Chapter 54

It was over breakfast the next morning, not sooner, that Dors took up the subject--and in a way that Seldon found most wounding. She said, "Well, that was a pretty fiasco yesterday."
Seldon, who had honestly thought he had gotten away with it without comment, looked sullen¹. "What made it a fiasco?"
"Driven out is what we were. And for what? What did we gain?"
"Only the knowledge that there is a robot in there."
"Mycelium Seventy-Two said there wasnt."
"Of course he said that. Hes a scholar--or thinks he is--and what he doesnt know about the Sacratorium would probably fill that library he goes to. You saw the Elders reaction."
"I certainly did."
"He would not have reacted like that if there was no robot inside. He was horrified² we knew."
"Thats just your guess, Hari. And even if there was, we couldnt get in."
"We could certainly try. After breakfast, we go out and buy a sash for me, one of those obiahs. I put it on, keep my eyes devoutly³ downward, and walk right in."
"Skincap and all? Theyll spot you in a microsecond."
"No, they wont⁴. Well go into the library where all the tribespeople data is kept. Id like to see it anyway. From the library, which is a Sacratorium annex⁵, I gather, there will probably be an entrance into the Sacratorium."
"Where you will be picked up at once."
"Not at all. You heard what Mycelium Seventy-Two had to say. Everyone keeps his eyes down and meditates⁶ on their great Lost World, Aurora⁷. No one looks at anyone else. It would probably be a grievous breach⁸ of discipline to do so. Then Ill find the Elders aerie--"
"Just like that?"
"At one point, Mycelium Seventy-Two said he would advise me not to try to get up into the Elders aerie. Up. It must be somewhere in that tower of the Sacratorium, the central tower."
Dors shook her head. "I dont recall the mans exact words and I dont think you do either. Thats a terribly weak foundation to-- Wait." She stopped suddenly and frowned.
"Well?" said Seldon.
"There is an archaic⁹ word aerie that means a dwelling¹⁰ place on high. "
"Ah! There you are. You see, weve learned some vital things as the result of what you call a fiasco. And if I can find a living robot thats twenty thousand years old and if it can tell me--"
"Suppose that such a thing exists, which passes belief, and that you find it, which is not very likely, how long do you think you will be able to talk to it before your presence is discovered?"
"I dont know, but if I can prove it exists and if I can find it, then Ill think of some way to talk to it. Its too late for me to back out now under any circumstances. Hummin should have left me alone when I thought there was no way of achieving psychohistory. Now that it seems there may be, I wont let anything stop me--short of being killed."
"The Mycogenians may oblige, Hari, and you cant¹¹ run that risk."
"Yes, I can. Im going to try."
"No, Hari. I must look after you and I cant let you."
"You must let me. Finding a way to work out psychohistory is more important than my safety. My safety is only important because I may work out psychohistory. Prevent me from doing so and your task loses its meaning.--Think about it."
Hari felt himself infused with a renewed sense of purpose. Psychohistory--his nebulous theory that he had, such a short while ago, despaired ever of proving--loomed larger, more real. Now he had to believe that it was possible; he could feel it in his gut¹². The pieces seemed to be falling together and although he couldnt see the whole pattern yet, he was sure the Sacratorium would yield another piece to the puzzle.
"Then Ill go in with you so I can pull you out, you idiot, when the time comes."
"Women cant enter."
"What makes me a woman? Only this gray kirtle. You cant see my breasts under it. I dont have a womans style hairdo with the skincap on. I have the same washed, unmarked face a man has. The men here dont have stubble. All I need is a white kirtle and a sash and I can enter. Any Sister could do it if she wasnt held back by a taboo¹³. I am not held back by one."
"Youre held back by me. I wont let you. Its too dangerous."
"No more dangerous for me than for you."
"But I must take the risk."
"Then so must I. Why is your imperative¹⁴ greater than mine?"
"Because--" Seldon paused in thought.
"Just tell yourself this," said Dors, her voice hard as rock. "I wont let you go there without me. If you try, I will knock you unconscious and tie you up. If you dont like that, then give up any thought of going alone."
Seldon hesitated and muttered darkly. He gave up the argument, at least for now.

1 sullen   

adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的

参考例句：

• He looked up at the sullen sky.他抬头看了一眼阴沉的天空。
• Susan was sullen in the morning because she hadn't slept well.苏珊今天早上郁闷不乐，因为昨晚没睡好。

2 horrified   

a.(表现出)恐惧的

参考例句：

• The whole country was horrified by the killings. 全国都对这些凶杀案感到大为震惊。
• We were horrified at the conditions prevailing in local prisons. 地方监狱的普遍状况让我们震惊。

3 devoutly   

adv.虔诚地，虔敬地，衷心地

参考例句：

• She was a devoutly Catholic. 她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This was not a boast, but a hope, at once bold and devoutly humble. 这不是夸夸其谈，而是一个即大胆而又诚心、谦虚的希望。 来自辞典例句

4 wont   

adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯

参考例句：

• He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
• It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。

5 annex   

vt.兼并，吞并；n.附属建筑物

参考例句：

• It plans to annex an England company in order to enlarge the market.它计划兼并一家英国公司以扩大市场。
• The annex has been built on to the main building.主楼配建有附属的建筑物。

6 meditates   

深思，沉思，冥想( meditate的第三人称单数 )； 内心策划，考虑

参考例句：

• He purges his subconscious and meditates only on God. 他净化他的潜意识且只思念上帝。
• He meditates away eight or ten hours every day. 他每天花8或10小时作沉思冥想。

7 aurora   

n.极光

参考例句：

• The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
• Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。

8 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

9 archaic   

adj.(语言、词汇等)古代的，已不通用的

参考例句：

• The company does some things in archaic ways,such as not using computers for bookkeeping.这个公司有些做法陈旧，如记账不使用电脑。
• Shaanxi is one of the Chinese archaic civilized origins which has a long history.陕西省是中国古代文明发祥之一，有悠久的历史。

10 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

11 cant   

n.斜穿，黑话，猛扔

参考例句：

• The ship took on a dangerous cant to port.船只出现向左舷危险倾斜。
• He knows thieves'cant.他懂盗贼的黑话。

12 gut   

n.[pl.]胆量；内脏；adj.本能的；vt.取出内脏

参考例句：

• It is not always necessary to gut the fish prior to freezing.冷冻鱼之前并不总是需要先把内脏掏空。
• My immediate gut feeling was to refuse.我本能的直接反应是拒绝。

13 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

14 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。