried the warm, fresh scent of the meadow in the afternoon sun to his nostrils, mingled with Ruth's scent. It seemed that whenever little Lübeck was by her side, he could always be so carefree.
吕贝克也躺在她的身边,挑着一些成熟的黑莓,在袖子上擦一擦,然后放进嘴里,一边品尝那淡淡的酸甜,一边仰望蓝色天空里的白云流动,清风不时把午后阳光里温润清新草甸的味道送入鼻息,同时也夹杂着露丝的气息,似乎在她的身边,小小的吕贝克总是可以那么地无忧无虑.
In the rain-drenched night, Lübeck walked down the street toward the San Diego Naval Base, his suitcase in hand. The deserted road echoed only with the patter of raindrops on the pavement, while scattered streetlights cast a dim glow over the puddled roadway. Through the rain-blurred vision, Ruth's face at their parting lingered before Lübeck's eyes, blending with the night's rain-drenched scene before him, gradually fading away.
雨夜中,吕贝克拎着自己的皮箱,走在前往圣地亚哥海军基地的街上,冷清的街道只有雨滴打在地面的噼啪声,零星的沿街灯光,惨淡地照亮积水的路面.雨水打湿视线的行色里,露丝离别时的脸庞还萦绕在吕贝克的眼前,与这眼前的雨中夜色交融,渐渐冲淡,
Erich, don't be so stubborn. I'll wait for you to come back...
Those unfinished words at parting, laden with her longing, seemed to follow Lübeck's footsteps to the ends of the earth.
"埃里希,别逞强,我等你回来..."
那分别时最后没有说完的嘱托,带着她的牵挂,仿佛跟随着吕贝克的脚步,远赴天涯.
The blood and fire of war may forge a man, while the trials of life and death reveal what one truly cherishes in existence. At home, Ruth lay prone on the bed in the quiet night, her cheek pressed against the sheets. Her loose hair could not conceal her gauntness, and her sunken eye sockets closed her eyes in deep slumber.
战争的血与火或许能让男子汉成长,而生与死的考验则让人更清楚自己生命中所珍视.家中的露丝,恬静的夜里,俯身趴在床上,脸颊贴在床单,披散的发丝遮不住她的消瘦,深陷的眼窝在沉睡中闭拢双眼.
The dawn's haze traced the contours of her cheeks through the curtains, reminding Lübeck of the face that had watched him grow over the years. How he longed to see his Ruth open her eyes, to once again feel the warmth of her caring gaze, to see if any sorrow lingered there that he needed to make amends for. Yet he did not wish to disturb her before this dawn of his return.
破晓的朦胧透过窗帘勾画着她脸颊的轮廓,让吕贝克不禁想起那张岁月中陪伴自己成长的面容,此刻他多想看见他的露丝睁开眼睛,再次体会她那温柔关爱的眼神,查看这些年,她的眼里有没有自己需要为她补偿的忧伤,可是他不想打扰她,在自己归来的这个黎明前.
The longing and concern for separation, the companionship and gratitude of time, turned into tears in this moment and fell to the floor,
"Erich,"
"Erich,"
"Erich, wake up."
分离的思念与牵挂,岁月的陪伴与感激,在这一刻化作热泪夺眶而出,掉在了地板上,
"埃里希,"
"埃里希,"
"埃里希,醒醒,"
Lübeck slowly opened her eyes. She was leaning over her, her large hazel eyes and short golden hair. She wasn't Ruth, but Brittany.
吕贝克缓缓睁开眼睛,她俯身在自己的面前,她有一双棕绿色的大眼睛,金色短发,她不是露丝,而是布列塔尼,
She gently wiped the tears from Lübeck's eyes and asked with concern,
"What's wrong, Erich?"
As she spoke, she fluttered her large eyes, repeatedly observing Lübeck's reaction, her chest swaying before him with each movement of her gaze.
她用手轻轻抹去吕贝克眼角的泪水,关切地问,
"怎么了?埃里希,"她一边问着,一边呼扇着那双大眼睛,反复观察着吕贝克的反应,而她的胸正随着她观察的动作在吕贝克面前晃动,
For some reason, this scene suddenly evoked in Lübeck that familiar feeling of a harbor—a sheltered haven where one could rest weary limbs and mend momentary frailties.
不知为何,这情景让吕贝克忽然感到那熟悉的港湾的感觉,一个可以避风的港湾,用来休息那一刻的疲惫,休整那一瞬间的脆弱,
He wrapped his arms around Brittany's back, gently pulling her close to him. Burying his face in her chest, still damp with the cold, wet traces of tears, he breathed in the lingering scent of their earlier moments. It felt like he'd been dreaming for an eternity, as if he'd been busy all night long.
他双手搂着布列塔尼的背,轻轻靠向自己,把自己的脸埋在她的胸里,还带着刚才的已经湿冷的泪痕,呼吸间回味着之前的情景,似乎自己做了一个很长的梦,好像忙碌了一整夜.
Brittany propped herself up with one hand while stroking Lübeck's head with the other. She bent down and asked him,
"What's wrong, my little darling?"
布列塔尼一手支撑着身体,一手摸着吕贝克的头,低头问他,
"怎么了,我的小宝贝儿?"
Lübeck buried his head in her lap, turning his face inward and nestling deeper. He said nothing, but a faint smile touched his lips—perhaps a self-mocking one.
吕贝克把头扎在她的怀里,扭着头,往里钻了钻,没说话,嘴角露出了微笑,或许是自嘲吧,
Did you have a dream? What kind of dream could be so sad?
"做梦了吗?是什么梦那么伤心?"
Lübeck gently stroked Brittany's back, then turned his head to lightly kiss her breast with his lips, still saying nothing.
吕贝克用手轻抚着布列塔尼的背,扭头用嘴唇轻轻亲了亲她的乳房,还是什么也没说,
After a moment of silence, Brittany asked softly,
"Did you dream about her?"
沉默了一阵子,布列塔尼又轻声问,
"是梦到她了吗?"
"Well, don't mind me,"
"嗯,你别介意,"
Brittany didn't respond this time either, just stroked his head, and after a moment said,
"I don't mind, but please don't keep hurting yourself over her, okay?"
布列塔尼这次也没有应声,只是抚摸着他的头,过了一会儿说,
"我并不介意,只是你也别总因为她伤心,好吗?"
"Hmm," Lübeck tilted her head back, gazing into Brittany's large eyes as she murmured her reply, then asked,
"Have you been awake for long?"
"嗯,"吕贝克仰着头,望着布列塔尼那双大眼睛轻声答应,然后问,
"你醒了好久了吗?"
"It's been a while."
"有一阵子了,"
"And me? What a sight I must have been just now—I'm so sorry to have embarrassed you," Lü Beck said, wrapping his arm around her waist and laying her down beside him, holding her close. After all, he didn't want to show too much of his vulnerable side; as a man, he still needed to be Brittany's rock.
"那我?刚才是什么样子,让你见笑了,"说着,吕贝克搂着她的腰把她平放在自己身边,把她搂在怀里,毕竟自己不想把脆弱的一面过多展现,作为男人他还要让自己成为布列塔尼的依靠.
"Maybe it's my fault for making you always think of her."
"也许是我做得不好,让你总是想起她,"
"No, no, no—it's not your fault. It's all my fault for not clearing the memory," Lübeck hurriedly explained.
"不不不,不是你的错,都怪我没清除记忆,"吕贝克急忙解释,
"Oh, shall I clear it for you? Need some help?" Brittany turned, draped her leg over Lübeck's, and said with feigned allure,
"哦,那我帮你清除好吗?需要吗?"布列塔尼转身把腿搭在吕贝克的身上故作魅惑地说,
Lübeck smiled, one arm around her waist, the other hand caressing her hip, gazing into her eyes without speaking.
吕贝克笑了,一手搂着她的腰,一手抚摸着她的胯,望着她的眼睛,没说话,
"Oh, you don't like me erasing her from your memory? Then why not add me to your memories of her? That way, you'll never be able to tell me apart from her again," Brittany said in a slightly annoyed tone, leaning over Lübeck. One hand caressed his chest while the other pinched his jaw as she demanded with a mix of pride and petulance.
"哦,你不喜欢我把她从你的记忆里抹除,那就把我也加入你对她的记忆好吗?让你以后再也分不清是我还是她,"布列塔尼有些懊恼的声调说着,趴在吕贝克身上,一手抚着他的前胸一手掐住他的下颌傲娇地质问,
"Alright,"
"好,"