致「炉心」基地全体的一封信 A Letter to All of Furnace Core Base

一封来自过去的信，现由某位沉默且威严的机械生命体小心翼翼地保管着。之于其所有者，似乎蕴含着非凡的意义。 A letter from the past, now carefully guarded by a silent yet majestic mechanical construct. It seems to have an extraordinary meaning for its owner

致「炉心」基地全体的一封信

A Letter to all of Furnace Core Base

致「炉心」科考基地全体成员：

To all the members of the Furnace Core Research Station:

大家好。我是地髓开拓团第四任团长克列诺娃。

Greetings. I am Klenova, the fourth head of the Geomarrow Development Group.

当年寒潮来袭时，地表的地髓储备迅速告急。在伟大的守护者阿丽萨•兰德号召下，人类开始向未知的地表之下进发——肩负着伟大使命的地髓开拓团就此成立。

When the Eternal Freeze approached in the past, the Geomarrow stores on the surface were immediately consumed. Under the command of the great Guardian Alisa Rand, humanity began to march towards the unknown deep underground — That was when the Geomarrow Development Group was created with our great mission.

——如果要让贝洛伯格的史学家们为我们编撰一部「地髓开拓史」，他们想必会从这一时间点着墨吧。然而实际上，在漫长的历史长河里，早有一群先驱的探险家们先于我们深入了地下，而「寒潮来临」已远在那之后了：经大守护者的授意，地髓开拓团才正式成为了筑城者下属的重要组织。我们的任务是不断向下深入、将地髓源源不断地送到地面，以此维持贝洛伯格的正常运转；但除了发掘地髓之外，更重要的是，我们必须要建立地下的生态。

— If the Belobog historians were to write a record of Geomarrow development, they would likely start from that time point. However, the truth was that another group of pioneering explorers had dug underground before we did, and the arrival of the Eternal Freeze was long after them. The Supreme Guardian made the Geomarrow Development Group an important organization under the command of the Architects. Our job is to always dig deeper and maintain a flow of Geomarrow to the surface so that Belobog can function. But apart from digging for Geomarrow, we have a more important mission: To create a subterranean ecosystem.

我从小就只在家父的书信中听他提起许多地下的见闻。在他的激情洋溢又夸大其词的描述里，我很难分辨个中虚实。但是，等到我实际有机会加入开拓团参与探索后，这才发现他所说的一切原来根本不是科学幻想。

I have only heard about the sights in the underground from my father's letters. I could not tell what was real amongst his passionate and exaggerated descriptions. And yet, when I actually had the chance to join the Group and start exploring, I finally discovered the things he said were no illusions.

我和开拓团在整理他的遗物时，发现了最后一封未能寄出的家书。他在信中写道：「…诺娃，我从来没向你提起过：我的童年是在远离贝洛伯格的大山里度过的。那时候，我感觉整个天地都属于我，我想去哪儿就去哪儿。但是寒潮来临之后，你这辈的孩子从来都没有离开过贝洛伯格。

The Group and I discovered a final, unsent letter when we were sorting out his belongings. He wrote: "...Nova, I had never mentioned this to you, but I spent my childhood in the mountains far from Belobog. At that time, I felt the entire world belonged to me, and I could go anywhere I wanted. However, after the Eternal Freeze arrived, children of your generation never left Belobog."

「我想，也许我们会在地下发现海洋、发现群山；也许在未来，我们也能生活在地下……

"I thought perhaps we will discover oceans and mountain ranges underground. Perhaps, in the future, we can also live underground..."

「如果真的到了那时候，我多希望我能和你一同亲眼见证啊。」

"I really hope I can see that day together with you."

他给我的每一封信我都好好保存着，包括这一封。我记得他的愿望，我知道我必须去实现它——我们以这个「炉心」科考基地为原点，不断挖掘出各个地髓矿区。今年年末，第一个扎根于地下的矿山小镇也会正式建立，矿民们将会在那里安居乐业，开启全新的生活。然而，这还只是第一步：我想，在未来，还会有更多的小镇出现在这贝洛伯格的地底，或许还能够建立起如上层区一般壮美的都市；我们甚至还会用铁轨将地上与地下各界系为一体，使新旧世界之间不再有任何隔阂……

I had kept all of the letters he sent me, including this one. I remember his wish and I know I must fulfill it — With the Furnace Core research station as a base, we will keep excavating Geomarrow mines. At the end of this year, we will formally establish the first underground mining town. That is, however, only the first step. I hope more towns will appear underground in Belobog in the future, and we might even build cities as beautiful as the Overworld. We might even connect all the regions above ground and underground using train rails, so the old world and the new would not be separated...

——等到那时，所有人就都不用再为躲避风雪而龟缩在小小的庇护所中，而是在新天地里找到了自己真正的位置。

— At that time, we will no longer have to crouch in tiny shelters to evade the snow, and will find where we truly belong in this new world.

与此同时，开拓团的历史使命也即将宣告完结；我们记录下的地质、矿石信息，我们采集动物植物以及菌类的资料，都将服务于开拓未来。现在，我们中大部分人会暂时回到各自的研究院继续进行科学工作。不过就我个人而言，等几年我退休了以后，肯定还会再回到地下来的。

At the same time, the historical mission of the Group is about to come to an end. The information we gathered will be used to explore the future, including our geological, mineralogical, and biological data including the knowledge on flora, fauna, and micro-organisms. As of now, most of us will temporarily return to our respective institutes for scientific research. But personally, I will definitely return to the underground after I retire in a few years.

因此，各位不必为即将到来的离别伤感。等到大守护者将此处改造成贯通地面上下的首个运输通道，这小小的「炉心」基地将改头换面，继续为地下的开拓事业发光发热。在那之前，我们的朋友「大个子」史瓦罗会为我们守好这里，使我们来时的痕迹不被抹去。我们都知道他虽然不善言辞，但总会忠诚地守护在我们身边。我相信他这次也一定不会食言。他是我们最好的同志。

Therefore, there is no need to feel sad for the coming farewell. Simply wait till the Supreme Guardian renovates this place into the first transport channel connecting above and below ground. This small Furnace Core base will be completely changed and continue to shine for the mission of underground exploration. Until that time, our friend big Svarog will protect this place for us, so the traces we leave behind won't disappear. We know that though he doesn't talk much, he has always protected us with great loyalty. I believe he will keep his promise this time as well. He is our best compatriot.

「天下没有不散的筵席」——现在已经到了说再见的时候了。

Everything with a beginning has an end. Now is the time to say goodbye.

向地髓开拓团及「炉心」科考基地全体成员致敬！

I salute you all, the Geomarrow Development Group, and all members of the Furnace Core Research Station!

地髓开拓团团长 克列诺娃

Head of the Geomarrow Development Group, Klenova