fs.thefirstbookofswords-第59部分

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ince　no　victory　over　them　is　ever　quite　perfect　or　plete。
　　　The　cause　of　Life　turns　enemies　into　allies　but　alliances　change　to　emnities　in　the　camp　of　Death。　Yet　the　contending　sides　are　not　homogeneous：　humans　use　thinking　machines　and　berserkers　incorporate　living　tissue。　The　cyborg　hero　of　Berserker　Man　bees　humanity's　paladin　without　denying　the　machine　side　of　his　nature。　In　the　long　run；　Life　may　be　more　at　risk　from　treachery　by　the　living　than　from　attack　by　the　unliving。　The　berserkers'　〃goodlife〃　servants　are　worse　than　their　masters　because　they　freely　choose　and　bleakly　enjoy　their　perversions。　These　worshipers　of　destruction　are　but　one　particular　expression　of　sentient　beings　bent　toward　sin。　Before　the　berserkers　came　to　be；　Evil　was。
　　　Turns　of　play　proceed　by　ironic　reversals　of　fortune。　The　race　is　not　always　to　the　swift　nor　the　battle　to　the　strong。　Pawns　have　a　way　of　being　kings　…　and　vice　versa。　Unable　to　penetrate　the　councils　of　the　light；　darkness　often　falls　into　its　own　malicious　snares。　Even　when　it　wields　planet…shattering　weapons；　Evil　can　be　defeated　by　a　child；　an　animal；　or　even　a　plant。　Eucatastrophe；　the　unexpected　happy　ending；　is　always　possible　when　the　game　is　bravely　…　and　skillfully　played。
　　　The　stakes　could　not　be　higher。　The　very　nature　of　the　universe　is　being　put　to　wager　of　battle。　Is　existence　a　circular　parade　of　ants？　（〃What　did　it　all　matter？〃　asks　one　villain。　〃Was　it　not　a　berserker　universe　already；　everything　determined　by　the　random　swirls　of　condensing　gas；　before　the　stars　were　born？〃）　Or　is　it　a　march　towards　a　glorious　destination？　Defeating　Death's　legions　vindicates　the　evolutionary　potential　latent　in　every　bit　of　Life。
　　　Likewise；　human　art；　love；　holiness；　even　humor　and　personal　quirks　can　transcend　the　laws　of　probability　that　govern　berserkers。　Machine　intelligence　cannot　grasp　why　〃the　most　dangerous　life　units　of　all　sometimes　acted　in　ways　that　seemed　to　contradict　the　known　supremacy　of　the　laws　of　physics　and　chance。〃　Capacity　for　growth　and　choice　is　humankind's　passport　to　a　paradoxical　space…time　region　…　and　a　boundless　future　…　barred　to　its　unliving　foes。
　　　Unto　what　purpose　was　the　match　held？　Perhaps　to　let　Life　win　its　laurels　under　fire。　Virtue　untried　by　adversity　is　meaningless。　Moreover；　the　game　does　not　end　where　it　began。　Neither　players　nor　field　will　ever　be　the　same　again。　Evil　has　only　improved　what　it　sought　to　annihilate。　The　berserker　wars　are　but　one　set　among　the　contests　being　played　out　instant　by　instant　until　the　end　of　time。　Yet　whatever　the　odds　in　Death's　favor；　Saberhagen　stubbornly　proclaims　that　Life　will　wear　the　victor's　crown。
　　　The　same　ground　rules　obeyed　in　the　berserker　series　reappear　in　all　Saberhagen's　fiction　because　they　express　his　personal　…　and　highly　traditional　values。　Length　and　continuity　permit　some　especially　engrossing　refinements　of　play　in　The　Empire　of　the　East　（1979）；　the　revised　one…volume　edition　of　a　trilogy　originally　published　as　The　Broken　Lands　（1968）；　The　Black　Mountains　（1971）；　and　Changeling　Earth　（1973）。
　　　Ingenious　though　he　is；　Saberhagen　has　never　been　wildly　innovative。　His　strength　as　a　writer　lies　in　seeing　old　concepts　from　new　angles　and　employing　them　with　unswerving　thoroughness。　Empire　is　a　monument　to　these　qualities。　It　rests　on　that　venerable　fantasy　premise；　〃a　world　where　magic　works。〃　In　the　version　pioneered　by　L。　Sprague　de　Camp　and　Fletcher　Pratt　in　their　Inplete　Enchanter　（1942）；　magic　totally　replaces　science。　However；　in　Larry　Niven's　The　Magic　Goes　Away　（1978）；　magic　is　being　supplanted　by　science。　Works　like　Poul　Anderson's　Operation　Chaos　（1971）　and　Randall　Garrett's　Lord　Darcy　series　show　the　two　kinds　of　knowledge　co…existing　unequally　in　realistic　twentieth　century　settings；　but　series　by　Andre　Norton　（Witch　World）　and　Marion　Zimmer　Bradley　（Darkover）　set　them　at　odds　in　archaic　alien　societies。
　　　Saberhagen's　Empire　takes　place　in　a　post…catastrophe　North　America　whose　culture　is　vaguely　medieval。　Wizardry　dominates　this　demon…ridden　age　while　the　rare　bits　of　technology　surviving　from　the　Old　World　are　objects　of　superstitious　awe。　Sometimes　Old　and　New　can　unite；　as　in　the　temperamental　person　of　the　djinn　technologist；　a　being　as　maddeningly　literalminded　as　a　puter；　who　must　be　properly　programmed　to　perform　his　magic　feats。
　　　The　novelty　of　the　situation　is　why　magic　has　bee　feasible。　There　was　no　thaumaturgic　breakthrough。　Instead；　the　very　nature　of　physical　reality　has　been　fundamentally　altered　by　the　doomsday　weapons　used　in　a　past　global　war。　The　probability　of　occult　phenomena　occurring　has　increased　enormously。　〃Since　the　Change　it　could　scarcely　be　said　that　anything　was　lifeless；　powers　that　before　had　only　been　potentialities　now　responded　readily　to　the　wish；　the　incantation；　were　motivated　and　controlled　by　the　dream…like　logic　of　the　wizard's　world。〃　Meanwhile；　the　likelihood　of　certain　physical　reactions　and　technical　aptitude　itself　have　correspondingly　declined。　Or　as　the　author　himself　remarks；　〃We　are　not　justified　in　assuming　that　all　physical　laws　are　immutable　through　the　whole　universe　of　space　and　time。〃
　　　But　no　matter　how　much　else　may　change；　the　craving　for　mastery　endures。　Whether　engineers　or　wizards　build　their　war　gear；　conquerors　will　be　conquerors　still。　The　tyrant　of　the　age　is　John　Ominor　（〃The　AllDevourer〃）；　Emperor　of　the　East；　a　man　far　wickeder　than　the　demons　he　binds　to　his　will。　Not　long　before　the　story　opens；　Ominor's　armies　consumed　the　last　independent　bit　of　the　continent；　the　Broken　Lands　along　the　West　Coast。　But　before　his　world　dominion　can　be　perfectly　secured；　rebels　calling　themselves　the　Free　Folk　challenge　his　despotic　rule。　Aided　by　a　quasimaterial　power　named　Ardneh；　they　fight　their　way　up　through　the　feudal　hierarchy；　from　satrap　past　viceroy　to　confront　the　Emperor　himself。
　　　Each　volume　of　the　trilogy　has　a　different　source　of　mythic　inspiration。　As　the　text　itself　explains；　The　Broken　Lands　is　based　on　an　Indian　myth　concerning　the　god　Indra　and　the　demon　Namuci。　The　gods　（devas）　and　demons　（asuras）　of　India　are　the　opposite　poles　of　the　same　transcendent　nature。　Each　side　continually　struggles　to　amass　enough　spiritual　energy　to　subdue　the　other。　Indra　the　Thunderer；　god　of　storm；　war；　and　fertility；　rider　of　the　white　elephant　Airavata；　Guardian　of　the　Eastern　Quarter　of　the　Universe；　once　swore　an　extravagant　oath　of　friendship　with　the　powerful　drought　demon　Namuci。　Later；　he　slipped　through　a　loophole　in　the　terms　to　slay　the　placent　demon。　（Georges　Dumezil's　Destiny　of　the　Warrior　exhaustively　analyzes　this　episode　as　a　key　Indo…European　myth。）　In　other　adventures；　mighty　Indra　also　slew　Trisiras；　a　triple…headed　hybrid　of　god　and　demon；　and　Vritra；　a　cosmic　dragon　who　had　impounded　the　waters　of　life。
　　　Saberhagen　works　some　clever　and　selective　transformations　on　this　raw　material。　Indra's　discus…shaped　Thunderstone　appears　as　a　practical　device　for　making　rain　or　war。　The　oath　bees　a　prophecy　of　retribution　by　Arneh；　the　mysterious　presence　who　can　manifest　himself　in　persons；　places；　or　things。　Namuci　is　the　East's　cruel　satrap　Ekuman；　leigeman　of　demons；　and　the　sea…spume　that　kills　him　is　fireextinguisher　foam。　The　instrument　of　Arneh's　justice　is　a　youth　named　Rolf　who　has　a　natural　affinity　for　technology　and　the　courage　to　ride　the　atomic…powered　elephant　to　victory。
　　　The　Black　Mountains　borrows　motifs　rather　than　specific　incidents　from　mythology　and　arranges　these　in　opposing　pairs　to　render　the　next　great　battle　between　East　and　West。　Defeated　Easterner　Lord　Chup；　〃the　tall　broken　man；〃　is　wounded　and　healed；　slain　and　reborn；　degraded　and　redeemed　so　that　he　at　last　stands　tall　and　whole　…　on　the　Western　side。　Som　the　Dead；　an　inhuman　man；　is　annihilated　by　a　godlike　beast；　the　immortal　Lord　Draffut。　（These　two　fantastical　characters　seem　to　echo　every　remembered　tale　of　animated　corpses　and　kindly　nature　spirits　…　the　Nazgul　king　and　Tom　Bombadil　from　The　Lord　of　the　Rings　spring　to　mind。　Nevertheless；　they　are　strikingly　original　creations。）　Rolf's　twin　quests　for　his　kidnapped　sister　and　for　the　hidden　life