Jon Connington也许会是那些继任者之一，如果他不这么逃亡了的话。他在勇仝士团呆了五年，从列兵一路升为Toyne的右手荣位。如果他留下了，他也许会在Myl仝es Toyne死后成为他们所追随的对象，而不是Harry Strickland。但Griff不后悔自己选择的路。当我回到维斯特洛，就不会成为另一个长杆上的头颅了。
Jon Connington might have been one of those successors if his exile had gone otherwise. He had spent five years with the company, rising from the ranks to a place of honor at Toyne’s right hand. Had he stayed, it might well have been him the men turned to after Myles died, instead of Harry Strickland. But Griff did not regret the path he’d chosen. When I return to Westeros, it will not be as a skull atop a pole.
Flowers走出帐篷：“进来吧。”
Flowers stepped out of the tent. “Go on in.”
他们走进去的时候，黄金勇仝士团的高级军官们纷纷从营凳折椅上站了起来。老朋友们用微笑与拥仝抱欢迎Griff，新人们表现得更为正式。不是所有的人都乐于看到我，他们会让我相信这一点的。他感到某些微笑之后的刀子。直到最近，他们大部分人都仍相信Jon Connington大人正安安稳稳地躺在他的坟墓里，无疑很多人都觉得这对他——一个偷窃自己战友的人来说是个不错的地方。如果自己是他们，Griff也许会有同样的想法。
The high officers of the Golden Company rose from stools and camp chairs as they entered. Old friends greeted Griff with smiles and embraces, the new men more formally. Not all of them are as glad to see us as they would have me believe. He sensed knives behind some of the smiles. Until quite recently, most of them had believed that Lord Jon Connington was safely in his grave, and no doubt many felt that was a fine place for him, a man who would steal from his brothers-in-arms. Griff might have felt the same way in their place.
Franklyn爵士作了介绍。一些佣兵队长有着私生子的姓氏，就像Flowers一样：Rivers、Hill、Stone。其他人拥有一些在七大王国历仝史上曾经著名的姓氏；Griff数了数，有两个来自Strong家族、三个来自Peake家族、一个来自Mudd家族、一个来自Mandrake家族、一个来自Lothston家族、以及一对来自Cole家族的。并不都是纯种，他知道。在自仝由兵团中，一个人可以随仝心仝所仝欲的称呼自己。无论姓什么，佣兵总是以粗俗著称。就像部仝队中的很多人，都把他们到处征战得来的财富全数挂在身上：镶宝石的剑、雕花的盔甲、沉重的颈环，而好的绸子衣服就算是比较突出的了。而每一个人都戴着的金臂环都来自各位领主老仝爷的赎金。每个臂环代表着在黄金勇仝士团服役的一年。Marq Mandrake，有着一张满是痘疤的脸，一侧脸颊上还有一个因烧掉奴仝隶标志而留下的洞，还戴着一串金骷髅。
Ser Franklyn did the introductions. Some of the sellsword captains bore bastard names, as Flowers did: Rivers, Hill, Stone. Others claimed names that had once loomed large in the histories of the Seven Kingdoms; Griff counted two Strongs, three Peakes, a Mudd, a Mandrake, a Lothston, a pair of Coles. Not all were genuine, he knew. In the free companies, a man could call himself whatever he chose. By any name, the sellswords displayed a rude splendor. Like many in their trade, they kept their worldly wealth upon their persons: jeweled swords, inlaid armor, heavy torcs, and fine silks were much in evidence, and every man there wore a lord’s ransom in golden arm rings. Each ring signified one year’s service with the Golden Company. Marq Mandrake, whose pox-scarred face had a hole in one cheek where a slave’s mark had been burned away, wore a chain of golden skulls as well.
不是每一个军官都是维斯特洛大仝陆后裔。Black Balaq，一名白发的盛夏群岛人，皮肤像煤炭一样黑，指挥勇仝士团的弓箭手，在“黑心”时代就是如此。他穿着一件绿色和橙色的羽毛大氅，看起来很华丽。形容枯槁的瓦伦提斯人Gorys Edoryen接替Strickland成了军资官。一张豹皮从一侧肩膀垂下，血红的头发在肩上油亮打卷，不过他的尖尖的胡子是黑色的。新任情报官Griff并不认识，一个名叫Lysono Maar的里斯人，有着淡紫色的眼睛和白金色的头发，嘴唇会让妓仝女都感到嫉妒。第一眼看去时，Griff差点把他当成一个女人。他的指甲涂成了紫色，而他的耳环上垂着珍珠和紫水晶。
Not every captain was of Westerosi blood. Black Balaq, a white-haired Summer Islander with skin dark as soot, commanded the company’s archers, as in Blackheart’s day. He wore a feathered cloak of green and orange, magnificent to behold. The cadaverous Volantene, Gorys Edoryen, had replaced Strickland as paymaster. A leopard skin was draped across one shoulder, and hair as red as blood tumbled to his shoulders in oiled ringlets though his pointed beard was black. The spymaster was new to Griff, a Lyseni named Lysono Maar, with lilac eyes and white-gold hair and lips that would have been the envy of a whore. At first glance, Griff had almost taken him for a woman. His fingernails were painted purple, and his earlobes dripped with pearls and amethysts.
幽仝灵和扯谎者，Griff一边看着他们的脸想。来自遗忘之战、输掉之役、失败叛乱的归魂，失败者、失势者、耻辱者和被剥夺继承权的人的兄弟会。这就是我们最好的希望。
Ghosts and liars, Griff thought, as he surveyed their faces. Revenants from forgotten wars, lost causes, failed rebellions, a brotherhood of the failed and the fallen, the disgraced and the disinherited. This is my army. This is our best hope.
他转向Harry Strickland。
He turned to Harry Strickland.
“无家者”Harry Strickland看起来不太像个战士。肥胖，大圆脑袋，淡灰色双眼，以及被他梳到一边以掩盖秃头的薄薄头发，Strickland坐在一张折椅上，双脚泡在一桶盐水里。“你要原谅我没有起身欢迎你。”他以迎接的口气说道，“我们的行军令人疲倦，而我的脚趾很容易长水泡。这是个诅咒。”
Homeless Harry looked little like a warrior. Portly, with a big round head, mild grey eyes, and thinning hair that he brushed sideways to conceal a bald spot, Strickland sat in a camp chair soaking his feet in a tub of salt water. “You will pardon me if I do not rise,” he said by way of greeting. “Our march was wearisome, and my toes are prone to blisters. It is a curse.”
这是虚弱的象征。你听起来就像个老女人。Strickland家族从黄金勇仝士团成仝立之初就是其中一个部分，Harry的曾祖父在第一次黑衣人叛乱时跟随黑龙而丢仝了自己的领地。“四代人的财富。”Harry会这么自夸，就好像四代人的逃亡和溃败有什么好自豪的一样。
It is a mark of weakness. You sound like an old woman. The Stricklands had been part of the Golden Company since its founding, Harry’s great-grandsire having lost his lands when he rose with the Black Dragon during the first Blackfyre Rebellion. “Gold for four generations,” Harry would boast, as if four generations of exile and defeat were something to take pride in.
“我可以为你制仝作一种药膏来解决这个问题。”Haldon说，“里面有种矿物盐能够让你的皮肤强韧。”
“I can make you an ointment for that,” said Haldon, “and there are certain mineral salts that will toughen your skin.”
“你真好心。”Strickland向他的随从点点头，“Watkyn，给我们的朋友拿酒。”
“That is kind of you.” Strickland beckoned to his squire. “Watkyn, wine for our friends.”
“谢谢，不过不必了。”Griff说，“我们喝水就好。”
“Thank you, but no,” said Griff. “We will drink water.”
“随你喜欢。”总指挥向王子微笑，“那这个一定是你的儿子了。”
“As you prefer.” The captain-general smiled up at the prince. “And this must be your son.”
他知道吗？Griff疑惑着。Myl仝es告诉了他多少？瓦里斯曾坚持必须保密。他和伊利里欧还有“黑心”一起筹划的计划只有他们知道。团里其他人则一无所知。如果他们知道的话，一定不会让这个机会溜走。
Does he know? Griff wondered. How much did Myles tell him? Varys had been adamant about the need for secrecy. The plans that he and Illyrio had made with Blackheart had been known to them alone. The rest of the company had been left ignorant. What they did not know they could not let slip.
不过那个时候已经过去了。“没有人会想要比他更值得的儿子。”Griff说，“不过这位少年并非是我的后代，而他也不姓Griff。大人，我向你介绍伊耿？坦格里安，雷加的长子，第六位伊耿，安达尔人、罗伊拿人以及先民之王，七大王国的君主。”
That time was done, though. “No man could have asked for a worthier son,” Griff said, “but the lad is not of my blood, and his name is not Griff. My lords, I give you Aegon Targaryen, firstborn son of Rhaegar, Prince of Dragonstone, by Princess Elia of Dorne … soon, with your help, to be Aegon, the Sixth of His Name, King of Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms.”
寂静是对他声明的回应。某些人清了清喉咙。Cole家的一个用酒壶给自己满上了杯红酒。Gorys Edoryen一边玩着自己的发卷一边用Griff不懂的方言小声嘟囔着什么。Laswell Peake咳嗽了下，Mandrake和Lothston交换了下眼神。他们知道，Griff才明白过来。他们一直都知道。他转向Harry Strickland：“你什么时候告诉他们的？”
Silence greeted his announcement. Someone cleared his throat. One of the Coles refilled his wine cup from the flagon. Gorys Edoryen played with one of his corkscrew ringlets and murmured something in a tongue Griff did not know. Laswell Peake coughed, Mandrake and Lothston exchanged a glance. They know, Griff realized then. They have known all along. He turned to look at Harry Strickland. “When did you tell them?”
总指挥扭仝动着他洗脚盆里的脚趾。“当我们到达河边时。军团得不到休息，需要个好理由。争议之地那一战易胜，我们却离开了，为了什么？就为了让我们在可怕的高温里中暑、看着我们的铜板融化、我们的刀刃生锈，而回绝一笔丰厚的合约？”
The captain-general wriggled his blistered toes in his footbath. “When we reached the river. The company was restless, with good reason. We walked away from an easy campaign in the Disputed Lands, and for what? So we could swelter in this god-awful heat watching our coins melt away and our blades go to rust whilst I turn away rich contracts?”
这条新闻让Griff毛仝骨仝悚仝然：“谁的合约？”
That news made Griff’s skin crawl. “Who?”
“渊凯人。他们派去向瓦伦提斯求情的使节已经往奴仝隶湾派遣了三支自仝由兵团。他希望我们成为第四支，他允仝诺给我们两倍于密尔给我们的报酬，外加每个人一个奴仝隶，每个军官十个，以及专为我挑选的一百个女仝奴。”
“The Yunkishmen. The envoy that they sent to woo Volantis has already dispatched three free companies to Slaver’s Bay. He wishes us to be the fourth and offers twice what Myr was paying us, plus a slave for every man in the company, ten for every officer, and a hundred choice maidens all for me.”
该死。“那需要上千名奴仝隶。渊凯人上哪儿找那么多奴仝隶？”
Bloody hell. “That would require thousands of slaves. Where do the Yunkishmen expect to find so many?”
“弥林。”Strickland向他的随从点点头，“Watkyn，毛巾。这水凉了，我的脚趾皱得像葡萄干似的。不，不要那条，要软的那条。”
“In Meereen.” Strickland beckoned to his squire. “Watkyn, a towel. This water’s growing cool, and my toes have wrinkled up like raisins. No, not that towel, the soft one.”
“你拒绝了他。”Griff说。
“You refused him,” said Griff.
“我告诉他我会考虑他的提议。” Harry因为随从给他擦脚的疼痛而呲牙咧嘴。“对那些脚趾温柔点。把它们当成薄皮的葡萄，小伙子。你要弄干仝它们而不弄碎它们。轻拍，而不是搓。对，就像那样。”他转过头对着Griff，“粗仝鲁地拒绝是不明智的。他们也许会当然地问我是不是失去了理智。”
“I told him I would think on his proposal.” Harry winced as his squire toweled his feet. “Gentle with the toes. Think of them as thin-skinned grapes, lad. You want to dry them without crushing them. Pat, do not scrub. Yes, like that.” He turned back to Griff. “A blunt refusal would have been unwise. The men might rightly ask if I had taken leave of my wits.”
“你的刀刃很快就有活干了。”
“You will have work for your blades soon enough.”
“是嘛？”Lysono Maar问道，“我猜你知道那坦格里安女孩儿没启程往西去吧？”
“Will we?” asked Lysono Maar. “I assume you know that the Targaryen girl has not started for the west?”
“我们在赛尔霍利斯听到了这个传闻。”
“We heard that tale in Selhorys.”
“不是传闻。是简单的事实。原因倒是更难理解。掠劫弥林，是啊，为什么不呢？我如果是她也会这么做。奴仝隶城充满了金子的臭气，而征程需要铜板。但是为什么停留？恐惧？疯狂？怠惰？”
“No tale. Simple truth. The why of it is harder to grasp. Sack Meereen, aye, why not? I would have done the same in her place. The slaver cities reek of gold, and conquest requires coin. But why linger? Fear? Madness? Sloth?”
“原因并不重要。”Harry Strickland展开一双条纹羊毛长袜，“她在弥林而我们在这儿，瓦伦提斯人对我们在这儿的出现日益不满。我们是来拥护带我们回维斯特洛的国王与皇后，但是这个坦格里安女孩儿似乎对种橄榄树比夺回她父亲的宝座更感兴趣。正在此时，他的敌人正在聚仝集力量。渊凯、新吉斯、脱罗斯。‘血胡子’和‘破烂王子’都会在对抗她的阵营里……用不了多久老瓦伦提斯的舰队也会造访她的。她又有什么？拿棍仝子的陪床奴仝隶？”
“The why of it does not matter.” Harry Strickland unrolled a pair of striped woolen stockings. “She is in Meereen and we are here, where the Volantenes grow daily more unhappy with our presence. We came to raise up a king and queen who would lead us home to Westeros, but this Targaryen girl seems more intent on planting olive trees than in reclaiming her father’s throne. Meanwhile, her foes gather. Yunkai, New Ghis, Tolos. Bloodbeard and the Tattered Prince will both be in the field against her … and soon enough the fleets of Old Volantis will descend on her as well. What does she have? Bedslaves with sticks?”
“无垢者。”Griff说，“还有龙。”
“Unsullied,” said Griff. “And dragons.”
“龙，是啊。”总指挥说，“不过是小龙，比刚孵化的大一点。”Strickland穿上袜子，轻轻覆盖水泡，直到脚腕，“当所有的军仝队像拳头一样靠近她的城市时，它们对她能有什么帮助？”
“Dragons, aye,” the captain-general said, “but young ones, hardly more than hatchlings.” Strickland eased his sock over his blisters and up his ankle. “How much will they avail her when all these armies close about her city like a fist?”
Tristan Rivers在膝盖上敲打着手指：“我看这也是我们必须快点到达她那儿的原因。如果丹妮莉丝不来找我们，我们就得去找她。”
Tristan Rivers drummed his fingers on his knee. “All the more reason that we must reach her quickly, I say. If Daenerys will not come to us, we must go to Daenerys.”
“我们能徒步走过海浪么，爵士？” Lysono Maar问道，“我再对你说一次，我们无法通过海路接近银女王。我一个人溜进瓦伦提斯城，装成是个商人，来搞清楚有多少船能供我们使用。港口充满了各种各样的军舰、附船和大帆船，甚至是这样我也发现自己很快开始想与走私船和海盗合作。我们军团有一万人，我也确定Connington大人这么多年服役兵团下来一定知道。五百骑士，每个人有三匹马。五百随从，每个骑士一个。还有大象，我们不能忘了大象。一艘海盗船根本满足不了。我们需要一支海盗舰队……而且就算我们找到了一支海盗舰队，奴仝隶湾传来的消息也表示弥林已经武仝装戒仝严了。”
“Can we walk across the waves, ser?” asked Lysono Maar. “I tell you again, we cannot reach the silver queen by sea. I slipped into Volantis myself, posing as a trader, to learn how many ships might be available to us. The harbor teems with galleys, cogs, and carracks of every sort and size, yet even so I soon found myself consorting with smugglers and pirates. We have ten thousand men in the company, as I am sure Lord Connington remembers from his years of service with us. Five hundred knights, each with three horses. Five hundred squires, with one mount apiece. And elephants, we must not forget the elephants. A pirate ship will not suffice. We would need a pirate fleet … and even if we found one, the word has come back from Slaver’s Bay that Meereen has been closed off by blockade.”
“我们可以伪仝造渊凯的证明文件。” Gorys Edoryen力争道，“允许渊凯船只将我们运往东边，然后在弥林城下再把金子还给他们。”
“We could feign acceptance of the Yunkish offer,” urged Gorys Edoryen. “Allow the Yunkai’i to transport us to the east, then return their gold beneath the walls of Meereen.”
“一次毁约已经够玷污我们军团的荣誉了。”“无家者”Harry Strickland穿袜子的手停了下来，“让我提醒提醒你，在秘密契约上盖印的是Myl仝es Toyne，不是我。如果我可以的话，我会荣耀地完成他的协定，但是要怎么做呢？对我来说坦格里安姑娘不会回到西方这一点似乎已经很明白了。维斯特洛是他父亲的王国。而弥林是她的。如果她能攻克渊凯城，她就会成为奴仝隶湾的女王。如果不能，我们能有希望找着她之前，她都已经死了好久了。”
“One broken contract is stain enough upon the honor of the company.” Homeless Harry Strickland paused with his blistered foot in hand. “Let me remind you, it was Myles Toyne who put his seal to this secret pact, not me. I would honor his agreement if I could, but how? It seems plain to me that the Targaryen girl is never coming west. Westeros was her father’s kingdom. Meereen is hers. If she can break the Yunkai’i, she’ll be Queen of Slaver’s Bay. If not, she’ll die long before we could hope to reach her.”
他的话对Griff来说不算惊人。Harry Strickland一直是个温吞吞的人，在打破合约方面比打击敌人来得厉害多了。他善于嗅到财富的味道，但是他有没有打仗的勇气就是另一个问题了。
His words came as no surprise to Griff. Harry Strickland had always been a genial man, better at hammering out contracts than at hammering on foes. He had a nose for gold, but whether he had the belly for battle was another question.
“也有陆上的路线。” Franklyn Flowers提议说。
“There is the land route,” suggested Franklyn Flowers.
“魔鬼之路行不通。我们会在行军途中损失一半的军仝队——逃走，留下来的人一半也会被沿路掩埋。说这话真让我痛心，但是伊利里欧总督和他的朋友们对这孩子女王抱有这么多期望也许真是不太明智。”
“The demon road is death. We will lose half the company to desertion if we attempt that march, and bury half of those who remain beside the road. It grieves me to say it, but Magister Illyrio and his friends may have been unwise to put so much hope on this child queen.”
不，Griff想，但他们最不明智的就是对你抱以期望。
No, thought Griff, but they were most unwise to put their hopes on you.
然后伊耿王子开口了。“那就对我抱以期望吧。”他说，“丹妮莉丝是雷加王子的妹妹，但我是雷加的儿子。我是你唯一需要的龙。”
And then Prince Aegon spoke. “Then put your hopes on me,” he said. “Daenerys is Prince Rhaegar’s sister, but I am Rhaegar’s son. I am the only dragon that you need.”
Griff用带着黑仝手套的手放在伊耿的肩上。“大胆说。”他说，“但是要想想你在说什么。”
Griff put a black-gloved hand upon Prince Aegon’s shoulder. “Spoken boldly,” he said, “but think what you are saying.”
“我想过了。”少年坚持道，“为什么我要像个乞丐一样去投奔我的姑姑？我的称号比她的更好。让她来投奔我吧……来维斯特洛。”
“I have,” the lad insisted. “Why should I go running to my aunt as if I were a beggar? My claim is better than her own. Let her come to me … in Westeros.”
Franklyn Flowers大笑了起来：“我喜欢这个。向西航行，不向东。把那小女王留给橄榄树，让伊耿王子坐在铁王座上。这男孩有胆，给他铁王座。”
Franklyn Flowers laughed. “I like it. Sail west, not east. Leave the little queen to her olives and seat Prince Aegon upon the Iron Throne. The boy has stones, give him that.”
总指挥就好像有人打了他一巴掌似的：“太阳把你的脑子烧糊了么，Flowers？我们需要那女孩。我们需要联姻。如果丹妮莉丝承认我们的小王子并让他成为她的配仝偶，那么七大王国仝会一样接受，没有她，领主们只会嘲笑他的自我声明，然后给他贴上骗子和冒牌货的标签。而且你觉得我们该怎么去维斯特洛？你听到Lysono说的了。我们没有船。”
The captain-general looked as if someone had slapped his face. “Has the sun curdled your brains, Flowers? We need the girl. We need the marriage. If Daenerys accepts our princeling and takes him for her consort, the Seven Kingdoms will do the same. Without her, the lords will only mock his claim and brand him a fraud and a pretender. And how do you propose to get to Westeros? You heard Lysono. There are no ships to be had.”
这个人害怕战斗，Griff明白过来。他们怎们能选他接替“黑心”的位置？“去奴仝隶湾是没有船。去维斯特洛又是另一回事了。东方向我们关上了大门，而不是大海。我不怀疑元老们会很高兴看到我们回去。他们也许甚至会为我们安排好回七大王国的行程。没有哪个城市想要自己门口有一支军仝队。”
This man is afraid to fight, Griff realized. How could they have chosen him to take the Blackheart’s place? “No ships for Slaver’s Bay. Westeros is another matter. The east is closed to us, not the sea. The triarchs would be glad to see the back of us, I do not doubt. They might even help us arrange passage back to the Seven Kingdoms. No city wants an army on its doorstep.”
“他没说错。” Lysono Maar说，
“He’s not wrong,” said Lysono Maar.
“现在狮子肯定已经得知了龙的存在。”Cole家的一个说，“但瑟曦的注意力主要集中在弥林和另一个女王身上。她并不知道我们王子的存在。一旦我们登陆并扬旗，许许多多的人会群集来加入我们。”
“By now the lion surely has the dragon’s scent,” said one of the Coles, “but Cersei’s attentions will be fixed upon Meereen and this other queen. She knows nothing of our prince. Once we land and raise our banners, many and more will flock to join us.”
“一些人。”“无家者”Harry承认，“但不是许多。雷加的妹妹有龙。雷加的儿子没有。我们没有丹妮莉丝和她的军仝队是没有力量夺下王国的。她的无垢者。”
“Some,” allowed Homeless Harry, “not many. Rhaegar’s sister has dragons. Rhaegar’s son does not. We do not have the strength to take the realm without Daenerys and her army. Her Unsullied.”
“第一位伊耿打下维斯特洛时并没有太监帮助。” Lysono Maar说，“为什么第六位伊耿不能同样做？”
“The first Aegon took Westeros without eunuchs,” said Lysono Maar. “Why shouldn’t the sixth Aegon do the same?”
“计划是——”
“The plan—”
“哪个计划？”Tristan Rivers说，“胖子的计划？那个随着月亮盈缺改变心意的家伙？先是说韦赛里斯？坦格里安将带着五万多斯拉克大军加入我们。接着说乞丐王死了，于是带兵的将是他妹妹，一个柔仝弱年幼的孩子女王正带着三仝条龙前往潘托斯。然后那女孩在奴仝隶湾变卦了，一路烧了一串城市，而胖子决定我们将在瓦伦提斯与她汇合。现在那计划也一样破产了。”
“Which plan?” said Tristan Rivers. “The fat man’s plan? The one that changes every time the moon turns? First Viserys Targaryen was to join us with fifty thousand Dothraki screamers at his back. Then the Beggar King was dead, and it was to be the sister, a pliable young child queen who was on her way to Pentos with three new-hatched dragons. Instead the girl turns up on Slaver’s Bay and leaves a string of burning cities in her wake, and the fat man decides we should meet her by Volantis. Now that plan is in ruins as well.
“我受够了伊利里欧的计划了。劳勃？拜拉席恩没有龙助也赢得了铁王座。我们也能一样。而且如果我错了，国仝民没有为我们而起，我们也能撤退到狭海这边，就像Bittersteel曾经那样，以及他之后的其他人。”
“I have had enough of Illyrio’s plans. Robert Baratheon won the Iron Throne without the benefit of dragons. We can do the same. And if I am wrong and the realm does not rise for us, we can always retreat back across the narrow sea, as Bittersteel once did, and others after him.”
Strickland倔强地摇着头：“风险——”
Strickland shook his head stubbornly. “The risk—”
“——不再是从前那样了，泰温？兰尼斯特死了。征服七大王国的机会不能再成熟了。另一个男孩国王坐在铁王座上，甚至比上一个还年幼，而反抗者就像秋天地上的落叶那么多。”
“—is not what it was, now that Tywin Lannister is dead. The Seven Kingdoms will never be more ripe for conquest. Another boy king sits the Iron Throne, this one even younger than the last, and rebels are thick upon the ground as autumn leaves.”
“就算这样。”Strickland说，“单独的，我们无望于——”
“Even so,” said Strickland, “alone, we cannot hope to—”
Griff听够了总指挥的懦弱之言：“我们不是单独的。多恩仝人会加入我们，必须加入我们。伊耿王子是雷加之仝子，也是伊莉亚之仝子。”
Griff had heard enough of the captain-general’s cowardice. “We will not be alone. Dorne will join us, must join us. Prince Aegon is Elia’s son as well as Rhaegar’s.”
“是那样。”男孩说，“然后谁留在维斯特洛对抗我们？一个女人。”
“That’s so,” the boy said, “and who is there left in Westeros to oppose us? A woman.”
“一个兰尼斯特家的女人。”总指挥坚持着，“那婊仝子身边有弑君者，算上那个，然后他们背后还有所有的凯岩城的财富。伊利里欧说那男孩国王和提利尔家的女儿订婚了，那意味着我们还必须面对高庭的力量。”
“A Lannister woman,” insisted the captain-general. “The bitch will have the Kingslayer at her side, count on that, and they will have all the wealth of Casterly Rock behind them. And Illyrio says this boy king is betrothed to the Tyrell girl, which means we must face the power of Highgarden as well.”
Laswell Peake在桌上敲着指节：“甚至一个世纪之后，我们仍在河湾地拥有朋友。高庭的力量也许并不像梅斯？提利尔想象的那么强大。”
Laswell Peake rapped his knuckles on the table. “Even after a century, some of us still have friends in the Reach. The power of Highgarden may not be what Mace Tyrell imagines.”
“伊耿王子。” Tristan Rivers说，“我们都是你仝的仝人。渡海向西而不是向东，这是你的愿望么？”
“Prince Aegon,” said Tristan Rivers, “we are your men. Is this your wish, that we sail west instead of east?”
“是的。”伊耿热切地回应，“如果我姑姑想要弥林，那我欢迎。我会宣布自己拥有铁王座，依靠你们的宝剑与忠诚。快速前进，强力打击，我们就能在兰尼斯特得知我们登陆之前先赢得一些简单的胜利。那会为我们带来更多的人。”
“It is,” Aegon replied eagerly. “If my aunt wants Meereen, she’s welcome to it. I will claim the Iron Throne by myself, with your swords and your allegiance. Move fast and strike hard, and we can win some easy victories before the Lannisters even know that we have landed. That will bring others to our cause.”
Rivers微笑着赞成。其他人交换着思索的眼神。然后Peake说：“我宁愿更快死在维斯特洛也不愿意死在魔鬼之路上。”Marq Mandrake咯咯笑着回应说：“我，我宁愿更快活下来，得到土地和一些不错的城堡。” Franklyn Flowers拍拍剑柄说：“只要让我能杀掉几个Fossoway家的，我就去。”
Rivers was smiling in approval. Others traded thoughtful looks. Then Peake said, “I would sooner die in Westeros than on the demon road,” and Marq Mandrake chuckled and responded, “Me, I’d sooner live, win lands and some great castle,” and Franklyn Flowers slapped his sword hilt and said, “So long as I can kill some Fossoways, I’m for it.”
当他们所有人都开始一同说起来，Griff知道潮流已经改向。这是伊耿我从未见过的一面。这不是谨慎的路子，但是他已经厌倦了谨慎，烦恶了秘密，疲劳于等待。胜利或失败，他会在死前再次见到狮鹫的栖息，然后被埋葬在他父亲的坟墓边。
When all of them began to speak at once, Griff knew the tide had turned. This is a side of Aegon I never saw before. It was not the prudent course, but he was tired of prudence, sick of secrets, weary of waiting. Win or lose, he would see Griffin’s Roost again before he died, and be buried in the tomb beside his father’s.
一个又一个，黄金勇仝士团的人站出来，跪下，然后将他的剑放在他的年轻王子的脚前。最后一个这么做的是“无家者”Harry Strickland，带着他长满水泡的脚以及所有一切。
One by one, the men of the Golden Company rose, knelt, and laid their swords at the feet of his young prince. The last to do so was Homeless Harry Strickland, blistered feet and all.
他们离开总指挥帐篷时，太阳染红了西边的天空，给矛上的金头颅映上了绯红的影子。Franklyn Flowers主动提出带王子在军营里转转，向他介绍一些同龄人。Griff同意了：“但是记住，担心到军团的人，他仍应被称为年轻的Griff，直到我们穿越狭海”。在维斯特洛我们会洗净他的头发，让他穿上自己的盔甲。”
The sun was reddening the western sky and painting scarlet shadows on the golden skulls atop their spears when they took their leave of the captain-general’s tent. Franklyn Flowers offered to take the prince around the camp and introduce him to some of what he called the lads. Griff gave his consent. “But remember, so far as the company is concerned, he must remain Young Griff until we cross the narrow sea. In Westeros we’ll wash his hair and let him don his armor.”
“好嘞，明白。“Flowers拍拍年轻的Griff的背，”跟着我。我们从厨子开始。值得认识的好人。
“Aye, understood.” Flowers clapped a hand on Young Griff’s back. “With me. We’ll start with the cooks. Good men to know.”
“他们走后，Griff转过身对“半学士”说：“骑回羞涩处仝女仝号然后把Lemore夫人和Rolly爵士带来。我们也需要伊利里欧的资金。所有的铜板，和盔甲。向Yandry和Ysilla致以我们的谢意。他们的工作已经完成了。国王回国后不会忘记他们的。”
When they were gone, Griff turned to the Halfmaester. “Ride back to the Shy Maid and return with Lady Lemore and Ser Rolly. We’ll need Illyrio’s chests as well. All the coin, and the armor. Give Yandry and Ysilla our thanks. Their part in this is done. They will not be forgotten when His Grace comes into his kingdom.”
“照您吩咐，大人。”
“As you command, my lord.”
Griff离开他，钻进“无家者”Harry分配给他的帐篷。
Griff left him there, and slipped inside the tent that Homeless Harry had assigned him.
前路上充满了危险，他明白，又有什么关系呢？所有人都会死。他需要的只是时间。他已经等待了这么久，神一定会再给他更多几年，足够他看到曾被他称作儿子的男孩坐上铁王座。宣布拥有他的土地、他的姓氏、他的荣耀。并停止每当他闭上眼睛就会在他梦中巨响的钟声，独自在帐篷里，落日金色与绯红的光线透过打开的帐篷门帘照射仝进来，Jon Connington脱仝下他的狼皮大氅，将他的铁链衫脱仝下，放在营凳上，脱仝下右手的手套。他看到自己的中指指甲变得像黑玉一样黑，而灰色已经快蔓延到第一指节的位置。无名指指尖也开始变暗了，而当他用匕仝首尖碰它的时候，他没有任何感觉。
The road ahead was full of perils, he knew, but what of it? All men must die. All he asked was time. He had waited so long, surely the gods would grant him a few more years, enough time to see the boy he’d called a son seated on the Iron Throne. To reclaim his lands, his name, his honor. To still the bells that rang so loudly in his dreams whenever he closed his eyes to sleep. Alone in the tent, as the gold and scarlet rays of the setting sun shone through the open flap, Jon Connington shrugged off his wolfskin cloak, slipped his mail shirt off over his head, settled on a camp stool, and peeled the glove from his right hand. The nail on his middle finger had turned as black as jet, he saw, and the grey had crept up almost to the first knuckle. The tip of his ring finger had begun to darken too, and when he touched it with the point of his dagger, he felt nothing.
死亡，他知道，但是很缓慢。我仍有时间。一年。两年。五年。一些石仝人甚至活了十年。足够时间穿过海洋，去再次看到狮鹫的巢穴了。去永久终结篡位者的家族，并将雷加之仝子拥上铁王座。
Death, he knew, but slow. I still have time. A year. Two years. Five. Some stone men live for ten. Time enough to cross the sea, to see Griffin’s Roost again. To end the Usurper’s line for good and all, and put Rhaegar’s son upon the Iron Throne.
然后Jon Connington大人将死得其所。
Then Lord Jon Connington could die content.
