On, said ter. Farther, higher.
So on tco spy out t routes, because to steeper slopes and rocky footing, and as toravelers found tangled land of dry gullies, cliffs, and boulder-streion of insects he only sound.
topping only for sips of er from tskin flasks, and talking little.
Pantalaimon fle, and ttle sure-footed mountain s tate in illness bad, so t ing toiling on. And since tco stop too, as if er their own powers.
At one point to a little lake, a patcense blue scarcely ty yards across among topped to drink and refill to soak t in ter. tayed a fees and moved on, and soon afters and test, Serafina Pekkala darted doo speak to tated.
quot;I must leave you for a know w call if need my ;
quot;Mr. Scoresby?quot; said Lyra, excited and anxious. quot;But w;
But Serafina of sigion. Lyra reacomatically for ter to ask s o do no more than guide ill.
So ting nearby, ill slowly dripping blood, he burning.
quot;ill,quot; s;dyou kno;
quot;Its ake up my fatle. ts all I kno;
quot; does t mean, taking up le? s a mantle?quot;
quot;A task, I suppose. ever to carry on. It makes as muc;
out of
say c comparison o safe for t safe for him.
But it Saturday morning in t o ;ell done, er; Im proud of you. Come and rest no;
ill longed for t so muc part of like. So express t to Lyra no in o be quite so perceptive. t w e.
And s to at t moment a ch flew down.
quot;I can see people be; s;t t;
quot;Yes, do,quot; said Lyra, quot;but fly lo t;
ill and Lyra got painfully to t again and clambered on.
quot;I been cold plenty of times,quot; Lyra said, to take ;but I ent been t, ever. Is it t in your ;
quot;Not normally. But tes been cter to be. t people erfering mospting c, and t of control.quot;
quot;Yea; said Lyra, quot;and it is. And ;
oo and ty to reply, and throbbing air.
Pantalaimon no on Lyras soo tired to leap or fly. From time to time tcoo o climb to, and fly up to fill t er, and t made its o the rocks.
And so toward evening.
tco spy . So crag, and as tting and dra of to ttle blue lake and found a troop of soldiers making camp.
But glimpse of told ed to kno from ills tagazze, o see t daemons was a gross and sickening horror.
t of a tent by tion. Lena Feldt saers edge beside her.
Lena Feldt cer spoke to t up tents, made fires, boiled er.
tcroop er on t; but some fortune ecting t too far for a bo making o make t took ten minutes of deep concentration.
Confident at last, Lena Feldt doo found oo o remember, and looked acopped outside tent Mrs. Coulter o, and fitted an arroo ring.
Sened to to t overlooked the lake.
Inside tent Mrs. Coulter alking to a man Lena Feldt seen before: an older man, gray- daemon ting in a canvas coward ly.
quot;Of course, Carlo,quot; s;Ill tell you anyt do you to kno;
quot;ers?quot; t;I didnt t possible, but you is it?quot;
quot;Simple,quot; s;t if t me live to all tims tom s desire. As soon as you described to me, I knee t turns out. And a , Carlo,quot; s;I can please you, too, you knoo please you even more?quot;
quot;Marisa,quot; ;its enougo be close to you....quot;
quot;No, it isnt, Carlo; you kno isnt. You kno;
tle black roking t daemon. Little by little t loosened o flootle closer to him.
quot;A; said t into to ly along ongue flicked blackly t, and the man sighed.
quot;Carlo, tell me er ;o find ;
quot;. O;
quot; is it, Carlo? s ?quot;
o resist; ly around t, and running rous fur as h.
Lena Feldt canding invisible just taut, to it in readiness; ser cood still and silent and wide-eyed.
But le blue lake. On t in tly trees seemed to ed itself, a grove t sen remor like a conscious intention. But t trees, of course; and and ed at Mrs. Coulter, one of tacself from its felloed across ter, causing not a single ripple, until it paused a foot from ts daemon was perched.
quot;You could easily tell me, Carlo,quot; Mrs. Coulter ;You could end to be talking in your sleep, and tell me it. I could get it for you... .ouldnt you like me to do t? Just tell me, Carlo. I dont it. I t is it? Just tell me, and you s.quot;
s;Its a knife. tle knife of Cittagazze. You , Marisa? Some people call it teleutaia mak knife of all. Ot Aesatr.quot;
quot; does it do, Carlo? special?quot;
quot;As t anyt even its makers kne could do. Notter, spirit, angel, air—noto tle knife. Marisa, its mine, you understand?quot;
quot;Of course, Carlo. I promise. Let me fill your glass ...quot;
And as t again and again, squeezing just a little, lifting, stroking as Sir C saruly er secretly tilted a feo t again h wine.
quot;; s;Lets drink, to eac;
oxicated. ook the glass and sipped greedily, once, again, and again.
And t any er stood up and turned and looked Lena Feldt full in the face.
quot;ell, c; s;did you t know ;
Lena Feldt oo surprised to move.
Beruggling to breat empt.
Lena Feldt tried to sal paralysis ouc make . ttered a little cry.
quot;Os too late for t,quot; said Mrs. Coulter. quot;Look at tc;
Lena Feldt turned and satering and s ied of air; fluttering and falling, slumping, failing, er had enveloped him.
quot;No!quot; sried to move to, but could see t Mrs. Coulter didnt surprise o see t ter ers po t auty. Lena Feldt turned back in anguiso the woman.
quot;Let ; she cried.
quot;ell see. Is t;
quot;Yes!quot;
quot;And a boy, too? A boy ;
quot;Yes—I beg you—quot;
quot;And c;
quot;ty! Let ;
quot;All in tay on t;
quot;Most in t ;
quot;ain are topped to rest?quot;
Lena Feldt told ed any torture but o kno ell me tc t from one of your sisters, but se torture. ell, to save you noell me trut my daug;
Lena Feldt gasped, quot;S;
quot;Name t important t; cried Mrs. Coulter.
quot;Eve! Mot; stammered Lena Feldt, sobbing.
quot;A; said Mrs. Coulter.
And s sigo last.
Dimly tc s o cry out: quot; o ;
quot;o destroy ; said Mrs. Coulter, quot;to prevent anot I see t oo large to see....quot;
Sogetly, like a c, y, and time s fall. Ill see to t.quot;
And Mrs. Coulter dreer feeding on tctle snoing daemon lay tcer moved tocever Lena Feldt rebled and multiplied a a nausea of t so die of it. conscious t at life; o made of energy and delig of foulness, betrayal, and lassitude. Living ter, and from end to end of t and last and only truth.
tood, bow in , dead in life.
So Lena Feldt failed to see or to care about er did next. Ignoring t, tain of to get ready for a nigain.
t to ter and called to ters.
t across ter. S t one by one to ted free like malignant tledoing up into t and borne by ts toc Lena Feldt sa.
temperature dropped quickly after dark, and of to keep ry to sleep. At least Lyra didnt o try; se, curled tigalaimon, but ill couldnt find sleep, no matter ly up to tably sly tly tly utter exion, and partly her.
o look after ed o look after oo, as sed o bandage uck o bed and sing to ake arouble and surround ness and mot o of tle boy still. So ill as ing to wake Lyra.
But ill asleep. iff limbs and got up quietly, s off ain, to calm lessness.
Bery curned from tco see ill clambering up tly took to t to disturb to see t o no harm.
notice. suco move and keep moving t iced t as if , all day, forever, because not. And as if in sympato stir in t ted ream aside hin.
find o Lyra, until on a little plateau almost at top of t seemed. All around ains reac glare of tark black and dead we, and every edge was jagged and every surface bare.
t over too, for no gleam of moonlige ill found otal darkness.
And at t ill felt a grip on arm.