冰与火之歌系列之《权利的游戏》第9期:序曲(9)

 Finally Gared looked down. No fire, he muttered, low under his breath. 最后盖瑞低下头。那就算了。他讪讪地说。

Royce took it for acquiescence¹ and turned away. Lead on, he said to Will. 罗伊斯于是妥协，带路罢。他对威尔说。

Will threaded their way through a thicket², 威尔领他穿越浓密树丛，

then started up the slope to the low ridge³ where he had found his vantage point under a sentinel tree. 爬上低缓斜坡，朝山脊走去，他先前便是在那儿的一棵树下找到藏身处所。

Under the thin crust of snow, the ground was damp and muddy, slick footing, with rocks and hidden roots to trip you up. 薄薄的积雪底，地面潮湿而泥泞，极易滑倒，石块和暗藏的树根也能绊人一跤。

Will made no sound as he climbed. Behind him, he heard the soft metallic⁴ slither of the lordling's ringmail, 威尔爬坡时没有发出任何声响，身后却不时传来公子哥环甲的金属碰撞，

the rustle⁵ of leaves, and muttered curses as reaching branches grabbed at his longsword and tugged⁶ on his splendid sable⁷ cloak. 叶子摩擦，以及分叉枝干绊住他的长剑，勾住他漂亮貂皮斗篷时所发出的咒骂声。

The great sentinel was right there at the top of the ridge, where Will had known it would be, 威尔知道那棵大哨兵树位于山脊最高处，

its lowest branches a bare foot off the ground. 底部枝干离地仅有一尺。

Will slid in underneath⁸, flat on his belly⁹ in the snow and the mud, and looked down on the empty clearing below. 于是他爬进矮树丛，平趴在残雪和泥泞里，往下方空旷的平地望去。

His heart stopped in his chest. For a moment he dared not breathe. 他的心脏停止了跳动，好一阵不敢呼吸。

Moonlight shone down on the clearing, the ashes of the firepit, the snow-covered lean-to, the great rock, 月光洒落在空地上，映照出营火余烬，白雪覆盖的岩石，

the little half-frozen stream. Everything was just as it had been a few hours ago. 半结冰的小溪，全都和数小时前所见一模一样。

They were gone. All the bodies were gone. 惟一的差别是，所有的人都不见了。

Gods! he heard behind him. A sword slashed¹⁰ at a branch as Ser Waymar Royce gained the ridge. 诸神保佑！他听见背后传来的声音。威玛·罗伊斯爵士挥剑劈砍树枝，总算上了坡顶。

He stood there beside the sentinel, longsword in hand, his cloak billowing behind him as the wind came up, 他站在哨兵树旁，手握宝剑，披风被吹得噼啪作响，

outlined nobly against the stars for all to see. 明亮的星光清楚地勾勒出他高贵的身影。

 

1 acquiescence   

n.默许；顺从

参考例句：

• The chief inclined his head in sign of acquiescence.首领点点头表示允许。
• This is due to his acquiescence.这是因为他的默许。

2 thicket   

n.灌木丛，树林

参考例句：

• A thicket makes good cover for animals to hide in.丛林是动物的良好隐蔽处。
• We were now at the margin of the thicket.我们现在已经来到了丛林的边缘。

3 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

4 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

5 rustle   

v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声

参考例句：

• She heard a rustle in the bushes.她听到灌木丛中一阵沙沙声。
• He heard a rustle of leaves in the breeze.他听到树叶在微风中发出的沙沙声。

6 tugged   

v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
• A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 sable   

n.黑貂；adj.黑色的

参考例句：

• Artists' brushes are sometimes made of sable.画家的画笔有的是用貂毛制的。
• Down the sable flood they glided.他们在黑黝黝的洪水中随波逐流。

8 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

9 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

10 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》