"There are many universes and many earths... parallel to each other." "Worlds like yours... where people's souls live inside their bodies... and worlds like mine... where they walk beside us... as animal spirits we call dæmons." "Are we going to see the child?" "I should think so." "So many worlds... but connecting them all is Dust." "Dust was here before the witches of the air... the Gyptians of the water... and the bears of the ice." "In my world, scholars invented an alethiometer... a golden compass... and it showed them all that was hidden." "But the ruling power, fearing any truth but their own... destroyed these devices... and forbade the very mention of Dust." "One compass remains, however... and only one who can read it." "You'll never get me!" "Let's go get 'em, Lyra." "Come on!" "Gonna get you!" "I'll get you first!" "Billy!" "You come back here!" "Leave me alone!" "Faster, faster!" "We're gonna get you!" "Run, Roger!" "You are now Gobbled!" "You've gotta do whatever I say!" "Go, Roger!" "Run!" "Come on!" "Come on!" "Hurry!" " Leave us alone!" " Get him!" "Come on." "Run!" "Hurry up, Roger, or they'll Gobble you!" "Faster!" "Hurry up!" "Stop!" "If you value your lives, come no further." "Why?" "We Gobbled him fair and square." "This ain't no game, Billy Costa." "Don't you know what this gate is?" "It's the back door to your stupid college." "So?" "There's a curse on this gate." "You Gyptians ought to know that." "Crossin' this gate... is worse than touching someone's dæmon... with your bare hands." "Why ain't nothin' happened to you, then?" "'Cause we live 'ere." "We got safe passage, see?" "And anyway, my mother's the one who put the curse... on this gate in the first place." "What mother?" "I heard you was an orphink... and your uncle only left you 'ere 'cause nobody wanted you." "Come 'ere and say that." "Don't, Billy." "You should listen to your mate." "The scholars got this special room where they deal with trespassers." "They got this poison gown, right... and it burns you alive!" "Rubbish." "Hand him over." "It ain't rubbish." "I'll prove it." "I'll steal it." "You can have Roger." "As long as you try it on." "All right." "Bring it with you tonight." "Or else..." "War." "Billy, don't!" "See ya later, then." "OK." "Well done, Billy!" "You ain't really gonna hand me over to them?" "Of course not." "I'll steal any old scholar's gown." "He'll never try it on anyway." " Lord Asriel?" " Morning, Hunt." "Well, the Master will be relieved to hear you've arrived safely." "I'm sure he will." "I wish you'd listen to me once in a while." "Stop being such a coward." "If I weren't such a coward, where would you be?" "In the Retiring Room already." "Come on, quick." "Let's find a robe and get out of here." "Don't be silly." "I want to look around." "You do know that if you get a smack, I hurt too?" "Oh, Lyra." "You're gonna get us caught." "Oh, no!" "I told you!" "Lord Asriel is an eminent fellow of the college." "And as master of Jordan, you must force him... to abandon his plan." "They're talking about Uncle Asriel." "I speak for the Magisterium." "The Magisterium has no authority within these walls." "My dear fellow... the Magisterium has authority everywhere... and Lord Asriel will be silenced... one way or another." "That may be." "But while he is at Jordan, his proposal will be heard." "I'll not dispense with centuries of tolerance and free inquiry." "And that's my final word on the matter." "Now, if you'll excuse me..." "I shall call the Council to order." "I guess we lost that bet." "Hush, Pan." "Lyra, he's leaving." "Let's go." "Lyra." " The professor-a really hard time." " Oh, no." "It's Stelmaria." "The master asked me to decant a bottle of the '99 Tokay for you, Lord Asriel." "He remembered you were partial to it." "Thank you." " Lyra!" " It's poisoned." " Nonsense." " It ain't nonsense." "I saw that man from the Magisterium... pour some powder into the wine." "Go back in there." "Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut." "Go on." "Ah, Lord Asriel." "This is a rare pleasure." "May I introduce Fra Pavel of the Magisterium?" "We've never met, but I've followed your exploits closely, Lord Asriel." "That's what the smell is." "Master, gentlemen, I shall get straight to the point." "Hunt, the lights." "This photogram was taken at the magnetic North Pole... in Svalbard... kingdom of the ice bears." "Ice bears, Pan." "Lord Asriel, is that light rising up from the man's body or coming down?" "No, that's coming down from the sky, but that's not light." " It's Dust." " Dust?" " What's Dust?" " I don't know." "It can't be the normal sort." "They've got plenty of that here." "Mirabile dictu, gentlemen." "Allow Lord Asriel to explain." "Perhaps you've made a mistake." "It could be an aberration or malfunction of some kind." "No, it is no aberration." "The behavior of these particles is quite unmistakable." "Dust is flowing into this man, through his dæmon... from a city in another world." "A world much like ours in a parallel universe coexisting with our own." "Invisible, intangible, inaccessible!" "Until now." "From there, and from a billion other worlds, Dust flows." "Worlds of infinite possibilities." "Some where men have no dæmons." "Some where dæmons have no men." "People without dæmons." "That's impossible." "And even some where there is no Magisterium... and no Authority." "That is heresy." "That... is the truth." "I wouldn't recommend the Tokay, gentlemen." "It's corked." "To discover the source of Dust, I intend to travel to these worlds." "With a sufficient source of energy and" "Well, a sufficient source of funds..." "I can effect a crossing." "I humbly beg the College Council to fund such a journey." "It wasn't my fault." "She wouldn't listen to me." "I will not have my niece slithering round like an alley cat." "You're not very grateful, are you?" "I've just saved your life." "Uncle, why did he try to poison you?" " You wouldn't understand." " Yes, I would." "Well, I don't see why." "Apparently you're impossible to educate." "A miscreant and a liar." "What will the Magisterium do to you now?" "The Magisterium's days are numbered." "What does that mean?" "Trouble, with a bit of luck." "Did you get the money you needed?" "Are you going North again?" "The College Council has defied the Magisterium." "I'm leaving immediately." "Can I come with you?" "I want to see the ice bears and glaciers... and learn about Dust and everything." "What do you know about Dust?" " Nothing." " Good." "Keep it that way." "Now be a good girl and do what you're told." "But you don't do what you're told." "You don't let anybody tell you what to do." "Yes, and look at the welcome I got." "Hush, Pan." "I see your dæmon still changes shape." "Hasn't settled yet." "Yeah." "That's to do with Dust, isn't it?" "Why kids'dæmons can change shape... but grown-ups'dæmons can't." "Lyra." "Dust is none of your business." "Now you try and behave." "My Uncle Asriel said he'd take me to the North next time he goes." "He swore it." "'Cause he needs my help, see." "What for?" "Fightin', probably." "Or spying." "He uses me as a spy sometimes." "Like now, for instance." "I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on them Gobblers" "Come on!" "...'cause they took them Gyptian kids up Banbury way." "Billy Costa told me." "I heard them Gobblers take you down to hell." "Course they don't." "You're afraid of them, ain't you?" "No, I ain't." "But the adults are, because kids keep disappearing'." "They go after the poor kids, see." "The orphans and the servant kids as well." "Roger, I promise... if you was taken by the Gobblers..." "I'd come and rescue you." "You'd come and get me too, wouldn't you?" "Course." "But everybody would go looking for you if you was Gobbled." " You're a lady." " Says who?" "Cook." "He says that's why your uncle left you here, to make you a lady." "Nobody can make me a lady." "Not the master and scholars and porters combined, right?" "Take it back, or we ain't best mates no more!" "All right, all right, you ain't a lady." "Lyra!" "Lyra Belacqua, get down off them roofs!" "The Master wants you at high table!" "It was really- really quite surprising." "The state of your knees." "And your hair." "Well" "It's not surprising." "Roger and me's been huntin' Gobblers." "It's dirty work." "'Ere, don't you make jokes about them Gobblers." "Ain't nothin' to play about when children go missing." "Lyra, my dear... the tutor of metaphysics tells me that you've missed your lesson again." "Now, I know you do not always understand our need to educate you... but sometimes you must do what others think... best." "But I disagree, Master." "Mrs. Coulter." "When I was a young woman..." "I knew that no one could ever really truly understand me... except, of course, my dæmon... and that it would be best if we were free to do as we pleased." "Sit down, gentlemen." " Who's she?" " Don't know." "But she shut up the Master, all right." "Mrs. Coulter?" "This is our Lyra, Lyra Belacqua, Lord Asriel's niece." "Lyra, this is Mrs. Coulter... a friend of the college." "Lovely to meet you." "Lovely to meet you too." "Do you know I've met Lord Asriel?" "It was at the Royal Arctic Institute." "We discussed the political structure... of the ice bears of Svalbard." "You've seen an ice bear?" "As a matter of fact..." "I have had an audience with the bear king himself..." "Ragnar Sturlusson." "And I'll tell you something I probably shouldn't" "King Ragnar is desperate to have a dæmon of his own." "Bears don't have them, you see, and Ragnar... he likes to think of himself as a person... and he will stop at nothing to get one." "But you mustn't repeat that." "Oh, I'd never." "You know, I feel I can trust you." "I have to go back to the North very soon." "I'm going to need an assistant." "Me?" " Go to the North?" " North?" "It's cold up there." "We'd better get the Master's permission." "Master, I was wondering... if I might borrow dear Lyra." "Only for a while, of course." "I'm not sure that would be consistent with..." "Lord Asriel's wishes for her education." "Let me deal with Asriel." "You mustn't deny me this little thing, you really mustn't." "Very well." "Yeah" "Yeah" "A bet's a bet... and Lyra was supposed to show up with the gown." "I told you they wouldn't let her out of the college." "Which one's her room?" "What are you gonna do?" "Give her a fright, that's all." "We get caught, I'll be skinned alive." "Night porter's bound to be doin' his rounds." "Ratter, check if the coast is clear." "It's all clear." "Billy!" "Billy!" "The scholars still refuse to hand over the last alethiometer... and now they've given Asriel all the funds he needs." "If he succeeds in proving the existence of these other worlds... it will contradict centuries of teaching." "There will always be freethinkers and heretics... unless we deal with the root of the problem." "That is why Mrs. Coulter's work is so important." "What progress has she made?" "The doctors at Bolvangar... are close to perfecting the inoculation... against the effects of Dust." "I am relieved to hear that." "If we can protect our children from the corrupting influence of Dust... before their dæmons settle... then we will nurture a generation at peace with itself... one that will never question our authority again." "We owe it to the young... do we not?" "I fear our defiance will not go unpunished... now she'll be drawn into it." "We've failed her." "We've protected her as long as we could, Master." "And she's still only a child." "She can't possibly be a threat to them." "She is." "She's meant to play a major part in what is to come." "How can you know such things?" "The witches." "Thank you." "Could you" "Could you stay by the door, Mrs. Lonsdale?" "It's important that I know if I was followed." "Why yes, Master." "It's for you, Lyra." "What is this?" "An alethiometer." "Also known as a golden compass." "It was given to the college by Lord Asriel many years ago." "And now I'm giving it to you." "I feel you are meant to have it." "What's it for?" "It tells the truth." "We've always tried to acquaint you with the truth." "But the secrets at the heart of things elude scholars... and, uh, Authorities." "But this lets you glimpse things as they are." "But, Lyra, keep the alethiometer to yourself." "It is of the utmost importance... that Mrs. Coulter does not know that you have it." "Do you understand me?" "Of the utmost importance." "Lyra." "Are you ready?" "There's someone missing." "I want to say goodbye to Roger." "Roger?" "Who's Roger?" "My friend." "He works in the kitchens." "We must go." "The ferry's about to take off." "Why don't you write him a letter?" "You can tell him all about the journey, and... you can even send him a photogram." " Madam." " What do you think?" "Yeah." "I suppose." " Anything else, madam?" " That'll be all." "Mrs. Coulter, what's that?" "That is the Magisterial seat, Lyra." "What's the Magisterium for?" "Oh, you have been living in an ivory tower, haven't you?" "The Magisterium is what people need." "They keep things working by telling people what to do." "But... you told the Master you did whatever you pleased." "That's right." "Clever girl." "Well, some people know what's best for them... and some people don't." "Besides, they don't tell people what to do... in a mean, petty way... they tell them what to do in a kindly way... to keep them out of danger." "Sugar?" "Look, Pan, it's got loads of pictures round the edge." "But what do they all mean?" "Don't know." "The needle keeps stopping at the same symbols" "Lady... lightning bolt... and the baby." "Then it goes back and does it again." "See?" "What do you think makes the needle move?" "I don't know." "Maybe Uncle Asriel knows." "Maybe we're supposed to take it to him." "All washed and ready for bed?" "We have a busy few weeks." "Well, it was a stylish enough party... but why they don't offer more ice with their drinks..." "I shall never understand." "I'll only be a moment, darling." "Official business." "What?" "She likes to show off her new pet, doesn't she?" "She's never taking us to the North." "We're like prisoners in this house." "All these rules, and rooms that we aren't allowed into." "Perhaps we shouldn't have invited Professor Docker." "He's such a bore, isn't he?" "And he had sauce in his beard." "But he is one of the foremost experts on particle metaphysics." "Have I taught you what a particle is?" "Oh, I know about particles." "Like Dust." "That's a particle, isn't it?" "Dust?" "I mean the Dust from space." "That Dust, like in the North." "Where did you hear about that?" "It must have been one of the scholars at Jordan." "A wise person knows, Lyra... that there are some things that we best ignore... subjects that you- well, you never speak about." " But I didn't" " Yes." "You didn't know, so I forgive you." "Just don't mention it again." "Now, darling... will you take off that childish shoulder bag?" "I don't like to see you wearing it indoors." "Please, Mrs. Coulter." "I do love it." "But I do not." "Put it away." "Lyra, put it away now." "I don't want to." "If you do not obey me... we will have an argument which I will win." "Now put it away at once." "It's absurd to be carrying around a shoulder bag... in your own home." "Jordan is my home." "No!" "Lyra!" "Don't." "Please, it hurts!" "Lyra!" "Lyra!" "Will you do as I tell you?" "I promise." "Lyra." "Thank you." "And while you're at it, you must learn to control your dæmon." "He's much too wild." "Now..." "Kiss me." "I hate her!" "I hate them!" "And look." "They're spying on us." "What do they want with us?" "Why are we here?" "Did you see her dæmon?" "He went all sharp when you mentioned Dust." "And what does she keep in that room?" "Let's go find out." "Maybe this isn't such a good idea." "Over here." "Look." "That's just one of her stupid guest lists." "No, it isn't." "Look at it." ""Inter... cision. "" "What does it mean, Pan?" "And that" ""General..." "Oblation Board. "" "G" " O-B." "Gobblers." "From the letters, G-O-B." ""Workman, Edwards, Parslow, Costa!"" "Billy and Roger!" "Pan, it's her." "She's running the Gobblers." "Lyra, where are you?" "We have to get out of here." "Lyr" "Lyra." "What have you been doing?" "Nothing." "Well, we must find something for you to do." "Shall you help me arrange our passage to Norroway?" "Oh, you do want to come to the North with me, don't you?" "Where is he?" "I don't see him." "Lyra, this way!" "Quick, Lyra!" "Lyra!" "What are we gonna do, Pan?" "We've got to save Roger..." "and Billy." "We've got to save ourselves first!" "Where are we gonna go?" "Anywhere's better than here." "Come on!" "This way!" "All right, then." "Split up." "The girl can't be far." "Spread out." "Search all the buildings." "Gobblers!" "You, cover the canal." "She's gotta be here somewhere." "Wait up, Johnny!" "Put your back into it!" "We'll need two more of them." "Come on, lovely, lovely and fresh." "Lovely and fresh." "Hurry!" "Get her!" "Get it!" "Pan!" "Hurry, Lyra!" "Lyra!" "Hold her!" "No!" " Lyra!" " Pan." "Gyptians." "Don't fret none, Lyra." "Come 'ere." "You're safe with us." "You're Ma Costa." "Billy's mum." "But what are you doing here?" "We been in your shadow... ever since you left Jordan College, watchin' over you." "And a good thing too." "You best come with us." "Hurry, lads." "Where are we going?" "To see Lord Faa, King of the Gyptians." "Come on, get yourself aboard." "Not very friendly, are they?" "What are you lookin' at?" "So now all the clans are here... we'll head North on the next tide." "Ma Costa." "This is the child?" "It's all right." "How do you do, Lord Faa?" "Hello, Lyra." "You come and sit by my side." "Right, boys, get your heads up!" "This is Farder Coram." "Head for the ice lake!" "And these are the chiefs of the Gyptian families." "You are our guest here, and you're under our protection." "Lord Faa..." "I want to thank you." "For keeping watch on me and all." "But why did you do it?" "Lord Asriel has been a good friend to the Gyptians... this many a year, and this many a year it has been our charge... to bring him news of you as we travel along our ways." "Bet you didn't know that, did you?" "And when Mrs. Coulter got a hold of you, well... we suspected that she had something to do with the Gobblers." "And she did." "She and them Gobblers took my little boy Billy." "Lyra." "We know your tale all the way up until... you run away and the Costas found you." "But is there anything else you can tell us?" "Is there anything you may have forgot?" "Don't show it to them." "The Master of Jordan gave me this." "I thought they was all taken by the Magisterium." "It's an alethiometer." "It's a truth measurer." "A golden compass." "It enables you to see what others wish to hide." "You got three hands you can control." "By pointing at three symbols... you can ask any sort of question you can imagine." "Once you got your question framed... this blue needle points to more symbols... that give you the answer." "Could it be used to find the missing children?" "Not by me." "The art was jealously guarded." "Can I try?" "All right." "What are you doing, Lyra?" "You don't know how to read it." "Hush, Pan." "Well, the serpent is cunning, like the Gobblers." "And... the pot could mean a recipe or a plan." "And... the baby... that means kids." "One thing I do know, Lyra... you mustn't grasp at the answer." "Hold the question in your mind, but lightly." "Like it was something alive." "It's an hourglass." "But it came round to it on the second time." "The first time it only stopped there a moment." "On top of the hourglass... there's a skull." "Thank you, children." "Finish your letters now." "Billy Costa, why didn't you write anything?" "Your mother must be missing you terribly." "I don't know what to put in the letter, miss." "You haven't told us what we're here for." "You're here to help us." "And just as soon as you've helped us, we'll send you back home." "That's what you should write." "Or don't they teach Gyptian children to write?" "They teach us to write the truth, miss." "Billy, just write the letter." "Well, as I'll be posting these straight away..." "I'm afraid your parents will be disappointed." "I confess I am puzzled by your interest in the Belacqua girl." "For one thing, she is in possession of the alethiometer." "How-?" "Ah, yes." "The Master." "Can she read it?" "Of course not." "Mrs. Coulter... are you familiar with the prophesies of the witches?" "You think she is that child?" "Impossible." "Nonetheless, she must be found." "They'll seek her out like bees to honey." "Svalbard." "Kingdom of the ice bears." "We shall have to watch ourselves, Stelmaria." "You can bet that Coulter woman has hired... every Samoyed bandit from here to the Pole to hunt us down." "Let's not be so hasty." "Why don't we just" "We can work this out like gentlemen." "Don't worry, Lyra." "We'll find Roger." "I'm all right." "What is it?" "It's a spy-fly." "Is it dangerous?" "The one that got away is." "If you was to crack it open... you'd find no living thing in there." "No animal or insect, at any rate." "There's a clockwork... and pinned to the spring of it is a bad spirit... with a sleeping poison in its sting." "We'll keep him safe in here." "What was it after?" " You, Lyra." " Why me?" "Why are they doing this?" "We don't know." "But we Gyptians... have been hurt worse than most by these Gobblers... these child-thieves." "They're takin' those children up North... the land of cold and dark... and what they're doing with them there, we don't know... but we have heard terrible rumor." "Our aim... is first to go North and to rescue these children... both Gyptian and landloper alike." "But if they have been harmed..." "I promise you... if they have been harmed... there is not a place nor on land nor on sea... for these Gobblers." "And when the time comes to punish... we will strike such a blow as'll make their hearts faint and fearful." "Yes!" "We will strike the strength out of them." "We will leave them broken and shattered." "Yes!" "Are you getting scared, Pan?" "Scared?" "A little." "It's all bigger and scarier than we ever thought." "Maybe we shouldn't be doing this." "But we've got to, though, ain't we?" "Go on, I mean." "Who are you?" "My name is Serafina Pekkala... clan-queen of the witches of Lake Enara." "A witch?" "Where's your dæmon?" "Kaisa can fly a long way from me." "Are you the girl the Magisterium seeks?" "The one with a symbol reader?" "Let me see you read it." "I want to know if you can tell me... which of the men on this ship was once... my lover." "Farder Coram?" "But" "He was young and beautiful once." "And we witches live for hundreds of years." "Farder Coram wishes to know... where the child-cutters take their prey." "It is a place... they call Bolvangar." "The place of fear." "A regiment of Tartars with wolf dæmons guards it." "Birds do not fly above." "Animals have fled." "Even the Samoyeds fear it." "It is a week's march from Trollesund, on the coast of Norroway." "You will find something to help you in Trollesund." "You will need all your courage." "I'm glad I've lived long enough to see you... child." "Who's going to help us?" "Can you see anything?" "Lyra, you're not listening to me." "That's a mighty fancy clockwork you got there." "It's just a toy." "Well, then, it's a mighty fancy toy." "How'd you come by somethin' like that?" "Oh, Lord." "Lee, when you gonna learn to mind your own business?" "I do beg pardon." "Lee Scoresby." "And this old gal is Hester." "I'm Lyra." "And this is Pan." "Pantalaimon." " Howdy." " Mighty pleased, Miss Lyra." "You rode in with them Gyptian fellers." "Am I right?" " Whoa, boy." " There I go again." "Don't answer that." "What are you doing in Trollesund, Mr. Scoresby?" "Oh, a friend of mine got himself in a fix." "So I come to see what I could do about it." "Me too." "Course, that ain't my normal occupation." "Most of the time, I ply my trade up in the sky." "You're an aeronaut!" "Can I go up in your ship?" "I'd be honored." "Just as soon as I get her out of hock." "Miss Lyra..." "I'd like to give you a word of advice... though you ain't asked for none." "If I was on the kinda... scout... that I reckon you're on..." "I'd hire myself an aeronaut... and an armoured bear." "An armoured bear?" "There's one in town." "lorek Byrnison's his name." "Works at the sled depot behind Einarsson's Bar." "Good one to have on your side in a scrap." "Not that you're lookin' for that." "lorek Byrnison?" "lorek Byrnison?" "May I speak to you?" "What?" "We want to offer you employment." "I am employed, by the townspeople." "I mend broken machinery." "I lift heavy objects." "What kind of work is that for a Panserbjørn?" "Paid work!" "Is that what they pay you?" "Whisky?" "lorek Byrnison... you're the first ice bear I ever met." "I was ever so excited, and scared." "But now I'm just disappointed." "I heard that bears lived to hunt and to fight." "Why are you wasting your time here... drinking whisky?" "I stay because the people of this town... gave me spirits... and let me drink till I was asleep." "Then they took my armour away." "And without my armour, I cannot go to war." "And I am an armoured bear." "War is the sea I swim in... the air I breathe." "Without my armour, I am nothing." "But... can't you make new armour?" "I thought bears were good at that." "There's all this metal around." "Worthless!" "My armour is made of sky iron... from the falling stars that land in Svalbard." "A bear's armour is his soul... as your dæmon is your soul." "Irreplaceable." "You may as well take him away and replace him with a doll." "It must have been terrible to lose your armour." "It was no less than I deserved." "I am an exile." "I was sent away from Svalbard because I was unworthy." "I fought another bear in single combat... and was defeated." " Come, child." " But Farder Coram" "We can't involve ourselves." "He was a prince." "He would have been a king if the other bear hadn't defeated him." "He lost everything." "Oh, Pan, they've really hurt him." "lorek Byrnison?" "lorek Byrnison." " Be careful." " I know where your armour is." "They tricked you out of it." "They shouldn't have done that, lorek Byrnison." "It's in the district office of the Magisterium." "Right here in Trollesund." "What is your name, child?" "Lyra Belacqua." "Then, Lyra Belacqua..." "I owe you a debt." "I will serve you in your campaign... until I am dead... or you have a victory." "lorek!" "lorek Byrnison!" "lorek, listen." "Don't fight these men." "What they done ain't right, I know." "But if you fight, you'll kill them." "And there'll be more fighting... and we'll never get away to rescue those kids." "Let's not be too hasty." "Way I see it, there's no need for a dust-up." "Howdy, lorek." "I was down South." "Heard you ran into a little local trouble." "Didn't have the first notion on how to spring ya." "Fortunately, little girls... come in real resourceful up in these parts." "Well, looky here." "Reinforcements." "What do you say you fellers just call it a day?" "Just been hired on by these gentlemen... of the Gyptian persuasion." "You figuring' on joining this turkey shoot?" "Yes." "I have a contract with the child." "That's some pretty fast work, Miss Lyra." "My lord." "Rise, Fra Pavel." "I have received your news... about the Gyptian party heading to the North." "The matter is of the first importance." "They must be eliminated, and Bolvangar protected." "The intercision process is more important than ever." "Which is why it must be taken out of the hands... of the Coulter woman." "It was Mrs. Coulter who took the Belacqua child... from Jordan College and then let her slip away." "Yes, that is the most troubling of all." "No matter." "One way or another... it's better that I've sent Mrs. Coulter after the child." " You've sent her?" " Yes." "She is to demonstrate the improvements... to the intercision process upon the Belacqua girl." "I'm sorry." "I would never hurt you." "Oh, Lyra." "I'll find you." "I will find you." "Careful now, boys." "Airship machinery's kind of finicky." "I want to die in a rocking chair, not a hydrogen fire." "And she was ever so clever, Mrs. Coulter... but she was always telling me what to do." "I don't like people telling me what to do." "I bet you don't like it either." "I can tell." "You're like my Uncle Asriel." "He's a rough noble like you." "That's what I think." "Samoyed lands." "Samoyeds don't take kindly to trespassers." "It's the only way to reach Bolvangar." "Stay close to me." " Come, child." " It will be dark soon." "How far do you reckon?" "Oh, I don't know for sure, but a good few miles." "We covered some ground." "What's wrong?" "What can you see?" " Where are we going?" " Hush, Pan." "They told us not to leave the tent." "Is he coming, then?" "Don't know." "I'll have a look." "lorek?" "What is it, child?" "The alethiometer keeps telling me something." "In the next valley, there's a lake with a house by it... and it's troubled by a ghost." "It's something to do with the Gobblers and Roger." "You could take me there, couldn't you?" "You could carry me there and back... before anyone knew, couldn't you?" "You wish to ride me?" "Yeah." "We will travel faster without armour." "Are those birds?" "Witches." "More than I have ever seen." "Where are they going?" "Flying to war." "If they are flying to the aid of your enemies... you should all be afraid." "Are you afraid?" "No." "When I am, I will master my fear." "I will make sure the way is clear." "No." "Stay here." "Lyra, no, please don't." "Something's wrong." " Hush, Pan." " Something terrible." "I'm afraid." "We've got to master our fear." "Hello?" "Billy." "Where's his dæmon?" "He doesn't have a dæmon." "That's... intercision." "That's what the Gobblers are doing- cutting' away kids'dæmons." "Where's my Ratter?" "Have you seen her?" "Billy, it's me, Lyra." "Let me take you back to your mum." "I need Ratter." "Billy, come on with me." "We'll take you someplace safe." "We'll find Ratter." "Gracious God, what's this?" "Lyra, child, what have you found?" "Billy." "Billy Costa." "Billy!" "Oh, Billy!" "You're all right, Billy." "You're safe now." "We'll find your dæmon." "We'll bring 'er back." "Here, take Lyra." "Gyptians, to arms!" " Watch your backs!" " Protect the children!" "Look out, Lyra!" "lorek!" "lorek Byrnison, help me!" "Pan, where are they taking us?" "I don't know." "We've been going for hours." "Ice bears, Pan." "I hope you're happy now." "You're losing your touch, amigo." "So am I." "Don't worry." "We'll get her back." "The Samoyeds won't lay a hand on her." "She's worth more in one piece." "I'll find her." "I'll bring her back." "I can bargain with Ragnar." "I'll drop you at the border, pick you up on the way out." "No." "I will not leave her." "You show up in Svalbard..." "Ragnar and the rest of 'em will tear you to pieces." "You know that." "I know I would feel ashamed... to show less courage than that child." "That kind of courage could get you killed." "I will not live in shame any longer, Scoresby." "No." "I reckon not." "I'm gonna take her down, pick up the trail." "Don't worry. lorek will come." "That's just it, Pan." "There's too many of them for him to fight." "We've got to do something." "Do you remember what Mrs. Coulter said back at Jordan... about the king of the bears wanting a dæmon?" "Pan, I need you to hide." " Don't let them see you." " That's fine with me." "We can beat him, Pan." "What is this little thing?" "Our greetings to you, great king." "Or rather, my greetings and not his." "Not whose?" "lorek Byrnison's, Your Majesty." "What have you to do with lorek Byrnison?" "I am lorek Byrnison's dæmon." "And how has the exile... the unworthy lorek Byrnison, obtained a dæmon?" "lorek Byrnison was the first bear to get a dæmon... but it should've been you." "They gave me to him at Bolvangar." "Mrs. Coulter did." "And how could you be so far from him?" "I'm like a witch's dæmon, great king." " I can go as far from him as I please." " Well... if you are his dæmon... then I will kill you right now and be free of an enemy." "If you do that, I can never be your dæmon." "My... dæmon?" "That's why I come here, see?" "'Cause I want to be your dæmon, not his." "He's just an exile, nothing." "But you, you're powerful and clever and rich... and better in every way." "He's on his way here now, to fight you." "What?" "He's mad." " We shall destroy him!" " No." "No." "If you defeat him, I will become your dæmon." "But you must defeat him in single combat." "Then all his strength will flow into yours... and my mind will flow into your mind." "You and me, together." "Have him killed any other way... and I'll just go out like a light, and you'll never have a dæmon." "Prove it." "Prove to me that you are a dæmon." "Ask me something only you know." "How did I become king?" "What is that?" "It's a dæmon mirror, great king." "We dæmons use it to see the truth in our own eyes." "Truly you are great and powerful, Ragnar... for you poisoned the old king... then challenged the heir to the throne and beat him in single combat." "lorek Byrnison." "Oh, Pan, what have I done?" "Ragnar's too strong." "So here he is." "But what if the coward dare not fight me?" "Great king, let me speak to him." " If I do, he will not suspect." " Very well." "You go to him." "Give him courage." "Bring him to his death." "Soon you'll be mine." "Oh, lorek." "lorek, dear, I've done a terrible thing." "What terrible thing?" "I told the king I was your dæmon and that he must fight you." "If not, they would never let you fight." "They would burn you before you even got up close." "But you've been fighting... and running all this way." "Lyra." "Lyra Belacqua." "No, I shall call you Lyra Silvertongue." "To fight him is all I want." "Come, little dæmon." "Fight well, lorek, my dear." "You're the real king, and he ain't nothing." "Lyra, if I am killed..." "Scoresby will find you." "Is that all... whimpering cub?" "Is that all... soon-to-die?" "Is that all?" "Huh?" "Is that all?" "Yes, that is all." "That is all." "Bears, who is your king?" "lorek... lorek, I thought I'd lost you." "Why?" "You still own my contract." "And now I will take you to Bolvangar." "We've got to stop them, lorek." "The alethiometer says they'll hurt Roger." "There." "It may not hold us both." "You cross on your own." "I will follow." "I'm right here." "Step quickly." "Don't look down." "Don't look back!" "You're almost there." "Run, Lyra!" "Run!" "Run!" "Lyra!" "I will get Scoresby and the Gyptians." "Wait for me there!" "Lyra!" "Wait!" "I don't like the look of this place." "Bolvangar." "Hello, there." "I got lost in the snow." "Where am I?" "No need to worry, my child." "You're safe now." "Well, you'd better come inside." "It's warm and comfortable in here." " What's your name?" " Don't tell him who we are." "Lizzie." "Lizzie Brooks." "What were you doing so far north, Lizzie?" "That must be an interesting story." "My dad and uncles, they took me north." "They're traders." "Well, you're very lucky to have found us when you got lost." "What is this place?" "Oh, you'll like it." "It's called the Experimental Station." "What do you do here?" "We help children grow up." " Liar." " You must be hungry, Lizzie." "Lucky you." "Just in time for dinner." "Can you see him?" "Is he here?" " Lyra, it's them." " Pan!" " You found us!" " You're all right!" "You kept your promise!" "I knew you'd come." "I promised, didn't I?" "Roger, do you know what they do to the kids here?" "They say they're gonna give us this operation, right?" "Then they'll send us home... and we won't have to worry about Dust." "But once they call a kid in... you'll never see them again." "They took Billy Costa away last week... and he's still gone." "Don't worry." "I've got a plan, all right?" "Tell the kids to have their warm clothes ready." "I need to be alone someplace." "But not here." "They hardly ever use this one, but be quick." "Ask it how we're gonna get out of here." "But why would it" "Oh, no." "It's them." "I think you'll be pleased with our progress." "That may be so, but I am very interested in discovering... how several children managed to wander free from the station." " Thank you." " Mrs. Coulter..." "I hope you'll understand that the question is moot." "Any child who escapes from the facility... would not last very long in the cold." "We have already recovered two of the three missing children." "Were they alive?" "Well, that is unfortunate." "But enough of that for now." "I, at least, have some good news." "We needn't be concerned with Lord Asriel any longer." "He has bribed his captors and set up a secret laboratory... in the furthest reaches of the North." "The Magisterium soldiers are on their way." "He will be arrested for heresy and sentenced to death." "Put him to death?" "Dear me." "I think I will retire for the evening." "Oh, well, yes, of course." "The orderlies will show you to your chambers." "Wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of her." "I tell you that." "She's positively ghoulish." "Do you remember the first experiments... when she was so keen to see them pulled apart?" "Her and that mute of a dæmon." " What was that?" " Down there." " Under the table." " Quick!" " Lyra!" " Grab her leg!" "Lyra, they've got me!" "Come here." " Come on." " Lyra!" " You can't!" " Let me go!" "Get off me!" "You're not allowed!" "Lyra!" "Quickly now." "Straight into the chamber." "Let me go. lorek Byrnison's gonna kill you." " He'll rip your guts out!" " What a" "Don't fret, dear." "It's only a little cut." " You'll never keep us apart." " You want to grow up, don't you?" " Well, this is how you grow up." " Stay away from me!" " You'll never keep us apart!" " Set phase two." "Never, never!" "No, stop!" " Lyra!" " Pan!" " No!" " Never!" "You can't!" " Don't leave me, Pan." " No!" " Stop!" " No!" "Help me!" "Lyra!" "Lyra!" "Lyra." "Darling." " Don't." "Don't you touch." " No, no." "No, no one will hurt you." "No one is going to hurt you." "No one is ever... ever going to hurt you." "They did it to Billy... and those other kids." "They cut their dæmons away." "Why?" "Why are they doing that?" "I know it's difficult to understand, but it's for their own good." "It's just a little cut." "You listen." "Listen to me." "A long, long time ago... some of our ancestors made- made a terrible mistake." "They disobeyed... the Authority." "And that is what made Dust come into the world." "And ever since then, we have been sick with it, we have been sick with Dust." "But there is a way out." "You see, Dust doesn't settle on innocent children." "It's later, when your dæmon begins to settle... that Dust begins to swarm all around us... trying to work its mischief." "And that is how children begin to have all sorts of nasty thoughts... and unhappy feelings and" "But there is a way to stop it." "A little cut, and gone forever." "Well, if it's so good, then why don't you do it yourself?" "Why didn't you let them do it to me?" "I'm going to tell you something." "Something very important, something you don't know." "Intercision isn't perfect yet... and you're not just anyone, Lyra." "Your mother didn't die in an airship accident as you were told." "She wasn't married to your father, and even though- even though she loved you very much and... and she wanted to keep you... it wasn't allowed." "And so you were taken from her." "And it wasn't until things changed... and she was free to do as she wanted, that... that she went to Jordan College and she spoke to the Master." "No!" "You can't be!" "Yes, Lyra, you're mine." "And you're safe with me." "You'll always be safe with me." "Who's my father?" "Lord Asriel." "He's my father, isn't he?" "Yes." "Yes." "Now I almost forgot." "The Master of Jordan gave you something, didn't he?" "He gave you an alethiometer, didn't he?" "But you see... it wasn't really his to give." "Ah, he did." "Oh." "Must've seemed such a puzzle, what a silly old thing like that was any good for." "All right." "Here it is." "Thank you." "What a funny old tin." "Did you- did you put it in here to keep it safe?" "Run!" "Lyra, let's go!" "Go!" "We're just not used to that reaction." "Understand this, Sister Clara, they're not registered" "Go on, then." "Go on." "lorek!" "lorek!" "Run, child!" "Let's go!" "Come on!" " Quickly!" " Let's go!" "You'd better not touch me." "I'm warning you." "Serafina Pekkala?" " This way." " Get out!" "Get out!" " Mrs. Coulter!" " Get her up." "Come!" " Come on, come on!" " Hurry!" "Charge!" "Come on!" "Run!" "Come on!" "Get down, men!" "Mr. Scoresby, help lorek!" "Come on!" "Joe!" "Oh, my precious!" " Dad!" " Oh, my goodness, boy!" " Darling!" " Mum!" "Here's my daughter!" "Come here!" "Gyptians!" "To me!" "We're going home!" "Lyra, we've got to go." "It's time to go home." "I can't, Roger." "I've got to go to my father and bring him the alethiometer." " Your father?" " Lord Asriel" "Mrs. Coulter and them- they're gonna kill him." "Then I'm going too." "You said you was gonna come and get me." "You got me." "Miss Lyra, are you ready to fly?" "I know where she's going." "Well, they're all tucked in back there." "That little girl's somethin', huh?" "There's a prophesy about that child, Mr. Scoresby." "She will decide the war which is to come." "War?" "I ain't heard rumor of any war." "You will." "It is your war too, whether you know it or not." " What would the quarrel be about?" " Nothing less than free will." "The Magisterium not only seeks to control everyone in this world... but every world in every universe." "They've been unable to extend their power until now." "But if Asriel finds a way to travel between worlds... nothing will stop them from trying to take over." "Nothing but us... and that child." "What's it telling you?" "It's telling me about my father." "It says I'm bringing him what he needs." "We're going home, aren't we, Lyra?" "After we save your father." "Course." "'Cept, first we gotta sort out some things that need sorting." "Like Billy and them other kids that lost their dæmons." "We've got to help them." "And it isn't like the Magisterium's... just gonna let us go home to Jordan just like that... or leave off ordering people about." "And Dust" "I want to know what Dust is." "Maybe we're supposed to go to that other world with my father and find out." "That's an awful lot to sort out." "Well, who else is gonna do it?" "'Sides, we're in this together now." "Yeah, suppose we are." "You reckon it would do any harm to get some sleep now?" "Go on, then." "We'll set things right." "We will." "You and me... and Iorek." "And Serafina Pekkala and Mr. Scoresby." "And my father." "We'll set it right, Pan." "Just let them try to stop us." "THE END" "# Where are our lives #" "# If there is no dream?" "#" "# Where is our home?" "#" "# We don't know how #" "# There will be a way #" "# Out of the storm #" "# We will find hope #" "# And her soul walks beside her #" "# An army stands behind her #" "# Lyra #" "# And her face #" "# Full of grace #" "# Two worlds collide around her #" "# The truth lies deep inside her #" "# Lyra #" "# And the stars look down upon her #" "# This darkness settles on her #" "# Lyra #" "# Who's to know what's in the future?" "#" "# Every hope we will be with her #" "# We have all our love to give her #" "# Oh, Lyra #" "# Lyra #" "# And her soul walks beside her #" "# An army stands behind her #" "# Lyra #" "# And her face #" "# Full of grace #" "# Two worlds collide around her #" "# The truth lies deep inside her #" "# Oh, Lyra #" "# Lyra #"