#Ray#

#Ray#

Lyra’s mind was starting to burst with ridiculous ideas of being able to take on 30 people by herself. Her feet were buckled and all she wanted was to get out and run.

“Almost there. Time for our paycheck.” Laughed a gruff voice.

“Where are we going?” Lyra questioned.

“There is no need for you to know. I will get paid in a moment and you will be escorted to a very nice place.  Enjoy it, lady.” The gruff voice sniggered.

Lyra’s eyes fell hopelessly on Pantalaimon who stared back at her, indignantly. She gave up and hoped that Roger would come….

~*~

Mrs Coulter was waiting. The girl was within her grasp. The boy didn’t matter but it would be useful to lead Lyra to her if she escapes. Lyra would be a useful bargaining tool with lord Asriel; the church will be delighted. The prophecy can therefore never be true. She would get all the credit and be able to rise above the magisterium.

“Knock, knock!”

Mrs. Coulter squealed in happiness. She opened the door with a gleeful smile on her face.

To her surprise, a little, malevolent and intriguing boy was standing outside. He pulled something out of the left pocket and handed it to Mrs. Coulter…

#Anna#

“They’re coming, Mistress Coulter,” the boy murmured with his head bowed.

Mrs Coulter read the note he passed her hurriedly and jumped up into the air in excitement. She slapped her hands sharply twice. The butler rushed forward and waited for her command.

“Clean the whole mansion, now!” she ordered.

The butler’s eyes widened in shock. He was about to protest but thought about it. He rushed off to warn the other servants. Mrs Coulter grinned a malevolent grin.

“Now, I will have everyone under my thumb! I will finally be in control!” she cackled.

There was a frantic knocking on the door.

She dashed towards the door and flung it open. She fixed her face so it resembled a warm and welcoming smile, not a cold and hard one. Two muscular men stood in front of the door panting and sweating. They had large wounds on them and crimson blood was dropping ont0 the floor.

“Where are the CHILDREN!” Mrs Coulter screeched.

“They escaped! We couldn’t do anything about it! The daemons suddenly turned into lions and slashed us! Then they were gone!” they sobbed.

Mrs Coulter sighed. She turned to an elaborate cupboard and opened the door. She rifled through some boxes and brought out an object.

“Turn around” Mrs Coulter ordered.

They turned around obediently. Mrs Coulter raised her hands. In her hands was a knife. Screams ran through the air as blood splattered onto the floor.

 

Lyra was sprinting the streets in fright.

“Do you think they are gone, Pan?” Lyra said.

“Yes, I think so,” Pan answered.

“All we need to do now is find Roger! I can’t believe we got separated!” Lyra exclaimed.

Pan nodded in agreement.

 

 

---

#Amber#

Lyra was sweaty, bedraggled and beginning to see stars by the time she and Pan had crossed the rocky plains. Lyra was saturated and would have gratefully glugged down the entirety of the Mississippi River if anyone presented her with the chance.

Her dæmon was pacing around, a rumpled lion. The lion gnashed its teeth every once and a while.

“Lyra, I don’t like it here. The air, it’s too…synthetic.” Pantaliomen drew back his jaws.

Lyra nodded.

It was as if the air was tugging, chocking, throttling them. Her hand went to her throat. Her breaths came out in gasps. Wisps of grey, undulating smoke curled around her neck. She could feel the slimy texture of the gas, the icy grasp of the tentacles of smoke. Lyra gagged.

Pantaliomen was being wrung. He had transformed into a Mockingjay, just as the smoke extended around his neck. Lyra heard her dæmon’s agonized, shrill cry, a sharp jolt of lightning into her heart.

And then, she screamed.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

#Ray#

 

Her heart was stuck in her throat. Icy cold hands tapped on Lyra’s shoulder. It made her spine crumble out of fear.

“AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH… HELP!” She exclaimed.

Then she heard Pan sniggering madly with laughter. She turned around to see Roger staring at her, bewildered.

“You just told everybody in the entire world where you are. Where did you get those vocal lessons?” chuckled Roger.

“NOT FUNNY ROGER. I THOUGHT I WAS DOOMED!” shouted Lyra.

They trudged on through the dark labyrinth of dead trees trying to avoid the huge holes of mud weighing them down. The choking air became worse and worse. They could barely breathe and kept spluttering.

They did not know where they were going but as long as they were able to find Jordan they would be safe. Little did they know that they would be a fly running away from a flycatcher. Lyra and Roger were exuberant when they found a piece of land that was not covered in mud.

They rushed towards it to only find that they were in a trap…

#Anna#

“Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun- Helloooooooooo,” someone laughed.

Lyra spun around and saw a figure in the distance. BAM!!!!!!!! A huge metal cage fell on top of the group. Pan changed into a mouse almost immediately and sped through a gap in the cage and to the figure. He switched into an eagle and pecked the person’s eyes out.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-”

The figure’s cries have been cut short.

Roger’s daemon had followed Pan’s actions and turned into a tiger. Warning(If you are easily disgusted or one of the faint-hearted please do not read this bit)Warning!!!!

The daemon leapt forward and placed its head in her mouth. Then she pulled. Blood splattered everywhere like a broken fountain. One that was made of flesh. And had been alive a few seconds ago.

“Roger, we have to go!” Salcilia said, ” This place reeks of the evil!”

“Maybe, maybe, maybe, that person was one of the Gobblers!” Lyra whispered.

“NO way,” Roger hissed, bringing his hand up to his mouth.

“I agree with the boy, NO way!” said a new voice.

“Oh noooooooooooo, we gotta run again?” Lyra moaned,” Alright, Pan, get ready!”

A lady stepped out from the smoke. She was wearing hiking clothes but still made it look like a dress that cost a trillion pounds.

“Who-Who are you?” Lyra said.

“I’m Mrs Coulter, I’ve come to rescue you, children,” She smiled stretching out a hand.

---

#Amber#

Lyra decided that she could not trust the lady. Roger seemed to agree with her as his hand was positioned in a clenched fist.

BAM!

A golden, sleek monkey lunged at Lyra. Roger ran for the woman. Time slowed down. A howl.

Lyra felt blood gush down her back. Cold, iron fingers grasped her arm. She did not resist. She could not.

Roger was held at gun-point by the lady. One wrong move and her friend would be history.

Mrs Coulter smiled. The pearl handle of the gun glistened with brilliance. A cold wave of nausea swept over Lyra.

No one was there to help them. Pantaliomen was caged with Salicia. Her gipsy friends were miles away. Her parents weren’t even in the world anymore.

Only Roger.

She hated that she had ever brought him along. Now his life was at stake. Because of her.

Then, she felt the tiny knife in her satchel by her side. The knife flew through the air, whistling a merry tune The tune of triumph.

Lyra felt the warm sensation of delight surge through her.

That was the last thing she remembered.

---

#Ray#

Roger could make out an ear-piercing scream. (Viewer Discretion is advised) Blood trickled down Mrs Coulter, the knife just skimming the side of her face, revealing fleshy meat that wobbled up and down as she moved. Her face was bursting with anger. The blood falling down her face was being detonated as she walked closer and closer. Her teeth were gleaming red and she smiled like a fox enjoying every moment of being able to suck the happiness of the poor chickens. Roger’s mind went blank.

He woke up with a start to find himself in a forest. Cloaked in mist, the trees were like ghostly,` prehistoric creatures. It was impossible to find a way through. He was trapped in a thick jungle of tangled trees, gnarled branches and thorns that had spread and twisted together. Grasping at him as he tried to pass, they tore at his arms and legs, clutching him in their thorny grasps.

The dense undergrowth, the humid air and the angry trees made this place like the deepest pits of hell. In the dead of night, there are the constant threats: wolves and bears eating you alive; the branch that is holding cracks and sends you hurtling to the ground and the lack of food. Roger wished he could have stayed at the kitchen. If only he had been good…

Lyra was nowhere to be seen. Roger imagined the glee on Mrs Coulter’s face; she would shake her hands ecstatically and perform tests on her. Whatever tests they did, the child would never come back…

#Anna#

Roger started shrieking at the top of his voice.

“LYRA! LYRA! WHERE ARE YOU?”

There were no sounds apart from his echoes and the wind. He was alone…

Meanwhile, Lyra was alone in a glamorous and luxurious room. She stared longly at the door, willing it to swing open. A few hours ago, Mrs Coulter had locked her in this room, leaving a sinister aura behind her. Lyra wanted to smash the window but resisted. There were probably guards around the place and would come running into the room before Lyra could stand up.

“Pan, do you think if we started shouting guards would come in? If they do, would you kill them for me?” Lyra asked.

Pan gave Lyra a nod.

“Of course I would because if you died I would also die. So yeah,” Pan explained.

Lyra aimed a mock punch at him.

“I always wondered why I was lumbered with you,” Lyra retorted.

“I always wondered how I managed to live alongside you,” Pan giggled.

They looked at each other and started laughing helplessly. The argument was so silly that they couldn’t help it. Lyra jumped up and knocked over a candle. The bright flames danced across the plush white carpet, spreading quick and fast. The pair started choking, smoke was flooding the room.

“HELP!HELP! HELP US, YOU IDIOTS!” Lyra screamed.

The fire was everywhere. On the bed, the curtains, but most importantly, it was burning the door…Pan started squeaking in excitement.

“Lyra, Lyra, Lyra!”

“Yes, Pan” sighed Lyra,” you do realise we might die here?”

“Yes I know!*cough* but we can find Salcilia!” Pan said.

Lyra pondered about this. They could escape but Roger needs his daemon…

“Alright, Let’s do it!”

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————

#Amber#

Lyra pressed her palms together. Rubbing them vigorously, she shoved her way through the icy snow that had begun to collect a few miles before. Roger and his dæmon had to be somewhere… A chill fizzed down Lyra’s spine. And it wasn’t because of the cold.

Pantaliomen was pacing the snowy ground beside her, bear formed. A growl rumbled through his throat.

“Yes.”

Lyra muttered to Pantaliomon. Her coat was doing no good, so she edged nearer to his robust, furred body. He was staring at the distance of white before them, seeming separate from the world. Lyra knew what Pan was doing. He always stared off when trying to become an animal that did not yet exist in life.

Pantaliomen grunted, as he kept his bear body, but sprouted eagle wings and obtained a lion’s ferocious head.

Lyra gasped. “Pan! I can’t feel the ground anymore!”

“Lyra! We’re flying!” Pantaliomon laughed at his ability to swoop and glide with Lyra clinging to his back (She had somehow clambered on without noticing it).

Don’t be afraid,
We’re in this together

Here we stand in the snow,
We swoop in the air,
and you are afraid.

It is nothing that you can’t conquer,
Without a fear in the world.

You aren’t alone,
We’re in this together.

Land in the sky,
Heart in the ice,
Maybe life was never real,
But we will realize

Here we stand,
Above the sand,
But now you show,
A million dreams are passed.

Lyra ended her quiet song. Her voice was hoarse with dryness, yet she ignored it. They could find Roger. They would survive. Nothing could stop them.

And nothing would.

#Ray#

Lyra’s shivering white hands clasped the soft brown feathers of Pan. She stood erect, her head held high, gazing at torrents of water plunging over the top of the cliffs into the once calm river, turning it into raging, foaming falls and sending huge clouds of spray hundreds of feet into the air.

Her frail hands, frozen like little ice cubes, slipped from Pan’s feathers. Her face was inconceivably shocked and full of pain.

Lyra shrieked “HELP! HELP! Help me!”

Pan dived down like an eagle hunting his prey, 100m, 50m,20m,10m. Pan caught Lyra within its claws and smashed against a few branches, otherwise, Pan was okay.

Lyra on the other hand… Her face was screwed up with pain. All thought drained out of her, the pain tore through her body and left her bending double and writhing in agony. It felt like poison had taken a root in her whole body, seeping through her veins and spreading bile to the back of her throat.

Far below, were little yellow drops of light that shone out of the dark, inky-black sky.

Lyra muttered “Look, there is a village down there. Go down now.”

Pan sarcastically laughed “And get ourselves killed down there?”

Lyra shouted “I DON’T CARE. I AM SO HUNGRY I CAN EAT YOU!!!”

Pan slowly descended towards the village. Then there was a gunshot…

 

In an instant, Pan soared high into the sky. He flew and hung about in a cloud.

Mrs Coulter fired her gun like a maniac aiming at anything she could see in the sky.

“Get every person on the field NOW!”, yelled Mrs Coulter, “Track them down or I might as well kill you!”

With scurried faces, everybody rushed around to do their errands.

Mrs Coulter cackled, “Someone’s going to die.”

#Anna#

A voice rang out.

“There! There they are! Besides that huge cloud!”

“Excellent! £1,000,000,000 pounds to you, young man!” Mrs Coulter shouted.

“I’m a woman,”

“Don’t you dare defy me! When I say you are a man, you are one!” Mrs Coulter answered.

The crowd muttered but otherwise stayed quiet.

“Alright…” Mrs Coulter muttered, taking her gun to where she wanted it to go.

She aimed. And fired…

“PAN! PAN! WAKE UP!”

Mrs Coulter had taken her shot well and now Pan and Lyra were falling through the air.

“Anyone here has a kid?”Mrs Coulter asked,” If so ask, them to change their daemon into a large bird to catch those two!”

Several enormous birds launched into the air and grabbed the two falling shapes. Mrs Coulter cackled.

“Finally! FINALLY! My plan will work!” she muttered.

“No, your plan will not work,” whispered a voice in her ear.

Mrs Coulter whipped around and pointed the gun into a woman’s face. Suddenly, Mrs Coulter felt her hands being grabbed and a rope being tied around her. Mrs Coulter struggled but the rope was too tight. She stopped. and howled in rage.

“We won’t let you take any more innocent kids. We know that a child up there and you’re one of the Gobblers,” said a man. He was admiring a sharp cutlass that he held in his hand.

The daemons brought down a bleeding Pantaliomon and a fainted Lyra. The murmur of voices was quite loud and startled Lyra from her sleep. She opened her eyes to see many faces staring at her. She jumped up and was about to attack when she remembered Pan.

“Pan? Pan! Pan! Please wake up! Please!” Lyra whispered. She shook him gently.

“He’s still alive,” said a woman

“How?” Lyra cried.

“Because you’re not dead yet. If the one dies the other dies,”

“How do you know?” Lyra sobbed.

“I will tell you when we save your daemon,”

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

#Amber#

“See, we’re the Gyptians, “Lyra stared wide-eyed at the woman talking to her, “there, your dæmon will survive.”

“Thank you, Mrs Jenkins!” Lyra gasped out.

The woman chuckled.

“Lyra, we Gyptians are never too happy to help, especially Lord Asriel’s daughter.”

Lyra stopped.

Pantaliomon groaned.

Somewhere, far off in the distance, a bear rumbled.it was going to be a very disruptive night.

 

#Ray#

Roger searched for a way forward and finally came across what seemed to be a forgotten path, hidden by thorns, creepers and streamers. Rain dripped from every fern and leaf-like the tick of a very slow clock. The fog crept up on the forest like a ghostly serpent, slid among the trees, flicked its tongue into the high trees, waited a moment and then slipped back along the path.

He was in a state of confusion; he was lost; He was in the epoch of sadness.

The only sound of life in the jungle was the distant hooting of the owls. The sky was inky black.

Roger could feel thousands of eyes staring at him. His spine was prickling in the moonlight.

Then in the distance, a shrill gunshot filled his ears. His sore legs, his bruised face and the stitch in his stomach all became a faint memory to him. He rushed to the scene. He could hear screaming and shouting. In the darkness, he stood stock-still for a moment. His heart convulsing against his chest. He heard a voice he knew only too well…

#Anna

“WAKE UP!”

This really loud and annoying word was echoing through the forest.

Roger ran through the thicket. Thank goodness Lyra had a loud voice. It may be deafening but now it was really helpful.

“LYRA! WHERE ARE YOU? LYRA!” Roger yelled.

No answer. He tried again. And again. Still no answer. It was only the echo of Roger’s voice and some random crickets. He was alone…

Or so he thought…

Roger felt a rope around his legs but since he struggled so much, he fell backwards unable to unlock his legs. His hands were soon paralysed by some rope as well. Whoever was attacking was quick and deft. Unlike Roger. Then he blacked out. He saw the faint glimmer of light. He opened his eyes. I mean what else was he supposed to do? Sing? A familiar cheeky and annoying face was staring at him. It didn’t look concerned. Not a bit. Roger groaned and opened his eyes wider. They felt like lead. Lyra was sitting next to him but wasn’t waiting for him to wake up. She was talking(loudly) to a lady who was bustling around some pots and pans. Lyra and the woman hadn’t noticed him. A few seconds ticked by. Still hadn’t noticed him. A minute went by. Still hadn’t.

“HellOoOoO?”Roger asked.

“Oh! Roger! You’re awake!” Lyra exclaimed. Then continued chatting to the lady.

“Are you busy?” Roger asked. He was a bit triggered that Lyra didn’t mind that he had just hit his head whilst being captured. It was probably Lyra.

“No, not busy. Just ignoring you,” Lyra answered.

Suddenly there was a voice.

“Here eat this up. You probably feel tired and hungry,” said a motherly-looking woman. She placed a warm bowl of broth in his hands.

“Thanks,” Roger….thanked. The mention of the word hungry made him hungry. Same for the word tired.

He was drinking it was Lyra who pushed the bowl up further. Roger quickly moved his head away but his bed and clothes got wet.

“LYRA! What are you doing? The boy is tired!” the woman scolded.

Lyra apologized but started making faces at the lady’s back.

“Stop it Lyra!” she said.

Lyra stopped with a look of surprise on her face. The woman chuckled.

---

#Amber#

Roger held out his hand for Lyra’s they huddled together, trying to regain any droplet of strength that could be retained into their bodies. Soon, the cold night air and the sound of the homely woman singing lulled them to sleep.

If only, if only,

The trees were naught,

The snow gone away,

Hungry wolves scout about,

Yet hungry, lonely。

 

If only, if only,

The woodpecker sighs,

The sky were blue again.

 

Down below wolves scout, hungry, lonely.

Howl up to the mo-ooo-n!

If only, if only.

Lyra felt Roger shift beside her. When she realized that they had been clutching each other, she burrowed into the blanket that had mysteriously appeared over the two children. All was snug…and woolly.

Lyra whispered the song of the lady again in her head. She lulled herself back to sleep, with Roger still clasped in her arms.

The next day, Roger would awake to a passionate caress, on a perfect wintery day.

The weird thing was that later, both children admitted to having heard of the song of the lady before, only in somewhere far less wild than the North. Nothing could be said for the North, except that it was a fierce place to be.

 

#Ray#

She has heard the alarm call of the north.

She has heard the birds singing at dawn.

She has heard their joyful chorus.

She has seen the sun rise in an explosion of orange.

She has touched the liquid diamonds of the morning dew.

She has felt the crunch of frosty leaves beneath her feet.

She has smelled the sweet scent of pine needles.

A wonderful glow of happiness is pulsing in her veins.

#Anna#

beautiful! Just beautiful music/writing

Roger and Lyra liked being fussed over. It always meant bigger portions and warmer and softer beds. A normal conversation between them would go like this:

“I saw the most magnificent bird today! It was so pre-” Lyra would begin.

“Oh, dear! You look all bones and skin! Here take my bowl,” the lady would say.

Or:

“It’s quite cold outside!” Roger would say.

“Cold? I’ll give you more blankets!” She would answer. And then come back staggering with 20 blankets.

Soon, Lyra and Roger got tired of it.

“It was fun but now it’s fuss fuss fuss over the poor little lambs,” Lyra would moan. She would stroke Pan who would turn into a lamb for a joke.

Roger started to agree. Although his limbs were sore because Lyra had tied him up too well, the woman was irritating. She was always there, pampering them and never asking for their opinion. It was annoying. I agree. But, oh no, she wouldn’t stop there. She would order her daemon to fuss over THEIR daemons. Pan and Salcilia would always laugh and snigger when Lyra and Roger would complain. But…(the but sounds very intense, doesn’t it?)now the tables have turned…they are also getting irritated.

” This is torture,” Roger whispered to Salcilia.

The lady had just insisted on dressing the two children in lots of coats just because it was a little bit windy outside. The sun was out as well. And now the children were roasting in their clothes. A few minutes later, the clothes were sinking to the bottom of the river and Lyra and Roger weren’t red anymore.

“HELP! MURDER! THERE HAS BEEN A MURDER!”

Lyra and Roger rushed to the scene. A man lay dead on the floor, his daemon fading away. A woman knelt beside him, sobbing her eyes out. But Lyra didn’t look at that. She looked at a figure holding a knife and silently walking away…

---

#Amber#

The boy was tall, gangly and curly-haired. His knife was a dagger only, dull and un-kempt. His blue eyes seemed strange set on the body of a normal person- red T-shirt and blue jeans- but with a wild, scraggly appearance.

But there was no expression on his face. Only that of set determination. His dæmon… he didn’t have one. Lyra’s heart almost stopped. She felt complete puty, even if the boy was a murderer.

But all the same.

And the boy and girl began lashing at each other, Lyra with her ists, the stranger boy with his palms.

He didn’t touch his dagger.

“Stop!” The boy panted.

Lyra stopped.

‘I did not kill the man, he killed himself, and I am a murderer. In Oxford, my world’s Oxford, the man-” The boy broke off.

Lyra nodded slowly.

“My name is Lyra.”

“Will.”

Will stared at Lyra for a second.

“I am not imposed by having a murderer by my side.” Lyra smiled.

Then the pair burst into laughter.

---

#Ray#

 

“Long time no see! What brings you here?” exclaimed Lyra.

“Oh, I am friends with a tribe an hour’s walk from here. I only see you with your uncle. Do you know these people?” questioned Will.

“Shhh, keep quiet. I will take you somewhere.” Will said.

His knife was fast in his hand. No less intense, he was focused differently now and the knife looked different too. Perhaps it was those cloudy colours along the blade, or perhaps it was the way it sat so naturally in will’s hand, but the little movement he was making with the tip now looked purposeful instead of random. He felt this way, then turned the knife over and felt the other, always feeling with the silvery edge; and then he seemed to find some little snag in the empty air. He pulled it down and there came a window to a lush garden.

Everybody stood perplexed and amazed. Will entered through the window and out of their sight. Roger and Lyra rushed on in to see Will creating another window. They stepped on inside…

#Anna#

*no offence to us people

“Pan? Where are you?” Lyra called.

“Mm hmree!” said a muffled voice.

“What?” Lyra asked.

She felt a wriggle in her hand. Pan was in mouse form and started gasping for air.

“FINALLY! I thought I would die!” he breathed.

Lyra apologised but immediately stuffed Pan in her pocket. She looked around. Roger and Salcilia were gazing at the garden in wonder.

“I’ve never seen anything like this garden before!” Roger exclaimed.

“Well, get used to it,” Will spoke,” Hide your daemon-whatsits. People in my world don’t have daemons. Make sure they don’t make a sound.”

Pantaliamon immediately squeaked, much to the annoyance of Lyra.

“Shut up Pan! You heard him, people here don’t have daemons! Imagine what they would do to you and me when they find out I have a daemon?” Lyra hissed.

Pan grumbled quietly but shut his mouth. After 5 seconds he opened it again.

“But do I have to?” he complained.

“PAN!” Lyra snapped quietly.

Will and Roger looked at this by-play with amusement.

“Is she always like this? If so, then she and her daemon are going to be a handful!” Will whispered to Roger.

“Unfortunately for us, she is like this!” Roger said.

Will sighed. He beckoned them to follow him. He started climbing a wall that was smothered in ivy. There were people on the other side. And none of them had daemons…

“What the…” Lyra whispered.

The streets had these monsters travelling on them. 90% of people were staring at a small square screen, their faces washed in blue light. The was a terrific noise. It was a different kind of noise from the square in Lyra’s world. It was somehow colder. Everyone was in their little groups and barely looked at the newcomers. Where Lyra and Roger were everyone welcomed new people and everyone talked to everyone else. No one hung out in small groups ignoring the others. This world was different. Too different. It was a mess…*

---

#Amber#

It happened in a microsecond.

Roger was there, then he wasn’t.

“Roger! Roger! Roger?” Lyra spun around, while Will started to say, “Lyra-”

But instead, he began to run.

“Quick, into that window!” Will took his knife from the sheath around his waist. The Quick flip of the weapon set it to defence mode. Lyra scrambled through, Will following suit.

Both of them landed gasping in snow, the snow of Lyra’s world.

Three things.

A red snow wagon.

A tall man.

A struggling boy.

“Roger!” Lyra burst towards her friend, trying her best not to trip in the icy snow.

“Lyra! Lyra!” Roger kicked, sobbed and hit the man mangling him towards the snowy cliff edge.

“I’m coming Roger!” Lyra’s desperate sprint was too slow.

She was too late.

“Lyraaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

Roger’s fading screams abided and his body fell still, resting in the halo of crimson around him. Will’s knife had fallen short of the man smiling at the portal he had created.

Lord Asriel called, “Marisa? Marisa!”

The golden monkey ran its fingers along the snow leopard’s spine. Mrs Coulter’s arms embraced Lord Asriel.

“Please. Join me, Marisa! Join me! We can do wonders together!”

Mrs Coulter hesitated. Then, she shook her head.

“No, Asriel. No.” And she gently pushed him away, a crystal forming over her eyes.

Lord Asriel entered the Portal, Mrs Coulter swung away into the snow.

Lyra wailed into the night.

She was a lost wolf cub, but another warm figure was there to assist her.

William Parker clasped the fragile, weeping child to his chest. He stayed with her for the whole night.

---

#Ray#

Lord Asriel finally had what he wanted.

“After all these years, the expeditions, the adventures, and the discoveries, a boy found the dagger. A clueless little boy. Innocent and free. He found it before me…” he muttered, “I have it now. That’s all that matters.”

In the distance was Mrs. Coulter looking down from the edge of the mountain. Her golden monkey a huddling in her jacket. Her eyes were emotionless. Her face was bland.

The next morning, Will and Lyra climbed back down to where the edge of the cliff ends to see Roger’s body. It was 3 long tedious days, 40 cuts, and almost starving to death when they reached the bottom. Lyra’s face slowly turned downwards after she could not find the body.

“It’s fine Lyra I am sure that he is living a happy afterlife.” Will wiped tears off his face.

“But it’s all my fault, he could have lived longer and still have a happy afterlife,” Lyra replied.

“We all miss Roger, but we need to look forward. How else will we survive? We can build a grave for Roger but then we need to look for food.” Pan said.

“I might as well just fall off the mountain now and see Roger. I can’t bear to live without him. Why didn’t I listen to you, pan? If we didn’t follow the boy in the first place, we wouldn’t be here at all. We would be back and oxford having fun. We would be dancing on the top of the roofs and throwing mud balls to the stalls below. I would also have gotten the Gyptian toffee. Why didn’t I treat Roger better? I was always grabbing him here and there. It’s all my fault.” Lyra muttered.

#Anna#

*BTW don’t watch a python feeding because its depressing and really sad. WeLl I aM An AnImAL LoVeR

“Speaking about Gyptian toffee, would you like some?” Will asked.

Lyra nodded glumly and took a piece. In an instant, the beautiful flavours of the toffee seeped into her mouth. It was like a piece of art turned into food. She smiled but it was only a small one, a sad one.

“Roger should be here eating it with me,” She murmured, half to herself.

“S’all right Lyra, you still have me! You ‘loyal’ and ‘trustable’ daemon, #Bestfriends!” Pan growled.

“What do you mean? What’s ‘ha-shhhhtag best friends’?” Lyra asked. Pan shrugged.

“Dunno. Heard one of the weirdos who don’t have daemons say that, it was weird,”

Lyra shook her head as if to say ‘Well, that’s what you expect from people who don’t have daemons'(a very long shake).

Lyra stood up(how very interesting). She walked towards Will and motioned to Pan to pin him down. Obviously, Will was too stupid to notice. Pan nodded and started to transform. A big elephant stood in his place.

“Idiot! If you try to pin Will down, you will punch a hole in his chest, though I’m not saying you shouldn’t do that!” Lyra said hurriedly.

Pan grumbled and turned into a python.

“What a fat python! Nice transformation…Pan isn’t it?” Will laughed. Nervously.

Pan tried to slither over quickly but failed.* Will scrambled up and started running. Lyra tripped him over(he didn’t run that far) and Pan managed to get there in time. He wrapped himself around Will but not very tight. Lyra started searching his pockets.

“Aha! Here’s the knife!” She exclaimed.

“No! Lyra! That’s a normal stabbing knife!” He cried desperately.

“Why should I trust you? If we never met, Roger would still be alive. A Gyptian toffee? PAh(she spat) That’s nothing compared to Roger’s friendship!” She ranted coldly. Pan nodded his head in agreement.

Will just sighed. Lyra opened her mouth to start again.

“Noooo Lyraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, donnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn””””’tttttttttttttt wasssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssste yourrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr timeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,” Pan hissed.

“Is that your snake voice?” Lyra asked.

“Yep!Sssssssssssssssooooooooooooo isssssssssssssssssssss it gooooooooooooooooooooodddddddddddd?” Pan hissasked.

Lyra cracked up. Will sighed(again). He was glad that Lyra was in a good mood again.

“Shut up! I’m not done with you,” Lyra yelled.

“OK, ok ok ok ok!” Will answered.

---

#Amber#

Total darkness.

Lyra shivered. The nightmare… she had been so terrible in it. She looked around. And she realized what had happened. The snow around her was crimson, even more, crimson than it had been that morning.

Roger’s body was gone.

Will was gone.

All that remained of the two boys were a small fork (Roger’s prized piece) and the knife, studded with rubies along the blade.

No… those weren’t rubies. The droplets of blood fell silently from the steel knife.

“No…” Lyra’s breaths came out fast. She took Pantliomen in her arms, wrapped her cloak tightly around her thin figure, took the knife and fork, stuffing them into her pockets, and ran.

She stumbled, fell and sprinted across the kingdom of snow, not caring about the cold. Her two friends… missing. One dead, the other, probably so too.

Feet catching on an object, Lyra fell down and sobbed into the freezing cold. She trembled, rocked back and forth as if possessed, then reached out her hand for the hard thing in the ground.

It was a piece of wood.

Just as she was about to throw it away, disgusted, Lyra saw the hastily inscribed words on the shard.

Lyra,

North, then East. Go-

W.P.

Her heart thumping like it was in a plight, Lyra got up slowly. 

An onlooker would have seen a half-dead, determined girl stumbling North.

Lyra hugged the darkness close to her.

It was the only thing left that felt.

---

#Ray#

“What do you think Pan? Should we follow that little devil?” questioned Lyra.

“Leave that little blighter alone. I am scared of what you might do to him.” Hissed Pan.

“Nah. He is my only friend left because Roger died. Come on. Let’s go. I definitely won’t hurt him.” Chucked Lyra.

“PARDON. YOUR ONLY FRIEND! HELLO. I AM HERE. I DID NOT SIMPLY DISAPPEAR INTO THIN AIR LIKE WILL. I AM RIGHT NEXT TO YOU. YOU ARE GOING CRAZY.” Screamed pan at the top of his voice.

“Fine. Ok. You are my friend.“  Lyra murmured. Her lips were turning blue.

“Not a best friend?” Pan whispered almost in an apologetic voice.

“Well, if you keep your mouth shut then probably,” Lyra said with her mouth slowly moving upwards.

As Pan was opening his mouth to say “Fine. Let’s find Will. North is this way.”

Lyra shouted with a smearing face. “Ahah. You can’t say anything. Unless you don’t want to be my best friend. Do you really want to be just a friend? Walk north and I shall follow you.”

Pan stared at Lyra. He could not contain his anger. Pan wrapped around Lyra and tugged as hard as he can till he could hear her screaming. “STOP IT. PLEASE JUST STOP IT. You are my best friend ok.”

Then chunks of ice smashed the ground next to them. They could hear voices talking. Then all went dark.

#Anna

“So eat it?”

“Yes!”

“But to be honest it doesn’t look that tasty,”

“Shut up! Just eat it!”

“Haven’t paid me yet and ordering me around like this it just seems a bit trash you know?”

“JUST DO IT,”

“Alright,”

There was suddenly a choking sound. Lyra sat up. She shook her head and saw a child trying to eat this large blue pill. The girl spat it out and turned to a lady.

“That…was disgusting,” she whined.

Then the moment she finished her sentence her face slowly changed to a vibrant blue.

“Hmmmmmmm, test #89863 didn’t work,” the lady said.

She turned to Lyra. She smiled a wide smile. It was Mrs Coulter…

“You!YOU!”Lyra shrieked.

“Yes, darling, me!” She smiled.

“You…You…killed Roger….You killed him!” Lyra muttered.

“Well, I had to, I guess,” Mrs Coulter answered.

Lyra was fuming. She knew Mrs Coulter had a choice. She knew what she saw. Mrs Coulter was a lyingm, Murdering TRAITOR. Suddenly, the door burst open. 10 scientists walked in staring at their clipboards frowning. They stood in a perfect line wating for Mrs.Coulter’s order. She clicked her fingers. The blue-faced child was hauled out by a burly security guard. Mrs Coulter’s smile widened.

“You see Lyra, I have all of these people under my command, waiting and hanging on to my every word. But you? You just have a little daemon and a child you abandoned you!” She said. Lyra could hear a slight sneer in her voice.

“You should join me! I have two reasons, One, I am better than you and Two, I am your mother.” Her already crocodile like smile widened. Her mouth looked like a basking shark’s mouth.

Lyra gasped. Her train of thought crashed. All her other emotions shrivelled up and died. Apart from one. Her anger fired up.

“NO! I CAN’T BE A DAUGHTER TO A PYSCOPHATH! NO! NONONONONONO! WHY DID YOU KILL ROGER THEN HUH HUH! ROGER WAS MY BEST FRIEND. KILLING MY BEST FRIEND AND THEN TELLING ME YOU ARE MY MOTHER ISN’T SOMETHING UPLIFTING. IT HAS MADE ME MENTALLY INSANE!” Lyra shrieked.

“That wasn’t the asnwer I was expecting,” Mrs. Coulter muttered.

---

#Amber#

Lyra scrambled up onto her feet. She pulled Pan around into her sleeve (he had transformed into an ermine).

Forcing her legs to obey her command, Lyra ran from the blond woman, who remained smiling beside the snowdrift.

“He is not there anymore, Lyra. He will not be so for any longer.”

Lyra’s heart stopped.

Mrs Coulter had taken Roger, with Lord Asriel as an accomplice. So why not have taken Will? Then, it hit her.

In her dream, she had physically abused Will, seen Roger gone.

But she had betrayed both of them. When Mrs Coulter had been ‘captured’ she hadn’t been. She had been the king gipsy woman who had heard of Lyra’s tale and soon knew of Roger and Will.

The words Mrs Coulter pronounced were bone-chilling.

“William Parker is headed for the water, permanently.”

Lyra’s mouth ran dry.

The arctic sea. No more jokes. Mrs Coulter was serious.

Without blinking, not thinking of the cold, numbness of her skin, Lyra skidded across the snow, feet barely touching the ground. Pantaliomen pounced saber tooth tiger-formed, leaping with her from white peak to white peak. No more bickering was wasted on friendship. No more jolts of abuse. Just the two of them running for their only mutual second friend on the planet, each hoping to arrive soon.

The crater had been punched already.

No one was at the site.

Lyra wrapped her animal skins around her, taking a deep breath…

Into the water.

Cold.

No, she felt at home. But not a time for jabbering, Lyra launched herself after the falling figure below her. Pantaliomen, seal-shaped splashed into the icy drifts .

“Will!” Lyra mustered all her strength, dragging both daemon and boy from the water depths of cold. Her body was too sad to feel cold. Too angry to feel pain. Too fired up with hatred to talk.

And Lyra repaid the debt she owed Will.

It was she who cradled him, feeling his pulse throughout the night. It was she who went after Mrs. Coulter. And it was she who Will saw, hands and nails out against the monkey and his mistress.

 

#Ray#

Will stared in shock. He could see Lyra squirming on the ground. Mrs. Coulter and was grasping her hands and forcing her down. Her golden monkey holding pan down onto the floor. The sound of screaming pierced his ears. He scrambled up from his feet. He ran at Mrs. Coulter smashing her in the stomach with his head. He could hear a groan as Lyra leaned up from the floor. Everyone felt like they would vomit.

The sky started to rumble, and lightning shook the ground. Rain drizzled down. Will saw Lyra staring at Mrs. Coulter with such ferocity that it made Will shiver.

Mrs. Coulter muttered, “I didn’t want to do this but you forced me to.”

Her hand drifted to her back. 2 Seconds later a gleaming knife appeared in her hand. She slowly stood up. Her fist clenching the knife with her veins popping out. She rushed at Will her knife pointing right at him. A slow bloodthirsty smile emerged from Mrs. Coulter’s lips. Will started to run. His heart was pounding against his ribcage. He could hear heavy breathing coming closer and closer towards him.

#Anna

I’ll try to write amazingly like you two. I can’t promise I might make jokes.

The heavy breathing changed into a furious scream. Lyra was clinging to the back of Mrs Coulter. The knife fell from her grasp. Will lunged forward and grabbed it. The golden monkey also lunged forward and bit Will’s hand. Will dropped the knife and it fell into the cold Arctic water. Pan turned into a beluga whale and dived down into the deep. Meanwhile, Mrs Coulter was severely rebuking her monkey.

“Why did you do that! Damn it! You can’t morph anymore and we have nothing to ki- wait. I’m so stupid. I have a gun, no worries,” Mrs Coulter exclaimed.

BANG!

A shot narrowly missed Will’s head. Mrs Coulter smiled.

“I was just testing, now it’s serious.”

She knelt down and aimed at Lyra’s belly. Pan noticed this. He turned into a cheetah and sped over to Mrs Coulter.  He turned into the golden monkey then climbed up onto her shoulder. Just as she was about to pull the trigger, Lyra lunged to the side and Pan made his move. He turned into a cobra and bite Mrs Coulter’s neck. She screamed in pain and dropped the gun. She grabbed Pan by his snakey head. Mrs Coulter got a good grip on him and started walking towards the edge of the land. Her feet sank heavily into the deep snow and the darkness made it hard to see.  Mrs Coulter’s grip was strong but it gradually became looser and looser because of the snake poison. At the edge of the freezing water, she gave out an agonizing cry. Pan chose this time to turn into Stella’s sea eagle(very important information). His eagly claws sank into Mrs Coulter’s face drawing blood. She screamed in more pain. Pan flew into the air and then suddenly dived down. He grabbed Mrs Coulter from behind and flew up into the air along with her. Pan flew with much difficulty and flew out into the Arctic sea. He flew in the darkness, not even knowing whether he was on land or sea. All he could hear was the beating of his wings and the struggled breathing of Mrs Coulter. Finally, when he thought he flew enough he loosened his talons. Mrs Coulter fell down into the depths below. Her breathing was inaudible and Pantaliamon didn’t know if she was even alive. He strained to hear the splash. But all there was was a dull thud(I am correct here Grammarly, thank you very much). She had fallen onto an ice floe. Pan sensed that his job was done and flapped his wings and left.

Lyra looked at the disappearing dot of Pan and let out a sigh of relief.

“Finally, my psycho of a mother is gone,” Lyra said.

There was an indignant screeching sound and Lyra felt claws tear at her body. But it was getting weaker. Mrs Coulter’s monkeys faded away into gold dust…

They were both gone.

---

#Amber#

The two children stared at each other in silence.

In the fury of the struggle, they had forgotten one important factor.

“She’s got the vial,” Will said, almost in a whisper.

“Yes; she’ll join Lord Asriel and we’ll need to find the knife soon,” Lyra kicked the snow, “that vial will give her one more life, at least if she knows ’bout the servitude.”

The snow whirled around the silent figures in the snow. An onlooker would have observed two bloody children, each lost in thought. But this book is not a brochure. It is a tale of the extraordinary.

And the extraordinary did happen.

Will pulled on Lyra’s sleeve.

“The water isn’t that cold,” he told her.

Bot dived into the Arctic, in search of the metal blade.

But the truly surprising thing was that the pair didn’t freeze to death. In fact, it seemed like underwater, there was a Spring.

For, lining the sandbanks rose tall seaweed, like swaying trees of green, starfish swaddled over opaque rocks, while schools of surprisingly lively fish swarmed about. Pantoliomen joined a crayfish, while Lyra and Will explored the great Reef that lay hidden under the thin sheets of ice. It felt, not like being underwater, but like being in a warmer, more pleasant world.

Will snapped his fingers.

“Of course! Mrs. Coulter survived by gaining access to the portal! I bet there is another world above this water-not the ice!”

Lyra smiled.

They swam to the surface…

And there it was. A stone in the middle of an archway of greenery. Walking through the forest, Lyra no longer felt lost. She felt like a Queen on her domain. She felt like grass on heaving piles of moisture. She felt like a lioness striding through her home.

Will gripped her arm.

“There.”

---

#Ray#

Moving through the depths, Will and Lyra become aware of her currents; the sea is more a river in three dimensions with no need for banks. In them are schools of the living, the creation that remained in her watery embrace when we land-dwellers sought flowers and the shelter of trees. Though to her fish swimming is as easy as breathing. The quiet beast was beautiful when dormant.

Lyra and Will watched as the steady pulse of the sea went along with their footsteps. They stared in awe. Then a thought struck Lyra. How did Pan leave Lyra? Lyra pondered as she slowly walked. Will had noticed a bright purple light shining stronger and stronger. He slowly walked towards the light. Entranced by it. Lyra was still so perplexed that she did not notice will walking away.

As Will slowly came towards the light he slowly came to realize that seaweed various amounts of greenery were covering the entrance. He slowly put his hand and he could feel a gem. As he slowly grabbed it out a hand grasped at him. Will shouted in horror. Lyra was brought back to her senses and rushed towards will.

#Anna#

*Stolen from an anime. Hehe.

Mrs Coulter had Will in her grip. And as a bonus, she had a knife in her hand. She didn’t slowly raise the knife to Will’s throat(as some dramatic movies do) she did it quickly. Will mouthed run and raised his arm to throw the gem. But alas, because Mrs Coulter actually has brains she grabbed his arm and forced it down. Her daemon swam out of nowhere. It took the form of a small shark and viciously bit Will’s arm. Will grimaced in pain but didn’t let out a cry of pain.  His hand opened and dropped the gem. Lyra lunged forward and tried to grab the gem but she wasn’t fast enough. Coulter’s daemon shape-shifted and managed to get there before Lyra.  Mrs Coulter laughed maniacally and pressed the knife harder against Will’s throat. A few beads of blood appeared. Lyra screamed in rage and pushed Mrs Coulter’s arm away. Well. That was a bad move. The knife created a thin red line on Will’s throat. Luckily, it wasn’t deep enough. Will had survived Lyra’s craziness. Mrs Coulter didn’t mind she lunged forward and slashed at Lyra belly. Lyra twisted out of the way but the knife managed to get cut Lyra’s leg. Blood was dripping down her leg. Will tried to help her but he was slammed to the floor by Coulter’s daemon. Mrs Coulter started walking forward and knelt beside Lyra.

“Torture…is the best form of punishment for a misbehaving daughter,” she smiled.

Will scrabbled desperately at the ground, trying(and failing) to get to Lyra. Lyra screamed.* Her leg was broken…(not that suspensful)

---

#Amber#

When the agony that would have killed subsided, Lyra’s thoughts spiralled off.

“Lyra, Lyra, Lyra.” The little boy flickered in and out of her vision.

“Roger!” Her breath caught in her throat.

“Please,” The boy shimmered, like a silky, fragile web, about to break at any moment.

“Come, Please…” Then the bony hand reached out for hers. Lyra wept.

“Roger! Roger!”

“Come, She’s bewitching…”

Part Two                      {we previously wrote Part One, Sorry for the confusion:-）}

Will put out his hand.

The knife was missing. Lyra was gone. He pulled himself together.

No, there wasn’t any barrier stopping him. So he set his mind to finding the little girl and her pesky dæmon.

Really, he should have directly known.

Lyra wasn’t in that world anymore.

She was resting. Resting in a distant cave, far beyond the peaks of Mt. Everest. She was farther than Will’s own world.

Really, he should have known.

It would have saved him three back-breaking months.

---

#Ray#

Will had found himself on a distant shore. Little beads of blood were dripping from his neck. The dark, stormy and dismal sky cackled like a witch; its gleeful tone, a horror to humanity.

Will was aimlessly looking around. He would mutter to himself in a small, harsh, and quiet voice.

He would explore the deep undergrowth and talk to the little monkeys. Will was no longer Will he was part of the jungle now. He had spent so much time that even the animals felt safe to be close to him. It was only when he saw a gleaming, little, picturesque and cute portal that he went back to his senses.

#Anna#

Hello people

Will had spent 3 months looking for Lyra and didn’t hesitate to jump into the portal. Glimmering blue lights swirled around chanting some alien language. Then it was dark. Will stepped out onto a dusty, cold ground. Dust was everywhere. There was no sky, only a ceiling or rock. Grey fire was everywhere. It was like the Nether in Minecraft but grey and dusty. Will ran over to the grey fire and held his hands out, he immediately withdrew them. Will looked at his shaking hands. It was dusted with frost. He gasped, inhaling more cold air. He had to find Lyra. Suddenly, a shadow loomed over him. Will opened his mouth to scream but the figure went past him. It was black and looked like it was made of dust that somehow defied gravity and took the form of a human. The ‘human’ thing walked away and ignored Will. There was a groaning sound. It was another one of those creatures… They were everywhere. Another groan. They formed a circle around Will. The dust people had trapped him…

Lyra woke up and banged her head on the low cave ceiling. She yelped in pain. Ignoring the blinding pain she shuffled forward to the cave mouth. Pan had jumped onto her shoulder instantly warming her. The grey cold fire was barricading her way out. Lyra sighed. Today wasn’t any different. She helps her hand out to the fire. When she looked at her hand it was ice blue. Lyra wanted to scream with frustration. Why? Why? Why is she stuck here? Lyra slumped onto the floor in despair. At this rate, she will never escape.

Will stood in the middle looking at the menacing faces of the things. But, they had no faces just gaping holes for mouths and eyes, all the other features were non-existent.  They closed in on him and had shown no signs of backing away. Will started panicking. What could he do? He had nothing…apart from some matches. Will had an idea. If the dust people had lived in the cold for so long, wouldn’t they fear heat? He struck a match and held it towards the dust things. The shrank back. Will’s plan was working! He rand forward, but his excitement didn’t last for long. He could hear them running, the soft thump as their ‘feet’ hit the ground. Suddenly, Will heard Roger’s voice in his head. He nearly stopped running in shock.

Follow the flames…

Will obeyed Roger’s request. He followed the cold, grey flames. He held out his match whose flame was beginning to fade. He pushed himself to run faster. A colossal group of fire was in front of him but they, too, shrank away from the heat. And at last, after so long, Will found Lyra…

Lyra was pacing up and down. The groans of the ‘dusties’ were now normal to her. She needed an exit. Food appeared magically for her at precisely(or so Lyra thought) 12 pm. She leaned forward to grab it when she heard a soft thump of heat and Roger’s voice in her head.

Go back…

Lyra was confused. What does he mean to go back? She can’t go back! Going back meant going back to the cold regions of the Arctic!

“Maybe Roger means to go to the back of the cave?” Pan suggested.

Lyra shrugged and started walking. The moment her hand brushed against the grey stone wall the flames shot across the room just barely touching Lyra’s elbow. Her elbow felt numb but the feeling subsided almost immediately. Thank you, Roger, Lyra thought. The groans grew louder and louder. The dust people were at the cave mouth but didn’t dare to come in. There was a bedraggled figure holding Aber#

 

---

#Amber#

Will was grasping onto the very edges of his vision, hand quivering with the effort of holding the match steady. Lyra was safe behind the wall of flame; he needed somewhere to hide. But where? The cave was rocky:its crooks and crannies were small, too small for a teenage boy to fit into.

 

Grey tiling that spiraled across the ground…

 

Tiles.

 

Will remembered the prophecy. He dragged his free hand along the rusty ivory. There-the catch. He lifted the frame,but didn’t enter the hole that bulged on the floor. It was for the shadow-creatures, not him.

 

He laid a hand on the catch, then threw his matchstick to the ground.

 

Closing his eyes; running; leaping into bursting, orange flame; hanging there.

 

Fire leaped across Will’s clothing, wrapping him, hugging the atoms inside his body.

 

Lyra plunged her hand into the flame; she too, consumed by flaring dragons of heat, skirt set a-blaze, eyes a-glow. They clung to each other, then stood back to back. Roger’s wall of flame had gone. The two glowing, fiery beings fought off the shadow-creatures, Lyra wiping her eyes on a burning sleeve. Smoke and ash were sent into an arc, coal sizzled in a distant grate. Will closed the catch on the screeching woman who ripped his flame and sent the birth of burns along a lit back.

 

Battle, the woman’s eyes read. Golden monkey; his talons like a demon’s, teeth like razors . Defence: the goal of the daemon. Mrs. Coulter punched her arms wildly, excreting a purpose to hunt, pin and kill. Her eyes were none of colour; they were inkwells of ravaging beastliness that filled the tense hole that was her life.

 

Woman, daemon and children fought, woman and daemon together, roaring the same battle-cry: “Kill! Kill! Kill!”

 

Boy and Girl were no more desperate, for they tore at the woman and her monkey, they fought with flame and timber, with nature and sword. They used the land as their weapon, the cave as a cutlass, the water as a dagger. Soon both had cornered the monkey and his mistress, both groups were in tatters of blood, teeth and chilled bone.

 

“So, come on.”

 

The woman smiled.

 

A sickly, honeyed smile.

#Ray#

“Do it! Kill me. I have lost and you have won. I dare you Lyra. I can see that deep inside you have a feeling of guilt. That is because I am your mother. However much you hate, we are drawn by blood. Lord Asriel’s favourite quote was always “when your hands are dealt and you have silenced your family; every moment of your life will be poison to your soul.”

Will and Lyra stared at Mrs Coulter as if she was an alien. Their eyes looked for any signs of truth in the words. Will and Lyra could not do it. Their eyes slowly lingered towards the bright red fire. Their hand unflinchingly held onto Mrs Coulter. Their body walked slowly towards the fire.  Mrs Coulter put one part with another.

#Anna

I am assuming that they took Mrs Coulter with them?

They slowly walked to the red fire. They knew if Mrs Coulter wasn’t chosen by the fire then she would perish in the fire. Dragging Mrs Coulter very slowly behind them was a sign that they hated her a lot.

“OW, that’s a really mean thing to do to your mother!” Mrs Coulter said.

Lyra ignored and tugged at Mr Coulter’s arm. Suddenly, (even though it’s already been Halloween and I’m just weird sometimes)there was an evil laugh and a pumpkin sprouted out of nowhere.

“Tf!” Will yelled.

“What does tee-eff mean?” Lyra asked.

“Oh, Ummm- it means the frick in my world” Will said.

Lyra screamed. She pointed up. There were candles floating every, just like in Harry Potter(even though Lyra doesn’t know what Harry Potter is). There was a lane.

“Just an idea but how about not going down that path?” Lyra said.

Will nodded. Mrs Coulter just stared off into space. Well, not really because she couldn’t see the space. But you know what I mean. Suddenly, there was a rumbling sound to their left(the path was on their right) and a huge chasm opened up.

“Guess we’re going to the path them” Lyra huffed.

---

#Amber# [have you ever heard of a pump-ristmas?]

There was a time when Lyra was a baby. There was a time when Will was a baby. There was a time when Mrs. Coulter was a baby. Going back all that time is not easy, especially if you know the nature of Time.

To start over again, we must begin with a boy called Herald. He was a quiet boy, round and stocky. His parents owned the inn in Summertown.

Herald found out about Lyra as abruptly as he met Alice.

Lyra made the trip across flooded hills and tall mountains, her two teenage guardians looking after her every move.  A year and a half later, all were at Jordan.

That was the story of Lyra. She had no prospect, only Jordan and some scholars. Herald never mentioned it to her. He never told her that the old headmaster of Jordan had an unlikely history.

And that was when the oracles began to die.

But Will did not have such a dramatic start; it was the poorhouse and his mother he saw at birth, but not his father. He was off on an Atlantic voyage. He could have been an orphan: his mother was delicious, his father gone.

HHJJJHHJVFFGJGFYTHBVBVNBBVGBBNBNHGHGVHG

(The code above is related to the next part)

 

#Ray#

HHJJJHHJVFFGJGFYTHBVBVNBBVGBBNBNHGHGVHG was inscribed on the poorhouse. Roger was born in a lower-class family during the time where the economy had about 5%inflation(2%inflation is healthy) and would occasionally crash like the 2007 stock market. Rogers’s life was hard because since he was young he had been working.

Lyra and Will were gripping Mrs Coulter tried to squirm her way out of their grasp. Step after step after step Will and Lyra became more and more tired. The only thing that kept them awake was the distant flicker of flames. Their eyelids slowly closed, almost as if all their energy had been sucked out of them. They were lifeless, hobbling towards the flame.

It was only when they started seeing the ghosts guarding the wall of fire did their brain start working and their heartbeat. With their eyes closing they heaved Mrs Coulter towards the ghost to hear screaming. They felt sorry but what had to be done. Then their eyelids collapsed.

#Anna says frogs are pog# fun fact for all: frogs are pog

When your r key isn’t working properly but there are a thousand words that have the letter r in it

Mrs Coulter was finally gone. After what seemed like a million years the wanna-be devil has finally been vanquished. Lyra tried to move her arms but it felt as heavy as lead. Her head felt fuzzy.

“W-will? Are you there?” Lyra mumbled. She was so tired that just saying something sapped all of her energy.

There was a grunt. It was obvious Will was too lazy…I-I mean, it was obvious Will didn’t have the energy either. Lyra did a gigantic sigh and immediately stopped. She stared at the rocky ceiling through half-closed(or half-open) eyelids. She felt the presence of sleep. It was creeping around looking for its next victim. It spotted Lyra and made its way towards her. It made Lyra tired, and more tired, and more tired..you get it. Sleep made Lyra fall into a deep sleep. Deeper than the Mariana Trench. You see, sleep in that weird dimension which is inhabited by dusty weirdos is so strong it can make a person fall into such a deep sleep that they begin to actually live in that dream. Confusing? I know. No need to tell me.

Lyra felt her limbs relax and her eyelids inched down until all she could see was darkness. Suddenly, she was falling, and falling and…you get it. Lyra twisted her head and saw the dark tunnel end. She shielded her eyes. The bright white light that was shining from the hole was so, so bright. She felt a tingly feeling and suddenly she was back at the Jordan(i think it is called that) College. Everywhere was busy and bustling. No posters searches for Lyra or Roger. Lyra looked around. She was in the market square. Lyra’s eyes suddenly locked onto a person. It was the Master.

“MASTER, MASTER!” Lyra waved.

“Loora? What are you doing? I thought you went for a walk?” Master exclaimed.

“W-Walk? What do you mean?” Lyra stammered.

“You said you needed to go for a walk and would come back for lunch! Don’t you remember, Loora?” Master explained.

“Why are you calling me Loora? My name’s Lyra!” Lyra asked.

“Lyra? What a strange name! Loora is the best name of all!

Lyra mumbled something.

“Where’s Mrs. Coulter? Mrs who? We only have one Mrs. It’s Mrs. Coaler! Come! Reeger’s looking for you!” Master said.

________________________________________________

#Amber#

Will opened his eyes.

The rocky ceiling mocked his tired body. As he rose, he felt a twinge of pain compress his spine. Will dragged his legs up.

Lyra was lying beside him, seeming to be mouthing incredulous words in her slumber. He shook himself, taking a step, then another. His legs were jelly-like creatures, who had minds of their own. His face would have seemed gravestone-white to an onlooker.

The cobbled stones seemed  spike-like to Will. His feet were bloodied and his hair obverted vision. The whole world was cold to him.

Stumbling, Will lurched towards the cavern’s entrance. He had to find that portal to his own world. Where was his mother now? Dead? Consumed by spectors? He shuddered.

Then, with a painstaking realization, Will saw his empty, bloodied right hand. The hand he had held his dagger with.

The knife was gone.

With a sinking feeling prevailing his figure, Will fell to his knees.

Exhaustion caught him.

Darkness closed in.

————————————————————————————————————

#Ray#

Will was brought into his own world. A world of his own portraying life and death. He did not fear death because deep inside he knew that he might be happier if he died. Aching and bruised, his dark hair was like a mane over his head. His happy smile was long gone; it was drowned by darkness and death. Brightly shining in the moonlight, a metallic, cutting edge knife appeared in front of him.

He grasped the knife and slit his throat. Waking up in a shock he saw, Lyra holding his neck in a bear trap grasp. She shook him so vigorously that he felt like he was going to vomit.

#Anna# This part of the story is going to be very very crazy…enjoy 🙂 PS HAVE YOU GUYS HEARD OF POPPY PLAYTIME? 🙂

“Lyra, Lyra LYRA STOP. I AM GOING TO VOMIT!” Will yelled.

Lyra immediately backed away screaming.

Will massaged his neck and looked at Lyra.

“Don’t you dare vomit, Will? I-I hate vomit. It’s so smelly.” Lyra said.

“BLEURGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Lya ran away even faster than Sonic the Hedgehog. She ran straight towards the portal and jumped through.

“LYRA WA-” shouted Will but he was too late.

Lyra had gone through the portal so quickly it shattered. He struggled up and ran towards the shattered portal. All that was left was blue dust. Will slumped to the floor and sighed.

“Um, excuse me, sir. Are you OK?” asked something.

“Y-Yes,” answered Will.

Will looked up. A fridge stared at him through some googly eyes. Its handle shook in a friendly way. Will guessed it was a wave.

“Um, hi!” said Will.

There was an awkward silence. Will averted his eyes from the fridges gaze.

“Am…am-am I g-going crazy?” he asked.

The fridge started to sob and kind of hobbled ran away. It smashed into a wall and lay there sobbing. Will rushed forward and tried to lift it up.

“How-How could you…I’m real!” cried the Fridge.

“No-no-no I didn’t mean you weren’t real…” protested Will.

There was a groaning sound. Because the portal disappeared, all source of ‘happy’ light was gone. All that was left was the cold grey fire. The dust monsters were coming. A chilly wind picked up and swirled the dust round and round until it formed a dust monster. It looked around and spotted the fridge that was loudly sobbing and the frantic Will. It started to stumble towards them.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

PS. 😁Nopeeee…

“Get it away!” The Fridge wailed.

Will flashed his knife.He was sick of monsters pursuing him everywhere. When did his ‘normal’ boyhood end?

The expected effect- poof! Bye-bye life-threatening monster!

What really happened: the Fridge screamed. The dust monster howled, and Will stood there, hands covered with sticky, black goo.

That is what happens when you mistake a fierce black bunny for a dust monster. Care to know?

The bunny poops. Not very exciting, but certainly also not pleasant.

💩 This is what bunny poo looks like-only that the poo is scowling.

Will backed away, his hands still covered with bunny faeces. Really, if you want to know how bad it smelled, go and put your nose in your brother’s old smelly sock.Then multiply the smell by a trillion. Got your bunny dung?

The Fridge was very upset, for it valued a very good first-impression. Instead, out came embarrassment. It decided to crack a joke, which ran like this:

“What eats cattle and smells like pong?

A rabbit!”

The bunny did not like this joke one bit. After all, the Fridge was insulting its species.

And you know what happens when a bunny gets angry…

💩

The Fridge found itself in a very sticky situation.

 

#Ray#

PS.Yes…

The fridge’s light smile of embarrassment turned into a dark smile full of mischief. His pupils dilated.  The fridge’s arms extended till it reached the rabbit. It’s stone-cold grip stopped the rabbit from escaping and put it into the freezer where screaming and the smell of poo could be noticed for 1000 miles. You could hear the rabbit smashing against the walls and then all went silent.

Will stared at the fridge open-eyed, shocked that he could just freeze somebody to death. Wills’ hand was inching towards his knife, ready to stab the fridge at a moment’s notice. Before he could stab him he was already inside the fridge’s stomach

#Anna#

Inside the fridge it was freezing and Will’s fingers were turning blue. The rabbit beside was dead, frozen in an ice cube. Will looked behind him and gasped. Inside the fridge there were more icecubes. They all contained at least one animal.

“Heeeeeeeelp…”

Will jumped up. He looked around. There was only him and some dead animals.

“Beehind ze smellee rabbeet,”

He moved the icecabbit(get it ice cube and rabbit?)and behind was a fraisier cake. It had small cake arms that was twirling a long chocolate moustache. The cake was also holding a baguette and wearing a french beret. Will opened his mouth to scream but the cake shook his head. Suprisingly, Will obeyed him or her or it.

“How are you not frozen?” Will asked.

The cake coughed,” Wait, I have casthma(cake and astha)…”

Will waited as the cake fumbled for it casthma canhaler(cake and inhaler…). Suddenly, the cake dropped it’s canhaler into the depths below. Will sighed. The cake was going to die from an asthma attack then he’ll be all alone again.

“Ahem, wheeeeeze, would you be so, wheeeeeeeeeze splutter, get my, wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze, canhaler?” wheezed the cake.

Will nodded and jumped down. Because the human body is heavier than an canhaler, he over took the canhaler and plummetted to the depths below. Will closed his eyes in fright. When Will finally had the courage to open his eyes, all he could see was darkness. The wind whipped through his air, freezing his body. Then as if someone had flicked a switch, tiny lights appeared. They were all different colours; a green that was as vibrant as an emerale, orange that looked too hot to touch, blue that was as cold as ice. They swirled around forming a picture…his old home. He was drawn to it like a piece of metal to a magnet…