The myth of Loki’s monstrous children - Iseult Gillespie

翻译人员: Yuwei Wu 校对人员: Helen Chang

Odin, the king of Asgard, was plagued by nightmares.

奥丁，阿斯加德的国王， 被噩梦所困扰。

Three fearsome figures haunted his dreams:

三个可怕的身影萦绕在他的梦中:

a massive, writhing shadow;

一个巨大的、扭动着的影子;

a shambling, rotting corpse;

一具摇摇晃晃、腐烂的尸体;

and worst of all, a monstrous beast with a deadly bite.

最糟糕的是， 一只有着致命咬合地巨大怪物。

Night after night, the creatures besieged the king.

夜复一夜，这些生物包围了国王。

And although their true forms were unknown to him,

虽然他不知道牠们的真实形态，

he could tell they were related to Asgard’s most persistent problem:

但可以断定牠们与 阿斯加德最难缠的问题有关:

Loki.

洛基。

Despite having settled down with his wife and sons,

尽管洛基已经和妻儿安顿下来，

Loki had been sneaking off to visit the giantess Angrboda.

但他还是偷偷地去拜访 巨人安格博达。

And when the king learned this affair had produced three children,

当国王得知因这段恋情 产生了三个孩子时，

he was filled with unease.

他感到非常不安。

Odin summoned Thor and Tyr, two of his bravest warriors,

奥丁召唤了他最勇敢的两名战士 索尔和泰尔前往约顿海姆，

to travel to Jotunheim to capture Loki’s secret children.

抓捕洛基的秘密孩子。

Upon arriving at Angrboda’s home,

到达安格博达的家后，

the pair were immediately accosted by Loki's first child,

洛基的长子立即前来和两人搭讪，

a serpent named Jörmungandr.

他是名叫约尔蒙甘德的蛇。

The God of Thunder dodged the snake’s venom

雷电之神躲开了蛇的毒液，

and swiftly bound him to a pine tree.

并迅速将蛇绑在一棵松树上。

The second child, Hel, appeared as a glowing young woman from the right

第二个孩子海尔，从右边看像一个 容光焕发的年轻女子，

and a moldering corpse from the left.

从左边看像一具腐烂的尸体。

Her flesh flaked onto the ground as she silently submitted to her captors.

当她默默地向俘获她的人屈服时， 她的皮肉落到了地上。

Finally, the third child leapt at Tyr.

最后，第三个孩子向提尔扑去。

The small wolf was fierce but harmless.

小狼很凶猛，但没有杀伤力。

Tyr playfully cuffed its claws and stowed the cub in his pocket.

提尔俏皮地铐住牠的爪子， 把幼崽塞进口袋。

Back in Asgard, the warriors presented their prisoners

回到阿斯加德， 战士们献上了他们的俘虏，

and fearful recognition seized Odin's heart.

认出的恐惧揪住了奥丁的心。

Though these three were meager reflections of his dark dreams,

虽然这三个只是他黑暗梦境的缩影，

the king was determined to dispose of them before his visions came true.

但国王下定决心在他的 幻想成真之前处理掉牠们。

First, he banished Jörmungandr to the sea at the edge of the world.

首先，他把约尔蒙甘德 放逐到世界边缘的大海里。

Then he sent Hel deep below the earth to join her fellow corpses.

他把海尔送到地下深处， 与她的尸体同伴们一起。

But the wolf, named Fenrir, presented a challenge.

但是这只名叫芬里尔的狼 提出了一个挑战。

He’d already grown strong enough to threaten the gods,

牠已经强大到足以威胁诸神，

so Odin took a more patient approach.

所以奥丁采取了更耐心的方法。

For months, he supervised the creature, watching Fenrir grow

几个月来，他一直在监督这只动物，

from a cub to a wolf to a beast who spoke with the voice of a God.

看着芬里尔从一只幼崽变成一只狼， 再到一只能用神的声音说话的野兽。

Tyr visited frequently and found Fenrir to be strong and clever.

提尔经常拜访芬里尔， 发现他既强壮又聪明。

But as their bond deepened, Odin's fear only grew.

但随着他们关系的加深， 奥丁的恐惧与日俱增。

One day, Odin forged his heaviest chains

有一天，奥丁锻造了他最重的锁链

and hauled them to Fenrir with a challenge.

带到芬里尔前挑战牠。

He would bind the wolf to test his growing strength.

奥丁要把狼绑起来， 以测试牠日渐增长的力量。

Fenrir eagerly accepted the challenge and splintered the metal like old wood.

芬里尔急切地接受了挑战， 把金属像老木头一样劈开。

Odin returned to the forge, crafting shackles that no man could lift alone.

奥丁回到了锻造厂， 制作了没有人能单独举起的镣铐。

These sturdy chains gave Fenrir pause.

这些结实的铁链让芬里尔犹豫。

But with an encouraging wink from Tyr, he accepted the challenge.

但在提尔的鼓励下， 他接受了挑战。

The beast strained for a moment and then shattered his restraints

这头野兽拉紧了铁链， 然后把他的束缚

into a thousand pieces.

打碎成一千块。

Desperate, Odin sought help from the most skilled makers of all:

绝望之时奥丁向 技艺高超的制造者寻求帮助：

the Dwarves.

矮人。

Rather than metal, they sought the rarest ingredients;

他们寻找的并不是金属， 而是最稀有的材料；

from feline footsteps and fish breath

从猫科动物的脚印和鱼的气息

to the sinews of mountains and mighty bears.

到山的命脉和威武的熊。

With these, the Dwarves crafted Gleipnir,

有了这些， 矮人们就制作出了格莱普尼尔，

an unbreakable chain in the guise of fine thread.

一条伪装成细线的 牢不可破的链条。

When Odin challenged Fenrir a third time, the wolf laughed.

当奥丁第三次挑战芬里尔时， 那只狼笑了。

But as he examined the thread more closely,

但当芬里尔更仔细地检查这根线时，

Fenrir sensed Odin’s trickery and began to feel some fear himself.

他察觉到了奥丁的诡计， 他自己也开始感到一些恐惧。

Fenrir struck a deal.

芬里尔提出了一项协议。

He would accept the challenge,

他会接受挑战，

but only if a god kept their hand in his mouth throughout.

但前提是要有一个神 全程把手放在他的嘴里。

With a heavy heart, Tyr volunteered.

提尔怀着沉重的心情，主动请缨。

The gods bound the wolf and as he strained Gleipnir only grew tighter.

诸神把狼绑了起来，牠使劲拉， 格莱普尼尔却越拉越紧。

Fenrir felt the agony of betrayal—

芬里尔感到了被背叛的痛苦—

not only from Odin, but from his reluctant friend.

不仅来自奥丁， 也来自他不情愿的朋友。

With a howl of fury, he bit through Tyr’s wrist

牠怒吼一声，咬断提尔的手腕，

and vowed to destroy Odin for tricking him.

发誓要杀死欺骗他的奥丁。

Watching his nightmare come to life,

看着他的噩梦成真，

Odin thrust Tyr’s blade between Fenrir jaws,

奥丁将提尔的剑刺进了 芬里尔的下巴，

releasing a torrent of saliva that became a furious river.

吐出的唾液变成了湍急的河流。

While the beast was not dead, he was bound,

虽然野兽没有死， 但他被绑住了，

and Odin celebrated his victory over fate.

奥丁庆祝他战胜了命运。

But in truth, his actions had only sealed his doom.

但事实上， 他的行为只是注定了他的厄运。

Beneath the waves, Jörmungandr grew to encircle the world.

在海浪之下，约尔蒙甘德长大， 逐渐包围了世界。

Hel rose to rule the dead as queen of the Underworld.

海尔作为冥界的女王崛起统治死者。

And every day, Fenrir strained a little more against his chains,

而每一天， 芬里尔都更加努力地挣脱锁链，

inching ever closer to his bloody revenge.

一点一点地接近他的血腥复仇。