Rafał Kosik
Felix, Net and Nika and the Gang of Invisible People
(excerpt)
They headed to their headquarters at the school attic, following the usual precautions. Felix switched on the monitor and selected a wavelength for the drone’s camera. The image was full of static, but it was possible to make out a child’s room and a door.
“More than a kilometre,” said Felix. “But we don’t have time. The battery’s going to die soon.”
On the screen they could see two young boys. One of them grabbed the drone and started running around the room, pretending it was flying.
“He’s going to smash it any minute,” Felix said, clenching his teeth.
He turned on the remote control and put his thumbs on the switches.
“Wait,” Net warned him.
And so, they watched helplessly as the boy carried out an imaginary mission and knocked down houses made of Lego with his other hand, pretending to strike them with rockets. Then the drone overturned model cars with imaginary anti-tank missiles.
“Now!” Nika shouted, and Felix immediately started the propellers. On the screen they could see the other boy’s hands trying to snatch the drone.
The boys’ mouths made shapes that looked like they were saying “Wow!” Then they both started jumping, trying to reach the toy. Felix tried to avoid catching by the boys. It was tricky because the remote control didn’t work very precisely at such a distance.
“The window!” shouted Net. “It’s open a crack!”
Felix turned the drone towards the window, made a spectacular manoeuvre and flew through the narrow opening.
“Where are we… I mean, where is it?” Net asked.
“It looks familiar, though,” Nika said, thinking carefully.
Battling against the wind, the drone rose over the treetops and slowly turned around. They could make out the school attic on the monitor. Felix pushed on the controls and the drone started heading towards the attic. It was going against the wind.
“Open the window,” Felix said.
Net cracked open one pane of the small, semi-circular window and the sound of a police siren reached them along with a gust of fresh air.
“I wonder what’s going on,” Net remarked, trying to peek out.
“I’ve got the car on the monitor,” exclaimed Felix.
The police car was really speeding. A white van was racing three hundred metres in front of it. The three friends watched in suspense.
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Felix asked.
“It’s the Gang of Invisible People!” Net answered. “They’ve robbed another bank. They’ve got no chance of escaping!”
Another police car was approaching from the other end of the street.
“The battery is dying,” Felix announced, but he didn’t hesitate. He made the drone rise even higher and turned it, pointing the camera straight at the chase.
With a squeal of tyres which they could hear through the window, the white van turned into a side street and drove into a white lorry. It didn’t hit the lorry – it literally drove up its ramp at the back and entered it. The ramp shut quickly. Both police cars turned into the side street, drove past the lorry and kept going.
“Holy cow!” Net exclaimed. “So that’s how they disappear…”
Translated by Scotia Gilroy
费利克斯、奈特、尼卡和隐形人团伙

作者Rafał Kosik

（节选）

他们做好了常规的预防措施，前往位于学校阁楼的总部。菲利克斯打开显示器，为无人机的摄像头选定了一个波长。拍摄画面上满是静电干扰，但仍能辨认出是一个孩子的房间和一扇门。

“离这超过一公里，”费利克斯说。“但是我们没有时间。电池快没电了。”

在屏幕上他们可以看到两个小男孩。其中一人抓着无人机在房间里跑来跑去，假装它在飞。

“他随时都可能把无人机摔碎，”费利克斯咬牙切齿地说。

他打开遥控器，把拇指放在开关上。

“等等，”奈特警告他。

于是，他们无可奈何地看着小男孩执行着想象中的任务，小男孩用另一只手推倒乐高积木搭成的房子，假装用火箭袭击这些房子。然后让无人机利用假想的反坦克导弹掀翻了模型汽车。

“快！”尼卡喊道，费利克斯立刻启动了螺旋桨。在屏幕上，他们可以看到另一个男孩伸手试图抢夺无人机。

从嘴型来看，男孩们像是在说“哇！”然后他们跳起来，想去够到玩具。费利克斯尽力不让无人机被孩子们抓住。这很难，因为遥控器在这么远的距离下控制得不太精确。

“窗户!”奈特喊道。“开了一条缝！”

费利克斯把无人机转向窗户，无人机做了一个炫酷的特技动作，从狭窄的窗缝中飞了出去。

“我们……我是说，无人机这是在哪里？”奈特问道。

“这地方倒是看起来很眼熟，”尼卡仔细地想了想说。

那无人机顶着风上升，越过树梢，慢慢地转弯。他们能从监视器上辨认出学校的阁楼。费利克斯按下遥控器，无人机开始朝着阁楼逆风飞行。

“打开窗户，”费利克斯说。

奈特打开了一扇半圆形的小窗户，清新空气扑面而来，同时传来一阵警笛声。

“发生了什么，”内特说着，试图往外看。

费利克斯大声道：“无人机摄像头拍到警车了。”

警车开得飞快，正在追三百米前的一辆白色面包车。费利克斯、奈特和尼卡三个朋友焦急地看着。

“你们和我想的一样吗？”费利克斯问道。

“是隐形人团伙！”“奈特回答。“他们抢劫了另一家银行，逃不掉的！”

另一辆警车从街的另一头驶来。

“电池快没电了，”费利克斯说，但他没有犹豫。他让无人机飞得更高，然后将它的摄像头对准追逐目标——那辆白色面包车。

一阵刺耳的轮胎摩擦声传来，他们隔着窗户都能听到。白色面包车拐进了一条小巷，驶进了一辆白色大货车。它并没有撞到大货车，而是从货车车尾的坡道上冲进了货车车厢。坡道很快就合上了。两辆警车都拐进了小巷，从卡车旁边开了过去，继续往前开。

“我的天啊！”奈特喊道。“原来它们是这样消失的……”