冰与火之歌系列之《权力的游戏》第405期:第二十四章 艾德(1)

 　　I stood last vigil for him myself, Ser Barristan Selmy said as they looked down at the body in the back of the cart.  昨晚是我亲自替他守的灵，巴利斯坦·赛尔弥爵士道，他们看着推车后面载着的遗体。

　　He had no one else. A mother in the Vale, I am told. 这孩子无依无靠，连个亲朋好友都没有，听说就只有艾林谷家里的母亲。

　　In the pale dawn light, the young knight¹ looked as though he were sleeping.  苍白的晨光中，年轻骑士看上去仿佛正在沉睡。

　　He had not been handsome, but death had smoothed his rough-hewn features and the silent sisters had dressed him in his best velvet² tunic³,  他算不上英俊，但死亡抚平了他粗糙的面容，静默修女会的姐妹则为他穿上了料子最好的天鹅绒外衣，

　　with a high collar to cover the ruin the lance had made of his throat.  高高的领口恰好遮住喉咙上被长枪戳出的大洞。

　　Eddard Stark⁴ looked at his face, and wondered if it had been for his sake that the boy had died.  艾德·史塔克看着他的脸，暗忖这男孩不知是否因为自己而丢了性命。

　　Slain⁵ by a Lannister bannerman before Ned could speak to him;  奈德还不及和他谈谈，他便死于兰尼斯特封臣枪下。

　　could that be mere⁶ happenstance? He supposed he would never know. 这真的只是巧合？他大概永远不会知道。

　　Hugh was Jon Arryn's squire⁷ for four years, Selmy went on. The king knighted him before he rode north, in Jon's memory.  修夫在琼恩·艾林身边当了四年的侍从，赛尔弥继续说，国王为了纪念琼恩，在北行前封他做了骑士。

　　The lad wanted it desperately⁸, yet I fear he was not ready. 这孩子想当骑士想得不行，只可惜他恐怕还没准备好。

　　Ned had slept badly last night and he felt tired beyond his years. None of us is ever ready, he said. 奈德昨晚睡得很差，现在的他和身边的老人一样疲累。我们不也一样？他说。

　　For knighthood? 我们也没准备好当骑士？

　　For death. Gently Ned covered the boy with his cloak, a bloodstained bit of blue bordered in crescent moons.  没准备好面对死亡。奈德轻轻地为那孩子盖上他绣着弯月的染血蓝披风。

　　When his mother asked why her son was dead, he reflected bitterly, they would tell her he had fought to honor the King's Hand, Eddard Stark.  当他的母亲问起儿子死因时，他苦涩地想，他们会说他是为了首相的荣誉而献身。

1 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

2 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。

3 tunic   

n.束腰外衣

参考例句：

• The light loose mantle was thrown over his tunic.一件轻质宽大的斗蓬披在上衣外面。
• Your tunic and hose match ill with that jewel,young man.你的外套和裤子跟你那首饰可不相称呢，年轻人。

4 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

5 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

6 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

7 squire   

n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅

参考例句：

• I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
• The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。

8 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。