DL-Villains-《Lord Toede》-序言-坑
《投德大王》或
《大地精立志传》？
希望不会撞车
这本书理论上应该是属于比较EG的，所以我用的语言也不是很正规，翻译也没有尽求信达雅，请大大们口下留情...
序言
准确地说，我们并没有在序章里看到我们的主角，但我们看到了一个很遥远很遥远的地方的一场赌博。
无底深渊的神祗的面容便是无底深渊的大地。塔克西斯就是大地，而大地也伴随着她的心情而抽动。她的一颦便可造山，一笑为震，冲冠一 怒则其天地亦为之变色-因为天地也不过是她的面容而已。
仍然有生物愿意居住在女王的眉目之间，生命就像候鸟身上的爬虫一般在她的脸上摸爬滚打。恶魔们在此徘徊游荡，坦那瑞魔们在他们的猎 物的鲜血中沐浴，尤格罗斯魔激情地雀跃着欢庆他们的邪恶。暗月在此扫荡，希冀能发现一些新升的灵魂。地表被不死鲨蜥兽从地下割裂， 他们骨白色的背甲像鲨鱼一样从地下为女王增添新的皱纹。潘德则魔们在此无限延长他们狂乱的舞蹈，克斯魔们磨利了它们剃刀般的下颚， 目盲的伊路达魔们则追寻着被诅咒者们灵魂的恶臭狩猎着他们的全部。
这便是闪烁着死亡光辉的无底深渊，但这凋零的土地对于两个旁观者来说，也是它们的家。顺便提一句，这两个旁观者本应该在忙着撰写某些用于扭曲灵魂的计划或是起草最新版的克莱恩毁灭大计，但即便是低层位面的恶魔也有休息时间，过长的午餐，或是私自加长的下午茶，只希望他们那些比深渊更邪恶的老板[不是研究生导师！]这时候并不需要他们的工作（或者干脆没有注意到他们不在干活，那样更好）。如 果这对儿旁观者只是两个矮人水手，过闲的人类，坎德小借[他们当然不是小偷]，或者之类的什么，根本就不会有人来管他们。但很可惜， 他们不仅不是矮人，不是坎德人[感谢帕拉丁]，甚至不是人类，他们是塔克西斯的选民，亚比西魔，塔克西斯最阴毒最能折腾的手下。他们 很像变形的蜥蜴，鳄鱼般的头颅长着长长的尖牙，背上有厚厚的蝙蝠般的翅膀，又像人一样地双足站立，用眼观察。有鳞覆盖的皮肤以血为 汗，汗血打在地上发出嘶嘶的声音。他们把自己和无底深渊的关系比做仆人和主人的家的关系，伴有相当的敬畏，和不少的自豪。也是，如 果不是他们的话，还有谁来做诸如看管东西，保持秩序，打扫裂隙之类的杂事呢？[原来就是学生会里的干事-干的啥事？啥事都干！]
其中一个亚比西魔由于受到过多的压榨而又高又瘦，他只有俯身到手指触地才能让别人听到他的低语。他是混乱评议会的一名高阶议员，他的主要职责就是在克莱恩位面上出差，像智囊团一样到处提供意见和建议-不过与智囊团不同的是，他提供的大多是坏的。例如他现在就本应该潜在Taladas一名两本帐的会计的梦中给他提供建议，“明天的审核不过如此，你做帐做得这么漂亮，完全应该多拿一点的！”
但他并不在那，这个特别的议员现在正在休息，这个黑暗的代言人从办公室溜到小路上想喘口气。这只高个的蜥蜴遛达着经过一个个魔窟，像猫一样伸了一个大懒腰，满意地长出了一口气，“又是天堂般的一天啊~”他说。
他的同伴比他矮一些，也更胖。这只亚比西魔的任务是看守并保管那些恶中之恶的真正纯粹邪恶的灵魂。他要储存这些灵魂并防止它们有任何与黑暗女士竞争的机会，因为她知道邪恶自相残杀的危险，于是干脆扼杀了所有竞争的可能性。保证这一点便是这只被称作“被诅咒者的牢头”的胖亚比西魔的工作。这份工作的重要性非常可悲地被它压倒性的无聊完全地掩盖了-除了数数就没有什么别的要做了。胖牢头对他在这个永恒中的工作并不十分投入，有时他会溜号去跟他的朋友一起出差，闲逛，出主意-仍然是坏的，之类。恩，好在，次数并不多。
现在牢头正用它的爪子指着附近的一座小山，跟它的同伴说：“看起来我们好像有客人了。”
高个子的亚比西魔发出一阵咕哝声表示同意。爪手是瞻，一道明亮的光芒正在上升，好像一颗由纯粹的光能量组成的星星正从地面挣脱一般。它的光线在其他的一切上投射出长长的影子，深渊的底层生物无法适应如此纯粹的善良能量的辐射，尖叫着向地下巢穴或更安全的黑暗中四散逃去。
辐射的中心是一个亮银色的盔甲组成的手拿一把巨大水晶剑的凡人的身影。
[私认为最后一句翻译得不好，首先mortal，human-sized就被我翻到一起去了，这句话翻出来又太长，而且对于“Solid Crystal”这个词组还有相当疑议，我觉得它是在与LCD的Liquid Crystal形成对照，但不知道怎么翻好，固晶？变态诶。]
“圣骑士？”高个子的亚比西魔一边用他过长的手指遮着光线一边做出猜测。
“恩，应该是吧。”矮的那个眯着眼睛看向那道光芒，补充了一句：“好像一点都不难猜。”
“像一场风暴洗礼深渊的大门。”高个子说，“看，快反力量已经出现了，这是我们队的第一个代表。”
光芒闪烁了一下，是被一个恶魔隆起的身躯遮挡的。这是一只地狱猎犬，这样的恶魔在深渊中被作为看门狗一般。这只猎犬的大角会让一个牛头人因羞愧而脸红。
两个观察者都没有看到那个圣骑士动，只看到了水晶剑划出的穿透那个恶魔的闪电般的美丽弧线。可怜的猎犬以非常标准的两半的形式掉了下来，它被从正中央划开了。
“真是漂亮。”议员评论说。它的同伴咕哝着表示同意。
第二只恶魔在第一只同样的位置上遭到了同样的命运，唯一的不同点在于它是被横着切开的。
“真是好刀。”胖牢头评论说。
高个子的点了点头，他们可一点也不想去参与战斗。“我赌他撑不了5分钟。”议员说。
“我赌他行。”矮个子说，“他的装备很好，技术也不错。就拿一杯圣徒的鲜血来赌吧？”
牢头的高个子同伴点了点头，它的鳄鱼般长长的头颅使这个点头的幅度变得很夸张，“赌就赌，现在开始计时吧。”
这两位在一堆冒烟的石头上安顿得舒舒服服的，事不关己地看着战斗继续。议员用它的手指数着秒。十秒，再是十秒，又是十秒，很快就过去了四十秒。
一道山谷之遥的地方，深渊原住民的军团前仆后继地攻向入侵者。另两个恶魔想把新来的拉下水，在分别少了一些零件后放弃了努力。一只尤格罗斯魔的下场也好不到哪去。一只亚比西魔（并非所有的亚比西魔都是逃兵）试着潜行到对手的后方上空，却反被一剑串了起来。
“那个不是苦痛教士吗？”矮个子问。
“有可能，”高个子说，“他就总是试着吸引眼球，还老想着抢功劳。一分钟咯。”
又两只尤格罗斯魔在暂时取得优势后跌了下来，还有另一只亚比西魔的血红色的翅膀也被拆了下来。一条蠕虫状的毕沙克魔缠住了圣骑士的脚，却被炸成了无数碎片。
“两分钟咯。”议员说。
圣骑士脚下的土地突然沸腾开来，一只不死鲨蜥兽角质的大嘴从他站立的猛冲出来，试着一口将他吞下。周身流溢着光芒的圣骑士只是轻轻一跳站到那怪物的鼻部，将他的宝剑深深地插到不死鲨蜥兽腐烂中的大脑所在的位置。不死的陆行鲨鱼猛地抽搐了一下就再也不动弹了。圣骑士向后略退一步，正面面对正源源不断从他们巢穴里蜂拥而出的怪物们。
“我觉得他好像变暗了。”牢头说，语气中还带着一丝关心。
“只是盔甲上沾了点血而已。三分钟了。”议员说。
黑暗生物们的疯狂进攻几乎形成了暗涌的大潮，张牙舞爪地试图淹没那个圣骑士。穿甲的人类消灭了已经最靠近自己的一排怪物，后退了一步（差点失去平衡），又消灭了另一排，然后再退一步，直到他已经靠在了无尽的下界生物组成的漩涡中心的鲨蜥兽尸体上。
“这个家伙的力量从何而来？”矮个子几乎带着敬意地问。
“他由‘善良’汲取力量，”他的高个子同伴厉声说，“四分钟咯，哦，她终于来了。好了好了，游戏结束了。”
矮个子亚比西魔跟着他的同伴的视线，看到了那个即将变成深红色的骨朵，“接着数！”他冷冷地说。
又数了十下，那个骨朵已经变成了一个巨大的飞行生物，最高阶地狱娘子的具现。她的血肉是闪亮的白银，用她不自量力的敌手们的鲜血修饰，似乎已经与她火红的盔甲融为了一体。她的一只手爪里握着一把乌木般漆黑的剑，只要凝视便可伤人。俯冲攻向圣骑士时，她大胆到将高度低到她深红色的头发扫过他的脸颊。她的唇边发出的是班西的恸哭，她便是深渊中最美丽而最可怕的生物。
“那是茱蒂丝。”牢头勉强压住自己的颤抖，说。茱蒂丝是塔克西斯在深渊位面的坚强臂膀-和平守护者的一员。她也是平时常任监督亚比西魔工作的拿莫温之一。即使是现在茱蒂丝的注意力被入侵者完全吸引了，他俩还是不由自主地退回到了石堆里。
圣骑士在黑暗阵营自动退却时才发现茱蒂丝的危险性。他抬头向上看去，并突然蹲了一下，漆黑之刃划过他的脖子一秒钟前还在的位置，只留下了割裂空气的轨迹。
茱蒂丝盘旋着再次进攻，而圣骑士周身的光芒也开始变得更强烈，仿佛再次充满了激情。
地狱娘子在俯冲中双手举起了她的黑色巨剑，圣骑士也将他辐射着光明的水晶剑高高举起以偏移对方的攻击。剑刃猛然相交...
...然后圣骑士的剑裂成了无数的碎片。茱蒂丝俯冲了下来，掠过地面，转回来准备再次进攻。圣骑士蹒跚了一下，现在他的盔甲上混合了自己和怪物的鲜血，变得暗红而结痂。他抬头凝视茱蒂丝的眼神已经变得呆滞而恐惧，而茱蒂丝已经第三次袭来了。她在他的上空双手持剑准备最后一次横扫。牢头看见圣骑士伸长了脖子引颈待砍，茱蒂丝一刀劈下，刀身划过圣骑士的身体...
...而恰在此时，圣骑士的周身升起一团烟雾，而烟雾散去，圣骑士已像晨露消散在阳光里一样消失了。茱蒂丝站在深渊阵前圣骑士片刻之前所站的位置怒吼着，大地为之震颤。然后紧接着又生出一团血红的蓓蕾，茱蒂丝也消失了。
“好像是跑了，不是挂了。”牢头说，“多少时间了？”
“恐怕还差两秒，”议员举起八根手指，说。
“肯定是你数慢了。”矮个子撅起了嘴。“即使我真的数慢了，你之前也没发现。”高个子嘴角泛起一个微笑，“所以其实都一样啦。走吧，估计茱蒂丝追踪那个圣骑士追不了一会的，我们还能趁这个时间开撤。”
于是这两只恶魔从他们坐着的石头上下来，朝着牢头的地窖走了过去。这时深渊的腐食动物已经从它们的地洞里蜂拥了出来，根本不管它们的食物不久前还是它们的盟友，就开始了它们的饕餮。议员对这样的疯食十分反感，加快了步伐。矮胖的朋友不得不疾步前驱才能赶上它同伴的脚步。
“为什么他们要这样做？”牢头边喘边问，“为什么他们总要冲击深渊？”
他的高个子同伴叹了口气，缓了缓脚步，“因为他们把自己看成是正义的，而我们是邪恶的。我们的性异促使我们相吸。”“那，什么是善良呢？”牢头接着问。“我们的对立面就是善良。”另一只停下脚步，好像是把所有的注意力都集中在这个问题上了一样。“我理解你的意思，但你也看到了，我们可没有袭击正义堡垒的日常计划，这个问题是不是可以改成‘是什么促使这些正义之士行事如此愚蠢？’这便是正义的某种原质，正义会自然地导致这种盲目的愚行。”“不止是愚蠢，”矮个子说，“他们的灵魂都会有一种浓烈的气味，他们死的时候你可以感觉得到，一种...空气的电击，一种灵魂的愉悦，一种精神的高尚...”他发现自己的同伴并没有专心在听，便轻了下来。
“灵魂的高尚，”混乱评议会的议员闪着微笑说，“我们的问题不就从‘什么是善良’变成‘什么是高尚’了吗？”
“也许吧。”牢头说着又继续出发了，这时他们走过的是他管理的第一个储藏间。
“也许不是。”牢头可以从议员的语气里听出怀疑，“高尚就是善良的，善良就是高尚的，这两者是分不开的。”
“我不同意，”牢头说，“这两者应该是可以独存的，我基本上确信这一点。”
“嗯...”议员说。这时他们已走近了矮个子的办公室的黄铜大门，“我是不是听到你又开了一桩赌？”
“这只是一个想法，一个实验，如果你想的话，”牢头边说边（大致地）想像了一下茱蒂丝如果听说她的部下在打这样的赌会是什么表情，“但既然你提出要赌，那...如果下点什么注的话可能的确会好玩一些。”
“可不要再用一杯圣徒的鲜血就打发了这么...重要的实验。”议员提醒说。
“好啊，我一直都很羡慕你在克莱恩的自由，到处给那些伟人和即将成为伟人的家伙提供建议。虽然都是些坏主意，但那可真是自由啊...”牢头触到了自己的痛处，黯然叹息。
“我也一直羡慕你恶中之恶的守护者的‘高位’，所谓‘美差中的美差’。”高个子咧开嘴笑了，“但这是我们永恒的命运，你得不到你想要的自由的。我们这次怎么‘实验’呢？”
牢头打开门，走向燃烧的煤炭制成的阶梯。他想都没想就走下楼梯，而他的同伴则小心翼翼地选择那些看起来冷一些的位置落脚。“我们来看看，一个人能否是高尚而不够善良的？”矮个子边把它的皮翅收起来边说，“我被托付来看守这些纯粹邪恶的灵魂，这些家伙在五到六个永恒里都不会得超生的。我们完全可以在其中选择一个，把它送回克莱恩，告诉他‘你必须高尚地活着’，然后我们只消看看他是怎样的就可以了。”
这时这对搭档已经来到了地窖的最底下，那里被无尽炙烤着的黄铜制的柜子里，储存的便是那些恶中之恶的灵魂，架子上一格一格码满了各种铁质的、白金质的和铅质的罐子。房间里总是若有若无地回荡着灵魂被折磨的惨叫声，烟晶的玻璃里也会闪现出凡人因痛苦而扭曲恸哭的面孔。议员不小心踩上了一块瓶子的碎片，它把它捡起来放在手中细看。碎片上用黄金标了三个字-雷斯林。
“你之前试过这个吗？”议员把那块玻璃翻来覆去地把玩着问。
牢头摇头，“总有一些会因为某些原因从命运的落网中落出来，比如索斯爵士的瓶子就一直在我这，但它依然空空如也。”他耸了耸肩，“但我们还有很多可以挑的，谋杀犯，精神病，假僧侣，还有一些官员的。你来选一个，然后我们来看看会发生些什么。”
议员用爪子撑住头作沉思状，它突然看中了一个架子，“我们先把事情说清楚，我说高尚和善良是相辅相成的，你说它俩是可以被区分开来的，对吗？”
“这就是我们实验的目的。”
“赌赢了的，就可以任意占有对方的职位和权力，占有...恩...一克莱恩年，怎么样？”
“可以接受。”
议员点了点头，“那我就来选一个咯？”
牢头把手握起表示同意，“好的。”
“就这个吧。”议员说着，用它长长的手从其中一个炙热的架子上取出一个铁质的像装咸菜的那样的罐子。它把罐子丢给它的同伴看，虽然它丢得并不高，但它的同伴还是踮起了脚才能接到。它把那罐子在爪手里翻转过来，擦去上面的积尘，露出了上面的名字。
投德
牢头吹了声口哨，“你这老黄鼠狼，这次你不会那么容易得胜的。”
[[i] 本帖最后由 zhuying1317 于 2008-9-5 23:24 编辑 [/i]] 支持你！楼主
希望能坚持下去
我们期待看到投徳大王的故事;P Prologue
In which we do not meet Our Protagonist, exactly, but in which we witness a wager being made in lands far from our own.
The face of the Abyss was the face of its goddess. Takhi-sis was the land, and the land reflected her moods. A light,
pleased smile became an earthquake, a furrowed brow a new rise of mountains, a sudden irritation a thunder璼torm of blood
and dead creatures sweeping across her features.
And yet the face of this goddess was inhabited, for life crawled and scrabbled and clawed its way across her sur璮ace like
fleas and mites across a seasoned world-traveler. Here the fiends prowled, the tanar'ri bathed in the blood of their
victims, and the yugolotjhs capered with gleeful intensity. Here the moondarks sweptMow, hoping to snare some rising soul
from the terrain, and the ground roiled with the passage of the bulette-liches, their bone-white carapaces knifing the
soil from below. Here the pindizzers spun in their dervish-dance, the kothmew sharpened their scissorlike mandibles, and
the eloda, blinded, hunted the damned by the reek of their souls.
序言
准确地说，我们并没有在序章里看到我们的主角，但我们看到了一个很遥远很遥远的地方的一场赌博。
无底深渊的神祗的面容便是无底深渊的大地。塔克西斯就是大地，而大地也伴随着她的心情而抽动。她的一颦便可造山，一笑为震，冲冠一怒则其天地亦为之变色-因为天地也不过是她的面容而已。
仍然有生物愿意居住在女王的眉目之间，生命就像候鸟身上的爬虫一般在她的脸上摸爬滚打。恶魔们在此徘徊游荡，坦那瑞魔们在他们的猎物的鲜血中沐浴，尤格罗斯魔激情地雀跃着欢庆他们的邪恶。暗月在此扫荡，希冀能发现一些新升的灵魂。地表被不死鲨蜥兽从地下割裂，他们骨白色的背甲像鲨鱼一样从地下为女王增添新的皱纹。潘德则魔们在此无限延长他们狂乱的舞蹈，克斯魔们磨利了它们剃刀般的下颚，目盲的伊路达魔们则追寻着被诅咒者们灵魂的恶臭狩猎着他们的全部。
如果没有听说过这些恶魔的话请不要自卑，按照我查到的资料，这些恶魔中的很大一部分唯一的登场机会就是Lord Toede 的第一页。
参考资料
Yugoloth（Yugolotjh，应该是这个吧） [url]http://203.194.161.207/ellesime/bbs/index.php?showtopic=5143[/url]
Tanar''ri [url]http://www.xici.net/b95494/d3653283.htm[/url]
Here in all its deadly splendor was the Abyss. For two observers, looking out on the blasted landscape, it was home. By rights, said observers should have been working on some soul-wrenching plot or Krynn-destroying plan, but even fiends from the lower planes take their five-minute breaks, their long lunches, their extended afternoons, hop璱ng that their Abyssal masters do not need them (or at least do not notice them missing). Were these observers a pair of dwarven roustabouts, human idlers, or kender finders, no further notice would be taken of them, but they were not dwarves or kender or even men, but abishai, the chosen of Takhisis, the most mischievous and foul of the creations under her command. The pair resembled lizards, after a fashion, with long, fanged, crocodile heads and thick batlike wings, and they resembled men in their upright stance and cognizant eyes. Blood sweated from their scaled black hides and hissed as it struck the ground. They regarded the Abyss as servants would their master's house, with respectful awe and not a small bit of personal pride. Indeed, if not for them, who would look after things, keep matters in order, dust the odd crevice, and whatnot?
这便是闪烁着死亡光辉的无底深渊，但这凋零的土地对于两个旁观者来说，也是它们的家。顺便提一句，这两个旁观者本应该在忙着撰写某些用于扭曲灵魂的计划或是起草最新版的克莱恩毁灭大计，但即便是低层位面的恶魔也有休息时间，过长的午餐，或是私自加长的下午茶，只希望他们那些比深渊更邪恶的老板[不是研究生导师！]这时候并不需要他们的工作（或者干脆没有注意到他们不在干活，那样更好）。如果这对儿旁观者只是两个矮人水手，过闲的人类，坎德小借[他们当然不是小偷]，或者之类的什么，根本就不会有人来管他们。但很可惜，他们不仅不是矮人，不是坎德人[感谢帕拉丁]，甚至不是人类，他们是塔克西斯的选民，亚比西魔，塔克西斯最阴毒最能折腾的手下。他们很像变形的蜥蜴，鳄鱼般的头颅长着长长的尖牙，背上有厚厚的蝙蝠般的翅膀，又像人一样地双足站立，用眼观察。有鳞覆盖的皮肤以血为汗，汗血打在地上发出嘶嘶的声音。他们把自己和无底深渊的关系比做仆人和主人的家的关系，伴有相当的敬畏，和不少的自豪。也是，如果不是他们的话，还有谁来做诸如看管东西，保持秩序，打扫裂隙之类的杂事呢？[原来就是学生会里的干事-干的啥事？啥事都干！]
One abishai was long and lean, the result of too many turns of the rack. He had to stoop, his long knuckles graz璱ng the ground, to bring his soft, whispering voice to the ears of others. He was one of the Abbots of Misrule, and his portfolio was to journey into the world of Krynn and dispense bad advice and terrible truths. By rights he should have been in Taladas, nosing softly into the dreams of a corrupt accountant the evening before a sur璸rise audit, assuring said coin-counter that his embezzle璵ent was perfect and none would catch him, so why not take a little bit more?
其中一个亚比西魔由于受到了过多的压榨而又高又瘦，他只有俯身到手指触地才能让别人听到他的低语。他是混乱评议会的一名长老，他的主要职责就是在克莱恩位面上出差，像智囊团一样到处提供意见和建议-不过与智囊团不同的是，他提供的大多是坏的。例如他现在就本应该潜在Taladas一名两本帐的会计的梦中给他提供建议，“明天的审核不过如此，你做帐做得这么漂亮，完全应该多拿一点的！”
Instead, this particular abbot was taking a break, the dark equivalent of sneaking out to the alley for a few puffs with the mates. The tall reptilian creature surveyed the pandemonium around him and let out a contented sigh, stretching like a cat to his full height. "Another day in paradise," he said. His companion was shorter and more potbellied. This abishai's task was to maintain the souls of the truly and justly damned, the most evil of the evil, to contain them and prevent any chance of rivals to their dark mistress arising in the pits of the Abyss. For Takhisis knew the deadly danger of evil turning upon itself, and brooked no competition. Making sure, that was the fat abishai's task, he who was called the Castellan of the Condemned. The weight of this task was only exceeded by the sheer spine-numbing boredom of it all. The Castellan of the Con璬emned did not dwell on his lot in eternity, the fact that he remained in place while his companion got to jolly-ride about, spreading bad advice. Not often, at least.
但他并不在那，这个特别的议员现在正在休息，这个黑暗的代言人溜出办公室，到小路上想喘口气。这只高个子的蜥蜴遛达着经过一个个魔窟，像猫一样伸了一个大懒腰，满意地长出了一口气，“又是天堂般的一天啊~”他说。
他的同伴比他矮一些，也更胖。这只亚比西魔的任务是看守并保管那些恶中之恶的真正纯粹邪恶的灵魂。他要保管这些灵魂并防止它们有任何与黑暗女士竞争的机会，因为她知道邪恶自相残杀的危险，于是干脆扼杀了所有竞争的可能性。保证这一点便是这只被称作“被诅咒者的牢头”的胖亚比西魔的工作。这份工作的重要性非常可悲地被它压倒性的无聊完全地掩盖了-除了数数就没有什么别的要做了。胖牢头对他在这个永恒中的工作并不十分投入，有时他会溜号去跟他的朋友一起出差，闲逛，出主意-仍然是坏的，之类。恩，好在，次数并不多。
At the moment, the Castellan just grunted and waved a claw at a nearby hillock. "Looks like we have a tourist."
The taller abishai grunted in agreement. A bright light had manifested halfway up the low rise, as if a star of pure radiance had been brought to the surface of the land. Its brilliance cast hard shadows on the surroundings, and the lesser creatures of the Abyss, unaccustomed to such a glow, fled squealing from its purity, tunneling deep into lairs or tumbling downhill to darker, more secure loca璽ions.
At the center of the radiance was the glittering white and steel form of a mortal, human-sized, with a great sword of solid crystal.
现在牢头正用它的爪子指着附近的一座小山，跟它的同伴说：“看起来我们好像有客人了。”
高个子的亚比西魔发出一阵咕哝声表示同意。爪手是瞻，一道明亮的光芒正在上升，好像一颗由纯粹的光能量组成的星星正从地面挣脱一般。它的光线在其他的一切上投射出长长的影子，深渊的底层生物无法适应如此纯粹的善良能量的辐射，尖叫着向地下巢穴或更安全的黑暗中四散逃去。
辐射的中心是一个亮银色的盔甲组成的手拿一把巨大水晶剑的凡人的身影。
[私认为最后一句翻译得不好，首先mortal，human-sized就被我翻到一起去了，这句话翻出来又太长，而且对于“Solid Crystal”这个词组还有相当疑议，我觉得它是在与LCD的Liquid Crystal形成对照，但不知道怎么翻好，固晶？变态诶。]
"Paladin?" guessed the taller abishai, shading his eyes with his overlong knuckles.
"Seems as if," said the shorter one, squinting intalhe light. "Definitely not subtle."
"Storming the gates of the Abyss never is," said the other. "Here comes the first of the Heavy Brigade, repre璼enting our team."
The bright light was eclipsed, if only for a moment, by the rising form of a charging fiend. A large specimen, such fiends served as the pit bulls of the Abyss, and this one had horns that would make a minotaur blush in inad璭quacy.
The observers did not see the paladin move, only the bright afterimage as the crystal sword traced a lightning-like arc through the fiend. The pit-creature fell away in identical halves, carved down the center.
"That had to smart," said the Abbot. His companion grunted in agreement.
“圣骑士？”高个子的亚比西魔一边用他过长的手指遮着光线一边做出猜测。
“恩，应该是吧。”矮的那个眯着眼睛看向那道光芒，补充了一句：“好像一点都不难猜。”
“又一次对深渊的冲击。”高个子说，“看，快反力量已经出现了，这是我们队的第一个代表。”
光芒闪烁了一下，是被一个恶魔隆起的身躯遮挡的。这是一只地狱猎犬，这样的恶魔在深渊中被视作看门狗。这只猎犬的大角会让一个牛头人因羞愧而脸红。
两个观察者都没有看清那个圣骑士的动作，只看到了水晶剑划出的穿透那个恶魔的闪电般的美丽弧线。可怜的猎犬以非常标准的两半的形式掉了下来，它被从正中央划开了。
“真是漂亮。”议员评论说。它的同伴咕哝着表示同意。
A second fiend took the first one's place and met a sim璱lar fate as the first, this one's separation being horizontal as opposed to vertical.
"Looks vorpal to me," said the squat Castellan.
The taller one nodded, though neither showed any movement toward the scene of battle. "Bet he shan't last five minutes," said the Abbot.
"Bet he can," said the shorter abishai. "He's got the armor, fche sword, and the attitude. How about a cup of saint's blood against a breeze of a mortal's summer?"
The Castellan's tall companion nodded, his crocodile-like head turning the nod into an exaggerated bob. "Bet taken. Starting now."
第二只恶魔在第一只同样的位置上遭到了同样的命运，唯一的不同点在于它是被横着切开的。
“真是好刀。”胖牢头评论说。
高个子的点了点头，他们可一点也不想去参与战斗。“我赌他撑不了5分钟。”议员说。
“我赌他行。”矮个子说，“他的装备很好，技术也不错。就拿一杯圣徒的鲜血来赌吧？”
牢头的高个子同伴点了点头，它的鳄鱼般长长的头颅使这个点头的幅度变得很夸张，“赌就赌，现在开始计时吧。”
The pair made themselves as comfortable as possible on a broken pile of smoldering rocks and watched the battle unfold. The Abbot of Misrule counted the seconds off on his fingers. Ten, then ten again, then ten again and so forth, ticking off the time.
Across the low valley, the legions of the Abyss mar璼haled themselves against the invader. Two more fiends tried to bring the new arrival down and were rewarded for their efforts with lost limbs and severed heads. A yugoloth met a similar fate. An abishai (for not all were malingerers) tried to sneak up from behind and aloft and was skewered for its effort.
"Was that the Padre of Pain?" asked the short observer.
"Probably," said the tall one. "He's always sucking up for attention and battlefield merits. One minute."
这两位在一堆冒烟的石头上安顿得舒舒服服的，事不关己地看着战斗继续。议员用它的手指数着秒。十秒，再是十秒，又是十秒，很快就过去了四十秒。
一道山谷之遥的地方，深渊原住民的军团前仆后继地攻向入侵者。另两个恶魔想把新来的拉下水，在分别少了一些零件后放弃了努力。一只尤格罗斯魔的下场也好不到哪去。一只亚比西魔（并非所有的亚比西魔都是逃兵）试着潜行到对手的后方上空，却反被一剑串了起来。
“那个不是苦痛教士吗？”矮个子问。
“有可能，”高个子说，“他就总是试着吸引眼球，还老想着抢功劳。一分钟咯。”
Two more yugoloths fell in quick succession, along with another abishai whose blood-red wings were sev璭red from his body. A wormlike beshak wrapped around the paladin's leg and exploded in a million shards from proximity to so much goodness.
"Two minutes," said the Abbot.
The ground erupted beneath the paladin, and the chiti-nous maw of a bulette-liche broke the surface, seeking to swallow him in one gulp. The shining paladin jumped on the beast's snout, driving the sword deep into the decay璱ng rot that was the creature's brain. The undead land-shark gave a sharp spasm and perished immediately. The paladin retreated up the beast's crenelated back as more creatures poured out of their lairs.
又两只尤格罗斯魔在暂时取得优势后跌了下来，还有另一只亚比西魔的血红色的翅膀也被拆了下来。一条蠕虫状的毕沙克魔缠住了圣骑士的脚，却被炸成了无数碎片。
“两分钟咯。”议员说。
圣骑士脚下的土地突然沸腾开来，一只不死鲨蜥兽角质的大嘴从他站立的猛冲出来，试着一口将他吞下。周身流溢着光芒的圣骑士只是轻轻一跳站到那怪物的鼻部，将他的宝剑深深地插到不死鲨蜥兽腐烂的大脑所在的位置。不死的陆行鲨鱼猛地抽搐了一下就再也不动弹了。圣骑士向后略退一步，正面面对正源源不断从他们巢穴里蜂拥而出的怪物们。
"I think he's dimming," said the Castellan, a note of concern in his voice.
"That's just blood covering the armor. Three minutes," said the Abbot.
A dark wave rose as the combined mass attack of twisted creatures sought to overwhelm the paladin. The armored human took out the closest rank of the beasts, stepped backward, nearly lost his balance, took out the next rank, and retreated again, until he was perched cen-termost on the body of the undead landshark that was resting on an ever-increasing number of other lower pla璶ar creatures.
“我觉得他好像变暗了。”牢头说，语气中还带着一丝关心。
“只是盔甲上沾了点血而已。三分钟了。”议员说。
黑暗生物们的疯狂进攻几乎形成了暗涌的大潮，张牙舞爪地试图淹没那个圣骑士。穿甲的人类消灭了已经最靠近自己的一排怪物，后退了一步（差点失去平衡），又消灭了另一排，然后再退一步，直到他已经靠在了无尽的下界生物组成的漩涡中心的鲨蜥兽尸体上。
"What is it that gives creatures like that such power?" asked the short observer, almost in admiration.
"The power of Good," snarled his tall companion. "Four minutes. Ah, she's finally here. It's over now."
The short abishai followed his cohort's sharper eyes to the blossom of crimson on the horizon. "Keep counting," he said grimly.
By the count of ten the blossom had congealed into a great flying creature, the form of a hell-maiden in full regalia. Her flesh was shining silver, polished with the blood of her enemies, and seemed to merge with her flame-mirrored armor. She held in one clawlike hand an ebony blade of a shade so dark it hurt the eyes to behold it. Her crimson hair swept backward away from he/ face as she dove upon the battling paladin, a banshee scream on her lips. She was the most beautiful and frightening creature of the Abyss.
“这个家伙的力量从何而来？”矮个子几乎带着敬意地问。
“他由‘善良’汲取力量，”他的高个子同伴厉声说，“四分钟咯，哦，她终于来了。好了好了，游戏结束了。”
矮个子亚比西魔跟着他的同伴的视线，看到了那个即将变成深红色的骨朵，“接着数！”他冷冷地说。
又数了十下，那个骨朵已经变成了一个巨大的飞行生物，最高阶地狱娘子的具现。她的血肉是闪亮的白银，用她不自量力的敌手们的鲜血修饰，似乎已经与她火红的盔甲融为了一体。她的一只手爪里握着一把乌木般漆黑的剑，只要凝视便可伤人。俯冲攻向圣骑士时，她大胆到将高度低到她深红色的头发扫过他的脸颊。她的唇边发出的是班西的恸哭，她便是深渊中最美丽而又最可怕的生物。
"Judith," said the Castellan, suppressing a shudder. Judith was among the Keepers of the Peace, the strong arms of Takhisis in the Abyssal Planes. She was also nom璱nally the watching abishai's immediate superior. Both creatures shrunk back into the rocks, even though Judith's attention was fixed on the interloper.
The paladin looked up, cued to his peril only by the dark hordes themselves pulling back with Judith's arrival. A timely duck kept his head on his shoulders as the black blade, trailing ebony flames, passed through the air where his neck had been only seconds before.
Judith circled again, and the paladin began to glow more strongly, more intensely.
“那是茱蒂丝。”牢头勉强压住自己的颤抖，说。茱蒂丝是塔克西斯在深渊位面的坚强臂膀-和平守护者的一员。她也是平时常任监督亚比西魔工作的拿莫温之一。即使是现在茱蒂丝的注意力被入侵者完全吸引了，他俩还是不由自主地退回到了石堆里。
圣骑士在黑暗阵营自动退却时才发现茱蒂丝的危险性。他抬头向上看去，并突然蹲了一下，漆黑之刃划过他的脖子一秒钟前还在的位置，只留下了割裂空气的轨迹。
茱蒂丝盘旋着再次进攻，而圣骑士周身的光芒也开始变得更强烈，仿佛再次充满了激情。
The Hell-maiden swung her great black blade over her head with both hands as she dived. The paladin raised his sword of glowing crystal to catch the blow and turn it aside. The blades met...
.. . and the paladin's sword shattered into a million fragments. Judith swooped low over the land in a banking dive and turned to make another pass. The paladin stag璯ered, his own blood now mixing with the darker hues on his punctured armor. He looked up with dull, fearful eyes as Judith returned a third time, sweeping her sword in a broad stroke aimed at the top his helmet. The Castellan saw the paladin reach for his throat and ...
... the blade passed through his body just as the pal璦din became misty as a fog bank fading in the dawn. Judith stood where the paladin moments before had with璼tood the armies of the Abyss and howled in rage. The ground thundered at her shout. There was another blos璼om of crimson, then she, too, was gone.
地狱娘子在俯冲中双手举起了她的黑色巨剑，圣骑士也将他辐射着光明的水晶剑高高举起以偏移对方的攻击。剑刃猛然相交...
...然后圣骑士的剑裂成了无数的碎片。茱蒂丝俯冲了下来，掠过地面，转回来准备再次进攻。圣骑士蹒跚了一下，现在他的盔甲上混合了自己和怪物的鲜血，变得暗红而结痂。他抬头凝视茱蒂丝的眼神已经变得呆滞而恐惧，而茱蒂丝已经第三次袭来了。她在他的上空双手持剑准备最后一次横扫。牢头看见圣骑士伸长了脖子引颈待砍，茱蒂丝一刀劈下，刀身划过圣骑士的身体...
...而恰在此时，圣骑士的周身升起一团烟雾，而烟雾散去，圣骑士已像晨露消散在阳光里一样消失了。茱蒂丝站在深渊阵前圣骑士片刻之前所站的位置怒吼着，大地为之震颤。然后紧接着又生出一团血红的蓓蕾，茱蒂丝也消失了。
"Rather fled than dead, it seems," said the Castellan. 'Time?"
"Two tics short I'm afraid," said the Abbot, holding up eight of ten fingers.
"You counted slow," pouted the short one. "If I did, you failed to notice," said the tall one with a smile. "So it matters not. Come on, Judith's going to be haring after that paladin for a little while more. We might as well clear the scene."
The two descended from their low hillock, toward the Castellan's crypts and away from the ruins of the battle璮ield. Already the scavengers of the Abyss were crawling from their burrows, unconcerned about the allegiance and alignment of their meals. The Abbot had no love of such feeding frenzies and lengthened his strides. The more portly abishai had to puff and scurry to keep up.
"Why do they do it?" asked the Castellan, panting. "Why storm the Abyss?"
“好像是跑了，不是挂了。”牢头说，“多少时间了？”
“恐怕还差两秒，”议员举起八根手指，说。
“肯定是你数慢了。”矮个子撅起了嘴。“即使我真的数慢了，你之前也没发现。”高个子嘴角泛起一个微笑，“所以其实都一样啦。走吧，估计茱蒂丝追踪那个圣骑士追不了一会的，我们还能趁这个时间开撤。”
于是这两只恶魔从他们坐着的石头上下来，朝着牢头的地窖走了过去。这时深渊的腐食动物已经从它们的地洞里蜂拥了出来，根本不管它们的食物不久前还是它们的盟友，就开始了它们的饕餮。议员对这样的疯食十分反感，加快了步伐。矮胖的朋友不得不疾步前驱才能赶上它同伴的脚步。
“为什么他们要这样做？”牢头边喘边问，“为什么他们总要冲击深渊？”
His taller companion sighed and slowed only for a moment. "Because they see themselves as Good and us as Evil. We're opposites, so we gravitate toward each other." "Then what is Good?" continued the Castellan. "Our opposite," said the other, then stopped, as if turn璱ng his attention fully to the question. "But I think I see your point. You don't see us storming Paladine's castle on a regular basis. Shouldn't the question rather be 'What is it about Good that causes those possessing it to act in such \ a foolish fashion?' There is probably something in the very nature of goodness that inflicts such blind stupidity." "Stupidity and more," said the shorter creature. "There is a tangy taste to their souls. You can feel it when they die: an electrification of the air, an exhilaration of the soul, a nobility of the spirit...." His voice died off as he real璱zed his companion was now staring at him.
他的高个子同伴叹了口气，缓了缓脚步，“因为他们把自己看成是正义的，而我们是邪恶的。我们的性异促使我们相吸。”“那，什么是善良呢？”牢头接着问。“我们的对立面就是善良。”另一只停下脚步，好像是把所有的注意力都集中在这个问题上了一样。“我理解你的意思，但你也看到了，我们可没有袭击正义堡垒的日常计划，这个问题是不是可以改成‘是什么促使这些正义之士行事如此愚蠢？’这便是正义的某种原质，正义会自然地导致这种盲目的愚行。”“不止是愚蠢，”矮个子说，“他们的灵魂都会有一种浓烈的气味，他们死的时候你可以感觉得到，一种...空气的电击，一种灵魂的愉悦，一种精神的高尚...”他发现自己的同伴并没有专心在听，便轻了下来。
"A nobility of the spirit," said the Abbot of Misrule, a small smile flickering across his face. "Then isn't our question not 'What is good?' but 'What is nobility?' "
"Perhaps it is," said the Castellan, and set off again, passing the first crypts of the area under his care.
"Or perhaps not," the Abbot said. His shorter companion could hear the shrug in his voice. "There is goodness in nobility and nobility in goodness. You cannot separate the two."
"I disagree," said the Castellan. "You should be able to have one without the other. I'm almost sure of that."
"Hmmm," said the Abbot as they reached the heated brass doors of the shorter abishai's domain. "Do I hear another wager being made?"
“灵魂的高尚，”混乱评议会的议员闪着微笑说，“我们的问题不就从‘什么是善良’变成‘什么是高尚’了吗？”
“也许吧。”牢头说着又继续出发了，这时他们走过的是他管理的第一个储藏间。
“也许不是。”牢头可以从议员的语气里听出怀疑，“高尚就是善良的，善良就是高尚的，这两者是分不开的。”
“我不同意，”牢头说，“这两者应该是可以独存的，我基本上确信这一点。”
“嗯...”议员说。这时他们已走近了矮个子的办公室的黄铜大门，“我是不是听到你又开了一桩赌？”
"It's just an idea, an experiment, if you will," said the Castellan, thinking (briefly) of how Judith would react to all this spurious betting by her subordinates. "But since you bring it up, we could make it... interesting with a bet of some sort."
"Not just a cup of sainf s blood for an... experiment... of such magnitude," the Abbot cautioned.
"Well, I have long lusted after your freedom in the liv璱ng world, advising the great and near-great. Badly, it is true, but still, such freedom." The Castellan sighed despite himself.
"And I have always envied your vaunted position as guardian of the most damned among the damned, the creme de la creme in a manner of speaking," the taller abishai replied, grinning. "But that is the fate of eternal damnation: You don't get what you want. What would the nature of this 'experiment' be?"
“这只是一个想法，一个实验，如果你想的话，”牢头边说边（大致地）想像了一下茱蒂丝如果听说她的部下在打这样的赌会是什么表情，“但既然你提出要赌，那...如果下点什么注的话可能的确会好玩一些。”
“可不要再用一杯圣徒的鲜血就打发了这么...重要的实验。”议员提醒说。
“好啊，我一直都很羡慕你在克莱恩的自由，到处给那些伟人和即将成为伟人的家伙提供建议。虽然都是些坏主意，但那可真是自由啊...”牢头触到了自己的痛处，黯然叹息。
“我也一直羡慕你恶中之恶的守护者的‘高位’，所谓‘美差中的美差’。”高个子咧开嘴笑了，“但这是我们永恒的命运，你得不到你想要的自由的。我们这次怎么‘实验’呢？”
The Castellan swung his crypt door open to reveal steps made of burning anthracite. Without a second thought, he started down them, while his companion gingerly picked his way down among the cooler spots. "We discover if one can be noble without being Good," said the portly abishai, rubbing his leathery palms together. "I have entrusted to me the worst of the worst, hated creatures condemned for five or six eternities. We take one, restore him to life, and send him to Krynn with the command 'live nobly.' And we see if he pulls it off."
牢头打开门，走向燃烧的煤炭制成的阶梯。他想都没想就走下楼梯，而他的同伴则小心翼翼地选择那些看起来冷一些的位置落脚。“我们来看看，一个人能否是高尚而不够善良的？”矮个子边把它的皮翅收起来边说，“我被托付来看守这些纯粹邪恶的灵魂，这些家伙在五到六个永恒里都不会得超生的。我们完全可以在其中选择一个，把它送回克莱恩，告诉他‘你必须高尚地活着’，然后我们只消看看他是怎样的就可以了。”
By this time the pair had reached the bottom level of the crypt, where the worst of the worst were kept. The shelves
were made of brass and glowed from the heat of the burn璱ng floor. Stacked upon each shelf, almost filling the room, were jars made of iron, white gold, and heavily leaded glass. There was the low moaning of the tormented within the room, and the smoky glass would often clear enough to reveal a mortal face, screaming in pain.
The Abbot's foot crunched on a broken shard. He picked it up and turned it over in his hands. On it, in burning gold script, was the single word: RAISTLIN.
这时这对搭档已经来到了地窖的最底下，那里被无尽炙烤着的黄铜制的柜子里，储存的便是那些恶中之恶的灵魂，架子上一格一格码满了各种铁质的、白金质的和铅质的罐子。房间里总是若有若无地回荡着灵魂被折磨的惨叫声，烟晶的玻璃里也会闪现出凡人因痛苦而扭曲恸哭的面孔。议员不小心踩上了一块瓶子的碎片，它把它捡起来放在手中细看。碎片上用黄金标了三个字-雷斯林。
"Have you tried this before?" asked the Abbot, turning the glass over.
The Castellan shook his head. "There are always a few who slip through the net, for one reason or another. I have a bottle for Lord Soth, but it was never filled." He gave a heavy shrug, then motioned to the remainder. "But we have such a variety to choose from: murderers, maniacs, deluded priests, petty officials. Pick one, and we'll see what happens."
The Abbot of Misrule raised a taloned hand to his lips, his eyes locked on one shelf of bottles. "Let me under璼tand this clearly. I say that nobility cannot exist without goodness. You say that you can be one without being the other."
"That is the supposition of the experiment."
“你之前试过这个吗？”议员把那块玻璃翻来覆去地把玩着问。
牢头摇头，“总有一些会因为某些原因从命运的落网中落出来，比如索斯爵士的瓶子就一直在我这，但它依然空空如也。”他耸了耸肩，“但我们还有很多可以挑的，谋杀犯，精神病，假僧侣，还有一些官员的。你来选一个，然后我们来看看会发生些什么。”
议员用爪子撑住头作沉思状，它突然看中了一个架子，“我们先把事情说清楚，我说高尚和善良是相辅相成的，你说它俩是可以被区分开来的，对吗？”
“这就是我们实验的目的。”
'The winner gets the loser's position, power, and port璮olio for... say... a year of Krynn's time?" "That is a fair wager."
The Abbot nodded. "I get to choose the sinner we try to redeem?"
The Castellan held out both palms in agreement. "Done," he said.
"Done," said the Abbot, and with a long arm snaked out and snagged an iron bottle from one of the burning shelves. It was a small jar, and in the mortal world it would seem a suitable vessel in which to store pickles, and small pickles at that. He tossed it to his partner. The toss was short, and the Castellan had to lean forward to catch it up. He turned the small jar in his short-clawed hands and brushed the dust from its surface.
TOEDE.
The Castellan let out a low whistle and swore. "You rat-bastard. You're not going to make this easy."
“赌赢了的，就可以任意占有对方的职位和权力，占有...恩...一克莱恩年，怎么样？”
“可以接受。”
议员点了点头，“那我就来选一个咯？”
牢头把手握起表示同意，“好的。”
“就这个吧。”议员说着，用它长长的手从其中一个炙热的架子上取出一个铁质的像装咸菜的那样的罐子。它把罐子丢给它的同伴看，虽然它丢得并不高，但它的同伴还是踮起了脚才能接到。它把那罐子在爪手里翻转过来，擦去上面的积尘，露出了上面的名字。
投德
牢头吹了声口哨，“你这老黄鼠狼，这次你不会那么容易得胜的。” 此书翻译工作确定要坑了...
我今年进的大学，本以为在学习之余还会有翻译东西这样提高英语的时间，谁知道我进了一个变态系，我们上德语不上英语...我们一个礼拜七天，从礼拜二（礼拜一一天的实习课）到礼拜六全是4节/天铺天盖地的德语课，苍天哪...寒假要继续学驾驶，暑假我们系改叫短学期，休息时间保证半个月争取一个月...苍天哪，我们是工科，居然比语言系的语言课还多...还要看高数，还要补物理，还要抽时间想办法把四六级过来...于是这书的翻译工作便注定是要坑的了...请各位看官谅解...（好像本来也没几个人看）
另，谁高二高三打算考上海的大学的，或者身边有人打算考上海的大学的，PM我关于这是什么学校的什么专业...这个专业，就相当于再读3年高三，最后一年还不知道怎么样呢...千万记得，连选修课都没有的专业，一定不是好混的专业！
血泪...
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