书城童书纳尼亚传奇系列(套装共7册)
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第278章 两次绝处逢生(4)

If anything it’s the other way round. I am one of the four ancient sovereigns of Narnia and you are under allegiance to the High King my brother.”

“So it has come to that, King Edmund, has it?” said Caspian, laying his hand on his sword-hilt.

“Oh, stop it, both of you,” said Lucy. “That‘s the worst of doinganything with boys. You’re all such swaggering, bullying idiots- oooh! -” Her voice died away into a gasp. And everyone else saw what she had seen.

Across the grey hillside above them-grey, for the heather was not yet in bloom-without noise, and without looking at them, and shining as if he were in bright sunlight though the sun had in fact gone in, passed with slow pace the hugest lion that human eyes have ever seen. In describing the scene Lucy said afterwards, “He was the size of an elephant,” though at another time she only said, “The size of a cart- horse.” But it was not the size that mattered. Nobody dared to ask what it was. They knew it was Aslan.

And nobody ever saw how or where he went. They looked at one another like people waking from sleep.

“What were we talking about?” said Caspian. “Have I been making rather an ass of myself ?”

“Sire,” said Reepicheep, “this is a place with a curse on it. Let us get back on board at once. And if I might have the honour of naming this island, I should call it Deathwater.”

“That strikes me as a very good name, Reep,” said Caspian, “though now that I come to think of it, I don‘t know why. But the weather seems to be settling and I dare say Drinian would like to be off. What a lot we shall have to tell him.”

But in fact they had not much to tell for the memory of the last hour had all become confused.

“Their Majesties all seemed a bit bewitched when they came aboard,” said Drinian to Rhince some hours later when the Dawn Treader was once more under sail and Deathwater Island already below the horizon. “Something happened to them in that place. The only thing I could get clear was that they think they’ve found the body of one of these lords we‘re looking for.”

“You don’t say so, Captain,” answered Rhince. “Well, that‘s three. Only four more. At this rate we might be home soon after the New Year. And a good thing too. My baccy’s running a bit low. Good night, Sir.”

中文阅读

“黎明”号驶离龙岛的时候,人人都兴高采烈。刚一驶出海湾,就遇上了顺风。第二天一早,就到达了那块未知的土地。尤斯塔斯还是条龙的时候,有些人骑在他的身上飞过群山,曾经看到过这个地方。这是一个低矮的绿色岛屿,上面只有兔子和几只山羊。但根据石屋的废墟以及一片片火烧的黑色痕迹来判断,前不久这里还有人居住。此外,还可以看到一些骨头和折断的武器。

“是海盗干的。”卡斯宾说。“或者是龙的作为。”埃德蒙说。

在那里,他们还发现了沙滩上的一只小皮筏子,或者说是小渔船,在枝条编制的船架子上蒙了一层皮。船很小,只有四英尺长,里面放着的桨也很小巧。他们认为,这只船或者是为孩子造的,或者那个地方的人是矮人。雷匹奇普决定留下这只船,因为它的大小刚好适合自己,于是把它带上了“黎明”号。他们称这个地方为火烧岛,还不到正午就驶离了。

大约有五天之久,他们被一股东南风吹送着向前行驶,既看不到陆地,也看不到鱼和海鸥。有一天,大雨倾盆,直到午后雨才停止。尤斯塔斯跟雷匹奇普下棋,输了两盘,又开始显露出他从前那副讨厌的样子。埃德蒙说,他真希望他们都能跟苏珊一起去美国。露西从船尾的窗户望出去,说道:

“喂!我相信船要停了。那是什么?”听到这话,他们都一窝蜂地跑到船尾楼上,发现雨已经停了,德利尼安正在值班瞭望,他也在使劲儿地盯着船后面的什么东西,或者更准确的说,好几个东西。它们看上去有点像光滑的圆石头,排成一长串,彼此的间距大约为四十英尺。

“那些不可能是石头,”德利尼安说,“五分钟前,它们还不在那里。”“有一个刚刚消失了。”露西说。“不错,另一个又冒了出来。”埃德蒙说。“也近了很多。”尤斯塔斯说。“见鬼!”卡斯宾说,“那整个东西都在朝这个方向移动。”

“而且移动的速度比我们行驶的速度快得多,陛下,”德利尼安说,“一分钟后它就会追赶上我们。”

他们全都屏住了呼吸,不管是在陆地还是海上,被一个不明身份的东西追赶,都不是一件令人愉快的事情。结果比大家所猜想的更加恐怖。突然,距离左舷仅仅有二十米的地方,一个可怕的脑袋从海里探了出来。那脑袋红绿斑驳,还夹杂着紫色的斑点——除开吸附着贝壳类水生物的地方之外——脑袋的形状很像一个马头,只是没有耳朵。它长着巨大的眼睛,适合在大海黑暗的深处看东西,它的大嘴里长着两排锋利的牙齿。一开始他们以为,它的脑袋下面是粗大的脖子,但随着它露出海面越来越多,大家才知道,那不是它的脖子,而是它的身子。最后他们才明白,自己看到的正是很多人傻乎乎想要目睹的——巨大的海蟒。远远望去,可以看到它弯曲的大尾巴,一节节的露出海面。此刻,它的脑袋高高昂起,比船的桅杆还要高。

大家纷纷去拿武器,但却无计可施,因为够不着那个怪物。“射箭!射箭!”弓箭手头目喊道,有几个人遵命而行,但箭矢擦着海蟒的皮都纷纷落下,似乎那是一层铁甲。然后,熬过了可怕的整整一分钟,每个人都纹丝不动,紧盯着它的眼睛和嘴巴,猜测它会攻击什么地方。

可是海蟒并没有发起攻击。它把脑袋伸到跟桅杆的帆桁平行的地方,就在作战的桅楼旁边,而且继续往前伸,越过右舷的舷墙,这才垂下脑袋——不是伸到人群密集的甲板上,而是伸进水中,整个船被海蟒围了一圈。立刻,那个圈开始缩小,的确,在右舷,海蟒差不多已经挨着了“黎明”号的船边。

这时,尤斯塔斯(他一直在认真地待人接物,直到大雨和输棋使他故态重萌)做出了他一生中第一个勇敢的举动。他还拿着卡斯宾借给他的宝剑,一看海蟒的身子碰触到右舷,可以够得着了,便一步跳上舷墙,使出全身的力气挥剑朝它砍去。说实话,除了把卡斯宾排名第二的宝剑断成了几截之外,他一无所获。但对于一个新手,这可以称得上一个了不起的行为。

此刻,若不是雷匹奇普高声喊叫“别打!来推!”的话,其他人都会跟着尤斯塔斯去砍起来。在那个危急关头,老鼠居然不让人去厮杀,这实在非同寻常,每个人都转眼去瞧它。只见它跳到舷墙上,在海蟒的前方,用它那毛茸茸的瘦小背部抵住那巨大的有鳞的粘滑的蟒背,拼命地在推。许多人顿时明白了它的用意,也冲到船的两边,去推那条蟒蛇。过了片刻,海蟒的脑袋又探了出来,这次是在左舷这边儿,背对着他们,这下子,所有的人都明白了。

这条大蟒绕着“黎明”号缠了一圈,正准备把圈收紧。一旦它把船缠紧——啪的一声——船就会裂成碎片,它便可以在水里把人一个个吞吃掉。他们唯一的出路就是把这个圈往后推,让它从船尾滑落下去,或者(把蟒身往前推),使船从这个圈中解脱出来。

当然,雷匹奇普依靠自己的力量,就像是要举起一座大教堂一样,根本没有希望,反而差点儿搭上了小命,好在别人把它推到了一边。很快,除了露西和老鼠(它几乎昏厥了),船上所有的人,沿着两边的舷墙排成两队,每个人的前胸贴着前面那个人的后背,一排人的重量都集中在最后那个人的身上。为了活命,大家竭尽全力地推着。使人痛苦的几秒钟(感觉就像是几个小时)过去了,一切还是老样子。关节在咔啪作响,汗如雨下,人们大口地喘着粗气。这时,他们感到船在移动,看见蟒蛇圈离桅杆远了一些。但是他们也看到,那个圈子缩的更小了。危险已经迫在眉睫。他们能不能把它推下船尾呢?这个圈是不是已经缠得太紧了?哦没问题,现在还来得及。蟒身正靠在船尾栏杆上。十几个人跳上船尾楼。这样就好多了。海蟒身子的位置比较低,他们可以顺着船尾楼排成一排,肩并肩地来推。大家满怀希望,后来才想起来“黎明”号船后部高耸的龙尾巴。要想把海蟒推过龙尾巴,几乎是不可能完成的任务。

“拿把斧头,”卡斯宾声音嘶哑地叫道,“继续推。”露西知道所有的东西摆放在哪里,她本来正站在主甲板上,望着船尾。