《黎明踏浪号》第八章 两次死里逃生
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CHAPTER EIGHT TWO NARROW ESCAPES
第八章 两次死里逃生
EVERYONE was cheerful as the Dawn Treader sailed from Dragon Island.They had fair winds as soon as they were out of the bay and came early next morning to the unknown land which some of them had seen when flying over the mountains while Eustace was still a dragon.It was a low green island inhabited by nothing but rabbits and a few goats，but from the ruins of stone huts，and from blackened places where fires had been，they judged that it had been peopled not long before.There were also some bones and broken weapons.黎明踏浪号终于要离开龙岛了，人人都很开心。船一出海湾， 一路顺风，第二天一大早就到了那个无名地。尤斯塔斯还是条龙的时候，有些人骑在他身上飞过群山曾见过这地方。这是一块低矮的绿岛， 上面有些兔子和几只山羊，不过根据石屋的残址和被火烧得发黑的岩石来看，这里不久前还住过人。岛上还有一些骨头和破旧的武器。
“Pirates’work，”said Caspian.
“是海盗的杰作吧。”凯斯宾说
“Or the dragon’s，”said Edmund.
“要不就是龙干的。”爱德蒙说。
The only other thing they found there was a little skin boat， or coracle，on the sands.It was made of hide stretched over a wicker framework.It was a tiny boat，barely four feet long，and the paddle which still lay in it was in proportion.They thought that either it had been made for a child or else that the people of that country had been Dwarfs.Reepicheep decided to keep it，as it was just the right size for him;so it was taken on board.They called that land Burnt Island，and sailed away before noon.
此外他们在岛上找到的唯一的东西就是一只小皮艇，又叫皮筏子，是用兽皮绷在一个柳条框架上做成的。那只小小的船，只有四英尺长，船桨还搁在那儿，和船的大小相称。他们心想，要么这船是造给孩子的，或者这里住着小矮人。雷佩契普决定留着这条船，因为这船的大小跟它的身材正合适，所以就带上了大船。他们把这地方叫做火烧岛，没到中午就离开了。
For some five days they ran before a south-south east wind， out of sight of all lands and seeing neither fish nor gull.Then they had a day that rained hard till the afternoon.Eustace lost two games of chess to Reepicheep and began to get like his old and disagreeable self again，and Edmund said he wished they could have gone to America with Susan.Then Lucy looked out of the stern windows and said：“Hello ! I do believe it’s stopping.And what’s that ?”
他们顺着东南风航行了五天，一直没有见到陆地，也没有见到鱼和海鸥。后来有一天下了一场雨，午后才停。尤斯塔斯跟雷佩契普下棋，输了两局之后，又露出令人讨厌的样子。爱德蒙说他真希望当初他们跟苏珊一起去了美国。露茜望着窗外说：“嘿!雨真的停了。你们看那是什么?”
They all tumbled up to the poop at this and found that the rain had stopped and that Drinian，who was on watch，was also staring hard at something astern.Or rather，at several things.They looked a little like smooth rounded rocks，a whole line of them with intervals of about forty feet in between.
大家听到后，都跑到船尾来看，发现雨真的停了，正在值班的德里宁也盯着船尾外面的什么东西。确切地说有好多东西。那些东西看上去像光滑的卵石，但是两两之间相隔大约四十英尺，排成长长的一列。
“But they can’t be rocks，”Drinian was saying，“because they weren’t there five minutes ago.”
“不可能是石头，”德里宁说，“因为五分钟之前那儿还没有这些东西。”
“And one’s just disappeared，”said Lucy.
“有一块刚才不见了。”露茜说。
“Yes，and there’s another one coming up，”said Edmund.
“是啊，还有一块突然冒出来了。”
“And nearer，”said Eustace.
“越来越近了。”尤斯塔斯说。
“Hang it!”said Caspian.“The whole thing is moving this way.”
“真见鬼!”凯斯宾说，“那些东西都往这儿移动了。”
“And moving a great deal quicker than we can sail，Sire，”said Drinian.“It’ll be up with us in a minute.”
“而且它们的速度比我们的船还快，陛下，”德里宁说，“很快就会追上我们。”
They all held their breath，for it is not at all nice to be pursued by an unknown something either on land or sea.But what it turned out to be was far worse than anyone had suspected.Suddenly， only about the length of a cricket pitch from their port side，an appalling head reared itself out of the sea.It was all greens and vermilions with purple blotches—except where shellfish clung to it—and shaped rather like a horse’s，though without ears.It had enormous eyes，eyes made for staring through the dark depths of the ocean，and a gaping mouth filled with double rows of sharp fish-like teeth.It came up on what they first took to be a huge neck，but as more and more of it emerged everyone knew that this was not its neck but its body and that at last they were seeing what so many people have foolishly wanted to see—the great Sea Serpent.The folds of its gigantic tail could be seen far away， rising at intervals from the surface.And now its head was towering up higher than the mast.
他们都屏住呼吸，因为不管是在陆地上还是海上，被未知的东西追总没好事。谁知道，这玩意一露头比猜想的还可怕。忽然，在离左舷还有一个投球距离的时候，一个吓人的脑袋钻出海面。这东西的脑袋上除了寄生贝之外，还有绿色的、红色的和紫色的疙瘩。那形状像一只没有耳朵的马头。脑袋上长着可以透视海洋深处的大眼睛，还有一张咧开的大嘴长着上下两排尖利的牙齿。脑袋和脖子连在一起，越变越长——大家这才发现这不是脖子，而是身子，最后他们总算看见了有不少人想要见识的——大海蛇。远远就能看见它巨大的尾巴上的皱槽，不时升出水面。这时它正昂起脑袋，高耸在桅杆上面。
Every man rushed to his weapon，but there was nothing to be done，the monster was out of reach.“Shoot !Shoot !”cried the Master Bowman，and several obeyed，but the arrows glanced off the Sea Serpent’s hide as if it was iron—plated.Then，for a dreadful minute，everyone was still，staring up at its eyes and mouth and wondering where it would pounce.
大家都跑去拿武器，可是并没什么用，因为这东西太高了。“射箭，射箭!”弓箭手头领一声令下，几个人开始射箭，可是箭只是从蛇皮上擦过去，好像射在了铁甲上一样。这时，大家一动不动地看着海蛇的眼睛和嘴，倒吸了一口冷气，因为不知道它会向哪儿扑过来。
But it didn’t pounce.It shot its head forward across the ship on a level with the yard of the mast.Now its head was just beside the fightingtop.Still it stretched and stretched till its head was over the starboard bulwark.Then down it began to come—not onto the crowded deck but into the water，so that the whole ship was under an arch of serpent.And almost at once that arch began to get smaller：indeed on the starboard the Sea Serpent was now almost touching the Dawn Treader’s side.
可是它没有。它的脑袋沿着桅杆探过船身，眼看就要到观测台旁边了，仍不断伸长，一直伸到右舷上。然后开始向下钻——不是钻向甲板上的人群，而是海里。然后它的身体就把整条船给围住了。这个圈越来越小，海蛇的身体简直要碰到右舷壁了。
Eustace(who had really been trying very hard to behave well， till the rain and the chess put him back)now did the first brave thing he had ever done.He was wearing a sword that Caspian had lent him.As soon as the serpent’s body was near enough on the starboard side he jumped on to the bulwark and began hacking at it with all his might.It is true that he accomplished nothing beyond breaking Caspian’s second-best sword into bits，but it was a fine thing for a beginner to have done.
尤斯塔斯一直努力好好表现，后来天下雨了他就和别人下棋， 虽然输给别人的时候他得表现让人生厌，但这时他居然做出平生第一次壮举。他随身带着凯斯宾借给他的一把剑，当蛇身快接近右舷壁的时候，他向舷壁扑过去，使出浑身力量猛然刺向海蛇。当然结果除了把凯斯宾那第二把好剑折成碎片之外，毫无收获。可是对一个初出茅庐的人来说，这倒是件好事。
Others would have joined him if at that moment Reepicheep had not called out，“Don’t fight ! Push !”It was so unusual for the Mouse to advise anyone not to fight that，even in that terrible moment，every eye turned to him.And when he jumped up on to the bulwark，forward of the snake，and set his little furry back against its huge scaly，slimy back，and began pushing as hard as he could，quite a number of people saw what he meant and rushed to both sides of the ship to do the same.And when，a moment later，the Sea Serpent’s head appeared again，this time on the port side，and this time with its back to them，then everyone understood.
若不是雷佩契普大声喊：“别打!推!”别人早就跟凯斯宾一起去战斗了。到了那样的紧要关头，老鼠竟然还劝大家别打，这太奇怪了，所以大家目光都转向它。当它扑向舷壁，挡在海蛇前面，用它那毛茸茸的小身子挡住海蛇那长满鳞甲，滑腻腻的巨大身子使劲往外推的时候，好多人这才明白它的用意，纷纷冲到船舷两侧，学着他那样往外推。过了一会，海蛇的脑袋又出现了，这回在左舷，而且是背对着大家，于是大家都明白了。
The brute had made a loop of itself round the Dawn Treader and was beginning to draw the loop tight.When it got quite tight— snap ! —there would be floating matchwood where the ship had been and it could pick them out of the water one by one.Their only chance was to push the loop backward till it slid over the stern;or else(to put the same thing another way)to push the ship forward out of the loop.
这怪物竟把身子绕成个圈，套着黎明踏浪号，并开始把圈套收紧。等这个圈套收得相当紧了，“啪”的一下子，大船就会变成一堆漂浮的碎片，它就可以在水里把他们一一吃掉。他们的唯一出路是把这个圈套往船后推，推得它滑过船尾，不然就把圈套朝另一个方向推， 让船身前进，脱出圈套。
Reepicheep alone had，of course，no more chance of doing this than of lifting up a cathedral，but he had nearly killed himself with trying before others shoved him aside.Very soon the whole ship’s company except Lucy and the Mouse(which was fainting) was in two long lines along the two bulwarks，each man’s chest to the back of the man in front，so that the weight of the whole line was in the last man，pushing for their lives.For a few sickening seconds(which seemed like hours)nothing appeared to happen. Joints cracked，sweat dropped，breath came in grunts and gasps. Then they felt that the ship was moving.They saw that the snake-loop was further from the mast than it had been.But they also saw that it was smaller.And now the real danger was at hand.Could they get it over the poop，or was it already too tight ? Yes.It would just fit.It was resting on the poop rails.A dozen or more sprang up on the poop.This was far better.The Sea Serpent’s body was so low now that they could make a line across the poop and push side by side.Hope rose high till everyone remembered the high carved stern，the dragon tail，of the Dawn Treader.It would be quite impossible to get the brute over that.
雷佩契普势单力薄，无异蚍蜉撼大树。当别人把它推到一边时， 它已用尽力气，差点送了命。一会儿工夫全船人，除了露茜和晕倒的老鼠之外，都沿着两边舷壁，排成两条长队，个个前胸贴后背， 整列队伍的重量都落在队尾一个人身上，大家拼命推。推了几秒钟， 就像推了好几个小时，还是毫无结果。大家伙儿的关节都像散了架， 汗珠往下淌，嘴里哼哼嘿嘿地直喘气。这时他们觉得船在动了，他们看见蛇圈离桅杆比先前更远了，蛇圈却收小了。真正的危险迫在眉睫。他们能让船尾穿过这个圈吗?这个圈是不是已经太小了?是啊，这个圈套贴着船尾楼的栏杆绕成一个圈。十几个人跳上船尾去，这样就好得多了。这时海蛇的身体很低，他们在船尾对面排成一排并肩一齐推。大家满怀希望，但忽然又想起黎明踏浪号高耸在船尾的雕花龙尾，要让龙尾摆脱那个圈套就不太可能了。
“An axe，”cried Caspian hoarsely，“and still shove.”Lucy， who knew where everything was，heard him where she was standing on the main deck staring up at the poop.In a few seconds she had been below，got the axe，and was rushing up the ladder to the poop.But just as she reached the top there came a great crashing noise like a tree coming down and the ship rocked and darted forward.For at that very moment，whether because the Sea Serpent was being pushed so hard，or because it foolishly decided to draw the noose tight，the whole of the carved stern broke off and the ship was free.
“拿把斧头来，”凯斯宾声嘶力竭喊道：“像原来那样用力推。” 露茜对船上的东西放在哪儿都了如指掌。此时的她正站在甲板上望着船尾，听到他这话，她立即冲下舱，拿了斧子，奔上梯子，赶到船尾。谁知正当她到达顶上，就听见“咔嚓”一声，像树木倒下似的一声巨响， 船身摇摇摆摆往前冲去。就在那千钧一发之际，不管是因为大家使劲猛推海蛇，还是因为海蛇猛地抽紧圈套，整个雕花龙尾都折断了， 大船也就脱险了。
The others were too exhausted to see what Lucy saw.There， a few yards behind them，the loop of Sea Serpent’s body got rapidly smaller and disappeared into a splash.Lucy always said(but of course she was very excited at the moment，and it may have been only imagination)that she saw a look of idiotic satisfaction on the creature’s face.What is certain is that it was a very stupid animal，for instead of pursuing the ship it turned its head round and began nosing all along its own body as if it expected to find the wreckage of the Dawn Treader there.But the Dawn Treader was already well away，running before a fresh breeze，and the men lay and sat panting and groaning all about the deck，till presently they were able to talk about it，and then to laugh about it.And when some rum had been served out they even raised a cheer;and everyone praised the valour of Eustace(though it hadn’t done any good)and of Reepicheep.
大伙都筋疲力尽，顾不上去看露茜见到的情景：在船尾几码外， 海蛇缩成的圈越收越小，然后扑通一下不见了。露茜总是说她看见那怪物脸上有种白痴的满足感( 可是当时她那么激动，这可能是她的想象而已)。值得庆幸的是，这条海蛇非常愚蠢，它并没有追这条船， 而是掉过头去，在自己全身上下嗅探，仿佛能找到船的残骸似的。不过黎明踏浪号已经安然脱身，欢快地在风里航行，所有人都躺在或坐在甲板上，喘着气又呻吟着，过了好一会才开始谈论这个事。喝甜酒的时候，大家还举杯庆贺，都夸尤斯塔斯( 虽然没帮上什么忙)和雷佩契普真是勇敢。
After this they sailed for three days more and saw nothing but sea and sky.On the fourth day the wind changed to the north and the seas began to rise;by the afternoon it had nearly become a gale. But at the same time they sighted land on their port bow.
脱险后，他们又航行了三天，除了大海和天空什么也看不见。第四天突然刮起北风，海平面也升高了许多，到中午的时候，竟然刮起了大风。就在这个时候他们在左舷那边看见有块陆地。
“By your leave，Sire，”said Drinian，“we will try to get under the lee of that country by rowing and lie in harbour，maybe till this is over.”Caspian agreed，but a long row against the gale did not bring them to the land before evening.By the last light of that day they steered into a natural harbour and anchored，but no one went ashore that night.In the morning they found themselves in the green bay of a rugged，lonely-looking country which sloped up to a rocky summit.From the windy north beyond that summit clouds came streaming rapidly.They lowered the boat and loaded her with any of the water casks which were now empty.
“陛下，请准许，”德里宁说，“准许我们划桨，停靠在港口里， 设法在那地方避避风，等风过了再说。”凯斯宾同意了。不过顶着大风划桨，估计傍晚才能到那儿。在白天最后一抹光线里，他们开进一个天然港口，抛下了锚，没有上岸。到早上的时候，他们发现那是一个海水绿色的海湾，岸上崎岖不平，非常凄清，斜坡上面还有一个怪石嶙峋的山顶。望向山顶那边，可以看到乌云从北面滚滚而来。他们放下小船，把吃空的水桶全都装上小船。
“Which stream shall we water at，Drinian ?”said Caspian as he took his seat in the stern-sheets of the boat.“There seem to be two coming down into the bay.”
“我们到哪条河打水呢，德里宁?”凯斯宾一边说，一边在船尾坐下，“好像有两条河流汇进这个海湾。”
“It makes little odds，Sire，”said Drinian.“But I think it’s a shorter pull to that on the starboard—the eastern one.”
“都可以，陛下，”德里宁说，“我看右舷东边那条好一点， 路程稍短。”
“Here comes the rain，”said Lucy.
“下雨了。”露茜说。
“I should think it does!”said Edmund，for it was already pelting hard.“I say，let’s go to the other stream.There are trees there and we’ll have some shelter.”
“我觉得也是!”爱德蒙话刚落下，这时已经是大雨倾盆，“我看还是到另一条河吧。那儿有树，可以避雨。”
“Yes，let’s，”said Eustace.“No point in getting wetter than we need.”
“是啊，去吧。”尤斯塔斯说，“我们白白淋湿也没什么意义。”
But all the time Drinian was steadily steering to the starboard， like tiresome people in cars who continue at forty miles an hour while you are explaining to them that they are on the wrong road.
德里宁还是把小船开向右舷那里，像个听不进意见的司机，真让人讨厌。尽管你告诉他开错方向了，他还是以一小时四十英里的速度向前开。
“They’re right，Drinian，”said Caspian.“Why don’t you bring her head round and make for the western stream ?”
“他们说得对，德里宁，”凯斯宾说，“你为什么不掉头，到西边的那条河去?”
“As your Majesty pleases，”said Drinian a little shortly.He had had an anxious day with the weather yesterday，and he didn’t like advice from landsmen.But he altered course;and it turned out afterwards that it was a good thing he did.
“听陛下调遣。”德里宁有点不快地说。他昨天为天气担心了一整天，他更不喜欢陆上的人对他一个舵手指指点点。不过他最后还是改变了航向，后来证明他这么做是做对了。
By the time they had finished watering，the rain was over and Caspian，with Eustace，the Pevensies，and Reepicheep，decided to walk up to the top of the hill and see what could be seen.It was a stiffish climb through coarse grass and heather and they saw neither man nor beast，except seagulls.When they reached the top they saw that it was a very small island，not more than twenty acres; and from this height the sea looked larger and more desolate than it did from the deck，or even the fighting—top，of the Dawn Treader.
大家装满水之后，雨停了。凯斯宾就带着尤斯塔斯、佩文西兄妹和雷佩契普去了山顶，看看有没有什么发现。这条遍地野草和碎石的山坡很难爬，路上看不见人，也没看见野兽，只能看到几只海鸟。到了山顶才发现这是个小岛，还不到二十英亩。从这望去，海面比从甲板或者黎明踏浪号的桅顶观测台上望去更大更荒凉。
“Crazy，you know，”said Eustace to Lucy in a low voice， looking at the eastern horizon.“Sailing on and on into that with no idea what we may get to.”But he only said it out of habit，not really nastily as he would have done at one time.
“你这是在发疯，你知道吗，”尤斯塔斯望着东方地平线，低声对露茜说，“打算去哪儿心里也没个谱。”不过是出于习惯才这样说， 并不是之前那样存心抬杠。
It was too cold to stay long on the ridge for the wind still blew freshly from the north.
山上很冷，不能待久，北面还有冷风吹来。
“Don’t let’s go back the same way，”said Lucy as they turned;“let’s go along a bit and come down by the other stream， the one Drinian wanted to go to.”
“我们回去的时候别走老路。”回程的时候露茜说，“我们到另外一条河边去，就是德里宁想去的那边。”
Everyone agreed to this and after about fifteen minutes they were at the source of the second river.It was a more interesting place than they had expected;a deep little mountain lake， surrounded by cliffs except for a narrow channel on the seaward side out of which the water flowed.Here at last they were out of the wind，and all sat down in the heather above the cliff for a rest.
大家都同意露茜的主意。十五分钟后，他们就到了另一条河的源头。这里有想象不出的美：深山中有一个小湖泊，周围是悬崖峭壁， 只有一条狭窄的水道通向海里。在这里吹不到风，大家在悬崖边的树丛里坐下来休息了一会儿。
All sat down，but one(it was Edmund)jumped up again very quickly.
大家刚坐下，爱德蒙突然又跳了起来。
“They go in for sharp stones on this island，”he said，groping about in the heather.“Where is the wretched thing ? ... Ah，now I’ve got it... Hullo ! It wasn’t a stone at all，it’s a sword-hilt.No，by jove，it’s a whole sword;what the rust has left of it.It must have lain here for ages.”
“这岛上全是尖石头，”他在石丛里摸索着说，“那该死的石头在哪儿……啊，我找到了……嗨!这根本不是石头，是剑柄。不，天哪， 是一把完整的剑。上面生了厚厚的一层锈，一定落在这儿有好多年了。”
“Narnian，too，by the look of it，”said Caspian，as they all crowded round.
“看起来，它是纳尼亚的剑。”大家都围上来，凯斯宾说。
“I’m sitting on something too，”said Lucy.“Something hard.”It turned out to be the remains of a mail shirt.By this time everyone was on hands and knees，feeling in the thick heather in every direction.Their search revealed，one by one，a helmet， a dagger，and a few coins;not Calormen crescents but genuine Narnian“Lions”and“Trees”such as you might see any day in the market-place of Beaversdam or Beruna.
“我也坐在什么上面了呢，”露茜说，“有点硬硬的。”仔细一看， 原来是一副铠甲的残留。这时大家都跪在地上用手在密密麻麻的石丛里摸索。之后，他们搜出了一个头盔、一把匕首、几枚钱币。这可不是卡乐门国的弯月银币，而是纳尼亚国的真正的“狮子硬币”和“树币”。这种货币，在海狸大坝和柏卢纳的市场上随处可见。
“Looks as if this might be all that’s left of one of our seven lords，”said Edmund.
“看来，这很像是七位公爵中的一位留下的物品。”爱德蒙说。
“Just what I was thinking，”said Caspian.“I wonder which it was.There’s nothing on the dagger to show.And I wonder how he died.”
“我也这么觉得，”凯斯宾说，“不知道是哪一位，从匕首上看不出来，也不知道他是怎么死的。”
“And how we are to avenge him，”added Reepicheep.
“所以无法替他报仇。”雷佩契普加上一句。
Edmund，the only one of the party who had read several detective stories，had meanwhile been thinking.
在这群人中，爱德蒙是唯一看过几本侦探小说的人，这时他一直在思考。
“Look here，”he said，“there’s something very fishy about this. He can’t have been killed in a fight.”
“听我说，”他说，“这件事很蹊跷，他应该不是在决斗中战死的。”
“Why not?”asked Caspian.
“为什么呢?”凯斯宾问。
“No bones，”said Edmund.“An enemy might take the armour and leave the body.But who ever heard of a chap who’d won a fight carrying away the body and leaving the armour ?”
“尸骨荡然无存，”爱德蒙说，“他的敌人应该会拿走他的铠甲， 丢下尸体。谁听说打胜了仗把尸体带走，丢下铠甲的?”
“Perhaps he was killed by a wild animal，”Lucy suggested.
“有可能是被野兽吃掉的。”露茜提出。
“It’d be a clever animal，”said Edmund，“that would take a man’s mail shirt off.”
“那必须得是只聪明的野兽，”爱德蒙说，“才能把人的铠甲脱掉。”
“Perhaps a dragon ?”said Caspian.
“会不会是条龙?”凯斯宾说。
“Nothing doing，”said Eustace.“A dragon couldn’t do it.I ought to know.”
“不可能，”尤斯塔斯说，“龙办不到，我知道的。”
“Well，let’s get away from the place，anyway，”said Lucy. She had not felt like sitting down again since Edmund had raised the question of bones.
“好吧，无论如何，我们应该离开这里。”露茜说。听到爱德蒙提起尸骨的事情，她不想待在这儿了。
“If you like，”said Caspian，getting up.“I don’t think any of this stuff is worth taking away.”
“好的，”凯斯宾站起来说，“这些东西哪样都不值得我们带走。”
They came down and round to the little opening where the stream came out of the lake，and stood looking at the deep water within the circle of cliffs.If it had been a hot day，no doubt some would have been tempted to bathe and everyone would have had a drink.Indeed，even as it was，Eustace was on the very point of stooping down and scooping up some water in his hands when Reepicheep and Lucy both at the same moment cried，“Look，”so he forgot about his drink and looked into the water.
他们下了山，绕到河流的小空地上，看着悬崖中间的那潭深水。如果是大热天，保准有人情不自禁去洗个澡，兴许大家还会喝个饱。说真的，尽管天不热，在尤斯塔斯弯下腰来，想用双手舀些水喝时， 忽然听到雷佩契普和露茜同时喊道：“看!”他顿时忘了喝水，看向水里。
The bottom of the pool was made of large greyish-blue stones and the water was perfectly clear，and on the bottom lay a life-size figure of a man，made apparently of gold.It lay face downwards with its arms stretched out above its head.And it so happened that as they looked at it，the clouds parted and the sun shone out.The golden shape was lit up from end to end.Lucy thought it was the most beautiful statue she had ever seen.
潭底由青灰色的大石块砌成，水非常清澈，潭底躺着一个和真人一般大小的人像，分明是金子铸成的。脸向下，两臂高举过头顶。他们看着它的时候，乌云渐渐散开，太阳出来了。金像上上下下都被照得明晃晃的，露茜觉得这是她见过的人像中最美的一尊。
“Well !”whistled Caspian.“That was worth coming to see ! I wonder，can we get it out ?”
“太好啦”，凯斯宾吹着口哨说，“太值得一看了，不知道能不能捞上来?”
“We can dive for it，Sire，”said Reepicheep.
“我们可以潜下去打捞，陛下。”雷佩契普说。
“No good at all，”said Edmund.“At least，if it’s really gold—solid gold—it’ll be far too heavy to bring up.And that pool’s twelve or fifteen feet deep if it’s an inch.Half a moment， though.It’s a good thing I’ve brought a hunting spear with me. Let’s see what the depth is like.Hold on to my hand，Caspian， while I lean out over the water a bit.”Caspian took his hand and Edmund，leaning forward，began to lower his spear into the water.
“没用的，”爱德蒙说，“要是纯金的话就太沉了，捞不出来。而且那水至少有十二到十五英尺那么深。话说回来，等一下，我有一支鱼叉，让我们来看看水有多深。凯斯宾，你抓住我的手。”凯斯宾就抓住他的手，爱德蒙探出身子，把鱼叉插下水去。
Before it was half-way in Lucy said，“I don’t believe the statue is gold at all.It’s only the light.Your spear looks just the same colour.”
没插到一半，露茜说，“我根本不信这人像是金的。可能是光线的问题，你看鱼叉插进去也是这颜色。”
“What’s wrong ?”asked several voices at once;for Edmund had suddenly let go of the spear.
“怎么回事?”几个人异口同声地问，因为爱德蒙失手把鱼叉掉下去了。
“I couldn’t hold it，”gasped Edmund，“It seemed so heavy.”
“我拿不动了，”爱德蒙喘着气说，“好像很沉的样子。”
“And there it is on the bottom now，”said Caspian，“and Lucy is right.It looks just the same colour as the statue.”
“看，现在沉到底了，”凯斯宾说，“露茜说的是对的，跟人像颜色一样。”
But Edmund，who appeared to be having some trouble with his boots—at least he was bending down and looking at them— straightened himself all at once and shouted out in the sharp voice which people hardly ever disobey：
爱德蒙的靴子出了点问题。当他弯腰的时候，忽然一下子挺直身体，尖叫起来，大家听了不敢不从。
“Get back !Back from the water.All of you.At once !!”
“赶紧往后退，离水远一点。你们，快点!”
They all did and stared at him.
大家都往后退，然后目不转睛地看着他。
“Look，”said Edmund，“look at the toes of my boots.”
“看，”爱德蒙说，“看我的靴尖。”
“They look a bit yellow，”began Eustace.
“看上去有点发黄。”尤斯塔斯先说。
“They’re gold，solid gold，”interrupted Edmund.“Look at them.Feel them.The leather’s pulled away from it already.And they’re as heavy as lead.”
“是金的，纯金，”爱德蒙打断了他的话，“看，我感觉皮子和靴尖分开了，如同铅那么沉。”
“By Aslan !”said Caspian.“You don’t mean to say—?”
“阿斯兰在上!”凯斯宾说，“你的意思不是……”
“Yes，I do，”said Edmund.“That water turns things into gold. It turned the spear into gold，that’s why it got so heavy. And it was just lapping against my feet(it’s a good thing I wasn’t barefoot)and it turned the toe-caps into gold.And that poor fellow on the bottom—well，you see.”
“是的，”爱德蒙说，“那水把所有的东西都变成金子了。鱼叉也变成金的了，所以很沉。潭水刚刚溅到我脚上，靴尖也变成了金的。水底那个可怜的家伙——现在，你们明白了吧?”
“So it isn’t a statue at all，”said Lucy in a low voice.
“原来那根本不是雕像。”露茜低声地说。
“No.The whole thing is plain now.He was here on a hot day. He undressed on top of the cliff—where we were sitting.The clothes have rotted away or been taken by birds to line nests with; the armour’s still there.Then he dived and—”
“不是。现在真相大白了。他应该是在一个大热天来到这里。在我们刚坐的地方脱掉衣服，衣服可能是烂掉了或者被鸟叼走筑巢了，所以铠甲还在那里。他潜下水，然后就……”
“Don’t，”said Lucy.“What a horrible thing.”
“别说了，”露茜说，“太恐怖了。”
“And what a narrow shave we’ve had，”said Edmund.
“我们刚刚实在太危险了。”爱德蒙说。
“Narrow indeed，”said Reepicheep.“Anyone’s finger， anyone’s foot，anyone’s whisker，or anyone’s tail，might have slipped into the water at any moment.”
“差一点，”雷佩契普说，“无论谁的手指，谁的脚，谁的胡须， 谁的尾巴，随时都可能滑进水里。”
“All the same，”said Caspian，“we may as well test it.”He stooped down and wrenched up a spray of heather.Then，very cautiously，he knelt beside the pool and dipped it in.It was heather that he dipped;what he drew out was a perfect model of heather made of the purest gold，heavy and soft as lead.
“既然这样，”凯斯宾说，“我们不妨验证一下。”他弯下腰， 折了一枝石南花枝。然后小心翼翼地跪在水边，把花枝浸在水里。浸的是石南花，抽出来的却是纯金的石南花模型，跟铅一样沉、一样软。
“The King who owned this island，”said Caspian slowly， and his face flushed as he spoke，“would soon be the richest of all the Kings of the world.I claim this land for ever as a Narnian possession.It shall be called Goldwater Island.And I bind all of you to secrecy.No one must know of this.Not even Drinian—on pain of death，do you hear ?”
“这个岛的国王，”凯斯宾说话虽有些慢，但激动得满脸通红， “马上会成为世界上最富有的国王。我就此声明，这块土地是纳尼亚的属地了，取名为金水岛。我要求所有人保密，不准让外人知道， 连德里宁也不能知道，违者处死，听见没有?”
“Who are you talking to ?”said Edmund.“I’m no subject of yours.If anything it’s the other way round.I am one of the four ancient sovereigns of Narnia and you are under allegiance to the High King my brother.”
“你这是跟谁在说话啊?”爱德蒙说，“我可不是你的臣民。其实， 这话应该反过来说。我是纳尼亚王国古代四位君主之一，你应效忠于我哥哥至尊王。”
“So it has come to that，King Edmund，has it ?”said Caspian，laying his hand on his sword-hilt.
“你真的这样想吗，爱德蒙国王?”凯斯宾一手按在剑柄上说。
“Oh，stop it，both of you，”said Lucy.“That’s the worst of doing anything with boys.You’re all such swaggering，bullying idiots—oooh !—”Her voice died away into a gasp.And everyone else saw what she had seen.
“你们两个都给我住口，”露茜说，“你们男孩子真是要命， 都是狂妄自大、恃强凌弱的白痴!哎呀……”她说着说着就没音了，屏住了呼吸，大家都看到了她看到的景象。
Across the grey hillside above them—grey，for the heather was not yet in bloom—without noise，and without looking at them，and shining as if he were in bright sunlight though the sun had in fact gone in，passed with slow pace the hugest lion that human eyes have ever seen.In describing the scene Lucy said afterwards，“He was the size of an elephant，”though at another time she only said，“The size of a cart-horse.”But it was not the size that mattered.Nobody dared to ask what it was.They knew it was Aslan.
在他们对面那座灰蒙蒙的山顶——石南还没开花，所以看上去灰蒙蒙的——有一头人类眼睛能见到的最雄伟的狮子漫步走过，没朝他们看一眼。虽然太阳被云层遮住了，可是他浑身金光灿灿，就像沐浴在金色的阳光中。之后，露茜描述这幕情景时说，“他的个头就像大象那样大，”还有一次她也这样说过，“个头跟拉车的马那样大。” 不过，这不是关键，没人敢打听这些。大家都明白，这就是狮王阿斯兰。
And nobody ever saw how or where he went.They looked at one another like people waking from sleep.
没有人看到它是怎么走掉的，去了哪里。大家如梦初醒，面面相觑。
“What were we talking about ?”said Caspian.“Have I been making rather an ass of myself ?”
“我们刚才说到哪儿了?”凯斯宾问，“我刚才出洋相了吗?”
“Sire，”said Reepicheep，“this is a place with a curse on it. Let us get back on board at once.And if I might have the honour of naming this island，I should call it Deathwater.”
“陛下，”雷佩契普说，“这个地方被诅咒了，我们还是回船上吧。如果我可以为这个岛命名，就叫它‘死水岛’。”
“That strikes me as a very good name，Reep，”said Caspian， “though now that I come to think of it，I don’t know why.But the weather seems to be settling and I dare say Drinian would like to be off.What a lot we shall have to tell him.”
“还是这个名字好，雷佩契普，”凯斯宾说，“不知道为什么， 我现在才想到。不过天气好像稳定下来了。德里宁应该愿意起航了， 我觉得我们有好多话要跟他说。”
But in fact they had not much to tell for the memory of the last hour had all become confused.
可是事实上他们什么都没说，因为刚才那一小时里的事，谁都搞不清了。
“Their Majesties all seemed a bit bewitched when they came aboard，”said Drinian to Rhince some hours later when the Dawn Treader was once more under sail and Deathwater Island already below the horizon.“Something happened to them in that place. The only thing I could get clear was that they think they’ve found the body of one of these lords we’re looking for.”
“几位陛下回到船上时，都跟中邪了一样。”几个小时后，黎明踏浪号再次起航。死水岛的风景已经看不见了，这时候德里宁对赖因斯说，“他们好像在那里碰到怪事了。我只听明白一件事，他们在那里找到了一位我们要找的公爵的尸体。”
“You don’t say so，Captain，”answered Rhince.“Well， that’s three.Only four more.At this rate we might be home soon after the New Year.And a good thing too.My baccy’s running a bit low.Good night，Sir.”
“你说的不完全对，船长，”赖因斯说，“总之我们已经找到三位了，只剩下四位了。按这个速度，我们过年之后就能回家了。这也是个好事。我的烟草也快抽完了。晚安，船长。”
CHAPTER EIGHT TWO NARROW ESCAPES
EVERYONE was cheerful as the Dawn Treader sailed from Dragon Island.They had fair winds as soon as they were out of the bay and came early next morning to the unknown land which some of them had seen when flying over the mountains while Eustace was still a dragon.It was a low green island inhabited by nothing but rabbits and a few goats，but from the ruins of stone huts，and from blackened places where fires had been，they judged that it had been peopled not long before.There were also some bones and broken weapons.“Pirates’work，”said Caspian.
“Or the dragon’s，”said Edmund.
The only other thing they found there was a little skin boat， or coracle，on the sands.It was made of hide stretched over a wicker framework.It was a tiny boat，barely four feet long，and the paddle which still lay in it was in proportion.They thought that either it had been made for a child or else that the people of that country had been Dwarfs.Reepicheep decided to keep it，as it was just the right size for him;so it was taken on board.They called that land Burnt Island，and sailed away before noon.
For some five days they ran before a south-south east wind， out of sight of all lands and seeing neither fish nor gull.Then they had a day that rained hard till the afternoon.Eustace lost two games of chess to Reepicheep and began to get like his old and disagreeable self again，and Edmund said he wished they could have gone to America with Susan.Then Lucy looked out of the stern windows and said：“Hello ! I do believe it’s stopping.And what’s that ?”
They all tumbled up to the poop at this and found that the rain had stopped and that Drinian，who was on watch，was also staring hard at something astern.Or rather，at several things.They looked a little like smooth rounded rocks，a whole line of them with intervals of about forty feet in between.
“But they can’t be rocks，”Drinian was saying，“because they weren’t there five minutes ago.”
“And one’s just disappeared，”said Lucy.
“Yes，and there’s another one coming up，”said Edmund.
“And nearer，”said Eustace.
“Hang it!”said Caspian.“The whole thing is moving this way.”
“And moving a great deal quicker than we can sail，Sire，”said Drinian.“It’ll be up with us in a minute.”
They all held their breath，for it is not at all nice to be pursued by an unknown something either on land or sea.But what it turned out to be was far worse than anyone had suspected.Suddenly， only about the length of a cricket pitch from their port side，an appalling head reared itself out of the sea.It was all greens and vermilions with purple blotches—except where shellfish clung to it—and shaped rather like a horse’s，though without ears.It had enormous eyes，eyes made for staring through the dark depths of the ocean，and a gaping mouth filled with double rows of sharp fish-like teeth.It came up on what they first took to be a huge neck，but as more and more of it emerged everyone knew that this was not its neck but its body and that at last they were seeing what so many people have foolishly wanted to see—the great Sea Serpent.The folds of its gigantic tail could be seen far away， rising at intervals from the surface.And now its head was towering up higher than the mast.
Every man rushed to his weapon，but there was nothing to be done，the monster was out of reach.“Shoot !Shoot !”cried the Master Bowman，and several obeyed，but the arrows glanced off the Sea Serpent’s hide as if it was iron—plated.Then，for a dreadful minute，everyone was still，staring up at its eyes and mouth and wondering where it would pounce.
But it didn’t pounce.It shot its head forward across the ship on a level with the yard of the mast.Now its head was just beside the fightingtop.Still it stretched and stretched till its head was over the starboard bulwark.Then down it began to come—not onto the crowded deck but into the water，so that the whole ship was under an arch of serpent.And almost at once that arch began to get smaller：indeed on the starboard the Sea Serpent was now almost touching the Dawn Treader’s side.
Eustace(who had really been trying very hard to behave well， till the rain and the chess put him back)now did the first brave thing he had ever done.He was wearing a sword that Caspian had lent him.As soon as the serpent’s body was near enough on the starboard side he jumped on to the bulwark and began hacking at it with all his might.It is true that he accomplished nothing beyond breaking Caspian’s second-best sword into bits，but it was a fine thing for a beginner to have done.
Others would have joined him if at that moment Reepicheep had not called out，“Don’t fight ! Push !”It was so unusual for the Mouse to advise anyone not to fight that，even in that terrible moment，every eye turned to him.And when he jumped up on to the bulwark，forward of the snake，and set his little furry back against its huge scaly，slimy back，and began pushing as hard as he could，quite a number of people saw what he meant and rushed to both sides of the ship to do the same.And when，a moment later，the Sea Serpent’s head appeared again，this time on the port side，and this time with its back to them，then everyone understood.
The brute had made a loop of itself round the Dawn Treader and was beginning to draw the loop tight.When it got quite tight— snap ! —there would be floating matchwood where the ship had been and it could pick them out of the water one by one.Their only chance was to push the loop backward till it slid over the stern;or else(to put the same thing another way)to push the ship forward out of the loop.
Reepicheep alone had，of course，no more chance of doing this than of lifting up a cathedral，but he had nearly killed himself with trying before others shoved him aside.Very soon the whole ship’s company except Lucy and the Mouse(which was fainting) was in two long lines along the two bulwarks，each man’s chest to the back of the man in front，so that the weight of the whole line was in the last man，pushing for their lives.For a few sickening seconds(which seemed like hours)nothing appeared to happen. Joints cracked，sweat dropped，breath came in grunts and gasps. Then they felt that the ship was moving.They saw that the snake-loop was further from the mast than it had been.But they also saw that it was smaller.And now the real danger was at hand.Could they get it over the poop，or was it already too tight ? Yes.It would just fit.It was resting on the poop rails.A dozen or more sprang up on the poop.This was far better.The Sea Serpent’s body was so low now that they could make a line across the poop and push side by side.Hope rose high till everyone remembered the high carved stern，the dragon tail，of the Dawn Treader.It would be quite impossible to get the brute over that.
“An axe，”cried Caspian hoarsely，“and still shove.”Lucy， who knew where everything was，heard him where she was standing on the main deck staring up at the poop.In a few seconds she had been below，got the axe，and was rushing up the ladder to the poop.But just as she reached the top there came a great crashing noise like a tree coming down and the ship rocked and darted forward.For at that very moment，whether because the Sea Serpent was being pushed so hard，or because it foolishly decided to draw the noose tight，the whole of the carved stern broke off and the ship was free.
The others were too exhausted to see what Lucy saw.There， a few yards behind them，the loop of Sea Serpent’s body got rapidly smaller and disappeared into a splash.Lucy always said(but of course she was very excited at the moment，and it may have been only imagination)that she saw a look of idiotic satisfaction on the creature’s face.What is certain is that it was a very stupid animal，for instead of pursuing the ship it turned its head round and began nosing all along its own body as if it expected to find the wreckage of the Dawn Treader there.But the Dawn Treader was already well away，running before a fresh breeze，and the men lay and sat panting and groaning all about the deck，till presently they were able to talk about it，and then to laugh about it.And when some rum had been served out they even raised a cheer;and everyone praised the valour of Eustace(though it hadn’t done any good)and of Reepicheep.
After this they sailed for three days more and saw nothing but sea and sky.On the fourth day the wind changed to the north and the seas began to rise;by the afternoon it had nearly become a gale. But at the same time they sighted land on their port bow.
“By your leave，Sire，”said Drinian，“we will try to get under the lee of that country by rowing and lie in harbour，maybe till this is over.”Caspian agreed，but a long row against the gale did not bring them to the land before evening.By the last light of that day they steered into a natural harbour and anchored，but no one went ashore that night.In the morning they found themselves in the green bay of a rugged，lonely-looking country which sloped up to a rocky summit.From the windy north beyond that summit clouds came streaming rapidly.They lowered the boat and loaded her with any of the water casks which were now empty.
“Which stream shall we water at，Drinian ?”said Caspian as he took his seat in the stern-sheets of the boat.“There seem to be two coming down into the bay.”
“It makes little odds，Sire，”said Drinian.“But I think it’s a shorter pull to that on the starboard—the eastern one.”
“Here comes the rain，”said Lucy.
“I should think it does!”said Edmund，for it was already pelting hard.“I say，let’s go to the other stream.There are trees there and we’ll have some shelter.”
“Yes，let’s，”said Eustace.“No point in getting wetter than we need.”
But all the time Drinian was steadily steering to the starboard， like tiresome people in cars who continue at forty miles an hour while you are explaining to them that they are on the wrong road.
“They’re right，Drinian，”said Caspian.“Why don’t you bring her head round and make for the western stream ?”
“As your Majesty pleases，”said Drinian a little shortly.He had had an anxious day with the weather yesterday，and he didn’t like advice from landsmen.But he altered course;and it turned out afterwards that it was a good thing he did.
By the time they had finished watering，the rain was over and Caspian，with Eustace，the Pevensies，and Reepicheep，decided to walk up to the top of the hill and see what could be seen.It was a stiffish climb through coarse grass and heather and they saw neither man nor beast，except seagulls.When they reached the top they saw that it was a very small island，not more than twenty acres; and from this height the sea looked larger and more desolate than it did from the deck，or even the fighting—top，of the Dawn Treader.
“Crazy，you know，”said Eustace to Lucy in a low voice， looking at the eastern horizon.“Sailing on and on into that with no idea what we may get to.”But he only said it out of habit，not really nastily as he would have done at one time.
It was too cold to stay long on the ridge for the wind still blew freshly from the north.
“Don’t let’s go back the same way，”said Lucy as they turned;“let’s go along a bit and come down by the other stream， the one Drinian wanted to go to.”
Everyone agreed to this and after about fifteen minutes they were at the source of the second river.It was a more interesting place than they had expected;a deep little mountain lake， surrounded by cliffs except for a narrow channel on the seaward side out of which the water flowed.Here at last they were out of the wind，and all sat down in the heather above the cliff for a rest.
All sat down，but one(it was Edmund)jumped up again very quickly.
“They go in for sharp stones on this island，”he said，groping about in the heather.“Where is the wretched thing ? ... Ah，now I’ve got it... Hullo ! It wasn’t a stone at all，it’s a sword-hilt.No，by jove，it’s a whole sword;what the rust has left of it.It must have lain here for ages.”
“Narnian，too，by the look of it，”said Caspian，as they all crowded round.
“I’m sitting on something too，”said Lucy.“Something hard.”It turned out to be the remains of a mail shirt.By this time everyone was on hands and knees，feeling in the thick heather in every direction.Their search revealed，one by one，a helmet， a dagger，and a few coins;not Calormen crescents but genuine Narnian“Lions”and“Trees”such as you might see any day in the market-place of Beaversdam or Beruna.
“Looks as if this might be all that’s left of one of our seven lords，”said Edmund.
“Just what I was thinking，”said Caspian.“I wonder which it was.There’s nothing on the dagger to show.And I wonder how he died.”
“And how we are to avenge him，”added Reepicheep.
Edmund，the only one of the party who had read several detective stories，had meanwhile been thinking.
“Look here，”he said，“there’s something very fishy about this. He can’t have been killed in a fight.”
“Why not?”asked Caspian.
“No bones，”said Edmund.“An enemy might take the armour and leave the body.But who ever heard of a chap who’d won a fight carrying away the body and leaving the armour ?”
“Perhaps he was killed by a wild animal，”Lucy suggested.
“It’d be a clever animal，”said Edmund，“that would take a man’s mail shirt off.”
“Perhaps a dragon ?”said Caspian.
“Nothing doing，”said Eustace.“A dragon couldn’t do it.I ought to know.”
“Well，let’s get away from the place，anyway，”said Lucy. She had not felt like sitting down again since Edmund had raised the question of bones.
“If you like，”said Caspian，getting up.“I don’t think any of this stuff is worth taking away.”
They came down and round to the little opening where the stream came out of the lake，and stood looking at the deep water within the circle of cliffs.If it had been a hot day，no doubt some would have been tempted to bathe and everyone would have had a drink.Indeed，even as it was，Eustace was on the very point of stooping down and scooping up some water in his hands when Reepicheep and Lucy both at the same moment cried，“Look，”so he forgot about his drink and looked into the water.
The bottom of the pool was made of large greyish-blue stones and the water was perfectly clear，and on the bottom lay a life-size figure of a man，made apparently of gold.It lay face downwards with its arms stretched out above its head.And it so happened that as they looked at it，the clouds parted and the sun shone out.The golden shape was lit up from end to end.Lucy thought it was the most beautiful statue she had ever seen.
“Well !”whistled Caspian.“That was worth coming to see ! I wonder，can we get it out ?”
“We can dive for it，Sire，”said Reepicheep.
“No good at all，”said Edmund.“At least，if it’s really gold—solid gold—it’ll be far too heavy to bring up.And that pool’s twelve or fifteen feet deep if it’s an inch.Half a moment， though.It’s a good thing I’ve brought a hunting spear with me. Let’s see what the depth is like.Hold on to my hand，Caspian， while I lean out over the water a bit.”Caspian took his hand and Edmund，leaning forward，began to lower his spear into the water.
Before it was half-way in Lucy said，“I don’t believe the statue is gold at all.It’s only the light.Your spear looks just the same colour.”
“What’s wrong ?”asked several voices at once;for Edmund had suddenly let go of the spear.
“I couldn’t hold it，”gasped Edmund，“It seemed so heavy.”
“And there it is on the bottom now，”said Caspian，“and Lucy is right.It looks just the same colour as the statue.”
But Edmund，who appeared to be having some trouble with his boots—at least he was bending down and looking at them— straightened himself all at once and shouted out in the sharp voice which people hardly ever disobey：
“Get back !Back from the water.All of you.At once !!”
They all did and stared at him.
“Look，”said Edmund，“look at the toes of my boots.”
“They look a bit yellow，”began Eustace.
“They’re gold，solid gold，”interrupted Edmund.“Look at them.Feel them.The leather’s pulled away from it already.And they’re as heavy as lead.”
“By Aslan !”said Caspian.“You don’t mean to say—?”
“Yes，I do，”said Edmund.“That water turns things into gold. It turned the spear into gold，that’s why it got so heavy. And it was just lapping against my feet(it’s a good thing I wasn’t barefoot)and it turned the toe-caps into gold.And that poor fellow on the bottom—well，you see.”
“So it isn’t a statue at all，”said Lucy in a low voice.
“No.The whole thing is plain now.He was here on a hot day. He undressed on top of the cliff—where we were sitting.The clothes have rotted away or been taken by birds to line nests with; the armour’s still there.Then he dived and—”
“Don’t，”said Lucy.“What a horrible thing.”
“And what a narrow shave we’ve had，”said Edmund.
“Narrow indeed，”said Reepicheep.“Anyone’s finger， anyone’s foot，anyone’s whisker，or anyone’s tail，might have slipped into the water at any moment.”
“All the same，”said Caspian，“we may as well test it.”He stooped down and wrenched up a spray of heather.Then，very cautiously，he knelt beside the pool and dipped it in.It was heather that he dipped;what he drew out was a perfect model of heather made of the purest gold，heavy and soft as lead.
“The King who owned this island，”said Caspian slowly， and his face flushed as he spoke，“would soon be the richest of all the Kings of the world.I claim this land for ever as a Narnian possession.It shall be called Goldwater Island.And I bind all of you to secrecy.No one must know of this.Not even Drinian—on pain of death，do you hear ?”
“Who are you talking to ?”said Edmund.“I’m no subject of yours.If anything it’s the other way round.I am one of the four ancient sovereigns of Narnia and you are under allegiance to the High King my brother.”
“So it has come to that，King Edmund，has it ?”said Caspian，laying his hand on his sword-hilt.
“Oh，stop it，both of you，”said Lucy.“That’s the worst of doing anything with boys.You’re all such swaggering，bullying idiots—oooh !—”Her voice died away into a gasp.And everyone else saw what she had seen.
Across the grey hillside above them—grey，for the heather was not yet in bloom—without noise，and without looking at them，and shining as if he were in bright sunlight though the sun had in fact gone in，passed with slow pace the hugest lion that human eyes have ever seen.In describing the scene Lucy said afterwards，“He was the size of an elephant，”though at another time she only said，“The size of a cart-horse.”But it was not the size that mattered.Nobody dared to ask what it was.They knew it was Aslan.
And nobody ever saw how or where he went.They looked at one another like people waking from sleep.
“What were we talking about ?”said Caspian.“Have I been making rather an ass of myself ?”
“Sire，”said Reepicheep，“this is a place with a curse on it. Let us get back on board at once.And if I might have the honour of naming this island，I should call it Deathwater.”
“That strikes me as a very good name，Reep，”said Caspian， “though now that I come to think of it，I don’t know why.But the weather seems to be settling and I dare say Drinian would like to be off.What a lot we shall have to tell him.”
But in fact they had not much to tell for the memory of the last hour had all become confused.
“Their Majesties all seemed a bit bewitched when they came aboard，”said Drinian to Rhince some hours later when the Dawn Treader was once more under sail and Deathwater Island already below the horizon.“Something happened to them in that place. The only thing I could get clear was that they think they’ve found the body of one of these lords we’re looking for.”
“You don’t say so，Captain，”answered Rhince.“Well， that’s three.Only four more.At this rate we might be home soon after the New Year.And a good thing too.My baccy’s running a bit low.Good night，Sir.”
第八章 两次死里逃生
黎明踏浪号终于要离开龙岛了，人人都很开心。船一出海湾， 一路顺风，第二天一大早就到了那个无名地。尤斯塔斯还是条龙的时候，有些人骑在他身上飞过群山曾见过这地方。这是一块低矮的绿岛， 上面有些兔子和几只山羊，不过根据石屋的残址和被火烧得发黑的岩石来看，这里不久前还住过人。岛上还有一些骨头和破旧的武器。“是海盗的杰作吧。”凯斯宾说
“要不就是龙干的。”爱德蒙说。
此外他们在岛上找到的唯一的东西就是一只小皮艇，又叫皮筏子，是用兽皮绷在一个柳条框架上做成的。那只小小的船，只有四英尺长，船桨还搁在那儿，和船的大小相称。他们心想，要么这船是造给孩子的，或者这里住着小矮人。雷佩契普决定留着这条船，因为这船的大小跟它的身材正合适，所以就带上了大船。他们把这地方叫做火烧岛，没到中午就离开了。
他们顺着东南风航行了五天，一直没有见到陆地，也没有见到鱼和海鸥。后来有一天下了一场雨，午后才停。尤斯塔斯跟雷佩契普下棋，输了两局之后，又露出令人讨厌的样子。爱德蒙说他真希望当初他们跟苏珊一起去了美国。露茜望着窗外说：“嘿!雨真的停了。你们看那是什么?”
大家听到后，都跑到船尾来看，发现雨真的停了，正在值班的德里宁也盯着船尾外面的什么东西。确切地说有好多东西。那些东西看上去像光滑的卵石，但是两两之间相隔大约四十英尺，排成长长的一列。
“不可能是石头，”德里宁说，“因为五分钟之前那儿还没有这些东西。”
“有一块刚才不见了。”露茜说。
“是啊，还有一块突然冒出来了。”
“越来越近了。”尤斯塔斯说。
“真见鬼!”凯斯宾说，“那些东西都往这儿移动了。”
“而且它们的速度比我们的船还快，陛下，”德里宁说，“很快就会追上我们。”
他们都屏住呼吸，因为不管是在陆地上还是海上，被未知的东西追总没好事。谁知道，这玩意一露头比猜想的还可怕。忽然，在离左舷还有一个投球距离的时候，一个吓人的脑袋钻出海面。这东西的脑袋上除了寄生贝之外，还有绿色的、红色的和紫色的疙瘩。那形状像一只没有耳朵的马头。脑袋上长着可以透视海洋深处的大眼睛，还有一张咧开的大嘴长着上下两排尖利的牙齿。脑袋和脖子连在一起，越变越长——大家这才发现这不是脖子，而是身子，最后他们总算看见了有不少人想要见识的——大海蛇。远远就能看见它巨大的尾巴上的皱槽，不时升出水面。这时它正昂起脑袋，高耸在桅杆上面。
大家都跑去拿武器，可是并没什么用，因为这东西太高了。“射箭，射箭!”弓箭手头领一声令下，几个人开始射箭，可是箭只是从蛇皮上擦过去，好像射在了铁甲上一样。这时，大家一动不动地看着海蛇的眼睛和嘴，倒吸了一口冷气，因为不知道它会向哪儿扑过来。
可是它没有。它的脑袋沿着桅杆探过船身，眼看就要到观测台旁边了，仍不断伸长，一直伸到右舷上。然后开始向下钻——不是钻向甲板上的人群，而是海里。然后它的身体就把整条船给围住了。这个圈越来越小，海蛇的身体简直要碰到右舷壁了。
尤斯塔斯一直努力好好表现，后来天下雨了他就和别人下棋， 虽然输给别人的时候他得表现让人生厌，但这时他居然做出平生第一次壮举。他随身带着凯斯宾借给他的一把剑，当蛇身快接近右舷壁的时候，他向舷壁扑过去，使出浑身力量猛然刺向海蛇。当然结果除了把凯斯宾那第二把好剑折成碎片之外，毫无收获。可是对一个初出茅庐的人来说，这倒是件好事。
若不是雷佩契普大声喊：“别打!推!”别人早就跟凯斯宾一起去战斗了。到了那样的紧要关头，老鼠竟然还劝大家别打，这太奇怪了，所以大家目光都转向它。当它扑向舷壁，挡在海蛇前面，用它那毛茸茸的小身子挡住海蛇那长满鳞甲，滑腻腻的巨大身子使劲往外推的时候，好多人这才明白它的用意，纷纷冲到船舷两侧，学着他那样往外推。过了一会，海蛇的脑袋又出现了，这回在左舷，而且是背对着大家，于是大家都明白了。
这怪物竟把身子绕成个圈，套着黎明踏浪号，并开始把圈套收紧。等这个圈套收得相当紧了，“啪”的一下子，大船就会变成一堆漂浮的碎片，它就可以在水里把他们一一吃掉。他们的唯一出路是把这个圈套往船后推，推得它滑过船尾，不然就把圈套朝另一个方向推， 让船身前进，脱出圈套。
雷佩契普势单力薄，无异蚍蜉撼大树。当别人把它推到一边时， 它已用尽力气，差点送了命。一会儿工夫全船人，除了露茜和晕倒的老鼠之外，都沿着两边舷壁，排成两条长队，个个前胸贴后背， 整列队伍的重量都落在队尾一个人身上，大家拼命推。推了几秒钟， 就像推了好几个小时，还是毫无结果。大家伙儿的关节都像散了架， 汗珠往下淌，嘴里哼哼嘿嘿地直喘气。这时他们觉得船在动了，他们看见蛇圈离桅杆比先前更远了，蛇圈却收小了。真正的危险迫在眉睫。他们能让船尾穿过这个圈吗?这个圈是不是已经太小了?是啊，这个圈套贴着船尾楼的栏杆绕成一个圈。十几个人跳上船尾去，这样就好得多了。这时海蛇的身体很低，他们在船尾对面排成一排并肩一齐推。大家满怀希望，但忽然又想起黎明踏浪号高耸在船尾的雕花龙尾，要让龙尾摆脱那个圈套就不太可能了。
“拿把斧头来，”凯斯宾声嘶力竭喊道：“像原来那样用力推。” 露茜对船上的东西放在哪儿都了如指掌。此时的她正站在甲板上望着船尾，听到他这话，她立即冲下舱，拿了斧子，奔上梯子，赶到船尾。谁知正当她到达顶上，就听见“咔嚓”一声，像树木倒下似的一声巨响， 船身摇摇摆摆往前冲去。就在那千钧一发之际，不管是因为大家使劲猛推海蛇，还是因为海蛇猛地抽紧圈套，整个雕花龙尾都折断了， 大船也就脱险了。
大伙都筋疲力尽，顾不上去看露茜见到的情景：在船尾几码外， 海蛇缩成的圈越收越小，然后扑通一下不见了。露茜总是说她看见那怪物脸上有种白痴的满足感( 可是当时她那么激动，这可能是她的想象而已)。值得庆幸的是，这条海蛇非常愚蠢，它并没有追这条船， 而是掉过头去，在自己全身上下嗅探，仿佛能找到船的残骸似的。不过黎明踏浪号已经安然脱身，欢快地在风里航行，所有人都躺在或坐在甲板上，喘着气又呻吟着，过了好一会才开始谈论这个事。喝甜酒的时候，大家还举杯庆贺，都夸尤斯塔斯( 虽然没帮上什么忙)和雷佩契普真是勇敢。
脱险后，他们又航行了三天，除了大海和天空什么也看不见。第四天突然刮起北风，海平面也升高了许多，到中午的时候，竟然刮起了大风。就在这个时候他们在左舷那边看见有块陆地。
“陛下，请准许，”德里宁说，“准许我们划桨，停靠在港口里， 设法在那地方避避风，等风过了再说。”凯斯宾同意了。不过顶着大风划桨，估计傍晚才能到那儿。在白天最后一抹光线里，他们开进一个天然港口，抛下了锚，没有上岸。到早上的时候，他们发现那是一个海水绿色的海湾，岸上崎岖不平，非常凄清，斜坡上面还有一个怪石嶙峋的山顶。望向山顶那边，可以看到乌云从北面滚滚而来。他们放下小船，把吃空的水桶全都装上小船。
“我们到哪条河打水呢，德里宁?”凯斯宾一边说，一边在船尾坐下，“好像有两条河流汇进这个海湾。”
“都可以，陛下，”德里宁说，“我看右舷东边那条好一点， 路程稍短。”
“下雨了。”露茜说。
“我觉得也是!”爱德蒙话刚落下，这时已经是大雨倾盆，“我看还是到另一条河吧。那儿有树，可以避雨。”
“是啊，去吧。”尤斯塔斯说，“我们白白淋湿也没什么意义。”
德里宁还是把小船开向右舷那里，像个听不进意见的司机，真让人讨厌。尽管你告诉他开错方向了，他还是以一小时四十英里的速度向前开。
“他们说得对，德里宁，”凯斯宾说，“你为什么不掉头，到西边的那条河去?”
“听陛下调遣。”德里宁有点不快地说。他昨天为天气担心了一整天，他更不喜欢陆上的人对他一个舵手指指点点。不过他最后还是改变了航向，后来证明他这么做是做对了。
大家装满水之后，雨停了。凯斯宾就带着尤斯塔斯、佩文西兄妹和雷佩契普去了山顶，看看有没有什么发现。这条遍地野草和碎石的山坡很难爬，路上看不见人，也没看见野兽，只能看到几只海鸟。到了山顶才发现这是个小岛，还不到二十英亩。从这望去，海面比从甲板或者黎明踏浪号的桅顶观测台上望去更大更荒凉。
“你这是在发疯，你知道吗，”尤斯塔斯望着东方地平线，低声对露茜说，“打算去哪儿心里也没个谱。”不过是出于习惯才这样说， 并不是之前那样存心抬杠。
山上很冷，不能待久，北面还有冷风吹来。
“我们回去的时候别走老路。”回程的时候露茜说，“我们到另外一条河边去，就是德里宁想去的那边。”
大家都同意露茜的主意。十五分钟后，他们就到了另一条河的源头。这里有想象不出的美：深山中有一个小湖泊，周围是悬崖峭壁， 只有一条狭窄的水道通向海里。在这里吹不到风，大家在悬崖边的树丛里坐下来休息了一会儿。
大家刚坐下，爱德蒙突然又跳了起来。
“这岛上全是尖石头，”他在石丛里摸索着说，“那该死的石头在哪儿……啊，我找到了……嗨!这根本不是石头，是剑柄。不，天哪， 是一把完整的剑。上面生了厚厚的一层锈，一定落在这儿有好多年了。”
“看起来，它是纳尼亚的剑。”大家都围上来，凯斯宾说。
“我也坐在什么上面了呢，”露茜说，“有点硬硬的。”仔细一看， 原来是一副铠甲的残留。这时大家都跪在地上用手在密密麻麻的石丛里摸索。之后，他们搜出了一个头盔、一把匕首、几枚钱币。这可不是卡乐门国的弯月银币，而是纳尼亚国的真正的“狮子硬币”和“树币”。这种货币，在海狸大坝和柏卢纳的市场上随处可见。
“看来，这很像是七位公爵中的一位留下的物品。”爱德蒙说。
“我也这么觉得，”凯斯宾说，“不知道是哪一位，从匕首上看不出来，也不知道他是怎么死的。”
“所以无法替他报仇。”雷佩契普加上一句。
在这群人中，爱德蒙是唯一看过几本侦探小说的人，这时他一直在思考。
“听我说，”他说，“这件事很蹊跷，他应该不是在决斗中战死的。”
“为什么呢?”凯斯宾问。
“尸骨荡然无存，”爱德蒙说，“他的敌人应该会拿走他的铠甲， 丢下尸体。谁听说打胜了仗把尸体带走，丢下铠甲的?”
“有可能是被野兽吃掉的。”露茜提出。
“那必须得是只聪明的野兽，”爱德蒙说，“才能把人的铠甲脱掉。”
“会不会是条龙?”凯斯宾说。
“不可能，”尤斯塔斯说，“龙办不到，我知道的。”
“好吧，无论如何，我们应该离开这里。”露茜说。听到爱德蒙提起尸骨的事情，她不想待在这儿了。
“好的，”凯斯宾站起来说，“这些东西哪样都不值得我们带走。”
他们下了山，绕到河流的小空地上，看着悬崖中间的那潭深水。如果是大热天，保准有人情不自禁去洗个澡，兴许大家还会喝个饱。说真的，尽管天不热，在尤斯塔斯弯下腰来，想用双手舀些水喝时， 忽然听到雷佩契普和露茜同时喊道：“看!”他顿时忘了喝水，看向水里。
潭底由青灰色的大石块砌成，水非常清澈，潭底躺着一个和真人一般大小的人像，分明是金子铸成的。脸向下，两臂高举过头顶。他们看着它的时候，乌云渐渐散开，太阳出来了。金像上上下下都被照得明晃晃的，露茜觉得这是她见过的人像中最美的一尊。
“太好啦”，凯斯宾吹着口哨说，“太值得一看了，不知道能不能捞上来?”
“我们可以潜下去打捞，陛下。”雷佩契普说。
“没用的，”爱德蒙说，“要是纯金的话就太沉了，捞不出来。而且那水至少有十二到十五英尺那么深。话说回来，等一下，我有一支鱼叉，让我们来看看水有多深。凯斯宾，你抓住我的手。”凯斯宾就抓住他的手，爱德蒙探出身子，把鱼叉插下水去。
没插到一半，露茜说，“我根本不信这人像是金的。可能是光线的问题，你看鱼叉插进去也是这颜色。”
“怎么回事?”几个人异口同声地问，因为爱德蒙失手把鱼叉掉下去了。
“我拿不动了，”爱德蒙喘着气说，“好像很沉的样子。”
“看，现在沉到底了，”凯斯宾说，“露茜说的是对的，跟人像颜色一样。”
爱德蒙的靴子出了点问题。当他弯腰的时候，忽然一下子挺直身体，尖叫起来，大家听了不敢不从。
“赶紧往后退，离水远一点。你们，快点!”
大家都往后退，然后目不转睛地看着他。
“看，”爱德蒙说，“看我的靴尖。”
“看上去有点发黄。”尤斯塔斯先说。
“是金的，纯金，”爱德蒙打断了他的话，“看，我感觉皮子和靴尖分开了，如同铅那么沉。”
“阿斯兰在上!”凯斯宾说，“你的意思不是……”
“是的，”爱德蒙说，“那水把所有的东西都变成金子了。鱼叉也变成金的了，所以很沉。潭水刚刚溅到我脚上，靴尖也变成了金的。水底那个可怜的家伙——现在，你们明白了吧?”
“原来那根本不是雕像。”露茜低声地说。
“不是。现在真相大白了。他应该是在一个大热天来到这里。在我们刚坐的地方脱掉衣服，衣服可能是烂掉了或者被鸟叼走筑巢了，所以铠甲还在那里。他潜下水，然后就……”
“别说了，”露茜说，“太恐怖了。”
“我们刚刚实在太危险了。”爱德蒙说。
“差一点，”雷佩契普说，“无论谁的手指，谁的脚，谁的胡须， 谁的尾巴，随时都可能滑进水里。”
“既然这样，”凯斯宾说，“我们不妨验证一下。”他弯下腰， 折了一枝石南花枝。然后小心翼翼地跪在水边，把花枝浸在水里。浸的是石南花，抽出来的却是纯金的石南花模型，跟铅一样沉、一样软。
“这个岛的国王，”凯斯宾说话虽有些慢，但激动得满脸通红， “马上会成为世界上最富有的国王。我就此声明，这块土地是纳尼亚的属地了，取名为金水岛。我要求所有人保密，不准让外人知道， 连德里宁也不能知道，违者处死，听见没有?”
“你这是跟谁在说话啊?”爱德蒙说，“我可不是你的臣民。其实， 这话应该反过来说。我是纳尼亚王国古代四位君主之一，你应效忠于我哥哥至尊王。”
“你真的这样想吗，爱德蒙国王?”凯斯宾一手按在剑柄上说。
“你们两个都给我住口，”露茜说，“你们男孩子真是要命， 都是狂妄自大、恃强凌弱的白痴!哎呀……”她说着说着就没音了，屏住了呼吸，大家都看到了她看到的景象。
在他们对面那座灰蒙蒙的山顶——石南还没开花，所以看上去灰蒙蒙的——有一头人类眼睛能见到的最雄伟的狮子漫步走过，没朝他们看一眼。虽然太阳被云层遮住了，可是他浑身金光灿灿，就像沐浴在金色的阳光中。之后，露茜描述这幕情景时说，“他的个头就像大象那样大，”还有一次她也这样说过，“个头跟拉车的马那样大。” 不过，这不是关键，没人敢打听这些。大家都明白，这就是狮王阿斯兰。
没有人看到它是怎么走掉的，去了哪里。大家如梦初醒，面面相觑。
“我们刚才说到哪儿了?”凯斯宾问，“我刚才出洋相了吗?”
“陛下，”雷佩契普说，“这个地方被诅咒了，我们还是回船上吧。如果我可以为这个岛命名，就叫它‘死水岛’。”
“还是这个名字好，雷佩契普，”凯斯宾说，“不知道为什么， 我现在才想到。不过天气好像稳定下来了。德里宁应该愿意起航了， 我觉得我们有好多话要跟他说。”
可是事实上他们什么都没说，因为刚才那一小时里的事，谁都搞不清了。
“几位陛下回到船上时，都跟中邪了一样。”几个小时后，黎明踏浪号再次起航。死水岛的风景已经看不见了，这时候德里宁对赖因斯说，“他们好像在那里碰到怪事了。我只听明白一件事，他们在那里找到了一位我们要找的公爵的尸体。”
“你说的不完全对，船长，”赖因斯说，“总之我们已经找到三位了，只剩下四位了。按这个速度，我们过年之后就能回家了。这也是个好事。我的烟草也快抽完了。晚安，船长。”
