"You've had your chance at me before now," snorted Conan. "Why didn't you kill me then, if you could?"
"My brother had not painted a skull black for you and hurled it into the fire that burns for ever on Gullah's black altar (мой брат /тогда еще/ не раскрасил череп черным для тебя и /не/ бросил его в огонь, который горит вечно на черном алтаре Гуллы). He had not whispered your name to the black ghosts that haunt the uplands of the Dark Land (он не прошептал твое имя черным призракам, которые обитают на нагорьях Темной Страны). But a bat has flown over the Mountains of the Dead (но летучая мышь перелетела Горы Мертвых) and drawn your image in blood on the white tiger's hide (и нарисовала твой образ кровью на шкуре белого тигра) that hangs before the long hut where sleep the Four Brothers of the Night (которая висит перед длинной хижиной, где спять Четыре Брата Ночи). The great serpents coil about their feet and the stars burn like fireflies in their hair (огромные змеи сворачиваются = свернулись у их ног, а звезды горят, как светлячки, в их волосах)."
"My brother had not painted a skull black for you and hurled it into the fire that burns for ever on Gullah's black altar. He had not whispered your name to the black ghosts that haunt the uplands of the Dark Land. But a bat has flown over the Mountains of the Dead and drawn your image in blood on the white tiger's hide that hangs before the long hut where sleep the Four Brothers of the Night. The great serpents coil about their feet and the stars burn like fireflies in their hair."
"Why have the gods of darkness doomed me to death?" growled Conan (почему боги тьмы обрекли меня на смерть? — прорычал Конан).
Something — a hand, foot or talon, he could not tell which, thrust out from the fire and marked swiftly on the mold (нечто — рука, нога или коготь, он не мог сказать точно: «который», вытянулось из огня и начертало быстро на рыхлой земле). A symbol blazed there, marked with fire, and faded, but not before he recognized it (символ пылал там, бросающийся в глаза благодаря огню: «помеченный с огнем» и угас, но не прежде, чем он узнал его).
"Why have the gods of darkness doomed me to death?" growled Conan.
Something — a hand, foot or talon, he could not tell which, thrust out from the fire and marked swiftly on the mold. A symbol blazed there, marked with fire, and faded, but not before he recognized it.
"You dared make the sign which only a priest of Jhebbal Sag dare make (ты осмелился начертать знак, который смеет изображать лишь жрец Джеббал Сага). Thunder rumbled through the black Mountain of the Dead (гром прогрохотал = прокатился через черную Гору Мертвых) and the altar-hut of Gullah was thrown down by a wind from the Gulf of Ghosts (и хижина с алтарем Гулы была разрушена ветром с Залива Привидений). The loon which is messenger to the Four Brothers of the Night flew swiftly and whispered your name in my ear (полярная гагара, /которая является/ вестник Четырех Братьев Ночи, быстро прилетела и прошептала твое имя в мое ухо). Your race is run (твой бег закончен: «отбеган»). You are a dead man already (ты уже мертвый человек = мертвец). Your head will hang in the altar-hut of my brother (твоя голова будет висеть в хижине с алтарем моего брата). Your body will be eaten by the black-winged, sharp-beaked Children of Jhil (твое тело будет съедено = съедят чернокрылые, остроклювые дети Джила = Джаббала)."
"Who the devil is your brother?" demanded Conan (кто /же/, блин,[49] твой брат? — спросил Конан). His sword was naked in his hand, and he was subtly loosening the ax in his belt (его меч был обнажен в его руке, и он незаметно освобождал топор на /его/ поясе).
priest [pri: st], messenger [ˈmesɪnʤə], subtly [ˈsʌtlɪ]
"You dared make the sign which only a priest of Jhebbal Sag dare make. Thunder rumbled through the black Mountain of the Dead and the altar-hut of Gullah was thrown down by a wind from the Gulf of Ghosts. The loon which is messenger to the Four Brothers of the Night flew swiftly and whispered your name in my ear. Your race is run. You are a dead man already. Your head will hang in the altar-hut of my brother. Your body will be eaten by the black-winged, sharp-beaked Children of Jhil."
"Who the devil is your brother?" demanded Conan. His sword was naked in his hand, and he was subtly loosening the ax in his belt.
"Zogar Sag; a child of Jhebbal Sag who still visits his sacred groves at times (Зогар Саг, дитя Джеббал Сага, который все еще временами посещает свои священные рощи). A woman of Gwawela slept in a grove holy to Jhebbal Sag (одна женщина Гвавелы спала в роще, священной для Джеббала Сага). Her babe was Zogar Sag (ее ребенком был = стал Зогар Саг). I too am a son of Jhebbal Sag, out of a fire-being from a far realm (я тоже сын Джеббал Сага от огненного существа из далекого королевства). Zogar Sag summoned me out of the Misty Lands (Зогар Саг призвал меня из Туманных Земель). With incantations and sorcery and his own blood he materialized me in the flesh of his own planet (заклинаниями, волшебством и своей кровью он материализовал меня во плоти его собственной планеты). We are one, tied together by invisible threads (мы одно /целое/, связанные вместе незримыми нитями). His thoughts are my thoughts; if he is struck, I am bruised (его мысли — мои мысли, если ударят его, синяк появляется у меня: «если он ударен, я ушиблен»). If I am cut, he bleeds (если меня поранят, кровь течет у него: «если я ранен, он кровоточит»; to bleed — кровоточить, истекать кровью). But I have talked enough (но я сказал достаточно). Soon your ghost will talk with the ghosts of the Dark Land (скоро твой дух будет беседовать с духами Темной Страны), and they will tell you of the old gods which are not dead (и они расскажут тебе о древних богах, которые не являются мертвыми = не умерли), but sleep in the outer abysses, and from time to time awake (а спят во внешних безднах и время от времени пробуждаются)."
son [sʌn], realm [relm], sorcery [ˈsɔ: sərɪ]
"Zogar Sag; a child of Jhebbal Sag who still visits his sacred groves at times. A woman of Gwawela slept in a grove holy to Jhebbal Sag. Her babe was Zogar Sag. I too am a son of Jhebbal Sag, out of a fire-being from a far realm. Zogar Sag summoned me out of the Misty Lands. With incantations and sorcery and his own blood he materialized me in the flesh of his own planet. We are one, tied together by invisible threads. His thoughts are my thoughts; if he is struck, I am bruised. If I am cut, he bleeds. But I have talked enough. Soon your ghost will talk with the ghosts of the Dark Land, and they will tell you of the old gods which are not dead, but sleep in the outer abysses, and from time to time awake."
"I'd like to see what you look like," muttered Conan, working his ax free (я хотел бы увидеть, какой ты: «чему ты выглядишь подобно», — пробормотал Конан, высвобождая свой топор), "you who leave a track like a bird (ты, который оставляет след, как птица), who burn like a flame (который горит, как огонь) and yet speak with a human voice (и тем не менее говорит человеческим голосом)."
"You shall see," answered the voice from the flame, "see, and carry the knowledge with you into the Dark Land (ты увидишь, — ответил голос из пламени, — зри и унеси знание с собой в Темную Страну)."
look [lʋk], flame [fleɪm], knowledge [ˈnɔlɪʤ]
"I'd like to see what you look like," muttered Conan, working his ax free, "you who leave a track like a bird, who burn like a flame and yet speak with a human voice."
"You shall see," answered the voice from the flame, "see, and carry the knowledge with you into the Dark Land."
The flames leaped and sank, dwindling and dimming (языки пламени взметнулись и опустились, уменьшаясь и тускнея). A face began to take shadowy form (лицо начало приобретать призрачную форму). At first Conan thought it was Zogar Sag himself who stood wrapped in green fire (сначала Конан подумал, /что/ это /был/ сам Зогар Саг стоял, окутанный зеленым пламенем). But the face was higher than his own, and there was a demoniac aspect about it (но лицо было выше его собственного, и был у него демонический облик) — Conan had noted various abnormalities about Zogar Sag's features (Конан заметил различные отклонения от черт Зогар Сага) — an obliqueness of the eyes (скошенность глаз), a sharpness of the ears (острота ушей), a wolfish thinness of the lips (волчья тонкость губ): these peculiarities were exaggerated in the apparition which swayed before him (эти особенности были преувеличены в видении, которое покачивалось перед ним). The eyes were red as coals of living fire (глаза были красные, как угли живого огня).
aspect [ˈæspekt], various [ˈvɛərɪəs], exaggerate [ɪɡˈzæʤɪreɪt]
The flames leaped and sank, dwindling and dimming. A face began to take shadowy form. At first Conan thought it was Zogar Sag himself who stood wrapped in green fire. But the face was higher than his own, and there was a demoniac aspect about it — Conan had noted various abnormalities about Zogar Sag's features — an obliqueness of the eyes, a sharpness of the ears, a wolfish thinness of the lips: these peculiarities were exaggerated in the apparition which swayed before him. The eyes were red as coals of living fire.
More details came into view (больше деталей замечал взгляд: «пришло в видимость»): a slender torso, covered with snaky scales (стройное туловище, покрытое змеиной чешуей), which was yet man-like in shape (которое, тем не менее, было человекоподобным по форме), with man like arms, from the waist upward (с человекоподобными руками, /тянувшимися/ от талии вверх), below, long crane-like legs ended in splay, three-toed feet like those of huge bird (ниже длинные журавлиные ноги, заканчивающиеся кривыми трехпалыми ступнями, как /таковые = ступни/ у огромной птицы). Along the monstrous limbs the blue fire fluttered and ran (вдоль чудовищных конечностей трепетал и пробегал голубой огонь). He saw it as through a glistening mist (он видел его, словно сквозь сияющую дымку).
detail [ˈdi: teɪl], torso [ˈtɔ: səu], huge [hju: ʤ]
More details came into view: a slender torso, covered with snaky scales, which was yet man-like in shape, with man like arms, from the waist upward, below, long crane-like legs ended in splay, three-toed feet like those of huge bird. Along the monstrous limbs the blue fire fluttered and ran. He saw it as through a glistening mist.
Then suddenly it was towering over him (затем вдруг оно нависло над ним), though he had not seen it move toward him (хотя он не видел, /чтобы/ оно передвинулось к нему). A long arm, which for the first time he noticed was armed with curving, sickle-like talons, swung high and swept down at his neck (длинная рука, которую он заметил в первый раз, была вооружена изогнутыми серповидными когтями, высоко размахнулась и обрушилась вниз на его шею). With a fierce cry he broke the spell and bounded aside, hurling his ax (/с/ неистовым криком он разорвал чары и отпрыгнул в сторону, метнув /свой/ топор). The demon avoided the cast with an unbelievably quick movement of its narrow head and was on him again with a hissing rush of leaping flames (демон избежал броска невероятно быстрым движением /своей/ узкой головы и был снова был = навис над ним с шипящим наплывом подпрыгнувших языков пламени).
tower [ˈtauə], movement [ˈmu: vmənt], narrow [ˈnærəu]
Then suddenly it was towering over him, though he had not seen it move toward him. A long arm, which for the first time he noticed was armed with curving, sickle-like talons, swung high and swept down at his neck. With a fierce cry he broke the spell and bounded aside, hurling his ax. The demon avoided the cast with an unbelievably quick movement of its narrow head and was on him again with a hissing rush of leaping flames.
