Read Online The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman - Free Book Online Page B

together. They have a new plan, which my companion and I were able to discover. The Authority considers that conscious beings of every kind have become dangerously independent, so Metatron is going to intervene much more actively in human affairs. They intend to move the Authority secretly away from the Clouded Mountain, to a permanent citadel somewhere else, and turn the mountain into an engine of war. The churches in every world are corrupt and weak, he thinks, they compromise too readily . . . He wants to set up a permanent inquisition in every world, run directly from the Kingdom. And his first campaign will be to destroy your Republic . . .”
    They were both trembling, the angel and the man, but one from weakness and the other from excitement.
    Baruch gathered his remaining strength, and went on:
    “The second thing is this. There is a knife that can cut openings between the worlds, as well as anything in them. Its power is unlimited, but only in the hands of the one who knows how to use it. And that person is a boy . . .”
    Once again the angel had to stop and recover. He was frightened; he could feel himself drifting apart. Lord Asriel could see the effort he made to hold himself together, and sat tensely gripping the arms of his chair until Baruch found the strength to go on.
    “My companion is with him now. We wanted to bring him directly to you, but he refused, because . . . This is the third thing I must tell you: he and your daughter are friends. And he will not agree to come to you until he has found her. She is—”
    “Who is this boy?”
    “He is the son of the shaman. Of Stanislaus Grumman.”
    Lord Asriel was so surprised he stood up involuntarily, sending billows of smoke swirling around the angel.
    “Grumman had a
son?
” he said.
    “Grumman was not born in your world. Nor was his real name Grumman. My companion and I were led to him by his own desire to find the knife. We followed him, knowing he would lead us to it and its bearer, intending to bring the bearer to you. But the boy refused to . . .”
    Once again Baruch had to stop. Lord Asriel sat down again, cursing his own impatience, and sprinkled some more herbs on the fire. His dæmon lay nearby, her tail sweeping slowly across the oaken floor, her golden eyes never leaving the angel’s pain-filled face. Baruch took several slow breaths, and Lord Asriel held his silence. The slap of the rope on the flagpole above was the only sound.
    “Take your time, sir,” Lord Asriel said gently. “Do you know where my daughter is?”
    “Himalaya . . . in her own world,” whispered Baruch. “Great mountains. A cave near a valley full of rainbows . . .”
    “A long way from here in both worlds. You flew quickly.”
    “It is the only gift I have,” said Baruch, “except the love of Balthamos, whom I shall never see again.”
    “And if
you
found her so easily—”
    “Then any other angel may, too.”
    Lord Asriel seized a great atlas from the map chest and flung it open, looking for the pages that showed the Himalaya.
    “Can you be precise?” he said. “Can you show me exactly where?”
    “With the knife . . .” Baruch tried to say, and Lord Asriel realized his mind was wandering. “With the knife he can enter and leave any world at will . . . Will is his name. But they are in danger, he and Balthamos . . . Metatron knows we have his secret. They pursued us . . . They caught me alone on the borders of your world . . . I was his brother . . . That was how we found our way to him in the Clouded Mountain. Metatron was once Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel . . . Enoch had many wives. He was a lover of the flesh . . . My brother Enoch cast me out, because I . . . Oh, my dear Balthamos . . .”
    “Where is the girl?”
    “Yes. Yes. A cave . . . her mother . . . valley full of winds and rainbows . . . tattered flags on the shrine . . .”
    He raised himself to look at