遇见佐伊 Meet Zoe

蛋糕店刚一出现在脑海中，佐伊便一跃而起，任凭重力将她牵引。下落途中，她伸出手，集中意念，形成一条通路。一道传送门立刻出现在她下方，连接到另一个地点。她掉进传送门，组成她身体的物质不断发生对撞和爆聚，在时空中穿梭。

The moment she thought of the cake store, Zoe dove into the air, surrendering herself to gravity. While falling, she reached out with her consciousness to form a gateway. Instantly, a portal opened beneath her and connected to the other place. She fell into the gate. Her mass collided and imploded as she traveled.

感觉有点刺痒。

It kinda tickles.

可惜，佐伊并没有到达她想去的目的地。她从第二道传送门穿出来，发现距离刚才的位置只有十几步远。她借着刚才下落的动量腾空，短暂的静止，又被拖进传送门。她周围的时间和空间再次扭曲——用她的话说就是呼啦一声——随后她翻回了原点。随后，两道传送门折叠缩小，消失不见。

Unfortunately, Zoe did not appear at her intended destination. Instead, she emerged from a second portal only a dozen strides away, propelled through the air by the momentum of her previous fall. Then, after a brief moment of equilibrium, she was pulled back into the second portal. Again, time and space twisted around her—all swooshy-like, as she would describe it—before flopping her back at the starting point. Both portals then folded into space and disappeared.

某种强大的魔法正在干扰佐伊的穿越能力。这可能与她应该传达的某种变革有关，而且显然她还没有完成这个任务。这可是个严重的问题，但对她而言也不算意外。她不太确定自己要传达的是什么信息，要给谁，甚至不知道是什么含义，但从她的经验来判断，这些细节都无关紧要。神圣的数学定理必将发挥作用，而她所要传达的信息一定会在她到达目的地以后不久自行展开整理。佐伊觉得，作为一名星灵拥有这样的本事还真不赖。

A powerful magic was distorting Zoe’s ability to travel. It probably related to whatever change she was supposed to herald, and, obviously, she hadn’t succeeded yet. It was a problem, but not an unfamiliar one. She wasn’t really sure what the message was, who it was for, or even what it meant, but, in her experience, those details rarely mattered. The holy mathematics wanted to advance, and the messages generally fell into place shortly after she arrived. Zoe felt that was a pretty cool advantage of being an Aspect.

当然，现在的问题是她在等待的时候应该做点什么。她环顾四周，在一棵树旁边，她发现了一只小小的、毛茸茸的动物，拖着一条大大的尾巴。它看上去有点像小号的约德尔人。不过佐伊注意到，与约德尔人相比，这只动物与精神世界之间的连接微乎其微。

Of course, there was now the question of what to do while she waited. Zoe glanced around. Beside a nearby tree, she spotted a small, fuzzy creature with a huge tail. It looked similar to a tiny yordle, though Zoe noted how this creature’s connection to the spirit world was comparatively miniscule.

它的生命轨迹在佐伊脑海中一闪而过。它只能生活十几个周期，然后就要返还自己的精魂。在她看来，稍纵即逝的短暂让这个生命显得更加可爱。佐伊跳了起来，向它跑过去。

The small animal’s life-pattern flashed in Zoe’s brain. It would live only a dozen rotations before returning its spirit. To her, the brevity of its life made it more adorable. Zoe jumped up and ran toward it.

“好可爱！”

“So cute!”

那只小动物爬上了树，躲到远处。

The tiny animal scrambled up the tree away from her.

“嘿，回来！”她大喊道。

“Hey, come back!” she pouted.

她丝毫没有放慢追赶的脚步，一边跑一边造出一个时间泡泡，用星球自转速度的一半旋转加速，然后将泡泡扔向那棵树。奇异的泡泡蹦蹦跳跳地飞向前，最后撞到树干破掉了。

Without slowing her pursuit, Zoe created a time bubble, turning it only half a planet’s rotation, before launching it at the tree. The anomaly bounced before bursting against the tree’s trunk.

那一秒，这只小动物的过去与它的现在发生了融合。穹庐如夜，遮天蔽日，暮光舞蝶，忽暗忽明。这只小动物进入了倦怠、恬适的旧夜沉梦，曾经的精神状态覆上了当下的意识。

For a second, the cute animal’s past merged with the present. The night sky overtook the area, and twilight butterflies pulsed around it. The small creature fell into the tired, restful sleep of the previous evening, as its past’s spiritual and mental state overwhelmed its current consciousness.

佐伊暂时脱开重力，飘上了树枝，来到小动物旁边。她的手在它的绒毛上方犹豫地停住了。她知道，只要触碰一下，她的魔咒就会被打破。

Zoe ignored gravity for a moment, floated up into the branches, and came to a stop beside the tiny animal. Her hand hesitated above its downy fur. She knew the moment she touched the creature, her spell would break.

“佐伊是你的朋友，”她轻声说道。但就在她的手轻放在小动物的头上时，它突然惊醒，慌乱地跳开了。

“Zoe is a friend,” she whispered. But when she caressed the tiny animal’s head, it burst awake and dove away from her in a panic.

佐伊失望地叹了口气，然后飘到更高的地方，头朝下倒挂在空中。她在想，办完这事以后要不要去找奥瑞利安·索尔。那条龙也不喜欢被抚摸。不过她转念一想，至少索尔不容易在追逐的过程中被弄伤。佐伊的思绪被眼前的东西打断了，因为她飘到了更高的地方，看见小山另一边的地平线上有一座小村子。

With a disappointed moan, Zoe floated a bit higher before flipping upside down. She considered visiting Aurelion Sol after she finished here. The dragon didn’t like being petted either. But, she thought, he was easier to catch without harming. This notion vanished as, thanks to her new altitude, Zoe saw past the hills and spotted a village on the horizon.

她用意念做出了一道通往那座村镇的传送门，钻了进去。但和刚才一样，佐伊的传送门只跨越了几码的距离。而且更糟糕的是，传送门又把她拖回了原点，自己就坍缩了。

She willed a portal to the town into existence and dove into it. But, again, Zoe was only able to create a gate to a few yards away. Worse, it collapsed upon itself, as before, and pulled her back to her starting point.

夏日的芳草看上去的确很美好，所以既然也没有别的交通方式，她就徒步穿过森林，向村庄的方向走去。

The summer grass did seem inviting, so with no better option, she walked through the forest to the village.

当她到达这座村镇的外墙郊区的时候，太阳已经开始落山。她听到了嬉笑的声音，于是抛开重力飘到了一座房子的屋檐上。

She arrived at the outskirts of the walled town as the sun began to set. Hearing laughter, she dismissed gravity for a second and floated up to one of the village’s rooftops.

在中庭院子里，五、六个人类正在玩耍。他们的体型几乎和佐伊一般大，不像是她最近在这颗星球上遇到的那群小孩或大人。

In the center courtyard, a half dozen mortals were playing. They were almost exactly Zoe’s size, unlike the children or adults she had encountered more recently in her tour of the planet.

一个男性正在绕着圈追逐一个女性。两个人都在开心地笑。游戏的规则看不太明白。

One of the males chased a female around in a circle. Both were laughing. The rules of the game were unclear.

佐伊仔细看着女孩穿的红裙子，她在想这种颜色是不是代表了什么特殊含义。虽然这条裙子和游戏无关，但是佐伊还是很喜欢。这个女孩看上去比其他女性要高一些，佐伊觉得这个女孩可能知道一些她需要学习的东西。

Zoe focused on the girl’s beautiful red dress—wondering if the coloration represented something. Even if it wasn’t a part of the game, Zoe liked it. The girl seemed taller than the other females, and Zoe felt the girl might know things she needed to learn.

那个男性也很有趣，不过有趣的地方完全不同。她可以看得出来，他现在这副肉身将会很短命，不过佐伊还是觉得如果自己能被他追赶一定会非常好玩。他的下巴和嘴唇有种特别的俊朗。

The male was also interesting, but in a completely different way. She could tell his current incarnation would be short lived, but Zoe suspected it would be amazing if he chased her. There was something wonderful about his chin and the shape of his lips.

她紧张地咽了一下口水。毕竟，距离佐伊身为凡人的时候，以及她上一次造访这片领域，都已经过去了很久。她莫名地担心这群人不会接受自己，担心他们不带她一起玩。

She swallowed nervously. It had, after all, been a very long time since Zoe was a mortal or had even visited this realm. She was strangely worried the group wouldn’t accept her, and she would be left out of whatever they were playing.

另外两个稍显无趣的男孩开始互相踢球玩。这个游戏，佐伊记得怎么玩。

Two of the other boys, decidedly less interesting ones, began kicking a ball between themselves. This game, Zoe remembered.

有了熟悉的游戏给她壮胆，佐伊从屋檐上落到这群人中间。

Emboldened by this connection, Zoe swooped down from the rooftop to the middle of the group.

“嗨！”她一边说，一边将自己的头发变成另一种颜色，模仿那名高个子女孩的裙子。

“Hi!” she said, while turning the base of her hair into a color that mimicked the tall female’s dress.

“幽灵，”那个有趣的男孩瞪大了双眼，尖叫着说，“跑！”

“A spirit,” the interesting boy said with wide eyes. Then he screamed, “Run!”

佐伊觉得她应该强调自己是星灵而不是幽灵，但她不确定他尖叫的这一声是不是游戏规则的一部分。

Zoe felt she should point out she was an Aspect rather than a spirit, but she was uncertain if his cry was part of the other game’s rules.

“其实吧，我是来送信的。不过如果你们想玩的话，我有很多时间噢。”她一边说，一边冲向他们的背影。

“Actually, I’m here with a message. But if you wanted to play, I have plenty of time,” she said, as she launched after them.

然后她飞了起来，尽量用轻松平和的姿态飘在高个子女孩的身边。

Then she flew, as casually as she could, alongside the tall girl.

“你的红衣服真好看！这颜色有什么含义吗？”佐伊问道。但她这次寻找话题的努力完全是徒劳。就在她说话的同时，高个子女孩被那个有趣的男孩拉进了屋子里。然后他重重地关上了木头门，把佐伊挡在外面。

“Your red outfit is so cool! Does the color mean something?” Zoe asked. But her attempt at starting a conversation hardly mattered. As she spoke, the tall girl was pulled into a house by the interesting boy. He then slammed the heavy, wooden door shut, blocking Zoe’s path.

佐伊环顾四周，她发现其他凡人也都不见了，但可以听到一阵骚动正在从村镇中心的要塞方向传来。

Zoe glanced around, discovering the other mortals had similarly disappeared, but a commotion could be heard coming from a keep near the center of the town.

不一会，十多个全副武装的人手持长矛向佐伊冲过来。长矛有点让她想起潘森的武器。

After a moment, a dozen men in armor came running toward Zoe with spears. They reminded her of Pantheon’s weapon.

当地的卫兵，她得出了结论。

Local guardians, she surmised.

这群人把她当做幽灵，大声发出警告，而他们的领袖则甩出一个驱逐恶灵的法术。佐伊觉得这个法术不错，但她不喜欢。她在想，或许曾经有幽灵频繁滋扰这座村镇。

Assuming she was a spirit, they screamed warnings, while their leader attempted a banishing spell. It was a very good spell, in Zoe’s opinion, but not one she wanted. She wondered if, perhaps, spirits frequently plagued the town.

突然这群人开始向佐伊投掷长矛，于是她制造了一枚奥术陨石，将下落轨迹瞄准村镇要塞的方向。然后这位暮光少女制造了一对传送门，躲开了卫兵们的长矛，最后又将陨石的落点瞄准攻击自己的人们。

When the men began throwing their weapons at Zoe, she manifested an arcane meteor and sent it on a flight path around the keep. Then, the twilight girl created a pair of portals to dodge the guardian’s spears, before finally redirecting the shooting star at her attackers.

陨石的冲撞造成了一次爆聚，它飞行途中吸收的小粒子发生了链式反应，而后又造成了第二次爆炸，横扫卫兵和他们的岗楼，将整片地区化为精细的尘埃。

The meteor’s impact created an implosion, causing a chain reaction with the small particles it had gathered while flying, which resulted in a secondary explosion that thundered through the guards and their tower—annihilating the area into a fine dust.

“有人吗？”佐伊被层层硝烟包裹着。她在想，那个高个子女孩或者那个有趣的男孩有没有逃脱。看上去很有可能。

“Hello?” Zoe asked as the clouds of destruction whirled around her. She wondered if the tall girl or the interesting boy had run away. It seemed likely.

经过短暂的失落，佐伊决定去造访下一个更大的凡人定居点。在那种地方，应该会有人愿意和她一起玩。

Momentarily dispirited, Zoe decided to visit a larger mortal settlement next. It seemed like someone might be willing to play with her at that sort of location.

佐伊想起来一千年前某座……城市的位置。出于本能，她将前几次的失败抛到脑后，再次用意念制造了一道传送门，通往那座城市。她惊喜地发现，通路的另一端正是她所想的地方。

Zoe remembered where a... city had been a few thousand years ago. On instinct and despite her previous failures, she willed a portal to it. And she was pleasantly surprised when a gateway opened to her intended destination.

“唔，好样的！”她很高兴能够再次进行空间旅行，而且对她要传达的下一条信息充满了期待。

“Oh cool!” she said, happy to be able to travel again, and eager to deliver her next message.

佐伊踏出了现实，她在想，新形成的陨石坑是否会让某些凡人找到附近的那枚世界符文。没准发现符文的人会是那个高个子女孩或者那个有趣的男孩呢。

As Zoe stepped out of reality, she wondered if the new crater would lead some mortals to find the World Rune that was nearby. The tall girl or that interesting boy might even be the ones to discover it.

如果真是他们发现的话，应该会很好玩，她做出了判断。

It would probably be funny if they did, she decided.