Ray Bradbury A Sound of Thunder (4/25)

"Good luck (удачи)," said the man behind the desk (сказал человек за столом). "Mr. Travis, he's all yours (он полностью ваш = займитесь им)."

They moved silently across the room (они прошли молча через комнату), taking their guns with them (взяв свои ружья с собой), toward the Machine (по направлению к Машине), toward the silver metal and the roaring light (к серебряному металлу и ревущему свету).

First a day and then a night (сначала день, а потом

ночь) and then a day and then a night, then it was day-night-day-night. A week, a month, a year, a decade (неделя, месяц, год, десятилетие)! A.D. (сокращенное anno Domini – нашей эры /лат./) 2055. A.D. 2019. 1999! 1957! Gone (поехали)! The Machine roared (Машина взревела).

They put on their oxygen helmets and tested the intercoms (они надели кислородные шлемы и проверили связь).

Eckels swayed on the padded seat (качался на мягком сидении: to pad – набивать волосом или ватой), his face pale, his jaw stiff (его лицо бледно, его челюсть застывшая, окоченевшая = зубы крепко сжаты). He felt the trembling in his arms and he looked down (он почувствовал дрожь в руках и посмотрел вниз) and found his hands tight on the new rifle (и обнаружил свои руки плотно, крепко /прижатыми/ к новой винтовке /«на новой винтовке»/).

There were four other men in the Machine (в Машине было еще 4 человека). Travis, the Safari Leader (руководитель), his assistant (его помощник), Lesperance, and two other hunters (и два других охотника), Billings and Kramer. They sat looking at each other (они сидели, смотря друг на друга), and the years blazed around them (и годы сверкали = мелькали вокруг них).

"Can these guns get a dinosaur cold (могут ли эти ружья убить динозавра наповал)?" Eckels felt his mouth saying (почувствовал, как его рот говорит = произнес неосознанно).

"If you hit them right (если попасть из них правильно: to hit – ударять, попадать в цель)," said Travis on the helmet radio (сказал Тревис по радио в шлеме). "Some dinosaurs have two brains (у некоторых динозавров два мозга), one in the head (один в голове), another far down the spinal column (другой гораздо ниже по позвоночнику: spinal column – позвоночный столб). We stay away from those (мы избегаем таких). That's stretching luck (это искушает судьбу = незачем искушать судьбу: to stretch – растягивать, luck – удача, to stretch one's luck – искушать судьбу). Put your first two shots into the eyes («поместите» ваши первые два выстрела в глаза), if you can, blind them (если можете, ослепите их), and go back into the brain (и идите «назад» в мозг = стреляйте в мозг)."

"Good luck," said the man behind the desk. "Mr. Travis, he's all yours."

They moved silently across the room, taking their guns with them, toward the Machine, toward the silver metal and the roaring light.

First a day and then a night and then a day and then a night, then it was daynight-day-night. A week, a month, a year, a decade! A.D. 2055. A.D. 2019. 1999! 1957! Gone! The Machine roared.

They put on their oxygen helmets and tested the intercoms.

Eckels swayed on the padded seat, his face pale, his jaw stiff. He felt the trembling in his arms and he looked down and found his hands tight on the new rifle.

There were four other men in the Machine. Travis, the Safari Leader, his assistant, Lesperance, and two other hunters, Billings and Kramer. They sat looking at each other, and the years blazed around them.

"Can these guns get a dinosaur cold?" Eckels felt his mouth saying.

"If you hit them right," said Travis on the helmet radio. "Some dinosaurs have two brains, one in the head, another far down the spinal column. We stay away from those. That's stretching luck. Put your first two shots into the eyes, if you can, blind them, and go back into the brain.