quot;ill,quot; said Lyra, quot; ts out?quot;
Because tures ting louder and flying closer, and time, as if tself into little clots of malice and giving ts kept looking up fearfully.
quot;Are ting close?quot; Lyra called to the Lady Salmakia.
quot;Not far no; s;You could see rock.quot;
But Lyra didnt to e time. Srying to put on a c every moment in front of terrible image of ttle dog-Pan abandoned on tty as t closed around , t be hopeful for Roger; she always had been.
o face, it e suddenly. In among ts, tures as a g could be. o embrace her.
But tle c , it rengto ruly touch again.
But ;Lyra, I never t Id ever see you again, I t even if you did come do to speak to me...”
quot;?quot;
quot;Because I done t my daemon ao figo you! t o get my daemon again, and ;
quot;But t your fault, stupid!quot; Lyra said. quot;It brung you t place, and I s you go back ians. It . Im so sorry, Roger, , it , you ve been ;
quot;ell,quot; ;I dunno. Maybe I dead some ot it your fault, Lyra, see.quot;
S o believe it; but all t o see ttle cold t so out of reacried to grasp , ty air; but ood and sat down beside her.
ts tle, leaving t, too, to sit do ts to force tend to the wound.
But Lyra and Roger o t.
quot;And you ent dead,quot; ;ill alive? And w;
quot;Oo leave to do, it so muc s, and stood t looking, o like a murderer, Roger, but I o, or else I couldnt ;
quot;I been pretending to talk to you all time since I died,quot; ;I been , me and all terrible place, Lyra, its t till youre resting, you cant never sleep properly, you just sort of doze, and t beside you and t forget em. t t you. to make you feel tupid ts you ever you cant get a;
quot;ell,quot; s;listen.quot;
Dropping o ttle g, just as so do w Jordan, : s on:
quot;You probably dont kno tcc a prop me. t knoo anyone about it before. But ian took me to see tcest. o go outside and pick out t piece of cloud-pine out of all to ser.
quot;ell, I done t, and t only took a second, it alking to Farder Coram, and t knoo do somet and important, and it o be in another world...
quot;Only I never spoke of it, and I reckon I must it, t sort of sunk out of my mind. I never even talked about it h Pan, cause he would have laughed, I reckon.
quot;But ter on Mrs. Coulter caugrance, and I , and I dreamed of you. And I remembered tian boat mota, you remember, it on board of, in Jerichem...”
quot;Yes! And to Abingdon! t t never forget t, even if Im down housand years...”
quot;Yes, but listen, time, rigians again and ter me and... O, youd be amazed, but tant ta said to me, s cians er people but I was a fire person.
quot;And means is s of preparing me for tc sometant to do, and Dr. Lanselius t al I never found out iny ill it never ask about it... So I never did. I never even t miger, even.
quot;But no a sort of proof. I got to do, Roger, iny is, is I got to s out of t to rescue you all. Im sure its t. It must be. And because Lord Asriel, because of someto die, ll nt tell em yet, promise. I mean you mig last up t...”
e to speak, so sopped.
quot;ts just ed to tell you!quot; ;I told em, all told t like you came and rescued t, it anyone can. they
rue, ted to believe me, but tell.
quot;For one t; on, quot;every kid ts ever come arts by saying, I bet my dadll come and get me, or I bet my mum, as soon as sc ent ts t someones going to come and rescue em. Only told em youd come. Only I was rig;
quot;Yea; s; ill. ts ill over ts tialys and to tell you, Roger...quot;
quot;;
Lyra began to explain, quite unaraig ory of ing for tle knife. Roger noticed, he unchanging dead.
Meanalking quietly.
quot; are you going to do, you and t; said tialys.
quot;Open t ts out. ts t;
onis on any faces, let alone t respect for t silent for a fes, and tialys said:
quot;ts test blorike. ty er t;
quot; it?quot; said t;Itll come at t of now;
quot;And ; tialys asked ill.
quot; to get out ourselves, and find our daemons, I suppose. Dont ts enougo t said anyto ts, in case…, in case it doesnt you say anyto find a c to ract t.quot;
Instantly to tc insects c t creatures w over briger again.
took up tantly t aunts about opped. trying to clear his mind.
ried again, . e ty of t ttle to stop them.
ell, t it o be like. It going to get any easier. So ill let sat til he was ready again.
time t straigo t rock. o t up and tried again.
And t ing.
Next time carefully in tting tip searc revealed a ouc. to; everywouc was solid rock.
Lyra sometion to o ills side.
quot; is it?quot; sly.
old ;ere going to o move some going to let us. old ts ;
quot;No. Only Roger, and I told o keep it quiet. ever I tell not ever get out. Suppose stuck ;
quot;t to, cut a tunnel. Itll take a long time, and I o, but ;
quot;Yea. Course ;
But s . t go on muc t quail in ightly, aching for Pan.
Mean leave Lyra alone.
quot;Please,quot; said one girl, quot;you forget us w;
quot;No,quot; said Lyra, quot;never.quot;
quot;Youll tell t us?quot;
quot;I promise. s your name?quot;
But tten. Surned away, hiding her face, and a boy said:
quot;Its better to forget, I reckon. Ive forgotten mine. Some ent been ill knoen a ts t. And t;
quot;Yea; said anot;tell us about t!quot;
And more and more of to tell t tten, suco play; and surned to ill and w; s;
quot;tell t;
quot;Im scared. After w he harpies...”
quot;tell trut;
S fully. In fact, s sick urned back to ts, whronging closer and closer.
quot;Please!quot; t;Youve just come from tell us, tell us! tell us about t;
tree not far a a dead trunk s bone o t talk at time, s so as to o sit. ts jostled and so make room.
tree, tialys landed on ills ed t o listen.
quot;t; ly, quot;t you migo fig;
it s s o it. tialys took off again, and tree and sat dos.
So many dead figures clustered around, pressing ill o make t Roger stay close, because Lyra, listening h a
passion.
And Lyra began to talk about the world she knew.
Sold tory of er it until it o fly again; and and cob migokay, s tell, and listened, proud and desperate, nodding and s just rue all rig;
told t t battle betohe clayburners.
First s in everyts, t brick beeold t trees along told o split up into great es, to squiso te of mud, trying to keep it as big as you could breaking it. Underneat ill , ideal for t people.
And sten-leaf-mold smell of t, tatoes to eat; and ter slipping slickly over to ts; and tried to pull your foot out of t slap of te paddles in ter.
As ss croop.
told o o; and oed and planned and attacked t t one anotle and tearing it dourning tifications into missiles until ter ricably togetly to sole, and none of tter day in all their lives.
ill, exed. then she had a shock.
As s, silent all around, and oo: tree ered her, solemn and spellbound.
Sood up in sudden fear, but t move.
quot;You,quot; se, quot;you fle me before, o tell you somets stopping you noear at me out of me!quot;
quot;t is t er, en to me. t gs came doo see t in every one, and ill our blood is rank and our very s are sickened.
quot;But still, it o open a o ts out into the air...”
And til ts fell silent again.
quot;Yes,quot; cried No-Name, quot;to lead t! will we do now? I sell you w we will do: from
noear and rend every g t comes tred. teland now; we s a ;
Every single ree and straig ts, making tter in terror. Lyra clung to ills arm and said, quot;t a do it. te us, trayed t better!quot;
quot;Quiet,quot; said tialys. quot;Dont despair. Call ten to us.quot;
So ill cried out, quot;Come back! Come back, every one of you! Come back and listen!quot;
One by one t for misery, turned and fleo tree, and ts drifted back as tle tense figure, green-clad and dark- to a rock whey could all see him.
quot;; ;ter t. Ansions truly, and I say, and to you outside t ?quot;
quot;Lies!quot; t;Lies and fantasies!quot;
quot;Yet ened, every one of you, and you kept silent and still. Again, ;
quot;Because it rue,quot; said No-Name. quot;Because srut . Because it rue. Because broug rue.quot;
quot;t; said tialys, quot;lets make a bargain ead of seeing only ty and greed of ts t come doo ask all ts to tell you tories of to tell trut oucs ory; every single one t comes doure o tell you about t to o tell you.quot;
Lyra marveled at ttle spy. o tures as if o give ts? Any one of t, o smas tood, proud and fearless, making a bargain ened, and conferred, turning to one anotheir voices low.
All ts c.
turned back.
quot;ts not enoug; s;e more t. e ask under tion. e y. e fulfilled tys commands diligently, and for t ake any notice of us, if t into t let t be dispensed y and a task to do, one t ;
ted on ttering and raising t a moment later Salmakia leapt up to join t:
quot;You are quite rigask to do ts important, one t brings task, and its one t only you can do, because you are task o guide ts from to t into they will
tell you tories as a fair and just payment for t seem rigo you?quot;
No-Name looked at ers, and t;And o refuse to guide to tell us. If toucion for infants o learn anyt ot guide t.quot;
quot;t is fair,quot; said Salmakia, and travelers agreed.
So treaty. And in excory of Lyras t to take travelers and to a part of t unnels and caves, ts could follow.
But before t, as loudly as a of a te face, and he cried:
quot; ill o o us!quot;
Otook up tion: quot;Yes, tell us o expect! e go unless ;
Lyra turned to ill in despair, but ;tell truter, and tell t it says.quot;
quot;All rig; she said.
Sook out trument. t once. S it aood up.
quot;tll ; s;and its true, perfectly true. of icles t make you up apart, just like your daemons did. If youve seen people dying, you kno looks like. But your daemons ent just not of everytoms t o trees and t part of everyts exactly o you, I promise on my apart, its true, but youll be out in t of everyt;
No one spoke. t, and t , and no one spoke until a young uries before. So ts:
quot;old us t y in ts and angels praising ty, in a state of bliss. ts s o give our lives, and oto spend years in solitary prayer, e around us and we never knew.
quot;Because t a place of res a place of not, or peace.
quot;But no and Im going to follo, because it be nottering in tars and t true home and always was.
quot;So I urge you: come to t;
But aside by t of a man when he said:
quot;tter message, a sad and cruel joke. Cant you see trut a c of tion and tears. Notisfy us. But ty ed us ternity, to t ruly! t lies. Ss to lead you to your peril. My companions and I of true faiternity singing ty, o tell true.quot;
Once again urned away in hing.
Lyra felt beake? Sion on every side. But s trusting Mrs. Coulter because of iful smile and -scented glamour. It o get t o guide too.
But ill was s o roughly.
quot;You knos not true,quot; ;just as ake no notice! too. And ts make a start.quot;
So trust rut old her; she knew Pan would have.
So t off, and ts began to follooo far back for to see, otants of t marcialys and Salmakia fleo look and o see ty look all, beings like tranger gs as well.
But ill and Lyra rengto look back; all ter the harpies, and hope.
quot; done it, ill?quot; Lyra nearly over?quot;
tell. But t ;Yes, its nearly over, . ell be out soon.quot;