冰与火之歌系列之《权力的游戏》第457期:第二十六章 艾莉亚(13)

 　　If the Lannisters move north, that will bring the Tullys in as well. Delay, you say.  若是兰尼斯特对北方用兵，那么徒利家也将被牵扯进来。你叫我拖一拖，

　　Make haste, I reply. Even the finest of jugglers cannot keep a hundred balls in the air forever. 我却要叫你加快行动啊。就算最厉害的杂耍戏子也没法永远把一百颗球抛在空中呐。

　　You are more than a juggler¹, old friend. You are a true sorcerer. All I ask is that you work your magic awhile longer.  老朋友，你可不只是杂耍戏子，你是个真正的魔术师。我不过请你多变一会儿戏法罢了。

　　They started down the hall in the direction Arya had come, past the room with the monsters. 他们朝艾莉亚来时的方向走去，穿过充满怪兽的房间。

　　What I can do, I will, the one with the torch said softly. I must have gold, and another fifty birds. 只要我能做的，我都会去做。拿火把的人轻声说，但我需要经费，还要五十只鸟儿。

　　She let them get a long way ahead, then went creeping after them. Quiet as a shadow. 她等他们走远后才偷偷跟在后面。静如影。

　　So many? The voices were fainter as the light dwindled² ahead of her. The ones you need are hard to find...so young, to know their letters...perhaps older...not die so easy. 要那么多？前方光线渐暗，声音也愈见微弱。你要的这种可不好找……既要年轻，又要识字…如果年纪稍大一点…不那么容易送命…

　　No. The younger are safer...treat them gently. 不，年轻的比较安全…对他们好一点…

　　if they kept their tongues.the risk. 如果他们保住口舌…冒风险…

　　Long after their voices had faded away, Arya could still see the light of the torch, a smoking star that bid her follow.  声音淡去后许久，艾莉亚依然能看见火把的光亮，如一颗冒烟的星星，吸引她跟随。

　　Twice it seemed to disappear, but she kept on straight, and both times she found herself at the top of steep, narrow stairs, the torch glimmering³ far below her.  有两次，它几乎失去了踪影，但她一径向前，两次都发现自己走到险陡窄梯的顶端，火把的光芒则在遥远的下方。

　　She hurried after it, down and down. Once she stumbled⁴ over a rock and fell against the wall,  她急忙追赶，不断向下。中途她曾踢到石头，失足撞上墙壁，

　　and her hand found raw earth supported by timbers⁵, whereas⁶ before the tunnel had been dressed stone. 手指所触却是粗糙的泥土，由木材所支撑，并非先前的石造甬道。

1 juggler   

n. 变戏法者, 行骗者

参考例句：

• Dick was a juggler, who threw mists before your eyes. 迪克是个骗子，他在你面前故弄玄虚。
• The juggler juggled three bottles. 这个玩杂耍的人可同时抛接3个瓶子。

2 dwindled   

v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Support for the party has dwindled away to nothing. 支持这个党派的人渐渐化为乌有。
• His wealth dwindled to nothingness. 他的钱财化为乌有。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 glimmering   

n.微光，隐约的一瞥adj.薄弱地发光的v.发闪光，发微光( glimmer的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I got some glimmering of what he was driving at. 他这么说是什么意思，我有点明白了。 来自辞典例句
• Now that darkness was falling, only their silhouettes were outlined against the faintly glimmering sky. 这时节两山只剩余一抹深黑，赖天空微明为画出一个轮廓。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译

4 stumbled   

v.（不顺畅地）说( stumble的过去式和过去分词 )；跌跌撞撞地走；绊脚；（说话、演奏等）出错

参考例句：

• I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤，把脚脖子扭了。
• The child stumbled and fell. 孩子绊了一下，摔倒了。

5 timbers   

（用于建筑或制作物品的）树木( timber的名词复数 )； 用材林

参考例句：

• Contraction of the timbers left gaps in the fence. 木料收缩，结果围墙露出缝来。
• The ship's timbers groaned audibly during the storm. 船骨在暴风雨中吱嘎作响。

6 whereas   

conj.而，却，反之

参考例句：

• They want a house,whereas we would rather live in a flat.他们想要一座房子，而我们宁愿住在一套房间里。
• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。