Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Shadow Chase

As the Isle of Pendor sank to the level of the sea behind Ged, he looked eastward, and at once the fear of the shadow came back to him.The sense of danger of confronting the dragon is bright, but the fear of facing the shadow is invisible and hopeless. It is difficult to adapt to this change.He dispelled the spell winds and sailed on the natural winds, for he now had no desire to travel swiftly.What to do next, he has no clear plan.As the dragon said, he must run, but where?Go to Roke, he thought, where at least he would be protected, and perhaps even consult the wise men.First, however, he had to go back to Lower Thorning and tell the islanders what had happened.

It was heard that Ged had been gone for five days and returned, and the neighbors, and half the population of the town, rowers and runners, gathered around him, and gazed at him, and listened intently to the story.After listening, a man said: "But who has seen this miracle of dragon slaying, and finally the dragon is defeated? What if he..." "Shut up!" The representative of the island hastily stopped him, because he, like most people, knew that the wizard might tell the truth in subtle ways, or he might keep the truth, but every time the wizard said something, it would be exactly what he said , because he is proficient in this way.Therefore, with a cry of wonder, and gradually feeling that their long-held fears were at last lifted, they rejoiced, and the great crowd gathered round the young wizard, and begged him to repeat the story.More islanders kept coming, always asking for the story to be told again.By evening there was no need for Ged to bother, and the islanders could speak for him, and better.The chanter of the village has also put the story lightly into an old tune and has begun to sing "Song of the Sparrowhawk".Not only the fireworks are set off in the lower Tuoning Island area, but also the small islands to the east and south of Yun are lively and lively.The fishermen in their respective boats shouted the news to each other, and spread the news from island to island: the evil is gone, and the Pendor Dragon will never come again!That night, the only night, Ged was very happy, because no shadow could come near him.All the hills and beaches were lit up with thanksgiving fireworks, and laughing dancers danced around him, and singers praised him, and Otsuka shook his torches against the gusts of autumn nights, forming thick bright sparks high in the wind.

The next day he met Pevery, and he said, "My lord, I never knew you were so brave." There was fear in the words: for he had dared to make friends with Ged before, but there was also reproach in them Ged could slay a dragon, but he couldn't save a child.After hearing Pevery's words, Ged felt again the uneasiness and impatience that had driven him to Pendor.The uneasiness and urgency drove him to leave Lower Thorning again. The next day, although the islanders were glad that Ged would remain in Lower Torning for the rest of his life, and be praised by the islanders, he left the hut on the hill with nothing but a few books and Canes, and otaks straddling their shoulders.

He was in a rowboat which belonged to two young fishermen from Lower Thorning who wished to have the honor of rowing for him.The straits to the east of Jiushiyu are often crowded with sailing boats. Along the way, they saw houses on some islands with balconies and windows protruding from the water; Those foul-smelling oil sheds on the Isle of Stock.Along the way, Ged's dragon-slaying deeds always reached their destination one step ahead of them, for people to pass on.When the people on the island saw them passing by, they whistled and sang "Song of the Sparrowhawk" to them. Otsuka rushed to invite Gedden Island to spend the night and asked him to tell them the story of slaying the dragon.At last Ged arrived at the Isle of Sed and found a boat bound for Roke. The owner of the boat bowed and said, "My lord wizard, this is my honor and the honor of my boat."

So Ged sailed away from the Ninety Isles.As the ship sailed from the Inner Harbor of Sod, a strong wind blew head-on from the east as it hoisted its sails.The wind was strange, for although it was winter, the sky was clear that morning and the weather seemed mild and stable.The Isle of Sed was only thirty miles from Roke, so they sailed as usual.The wind continued to blow, and they continued to sail.The skiff, like most merchant ships in the Inner Pole, had tall sails end to end that could turn to meet headwinds, and the owner was a nimble sailor who took great pride in his skill.So, they strategically swerved north and south, still sailing east.But the wind carried bird clouds and rain, and the direction was uncertain and the wind was extremely strong. It was very likely that the ship would stop suddenly at sea, which was extremely dangerous. "My lord Sparrowhawk," said the skipper to the young man, and Ged was beside him, standing honorably in the prow, but the wind and rain drenched them both, and in that miserable sheen of rain, The dignity that can be maintained is extremely low. "Master Sparrowhawk, can you speak to this wind? Can you?"

"How close is it to Roke Isle now?" "We've made half the voyage, at most. But this hour, we're not making any progress." Ged spoke to the wind, and it died down a little, and their ship sailed smoothly for a while.But suddenly there was another strong wind from the south, by which they were blown back to the west again.The bird clouds in the sky broke and swelled, and the captain roared angrily: "This ghost wind is blowing in all directions at the same time! My lord, only the magic wind can lead us through this kind of weather." Ged seemed very reluctant to use the spellwind, but the ship and its owner were in danger because of him, so he hoisted the spellwind for the sails.With the magic wind, the ship immediately sailed eastward through the waves, and the captain showed a happy face again.But though Ged kept up his spell, the spell wind slackened little by little, and became weaker and weaker, until at last, in a stormy situation, the ship seemed to hang fixed on the waves, and the sails drooped.Then, with a loud snap, the yard came round a wide bend, causing the ship to come to a sudden stop, then leap northward like a frightened kitten.

At this moment, the ship was lying almost on its side on the sea, and Ged held on to a post, and said in a loud voice, "Captain, sail back to Sod!" The owner cursed, and cried out that he would not dismiss Cedre: "Go back? We have wizards on board, and I'm the best sailor in the trade, and it's the neatest boat—go back now?" Sooner or later, the ship made a big turn, as if the keel was caught by a vortex, and the owner had to hold on to the pillars to avoid being thrown overboard.Then Ged said to him, "Put me back on the Isle of Sed, and you may sail as you please. The wind is not against you, but against me."

"Against you? A wizard from Roke?" "Captain, haven't you heard of 'Wind of Roke'?" "I've heard it, it's the wind that prevents evil forces from invading the island of the wise. But you are a dragon subduing wizard, so what does this wind have to do with you?" "That is between me and my shadow," replied Ged curtly, wizardly.They sailed so fast that Ged said nothing all the way.With a clear sky and a steady wind, they sailed back to Sed Isle smoothly. Ged's heart was heavy and terrified when he disembarked from Sod's wharf.The time sequence enters winter, the days are short and the twilight comes early.

Ged's uneasiness deepened with every evening.Now, even turning a block seems like a big threat.He had to restrain himself from looking back all the time, lest he see what might be right behind him.He went to the Oceanarium on the Isle of Sed, where travelers and merchants gathered to dine, and not only was the town supplied with good food, but they could also sleep in long rafter halls, such is the hospitality of the prosperous islands of the Inner Sea. Ged saved some meat from his own supper, and took it to the fire-pit afterward, and persuaded the Outak, who had been huddled in his hood all day, to come out and eat.He stroked Outake and whispered to it: "Hou Yege, Hou Yege, little guy, be silent..." But Outake refused to eat it, and instead hid it in his pocket.From this, and from his own vague sense of uncertainty, and from the darkness in the corners of the hall, Ged knew that the shadow was not far from him.

Nobody in this place knew Ged, they were travelers from other islands, and they hadn't heard "Song of the Sparrowhawk," so no one came to accost him.He chose a straw bed to lie down on himself.However, all the passengers slept peacefully in the huge long-raftered hall, but he couldn't sleep with his eyes open all night.He spent the night trying to choose his next move, planning where to go and how to do it, but every choice, every plan, was a predictable dead end that wouldn't work.No matter which way, in the end, you may meet the dark shadow on a narrow road.Only the Isle of Roke was free of shadows, and yet he could not go to Roke, for the old spell, great and effective, which kept the island safe, forbade him to enter.Even Rookie raised his head high to surround him, which showed that the thing that had been chasing him must be very close to him.

That thing has no body, cannot be seen in the sun, and was born in a realm without light, place, and time. It traveled through time and across oceans, searching for him in the afterworld, only in dreams and darkness could it appear.It has no substance or existence yet, so the sun does not shine.The same situation has been broken in "Holder's Friendship", "Dawn created the earth and the sea, and the shape came from the shadow, and drove the dream into the kingdom of darkness." Once the shadow catches Ged, it will pull his strength. Go, take away all the weight, warmth, and life that affect his body. Such was the catastrophe that Gedul foresaw on every road.And he knew that he might also fall into that doom, because the closer the shadow was to him, the stronger it was, and now I am afraid that it has enough strength to drive evil forces or people to achieve its purpose, such as signing Ged's mistake. signs, or speak to him through the mouth of a stranger, etc.Ged knew that among the crowds in every corner of the Oceanarist's rafters that had lodged tonight, the dark thing was seeking one of the dark souls, and to infiltrate the man so that he might have a foothold from which to watch Ged up close.Even now it was exploiting Ged's weakness, fear, and uncertainty to enrich itself. This is intolerable, he must rely on luck and let the luck lead him forward. Ged got out of bed as soon as the first cold light of dawn rose, and hurried to the pier of Sod by the dark starlight, determined to take the earliest boat to sea.A galley was loading Obifish Oil on board and was scheduled to set sail at sunrise for the great port of Havnor.Ged begged the master to carry them.The wizard's token was a pass-cum-payment on most ships, so they were more than happy to let Ged aboard.Within an hour, the ship set off.The forty long prizes were raised in one fell swoop, and Ged's spirit was also lifted up.The drums that controlled the paddling made for Ged a brave note. However, he still doesn't know what will happen when he gets Havnor, and he doesn't know where he will go when he gets there.Going north seemed to be a good direction. He himself was from the North Cape. Maybe he could find a ship in Havnor to take him back to Gont.Or, he said that if he didn't leave, he could find a ship and sail to the Territory, which was too far away for the shadow to follow him, and finally gave up chasing him.Apart from these vague thoughts Ged had no plans in mind.He also understands that he doesn't necessarily have to go which way, he just knows that he has to escape... After leaving Port Sod, the forty oars had rowed a hundred and fifty miles on the winter sea before sunset the next day.They came to Oromi, a seaport in the eastern part of the continent of Housk, because these large trade ships in the Inner Pole Sea always sailed along the coast and spent the night in the port as much as possible.As it was light, Ged went ashore, and wandered aimlessly in the steep streets of the harbor town, brooding. Aurome was an old town, all great buildings of rock and brick, with high walls and thick walls, to ward off the wicked landowners of the interior.Dock warehouses were built like blockhouses, and merchant houses were also built with towers and fortifications.However, to Ged, who was walking the streets, those huge woolen mansions were like veils, behind which lay an empty darkness.The passers-by who were in the same body as him were only focused on their own affairs, and they didn't look like real people, but just silent figures.At sunset, he returned to the pier, and despite the bright red light and the evening breeze, he still felt that the sea and land were dark and silent. "Master Wizard, where are you going?" Suddenly someone greeted him from behind.Ged turned, and saw a man in gray, holding a heavy wooden staff, which was not a witch's staff.The stranger's eyelids were concealed in the red-light hood, but Ged could feel the invisible eyes meeting his.Ged looked back, and held up his yew cane between them. The man asked gently: "What are you afraid of?" "The thing following me." "Really? But I am not your shadow." Ged remained silent.He knew that whoever the man was, it wasn't really what he was afraid of: he was not a shadow, or a ghost, or a puppet.In the dead silence and darkness that has enveloped the world, at least this person still has a voice and substance.Then the man pulled the hood back, revealing a strange, bald, wrinkled, lined face.Although his voice is not old, but his face looks like an old man. "I don't know you," said the man in gray. "But I thought maybe we didn't meet by accident. I've heard a story about a young man with a scar on his face who won power, even a throne, through darkness. I don't know if that's your story, but, I will tell you that if you need a sword to fight the shadows, go to the Palace of Iron Ruoneng. A yew cane is not enough for you." Ged struggled with hope and doubt as he heard this.A person who is well versed in shamanism always quickly realizes that all occasions are indeed rarely accidental, and the purpose of these occasions is either good or bad. "Which island is Tie Ruoneng Palace on?" "On Osskol." On hearing the name, Ged saw for a moment, through memory hallucinations, a black raven on a green meadow, looking up at him with bright stone eyes, talking to him, but what he said was already forget. "That island has a bad reputation," said Ged, keeping his eyes on the gray man, trying to judge what kind of man he was.Judging by his demeanor, he seems to have the style of a warlock, or even a wizard.He didn't talk too much to Ged, though, and had a strangely tired expression that almost looked like a sick man, or a prisoner, or a slave. "You are from the Isle of Roke," answered the other; "Wizards of Roke Isle are condemned to dishonor to any wizardry that is not their own." "who are you?" "A traveler, a trade agent from Osskol, came here on business," said the man in gray.Seeing that Ged didn't ask any more questions, he said good night to the young man quietly, and climbed up the steep and narrow street above the pier. Ged turned, uncertain whether to accept the message.He looked north, where the red lights on the mountains and the winter sea had faded.Gray twilight fell, and after twilight came night. Having made up his mind hastily, Ged hurried along the quay, and seeing a fisherman folding his nets in a dory, he called to him and said, "Do you know that there is a ship in the harbor sailing north, to the Isle of Kaime or the Enlad Islands?" ?” "The longship from Ossk may stop at the Enlad Isles." Ged hastened again to the longboat which the fisherman had directed.It was a long boat with sixty oars, as thin as a snake, with a tall and curved prow inlaid with lotus shell-shaped discs, and the oar seats were painted red, and black sifu talismans were also depicted.It looked like a frighteningly fast ship, all crewed and ready to go.Ged found the captain and asked for a ride. "Are you paying?" "I know a little Wind Control Technique." "I'm a weatherman myself. Don't you have anything to pay? No money?" The islanders of Lower Thornin paid Ged as best they could in the ivory tokens used by the merchants of the Archipelago, and though they wanted to give some more, Ged took only ten.Now he gave all the ten tokens to the Ossk merchant, but the other party shook his head: "We don't use these tokens, and if you have nothing to pay, I have nowhere to put you on board." .” "Do you need help? I used to row a paddleboat." "Okay, we still have two people missing, let's find a stool." After the captain finished speaking, he no longer cared about him. Ged put his staff and book-bag under the oarsmen's stool, and prepared to be oarsmen for ten hard winter days in the longship sailing north.They sailed out of the port of Orome at daybreak.That day, Ged thought he would never be able to keep up with the work of an oarsman: his left arm was a little strained by an old shoulder injury, and he was rowing in the Lower Torning Channel, and pushing the oars to the beat of the drums on the captains. The situation with oars is quite different.Each stroke lasted two or three hours before the second shift of oarsmen took over, but the rest seemed to only stiffen all the muscles of Ged's body before he went back to pushing the oars.The next day it was even worse.But after that, Ged worked hard, and managed to survive. There was a sense of camaraderie among the ship's crew, unlike the crew he had first sailed on the Sombra to Roke.The crews of the Androids and Gont are business partners, working for the common good.But the merchants of Osskol used slaves or guarantors to row the oars, or hired men to row the oars, and paid them in gold coins.Gold is a great thing on Osskol, but it doesn't make good friendships, and neither does it for dragons who value gold as much.Since half of the sailors on such a long ship are guarantors and are forced to work, the senior officials on board are naturally slave owners, and all of them are vicious.Their whips never fell on hired men or oarsmen of money-making ferries, but there was little friendship among crews either, for some got whipped and some didn't.Ged's companions seldom spoke to each other, still less to him.Most of them were from Ossk, and they spoke not the Hittish language spoken in the Archipelago, but their own dialect.They were grim by nature, with black beards, thin hair, and sun-dried skin, so everyone called Ged "Quilaba," which means red-skinned people.Although they knew Ged was a wizard, they had little respect for him, but a sense of defensive malice.Fortunately, Ged had no desire to make friends himself, and sat on his allotted bench, bound by the vigorous rhythm of the oars, as one of the sixty prize-winners.Sailing in this way on the open sea, he felt that he was unsheltered and unguarded.In the evening, the ship sailed into a strange port for the night, and Ged tucked into his hood to sleep.In spite of his fatigue he dreamed and woke up and dreamed again, evil dreams which he could not remember when he awoke, but which seemed to hang around the ship and among the crew, so that he distrusted everyone on board . All the free men of Osskol wear long swords at their waists.One day, when he had lunched with some of the Oscor Freemen, as the oars were in rotation, one of them said to Ged, "Are you a slave or a bondage, Queraba?" "neither." "Then why don't you wear a long knife? Are you afraid of fighting?" The man named Schiewo asked mockingly. "no." "Does your puppy fight for you?" "It's an otak, not a puppy, it's an otak." Another oarsman who had heard their conversation said this, and said something to Skeewo in the Osko dialect, and Skeewo frowned. Brows, turned and left.As he turned and squinted at Ged, Ged saw his jumphole change: his whole features changed, as if something had changed him at that moment, or used him.But when that moment passed, Ged looked at the man again, and the face remained the same, so Ged told himself that what he had just seen was his own inner fear, and his personal fear was reflected in the eyes of others.But that night when they stayed at the port of Essen, he dreamed again, and Schiewer actually entered his dream.After that, Ged avoided Skilworth as much as possible, and Skilwoll seemed to avoid Ged, so there was no further conversation between them. The snow-covered mountains of Havnor fell behind them, sinking further southwards, obscured again by the early winter mist.After that, they paddled past the mouth of the Iya Sea, where Ye Furuan died in the early years.Then they rowed by Enlad Island.They spent two nights in the port of Berilla in Ivory City, a white bay west of Enlad Island, haunted by myth.The crew remained on board at all ports of call, and none of them went ashore.Therefore, when the red sun rose, they rowed out of the port, went to Ousi Kezhen, and then entered the northern border space sea area.The northeast wind blows here unobstructed, and they are safe to sail in this dangerous sea city.The next day they sailed into the trade city on the east coast of Ossk: the port of Neixuan City. Ged saw before him a low, storm-beaten coast, with a harbor made of stone breakwaters, and behind the causeways crouched gray towns, and behind them a dark sky of falling snow, under which was light and treeless. mountains.They were already far from the sunshine of the Inner Pole Sea. The stevedores of the Neixuan City Oceanic Chamber of Commerce boarded the ship to unload the goods. The goods included gold, jewelry, high-grade silk materials, southern fabrics and other treasures that Ousike landlords especially loved.During unloading, free persons in the crew can move freely. Ged stopped a loan unloader to ask for directions.From the beginning until now, Ged, based on his mistrust of the crew, never mentioned to anyone where he was going.But now, he was alone in a strange place, so he had to seek advice.The person who was asked continued to load and unload, and replied impatiently that he did not know the way.But Schiewo, who overheard their conversation, took the initiative to answer: "Tie Ruoneng Palace? It's on the Kekesen wasteland. I'll go that way." It stands to reason that Ged would not have chosen Skeewoll as his companion.But he neither knew the local dialect nor the way, so he had no choice. He thought to himself, it doesn't matter, anyway, coming here is not his own choice.He is driven to come, since he is here, let's continue walking along.He pulled up his hood, carried his book bag and walking stick, and followed Skeewo through the streets of the town, climbing into the snow-covered mountains.The little otaker would not straddle his shoulders, but hid in the pocket of his sheepskin robe under the battens of his cloak, as he had done in cold weather.As far as the eye could see, the beautiful mountains all around stretched into the desolate rolling wilderness.The two walked forward without a word, and the surrounding mountains and plains were covered with the silence of winter. "How far?" After walking for several miles, not seeing half a village in every direction, thinking that they hadn't brought any food with them, Gedfang asked about the distance.Skilworth turned his head, pulled his hood, and replied, "Not far." It was an ugly, pale, rough, cruel face.Ged was not afraid of any man, but perhaps he was afraid where such a one would lead him.But he nodded and the two moved on.The road they walked was really just a trail, a barren land of thin snow and bare trees.From time to time, there are forks on the way, or branches out.At this time, the smoke from the chimneys of Neixuan City had disappeared in the darkening noon behind.Where they should continue to go, or where they have been, there is no trace to follow.Only the wind kept blowing from the east.After walking for hours, Ged thought he saw, far to the northwest, on the hill they were heading for, a small dot against the sky like White Fang.But the short light of the day was fading, and when they were on the other side of the path Ged could still make out the little dot, which looked like a tower or a tree, but more dimly than before. "Are we going there?" he asked, pointing. Schiewer didn't answer, just wrapped tightly in the wool-trimmed ossk-style hood, and continued to move forward with difficulty.Ged strode beside him, and they had gone a long way.Ged was weary from the monotonous walking, and from the long and toilsome days and nights of work in the ship.He began to feel as if he had been walking beside this silent man, across the dark land of silence, and would go on.His inherent caution and purpose were blunted, as if walking aimlessly in a long dream. The otak moved in his pocket, and his mind was disturbed by a vague fear.He forced himself to speak: Schiewer, it's getting dark and snowing again.How far is it? " There was a pause, but the other party did not turn his head, but only replied, "It's not far away." But his voice did not sound like a man's, but rather that of a rough, lipless beast trying to speak. Ged stopped.In the twilight of the sky, there are only empty mountains extending in all directions, and scattered light snow is flying down.Ged called out, "Skeewoll!" The man stopped, turned around, and there was no face under the pointed hood!Before Ged could cast spells or summon powers, the puppet spoke in a gruff voice: "Ged!" In this way, it was too late for young Ged to change shape, and he could only be locked in his real being, so defenseless he had to face the corpse.In this strange place, even if he wanted to call for any help, he couldn't do anything, because he didn't know the people and things here, so it was impossible to come to help.He stood alone, with only the yew cane held in his right hand between him and his opponent. The thing that had swallowed up Skittle's mind and took possession of his body was taking advantage of Skittle's form, taking a step towards Ged, and stretching out its arms towards him.Filled with fear that surged up, Gedpo jumped up suddenly, and stretched out his cane to touch the hood that hid the shadowy face.Suffering this violent blow, the opponent's hood and cloak almost collapsed to the ground in an instant, as if there was nothing inside except the wind, but after a burst of rolling and flapping, he stood up again.The essence of the puppet body has been gradually lost, just like the air outside the empty shell of the human form, and the unreal body wears the real shadow.Then the shadow twitched and swelled like a wind, trying to grab Ged as it had done at Roke Knoll.If it succeeds, it will throw off Skiwoll's body, enter Ged's body, and devour him from the inside out. Possession is all it desires.Ged struck again with his heavy smoking stick, trying to knock him down, but it came back, and Ged struck again, and then threw the stick away, for it caught fire and burned his hand on the ground.He backed away, then immediately turned and ran. Ged ran, and the puppet, who was only a step behind, followed, and although he could not win, he was still not far behind.Ged never looked back, and he ran, ran, across the bare, twilight-covered expanse.At one point the puppet called Ged's name again in a breath-like voice. Although the puppet had taken away Ged's magic power, luckily it was not stronger than his physical strength, so it could not force Ged to stop. Ged To keep running. The night was dark enough for Ged to pass, and snowflakes covered the path so that Ged could no longer see the way.His pulse beat in his eyes, his breath burned in his throat.In fact, Ged was no longer really running, but was dragging forward.Oddly, the puppet didn't seem to be able to catch him, but just kept following him, muttering to him.Then suddenly Ged realized that all his life he had heard that small voice, but could not hear it; but now he could hear it clearly.He had to surrender, he had to give up, he had to stop.However, he continued to climb up a long and obscure slope with all his might.He thought there was a light somewhere ahead, and he thought he heard a voice ahead, somewhere above his head, calling "Come! Come!" He tried to answer, but there was no sound.The faint light gradually became clear, hanging high in the doorway directly in front of him.He didn't see the wall, but the gate.The sight brought him to a halt as the puppet caught up and grabbed his cloak, and struggled at the sides to embrace him whole from behind.With the last of his strength Ged threw himself through the dimly glowing door.He originally wanted to turn around and close the door to prevent the corpse doll from entering, but his legs couldn't make it big, so he staggered, trying to find a support point.Lights swirled and flickered in his eyes.He felt himself falling, even felt that he was caught as he fell, and from exhaustion, he passed out and his mind went dark.