Chapter Seven

The Book

The next three days were a desperate track to the Silver Tower. The grimgnaws did not attack again, but they were not far off, as Dr. Rosenberg pointed out to Will and Lyra early on the third day. "The Silver Tower," He said, "is the only place where the grimgnaws will not go."

"Why is that?" Lyra asked. Dr. Rosenberg shrugged. "I don't know, and neither do any of the villagers here, apparently the tower is much older than the villagers are."

The Master was in the back of a caravan with Jordey. Bloodmoss had been applied properly to all his wounds, but the poor boy was still moaning in pain. A tribeswoman held a rattle over him and shook it violently. The Master had a growing suspicion that this was the villagers' death rattle. The tribeswoman gave him a sign that he took for meaning that she would watch Jordey. Then (reluctantly) he left the wagon to join Will, Lyra, and Dr. Rosenberg. "How is Jordey fairing?" Will asked.

"As well as can be expected," The Master said grimly. That meant, Lyra knew, not well at all. "He'll be moderately okay," Dr. Rosenberg tried to say optimistically (but failed), "as long as we keep the moondirt and that Bloodmoss of your's on him, Master."

"Moondirt?" Will asked.

"It's a compound that we often use for repelling the grimgnaws, works fairly well as a medicine, too."
Will nodded, understanding.

Within the next hour, they reached the valley that the Silver Tower stood in. It was leaned sideways, Will noticed, like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, but it was indeed made of pure silver. "Amazing," Lyra spoke his thoughts.

"How come we didn't see it before we've come this close?" The Master asked.

"There's something mysterious about it," Dr. Rosenberg said, "you can't see it without being within twenty feet of it or so." Without another word, he spoke the traveling group in a language that was a series of grunts. The entire group hastened to the tower. Soon, they reached the fifty-foot tall door. Dr. Rosenberg grunted directions to the tribesmen and at least five dozen of them ran up to the door and began to push it in.

Will felt a burning in his pocket, he winced. "What's wrong, Will?" Lyra asked. Will pulled the tip of the Subtle Knife out of his pocket. "The Infinity Star," he told her, "it's doing something." A ray of blue light shot from the tip toward the door, where the dozens of men were pushing it open. There was a sound of a lock being undone (though it was extremely loud) and the doors opened completely…and stayed there.

"That's…" Dr. Rosenberg was lost in awe, "That was…"

"The Infinity Star." Will said, looking down to marvel at the blade tip in his hand. But, suddenly, the tip got red hot and Will dropped it down into the snow. It burned through and then, as Will looked down, he did not see it.

Instead, he saw a small, blue sphere that was about the size of a marble. Will picked it up. It was cool to the touch. "So that's the Infinity Star." Lyra said.

"Yes," Will said, "I guess it is." He held it up to the sun and found that it was not a blue sphere, nor any other individual hue, but an entire kaleidoscope of colors in the brightest, most brilliant forms. "Amazing…" Dr. Rosenberg said, "Simply amazing!"

That night, Will and Lyra recanted their tale to the point where the portal opened and brought them to this world. "Astounding," he said, "talking bears, aeronauts, a Land of the Dead, a knife that could open gates between worlds…I'm amazed."

"Well," Lyra said, "it all happened."

"I believe you," Dr. Rosenberg said. He looked at Will, "and after I saw what that boy's sphere could do, I'm just about ready to believe anything."

They got into the Tower, but they did not rest easily. Jordey's condition was growing worse. He seemed to getting much, much worse. His daemon, Sator, was looking incredibly lean and seemed to blink in and out of view when Jordey's grimgnaw persona clashed with his human side. "The grimgnaw side of him is coming out," Dr. Rosenberg said nervously, "the medicine women are trying there best to keep it at bay, but…I can't guarantee…" The Master was now very distraught. He had followed Lyra, Will, and Jordey into this world, only to be too late to save his son.

"I know…" Lyra patted him on the shoulder, trying in vain to comfort him. Will, however, went towards the tent where the tribesmen were housing Jordey for treatment. "Will, wait!" Dr. Rosenberg yelled to him. Will spun around and saw Dr. Rosenberg holding a silver necklace before him. "If you go in there, wear this, Jordey will not bite you when you wear it." Will took the necklace and slipped it over his neck. A wave of warmth passed through his body. Will then thanked Rosenberg and entered the tent. The three of four elderly women in the tent barely gave him a second glance, either having heard his conversation with Rosenberg or seeing the necklace he now wore. Jordey's arms were chained to the floor, and he jerked about angrily. His eyes were blood red and Sator was missing from his side.

"Jordey, can you hear me?" Will asked. The boy that had once been his friend growled angrily at him.

"It's me…It's Will."

A sudden change flushed over the boy who sat there in tattered rags and self-inflicted wounds. He began breathing furiously and his eyes reverted back to their pearl-blue color. Jordey gagged in surprise.

"Will?"

"Yes," Will nodded, "It's me."

"Where are Lyra, and dad? And is Dr. Rosenberg okay?"

"They're fine," a voice came from behind Will, "one of them happens to be right here…"

Will turned around to see Lyra and Pan, standing in the flap of the tent. Lyra also wore a silver necklace.

"How are you, Jordey?"

"Pretty good," Jordey said, a bit of his good-humor still in him.

Meanwhile, at their feet, Pan and Sator chatted. "What is happening to you, Sator?" Pan asked him, "Where do you go when Jordey has his fits?" "You should know better than I," Sator's mouse-like form gave a shrug, "Both you and Kirjava have been in the Land of the Dead."

Pan swallowed, and then nodded his pine marten head understandingly.

"It's so painful." Sator breathed.

"I know it is."

Kirjava's sleek cat-like body slipped over from beside Will to talk to them.

"I do, as well.'

"It doesn't seem that Jordey or I will be around for much longer."

"It seems that way."

Pan couldn't say anything to make Kirjava's last statement any more comforting for Sator. He was going to die, there was absolutely no way around it. Suddenly, however, Sator's form seemed to blink in and out of focus again. Jordey's eyes had turned red again, and his violent behavior resumed. The medicine women shooed them from the tent.

That night, Lyra slept comfortably in Will's arms. Will however, could not sleep. His mind was still in the tent with Jordey, who had been sedated so that the villagers could get some sleep. He rolled the little blue marble to and fro in his hands. He closed his eyes and thought about waking Lyra to tell him of the dream he had had in the Botanic Garden, but she looked so peaceful laying on him, feeling safe as every in his embrace. Finally, when Will was about to drop off, he heard the sound of a metal clinking against the stone floor. Stealthily, he moved out from under Lyra, snatched up Kirjava, and followed the sound of heavy footsteps. Without thinking, he pulled out the Infinity Star and held it out before him. It generated a rich, vibrating blue light.

This did not disturb the sleeping tribesmen, who seemed to take no notice of it at all. Maybe, Will thought, maybe it's a light that only I can see. This thought was cast aside as he saw someone that quite amazed him. Dr. Rosenberg was headed down the passage to a single, man-height door, which he looked behind himself before he opened. He entered and shut it behind him. Will shrugged to himself and followed. He opened the door with a surprisingly loud clang and said to no one in particular, "We need to be invisible." He had not looked ahead when he turned to see Dr. Rosenberg, standing about ten feet away from him. The good doctor had looked back to see the crack in the door where the apparently unseen Will and Kirjava had come through. Will leapt into the shadows as Dr. Rosenberg came to reseal the door again.

"What the-?" Kirjava, now awake called out. Will clapped a hand to his feline daemon's mouth. "Quiet," Will whispered shrilly, Dr. Rosenberg looking over in there direction, but apparently seeing nothing at all. The man turned to a massive bookshelf and pulled out an old tome with a green cover. He set it on a stand, opened it, and began to read carefully. It was an hour before he stopped, turned about, and left the room. Ironically, he had left the book open on the stand without as much as a care. Will, with the unseen Kirjava creeping by his side, walked up to it. Inside was writing in a language that Will could not begin to fathom the meaning of, and several sketches of a familiar-looking blue sphere. Will stepped back from the book in shock. What interest would Dr. Rosenberg have in the Infinity Star? Oh, he thought bitterly to himself, despite the fact that it's a magical jewel that can do almost anything on command?

Will considered going back for Lyra, but then he saw something that took his mind off of it. It was a passage in the book…it was in English. Will recognized it as Dr. Rosenberg, for he figured, Who else would have written it? The words in the passage were:

Three shall fall out of the sky

One shall fade away

Then, at last, the tower falls

And then the vengeance of the Star shall into fruition fly

Will looked up from the book and then looked to the little blue orb in his hand. What kind of vengeance would the Infinity Star have to enacted? Before he could ponder further, a hand fell on his shoulder. "Will, what are you doing here?" Will spun around and saw Dr. Rosenberg. His traditional smile was gone. The warmth in his eyes was replaced by an icy glare. "I was…" he stuttered. How can he see me? Will thought. "Snooping?" Rosenberg finished for him. Will was silent. "Get out of here." Rosenberg said, "Do not come here again." Will, without another word, snatched up Kirjava and sped out of the room.