Chapter 12 Chapter 11 Xishan

Tenar struggled to wake from a nightmare. She dreamed that she had walked for a long time, in many places, with all the muscles off her body, and the bones of her arms glowed faintly in the dark.She opened her eyes, the golden light shone into her eyes, and the pungent smell of sage.A burst of sweetness welled up in my heart, and joy slowly filled my whole body, even overflowing.She sat up straight, stretched out her arms from the sleeves of her black robe, and looked around happily. It is dusk.The sun had already set from the neighboring high mountains on the west side, but the afterglow shone on the sky and the earth.The sky is wide and cloudless, but there is winter depression; the land is vast and desolate, but there are golden valleys spreading out.The wind is quiet, the climate is cold, and everything is silent.The gray leaves of the nearby sage bushes stood dry and dry, and the dwarf stalks of the desert grass gnawed at her hands.The quiet radiance of twilight spread over hills and sky, reddening every twig, dry leaf, and withered stem.

She looked to the left and saw the man lying on the desert floor, tightly wrapped in his cloak, one arm under his head, fast asleep.In his sleep, his face was rather serious, almost frowning, but his left hand rested easily on the sand.Next to his left hand was a small thistle, with a ball of fluffy gray-white down and small defensive spines on the stalk.The man and the desert thistle; the thistle and the sleeping man... The power he possesses is similar to the ancient force of the earth, or equal to it.He once talked with the dragon, and stopped the earthquake with the curse word.And the man was sleeping peacefully on the dusty sand, with a thistle growing by his hand.It was strange that life in this world was so great, so incredible, far beyond what she had ever imagined.At this moment, the rays of the sky lightly touched his dusty hair, and dyed the little thistle nestled in Erfang into gold.

The afterglow of the setting sun fades away gradually, while the chill seems to intensify bit by bit.Tenar rose to gather dead sage, to gather twigs that had fallen, to snap off the knotty boughs that looked like the hands and feet of a very oak.They came here about noon, but were too tired to go any further.It was still warm, and the two stunted junipers and the west ridge they had just come down provided enough shade.They lay down after drinking some water from the bottle, and soon fell asleep. She put the collected branches under the dwarf tree, smashed the sand along the angle of the rock to form a small hole, and struck the flint with a steel sheet to start the fire.Combustible materials such as sage leaves and twigs were immediately ignited, and the dry branches were filled with red flames, emitting a pleasant pine fragrance.After the fire was started, the surroundings of the fire seemed to be very dark, and the vast sky showed stars again.

The crackling of flames wakes nearby sleepers.He sat up, wiped his dirty face with his hands, and then stood up stiffly and approached the fire. "I don't know this—" His tone of voice was still sleepy. "I know, but we can't spend the night here without a fire, it's too cold," she said after a while, "unless you have some magic to keep us both warm, or hide the fire..." He sat down by the fire with his arms around his knees and his feet almost in the fire. "Wow," he said, "actual fire is better than magic. I've cast a little illusion around us, and if anyone walks by, they'll just see sticks and stones. What do you think, they'll Come after us?"

"I'm also afraid that they will come after them, but I don't think they will. No one knows you came to the mausoleum area except Ke Xiu. By the way, there is also Manan, but both of them died. When the throne hall collapsed, Ke Xiu must be inside, waiting outside the trap door. As for the rest, they must have thought that I was crushed to death in the earthquake in the temple or in the tomb." She also wrapped her arms around her knees at this time, and her body could not help trembling: "I hope the rest of the buildings didn't collapse. It was hard to see from the side of the hill at that time, and there was too much dust. The rest of the temples and houses, such as the big house where the girls slept, should not have collapsed."

"I think it didn't fall. The tomb swallowed itself. As we turned our heads, I saw the golden roof of a temple, still standing, and a figure running down the hill." "What will they talk about, what will they think... Poor Pan Si! Now she may become the high priestess of the Temple of the God King. It was always her who wanted to escape, not me. After all this trouble, she probably really will run away." Tenar smiled.There was a joy in her heart that could not be erased by any thoughts or fears, just like the joy she felt when she woke up in the golden sunset, it was a joy of peace of mind.She opened the bag and took out two small flatbreads.She passed one piece across the fire to Ged, and opened her mouth to bite the other.The bread was hard and sour, but very tasty.

The two chewed in silence for a while. "How far are we from the sea?" "It took me two days and two nights to come. Now the return trip will be longer." "I'm strong," she said. "Yes, and heroic. But your companion is tired," he smiled. "And we don't have much bread." "Can we find water?" "Tomorrow, it can be found in the mountains." "Can you find food for us?" She asked a little ambiguously and timidly. "Hunting takes time and requires weapons." "I mean, use—you know, use spells."

"I can summon rabbits," he said, stirring the fire with a twisted juniper branch. "Now there are many rabbits around us, and they all run out of their dens at night. I can call a rabbit by name, and the rabbit will come over obediently, but will you catch the rabbit summoned like that, peel it and cook it? Maybe when you’re starving. But I think that’s a breach of trust.” "True. But I was thinking maybe you could—" "Conjure a supper?" he said. "Ah, I can do it, and serve it on a golden plate if you like. But it's an illusion, and eating an illusion results in hunger. Its hunger-satisfying and nourishing effect." It's like eating your own 'words.'" She saw his white teeth flash for a moment in the firelight.

"Your magic is very special, and it is only useful when encountering major events." When she said this, she had a slight sense of dignity in her arms. This was a conversation between a priestess and a mage. He added some twigs to the fire, and the flames flared up, crackling with juniper scent and sparks. "Can you really summon a rabbit?" Tenar asked suddenly. "Do you want me to summon?" She nods. He turned away from the fire, and whispered into the star-studded darkness, "Kepo... O Kebo..." silence.silent.Nothing happened.But in a blink of an eye, on the edge of the swaying fire, a bright black jade-like eye appeared very close to the ground.Then came the shaggy arched back, and then one ear, a long erect and alert ear.

Ged spoke again.There was a flick of one ear, and suddenly another appeared out of the shadows; then the little animal turned, and Tenar saw it fully revealed.But all at once, the pulsating, soft little creature turned nonchalantly to its evening business. "Ah!" She finally let go of her breath and said, "That's great!" Before long, she asked, "Can I try?" "Oh--" "The secret must not be leaked?" She blurted out, her dignity reappearing. "The name of the rabbit is a secret, at least it should not be used lightly without reason. But you know, summoning power is not a secret, but a talent, or a mystery."

"Oh," she said, "you have that power, I know it!" The irritation in her voice was not concealed by the mocking sarcasm.He looked at her and didn't respond. He was indeed still very weary at this point from fighting against the Nameless.In those earth-shattering tunnels, his strength was exhausted, and even though he won in the end, he no longer felt happy.So he quickly curled up again and slept as close to the fire as possible. Tenar sat still adding wood to the fire, and then looked intently at the twinkling winter stars, from horizon to horizon.Then, feeling drowsy from the splendor of the starry sky and the silence around her, she dozed off. When they all awoke, the fire went out.The stars she had been looking at had moved to the western hills, and new ones had risen to the east.They were awakened by the cold, the dry cold of the desert night making the mountain wind blowing as sharp as ice knives.Floating clouds gradually floated from the southwest sky. The collected firewood is almost exhausted. "Let's go," said Ged, "it's almost daylight." His teeth were chattering so badly that she could hardly understand him.The two set off and began to climb the long gentle slope to the west.The trees and rocks still looked dark under the stars, but they were as easy to walk as in daylight.They felt cold at first, but they warmed up as soon as they walked; they stopped shivering and began to move forward with ease.By sunrise they were on the first mountain of the Western Range, the great wall that had kept Tenar so far all her life. They rested in a forest in the middle of the mountain. The golden leaves on the tree trembled with the wind, but they were still attached to the branches.He told her it was aspen.The few trees she recognized were the juniper and the weary aspen by the stream, and the forty apple trees in the orchard where she stood.A little bird chirped softly among these aspen bushes.There is a small stream under the tree. The channel is narrow but the water flow is strong. It flows powerfully over the rocks and low waterfalls, and it does not freeze because of the fast flow.Tenar was almost afraid of it.She was used to the desert, where things were quiet and slow, the streams moved slowly, the clouds lingered, and the vultures circled. They shared a slice of bread and a last morsel of cheese for breakfast, and after a short rest they continued on their way. By evening they had climbed a long way uphill.The weather was cloudy and gloomy that day, with strong wind and severe cold.At night, they camped in another river valley.There was plenty of firewood here, and they had a great fire of logs, which was quite sufficient for warmth. Tenar was very happy.She found a squirrel's hiding place of nuts, exposed by the fall of an empty tree trunk, with about two pounds of good walnuts in it, and a kind of smooth-shelled nut that Ged didn't know what the Kargs called them, but he called them For "Oil Bill".She took a flat stone and a mallet, and cracked open the nuts one by one, and handed the flesh of each second nut to the man. "Wish we could stay here," she said, looking out over the dark, windy valley between the mountains. "I like this place." "It's a good place," he agreed. "Outsiders never come here." "Not often... I was born in the mountains, too," he said, "on Mount Gont. We pass by it if we go to Havnor by the North Road. The mountains look beautiful in winter, The hills are all white, and they look like great waves jutting out of the sea. The village where I was born was also by a brook, like this brook. Where were you born, Tenar?" "Entate on the north side of Etuan Island, I don't remember the place." "They took you away at such a young age?" "Five. I still remember the fire in the house, and... no more." He touched his chin, although he had grown a little beard, it was still clean; earlier, the two of them took a bath in the mountain stream regardless of the cold weather.At this time, he stroked his chin, showing a thoughtful and serious expression.She looked at him, looked at him by the light of the fire in the dimness of the mountains, but she could never say what she really wanted to say in her heart. "What are you going to do here in Havnor?" he asked, looking to the fire instead of her. "You are truly born again, better than I have ever experienced personally." She nodded and smiled lightly.She is feeling like a newborn. "You should at least learn some language." "Your language?" "right." "I really want to." "Well, that's good. This is 'Kaba'." He said, throwing a small stone into the pocket of her black robe. "'Kaba'. Is that Dragon Language?" "No, no. You don't cast spells, this is for talking to others!" "What's the name of the small stone in Dragon Language?" "Tuo," he said, "but I'm not going to make you my apprentice sorcerer. I'm going to teach you the language of the Archipelago, the Inner Ring Islands. I learned your language before I came here. .” "But you speak so strangely." "Yes. Come, 'Okenmi Kaba'," he said, and held out his hand, asking her to give him the pebble. "Must I go to Havnor?" she asked. "Where are you going otherwise, Tenar?" She hesitated. "Havnor is a fair city," he said, "and you will bring them that token of peace, that armband, that lost treasure. The people of Havnor will welcome you like a princess. They will honor you for bringing them this costly gift, entertain you, and make you truly feel at home. The inhabitants of that city are noble and generous, and they will call you the "Snow White Lady" because of your white skin, plus you are So young and so beautiful, they will love you twice as much. You will have hundreds of silk clothes like the last time I lent you the illusion show, but real clothes. You will be admired, appreciated, loved. In the past, you only knew loneliness, jealousy and darkness." "There was Manan," she said defensively, her mouth trembling a little: "he loved me and took care of me. He protected me as best he could, and I caused him to fall into a huge pit and die because of it. I don't want to go to Havnor, I don't want to go there, I want to stay here." "Here - Etuan Island?" "Here in the mountains, here we are now." "Tenar," he said in a solemn, low voice, "in that case, stay here. But I don't even have a knife. If it snows here, it will be hard. But if we can find food-- " "No. I know we can't stay here. I'm just being silly," said Tenar, and she stood up to add wood to the fire, scattering nutshells from her skirt pockets.The clothes and black cloak on her were already stained and looked very thin, but she stood upright. "Now everything I know is useless," she said. "I haven't learned anything. I'm going to have to try to learn something." Ged flinched and turned his head away, as if in pain. The next day they climbed over the highest point of the tawny ridge.When walking on the pass in the mountains, the wind and snow blow hard, both piercing and blinding the sight.It was not until they came down the ridge, and after a long walk to the other side, out of the snow-clouded region on the summit, that Tenar finally saw the land beyond the great gable wall.As far as the eye can see is emerald green, pine trees, grassland, cultivated land, fallow land, everything is green as far as the eye can see.Even in this bleak winter, when the shrubs are bare and the forest is full of gray branches, it is green, rustic and good-natured.They looked down from the high rocky slope, and Ged silently pointed to the western sky. The sun was gradually sinking behind the thick creamy yellow halo and the curling clouds.The red sun was hidden, but the horizon was still bright, equal to the brilliance of the crystal walls of the mausoleum and tomb, as if this edge of the world was showing a cheerful light. "What's that?" the girl asked, and he replied, "The ocean." Not long after, she saw another thing, not quite as wonderful, but still wonderful enough.They come to a path.When dusk came, they followed the road into a village, a small village with a dozen or so families distributed along the road.As soon as she realized that they were entering the crowd, she turned her head to look at her companion in a panic, but she found that his companion was gone. is another person.The man was fair-skinned and had no beard.He sent her a glance, blue eyes, winking at her. "Can I fool them with my appearance?" He said, "Are your clothes nice?" She looked down.She wore a village woman's brown skirt and coat, and a large red woolen shawl was round her shoulders. "Ah," she finished, stopping abruptly. "Oh, so you're--you're Ged!" She saw his familiar dark-brown skin, scarred face, and black eyes for a moment, all too clearly, as she said his name.However, standing next to him was a stranger with a milk complexion. "Don't call me by my real name in front of others. I don't call you by your name either. We are brother and sister now, pulled from Tienak. If I see a nice-looking person later, I plan to ask him to entertain you Coarse meal." He took her hand and they entered the village together. When the two left the village the next day, their bellies were full, and they had a good night's sleep in the hayloft. "Do mages beg often?" Tenar asked, and they were walking along the Green Field Road, with Shanfeng and Xiaohuaniu grazing in the green meadows on either side. "Why do you ask?" "You seem to be very used to begging. To be honest, you are really good at begging." "Well, yes. I've been begging all my life, that way of looking at it. Needless to say, a wizard doesn't have much. In fact, when he roams, he has a wand and a suit of clothing. Most people are happy to give Give the mage food and shelter, and the mage will do what he can in return." "How to repay?" "Well, for example, that village woman just now, I treated her sheep." "What happened to the sheep?" "They all suffer from udder infection. I used to herd sheep when I was a kid." "Did you tell her you cured the sheep?" "No. How to tell her? Why?" After a moment's pause, she said, "I see that your magic is not only useful for great things." "It's amazing to show hospitality to strangers. Of course, thank you is enough, but I feel sorry for the goats," he said. In the afternoon, the two passed through a large town.The houses in the town are built of mud bricks, and battlements and watchtowers are added to the four corners of the village, and a Karst city wall is built, but there is only one gate, and several livestock dealers are driving a large flock of sheep through the gate.The red brick roofs of more than a hundred houses protrude above the upper yellow stone wall.Two guards stood by the town gate, wearing helmets with red feathers on their heads, the kind of helmets meant to serve the God King.Tenar had seen men in such helmets come to the tomb site once a year or so, escorting slaves or money to the Temple of the God-King for offerings.This was what Tenar told Ged as they passed beyond the walls, and Ged replied, "I have seen it too. When I was a boy they raided the Isle of Gont, and swarmed our village to plunder them, but only drove them away. But afterward in Ar There was a battle on the banks of the river mouth, and many were killed, hundreds are said to be. Well, now that the armbands have been recovered, and the lost talisman has been rediscovered, there may be no difference between the Karg Empire and the island kingdoms of the Inner Rim. No more attacks and killings like this." "It would be unwise for such things to continue," Tenar said. "The God-King has so many slaves that it is not known what he intends to do with them." Her companion evidently pondered the question for a while. "You mean, after Karg defeats the Kingdom of the Islands?" She nods. "I don't think that's going to happen." "But look at how powerful this empire is. Take the big city just now as an example. It has walls and guards. If they send troops to attack, how will your island resist?" "That city is not too big," he said cautiously and gently, "When I first left the mountain village of my hometown, I also thought that such a city was very big, but there are many, many cities in the whole land and sea. Compared with those cities, It's only a small town. There are many, many islands in Earthsea. You'll see, Tenar." She didn't say anything, just shuffled along the road with a sullen face. "As the ships approached the islands, it was admirable to see lands that had never been seen rising from the sea. Farms, forests, towns, palaces, ports, and markets selling goods from all over the world, oh, It really has it all.” She nods.She knew he was trying to inspire her, but all her joy remained in the dark valley above the hill where the brook ran.Now, instead, there was a growing fear in her heart.The future is uncertain, except for the desert and the tomb, she knows nothing about the world.Know what is the use of deserts and mausoleums?She knows the turns of underground tunnels, but they crumble; she knows how to dance at altars, but they crumble.She knew nothing of forests, towns, or even the human heart. She said suddenly, "Will you live in Havnor with me?" She didn't look at him.He was still the illusion's disguise, a fair-skinned Kalger countryman, and she didn't like to see him that way.However, his voice remained unchanged, exactly as it had been when speaking in the darkness of the Great Labyrinth. He was slow to answer. "Tenar, my life is to follow my call, to go where I am sent. So far, I have not been stuck on an island for long. Do you understand? I have to do what I have to do, and those things You have to do it alone. If you need me, I will stay with you in Havnor. Later, if you need me again, you can call me and I will come. As long as you call, I will come even if I lie in the grave , Tenar! But I cannot stay in Havnor with you long." She said nothing.After a while he said again, "You won't need me soon in Havnor. You'll be happy." She nodded and silently accepted. They walked side by side to the ocean.