Chapter II A KNIFE IN THE DARK As they prepared for sleep in the inn at Bree, darkness lay on Buckland; a mist strayed in the dells and along the river-bank. The house at Crickhollow stood silent. Fatty Bolger opened the door cautiously and peered out. A feeling of fear had been growing on him all day, and he was unable to rest or go to bed: there was a brooding threat in the breathless night-air. As he stared out into the gloom, a black shadow moved under the trees; the gate seemed to open of its own accord and close again without a sound. Terror seized him. He shrank back, and for a moment he stood trembling in the hall. Then he shut and locked the door. The night deepened. There came the soft sound of horses led with stealth along the lane. Outside the gate they stopped, and three black figures entered, like shades of night creeping across the ground. One went to the door, one to the corner of the house on either side; and there they stood, as still as the shadows of stones, while night went slowly on. The house and the quiet trees seemed to be waiting breathlessly. There was a faint stir in the leaves, and a cock crowed far away. The cold hour before dawn was passing. The figure by the door moved. In the dark without moon or stars a drawn blade gleamed, as if a chill light had been unsheathed. There was a blow, soft but heavy, and the door shuddered. ‘Open, in the name of Mordor!’ said a voice thin and menacing. At a second blow the door yielded and fell back, with timbers burst and lock broken. The black figures passed swiftly in. At that moment, among the trees nearby, a horn rang out. It rent the night like fire on a hill-top. AWAKE! FEAR! FIRE! FOES! AWAKE! Fatty Bolger had not been idle. As soon as he saw the dark shapes creep from the garden, he knew that he must run for it, or perish. And run he did, out of the back door, through the garden, and over the fields. When he reached the nearest house, more than a mile away, he collapsed on the doorstep. ‘No, no, no!’ he was crying. ‘No, not me! I haven’t got it!’ It was some time before anyone could make out what he was babbling about. At last they got the idea that enemies
第二章 黑暗中的利刃 當他們在布理的客棧裡準備入睡時，黑暗籠罩著巴克蘭；薄霧在山谷和河岸邊徘徊。溪谷居的屋子一片寂靜。胖子博爾傑小心翼翼地打開門，向外張望。恐懼感整天都在他心頭滋長，他無法休息也無法入睡：無風的夜空中瀰漫著一股陰沉的威脅。當他凝視著黑暗時，一個黑影在樹下移動；大門似乎自動打開，然後又無聲地關上。恐懼攫住了他。他猛地縮回身子，一時之間，他顫抖著站在大廳裡。然後他關上並鎖上了門。夜色更深了。小徑上傳來馬匹被悄悄牽行的輕柔聲響。他們在大門外停下，三個黑影走了進來，如同夜的幽靈般在地面上爬行。一個走向門口，另外兩個則分立屋子兩側的角落；他們就那樣站著，像石頭的影子般靜止不動，而夜色緩緩流逝。屋子和寂靜的樹木似乎都在屏息等待。樹葉間傳來一絲微弱的騷動，遠處傳來一聲雞鳴。黎明前那寒冷的時刻正在過去。門邊的那個身影動了。在無月無星的黑暗中，一把出鞘的刀刃閃爍著寒光，彷彿一道冰冷的亮光被拔出。一聲輕柔卻沉重的撞擊，門顫抖了一下。「以魔多的名義，開門！」一個尖細而充滿威脅的聲音說道。第二下撞擊，門便應聲而開，向後倒去，木頭爆裂，鎖也壞了。黑影們迅速地走了進去。就在那一刻，附近樹林中，一聲號角響起。它劃破夜空，如同山頂上的烈火。醒來！恐懼！火光！敵人！醒來！胖子博爾傑並沒有閒著。當他看到那些黑影從花園裡爬出來時，他就知道他必須逃跑，否則就會滅亡。他確實跑了，從後門出去，穿過花園，越過田野。當他跑到一英里多以外最近的房子時，他倒在了門階上。「不，不，不！」他哭喊著。「不，不是我！我沒有！」過了一會兒，才有人弄明白他在胡言亂語些什麼。最後他們才明白，敵人
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 177 were in Buckland, some strange invasion from the Old Forest. And then they lost no more time. FEAR! FIRE! FOES! The Brandybucks were blowing the Horn-call of Buckland, that had not been sounded for a hundred years, not since the white wolves came in the Fell Winter, when the Brandywine was frozen over. AWAKE! AWAKE! Far away answering horns were heard. The alarm was spreading. The black figures fled from the house. One of them let fall a hobbit-cloak on the step, as he ran. In the lane the noise of hoofs broke out, and gathering to a gallop, went hammering away into the darkness. All about Crickhollow there was the sound of horns blowing, and voices crying and feet running. But the Black Riders rode like a gale to the North-gate. Let the little people blow! Sauron would deal with them later. Meanwhile they had another errand: they knew now that the house was empty and the Ring had gone. They rode down the guards at the gate and vanished from the Shire. In the early night Frodo woke from deep sleep, suddenly, as if some sound or presence had disturbed him. He saw that Strider was sitting alert in his chair: his eyes gleamed in the light of the fire, which had been tended and was burning brightly; but he made no sign or movement. Frodo soon went to sleep again; but his dreams were again troubled with the noise of wind and of galloping hoofs. The wind seemed to be curling round the house and shaking it; and far off he heard a horn blowing wildly. He opened his eyes, and heard a cock crowing lustily in the inn-yard. Strider had drawn the curtains and pushed back the shutters with a clang. The first grey light of day was in the room, and a cold air was coming through the open window. As soon as Strider had roused them all, he led the way to their bedrooms. When they saw them they were glad that they had taken his advice: the windows had been forced open and were swinging, and the curtains were flapping; the beds were tossed about, and the bolsters slashed and flung upon the floor; the brown mat was torn to pieces. Strider immediately went to fetch the landlord. Poor Mr. Butterbur looked sleepy and frightened. He had hardly closed his eyes all night (so he said), but he had never heard a sound.
《黑暗中的刀鋒》177頁。他們在巴克蘭，是來自老林子的某種奇怪入侵。於是他們不再耽擱。恐懼！火焰！敵人！白蘭地鹿家族正在吹響巴克蘭的號角，這號角已經百年未曾響起，自從白狼在嚴冬降臨，白蘭地河結冰以來就沒有響過。醒來！醒來！遠處傳來了回應的號角聲。警報正在蔓延。那些黑影從屋子裡逃走了。其中一個在奔跑時，讓一件哈比人斗篷掉在了臺階上。在小巷裡，蹄聲響起，逐漸加速成疾馳，然後敲擊著遠去，消失在黑暗中。整個溪谷地都響徹著號角聲、呼喊聲和奔跑的腳步聲。但黑騎士們如狂風般奔向北門。讓這些小人物去吹吧！索倫之後會處理他們。同時他們還有另一項任務：他們現在知道屋子是空的，魔戒已經不見了。他們衝倒了門口的守衛，從夏爾消失了。在深夜，佛羅多突然從沉睡中醒來，彷彿有什麼聲音或存在打擾了他。他看到亞拉岡警覺地坐在椅子上：他的眼睛在火光中閃爍，火堆已被照料過，燃燒得正旺；但他沒有發出任何聲響或動作。佛羅多很快又睡著了；但他的夢境再次被風聲和疾馳的蹄聲所困擾。風似乎在屋子周圍盤旋並搖晃著它；遠處他聽到號角聲狂野地吹響。他睜開眼睛，聽到客棧院子裡一隻公雞雄赳赳地啼叫。亞拉岡已經拉開了窗簾，並「哐」地一聲推開了百葉窗。黎明的第一道灰光照進了房間，一股冷空氣從打開的窗戶吹進來。亞拉岡一喚醒他們所有人，就領著他們去了臥室。當他們看到臥室時，他們很高興聽從了他的建議：窗戶被強行打開，正在搖晃，窗簾在飄動；床鋪被翻亂，枕墊被割破並扔在地板上；棕色的地墊被撕成了碎片。亞拉岡立刻去叫店主。可憐的巴特伯先生看起來又睏又害怕。他整晚幾乎沒合眼（他是這麼說的），但他卻從未聽到任何聲音。
178 THE LORD OF THE RINGS ‘Never has such a thing happened in my time!’ he cried, raising his hands in horror. ‘Guests unable to sleep in their beds, and good bolsters ruined and all! What are we coming to?’ ‘Dark times,’ said Strider. ‘But for the present you may be left in peace, when you have got rid of us. We will leave at once. Never mind about breakfast: a drink and a bite standing will have to do. We shall be packed in a few minutes.’ Mr. Butterbur hurried off to see that their ponies were got ready, and to fetch them a ‘bite’. But very soon he came back in dismay. The ponies had vanished! The stable-doors had all been opened in the night, and they were gone: not only Merry’s ponies, but every other horse and beast in the place. Frodo was crushed by the news. How could they hope to reach Rivendell on foot, pursued by mounted enemies? They might as well set out for the Moon. Strider sat silent for a while, looking at the hobbits, as if he was weighing up their strength and courage. ‘Ponies would not help us to escape horsemen,’ he said at last, thoughtfully, as if he guessed what Frodo had in mind. ‘We should not go much slower on foot, not on the roads that I mean to take. I was going to walk in any case. It is the food and stores that trouble me. We cannot count on getting anything to eat between here and Rivendell, except what we take with us; and we ought to take plenty to spare; for we may be delayed, or forced to go round-about, far out of the direct way. How much are you prepared to carry on your backs?’ ‘As much as we must,’ said Pippin with a sinking heart, but trying to show that he was tougher than he looked (or felt). ‘I can carry enough for two,’ said Sam defiantly. ‘Can’t anything be done, Mr. Butterbur?’ asked Frodo. ‘Can’t we get a couple of ponies in the village, or even one just for the baggage? I don’t suppose we could hire them, but we might be able to buy them,’ he added, doubtfully, wondering if he could afford it. ‘I doubt it,’ said the landlord unhappily. “The two or three ridingponies that there were in Bree were stabled in my yard, and they’re gone. As for other animals, horses or ponies for draught or what not, there are very few of them in Bree, and they won’t be for sale. But T’ll do what I can. Pll rout out Bob and send him round as soon as may be.’ ‘Yes,’ said Strider reluctantly, ‘you had better do that. I am afraid we shall have to try to get one pony at least. But so ends all hope of starting early, and slipping away quietly! We might as well have blown a horn to announce our departure. That was part of their plan, no doubt.’ ‘There is one crumb of comfort,’ said Merry, ‘and more than a
178 《魔戒》 「我活了這麼久，從沒發生過這種事！」他驚恐地舉起雙手，大叫道。「客人們無法在床上安睡，連好好的枕頭都毀了！我們這是怎麼了？」 「時局艱難。」亞拉岡說。「但就目前而言，你們離開後，這裡就能恢復平靜了。我們立刻就走。早餐的事不必介意：站著喝點東西、吃點點心就行了。我們幾分鐘內就能收拾好。」 巴力曼先生匆匆忙忙地去查看他們的矮種馬是否準備妥當，並去給他們拿「點心」。但很快他就驚慌失措地回來了。矮種馬不見了！馬廄的門在夜裡都被打開了，牠們都跑了：不只是梅里的小馬，連這裡所有其他的馬匹和牲畜也都不見了。 佛羅多聽到這個消息後心灰意冷。他們怎麼可能徒步抵達瑞文戴爾，還被騎馬的敵人追趕？他們倒不如直接去月亮上。 亞拉岡沉默了一會兒，看著哈比人，彷彿在衡量他們的體力和勇氣。「矮種馬也幫不了我們擺脫騎兵。」他終於若有所思地說，彷彿猜到了佛羅多心裡在想什麼。「我們徒步也不會慢多少，尤其是我打算走的那幾條路。無論如何，我本來就打算步行。讓我擔心的是食物和補給。從這裡到瑞文戴爾，我們不能指望能找到任何吃的，除了我們自己帶的；而且我們應該多帶一些以備不時之需；因為我們可能會被耽擱，或者被迫繞遠路，偏離了直達的路線。你們準備背多少東西？」 「我們必須背多少就背多少。」皮聘心頭一沉地說，但努力表現得比他看起來（或感覺起來）更堅強。「我一個人能背兩個人的份。」山姆堅定地說。 「巴力曼先生，難道就沒辦法了嗎？」佛羅多問。「我們不能在村子裡弄到兩匹矮種馬，哪怕只是一匹用來馱行李的也行？我想我們租不到，但或許可以買下來。」他懷疑地補充道，心想自己是否負擔得起。 「恐怕不行。」旅館老闆不開心地說。「布理僅有的兩三匹騎乘用矮種馬都養在我的院子裡，牠們都跑了。至於其他牲畜，無論是拉車的馬還是矮種馬，布理都很少，而且牠們也不會出售。但我會盡力而為。我會把鮑伯找出來，盡快派他去跑一趟。」 「是的。」亞拉岡不情願地說，「你最好這麼做。恐怕我們至少得弄到一匹矮種馬。但這樣一來，所有提早出發、悄悄溜走的希望都破滅了！我們倒不如吹響號角來宣布我們的離開。這無疑是他們計劃的一部分。」 「還有一點點安慰。」梅里說，「而且不止一點。」
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 179 crumb, I hope: we can have breakfast while we wait — and sit down to it. Let’s get hold of Nob!’ In the end there was more than three hours’ delay. Bob came back with the report that no horse or pony was to be got for love or money in the neighbourhood — except one: Bill Ferny had one that he might possibly sell. ‘A poor old half-starved creature it is,’ said Bob; ‘but he won’t part with it for less than thrice its worth, seeing how you’re placed, not if I knows Bill Ferny.’ ‘Bill Ferny?’ said Frodo. ‘Isn’t there some trick? Wouldn’t the beast bolt back to him with all our stuff, or help in tracking us, or something?’ ‘I wonder,’ said Strider. ‘But I cannot imagine any animal running home to him, once it got away. I fancy this is only an afterthought of kind Master Ferny’s: just a way of increasing his profits from the affair. The chief danger is that the poor beast is probably at death’s door. But there does not seem any choice. What does he want for it?’ Bill Ferny’s price was twelve silver pennies; and that was indeed at least three times the pony’s value in those parts. It proved to be a bony, underfed, and dispirited animal; but it did not look like dying just yet. Mr. Butterbur paid for it himself, and offered Merry another eighteen pence as some compensation for the lost animals. He was an honest man, and well-off as things were reckoned in Bree; but thirty silver pennies was a sore blow to him, and being cheated by Bill Ferny made it harder to bear. As a matter of fact he came out on the right side in the end. It turned out later that only one horse had been actually stolen. The others had been driven off, or had bolted in terror, and were found wandering in different corners of the Bree-land. Merry’s ponies had escaped altogether, and eventually (having a good deal of sense) they made their way to the Downs in search of Fatty Lumpkin. So they came under the care of Tom Bombadil for a while, and were well-off. But when news of the events at Bree came to Tom’s ears, he sent them to Mr. Butterbur, who thus got five good beasts at a very fair price. They had to work harder in Bree, but Bob treated them well; so on the whole they were lucky: they missed a dark and dangerous journey. But they never came to Rivendell. However, in the meanwhile for all Mr. Butterbur knew his money was gone for good, or for bad. And he had other troubles. For there was a great commotion as soon as the remaining guests were astir and heard news of the raid on the inn. The southern travellers had lost several horses and blamed the innkeeper loudly, until it became known that one of their own number had also disappeared in the
黑暗中的刀刃 179 謝天謝地，我希望：我們可以邊等邊吃早餐——而且是坐下來吃。我們去找諾伯吧！結果延誤了三個多小時。鮑伯回來報告說，附近無論如何也找不到馬匹或小馬——除了一匹：比爾·費爾尼有一匹，他或許會賣。「那是一匹可憐的、半飢餓的老畜生，」鮑伯說：「但他不會以低於其三倍的價格出售，尤其是在你們這種情況下，如果我了解比爾·費爾尼的話。」「比爾·費爾尼？」佛羅多說：「難道沒有什麼詭計嗎？那畜生會不會帶著我們所有的東西跑回他那裡，或者幫助他追蹤我們，諸如此類？」「我懷疑，」亞拉岡說：「但我無法想像任何動物一旦逃脫後還會跑回他那裡。我想這只是費爾尼老爺子事後的想法：不過是從這筆交易中增加利潤的一種方式。主要危險是那可憐的畜生可能命在旦夕。但似乎別無選擇。他想要多少錢？」比爾·費爾尼的開價是十二枚銀便士；這確實是那匹小馬在當地價值的三倍。結果證明那是一匹骨瘦如柴、營養不良、精神萎靡的動物；但它看起來還不至於立刻死去。巴特伯先生自己付了錢，並另外給了梅里十八便士，作為失去動物的補償。他是一個誠實的人，而且以布理的標準來看算是富裕；但三十枚銀便士對他來說是個沉重的打擊，而且被比爾·費爾尼欺騙讓他更難以承受。事實上，他最終還是佔了上風。後來發現，實際上只有一匹馬被偷了。其他的馬匹都被趕走了，或者在恐慌中逃跑了，後來在布理地區的不同角落被發現。梅里的幾匹小馬完全逃脫了，最終（牠們很有靈性）牠們前往丘陵地帶尋找胖子蘭普金。於是牠們在湯姆·邦巴迪爾的照料下待了一段時間，過得很好。但當布理發生的事情傳到湯姆耳中時，他將牠們送回給巴特伯先生，巴特伯先生因此以非常合理的價格得到了五匹好牲畜。牠們在布理必須更努力工作，但鮑伯對牠們很好；所以總體來說牠們很幸運：牠們避開了一段黑暗而危險的旅程。但牠們從未到達瑞文戴爾。然而，與此同時，就巴特伯先生所知，他的錢是徹底沒了，無論好壞。他還有其他麻煩。因為當其餘的客人醒來並聽到旅館被襲擊的消息時，引起了一陣騷動。南方來的旅客丟失了好幾匹馬，大聲責怪旅館老闆，直到後來得知他們自己人中也有一人失蹤在
180 THE LORD OF THE RINGS night, none other than Bill Ferny’s squint-eyed companion. Suspicion fell on him at once. ‘If you pick up with a horse-thief, and bring him to my house,’ said Butterbur angrily, “you ought to pay for all the damage yourselves and not come shouting at me. Go and ask Ferny where your handsome friend is!’ But it appeared that he was nobody’s friend, and nobody could recollect when he had joined their party. After their breakfast the hobbits had to re-pack, and get together further supplies for the longer journey they were now expecting. It was close on ten o’clock before they at last got off. By that time the whole of Bree was buzzing with excitement. Frodo’s vanishing trick; the appearance of the black horsemen; the robbing of the stables; and not least the news that Strider the Ranger had joined the mysterious hobbits, made such a tale as would last for many uneventful years. Most of the inhabitants of Bree and Staddle, and many even from Combe and Archet, were crowded in the road to see the travellers start. The other guests in the inn were at the doors or hanging out of the windows. Strider had changed his mind, and had decided to leave Bree by the main road. Any attempt to set off across country at once would only make matters worse: half the inhabitants would follow them, to see what they were up to, and to prevent them from trespassing. They said farewell to Nob and Bob, and took leave of Mr. Butterbur with many thanks. ‘I hope we shall meet again some day, when things are merry once more,’ said Frodo. ‘I should like nothing better than to stay in your house in peace for a while.’ They tramped off, anxious and downhearted, under the eyes of the crowd. Not all the faces were friendly, nor all the words that were shouted. But Strider seemed to be held in awe by most of the Bree-landers, and those that he stared at shut their mouths and drew away. He walked in front with Frodo; next came Merry and Pippin; and last came Sam leading the pony, which was laden with as much of their baggage as they had the heart to give it; but already it looked less dejected, as if it approved of the change in its fortunes. Sam was chewing an apple thoughtfully. He had a pocket full of them: a parting present from Nob and Bob. ‘Apples for walking, and a pipe for sitting,’ he said. ‘But I reckon Ill miss them both before long.’ The hobbits took no notice of the inquisitive heads that peeped out of doors, or popped over walls and fences, as they passed. But as they drew near to the further gate, Frodo saw a dark ill-kept house behind a thick hedge: the last house in the village. In one of the windows he caught a glimpse of a sallow face with sly, slanting eyes; but it vanished at once.
180 《魔戒》夜裡，那人正是比爾·費爾尼那個斜眼同伴。眾人立刻對他起了疑心。「如果你跟一個偷馬賊混在一起，還把他帶到我家來，」巴力曼先生氣憤地說，「你們就該自己賠償所有的損失，而不是來對我大吼大叫。去問費爾尼，你的英俊朋友在哪裡！」但那人似乎誰也不是朋友，也沒人記得他是什麼時候加入他們的隊伍的。吃過早餐後，哈比人必須重新打包，並為他們預期中的更長旅程準備更多補給品。他們直到將近十點才終於出發。那時，整個布理都沸騰了。佛羅多的消失術；黑騎士的出現；馬廄被搶；以及同樣重要的是，遊俠亞拉岡加入了這些神秘的哈比人，這些事蹟足以流傳多年，成為茶餘飯後的話題。布理和史戴德的大部分居民，甚至許多來自康比和亞切特的居民，都擠在路上看著旅行者啟程。旅館裡的其他客人則站在門口或從窗戶探頭出來。亞拉岡改變了主意，決定走大路離開布理。任何試圖立刻穿越鄉野的舉動只會讓事情變得更糟：一半的居民會跟著他們，看看他們在搞什麼鬼，並阻止他們擅闖。他們向諾伯和鮑伯告別，並向巴力曼先生表達了許多謝意。「我希望我們有朝一日能再次相見，當一切都再次歡樂的時候，」佛羅多說。「我最想做的就是能在你家安靜地待上一段時間。」他們在眾人的注視下，焦慮而沮喪地跋涉前行。並非所有的臉孔都友善，也不是所有的叫喊聲都善意。但亞拉岡似乎受到大多數布理居民的敬畏，那些被他盯著看的人都閉上了嘴，退了開來。他走在佛羅多前面；接著是梅里和皮聘；最後是山姆牽著小馬，小馬馱著他們捨得給牠的所有行李；但牠看起來已經不那麼沮喪了，彷彿牠很滿意自己命運的改變。山姆若有所思地嚼著蘋果。他口袋裡裝滿了蘋果：那是諾伯和鮑伯送的餞別禮。「走路吃蘋果，坐下抽菸斗，」他說。「但我估計我很快就會兩樣都想念了。」哈比人對那些從門口探頭或從牆頭籬笆上冒出來的好奇腦袋不予理會，徑直走過。但當他們靠近更遠的那個大門時，佛羅多看到一棟黑暗、破舊的房子藏在一道厚厚的樹籬後面：那是村子裡最後一棟房子。在其中一扇窗戶裡，他瞥見一張面色蠟黃、眼睛狡黠而斜視的臉；但它立刻就消失了。
A KNIFE IN THE DARK I8I ‘So that’s where that southerner is hiding!’ he thought. ‘He looks more than half like a goblin.’ Over the hedge another man was staring boldly. He had heavy black brows, and dark scornful eyes; his large mouth curled in a sneer. He was smoking a short black pipe. As they approached he took it out of his mouth and spat. ‘Morning, Longshanks!’ he said. ‘Off early? Found some friends at last?’ Strider nodded, but did not answer. ‘Morning, my little friends!’ he said to the others. ‘I suppose you know who you’ve taken up with? That’s Stick-at-naught Strider, that is! Though I’ve heard other names not so pretty. Watch out tonight! And you, Sammie, don’t go ill-treating my poor old pony! Pah!’ He spat again. Sam turned quickly. ‘And you, Ferny,’ he said, ‘put your ugly face out of sight, or it will get hurt.’ With a sudden flick, quick as lightning, an apple left his hand and hit Bill square on the nose. He ducked too late, and curses came from behind the hedge. ‘Waste of a good apple,’ said Sam regretfully, and strode on. At last they left the village behind. The escort of children and stragglers that had followed them got tired and turned back at the South-gate. Passing through, they kept on along the Road for some miles. It bent to the left, curving back into its eastward line as it rounded the feet of Bree-hill, and then it began to run swiftly downwards into wooded country. To their left they could see some of the houses and hobbit-holes of Staddle on the gentler south-eastern slopes of the hill; down in a deep hollow away north of the Road there were wisps of rising smoke that showed where Combe lay; Archet was hidden in the trees beyond. After the Road had run down some way, and had left Bree-hill standing tall and brown behind, they came on a narrow track that led off towards the North. “This is where we leave the open and take to cover,’ said Strider. ‘Not a “short cut’’, hope,’ said Pippin. ‘Our last short cut through woods nearly ended in disaster.’ ‘Ah, but you had not got me with you then,’ laughed Strider. ‘My cuts, short or long, don’t go wrong.’ He took a look up and down the Road. No one was in sight; and he led the way quickly down towards the wooded valley. His plan, as far as they could understand it without knowing the country, was to go towards Archet at first, but to bear right and pass it on the east, and then to steer as straight as he could over the wild lands to Weathertop Hill. In that way they would, if all went well, cut off a great loop of the Road, which further on bent southwards
黑暗中的一把刀 I8I 「原來那個南方佬躲在這裡！」他想。「他看起來有大半像個哥布林。」越過樹籬，另一個男人正大膽地盯著他們。他有著濃密的黑眉毛和陰沉輕蔑的眼睛；他的大嘴巴撇著，露出一個譏諷的笑容。他抽著一根短小的黑菸斗。當他們走近時，他把菸斗從嘴裡拿出來，然後吐了口痰。「早啊，長腿！」他說。「這麼早就出發了？終於找到朋友了？」亞拉岡點了點頭，但沒有回答。「早啊，我的小朋友們！」他對其他人說。「我想你們知道你們跟誰混在一起了吧？那就是一無是處的亞拉岡，就是他！雖然我也聽過一些不那麼好聽的名字。今晚可要小心了！還有你，山姆米，別虐待我那可憐的老小馬！呸！」他又吐了口痰。山姆迅速轉過身。「還有你，費尼，」他說，「把你的醜臉藏起來，不然它會受傷的。」他突然一彈，快如閃電，一顆蘋果從他手中飛出，正中比爾的鼻子。比爾躲閃不及，咒罵聲從樹籬後傳來。「浪費了一個好蘋果。」山姆後悔地說，然後大步向前走。他們終於把村莊拋在腦後。跟隨他們的孩童和掉隊者的隊伍累了，在南門折返。穿過南門後，他們沿著大路走了幾英里。大路向左彎曲，繞過布理山腳，回到向東的方向，然後開始迅速下坡，進入樹林茂密的鄉村。在他們左邊，可以看到斯塔德爾的一些房屋和哈比人洞穴，位於山坡較平緩的東南坡上；在大路以北的一個深谷中，有幾縷升起的炊煙，顯示著康貝的所在；阿切特則隱藏在遠處的樹林裡。大路向下延伸了一段距離，將高聳褐色的布理山拋在身後，他們來到了一條通往北方的狹窄小徑。「我們在這裡離開開闊地帶，進入掩蔽處。」亞拉岡說。「希望這不是一條『捷徑』。」皮聘說。「我們上次穿過樹林的捷徑差點釀成災難。」「啊，但那時候你們沒有我跟著啊。」亞拉岡笑道。「我的路徑，無論長短，都不會出錯。」他環顧大路上下。沒有人影；他迅速帶領大家走向樹木繁茂的山谷。他的計畫，就他們在不熟悉當地情況下所能理解的，是先朝阿切特方向走，然後向右轉，從東邊繞過它，接著盡可能筆直地穿過荒野，前往風雲頂。這樣一來，如果一切順利，他們就能截斷大路的一個大彎，因為大路再往前就會向南彎曲。
182 THE LORD OF THE RINGS to avoid the Midgewater Marshes. But, of course, they would have to pass through the marshes themselves, and Strider’s description of them was not encouraging. However, in the meanwhile, walking was not unpleasant. Indeed, if it had not been for the disturbing events of the night before, they would have enjoyed this part of the journey better than any up to that time. The sun was shining, clear but not too hot. The woods in the valley were still leafy and full of colour, and seemed peaceful and wholesome. Strider guided them confidently among the many crossing paths, although left to themselves they would soon have been at a loss. He was taking a wandering course with many turns and doublings, to put off any pursuit. ‘Bill Ferny will have watched where we left the Road, for certain,’ he said; ‘though I don’t think he will follow us himself. He knows the land round here well enough, but he knows he is not a match for me in a wood. It is what he may tell others that I am afraid of. I don’t suppose they are far away. If they think we have made for Archet, so much the better.’ Whether because of Strider’s skill or for some other reason, they saw no sign and heard no sound of any other living thing all that day: neither two-footed, except birds; nor four-footed, except one fox and a few squirrels. The next day they began to steer a steady course eastwards; and still all was quiet and peaceful. On the third day out from Bree they came out of the Chetwood. The land had been falling steadily, ever since they turned aside from the Road, and they now entered a wide flat expanse of country, much more difficult to manage. They were far beyond the borders of the Bree-land, out in the pathless wilderness, and drawing near to the Midgewater Marshes. The ground now became damp, and in places boggy and here and there they came upon pools, and wide stretches of reeds and rushes filled with the warbling of little hidden birds. They had to pick their way carefully to keep both dry-footed and on their proper course. At first they made fair progress, but as they went on, their passage became slower and more dangerous. The marshes were bewildering and treacherous, and there was no permanent trail even for Rangers to find through their shifting quagmires. The flies began to torment them, and the air was full of clouds of tiny midges that crept up their sleeves and breeches and into their hair. ‘I am being eaten alive!’ cried Pippin. ‘Midgewater! There are more midges than water!’ ‘What do they live on when they can’t get hobbit?’ asked Sam, scratching his neck. They spent a miserable day in this lonely and unpleasant country.
《魔戒》182頁，為了避開中水沼澤。但他們當然還是得經過沼澤本身，而亞拉岡對沼澤的描述並不令人鼓舞。然而，在此期間，走路倒也還算愉快。事實上，如果不是前一晚發生的那些令人不安的事件，他們會比之前任何時候都更享受這段旅程。陽光普照，天氣晴朗卻不至於太熱。山谷裡的樹林依然枝葉繁茂，色彩繽紛，看起來寧靜而宜人。亞拉岡自信地引導他們穿梭於眾多交錯的小徑之間，儘管如果讓他們自己走，他們很快就會迷失方向。他走的是一條迂迴曲折的路線，有許多轉彎和折返，以甩開任何追兵。「比爾·羊齒肯定會留意我們在哪裡離開了大道，」他說，「不過我想他不會親自追來。他對這裡的地形很熟悉，但他知道在樹林裡他不是我的對手。我擔心的是他會把消息告訴別人。我想他們離這裡不遠了。如果他們以為我們去了亞切特，那就更好了。」無論是因為亞拉岡的技巧，還是其他原因，那天他們一整天都沒有看到或聽到任何其他生物的蹤跡：除了鳥類之外，沒有兩足動物；除了狐狸和幾隻松鼠之外，也沒有四足動物。第二天，他們開始穩穩地向東前進；一切依然寧靜祥和。從躍馬客棧出發的第三天，他們走出了契特森林。自從他們離開大道以來，地勢一直穩步下降，他們現在進入了一片廣闊平坦的鄉野，管理起來困難得多。他們已經遠離了躍馬客棧的邊界，身處無路可循的荒野之中，並逐漸接近中水沼澤。地面變得潮濕，有些地方泥濘不堪，他們不時會遇到水窪，以及大片蘆葦和燈心草叢，裡面充滿了隱藏小鳥的鳴唱聲。他們必須小心翼翼地選擇路徑，既要保持腳步乾燥，又要不偏離正確方向。起初他們進展順利，但隨著前進，他們的行程變得越來越慢，也越來越危險。沼澤令人困惑且充滿陷阱，即使是遊俠也無法在變幻莫測的泥沼中找到永久的路徑。蒼蠅開始折磨他們，空氣中充滿了成群的小蚊蚋，牠們爬上他們的袖子和馬褲，鑽進他們的頭髮裡。「我快被活吃了！」皮聘大叫。「中水沼澤！這裡的蚊蚋比水還多！」「如果沒有哈比人，牠們靠什麼維生？」山姆一邊搔著脖子一邊問道。他們在這個孤寂而令人不快的鄉野中度過了悲慘的一天。
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 183 Their camping-place was damp, cold, and uncomfortable; and the biting insects would not let them sleep. There were also abominable creatures haunting the reeds and tussocks that from the sound of them were evil relatives of the cricket. There were thousands of them, and they squeaked all round, neek-breek, breek-neek, unceasingly all the night, until the hobbits were nearly frantic. The next day, the fourth, was little better, and the night almost as comfortless. Though the Neekerbreekers (as Sam called them) had been left behind, the midges still pursued them. As Frodo lay, tired but unable to close his eyes, it seemed to him that far away there came a light in the eastern sky: it flashed and faded many times. It was not the dawn, for that was still some hours off. ‘What is the light?’ he said to Strider, who had risen, and was standing, gazing ahead into the night. ‘I do not know,’ Strider answered. ‘It is too distant to make out. It is like lightning that leaps up from the hill-tops.’ Frodo lay down again, but for a long while he could still see the white flashes, and against them the tall dark figure of Strider, standing silent and watchful. At last he passed into uneasy sleep. They had not gone far on the fifth day when they left the last straggling pools and reed-beds of the marshes behind them. The land before them began steadily to rise again. Away in the distance eastward they could now see a line of hills. The highest of them was at the right of the line and a little separated from the others. It had a conical top, slightly flattened at the summit. ‘That is Weathertop,’ said Strider. “The Old Road, which we have left far away on our right, runs to the south of it and passes not far from its foot. We might reach it by noon tomorrow, if we go straight towards it. I suppose we had better do so.’ ‘What do you mean?’ asked Frodo. ‘I mean: when we do get there, it is not certain what we shall find. It is close to the Road.’ ‘But surely we were hoping to find Gandalf there?’ “Yes; but the hope is faint. If he comes this way at all, he may not pass through Bree, and so he may not know what we are doing. And anyway, unless by luck we arrive almost together, we shall miss one another; it will not be safe for him or for us to wait there long. If the Riders fail to find us in the wilderness, they are likely to make for Weathertop themselves. It commands a wide view all round. Indeed, there are many birds and beasts in this country that could see us, as we stand here, from that hill-top. Not all the birds are to be trusted, and there are other spies more evil than they are.’
黑暗中的利刃 183 他們的營地潮濕、寒冷又不舒服；叮咬的昆蟲讓他們無法入睡。還有一些可憎的生物在蘆葦叢和草叢中出沒，從牠們的聲音判斷，牠們是蟋蟀的邪惡親戚。牠們數量成千上萬，整夜不停地在四周吱吱作響，neek-breek，breek-neek，直到哈比人幾乎要發瘋。隔天，也就是第四天，情況也好不到哪裡去，夜晚也幾乎同樣難熬。雖然那些「尼克布里克」（山姆如此稱呼牠們）已經被甩在後面，但小黑蚊仍然追著他們。佛羅多躺著，疲憊卻無法閉眼，他似乎看到遠方東方的天空中出現一道光：它閃爍又消逝了許多次。那不是黎明，因為離天亮還有好幾個小時。「那是什麼光？」他問向已起身、正凝視著夜色的亞拉岡。「我不知道，」亞拉岡回答。「太遠了，看不清楚。它就像從山頂躍起的閃電。」佛羅多再次躺下，但很長一段時間他仍能看見那些白色的閃光，以及映襯著閃光、沉默而警惕地站立著的亞拉岡高大黑暗的身影。最後他陷入了不安的睡眠。第五天他們沒走多遠，就將沼澤地最後零星的水窪和蘆葦叢拋在腦後。前方的土地又開始緩緩上升。在東方遠處，他們現在能看到一排山丘。其中最高的一座在山脈的右側，與其他山丘略微分開。它有一個圓錐形的頂部，頂端略微平坦。「那是風雲頂，」亞拉岡說。「我們遠遠甩在右邊的古道，從它的南邊經過，離山腳不遠。如果我們徑直朝它走，明天中午或許能到達。我想我們最好這麼做。」「你這是什麼意思？」佛羅多問道。「我的意思是：當我們到達那裡時，不確定會發現什麼。它離古道很近。」「但我們不是希望在那裡找到甘道夫嗎？」「是的；但希望渺茫。如果他真的走這條路，他可能不會經過布理，所以他可能不知道我們在做什麼。而且，除非我們碰巧幾乎同時到達，否則我們將會錯過彼此；對他或對我們來說，在那裡久候都不安全。如果戒靈在荒野中找不到我們，他們很可能會直接前往風雲頂。那裡視野開闊。事實上，這個國家有許多鳥獸，當我們站在這裡時，牠們從那山頂就能看到我們。並非所有的鳥類都值得信任，而且還有比牠們更邪惡的間諜。」
184 THE LORD OF THE RINGS The hobbits looked anxiously at the distant hills. Sam looked up into the pale sky, fearing to see hawks or eagles hovering over them with bright unfriendly eyes. ‘You do make me feel uncomfortable and lonesome, Strider!’ he said. ‘What do you advise us to do?’ asked Frodo. ‘I think,’ answered Strider slowly, as if he was not quite sure, ‘I think the best thing is to go as straight eastward from here as we can, to make for the line of hills, not for Weathertop. There we can strike a path I know that runs at their feet; it will bring us to Weathertop from the north and less openly. Then we shall see what we shall see.’ All that day they plodded along, until the cold and early evening came down. The land became drier and more barren; but mists and vapours lay behind them on the marshes. A few melancholy birds were piping and wailing, until the round red sun sank slowly into the western shadows; then an empty silence fell. The hobbits thought of the soft light of sunset glancing through the cheerful windows of Bag End far away. At the day’s end they came to a stream that wandered down from the hills to lose itself in the stagnant marshland, and they went up along its banks while the light lasted. It was already night when at last they halted and made their camp under some stunted alder-trees by the shores of the stream. Ahead there loomed now against the dusky sky the bleak and treeless backs of the hills. That night they set a watch, and Strider, it seemed, did not sleep at all. The moon was waxing, and in the early night-hours a cold grey light lay on the land. Next morning they set out again soon after sunrise. There was a frost in the air, and the sky was a pale clear blue. The hobbits felt refreshed, as if they had had a night of unbroken sleep. Already they were getting used to much walking on short commons - shorter at any rate than what in the Shire they would have thought barely enough to keep them on their legs. Pippin declared that Frodo was looking twice the hobbit that he had been. ‘Very odd,’ said Frodo, tightening his belt, ‘considering that there is actually a good deal less of me. I hope the thinning process will not go on indefinitely, or I shall become a wraith.’ ‘Do not speak of such things!’ said Strider quickly, and with surprising earnestness. The hills drew nearer. They made an undulating ridge, often rising almost to a thousand feet, and here and there falling again to low clefts or passes leading into the eastern land beyond. Along the crest of the ridge the hobbits could see what looked to be the remains of green-grown walls and dikes, and in the clefts there still stood the
184 《魔戒》 哈比人焦慮地望著遠方的山丘。山姆抬頭望向蒼白的天空，生怕看到有老鷹或鷲鷹盤旋在他們上方，用銳利而不友善的眼睛盯著他們。「你真的讓我感到很不自在又孤單，亞拉岡！」他說。「你建議我們怎麼辦？」佛羅多問道。「我想，」亞拉岡緩慢地回答，語氣似乎不太確定，「我想最好的辦法是盡可能地從這裡一直往東走，朝著山脈的方向前進，而不是直接去風雲頂。在那裡我們可以找到一條我認識的小徑，它沿著山腳延伸；這條路會從北方帶我們到風雲頂，而且比較不顯眼。到時候我們就見機行事吧。」那天他們一整天都在艱難地跋涉，直到寒冷的傍晚降臨。土地變得越來越乾燥貧瘠；但沼澤地上方卻瀰漫著霧氣和水汽。幾隻憂鬱的鳥兒鳴叫哀號著，直到圓圓的紅日緩緩沉入西方的陰影中；隨後，一片空寂的沉默籠罩下來。哈比人想起了遠方袋底洞歡樂窗戶透出的柔和夕陽餘暉。日暮時分，他們來到一條從山間蜿蜒而下，最終消失在死寂沼澤地中的小溪旁，趁著天光未盡，他們沿著溪岸向上走。當他們最終停下腳步，在溪岸邊幾棵矮小的赤楊樹下紮營時，天色已晚。前方，在昏暗的天空下，光禿禿、了無生氣的山脊赫然聳立。那天晚上他們安排了守夜，而亞拉岡似乎根本沒有睡覺。月亮正在漸圓，在深夜時分，一片冰冷的灰色光芒籠罩著大地。第二天早上，他們在日出後不久再次啟程。空氣中帶著寒霜，天空是淡而清澈的藍色。哈比人感到精神煥發，彷彿他們經歷了一個不間斷的夜晚。他們已經習慣了在食物短缺的情況下大量步行——至少比在夏爾時他們認為僅夠維持體力的食物還要少。皮聘說佛羅多看起來比以前健康多了。「真奇怪，」佛羅多說，一邊繫緊腰帶，「考慮到我實際上瘦了很多。我希望這個瘦身過程不會無限期地持續下去，否則我就會變成一個幽靈了。」「別說這種話！」亞拉岡迅速地說，語氣帶著令人驚訝的嚴肅。山丘越來越近。它們形成了一道起伏的山脊，常常高達近千英尺，時而又下降到通往東方土地的低矮裂谷或山口。沿著山脊的頂部，哈比人可以看到像是被綠色植物覆蓋的牆壁和堤壩的遺跡，而在裂谷中仍然矗立著
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 185 ruins of old works of stone. By night they had reached the feet of the westward slopes, and there they camped. It was the night of the fifth of October, and they were six days out from Bree. In the morning they found, for the first time since they had left the Chetwood, a track plain to see. They turned right and followed it southwards. It ran cunningly, taking a line that seemed chosen so as to keep as much hidden as possible from the view, both of the hill-tops above and of the flats to the west. It dived into dells, and hugged steep banks; and where it passed over flatter and more open ground on either side of it there were lines of large boulders and hewn stones that screened the travellers almost like a hedge. ‘I wonder who made this path, and what for,’ said Merry, as they walked along one of these avenues, where the stones were unusually large and closely set. ‘I am not sure that I like it: it has a — well, rather a barrow-wightish look. Is there any barrow on Weathertop?’ ‘No. There is no barrow on Weathertop, nor on any of these hills,’ answered Strider. “The Men of the West did not live here; though in their latter days they defended the hills for a while against the evil that came out of Angmar. This path was made to serve the forts along the walls. But long before, in the first days of the North Kingdom, they built a great watch-tower on Weathertop, Amon Sil they called it. It was burned and broken, and nothing remains of it now but a tumbled ring, like a rough crown on the old hill’s head. Yet once it was tall and fair. It is told that Elendil stood there watching for the coming of Gilgalad out of the West, in the days of the Last Alliance.’ The hobbits gazed at Strider. It seemed that he was learned in old lore, as well as in the ways of the wild. ‘Who was Gil-galad?’ asked Merry; but Strider did not answer, and seemed to be lost in thought. Suddenly a low voice murmured: Gil-galad was an Elven-king. Of him the harpers sadly sing: the last whose realm was fair and free between the Mountains and the Sea. His sword was long, his lance was keen, his shining helm afar was seen; the countless stars of heaven’s field were mirrored in his silver shield. But long ago he rode away, and where he dwelleth none can say; for into darkness fell his star in Mordor where the shadows are.
《幽暗中的刀鋒》185頁 古老的石造建築廢墟。 夜幕降臨時，他們抵達了西邊山坡的腳下，並在那裡紮營。那是十月五日的夜晚，他們離開布理已經六天了。隔天早上，他們發現了一條清晰可見的小徑，這是他們離開契特森林以來首次遇到。他們向右轉，沿著小徑往南走。小徑蜿蜒曲折，巧妙地延伸，似乎是為了盡可能避開上方山頂和西方平坦地帶的視線。它鑽入小谷，緊貼著陡峭的河岸；而在它經過兩旁較為平坦開闊的地面時，兩側則排列著巨大的圓石和鑿成的石頭，幾乎像樹籬一樣遮蔽了旅人。「我真好奇這條路是誰造的，又是為了什麼？」梅里說道，他們正走在其中一條石塊異常巨大且緊密排列的「林蔭道」上。「我不太喜歡它：它有一種——嗯，有點像墓塚屍妖的感覺。風雲頂上有墓塚嗎？」 「沒有。風雲頂上沒有墓塚，這些山丘上也沒有。」亞拉岡回答。「西方人不住在這裡；儘管在他們的後期，他們曾一度防禦這些山丘，抵禦來自安格馬的邪惡。這條路是為了服務沿著城牆的堡壘而建造的。但很久以前，在北方王國的初期，他們在風雲頂上建造了一座巨大的瞭望塔，他們稱之為阿蒙蘇爾。它被燒毀並破壞了，現在只剩下一個坍塌的圓環，就像老山頭上的一頂粗糙王冠。然而，它曾經高大而美麗。據說，在最後同盟的時代，伊蘭迪爾曾站在那裡，等候來自西方的吉爾加拉德。」 哈比人們凝視著亞拉岡。他似乎不僅博學於古老傳說，也精通荒野之道。「吉爾加拉德是誰？」梅里問道；但亞拉岡沒有回答，似乎陷入了沉思。突然，一個低沉的聲音輕聲吟唱道： 吉爾加拉德是一位精靈王。 豎琴手悲傷地歌唱著他： 他是最後一位，其國度在群山與大海之間美麗而自由。 他的劍很長，他的長矛鋒利，他閃亮的頭盔遠處可見； 天空中無數的星辰映照在他的銀盾上。 但很久以前他已遠去，他居住何處無人能說； 因為他的星辰墜落在陰影之地魔多。
186 THE LORD OF THE RINGS The others turned in amazement, for the voice was Sam’s. ‘Don’t stop!’ said Merry. ‘That’s all I know,’ stammered Sam, blushing. ‘I learned it from Mr. Bilbo when I was a lad. He used to tell me tales like that, knowing how I was always one for hearing about Elves. It was Mr. Bilbo as taught me my letters. He was mighty book-learned was dear old Mr. Bilbo. And he wrote poetry. He wrote what I have just said.’ ‘He did not make it up,’ said Strider. ‘It is part of the lay that is called The Fall of Gil-galad, which is in an ancient tongue. Bilbo must have translated it. I never knew that.’ “There was a lot more,’ said Sam, ‘all about Mordor. I didn’t learn that part, it gave me the shivers. I never thought I should be going that way myself!’ ‘Going to Mordor!’ cried Pippin. ‘I hope it won’t come to that!’ ‘Do not speak that name so loudly!’ said Strider. It was already mid-day when they drew near the southern end of the path, and saw before them, in the pale clear light of the October sun, a grey-green bank, leading up like a bridge on to the northward slope of the hill. They decided to make for the top at once, while the daylight was broad. Concealment was no longer possible, and they could only hope that no enemy or spy was observing them. Nothing was to be seen moving on the hill. If Gandalf was anywhere about, there was no sign of him. On the western flank of Weathertop they found a sheltered hollow, at the bottom of which there was a bowl-shaped dell with grassy sides. There they left Sam and Pippin with the pony and their packs and luggage. The other three went on. After half an hour’s plodding climb Strider reached the crown of the hill; Frodo and Merry followed, tired and breathless. The last slope had been steep and rocky. On the top they found, as Strider had said, a wide ring of ancient stone-work, now crumbling or covered with age-long grass. But in the centre a cairn of broken stones had been piled. They were blackened as if with fire. About them the turf was burned to the roots and all within the ring the grass was scorched and shrivelled, as if flames had swept the hill-top; but there was no sign of any living thing. Standing upon the rim of the ruined circle, they saw all round below them a wide prospect, for the most part of lands empty and featureless, except for patches of woodland away to the south, beyond which they caught here and there the glint of distant water. Beneath them on this southern side there ran like a ribbon the Old Road, coming out of the West and winding up and down, until it faded behind a ridge of dark land to the east. Nothing was moving on it. Following its line eastward with their eyes they saw the Mountains:
186 魔戒 他們驚訝地轉過身，因為那是山姆的聲音。「別停！」梅里說。「我就知道這麼多。」山姆結結巴巴地說，臉紅了。「我小時候跟比爾博先生學的。他以前常講這樣的故事給我聽，因為他知道我總是喜歡聽關於精靈的事。是比爾博先生教我識字的。親愛的比爾博先生學識淵博。他還寫詩。他寫的就是我剛才說的那些。」「他沒有編造。」亞拉岡說。「那是叫做《吉爾加拉德之殞》的歌謠的一部分，是用古語寫的。比爾博一定是翻譯了它。我從來不知道這件事。」「還有很多呢。」山姆說，「都是關於魔多。我沒學那部分，它讓我毛骨悚然。我從沒想過自己會走那條路！」「去魔多！」皮聘喊道。「我希望不會走到那一步！」「別那麼大聲地說那個名字！」亞拉岡說。當他們靠近小徑南端時，已是中午時分，他們看到前方，在十月陽光蒼白清澈的光線下，有一道灰綠色的土坡，像一座橋一樣通往山丘的北坡。他們決定趁天色還亮，立刻前往山頂。隱蔽已不再可能，他們只能希望沒有敵人或間諜在監視他們。山丘上沒有任何動靜。如果甘道夫在附近，也沒有他的蹤影。在風雲頂的西側，他們找到一個避風的山坳，底部有一個碗狀的凹地，兩側長滿了草。他們把山姆和皮聘以及小馬、他們的背包和行李留在那裡。另外三個人繼續前進。經過半小時的艱難攀爬，亞拉岡到達了山頂；佛羅多和梅里跟在後面，又累又喘。最後一段斜坡又陡又多石。在山頂上，正如亞拉岡所說，他們發現了一個寬闊的古老石圈，現在已經坍塌或被經年的野草覆蓋。但在中央堆積著一堆破碎的石頭。它們被燒得焦黑，彷彿經過火燒。周圍的草皮被燒到根部，石圈內的所有草都焦枯萎縮，彷彿火焰曾掃過山頂；但沒有任何活物的跡象。站在毀壞的圓圈邊緣，他們看到下方四周是一片廣闊的景色，大部分是空曠而沒有特色的土地，除了南方遠處的一些林地，他們不時瞥見遠處水面的微光。在他們下方，這南側像一條緞帶般延伸著老路，從西方而來，蜿蜒起伏，直到它在東方一片黑暗山脊後消失。路上沒有任何動靜。他們用眼睛沿著它的路線向東望去，看到了群山：
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 187 the nearer foothills were brown and sombre; behind them stood taller shapes of grey, and behind those again were high white peaks glimmering among the clouds. ‘Well, here we are!’ said Merry. ‘And very cheerless and uninviting it looks! There is no water and no shelter. And no sign of Gandalf. But I don’t blame him for not waiting — if he ever came here.’ ‘I wonder,’ said Strider, looking round thoughtfully. ‘Even if he was a day or two behind us at Bree, he could have arrived here first. He can ride very swiftly when need presses.’ Suddenly he stooped and looked at the stone on the top of the cairn; it was flatter than the others, and whiter, as if it had escaped the fire. He picked it up and examined it, turning it in his fingers. “This has been handled recently,’ he said. ‘What do you think of these marks?’ On the flat under-side Frodo saw some scratches: Il. “There seems to be a stroke, a dot, and three more strokes,’ he said. “The stroke on the left might be a G-rune with thin branches,’ said Strider. ‘It might be a sign left by Gandalf, though one cannot be sure. The scratches are fine, and they certainly look fresh. But the marks might mean something quite different, and have nothing to do with us. Rangers use runes, and they come here sometimes.’ ‘What could they mean, even if Gandalf made them?’ asked Merry. ‘I should say,’ answered Strider, ‘that they stood for G3, and were a sign that Gandalf was here on October the third: that is three days ago now. It would also show that he was in a hurry and danger was at hand, so that he had no time or did not dare to write anything longer or plainer. If that is so, we must be wary.’ ‘I wish we could feel sure that he made the marks, whatever they may mean,’ said Frodo. ‘It would be a great comfort to know that he was on the way, in front of us or behind us.’ ‘Perhaps,’ said Strider. ‘For myself, I believe that he was here, and was in danger. There have been scorching flames here; and now the light that we saw three nights ago in the eastern sky comes back to my mind. I guess that he was attacked on this hill-top, but with what result I cannot tell. He is here no longer, and we must now look after ourselves and make our own way to Rivendell, as best we can.’ ‘How far is Rivendell?’ asked Merry, gazing round wearily. The world looked wild and wide from Weathertop. ‘I don’t know if the Road has ever been measured in miles beyond the Forsaken Inn, a day’s journey east of Bree,’ answered Strider. ‘Some say it is so far, and some say otherwise. It is a strange road, and folk are glad to reach their journey’s end, whether the time is long or short. But I know how long it would take me on my own feet, with fair weather and no ill fortune: twelve days from here to
黑暗中的一把刀 187 較近的山麓呈褐色，陰沉沉的；它們後面是更高的灰色山影，而那些山影後面又是高聳的白色山峰，在雲間閃爍。「嗯，我們到了！」梅里說。「看起來真是荒涼又了無生氣！沒有水，也沒有遮蔽。也沒有甘道夫的蹤影。但我不會怪他沒有等我們——如果他真的來過這裡的話。」「我在想，」亞拉岡若有所思地環顧四周說。「即使他在布理比我們晚了一兩天，他還是可能先到這裡。當情況緊急時，他能騎得非常快。」突然他彎下腰，看著石堆頂部的石頭；它比其他的石頭更平坦，也更白，彷彿它躲過了火燒。他撿起來仔細檢查，在指間轉動著。「這塊石頭最近被人動過，」他說。「你覺得這些記號怎麼樣？」在平坦的底面，佛羅多看到了一些刮痕：Il。「看起來像是一劃、一個點，還有三劃，」他說。「左邊那一劃可能是帶有細枝的G符文，」亞拉岡說。「這可能是甘道夫留下的記號，雖然不能確定。這些刮痕很細，而且看起來確實很新。但這些記號可能意味著完全不同的東西，與我們無關。遊俠會使用符文，他們有時會來這裡。」「即使是甘道夫做的，它們可能意味著什麼？」梅里問道。「我會說，」亞拉岡回答，「它們代表G3，是甘道夫在十月三日來過這裡的記號：那就是三天前了。這也表明他當時很匆忙，危險迫在眉睫，所以他沒有時間或不敢寫下任何更長或更清楚的東西。如果真是這樣，我們必須小心謹慎。」「我希望我們能確信是他留下的記號，無論它們意味著什麼，」佛羅多說。「知道他正在路上，無論是在我們前面還是後面，都會是很大的安慰。」「或許吧，」亞拉岡說。「就我而言，我相信他來過這裡，而且身處險境。這裡曾有過灼熱的火焰；現在，我們三天前在東方天空看到的光芒又回到我的腦海中。我猜他是在這個山頂上遭到襲擊，但結果如何我無法得知。他已經不在這裡了，我們現在必須照顧好自己，盡力前往瑞文戴爾。」「瑞文戴爾有多遠？」梅里疲憊地環顧四周問道。從風雲頂看去，世界顯得荒涼而廣闊。「我不知道從布理以東一日路程的『荒廢客棧』之後，這條路是否曾以英里計算過，」亞拉岡回答。「有人說很遠，也有人說不遠。這是一條奇特的道路，人們都很高興能到達旅程的終點，無論時間長短。但我知道如果天氣晴朗，沒有厄運，我徒步需要多久：從這裡到
188 THE LORD OF THE RINGS the Ford of Bruinen, where the Road crosses the Loudwater that runs out of Rivendell. We have at least a fortnight’s journey before us, for I do not think we shall be able to use the Road.’ ‘A fortnight!’ said Frodo. ‘A lot may happen in that time.’ ‘It may,’ said Strider. They stood for a while silent on the hill-top, near its southward edge. In that lonely place Frodo for the first time fully realized his homelessness and danger. He wished bitterly that his fortune had left him in the quiet and beloved Shire. He stared down at the hateful Road, leading back westward — to his home. Suddenly he was aware that two black specks were moving slowly along it, going westward; and looking again he saw that three others were creeping eastward to meet them. He gave a cry and clutched Strider’s arm. ‘Look,’ he said, pointing downwards. At once Strider flung himself on the ground behind the ruined circle, pulling Frodo down beside him. Merry threw himself alongside. ‘What is it?’ he whispered. ‘I do not know, but I fear the worst,’ answered Strider. Slowly they crawled up to the edge of the ring again, and peered through a cleft between two jagged stones. The light was no longer bright, for the clear morning had faded, and clouds creeping out of the East had now overtaken the sun, as it began to go down. They could all see the black specks, but neither Frodo nor Merry could make out their shapes for certain; yet something told them that there, far below, were Black Riders assembling on the Road beyond the foot of the hill. ‘Yes,’ said Strider, whose keener sight left him in no doubt. “The enemy is here!’ Hastily they crept away and slipped down the north side of the hill to find their companions. Sam and Peregrin had not been idle. They had explored the small dell and the surrounding slopes. Not far away they found a spring of clear water in the hillside, and near it footprints not more than a day or two old. In the dell itself they found recent traces of a fire, and other signs of a hasty camp. There were some fallen rocks on the edge of the dell nearest to the hill. Behind them Sam came upon a small store of firewood neatly stacked. ‘I wonder if old Gandalf has been here,’ he said to Pippin. ‘Whoever it was put this stuff here meant to come back it seems.’ Strider was greatly interested in these discoveries. ‘I wish I had waited and explored the ground down here myself,’ he said, hurrying off to the spring to examine the footprints.
188 《魔戒》 布魯伊南渡口，那裡的大路橫越喧水河，喧水河則發源於瑞文戴爾。「我們至少還有兩週的路程，因為我想我們無法使用這條大路了。」「兩週！」佛羅多說。「那段時間可能會發生很多事。」「的確如此。」亞崔迪說。他們在山頂上，靠近南邊的邊緣，靜默地站了一會兒。在那孤寂的地方，佛羅多第一次完全意識到自己的無家可歸和危險。他痛苦地希望自己的命運能讓他留在寧靜而心愛的夏爾。他凝視著那條可恨的大路，它向西延伸——通往他的家。突然，他意識到有兩個黑點正沿著大路緩慢地向西移動；再仔細一看，他發現另外三個黑點正向東爬行，準備與它們會合。他大叫一聲，緊抓著亞崔迪的手臂。「看！」他指著下方說。亞崔迪立刻猛地撲倒在廢棄的圓圈後面，把佛羅多也拉到他身邊。梅里也跟著撲倒。 「那是什麼？」他低聲問。「我不知道，但我擔心最壞的情況。」亞崔迪回答。他們慢慢地爬回到圓圈的邊緣，透過兩塊鋸齒狀石頭之間的裂縫窺視。光線不再明亮，因為晴朗的早晨已逝去，從東方蔓延而來的雲朵已經遮蔽了太陽，太陽正開始下山。他們都能看到那些黑點，但佛羅多和梅里都無法確定它們的形狀；然而，有種感覺告訴他們，在下方遙遠處，有戒靈正在山腳下的大路上集結。「是的。」亞崔迪說，他更敏銳的視力讓他確信無疑。「敵人就在這裡！」他們匆忙地爬開，沿著山北側滑下，去尋找他們的同伴。山姆和皮聘並沒有閒著。他們探索了那個小山谷和周圍的山坡。不遠處，他們在山坡上發現了一處清澈的泉水，附近還有不超過一兩天前的腳印。在小山谷裡，他們發現了最近生火的痕跡，以及其他倉促紮營的跡象。在小山谷靠近山的一側邊緣，有一些倒下的岩石。在這些岩石後面，山姆發現了一小堆整齊堆放的柴火。「我想知道老甘道夫是不是來過這裡。」他對皮聘說。「無論是誰把這些東西放在這裡，看來都打算回來。」亞崔迪對這些發現非常感興趣。「我真希望我當時等著，自己下來探索一下這裡。」他說著，匆匆走向泉水去檢查那些腳印。
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 189 ‘It is just as I feared,’ he said, when he came back. ‘Sam and Pippin have trampled the soft ground, and the marks are spoilt or confused. Rangers have been here lately. It is they who left the firewood behind. But there are also several newer tracks that were not made by Rangers. At least one set was made, only a day or two ago, by heavy boots. At least one. I cannot now be certain, but I think there were many booted feet.” He paused and stood in anxious thought. Each of the hobbits saw in his mind a vision of the cloaked and booted Riders. If the horsemen had already found the dell, the sooner Strider led them somewhere else the better. Sam viewed the hollow with great dislike, now that he had heard news of their enemies on the Road, only a few miles away. ‘Hadn’t we better clear out quick, Mr. Strider?’ he asked impatiently. ‘It is getting late, and I don’t like this hole: it makes my heart sink somehow.’ “Yes, we certainly must decide what to do at once,’ answered Strider, looking up and considering the time and the weather. ‘Well, Sam,’ he said at last, ‘I do not like this place either; but I cannot think of anywhere better that we could reach before nightfall. At least we are out of sight for the moment, and if we moved we should be much more likely to be seen by spies. All we could do would be to go right out of our way back north on this side of the line of hills, where the land is all much the same as it is here. The Road is watched, but we should have to cross it, if we tried to take cover in the thickets away to the south. On the north side of the Road beyond the hills the country is bare and flat for miles.’ ‘Can the Riders see?’ asked Merry. ‘I mean, they seem usually to have used their noses rather than their eyes, smelling for us, if smelling is the right word, at least in the daylight. But you made us lie down flat when you saw them down below; and now you talk of being seen, if we move.’ ‘I was too careless on the hill-top,’ answered Strider. ‘I was very anxious to find some sign of Gandalf; but it was a mistake for three of us to go up and stand there so long. For the black horses can see, and the Riders can use men and other creatures as spies, as we found at Bree. They themselves do not see the world of light as we do, but our shapes cast shadows in their minds, which only the noon sun destroys; and in the dark they perceive many signs and forms that are hidden from us: then they are most to be feared. And at all times they smell the blood of living things, desiring and hating it. Senses, too, there are other than sight or smell. We can feel their presence — it troubled our hearts, as soon as we came here, and before we saw them; they feel ours more keenly. Also,’ he added, and his voice sank to a whisper, ‘the Ring draws them.’
《黑暗中的一把刀》189 「正如我所擔心的，」他回來時說道，「山姆和皮聘踩踏了鬆軟的地面，痕跡被破壞或混淆了。遊俠們最近來過這裡。是他們留下了柴火。但也有一些不是遊俠們留下的新足跡。至少有一組是重靴踩出來的，就在一兩天前。至少有一組。我現在不能確定，但我認為有很多穿靴子的腳印。」他停下來，焦慮地沉思著。每個哈比人心中都浮現出那些披著斗篷、穿著靴子的騎手們的景象。如果那些騎手已經找到了這個小山谷，那麼神行客越早帶他們去別處越好。山姆對這個窪地感到非常厭惡，因為他剛聽說他們的敵人在大路上，距離此處僅幾英里。「我們是不是最好趕快離開，神行客先生？」他焦急地問道。「天色已晚，我不喜歡這個地方：不知怎的，它讓我心裡發沉。」「是的，我們確實必須立刻決定怎麼辦，」神行客回答道，他抬頭看了看時間和天氣。「嗯，山姆，」他終於說道，「我也不喜歡這個地方；但在天黑之前，我想不出有什麼更好的地方我們可以到達。至少我們目前是隱蔽的，如果我們移動，就更有可能被間諜發現。我們能做的就是繞道向北，沿著這條山脈的這一側走，那裡的土地和這裡大同小異。大路有人監視，但如果我們試圖到南邊的灌木叢中躲藏，我們就必須穿過它。在大路北邊的山脈之外，那片地區數英里內都是荒蕪而平坦的。」「那些騎手能看見嗎？」梅里問道。「我的意思是，他們似乎通常是用鼻子而不是眼睛來嗅探我們，如果『嗅探』這個詞用得恰當的話，至少在白天是這樣。但你看到他們在下面時，卻讓我們趴下；現在你又說如果我們移動，就會被看見。」「我在山頂上太粗心了，」神行客回答道。「我非常渴望找到甘道夫的蹤跡；但我們三個人上去站在那裡那麼久是個錯誤。因為那些黑馬能看見，而且騎手們可以利用人類和其他生物作為間諜，就像我們在布理發現的那樣。他們自己不像我們一樣看見光明的世界，但我們的形體會在他們心中投下陰影，只有正午的陽光才能將其摧毀；而在黑暗中，他們能感知到許多對我們隱藏的跡象和形體：那時他們最令人畏懼。而且他們時刻都能聞到活物的血腥味，既渴望又憎恨。此外，還有視覺和嗅覺之外的其他感官。我們能感覺到他們的存在——我們一到這裡，甚至在看到他們之前，我們的心就感到不安；他們對我們的感覺則更為敏銳。還有，」他補充道，聲音低沉得像耳語，「魔戒吸引著他們。」
190 THE LORD OF THE RINGS ‘Is there no escape then?’ said Frodo, looking round wildly. ‘If I move I shall be seen and hunted! If I stay, I shall draw them to me!’ Strider laid his hand on his shoulder. “There is still hope,’ he said. “You are not alone. Let us take this wood that is set ready for the fire as a sign. There is little shelter or defence here, but fire shall serve for both. Sauron can put fire to his evil uses, as he can all things, but these Riders do not love it, and fear those who wield it. Fire is our friend in the wilderness.’ ‘Maybe,’ muttered Sam. ‘It is also as good a way of saying “‘here we are’’ as I can think of, bar shouting.’ Down in the lowest and most sheltered corner of the dell they lit a fire, and prepared a meal. The shades of evening began to fall, and it grew cold. They were suddenly aware of great hunger, for they had not eaten anything since breakfast; but they dared not make more than a frugal supper. The lands ahead were empty of all save birds and beasts, unfriendly places deserted by all the races of the world. Rangers passed at times beyond the hills, but they were few and did not stay. Other wanderers were rare, and of evil sort: trolls might stray down at times out of the northern valleys of the Misty Mountains. Only on the Road would travellers be found, most often dwarves, hurrying along on business of their own, and with no help and few words to spare for strangers. ‘I don’t see how our food can be made to last,’ said Frodo. ‘We have been careful enough in the last few days, and this supper is no feast; but we have used more than we ought, if we have two weeks still to go, and perhaps more.’ ‘There is food in the wild,’ said Strider; ‘berry, root, and herb; and I have some skill as a hunter at need. You need not be afraid of starving before winter comes. But gathering and catching food is long and weary work, and we need haste. So tighten your belts, and think with hope of the tables of Elrond’s house!’ The cold increased as darkness came on. Peering out from the edge of the dell they could see nothing but a grey land now vanishing quickly into shadow. The sky above had cleared again and was slowly filled with twinkling stars. Frodo and his companions huddled round the fire, wrapped in every garment and blanket they possessed; but Strider was content with a single cloak, and sat a little apart, drawing thoughtfully at his pipe. As night fell and the light of the fire began to shine out brightly he began to tell them tales to keep their minds from fear. He knew many histories and legends of long ago, of Elves and Men and the
190 魔戒之王 『難道就沒有辦法逃脫嗎？』佛羅多環顧四周，焦急地說。『如果我移動，就會被看見並遭到追捕！如果我留下，就會把他們引到我這裡來！』亞拉岡把手搭在他的肩上。『還有希望，』他說。『你並不孤單。讓我們把這些準備好生火的木柴當作一個徵兆吧。這裡幾乎沒有什麼遮蔽或防禦，但火可以兩者兼顧。索倫可以將火用於邪惡目的，就像他能利用萬物一樣，但這些戒靈不喜歡火，而且害怕那些使用火的人。在荒野中，火是我們的朋友。』『或許吧，』山姆咕噥道。『除了大喊大叫之外，這也是我能想到最好的方式來表示「我們在這裡」了。』在山谷最深、最隱蔽的角落，他們生起了火，準備了一頓飯。夜幕開始降臨，天氣也漸漸變冷。他們突然感到非常飢餓，因為自早餐後就沒吃過東西了；但他們不敢吃得太多，只準備了一頓簡單的晚餐。前方的土地除了鳥獸之外，空無一物，是世上所有種族都已遺棄的不友善之地。遊俠偶爾會越過山丘，但他們人數稀少，也不會久留。其他流浪者則很少見，而且多半是邪惡之徒：食人妖有時會從迷霧山脈的北方山谷中遊蕩下來。只有在大路上才能找到旅人，最常見的是矮人，他們通常是為了自己的事務匆匆趕路，對陌生人既不提供幫助，也吝於多說幾句話。『我不知道我們的食物怎麼能撐下去，』佛羅多說。『過去幾天我們已經夠小心了，這頓晚餐也算不上豐盛；但如果我們還有兩週，甚至更長的路要走，我們已經吃得比預期的多了。』『野外有食物，』亞拉岡說；『漿果、根莖和藥草；而且我在必要時也有些狩獵的本領。你們不必擔心在冬天來臨前會餓死。但採集和捕獵食物是漫長而疲憊的工作，我們需要趕路。所以勒緊褲帶吧，並懷著希望想想愛隆王家的餐桌！』隨著黑暗降臨，寒意漸濃。他們從山谷邊緣向外望去，除了灰濛濛的土地迅速沒入陰影中之外，什麼也看不見。上方的天空再次放晴，慢慢地佈滿了閃爍的星光。佛羅多和他的同伴們圍著火堆擠在一起，裹著他們所有的衣物和毯子；但亞拉岡只披著一件斗篷就心滿意足了，他獨自坐在一旁，若有所思地抽著菸斗。夜幕低垂，火光開始明亮地閃耀時，他開始給他們講故事，以消除他們心中的恐懼。他知道許多古老的歷史和傳說，關於精靈和人類以及
A KNIFE IN THE DARK I9QI good and evil deeds of the Elder Days. They wondered how old he was, and where he had learned all this lore. ‘Tell us of Gil-galad,’ said Merry suddenly, when he paused at the end of a story of the Elf-kingdoms. ‘Do you know any more of that old lay that you spoke of?’ ‘I do indeed,’ answered Strider. ‘So also does Frodo, for it concerns us closely.’ Merry and Pippin looked at Frodo, who was staring into the fire. ‘I know only the little that Gandalf has told me,’ said Frodo slowly. ‘Gil-galad was the last of the great Elf-kings of Middle-earth. Gil-galad is Starlight in their tongue. With Elendil, the Elf-friend, he went to the land of : ‘No!’ said Strider interrupting, ‘I do not think that tale should be told now with the servants of the Enemy at hand. If we win through to the house of Elrond, you may hear it there, told in full.’ “Then tell us some other tale of the old days,’ begged Sam; ‘a tale about the Elves before the fading time. I would dearly like to hear more about Elves; the dark seems to press round so close.’ ‘I will tell you the tale of Tintviel,’ said Strider, ‘in brief — for it is a long tale of which the end is not known; and there are none now, except Elrond, that remember it aright as it was told of old. It is a fair tale, though it is sad, as are all the tales of Middle-earth, and yet it may lift up your hearts.’ He was silent for some time, and then he began not to speak but to chant softly: The leaves were long, the grass was green, The hemlock-umbels tall and fair, And in the glade a light was seen Of stars in shadow shimmering. Tinuviel was dancing there To music of a pipe unseen, And light of stars was in her hair, And in her raiment glimmering. There Beren came from mountains cold, And lost he wandered under leaves, And where the Elven-river rolled He walked alone and sorrowing. He peered between the hemlock-leaves And saw in wonder flowers of gold Upon her mantle and her sleeves, And her hair like shadow following.
黑暗中的刀刃 I9QI 上古時代的善行與惡行。他們好奇他究竟有多老，以及他從何處學來這些知識。「跟我們說說吉爾加拉德吧，」當他講完一個精靈王國的故事，稍作停頓時，梅里突然說道。「你還知道你提過的那首古老歌謠嗎？」「我當然知道，」亞拉岡答道。「佛羅多也知道，因為這與我們關係密切。」梅里和皮聘望向佛羅多，他正凝視著爐火。「我只知道甘道夫告訴我的一點點，」佛羅多緩緩說道。「吉爾加拉德是中土大陸最後一位偉大的精靈王。在他們的語言中，吉爾加拉德意為『星光』。他與精靈之友伊蘭迪爾一同前往……「不！」亞拉岡打斷道，「我不認為這個故事現在應該講，因為敵人的爪牙就在附近。如果我們能成功抵達愛隆的家，你就能在那裡聽到完整的故事。」「那麼，跟我們講一些其他關於舊日的故事吧，」山姆懇求道，「一個關於精靈在消逝時代來臨之前的故事。我非常想多聽一些關於精靈的事；黑暗似乎壓得太近了。」「我會告訴你們廷維爾的故事，」亞拉岡說，「簡短地說——因為這是一個漫長的故事，結局無人知曉；除了愛隆之外，現在已無人能正確地回憶起它當年是如何被講述的了。這是一個美好的故事，儘管它很悲傷，就像所有中土大陸的故事一樣，但它或許能振奮你們的心。」他沉默了一會兒，然後他沒有說話，而是輕聲吟唱起來： 葉子修長，青草茵茵， 毒芹繖形花序高大而美， 林間空地，星光閃爍， 陰影中，光芒隱現。 緹努維爾在那裡翩翩起舞， 伴著無形笛聲， 星光在她髮間， 在她衣裳上閃耀。 貝倫從寒冷的群山而來， 迷失在落葉之下， 精靈之河蜿蜒流淌之處， 他獨自漫步，滿懷悲傷。 他從毒芹葉間窺視， 驚奇地看見金色的花朵， 在她斗篷和衣袖上， 她的髮絲如影隨形。
192 THE LORD OF THE RINGS Enchantment healed his weary feet That over hills were doomed to roam; And forth he hastened, strong and fleet, And grasped at moonbeams glistening. Through woven woods in Elvenhome She lightly fled on dancing feet, And left him lonely still to roam In the silent forest listening. He heard there oft the flying sound Of feet as light as linden-leaves, Or music welling underground, In hidden hollows quavering. Now withered lay the hemlock-sheaves, And one by one with sighing sound Whispering fell the beechen leaves In the wintry woodland wavering. He sought her ever, wandering far Where leaves of years were thickly strewn, By light of moon and ray of star In frosty heavens shivering. Her mantle glinted in the moon, As on a hill-top high and far She danced, and at her feet was strewn A must of silver quivering. When winter passed, she came again, And her song released the sudden spring, Like rising lark, and falling rain, And melting water bubbling. He saw the elven-flowers spring About her feet, and healed again He longed by her to dance and sing Upon the grass untroubling. Again she fled, but swift he came. Tinuviel! Tinuviel! He called her by her Elvish name; And there she halted listening. One moment stood she, and a spell His voice laid on her: Beren came, And doom fell on Tinuviel That in his arms lay glistening.
192 魔戒 魔力治癒了他疲憊的雙足， 那雙注定要漫遊山丘的腳； 他匆匆前行，強健而輕快， 捕捉著閃爍的月光。 穿梭於精靈家園的密林中， 她輕盈地舞步飛奔， 留下他孤獨地繼續漫遊， 在寂靜的森林中傾聽。 他常在那裡聽到輕盈的腳步聲， 如椴樹葉般輕盈， 或地下湧出的樂音， 在隱秘的洞穴中顫動。 如今鐵杉的捆束已枯萎， 一捆捆伴隨著嘆息聲， 山毛櫸葉輕聲飄落， 在冬日的林地中搖曳。 他不斷尋找她，遠行漫遊， 歲月的落葉厚厚地鋪滿， 在月光和星光下， 寒冷的夜空顫抖。 她的披風在月下閃爍， 當她在高遠的山頂上起舞， 腳下散落著一片顫動的銀色薄霧。 當冬天過去，她再次降臨， 她的歌聲釋放了突如其來的春天， 如同高飛的雲雀，墜落的雨滴， 以及融化後冒泡的水流。 他看見精靈之花在她腳邊綻放， 再次痊癒，他渴望與她共舞歌唱， 在寧靜的草地上。 她再次飛奔而去，但他迅速追上。 緹努維爾！緹努維爾！ 他呼喚著她的精靈之名； 她停下腳步，傾聽著。 她佇立片刻，他的聲音對她施了魔法： 貝倫來了， 命運降臨在緹努維爾身上， 她在他懷中閃耀。
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 193 As Beren looked into her eyes Within the shadows of her hair, The trembling starlight of the skies He saw there mirrored shimmering. Tinuviel the elven-fair, Immortal maiden elven-wise, About him cast her shadowy hair And arms like silver glimmering. Long was the way that fate them bore, O’er stony mountains cold and grey, Through halls of tron and darkling door, And woods of nightshade morrowless. The Sundering Seas between them lay, And yet at last they met once more, And long ago they passed away In the forest singing sorrowless. Strider sighed and paused before he spoke again. “That is a song,’ he said, ‘in the mode that is called ann-thennath among the Elves, but is hard to render in our Common Speech, and this is but a rough echo of it. It tells of the meeting of Beren son of Barahir and Luthien Tinuviel. Beren was a mortal man, but Luthien was the daughter of Thingol, a King of Elves upon Middle-earth when the world was young; and she was the fairest maiden that has ever been among all the children of this world. As the stars above the mists of the Northern lands was her loveliness, and in her face was a shining light. In those days the Great Enemy, of whom Sauron of Mordor was but a servant, dwelt in Angband in the North, and the Elves of the West coming back to Middle-earth made war upon him to regain the Silmarils which he had stolen; and the fathers of Men aided the Elves. But the Enemy was victorious and Barahir was slain, and Beren escaping through great peril came over the Mountains of Terror into the hidden Kingdom of Thingol in the forest of Neldoreth. There he beheld Luthien singing and dancing in a glade beside the enchanted river Esgalduin; and he named her Tintviel, that is Nightingale in the language of old. Many sorrows befell them afterwards, and they were parted long. Tintviel rescued Beren from the dungeons of Sauron, and together they passed through great dangers, and cast down even the Great Enemy from his throne, and took from his iron crown one of the three Silmarils, brightest of all jewels, to be the bride-price of Luthien to Thingol her father. Yet at the last Beren was slain by the Wolf that came from the gates of Angband, and he died in the arms of Tinuviel. But she chose mortality, and to die
黑暗中的利刃 193 當貝倫凝視她的雙眸，在她髮絲的陰影中，他看見天際顫抖的星光閃爍倒映。蒂努維爾，那精靈般美麗、永生的少女，精靈般智慧，將她如影的髮絲和銀光閃爍的雙臂環繞著他。命運引領他們走過漫漫長路，越過冰冷灰暗的石山，穿過鐵鑄的大廳和幽暗的門扉，以及永無明日的茄屬植物林。離絕之海橫亙於他們之間，然而他們最終再次相遇，很久以前，他們在森林中無憂無慮地歌唱，然後逝去。 亞拉岡嘆了口氣，停頓了一下才再次開口。「那是一首歌，」他說，「在精靈語中被稱為『ann-thennath』的曲調，但在我們的通用語中很難表達，這只是一個粗略的迴響。它講述了巴拉希爾之子貝倫與露西安·蒂努維爾的相遇。貝倫是個凡人，但露西安是辛葛的女兒，當世界尚年輕時，他是中土大陸的精靈之王；她是這個世界上所有孩子中最美麗的少女。她的美麗如同北方大地迷霧上方的星辰，她的臉龐閃耀著光芒。在那些日子裡，大敵（魔多索倫只是他的僕從）居住在北方的安格班，而從西方返回中土大陸的精靈們向他宣戰，以奪回他所竊取的精靈寶鑽；人類的先祖也協助了精靈。但敵人獲勝了，巴拉希爾被殺，貝倫歷經重重危險，越過恐怖山脈，進入了內爾多雷斯森林中辛葛的隱秘王國。在那裡，他看見露西安在魔法河埃斯加爾都因旁的一片林間空地唱歌跳舞；他稱她為蒂努維爾，那是古語中的夜鶯。此後，許多悲傷降臨在他們身上，他們分離了很久。蒂努維爾從索倫的地牢中救出了貝倫，他們一起經歷了巨大的危險，甚至將大敵從他的寶座上推翻，並從他的鐵冠上取下三顆精靈寶鑽中的一顆，那是所有珠寶中最璀璨的，作為露西安獻給她父親辛葛的聘禮。然而最終，貝倫被來自安格班大門的狼殺死，他死在蒂努維爾的懷中。但她選擇了凡人的命運，並死去
194 THE LORD OF THE RINGS from the world, so that she might follow him; and it is sung that they met again beyond the Sundering Seas, and after a brief time walking alive once more in the green woods, together they passed, long ago, beyond the confines of this world. So it is that Luthien Tinuviel alone of the Elf-kindred has died indeed and left the world, and they have lost her whom they most loved. But from her the lineage of the Elf-lords of old descended among Men. There live still those of whom Luthien was the foremother, and it is said that her line shall never fail. Elrond of Rivendell is of that Kin. For of Beren and Luthien was born Dior Thingol’s heir; and of him Elwing the White whom Earendil wedded, he that sailed his ship out of the mists of the world into the seas of heaven with the Silmaril upon his brow. And of Earendil came the Kings of Numenor, that is Westernesse.’ As Strider was speaking they watched his strange eager face, dimly lit in the red glow of the wood-fire. His eyes shone, and his voice was rich and deep. Above him was a black starry sky. Suddenly a pale light appeared over the crown of Weathertop behind him. The waxing moon was climbing slowly above the hill that overshadowed them, and the stars above the hill-top faded. The story ended. The hobbits moved and stretched. ‘Look!’ said Merry. “The Moon is rising: it must be getting late.’ The others looked up. Even as they did so, they saw on the top of the hill something small and dark against the glimmer of the moonrise. It was perhaps only a large stone or jutting rock shown up by the pale light. Sam and Merry got up and walked away from the fire. Frodo and Pippin remained seated in silence. Strider was watching the moonlight on the hill intently. All seemed quiet and still, but Frodo felt a cold dread creeping over his heart, now that Strider was no longer speaking. He huddled closer to the fire. At that moment Sam came running back from the edge of the dell. ‘I don’t know what it is,’ he said, ‘but I suddenly felt afraid. I durstn’t go outside this dell for any money; I felt that something was creeping up the slope.’ ‘Did you see anything?’ asked Frodo, springing to his feet. ‘No, sir. I saw nothing, but I didn’t stop to look.’ ‘I saw something,’ said Merry; ‘or I thought I did — away westwards where the moonlight was falling on the flats beyond the shadow of the hill-tops, I thought there were two or three black shapes. They seemed to be moving this way.’ ‘Keep close to the fire, with your faces outward!’ cried Strider. ‘Get some of the longer sticks ready in your hands!’ For a breathless time they sat there, silent and alert, with their backs turned to the wood-fire, each gazing into the shadows that
194 魔戒 從世間離去，好讓她能追隨他；傳說他們在分隔之海的彼岸再次相遇，並在綠林中再次活著行走了一段短暫時光後，他們便一同，在很久以前，超脫了這個世界的束縛。因此，露西安·緹努維兒是精靈族中唯一真正死去並離開世界的人，而他們也失去了他們最愛的人。但從她身上，古老的精靈領主血脈傳承到了人類之中。至今仍有露西安為其始祖的後裔活著，據說她的血脈永不枯竭。瑞文戴爾的愛隆便是這血親之一。因為貝倫和露西安生下了辛葛的繼承人迪歐；而迪歐生下了白色的愛爾溫，她嫁給了埃蘭迪爾，埃蘭迪爾駕著他的船，從世界的迷霧中駛入天堂之海，額上戴著精靈寶鑽。而埃蘭迪爾的後裔便是努曼諾爾的國王，也就是西方之地。』 當亞拉岡說話時，他們注視著他那張奇異而熱切的臉龐，在木柴火的紅光中顯得有些模糊。他的眼睛閃閃發光，聲音低沉而洪亮。在他上方是漆黑的星空。突然，一道微弱的光芒出現在他身後風雲頂的山頂上。漸盈的月亮緩緩爬上籠罩著他們的山頭，山頂上方的星星也漸漸黯淡。故事結束了。霍比特人們動了動身子，伸了伸懶腰。 「看！」梅里說道。「月亮升起來了：時間一定不早了。」 其他人抬頭看去。就在他們抬頭時，他們看到山頂上，在月光初現的微光中，有一個小小的、黑色的東西。那或許只是一塊大石頭，或是一塊在微光中顯現出來的突出岩石。山姆和梅里站起來，走離了火堆。佛羅多和皮聘依然靜靜地坐著。亞拉岡專注地凝視著山上的月光。一切似乎都寂靜無聲，但佛羅多感到一股寒冷的恐懼爬上心頭，因為亞拉岡不再說話了。他更靠近火堆蜷縮起來。就在那時，山姆從山谷邊緣跑了回來。 「我不知道那是什麼，」他說，「但我突然感到害怕。我不敢為任何代價走出這個山谷；我感覺有什麼東西正沿著斜坡爬上來。」 「你看到什麼了嗎？」佛羅多跳了起來問道。 「沒有，先生。我什麼也沒看到，但我沒有停下來看。」 「我看到了一些東西，」梅里說，「或者我以為我看到了——在西邊，月光落在山頂陰影之外的平地上，我以為那裡有兩三個黑影。它們似乎正朝這邊移動。」 「靠近火堆，臉朝外！」亞拉岡喊道。「把一些長一點的木棍拿在手裡準備好！」 他們屏息靜坐了一段時間，沉默而警惕，背對著木柴火，各自凝視著陰影，那陰影
A KNIFE IN THE DARK 195 encircled them. Nothing happened. There was no sound or movement in the night. Frodo stirred, feeling that he must break the silence: he longed to shout out aloud. ‘Hush!’ whispered Strider. ‘What’s that?’ gasped Pippin at the same moment. Over the lip of the little dell, on the side away from the hill, they felt, rather than saw, a shadow rise, one shadow or more than one. They strained their eyes, and the shadows seemed to grow. Soon there could be no doubt: three or four tall black figures were standing there on the slope, looking down on them. So black were they that they seemed like black holes in the deep shade behind them. Frodo thought that he heard a faint hiss as of venomous breath and felt a thin piercing chill. Then the shapes slowly advanced. Terror overcame Pippin and Merry, and they threw themselves flat on the ground. Sam shrank to Frodo’s side. Frodo was hardly less terrified than his companions; he was quaking as if he was bitter cold, but his terror was swallowed up in a sudden temptation to put on the Ring. The desire to do this laid hold of him, and he could think of nothing else. He did not forget the Barrow, nor the message of Gandalf; but something seemed to be compelling him to disregard all warnings, and he longed to yield. Not with the hope of escape, or of doing anything, either good or bad: he simply felt that he must take the Ring and put it on his finger. He could not speak. He felt Sam looking at him, as if he knew that his master was in some great trouble, but he could not turn towards him. He shut his eyes and struggled for a while; but resistance became unbearable, and at last he slowly drew out the chain, and slipped the Ring on the forefinger of his left hand. Immediately, though everything else remained as before, dim and dark, the shapes became terribly clear. He was able to see beneath their black wrappings. There were five tall figures: two standing on the lip of the dell, three advancing. In their white faces burned keen and merciless eyes; under their mantles were long grey robes; upon their grey hairs were helms of silver; in their haggard hands were swords of steel. Their eyes fell on him and pierced him, as they rushed towards him. Desperate, he drew his own sword, and it seemed to him that it flickered red, as if it was a firebrand. Two of the figures halted. The third was taller than the others: his hair was long and gleaming and on his helm was a crown. In one hand he held a long sword, and in the other a knife; both the knife and the hand that held it glowed with a pale light. He sprang forward and bore down on Frodo. At that moment Frodo threw himself forward on the ground, and he heard himself crying aloud: O Elbereth! Gilthoniel! At the same
「黑暗中的一把刀 195」將他們團團圍住。什麼也沒發生。夜裡沒有任何聲響或動靜。佛羅多動了一下，覺得自己必須打破寂靜：他渴望大聲呼喊。「噓！」亞拉岡低聲說。「那是什麼？」皮聘同時驚呼。在小山谷的邊緣，遠離山丘的那一側，他們感覺到，而非看見，一個或多個陰影升起。他們瞪大眼睛，陰影似乎越來越大。很快地，便毫無疑問：三四個高大的黑色身影站在斜坡上，俯視著他們。他們黑得像身後深沉陰影中的黑洞。佛羅多覺得他聽到一聲微弱的嘶嘶聲，彷彿是毒氣的呼吸，並感到一陣刺骨的寒意。接著，那些形體緩緩前進。恐懼壓倒了皮聘和梅里，他們撲倒在地。山姆縮到佛羅多身邊。佛羅多受到的驚嚇絲毫不亞於他的同伴；他顫抖著，彷彿身處嚴寒，但他的恐懼卻被戴上魔戒的突發誘惑所吞噬。這種渴望攫住了他，他再也無法思考其他事情。他沒有忘記古墓崗，也沒有忘記甘道夫的訊息；但似乎有什麼東西在迫使他無視所有警告，他渴望屈服。這並非為了逃脫，也不是為了做任何事，無論好壞：他只是覺得他必須拿起魔戒戴在手指上。他無法說話。他感覺到山姆在看著他，彷彿山姆知道他的主人身陷大麻煩，但他無法轉向山姆。他閉上眼睛掙扎了一會兒；但抵抗變得難以忍受，最後他緩緩抽出鍊子，將魔戒滑入左手食指。立刻，儘管其他一切如舊，昏暗不明，那些形體卻變得異常清晰。他能看見他們黑色斗篷之下。有五個高大的身影：兩個站在山谷邊緣，三個正在前進。他們蒼白的臉上燃燒著銳利而無情的眼睛；斗篷下是長長的灰色長袍；灰色的頭髮上戴著銀色頭盔；他們憔悴的手中握著鋼劍。他們的目光落在佛羅多身上，刺穿了他，同時他們衝向他。絕望中，他拔出自己的劍，在他看來，劍身閃爍著紅光，彷彿是一支火把。其中兩個身影停了下來。第三個比其他的高大：他的頭髮又長又亮，頭盔上戴著一頂王冠。他一手握著一把長劍，另一手握著一把刀；刀和握刀的手都發出微弱的光芒。他向前猛衝，撲向佛羅多。就在那一刻，佛羅多向前撲倒在地，他聽到自己大聲呼喊：「噢，埃爾貝瑞絲！吉爾松尼爾！」就在同一
196 THE LORD OF THE RINGS time he struck at the feet of his enemy. A shrill cry rang out in the night; and he felt a pain like a dart of poisoned ice pierce his left shoulder. Even as he swooned he caught, as through a swirling mist, a glimpse of Strider leaping out of the darkness with a flaming brand of wood in either hand. With a last effort Frodo, dropping his sword, slipped the Ring from his finger and closed his right hand tight upon it.
當他攻擊敵人的雙腳時。一聲尖銳的叫喊劃破夜空；他感到一陣劇痛，彷彿一支淬毒的冰箭刺穿了他的左肩。就在他昏厥之際，他彷彿透過一片繚繞的迷霧，瞥見史崔德手持兩支燃燒的木柴，從黑暗中躍出。佛羅多用盡最後的力氣，丟下劍，將魔戒從手指上取下，緊緊握在右手中。