A blinding shaft of light seemed almost to explode from out of the block which had risen three feet out of the ground, and out of that rose a smaller Perspex block, dazzling with interior dancing colours. The block was slotted with deep groves, three upright and two across, clearly designed to accept the Wikkit Key. The robots approached the Lock, slotted the Key into its home and stepped back again. The block twisted round of is own accord, and space began to alter. As space unpinched itself, it seemed agonizingly to twist the eyes of the watchers in their sockets. They found themselves staring, blinded, at an unravelled sun which stood now before them where it seemed only seconds before there had not been even empty space. It was a second or two before they were even sufficiently aware of what had happened to throw their hands up over their horrified blinded eyes. In that second or two, they were aware of a tiny speck moving slowly across the eye of that sun. They staggered back, and heard ringing in their ears the thin and unexpected chant of the robots crying out in unison. Krikkit! Krikkit! Krikkit! Krikkit! The sound chilled them. It was harsh, it was cold, it was empty, it was mechanically dismal. It was also triumphant. They were so stunned by these two sensory shocks that they almost missed the second historic event. Zaphod Beeblebrox, the only man in history to survive a direct blast attack from the Krikkit robots, ran out of the Krikkit warship brandishing a Zap gun. OK, he cried, the situation is totally under control as of this moment in time. The single robot guarding the hatchway to the ship silently swung his battleclub, and connected it with the back of Zaphod’s left head. Who the zark did that? said the left head, and lolled sickeningly forward. His right head gazed keenly into the middle distance. Who did what? it said. The club connected with the back of his right head. Zaphod measured his length as a rather strange shape on the ground. Within a matter of seconds the whole event was over. A few blasts from the robots were sufficient to destroy the Lock for ever. It split and melted and splayed its contents brokenly. The robots marched grimly and, it almost seemed, in a slightly disheartened manner, back into their warship which, with a “foop”, was gone. Trillian and Ford ran hectically round and down the steep incline to the dark, still body of Zaphod Beeblebrox. 前方，徐徐升起什么东西，射出了万道光芒。光芒之中，又出现一尊玻璃制品，通体流光溢彩。 它身上有几道深深的凹槽，三条竖，两条横，显然是用来放钥匙的。 机器人来到这把锁跟前，将钥匙按进去，然后退回。锁开始旋转，空间开始变化。 天空一下子回来了。喷薄而出的光，几乎要灼瞎人的眼睛。现在，他们几个的眼前，是一个光辉夺目的太阳，几秒钟前那儿还空无一物呢。愣了一会儿，他们才想到赶快用手遮住眼睛。遮眼之前，他们瞥见太阳下方有什么东西在动。 众人踉跄着退后几步。这时，耳边传来机器人们齐声呐喊的声音。 “版求！版求！版求！版求！” 他们听得脊背发凉。那声音是恐怖的、冰冷的、无情的，更是致命的。 当然，也是洋洋得意的。 这真是视觉和听觉的双重震撼。他们差点就错过第二个历史性的时刻了。 赞福德·毕博布鲁克斯，史上唯一一位受到版求机器人攻击而没死的人，从版求战船上奔将下来，手中高举一把暴杀枪。 “OK！”他吼道，“现在你们都在我的控制之下！” 守舱门的那个机器人见了他，便静静地举起板球棒，抵在了赞福德左头的后面。 “赞他的，谁呀？”左头郁闷地低下了头，口中说道。 右头警觉地四处张望。 “谁呀？”它说。 球棒又抵住了他的右头。 赞福德盯住地上自己的影子，那影子可真奇怪。 这一历史事件只持续了几秒钟。由于机器人们突然猛力开火，叁柱锁这下彻底毁于枪林弹雨之中，熔为废水，碾作薤粉。机器人们静静地走回战船，看上去竟有点儿沮丧。战船“呼”了一下，便飞走了。 崔莉安和福特忙不迭地爬下山坡，奔向一动不动躺在地上的赞福德。
