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Suddenly he heard a thundering sound, and he was thrown to the ground by a wind such as he had never known.
突然，传来一声巨响，圣地亚哥被一阵罕见的狂风猛地掀翻在地。
The area was swirling in dust so intense that it hid the moon from view.
四周尘土飞扬，星月黯淡。
Before him was an enormous white horse, rearing over him with a frightening scream.
在他面前，一匹高大的白马正扬起前蹄，发出骇人的嘶鸣。
When the blinding dust had settled a bit, the boy trembled at what he saw.
男孩一时看不清发生的事情，但当尘埃稍稍落定之后，他感到了一种前所未有的恐惧。
Astride the animal was a horseman dressed completely in black, with a falcon perched on his left shoulder.
马背上坐着一个身穿黑衣的骑士，左肩一只猎鹰，
He wore a turban and his entire face, except for his eyes, was covered with a black kerchief.
额上缠着头巾，黑布遮面，只露出两只眼睛，
He appeared to be a messenger from the desert, but his presence was much more powerful than that of a mere messenger.
看上去颇像沙漠里传递消息的信使，身材比男孩这辈子见过的任何人都强壮。
The strange horseman drew an enormous, curved sword from a scabbard mounted on his saddle. The steel of its blade glittered in the light of the moon.
神秘骑士抽出拴在马鞍上的一把巨大弯刀，刀刃在月光下闪着寒光。
"Who dares to read the meaning of the flight of the hawks?" he demanded, so loudly that his words seemed to echo through the fifty thousand palm trees of Al-Fayoum.
“什么人竟敢解读鹰翔的寓意？”那骑士问道，声如龙吟，在法尤姆绿洲的五万棵椰枣树中回响。
"It is I who dared to do so," said the boy.
“是我。”男孩说。
He was reminded of the image of Santiago Matamoros, mounted on his white horse, with the infidels beneath his hooves.
他突然想起圣地亚哥·马塔莫罗斯的雕像：骑着白马，马蹄下匍匐着一群异教徒。
This man looked exactly the same, except that now the roles were reversed.
那场景与眼前情况如出一辙，只是双方情势颠倒了过来。
"It is I who dared to do so," he repeated, and he lowered his head to receive a blow from the sword.
“是我。”男孩又说了一遍，并低下头，等着那弯刀斩落下来，
"Many lives will be saved, because I was able to see through to the Soul of the World." The sword didn't fall.
“许多生命终将得救，因为世界之魂不在你们一边。”然而，弯刀并没有快速斩落下来。
Instead, the stranger lowered it slowly, until the point touched the boy's forehead. It drew a droplet of blood.
那神秘骑士的手缓缓落下，刀尖触到男孩的额头。刀尖无比锋利，鲜血流了出来。
The horseman was completely immobile, as was the boy.
骑士一动不动，停在那里。男孩亦如此。
It didn't even occur to the boy to flee.
他丝毫没有动过逃跑的念头，
In his heart, he felt a strange sense of joy: he was about to die in pursuit of his personal legend. And for Fatima.
相反，他内心深处涌起一种罕见的快意，流遍全身。他将为完成天命而死，将为法蒂玛而死。
The omens had been true, after all.
不管怎么说，预兆是真实的。
Here he was, face-to-face with his enemy, but there was no need to be concerned about dying—the Soul of the World awaited him, and he would soon be a part of it.
敌人就在这里，正是由于如此，他才无需担心死去，因为有世界之魂。不用多久，他将成为世界之魂的一部分。
And, tomorrow, his enemy would also be apart of that Soul.
明天，敌人也将成为世界之魂的一部分。
