The ground sloped downwards2, forming a kind of very broad valley. It was an exposed place.
“Listen,” said Spendius, “and first of all fear nothing! I shall fulfil my promise —”
He stopped abruptly3, and seemed to reflect as though searching for words — “Do you remember that time at sunrise when I showed Carthage to you on Salammbo’s terrace? We were strong that day, but you would listen to nothing!” Then in a grave voice: “Master, in the sanctuary4 of Tanith there is a mysterious veil, which fell from heaven and which covers the goddess.”
“I know,” said Matho.
Spendius resumed: “It is itself divine, for it forms part of her. The gods reside where their images are. It is because Carthage possesses it that Carthage is powerful.” Then leaning over to his ear: “I have brought you with me to carry it off!”
Matho recoiled5 in horror. “Begone! look for some one else! I will not help you in this execrable crime!”
“But Tanith is your enemy,” retorted Spendius; “she is persecuting6 you and you are dying through her wrath7. You will be revenged upon her. She will obey you, and you will become almost immortal8 and invincible9.”
Matho bent10 his head. Spendius continued:
“We should succumb11; the army would be annihilated12 of itself. We have neither flight, nor succour, nor pardon to hope for! What chastisement13 from the gods can you be afraid of since you will have their power in your own hands? Would you rather die on the evening of a defeat, in misery14 beneath the shelter of a bush, or amid the outrages15 of the populace and the flames of funeral piles? Master, one day you will enter Carthage among the colleges of the pontiffs, who will kiss your sandals; and if the veil of Tanith weighs upon you still, you will reinstate it in its temple. Follow me! come and take it.”
Matho was consumed by a terrible longing16. He would have liked to possess the veil while refraining from the sacrilege. He said to himself that perhaps it would not be necessary to take it in order to monopolise its virtue17. He did not go to the bottom of his thought but stopped at the boundary, where it terrified him.
“Come on!” he said; and they went off with rapid strides, side by side, and without speaking.
The ground rose again, and the dwellings18 were near. They turned again into the narrow streets amid the darkness. The strips of esparto-grass with which the doors were closed, beat against the walls. Some camels were ruminating19 in a square before heaps of cut grass. Then they passed beneath a gallery covered with foliage20. A pack of dogs were barking. But suddenly the space grew wider and they recognised the western face of the Acropolis. At the foot of Byrsa there stretched a long black mass: it was the temple of Tanith, a whole made up of monuments and galleries, courts and fore-courts, and bounded by a low wall of dry stones. Spendius and Matho leaped over it.
This first barrier enclosed a wood of plane-trees as a precaution against plague and infection in the air. Tents were scattered21 here and there, in which, during the daytime, depilatory pastes, perfumes, garments, moon-shaped cakes, and images of the goddess with representations of the temple hollowed out in blocks of alabaster22, were on sale.
They had nothing to fear, for on nights when the planet did not appear, all rites23 were suspended; nevertheless Matho slackened his speed, and stopped before the three ebony steps leading to the second enclosure.
“Forward!” said Spendius.
Pomegranate, almond trees, cypresses24 and myrtles alternated in regular succession; the path, which was paved with blue pebbles25, creaked beneath their footsteps, and full-blown roses formed a hanging bower26 over the whole length of the avenue. They arrived before an oval hole protected by a grating. Then Matho, who was frightened by the silence, said to Spendius:
“It is here that they mix the fresh water and the bitter.”
“I have seen all that,” returned the former slave, “in Syria, in the town of Maphug”; and they ascended27 into the third enclosure by a staircase of six silver steps.
A huge cedar28 occupied the centre. Its lowest branches were hidden beneath scraps29 of material and necklaces hung upon them by the faithful. They walked a few steps further on, and the front of the temple was displayed before them.
Two long porticoes30, with their architraves resting on dumpy pillars, flanked a quadrangular tower, the platform of which was adorned31 with the crescent of a moon. On the angles of the porticoes and at the four corners of the tower stood vases filled with kindled32 aromatics33. The capitals were laden34 with pomegranates and coloquintidas. Twining knots, lozenges, and rows of pearls alternated on the walls, and a hedge of silver filigree35 formed a wide semicircle in front of the brass36 staircase which led down from the vestibule.
There was a cone37 of stone at the entrance between a stela of gold and one of emerald, and Matho kissed his right hand as he passed beside it.
The first room was very lofty; its vaulted38 roof was pierced by numberless apertures39, and if the head were raised the stars might be seen. All round the wall rush baskets were heaped up with the first fruits of adolescence41 in the shape of beards and curls of hair; and in the centre of the circular apartment the body of a woman issued from a sheath which was covered with breasts. Fat, bearded, and with eyelids42 downcast, she looked as though she were smiling, while her hands were crossed upon the lower part of her big body, which was polished by the kisses of the crowd.
Then they found themselves again in the open air in a transverse corridor, wherein there was an altar of small dimensions leaning against an ivory door. There was no further passage; the priests alone could open it; for the temple was not a place of meeting for the multitude, but the private abode43 of a divinity.
“The enterprise is impossible,” said Matho. “You had not thought of this! Let us go back!” Spendius was examining the walls.
He wanted the veil, not because he had confidence in its virtue (Spendius believed only in the Oracle), but because he was persuaded that the Carthaginians would be greatly dismayed on seeing themselves deprived of it. They walked all round behind in order to find some outlet44.
Aedicules of different shapes were visible beneath clusters of turpentine trees. Here and there rose a stone phallus, and large stags roamed peacefully about, spurning46 the fallen fir-cones with their cloven hoofs47.
But they retraced48 their steps between two long galleries which ran parallel to each other. There were small open cells along their sides, and tabourines and cymbals49 hung against their cedar columns from top to bottom. Women were sleeping stretched on mats outside the cells. Their bodies were greasy50 with unguents, and exhaled51 an odour of spices and extinguished perfuming-pans; while they were so covered with tattooings, necklaces, rings, vermilion, and antimony that, but for the motion of their breasts, they might have been taken for idols53 as they lay thus on the ground. There were lotus-trees encircling a fountain in which fish like Salammbo’s were swimming; and then in the background, against the wall of the temple, spread a vine, the branches of which were of glass and the grape-bunches of emerald, the rays from the precious stones making a play of light through the painted columns upon the sleeping faces.
Matho felt suffocated54 in the warm atmosphere pressed down upon him by the cedar partitions. All these symbols of fecundation, these perfumes, radiations, and breathings overwhelmed him. Through all the mystic dazzling he kept thinking of Salammbo. She became confused with the goddess herself, and his loved unfolded itself all the more, like the great lotus-plants blooming upon the depths of the waters.
Spendius was calculating how much money he would have made in former days by the sale of these women; and with a rapid glance he estimated the weight of the golden necklaces as he passed by.
The temple was impenetrable on this side as on the other, and they returned behind the first chamber55. While Spendius was searching and ferreting, Matho was prostrate56 before the door supplicating57 Tanith. He besought58 her not to permit the sacrilege, and strove to soften59 her with caressing60 words, such as are used to an angry person.
Spendius noticed a narrow aperture40 above the door.
“Rise!” he said to Matho, and he made him stand erect61 with his back against the wall. Placing one foot in his hands, and then the other upon his head, he reached up to the air-hole, made his way into it and disappeared. Then Matho felt a knotted cord — that one which Spendius had rolled around his body before entering the cisterns62 — fall upon his shoulders, and bearing upon it with both hands he soon found himself by the side of the other in a large hall filled with shadow.
Such an attempt was something extraordinary. The inadequacy63 of the means for preventing it was a sufficient proof that it was considered impossible. The sanctuaries64 were protected by terror more than by their walls. Matho expected to die at every step.
However a light was flickering66 far back in the darkness, and they went up to it. It was a lamp burning in a shell on the pedestal of a statue which wore the cap of the Kabiri. Its long blue robe was strewn with diamond discs, and its heels were fastened to the ground by chains which sank beneath the pavement. Matho suppressed a cry. “Ah! there she is! there she is!” he stammered67 out. Spendius took up the lamp in order to light himself.
“What an impious man you are!” murmured Matho, following him nevertheless.
The apartment which they entered had nothing in it but a black painting representing another woman. Her legs reached to the top of the wall, and her body filled the entire ceiling; a huge egg hung by a thread from her navel, and she fell head downwards upon the other wall, reaching as far as the level of the pavement, which was touched by her pointed69 fingers.
They drew a hanging aside, in order to go on further; but the wind blew and the light went out.
Then they wandered about, lost in the complications of the architecture. Suddenly they felt something strangely soft beneath their feet. Sparks crackled and leaped; they were walking in fire. Spendius touched the ground and perceived that it was carefully carpeted with lynx skins; then it seemed to them that a big cord, wet, cold, and viscous70, was gliding71 between their legs. Through some fissures72 cut in the wall there fell thin white rays, and they advanced by this uncertain light. At last they distinguished73 a large black serpent. It darted74 quickly away and disappeared.
“Let us fly!” exclaimed Matho. “It is she! I feel her; she is coming.”
“No, no,” replied Spendius, “the temple is empty.”
Then a dazzling light made them lower their eyes. Next they perceived all around them an infinite number of beasts, lean, panting, with bristling75 claws, and mingled76 together one above another in a mysterious and terrifying confusion. There were serpents with feet, and bulls with wings, fishes with human heads were devouring77 fruit, flowers were blooming in the jaws79 of crocodiles, and elephants with uplifted trunks were sailing proudly through the azure80 like eagles. Their incomplete or multiplied limbs were distended81 with terrible exertion82. As they thrust out their tongues they looked as though they would fain give forth83 their souls; and every shape was to be found among them as if the germ-receptacle had been suddenly hatched and had burst, emptying itself upon the walls of the hall.
Round the latter were twelve globes of blue crystal, supported by monsters resembling tigers. Their eyeballs were starting out of their heads like those of snails84, with their dumpy loins bent they were turning round towards the background where the supreme85 Rabbet, the Omnifecund, the last invented, shone splendid in a chariot of ivory.
She was covered with scales, feathers, flowers, and birds as high as the waist. For earrings86 she had silver cymbals, which flapped against her cheeks. Her large fixed87 eyes gazed upon you, and a luminous88 stone, set in an obscene symbol on her brow, lighted the whole hall by its reflection in red copper89 mirrors above the door.
Matho stood a step forward; but a flag stone yielded beneath his heels and immediately the spheres began to revolve90 and the monsters to roar; music rose melodious91 and pealing92, like the harmony of the planets; the tumultuous soul of Tanith was poured streaming forth. She was about to arise, as lofty as the hall and with open arms. Suddenly the monsters closed their jaws and the crystal globes revolved94 no more.
Then a mournful modulation95 lingered for a time through the air and at last died away.
“And the veil?” said Spendius.
Nowhere could it be seen. Where was it to be found? How could it be discovered? What if the priests had hidden it? Matho experienced anguish96 of heart and felt as though he had been deceived in his belief.
“This way!” whispered Spendius. An inspiration guided him. He drew Matho behind Tanith’s chariot, where a cleft97 a cubit wide ran down the wall from top to bottom.
Then they penetrated98 into a small and completely circular room, so lofty that it was like the interior of a pillar. In the centre there was a big black stone, of semispherical shape like a tabourine; flames were burning upon it; an ebony cone, bearing a head and two arms, rose behind.
But beyond it seemed as though there were a cloud wherein were twinkling stars; faces appeared in the depths of its folds — Eschmoun with the Kabiri, some of the monsters that had already been seen, the sacred beasts of the Babylonians, and others with which they were not acquainted. It passed beneath the idol52’s face like a mantle99, and spread fully45 out was drawn100 up on the wall to which it was fastened by the corners, appearing at once bluish as the night, yellow as the dawn, purple as the sun, multitudinous, diaphanous101, sparkling light. It was the mantle of the goddess, the holy zaimph which might not be seen.
Both turned pale.
“Take it!” said Matho at last.
Spendius did not hesitate, and leaning upon the idol he unfastened the veil, which sank to the ground. Matho laid his hand upon it; then he put his head through the opening, then he wrapped it about his body, and he spread out his arms the better to view it.
“Let us go!” said Spendius.
Matho stood panting with his eyes fixed upon the pavement. Suddenly he exclaimed:
“But what if I went to her? I fear her beauty no longer! What could she do to me? I am now more than a man. I could pass through flames or walk upon the sea! I am transported! Salammbo! Salammbo! I am your master!”
His voice was like thunder. He seemed to Spendius to have grown taller and transformed.
A sound of footsteps drew near, a door opened, and a man appeared, a priest with lofty cap and staring eyes. Before he could make a gesture Spendius had rushed upon him, and clasping him in his arms had buried both his daggers103 in his sides. His head rang upon the pavement.
Then they stood for a while, as motionless as the corpse104, listening. Nothing could be heard but the murmuring of the wind through the half-opened door.
The latter led into a narrow passage. Spendius advanced along it, Matho followed him, and they found themselves almost immediately in the third enclosure, between the lateral105 porticoes, in which were the dwellings of the priests.
Behind the cells there must be a shorter way out. They hastened along.
Spendius squatted106 down at the edge of the fountain and washed his bloodstained hands. The women slept. The emerald vine shone. They resumed their advance.
But something was running behind them under the trees; and Matho, who bore the veil, several times felt that it was being pulled very gently from below. It was a large cynocephalus, one of those which dwelt at liberty within the enclosure of the goddess. It clung to the mantle as though it had been conscious of the theft. They did not dare to strike it, however, fearing that it might redouble its cries; suddenly its anger subsided107, and it trotted108 close beside them swinging its body with its long hanging arms. Then at the barrier it leaped at a bound into a palm tree.
When they had left the last enclosure they directed their steps towards Hamilcar’s palace, Spendius understanding that it would be useless to try to dissuade110 Matho.
They went by the street of the Tanners, the square of Muthumbal, the green market and the crossways of Cynasyn. At the angle of a wall a man drew back frightened by the sparkling thing which pierced the darkness.
“Hide the zaimph!” said Spendius.
Other people passed them, but without perceiving them.
At last they recognised the houses of Megara.
The pharos, which was built behind them on the summit of the cliff, lit up the heavens with a great red brightness, and the shadow of the palace, with its rising terraces, projected a monstrous111 pyramid, as it were, upon the gardens. They entered through the hedge of jujube-trees, beating down the branches with blows of the dagger102.
The traces of the feast of the Mercenaries were everywhere still manifest. The parks were broken up, the trenches112 drained, the doors of the ergastulum open. No one was to be seen about the kitchens or cellars. They wondered at the silence, which was occasionally broken by the hoarse113 breathing of the elephants moving in their shackles114, and the crepitation of the pharos, in which a pile of aloes was burning.
Matho, however, kept repeating:
“But where is she? I wish to see her! Lead me!”
“It is a piece of insanity115!” Spendius kept saying. “She will call, her slaves will run up, and in spite of your strength you will die!”
They reached thus the galley116 staircase. Matho raised his head, and thought that he could perceive far above a vague brightness, radiant and soft. Spendius sought to restrain him, but he dashed up the steps.
As he found himself again in places where he had already seen her, the interval117 of the days that had passed was obliterated118 from his memory. But now had she been singing among the tables; she had disappeared, and he had since been continually ascending119 this staircase. The sky above his head was covered with fires; the sea filled the horizon; at each step he was surrounded by a still greater immensity, and he continued to climb upward with that strange facility which we experience in dreams.
The rustling120 of the veil as it brushed against the stones recalled his new power to him; but in the excess of his hope he could no longer tell what he was to do; this uncertainty121 alarmed him.
From time to time he would press his face against the quadrangular openings in the closed apartments, and he thought that in several of the latter he could see persons asleep.
The last story, which was narrower, formed a sort of dado on the summit of the terraces. Matho walked round it slowly.
A milky122 light filled the sheets of talc which closed the little apertures in the wall, and in their symmetrical arrangement they looked in the darkness like rows of delicate pearls. He recognised the red door with the black cross. The throbbing123 of his heart increased. He would fain have fled. He pushed the door and it opened.
A galley-shaped lamp hung burning in the back part of the room, and three rays, emitted from its silver keel, trembled on the lofty wainscots, which were painted red with black bands. The ceiling was an assemblage of small beams, with amethysts124 and topazes amid their gilding125 in the knots of the wood. On both the great sides of the apartment there stretched a very low bed made with white leathern straps126; while above, semi-circles like shells, opened in the thickness of the wall, suffered a garment to come out and hang down to the ground.
There was an oval basin with a step of onyx round it; delicate slippers127 of serpent skin were standing109 on the edge, together with an alabaster flagon. The trace of a wet footstep might be seen beyond. Exquisite128 scents129 were evaporating.
Matho glided130 over the pavement, which was encrusted with gold, mother-of-pearl, and glass; and, in spite of the polished smoothness of the ground, it seemed to him that his feet sank as though he were walking on sand.
Behind the silver lamp he had perceived a large square of azure held in the air by four cords from above, and he advanced with loins bent and mouth open.
Flamingoes’ wings, fitted on branches of black coral, lay about among purple cushions, tortoiseshell strigils, cedar boxes, and ivory spatulas131. There were antelopes’ horns with rings and bracelets132 strung upon them; and clay vases were cooling in the wind in the cleft of the wall with a lattice-work of reeds. Several times he struck his foot, for the ground had various levels of unequal height, which formed a succession of apartments, as it were, in the room. In the background there were silver balustrades surrounding a carpet strewn with painted flowers. At last he came to the hanging bed beside an ebony stool serving to get into it.
But the light ceased at the edge; — and the shadow, like a great curtain, revealed only a corner of the red mattress133 with the extremity134 of a little naked foot lying upon its ankle. Then Matho took up the lamp very gently.
She was sleeping with her cheek in one hand and with the other arm extended. Her ringlets were spread about her in such abundance that she appeared to be lying on black feathers, and her ample white tunic135 wound in soft draperies to her feet following the curves of her person. Her eyes were just visible beneath her half-closed eyelids. The curtains, which stretched perpendicularly136, enveloped137 her in a bluish atmosphere, and the motion of her breathing, communicating itself to the cords, seemed to rock her in the air. A long mosquito was buzzing.
Matho stood motionless holding the silver lamp at arm’s length; but on a sudden the mosquito-net caught fire and disappeared, and Salammbo awoke.
The fire had gone out of itself. She did not speak. The lamp caused great luminous moires to flicker65 on the wainscots.
“What is it?” she said.
He replied:
“’Tis the veil of the goddess!”
“The veil of the goddess!” cried Salammbo, and supporting herself on both clenched138 hands she leaned shuddering139 out. He resumed:
“I have been in the depths of the sanctuary to seek it for you! Look!” The Zaimph shone a mass of rays.
“Do you remember it?” said Matho. “You appeared at night in my dreams, but I did not guess the mute command of your eyes!” She put out one foot upon the ebony stool. “Had I understood I should have hastened hither, I should have forsaken140 the army, I should not have left Carthage. To obey you I would go down through the caverns141 of Hadrumetum into the kingdom of the shades! — Forgive me! it was as though mountains were weighing upon my days; and yet something drew me on! I tried to come to you! Should I ever have dared this without the Gods! — Let us go! You must follow me! or, if you do not wish to do so, I will remain. What matters it to me! — Drown my soul in your breath! Let my lips be crushed with kissing your hands!”
“Let me see it!” she said. “Nearer! nearer!”
Day was breaking, and the sheets of talc in the walls were filled with a vinous colour. Salammbo leaned fainting against the cushions of the bed.
“I love you!” cried Matho.
“Give it!” she stammered out, and they drew closer together.
She kept advancing, clothed in her white trailing simar, and with her large eyes fastened on the veil. Matho gazed at her, dazzled by the splendours of her head, and, holding out the zaimph towards her, was about to enfold her in an embrace. She was stretching out her arms. Suddenly she stopped, and they stood looking at each other, open-mouthed.
Then without understanding the meaning of his solicitation142 a horror seized upon her. Her delicate eyebrows143 rose, her lips opened; she trembled. At last she struck one of the brass pateras which hung at the corners of the red mattress, crying:
“To the rescue! to the rescue! Back, sacrilegious man! infamous144 and accursed! Help, Taanach, Kroum, Ewa, Micipsa, Schaoul!”
And the scared face of Spendius, appearing in the wall between the clay flagons, cried out these words:
“Fly! they are hastening hither!”
A great tumult93 came upwards145 shaking the staircases, and a flood of people, women, serving-men, and slaves, rushed into the room with stakes, tomahawks, cutlasses, and daggers. They were nearly paralysed with indignation on perceiving a man; the female servants uttered funeral wailings, and the eunuchs grew pale beneath their black skins.
Matho was standing behind the balustrades. With the zaimph which was wrapped about him, he looked like a sidereal146 god surrounded by the firmament147. The slaves were going to fall upon him, but she stopped them:
“Touch it not! It is the mantle of the goddess!”
She had drawn back into a corner; but she took a step towards him, and stretched forth her naked arm:
“A curse upon you, you who have plundered148 Tanith! Hatred149, vengeance150, massacre151, and grief! May Gurzil, god of battles, rend152 you! may Mastiman, god of the dead, stifle153 you! and may the Other — he who may not be named — burn you!”
Matho uttered a cry as though he had received a sword-thrust. She repeated several times: “Begone! begone!”
The crowd of servants spread out, and Matho, with hanging head, passed slowly through the midst of them; but at the door he stopped, for the fringe of the zaimph had caught on one of the golden stars with which the flagstones were paved. He pulled it off abruptly with a movement of his shoulder and went down the staircases.
Spendius, bounding from terrace to terrace, and leaping over the hedges and trenches, had escaped from the gardens. He reached the foot of the pharos. The wall was discontinued at this spot, so inaccessible155 was the cliff. He advanced to the edge, lay down on his back, and let himself slide, feet foremost, down the whole length of it to the bottom; then by swimming he reached the Cape154 of the Tombs, made a wide circuit of the salt lagoon156, and re-entered the camp of the Barbarians157 in the evening.
The sun had risen; and, like a retreating lion, Matho went down the paths, casting terrible glances about him.
A vague clamour reached his ears. It had started from the palace, and it was beginning afresh in the distance, towards the Acropolis. Some said that the treasure of the Republic had been seized in the temple of Moloch; others spoke158 of the assassination159 of a priest. It was thought, moreover, that the Barbarians had entered the city.
Matho, who did not know how to get out of the enclosures, walked straight before him. He was seen, and an outcry was raised. Every one understood; and there was consternation160, then immense wrath.
From the bottom of the Mappalian quarter, from the heights of the Acropolis, from the catacombs, from the borders of the lake, the multitude came in haste. The patricians161 left their palaces, and the traders left their shops; the women forsook162 their children; swords, hatchets163, and sticks were seized; but the obstacle which had stayed Salammbo stayed them. How could the veil be taken back? The mere68 sight of it was a crime; it was of the nature of the gods, and contact with it was death.
The despairing priests wrung164 their hands on the peristyles of the temples. The guards of the Legion galloped165 about at random166; the people climbed upon the houses, the terraces, the shoulders of the colossuses, and the masts of the ships. He went on, nevertheless, and the rage, and the terror also, increased at each of his steps; the streets cleared at his approach, and the torrent167 of flying men streamed on both sides up to the tops of the walls. Everywhere he could perceive only eyes opened widely as if to devour78 him, chattering168 teeth and outstretched fists, and Salammbo’s imprecations resounded169 many times renewed.
Suddenly a long arrow whizzed past, then another, and stones began to buzz about him; but the missiles, being badly aimed (for there was the dread170 of hitting the zaimph), passed over his head. Moreover, he made a shield of the veil, holding it to the right, to the left, before him and behind him; and they could devise no expedient171. He quickened his steps more and more, advancing through the open streets. They were barred with cords, chariots, and snares172; and all his windings173 brought him back again. At last he entered the square of Khamon where the Balearians had perished, and stopped, growing pale as one about to die. This time he was surely lost, and the multitude clapped their hands.
He ran up to the great gate, which was closed. It was very high, made throughout of heart of oak, with iron nails and sheathed174 with brass. Matho flung himself against it. The people stamped their feet with joy when they saw the impotence of his fury; then he took his sandal, spit upon it, and beat the immovable panels with it. The whole city howled. The veil was forgotten now, and they were about to crush him. Matho gazed with wide vacant eyes upon the crowd. His temples were throbbing with violence enough to stun175 him, and he felt a numbness176 as of intoxication177 creeping over him. Suddenly he caught sight of the long chain used in working the swinging of the gate. With a bound he grasped it, stiffening178 his arms, and making a buttress179 of his feet, and at last the huge leaves partly opened.
Then when he was outside he took the great zaimph from his neck, and raised it as high as possible above his head. The material, upborne by the sea breeze, shone in the sunlight with its colours, its gems180, and the figures of its gods. Matho bore it thus across the whole plain as far as the soldiers’ tents, and the people on the walls watched the fortune of Carthage depart.
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1
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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downwards
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| adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地） | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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sanctuary
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| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
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recoiled
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| v.畏缩( recoil的过去式和过去分词 )；退缩；报应；返回 | |
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6
persecuting
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| （尤指宗教或政治信仰的）迫害(~sb. for sth.)( persecute的现在分词 )； 烦扰，困扰或骚扰某人 | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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8
immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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invincible
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| adj.不可征服的，难以制服的 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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succumb
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| v.屈服，屈从；死 | |
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12
annihilated
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| v.（彻底）消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 )；使无效；废止；彻底击溃 | |
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13
chastisement
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| n.惩罚 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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15
outrages
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| 引起…的义愤，激怒( outrage的第三人称单数 ) | |
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16
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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17
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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18
dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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19
ruminating
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| v.沉思( ruminate的现在分词 )；反复考虑；反刍；倒嚼 | |
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20
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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21
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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22
alabaster
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| adj.雪白的；n.雪花石膏；条纹大理石 | |
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23
rites
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| 仪式，典礼( rite的名词复数 ) | |
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24
cypresses
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| n.柏属植物，柏树( cypress的名词复数 ) | |
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25
pebbles
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| [复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 ) | |
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26
bower
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| n.凉亭，树荫下凉快之处；闺房；v.荫蔽 | |
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27
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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28
cedar
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| n.雪松，香柏(木) | |
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29
scraps
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| 油渣 | |
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30
porticoes
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| n.柱廊，（有圆柱的）门廊( portico的名词复数 ) | |
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31
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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32
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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33
aromatics
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| n.芳香植物( aromatic的名词复数 )；芳香剂，芳香药物 | |
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34
laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
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35
filigree
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| n.金银丝做的工艺品；v.用金银细丝饰品装饰；用华而不实的饰品装饰；adj.金银细丝工艺的 | |
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36
brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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37
cone
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| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
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38
vaulted
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| adj.拱状的 | |
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39
apertures
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| n.孔( aperture的名词复数 )；隙缝；（照相机的）光圈；孔径 | |
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40
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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41
adolescence
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| n.青春期，青少年 | |
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42
eyelids
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| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
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43
abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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44
outlet
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| n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄 | |
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45
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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46
spurning
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| v.一脚踢开，拒绝接受( spurn的现在分词 ) | |
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47
hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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48
retraced
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| v.折回( retrace的过去式和过去分词 )；回忆；回顾；追溯 | |
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49
cymbals
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| pl.铙钹 | |
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50
greasy
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| adj. 多脂的，油脂的 | |
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51
exhaled
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| v.呼出，发散出( exhale的过去式和过去分词 )；吐出（肺中的空气、烟等），呼气 | |
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52
idol
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| n.偶像，红人，宠儿 | |
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53
idols
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| 偶像( idol的名词复数 )； 受崇拜的人或物； 受到热爱和崇拜的人或物； 神像 | |
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54
suffocated
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| （使某人）窒息而死( suffocate的过去式和过去分词 )； （将某人）闷死； 让人感觉闷热； 憋气 | |
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55
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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56
prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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57
supplicating
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| v.祈求，哀求，恳求( supplicate的现在分词 ) | |
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58
besought
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| v.恳求，乞求（某事物）( beseech的过去式和过去分词 )；(beseech的过去式与过去分词) | |
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59
soften
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| v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和 | |
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60
caressing
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| 爱抚的，表现爱情的，亲切的 | |
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61
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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62
cisterns
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| n.蓄水池，储水箱( cistern的名词复数 )；地下储水池 | |
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63
inadequacy
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| n.无法胜任，信心不足 | |
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64
sanctuaries
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| n.避难所( sanctuary的名词复数 )；庇护；圣所；庇护所 | |
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65
flicker
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| vi./n.闪烁，摇曳，闪现 | |
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66
flickering
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| adj.闪烁的，摇曳的，一闪一闪的 | |
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67
stammered
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| v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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68
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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69
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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70
viscous
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| adj.粘滞的，粘性的 | |
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71
gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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72
fissures
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| n.狭长裂缝或裂隙( fissure的名词复数 )；裂伤；分歧；分裂v.裂开( fissure的第三人称单数 ) | |
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73
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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74
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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75
bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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76
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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77
devouring
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| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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78
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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79
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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80
azure
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| adj.天蓝色的，蔚蓝色的 | |
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81
distended
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| v.（使）膨胀，肿胀( distend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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82
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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83
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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84
snails
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| n.蜗牛；迟钝的人；蜗牛( snail的名词复数 ) | |
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85
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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86
earrings
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| n.耳环( earring的名词复数 )；耳坠子 | |
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87
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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88
luminous
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| adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的 | |
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89
copper
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| n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的 | |
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90
revolve
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| vi.(使)旋转；循环出现 | |
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91
melodious
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| adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的 | |
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92
pealing
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| v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的现在分词 ) | |
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93
tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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94
revolved
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| v.（使）旋转( revolve的过去式和过去分词 )；细想 | |
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95
modulation
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| n.调制 | |
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96
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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97
cleft
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| n.裂缝；adj.裂开的 | |
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98
penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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99
mantle
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| n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红 | |
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100
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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101
diaphanous
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| adj.(布)精致的，半透明的 | |
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102
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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103
daggers
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| 匕首，短剑( dagger的名词复数 ) | |
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104
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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105
lateral
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| adj.侧面的，旁边的 | |
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106
squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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107
subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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108
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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109
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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110
dissuade
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| v.劝阻，阻止 | |
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111
monstrous
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| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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112
trenches
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| 深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕 | |
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113
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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114
shackles
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| 手铐( shackle的名词复数 )； 脚镣； 束缚； 羁绊 | |
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115
insanity
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| n.疯狂，精神错乱；极端的愚蠢，荒唐 | |
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116
galley
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| n.（飞机或船上的）厨房单层甲板大帆船；军舰舰长用的大划艇； | |
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117
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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118
obliterated
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| v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 )；涂去；擦掉；彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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119
ascending
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| adj.上升的，向上的 | |
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120
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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121
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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122
milky
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| adj.牛奶的，多奶的；乳白色的 | |
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123
throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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124
amethysts
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| n.紫蓝色宝石( amethyst的名词复数 )；紫晶；紫水晶；紫色 | |
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125
gilding
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| n.贴金箔，镀金 | |
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126
straps
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| n.带子( strap的名词复数 )；挎带；肩带；背带v.用皮带捆扎( strap的第三人称单数 )；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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127
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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128
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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129
scents
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| n.香水( scent的名词复数 )；气味；（动物的）臭迹；（尤指狗的）嗅觉 | |
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130
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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131
spatulas
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| n.（搅拌或涂敷用的）铲，漆工抹刀( spatula的名词复数 )；压舌板 | |
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132
bracelets
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| n.手镯，臂镯( bracelet的名词复数 ) | |
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133
mattress
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| n.床垫，床褥 | |
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134
extremity
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| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
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135
tunic
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| n.束腰外衣 | |
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136
perpendicularly
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| adv. 垂直地, 笔直地, 纵向地 | |
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137
enveloped
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| v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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138
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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139
shuddering
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| v.战栗( shudder的现在分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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140
Forsaken
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| adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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141
caverns
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| 大山洞，大洞穴( cavern的名词复数 ) | |
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142
solicitation
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| n.诱惑；揽货；恳切地要求；游说 | |
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143
eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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144
infamous
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| adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的 | |
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145
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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146
sidereal
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| adj.恒星的 | |
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147
firmament
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| n.苍穹；最高层 | |
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148
plundered
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| 掠夺，抢劫( plunder的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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149
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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150
vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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151
massacre
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| n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀 | |
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152
rend
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| vt.把…撕开，割裂；把…揪下来，强行夺取 | |
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153
stifle
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| vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止 | |
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154
cape
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| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
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155
inaccessible
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| adj.达不到的，难接近的 | |
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156
lagoon
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| n.泻湖，咸水湖 | |
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157
barbarians
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| n.野蛮人( barbarian的名词复数 )；外国人；粗野的人；无教养的人 | |
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158
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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159
assassination
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| n.暗杀；暗杀事件 | |
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160
consternation
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| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 | |
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161
patricians
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| n.（古罗马的）统治阶层成员( patrician的名词复数 )；贵族，显贵 | |
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162
forsook
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| forsake的过去式 | |
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163
hatchets
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| n.短柄小斧( hatchet的名词复数 )；恶毒攻击；诽谤；休战 | |
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164
wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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165
galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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166
random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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167
torrent
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| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
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168
chattering
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| n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式 | |
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169
resounded
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| v.（指声音等）回荡于某处( resound的过去式和过去分词 )；产生回响；（指某处）回荡着声音 | |
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170
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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171
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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172
snares
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| n.陷阱( snare的名词复数 )；圈套；诱人遭受失败（丢脸、损失等）的东西；诱惑物v.用罗网捕捉，诱陷，陷害( snare的第三人称单数 ) | |
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173
windings
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| （道路、河流等）蜿蜒的，弯曲的( winding的名词复数 )； 缠绕( wind的现在分词 )； 卷绕； 转动（把手） | |
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174
sheathed
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| adj.雕塑像下半身包在鞘中的；覆盖的；铠装的；装鞘了的v.将（刀、剑等）插入鞘( sheathe的过去式和过去分词 )；包，覆盖 | |
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175
stun
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| vt.打昏，使昏迷，使震惊，使惊叹 | |
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176
numbness
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| n.无感觉，麻木，惊呆 | |
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177
intoxication
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| n.wild excitement;drunkenness；poisoning | |
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178
stiffening
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| n. (使衣服等)变硬的材料, 硬化 动词stiffen的现在分词形式 | |
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179
buttress
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| n.支撑物；v.支持 | |
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180
gems
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| growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长 | |
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