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，徐徐升起什麼東西，射出了萬道光芒。光芒之中，又出現一尊玻璃製品，通體流光溢彩。 它身上有幾道深深的凹槽，三條豎，兩條橫，顯然是用來放鑰匙的。 機器人來到這把鎖跟前，將鑰匙按進去，然後退回。鎖開始旋轉，空間開始變化。 天空一下子回來了。噴薄而出的光，幾乎要灼瞎人的眼睛。現在，他們幾個的眼前，是一個光輝奪目的太陽，幾秒鐘前那兒還空無一物呢。愣了一會兒，他們纔想到趕快用手遮住眼睛。遮眼之前，他們瞥見太陽下方有什麼東西在動。 衆人踉蹌着退後幾步。這時，耳邊傳來機器人們齊聲吶喊的聲音。 “版求！版求！版求！版求！” 他們聽得脊背發涼。那聲音是恐怖的、冰冷的、無情的，更是致命的。 當然，也是洋洋得意的。 這真是視覺和聽覺的雙重震撼。他們差點就錯過第二個歷史性的時刻了。 贊福德·畢博布魯克斯，史上唯一一位受到版求機器人攻擊而沒死的人，從版求戰船上奔將下來，手中高舉一把暴殺槍。 “OK！”他吼道，“現在你們都在我的控制之下！” 守艙門的那個機器人見了他，便靜靜地舉起板球棒，抵在了贊福德左頭的後面。 “贊他的，誰呀？”左頭鬱悶地低下了頭，口中說道。 右頭警覺地四處張望。 “誰呀？”它說。 球棒又抵住了他的右頭。 贊福德盯住地上自己的影子，那影子可真奇怪。 這一歷史事件只持續了幾秒鐘。由於機器人們突然猛力開火，叄柱鎖這下徹底毀於槍林彈雨之中，熔爲廢水，碾作薤粉。機器人們靜靜地走回戰船，看上去竟有點兒沮喪。戰船“呼”了一下，便飛走了。 崔莉安和福特忙不迭地爬下山坡，奔向一動不動躺在地上的贊福德。
