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最后一战
The Last Battle

英文中文双语对照双语交替

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CHAPTER EIGHT WHAT NEWS THE EAGLE BROUGHT	8、老鹰带来的消息

IN the shadow of the trees on the far side of the clearing something was moving. It was gliding very slowly Northward. At a first glance you might have mistaken it for smoke, for it was grey and you could see things through it. But the deathly smell was not the smell of smoke. Also, this thing kept its shape instead of billowing and curling as smoke would have done. It was roughly the shape of a man but it had the head of a bird; some bird of prey with a cruel, curved beak. It had four arms which it held high above its head, stretching them out Northward as if it wanted to snatch all Narnia in its grip; and its fingers - all twenty of them - were curved like its beak and had long, pointed, bird-like claws instead of nails. It floated on the grass instead of walking, and the grass seemed to wither beneath it.	在开阔地远远的一边，树木的阴影里，有个东西在移动着。它正在慢慢地向北滑行。第一眼看到时，你会把它看做是烟霭，因为它是灰白色的，而且可以透过它看出去。但那种尸体的臭味并不是烟的臭味。那东西也保持着它的形体，不像烟那样起伏翻腾、蜷曲缭绕。它粗看是个人的形体，但长着一个鸟的头，乃是头上生着凶狠的钩形嘴的某种猛禽。它有四条手臂，高举在脑袋之上，朝北伸张开去，仿佛要把整个纳尼亚都抓在它的手掌里似的；而它的手指——一总共有二十个手指——是像嘴巴一样弯弯的，尖端长的不是指甲，而是长长的尖尖的跟鸟一样的爪子。它不是在走路，而是在草土浮动，青草似乎在它身底下枯萎了。迷惑看了它一下就发出一声驴子的哀鸣，窜到堡垒里边去了。而吉尔(你知道，她可不是懦夫)却用双手掩住她的脸，挡住自己的视线。其余人也许看望了一分钟光景，直至它进入右边儿树林深处，消失无影。于是太阳重新出来了，鸟儿再一次开始呜啭了。
After one look at it Puzzle gave a screaming bray and darted into the Tower. And Jill (who was no coward, as you know) hid her face in her hands to shut out the sight of it. The others watched it for perhaps a minute, until it streamed away into the thicker trees on their right and disappeared. Then the sun came out again, and the birds once more began to sing.	大家都开始正常呼吸和正常活动。看得见那东西时，大家都一直一动也不动，简直像泥塑木雕一样。"它是什么东西啊?"尤斯塔斯低声问道。"我从前看见过一次的，"蒂莲说道，"但那次，它是用石头雕刻出来的，镶嵌着金子，用坚硬的金刚钻做眼睛。那时我的年龄不比你现在大，曾到塔什班城'蒂斯罗克'宫廷里去做过客。'蒂斯罗克'带我进了塔什神的大庙。我在庙里看到它的，刻在祭台的上方。"
Everyone started breathing properly again and moved. They had all been still as statues while it was in sight.	"这么说，那个——那个东西——就是塔什神吗?"尤斯塔斯问道。
"What was it?" said Eustace in a whisper.	但蒂莲没有回答他的问题，他把手臂伸到吉尔的肩膀后面，问道"小姐，你怎么啦?"
"I have seen it once before," said Tirian. "But that time it was carved in stone and overlaid with gold and had solid diamonds for eyes. It was when I was no older than thou, and had gone as a guest to The Tisroc's court in Tashbaan.	"挺，挺好，"吉尔说，从苍白的脸上放下手来，竭力微笑，"我挺好。只不过有一忽儿使我觉得要呕吐似的。"
He took me into the great temple of Tash. There I saw it, carved above the altar."	"那么，看起来，"独角兽道，"似乎毕竟有个真正的塔什神。"
"Then that - that thing - was Tash?" said Eustace.	"是的，"小矮人说，"这个傻瓜无尾猿，他不相信塔什神，他得到的，必将多于他当初讨价还价想弄到手的。他呼唤塔什神：塔什神已经来了。"
But instead of answering him Tirian slipped his arm behind Jill's shoulders and said, "How is it with you, Lady?"	"它——这个东西——哪儿去了?"吉尔问。"北上进入纳尼亚的中心地区，"蒂莲说，"它来住在我们这儿了。他们呼唤它，它就来了。"
"A-all right," said Jill, taking her hands away from her pale face and trying to smile. "I'm all right. It only made me feel a little sick for a moment."	"哈哈，哈哈，哈哈，"小矮人一边报着嘴好笑，一边用多毛的双手互相摩擦，"会叫无尾猿大吃一惊的。人们不该呼唤魔鬼，除非他们口中说的确实就是他们心里想的。"
"It seems, then," said the Unicorn, "that there is a real Tash, after all."	"谁知道无尾猿是否会看得见塔什神呢?"珍宝说。
"Yes," said the Dwarf. "And this fool of an Ape, who didn't believe in Tash, will get more than he bargained for! He called for Tash: Tash has come."	"迷惑上哪儿去了?"尤斯塔斯说。
"Where has it - he - the Thing - gone to?" said Jill.	他们大家都高喊迷惑的名字，吉尔还绕到堡垒另一边，去看看它是否跑到那边去了。他们四处找它，找得简直懒得再找时，它那灰色大脑袋终于小心翼翼地从门口探出来张望，口中问道。"它走了吗?"最后他们把迷惑从堡垒里拖出来时，它浑身哆嗦，就像一条狗遇到雷暴雨时一样。
"North into the heart of Narnia," said Tirian. "It has come to dwell among us. They have called it and it has come."	"我现在明白了，"迷惑说道，"我确实曾经是头十分不好的驴子。我应该绝对不听诡谲的话。我从来没有想到竟会发生如此这般的事情。"
"Ho, ho, ho!" chuckled the Dwarf, rubbing his hairy hands together. "It will be a surprise for the Ape. People shouldn't call for demons unless they really mean what they say."	"如果你少花点时间说自己不聪明，多花点时间努力变得尽可能聪明——"尤斯塔斯刚开口便被吉尔打断了。
"Who knows if Tash will be visible to the Ape?" said Jewel.	"迷惑可怜巴巴的，年纪又大了，由它去吧，"她说，"这全是一个失误，是不是，亲爱的迷惑?"她亲亲驴子的鼻子。他们所看到的东西，虽然使他们颇为震动，大伙儿现在还是坐下来继续谈话。
"Where has Puzzle got to?" said Eustace.	珍宝没有什么可告诉他们的。它是个俘虏时，几乎所有的时间都给绑在马厩背后，当然点也没听到敌人的计划。它曾经被拳打脚踢(它也回踢了几脚)，曾经受到处死的威胁，除非它愿意说它相信每天夜里带出去在火光中给它们看的，确实就是阿斯兰，否则就要宰了它。事实上，那天早晨就要执行死刑的，若不是蒂莲救了它的话。它不知道羊羔遭到的灾难。
They all shouted out Puzzle's name and Jill went round to the other side of the Tower to see if he had gone there.	他们非作出决定不可的问题是当夜他们要不要重上马服山，把迷惑向纳尼亚国民示众，设法使他们明白他们被人欺骗了，或者，他们是否应该偷偷地向东而行，去与人头马龙威特从凯尔帕拉维尔带来的援军相会，然后一起回过头来大举进攻无尾猿和它的卡乐门士兵。蒂莲很想采取第一个方案他一想到毫无必要地再听任无尾猿继续对纳尼亚国横行霸道下去，哪怕是短暂的片刻，他心里也恨得不得了。但在另一方面，昨天夜里小矮人们所表现出来的那种态度，倒是个警告。十分明显，如果拿迷惑来示众，大伙儿会采取什么态度，那是谁也吃不准的。还得对付卡乐门士兵哩。波金估计大约有三十个光景的卡乐门士兵。蒂莲觉得挺有把握，如果纳尼亚的群众都站在他的一边，他和独角兽，加上孩子们和小矮人波金(驴子迷惑可算不了什么)就会有大好机会打败敌人。但，如果一半纳尼亚群众——包括所有的小矮人们——只是坐在那儿冷眼旁观呢?或者甚至同他作战呢?这个风险可太大了。还有形体像云疆的塔什呢，它可能搞什么鬼把戏?)
They were quite tired of looking for him when at last his large grey head peered cautiously out of the doorway and he said, "Has it gone away?" And when at last they got him to come out, he was shivering the way a dog shivers before a thunderstorm.	而且，正如波金所指出的，也不妨让无尾猿有那么一两天去对付它的困难。现在它没有驴子可拉出来示众了。看来无尾猿——或金格——要设法编造出故事来解释这个问题，可不容易哩。如果野兽们一夜复一夜地要求见到阿斯兰，而无尾猿却请不出阿斯兰来，那么，哪怕是头脑最简单的野兽，也会变得怀疑起来的。
"I see now," said Puzzle, "that I really have been a very bad donkey. I ought never to have listened to Shift. I never thought things like this would begin to happen."	商量到末末了儿，大家一致同意，最好的策略就是离开这儿，设法同龙威特会师。
"If you'd spent less time saying you weren't clever and more time trying to be as clever as you could -" began Eustace but Jill interrupted him.	他们刚做出这个决定，说也奇怪，每个人都感到高兴得多了。说老实话，我并不认为那是因为他们之中有什么人害怕战斗(也许吉尔和尤斯塔斯是例外)，但我敢大胆说一旬，他们之中的每位，内心里对于不再走近——或者说还没有走近——那长着鸟头的可怕的东西，是十分欣慰的。这东西，不论看得见或看不见，现在很可能正出没于马厩山上哩。无论如何，一个人下定了决心，总是感觉舒畅多了。
"Oh leave poor old Puzzle alone," she said. "It was all a mistake; wasn't it, Puzzle dear?" And she kissed him on the nose.	蒂莲说，他们还是去掉伪装的好，因为他们不想被误认为是卡乐门人，也不想或许被可能遇到的忠诚的纳尼亚兽民所攻击。小矮人用壁炉里的灰和储备在润滑油瓶里的用以擦剑擦矛的油，制成了一种形状难看的糊糊。于是他们脱掉了卡乐门盔甲，到溪水里去洗刷。这肮脏的混合物变成一种泡沫糊糊，就像半液体皂一般。蒂莲和两个孩子跪在水边，擦着他们的脖子的后半部，用水泼掉泡沫糊糊时又喷又吹的，看上去真是一幅愉快的、家庭风味的图画。接着，他们就红光满面地回到堡垒里，就像人们去参加宴会之前，特别卖力地好好洗了一番一般。他们按照真正的纳尼亚方式，用笔直的剑和三个角的盾重新武装自己。"还我身体的本色，"蒂莲说道，"那就比较好了。我觉得我重新是个真正的人了。"迷惑十分迫切地恳求把狮子毛皮从它身上取下来。它说裹着毛皮太热，毛皮折叠在它背脊上的方式也很不舒服，而且使它看上去愚蠢可笑。但他们告诉它，它还得再裹一阵子狮子毛皮，因为他们仍旧要让别的野兽看到它这身打扮，即使他们首先要去和龙威特会师。
Though rather shaken by what they had seen, the whole party now sat down again and went on with their talk.	吃剩下来的鸽子肉和野兔肉是不值得带走的了，但他们带了些饼干。然后蒂莲锁上堡垒的大门，他们在堡垒里的休整至此便结束了。
Jewel had little to tell them. While he was a prisoner he had spent nearly all his time tied up at the back of the stable, and had of course heard none of the enemies' plans. He had been kicked (he'd done some kicking back too) and beaten and threatened with death unless he would say that he believed it was Aslan who was brought out and shown to them by firelight every night. In fact he was going to be executed this very morning if he had not been rescued. He didn't know what had happened to the Lamb.	下午两点钟稍微过一点儿，他们出发了，这是当年春天第一个真正暖和的曰子，嫩叶似乎比昨天长出来好多了雪花莲已经谢落，但他们看见了几朵报春花。阳光斜斜地穿过树木，众鸟鸣眠，总是有流水奔腾的声音(尽管往往看不见)。不会想到像塔什神之类的可怕事物了。孩子们感觉到"终于领略到了真正的纳尼亚了。"甚至蒂莲的心也变得比较轻松，他走在大伙儿的前头，口中哼着一支古老的纳尼亚进行曲。曲子里有个叠句
The question they had to decide was whether they would go to Stable Hill again that night, show Puzzle to the Narnians and try to make them see how they had been tricked, or whether they should steal away Eastward to meet the help which Roonwit the Centaur was bringing up from Cair Paravel and return against the Ape and his Calormenes in force. Tirian would very much like to have followed the first plan: he hated the idea of leaving the Ape to bully his people one moment longer than need be. On the other hand, the way the Dwarfs had behaved last night was a warning. Apparently one couldn't be sure how people would take it even if he showed them Puzzle. And there were the Calormene soldiers to be reckoned with. Poggin thought there were about thirty of them. Tirian felt sure that if the Narnians all rallied to his side, he and Jewel and the children and Poggin (Puzzle didn't count for much) would have a good chance of beating them. But how if half the Narnians - including all the Dwarfs - just sat and looked on? or even fought against him? The risk was too great. And there was, too, the cloudy shape of Tash. What might it do?	啊，战鼓急匆匆乱哄哄，冬冬又冬冬，冬冬又冬冬。
And then, as Poggin pointed out, there was no harm in leaving the Ape to deal with his own difficulties for a day or two. He would have no Puzzle to bring out and show now. It wasn't easy to see what story he - or Ginger could make up to explain that. If the Beasts asked night after night to see Aslan, and no Aslan was brought out, surely even the simplest of them would get suspicious.	走在国王后面的是尤斯塔斯和小矮人波金。波金正在把尤斯塔斯还不知道的纳尼亚的一切树木、飞禽、农作物的名字告诉他。有时尤斯塔斯也把它们的英文名字告诉波金。
In the end they all agreed that the best thing was to go off and try to meet Roonwit.	他们的后面是驴子迷惑，驴子后面是吉尔和独角兽珍宝，他们靠得很拢地一起行走。你可能要说，吉尔已经相当钟情于独角兽了。她认为——她想得也不算太错——它是她所遇到的最杰出的、最娇嫩的、最雅致的野兽，而且它又是那么文质彬彬、柔声细语，如果你对它不熟悉，你简直无法相信它在战斗中会那样凶猛可畏。
As soon as they had decided this, it was wonderful how much more cheerful everyone became. I don't honestly think that this was because any of them was afraid of a fight (except perhaps Jill and Eustace). But I daresay that each of them, deep down inside, was very glad not to go any nearer - or not yet - to that horrible bird-headed thing which, visible or invisible, was now probably haunting Stable Hill. Anyway, one always feels better when one has made up one's mind.	"啊，这样愉快极了!"吉尔说，"就像这样的一路漫步过去。我倒希望有更多类似这样的冒险哩。可惜纳尼亚国土上老是出很多乱子。"
Tirian said they had better remove their disguises, as they didn't want to be mistaken for Calormenes and perhaps attacked by any loyal Narnians they might meet. The Dwarf made up a horrid-looking mess of ashes from the hearth and grease out of the jar of grease which was kept for rubbing on swords and spear-heads. Then they took off their Calormene armour and went down to the stream. The nasty mixture made a lather just like soft soap: it was a pleasant, homely sight to see Tirian and the two children kneeling beside the water and scrubbing the backs of their necks or puffing and blowing as they splashed the lather off. Then they went back to the Tower with red, shiny faces, like people who have been given an extra good wash before a party. They re-armed themselves in true Narnian style, with straight swords and three-cornered shields. "Body of me," said Tirian. "That is better. I feel a true man again."	但独角兽给吉尔解释，说她完全搞错了。它说只是在纳尼亚发生动乱或是被颠覆的时候，亚当和夏娃的子子孙孙才从他们自己的奇异世界里给送到纳尼亚来的，但她不能认为纳尼亚老是这样乱糟糟的。在他们的两次来访之间，隔着几百年乃至上干年的时光，当年和平的国王一个接着一个，简直没法儿记住国王的名字、点清国王的数目，历史书中也确实没有什么记载。它继续讲到她从未听说过的、老的女王们和英雄们。它讲起出生在白女巫和永恒严冬称王称霸时代之前的白天鹅女王，她长得那么美丽，她朝树林里随便哪一个池塘里瞧瞧，她的脸儿的倒影，便会从水里发出光辉，像黑夜里的明星一样，从此发光一年零一天。它讲起野兔蒙伍德长着一对神奇的耳朵，坐在大锅渊雷鸣般的大瀑布下，竟可以听到凯尔帕拉维尔人们的窃窃私语。它讲起弗兰克一世的第九代孙子、国王加尔，如何远航东海，从恶龙手里把孤独群岛解救出来，作为报答，人家又把孤独群岛献给他，永远划为纳尼亚国土的一部分。它讲到整整几个世纪里，纳尼亚全国是那么幸福，惟一能记得的事情，就只有著名的舞蹈和宴会，或者至多再加上比武大会了，而今天总比昨天好，这个星期总比上个星期好。独角兽继续讲下去时，所有这些幸福岁月的图画，成千上万张图画，都在吉尔的脑子里堆积起来了，终于仿佛是站在高山上俯瞰一大片富饶而美丽可爱的平原，平原上充满森林、河流和小麦田，连绵不断地往远处延伸，终于远得淡化了，模糊了。她说"
Puzzle begged very hard to have the lion-skin taken off him. He said it was too hot and the way it was rucked up on his back was uncomfortable: also, it made him look so silly. But they told him he would have to wear it a bit longer, for they still wanted to show him in that get-up to the other Beasts, even though they were now going to meet Roonwit first.	"啊，我真希望我们不久就能解决无尾猿问题，重新恢复那些美好而寻常的时代。然后这些美好的时代会永远永远继续下去。我们自己的世界总有一天要完结的。也许这个世界不会完结。珍宝啊——如果纳尼亚继续存在下去——像它从前(如你所说的)那样幸福美好地存在下去——岂不美妙吗?"
What was left of the pigeon-meat and rabbit-meat was not worth bringing away but they took some biscuits. Then Tirian locked the door of the Tower and that was the end of their stay there.	"不然，小妹妹，"珍宝答道，"所有的世界都要完结的，不在此列的只有阿斯兰自己的世界。"
It was a little after two in the afternoon when they set out, and it was the first really warm day of that spring. The young leaves seemed to be much further out than yesterday: the snow-drops were over, but they saw several primroses. The sunlight slanted through the trees, birds sang, and always (though usually out of sight) there was the noise of running water. It was hard to think of horrible things like Tash. The children felt, "This is really Narnia at last." Even Tirian's heart grew lighter as he walked ahead of them, humming an old Narnian marching song which had the refrain:	"哦，至少，"吉尔说，"我希望这个世界要在亿万年以后才完结——喂!我们为什么停步不走啊?"
Ho, rumble, rumble, rumble, Rumble drum belaboured.	国王、尤斯塔斯和小矮人都在仰望天空。吉尔哆嗦，她想起刚才已经看到过的恐怖事物。但这一回可不是这类东西了。它是小小的，映衬着蓝天，看上去是黑色的。
After the King came Eustace and Poggin the Dwarf. Poggin was telling Eustace the names of all the Narnian trees, birds, and plants which he didn't know already. Sometimes Eustace would tell him about English ones.	"我敢发誓，"独角兽说，"从它飞翔的样子看来，它是一只能说人话的鸟儿。"
After them came Puzzle, and after him Jill and Jewel walking very close together. Jill had, as you might say, quite fallen in love with the Unicorn. She thought- and she wasn't far wrong - that he was the shiningest, delicatest, most graceful animal she had ever met: and he was so gentle and soft of speech that, if you hadn't known, you would hardly have believed how fierce and terrible he could be in battle.	"我也这样想。"国王说，"但它是个朋友呢，还是无尾猿的一个密探?"
"Oh, this is nice!" said Jill. "Just walking along like this. I wish there could be more of this sort of adventure. It's a pity there's always so much happening in Narnia."	"在我看来，陛下，"小矮人道，"它具有老鹰千里眼的神气。"
But the Unicorn explained to her that she was quite mistaken. He said that the Sons and Daughters of Adam and Eve were brought out of their own strange world into Narnia only at times when Narnia was stirred and upset, but she mustn't think it was always like that. In between their visits there were hundreds and thousands of years when peaceful King followed peaceful King till you could hardly remember their names or count their numbers, and there was really hardly anything to put into the History Books. And he went on to talk of old Queens and heroes whom she had never heard of. He spoke of Swanwhite the Queen who had lived before the days of the White Witch and the Great Winter, who was so beautiful that when she looked into any forest pool the reflection of her face shone out of the water like a star by night for a year and a day afterwards. He spoke of Moonwood the Hare who had such ears that he could sit by Caldron Pool under the thunder of the great waterfall and hear what men spoke in whispers at Cair Paravel. He told how King Gale, who was ninth in descent from Frank the first of all Kings, had sailed far away into the Eastern seas and delivered the Lone Islanders from a dragon and how, in return, they had given him the Lone Islands to be part of the royal lands of Narnia for ever. He talked of whole centuries in which all Narnia was so happy that notable dances and feasts, or at most tournaments, were the only things that could be remembered, and every day and week had been better than the last. And as he went on, the picture of all those happy years, all the thousands of them, piled up in Jill's mind till it was rather like looking down from a high hill on to a rich, lovely plain full of woods and waters and cornfields, which spread away and away till it got thin and misty from distance. And she said:	"我们该躲在树底下吗?"尤斯塔斯问。
"Oh, I do hope we can soon settle the Ape and get back to those good, ordinary times. And then I hope they'll go on for ever and ever and ever. Our world is going to have an end some day. Perhaps this one won't. Oh Jewel wouldn't it be lovely if Narnia just went on and on - like what you said it has been?"	"不要，"蒂莲说道，"最好是站着一动也不动，像石头一样。我们如果走动了，它倒肯定无疑地会看到我们了。"
"Nay, sister," answered Jewel, "all worlds draw to an end, except Aslan's own country."	"瞧!它在盘旋哩，它已经看见我们了。"珍宝说，"它正在兜着大圈子盘旋而下哩。"
"Well, at least," said Jill, "I hope the end of this one is millions of millions of millions of years away - hallo! what are we stopping for?"	"箭搭在弦上，小姐，"蒂莲对吉尔说，"可是我不下令你无论如何别把箭射出去。它说不定是个朋友。"
The King and Eustace and the Dwarf were all staring up at the sky. Jill shuddered, remembering what horrors they had seen already. But it was nothing of that sort this time. It was small, and looked black against the blue.	如果有人知道下一步会发生什么事情，瞧着大鸟那么优美而从容地滑翔而下，倒是赏心悦目的。它栖息在一个幢崖上，离蒂莲不过几英尺，它用它生有冠毛的头鞠了一个躬，用它奇怪的老鹰噪音说道"好啊，国王。"
"I dare swear," said the Unicorn, "from its flight, that it is a Talking bird."	"好啊，老鹰千里眼。"蒂莲说道，"既然你称我为国王，我就不妨相信你不是无尾猿及其伪阿斯兰的一名追随者。我对你的来到感到高兴。"
"So think I," said the King. "But is it a friend, or a spy of the Ape's?"	"陛下，"老鹰说，"你听到我带来的消息时，我的到来啊，就会比过去你所遭到的最大的灾难更加使你感到伤心难受。"
"To me, Sire," said the Dwarf, "it has a look of Far-sight the Eagle."	蒂莲听到这些话，他的心脏仿佛停止跳动了，但他咬紧牙关，说道"请说下去吧。"
"Ought we to hide under the trees?" said Eustace.	"我看到了两个景象，"老鹰千里眼说道，"第一个景象是：凯尔帕拉维尔城里充满了死掉的纳尼亚人和活着的卡乐门人：'蒂斯罗克'的旗帜插上了你那王城的雉堞。：你的老百姓从城里逃出去——从这条路或那条路，逃进森林里去了。凯尔帕拉维尔是被海上来的敌人攻占的。前天夜间，在漆黑一团的夜色里，二十条卡乐门大船闯了进来。"
"Nay," said Tirian, "best stand still as rocks. He would see us for certain if we moved."	没人说话。"第二个景象是，在离凯尔帕拉维尔不到十五英里的地方，人头马龙威特腰间中了卡乐门人的一箭，倒下死了；他临终最后一小时，我是和他在一起的，他叫我给陛下送来这个信息要牢牢记住，所有的世界都要完结的，而崇高的牺牲是个宝库，可没有人穷得买不起这个宝库的。"
"Look! He wheels, he has seen us already," said Jewel. "He is coming down in wide circles."	"如此说来，"国王在长时间的沉默之后说道，"纳尼亚王国是不复存在了。"
"Arrow on string, Lady," said Tirian to Jill. "But by no means shoot till I bid you. He may be a friend."
If one had known what was going to happen next it would have been a treat to watch the grace and ease with which the huge bird glided down. He alighted on a rocky crag a few feet from Tirian, bowed his crested head, and said in his strange eagle's-voice, "Hail, King."
"Hail, Farsight," said Tirian. "And since you call me King, I may well believe you are not a follower of the Ape and his false Aslan. I am right glad of your coming."
"Sire," said the Eagle, "when you have heard my news you will be sorrier of my coming than of the greatest woe that ever befell you."
Tirian's heart seemed to stop beating at these words, but he set his teeth and said, "Tell on."
"Two sights have I seen," said Farsight. "One was Cair Paravel filled with dead Narnians and living Calormenes: The Tisroc's banner advanced upon your royal battlements: and your subjects flying from the city - this way and that, into the woods. Cair Paravel was taken from the sea. Twenty great ships of Calormen put in there in the dark of the night before last night."
No one could speak.
"And the other sight, five leagues nearer than Cair Paravel, was Roonwit the Centaur lying dead with a Calormene arrow in his side. I was with him in his last hour and he gave me this message to your Majesty: to remember that all worlds draw to an end and that noble death is a treasure which no one is too poor to buy."
"So," said the King, after a long silence, "Narnia is no more."