续写索阿蒂丝 Finishing Soates
作者：Matt Dunn
塔诺德知道这出戏要砸了，因为他所有的剧作技巧都已用尽。他手下的演员全都开始怯场。可能要怪剧本的行文，或者是迷信的心里在作祟，毕竟他们要表演的是一个已故作家的未竟手稿，所以无论是什么原因，每个演员都在某种程度上有失专业水准。
Tarnold knew the performance was doomed when all his playwright’s tricks were exhausted. His players were lost to performance jitters. Perhaps the text was to blame, or the superstitions surrounding the performance of a dead scribe’s unfinished work, but each mummer had succumbed to one form of unprofessionalism or another.
亚特洛扮演的角色只有一个“哲人”的代称，他的问题是死得太拖沓。每当那对名为“羊”和“狼”的双生鬼魂来到他身边，陪他吐出最后一口气的时候，他总是要苟延残喘好一段时间，显得莫名其妙。而这一次，南妮笑得太厉害，把脸上的羊面具甩掉了，落到地上发出响亮的碎裂声。
Artlo, who played a character known only as the Philosopher, wouldn’t stop dying. Each time he pantomimed his last breath in the company of that kindred pair of macabre spirits known as the Lamb and the Wolf, he prolonged his death rattles to the point of absurdity. This time, Nenni had laughed so hard her Lamb’s mask fell off her face. It landed on the ground with a loud crack.
埃米尔摘下狼面具，锋利的毛边几乎要把他的下巴磨开花。他疼得龇牙咧嘴——塔诺德知道他肯定又要叫人拿药膏来了。
Emile removed his Wolf’s mask. Its sharp, jagged edges were chafing his jowls to pulp. He winced in pain—Tarnold knew he was about to ask for the poultice again.
“停！”塔诺德说。他不需要大声喊。伶圜剧场出名的拢音结构可以保证，即使是票价半个铜板的蹲在边沿上的位置，也能清楚地听到最轻柔的叹息。
“Stop!” Tarnold said. He did not need to yell. The Mummers’ Round’s renowned acoustics ensured even the eaves-perchers, with their half-copper admission, could hear the softest sigh with clarity.
这座老剧院坐落在山顶城堡的附近，在这里能和郡王城主一样瞥见远处的黑暗森林。每每迎来今晚这样的夜宴场合，贵族们都会从郡王的宅子里出来，醉醺醺地走下山坡，借着酒意欣赏戏剧。一群贵族要是感到不悦耍起酒疯来，后果可比演出失败本身的羞辱更严重。
The old theater rested near the lord castellan’s hillfort and provided a nice glimpse of the dark forest. On banquet nights like tonight, nobles descended from the castellan’s manse to drunkenly take in the mummers’ theatrics. A displeased crowd of drunken nobles was worse than the humiliation of a failed play.
演员们中断了刚才的造型和站位，纷纷转过身面向他们的首席剧作家。
The actors released their poses and turned to face their chief dramatist.
塔诺德捏了捏鼻梁，看向剧场侧面，一个胡须浓密、穿着精致的黑色套装的人，正靠在一块事记石上。
Tarnold rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingers and looked to the wings, where a mustachioed man, dressed in black finery, leaned against one of the story stones.
“杜瓦迪。”塔诺德对那个人说，“尽量帮我争取时间。”
“Duarte,” Tarnold said to the well-dressed man. “Buy me as much time as you can.”
杜瓦迪点点头，“我拖住观众，等你发信号。”
Duarte nodded in understanding. “I’ll hold the audience until I hear your sign.”
“一定不要来打扰我们，就算俄尔茵夫人的病情好转，突然要求亲自观看预演也不行。我们已经站到了悬崖边，杜瓦迪。我们必须同归于尽，才能齐飞升腾。”
“Do not disturb us, even if Lady Erhyn herself shakes off her malaise and demands a preview. We are on the verge, Duarte. We must fall together to rise together!”
“天赐生命之风，助我们一飞冲天。”杜瓦迪亲吻自己的手心，然后印到事记石上祈求好运。他离开舞台，走出剧场。大家在一片寂静中等待门闩闭合的声音。
“Rise we shall, Tarnold. With the gust of life.” Duarte kissed the palm of his hand and placed it on the story stone for good luck. He disappeared from the stage and exited the theater. Silence pervaded while everyone waited on the sound of the heavy bolt sliding shut.
他们被反锁在伶圜剧场中，斜阳已抵不过夜晚的到来，塔诺德的脾气爆发了。
Once they were sealed within the Mummers’ Round’s walls, with the sun dipping closer to the evening, Tarnold unleashed his temper.
“雄都的孩子主意多，你让他提桶水，他给你放把火。亚特洛，人只死一次，要死得干脆一点。”他转身面向南妮，“亚特洛犯傻，你也跟着傻笑吗？我知道你是斯卡郭恩出来的女娃子，老家带来的奇怪笑点你给我克制一下，要的是你冷峻的死亡气息。”最后，他指着埃米尔说，“你的血都顺着下巴淌了。擦一下。”
“Ask a Great City boy for water, and a Great City boy will bring you fire. There is to be one death, and one death alone, Artlo.” He turned to Nenni. “Stop laughing at Artlo’s nincompoopery, you daughter of Skaggorn. Shake off your provincial humors and exude the cold menace of death.” Finally, he pointed to Emile. “I can see your blood dribbling down your cheek. Dab your cheeks.”
“拜托，让我往里塞个垫子吧，这个狼面具想咬死我。”
“Please, let me fix some padding to the inside of this accursed wolf mask.”
“你要让你的表演穿透疼痛！索阿蒂丝在临终的病榻上写出《千珏寓言集》的时候，她抱怨了么？没有。你得懂得敬畏！她的传世之宝正在刮擦你的脸。”
“Project through the pain! Did Soates complain while writing her Kindred Fables on her deathbed? No. Be honored! One of her own heirlooms chafes your cheek.”
“我的面具也不合适。”南妮说道。她刚刚已经把羊面具从舞台上捡了起来。“总往下掉。”
“This one doesn’t fit me,” Nenni said. She had picked her lamb mask up off the stage floor. “It keeps sliding off.”
“那就用绳子绑住！”塔诺德说着，把自己的腰带解下来扔到南妮脚边。
“Then use straps!” Tarnold said, pulling off his own belt to throw it at Nenni’s feet.
这个剧团已经彩排了不知多少小时，但索阿蒂丝未完成的遗作让他们一筹莫展。要问责任，塔诺德承认自己有一部分过错。作为埃尔德堡最大、也是唯一的剧院里的首席剧作家，替她续写遗作的任务落到了他的肩上。
Endless hours of rehearsals had done nothing to prepare the troupe for the performance of Soates’ final, unfinished story. Part of that, Tarnold had accepted as his own fault. As the chief dramatist of Alderburg’s greatest—and only—theater, the grim task of finishing her story fell to him.
“《果园里的羔羊》是索阿蒂丝的临终狂舞。她迸发出的最终火花，现在被我们拿在手里……而你们全都选择亵渎她的记忆，为了贪图虚荣和慵懒而对自己的戏挑肥拣瘦。她生命的最后时刻还在从迫近的湮灭中感悟真理。如果不是死亡让她持笔的手停在了这一句话上，可能我们将会对自己短暂而悲惨的存在产生更加深刻的理解。”
“Lambs in the Orchard was Soates’ final gush of madness. The very last of her spark is here, in our hands... and you all choose to desecrate her memory, picking at it for your own vanity and comfort. She spent her final moments coaxing truths from the impending nevermore. Had death not stilled her hand while writing this very scene, perhaps we would all have a far greater understanding of our own brief and tragic existence!”
几位演员一言不发，垂头丧气，最后是亚特洛清了清嗓子开了口。
The actors remained silent, chastened even, until Artlo cleared his throat and spoke up.
“请恕我直言。”这个瘦高的德玛西亚人稍作停顿。塔诺德知道亚特洛肯定要唱反调，毫不掩饰地翻了个白眼。“或许一部未完成的作品，注定就不该由别个人续写。”
“With respect,” the gangly Demacian started. Tarnold knew Artlo meant the opposite, and rolled his eyes to show it. “Perhaps an unfinished work is simply not meant to be finished by another.”
塔诺德感觉自己的品行受到了攻击。他们曾就此问题反复争论过。“你是想说这场演出就是亵渎？”
Tarnold sensed an attack on his integrity. They had had this argument over and again. “Are you suggesting that this production is a work of sacrilege?”
“我们似乎无法再现出一位大师在大限将至时的情绪。”
“We seem unable to replicate the emotions of a master writing against time.”
“你疯了吗？我们现在的确是快没时间了！”塔诺德指了指剧场木墙缝之间洒进来的落日余晖。他突然觉得一阵寒意拂过全身。
“Are you mad? We are out of time!” Tarnold pointed to the dwindling rays of sunlight piercing the wooden walls of the theater. A chilly sensation swept through him.
“可能，我们就把我们知道的部分演出来，没完成的部分就不演。这难道不是纪念索阿蒂丝的正确方式吗？你得承认，塔诺德，这一套，”亚特洛指了指自己周围，“行不通！。”
“Perhaps, we perform the bits we know and leave the unfinished unperformed. Is that not a better way to honor Soates? You must acknowledge, Tarnold, this,” Artlo said, pointing around himself, “does not work!”
亚特洛说的对。那位多产的吟游诗人写出过许多寓言故事，但他们始终都未能再现其中的灵感火花。他们的主顾是索阿蒂丝的狂热剧迷，虽然自己身体抱恙，但却期待这个剧团创造奇迹——给一部残篇续写结局。在不择手段的创作过程中，塔诺德全权委托了杜亚迪向西远行，到嘉文二世国王的雄都内寻找吟游诗人索阿蒂丝当初用过的面具。这两副面具都是古董，所以非常昂贵。
Artlo was right. They had failed to recreate the spark found in the prolific bard’s other fables. Their ailing patron, a Soates devotee, expected the impossible—an ending to an unfinished work. In desperation, Tarnold had authorized Duarte to travel to King Jarvan II’s Great City to the west, and hunt down the bard’s original masks. They were ancient and therefore costly.
塔诺德垂下了头，然后肩膀也耷拉下来，然后他向后躺倒，感觉喘不上气。天色渐晚，他焦急的心在狂跳。
Tarnold’s head slumped, his shoulders followed, and then he was on his back, struggling to breathe. His heart raced against the quickening hour.
“我们必须取消演出。”他揉了揉额头，想挤出最后一点运气，但只揩下来一手汗。“更糟的还在后头，我们还必须得退款。”他深吸一口气，“可我们已经把金子都花出去了。”
“We have to cancel the performance.” He rubbed his forehead, trying to eke out some last shred of luck, but finding only sweat. “Worse, we’ll be forced to offer refunds.” He gasped out. “We already spent the gold!”
“这个时候我是不是不该提……羊面具坏了的事。”
“It’s probably not a good time to mention that the lamb mask is broken.”
塔诺德脸上没了血色。“什么？”
The color drained from Tarnold’s face. “What?”
“刚才掉地上的时候，摔坏了。是意外事故！”南妮一只手握着面具的碎片。其中一只木耳朵断了。“我觉得可以缠起来。”
“When it fell off my face, it broke. It was an accident!” Nenni held the pieces of the mask in her hand. One of the wooden ears had snapped off. “I think I can strap it back together.”
“简直是波澜壮阔。”塔诺德几乎是在大笑着说，“我们的金子正是花在它上面了。这对面具是索阿蒂丝当初用过的。是租来的！”
“This is utterly majestic.” Tarnold almost laughed. “That’s what we spent the gold on. They were Soates’ original masks. They’re on loan!”
“她说了，是意外事故。”埃米尔说。
“She said it was an accident,” said Emile.
“让我想想。”塔诺德站起来端详这座剧场。阶梯状的环形观众席已经矗立了几百年。一块块事记石是伶圜剧场的根基。这些巨大的石板排成环形，它们立在这里的时间，甚至比任何人定居于诺克默奇的时间都更久远。经年累月，一层层木质观众席沿着石环外侧耸立而起，让人们可以从更高的视角观看舞台上的戏剧和其他仪式活动。演员和歌手会把自己的徽章刻在石柱上，在这片圣地留下自己的痕迹。
“Let me think.” Tarnold stood up to take in the theater. Its storied round had existed for centuries. The story stones were the foundation of the Mummers’ Round. The circle of towering flagstones had stood in the theater’s location long before anyone settled the Nockmirch. Over the years, wooden viewing platforms were erected to allow more a better view of the theatrics and rituals performed inside the round. Performers and singers notched the pillars with their sigils, leaving their mark upon hallowed grounds.
这座剧场一直都是塔诺德的家，在许多次艰难时期为他遮风挡雨。现在，在他的执掌下，这里却成为他悲伤的源头。
The theater had been home to Tarnold during many difficult times. Now, under his stewardship, it was the source of all his sorrows.
“一副损坏的面具讲述了两个故事，”中间看台传来一个声音，那里是最富有的贵族预留的位置。即使是四下无人的时候，塔诺德也不敢用那边那些精美的靠垫当枕头。“如果你算上面具工匠的话，其实是三个故事……可惜啊，没人愿意听那个故事。”
“A broken mask tells two stories,” said a voice from the middle balcony, reserved for the wealthiest nobles. Even in his loneliest moments, Tarnold dared not rest his head on those fine cushions. “Three, if you consider the tale of the maskmaker... Alas, no one wishes to hear that story.”
“我们都说好了彩排期间谢绝访客！”塔诺德对着演员们说。
“We agreed for no visitors during rehearsals!” Tarnold said to his performers.
“她一整晚都在这，”南妮说，“我们都以为她是你带来的人呢。”
“She’s been here all night,” Nenni said. “We thought she was with you.”
一直都在吗？不可能。塔诺德这几周一直失眠。他立刻看向那个女人，她坐的黄金座位是给俄尔茵夫人单独预留的。两夏以前，嘉文二世国王的子嗣曾坐在那里的丝绒靠垫上欣赏过塔诺德编导的万鱼之王。最终落幕的时候，那个孩子鼓掌的声音最响亮。
Had she? It was possible. Tarnold had battled insomnia for weeks. His attention snapped to the woman in the golden seats, which were reserved for the Lady Erhyn herself. Two summers ago, King Jarvan II’s little heir had sat upon those velvet cushions to enjoy Tarnold’s rendition of The King of All Fishes. The boy had clapped loudest as the final curtain fell.
“你是谁？”塔诺德说，“上前面来。”
“Who are you?” Tarnold said. “Step into the light.”
那个女人往前走，但昏暗的光线并没照清楚她的面目。她的双眼就像迷雾笼罩下的遥远星辰。她戴着似有似无的半面具，面具顶端伸出一根奇异的枝杈，枝杈上单独挂着一片黑暗的树叶。她的步调节奏透出贵族的优雅，塔诺德最后终于认出了她罩袍上的家徽。
The woman came forward, but the light illuminated little of her mystery. Her eyes were distant stars shining through mist. She wore a ghostly half-mask with a curious twirl of a twig sprouting off the top. Upon that sprig was a single dark leaf. Her elegant gait sang of nobility, and Tarnold finally recognized the crest on her gown.
她正是他们的赞助人，看来是克服了顽疾。
It was their patron, recovered from her malaise.
“俄尔茵夫人，我有眼无珠！请见谅。”塔诺德恭敬地俯身鞠躬。“请问，是谁家的面具得来福分戴在您的面前？看着眼熟但又想不起来。”
“My lady Erhyn, I did not recognize you! Please forgive me.” Tarnold offered a respectable bow. “Tell me, what mask is this that graces your face? It is familiar yet beyond memory.”
“这是用艾尔德劳克树雕出来的。”她的嗓音平静，虽然轻声细语，但却听得字字清晰。“故事里说，从艾尔德劳克树上取下来的任何木料，都会和大树母亲在同样的季节开花萌芽。无论相距多远，只要大树母亲依然挺立，这份纽带就绝不会被扯断。”
“It is made of eldlock.” She spoke in a calm voice. Her words were clear, even as she whispered. “The stories tell that any wood removed from an eldlock will continue to blossom and flower in season with its mothertree, as long as it still stands. No distance may sever their bond.”
“真是稀奇，夫人。”
“It is exquisite, my lady.”
“容我插一句嘴，”俄尔茵夫人对着演员们说，“我有个修改建议不知想不想听。”
“I have interrupted,” Lady Erhyn said, gesturing to the actors. “Perhaps I could suggest a change.”
“当然，那太好了！”塔诺德双手胡乱挥舞。他看了看两侧，又看回舞台。这一次，所有演员都闭嘴不说话了。“我们最喜欢的赞助人，要提建议我们肯定欢迎。”
“Why, of course!” Tarnold fidgeted with his hands. He looked to the wings, and to the stage. The mummers were keeping their mouths shut, for once. “Advice from our favorite patron is always welcome.”
“索阿蒂丝在世的时候，所有演员都是戴面具的。那，或许大家必须带上面具，才能窥探她在死亡大门之前看到的那些神魔灵怪，体味她在被黑夜拥入怀抱之前的奋笔疾书。”
“All actors were masked in Soates’ day—perhaps all must don masks to channel the strange spirits she saw at death’s door, as she scribbled furiously into the night’s embrace.”
“这个主意我喜欢！”亚特洛说，“装面具的棺材呢？剩下的面具都在里边。”他一边说着，一边钻进后台消失了。
“I like that!” Artlo said. “Where is the casket of masks? There were others in that trunk,” he called as he vanished behind the stage.
“别急，稍等，这得好好商量——”
“Now, wait, let’s talk this—”
塔诺德话说到一半停住了，因为他看到那个戴着艾尔德劳克木面具的憔悴妇人把双手扣在一起。他们这位赞助人似乎有点不同寻常。
Tarnold was silenced by the sight of the gaunt lady with the eldlock mask clasping her hands together. There was something off about their benefactor.
但还不等塔诺德找到旁敲侧击的机会，亚特洛就已经回到了台前，拖着一个长度堪比他身高的大箱子。箱子侧面刻着Q•W•索阿蒂丝的名字。塔诺德突然意识到，这个古旧的木箱的确是很像一口棺材。
Before Tarnold could put his finger on it, Artlo returned onstage, dragging a trunk that was as long as he was tall. The name Q. W. Soates was engraved on its long side. Suddenly, it struck Tarnold how much the old trunk resembled a coffin.
亚特洛搬开厚重的箱子盖，说道，“入土的诗人朽烂以后的味儿。”
Artlo lifted open the heavy trunk’s lid. “Smells like dead poets,” he said.
这人真是没品味。塔诺德心想道。
The man really has no taste, Tarnold thought.
生锈的折叶发出厚重的吱嘎声，像饿犬的哀嚎一样回荡在剧场里。另外两个演员伸长了脖子往箱子里看。
A heavy creak of rusted hinges reverberated through the round like the howl of a starving dog. The other two actors craned their necks to peer inside.
“先别急着挑选，”戴艾尔德劳克木面具的妇人说，“务必听我下面一言。天色已晚，戏将开场，若要今晚为人铭记，各位需选择与自己相称的面具，因为我们所演绎的灵魂……”
“Before you choose,” the woman in the eldlock mask said. “Please heed these next words wisely. The hour is late, the show waits to play, and tonight can be truly memorable if all choose the mask that is right for them, for the spirits we become...”
“……常寄于我们内心。”埃米尔补全了后半句。
“...Inhabit us,” Emile completed.
“演员的信条。”南妮说。
“The mummers’ tenet,” Nenni said.
“无论这场疯狂闹剧最后的味道如何，”亚特洛撇嘴露出歪笑，“我都要参与其中。来吧，塔诺德。你就是再顽固也得承认，现如今这个情况，我们必须借着生命之风舞下去。”
“Whatever flavor of madness this is,” Artlo said, a grin spreading on his face, “I want to be a part of it. Come, Tarnold. Even you must agree that at this late stage, we must perform with the gust of life.”
“勇往直前。”那位妇人说。
“Intrepid,” the lady said.
塔诺德似乎从她口中听出一丝笑意。他记不太清楚……刚才杜瓦迪离开的时候，贵族的看台没清空吗？整座剧场都清空了……而这位俄尔茵夫人现在给他感觉也很不一样。她似乎体态憔悴，忧心忡忡。似乎俄尔茵夫人并没有从恶病中彻底康复。傍晚的凉气开始袭来。
Tarnold heard the hint of a strange smile on her face. He couldn’t remember... had the nobles’ balcony not been empty when Duarte left? The whole theater was empty... Lady Erhyn struck him as different now, too. She seemed gaunt and haunted. Perhaps the noble lady Erhyn hadn’t entirely shaken off her affliction. The evening chill was settling in.
“夫人，见您安康无恙我甚是高兴。要不我给您拿件斗篷来？”
“My lady, I am most pleased at your recovery. Perhaps I can fetch you a cloak?”
“瞧瞧，这才是用来纪念过世诗人的面具。”亚特洛说。
“Now, this is the mask to honor a forgotten poet,” Artlo said.
俄尔茵摆摆手拒绝了塔诺德，面向亚特洛说，“不祥之选。兀鹫专门啄食尸首残骸，风卷残云后，它就飞上枝头，远离此地，等待下一顿餐食。”
Lady Erhyn waved off Tarnold’s offer, turning to Artlo. “An ominous choice. The Vulture picks at what remains, and when nothing is left... it flies on to perches far removed from here and waits for the next meal.”
“拿索阿蒂丝的遗产当饭吃，必是一顿大餐。”亚特洛转过身向众人展示自己的新妆：一副骨白色的面具，前方突出又长又尖的弯钩鸟喙。再加上他原本就瘦高的身材，宛如一只食腐的飞禽。
“Pecking at Soates’ legacy sounds like a feast.” Artlo turned around and showed off his guise: a bone-white mask with a long, hooked beak. The gangly man resembled a carrion bird.
憔悴的妇人靠近舞台。她看上去是那么古老，但举手投足又透着矍铄和优雅。她的皮肤看上去不像是血肉之躯。塔诺德想到了石膏抹平、凝固以后的质感。她的头发如同黑夜本身，向外发散着欲拒还迎的拥抱。他感到自己被挤压得喘不上气。他居然能把她们两个认错？
The gaunt lady approached the stage. She seemed so ancient, yet hale and graceful in her moves. Her skin did not look like flesh. It reminded Tarnold of plaster, after it had been set and smoothed. Her hair was the very night itself, radiating outward in a wavering embrace. He felt as if the breath were stabbed out of his lungs. How could he have ever mistaken the two?
“你不是俄尔茵夫人。”
“You’re not Lady Erhyn.”
演员们全然不理会恍然大悟的塔诺德。一阵冰冷的狂喜摄住了他的心脏。心跳的巨响震彻耳畔，几乎盖过了几位演员的话。
The actors were oblivious to Tarnold’s epiphany. A chilling swoon descended upon his heart. Its beating pulsed loudly in his ears, nearly drowning out the actors’ words.
“跟我换面具，”南妮对埃米尔说，“你这细皮嫩肉的戴不了这么帅的面具。我的皮肤大风大浪都见过，比你强。”
“Switch masks with me,” Nenni said to Emile. “Your soft skin can’t wear such a handsome mask. My skin’s weathered worse, I’ll reckon.”
“既然你这么想戴这个扎人的玩意，”埃米尔把狼面具递给了他的搭档，“那我就提前为你可爱的下巴默哀了。”
“If you want to wear that agonizing thing...” Emile offered the wolf mask to his stage partner. “I mourn for your lovely cheekbones.”
二人交换了面具，戴到面前。
The two slipped on their swapped masks.
一阵风吹过伶圜剧场，墙壁发出悄声细语。窗榄闭合。塔诺德在迅捷的旋风中听到了说话的声音。
The walls whispered as a gust of wind swept over the Mummers’ Round. Shutters clacked shut. Tarnold heard voices in that swift and swirling breeze.
“小羊，这里，有心跳。”一个低沉的声音吼道。
“Heartbeats, Lamb. Here,” a deep voice growled.
塔诺德寻找声音的来处，但只看到几名演员。他们似乎都已忘记了他的存在。然后，在他耳畔，另一个声音唱起歌来。
Tarnold looked for the source, but could only see his mummers. They seemed to have forgotten all about him. Then, in his left ear, sang another voice.
“零星微光，
“Bits of light,墨中舞裳，Dancing in the dark,仓忙，仓忙，仓忙……”
Playing on, playing on, playing on...”
短暂的词句贯穿塔诺德，让他猛醒。在舞台上，他看到南妮和埃米尔手牵着手，戴着对方的面具。然后他看到两名演员嘴里吐出诡异的台词。
The words flew through Tarnold with a jolt. On the stage, he saw Nenni and Emile, hand in hand, wearing each other’s masks. Then he saw the otherwordly words were coming from the actors’ mouths.
“没错，”埃米尔说话的嗓音提高到了假声，抑扬顿挫，如同鬼魅附身。“现在我看到我最亲爱的狼了。”
“Yes,” Emile said, shifting his voice up to a lilting and haunted falsetto. “I see my darlingest Wolf now.”
“啊——”南妮发出一声爽快的嚎叫，她的声音低沉而粗暴。“感觉好多了，小羊。”这名演员趴到了地上，躯干伸展和压低的程度超出人类的范围。“可以玩追赶游戏了吗？”
“Ahhh.” Nenni let out a relieved growl, her voice guttural and deep. “That feels better, little Lamb.” The actor dropped down on all fours, and stretched lower than a human should be able to. “Is it time to play chase?”
“只等帷幕升起，
“When the veil lifts,你当尽用尖牙利爪，You shall claw and bite,我的箭矢飞啸，随后我们前往下一幕。”
My arrow swift, and on to the next act we go.”
塔诺德穿过舞台，眼神始终盯着那个憔悴的妇人。“这是什么把戏？求你了，别干涉我们！”
Tarnold crossed the round, keeping his eyes fixed on the gaunt lady. “What trickery is this? Please, leave us be!”
那个妇人面向塔诺德说，“我不是你的雇主。”
The woman turned to Tarnold. “I am not your patron,” she said.
塔诺德看了看那些戴面具的演员。“你们几个，都给我从台上下来。回家去。这场戏演完了。”他提高音量，对着闩住的入口大喊道，“杜瓦迪！”
Tarnold looked to his masked actors. “All of you, clear the stage. Go home. The performance is over.” He raised his voice, shouting toward the barred entrance. “Duarte!”
“塔诺德……”那个并非俄尔茵夫人的妇人转过身看着他，闪烁的眼睛深邃而广袤。在艾尔德劳克木面具下，那双眼睛散发出诞于黑暗的光芒。诡异的光泽让塔诺德神游出窍。无论这个人是谁，他感到相识而又陌生；恐惧而又向往。要逃离她似乎很傻，但又合情合理。他不需要进行抉择，就径直走向舞台。
“Tarnold...” The woman who was not Lady Erhyn turned and looked at him with the enormity of her vast, glimmering eyes. Even behind the eldlock mask, they shone with a light born of darkness. Their eerie sheen pulled Tarnold’s attention out of his body. Whoever this was, he knew her and did not; feared her and sought her. Running from her felt foolish, and reasonable. Without deciding to, he walked toward the stage.
“面具都给我摘掉，”他说，“这，简直疯了……这出戏中邪了！你们还没看出来吗？假如，我们大胆猜测一下，索阿蒂丝并不是意外死在写这出戏的半途中，而是写出果园里的羔羊这个行为本身害死了她……这个故事本身就是诅咒！”
“Take the masks off,” he said. “Now. This is madness... This play is cursed! Don’t you see? What if, in the conjuring, Soates did not happen to die while writing the play, the act of writing Lambs in the Orchard was itself what killed her... The narrative itself is a curse!”
回答他的不是那个憔悴妇人，不是南妮的狼，也不是埃米尔的羊。亚特洛，或者说透过亚特洛发声的东西，用刺耳的声音回答了他。他高高展开双臂，单腿站立，宛如一只食腐的飞禽。
It was not the gaunt lady, Nenni’s wolf nor Emile’s lamb that replied. Artlo, or whatever spoke through Artlo, answered in a screeching voice. He spread his arms high and stood upon one leg, like a carrion bird.
“作者等着我啄食。”他的嘴角裂开了口子，“索阿蒂丝已经真正死亡了……如今已经没有人记得当时的她。”亚特洛被拉长的脸颊上流下泪水。那个声音让塔诺德的心脏僵滞，脚步也停下了。“索阿蒂丝跟在我身后飞，很快就迷失遗落。纸张上的文字。风中的名字。只不过是……残片。”
“The author waits for my beak,” he said. The corners of his lips cracked and split open. “Soates is truly dead... as none remember her now as she once was.” Tears ran down Artlo’s stretched cheeks. The voice stilled Tarnold’s heart and stopped him in his stride. “Soates flies in my wake, soon lost and forgotten. Words on a page. A name on the wind. Shreds... nothing more.”
“索阿蒂丝的残片依然是索阿蒂丝。”憔悴妇人说。
“Shreds of Soates is still Soates,” said the gaunt lady.
“他停止了表演……”占据了亚特洛的东西丝毫不在意自己对他的身体造成多大痛苦。那个演员的胳膊猛烈向前扭摆伸展，皮包骨头的手对着塔诺德伸出一根凌厉的指头，“而且他不戴面具……”
“He ceased the performance...” Whatever spoke through poor Artlo didn’t care how much pain it caused the man’s body. The actor’s arm violently wrenched forward and stretched, its bony hand pointing an accusatory finger at Tarnold. “And he wears no mask...”
“你距离索阿蒂丝是如此接近，”那个妇人对剧作家说，“选一副面具，见证她最后一场戏最真实的演绎。”
“You are so close to Soates,” the woman said to the dramatist. “Choose a mask, and see her final scene come alive.”
他想逃离伶圜剧场。他想象自己跑上山坡来到郡王城主的山顶城堡，或者跑到镇上。他进入俄尔茵夫人的宅子以后会怎样？他望向那个憔悴的妇人。太阳几乎已经落山。虫鸣和鸟啼声渐起，迎接即将到来的黑夜。他曾在多少个夜晚梦见过索阿蒂丝的临终时刻，最后一场戏……
He thought about running from the Mummers’ Round. He pictured himself fleeing up to the lord castellan’s fort on the hill, or into town. What would he find in Lady Erhyn’s house? He looked to the gaunt woman. The sun had almost set. The evening cacophony of insects and night birds chirped out their greetings to the coming night. How many nights had he dreamt of Soates’ final moments, of the final scene...
“必须所有人都戴好面具。”那个妇人说。
“Everyone must wear a mask,” the woman said.
塔诺德哑然地点了点头，捉摸不透艾尔德劳克木面具后面的表情如何，但那片黑暗的树叶在一阵觉察不到的风中轻轻飘舞。
Mouth agape, Tarnold nodded in agreement with the woman in the eldlock mask, that dark leaf dancing in an unfelt breeze.
“如果必须要我选面具，那我承认，我知道我要选的那一副并不在这个箱子里，也不在这个舞台上。”他觉得自己的四肢重新注入了生命力。他浑身骨骼僵硬，动弹不得，但那种情况只是暂时的。
“If I must choose a mask, then I confess, I know the one I would select is not in that trunk, nor is it on the stage.” He felt life return to his limbs. His bones were stiff and unwieldy... but that was a temporary condition.
那个憔悴的妇人笑着说，“你想戴我的面具？这是极好的决定，亲爱的塔诺德，一个充满创造力与好奇心的人。来从我面前摘下它吧。”
The gaunt woman smiled. “You wish to wear my mask? That is a most excellent decision, dear Tarnold, a man of creativity and curiosity. Come and remove it from my face.”
“我要摘下你的面具，然后变成你。愿我们所演绎的灵魂……”
“I shall take your mask, and become you. May the spirits we become...”
“……常寄于我们内心，根深叶茂。”她说出了后半句。
“...Inhabit us deeply and truly,” she finished.
塔诺德摘下了那副艾尔德劳克活木面具，把它戴到自己脸上，终于，他看到了索阿蒂丝戏剧的真实结局。这个结局既完美又糟糕，既充满活力又令人窒息。
When Tarnold did, and placed the living eldlock mask on his face, he saw, finally, the true ending of Soates’ play. It was flawless and terrible, life-giving and breathtaking.
“朋友们，同伴们，请就位。”他说，“我们的故事可不等人。让我们同归于尽，齐飞升腾，共唱和声，礼赞生命之风。”
“Places, my friends and fellows,” he said. “Our tale waits for no one. Let us fall together to rise as one, and sing our harmonies with the gust of life.”
“最后的呼啸。”羊，狼和秃鹫齐声应答。
“One last gust,” replied Lamb, Wolf, and Vulture.
于是，他们开始了表演。
And together, they played.
杜瓦迪一整天都在瞒着塔诺德，不敢告诉他关于俄尔茵夫人的消息，但有好几次他差点就忍不住透露出她的死讯。今早还没破晓的时候，她就伴着恶病离世了，至少新任俄尔茵家族夫人是这么说的。这个噩耗足以摧毁整个剧团的士气。他知道，塔诺德是最无法承受的。
虽然杜瓦迪心情沉重，但在这场悲剧的尽头，也有一丝光明，一件激动人心的好事。俄尔茵夫人在临终的病榻上嘱托，要将她的财产全部用于资助伶圜剧场，点名由塔诺德管理，不设期限。
然而，随着时间越拖越久，那帮醉醺醺的贵族老爷们开始等得不耐烦了。脾气大的贵族要是觉得自己受到侮辱，往往会出言不逊，冷嘲热讽，而最糟糕的情况则是，抵制未来的剧团创作。
Duarte had kept the news about Lady Erhyn hidden from Tarnold all day, even though the truth of her passing threatened to burst forth from his lips. Her malaise carried her off in kindred company before dawn, or so the new lady of House Erhyn had said. The news could break the morale of the entire troupe. Tarnold, he knew, would take it exceptionally hard.
前来的观众们开始在门口聚集，他们脸上都涂了烟灰，以此向俄尔茵夫人致哀。就在杜瓦迪打算说点什么压一压场面的时候，他听到了塔诺德的开门信号。
But just as sorrow weighed down Duarte’s heart, there was a brightness, an exciting turn of good fortune beyond the tragedy. Lady Erhyn, on her deathbed, bade her estate to fund the Mummers’ Round, and Tarnold specifically, in perpetuity.
他连忙跑到大门口，搬开了沉重的门闩。观众们冲进剧场，他们看到演员们已在铺满了黑柄玫瑰残花的舞台上摆好造型，纷纷驻足。这幅骇人的景象把乱哄哄的人群镇住了。他们迅速而安静地找好自己的座位。俄尔茵夫人的专座是整个剧场里唯一的空地。
However, as the hour drew later, the inebriated nobles grew weary of the wait. Belligerent and insulted nobility often led to lashings, mockings, and worse: sanctions against future endeavors.
演员们保持着充满张力的静止，而台下的贵族们则等待着索阿蒂丝失传已久而且没有写完的绝笔，隆重开场。
As Duarte was about to address the amassed watchers, daubed with ashes and charcoal in mourning of Lady Erhyn, he heard Tarnold’s signal to open the doors.
杜瓦迪没有看到塔诺德。很少看到这位剧作家在首演之夜丢下演员们不管。正常情况下，他会向观众们致欢迎词，然后带上一瓶酒站在侧面观看。
He rushed to the gate and removed the heavy deadbolt. The audience rushed in and stopped short as they found the actors posed upon a stage covered in wilted black-stemmed roses. Their buzzing anticipation was hushed by the macabre tableau. They quickly and quietly found their seats. Lady Erhyn’s seat of honor was the only empty spot in the house.
他转身查看开场的造型。南妮和埃米尔锁定在至死方休的拥抱中。南妮戴着狼面具，手里握着一支箭，似乎直接刺进了埃米尔的肋间。埃米尔的双手则掐着南妮的喉咙。
The actors held their strenuous positions while the noble audience waited for Soates’ long-lost and unfinished masterpiece to finally begin.
亚特洛本应该扮演一个哲人，现在则不知为何戴着一副面具，看上去像一只报丧的乌鸦。他蹲坐在一棵道具树上，悬在狼羊双子的头顶，双臂像翅膀一样张开。他的胳膊上挂着许多干枯的花，如同一片片羽毛。
Duarte saw no sign of Tarnold. It was unusual for the dramatist to desert his cast on opening night—normally he would greet the audience before watching from the wings with a bottle of wine.
他们甚至都不喘气……
He turned to inspect the opening stance. Nenni and Emile were locked in a mortal embrace. Nenni, wearing the wolf mask, held an arrow that seemed to stick directly into Emile’s side. Emile’s hands were wrapped around Nenni’s throat.
观众们安静地坐在台下，急切地等待开演，但杜瓦迪意识到少了点什么。他来到后台，查看剧作家最喜欢的位置。没有酒，也没有塔诺德。
Artlo, who was supposed to be playing a philosopher, now inexplicably wore a mask that resembled a dirge crow. He perched atop a prop tree, suspended over the other pair, his arms outstretched like great wings. Dead flowers hung from his arms like feathers.
反倒是看到了世上仅存的那一本果园里的羔羊。
They weren’t even breathing...
他翻倒最后一页。故事依然没有写完，但塔诺德稳健的笔迹写下了新的一行。
The audience stayed silent, eagerly awaiting action, but Duarte realized something was amiss. Backstage, Duarte checked the dramatist’s favorite perch. There was no bottle of wine, and no Tarnold, either.
结局不给那些不戴面具的人看。她给我看了，很美。
Instead there was the last surviving copy of Lambs in the Orchard.
He thumbed to the last page. The story remained unfinished, but there was a new line written in Tarnold’s steady hand.
The end is not for those who wear no masks. She showed me, and it was beautiful.
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