Ch3-Dragons Everywhere

CHAPTER THREE Dragons Everywhere

第三章龙无处不在

"Oh, wow…a secret garden," whispered Annie. She put Oki down and unhooked his leash, and the puppy dashed into the lush greenery. Guinevere led Jack and Annie through the doorway and into the walled garden. As they followed her down a stone path, they passed tangles of cream-colored lilies, butter-yellow daffodils, blue periwinkles, and pale-pink roses. "From her plants, Morgan makes inks and paints for the books of our scribes," explained Guinevere, "and dyes for the wool of the castle weavers." "Cool," said Annie. Guinevere pointed to raised earth beds in the center of the garden. "She grows flowers and herbs for healing everyday illnesses and injuries," she said. "Like what?" asked Jack. "Nettles for a cold," said Guinevere, "and mint for headaches." She pointed to a fishpond surrounded by yellow-green grasses and white flowers. "Lemon-grass for fever, and yarrow to stop bleeding."

“哦，哇……一个秘密花园，”安妮小声说。 她放下奥基，解开他的皮带，小狗冲进了郁郁葱葱的绿色植物。 桂尼维尔领着杰克和安妮穿过门口，进入有围墙的花园。 他们跟着她走在一条石径上，经过了一簇簇奶油色的百合花、黄油黄色的水仙花、蓝色的长春花和淡粉色的玫瑰。 “摩根用她的植物为我们的抄写员的书制作墨水和颜料，”吉娜薇解释说，“还为城堡织工的羊毛染色。” “酷，”安妮说。桂尼维尔指着花园中央凸起的土床。 “她种植花草来治疗日常的疾病和伤害，”她说。 “比如什么？”杰克问。“荨麻治感冒，”吉娜薇说，“薄荷治头痛。” 她指着一个鱼塘，周围是黄绿色的草和白色的花。 “用柠檬草退烧，用蓍草止血。”

Jack shivered. The air felt tingly and alive. Why did he imagine they were being watched? Did he hear breathing? Whispering? The flutter of wings? Or was it just the wind blowing through the garden? Oki started barking. He bounced up and down, yelping at something in the shrubbery. When Jack and Annie hurried to him, they found a small bronze statue of a dragon. Jack laughed. "It's not a real dragon, Oki," he said. "It's just a statue." Annie started to pick up the puppy. But Oki dashed to a patch of pink roses and barked again. Jack and Annie followed him and found a statue carved from pink granite. "Another dragon!" said Annie. Oki kept bounding around the garden, yelping at more and more hidden dragon statues: a clay dragon tucked behind clay pots, an emerald dragon hidden among the ivy, a marble dragon between white stones, a silver dragon in tall silvery grass, a glass dragon and a dragon made from seashells in the shadows of the rock wall.

杰克颤抖。空气中充满了活力。 为什么他认为他们被监视了？ 他听到呼吸声了吗？窃窃私语? 翅膀扑腾的声音？或者只是风吹过花园？ Oki开始叫。他跳上跳下，对着灌木丛里的什么东西大喊大叫。 当杰克和安妮赶到他身边时，他们发现了一个小的青铜龙雕像。 杰克笑了。“这不是真的龙，奥基，”他说。 “它只是一座雕像。”安妮开始抱起小狗。 但Oki冲到一片粉红色的玫瑰跟前，又叫了起来。 杰克和安妮跟着他，发现了一座粉红色花岗岩雕刻的雕像。 “又是一条龙！”安妮说。 Oki不停地在花园里跳来跳去，对着越来越多隐藏起来的龙像大喊大叫：一条粘土龙藏在陶罐后面，一条翡翠龙藏在常春藤里，一条大理石龙藏在白色石头中间，一条银龙藏在高高的银草里，一条玻璃龙和一条贝壳做的龙藏在石墙的阴影里。

"Dragons everywhere!" said Jack. Annie picked up the puppy and tried to calm him. "Don't worry, Oki," she said, "they're just garden decorations." "No," the queen said. "These dragons are far more than garden decorations." She looked very serious. "Perhaps you have heard of King Arthur's father, Uther Pendragon?" "I've read about him," said Jack. "Doesn't Pendragon mean 'Chief Dragon'?" The queen nodded. "Indeed, it does," she said. "The emblem on King Uther's flag and shield was a dragon. And now a dragon adorns Arthur's flag and shield as well. The dragon is the symbol of the ruler of Camelot." "Got it," said Annie. "Before he died, Uther Pendragon ordered his craftsmen to create nine dragon statues. Each statue was to be made from a different material," said the queen. "And those statues are the ones here in the garden?" said Jack.

“到处都是龙！”杰克说。 安妮抱起小狗，试图让它平静下来。 “别担心，奥基，”她说，“它们只是花园的装饰品。” “不，”王后说。“这些龙远不止是花园的装饰品。” 她看上去很严肃。“也许你听说过亚瑟王的父亲，乌瑟·彭德拉根？”“我读过关于他的事，”杰克说。 “彭德拉根的意思不是‘龙首领’吗？”王后点点头。 “的确是这样，”她说。 “乌瑟国王的旗帜和盾牌上的标志是一条龙。 现在亚瑟王的旗帜和盾牌上也装饰着一条龙。 龙是卡梅洛特统治者的象征" “明白了，”安妮说。"乌瑟·彭德拉根死前命令他的工匠们制作了九座龙的雕像。 每座雕像都要用不同的材料制作，”女王说。 “那些雕像就是花园里的那些吗？”杰克说。

"Yes," said the queen. "Merlin placed a spell on each of them. As long as the dragons are here in Morgan's garden, the kingdom's enchanters can unlock the portals to any of the nine mythical realms of Camelot." "Wow," said Annie. "What are the nine mythical realms?" asked Jack. "We've never heard of them." "They are lands that cannot be traveled to directly from mortal worlds," said the queen. "And actually, you do know about some of them. With Merlin's help, you have made journeys to four of the mythical realms." She pointed to the silver dragon in the grass. "That dragon opens the portal to the realm of Timeless Treasures. I believe Merlin sent you there one Christmas." "He did," said Annie. "That was our mission to find the Water of Memory and Imagination." "And the marble dragon opens the portal to the Land-Behind-the-Clouds," said Guinevere. "Where we met the Ice Wizard!" said Jack. "The bronze dragon is the gateway to the realm of the Raven King," said the queen. "And the sea-

“是的，”王后说。“梅林对他们每个人都施了一个咒语。 只要龙还在摩根的花园里，王国的魔法师就能打开通往卡梅洛特九个神秘王国中的任何一个的大门。” “哇，”安妮说。“什么是九个神话王国？”杰克问。 “我们从来没听说过他们。” “那是无法从凡人世界直接旅行到的地方。”女王说。 “实际上，你确实知道其中一些。 在梅林的帮助下，你已经游历了四个神话王国。” 她指着草丛里那条银色的龙。 "那条龙打开了通往永恒宝藏王国的大门。 我相信有一年圣诞节是梅林派你去的。” “是的，”安妮说。“找到记忆与想象之水就是我们的使命。” “大理石龙打开了通往云后大陆的大门。”桂尼维尔说。 “我们在那里遇到了冰雪巫师！”杰克说。 “青铜龙是通往乌鸦王王国的大门。”王后说。 “还有大海——