Now all roads were running together to the East to meet the coming of war and the onset of the Shadow. And even as Pippin stood at the Great Gate of the City and saw the Prince of Dol Amroth ride in with his banners, the King of Rohan came down out of the hills.
此刻，一切的力量都开始朝向东方集结，准备迎接即将到来的战火和魔影的攻击。正当皮聘站在主城的大门口，看着多尔安罗斯王带着旗帜前来的时候，骠骑王也正好从山脉中走了出来。
All day far below them a leaping stream had run down from the high pass behind, cleaving its narrow way between pine-clad walls; and now through a stony gate it flowed out and passed into a wider vale. The Riders followed it, and suddenly Harrowdale lay before them, loud with the noise of waters in the evening. There the white Snowbourn, joined by the lesser stream, went rushing, fuming on the stones, down to Edoras and the green hills and the plains. Away to the right at the head of the great dale the mighty Starkhorn loomed up above its vast buttresses swathed in cloud; but its jagged peak, clothed in everlasting snow, gleamed far above the world, blue-shadowed upon the East, red-stained by the sunset in the West.
山下还有一天行程的地方，有座跳跃的溪流从隘口一路流下，在松树耸峙而成的高墙间开出一条道路，穿越了多岩的山谷，流入宽广的河谷中。骠骑们跟着小溪前进，哈洛谷就这么毫无预警地出现在众人面前。雪界河在此和诸多的支流会合，在多岩的河床上冲激出巨大的声响，一路流向伊多拉斯和底下翠绿的山丘及平原。在山谷右方则是高耸的厉角山，它顶端参差不齐的山峰漂浮在云海上，盖着永恒不化的积雪，以无比的霸气俯视着东方，浑身沐浴在夕阳的猩红光辉中。
Day was waning. In the last rays of the sun the Riders cast long pointed shadows that went on before them. Darkness had already crept beneath the murmuring fir-woods that clothed the steep mountain-sides. The king rode now slowly at the end of the day. Presently the path turned round a huge bare shoulder of rock and plunged into the gloom of soft-sighing trees. Down, down they went in a long winding file. When at last they came to the bottom of the gorge they found that evening had fallen in the deep places. The sun was gone. Twilight lay upon the waterfalls.
太阳正渐渐消逝，骠骑们在最后一丝阳光中疾行，身体往前投射出长长的阴影。黑暗已经将山脚边的松林全都吞没，骠骑王在黄昏时降低了速度。小径绕过一颗裸露的岩石，俯头冲进低声呢喃的树林中。骠骑们排成长长一列队伍不停地往下走。最后，他们终于来到这座峡谷的末端，夜色已经降临了此地。太阳消失了，最后的夕阳照在眼前的瀑布上。
He was very tired, for though they had ridden slowly, they had ridden with very little rest. Hour after hour for nearly three weary days he had jogged up and down, over passes, and through long dales, and across many streams. Sometimes where the way was broader he had ridden at the king’s side, not noticing that many of the Riders smiled to see the two together: the hobbit on his little shaggy grey pony, and the Lord of Rohan on his great white horse. Then he had talked to Théoden, telling him about his home and the doings of the Shire-folk, or listening in turn to tales of the Mark and its mighty men of old. But most of the time, especially on this last day, Merry had ridden by himself just behind the king, saying nothing, and trying to understand the slow sonorous speech of Rohan that he heard the men behind him using. It was a language in which there seemed to be many words that he knew, though spoken more richly and strongly than in the Shire, yet he could not piece the words together. At times some Rider would lift up his clear voice in stirring song, and Merry felt his heart leap, though he did not know what it was about.
他觉得非常非常的疲倦，虽然他们前进的速度并不快，但中间没有多少休息的时间。在这三天中，他们不眠不休的攀上爬下，穿越狭长的山谷、度过许多小溪；有些时候，当路比较宽广的时候，他会和骠骑王比肩共骑。他并没有注意到有许多的骠骑看见这景象都露出微笑：哈比人骑着毛发蓬松的灰色小马，骠骑王骑着高大的灰白骏马，两者形成了非常强烈的对比。在这些时候，他会和希优顿王聊天，述说他的家乡和同胞们的故事，或是聆听骠骑们的传说，以及远古时先祖的伟大功业。不过，大多的时间，特别是在最后一天的时候，梅里只是跟着国王后面，一言不发地聆听着骠骑们所使用的缓慢语言。这种语言中似乎有许多他认识的字眼，但发音的方法却比夏尔的念法更为豪迈和富感情。只不过，虽然几乎每个字眼都认识，但他还是没办法把所有的字都凑在一起。有些时候，会有骠骑提高音量、唱起军歌，即使梅里完全听不懂歌词的内容，却还是会觉得热血沸腾。
Merry looked out in wonder upon this strange country, of which he had heard many tales upon their long road. It was a skyless world, in which his eye, through dim gulfs of shadowy air, saw only ever-mounting slopes, great walls of stone behind great walls, and frowning precipices wreathed with mist. He sat for a moment half dreaming, listening to the noise of water, the whisper of dark trees, the crack of stone, and the vast waiting silence that brooded behind all sound. He loved mountains, or he had loved the thought of them marching on the edge of stories brought from far away; but now he was borne down by the insupportable weight of Middle-earth. He longed to shut out the immensity in a quiet room by a fire.
梅里惊奇不已地看着这个陌生的国度，在这漫长的旅途上，他曾经听过许多关于这里的传说。这是个没有天空的山谷，在他的眼中只能看见不停攀升的岩壁，层层相叠，看起来毫无空隙，无数的山峰则是包围在迷雾中。他半梦半醒地坐在那边，倾听着流水的声响、树木的低语、岩石的撞击，以及在这一切之后等待的寂静。他喜欢山，或许，他喜欢的是走在传说边缘的感觉。只不过，现在他的肩头也必须同时背负着中土大陆沉重的负担，他只想要抛开这一切，躲在炉火边的安静小房间中。
All the same he had been lonely, and never more so than now at the day’s end. He wondered where in all this strange world Pippin had got to; and what would become of Aragorn and Legolas and Gimli. Then suddenly like a cold touch on his heart he thought of Frodo and Sam. “I am forgetting them!” he said to himself reproachfully. “And yet they are more important than all the rest of us. And I came to help them; but now they must be hundreds of miles away, if they are still alive.” He shivered.
但不论状况如何改变，他还是觉得十分的孤单，这天傍晚时，情况更是变本加厉，他开始想念不知混到这大千世界何处的皮聘，思索亚拉冈、勒苟拉斯和金雳的下场又会怎么样。然后，突然间，他想到了佛罗多和山姆，禁不住打了个冷颤。“我几乎都忘记他们了！”他懊悔地说。“但是，他们的任务其实比我们任何一个人都重要，我来此就是为了帮助他们。如果他们现在还活着，恐怕已经距离此地数百哩了！”光是想到这样的遭遇，他就觉得浑身发冷。
“Harrowdale at last!” said Éomer. “Our journey is almost at an end.” They halted. The paths out of the narrow gorge fell steeply. Only a glimpse, as through a tall window, could be seen of the great valley in the gloaming below. A single small light could be seen twinkling by the river.
“终于到了哈洛谷！”伊欧墨说：“我们的旅程就快到终点了。”众人停了下来，离开峡谷的道路十分陡峭，他们只能透过狭窄的缝隙观看外面那座巨大的山谷。唯一可以清楚看见的，是河边有盏孤单的灯火闪烁着。
“This journey is over, maybe,” said Théoden, “but I have far yet to go. Two nights ago the moon was full, and in the morning I shall ride to Edoras to the gathering of the Mark.”
“或许这段旅程已经结束了，”希优顿说：“但我还有很长的路要走。昨晚是月圆，明天一早我就必须骑往伊多拉斯，集结骠骑全军。”
“But if you would take my counsel,” said Éomer in a low voice, “you would then return hither, until the war is over, lost or won.”
“如果您听我的建议，”伊欧墨压低声音说：“在那之后您就可以回到这里来，静观这场战争的变化，不管是赢是输都一样。”
Théoden smiled. “Nay, my son, for so I will call you, speak not the soft words of Wormtongue in my old ears!” He drew himself up and looked back at the long line of his men fading into the dusk behind. “Long years in the space of days it seems since I rode west; but never will I lean on a staff again. If the war is lost, what good will be my hiding in the hills? And if it is won, what grief will it be, even if I fall, spending my last strength? But we will leave this now. Tonight I will lie in the Hold of Dunharrow. One evening of peace at least is left us. Let us ride on!”
希优顿笑了。“不，吾儿，请让我这样称呼你，也请你别用巧言那一套温言软语来说服我！”他挺起胸膛，看着麾下的战士排成长列，融入夜色之中。“距离我策马西征以来，我感觉似乎经过了好多年，但我绝不会再倚靠任何的拐杖了。如果这场仗输了，躲在山中又有什么用处？如果这场仗赢了，就算我耗尽力气，马革裹尸又有什么好遗憾的？现在先不提这个，今晚我们先暂时在登哈洛过夜，至少我们还可以平静地度过一晚。走吧！”
In the deepening dusk they came down into the valley. Here the Snowbourn flowed near to the western walls of the dale, and soon the path led them to a ford where the shallow waters murmured loudly on the stones. The ford was guarded. As the king approached many men sprang up out of the shadow of the rocks; and when they saw the king they cried with glad voices: “Théoden King! Théoden King! The King of the Mark returns!”
在逐渐笼罩的暮色之中，他们进入了山谷。雪界河在此流近山谷的西边，很快的，这条小径就带领他们来到可以通过激流的渡口。留守的人在渡口安排了重兵守卫，当骠骑王靠近的时候，许多男子从岩石的阴影间跳了出来，当他们发现眼前的正是国王时，纷纷欢欣地大喊：“希优顿王！希优顿王！骠骑王回来了！”
Then one blew a long call on a horn. It echoed in the valley. Other horns answered it, and lights shone out across the river.
然后，有人吹响了号角，号角声在山谷中回汤，其他的号角跟着回应，河流两岸立刻燃起了点点灯火。
So the King of the Mark came back victorious out of the West to Dunharrow beneath the feet of the White Mountains. There he found the remaining strength of his people already assembled; for as soon as his coming was known captains rode to meet him at the ford, bearing messages from Gandalf. Dúnhere, chieftain of the folk of Harrowdale, was at their head.
就这样，骠骑王凯旋归来，回到了白色山脉下的登哈洛。他发现大部分的子民都已经聚集在这里了；当他出现的消息一传开来，将军们立刻骑马来到渡口晋见王上，并且带来了甘道夫的口信，哈洛谷的领主登希尔率领着其他人前来。
And suddenly there rose a great chorus of trumpets from high above, sounding from some hollow place, as it seemed, that gathered their notes into one voice and sent it rolling and beating on the walls of stone.
从高山上突然传来了雄壮的号声，听起来似乎是从某个空旷的地方发出的，这滚滚如潮的乐音就这么合而为一，在山壁间不停回汤着。
“At dawn three days ago, lord,” he said, “Shadowfax came like a wind out of the West to Edoras, and Gandalf brought tidings of your victory to gladden our hearts. But he brought also word from you to hasten the gathering of the Riders. And then came the winged Shadow.”
“王上，三天以前的黎明，”他说：“影疾像是一阵风般地从西方赶来伊多拉斯，甘道夫通知了我们您所打的胜仗，让我们感到欢欣鼓舞。但他也同时传达了您的旨意，要让骠骑迅速集结，然后，那有翼的魔影就出现了。”
“The winged Shadow?” said Théoden. “We saw it also, but that was in the dead of night before Gandalf left us.”
“有翼的魔影？”希优顿说：“我们也看见了它，但那是在甘道夫离开之前的深夜。”
“Maybe, lord,” said Dúnhere. “Yet the same, or another like to it, a flying darkness in the shape of a monstrous bird, passed over Edoras that morning, and all men were shaken with fear. For it stooped upon Meduseld, and as it came low, almost to the gable, there came a cry that stopped our hearts. Then it was that Gandalf counselled us not to assemble in the fields, but to meet you here in the valley under the mountains. And he bade us to kindle no more lights or fires than barest need asked. So it has been done. Gandalf spoke with great authority. We trust that it is as you would wish. Naught has been seen in Harrowdale of these evil things.”
“或许吧，大人，”登希尔说：“但是那可能是同样的，或是另外一个会飞行的黑暗，它有着飞鸟的外形，那天早上越过了伊多拉斯，让所有的人都因恐惧而颤抖。它在宫殿上盘旋，当它往下俯冲，几乎撞上屋顶时，那刺耳的尖叫声几乎让我们心脏停止跳动。然后，甘道夫建议我们不要在平原上集结，而是在这山脉的掩护中和您会合，他也要求我们把灯火的数量降到最低。我们都照着做了，甘道夫说的话让人无法质疑，我们相信如果是您也会这样做的。后来，这些邪恶的东西就再也没出现在哈洛谷了。”
The road now led eastward straight across the valley, which was at that point little more than half a mile in width. Flats and meads of rough grass, grey now in the falling night, lay all about, but in front on the far side of the dale Merry saw a frowning wall, a last outlier of the great roots of the Starkhorn, cloven by the river in ages past.
小径直越过山谷，此处大约不过是半哩宽而已，四处都杂草丛生，但在夜色的灰光照耀下显得有些死气沉沉。在另外一边，梅里则是注意到一座岩壁，这是厉角山往外延伸的山脚，在许多年前被河水所切割开来的痕迹。
“It is well,” said Théoden. “I will ride now to the Hold, and there before I go to rest I will meet the marshals and captains. Let them come to me as soon as may be!”
“做的很好，”希优顿说：“我现在可以去找个地方休息了，在我就寝前，把所有的元帅和将军都请到我的房间来。不要拖延！”
On all the level spaces there was great concourse of men. Some thronged to the roadside, hailing the king and the riders from the West with glad cries; but stretching away into the distance behind there were ordered rows of tents and booths, and lines of picketed horses, and great store of arms, and piled spears bristling like thickets of new-planted trees. Now all the great assembly was falling into shadow, and yet, though the night-chill blew cold from the heights, no lanterns glowed, no fires were lit. Watchmen heavily cloaked paced to and fro.
在所有平坦的地形上聚集着无数的人们，有些只是毫无章法的挤在路边，夹道欢迎国王和从西方凯旋的骠骑们；但是，在那之后是整齐划一的帐篷和队伍、坚固的马圈、大量的武器，如同茂密树林一样的长枪架在地面上。即使此地集结了这么多的部队，但在夜风的吹袭下，此地依然没有任何不必要的灯火，披着厚重斗篷的哨兵们毫不懈怠地来回巡逻。
Merry wondered how many Riders there were. He could not guess their number in the gathering gloom, but it looked to him like a great army, many thousands strong. While he was peering from side to side the king’s party came up under the looming cliff on the eastern side of the valley; and there suddenly the path began to climb, and Merry looked up in amazement. He was on a road the like of which he had never seen before, a great work of men’s hands in years beyond the reach of song. Upwards it wound, coiling like a snake, boring its way across the sheer slope of rock. Steep as a stair, it looped backwards and forwards as it climbed. Up it horses could walk, and wains could be slowly hauled; but no enemy could come that way, except out of the air, if it was defended from above. At each turn of the road there were great standing stones that had been carved in the likeness of men, huge and clumsy-limbed, squatting cross-legged with their stumpy arms folded on fat bellies. Some in the wearing of the years had lost all features save the dark holes of their eyes that still stared sadly at the passers-by. The Riders hardly glanced at them. The Púkel-men they called them, and heeded them little: no power or terror was left in them; but Merry gazed at them with wonder and a feeling almost of pity, as they loomed up mournfully in the dusk.
梅里不知道眼前究竟有多少的骠骑，在这一片黑暗中，他无法算清楚确切的数量，他只知道从对方的气势判断起来，至少有数千人。正当他在四下打量人数的时候，国王率领的部队来到了山谷东方的峭壁下，道路从这里突然开始往上攀爬，梅里惊讶地抬起头来。他所在的道路和他之前所见过的都不一样，这是远在历史记载、歌谣赞颂以前的人类所建造的，它不停地往上攀升，像是巨蛇一般蜿蜒，在陡峭的岩石间钻来钻去。马匹可以在上面前进，车辆也可以缓慢地拖拉上去，不过，除非敌人生出翅膀，否则是无法进攻此地的，因为，这里的防卫都是建造在上方的。在每一个道路转弯处，路旁都有一座巨大的雕像，这雕像描摹着手脚粗大的人类，每个都盘腿坐着，手臂放在肥胖的肚皮上。有些在岁月的磨蚀下变得完全无法辨认，只能够用两眼深深的凹洞忧伤地望着路过的旅人。骠骑们并不在乎这些雕像，他们都叫这些为普哥人，对它们视若无睹，在岁月的侵蚀之下，它们连一点威吓力都不剩。梅里则是用好奇的眼光打量着他们，同时又感觉到一丝丝的同情，这些雕像只能这样子动也不动地看着道路，直到永远。
After a while he looked back and found that he had already climbed some hundreds of feet above the valley, but still far below he could dimly see a winding line of Riders crossing the ford and filing along the road towards the camp prepared for them. Only the king and his guard were going up into the Hold.
过了好一阵子，他回头一看，才发现自己已经距离底下的山谷好几百尺，但他依然可以看见底下的骠骑正排队骑过渡口，秩序井然地进入为他们准备好的营帐中，只有国王和侍从们准备进入高高在上的要塞中。
At last the king’s company came to a sharp brink, and the climbing road passed into a cutting between walls of rock, and so went up a short slope and out on to a wide upland. The Firienfeld men called it, a green mountain-field of grass and heath, high above the deep-delved courses of the Snowbourn, laid upon the lap of the great mountains behind: the Starkhorn southwards, and northwards the saw-toothed mass of Írensaga, between which there faced the riders, the grim black wall of the Dwimorberg, the Haunted Mountain rising out of steep slopes of sombre pines. Dividing the upland into two there marched a double line of unshaped standing stones that dwindled into the dusk and vanished in the trees. Those who dared to follow that road came soon to the black Dimholt under Dwimorberg, and the menace of the pillar of stone, and the yawning shadow of the forbidden door.
最后，国王的队伍来到了一个转弯处，进入了两边都是悬崖的狭窄道路中，再又经过了一小段斜坡之后，他们来到了一块宽广的平地。人们叫这里费瑞安台地，它是一块长满了青草的平原，距离底下雪界河所切割出的深谷有数百尺之远。这块平原紧靠着厉角山的南端，以及爱兰萨加山的北缘；在两者之间，面对着这些骠骑的则是被包围在松林之间的黑色丁默山，也就是亡灵之山。有一条以巨石隔成的简陋道路将这块高地切成两半，一路延伸进夜色之中。任何胆敢踏上这条路的人，就会来到丁默山之下的丁祸，亲眼目睹那些耸立的岩柱，以及遭到诅咒的封印之门。
Merry stared at the lines of marching stones: they were worn and black; some were leaning, some were fallen, some cracked or broken; they looked like rows of old and hungry teeth. He wondered what they could be, and he hoped that the king was not going to follow them into the darkness beyond. Then he saw that there were clusters of tents and booths on either side of the stony way; but these were not set near the trees, and seemed rather to huddle away from them towards the brink of the cliff. The greater number were on the right, where the Firienfeld was wider; and on the left there was a smaller camp, in the midst of which stood a tall pavilion. From this side a rider now came out to meet them, and they turned from the road.
梅里看着这些隔开道路的巨石，它们都有多处磨损，有些已经歪斜，有些则是倾倒在地上，甚至摔成了碎片，它们看起来像是老人口中歪斜的牙齿。他幻想着这些道路究竟通往什么地方，暗自希望国王不会跟随着它们走入其后的黑暗中。然后，他也发现到在道路的两旁有着许多的帐篷，奇怪的是，这些帐篷都不是设在树下，相对的，它们甚至刻意地躲开树林和可以遮风挡雨的峭壁。比较多数的帐篷设在右边，也就是高地比较宽广的那一边，在左边则是有一个范围不大的营地，中间则是一座高耸的华丽帐篷，一名骑士出来和他们会合，然后他们就转身离开了。
Such was the dark Dunharrow, the work of long-forgotten men. Their name was lost and no song or legend remembered it. For what purpose they had made this place, as a town or secret temple or a tomb of kings, none in Rohan could say. Here they laboured in the Dark Years, before ever a ship came to the western shores, or Gondor of the Dúnedain was built; and now they had vanished, and only the old Púkel-men were left, still sitting at the turnings of the road.
这就是入夜后的登哈洛，一处早已被遗忘的人类所留下的痕迹。他们的名号早已被历史掩盖，没有任何的歌谣或传说还记得他们的存在。现在早已无人知晓当年他们为何兴建这个地方，究竟是为了安身立业？还是祭祀神明？或是让帝王埋骨此处？他们在黑暗的年代中默默地埋头工作，当时没有任何的船只靠近过大陆西方的海岸，登丹人的刚铎也尚未建立。现在，这些人都神秘消失了，只剩下那些古老的普哥人沉默地坐在路边，瞪着来往的过路人。
As they drew near Merry saw that the rider was a woman with long braided hair gleaming in the twilight, yet she wore a helm and was clad to the waist like a warrior and girded with a sword.
在队伍逐渐靠近之后，梅里才发现那名骑士是名女子，挽起的长发在微弱的光线中闪闪发亮；不过，她腰部以上的穿着和战士一样，头上戴着头盔，腰间系着长剑。
“Hail, Lord of the Mark!” she cried. “My heart is glad at your returning.”
“骠骑王万岁！”她大喊着：“我真高兴可以看见您安全回来。”
“And you, Éowyn,” said Théoden, “is all well with you?”
“我也一样，伊欧玟，”希优顿回答道。“一切都还好吧？”
“No, he is gone,” said Éowyn turning away and looking at the mountains dark against the East and South.
“不，他已经离开了，”伊欧玟别过头去，看着东南方黑暗的山脉。
“All is well,” she answered; yet it seemed to Merry that her voice belied her, and he would have thought that she had been weeping, if that could be believed of one so stern of face. “All is well. It was a weary road for the people to take, torn suddenly from their homes. There were hard words, for it is long since war has driven us from the green fields; but there have been no evil deeds. All is now ordered, as you see. And your lodging is prepared for you; for I have had full tidings of you and knew the hour of your coming.”
“都很好，”她回答，不过，梅里觉得她的声音出卖了她的情绪。如果不是因为那张严肃、冰冷的面孔，他可能会认为她之前才掉过眼泪。“一切都很顺利，人们被迫突然离家，踏上漫长的迁徙之道，对他们来说相当疲累。人民们的确有抱怨，因为他们已经有许久没有见识过战争了，不过，并没有什么状况发生，如同您所见到的一样，一切都已经就绪了。您的行馆也已经准备好了，我在之前就已经听说了您的遭遇和抵达的时间。”
“So Aragorn has come then,” said Éomer. “Is he still here?”
“那么，亚拉冈来过这边了，”伊欧墨说：“他还在吗？”
“Whither did he go?” asked Éomer.
“他去了哪里？”伊欧墨问道。
“I do not know,” she answered. “He came at night, and rode away yestermorn, ere the Sun had climbed over the mountain-tops. He is gone.”
“我不知道，”她回答道：“他深夜前来，昨天一早太阳出来之前就离开了，他已经走了。”
“Yes, lord,” said Éowyn. “And he has passed into the shadow from which none have returned. I could not dissuade him. He is gone.”
“是的，王上，”伊欧玟说：“他已经进入了那从未有人生还的黑暗中，我没办法说服他。他走了。”
“You are grieved, daughter,” said Théoden. “What has happened? Tell me, did he speak of that road?” He pointed away along the darkening lines of stones towards the Dwimorberg. “Of the Paths of the Dead?”
“女儿啊，你看来很伤心，”希优顿说：“究竟发生了什么事情？告诉我，他是不是提到了那条路？”他指着丁默山漆黑的轮廓说：“亡者之道？”
“Then our paths are sundered,” said Éomer. “He is lost. We must ride without him, and our hope dwindles.”
“那么我们的道路注定就此分开，”伊欧墨说：“他可能已经身亡了，我们必须在没有他的状况下前进，希望也变得黯淡许多。”
Slowly they passed through the short heath and upland grass, speaking no more, until they came to the king’s pavilion. There Merry found that everything was made ready, and that he himself was not forgotten. A little tent had been pitched for him beside the king’s lodging; and there he sat alone, while men passed to and fro, going in to the king and taking counsel with him. Night came on and the half-seen heads of the mountains westward were crowned with stars, but the East was dark and blank. The marching stones faded slowly from sight, but still beyond them, blacker than the gloom, brooded the vast crouching shadow of the Dwimorberg.
他们缓步地穿越这块草地，不再交谈，最后终于来到了国王的帐篷。梅里发现一切都已经准备妥当，连他都考虑在内。在国王的行馆旁边安放了一座小帐篷，他就孤单地住在那里，看着人们来来去去，和国王商议、讨论。夜越来越深，西方的山脉顶端缀满了星辰，但东方依旧漆黑一片。隔开道路的巨岩缓缓被夜色吞没，和沉默的丁默山融为一体。
In the inner part of the pavilion was a small space, curtained off with broidered hangings, and strewn with skins; and there at a small table sat Théoden with Éomer and Éowyn, and Dúnhere, lord of Harrowdale. Merry stood beside the king’s stool and waited on him, till presently the old man, coming out of deep thought, turned to him and smiled.
在帐篷最内部有一块以廉幕隔开的小空间，上面还挂着许多的兽皮。希优顿、伊欧墨、伊欧玟、哈洛谷的领主登希尔都坐在一张小桌旁。梅里站在国王的凳子旁边耐心等待，直到老人从沉思中转过头，对他露出笑容。
“The Paths of the Dead,” he muttered to himself. “The Paths of the Dead? What does all this mean? They have all left me now. They have all gone to some doom: Gandalf and Pippin to war in the East; and Sam and Frodo to Mordor; and Strider and Legolas and Gimli to the Paths of the Dead. But my turn will come soon enough, I suppose. I wonder what they are all talking about, and what the king means to do. For I must go where he goes now.”
“亡者之道，”他自言自语道：“亡者之道？这究竟是什么意思？他们都抛下我一个人，这些人全都去迎接他们的末日：甘道夫和皮聘去东方参战、山姆和佛罗多去魔多、神行客和勒苟拉斯及金雳去亡者之道。我想，很快就会轮到我了。不知道这些人究竟在讨论些什么？骠骑王又准备怎么做？不管他去哪里，我都会跟着一起去。”
In the midst of these gloomy thoughts he suddenly remembered that he was very hungry, and he got up to go and see if anyone else in this strange camp felt the same. But at that very moment a trumpet sounded, and a man came summoning him, the king’s esquire, to wait at the king’s board.
他一边如此阴郁地思索着，边心不在焉地想起自己已经饿了许久。他这才一跃而起，看看是否有其他人和他想法一样。不过，就在那一刻，号声响起，一名男子前来找他，请国王的随扈到国王身边报到。
Room was made for the hobbit at the king’s left hand, but no one called for any tale. There was indeed little speech, and they ate and drank for the most part in silence, until at last, plucking up courage, Merry asked the question that was tormenting him.
大伙空出了一个位置让哈比人坐在国王左手边，但没有人真的请他讲故事，大家都不怎么交谈，大部分的时间中只是沉默地吃喝。最后，梅里才鼓起勇气，问出他一直如鲠在喉的问题。
“Come, Master Meriadoc!” he said. “You shall not stand. You shall sit beside me, as long as I remain in my own lands, and lighten my heart with tales.”
“来吧，梅里雅达克先生！”他说：“你不须要站着，只要还在我的国度里，你就应该坐在我旁边，讲述各种故事，让我轻松一些。”
The king sighed, but no one answered, until at last Éomer spoke. “We do not know, and our hearts are heavy,” he said. “But as for the Paths of the Dead, you have yourself walked on their first steps. Nay, I speak no words of ill omen! The road that we have climbed is the approach to the Door, yonder in the Dimholt. But what lies beyond no man knows.”
骠骑王叹了一口气，但一时间没有人回答，最后，伊欧墨才开口道：“我们并不知道，因此我们才会觉得非常担忧，”他说：“至于亡者之道，你刚刚已经踏上了它的第一阶。呸呸呸，我不应该说这么不吉利的话！我们之前所走的道路会前往丁祸的亡者之门，但是，没有人知道在门后有些什么东西。”
“No man knows,” said Théoden: “yet ancient legend, now seldom spoken, has somewhat to report. If these old tales speak true that have come down from father to son in the House of Eorl, then the Door under Dwimorberg leads to a secret way that goes beneath the mountain to some forgotten end. But none have ever ventured in to search its secrets, since Baldor, son of Brego, passed the Door and was never seen among men again. A rash vow he spoke, as he drained the horn at that feast which Brego made to hallow new-built Meduseld, and he came never to the high seat of which he was the heir.
“没有人类知道，”希优顿说：“但是，现今极少提起的古代传说则有一些内幕消息。如果我伊欧王室代代相传的历史正确无误，那么丁默山底下的大门通往一条密道，另一端的出口则早已被人遗忘。自从布理哥之子巴多越过了那扇门，从此在人间消失之后，就再也没有人类胆敢尝试那条道路。布理哥当时举杯庆祝黄金宫殿的落成，而巴多一饮而尽，立下重誓前往冒险，却再也没有回来继承属于他的王位。”
“Twice now, lord, I have heard of the Paths of the Dead,” he said. “What are they? And where has Strider, I mean the Lord Aragorn, where has he gone?”
“王上，我听你们两次提到亡者之道，”他说：“那是什么地方？神行客又──我是说亚拉冈大人又去了哪里？”
“Greatly changed he seemed to me since I saw him first in the king’s house,” said Éowyn: “grimmer, older. Fey I thought him, and like one whom the Dead call.”
“自从我第一次在王宫中见到他以来，他似乎变了很多，”伊欧玟说：“他变得更严肃、更苍老，我觉得他可能发疯了，才会被亡灵给召唤过去。”
“Folk say that Dead Men out of the Dark Years guard the way and will suffer no living man to come to their hidden halls; but at whiles they may themselves be seen passing out of the door like shadows and down the stony road. Then the people of Harrowdale shut fast their doors and shroud their windows and are afraid. But the Dead come seldom forth and only at times of great unquiet and coming death.”
“人们说黑暗之年代的亡灵看守着那条道路，不让任何的生人进入它们的厅堂；不过，有些时候，人们会看见它们如同幽影一般在石路上来回走动。那时，哈洛谷的居民会门窗紧闭，害怕地躲在屋内。不过，亡灵极少现身，只有在世局动汤、死亡将临的时候才会出现。”
“Yet it is said in Harrowdale,” said Éowyn in a low voice, “that in the moonless nights but little while ago a great host in strange array passed by. Whence they came none knew, but they went up the stony road and vanished into the hill, as if they went to keep a tryst.”
“不过，在哈洛谷另有一个传说，”伊欧玟低声说：“在不久之前一个没有月光的夜晚，有一大群的阴影出现在那条道路上。没有人知道它们是哪里来的，只知道它们消失在山壁中，彷佛是专程来赴约的。”
“Then why has Aragorn gone that way?” asked Merry. “Don’t you know anything that would explain it?”
“那亚拉冈又为什么要走这条路呢？”梅里问道：“你们难道不知道任何可能的理由吗？”
“Unless he has spoken words to you as his friend that we have not heard,” said Éomer, “none now in the land of the living can tell his purpose.”
“除非他曾经私下跟你说过什么话，”伊欧墨回答：“否则目前还在阳世的人，恐怕都无法回答你的问题。”
“Maybe he was called,” said Théoden; “and my heart tells me that I shall not see him again. Yet he is a kingly man of high destiny. And take comfort in this, daughter, since comfort you seem to need in your grief for this guest. It is said that when the Eorlingas came out of the North and passed at length up the Snowbourn, seeking strong places of refuge in time of need, Brego and his son Baldor climbed the Stair of the Hold and so came before the Door. On the threshold sat an old man, aged beyond guess of years; tall and kingly he had been, but now he was withered as an old stone. Indeed for stone they took him, for he moved not, and he said no word, until they sought to pass him by and enter. And then a voice came out of him, as it were out of the ground, and to their amaze it spoke in the western tongue: The way is shut.”
“或许他的确收到了召唤，”希优顿回答：“我内心认为将来可能不会再看见他，但他确实是个拥有不凡命运的王者。女儿，在我看来，这名客人的离开让你十分的难过，请听我说个故事：据说，当我们伊欧一族从北方前来，越过雪界河之后，我们想要找个在危急时候可以避难的地方。布理哥和他的儿子巴多爬上要塞的天梯，来到了这扇门前。在门前坐着一名老人，他苍老得让人无法猜测他确实的年纪：或许他曾经一度高壮尊贵，但现在却萎缩衰老得像是一颗秃岩。由于他动也不动，一声不出，一开始他们的确以为他是石像；等到他们准备通过他，走进门内的时候，他开口了。那声音彷佛是从地底窜出一般，让他们惊讶的是，他所用的竟然是西方语：‘此门不通！’”
“Then they halted and looked at him and saw that he lived still; but he did not look at them. The way is shut, his voice said again. ‘It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. The way is shut.'”
“然后一行人停下脚步，打量着他，这才发现他还活着，但他并不回应他们的眼光。此门不通！他的声音又说了。‘这是亡者所建，由亡者所看管，直到时机来临才会开放，此门不通！’”
“‘And when will that time be?’ said Baldor. But no answer did he ever get. For the old man died in that hour and fell upon his face; and no other tidings of the ancient dwellers in the mountains have our folk ever learned. Yet maybe at last the time foretold has come, and Aragorn may pass.”
“‘那是什么时候呢？’巴多问道，但他再也无法获得任何答案。老人就在那时倒下，无声无息地死去，我族从此再也无法得知山中居民的过往历史。不过，或许，预言中的时机终于到了，亚拉冈可以通过这条路。”
He paused, for at that moment there was a noise outside, a man’s voice crying the name of Théoden, and the challenge of the guard.
他停了下来，因为在那一刻，门外传来声响，一名男子呼喊着希优顿，守卫立刻通报帐内。
“But how shall a man discover whether that time be come or no, save by daring the Door?” said Éomer. “And that way I would not go though all the hosts of Mordor stood before me, and I were alone and had no other refuge. Alas that a fey mood should fall on a man so greathearted in this hour of need! Are there not evil things enough abroad without seeking them under the earth? War is at hand.”
“可是，人不进入那座门，又怎么会知道时机是否已经到来？”伊欧墨说：“即使我走投无路，必须面对魔多的大军，我也不愿意选择这条路。真可惜，在我们最需要他的时候，这位尊贵的战士竟然失去了理智！难道地面上的邪恶还不够吗，须要他进入地底去找寻？战火已经迫在眉睫了。”
Presently the captain of the Guard thrust aside the curtain. “A man is here, lord,” he said, “an errand-rider of Gondor. He wishes to come before you at once.”
守卫队长推开廉幕，“王上，有人来了！”他说：“是刚铎的传令，他希望立刻能见你。”
A tall man entered, and Merry choked back a cry; for a moment it seemed to him that Boromir was alive again and had returned. Then he saw that it was not so; the man was a stranger, though as like to Boromir as if he were one of his kin, tall and grey-eyed and proud. He was clad as a rider with a cloak of dark green over a coat of fine mail; on the front of his helm was wrought a small silver star. In his hand he bore a single arrow, black-feathered and barbed with steel, but the point was painted red.
一名高大的男子走了进来，梅里倒抽一口冷气；在他眼中，似乎波罗莫又重生了，然后，他定睛一看，这才发现并非是如此。这名男子是个陌生人，只是他的外型十分接近波罗莫，同样的高大自傲、拥有一双灰眸。他似乎刚从马背上下来，身上披着深绿色的斗篷，底下穿着精工打造的锁子甲，他的头盔前方镶着一颗小银星，他的手中拿着一支黑羽钢刺箭，箭尖漆成朱红色。
“Let him come!” said Théoden.
“让他进来！”希优顿说。
“But he knows that we are a people who fight rather upon horseback and in the open, and that we are also a scattered people and time is needed for the gathering of our Riders. Is it not true, Hirgon, that the Lord of Minas Tirith knows more than he sets in his message? For we are already at war, as you may have seen, and you do not find us all unprepared. Gandalf the Grey has been among us, and even now we are mustering for battle in the East.”
“但是，他也知道我们惯于在马背上作战，而不是徒步抗敌。我们的子民平常都散居各处，集合骠骑是需要时间的。贺刚，米那斯提力斯之王是否知道的比他所送来的口信还要多？因为，如你所见，我们已经全军备战，并非措手不及。灰袍甘道夫已经来过我们这里，我们早就已经开始动员准备面对西方的大战。”
“The Red Arrow!” said Théoden, holding it, as one who receives a summons long expected and yet dreadful when it comes. His hand trembled. “The Red Arrow has not been seen in the Mark in all my years! Has it indeed come to that? And what does the Lord Denethor reckon that all my strength and all my speed may be?”
“朱红箭！”希优顿紧握着这信物，彷佛期待这召唤已久，却又极不愿真的面对这种状况。“我在位的期间从来没有收过朱红箭！真的已经到了这个地步吗？迪耐瑟王认为我的全军、全速会是多强、会有多快呢？”
He sank on one knee and presented the arrow to Théoden. “Hail, Lord of the Rohirrim, friend of Gondor!” he said. “Hirgon I am, errand-rider of Denethor, who bring you this token of war. Gondor is in great need. Often the Rohirrim have aided us, but now the Lord Denethor asks for all your strength and all your speed, lest Gondor fall at last.”
他立刻单膝跪下，将箭支献给希优顿，“洛汗之王，刚铎之友，我向您致敬！”他说：“我名叫贺刚，是迪耐瑟麾下的传令，王上派我将这开战的信物交给您。刚铎正处在危机之中，洛汗国一直是我国忠实的盟友，但这次，迪耐瑟王请求您全军、全速出动，否则刚铎将会陷落！”
“That is best known to yourself, lord,” said Hirgon. “But ere long it may well come to pass that Minas Tirith is surrounded, and unless you have the strength to break a siege of many powers, the Lord Denethor bids me say that he judges that the strong arms of the Rohirrim would be better within his walls than without.”
“王上，这点只有您才知道，”贺刚说：“但是，不久之后，米那斯提力斯就会被团团围住；除非您的军力足以突破敌方滴水不漏的包围，否则迪耐瑟王还是认为骠骑们应该全速进入城中，而不是暴露在毫无防御的平原上。”
“What the Lord Denethor may know or guess of all these things I cannot say,” answered Hirgon. “But indeed our case is desperate. My lord does not issue any command to you, he begs you only to remember old friendship and oaths long spoken, and for your own good to do all that you may. It is reported to us that many kings have ridden in from the East to the service of Mordor. From the North to the field of Dagorlad there is skirmish and rumour of war. In the South the Haradrim are moving, and fear has fallen on all our coastlands, so that little help will come to us thence. Make haste! For it is before the walls of Minas Tirith that the doom of our time will be decided, and if the tide be not stemmed there, then it will flow over all the fair fields of Rohan, and even in this Hold among the hills there shall be no refuge.”
“我不知道迪耐瑟王知道或是猜到了些什么，”贺刚回答：“但我们的确迫切需要援军。我王并非指派我前来送达军令，他只请求您记得旧日的情谊和誓言，也为了洛汗国的未来，请您慎重考虑。根据我们的情报，有许多势力已经前往东方加入了魔多的黑旗下，从北到达哥拉平原，全都冲突不断，战争的流言四起。哈拉德林人也正在调动部队，我国沿岸全都面临极大的威胁，因此，没有多少援军能够前来支援我们。请您尽快！全世界的命运都将系于米那斯提力斯城外的一战，如果洪水无法在该处被阻止，那腐败的洪流将会淹没洛汗国美丽的国土，连这山中的要塞都将无法抵抗。”
“Dark tidings,” said Théoden, “yet not all unguessed. But say to Denethor that even if Rohan itself felt no peril, still we would come to his aid. But we have suffered much loss in our battles with Saruman the traitor, and we must still think of our frontier to the north and east, as his own tidings make clear. So great a power as the Dark Lord seems now to wield might well contain us in battle before the City and yet strike with great force across the River away beyond the Gate of Kings.
“这的确是很糟糕的消息，”希优顿说：“但并非完全不在掌握之中。请这样回覆迪耐瑟王──就算洛汗本身没有受到威胁，我们也会前往支援。但是，我们在对付叛徒萨鲁曼的过程中受到重创，在一切状况明朗之前还是必须要考量我国北方和东方的边境。黑暗魔君这次集结的兵力庞大到十分惊人的地步，他甚至可能同时开辟多个战场，以多股兵力分进集结。”
“But we will speak no longer counsels of prudence. We will come. The weapontake was set for the morrow. When all is ordered we will set out. Ten thousand spears I might have sent riding over the plain to the dismay of your foes. It will be less now, I fear; for I will not leave my strongholds all unguarded. Yet six thousands at the least shall ride behind me. For say to Denethor that in this hour the King of the Mark himself will come down to the land of Gondor, though maybe he will not ride back. But it is a long road, and man and beast must reach the end with strength to fight. A week it may be from tomorrow’s morn ere you hear the cry of the Sons of Eorl coming from the North.”
“不过，谨慎小心讨论的时间已经过去了，我们会去的，开拔的时间是明天，在一切都整编完毕之后，我们就会立刻出发。我本来可以派出一万名兵力让你们的敌人受到重创，但是，恐怕现在会少多了，因为我不敢让我自己的子民毫无防卫地暴露在敌人面前。但是，我还是会亲自率领至少六千名兵力驰援。告诉迪耐瑟，虽然可能战死沙场，但骠骑王还是决定御驾亲征刚铎。不过，两国之间的距离并不近，我麾下的战士和马匹抵达的时候，都必须还有精力作战才行。明天早晨之后的一周，你们才能够听到伊欧子嗣的吼声。”
“A week!” said Hirgon. “If it must be so, it must. But you are like to find only ruined walls in seven days from now, unless other help unlooked-for comes. Still, you may at the least disturb the Orcs and Swarthy Men from their feasting in the White Tower.”
“一周！”贺刚说：“如果必须要这么长的时间，那也别无他法。但是，七天之后抵达，你们恐怕只能看到化成废墟的米那斯提力斯；除非，另有我们意料之外的援军抵达。不过，到时至少你们可以扫荡那些亵渎我们尸骨的半兽人和野人们。”
“At the least we will do that,” said Théoden. “But I myself am new-come from battle and long journey, and I will now go to rest. Tarry here this night. Then you shall look on the muster of Rohan and ride away the gladder for the sight, and the swifter for the rest. In the morning counsels are best, and night changes many thoughts.”
“我们至少可以做到这一点，”希优顿说，“抱歉，我才经历过一场恶战，刚赶回此地，我必须先去休息了。你今天可以先留在这里，明天早上可以目睹洛汗全军集结，然后你可以怀抱着希望回国，希望你能比我们先到达。早上最适合研讨战略，或许一夜的思绪会让许多事情都改观。”
“I will be ready,” said Merry, “even if you bid me ride with you on the Paths of the Dead.”
“我会的，”梅里说：“即使您让我和你一起前往亡者之道，我也不会退缩。”
With that the king stood up, and they all rose. “Go now each to your rest,” he said, “and sleep well. And you, Master Meriadoc, I need no more tonight. But be ready to my call as soon as the Sun is risen.”
话一说完，国王就站了起来，其他的人也跟着起立。“每个人都去休息，”他说：“好好睡！至于你，梅里雅达克先生，我今晚不须要你帮忙了，请你明天天一亮就作好准备。”
“I won’t be left behind, to be called for on return!” said Merry. “I won’t be left, I won’t.” And repeating this over and over again to himself he fell asleep at last in his tent.
“我不愿意被留下来，等到大家都回来之后才想起我！”梅里说：“我不要、我不要！”在一遍又一遍的重复之后，他好不容易才在自己的帐篷里睡着了。
He was wakened by a man shaking him. “Wake up, wake up, Master Holbytla!” he cried; and at length Merry came out of deep dreams and sat up with a start. It still seemed very dark, he thought.
一名男子把他摇醒了。“醒醒，醒醒，哈比特拉先生①！”对方大喊道；最后，梅里才从深沉的睡梦中大惊失色醒来，外面看起来还是漆黑一片啊。【注：①哈比特拉：根据语言学家的研究，哈比人这个名称是来自于洛汗语的哈比特兰（Hobytlan），亦即是“住洞者”。在此，该名男子用的是洛汗语称呼梅里。】
“Speak not words of omen!” said the king. “For there may be more roads than one that could bear that name. But I did not say that I would bid you ride with me on any road. Good night!”
“不要说这种话！”骠骑王回答：“能够获得这种名号的并不只一条路，我也没说要让你和我一起踏上任何的道路。晚安了！”
“What is the matter?” he asked.
“怎么一回事？”他问道。
“The king calls for you.”
“骠骑王找你。”
“But the Sun has not risen, yet,” said Merry.
“但太阳还没升起来啊！”梅里说。
“No, and will not rise today, Master Holbytla. Nor ever again, one would think under this cloud. But time does not stand still, though the Sun be lost. Make haste!”
“是没有，哈比特拉先生，而且看起来今天也不会升起来了。在这种浓密的乌云之下，人们会以为它可能永远都不会出现了。虽然太阳不见了，但时间并不等人，动作快一点！”
Flinging on some clothes, Merry looked outside. The world was darkling. The very air seemed brown, and all things about were black and grey and shadowless; there was a great stillness. No shape of cloud could be seen, unless it were far away westward, where the furthest groping fingers of the great gloom still crawled onwards and a little light leaked through them. Overhead there hung a heavy roof, sombre and featureless, and light seemed rather to be failing than growing.
梅里随便披上几件衣服，往外看去。整个世界似乎都被黑暗包围了。连空气都看起来都是黑褐色的，一切都笼罩在灰黑色之中，彷佛万物都停滞下来。天空看不出有任何云朵的形状，只有在极东边可以看见许多的云朵如同魔爪一般继续蔓延，只有十分微弱的光芒从云层间渗透出来。头顶的天空上则是被厚重的乌云所包围，光线没有丝毫增亮的迹象，甚至还变得越来越微弱。
Merry saw many folk standing, looking up and muttering; all their faces were grey and sad, and some were afraid. With a sinking heart he made his way to the king. Hirgon the rider of Gondor was there before him, and beside him stood now another man, like him and dressed alike, but shorter and broader. As Merry entered he was speaking to the king.
梅里注意到有许多的人们指着天空窃窃私语，每个人的脸色都显得疲倦、哀伤，有些人甚至露出畏惧的神色。他怀着一颗沉重的心，走向国王。刚铎的传令贺刚比他早到，他身边站着另外一个人，穿着和外貌都很接近，只是比较矮胖。当梅里走进帐篷的时候，他正好在和国王说话。
“It comes from Mordor, lord,” he said. “It began last night at sunset. From the hills in the Eastfold of your realm I saw it rise and creep across the sky, and all night as I rode it came behind eating up the stars. Now the great cloud hangs over all the land between here and the Mountains of Shadow; and it is deepening. War has already begun.”
“王上，这是从魔多的方向来的，”他说：“是昨晚日落的时候开始的。从您国境中东谷的山丘中，我看见它慢慢升起，在天空逐渐蔓延，我奔驰了一整夜，同时也眼睁睁地看着它将星辰一颗颗吞食。现在，这恐怖的乌云将黯影山脉和此地之间的大地全都笼罩在黑暗中，而且，它还在不停的增长…战争已经开始了！”
“We have very great store long prepared,” answered Hirgon. “Ride now as light and as swift as you may!”
“我们早已为了这一刻作了准备，战备存粮非常充足。”贺刚回答道。“你们可以尽量减轻负担，以最快的速度赶去！”
For a while the king sat silent. At last he spoke. “So we come to it in the end,” he said: “the great battle of our time, in which many things shall pass away. But at least there is no longer need for hiding. We will ride the straight way and the open road and with all our speed. The muster shall begin at once, and wait for none that tarry. Have you good store in Minas Tirith? For if we must ride now in all haste, then we must ride light, with but meal and water enough to last us into battle.”
骠骑王沉默地坐着，最后，他终于开口了：“我们终于还是遇上了！”他说：“这是我们这个时代最壮烈的一场战争，许多事物都将就此消逝。我们不须要再躲藏了，我们会以最短的路全速赶去。立刻开始集合！不能等待任何拖延的部队了。你们在米那斯提力斯的补给品够吗？如果我们要全力赶去，就必须要轻装赶路，只能携带足够我们到达战场的粮食和饮水。”
“Then call the heralds, Éomer,” said Théoden. “Let the Riders be marshalled!”
“传令下去，伊欧墨，”希优顿说：“骠骑全军出动！”
Éomer went out, and presently the trumpets rang in the Hold and were answered by many others from below; but their voices no longer sounded clear and brave as they had seemed to Merry the night before. Dull they seemed and harsh in the heavy air, braying ominously.
伊欧墨走了出去，要塞中的号角响起，底下山谷中传来震耳的回应。只是，在梅里的耳中，这些号角声似乎没有昨晚听起来那么的清澈、雄壮。在这沉重的空气中，它们似乎变得十分沉闷，带着一丝不祥的预兆。
The king turned to Merry. “I am going to war, Master Meriadoc,” he said. “In a little while I shall take the road. I release you from my service, but not from my friendship. You shall abide here, and if you will, you shall serve the Lady Éowyn, who will govern the folk in my stead.”
骠骑王转向梅里。“梅里雅达克先生，我要参战了，”他说：“不久之后我就要上路了，我解除你的职务，但这并不包括我俩之间的友谊。如果你愿意的话，应该留在这里，你可以服侍代替我治理臣民的伊欧玟。”
Théoden smiled. “Rather than that I would bear you with me on Snowmane,” he said. “But at the least you shall ride with me to Edoras and look on Meduseld; for that way I shall go. So far Stybba can bear you: the great race will not begin till we reach the plains.”
希优顿笑了。“如果这样的话，那我可以让你和我一起骑雪鬃，”他说：“但是，至少你可以和我一起前往伊多拉斯，看看黄金宫殿。我会先往那个方向去。至少史戴巴还可以载你：在抵达平原之前，我们的急行军还不会开始。”
“But, but, lord,” Merry stammered, “I offered you my sword. I do not want to be parted from you like this, Théoden King. And as all my friends have gone to the battle, I should be ashamed to stay behind.”
“可是，可是，王上，”梅里结巴地说：“我对您献上了我的忠诚和宝剑，希优顿王，我不想要在这样的状况下和您分离。我所有的朋友都已经参战了，如果只有我一个人留在这里，我会抬不起头来的。”
“But we ride on horses tall and swift,” said Théoden; “and great though your heart be, you cannot ride on such beasts.”
“但是，我们必须要骑高大的快马，”希优顿说：“虽然你的勇气不逊于任何人，但你还是没办法骑乘这样的马匹。”
Then Éowyn rose up. “Come now, Meriadoc!” she said. “I will show you the gear that I have prepared for you.” They went out together. “This request only did Aragorn make to me,” said Éowyn, as they passed among the tents, “that you should be armed for battle. I have granted it, as I could. For my heart tells me that you will need such gear ere the end.”
伊欧玟站了起来。“来吧，梅里雅达克！”她说：“我带你看看我替你准备的装备。”两人一起走了出去。“这是亚拉冈对我的请求，”伊欧玟在经过帐篷时说道：“你应该有参战的资格。我同意了，并且尽可能照办了。因为，我认为最后你一定会需要这些装备的。”
“Then tie me on to the back of one, or let me hang on a stirrup, or something,” said Merry. “It is a long way to run; but run I shall, if I cannot ride, even if I wear my feet off and arrive weeks too late.”
“那就把我绑在马背上吧，或是让我挂在马蹬或是任何东西上都好，”梅里说：“虽然距离很远，但就算我不能骑，我用跑的也要跑到，就算我把脚跑断也不在乎！”
“No mail have we to fit you,” said Éowyn, “nor any time for the forging of such a hauberk; but here is also a stout jerkin of leather, a belt, and a knife. A sword you have.”
“我们没有你可以穿的盔甲，”伊欧玟说：“也没时间特别替你打造一件，不过，我还是想办法弄到了一条强韧的皮裤、皮带和一柄小刀，你已经有了一把宝剑了。”
Now she led Merry to a booth among the lodges of the king’s guard; and there an armourer brought out to her a small helm, and a round shield, and other gear.
她领着梅里来到了禁卫军驻扎的地方，一名铁匠递给她一顶小头盔、一具圆盾，以及其他的装备。
So it was that amid a gathering gloom the King of the Mark made ready to lead all his Riders on the eastward road. Hearts were heavy and many quailed in the shadow. But they were a stern people, loyal to their lord, and little weeping or murmuring was heard, even in the camp in the Hold where the exiles from Edoras were housed, women and children and old men. Doom hung over them, but they faced it silently.
骠骑王最后是在一个大厅中，做好了率领所有骠骑往东进发的准备，人们的心情十分沉重，许多人在黑暗中变得退缩，但他们是个坚强的民族，对于王上有无比的忠诚。即使在老弱妇孺居住的地方，也极少听见啜泣或是低语的声音，他们明知自己即将面临末日，却依然沉默地面对它。
Merry bowed, and the lady showed him the shield, which was like the shield that had been given to Gimli, and it bore on it the device of the white horse. “Take all these things,” she said, “and bear them to good fortune! Farewell now, Master Meriadoc! Yet maybe we shall meet again, you and I.”
梅里深深一鞠躬，王女让他仔细打量那个盾牌；这和金雳当初收到的盾牌一样，上面也同样有着白马的徽记。“把这些全收下，”她说：“不要辜负它们！再会了，梅里雅达克先生！不过，或许，将来我们两个还是会有见面的机会。”
Two swift hours passed, and now the king sat upon his white horse, glimmering in the half-light. Proud and tall he seemed, though the hair that flowed beneath his high helm was like snow; and many marvelled at him and took heart to see him unbent and unafraid.
两个小时很快就过去了，骠骑王坐在白马上，在微弱的光线中眺望着远方。虽然头盔下飘扬的头发雪白，但他看来自信而高大，许多人看见他毫不畏惧，都兴起了有为者亦若是之感。
There on the wide flats beside the noisy river were marshalled in many companies well nigh five and fifty hundreds of Riders fully armed, and many hundreds of other men with spare horses lightly burdened. A single trumpet sounded. The king raised his hand, and then silently the host of the Mark began to move. Foremost went twelve of the king’s household-men, Riders of renown. Then the king followed with Éomer on his right. He had said farewell to Éowyn above in the Hold, and the memory was grievous; but now he turned his mind to the road that lay ahead. Behind him Merry rode on Stybba with the errand riders of Gondor, and behind them again twelve more of the king’s household. They passed down the long ranks of waiting men with stern and unmoved faces. But when they had come almost to the end of the line one looked up glancing keenly at the hobbit. A young man, Merry thought as he returned the glance, less in height and girth than most. He caught the glint of clear grey eyes; and then he shivered, for it came suddenly to him that it was the face of one without hope who goes in search of death.
在淙淙的河流旁聚集了五千五百名全副武装的骠骑，其他还有数百名骑着轻装马匹的男子，一声号角响起，骠骑王举起手，骠骑全军就沉默出发了。最前面是骠骑王家族中十二名武勇过人的先锋，然后是骠骑王，右边则是伊欧墨。他已经在要塞中和伊欧玟道别了，这让他十分难过；不过，此时，他将精神全都专注在眼前的漫漫征途上。梅里骑着史戴巴与刚铎的传令跟在后面，在那之后则是另外十二名骠骑王室的成员。他们经过了一长列神情坚毅的人们，但是，当他们几乎走到队伍的终点时，有一道锐利的眼神射向哈比人；那是一位比一般男子都要矮小的年轻人，梅里打量着他，心中边思索着。他注意到对方拥有一对清澈的灰眸，此时，他不禁打了个寒颤；因为那是一付生亦何欢、慷慨赴死的神情。
to Edoras he came, the ancient halls
他来到伊多拉斯，古老的厅堂
through Folde and Fenmarch and the Firienwood,
穿越佛德、沼境、费理安森林，
Forth rode the king, fear behind him,
骠骑王奋勇向前，恐惧紧追不舍，
east and onward rode the Eorlingas
伊欧子嗣勇征东
Forth rode Théoden. Five nights and days
希优顿王驰向前。五日五夜不停歇
hearth and high-seat, and the hallowed places,
离开家园和王座，美丽的故乡，
golden timbers were in gloom mantled.
黄金宫殿在黑暗中失色。
oaths he had taken, all fulfilled them.
诺言让他不敢松懈，誓要抵抗邪恶。
Sea-kings’ city in the South-kingdom
南国的海王之城
From dark Dunharrow in the dim morning
清晨，自黑暗的登哈洛
where long he had feasted ere the light faded.
在光明消退前，这曾是他生活之处。
of the Mark-wardens mist-enshrouded;
笼罩迷雾中的骠骑皇宫；
Farewell he bade to his free people,
他向子民道别，
fate before him. Fealty kept he;
命运就在前方。忠诚驱策着他，
with thane and captain rode Thengel’s son:
塞哲尔之子和领主及将官同时出发：
On down the grey road they went beside the Snowbourn rushing on its stones; through the hamlets of Underharrow and Upbourn, where many sad faces of women looked out from dark doors; and so without horn or harp or music of men’s voices the great ride into the East began with which the songs of Rohan were busy for many long lives of men thereafter.
他们一路来到了雪界河在岩石间奔流的地方，一路上穿越了下哈洛和上溪两座小村，许多女子哀伤的透过黑暗地门缝往外观看。没有竖琴的伴奏，没有雄壮的歌声，日后传颂无数个世代的洛汗东征就这么开始了。
six thousand spears to Sunlending,
六千兵马横越森蓝德，
Mundburg the mighty under Mindolluin,
通过明都陆安山下的蒙登堡，
sank into silence: so the songs tell us.
落入沉寂中，歌谣永传颂。
“As for that, who can tell?” answered Merry. “But why, lord, did you receive me as swordthain, if not to stay by your side? And I would not have it said of me in song only that I was always left behind!”
“谁能够未卜先知呢？”梅里回答：“王上，但是，既然你接受我成为您的随扈，为什么又不让我和你并肩作战？我可不愿意在歌谣和传说中，把我描述成总是被人丢在后面的可怜虫！”
horse and horseman; hoofbeats afar
骏马与骑士，蹄声传千里
Doom drove them on. Darkness took them,
末日驱赶骠骑，黑暗吞没大地，
It was indeed in deepening gloom that the king came to Edoras, although it was then but noon by the hour. There he halted only a short while and strengthened his host by some three score of Riders that came late to the weapontake. Now having eaten he made ready to set out again, and he wished his esquire a kindly farewell. But Merry begged for the last time not to be parted from him.
骠骑王的确是在如同黄昏一般的天色中来到伊多拉斯，只是，当时的时间其实已经接近中午了。他只在那里暂停了片刻，让将近百名迟来的骠骑和他们会合。在用过午餐之后，他准备再度出发，同时向他的随扈和蔼地道别。梅里再一次的恳求，希望不要和他分开。
foe-beleaguered, fire-encircled.
遭敌围困，烈火侵攻。
“This is no journey for such steeds as Stybba, as I have told you,” said Théoden. “And in such a battle as we think to make on the fields of Gondor what would you do, Master Meriadoc, swordthain though you be, and greater of heart than of stature?”
“我之前已经说过了，未来的征途并不适合史戴巴，”希优顿说。“梅里雅达克先生，虽然你人小志气高，但是，在我们于刚铎将面临的血战中，你又能派上什么用场呢？”
“I received you for your safe-keeping,” answered Théoden; “and also to do as I might bid. None of my Riders can bear you as burden. If the battle were before my gates, maybe your deeds would be remembered by the minstrels; but it is a hundred leagues and two to Mundburg where Denethor is lord. I will say no more.”
“我接受你的效忠是为了你的安全，”希优顿说：“同时也希望你能够服从我的命令。我麾下的骠骑都没办法承载你而又跟上队伍。如果这场战斗是在我的家门口发生，或许你可以名留青史，但这里距离迪耐瑟的王城三百零六哩之遥，不要再跟我争辩了。”
“I do,” said Merry.
“是的，”梅里说。
“Thank you indeed!” said Merry. “Thank you, sir, though I do not know your name.”
“实在太感谢你了！”梅里说：“大人，多谢你的援手，但我还不知道你的大名。”
“Then you shall go with me,” said the Rider. “I will bear you before me, under my cloak until we are far afield, and this darkness is yet darker. Such good will should not be denied. Say no more to any man, but come!”
骑士说：“那么你可以跟我走，我可以载你过去，在离开这附近之前，我可以用斗篷遮住你，而这黑暗会是我们最好的掩护。你最好不要拒绝我的好意，不要多说，只管来就对了！”
Merry bowed and went away unhappily, and stared at the lines of horsemen. Already the companies were preparing to start: men were tightening girths, looking to saddles, caressing their horses; some gazed uneasily at the lowering sky. Unnoticed a Rider came up and spoke softly in the hobbit’s ear. “Where will wants not, a way opens, so we say,” he whispered; “and so I have found myself.” Merry looked up and saw that it was the young Rider whom he had noticed in the morning. “You wish to go whither the Lord of the Mark goes: I see it in your face.”
梅里深深一鞠躬，闷闷不乐地转身走开，看着眼前的马队。队伍已经准备好要出发了，人们开始系紧腰带、检查马鞍、安抚马匹。有些人不安地看着逐渐降低的天空，一名骑士悄悄来到哈比人的身边，低语道：“我们的俗谚说，援手往往来自意料之外的地方，”他低语道：“我正准备伸出这样的援手。”梅里抬头一看，发现对方正是他早上所注意到的那名年轻人。“我看得出来，你希望和骠骑同进退。”
“Do you not?” said the Rider softly. “Then call me Dernhelm.”
“喔，是吗？”骑士柔声说：“那就叫我德海姆好了。”
Thus it came to pass that when the king set out, before Dernhelm sat Meriadoc the hobbit, and the great grey steed Windfola made little of the burden; for Dernhelm was less in weight than many men, though lithe and well-knit in frame.
因此，当骠骑王出发的时候，哈比人梅里雅达克就坐在德海姆身前。两人胯下高大俊美的温佛拉对这多出的重量并不在乎，因为德海姆比大多数的男子要轻，但他也显得更为结实和敏捷。
And so King Théoden departed from his own realm, and mile by mile the long road wound away, and the beacon hills marched past: Calenhad, Min-Rimmon, Erelas, Nardol. But their fires were quenched. All the lands were grey and still; and ever the shadow deepened before them, and hope waned in every heart.
希优顿国王就这么离开了自己的国家，一哩又一哩的朝向目标迈进。骠骑们越过了一座又一座的烽火台：加仑汉、明瑞蒙、伊瑞拉斯、那多，但烽火全都熄灭了，大地全都笼罩在灰色的微光中，眼前的魔影越来越深沉，每个人心中怀抱的希望之火也跟着渐渐熄灭。
On into the shadow they rode. In the willow-thickets where Snowbourn flowed into Entwash, twelve leagues east of Edoras, they camped that night. And then on again through the Folde; and through the Fenmarch, where to their right great oakwoods climbed on the skirts of the hills under the shades of dark Halifirien by the borders of Gondor; but away to their left the mists lay on the marshes fed by the mouths of Entwash. And as they rode rumour came of war in the North. Lone men, riding wild, brought word of foes assailing their east-borders, of orc-hosts marching in the Wold of Rohan.
众人就这么骑向黑暗，在雪界河汇流入树沐河的树林附近，也就是距离伊多拉斯三十六哩的地方，他们在该地扎营。然后他们紧接着穿越佛德，接下来是沼境，右边则是刚铎边境的巨大橡树林，在他们右边的则是树沐河口的沼泽。在他们不断前进的时候，有关北方战争的流言也跟着传了过来，策马狂奔的人们前来通知东方边境遭到突袭的消息，半兽人趁机攻进了洛汗国境。
“Ride on! Ride on!” cried Éomer. “Too late now to turn aside. The fens of Entwash must guard our flank. Haste now we need. Ride on!”
“继续！继续前进！”伊欧墨大喊道。“我们现在回头已经太晚了，希望树沐河能够保卫我们的侧翼，我们必须更加快脚步。前进！”
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