瓦爾克拉斯歷史(二):瓦爾帝國(對照文獻)

EKwow
45 min readNov 29, 2018

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【瓦爾帝國 文獻】

[180] 祀奉艾爾卡莉(Shrine to Arakaali) V (Found in: The Temple of Decay Level 2)

艾爾卡莉展現無比的勇氣,在飽受戰火摧殘的帝國遺跡重新生根,但深山內出現前所未有的威脅。一頭毫無神性和良知的生物榨取了艾爾卡莉的生命精華。女王的藥物讓我們得以倖存,但饑荒和疫病再度肆虐。隨著山中的巨獸不斷成長,艾爾卡莉不斷衰退,變得跟孩童一樣無助。她甚至失去對腐朽神殿的信任。蜘蛛的毒液在體內灼燒的時候,我為先祖感到羞恥。在她最需要的時候,女王的子民背叛了她。把她包覆在絲中,讓她待在一座金字塔的某處,就像她多年前對葛魯斯寇所作的一切。她回來了,但她得不到自己想要的復仇。她和失去理性的葛魯斯寇不一樣,愛情女神艾爾卡莉只希望再次擁抱這個世界。 — 寡婦

Even as our courageous Arakaali forged the foundations of new empire within the ruination of the old, a fresh threat was born in the shadow of the mountains. A creature so devoid of divinity, so beyond humanity, that it drew the very essence from Arakaali as the spider imbibes the life of the trapped moth. Our Queen’s medicines had once sustained us. Now famine and plague ravaged what little remained of our lands.

As the Beast of the Mountains grew, our Arakaali waned until, helpless as a child, she lost even the faith of her most devoted, the Temple of Decay. I feel the shame for my ancestors as the spider’s venom burns in my belly. When our Queen needed them most, her people betrayed her, bound her in silk and left her to languish in the bowels of a pyramid, just as Arakaali had done to Gruthkul so many years before. Now she has returned, but it is not vengeance she wants. She is no mindless Gruthkul. Arakaali, Goddess of Love, wishes only to embrace the world as she wishes she had been embraced. — The Widow

[181] 原生祭儀 翠綠珠寶 Sacrificial Harvest

瓦爾人以活人獻祭,祈求天佑帝國。但最終還是背棄神祈,全心改良戰爭機械。

The Vaal used human sacrifice to power their empire. They, too, eventually sought means to make their machines run more efficiently.

[182] 艾米爾(Eramir) 瓦爾古城

瓦爾一族的科技在當時首屈一指,但在社會習俗上還是相當野蠻。想到瓦爾崇尚科學和發展,但依舊在市中心的祭壇從事活人獻祭…怎麼想都很衝突。從這座遺跡的結構看來,這座城市在特沙波卡爾女王統治下達到輝煌時期。許多學者指出她是「喜好怪異的領導人」。她是艾爾卡莉的虔誠信徒。根據文獻指出,她對於死亡和亡者遺體極具興趣。史書告訴我們,女王要求部下把親人的遺體擺在宮殿前的台階上。接著會有人把這些遺體帶進宮殿裡…嗯,大部分學者都作些很瘋狂的臆測,希望真的只是他們的臆測啦…

[183] 劇情區域

第二章的劇情區域古金字塔(The Ancient Pyramid)

[184] 劇情 BOSS

第二章的劇情章節BOSS 瓦爾超靈(Vaal Oversoul)

[185] 劇情怪物

古結構(Ancient Construct)、瓦爾結構(Vaal Construct)或蛇行結構(Serpentine Construct)

[186] 關於古代建築Ancient Gateway

西北方的古老通道十分奇特。這跟永恆帝國沒有什麼關係,而是瓦爾族留下的東西。我和很多古文都曾提過這個文明。瓦爾族是首先使用古靈寶石的民族,經過很久之後,建立帝國的祖先們才懂得如何使用。對於瓦爾族,我們所知有限,如果我手邊還有博物館的舊檔案,就可以好好跟你介紹一下。

That ancient gateway to the northwest, it’s a peculiar thing. Not of the Eternal Empire. It could be Vaal in origin… a culture I’ve seen mentioned here and there in some of the most antique of texts. It is the Vaal who began the use of Virtue Gems, well before our imperial ancestors. Little else is known about them. If only I havd my old museum archives, I could have given you a more tempered theory.

[187] 古物(The Ancients) 第四冊:阿茲莫里人的崛起 Book 4: Raising the Azmeri

倒下一杯阿茲莫里茶,然後從葉片中尋覓你的未來─ 你會發現瓦爾語竟然派上用場!不用感到驚訝:我們的文學是阿茲莫里和瓦爾兩大文化聯姻的產物。在約莫兩千五百年前,阿茲莫里文化與瓦爾族第一次接觸。在這之前,阿茲莫里的一切事物均以口耳相傳。在這之後,阿茲莫里人的文學蓬勃成長,而阿茲莫里文化的各個層面也都因此一飛沖天。當第一批瓦爾大使踏上阿茲莫里人山腰上的家園時,瓦爾族讓原始的阿茲莫里人轉變為擁有凝聚力的務農民族。對於瓦爾族十分慷慨地散播他們的知識和信仰,但他們對於「眾神之淚」、也就是我們今天所稱的「古靈寶石」始終三緘其口。經過長年的調查之後,目前還是沒找到阿茲莫里人在古早使用寶石的記載。雖然他們提到瓦爾人的肉體裡帶著閃閃發亮的水晶,先祖們也從未奢望寶石內潛藏的力量。這種關係一直持續到第一批瓦爾難民在五百年後上門求助為止。 — 圖書館長 特里尼安

Drain a cup of Azmerian tea and then try to read your future in the leaves. You’ll find that your Vaalish will come in mighty handy. Our literature was conceived and born within the Azmeri’s cultural marriage with the Vaal. Prior to Vaal contact some 2500 years ago, the Azmerian culture had a purely oral tradition of story and record keeping. Afterwards, their literary culture blossomed, along with just about every other aspect of their fledgling civilisation. From the moment the first Vaalish embassadors set foot upon the rugged slopes of the Azmerian Ranges, the Vaal civilisation held the hand of the Azmeri as they grew from a primitive tribal existence into a cohesive culture of settlement and agriculture. Yet while the Vaal were generous with their knowledge and guidance in many areas, there is one subject upon which they were notably silent: the Tears of Maji, now known as Virtue Gems. Despite an exhaustive search, neither account nor passing reference can be found regarding gem usage amongst the early Azmeri. Though they described the Vaal as having flesh adorned with glittering crystals, our Azmerian ancestors were never privy to the gems’ potentials or powers. At least, not until the first Vaal refugees came knocking five hundred years later. -Trinian — Intellectus Prime

[188] 黃金之頁 Golden Page

「瓦爾對寶石文化的嚮往更勝於古靈使徒和聖上,其執念如寶石文化般悠久頑強。」- 伊席厄斯.普蘭德斯

“The Vaal were even more steeped in gem culture than our Emperor and his ‘Gemlings’. It’s an obsession as old as civilisation itself.” — Icius Perandus

[189] 刺殺大師瓦里西(Vorici, Master Assassin) 奇術與古靈寶石

奇術無所不在,而就我們與生俱來的能力,能操控的實在有限。我不否認:有些女巫可以變出一些魔術,而卡魯族的聖者可以透過和靈魂溝通來祈雨。不過,對於古靈寶石的持有者來說,這都是雕蟲小技。簡單說來就是…如果我們把奇術當成血液,那古靈寶石就是那只心臟。

[190] 刺殺大師瓦里西(Vorici, Master Assassin) 風水

在瓦爾克拉斯裡,古靈寶石是力量的象徵。瓦爾人很瞭解這一點,永恆帝國也不例外。現在,輪到我們來研究、使用這些寶貴的石頭。我把這門學問稱為古靈學,而我可以確定一點:古靈學者應該繼承這座已殞落的帝國,讓這門學問重拾過去的榮耀、甚至是超越過去的成就。我很有興趣和你一起探究這方面,至於你值不值得我給予啟發…就有待考證了。

[191] 刺殺大師瓦里西(Vorici, Master Assassin) 古靈寶石

古靈寶石會得到這樣稱呼,在於這玩意可以讓凡夫俗子也可以得到傳說中古靈的力量,而當這個寶石嵌入骨肉裡之後,效果遠比作為工具還要強上十來倍。將人和古靈寶石結合的技術早已失傳,不過把工具和這些寶石結合在一起之後,只要有些資質就可以駕馭其中的力量。

[192] 刺殺大師瓦里西(Vorici, Master Assassin) 古靈寶石的起源

統治者之殿的礦坑是古靈寶石的發源地,就在聖權之泉的源頭,而這個水道從薩恩流向北方,最後導入山地。我從碼頭帶了一些貨回來。這些寶石從深山裡被挖了出來,然後一批批地運到薩恩。不過,古靈寶石的力量到底從何而來?我很不想承認,但我實在無法回答這個問題。

[193] 瑪拉凱的日記(Malachai’s Journal) Found in The Eternal Laboratory.

將你被禁錮的心靈「釋放」,這就是寶石的功能,它們真正的功效。當我指尖接觸到冰冷、光滑的寶石表時我就感受到了。我的頭骨開始脹痛,感覺是我的腦在成長而擠壓到了頭骨,在找一個地方從頭骨中解脫。那個夜晚,當足夠的酒中於暫時麻痺了痛楚而使我入睡時,我開始做夢。夢魘永遠都會跟隨著我。(後半文章台服沒翻) — 瑪拉凱

Tear down the walls that imprison the mind… that is what the gems do. That is their true ‘virtue’. The moment my fingertips brushed the cool, silken planes of that first gem, I felt it. My skull ached, as if its contents were growing, pressing against the bone, searching for a way to break free. That night, once the wine had dulled the pain enough to allow the onset of sleep, the dreams began. I have not been without them since. Nor would I be. Every spark of thaumaturgy that I wield, every device that I forge, every creature that I transfigure, I owe to these lessons cloaked in Nightmare. From whence do these precepts hail? Certainly not the mundane grey between my ears. I possess only one reference that bears faith. Translated with unquestionable clarity by that idiot savant, Icius Perandus. “The Beast”. Doryani of the Vaal knew the truth. Soon now, so shall I. — Malachai

[194] 聚魂美酒 Decanter Spiritus

「人類的潛能因為肉體的泥淖而陷入盲目,唯有解放物質的桎梏、奔向靈魂的正途,才能體會人生真實的感觸。」- 超靈者瑪拉凱

“Man is blinded by the mud of his corporeal self. Only through the transformation of the material into the spiritual can we hope to taste the full body of life.” — Malachai the Soulless

[195] 瓦爾戰刃 瓦爾軍刃 Rebuke of the Vaal

「瓦爾對外族一向以和為貴,但如有人膽敢冒犯,必將施予無赦懲戒。」- 帝國學者伊席厄斯.普蘭德斯

Though the Vaal revered peace, it would have been suicide for any culture to rouse them to war. — Icius Perandus, Scholar to the Empire.

[196] 瓦爾的靈手 銅影手套 Vaal Caress 「伏擊/侵略」

「古靈寶石擁有人性的一面:它們喜愛擁抱生命,為人所用。」- 女王首席預言者多里亞尼

“The gems are strangely human at times. They simply love to be held.” — Doryani, First Seer to the Queen

[197] 薩爾的揚音 光輝刺盾 Zeel’s Amplifier

“偉大的心智希望可以揭開所有時間和空間的秘密。但這無關緊要。創造物,物質變形的行為,是唯一值得發現的秘密。”- 瓦爾粗工席爾

“Great minds wish to reveal all the secrets of time and space. But it does not matter. Creation, the act of Matter Metamorphosis, is the only secret worth discovering.” — Zeel, Vaal Tinkerer

[198] 潛能防護 鈷藍珠寶 Energy From Within

阿茲莫里苦行者學會擺脫肉體的常見慾念。

The Azmeri ascetics learnt the power of going without the body’s ordinary cravings.

[199] 嗜血之爪 魔爪刃 Bloodseeker

「血流殆盡,肉體必滅。」- 瓦爾女祭司

“For the life of the flesh will always be in the blood.” — Atalui, Vaal Priestess

[200] 靈魂束縛 飾布腰帶 Soul Tether

瓦爾血祭師,知識的先驅者。靈魂竭盡其能,依偎於任何生命。正是由血祭師們所發現。

Vaal bloodpriests were among the earliest intellectuals on record. It was they who found that a newly freed soul would desperately cling to any other source of life.

[201] 獻祭之心 巨人魔盾 Rathpith Globe

瓦爾人挖掉奴隸的心臟,微微抽動的屍體堆積如山。

The Vaal emptied their slaves of beating hearts, and left a mountain of twitching dead.

[202] 古物(The Ancients) 第一冊:瓦爾的末代女王 Book 1: Last of the Vaal Queens

傳說中,阿茲里女王的朝政廳排滿了鏡子,而她總是一絲不掛地上朝,並且要求群臣依樣畫葫蘆。據她所說,人在沒有蔽體衣物時,也就沒有可以隱藏的事物。不過,任何人不用細想都會想到阿茲里會利用自己婀娜的體態來搏得其他人的認可。像阿茲里一般美麗的女人裸身站在面前時,必定很難拒絕她提出的條件。從所剩無幾的人偶和浮雕,可看出她是位絕世美人:不但擁有曼妙的體態、迷人的雙眼,更散發出令人銷魂的氣質。這些描述是真是假,時至今日已無從證實。不過,究竟這樣的女人性情如何?殘存至今的少數紀錄可分為兩派:其中一派以讚揚阿茲里極有遠見,必定讓瓦爾族步向光明的未來,另一派則毫不客氣,直指阿茲里對於自己的愛慕遠超出賜給人民的恩惠。如果她那朝政廳確實擺滿了鏡子,那麼後者的批判應該更為可信─ 虛榮心是最容易腐化人心的罪惡。關於阿茲里,只有一件事情是可以確信的:她是瓦爾族的末代女王,在她在權期間,瓦爾族的輝煌歷史於恆曆前四百年左右戛然而止。 — 圖書館長 特里尼安

It has been written of Queen Atziri that her throne room was lined with mirrors and that she held court naked, demanding the same of those wishing her audience. The theory was that a naked man had nothing to hide, but one might easily venture that Atziri utilised her striking physical presence to influence courtly engagements in her favour. A woman like Atziri, beautiful and naked, would be very difficult to refuse. The few statuettes and reliefs that remain depict her as a rare beauty, a young woman with exquisitely delicate features, large, mesmerizing eyes, and a full figure of intoxicating sensuality. Whether the depictions are realist or interpretive is unfortunately impossible to corroborate. But who was the woman behind the title? The few surviving accounts on this matter contain two schools of thought on the matter. Some speak of Atziri with adoration, touting her as a visionary, the woman who would lead the Vaal into a brighter future. Others are less kind, suggesting that Atziri’s love for herself overshadowed any love for her people. If her court of mirrors truly existed, however, then the latter seems more likely. Vanity, after all, is the most insidious of all Sins. Only one thing can be said for certain of Atziri: she was the last Queen of the Vaal. The trail of history ends during her reign, some four hundred years preceding the Imperialus Conceptus. -Trinian — Intellectus Prime

[203] 阿茲里的威權 祭禮束衣 Atziri’s Splendour 「瓦爾女王阿茲里」

「光明磊落者無所畏懼。」- 瓦爾女王阿茲里

“When you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.” — Atziri, Queen of the Vaal

[204] 阿茲里的秘寶庫 瓦爾金字塔 Vaults of Atziri

「當我的靈魂離開肉身,我的寶藏將隨我而去。」- 瓦爾女王阿茲里

“Should I depart this mortal coil, so shall all of my treasures.”- Atziri, Queen of the Vaal

[205] 催情劑 Elixir of Allure

為她的許多戀人而聞名,那些沒有因阿茲里前來的人們,最終也受到了液體的勸說。

Famous for her many lovers, those that did not come willing to Atziri, came by liquid persuasion.

[206] 威廉羅斯(Weylam Roth) 催情劑 I

以前老威廉可是無數女孩心目中的搶手貨。但我已經很長一段時間沒有得到女人滋潤了,現在都快憋死了。在我的討海人生中,我聽說過關於阿茲里女王和她的愛好的故事,她把這片土地變成一個寶庫,將她閃閃發亮的寶物全都放在裡面。其中一件寶物就是她有名的戀愛藥水,據說只要喝下藥水,就算夢中情人遠在天涯海角,也能將對方引來身邊。阿茲里女王把這瓶藥水放在她最寵愛的男寵的頭顱裡。該死的聖堂教團現在說不定已經拿到那瓶藥水,把它跟其他散落一地的骨頭一起丟進聖柩堂裡。流亡者,是朋友的話,就幫我拿到藥水,讓我再一次體驗真愛的感覺。

[207] 女王 The Queen 阿茲里的捷思

世間權力,盡在掌中

The power of the world, lies upon your hands.

[208] 她的面具 Her Mask 奉獻碎片

臣服在女王的美麗之下,至少你還能獻出頸項讓她劃破

To her beauty you submit, lest your neck the great Queen slit.

[209] 古物(The Ancients) 第二冊:殺人魔澤佛伊 Book 2: Zerphi the Murderer

據說瓦爾貴族澤佛伊活了一百六十八年,比當時瓦爾人平均壽命的三倍還多。如果澤佛伊只是個一生平安順遂、無事叨擾的平凡人,那麼他也只會是個塵封在角落、默默無聞的耄耋之人。想當然爾,他的一生充滿了傳奇的色彩。

在瓦爾族的歷史中,澤佛伊是最惡名昭彰的殺人魔:在一百二十八年期間,澤佛伊誘拐了十三名被害者,並加以凌虐、殺害,而所有被害者都二十來歲、擁有貴族血統,而且都是古靈使徒。然而,澤佛伊並不是因為殺了如此多人而赫赫有名,而是他那慘無人道的殺人手法。

當年發現澤佛伊非常瞭解如何讓受害者在最長的時間下,承受最劇烈的痛苦而死亡。在經過調查後,發現他的受害者都經歷了極為恐怖的凌遲,而驗屍報告更指出受害者身上的所有創傷都是在還活著的時候造成的。某些資料甚至宣稱他採用的凌虐手段極為熟練,讓他在受害者身心尚可支撐的狀態下,引起最為劇烈、持續最久的痛楚。

澤佛伊的死彷彿一個謎團,不過歷史總是會帶我們回到原點:他最後倒在第十三位、也是最後一位受害者的旁邊。這名受害者未受凌遲,體表毫無傷痕,只是單純死去。對這名超人瑞進行驗屍之後,結果更是讓人啞口無言:據說澤佛伊的遺體並無一百六十八歲的垂朽身軀,而是擁有一名二十歲男性的體態。從時間長河開始流動起,生命和死亡總是攜手相伴,難道澤佛伊找到了讓兩者結合的方法?

- 圖書館長 特里尼安

It is said the Vaalish noble, Zerphi, lived for 168 years. That is more than three times the current imperial average. Were this the only unusual attribute of an otherwise uneventful life, Zerphi might have have been cast into the back corner of history to gather dust with the other inexplicable anomalies. But his life was anything but uneventful.

Zerphi was the Vaal civilisation’s most infamous serial killer. Over a period of 128 years, Zerphi abducted, tortured and murdered thirteen victims. All in their twentieth year of life. All of noble descent. All Gemlings. But this feat alone did not catapult Zerphi into the annals of history. Rather, it was the quality of his heinous acts that set him apart, not the quantity.

Evidently, Zerphi was a master at inflicting the most prolonged and agonising demise. His victims’ bodies were found in a state of horrific mutilation, yet post-mortem analysis revealed that all of the physical trauma infilcted had occurred while the victim was still alive. Some sources claim that the techniques of torture were so refined that he was able to inflict the most intense and lasting pain the human body is capable of sustaining.

Then we come to the curious matter of Zerphi’s death which, as so often occurs with historical investigation, brings us back to where we started. Zerphi was finally found at the side of his thirteenth and final victim, who was unmolested and unmutilated. Simply dead. When the centenarian’s body was committed to autopsy, the recorded results are mystifying in the extreme. It is claimed that Zerphi did not possess the body of a 168-year-old, rather that his corpse had the physiognomy of a man of twenty years, no more.

Life and Death have walked hand in hand since the beginning of Time. Could Zerphi have persuaded them to kiss?

-Trinian — Intellectus Prime

[210] 澤佛伊的終息 優質魔力藥劑 Zerphi’s Last Breath 「普蘭德斯」

「只有愚蠢之人會為了長生不老冒險被唾棄萬年」 -伊席厄斯.普蘭德斯,古物收藏家,物品編號408

“Proof that if you devote yourself to a god of death, you may be spared from its wrath.” — Icius Perandus, Antiquities Collection, Item 408

[211] 古物(The Ancients) 第三冊:皇后的奇術師 Book 3: The Queen’s Thaumaturgist

在一個以古靈寶石和奇術為信仰的文化裡,能成為一人之下、萬人之上的權臣…多里亞尼必定也是當中的奇才,或是他為達目的不擇手段的殘暴無與倫比。在澤佛伊回歸塵土後,這是最駭人聽聞的事件之一。

許多古書都記載著阿茲里的御令:多里亞尼受命「盡所有可能達成使命,不需考慮任何代價或後果。」 那麼,多里亞尼究竟接下了什麼使命?答案是:瞭解澤佛伊長壽及永保青春的秘訣。

在一座特別讓人毛骨聳然的倉庫中,發現了為數可觀的草紙。上頭記載著無數青春年華的男女都交給多里亞尼進行「處理」。其中,只有「近年發育成熟」者才符合接受「必要程序」的資格,其他人則是打入「淘汰品」的行列。

是的,阿茲里女王為了追求無盡的青春和美貌,對自己的子民痛下殺手,再次證明了虛榮心是最容易腐化人心的罪惡。 — 圖書館長 特里尼安

In a culture festooned with gems and steeped in thaumaturgy, Doryani must have had quite the exceptional mind to rise to such preeminence as he did. Or perhaps he was simply more ruthless than his counterparts. Such is the impression one tends to garner from the accounts written of events following Zerphi’s death.

Atziri’s orders are quoted in a number of different texts. Doryani was “to make any effort within the realms of possibility, and to act without fear of question or consequence”. And to what was Doryani expected to apply this supreme effort? The investigation of Zerphi’s longevity and youthful vitality.

There is a particularly chilling manifest, containing endless lists of names, page upon page. The names of young men and women, ranging in age from sixteen to twenty-six, sent to Doryani for “processing”. Only those of “full and recent maturity” were deemed capable of accommodating the “necessary procedures” required without succumbing to “premature expiration”.

Yes, Queen Atziri was prepared to slaughter her own people in the desperate pursuit of perpetual youth and beauty. Vanity, indeed, is the most insidious of all Sins.

-Trinian — Intellectus Prime

[212] 薩歐賽(Siosa) 關於阿茲里女王

如果沒有切特斯大帝的青睞,瑪拉凱不可能如此得勢。這代表多里亞尼和阿茲里女王之間應該也存在著這樣的關係。據說美麗的阿茲里「希望在幽靜的歷史長河中看見自己曼妙的身影」,看來切特斯也自戀到無可救藥的地步。愛慕虛榮是萬惡的根源。

[213] 阿茲里的諾言 紫晶藥劑 Atziri’s Promise 「瓦爾女王阿茲里」

「死亡不求你的理解,它只需要你的奉獻。」 — 瓦爾女王阿茲里

“Death needs not your understanding. It needs only your loyalty.” — Atziri, Queen of the Vaal

[214] 阿茲里之鏡 金陽輕盾 Atziri’s Mirror

「帝陸將隨我一同踏上冥河之渡。」- 瓦爾女王阿茲里

As long as I see death in my mirror, so will Wraeclast.” — Atziri, Queen of the Vaal

[215] 時空扭曲 月光石戒指 Timetwist (時光之握 使用 命定時光 升級)

“即使是偉大的賢者,時間也沒有留情。“- 女王奇術師多里亞尼

“Even for the great Magi, time passes without relent.” — Doryani, Queen’s Thaumaturgist

[216] 時光之握 月光石戒指 Timeclasp

「對我們凡人來說,時間稍縱即逝;我只是試著平衡罷了。」- 女王首席預言者多里亞尼

“To us mere mortals, time is slippery. I’m just evening things out.” — Doryani, Queen’s Thaumaturgist

[217] 罪(Sin) 巨獸The Beast I

暗燼還埋在巨獸的深處。只是,統治者之殿的隧道現在已經崩塌了,我們必須想個辦法闖進去。我們知道巨獸腰側有個弱點,那是瓦爾奇術師多里亞尼割的舊傷。這個傷口癒合後,創口處形成一層厚實的膜。如果我們用正確的藥劑,應該可以把那層膜溶解,讓我們可以進去。這種藥劑需要兩種非常稀有的材料:首先是奇異酸,是一種從奇異鳳凰酸液心臟萃出的強烈毒液;第二種則是開採古靈寶石使用的爆裂物特拉坦藥粉。只要拿到這兩種材料,我就可以把那層膜溶掉。

The Dark Ember remains nestled deep within the putrid flesh of my dead Beast. With many of Highgate’s tunnels now collapsed, we must forge another way inside. Before us lies a weak point in the Beast’s flank. It is an ancient wound wrought by that Vaalish overreacher, Doryani. The wound was healed shut by a thick membrane but the right decoction should dissolve the tissue and allow us inside. Of course, for a cordial of such potency I shall require two ingredients of utmost rarity. First, our viscous concoction shall require Basilisk Acid, a princely poison which drips from the caustic heart of the Basilisk, and Tarathan Powder, an explosive substance oft used in the mining of Virtue gems. With these two bitter harvests, I shall brew something worth of eroding the membrane of my decaying pet.

[218] 薩歐賽(Siosa) 解讀第三頁

噢,第一行就這麼清楚:「女王崩殂、多里亞尼死去。子民們面臨隕落、驟變的命運。」後面的文字難以理解,唯一可以確定的是充滿著不安的氣息。我看看…我可以發現「沉睡」、「夢靨」和…「巨獸」,或是類似的東西。歷史學家最後提到:「越矩之行招致天崩地裂。」我不用特別想像瓦爾族怎麼隕落的,我親眼目堵惡夢的發生。

[219] 古物(The Ancients) 第五冊:覆亡之紀 Book 5: The Fall

瓦爾族繁盛了數千年後,在熾烈的烈陽下消逝。阿茲莫里人和殘餘的瓦爾族訴說著他們的同情和恐懼:支離破碎的家庭、步履蹣跚的雙腳,以及所剩無幾的財產和理智。阿茲莫里人親切地招呼、照顧瓦爾遺孤,但後者無法解釋 為什麼繁盛的民族會在如此短的時間內遭遇這樣的厄難,後人稱之為「覆亡之紀」。在阿茲莫里人歷史中,「三千一百二十六」是一個永不磨滅的數字:三千一百二十六名 瓦爾遺族最後歸化阿茲莫里人。那是為數百萬的龐大民族最後的三千一百二十六人…

- 圖書館長 特里尼安

The Vaal. Thousands of years in the making. Gone in a blink of Solaris’ burning eyes. The Azmeri tell of the Vaalish immigration with equal measures of pity and horror. Small bands of tattered, shambling survivors, bereft of their families, their wealth, and in many cases, their sanity. They were welcomed, and cared for, but none could give the Azmeri the one thing they sought in return. None could tell them how the Vaal realm came to such a sudden and catastrophic end. An apocalypse that came to be known as The Fall. The number 3126 is forever burned into Azmerian history. Three thousand one hundred and twenty-six: the number of Vaal refugees who came to live with and eventually become absorbed into the Azmerian people.

Three thousand one hundred and twenty-six survivors from a civilisation counting in its millions.

-Trinian — Intellectus Prime

[220] 薩歐賽(Siosa) 解讀第二頁

太好了。看看這頁會談到什麼。其中提到阿茲里女王。我看到一句警訊:「膽敢質疑女王者,都將在祭壇奉獻僭越犯上的鮮血。」下一段完全讓人難以理解,不過其中提到「交誼」,難道跟滿月有關?不管怎樣,多里亞尼似乎跟這件事脫離不了關係。很好,最後一行沒有什麼難度:「這是我們的最後一夜,充滿著恐懼和苦痛」獻祭、交誼和滿月…多麼讓人感到不安的故事。

[221] 瓦爾之訴 鈷藍珠寶 Vaal Sentencing

罪愆之罰,即為滅亡。阿茲里以殺戮流血鞏固帝國,奈何血已漸漸流盡。

In their final days, every crime was punishable by death. Atziri’s empire ran on blood, but the blood was running dry.

[222] 瓦爾信函 (Vaal Letter) VIII

「奇術之禍將遍及全族,女王之欲將引領消亡。」

“There was no escape for me. Should our Queen and her thaumaturge succeed, there will be no escape for anyone.”

[223] 瓦爾信函 (Vaal Letter) X

「阿茲里女王的不義之行將讓她失去民心。」

“Queen Atziri forfeited her sovereignty the day that she chose to murder her people.”

[224] 瓦爾信函 (Vaal Letter) XII

「阿茲里口中的永生,就像那即將熄滅的油燈,而後人將來到我們的墓前朝聖。」

“Atziri promises us eternal life. The only eternity we shall have is in the memories of the barbarians that shall plant their crops on our graves.”

[225] 夢語之痕 藍玉戒指 Dream Fragments

多里亞尼誤闖狂亂之境,狂亂帝國之王因其甦醒。

Doryani stumbled into a realm of madness. And awoke its Master.

[226] 墮落之血 琥珀護身符 Blood of Corruption (純淨之淚 使用 瓦爾寶珠 升級)

迷夢之際,耳語響起「吾土無邊,吾國無際,純淨之物註定朽腐天下蒼生終為我奴」- 女王的奇術師多里亞尼

In my dream, a voice spoke to me. It said: ‘My reach knows no bounds. All that is pure is destined to rot.

All that lives is destined to serve.’ — Doryani, Queen’s Thaumaturgist

[227] 空靈 The Ethereal 六連 瓦爾法衣

“很久以前,人們仰望群星,相信著它們正影響著我們。很快的,我們將會成為影響群星的人們。” — 多里亞尼,女王的奇術師

“Long ago, people looked to the stars, believing they influenced us. Soon, it will be us who influence the stars.” — Doryani, Queen’s Thaumaturge

[228] 多里亞尼之約 重革腰帶 Doryani’s Invitation 「瓦爾女王阿茲里」

「你可以送出誠摯的邀請,但無從得知造訪的是何方嘉賓。」- 女王奇術師多里亞尼

“You can invite them but you can never be sure who will come knocking.” — Doryani, Queen’s Thaumaturgist

[229] 黃昏的奉獻 Sacrifice at Dusk

瓦爾族從未對日落感到恐懼。

The Vaal shall never fear the setting of our sun.

[230] 凡人的哀傷 Mortal Grief

向罪惡之夜拜倒,我們將自取滅亡。

When we prostrate ourselves to the night, we worship mortality.

[231] 凡人的希望 Mortal Hope

相信女王將引領我們在黑暗中行進!

Look to our Queen, for she will lead us from the darkness.

[232] 午夜的奉獻 Sacrifice at Midnight

相信女王將賜給我們光明!

Look to our Queen, for she will lead us into the light.

[233] 薩歐賽(Siosa) 解讀第一頁

在我看來,瓦爾的轉化語法就像一尾滑溜的鰻魚,我得試試能不能直接切中重點。他們把古靈寶石帶到…「多里亞尼的床」…聽起來怪怪的。對了,應該是多里亞尼的搖籃。歷史學家在最後提到為了保障瓦爾族的未來,這是他們必須承擔的代價。古靈寶石的搖籃?多里亞尼會希望怎麼保障「瓦爾族的未來」?

[234] 多里亞尼的幻化之杖 瓦爾權杖 Doryani’s Catalyst 「瓦爾女王阿茲里」

「煉化」將讓所有子民長生不老,或是體毀魂消。 無論結果如何,多里亞尼都相信這是瓦爾一族的救藥。

The result of the catalytic reaction would be either immortality for all, or death for all. It was a risk Doryani was willing to take.

[235] 最後希望 Last Hope 凡人的希望

當他們的王朝開始崩壞,瓦爾民族的人民望向他們的女王。在她身上,人民看到了一線希望。在人民身上,她只見到負擔。

As their civilisation crumbled, the Vaal looked to their queen. In her, they saw a way out. In them, she saw a burden she was happy to free herself from.

[236] 瓦爾之運 Luck of the Vaal 瓦爾護手

真沒那麼幸運,否則他們現在可還在呢!

They can’t be THAT lucky, or they’d still be here!

[237] 罪(Sin) 浩劫 Cataclysm

不應該成為這樣的啊… 巨獸本身就是一種美的存在,就像人們髮飾上的珠寶。 我…希望給你們一個追求和平、在這個世界上發光發熱的機會,不再只是當眾神的奴隸和玩物…… 牠只是想自我防衛,錯的是那些背叛所有人類的扭曲心靈。我也無法預測瓦爾和永恆帝國的行為,會讓牠在瓦爾克拉斯引起巨變。歷史上總是充滿悲劇,甚至…不斷重演。流亡者,我的雙手沾滿了數以百萬計…無辜者的鮮血,我再怎麼嘗試也無法洗刷這個汙名。

It was never meant to transpire this way… My Beast was born to be a thing of beauty. A crowning jewel to rest upon humanity’s head. I… I wanted to give your kind a chance for peace, a chance to play atop the great stage. No longer pawns to a pantheon of petty, slavering gods… It was only ever defending itself, the fault lies within the twisted hearts of those who would betray their own humanity. Not even I could anticipate the cataclysms my pet wrought on Wraeclast. Both Vaal and Eternal. Ruins in the pages of history. And the others… trailing back across the aeoms. There is blood on my hands, exile, the innocent blood of millions, and try as I might, the strains just won’t wash off.

[238] 阿茲里之權 赤紅珠寶 Atziri’s Reign

阿茲里費盡多年心血,力求長生不死,奈何萬物終有窮盡。

Atziri went to great lengths to ensure her immortality, but nothing is eternal.

[239] 第六冊:恆曆 Book 6: Imperialus Conceptus

塔庫斯.維盧梭率領著八萬族人踏上阿札拉瓦爾那已覆亡的家園。他在阿茲里的陵墓插上旗幟,建立起偉大的永恆帝國。旗幟上寫著:

「瓦爾族不願正視付出血肉的代價,招致覆滅的命運。阿茲莫里目睹瓦爾的災難,將保障子民的平安。」

維盧梭在阿札拉瓦爾的殘骸上建起一座名為「薩恩」的新城,維盧梭號召第一波軍團征服聖山下方的土地,清除覆亡之紀所留下的奇異創造物和怪物。

誠如維盧梭所言,他保障子民的平安:他封起了瓦爾古老的教學和權力中心,對奇術創下禁令,讓學習瓦爾秘術者成為烈火的祭品。他考量到摧毀眾神之淚可能會帶來無法想像的後果,因此全數運往統治者之殿,埋入深山後加以密封,而古靈寶石就這樣受世人所遺忘。

這是一個消滅歷史的卓越手段,但在敝人眼中,這不過是原始部族自認為征服敗者的激進手段。

- 圖書館長 特里尼安

Tarcus Veruso descended from the mountains and his eighty thousand tribesmen and women through the doomlands to Azala Vaal. There he planted his banner upon Atziri’s grave and with these words founded our great and eternal empire.

“The Vaal closed their eyes to flesh and stone, to blood and bronze. We are not Vaal. We are Azmeri. For now and forever, our eyes are open.”

Veruso built his capital upon the bones of Azala Vaal and baptized it Sarn. From there, Veruso formed the first Legions and proceeded to conquer the lands beneath the Mantle, clearing it of the mindless constructs and fierce abominations left in the wake of The Fall. True to his word, Veruso ensured that his people lived “with eyes open”. The ancient Vaalish centres of learning and power were sealed and quarantined. Thaumaturgy was outlawed and those who stained themselves with Vaalish folly were burned for their sin. The Tears of the Maji, too dangerous to be destroyed, were gathered up, taken to Highgate, and buried within the bowels of the mountains. The caverns there were sealed and forgotten. A supreme effort to erase the past. A primitive reaction born of primitive times, in the opinion of this humble historian.

[240] 殘墟 Lingering Remnants 瓦爾密殿

永遠不滅亡,卻非生者,秋分月光下,徘徊不休。

Never dying, yet not living, Endlessly they wander beneath the harvest moon.

[241] 腐化寒息 翠綠珠寶 Chill of Corruption

即使千年過後,阿茲里的存在,依然為瓦爾克拉斯帶來死亡陰霾。

Even a millennium later, Atziri’s presence casts a shroud over Wraeclast.

[242] 艾瓦弗萊(Alva Valai) 阿茲瓦特 Atzoatl

流傳著失落的阿茲瓦特神殿(Atzoatl Temple)為瓦爾全部歷史和神話上最著名的。我能看的出來,神殿開始動工的時候是在瓦爾帝國的晚年。但確切的完工日期很難查明,因為它發生的時間很短暫且是在瓦爾文明滅絕前。或許就因為它在時間軸上的這種脆弱,才讓阿茲瓦特成為瓦爾的神話。有些人說他是個陰暗之地,最邪惡之獻祭的起源。但也有其他人說,神殿是科技的起源地 - 與那些牆後所產出的東西相比,即使是我們自己的創作都顯得淡然失色。

現今的學者也說,它是阿茲里女王自己的藏寶室。無論如何,它肯定是受到狂熱分子和皇室的重重保護。如果有什麼東西值得保護的話,那麼它就值得血腥奪取!

The lost Temple of Atzoatl is said to be the most famed in all Vaal history and myth. Best I can tell, the Temple began its construction in the final years of the Vaal Empire. The exact date of its completion has been hard to ascertain as it occurred shortly before the events which brought about the civilisation’s extinction.

Perhaps it is the fragility of the timeline that has made Atzoatl such a staple of Vaal mythology. Some say it was a place of darkness, home to the most vile of sacrifices. But there are others who claim the temple to be the birthplace of technology — even our own is said to pale in comparison to what was being forged within those walls.

Scholars today have even suggested that it was the treasure house for Queen Atziri herself. Whichever is true, it was bound to have been fiercely protected by fanatics and royalty alike. And if something’s worth protecting, well, then it’s worth bloody taking!

[243] 賞金獵手 Treasure Hunter 阿茲里的秘寶庫

“別擔心,我知道我在做什麼” — 特格的遺言

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.” — Toggo’s Last Words

後記

編寫者:EKwow

編寫日期:2018年11月29日

POE版本:3.4.5c 掘獄聯盟(Delve)

中文資料來源:http://poedb.tw/ (流亡編年史)

英文資料來源:https://pathofexile.gamepedia.com/Path_of_Exile_Wiki (POE Wiki)

台服的翻譯有很多錯誤,最常見的是同字翻成不同意思,如The First Ones翻成初始者/初代;Tsoagoth翻成賽根斯/特索勾斯;Hinekora 翻成海恩格拉/悉妮蔻拉,更嚴重的就是在原文里明明是大寫開頭的專有名詞卻翻成一般字面上的意思,更有些為了幽默而把根本不屬於該時代的人物翻進中文裡,所以建議能按還是盡量看原文,以上文獻中沒有英文的部分就是POE wiki並沒有人編寫,所以我也無法提供做對照,中文槓掉的部分(比如像這樣的文字),表示我個人認為翻譯無法真正達原文的意思,建議看英文。

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