《The Queen of Air and Darkness 》作者：- by Poul Anderson【EPUB】

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POUL ANDERSON The Queen of Airand Darkness The last glow of the last sunset would linger almost until midwinter. Butthere would be no more day and the northlands rejoiced. Blossomsopened flamboyance on firethorn trees steelflowers rising blue fromthe brok and rainplant that cloaked all hills shy whiteness of kiss-me-never down in the dales. Flitteries darted among them in iridescentwings a crownbuck shook his horns and bugled. Between horizons thesky deepened from purple to sable. Both moons were aloft nearly fullshining frosty on leaves and molten on waters. The shadows they madewere blurred by an aurora a great blowing curtain of light across halfheaven. Behind it the earliest stars had come out. A boy and a girl sat on Wolunds Barrow just under the dolmen itupbore. Their hair which streamed halfway down their backs showedstartlingly forth bleached as it was by summer. Their bodies still darkfrom that season merged with earth and bush and rock for they woreonly garlands. He played on a bone flute and she sang. They had lately become lovers. Their age was about .sixteen but they did not know this considering themselves Out..lingsand thus indifferent to time remembering little or nothing of how theyhad once dwelt in the lands of men. His notes piped cold around her voice: quotCast a spell weave it well of dust and dew and night and you.quot A brook by the grave mound carrying moonlight down to a hillhiddenriver answered with its rapids. A flock of hellbats passed black beneaththe aurora. A shape came bounding over Cloudmoor. It had two arms and two legsbut the legs were long and claw-footed and feather covered it to the endof a tail and broad wings. The face was half human dominated by itseyes. Had Ayoch been able to standwholly erect he would have reachedto the boys shoulder. The girl rose. quotHe carries a burdenquot she said. Her vision was not.. meantfor twilight like that of a northland creature born but she had learnedhow to use every sign her senses gave her. Besides thefact that ordinarilya pook would fly there was a heaviness to his haste. quotAnd he comes