【明報專訊】Shelley and Hollace have managed to persuade the two stupid jailers to venture (冒險) out to see if the factory is a living thing. They chain Shelley and Hollace to them for fear they may escape. Shelley and Hollace eye the keys hanging from their pockets. They want to steal them. The weird group of four now step out cautiously to avoid being noticed.
The jailers know some places of the factory, for example, its canteen, washrooms and dormitory. But they are no evidence that the factory is a living thing.
Shelley﹕To prove it's a living thing, we've got to find its brain.
Fat jailer﹕What is a brain?
Thin jailer﹕That's a very stupid question to ask. (Pointing to his hown head) The brain is here!
Fat jailer﹕(Pointing to his stomach) I think one has one's brain here.
The thin jailer is so irritated (惹怒) a fight almost starts. Shelley stops them and has them concentrate on finding the "brain" of the factory.
Shelley﹕Well, you know the brain controls thought and memory. The brain of the factory should be that part of it that serves that function.
Fat jailer﹕I know! It is the control room where the chips are stored. Oops... We mustn't have said that, let alone be there.
Thin jailer﹕That isn't the brain of this factory. I'm certain about that. It's just... it's just... We mustn't be there.
Hollace﹕Come on. We have to go there.
Shelley﹕Or I'd think you're both terribly stupid.
The jailers take Shelley and Hollace to the place where Shelley had been before she was caught. It is a huge room. The townsfolk's chips are stored there.
Thin jailer﹕Here we are. It is only a room, isn't it? It is no brain. It doesn't think.
(A deep, coarse voice comes from the back of the room. It startles (嚇一跳) the four.)
Voice﹕Who says I don't think?
Shelley﹕Who are you?
Voice﹕I am, as I should think, the spirit of this factory. Well, I'm its main computer system. I know everything about it.
Fat jailer﹕Do you know if this factory is a living thing?
Voice﹕A living thing? Haha! Yes and no. Everyone in this factory is dead because it sucks everyone's blood!
Shelley﹕Please bring them back to life. Let them live their own lives!
Thin jailer﹕I don't understand you. Show us you are a living thing.
The Escape (2 of 3)
Text: Ashley Ley
Illustration: Iris Tsoi
