游刃有余影 A Piece of Shadow Cake

作者：Odin Austin Shafer

霞向前跳进树叶的遮蔽中，躲避庙墙上发射的枪火。人类管这种武器叫做“喀舒利来复枪”。这是夺命的兵器，而且镇上的卫兵显然也都是经过训练的战士。不过他们已经来不及了——来不及打中她，也来不及阻止她派出的部族战士。现在她的手下应该已经爬到了古庙的位置，抵达了那群人类要守护的东西：一座琨珑。

Xayah jumped upward into the trees’ foliage, dodging the gunfire that exploded from the temple’s walls. The humans called their weapons “Kashuri rifles”. They were deadly, and the town’s guards were obviously trained warriors. But they were too late. Too late to hit her. Too late to stop the tribesmen she commanded, who had already climbed the ancient temple and reached what it guarded: a quinlon.

那是五块浮在空中的巨石，沿着圆环轨迹不断旋转。它是巨大的地标，里面蕴含着远古的魔咒，束缚着、限制着这座土地上的自然魔法。

It was a circle of five massive rocks, orbiting around each other, floating in the sky. A great ward, it contained ancient enchantments, which held back and limited the natural magic of this land.

琨珑的灰色石面上挂着十多条绳子，绳子前端困在长矛上，由瓦斯塔亚部族成员掷出，扎进石头里。这一群瓦斯塔亚属于柯刹喇一族，他们的体表覆盖着羽毛，和霞的族群一样，但他们的头部很长，在头顶的位置长着大角。

From the quinlon’s gray stone hung a dozen ropes, attached to spikes that the vastayan tribesmen had cast and hammered into it. The tribesmen were the Kepthalla vastaya. Their bodies were feathered, like Xayah’s own tribe, but their heads were long, and from their crown grew great horns.

绳子的末端被部族成员拴在腰上，现在挂在最下面的都是刚刚战死的烈士。还有一些摔下了更底端的地面。十多个战友在攀爬的途中死在了人类的弹丸下。但至少，他们的牺牲换来了霞所需的战线。

Hanging from some of those lines, with ropes tied to their waists, were the bodies of the slain. And on the ground far below were more dead bodies. A dozen comrades who had died trying to reach the stone—killed by the humans’ cruel missiles. But their sacrifice had, at least, secured the line Xayah needed.

她对自己的爱人和搭档——洛点了点头。他凑上去偷吻了她一下，接过她手里的包裹。然后洛跳上了树顶。

She nodded to Rakan, her lover and partner. He stole a kiss from her as he took the bundle she held. Then Rakan bounded into the treetops.

“呜——！”他开心地大喊一声，在树丛之间跳跃，以惊人的速度跳到空中。

“Whooo!” He screamed in joy as he skipped from tree to tree before jumping into the sky with breathtaking speed.

他的最后一跃飞过了高塔，这段距离要比十几个人叠起来还高，而他依然还在继续上升。

His final leap traversed the height of the tower, a distance greater than a dozen men standing on each other’s shoulders, and still he was rising higher and higher into the air.

霞感到自己像是断了气。为了这一刻已经死了那么多人……她害怕自己的爱人也加入死者的行列。一切都太明亮了。洛的斗篷像秋日轻云之后的太阳一样闪烁。枪口在追着他的轨迹。一切的成败都在此一举。但他跳跃的能量正在放缓……

Xayah felt her lungs empty. So many had died for this moment… and in it she feared her lover might join the dead. Everything seemed too bright. Rakan’s cape glittered like the sun through the thin autumn clouds. The guns were tracking him. Aiming. It all came down to this. But the energy of his leaps was slowing…

在他上面，一根绳子上，一个柯刹喇族人正在从藏身之处荡下来，迎着洛。但洛正在减速。而那些枪手已经开始开火。

Above him, on one of the ropes, a Kepthalla tribesman swung down from his hiding place, toward Rakan. But Rakan was slowing. And the guns began firing at him.

这个计划太荒唐了，只是因为她看到了洛的傻气杂耍就突发奇想。霞知道不应该出此下策。她在冒险，而失败的代价是整场战斗，是这个部族的命运，还有她爱人的性命，全部筹码都押在洛的运气和体能上。他是战士也是杂技高手不假，但有这么多支枪。如果他失败了，如果他犹豫了，如果他慢了……如果他受伤了……

It was a ludicrous plan, based on some idiotic circus move she’d seen Rakan perform. Xayah knew she shouldn’t have used it. She was risking the battle, the fate of this tribe, and her lover’s life all on Rakan’s luck and athleticism. He was a warrior and an acrobat certainly. But there were so many guns. If he failed—if he hesitated—if he slowed… if he got hurt…

悬在空中的柯刹喇族人伸出双手，洛抓住了，然后借着他的力量继续向上飞。

The tribesman hanging from the stone held out his hands and Rakan grabbed them, propelling himself even further upward.

随后他来到了琨珑的旁边。他沿着近乎垂直的表面奔跑，斗篷在身后威风凛凛。他在笑。他在嘲笑向他开枪的凡人。

And then he was on the side of the quinlon. He ran up its near-vertical surface, his cape flowing behind him majestically. And he was laughing. Laughing and mocking the mortals firing at him.

“你个俊美混蛋。”霞喜悦地呢喃。她紧握的双拳终于松开了。

“You beautiful bastard,” Xayah whispered joyfully. She felt her hands unclench at last.

“有何指示，领军？”一个身材矮小的柯刹喇传令歌手问道。

“What, warleader?” said the diminutive Kepthalla messenger-singer beside her.

“收兵！让所有人都撤下来。”霞吼道。

“Sound the retreat! Get everyone off that rock,” Xayah roared.

传令手吹响了随身的号角。深沉而忧郁的奇响回荡在森林和寺庙的高墙之间。

The messenger blew the horn he carried. Its strangely deep and melancholy sound echoed through the forest and off the temple’s walls.

柯刹喇族人开始从琨珑撤退。绳降、跳跃、坠落，最后跑向森林。他们都是人类枪手的活靶子……但后者并没有上钩。那些凡人知道，现在只有洛才是有价值的目标。而他现在正孤军奋战。

The Kepthalla tribesmen began to flee from the quinlon. Rappelling, jumping, falling, before running for the forest. They were easy prey for the human marksmen… but they didn’t take the bait. The mortals knew that Rakan was the only target who mattered now. But now he was alone.

枪声在他身边响起，打在琨珑的石面上形成无数个小孔。洛抵达了顶端，放下包裹，然后疑惑地环顾四周。他看着下面的霞，耸了耸肩。

Gunshots exploded around him, peppering the stone of the quinlon with tiny holes. When he reached the top, Rakan set down the package, then glanced around in confusion. He looked down at Xayah and shrugged.

“别看我啊，你个蠢货！”霞大喊道，“火柴！点火的棍子在你耳朵后面别着呢！”但距离太远，她的话语淹没在了枪声里。

“No, you damn idiot!” Xayah screamed. “The matches! The fire sticks behind your ear!” But her words were lost in the gunfire and distance.

霞跳到树顶，伸手示意自己的耳后，丝毫不顾自己暴露在枪手的视线中。

Xayah leapt to the top of the trees, exposing herself to the marksmen, and mimed reaching behind her ear.

子弹打在他的四周，激起石块和尘屑。但洛只是用手遮住午后的耀眼阳光，为了把霞看清楚。看到她的动作以后，他似乎立刻想起了她计划的其余部分。

The bullets were impacting all around him, sending up tiny shards of shrapnel and dust. But Rakan only covered his eyes from the afternoon glare and looked to Xayah. Seeing her gesture, he seemed to suddenly remember the rest of her plan.

他从耳后的羽毛中拔出了一根火柴。在石面上擦了一下。凑到了包裹旁边。然后跳到开阔的空中。

He yanked a match from the feathers behind his ear. Struck it on the rock. Leaned over the bundle with it. Then jumped clear.

他用自己的斗篷引导坠落的方向，时而滑行时而俯冲，奇迹般地躲过了射向他的子弹。他是一名战舞舞者，他们的看家本领就是感知敌人的行动，在敌人动手之前就做出预判。

He used his cape to direct his fall, gliding and banking, somehow always evading the gunfire directed at him. He was a battle-dancer, and their true skill was feeling what an enemy would do, even before they did.

他跌进了树冠中，短暂失去控制，撞到一根树枝，然后居然一个后空翻，优雅地落到了她身边。

He crashed through the treetops, lost control briefly, hit a tree limb, then somehow backflipped and landed gracefully beside her.

“连贯流畅的完美动作！”洛得意洋洋地喊道。他向霞献上那根还在冒烟的火柴。“我们还需要这根点火棍吗？”

“I am gorgeosity in motion!” Rakan shouted in triumph. He held the smoking match out to Xayah. “Do we still need this fire stick?”

“阿煞夷-泪”霞揉着前额咒骂道，“不要，我们已经不需要这根火柴了。”

“Ashai-rei,” Xayah swore while rubbing her forehead. “No, we don’t need the match anymore.”

“那然后呢？”洛问道。

“Now what?” Rakan asked.

“看着就行，看人类自己的武器——以前在纳沃利用来对付我们的炸药——现在被我们用来摧毁牢笼。”霞大喊道，不是对洛，而是对身边那些柯刹喇的族人。

“Watch as one of the humans’ own weapons—a bomb used against our people in Navori—watch as it destroys our prison!” Xayah shouted, not to Rakan, but to the Kepthalla tribesmen gathering around her.

回应她的只有寂静……然后是扫向树林的一轮枪声。

Only silence replied… followed by another round of gunfire raking the woods.

“洛，你有没有点燃引信？”霞拿出全身的冷静问道，这已经不是她第一次问自己为什么要把重任托付给他。

“Rakan, did you remember to light the fuse?” Xayah asked with all the calm she could muster and wondering, not for the first time, why she trusted him with these things.

“什么引信？”洛问道。

“Fuse?” Rakan asked.

但还没等霞喊出声，一声爆炸便从上方传来。

But before Xayah could scream, an explosion cracked overhead.

组成琨珑的最大一块巨石碎裂了。它比任何一座房屋都更庞大，它的碎块碰撞到其他浮空的巨石。然后一个接一个，环形的石阵停了下来，不再旋转。

The largest rock of the quinlon broke apart. It was larger than any house, and its remains crashed into the other floating stones around it. And then the other, surrounding rocks stilled, no longer rotating.

“我把点火棍放到那根细线上了。”洛刚说完，其余构成琨珑的石块开始颤抖。然后突然之间所有石块一起落了下来，砸向下方的山谷和庙堂，大地都跟着一起颤抖。

“I put the fire stick on that little string,” Rakan said as the remaining stones of the quinlon began to quiver. Then, all at once, they plummeted downward. The earth shook as they crashed into the valley and monastery below.

巨大的琨珑已不复存在，千百年来被它阻拦的魔法突然间释放出来，如同堤坝决口，洪水泛滥。

The giant quinlon was gone, and the countless centuries of magic it had held back was suddenly released, like a dam crumbling and releasing a flood.

霞的四周，森林泛起光芒。灵火闪烁，如同落在地上的繁星。野生魔法的奇形怪状全都闪烁着精神领域的光，在她身边忽明忽暗，若隐若现。这片景象光荣闪耀。

Around Xayah, the forest shone with light. Will-o’-the-wisps pulsed to life like miniature stars. Oddly-shaped beings of wild magic, glimmering with the light of the spirit realm, faded in and out of existence all around her. It was glorious.

她看向洛，他回以微笑。他的斗篷闪闪发亮，泛着红色和金色的光。他的羽毛抖擞着竖起。随着魔法的盈溢，他棱角分明的颧骨上似乎要冒出一对角，不过他拍了拍脸，让面颊变得微暗，匹配霞的肤色。

She looked to Rakan, and he smiled back at her. His cape shimmered, crimson and gold. His feathers ruffled and peacocked. As the magic swelled, the faint impression of horns grew out from his sharp cheekbones, but he batted them away in favor of darkening his face to a color matching Xayah’s.

“太丰厚了，我能感受得到。它正在改变我们。”霞汲取着魔法。感觉就像是她的胸口、喉咙和脑壳多年来一直被巨大的铁条缠着，而现在终于解脱了。她的羽毛腾起，顷刻之间她意识到自己可以任意改变羽毛的色彩、形状和尺寸。虽然最初涌出来的魔法正在开始退潮，但她只需要轻轻发动意念，就能平地升起，凌空飘浮。

“There’s so much, I can feel it. I can feel it changing us,” Xayah said as she breathed it in. It was as if a great iron bar had been clamped tightly around her chest, throat, and skull for years, and now she was finally free of it. Her feathers rose around her and she realized with only a passing thought she could effortlessly change their color, shape, and size. Though the initial wave of freed magic was ebbing, it took only a flick of her consciousness for her to rise into the air, high above the ground.

“我们在这里出生。在这世界的边界。一半精神，一半物质。”柯刹喇部族的人集结到霞的下方，她的声音掷地有声。“这就是我们为之战斗的东西。这片土地属于你们的祖先。同样，也应属于你们。”

“We are born from here. On these edges of this world. Half of spirit, half of form.” The Kepthalla tribesmen gathered beneath Xayah, and her voice boomed as she spoke. “This is what we have fought for. This is the land of your ancestors. As it was. As it is meant to be.”

霞缓缓飘回到地面。她周围的柯刹喇族人在惊讶之中也发生了改变。突然充沛的魔法给他们注入了活力，每个人都欢欣鼓舞、放声大笑。

Xayah slowly floated back down to the ground. The tribesmen around her, with their mouths open in wonder, were also transforming. Invigorated by the magic suddenly available to them, they cheered, laughed, and roared in joy.

霞身边的柯刹喇传令歌手，那个害羞的小家伙，突然抓住她，毫无征兆地给了她一个拥抱。“你成功了！”他欣喜地喊道，“你成功了！”

Xayah’s Kepthalla messenger-singer—a previously shy runt—grabbed her and spun her around in a hug without warning. “You did it!” he screamed in joy. “You did it!”

“接下来，轮到你们守护它了。”霞笑着说道，将他轻轻推开，飘到一旁。

“Now, you must defend it,” Xayah laughed as she gently pushed from him, allowing herself to float away.

那名传令手略微动用一丝魔法，重塑了他的号角。现在它比一头猛虎还长，上面还长出了十多根骨管。他吹奏出一首愉悦、亢奋的乐曲。

The messenger, with the slightest twist of the magic available to him, transformed his sounding horn. Now it was longer than a tiger, and a dozen bone pipes grew from the instrument. Into it he blew a song as joyful as it was overwhelming.

在霞的身后，森林在律动。他们在此走的路，向右转再向左转，现在又转向另一个左侧，进入了精神领域。穿过了曾经的地方，森林以外的地方——任何走上这条路的人都会被转变。

Behind Xayah the forest was moving. The trail they had taken here, which turned right then left, now also turned the other left, into the spirit realm. A direction that went through places-past, places beyond the forests—and would transform any who took it.

“一条远古的通路打开了！”霞惊讶地轻语。她没想到这里的魔法如此强大。她看向洛刚才在的地方，但却发现他不见了。

“An ancient pathway has opened!” Xayah whispered in awe. She had not expected the magic here to be so strong. She turned to where Rakan had been, but found him missing.

她看到他站在森林的边缘，他的斗篷闪耀着午后的阳光。他正在向森林之外眺望。

She spotted him at the forest edge, his cape glowing like the afternoon sun. He was looking outward.

“蜜耶里？”她轻轻走过去，说着古语中对爱人的称呼。

“Mieli?” she asked as she approached, using the ancient word for lover.

“我们毁了它。”洛表情凝重地说。

“We destroyed it,” Rakan said solemnly.

“是的。我们自由了——那座琨珑已不复存在。”

“Yes. We are free—that quinlon is no more.”

“不，我说的是他们的城镇。”他指了指那座庙，还有庙周围的人类聚落。

“No, their town.” He indicated the temple and the human settlement around it.

大如车厢的藤蔓在地上翻涌，如同森林中倾泻下来的巨浪，把十多所房屋拍成木屑。

Vines larger than wagons churned the earth. They ran like massive waves from the forest, smashing a dozen houses into flinders.

其他由树木织成的房屋开始不受控地疯长，挤占内部的空间，变成了巨大的树木，碾压了房间之内的一切。

The other woodwoven houses in the town were growing uncontrollably, folding in on themselves and crushing all inside, as they transformed into colossal trees.

一个凡人妇女抱着一个孩子，从家里逃出来坐上马车。她身后，一个男人勉强躲过了拍下来的巨大藤蔓，可他的房子被砸扁了。

A mortal woman, clutching a small child, ran from her home to a horse cart. Behind her, a man barely escaped being squashed by a huge vine that fell and crumbled his house.

他把怀中抱着的财物扔进马车里。但此时自由奔涌的魔法淹没了他们，马车活了，重新变成了它原本的植物模样。霞看着它变成了由木头和藤蔓构成的巨大昆虫。那个男人用拐杖敲打了几下，最后无望地带着女人和孩子逃走。

He was carrying an armful of their possessions. He threw them into the cart, but as the wave of powerful freed magic overtook them, the vehicle burst to life, reforming itself as the plants from which it had been fashioned. Xayah watched as it changed into a giant insect-like creature made of wood and vines. The man slashed at the creature with a walking stick, before fleeing from it with the woman and child.

一个编着长辫子的老人在起伏不定的地上举步维艰。他手脚并用地爬了几步，随后一对发着光的森林之灵抓住了他，它们就像一对鬼魅的蝴蝶，提着他飞到了空中。随后，它们厌倦了他的挣扎，爬升到树顶的同时把他扔了下去。他噗地一声掉了下去。他的灵魂颤抖着想要挣脱肉体的限制，要脱离自己的躯壳，加入森林的整体。

An old man with a long braid struggled on the undulating earth. He scrambled for a few paces before a pair of glowing forest spirits, shaped like ghostly butterflies, grabbed him. The spirits dragged him into the air. Then, growing tired of his struggles, they dropped him as they rose over a tree. He landed with a thud. His soul shuddered against the confines of his body, seeking to escape its own shell and join the forest.

其他凡人从他身边跑过。霞可以看到他们的灵魂也都在冲撞躯壳的限制。一个老妇人抓住那个扎长辫子的老人，扶着他站起来，然后他们一起踉跄着逃开……他们身边的大地和森灵都在翻滚。

Other mortals were running past him. Xayah could see their souls buffeting against the confines of their bodies too. An old woman grabbed the old man with the braid, lifting him to his feet, and together, limping, they fled… as the earth and spirits churned around them.

“这是人类自作自受。”霞最后开口说道。

“The humans’ greed brought this to them,” Xayah said finally.

洛没有回应。霞顺着他的目光，又看回远处，看着她制造出的破坏。

Rakan’s said nothing in reply. Xayah followed his gaze back to the destruction her plan had wrought.After their victory, Rakan and Xayah had received a call for aid from the Vlotah tribe, and it had taken three moons to travel to their main village.

It wasn’t much to look at. The Vlotah had always been a small tribe, even in ancient times. The town was little more than a couple dozen warping trees that surrounded a crystal pool. As Xayah and Rakan were led into the village by a guard, a few of the trees grew openings and Vlotah tribesmen stepped outside to see who the visitors were.

大获全胜以后，洛和霞接到了弗娄塔部族的求助，他们花了三天三夜的时间赶到他们的主村落。

The Vlotah were lithe and narrow, but with massive shoulders that protruded vertically from their backs like wings of bone. Their iridescent fur glittered in the light, first green, then purple, all over their bodies—save for their faces, which were creamy-white and vaguely feline in aspect.

这里看起来很简陋。弗娄塔一直都是个小部族，即便在古代也从未壮大过。村镇仅仅是几十棵弯曲的树围绕一座晶莹的水池构成的圆环。霞和洛在守卫的带领下进入村子，几棵树张开了一个裂口，弗娄塔族人从里面走了出来迎接访客。

But tints and vapors of sickly yellow and black seemed to be weeping from the trees, the vastaya, and even steaming from the pool. It was the color of hunger and sickness.

弗娄塔人的体型纤细瘦弱，不过宽大的肩胛骨从后背垂直凸起，如同一对骨头翅膀。他们浑身上下的毛发反射出斑斓的光，从绿色到紫色，但他们的面孔是无毛的，如同膏脂般白皙，带着一些猫科动物的特征。

Xayah whispered that she thought the vastaya here looked too weak to fight, or even help her and Rakan fight.

但蜡黄和暗黑的色彩和蒸汽正在弥漫，从树上、从瓦斯塔亚身上、甚至从水池里。那是饥饿和疾病的颜色。

“The magic here is unclean,” Rakan observed. “We should leave quickly. It’s upsetting my coat.” He ruffled his feathers.

霞悄声说她觉得这里的瓦斯塔亚看上去不堪一战，甚至不能为她和洛提供支援。

“Rakan, a victory here would raise awareness of our cause across Zhyun. We need another success to prove a rebellion is possible.” Xayah looked again at the tribesmen around her, pitying them, and confirming her suspicions that they were too sickly to fight for themselves. “The Vlotah tribe asked for our help. And clearly they need it, my love.”

“这里的魔法不干净，”洛细心观察后说道，“我们应该快点离开，我的外衣都被弄乱了。”他捋了捋了自己的羽毛。

“Is helping them more important than me looking amazing?!” Rakan said incredulously, then flashed a smile to reveal he was joking.

“洛，只要在这里取得胜利，整个芝云都将知晓我们的事业。我们需要再干成一次，才能证明反叛是可行的。”霞再次环顾周围的瓦斯塔亚族人，对他们心生怜悯，同时也确认自己的疑虑，他们的确是虚弱得不堪一战。“弗娄塔部族请求我们的帮助，显然他们是真的需要帮助，亲爱的。”

“Obviously not,” said Xayah, playing along and finding herself cheered by his humor.

“帮助他们难道比保持我的美貌还重要吗？”洛大惊失色的说，然后突然笑出来，表明自己是开玩笑。

“We have to pri-or-i-tize!” Rakan cried, emphasizing every syllable.

“显然你的美貌更重要。”霞接过了他的笑话，她发现自己被他的幽默所鼓舞。

“Rakan and Xayah, I presume?” a voice rumbled.

“我们必须分-清-主-次！”洛一字一顿地大呼小叫。

In the center of the village, sitting cross-legged on a boulder shaped like an eight-legged turtle, was an ancient Vlotah. He was white-furred and wearing a crown shaped to look like elk horns.

“没认错的话，是洛和霞吧？”一个低沉的声音传来。

“I am Leivikah, the Vlotah tribe’s elder,” he said, before coughing.

村落的中央，一块八足巨龟形状的巨石上，盘腿坐着一个老迈的弗娄塔族人。他浑身毛皮雪白，头戴鹿角状头冠。

Xayah and Rakan bowed. A crowd formed around them. Dozens of the Vlotah tribesmen were whispering in their own tongue.

“我是勒维卡，弗娄塔部族的长老。”他话音刚落，开始咳嗽。

“We have heard of how you saved Consul Akunir and Speaker Coll at Puboe. I am hoping you can help us,” Leivikah said, with a weak voice that barely rose above the crowd’s whispers.

霞和洛深鞠一躬。他们面前聚集起了人群。数十名弗娄塔族人用他们自己的语言窃窃私语。

Xayah glanced over to her partner and he took his cue.

“我们听说了你们在普玻解救阿库尼尔长老和说客可儿的事迹。我寄希望于你们的帮助。”勒维卡说，他微弱的声音勉强盖过人群的窃窃私语。

“I am Rakan,” he confirmed with that deep voice he used sometimes. It was loud and certain, and somehow it held a smile behind it. Its confidence silenced the crowd. Then, with his shoulders squared and his back arched, Rakan turned so as to make eye contact with everyone around them. “And this is Xayah, the Violet Raven. You have heard of her triumphs, and her call for rebellion.”

霞瞄了一眼自己的搭档，他立刻明白了暗号。

And just like that, the crowd and elder were hanging on his words, excited he was here. Xayah shook her head, amazed how Rakan could so often say almost nothing, but with exactly the right feeling. She secretly nudged him in the back, keeping him focused.

“我是洛，”他操起了那个不常用的低沉音调。这个声音洪亮坚决，却也藏着一抹微笑。声音中的自信让人群立刻肃静。然后他扩展双肩，弓起后背，扫视一圈，与在场的每个人短暂对视。“这位是霞，人称‘紫鸦’。你们都曾听过她的功绩，也知道她在号召反抗。”

“Oh, uh… We have answered your summons and we are happy to visit you as friends, or… as comrades. Tell us how we can help.” Rakan finished by flashing his glowing smile.

就这样，人群和长老都被他的话调动起情绪，充满期待。霞摇了摇头，她真是非常佩服，洛总是能说一堆答非所问的话，却又传达出恰到好处的感觉。她偷偷捅了一下他的后背，让他回到正题。

“Thank you, Rakan and Xayah, our need is great.” Leivikah rose unsteadily with his staff, then pointed toward the mountains. “North of here is the Kouln temple. It contains a small crystal quinlon. For many generations it has conditioned the magic of this region, and we have lived in peace with the mortals who tended it.”

“哦，呃……我们响应了你的请求，我们也很高兴能与大家成为朋友，或者……成为战友。请具体说说需要我们做什么。”

He coughed and indicated the sickness around him. “But black-and-red-clad warriors calling themselves Yanlei have taken over. Now the magic here has dwindled and darkened. We attempted to retake the temple with the good monks of Kouln, but were driven back. Now we are too weak and too few to fight. It is our hope that, with your help, our allies can reclaim their sacred place.”

“谢谢二位，洛和霞，我们已经迫在眉睫。”勒维卡颤颤巍巍地扶着手杖站起来，指了指远处的山。“北边，有一座寇恩寺庙。里面有一座小型的水晶琨珑。许多个世代以来，它一直在调节这方水土的魔法，我们与照料水晶的那些凡人也相安无事。”

Xayah frowned and looked at the poverty around her. She began speaking then stopped herself, before finally saying with irritation, “You want us to help some humans retake a quinlon?”

他咳嗽了几下，示意周围弥散的病态，“但有一群身披黑红甲的战士，他们自称炎雷，霸占了寺庙。现在这里的魔法已变得暗淡无光。我们曾试图同寇恩的善良僧人们一起夺回寺庙，但却败下阵来。现在我们战力已衰、人手已竭。我们希望，能在你们的帮助下，与盟友一起夺回他们的圣所。”

“We have heard of your great successes,” Leivikah said.

霞皱起眉看了看四周的贫瘠。她欲言又止，但最后还是愤怒地破口而出，“你想让我们帮助人类夺回一座琨珑？”

“You heard we destroyed the quinlon in the valley of Houth and freed the Kepthalla tribe,” she said.

“我们曾听闻过二位的伟大胜利。”勒维卡说。

“The monks of Kouln are—”

“你们听闻的是，我们摧毁了霍斯山谷的琨珑，解放了柯刹喇部族。”她说。

“Human,” Xayah snapped, interrupting the elder. “Why would we—and why should any of you—care about squabbles between the mortal races? You ask us to help those who strangled the magic of these lands? Are you a fool?”

“寇恩的僧人们是——”

Elder Leivikah snarled and then looked to Rakan. But Xayah’s partner didn’t appear to be paying attention. He was humming and balancing a twig he’d just found on his index finger.

“人类，”霞厉声打断了长老的话。“我们为什么要在乎凡类之间的无谓争斗？你们又为什么要去在乎？你请求我们帮助那些扼杀了魔法的人吗？你老糊涂了吧？”

“We will help you. But only by destroying the quinlon—not by surrendering it to some monks,” Xayah said finally.

勒维卡长老大喝一声，看向洛。不过霞的这位搭档似乎并没有在认真听。他正在哼着歌，把一根木棍立在食指上保持平衡。

“That will destroy the valley town!” the elder exclaimed.

“我们会出手相助的。不过我们只可能摧毁那座琨珑——绝不会把它交给什么僧人。”霞最后说道。

“Yes,” she agreed.

“那样整座山谷小镇都会毁掉的！”长老大声说道。

“Many people will die!”

“是的。”她说。

“Many humans will die,” Xayah said, correcting him.

“会死很多人的！”

“And when the humans try to take back their lands? What will—”

“会死很多人类。”霞纠正他的说法。

“With magic, you can defend it.”

“那如果人类要夺回他们的土地呢？我们怎么——”

“This is no way to speak to an elder!” Leivikah roared at Xayah, spittle coming from his mouth. “You do not have rights here, child! You make demands without knowing our tribe’s ways. Your fame as a warrior does not make you an elder!”

“有了魔法，你们就能守护这里。”

As Leivikah ranted, Rakan stepped away from Xayah and darted along the edge of the crowd, like a predator circling its prey. What few warriors this town still contained quickly backed away from the challenge Rakan was implying. Suddenly he leapt up onto the giant stone, landing beside the elder. Rakan stood over him for a moment.

“没有这么跟长老说话的！”勒维卡冲着霞大声吼，嘴里飞出唾沫。“这里没有你狡辩的份，妮子！你都不懂我们部族的传统，就信口雌黄。你的战功显赫，不意味着你能和长老平起平坐！”

“Do you want me to slap you off that rock?” Rakan asked.

勒维卡发出咆哮的同时，洛从霞身旁走开，沿着人群的边缘奔跑，就像捕食者在包围猎物。村镇里仅有的几名展示看到洛的挑战姿态纷纷让开了路。他突然跳上了巨石，落在老者身边。洛对他俯视了片刻。

Leivikah saw all of his guards had stepped away from the famous battle-dancer. Then he stammered, “I… I meant no disrespect.”

“你想让我把你掴下去吗？”洛对他发问。

Rakan continued, “My lady speaks wisdom, fool. And she speaks only the truth. Listen. And watch your tone. Or we’re gonna have a problem.”

勒维卡看到自己的所有卫兵都不敢靠近这位著名的战舞舞者。然后他结结巴巴地说，“我……我没有贬低她的意思。”

Rakan leapt back down from the rock as the elder pleaded. “My tribe only wants to return to the way it has been. The monks of Kouln have never broken their promises to us, and have protected us. We are not war-seekers like you.”

洛继续说，“我们女侠说的都是智慧，都是事实。请认真听她说，老糊涂。另外还请注意你的语气。不然我们可就要遇到问题了。”

Rakan walked over to Xayah, adjusted his feathers, and then scratched his ear.

洛从巨石上跳了下来，长老恳求道，“我的部族只想回到从前的样子。寇恩的僧人们从未打破与我们的承诺，也一直都在保护我们。我们同你们不一样，我们不是好战之人。”

“What do you think?” Xayah asked quietly.

洛向霞走过去，整理自己的羽毛，然后挠了挠自己的耳朵。

“About what?” Rakan replied in a whisper.

“你怎么看？”霞悄悄问他。

“About what he was saying?”

“什么怎么看？”洛悄悄回答。

“I wasn’t listening to the words,” Rakan shrugged. He kissed her on the cheek and said, “You were both yelling. You were angry, but he is just scared.”

“对他刚刚说的。”

Xayah smiled, realizing Rakan was right before whispering, “Thank you, mieli.” Then she gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

“我没听他说什么，”洛耸耸肩，轻吻她的脸颊说道，“你俩都在吼。你是因为愤怒，但他只是因为恐惧。”

“I’m sorry, Elder Leivikah,” she said apologetically with a bow. “I also meant no disrespect.”

霞笑了笑，她知道洛说到了最关键的点子上，然后对悄悄对他说，“谢谢你，蜜耶里。”然后她轻吻他的唇。

Then Xayah placed her hand over her heart and said, “You are afraid. There is no shame in that. But as long as you rely on humans to keep their promises, your tribe will never be free. And that is what I truly fear. How many generations has it been since you saw a child in this village? More than most of our people? Look around you. Your numbers were dwindling long before these new warriors appeared. But in the Kepthalla forests they have hope for the future. They hope that children will be born again—because, at last, the magic there is free!”

“对不起，勒维卡长老。”她鞠躬道歉，“我也没有贬低的意思。”

She looked around the crowd—like Rakan had—making eye contact with as many tribesmen as she could. “Rakan and I have fought these Yanlei before. Many know them as the Order of Shadow, and they are dangerous. Very dangerous. But we are willing to fight for you. We want to help you!”

然后霞把手放在心口说道，“你在恐惧。恐惧并不可耻。但只要你还仰赖人类信守诺言，你的部族就永远无法获得自由。而这才是我所恐惧的。你已经多久没在这个村落里见过孩子了？比我们大多数族类都更久远吧？请你看看身边。你们的人数早已所剩无几，这跟那群新出现的战士没什么关系。但是在柯刹喇森林，他们拥有未来的希望。他们希望将有新的孩子诞生——因为，过了这么久以后，魔法终于自由了！”

她环顾人群，就像洛刚才那样，与每个瓦斯塔亚族人短暂对视。“洛和我曾经打过这帮炎雷。他们也被称为‘影流’，而且是危险人物，非常危险。但我们愿意为你们而战。我们想帮助你们！”

然后霞松下了紧绷的肩膀，摇了摇头，“再也不需要荣誉和誓咒把你们同那群寇恩僧侣束缚在一起，我们将提供一个夺回故土的机会。你们只需要鼓起勇气，接受我们的意见，并维护属于你们的东西！”

Then Xayah let her shoulders drop, and shook her head. “Neither honor nor oath-magic binds you to those Kouln monks anymore—so we offer you a chance to take back your lands. You need only the courage to accept our offer and protect what is yours!”

长老盯着她看了许久，最后回答说，“你真的和传闻中一样勇猛，洛特兰部族的霞，我们感谢你的好意。我们会考虑你的意见，明早给你答复。”

The elder stared at her for a long moment before replying, “You are truly as fierce as your reputation, Xayah of Lhotlan, and we thank you. We will consider your words, and I will have our answer for you in the morning.”

长老站了起来，洛问霞，“我们要在这里过夜吗？”

As the elder rose to his feet, Rakan asked Xayah, “Are we staying the night?”

“看来是的。”她答到。

“Looks that way,” she replied.

洛随便指向人群中，“你们哪一个想给我做晚饭？还有……你们这有巧克力吗？！”

Rakan pointed randomly at the crowd. “Which one of you wants to make me dinner? And… do you have chocolate?!”

他们并不清楚他所指的那种人类制造的物质，互相面面相觑。洛回到霞身边，唉声叹气。

Unsure of the human substance he was seeking, the crowd exchanged confused looks. Rakan turned back to Xayah and with annoyance cried out.

“居然没有巧克力？！”

“No chocolate?!”In the morning, Elder Leivikah made his decision. He swore his people would defend any lands reclaimed by the wild magic released, and he assigned the few warriors he had to Xayah’s command.

After looking at their weakened and sickened condition, and because she knew the Vlotah tribe would need its warriors to defend their lands later, Xayah decided it was best to use them only as a diversion.

清晨，勒维卡长老做出了决定。他发誓他的族人将会坚守野生魔法所解放的每一寸土地，他还指派了为数不多的几名战士听从霞的调遣。

So while Xayah and Rakan were attempting to retake the temple alone, the Vlotah warriors would instead attack the Yanlei patrols—and hopefully draw some of their numbers away from the temple.

在查看了他们虚弱的身体状况以后，考虑到弗娄塔部族稍后还需要战士保卫领土，霞决定尽量只让他们佯攻造势。

It took Rakan and Xayah a day to walk from the Vlotah’s forest to the giant village the elder had spoken of.

所以当霞和洛尝试夺回寺庙的同时，弗娄塔的战士们会袭击炎雷的巡逻队，希望这样能够调虎离山、引蛇出洞。

Looking down on it from the hilltops, Xayah and Rakan saw it was far larger than any they had encountered in years. It was a small city, which dominated the entire valley with hundreds of dwellings.

洛和霞走了一整天，从弗娄塔部族的森林来到了长老所说的北部村镇。

“Can we go around it?” Rakan asked.

他们站在山顶向下望，发现这座镇子比他们几年来看到的任何一座都大许多。这里可以说是一座小型城市，上百处的住所遍布整座山谷。

“No. Not unless we climb on the bare cliff walls surrounding the city.”

“我们能绕过去吗？”洛问道。

“Climbing could be fun.”

“不行。除非我们攀爬城市周边的峭壁悬崖。”

“We would be exposed the whole time we were on the cliff’s face. If the humans have ballistae, or their Kashuri rifles…”

“爬悬崖很有意思啊。”

“I hate tubebows,” Rakan grumbled. Then he gestured to the hills beyond the town. “I can hear the quinlon disturbing the magic. But I can’t see it. A forest is after the town.”

“我们挂在悬崖上的全程都是在暴露位置。如果这里的人类有投石机，或者喀舒利来复枪……”

“We can rest there. But we must pass through the town without being spotted by the black-and-red-clad ones. They will know of us from what happened at Puboe and with the Kepthalla. We must try to look like humans.”

“我讨厌火弩。”洛嘟囔着说道。然后他指了指城镇另一侧的山丘。“我能听见琨珑正在干扰魔法。但我看不见。城镇的另一侧是一座森林。”

“Perhaps some of the Vlotah can circle back to help us get around it,” Rakan suggested.

“我们可以在那里休息。但我们必须悄悄从城镇中穿过，不能被身披黑红甲的人发现。在经过普玻和柯刹喇之后，他们肯定会有所提防。我们必须装扮成人类。”

“They are too scared and too weak, Rakan,” she replied. “And they would only draw attention to us.”

“或许可以让弗娄塔的人绕过去，帮我们蒙混过去。”洛提议道。

Xayah began pulling items from a bag she had taken from the village. “The Vlotah gave us human-style foot coverings. And we’ll wear big hoods.”

“他们太担惊受怕，也太虚弱无力，”她答道，“而且他们也只会让我们更容易暴露。”

“That cloak is gray,” Rakan said with breathless horror. “That’s not even a color!” He snapped a twig off a tree and threw it with great force into the forest.

霞开始从袋子里往外掏东西，那是他们从部族村落里拿到的物资。“弗娄塔给了我们类似人脚的鞋子。然后我们再戴上罩帽。”

Xayah looked down at the garments, and then she too shuddered at the thought of putting these coarse human fabrics over her feathers.Guards dressed in black and red were closing the gate and waving the last visitors into the city as night fell. Xayah ducked her head down as she and Rakan walked past them.

“这个斗篷是灰色的，”洛用惊恐的语气说，“这根本都不算是一种颜色！”他从树上掰断一根小树杈，用力扔进森林里。

As she entered through the gate, she stole a glance at the great town’s wall. It was massive, many times the height of the tallest tree in the forest.

霞低头看看那些衣物，一想到要在自己的羽毛之上覆盖一层粗糙的人类织物，她也不免打了个冷战。

“Rakan, could you jump over this wall?” Xayah whispered.

“Why?” he asked.

夜幕降临，身披黑红甲的守卫正要关上城门，他们挥手让最后几位来访的旅人进入。霞低下头，跟洛一起从他们身边走过。

“If we had to get out of here quickly,” she said.

她走进城门以后，偷看了一眼高大的城墙。这堵墙要比森林里最高的树木还高几倍。

He looked up at the wall, judging the distance, before saying, “No—too little clean magic here.”

“洛，你能翻过这堵墙吗？”霞悄悄问。

She could feel the ill magic used to construct the wall. It was alien, even for mortal magic. Dark and angry. She had only felt its like once before… at Puboe.

“为什么这么问？”他问道。

The enormous thorn vines, each wider around than a horse, hadn’t been asked or coaxed into dragging these stones into the wall—they had been goaded and forced. And the magic that held the wall and ramparts above her wailed and growled.

“万一我们需要迅速离开。”她说。

The wall would be a powerful barrier against invaders, but she wondered what would happen when the vines, which had been holding this magic, were suddenly let free.

她抬起头望向墙顶，判断着距离，然后说，“不行——这里的洁净魔法太少了。”

The gates closed behind them and locked. Xayah and Rakan hid amongst the travelers and peasants who walked down the main road toward the town’s center.

他能感受到这堵墙在建造的时候使用了恶浊的魔法。即使以凡人魔法的标准来评判，这也是相当异样的。漆黑、愤怒，她此前只有一次相同的感觉……那是在普玻。

“There is a mage here,” Rakan said.

巨大的荆棘藤蔓，每一根都比一匹马还粗，它们并非在请求和劝诱中搬动巨石砌成高墙——它们受到的是驱赶和强迫。而那些将城墙弥合起来的魔法正在她的头顶哀怨嚎哭。

“I hear their magic,” Xayah replied, “but I can’t see them.”

城墙可以抵挡入侵者，但她不知道如果这些藤蔓和被束缚的魔法突然获得自由，结果会怎样。

“Above us.”

他们身后的大门关闭、上锁。霞和洛藏在旅人和农民之间，沿着主路向城中心走去。

On a tower made out of cut and dead trees, a man stood in burgundy robes. From his eyes a strange darkness emanated, and he held an ornate brass bell which misted a dark vapor.

“这里有一个法师。”洛说。

“He is looking for vastaya and yordles,” Rakan said with certainty.

“我能听到这个人的魔法，”霞答道，“但却看不见。”

Xayah grabbed Rakan’s arm and pulled him into an alleyway, as the mage screeched a horrific sound. He had seen through their disguises. Horns of alarm blared from the walls answering the mage’s cry.

“在上面。”

Footsteps and guards shouted behind them. Xayah and Rakan ran, dodging from alleyway to alleyway, but soon discovered the streets formed a labyrinth.

一座使用砍伐的死木建成的高塔，塔顶站着一个身着紫红色长袍的人。他的双眼正在散发着奇怪的黑暗，手里正提着一颗有花纹装饰的铜铃，散发着迷雾般的黑气。

They could feel the mage scrying to find them. He was swinging the magically touched bell. It chimed softly but let free an invisible lash of magic in their direction. Again and again, it released a sound no mortal would hear—or feel the pain of—but which cracked like a giant’s whip in the ears of the vastaya. One of his strikes crashed down the alleyway, just missing Rakan as he dove against a wall.

“他正在寻找瓦斯塔亚和约德尔人。”洛确定地说。

The bell’s magic vibrated their feathers and for a moment Xayah thought they had been discovered. But then the mage rang the bell in a slightly different direction, down another alleyway. He was searching blindly, clearly uncertain what and where they were.

霞抓过洛的手臂，把他拽进了一条小巷，这时那个法师发出可怕的尖叫。他看破了他们的伪装。警报的号角呼应着法师的喊声，从城墙的方向传来。

Ahead, at an intersection, the Yanlei guards were grabbing townsfolk and dragging them out into the open where the mage could see them.

脚步声和卫兵的叫喊紧紧跟在他们身后。霞和洛开始奔跑，在小巷之间躲闪，他们很快就发现，这里的街道如同迷宫一样复杂。

One of the guards, a leader, was dressed differently than the rest. He wore a dark gray vest of rough cloth, unbuttoned. To the vastaya, he seemed malformed, touched by some sort of corruption. Rakan nodded to the black-within-black tattoos covering both of the man’s arms.

他们可以感觉到那个法师正在用占卜术搜寻。他在不停地摇晃那个附着魔法的铜铃。铃声轻轻地响，散发着一条看不见的魔法长鞭，向着他们所在的方向抽打。一次又一次，它发出了凡人听不见，也感受不到疼痛的声音。但在瓦斯塔亚耳中，那声音就像是巨人甩鞭发出的噼啪声。其中一下抽打到了下方的小巷，险些集中洛，多亏他及时藏到墙后。

“Shadow magic,” Rakan growled.

铜铃的魔法让他们的羽毛共振，有那么一刻，霞觉得他们已经被发现了。但随后那名法师向着稍微不同的方向摇铃，探查了另一条小巷。他正在盲目地搜索，显然并不清楚目标究竟是什么，究竟在哪里。

Xayah nodded. “They are insane.”

正前方的交叉路口，炎雷的卫兵正在捉拿市民，把他们拖拽到开阔地带，让那名法师可以清楚地看见。

“Let’s see if he can dance,” Rakan said. On instinct Xayah grabbed her lover’s hand and held him back.

其中一名卫兵的着装与别人不同，是他们的头领。他穿着深灰色的粗布背心。在瓦斯塔亚眼中，他似乎已经畸变了，被某种腐化的力量所侵染。洛示意了一下那个人双臂上比黑更黑的纹身。

Just then, the man’s tattoos came alive. They rose from his body like smoke. Their darkness solidified into barbed talons like a spider’s legs, each holding a cruel hook-sword. Then these shadow forms slashed a villager who had resisted being pulled out into the open. The man hit the ground screaming, a red gash along his back.

“暗影魔法。”洛怒吼道。

Rakan and Xayah swung against the wall under the overhang of the building next to them, then slipped into another alleyway that stank of rot and garbage. Then seeing it free of guards, they ran with everything they had. Bounding off the walls and drawing on some of the reserves of magic they held within themselves for greater speed. But the alleyway curved around. They discovered it led only back to the wide street.

霞点点头。“他们疯了。”

Behind them several of the black-and-red-clad warriors appeared on a balcony and leapt down.

“咱们看看他的舞跳的怎么样。”洛刚说完，霞就下意识地抓住爱人的手，把他拉了回来。

Rakan scanned the street, looking at each of the houses and inhabitants. Then he grabbed Xayah’s hand and dragged her around the corner toward a nearly ruined house with failing timbers.

就在那时，那个人的纹身活了，像一阵黑烟一样从他身上冒出来。黑烟化成实体，如同许多条带刺的蜘蛛腿，每条腿都连着一把带钩的利剑。然后那些暗影的化身砍向一名拒绝被拖到开阔地的市民。他倒在地上发出惨叫，后背渗出鲜血。

“What are you doing?” Xayah asked.

洛和霞翻上了墙头，在隔壁屋檐的掩护下溜进了另一个散发着垃圾腐臭的小巷。看到这里没有卫兵，他们拼尽全力奔跑。他们跳下墙头，动用体内留存的魔法加快奔跑的速度。但这条小巷转了个弯，他们发现到头来又回到了那条宽街道。

“This one is good,” Rakan responded, indicating the house’s recently swept entranceway and clean windows.

她们身后，几名身披黑红甲的战士出现在阳台上，飞身跳了下来。

“What?!” Xayah responded.

洛沿着街道扫视一圈，看了看每一所房屋和里面的居民。然后他抓住霞的手，拉着她转过街角，来到一座凋敝破败的房屋。

One of the guards down the street spotted the desperation of their pace, and indicated the pair to his commander. The tattooed brute was still standing over the wailing peasant.

“你要干什么？”霞问他。

“What’s wrong?” a woman’s voice asked.

“这家是好人。”洛回答的同时指了指干净整洁的门口和窗户。

Xayah turned and saw an elderly woman dressed in yellow. She had long white hair held up in an elaborate braid, and her eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

“什么？”霞依然不解。

“Nothing,” Xayah replied. “We were just—”

街道尽头的一名士兵发现了他们的慌乱脚步，向首领指了指他们俩的方向。那个带纹身的恶汉依然站在那个哀嚎的农民身旁。

“The guards are looking for us,” Rakan interjected. “We need help.”

“怎么了？”一个女人的声音问道。

The woman looked to the guards, then back to Xayah and Rakan. Rakan gave her a hopeful smile. “We mean no harm,” he assured her.

霞转身看到一位身着黄袍的老妇人。她满头白发精致地编成长长的辫子，眼神中露出怀疑。

“Quickly, come through the side door,” she said, gesturing to the alleyway beside her house. Then she closed and barred the front entrance behind her.

“没事，”霞答道，“我们只是——”

Rakan and Xayah ducked into the alleyway and ran along the side of the house. It was a dead end… and they couldn’t see any doors.

“卫兵在抓我们，”洛插了进来，“请帮帮我们。”

“Damn it, why would you say that to her?” Xayah cursed. She could hear the mage scrying above them—his magic cracking loudly through the spirit realm. They could see the shadows of the guards in the street, heralding their approach.

老妇看了看卫兵的方向，然后又看了看霞和洛。洛露出充满希望的微笑。“我们并无恶意。”他向老妇保证。

But then, a wall suddenly moved, as a hidden door into the house slid open. The old woman leaned out and gestured for them to come inside.

“快，从侧门进来。”她说着，指了指自己屋子后面的小巷。然后她关上了正门，插上门闩。

Once the pair was inside, the old woman slid the smugglers’ entrance closed, hiding its existence.

洛和霞低头钻进小巷里，沿着房子的墙壁奔跑。这是一条死胡同……看不到任何门。

The two vastaya looked around and discovered they were in a storage room with a low ceiling and dirt floors. It was dark and illuminated by only a single oil lamp and the glow of a pair of dying ekel-flowers.

“该死，你为什么要告诉她？”霞咒骂道。她可以听到那名法师正在高处搜寻，他的魔法在精神领域劈啪作响。他们已经可以看到卫兵的影子出现在街道上，循着他们的方向跑来。

Beneath her cloak, Xayah formed two feather blades and readied them.

可随后，一面墙突然动了，一扇通往那间房屋的暗门滑开了。老妇人探出身子示意他们近来。

Perhaps sensing the danger, the woman backed away toward a full-moon spear resting against the wall. It was a fine weapon, well-oiled and touched by ancient magics that purred happily inside of it.

二人近来以后，老妇人把暗门关好，让人无法察觉它的存在。

两个瓦斯塔亚环顾四周，发现他们正处于一个储藏室中，天棚低矮，地面积灰。这里光线昏暗，只点了一盏油灯，还有两朵即将凋零的娥克尔花发出的光。

在斗篷下面，霞拿出两片羽刃，做好攻击准备。

或许是感知到了危险，老妇后退几步，在她身后的墙上靠着一柄圆月长枪。那是一把精良的兵器，充分得到剑油的护理，内部还附着古老的魔法，正在愉快地颤动。

“你们是瓦斯塔亚？”老妇小心地问。

“You are vastaya?” the woman said cautiously.

霞没来得及阻止，洛马上点点头，用哪个低沉的声音说，“我是洛，来自洛特兰部族的战舞舞者。”

Before Xayah could stop him, Rakan nodded and said with the deep voice, “I am Rakan, battle-dancer of the Lhotlan tribe.”

霞没想到，老妇长吁一口气，大笑道，“勒维卡告诉过我，他要找你们帮忙，但后来我们就再也没听到弗娄塔部族的消息了。我是勾珊师太。”

To Xayah’s surprise, the woman let out a deep breath, and laughed. “Leivikah told me he was seeking your help, but we have heard no word from the Vlotah tribe since then. I am Abbess Gouthan.”

前门传来用力拍门的声音。

There was a loud banging on the front door.

“别出声，我来对付他们。”勾珊说着，迅速走向前门，顺手滑上了通往廊道的门。

“Stay quiet, I’ll get rid of them,” Gouthan said as she hurried to the front room, sliding the hallway’s door closed behind her.

就在师太去前门应对的时候，六个年轻的僧徒从其他房间里冒了出来。好几个人身上都缠着绷带，似乎是受了伤。他们紧张地交换眼神。霞可以感知到他们正在尽力聚集起稀薄的魔法。

While the abbess checked who was at the front door, six young mortal acolytes appeared from the house’s other rooms. Many wore bandages and appeared injured. They nervously exchanged glances with each other. Xayah could sense them gathering what little magic they could muster.

霞一只手伸进羊毛斗篷里，用意念做出几把羽刃。如果这些僧人动手，这么近的距离是不适合扔飞刀的，于是她握住了刀柄，把羽刃变成了短弯刀。

Xayah slid one of her hands inside the woolen cloak she wore and willed a new feather blade into existence. If the monks attacked, it would be too close for her to throw the daggers, so she altered the blade’s handle, shaping it into a short falchion.

勾珊师太回来了，她举起一根手指放在嘴前，示意他们要保持安静。然后，几乎不动声色地，她让那些伤势严重的僧人回屋休息，带着剩余的两个学徒准备生火做饭。他们悄悄地哼唱起幽邃的旋律，开始准备食材。

When Abbess Gouthan reappeared, the woman held a finger to her lips to indicate they should stay quiet. Then, almost silently, she sent her more heavily injured monks back into their rooms, while she and her two remaining students readied a cooking fire. They quietly sang and hummed a haunting tune as they began to prepare food.

洛搂住霞的肩膀，领她来到隔壁房间的矮桌前。情侣二人一起坐下。僧人们做饭的同时，霞放缓了呼吸，然后小心地把刀刃和魔法收回到自己的羽毛中。

Rakan put his arm around Xayah’s shoulder and led her to a low table in an adjoining room. The couple sat down together. While the monks cooked, Xayah slowed her breathing before cautiously reabsorbing her blades and their magic back into her feathers.

霞在等待的同时，把她的羽翼斗篷和羊毛斗篷同时包裹在双腿周围。屋子里只有几根蜂蜡蜡烛和炉灶里的火发出光亮，勉强抵御夜晚的寒冷。

As she waited, Xayah wrapped both her winged and woolen cloaks around her legs—only a few beeswax candles and the cooking fire illuminated their side room and barely held back the evening chill.When the candles had burned down to a thumb span, the abbess and her two attendants finished cooking and quietly joined Rakan and Xayah with several plates of food.

“We hid in the hills for a few weeks after they took our temple,” Gouthan whispered. “Then, like you, we snuck into the city.”

当蜡烛烧到只剩下拇指大小，师太和两个徒弟做好了饭，端着几盘饭菜，静静地来到洛和霞的桌上。

She and one of her students passed the meager food they had prepared from the fire pit of their kitchen to the table Rakan and Xayah sat at.

“他们夺走寺庙以后，我们在山里躲了几周，”勾珊小声说，“然后，和你们一样，我们也偷偷摸进了城里。”

“This old house was my family’s long before I became the abbess of Kouln temple. We managed to avoid detection only because the Navori—”

她和一个徒弟把简陋的饭菜从灶台传递到桌上。

“Who is the warrior with black tattoos?” Rakan asked.

“这是我家里的老宅，但那是在我成为寇恩寺师太以前的事了。我们能够躲开查探，多亏是纳沃利——”

“The warriors with tattoos are the Order of Shadow. They are a part of the Navori Brotherhood… or they were, when—”

“那个黑色纹身的战士是什么人？”洛问。

“Their tribe is at war with yours?” Rakan interrupted again.

“带黑色纹身的就是影流。他们是纳沃利兄弟会的一部分……曾经是，不过——”

“Not exactly,” Gouthan replied patiently. “They took our temple but let most of us live, I suppose to keep the local villagers from revolting against them. The peace ensures they can gather the foul shadow magic they are harvesting. But I’ve been sneaking my students back into the city. Readying ourselves.”

“他们的部族跟你们打仗？”洛又打断了师太。

Rakan bit into the stone-cooked bread. “You sang ‘Theln and the Falling Leaves’ while cooking this?”

“不尽然，”勾珊耐心地回答，“他们夺走了寺庙，但却放走了我们多数僧尼，放了我是为了让我劝阻当地人不要向他们寻仇。这里的安宁可以让他们专心收获那种污秽的暗影魔法。但我一直在偷偷把徒弟们送进城里来。积攒力量。”

“Yes,” Gouthan replied. “When vastaya cook, the song is important, right?”

洛咬了一口石板烘烤的面包。“你们在烤这个的时候唱的是《德琳与落叶》？”

“It is important,” Xayah said without emotion. Her plate sat untouched in front of her.

“是的，”勾珊答道，“瓦斯塔亚在烹饪的时候，唱的歌很重要，对吗？”

Rakan explained, “For stone flour bread, it is traditional to use a happy song that you can drum with.”

“很重要。”霞面无表情地说，面前的食物一口没动。

“And you can taste that?”

洛解释道，“石板面包的话，传统做法是用欢快的，带鼓点的歌。”

Rakan shoved another piece of bread into his mouth and nodded.

“能尝出来吗？”

“My apologies, we have so little to offer you, and even less skill in your customs,” the abbess said before bowing her head. She was clearly ashamed of what her order had been reduced to.

洛又往嘴里塞了一块面包，点了点头。

Rakan patted her on the shoulder. “It’s good! It’s not a song used for stone bread, but it goes well with this flour.”

“抱歉，我们能提供的很少，符合你们习惯的就更难做到了。”师太轻轻低头致歉。显然她十分惭愧，自己所领导的门派落得如此田地。

“You are too kind.”

洛拍了拍她的肩膀。“挺好吃的！虽然不是专门给石板面包的歌，但却很符合这种面粉。”

“He is hungry,” Xayah said.

“你过奖了。”

“Now that we have shared food, can we discuss how we will take back our temple?” the abbess asked hopefully.

“他是饿了。”霞说。

“Your help will not be needed,” Xayah responded.

“既然都坐到了饭桌上，可不可以商讨一下如何夺回我们的寺庙？”师太满怀希望地问。

“My students can lead you there. I myself can stand against more than a few of the shadow warriors. Also I sent word to the Kinkou Order—surely they will send reinforcements.”

“我们不需要你的帮助。”霞答道。

Xayah and Rakan exchanged a glance. Then Xayah asked, “How many of these Yanlei warriors are in the city?”

“我的徒弟们可以领你们过去。我自己可以抵挡几名影流的战士。我也给均衡教派捎了口信——他们肯定会派来支援的。”

“Perhaps a hundred.”

霞和洛交换了眼神。然后霞问道，“炎雷的战士，城里有多少个？”

“And at the temple?”

“大概有一百。”

“Perhaps fifty.”

“庙里呢？”

“We can handle that number,” Xayah said.

“大概五十。”

“Alone?”

“这个数目我们能应付。”霞说。

“Alone.”

“就你们俩？”

“They are bad dancers,” Rakan murmured, while grabbing another piece of bread.

“就我们俩。”

“But surely, if we wait for the Kinkou—”

“他们都不太会跳舞。”洛含糊地说着，又拿起一块面包。

“The Vlotah cannot wait for the Kinkou’s help. That is why we are here.”

“但稳妥起见，如果等待均衡——”

“I understand,” the abbess said. “I failed them. Allow me to at least join you against these Yanlei bastards.”

“弗娄塔部族等不起均衡的援兵。所以才找我们来。”

“You should wait here in the city,” Xayah said flatly.

“我明白，”师太说，“我辜负了他们。至少，请让我和你们一起收拾这帮炎雷混蛋。”

“I can show you where they have set up patrols—”

“你应该在城里候着。”霞平直地说。

“You can show us in the morning,” Xayah said. “But if you don’t mind, I would like a moment with my partner.”

“我知道他们的巡逻路线。”

“Oh… uh, okay.” The abbess rose with her attendant. Rakan followed them to the door, gave each of them a hug and handed them a couple pieces of bread as they returned to the rooms at the front of the house.

“你可以明天一早指给我们看。”霞说，“如果你不介意的话，我想和搭档单独商量一会。”

Then Rakan closed the door, and sat back down beside Xayah. She whispered, “We should leave as soon as they fall asleep.”

“哦……呃，好啊。”师太和徒弟站了起来。洛送他们到门口，分别拥抱，还给了他们几块面包。随后他们回到了宅子正面的房间。

“We should warn them about what will happen when we destroy the quinlon,” he responded, shoving another piece of bread into his mouth.

洛关上了门，坐回到霞的身边。她悄悄说，“等他们一睡着，我们就动身。”

“If they knew what we were going to do, they would betray us to these other mortals. Or the Kinkou.”

“我们应该提醒他们，毁掉了琨珑以后这座城市将岌岌可危。”他说着，又往嘴里塞了一块面包。

“Many mortals will die,” Rakan said.

“如果他们知道了我们的计划，就一定会背叛我们，通知另外那群凡人。或者告诉均衡教派。”

“The Vlotah tribe will die while waiting for help. My love, we are on this path. They settled on vastayan lands. They raised a wall with magic which they barely control and do not understand.”

“许多凡人都会死。”洛说。

“If you say so. But I prefer this abbess to Elder Leivikah. At least she’s not scared.”

“在等待救援的同时，弗娄塔部族会灭族。亲爱的，我们已经踏上这条路。他们占了瓦斯塔亚的土地。他们使用自己勉强控制，却又无法理解的力量竖起了高墙。”

“You’ve just been seduced by their food.”

“你说的我都信。但在这个师太和勒维卡长老之间，我更喜欢师太。至少她不怕。”

Rakan took another mouthful and shrugged. “It was made with care and a song sung truthfully.”

“你是吃人家嘴软。”

“I don’t trust her. Not with our lives on the line.”

洛又塞了一大口，耸了耸肩，“他们的烹饪用心，歌曲也动情。”

“This is why you said we didn’t need their help?”

“我不相信她。更不可能把我们的命押上去。”

“Fifty warriors is a lot,” Xayah admitted. “And that’s before you add shadow magic.”

“所以你对她说我们不需要帮助？”

Rakan shrugged. “You don’t have a plan?”

“五十人的确很多，”霞承认道，“而且还要再算上暗影魔法。”

“Of course I have a plan.”

洛耸耸肩，“你没计划了吗？”

“Then I trust it,” Rakan said softly.

“我当然有计划。”

Xayah shook her head. “We’re going in alone. If my plan goes wrong—”

“那我相信你的计划。”洛温柔地说。

“You are never wrong about those things.”

霞摇了摇头，“就我们两个进去。如果我的计划出错——”

Xayah ran her fingers through her feathers and bowed her head, running through every detail she had learned about the terrain—the black-and-red-clad warriors, the town, the mountain temple, and the crystal quinlon—from the Vlotah elder.

“你在这方面从不出错。”

Then after a long silence, she asked, “Why did you trust this monk?”

霞埋下头，用手指梳理羽毛，回顾她对这片土地掌握的每个细节——身披黑红甲的战士、城镇、山中的寺庙、水晶琨珑，这些都是弗娄塔长老告诉她的。

“Because I know about these things,” Rakan replied.Xayah lay awake for many hours that night, studying the maps the Vlotah had provided her with. She was able to deduce where the warriors had probably set patrols and pickets, and charted a path that would allow them to avoid detection until they were only a few hundred paces from the temple.

经过一段漫长的沉默之后，她问，“你为什么信任这个尼姑？”

They left after the moon rose and were able to sneak out of the house without incident.

“因为我对这方面很了解。”洛回答说。

The town was still, save for the sound of insects, making it easy to avoid the Yanlei warriors by listening for their footsteps. After Xayah deduced where these warriors were, it was simple for her to find a pathway through the sentries’ patrols.

They left the city and past the last of the farmhouses leading up the mountain as dawn was just beginning to lighten the sky.

那一夜，霞睁眼躺了好几个小时，不断研究弗娄塔部族给她的地图。她能大概推断出影流的战士可能设卡放哨的地点，绘制了一条可以隐秘前进的路线，直到距离寺庙几百步远的地方。

The forest on the mountain was the color of ash. Rakan and Xayah could feel the magic they held inside them being tugged away from them.

他们在月亮升高以后离开，悄无声息地离开了那所房子。

The quinlon here wasn’t just dampening the power of spirit magic to create change, or limiting its life-giving vitality by holding back the wild magic mortals found too dangerous; this one was actively absorbing magic, leeching it from the landscape and the spirit realm at a rate Xayah had never experienced before. It was as if the normal function of the quinlon had been turned upside down, allowing only the darkest magics to ebb out from the spirit realm.

整座城镇一片寂静，只有寂寥虫鸣，所以很容易听清炎雷战士的脚步声并避开他们的视线。霞推测出他们分布的位置以后，轻易找出了一条路线，穿越了哨兵的巡逻范围。

For most of the day, Rakan and Xayah marched through the woods, concealing themselves in what remained of the bone-colored underbrush of the forest, keeping a few dozen yards from the trail. They stayed motionless as the enemy warriors went past. At first they seemed to be on regular patrols, but soon large groups of warriors were marching downhill with an obvious urgency.

他们离开了城市，路过了最后几间农舍，来到山脚下，此时破晓的光开始照亮天边。

Xayah surmised the Vlotah tribesmen had begun the diversionary raids she had directed. Certainly, she and Rakan could defeat these humans—but Xayah knew it was safer to conserve what scarce magic they had.

山上的森林是土灰色的。霞和洛能够感受到自己体内的魔法正在被抽走。

Weakened and sick from the lack of magic, the Vlotah who had volunteered to draw these Yanlei away had shown great bravery. Xayah assured herself these new comrades would be safe for at least a while. But if she and Rakan failed to take out the quinlon soon? Xayah could feel her fingernails digging into her palms as she and Rakan lay hidden behind a wagon-sized boulder.

这里的琨珑并不仅仅是在抑制并调节精神领域的魔法，也不是在束缚对于凡人来说太危险的生命活力。这座琨珑正在主动吸收魔法，从土地和精神领域不断摄取力量，而且速度之快，是霞从未体会过的。感觉就像是把正常琨珑的功能颠倒过来，只允许最黑暗的魔法从精神领域泻出。

After a while, the patrols of red- and black-clad warriors significantly dwindled in size and frequency, enabling her and Rakan to travel more quickly than they had before.

这一天的大部分时间里，洛和霞都在树林中穿行，用骸骨颜色的草丛作掩护，始终与道路保持几十米的距离。他们一动不动地等待敌人路过。起初他们似乎是在进行常规的巡逻，不过很快就开始有大群大群的士兵沿路下山，显然是有要紧事。

霞估计是弗娄塔族人开始按照她的安排进行佯攻突袭了。当然，她和洛是足以击败这些人类的，只不过她知道稳妥起见，他们应该节省所剩不多的魔力。

由于缺少魔法，那些弗娄塔族人早已虚弱无力，但他们还是自告奋勇地引开炎雷。霞安慰自己，这些新的战友短时间内都是安全的。但如果她和洛无法快速解决琨珑的话？霞发现自己的指甲已经深深扎进掌心。但此刻她必须一动不动，和洛一起躲在马车大小的巨石后面。

片刻过后，身披红黑甲的巡逻兵数量明显变少，频率也降低了，她和洛得以更加快速地进发。

他们在傍晚时分抵达了寺庙。这座建筑丑陋不堪，它憎恨这个世界，外皮如同尸体一般惨白，树木编织的高墙上长出光秃的枝干和棘刺，构成了抵御入侵者的长枪壁垒。

They reached the temple by late afternoon. The building was ugly, and it hated the world. It was tall and as pale as a corpse. Leafless branches and thorns had grown from its woodwoven walls, forming battlements and defensive spikes.

洛吹了一声口哨，吸引第一个卫兵的注意。那个人转过身的同时刚好用胸口接住了霞的羽刃。洛在他倒下之前接住了他——卖弄技巧。

Rakan whistled, drawing the attention of the first guard he saw. The man turned just in time to take one of Xayah’s feather blades in the chest. Rakan caught him before he fell—showing off.

远处一声号角响起，霞知道他们被发现了。十多个黑衣战士从寺庙周围隐秘的藏身处走了出来。

A distant horn sounded, and Xayah knew they had been spotted. From hiding places scattered around the temple, a dozen more of the black-clad warriors appeared.

洛冲入敌人中间，蹬踏、旋转、把他们全都击飞到空中，而霞的羽刃纷纷命中目标。随后洛霞二人开始飞奔，直奔寺庙入口。

Rakan dashed into their midst, kicking, spinning, and throwing them up into the air, while Xayah’s blades took their toll. They were moving fast now. They cut a path to the temple’s entrance.

霞用魔法收回了羽刃，杀死了拦路的敌人，而洛则鞠躬谢幕。

Xayah used her magic to pull her feather blades back to her, killing the warriors that stood against them, while Rakan took a bow.

她翻了个白眼，把他留在身后对付剩下的黑衣战士。

She rolled her eyes at his antics and left him to keep these black-clad warriors busy.

她推开寺庙门口的藤蔓，走进了巨大的入口。两扇庙门早已损坏，平躺在地上，她的两侧分别是两条蜿蜒的黑暗通道。她没有理睬，沿着阳光的方向走到房间尽头一扇被藤蔓盖住的门前。

She pushed through the vines at the gateway of the temple, then walked into its grand entranceway. With doors broken and strewn on the ground, dark curving passageways lay open on both sides of her. She ignored them, and instead followed the path the sunlight cut toward a vine-covered doorway at the far end of the room.

她经过了垒在墙边的一小摞水晶方块，短暂驻足。这些东西有点奇怪，四四方方，没有任何灵魂，不知为何也不具任何魔法。它们的存在简直是对这个世界的亵渎，似乎制作它们的人设法阻断了自己的精萃，以及基本材料的精萃，没有一丝一毫流入这些方块之中。她敬而远之，钻进了一个长满黑色根须的门口。

She paused as she passed a small stack of crystal boxes, hidden against a wall. They were odd things, perfectly square and completely soulless, somehow holding no magic at all. In some great act of sacrilege against the world, it was as if their maker had managed not to let any of his essence—or the essence of their base materials—pass into them. She gave them a wide berth, and crept through a doorway overgrown with black roots.

她发现寺庙正中央的地面沐浴着红光。霞抬头向上看，发现琨珑正在头顶发光。和其他琨珑一样，这里的也是许多浮空巨石组成的阵列，然而这座琨珑似乎是由巨大的红宝石构成的，每一块都比一匹马还大。他能感受到它对魔法的引力。

She found the center of temple bathed in red light. Xayah looked up to see the quinlon glowing above her. Like many quinlons, it was an arrangement of rotating stones, but this one appeared to be made of giant shards of ruby, each larger than a horse. It glowed. She could feel its pull as it took in magic.

她惊恐地看到，许多渺小的森林之灵正在被它吸走。

And she watched in horror as it pulled tiny forest spirits up into it.

空气轻轻流动，她知道附近还有别人。她及时躲开，一个身披铠甲的战士从黑影中出现。他跳到她正上方，在墙壁和立柱之间来回弹跳，如同一名战舞舞者的动作——只不过他能随着一阵阵黑烟，捉摸不定地消失和出现。

There was a shift in the air, and she knew she wasn’t alone. She ducked just as an armored warrior appeared from the shadows. He vaulted above her, bouncing off the walls and pillars as a battle-dancer might—but he was appearing and disappearing in puffs of smoke.

她知道有被云雾触碰过的瓦斯塔亚能使出类似的招式。但这个人的魔法非常奇怪。甚至他体内的暗影也带着某种不同的痕迹，带着暮光魔法的残痕。他非常强大——比她见过的任何法师、任何凡人都更强大。因为霞和洛的力量已经被削弱，所以她知道自己很难战胜这个身披铠甲的战士。

She had known vastaya, touched by the clouds, with similar techniques. But this man’s magic was strange. Even the shadows inside him were touched by something else, an echo of the magic of the twilight. He was powerful—more powerful than any mage, any mortal she had encountered. Weakened as she and Rakan were, Xayah knew defeating this armored warrior was unlikely.

她丢出羽刃，但却被他轻松斩断，她的每个动作都让自己变得更虚弱，也让他的刀刃更接近。她看到那个战士挡开了她的又一次攻击，把她的羽刃弹开，飞向上方的琨珑。

She threw feather blades, but he simply cut them apart, and with each movement she was getting weaker and he closer. She stared as the warrior parried the next of her attacks and sent one of her feather blades up into the quinlon.

红色的石块立刻发生碎裂。

The red stone cracked instantly.

这时她突然明白，为什么这座小型琨珑要被关在寺庙内部。这种奇怪的红宝石般的矿物拥有非同寻常的力量……但同时也非常易碎。再加上它现在已经超负荷运转。

It was then the reason this small quinlon had been set inside the temple became clear. The strange ruby-like mineral it was made from gave it its unusual power… but it was fragile. Especially now that it was overloaded.

如果眼下的情况持续下去，她就无法击败这个战士……但如果她能干扰他的判断，就能摧毁这座琨珑。

She couldn’t defeat this warrior, not under these conditions… but if she kept him distracted, she could still destroy the quinlon.

她用意念变出尽量多的羽刃。此举抽干了她的力气，她觉得自己被困在水中。随后她盲目地掷出所有羽刃，迫使对手躲避。而她知道，每一片羽刃都会错过他，刺入琨珑的石面，或者飞向更高处的寺庙顶棚。

She willed as many feather blades into existence as she could. The effort of it drained her limbs, making her feel as if she was being held underwater. But she threw blindly, forcing her opponent to dodge, to duck—knowing that every blade that went past him would sink into the quinlon, cracking it, or fly beyond it into the roof of the temple.

但她的呼吸已经急促竭力，而她的敌人则像一条鲨鱼一样在四周盘旋。他一直在故意消耗她的体力——而现在他已经准备好终结这场对决。

But her breathing had become short and desperate, and her foe circled around her like a shark. He had been letting her tire—and now he was ready to finish their duel.

精疲力竭之中，霞咬紧牙关，准备完成自己必须完成的事。她会死在这，这个敌人也一样……但弗娄塔部族将活下去。

In her exhaustion, Xayah clenched her jaw, preparing herself for what she knew she must do. She would die, and so would this warrior… but the Vlotah would survive.

然后又那么几秒钟的瞬间，她意识到自己再也见不到洛了。感受不到他的拥抱。听不到他的笑声。看不到他的狡黠表情……在她分心的同时，那个身穿铠甲的战士突然袭来。她勉强挡开他的攻击，但冲撞的力量让她跌倒在地。那名战士向后翻滚一圈，随后毫无停顿地向她跳过来，刀刃准备好最后一击。

And then for the briefest of seconds she realized she never again would see Rakan. Feel him against her. Hear his laughter. See his sly smile… And in her distraction the armored warrior struck at her. Barely she turned his blow, but the impact knocked her to the ground. The warrior backflipped away from her, then, without pausing, jumped back toward her with blades ready for his killing blow.

这就是她的机会。她没有格挡，而是拉回了她的魔法羽刃，同时切开了琨珑和寺庙的顶棚！暗影战士扑上来的同时，琨珑的巨大碎片和顶棚的瓦砾都将砸到他们身上，必死无疑。

This was her chance. Instead of parrying, she drew back her magic blades and… ripped the quinlon and the roof of the temple apart! As the shadow warrior fell onto her, the quinlon’s giant shards and the stones of the roof began to fall onto them both, as certain as death.

然后，突然之间……洛！

And then, suddenly… Rakan!

他的双臂将她搂住，扶稳她，拥抱她。他的斗篷发出一团金色的能量，将他们环绕。她可以感受到暗影战士的刀刃打在金光的魔法上，没有夺走她的性命。她感到自己的脸庞贴在洛的胸前。她感受到洛的呼吸。

His arms were around her, holding her, embracing her. A swirl of golden energy wisped from his cape and surrounded them. She could feel the impact of the shadow warrior’s blades slam against its magic—unable to deliver the killing blow. She felt Rakan’s chest against her cheek. She could feel it rising as he took in a breath.

又有更大块的瓦砾和琨珑砸下来——洛的魔法始终闪耀，如同牢不可破的能量气泡，抵挡落石。但霞可以感受到他为了承担护盾的重量而变得越来越虚弱。他发出咆哮，像被困在笼中的猛虎一样奋力挣扎。整座建筑坍塌崩倒，他的胸膛颤抖着，跪倒在地。

Bigger pieces of the temple’s roof and the quinlon were falling now—whatever magic Rakan had held on to glowed as a bubble of energy, holding back the stones. But Xayah could feel him weakening under the shield’s weight. He roared, screeching like a tiger in a trap, as the entire building collapsed. His chest shuddered, and he fell to his knees.

然后一片黑暗。

And then there was darkness.When Xayah opened her eyes, Rakan was helping her to her feet in the ruins of the temple. The strange warrior was gone, and his cohorts were running down the trail, fleeing as the first wave of wild magic crashed free into this world.

The forests glowed, flowers bloomed, and the great spirits were awakening. The light from the other world washed around them.

当霞再次睁开眼，洛正在扶着她从寺庙的废墟中站起身。那个陌生的战士已经不见了，他的同伙都在沿着山路向下逃跑，因为第一波狂野的魔法已经自由奔放地涌入这个世界。

She looked at Rakan, smiled, and wiped a smudge from his cheek.

森林闪烁，鲜花盛放，巨大的森林之灵正在苏醒。另外一个世界的光芒沐浴着他们。

They embraced and took in the magic— it was different here than in the Kepthalla’s forest. Despite, or perhaps because of, how it had been caged and abused, it was bursting with vitality and joy.

她看了看洛，微笑着抹去他脸上的灰。

The Vlotah tribe would be free as the Kepthalla tribe were. And there would no longer be a question of whether destroying the quinlons was possible or right. More tribes, even Xayah’s, would see the future she believed was possible for her people.

他们相拥在一起，汲取这魔法——这里的魔法和柯刹喇森林的不一样。虽然它遭到了囚禁和滥用，但可能正因如此，它正带着活力和喜悦喷涌而出。

The ground rumbled—something giant beneath the mountain was awakening, and the two lovers danced across the great cracks forming in the landscape.

弗娄塔部族将会和柯刹喇部族一样获得自由。而今后将不会再有人质疑破坏琨珑是否可行、是否正确。会有更多部族，包括霞自己的部族，将会看到她所笃信的那个未来。

Rakan kissed Xayah gently, then said, “The humans cannot live in our lands, but I’m going to see if I can help that abbess escape. If I dive down that pink stone cliff, I might get there in time.”

大地在颤动，某种巨大的东西正在从山底复苏，这对爱侣在地面出现的裂缝之间飞舞跳跃。

“Go, save your bread-maker, my love. But I think she will have already fled the town.”

洛轻轻吻了霞，然后说，“人类无法在我们的土地上生活，但我想看看能不能帮助那个师太逃走。如果我从那个粉色的悬崖跳下去，或许还能来得及。”

Rakan tilted his head in confusion.

“去拯救你的面包师傅吧，亲爱的。但我觉得她早就逃离那座城镇了。”

Xayah cupped his face with her hands. “I left her a message, telling her what was about to happen, and that she should flee with as many of her kind as she could.”

洛疑惑地歪头看她。

“You told her what would happen?” Rakan asked, smiling as he held her hands against his face.

霞用双手捧着他的脸。“我给她留了字条，让她提前知道要发生的事，告诉她要尽可能带着更多人逃走。”

“You trusted her,” Xayah replied. “And I trust you in these things.”

“你让她知道要发生的事了？”洛问道，笑着握住她的手，把它贴上他的脸颊。

“你信任她。”霞答道，“而在这方面我信任你。”