CHAPTER SEVEN Invisible Menace

 The Kentons studied the red planet in silent awe¹. Beneath the thin cotton of atmosphere, they saw the crisscross markings of the canals that had baffled Earthmen for many years. Two small globes hovered² in the deeps beyond. They were the two moons, Phobos and Deimos.

 

Randy unconsciously shoved forward ahead of the Kentons. “Isn’t it beautiful!” he murmured.

 

“I wonder when we’ll be landing,” Jill said.

 

The commander, who had heard her, answered, “In fifty hours, young lady.”

 

“I guess we’d better get back to our suite³ so that some of the other passengers can come in,” Dr. Kenton said.

 

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They thanked the commander and left the pilots’ roost. When they had returned to their compartment⁴, Ted⁵ asked Randy, “Have you ever been to Earth?”

 

Randy shook his head. “It sounds like a terrific place, though. I’ve studied a lot about it in our Earth Geography course in school, and Pops has told me a lot about it. Imagine playing baseball outdoors without a space suit on!”

 

Ted realized he had always taken the wonders of Earth for granted. It was hard to understand that a boy such as Randy existed—a boy who had never experienced such a free life. He tried to imagine how it would be if he had lived all of his life on a world where all the breaths you took were from tanks of artificial air, and where you could never feel the cooling breezes of summer or the spicy⁶ winter winds in your lungs. Thinking about these things made Ted thankful that he was not in Randy’s shoes.

 

75

Suddenly an urgent voice came over the speaker in the Kentons’ suite: “Attention, everyone. Act quickly but do not be frightened. A leak has developed in our antiradiation shield. Everyone retire immediately to the rear store compartment at the extreme end of the ship.”

 

“My goodness!” exclaimed Mrs. Kenton. “What does that mean?”

 

“There’ll be time for explanations later,” replied Dr. Kenton. “The first thing is to do as he says.”

 

They hurried out of the compartment and down the corridor aft. There were crewmen stationed along the aisle⁷ at intervals⁸ to calm the people’s fears and keep them orderly. A warning bell signifying trouble was pealing⁹ throughout the ship.

 

The Kentons and Randy crowded into the farthest rear room of the Shooting Star with the other passengers, all of whom were chattering¹⁰ excitedly. When the last passenger was in, the transparent¹¹ door was fastened shut.

 

“Why did we have to come way back here, Father?” Jill asked.

 

“Because rays are loose in the ship,” her father replied. “The farther we are from the atomic engines up front, the safer we are.”

 

“Are they dangerous?” his wife asked.

 

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“They could be, in sufficient intensity¹². Right now, they’re closing all the doors along the corridors. The doors have built-in screens to resist the rays, if they are not too strong. Keep your eyes on the light bulb out in the corridor. If it turns red, it means the rays have penetrated¹³ that far!”

 

“Oh, dear!” groaned¹⁴ Mrs. Kenton. “I knew we shouldn’t have left Earth. Now it looks like we’ll never reach our new home, after getting so close, too!”

 

“Don’t worry,” Dr. Kenton said. “The ship’s crew knows how to handle this. They have electronic instruments they turn on that attract the rays like a magnet. They can clean out the entire ship in about half an hour. That bulb in the corridor will light if even the slightest bit of radiation is present. There’s another bulb in the corner of this room, but let’s certainly hope this one doesn’t light up.”

 

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Ted heard a groan¹⁵ from one of the passengers. The light in the corridor was beginning to glow. That meant the radiation had penetrated all the way to the rear of the ship. The next thing to watch was the bulb inside the room, Ted thought. His father had not said so, but Ted guessed that they would probably be in serious trouble if this last one should light.

 

Presently figures clothed in weird¹⁶ metallic¹⁷ suits and carrying shiny instruments were seen in the corridor.

 

“The crew is protected by those suits,” Dr. Kenton explained. “The things they are carrying are the magnetic ray catchers I was telling you about.”

 

“Look!” Jill said suddenly. “The red light has gone out!”

 

“We’ve nothing to worry about, then.” The scientist spoke¹⁸ with relief. “I would say those men got to us just in time.”

 

One of the curiously¹⁹ garbed²⁰ men unfastened the door of the storeroom and beckoned²¹ for the passengers to come out. Then he opened the front piece of his helmet to speak to them: “Don’t go through the next door until you hear the all-clear whistle,” he said. “It’ll be just a few minutes.”

 

78

 

Figures in weird metallic suits.

 

79

When the whistle blew, the corridor doors were opened and the passengers returned to their sections. After the Kentons were back in their suite, Mrs. Kenton sighed deeply and slumped²² in an air-cushioned chair.

 

“My goodness!” she said. “I’m still quivery. If it’s not one thing it’s another on these space voyages! I’m surprised we’re still alive after all that’s happened!”

 

“At least you can’t say the trip is boring, Mother,” Jill piped up, and this brought a relaxing laugh from the others.

 

* * * * * * * *

 

Nearly two days later Mars was a giant world dead ahead. Ted looked out the window with Jill and Randy and saw a close-up view of the strange land that was to be their new home. A great network of deep, straight gorges²³ split the boundless²⁴ stretches of red desert. These were the fabulous²⁵ canals built by the ancient Martians, now long dead.

 

“There’s the Prime Canal,” Randy said, pointing to the largest chasm²⁶ of all. “It feeds all the little canals in this section.”

 

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“Aren’t those trees growing along the canals?” Jill asked.

 

Randy nodded. “Evergreens,” he said.

 

“What’s that white stuff in the bottom of the canals and near the roots of the trees?” Ted wanted to know.

 

“That’s frost,” Randy answered. “The sun never melts it completely. It never even gets up to zero in this latitude²⁷.”

 

Dr. Kenton, whose interest was beyond Mars at the moment, said, “Look, kids, there’s our comet again!”

 

He pointed²⁸ it out to them in the heavens. It was a long streak²⁹ across the sky. The nucleus³⁰ burned brightly, like a heavenly torch.

 

“Now it really looks like a comet!” Ted declared.

 

“It’s beautiful!” Jill murmured.

 

“We’ll be able to see it from Mars for several days,” Dr. Kenton told them. “Then it’ll gradually disappear from view.”

 

81

At this point the Shooting Star began its turnabout for rearward landing. Then, still later, the order that all those aboard the Shooting Star had been waiting a long time to hear came over the loud-speakers. “Strap down on couches, everyone! Next stop—Lowell Harbor!”

 

The end of their journey was at hand.

 

1 awe   

n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧

参考例句：

• The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

2 hovered   

鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• A hawk hovered over the hill. 一只鹰在小山的上空翱翔。
• A hawk hovered in the blue sky. 一只老鹰在蓝色的天空中翱翔。

3 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

4 compartment   

n.卧车包房，隔间；分隔的空间

参考例句：

• We were glad to have the whole compartment to ourselves.真高兴，整个客车隔间由我们独享。
• The batteries are safely enclosed in a watertight compartment.电池被安全地置于一个防水的隔间里。

5 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

6 spicy   

adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的

参考例句：

• The soup tasted mildly spicy.汤尝起来略有点辣。
• Very spicy food doesn't suit her stomach.太辣的东西她吃了胃不舒服。

7 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

8 intervals   

n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息

参考例句：

• The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴，有阵雨。
• Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。

9 pealing   

v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The bell began pealing. 钟声开始鸣响了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The church bells are pealing the message of Christmas joy. 教堂的钟声洪亮地传颂着圣诞快乐的信息。 来自辞典例句

10 chattering   

n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。
• I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。

11 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

12 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

13 penetrated   

adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The knife had penetrated his chest. 刀子刺入了他的胸膛。
• They penetrated into territory where no man had ever gone before. 他们已进入先前没人去过的地区。

14 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 groan   

vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音

参考例句：

• The wounded man uttered a groan.那个受伤的人发出呻吟。
• The people groan under the burden of taxes.人民在重税下痛苦呻吟。

16 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

17 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

18 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。

19 curiously   

adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地

参考例句：

• He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
• He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。

20 garbed   

v.（尤指某类人穿的特定）服装，衣服，制服( garb的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The widow was garbed in black. 那寡妇穿着黑衣服。 来自辞典例句
• He garbed himself as a sailor. 他装扮成水手。 来自辞典例句

21 beckoned   

v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
• The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

23 gorges   

n.山峡，峡谷( gorge的名词复数 )；咽喉v.（用食物把自己）塞饱，填饱( gorge的第三人称单数 )；作呕

参考例句：

• The explorers were confronted with gorges(that were)almost impassable and rivers(that were)often unfordable. 探险人员面临着几乎是无路可通的峡谷和常常是无法渡过的河流。 来自辞典例句
• We visited the Yangtse Gorges last summer. 去年夏天我们游历了长江三峡。 来自辞典例句

24 boundless   

adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的

参考例句：

• The boundless woods were sleeping in the deep repose of nature.无边无际的森林在大自然静寂的怀抱中酣睡着。
• His gratitude and devotion to the Party was boundless.他对党无限感激、无限忠诚。

25 fabulous   

adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的

参考例句：

• We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
• This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

26 chasm   

n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突

参考例句：

• There's a chasm between rich and poor in that society.那社会中存在着贫富差距。
• A huge chasm gaped before them.他们面前有个巨大的裂痕。

27 latitude   

n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区

参考例句：

• The latitude of the island is 20 degrees south.该岛的纬度是南纬20度。
• The two cities are at approximately the same latitude.这两个城市差不多位于同一纬度上。

28 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

29 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

30 nucleus   

n.核，核心，原子核

参考例句：

• These young people formed the nucleus of the club.这些年轻人成了俱乐部的核心。
• These councils would form the nucleus of a future regime.这些委员会将成为一个未来政权的核心。