诗翁彼豆故事集 第25期:三兄弟的传说(2)

 　　That very night, another wizard crept upon the oldest brother as he lay, wine-sodden upon his bed. 就在那天晚上，老大喝得酩酊大醉后，另一个巫师蹑手蹑脚地来到他床边。

　　The thief took the wand and for good measure, slit¹ the oldest brother's throat. 贼偷走了魔杖，另外还割断了他的喉咙。

　　And so Death took the first brother for his own. 就这样，死神取走了老大的命。

　　Meanwhile, the second brother journeyed to his own home, where he lived alone. 与此同时，老二回到了他独自居住的家。

　　Here he took out the stone that had the power to recall the dead, and turned it thrice in his hand. 他拿出了可以起死回生的石头，在手里转了三次。

　　To his amazement² and his delight, the figure of the girl he had once hoped to marry, before her untimely death, appeared at once before him. 让他惊喜交加的是，他想娶的但不幸早逝的女孩立刻出现在他面前。

　　Yet she was silent and cold, separated from him as by a veil. 可是她无言而冷漠，他们之间似乎隔着一层面纱。

　　Though she had returned to the mortal world, she did not truly belong there and suffered. 她尽管返回了人间，却并不真正属于这里，她很痛苦。

　　Finally the second brother, driven mad with hopeless longing³, killed himself so as to truly join her. 最终，老二被无望的渴求折磨疯了，为了真正能和她在一起而自杀身亡。

　　And so Death took the second brother from his own. 就这样，死神取走了老二的命。

　　But though Death searched for the third brother for many years, he was never able to find him. 但是，死神找了老三好多年，却始终没能找到他。

　　It was only when he had attained⁴ a great age that the youngest brother finally took off the Cloak of Invisibility and gave it to his son. 老三一直活到很老以后，才最终脱下隐形衣，交给了他的儿子。

　　And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, equals, they departed this life. 然后像老朋友见面一样迎接死神，并以平等的身份，高兴地同他一道，离开了人间。

1 slit   

n.狭长的切口；裂缝；vt.切开，撕裂

参考例句：

• The coat has been slit in two places.这件外衣有两处裂开了。
• He began to slit open each envelope.他开始裁开每个信封。

2 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

3 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

4 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。