裂缝与疤痕 Seams and Scars

作者：Dana Luery Shaw

“你怎么会在艾欧尼亚呢，朋友？”

“How came you to Ionia, friend?”

村麻里想要让自己听上去随意一些。她曾许多次在赶集的路上与陌生人搭伙扎营，但从没有像现在这样不自在。因为，这是她第一次与一名诺克萨斯人隔着营火对坐，而且这名诺克萨斯女子的身后还背着一把巨大的刀剑。

Muramaat tried to keep her voice light. She had never felt uncomfortable sharing a campfire with other travelers along the road to the markets before. This, however, marked her first time sitting across the flames from a Noxian, one with an enormous weapon sheathed across her back.

那把刀夺去了多少艾欧尼亚人命？她心想。

How many Ionian lives has that blade claimed? she wondered.

那个白发女子瞄了一眼她的“父亲”，咽下一口辣子米饭，然后盯着自己手里的盘子。“我生在诺克萨斯。”她的口音很重，但音调却一个都没错。“战争过后就再也没回去，我也不打算回去。”

The white-haired woman glanced at her “father” before swallowing a mouthful of charred peppers and rice, then cast her eyes down at her plate. “I was born in Noxus,” she said, her accent thick but her tonality nearly flawless. “I have not been back since the war, and I do not plan to return.”

那个诺克萨斯人的父亲，亚撒•孔德把手搭在她的肩上。“现在这儿就是她家。”他语气坚定地说。

The Noxian’s father, Asa Konte, smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder. “This is her home now,” he said with finality.

村麻里邀请亚撒一起搭伙扎营的时候，并没有看到那个正在马车后面睡觉的诺克萨斯人。他说这是他的女儿锐雯，当时他的语气和现在一样坚定，硬气的下巴先声夺人。村麻里当时并没有对这个陌生老头说的话提出质疑，但那并不意味着他的“女儿”可以躲过审视。

Muramaat had invited Asa to make camp with her before she had spotted the Noxian asleep in the back of his cart. He had introduced her as his daughter, Riven, in this same tone, with his chin jutting forward in preemptive defense. Muramaat hadn’t pushed back against the strange old man’s declaration then, but that didn’t mean his “daughter” was beyond scrutiny.

“你没有回答我的问题，”村麻里揪住不放，她给自己倒了杯茶，胸前的修补匠项链发出叮叮铃音。“你是为什么踏上我们的土地，锐雯？”

“You have not answered my question,” Muramaat pressed, the chimes of her mender’s necklace clinking together as she poured herself a cup of tea. “What brought you to our shores, Riven?”

锐雯紧紧握住盘子，双肩紧绷。“我打过仗。”

Riven tightly gripped her plate, tension rippling through her shoulders. “I fought in the war.”

简单的陈述，带着沉重的忧伤。听到诺克萨斯人的悔恨，还真是新鲜。

A simple statement, laden with sorrow. Curious, to hear regret from a Noxian.

“你为什么留下来了？”村麻里问，“什么人会留在自己破坏过的地方，与自己迫害过的人一起生活？”

“Why did you stay?” Muramaat asked. “Why would anyone stay in a place where they and their people have caused so much pain, so much destruction?”

咔嚓。

Crack.

盘子被捏碎了，锐雯双拳紧握，指节发白，辣子米饭洒了一地。她喘了一口粗气，扔掉手中的盘子碎片，然后充满悲伤地深鞠一躬。“非常抱歉，”她低声说着，缓缓直起身，“盘子我照价赔偿，随后我们就还你清静的夜晚。我并不是想冒犯——”

The plate had broken in half in Riven’s white-knuckled grip, her charred peppers and rice falling to the ground. With a gasp, she dropped the plate shards before bowing ruefully. “My deepest apologies,” she mumbled as she rose. “I will pay for this plate, and then we will leave you to your evening. I didn’t mean to intrude—”

但村麻里并没有听她说什么。她捧起碎掉的盘子，举到耳边，同时轻轻哼唱。她缓缓调整自己的音调，呼唤陶土中的土灵。

But Muramaat wasn’t listening. Instead, she cradled the broken plate in her hands and held the shards to her ear, humming softly. Slowly, she adjusted her pitch, calling to the spirit within the clay.

她的后脑感到一阵刺痒，说明她已经调整到了正确的音调，土灵与她的哼唱产生了共鸣。维持音调的同时，村麻里提起了项链，轻轻摇晃，最后铃声的音调也加入了她和土灵的谐振乐曲中。

The back of her skull tingled when she hit the right tone, as the spirit reverberated with her hum. Holding the note, Muramaat lifted her necklace and flicked its chimes until she found the one that joined her and the spirit in song.

她映着火光盯着项链上的组铃——每一枚铃铛都镌刻着一个标志，对应着如何修补一个谐振的物灵。这个标志是一条曲线，越到末端越精细，它代表了烟。村麻里把碎片举到火焰上，让它们沐浴在烟中。片刻后，碎片就被缝补到了一起，只有几道煤炭色的缝隙和凸起，证明这个盘子曾经被打碎过。

She stared at the chime in the firelight—each one had been inscribed with a symbol that identified how to mend a resonant spirit. This symbol was for smoke, a single line with a curve that became more pronounced toward the end. Muramaat lifted the shards above the fire to bathe them in the smoke. It took only moments before they knitted back together, with only a few coal-colored seams and ridges to show that the plate had ever been broken.

“我是修补匠，”她向目瞪口呆的锐雯展示修好的盘子，“不需要任何补偿。”

“I’m a mender,” she said as she held the pottery out to a wide-eyed Riven. “No need to replace anything.”

锐雯拿过盘子仔细查看。“怎么补好的？”她一边问着，一边用手指抚过一道黑缝。

Riven took the plate and examined it. “How does it work?” she asked, running a finger down a thick black seam.

“万物有灵，而无论是物灵还是生灵，都想要变得完整。我问它们需要什么东西才能补好，然后为它们提供所需的东西。”

“Everything has a spirit, and every spirit wants to be whole. I ask them what they need to mend, and give it to them.”

“会留疤。”锐雯惋惜地说。

“It leaves scars,” Riven sighed.

“疤痕是疗愈的迹象。这个盘子永远都不再完美无瑕，但它是完整的。而且很结实。我觉得它现在的样子更美了。”

“Scars are a sign of healing. That plate will never be seamless again, but it is whole. And it is strong. I’d even say it is more beautiful like this.”

锐雯默默地想着这个盘子。

Riven considered the plate in silence.

“我之所以留下，”她思索片刻后说道，“正是因为我带来了破坏和迫害。我留下来是为了弥补。”

“I am still here,” she said after a moment, “because I have caused so much pain and so much destruction. I stay to atone.”

村麻里若有所思地点点头。显然，锐雯也有伤疤，虽然看不见，但却很深。或许她跟其他诺克萨斯人不一样。

Muramaat nodded somberly. Clearly Riven’s scars, though invisible, ran deep. Perhaps this Noxian was different from the others.

但村麻里的目光落在了锐雯的剑柄上。那种工具只能劈砍，不能修补。

But then Muramaat’s eyes fell to the hilt of Riven’s massive weapon. A tool for cutting, not mending.

就算不一样，又能好到哪去呢？

How different can she really be?

村麻里睡眼朦胧地醒来，她听到大篷车旁边传来一声巨大的闷响。遇上贼了。锐雯坚持要整夜放哨，村麻吕一边回想着，一边抄起一把最沉的水壶。这个修补匠对付抢劫很有经验，从来都能在打斗中不落下风。

Muramaat woke bleary-eyed to a loud thump against the side of her caravan. Bandits. Riven had insisted on keeping watch through the night, Muramaat remembered as she grabbed her heaviest kettle. But the mender was experienced in dealing with robbers and could always hold her own in a fight.

不过，当她打开车门，她发现锐雯根本不需要她帮忙。

When she opened her door, however, she saw that Riven would not need her help after all.

其中一个歹徒已经蜷缩在马车旁边。锐雯站在营火边上，被三个大块头劫匪包围。她握着巨大的剑柄，这时村麻里惊讶地地看到，剑柄之上只是一把残缺的断剑。不过这把武器依然令人望而生畏。断剑似乎在锐雯手里律动发光，等待着敌人走上前来。

One of the intruders lay crumpled at the foot of the caravan. By the fire stood Riven, surrounded by three hulking bandits. She held the enormous hilt, and Muramaat was surprised to see only a broken blade attached to the end. Yet the weapon was still formidable. It seemed to pulse in Riven’s hands as she waited for the others to advance.

村麻里看到那把断剑以后感到心头一凉，她不想再看到诺克萨斯人让艾欧尼亚人流血……但她还是继续看着。

Muramaat’s stomach turned to see that blade, not relishing the sight of a Noxian spilling more Ionian blood... but still she watched.

三个劫匪冲向锐雯，语无伦次地大叫着。不过她只是向前迈出一步，就用断剑放出一股能量，击退了他们。三人的武器都被震落，于是在黑暗中笨手笨脚地摸索。村麻里意识到，此时锐雯完全可以把他们全都杀光，但她却没有动手。相反，她举起剑，剑身开始发出诡异的绿光。剑中的魔法向前爆震，弹开了一个劫匪。随后他便不省人事，倒地不起。

The bandits rushed at Riven, yelling incoherently, but she took a single step forward and repulsed them with a burst of energy from her blade. They dropped their weapons, then scrambled to find them in the dark. Riven could have cut them all down, Muramaat realized, but she didn’t. Instead, she raised her sword, which began to glow an eerie green. The magic from the weapon blasted outward and repelled one of the bandits as soon as it touched him. He fell to the ground in a catatonic daze.

此时，另外两人都站了起来，拿好了武器。锐雯收回手中的武器，随后许多发光的金属碎片从马车里腾空而起，向着锐雯飞过来。那些碎片悬浮到断剑前端，几乎组成了一把完整的巨剑——只不过碎片之间还留有很大的空隙。两个劫匪再次向她冲过来。

By this point, the others were on their feet, weapons in hand. Riven brought her arm back, and glowing pieces of metal raced toward the Noxian from the cart. The shards formed around the blade, making it look almost whole—though there were still gaps between the pieces. The bandits rushed her again.

他们是不自量力。锐雯持着巨剑在面前一记空挥，一阵突如其来的气流将他们拍到了大篷车上，双双失去知觉。

Or so they tried. Riven whipped the blade in front of her and blew them back against the caravan with a sudden gust of wind, knocking them all unconscious.

不流血的胜利。

A bloodless victory.

村麻里小心翼翼地走向被击败的劫匪。“你打算怎么处理他们？”她问道。

Muramaat stepped gingerly over the defeated bandits. “What will you do with them?” she asked Riven, who had barely broken a sweat.

锐雯显得很轻松，她耸耸肩，任凭剑的碎片落到地上。“我会把他们绑到树上，早晨再放走。”

Riven shrugged, letting the shards of her sword drop to the ground. “I’ll just tie them to a tree until morning.”

村麻里看着断剑的碎片。这把剑看上去不再那么可怕了，因为她已经看到锐雯如何使用它。“我能看看你的兵器吗？”

Muramaat stared at the remnant of the blade. It didn’t seem as threatening anymore, now that she had seen how Riven wielded it. “Could I see your weapon?”

锐雯皱起眉后退一步，“为什么？”

Riven frowned and took a step back. “Why?”

“不用把它交给我。只要端起来就行。”

“You don’t need to hand it to me. Just hold it up.”

锐雯谨慎地举起断剑。村麻里闭上双眼开始哼唱。

Warily, Riven raised the blade. Muramaat closed her eyes and hummed.

“你在做什么？”锐雯警觉地问，正当村麻里找到正确的音调时——

“What are you doing?” Riven asked in alarm, just as Muramaat found the right pitch—

——一双眼睛，正在四下搜寻——

—a pair of eyes, searching———三个猎手，心怀怒火，满腔仇恨———three hunters, hearts filled with hate, thoughts with revenge———燃烧———burning———一切都在燃烧——

—everything, burning—

村麻里并没有意识到自己倒下，她只感觉到锐雯在摇晃她。“你没事吧？”

Muramaat didn’t realize she had fallen until she felt Riven shake her. “Are you all right?”

“有人，”村麻里悄声说道，她的喉咙已经干哑，“有人正在找这把剑。正在找你。”

“Someone,” Muramaat whispered, her throat dry, “is searching for this blade. For you.”

锐雯面色发白，但她的双眼并没有透露出心里的想法。“你做了什么，村麻里？”她低声问道。

Riven blanched, but her eyes revealed nothing of her thoughts. “What did you do, Muramaat?” she asked in a low whisper.

“我不该质疑你。我想对你道歉，修补你的剑。”

“I was wrong to question you. I wanted to offer my apologies by mending your sword.”

“不。”如此强烈的否决让村麻里感到意外。“如果你真的想感谢我，就永远都别修复这把剑。”锐雯苦笑一声。“我想修补的东西，是你修不好的。不过……还是谢谢你了。费心了。”

“No.” The intensity of the word took Muramaat by surprise. “If you truly want to thank me, you will never fix this blade.” Riven chuckled, a bitter sound. “The one thing I would want you to fix, you can’t. But... thank you. For the offer.”

她长吁一口气，心力交瘁，然后将断剑的碎片一一捡起。

She sighed, exhausted, and collected up the shards of her sword.

“如果明天还想赶上早集的话，就回去睡会吧。”

“You should go back to sleep if you want to get to the marketplace early tomorrow.”

村麻里点了点头，缓缓走回她的大篷车。当她回头看去，锐雯依然坐在营火边，安静地守着夜。

Muramaat nodded and slowly made her way to her caravan. When she looked back, Riven was at the fire, sitting and watching the night.

这已经不是第一次了，村麻里真希望自己知道如何修补一个人。

Not for the first time, Muramaat wished she knew how to mend people.