Ⅳ 群鴉的盛宴 Chapter6 艾莉亞
ARYA
遠(yuǎn)處，微弱的光線穿透海上的霧氣，在地平線附近閃耀。
Faint and far away the light burned, low on the horizon, shining through the sea mists.
“是星星?！卑騺喺f。
“It looks like a star,” said Arya.
“家鄉(xiāng)的星星。”德尼奧道。
“The star of home,” said Denyo.
他父親正大聲發(fā)號施令。水手們沿三根高高的桅桿爬上爬下，忙著擺弄索具和厚重的紫色船帆。底下，槳手們坐在兩長列槳位邊奮力劃水。甲板吱吱嘎嘎地傾向一側(cè)，三桅大帆船“泰坦之女號”轉(zhuǎn)為右舵，準(zhǔn)備入港。
His father was shouting orders. Sailors scrambled up and down the three tall masts and moved along the rigging, reefing the heavy purple sails. Below, oarsmen heaved and strained over two great banks of oars. The decks tilted, creaking, as the galleas Titan’s Daughter heeled to starboard and began to come about.
家鄉(xiāng)的星星。艾莉亞站在船頭，一手搭在鍍金船首像上，雕像乃是捧水果碗的處女。片刻間，她設(shè)想前方是家。
The star of home. Arya stood at the prow, one hand resting on the gilded figurehead, a maiden with a bowl of fruit. For half a heartbeat she let herself pretend that it was her home ahead.
真是笨念頭。她的家早沒了，她的父母死了，除開長城上的瓊恩·雪諾，她的兄弟姐妹也盡數(shù)被害。她想去長城，她告訴過船長，但即便那枚鐵幣也動搖不了他。一直以來，艾莉亞似乎每次都無法如愿，想去某地，到達(dá)的卻是另一個地方。尤倫承諾帶她回臨冬城，最終卻把她落在赫倫堡，自己進(jìn)了墳?zāi)?；她逃出赫倫堡，前往奔流城，半途教檸檬、安蓋和七弦湯姆逮住，拖到空山；接著獵狗劫走了她，把她弄去孿河城，后來艾莉亞將他留在三叉戟河邊等死，自己前往鹽場鎮(zhèn)，希望搭船去東海望，結(jié)果……
But that was stupid. Her home was gone, her parents dead, and all her brothers slain but Jon Snow on the Wall. That was where she had wanted to go. She told the captain as much, but even the iron coin did not sway him. Arya never seemed to find the places she set out to reach. Yoren had sworn to deliver her to Winterfell, only she had ended up in Harrenhal and Yoren in his grave. When she escaped Harrenhal for Riverrun, Lem and Anguy and Tom o’ Sevens took her captive and dragged her to the hollow hill instead. Then the Hound had stolen her and dragged her to the Twins. Arya had left him dying by the river and gone ahead to Saltpans, hoping to take passage for Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, only …
布拉佛斯也許不錯。西利歐來自布拉佛斯，還有賈昆……給她鐵幣的正是賈昆，可他并非她真正的朋友，不像西利歐——不過，朋友對她而言有什么用呢？我不需要朋友，只要“縫衣針”。她用拇指輕輕撫摸劍柄光滑的圓球，一遍遍地許愿……
Braavos might not be so bad. Syrio was from Braavos, and Jaqen might be there as well. It was Jaqen who had given her the iron coin. He hadn’t truly been her friend, the way that Syrio had, but what good had friends ever done her? I don’t need any friends, so long as I have Needle. She brushed the ball of her thumb across the sword’s smooth pommel, wishing, wishing …
老實(shí)說，艾莉亞不知道該許什么愿，也不知道遠(yuǎn)方星光下等待她的是什么。船長答應(yīng)載她，卻沒時間跟她說話。有些船員躲著她，另一些人送她禮物——包括一柄銀叉、若干無指手套和一頂鑲皮革的柔軟羊毛帽。有個人教她打水手結(jié)，另一個人小杯小杯地給她倒火酒喝。試圖親近她的水手會拍打胸脯，一遍遍地重復(fù)自己的名字，直到艾莉亞也會念為止，然而從沒有人問起她的姓名。他們叫她阿鹽，因?yàn)樗窃谌骊雍涌谔幍柠}場鎮(zhèn)上的船。這名字還湊合，她心想。
If truth be told, Arya did not know what to wish for, any more than she knew what awaited her beneath that distant light. The captain had given her passage but he had no time to speak with her. Some of the crew shunned her, but others gave her gifts—a silver fork, fingerless gloves, a floppy woolen hat patched with leather. One man showed her how to tie sailor’s knots. Another poured her thimble cups of fire wine. The friendly ones would tap their chests, repeating their names over and over until Arya said them back, though none ever thought to ask her name. They called her Salty, since she’d come aboard at Saltpans, near the mouth of the Trident. It was as good a name as any, she supposed.
天空中最后一顆晚星也告消失……只剩下正前方那一對，“原來是兩顆星星啊?！?/p>
The last of the night’s stars had vanished … all but the pair dead ahead. “It’s two stars now.”
“那是兩只眼睛，”德尼奧道，“泰坦巨人看著我們。”
“Two eyes,” said Denyo. “The Titan sees us.”
布拉佛斯的泰坦巨人。從前在臨冬城，老奶媽給她講過泰坦的故事。他有山那么高，每當(dāng)布拉佛斯陷入危難，就會醒來，眼里燃燒著熊熊火焰，揮動起吱嘎作響的石頭肢體，沖入海中擊碎敵人。“布拉佛斯人喂貴族小女孩給它吃，因?yàn)樗齻兊娜夥勰鄱嘀！崩夏虌尩墓适驴側(cè)绱私Y(jié)尾，然后珊莎就會發(fā)出一聲蠢笨的尖叫。不過魯溫學(xué)士說了，泰坦巨人只不過是座雕像，老奶媽的故事也只不過是故事。
The Titan of Braavos. Old Nan had told them stories of the Titan back in Winterfell. He was a giant as tall as a mountain, and whenever Braavos stood in danger he would wake with fire in his eyes, his rocky limbs grinding and groaning as he waded out into the sea to smash the enemies. “The Braavosi feed him on the juicy pink flesh of little highborn girls,” Nan would end, and Sansa would give a stupid squeak. But Maester Luwin said the Titan was only a statue, and Old Nan’s stories were only stories.
臨冬城已經(jīng)陷落、焚毀、化為廢墟，艾莉亞提醒自己。老奶媽和魯溫學(xué)士多半已死，珊莎也一樣。老想他們有什么好。凡人皆有一死，賈昆·赫加爾給出那枚舊鐵幣時教她的話是這個意思，離開鹽場鎮(zhèn)后她又新學(xué)了一些布拉佛斯詞匯，例如“請”、“謝謝”、“?！薄ⅰ靶恰?、“火酒”等等，但她說得最多的還是“凡人皆有一死”。泰坦之女號的船員大都略知一點(diǎn)通用語，因?yàn)樗麄冊谂f鎮(zhèn)、君臨和女泉城過夜，不過只有船長和他的兒子們可以跟她交談。德尼奧最小，他是個快樂的胖男孩，今年十二歲，負(fù)責(zé)打理父親的艙室，并幫長兄算賬。
Winterfell is burned and fallen, Arya reminded herself. Old Nan and Maester Luwin were both dead, most like, and Sansa too. It did no good to think of them. All men must die. That was what the words meant, the words that Jaqen H’ghar had taught her when he gave her the worn iron coin. She had learned more Braavosi words since they left Saltpans, the words for please and thank you and sea and star and fire wine, but she came to them knowing that all men must die. Most of the Daughter’s crew had a smattering of the Common Tongue from nights ashore in Oldtown and King’s Landing and Maidenpool, though only the captain and his sons spoke it well enough to talk to her. Denyo was the youngest of those sons, a plump, cheerful boy of twelve who kept his father’s cabin and helped his eldest brother do his sums.
“希望你們的泰坦肚子不餓。”艾莉亞告訴他。
“I hope your Titan isn’t hungry,” Arya told him.
“餓？”德尼奧迷惑地說。
“Hungry?” Denyo said, confused.
“沒事。”即使泰坦真的會吃粉嫩的小女孩，艾莉亞也不怕。反正她骨瘦如柴，怎配給巨人當(dāng)美餐？而且她快滿十一歲了，幾乎算是成年女子。再說，阿鹽又不是貴族?！疤┨故遣祭鹚沟纳駟幔俊彼龁?，“還是你們也崇拜七神？”
“It takes no matter.” Even if the Titan did eat juicy pink girl flesh, Arya would not fear him. She was a scrawny thing, no proper meal for a giant, and almost eleven, practically a woman grown. And Salty isn’t highborn, either. “Is the Titan the god of Braavos?” she asked. “Or do you have the Seven?”
“所有神靈都在布拉佛斯受到尊重。”船長之子喜歡談?wù)摳赣H的船，也喜歡談?wù)撟约旱某鞘?，“你們的七神在這兒有個圣堂，稱為‘外域圣堂’，但只有維斯特洛水手上那兒敬拜?！?/p>
“All gods are honored in Braavos.” The captain’s son loved to talk about his city almost as much as he loved to talk about his father’s ship. “Your Seven have a sept here, the Sept-Beyond-the-Sea, but only Westerosi sailors worship there.”
七神并非我的神祗，是母親的，可他們?nèi)斡煞鹄准以趯\河城將她殺害。她不知能否在布拉佛斯找到神木林，林中有棵魚梁木。德尼奧或許知道，但她不能問。阿鹽來自鹽場鎮(zhèn)，鹽場鎮(zhèn)的女孩怎會知道北境舊神呢？反正舊神早死了，她告訴自己，跟母親、父親、羅柏、布蘭和瑞肯一樣，統(tǒng)統(tǒng)都死了。她記得很久以前父親說的話：當(dāng)大雪降下，冷風(fēng)吹起，獨(dú)行狼死，群聚狼生。他說的是反話。如今獨(dú)狼艾莉亞活著，狼群卻被捕殺、被剝皮。
They are not my Seven. They were my mother’s gods, and they let the Freys murder her at the Twins. She wondered whether she would find a godswood in Braavos, with a weirwood at its heart. Denyo might know, but she could not ask him. Salty was from Saltpans, and what would a girl from Saltpans know about the old gods of the north? The old gods are dead, she told herself, with Mother and Father and Robb and Bran and Rickon, all dead. A long time ago, she remembered her father saying that when the cold winds blow the lone wolf dies and the pack survives. He had it all backwards. Arya, the lone wolf, still lived, but the wolves of the pack had been taken and slain and skinned.
“月詠者們帶領(lǐng)我們來到這個避難所，以躲避瓦雷利亞的巨龍，”德尼奧道，“因此他們的神廟最為壯觀。我們也敬拜眾水之父，但他每次迎娶新娘，宮殿都得重建。其余的神集中在市中心一個島上。你、你的……千面之神就在那里?！?/p>
“The Moonsingers led us to this place of refuge, where the dragons of Valyria could not find us,” Denyo said. “Theirs is the greatest temple. We esteem the Father of Waters as well, but his house is built anew whenever he takes his bride. The rest of the gods dwell together on an isle in the center of the city. That is where you will find the … the Many-Faced God.”
泰坦的眼睛似乎變得更加明亮，雙眼間的距離也增大了。艾莉亞不認(rèn)識什么千面之神，但假如他能回應(yīng)她的祈禱，也許就是她要尋找的神。格雷果爵士，她心中默念，鄧森、“甜嘴”拉夫、伊林爵士、馬林爵士、瑟曦太后。只剩六個。喬佛里死了，獵狗殺了波利佛，而她親手刺死記事本，還有那疙瘩臉的笨侍從。假如他不抓我，我不會殺他的。她將獵狗留在三叉戟河岸邊，當(dāng)時他因?yàn)閭诟腥径l(fā)著高燒，奄奄一息。我應(yīng)該給他慈悲，用匕首刺入他心臟。
The Titan’s eyes seemed brighter now, and farther apart. Arya did not know any Many-Faced God, but if he answered prayers, he might be the god she sought. Ser Gregor, she thought, Dunsen, Raff the Sweetling, Ser Ilyn, Ser Meryn, Queen Cersei. Only six now. Joffrey was dead, the Hound had slain Polliver, and she’d stabbed the Tickler herself, and that stupid squire with the pimple. I wouldn’t have killed him if he hadn’t grabbed me. The Hound had been dying when she left him on the banks of the Trident, burning up with fever from his wound. I should have given him the gift of mercy and put a knife into his heart.
“阿鹽，看哪！”德尼奧拉拉她的胳膊，讓她轉(zhuǎn)身。“看到了嗎？那兒！”他指點(diǎn)著說。
“Salty, look!” Denyo took her by the arm and turned her. “Can you see? There.” He pointed.
迷霧在面前退散，船首分割了參差不齊的灰色幕簾。泰坦之女號劈開灰綠色水面，風(fēng)帆猶如翻騰的紫色翅膀。艾莉亞聽見頭頂海鳥的尖叫。德尼奧手指之處，一排巖石山脊從海面驟然升起，陡峭的坡道上覆蓋著士卒松和黑云杉，但正前方有個缺口，泰坦巨人矗立在此，眼中閃光，綠色長發(fā)迎風(fēng)飛舞。
The mists gave way before them, ragged grey curtains parted by their prow. The Titan’s Daughter cleaved through the grey-green waters on billowing purple wings. Arya could hear the cries of seabirds overhead. There, where Denyo pointed, a line of stony ridges rose sudden from the sea, their steep slopes covered with soldier pines and black spruce. But dead ahead the sea had broken through, and there above the open water the Titan towered, with his eyes blazing and his long green hair blowing in the wind.
他的雙腿踩在缺口兩邊，各自踏住一座山，寬闊的肩膀則籠罩在崎嶇的山峰上方，那雙腿由頑石砌成，跟站立之處的黑色花崗巖海礁質(zhì)地相同。巨人腰間系一件綠色青銅戰(zhàn)裙，胸甲也是青銅，頭戴冠飾半盔，飄蕩的頭發(fā)為染綠的麻繩，眼睛是兩個山洞，大火堆在其中燃燒。他的一只手搭在左面山脊，青銅手指捏著一塊巨巖；另一只手伸向天空，抓著一把斷劍的劍柄。
His legs bestrode the gap, one foot planted on each mountain, his shoulders looming tall above the jagged crests. His legs were carved of solid stone, the same black granite as the sea monts on which he stood, though around his hips he wore an armored skirt of greenish bronze. His breastplate was bronze as well, and his head in his crested halfhelm. His blowing hair was made of hempen ropes dyed green, and huge fires burned in the caves that were his eyes. One hand rested atop the ridge to his left, bronze fingers coiled about a knob of stone; the other thrust up into the air, clasping the hilt of a broken sword.
他不過比君臨的貝勒王雕像大一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)嘛，她告訴自己，然而那時船只仍在遠(yuǎn)海。當(dāng)三桅大帆船逐漸靠近海浪拍打的山脊，泰坦的身軀便愈加駭人。德尼奧的父親用低沉的嗓音大聲指揮，人們繼續(xù)在索具上忙碌。我們要從泰坦的雙腿底下劃過去。艾莉婭可以看到巨大胸甲上無數(shù)的箭孔，也可以看到泰坦的雙臂和肩膀沾滿斑斑點(diǎn)點(diǎn)的污漬，那全是海鳥的巢穴。她曲項仰望。受神祝福的貝勒還不及他的膝蓋，他抬腿就能跨越臨冬城的城墻。
He is only a little bigger than King Baelor’s statue in King’s Landing, she told herself when they were still well off to sea. As the galleas drove closer to where the breakers smashed against the ridgeline, however, the Titan grew larger still. She could hear Denyo’s father bellowing commands in his deep voice, and up in the rigging men were bringing in the sails. We are going to row beneath the Titan’s legs. Arya could see the arrow slits in the great bronze breastplate, and stains and speckles on the Titan’s arms and shoulders where the seabirds nested. Her neck craned upward. Baelor the Blessed would not reach his knee. He could step right over the walls of Winterfell.
泰坦發(fā)出一聲巨吼。
Then the Titan gave a mighty roar.
洪亮的聲音跟他的個頭相稱，駭人的轟鳴甚至淹沒了船長的嗓門和波濤拍擊松林山脈的聲響。成千只海鳥同時躥入空中，艾莉亞向后畏縮，直到她看見德尼奧在笑?！八盐覀兊絹淼南⑼ㄖS，”男孩喊道，“你不必害怕。”
The sound was as huge as he was, a terrible groaning and grinding, so loud it drowned out even the captain’s voice and the crash of the waves against those pine-clad ridges. A thousand seabirds took to the air at once, and Arya flinched until she saw that Denyo was laughing. “He warns the Arsenal of our coming, that is all,” he shouted. “You must not be afraid.”
“我一點(diǎn)兒也不怕，”艾莉亞吼回去，“不過他聲音有點(diǎn)大而已?！?/p>
“I never was,” Arya shouted back. “It was loud, is all.”
風(fēng)浪全力驅(qū)動著泰坦之女號，將她快速推向地峽。雙層槳葉平穩(wěn)劃動，海水被攪拌成白色泡沫，而泰坦的影子遮天蔽日。有那么一瞬間，他們似乎就要在他腳下的巖石上撞得粉身碎骨。艾莉亞跟德尼奧一起擠在船頭，海水飛濺臉龐，味道咸澀。她必須高高昂頭，方能看見泰坦的腦袋?！安祭鹚谷宋官F族小女孩給它吃，因?yàn)樗齻兊娜夥勰鄱嘀！彼路鹩致犚娎夏虌尩脑捳Z，但她不是小女孩，也不會被一座笨雕像嚇到。
Wind and wave had the Titan’s Daughter hard in hand now, driving her swiftly toward the channel. Her double bank of oars stroked smoothly, lashing the sea to white foam as the Titan’s shadow fell upon them. For a moment it seemed as though they must surely smash up against the stones beneath his legs. Huddled by Denyo at the prow, Arya could taste salt where the spray had touched her face. She had to look straight up to see the Titan’s head. “The Braavosi feed him on the juicy pink flesh of little highborn girls,” she heard Old Nan say again, but she was not a little girl, and she would not be frightened of a stupid statue.
即便如此，駛過他雙腿底下時，她仍一手摸向縫衣針。巨巖大腿的內(nèi)側(cè)點(diǎn)綴著更多箭孔，艾莉亞仰起脖子，發(fā)現(xiàn)那些箭孔比頭頂?shù)镍f巢仍有足足十碼，泰坦的戰(zhàn)裙底下也有殺人孔，蒼白的臉在鐵欄桿后面注視著他們。
Even so, she kept one hand on Needle as they slipped between his legs. More arrow slits dotted the insides of those great stone thighs, and when Arya craned her neck around to watch the crow’s nest slip through with a good ten yards to spare, she spied murder holes beneath the Titan’s armored skirts, and pale faces staring down at them from behind the iron bars.
然后他們就過去了。
And then they were past.
影子消失，兩側(cè)的松林山脊?jié)u漸遠(yuǎn)去，風(fēng)勢減弱，船只駛?cè)胍粋€大礁湖中。前方又升起一座海礁，仿佛突出水中、長滿尖刺的拳頭，頂端的巖石垛口上密密麻麻布滿投石機(jī)、弩炮與噴火弩。“這便是布拉佛斯的兵工廠，”德尼奧的口氣好像是他造的一樣，“在那里，一天就能建造一艘戰(zhàn)艦?！卑騺喛吹綌?shù)十艘劃槳戰(zhàn)船泊在碼頭邊或者架在下水槽中，另有許多繪漆的船首像從巖石岸邊無數(shù)個木頭工棚中冒出來，仿佛關(guān)在獸舍中的獵狗，精悍、兇狠而饑餓，隨時等待獵人號角的召喚。她試圖記點(diǎn)數(shù)目，但它們實(shí)在太多，而且隨著海岸線蜿蜒伸展，還有更多碼頭、工棚與船塢。
The shadow lifted, the pine-clad ridges fell away to either side, the winds dwindled, and they found themselves moving through a great lagoon. Ahead rose another sea mont, a knob of rock that pushed up from the water like a spiked fist, its stony battlements bristling with scorpions, spitfires, and trebuchets. “The Arsenal of Braavos,” Denyo named it, as proud as if he’d built it. “They can build a war galley there in a day.” Arya could see dozens of galleys tied up at quays and perched on launching slips. The painted prows of others poked from innumerable wooden sheds along the stony shores, like hounds in a kennel, lean and mean and hungry, waiting for a hunter’s horn to call them forth. She tried to count them, but there were too many, and more docks and sheds and quays where the shoreline curved away.
兩艘劃槳船迎上前來，仿佛水面滑翔的蜻蜒，白色船槳上下翻飛。艾莉亞聽見某位船長朝他們喊叫，然后泰坦之女號的船長大聲應(yīng)答，她聽不懂這些話。隨著一聲嘹亮號角，兩艘劃槳船分向兩側(cè)，距離如此接近，她甚至能聽到紫色船殼內(nèi)的鼓點(diǎn)，砰、砰、砰、砰、砰、砰、砰、砰，就像活生生的心臟在跳動。
Two galleys had come out to meet them. They seemed to skim upon the water like dragonflies, their pale oars flashing. Arya heard the captain shouting to them and their own captains shouting back, but she did not understand the words. A great horn sounded. The galleys passed to either side of them, so close that she could hear the muffled sound of drums from within their purple hulls, bom bom bom bom bom bom bom bom, like the beat of living hearts.
接著，劃槳船和兵工廠都被拋在身后，前方是一片廣闊·的青綠色水域，仿佛帶波紋的彩色玻璃。矗立在水面中央的即是市區(qū)，宏偉的拱頂、高塔和橋梁向四面八方伸展，呈現(xiàn)灰色、金色和紅色。這便是海中布拉佛斯的百余列島。
Then the galleys were behind them, and the Arsenal as well. Ahead stretched a broad expanse of pea-green water rippled like a sheet of colored glass. From its wet heart arose the city proper, a great sprawl of domes and towers and bridges, grey and gold and red. The hundred isles of Braavos in the sea.
魯溫學(xué)士給孩子們講過布拉佛斯，但其中許多內(nèi)容艾莉亞都已忘記，她只記得這是座平坦的城市，不若君臨那樣建在三座山丘之上，僅有的突起都是由人們用磚塊、花崗巖、青銅和大理石搭建而起——它似乎缺點(diǎn)什么，她花了好長時間才意識到：這座城市沒有城墻。但當(dāng)她告訴德尼奧時，對方哈哈大笑。“我們的城墻是木頭做的，漆成紫色。”他告訴她，“我們的艦隊就是我們的城墻。不需要別的東西?！?/p>
Maester Luwin had taught them about Braavos, but Arya had forgotten much of what he’d said. It was a flat city, she could see that even from afar, not like King’s Landing on its three high hills. The only hills here were the ones that men had raised of brick and granite, bronze and marble. Something else was missing as well, though it took her a few moments to realize what it was. The city has no walls. But when she said as much to Denyo, he laughed at her. “Our walls are made of wood and painted purple,” he told her. “Our galleys are our walls. We need no other.”
身后的甲板發(fā)出一陣吱嘎響聲。艾莉亞轉(zhuǎn)身，發(fā)現(xiàn)德尼奧的父親走過來，身穿代表船長身份的紫羊毛布外套。商船長特尼西奧·特里斯不留長胡子，灰色絡(luò)腮胡剃得短小整潔，圍著他那張被風(fēng)吹得泛紅的方臉。渡海途中，她經(jīng)常見他跟船員們開玩笑，但只要他板起臉孔，人們便像躲避暴風(fēng)雨一樣逃開。他現(xiàn)在正板著臉?！昂匠炭旖Y(jié)束了，”他告訴艾莉亞，“我去方格碼頭，海王的海關(guān)官員將在那里登船檢查貨艙。他們會查上半天，他們總是要查半天，但你無須恭候他們。收拾好東西，我放一條小船下去，由約寇送你上岸?！?/p>
The deck creaked behind them. Arya turned to find Denyo’s father looming over them in his long captain’s coat of purple wool. Tradesman-Captain Ternesio Terys wore no whiskers and kept his grey hair cut short and neat, framing his square, windburnt face. On the crossing she had oft seen him jesting with his crew, but when he frowned men ran from him as if before a storm. He was frowning now. “Our voyage is at an end,” he told Arya. “We make for the Chequy Port, where the Sealord’s customs officers will come aboard to inspect our holds. They will be half a day at it, they always are, but there is no need for you to wait upon their pleasure. Gather your belongings. I shall lower a boat, and Yorko will put you ashore.”
上岸。艾莉亞咬緊嘴唇。她穿越狹海來到此處，但假如現(xiàn)在船長問起，她寧愿留在泰坦之女號上。阿鹽太瘦小，劃不動船槳，這點(diǎn)她已經(jīng)了解，但她可以編繩、收帆啊，還可以在廣闊的鹽水中掌舵航行。德尼奧有回帶她上鴉巢，雖然下面的甲板似乎只有一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)大，但她根本不怕。我還會算賬和清理艙室。
Ashore. Arya bit her lip. She had crossed the narrow sea to get here, but if the captain had asked she would have told him she wanted to stay aboard the Titan’s Daughter. Salty was too small to man an oar, she knew that now, but she could learn to splice ropes and reef the sails and steer a course across the great salt seas. Denyo had taken her up to the crow’s nest once, and she hadn’t been afraid at all, though the deck had seemed a tiny thing below her. I can do sums too, and keep a cabin neat.
然而大帆船上不需要第二個小男孩，另外，她只消看看船長的臉色就知道他多么急于擺脫自己。因此艾莉亞只點(diǎn)點(diǎn)頭。“上岸?！彼f，雖然上岸意味著在陌生人中生活。
But the galleas had no need of a second boy. Besides, she had only to look at the captain’s face to know how anxious he was to be rid of her. So Arya only nodded. “Ashore,” she said, though ashore meant only strangers.
“Valar dohaeris，”他用兩根手指觸摸眉毛，“請你記住特尼西奧·特里斯，以及他為你提供的幫助。”
“Valar dohaeris.” He touched two fingers to his brow. “I beg you remember Ternesio Terys and the service he has done you.”
“我會的。”艾莉亞小聲說。風(fēng)拉扯著斗篷，幽魂般固執(zhí)。該離開了。
“I will,” Arya said in a small voice. The wind tugged at her cloak, insistent as a ghost. It was time she was away.
船長說“收拾好東西”，其實(shí)她沒什么東西，只有幾件衣服、一小袋錢幣、船員們送的禮物，外加別在左腰的匕首和右腰的縫衣針。
Gather your belongings, the captain had said, but there were few enough of those. Only the clothes she was wearing, her little pouch of coins, the gifts the crew had given her, the dagger on her left hip and Needle on her right.
她還沒收拾完，小船已經(jīng)備好，由約寇劃槳。他也是船長的兒子，但比德尼奧年長，也沒那么友善。我還沒跟德尼奧道別呢，她邊想邊爬下去到他身邊。她不知將來能否再見到德尼奧。我應(yīng)該跟他道別的。
The boat was ready before she was, and Yorko was at the oars. He was the captain’s son as well, but older than Denyo and less friendly. I never said farewell to Denyo, she thought as she clambered down to join him. She wondered if she would ever see the boy again. I should have said farewell.
隨著約寇的劃動，泰坦之女號逐漸縮小，而城市越變越大。右面是港口，紛亂雜陳地擠滿了碼頭和船塢，其中不僅有來自伊班港的大肚子捕鯨船、來自盛夏群島的天鵝船，還有許許多多本地劃槳船，僅憑一個小女孩根本數(shù)不過來。左面遠(yuǎn)處有另一港口，與小船之間隔了一塊突出的低洼陸岬，陸上的建筑物統(tǒng)統(tǒng)位于水線以下，僅有屋頂冒出來。艾莉亞從未見過這么多大建筑聚集一處。如果說君臨擁有紅堡、貝勒大圣堂和龍穴，布拉佛斯則至少擁有二十座神廟、高塔和宮殿，每一幢都有過之而無不及。我又要變成一只老鼠，她陰郁地想，就像在赫倫堡時那樣。
The Titan’s Daughter dwindled in their wake, while the city grew larger with every stroke of Yorko’s oars. A harbor was visible off to her right, beyond a sinking point of land where the tops of half-drowned buildings thrust themselves above the water: a tangle of piers and quays crowded with big-bellied whalers out of Ibben, swan ships from the Summer Isles, and more galleys than a girl could count. Another harbor, more distant, was off to her left. Arya had never seen so many big buildings all together in one place. King’s Landing had the Red Keep and the Great Sept of Baelor and the Dragonpit, but Braavos seemed to boast a score of temples and towers and palaces that were as large or even larger. I will be a mouse again, she thought glumly, the way I was in Harrenhal before I ran away.
從泰坦巨人矗立的地方看過來，整座城市似乎是個大島，但隨著約寇將她劃近，她發(fā)現(xiàn)布拉佛斯確實(shí)由許多小島聚合而成，石拱橋跨越若干水道，將它們連接在一起。越過港口，灰色石屋排列成街巷，房子建得極為緊密，彼此倚靠。在艾莉亞看來，它們的模樣十分古怪，各有四五層樓，卻細(xì)瘦得很，覆蓋瓦片的陡峭屋頂就像尖頂帽——她沒見到茅草屋頂，熟悉的維斯特洛式木屋也寥寥可數(shù)。木材好少啊，她意識到，布拉佛斯是個石頭城，綠色汪洋中的灰色城市。
The city had seemed like one big island from where the Titan stood, but as Yorko rowed them closer she saw that it was many small islands close together, linked by arched stone bridges that spanned innumerable canals. Beyond the harbor she glimpsed streets of grey stone houses, built so close they leaned one upon the other. To Arya’s eyes they were queer-looking, four and five stories tall and very skinny, with sharp-peaked tile roofs like pointed hats. She saw no thatch, and only a few timbered houses of the sort she knew in Westeros. They have no trees, she realized. Braavos is all stone, a grey city in a green sea.
約寇劃向港口以北，深入一條大運(yùn)河，這條寬闊的綠色水道筆直地延伸至城市中心。他們從一座精雕細(xì)刻的石拱橋下經(jīng)過，橋上雕飾著數(shù)十種不同的魚、螃蟹和烏賊；第二座橋雕有枝繁葉茂的蔓藤；后面又有第三座，上千只彩繪眼睛向下凝視著他們。運(yùn)河兩側(cè)有一些較小的水渠匯入，更小的支流則匯入它們。有些房子居然建在運(yùn)河上方，使得運(yùn)河成為某種隧道。水蛇形狀的細(xì)窄小船在隧道中進(jìn)進(jìn)出出，它們有彩繪船頭和高翹尾巴，而且是不用劃的，由人站在船尾拿篙子撐，撐船人身穿灰色、褐色或苔蘚般深綠的斗篷。此外，她看見平底駁船，上面高高地堆滿箱子和木桶，船兩邊各有二十個篙夫；還有奇特的浮屋，掛著彩色玻璃吊燈，飾有天鵝絨簾幕和黃銅船首像。遠(yuǎn)處的溝渠和房屋上方，隱約可見一條碩大的灰?guī)r管道，由三層結(jié)實(shí)的橋弓支撐，伸向南方的迷霧之中?！澳鞘鞘裁?？”艾莉亞指著問約寇?！澳鞘翘鹚?，”他告訴她，“它跨越泥沼和淺灘，輸入淡水，最終這些優(yōu)質(zhì)的甜水會注進(jìn)噴泉池中?！?/p>
Yorko swung them north of the docks and down the gullet of a great canal, a broad green waterway that ran straight into the heart of the city. They passed under the arches of a carved stone bridge, decorated with half a hundred kinds of fish and crabs and squids. A second bridge appeared ahead, this one carved in lacy leafy vines, and beyond that a third, gazing down on them from a thousand painted eyes. The mouths of lesser canals opened to either side, and others still smaller off of those. Some of the houses were built above the waterways, she saw, turning the canals into a sort of tunnel. Slender boats slid in and out among them, wrought in the shapes of water serpents with painted heads and upraised tails. Those were not rowed but poled, she saw, by men who stood at their sterns in cloaks of grey and brown and deep moss green. She saw huge flat-bottomed barges too, heaped high with crates and barrels and pushed along by twenty polemen to a side, and fancy floating houses with lanterns of colored glass, velvet drapes, and brazen figureheads. Off in the far distance, looming above canals and houses both, was a massive grey stone roadway of some kind, supported by three tiers of mighty arches marching away south into the haze. “What’s that?” Arya asked Yorko, pointing. “The sweetwater river,” he told her. “It brings fresh water from the mainland, across the mudflats and the briny shallows. Good sweet water for the fountains.”
她回頭望去，海港和礁湖已在視野中消失。前方，高大魁梧的石像排列兩邊，它們神情肅穆，身披黃銅長袍，袍子上沾著斑斑點(diǎn)點(diǎn)的海鳥糞便。有的石像拿書，有的拿匕首，有的拿錘子。其中一位高舉一顆黃金制成的星星，另一位放倒石酒壺，好讓水流源源不斷地灌入水道。“他們是神嗎？”艾莉亞問。
When she looked behind her, the harbor and lagoon were lost to sight. Ahead, a row of mighty statues stood along both sides of the channel, solemn stone men in long bronze robes, spattered with the droppings of the seabirds. Some held books, some daggers, some hammers. One clutched a golden star in his upraised hand. Another was upending a stone flagon to send an endless stream of water splashing down into the canal. “Are they gods?” asked Arya.
“他們是過去的海王，”約寇道，“列神島還在前頭?？匆姏]？再過六座橋，右邊的岸上，便是月詠者神廟?！?/p>
“Sealords,” said Yorko. “The Isle of the Gods is farther on. See? Six bridges down, on the right bank. That is the Temple of the Moonsingers.”
那是艾莉亞在大礁湖上遠(yuǎn)眺到的建筑之一，宏偉的雪白大理石宮殿有銀色大圓頂，乳白玻璃窗展現(xiàn)出月亮的不同狀態(tài)。每道門邊都有一對大理石處女像，跟那些海王一般高，支撐著新月形門梁。
It was one of those that Arya had spied from the lagoon, a mighty mass of snow-white marble topped by a huge silvered dome whose milk glass windows showed all the phases of the moon. A pair of marble maidens flanked its gates, tall as the Sealords, supporting a crescent-shaped lintel.
再過去是另一座神廟，紅巖大廈如同堅固的要塞，它頂端的巨型方塔上有只直徑達(dá)二十尺的鐵火盆，其中燃燒著熊熊烈焰，神廟的黃銅門兩側(cè)也有較小的火堆?！凹t袍僧們喜歡火，”約寇告訴她，“他們崇拜光之王，紅神拉赫洛?！?/p>
Beyond it stood another temple, a red stone edifice as stern as any fortress. Atop its great square tower a fire blazed in an iron brazier twenty feet across, whilst smaller fires flanked its brazen doors. “The red priests love their fires,” Yorko told her. “The Lord of Light is their god, red R’hllor.”
我知道。艾莉亞記得密爾的索羅斯，他穿著破舊盔甲和褪成粉色的袍子，光看外貌已經(jīng)說不上是紅袍僧了，然而他的吻能讓貝里伯爵復(fù)活。她注視著紅神的宅邸緩緩經(jīng)過，心中琢磨布拉佛斯的僧侶是否也具有他的能力。
I know. Arya remembered Thoros of Myr in his bits of old armor, worn over robes so faded that he had seemed more a pink priest than a red one. Yet his kiss had brought Lord Beric back from death. She watched the red god’s house drift by, wondering whether these Braavosi priests of his could do the same.
接下來是一座大磚房，其上爬滿苔蘚。若非約寇講解，艾莉亞還以為是個倉庫?！斑@是‘庇圣所’，我們在此供奉被世界各地遺忘的諸多小神靈。你也許會聽見人們叫它‘大雜院’?！币粭l小渠從“大雜院”覆蓋苔蘚的高墻間穿過，他在這里將船轉(zhuǎn)向右邊，經(jīng)過一條隧道，然后再次進(jìn)入光亮之中。兩側(cè)聳立著更多神龕。
Next came a huge brick structure festooned with lichen. Arya might have taken it for a storehouse had not Yorko said, “That is the Holy Refuge, where we honor the small gods the world has forgotten. You will hear it called the Warren too.” A small canal ran between the Warren’s looming lichen-covered walls, and there he swung them right. They passed through a tunnel and out again into the light. More shrines loomed up to either side.
“我從來不知道有那么多神?！卑騺喺f。
“I never knew there were so many gods,” Arya said.
約寇哼了一聲。他們轉(zhuǎn)過一個彎，又從一座橋下經(jīng)過。一個小小的巖石山丘出現(xiàn)在左邊，山丘頂上有座無窗的深灰色石頭神廟，巖石階梯從門口直通向下面帶頂篷的碼頭。
Yorko grunted. They went around a bend and beneath another bridge. On their left appeared a rocky knoll with a windowless temple of dark grey stone at its top. A flight of stone steps led from its doors down to a covered dock.
約寇倒劃了幾下槳，小船便輕輕撞到石樁上。他抓住一個鐵環(huán)，以暫時穩(wěn)住船只?！拔野涯懔粼谶@兒?！?/p>
Yorko backed the oars, and the boat bumped gently against stone pilings. He grasped an iron ring set to hold them for a moment. “Here I leave you.”
碼頭光線陰暗，階梯極為陡峭，神廟的黑瓦屋頂尖尖的，跟水道沿岸的房屋相同。艾莉亞咬緊嘴唇。西利歐來自布拉佛斯，他或許造訪過這座神廟，或許登上過這些階梯。她抓住一個鐵環(huán)，上了碼頭。
The dock was shadowed, the steps steep. The temple’s black tile roof came to a sharp peak, like the houses along the canals. Arya chewed her lip. Syrio came from Braavos. He might have visited this temple. He might have climbed those steps. She grabbed a ring and pulled herself up onto the dock.
“你知道我的名字吧？”約寇在船里說。
“You know my name,” said Yorko from the boat.
“約寇·特里斯?！?/p>
“Yorko Terys.”
“Valar dohaeris?！彼煌茦?，回到水深的地方。艾莉亞望著他原路劃回，直到消失在橋下的陰影之中。劃槳聲漸弱，她幾乎能聽見自己的心跳，仿佛突然間到了別處……也許是回到赫倫堡，跟詹德利在一起，也許是跟獵狗一起在三叉戟河邊的樹林里游蕩。阿鹽是個笨小孩，她告訴自己，我是一頭奔狼，奔狼不會害怕。于是她拍了拍縫衣針的劍柄，以求好運(yùn)，然后沖入陰影之中，兩級一步地跨上臺階，這樣就沒人能指責(zé)她在恐懼了。
“Valar dohaeris.” He pushed off with his oar and drifted back off into the deeper water. Arya watched him row back the way they’d come, until he vanished in the shadows of the bridge. As the swish of oars faded, she could almost hear the beating of her heart. Suddenly she was somewhere else … back in Harrenhal with Gendry, maybe, or with the Hound in the woods along the Trident. Salty is a stupid child, she told herself. I am a wolf, and will not be afraid. She patted Needle’s hilt for luck and plunged into the shadows, taking the steps two at a time so no one could ever say she’d been afraid.
到得頂上，面前是一對十二尺高的雕花木門。左邊一扇由魚梁木制成，白如骸骨，右邊一扇是微微泛光的黑檀木。兩扇門中間合雕著一個月亮，不過魚梁木上嵌的是黑檀木，黑檀木上則嵌魚梁木，那模樣不知為何讓她想起了臨冬城神木林中的心樹。門在看著我，她一邊想，一邊用戴手套的手去推，兩扇門都推不動。鎖得死死的?！胺盼疫M(jìn)去，笨蛋，”她喊道，“我穿越狹海才來到這里?！彼笃鹑^敲打。“賈昆叫我來的。我有鐵硬幣?！彼龔拇永锍槌鲨F幣，舉在面前?！翱匆娏藛幔縑alar morghulis。”
At the top she found a set of carved wooden doors twelve feet high. The left-hand door was made of weirwood pale as bone, the right of gleaming ebony. In their center was a carved moon face; ebony on the weirwood side, weirwood on the ebony. The look of it reminded her somehow of the heart tree in the godswood at Winterfell. The doors are watching me, she thought. She pushed upon both doors at once with the flat of her gloved hands, but neither one would budge. Locked and barred. “Let me in, you stupid,” she said. “I crossed the narrow sea.” She made a fist and pounded. “Jaqen told me to come. I have the iron coin.” She pulled it from her pouch and held it up. “See? Valar morghulis.”
門沒有回答，自動打開了。
The doors made no reply, except to open.
它們毫無聲息地向內(nèi)開啟，無人介入。艾莉亞向前跨出一步，又一步。門在她身后關(guān)閉，一時間，她目不能視?？p衣針握在手中，但不知是何時拔出來的。
They opened inward all in silence, with no human hand to move them. Arya took a step forward, and another. The doors closed behind her, and for a moment she was blind. Needle was in her hand, though she did not remember drawing it.
幾支蠟燭沿墻燃燒，發(fā)出微弱的光線，艾莉亞甚至看不到自己的腳。有人喃喃低語，但聲音太輕，她無法辨清詞句。還有人哭泣。她聽見輕微的腳步聲，皮革與石頭摩擦，一扇門打開又關(guān)上。水，有水。
A few candles burned along the walls, but gave so little light that Arya could not see her own feet. Someone was whispering, too softly for her to make out words. Someone else was weeping. She heard light footfalls, leather sliding over stone, a door opening and closing. Water, I hear water too.
艾莉亞的眼睛漸漸調(diào)整適應(yīng)。神廟內(nèi)部似乎比外面看起來大很多。維斯特洛的圣堂都是七邊形，七個祭壇分別供奉七神，而這里的神遠(yuǎn)不止七個。無數(shù)雕像沿墻站立，高大又兇險，紅燭在它們腳邊搖曳，仿佛遙遠(yuǎn)昏暗的群星。距離最近的是個十二尺高的大理石女人，逼真的淚水自她雙眼流出，注入她抱在懷中的碗里；再過去是個坐在王座上的獅頭男人，由黑檀木雕刻而成；一扇門邊有匹由青銅和鋼鐵鑄成的高頭大馬，兩條粗壯的后腿直立起來；再往前，她分辨出一張巨大的石臉，一個蒼白的嬰兒握著一柄長劍，一只毛發(fā)蓬松、個頭有野牛那么大的黑山羊，一個倚著根棍子的兜帽男人，還有許許多多黑暗中若隱若現(xiàn)的影子。神像之間有些隱蔽的空穴，其中的陰影更加濃重，時不時還有一支燃燒的蠟燭。
Slowly her eyes adjusted. The temple seemed much larger within than it had without. The septs of Westeros were seven-sided, with seven altars for the seven gods, but here there were more gods than seven. Statues of them stood along the walls, massive and threatening. Around their feet red candles flickered, as dim as distant stars. The nearest was a marble woman twelve feet tall. Real tears were trickling from her eyes, to fill the bowl she cradled in her arms. Beyond her was a man with a lion’s head seated on a throne, carved of ebony. On the other side of the doors, a huge horse of bronze and iron reared up on two great legs. Farther on she could make out a great stone face, a pale infant with a sword, a shaggy black goat the size of an aurochs, a hooded man leaning on a staff. The rest were only looming shapes to her, half-seen through the gloom. Between the gods were hidden alcoves thick with shadows, with here and there a candle burning.
靜如影，艾莉亞手握短劍，在一排排石頭長凳間移動。地板也是石頭，但并非貝勒大圣堂中打磨光滑的大理石，這里的石頭很粗糙。她經(jīng)過幾個竊竊私語的婦女?？諝鉁?zé)釡灒钏唤蚱鸸?。她嗅到蠟燭的氣味，非常古怪，仿佛是某種奇異香料，隨著她逐漸深入，它聞起來就像是雪、松針和熱騰騰的肉湯相融合。這味道真好，艾莉亞心想，感覺略微勇敢了一點(diǎn)，勇敢得足以將縫衣針收入鞘中。
Silent as a shadow, Arya moved between rows of long stone benches, her sword in hand. The floor was made of stone, her feet told her; not polished marble like the floor of the Great Sept of Baelor, but something rougher. She passed some women whispering together. The air was warm and heavy, so heavy that she yawned. She could smell the candles. The scent was unfamiliar, and she put it down to some queer incense, but as she got deeper into the temple, they seemed to smell of snow and pine needles and hot stew. Good smells, Arya told herself, and felt a little braver. Brave enough to slip Needle back into its sheath.
在神廟中央，她找到了先前聽到的水聲源頭，那是一個直徑十尺的水池，在昏暗的紅燭照耀之下，黑如墨汁。池邊坐了一位穿銀斗篷的年輕人，正在輕聲哭泣。他將一只手伸入水中，猩紅的波紋在池內(nèi)蕩漾，接著，他收回手指逐個吮吸。他一定是渴了。池邊擺著一些石杯，艾莉亞舀滿一杯端給他。她送上水杯時，那年輕人凝視她許久。“Valar morghulis?！彼f。
In the center of the temple she found the water she had heard; a pool ten feet across, black as ink and lit by dim red candles. Beside it sat a young man in a silvery cloak, weeping softly. She watched him dip a hand in the water, sending scarlet ripples racing across the pool. When he drew his fingers back he sucked them, one by one. He must be thirsty. There were stone cups along the rim of the pool. Arya filled one and brought it to him, so he could drink. The young man stared at her for a long moment when she offered it to him. “Valar morghulis,” he said.
“Valar dohaeris。”她答道。
“Valar dohaeris,” she replied.
他深深啜飲，然后將杯子丟入池中，發(fā)出輕輕一聲“撲通”。接著，他搖搖晃晃站起身來，手捂肚子。一時間，艾莉亞以為他要摔倒，接著看見他腰帶下面有一片黑糊糊的污漬，并且在她注視之下逐漸擴(kuò)大?！澳惚淮塘恕！彼摽诙?，但那人未加理會。他跌跌撞撞朝墻邊走去，爬進(jìn)一個空穴，躺到堅硬的石床上。艾莉亞環(huán)顧四周，發(fā)現(xiàn)還有其他空穴。有的空穴中有老人在睡覺。
He drank deep, and dropped the cup into the pool with a soft plop. Then he pushed himself to his feet, swaying, holding his belly. For a moment Arya thought he was going to fall. It was only then that she saw the dark stain below his belt, spreading as she watched. “You’re stabbed,” she blurted, but the man paid her no mind. He lurched unsteadily toward the wall and crawled into an alcove onto a hard stone bed. When Arya peered around, she saw other alcoves too. On some there were old people sleeping.
不，記憶中一個模糊而又熟悉的聲音在她耳邊低語，他們死了，或者快死了。用你的眼睛看。
No, a half-remembered voice seemed to whisper in her head. They are dead, or dying. Look with your eyes.
一只手搭到她胳膊上。
A hand touched her arm.
艾莉亞立即轉(zhuǎn)身，但那不過是個小女孩，面色蒼白，身穿大得不成比例的兜帽長袍，袍子右半黑，左半白。兜帽下的臉憔悴削瘦，臉頰凹陷，黑眼睛看上去跟茶碗一般大?！皠e抓著我，”艾莉亞警告這流浪兒，“上次我把那個抓我的男孩給殺了。”
Arya spun away, but it was only a little girl: a pale little girl in a cowled robe that seemed to engulf her, black on the right side and white on the left. Beneath the cowl was a gaunt and bony face, hollow cheeks, and dark eyes that looked as big as saucers. “Don’t grab me,” Arya warned the waif. “I killed the boy who grabbed me last.”
女孩說了些什么。
The girl said some words that Arya did not know.
艾莉婭聽不懂，只好搖搖頭，“你不會通用語嗎？”
She shook her head. “Don’t you know the Common Tongue?”
一個聲音在她身后說，“我會?！?/p>
A voice behind her said, “I do.”
艾莉亞不喜歡別人老是這樣讓她吃驚。這回是個戴兜帽的男人，個子很高，身上裹著跟那女孩一樣的黑白長袍，不過尺寸更大。從兜帽底下，她只能看見他眼睛反射出的微微泛紅的燭光。“這是什么地方？”她問他。
Arya did not like the way they kept surprising her. The hooded man was tall, enveloped in a larger version of the black-and-white robe the girl was wearing. Beneath his cowl all she could see was the faint red glitter of candlelight reflecting off his eyes. “What place is this?” she asked him.
“安息之地?！彼Z氣溫柔，“你在這兒很安全。此乃黑白之院，孩子，不過你還太小，還未到尋求千面之神恩惠的時候?！?/p>
“A place of peace.” His voice was gentle. “You are safe here. This is the House of Black and White, my child. Though you are young to seek the favor of the Many-Faced God.”
“他跟南方人的神一樣有七張臉嗎？”
“Is he like the southron god, the one with seven faces?”
“七張臉？不，他的臉數(shù)不清，小家伙，就跟天上的群星一樣繁多。在布拉佛斯，人們愿意崇拜哪個神就崇拜哪個神……但每條路的終點(diǎn)，都是千面之神。有朝一日，他也會等著你，不必?fù)?dān)心，你無須急于尋求他的接納?！?/p>
“Seven? No. He has faces beyond count, little one, as many faces as there are stars in the sky. In Braavos, men worship as they will … but at the end of every road stands Him of Many Faces, waiting. He will be there for you one day, do not fear. You need not rush to his embrace.”
“我只是來找賈昆·赫加爾的?！?/p>
“I only came to find Jaqen H’ghar.”
“我沒聽過這個名字?！?/p>
“I do not know this name.”
她的心沉下去。“他來自羅拉斯，頭發(fā)半紅半白。他答應(yīng)教我秘密，還給了我這個。”鐵硬幣捏在拳頭里，她松開手指，發(fā)現(xiàn)其已吸附在汗津津的掌心。
Her heart sank. “He was from Lorath. His hair was white on one side and red on the other. He said he’d teach me secrets, and gave me this.” The iron coin was clutched in her fist. When she opened her fingers, it clung to her sweaty palm.
牧師仔細(xì)看了看，但沒去摸。那大眼睛流浪兒也看著它。最后，戴兜帽的牧師說，“你是誰，孩子？”
The priest studied the coin, though he made no move to touch it. The waif with the big eyes was looking at it too. Finally, the cowled man said, “Tell me your name, child.”
“阿鹽。我來自三叉戟河邊的鹽場鎮(zhèn)?！?/p>
“Salty. I come from Saltpans, by the Trident.”
她看不見他的臉，卻不知為何能感覺到他的笑意?！安唬彼f，“你是誰？’
Though she could not see his face, somehow she could feel him smiling. “No,” he said. “Tell me your name.”
“乳鴿?！边@是她的第二個答案。
“Squab,” she answered this time.
“你的真名，孩子?！?/p>
“Your true name, child.”
“我母親叫我娜娜，他們稱我為黃鼠狼——”
“My mother named me Nan, but they call me Weasel—”
“你到底是誰？”
“Your name.”
她咽了口口水。“阿利。我叫阿利。”
She swallowed. “Arry. I’m Arry.”
“接近了。你的真名？”
“Closer. And now the truth?”
恐懼比利劍更傷人，她告訴自己?！鞍騺??！钡谝槐樗p聲說出。第二遍則大聲沖他喊，“我是史塔克家族的艾莉亞?！?/p>
Fear cuts deeper than swords, she told herself. “Arya.” She whispered the word the first time. The second time she threw it at him. “I am Arya, of House Stark.”
“對，”他說，“但黑白之院容不下史塔克家族的艾莉亞?！?/p>
“You are,” he said, “but the House of Black and White is no place for Arya, of House Stark.”
“求求你，”她說，“我無處可去?！?/p>
“Please,” she said. “I have no place to go.”
“你怕死嗎？”
“Do you fear death?”
她咬緊嘴唇。“不?！?/p>
She bit her lip. “No.”
“讓我們試一試。”牧師摘下兜帽。帽子底下沒有臉，只有一個泛黃的頭骨，頰間粘著少許碎皮，一條白色蠕蟲從空洞的眼眶里扭動著鉆出來。“吻我，孩子?！彼粏〉卣f，聲調(diào)干枯沙啞，仿佛臨死前的喉音。
“Let us see.” The priest lowered his cowl. Beneath he had no face; only a yellowed skull with a few scraps of skin still clinging to the cheeks, and a white worm wriggling from one empty eye socket. “Kiss me, child,” he croaked, in a voice as dry and husky as a death rattle.
他想嚇唬我？艾莉亞吻向本該是他鼻子的地方，接著捉出他眼睛里的尸蟲，并打算把它吃掉。尸蟲像幻影一樣融化。
Does he think to scare me? Arya kissed him where his nose should be and plucked the grave worm from his eye to eat it, but it melted like a shadow in her hand.
泛黃的頭骨也融化了，一位她畢生所見最為慈祥的老人正低頭朝她微笑?！俺韵x子的孩子，”他說，“你很餓嗎？”
The yellow skull was melting too, and the kindliest old man that she had ever seen was smiling down at her. “No one has ever tried to eat my worm before,” he said. “Are you hungry, child?”
是的，她心想，但并非為了食物。
Yes, she thought, but not for food.
