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BRAN
布蘭
The tower stood upon an island, its twin reflected on the still blue waters.
塔堡矗立在島上，影子倒映于平靜的藍色湖面。
When the wind blew, ripples moved across the surface of the lake, chasing one another like boys at play.
朔風(fēng)吹起，波紋蕩漾，猶如嬉戲的小孩互相追逐。
Oak trees grew thick along the lakeshore, a dense stand of them with a litter of fallen acorns on the ground beneath.
橡樹沿岸生長，茂密繁盛，地上布滿掉落的橡果。
Beyond them was the village, or what remained of it.
林后是個村子，或者說村子的遺跡。
It was the first village they had seen since leaving the foothills.
那是下山之后他們見到的第一個村子。
Meera had scouted ahead to make certain there was no one lurking amongst the ruins.
梅拉在前探路，以確保沒人躲在廢墟之中。
Sliding in and amongst oaks and apple trees with her net and spear in hand,
她手拿索網(wǎng)和捕蛙矛，穿梭于橡樹和蘋果樹之間，
she startled three red deer and sent them bounding away through the brush.
驚起三頭紅鹿，使它們跳躍著越過灌木叢逃開。
Summer saw the flash of motion and was after them at once.
夏天發(fā)現(xiàn)動靜，立刻追趕過去，
Bran watched the direwolf lope off, and for a moment wanted nothing so much as to slip his skin and run with him,
布蘭看冰原狼大步奔跑，片刻之間，只想換為他的形體，同他一起前進。
but Meera was waving for them to come ahead.
但梅拉已揮手示意他們跟上，
Reluctantly, he turned away from Summer and urged Hodor on, into the village.
于是他不情不愿地催促阿多進村，
Jojen walked with them.
玖健跟隨在旁。
The ground from here to the Wall was grasslands, Bran knew;
布蘭知道，從此直到長城，一路都是草原，
fallow fields and low rolling hills, high meadows and lowland bogs.
包括未耕種的田地和低伏的丘陵，高處的草場和低地的沼澤。
It would be much easier going than the mountains behind, but so much open space made Meera uneasy.
這比他們走出的山區(qū)要容易行走，但開闊地讓梅拉不安。
“I feel naked,” she confessed.
“感覺就像沒穿衣服，”她承認，
“There’s no place to hide.”
“無處可藏。”
“Who holds this land?” Jojen asked Bran.
“這片土地屬于誰？”玖健問布蘭。
“The Night’s Watch,” he answered.
“屬于守夜人軍團，”他回答。
“This is the Gift.
“這是‘新贈地’，
The New Gift, and north of that Brandon’s Gift.”
位于‘布蘭登的饋贈’以南。”
Maester Luwin had taught him the history.
魯溫學(xué)士教的歷史派上了用場。
“Brandon the Builder gave all the land south of the Wall to the black brothers, to a distance of twenty-five leagues.
“‘筑城者’布蘭登將絕境長城南方二十五里格的土地全部送給黑衣弟兄，
For their … for their sustenance and support.”
作為……作為維持生計的資源。”
He was proud that he still remembered that part.
他很驕傲自己仍記得上的課。
“Some maesters say it was some other Brandon, not the Builder, but it’s still Brandon’s Gift.
“有些學(xué)士爭論說那是另一個布蘭登，不是‘筑城者’，但反正那就叫‘布蘭登的饋贈’。
Thousands of years later, Good Queen Alysanne visited the Wall on her dragon Silverwing,
數(shù)千年后，善良的亞莉珊王后乘她的龍‘銀翼’造訪長城，
and she thought the Night’s Watch was so brave that she had the Old King double the size of their lands, to fifty leagues.
敬佩于守夜人的勇敢，因此建議‘人瑞王’將土地翻倍，擴展至五十里格。
So that was the New Gift.”
這就是‘新贈地’。”
He waved a hand.
他揮揮手。
“Here. All this.”
“這里。所有這些都是。”
No one had lived in the village for long years, Bran could see.
布蘭看得出，村子已多年無人居住。
All the houses were falling down. Even the inn.
所有房屋皆已倒塌，連客棧也不例外。
It had never been much of an inn, to look at it,
它原本就不是個像樣的客棧，
but now all that remained was a stone chimney and two cracked walls, set amongst a dozen apple trees.
而今只剩一根石煙囪和兩道殘墻，周圍是十幾棵蘋果樹。
One was growing up through the common room, where a layer of wet brown leaves and rotting apples carpeted the floor.
其中一棵從大廳里長出來，廳內(nèi)地板鋪著一層濕乎乎的棕葉和爛蘋果，
The air was thick with the smell of them, a cloying cidery scent that was almost overwhelming.
空中充滿濃郁的氣味，有些像酒，幾乎掩蓋了所有其他味道。
Meera stabbed a few apples with her frog spear, trying to find some still good enough to eat, but they were all too brown and wormy.
梅拉用蛙矛戳起幾個蘋果，試圖找到一些可以吃的，但沒用，它們?nèi)闪俗睾稚瑑?nèi)里長滿蠕蟲。
It was a peaceful spot, still and tranquil and lovely to behold,
這里平靜、安寧、寂謐，別具一番愜意舒適，
but Bran thought there was something sad about an empty inn, and Hodor seemed to feel it too.
但布蘭覺得空蕩蕩的客棧有些悲哀，阿多似乎也有同感。
“Hodor?”
“阿多？”
he said in a confused sort of way.
他困惑地說，
“Hodor? Hodor?”
“阿多？阿多？”
“This is good land.”
“多好的一片土地。”
Jojen picked up a handful of dirt, rubbing it between his fingers.
玖健抓起泥土，在指間揉搓，
“A village, an inn, a stout holdfast in the lake, all these apple trees …
“有村子，有客棧，還有湖中的堅固要塞，蘋果樹……
but where are the people, Bran?
但人在哪兒，布蘭？
Why would they leave such a place?”
人們?yōu)楹坞x開這樣好的地方。”
“They were afraid of the wildlings,” said Bran.
“因為野人，”布蘭說。
“Wildlings come over the Wall or through the mountains, to raid and steal and carry off women.
“野人們穿過長城或群山，前來搶劫偷盜，擄奪婦女。
If they catch you, they make your skull into a cup to drink blood, Old Nan used to say.
老奶媽說，若教他們逮住，頭骨就會被做成飲血的杯子。
The Night’s Watch isn’t so strong as it was in Brandon’s day or Queen Alysanne’s, so more get through.
而今守夜人的力量不如布蘭登或亞莉珊王后的時代那樣強，許多野人都能過來。
The places nearest the Wall got raided so much the smallfolk moved south, into the mountains or onto the Umber lands east of the kingsroad.
靠近長城的地方常遭劫掠，因此百姓們往南遷移，進入群山中或國王大道以東的安柏家領(lǐng)地。
The Greatjon’s people get raided too, but not so much as the people who used to live in the Gift.”
大瓊恩那兒也會遭受劫掠，但不若贈地里這么頻繁。”
Jojen Reed turned his head slowly, listening to music only he could hear.
玖健·黎德緩緩轉(zhuǎn)頭，聆聽只有他能聽見的聲音。
“We need to shelter here.
“我們得找遮蔽，
There’s a storm coming.
暴風(fēng)雨快來了，
A bad one.”
猛烈的暴風(fēng)雨。”
