《最後一戰》第49期:步伐加快了(2)

"To me! to me!" he called. "Have you all turned cowards since I was your King?"

"We daren't," whimpered dozens of voices. "Tashlan would be angry. Shield us from Tashlan."

"Where are all the Talking Horses?" said Tirian to the Boar.

"We've seen, we've seen," squealed the Mice. "The Ape has made them work. They're all tied - down at the bottom of the hill."

"Then all you little ones," said Tirian, "you nibblers and gnawers and nutcrackers, away with you as fast as you can scamper and see if the Horses are on our side. And if they are, get your teeth into the ropes and gnaw till the Horses are free and bring them hither."

"With a good will, Sire," came the small voices, and with a whisk of tails those sharp-eyed and sharp-toothed folk were off. Tirian smiled for mere love as he saw them go. But it was already time to be thinking of other things. Rishda Tarkaan was giving his orders.

"Forward," he said. "Take all of them alive if you can and hurl them into the stable or drive them into it. When they are all in we will put fire to it and make them an offering to the great god Tash."

"Ha!" said Farsight to himself. "So that is how he hopes to win Tash's pardon for his unbelief."

The enemy line - about half of Rishda's force - was now moving forward, and Tirian had barely time to give his orders.

"Out on the left, Jill, and try to shoot all you may before they reach us. Boar and Bear next to her. Poggin on my left, Eustace on my right. Hold the right wing, Jewel. Stand by him, Puzzle, and use your hoofs. Hover and strike, Farsight. You Dogs, just behind us. Go in among them after the sword-play has begun. Aslan to our aid!"

Eustace stood with his heart beating terribly, hoping and hoping that he would be brave. He had never seen anything (though he had seen both a dragon and a seaserpent) that made his blood run so cold as that line of dark-faced bright-eyed men. There were fifteen Calormenes, a Talking Bull of Narnia, Slinkey the Fox, and Wraggle the Satyr. Then he heard twang-and-zipp on his left and one Calormene fell: then twang-andzipp again and the Satyr was down. "Oh, well done, daughter!" came Tirian's voice; and then the enemy were upon them.

“聽我的!聽我的指揮!”他呼喚道，“自從我成了你們的國王，難道你們都變成懦夫了嗎?”

“我們，我們不敢，”十幾個聲音嗚嗚咽咽地說道，“塔什蘭會震怒的。替我們擋住塔什蘭吧。”

“所有會說人話的馬兒都到哪兒去了?”蒂蓮問道。

“我們見過的，見過的，”老鼠吱吱地說道，“無尾猿叫它們幹活。它們都累極了——在小山底下幹活。”

“你們這些小不點兒們，”蒂蓮說道，“你們這些能啃、能齧、能咬碎硬殼的小不點兒們，你們能跳跳蹦蹦得多快，就儘量快跑到山底下去，去看看馬兒是否站在我們這一邊。

如果馬兒站在我們這一邊，那就用你們的牙齒咬斷繩索，一直咬到馬兒解除束縛，你們就帶它們上這兒來。”

“願意效勞，陛下。”傳來小聲的回答，尾巴一甩，這些眼睛尖、牙齒鋒利的小傢伙就已經跑開了。蒂蓮瞧着它們離開時，出於深情厚愛，莞爾微笑，但已經是該考慮其他事情的時候了。“泰坎”利什達正在下達命令哩。

“衝向前去，”利什達說，“如果辦得到的話，活捉他們全體人馬，把他們扔進馬廄；或者把他們趕到馬廄裏去。他和大家都進了馬廄時，我們就放火燒掉馬廄，把他們當做獻給偉大的塔什神的祭品。”

“哈哈!”老鷹對自己說，“原來他指望用這個辦法來爭取塔什寬恕他的不信神哩。”敵人的陣線——一半兒是利什達的軍隊——現在正向前推進，蒂蓮勉強來得及下達命令。

“吉爾，從左翼出擊，竭盡全力在敵人到達之前射出箭去。野豬和熊跟在她的後面。波金在我的左邊，尤斯塔斯在我的右邊。珍寶守住右翼。迷惑站在珍寶旁邊，運用你的蹄子作戰。千里眼老鷹，在天空盤旋、出擊。你們這些狗兒，就守在我們的後邊。刀劍交鋒開始後你們就闖到敵人之中去。阿斯蘭保佑我們!”

尤斯塔斯站在那裏，心怦怦亂跳，他希望，希望自己會大膽勇敢。他從來沒有看見過像面孔墨黑眼睛發亮的隊伍那樣使他血液冰涼的東西，儘管他看見過一條飛龍和一條海蛇。敵方是十五個卡樂門兵，一頭納尼亞的會說人話的公牛，狐狸斯林基，半神半獸的森林之神拉格爾。然後他聽到左邊兒嘣的一響、嗖的一聲，一個卡樂門士兵應聲倒下了；接着又是蹦的一響、嗖的一聲，半神半獸的森林之神也應聲倒下了。“啊，射得好，女兒!”傳來了蒂蓮的讚美聲；接着是敵人向他們進攻。