CHAPTER VI—UP IN THE AIR

 The plane was running like a dream at an altitude of 1,800 feet and due west when they became aware of two tiny lights far below them. Not a glimmer¹ was there anywhere near them and if Troyes were down there it was cautious enough to keep itself in the dark. Archer² says that Slade did not speak to him nor even answer when he spoke³, and he could only surmise⁴ what the pilot was about. He saw the altimétre register lower and presently he saw another light, the three forming a triangle. Slade said something about their being within gun fire range, but Archer could not hear him clearly and instinctively⁵ he kept still.

“I think it’s it,” he finally heard Slade say.

Archer did not fully⁶ understand why Slade thought it was “it.” He confesses that he was “nerrvous and flusterred” and did not dare to ask questions.

“Get your stuff ready,” he heard Slade say. “Do you see another light? There must be a patrol out—that’s lucky.”

As we know, Troyes was one of the places which Slade had often visited upon his official errands, and there he had once or twice met Archer. So we may assume that he knew something of the neighboring aviation school and field with its guiding corner lights. If there had been no patrol out these lights would not have been burning. At a second’s notice any one or all of them could be turned into a giant finger to probe the heavens, and Slade knew this.

In retelling, as well as I can, from Archer’s fragmentary narrative⁷, the tale of their heroic fight, I wish not to minimize the element of luck, nor, upon the other hand, to draw upon my imagination. If I had Slade’s story I could write from the standpoint of the pilot, but as it is I am writing from the standpoint of his anxious companion who did his little part, kept discreetly⁸ silent and waited in suspense⁹.

That Slade should have flown due west upon the strength of an original calculation and come directly over this place was remarkable¹⁰ and greatly to his credit. But he was mistaken in supposing that there would be a glare from the lights of the town and it was a piece of sheer luck that the corner lights of the big field were burning, for the night was not propitious¹¹ for patrols.

Archer had just spied a fourth light, completing a square, and was dipping his tightly wound shirt into the gasolene, when a long, dusky column moved across the darkness, hesitated, groped, moved toward them, then away again, and then—there they were in a field of brightness and he saw Slade as he had not seen him in nearly a year.

“He looked olderr and his big mouth was shut tight as if he was mad, but I could see how his two hands that held the controls were steady, just like that (he gripped one of the bars of the bed to show me), and I could even see the ring on his fingerr just as plain as day.”

A shot rang out and the plane shook “just like a dog shakes himself.” He saw Slade yank back the larger lever and reach below him for another. For a few seconds he was pushing and pulling—the terrible shaking ceased—darkness.

Archer was trembling like a leaf.

“A miss is as good as a mile,” he heard Slade say. “Don’t get rattled¹², she’s stable, drop your note, quick! I’m going to get out of this!”

It seemed to Archer but half a second and then the four lights were far away, so quickly is distance multiplied by the slightest movement in the air. It seemed now that the square was all askew¹³ and the odd fancy occurred to him that the shock of that gun away down there had knocked it out of shape.

“See it?” he heard Slade say without any trace of excitement.

Archer looked and saw far below them and some distance to the west the little flickering¹⁴ light of the descending¹⁵ torch, growing smaller— smaller—until it disappeared. He tried to determine whether it was within the radius¹⁶ of the square but that was quite impossible, for the square kept changing, and as a sort of vent¹⁷ to his suspense he watched it, expecting every second to find himself in another glare of light, and then to go tumbling down through space. Now those far-off lights formed a diamond, now they seemed to form almost a straight line, then opened into a crazy sort of square and again looked like a part of the Big Dipper; and the whimsical thought came to Archer that they were above the stars and looking down on them.

He knew, of course, that these odd effects were caused by Slade’s manouvering, but he had never seen such effects produced while riding on an express train or any other sort of conveyance¹⁸, and the experience fascinated him much more than did the very simple and obvious devices for controlling their craft. “I felt as if I didn’t belong to the worrld at all,” he said.

He does not know how long they manouvered, nor how much area they covered in doing so, because there is hardly such a thing as distance in an airplane. An aviator¹⁹ may go five miles to turn around. “All I know is,” he said, “that pretty soon I saw something down therre, but not just below me, just like a picture comes on the movie screen when the audience is all in the darrk. I saw the buildings and everything and long lines, white kind of, like a baseball field, only the buildings were all built slanting²⁰-ways, like, as if the wind that was blowin’ a little while before had kind of pushed them over one way. Believe me, I’ve sat up in the top galleries at a good many movie shows, but I neverr, neverr, neverr saw such a big, clearr screen.... ‘Slady,’ I shouted, ‘look at those buildings, will you, how they’rre all fallen overr sideways—’ ‘I don’t know which one of us is a bigger fool,’ Slady answered, pulling on the stick that moves the sideways thing in back and grabbin’ the otherr one that he called the broomstick. ‘Look at ’em, will you!’ I shouted. ‘They’rre built crazy, or something!’ ‘You’re built crazy or something,’ Slady said, ‘look at ’em now.’ And just then they straightened all up like regular buildings, long barrns, sorrt of, and the white lines made a big square, all nice and even like. ‘I swept ’em straight with the broomstick,’ Slady says, in that soberr way of his, and just then the whole place tipped up like as if it was going to spill all the buildings off it and everything was all crooked²¹ again. ‘Have a hearrt, Slady!’ I shouted. ‘You’ll spill the whole concarrned village if you pull that thing again!’”

“Did Slade laugh?” I asked.

“No, he didn’t. He just said he was a fool to tell them to fire three shots when he might have known that if they believed the message they’d just illuminate²² the field. ‘Maybe they’ll fire ’em anyway,’ he said. ‘I hope they don’t fire ’em up herre,’ I told him. He didn’t pay any attention to me, only kept scowlin’ like he always did when he was especially interested and kept his hands and feet both busy.

“Pretty soon therre were three shots and I guess they knew down therre that everything was all right because when we asked for three shots, that showed we were greenhorns, all right. But they gave ’em anyway. ‘What’ll I do now?’ I said to Slady, for I was feeling mighty²³ glad that we’d got there and that everything was all right. ‘Don’t do anything except shut up,’ he says, so I just watched him like mamma’s good little boy while he pulled and pushed and I could see from the altimetrrre that we werre going down.

“We werren’t over the bright field at all then—he’d got way overr to the west of it or the south of it—I don’t know—and the whole business was up slanting ways again—way up. Then all of a sudden the long buildings began to straighten out and be theirr right shapes again almost, and then just like that (he clapped his hands with a resounding²⁴ smack²⁵ by way of illustration) therre they werre away overr at the otherr end of the great big field standing²⁶ as straight as soldierrs and as squarre as a choppin’-block, and us coming straight towarrds them, and there was a company of Frenchies all lined up waitin’, maybe on account of its seemin’ sorrt of like a kamarad game, and there was fellerrs running out of those long buildings pell-mell towarrds us and it was a regularr kind of a circus. I guess we hit terra-cotta[7] too near the buildings maybe, but anyway it was all right. A lieutenant²⁷ climbed up and took a squint²⁸ at us and says, ‘Good shot,’ and then there was a crowd all around us—fellerrs that had been asleep, I guess, and a lot morre. The firrst thing I did when I got a chance I went overr and took a look at those long barrns—dorrmitories, they were, and I said to a sarrgeant that was therre, gaping²⁹ all overr his face, I says, ‘I want to make surre these things ain’t built like accordions³⁰, ’cause, believe me, you can twist ’em every which way when you’rre up in the airrrr!’”

“See if you can’t say air,” I said, smiling as he sat back in his wheel chair, quite exhausted³¹.

“Airrrrre,” he repeated.

“Good!” I laughed.

7. If he heard any such word as this used, it was probably terra firma.

1 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

2 archer   

n.射手，弓箭手

参考例句：

• The archer strung his bow and aimed an arrow at the target.弓箭手拉紧弓弦将箭瞄准靶子。
• The archer's shot was a perfect bull's-eye.射手的那一箭正中靶心。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 surmise   

v./n.猜想，推测

参考例句：

• It turned out that my surmise was correct.结果表明我的推测没有错。
• I surmise that he will take the job.我推测他会接受这份工作。

5 instinctively   

adv.本能地

参考例句：

• As he leaned towards her she instinctively recoiled. 他向她靠近，她本能地往后缩。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He knew instinctively where he would find her. 他本能地知道在哪儿能找到她。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

7 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

8 discreetly   

ad.(言行)审慎地，慎重地

参考例句：

• He had only known the perennial widow, the discreetly expensive Frenchwoman. 他只知道她是个永远那么年轻的寡妇，一个很会讲排场的法国女人。
• Sensing that Lilian wanted to be alone with Celia, Andrew discreetly disappeared. 安德鲁觉得莉莲想同西莉亚单独谈些什么，有意避开了。

9 suspense   

n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑

参考例句：

• The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
• The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。

10 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

11 propitious   

adj.吉利的；顺利的

参考例句：

• The circumstances were not propitious for further expansion of the company.这些情况不利于公司的进一步发展。
• The cool days during this week are propitious for out trip.这种凉爽的天气对我们的行程很有好处。

12 rattled   

慌乱的，恼火的

参考例句：

• The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。
• Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

13 askew   

adv.斜地；adj.歪斜的

参考例句：

• His glasses had been knocked askew by the blow.他的眼镜一下子被打歪了。
• Her hat was slightly askew.她的帽子戴得有点斜。

14 flickering   

adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的

参考例句：

• The crisp autumn wind is flickering away. 清爽的秋风正在吹拂。
• The lights keep flickering. 灯光忽明忽暗。

15 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

16 radius   

n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限

参考例句：

• He has visited every shop within a radius of two miles.周围两英里以内的店铺他都去过。
• We are measuring the radius of the circle.我们正在测量圆的半径。

17 vent   

n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄

参考例句：

• He gave vent to his anger by swearing loudly.他高声咒骂以发泄他的愤怒。
• When the vent became plugged,the engine would stop.当通风口被堵塞时，发动机就会停转。

18 conveyance   

n.(不动产等的)转让，让与；转让证书；传送；运送；表达；（正）运输工具

参考例句：

• Bicycles have become the most popular conveyance for Chinese people.自行车已成为中国人最流行的代步工具。
• Its another,older,usage is a synonym for conveyance.它的另一个更古老的习惯用法是作为财产转让的同义词使用。

19 aviator   

n.飞行家，飞行员

参考例句：

• The young aviator bragged of his exploits in the sky.那名年轻的飞行员吹嘘他在空中飞行的英勇事迹。
• Hundreds of admirers besieged the famous aviator.数百名爱慕者围困那个著名飞行员。

20 slanting   

倾斜的，歪斜的

参考例句：

• The rain is driving [slanting] in from the south. 南边潲雨。
• The line is slanting to the left. 这根线向左斜了。

21 crooked   

adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He crooked a finger to tell us to go over to him.他弯了弯手指，示意我们到他那儿去。
• You have to drive slowly on these crooked country roads.在这些弯弯曲曲的乡间小路上你得慢慢开车。

22 illuminate   

vt.照亮，照明；用灯光装饰；说明，阐释

参考例句：

• Dreams kindle a flame to illuminate our dark roads.梦想点燃火炬照亮我们黑暗的道路。
• They use games and drawings to illuminate their subject.他们用游戏和图画来阐明他们的主题。

23 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

24 resounding   

adj. 响亮的

参考例句：

• The astronaut was welcomed with joyous,resounding acclaim. 人们欢声雷动地迎接那位宇航员。
• He hit the water with a resounding slap. 他啪的一声拍了一下水。

25 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

26 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

27 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

28 squint   

v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的

参考例句：

• A squint can sometimes be corrected by an eyepatch. 斜视有时候可以通过戴眼罩来纠正。
• The sun was shinning straight in her eyes which made her squint. 太阳直射着她的眼睛,使她眯起了眼睛。

29 gaping   

adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大

参考例句：

• Ahead of them was a gaping abyss. 他们前面是一个巨大的深渊。
• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 accordions   

n.手风琴( accordion的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Accordions were nowhere in my hit parade. 手风琴在我的流行曲目里根本排不上号。 来自名作英译部分
• Most musical instruments( especially wind instruments and accordions) can be played without moving your fingers. 不需要动手指，就可以演奏多数的乐器，尤其是吹管乐器与手风琴。 来自互联网

31 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。