'Oakley Street,' said Farder Coram to Lee, Lyra, Asriel, Serafina Pekkala and Julian Van Buskirk. 'Have you ever heard of it?'

'I have,' nodded Asriel. 'Small, under-funded, disorganised –'

'And your best hope at this point in time,' interrupted Farder Coram. He may have been an old, ill man but at that moment Lee could clearly see the warrior he had once been etched upon his features. 'They may be small, but the work they do is invaluable.'

'But what are they exactly?' asked Lyra. Asriel huffed with impatience. Lee gritted his teeth. He hoped Farder Coram would be quick in divulging what he knew, for all their sakes.

They had gathered in the spinney near the oak tree, after Farder Coram had requested privacy from the other Gyptians. Rather to Lee's surprise, Lord Faa and Ma Costa had accepted this readily, but Derrick and Tony, bursting with curiosity, had almost had to be held down in place as their motley band departed. Lord Asriel had mentioned Lyra staying behind too, but Farder Coram would not brook it.

'This will affect Lyra, as she is a wolfwalker, and she deserves to hear what I have to say,' he said gruffly. And that was that.

Now, Farder Coram looked Lyra dead in the eye as he answered her.

'They are indeed a small organisation, but a very important one,' he said. 'Basically, their purpose is to safeguard Brytish democracy and freedom of thought against the Magisterium. I am not a member, but I know people who are, and I have lent them my assistance on several occasions.'

Lyra grinned gleefully at this revelation. Lee smiled too, though Asriel remained stony-faced.

'Most recently, I have been contacted by Oakley Street with regards to monitoring Magisterium activity within the vicinity of Oxford,' Farder Corman continued. 'Unsurprisingly, given Alderman Danvers's request for Magisterium security and the visits by the head of the Consistorial Court of Discipline. I've been acting as a go-between, basically, leaving messages at designated drop-off points, delivering warnings or updates and so forth. They've been gathering information about the Magisterium's interest in these wolf hunts, and their presence at Jordan College, and I believe they may be able to tell us where Coulter is conducting the bulk of her experiments – if they are willing.'

'What are you basing that on, sir?' asked Lee.

'I know for a fact that they have an operative working in the Council's finance department,' answered Farder Coram. 'And also, that the Magisterium is very particular about keeping track of its money. If Mrs Coulter is funding research into the wolfwalkers, she is either doing it through private means or funnelling Magisterium funds into it.'

'And I'm guessing it would be too expensive for her to manage it privately, wealthy woman or not,' Lee murmured. Farder Coram nodded.

'Very probably. If Mrs Coulter has set up a private laboratory, I believe it will be somewhere nearby, so as to allow her to monitor its progress. Which means in turn, the money will be passed to someone with land or a building within the vicinity of Oxford.'

'The Magisterium won't be channelling its money through the Council, surely,' said Dr Van Buskirk. 'It will want it kept as secret as possible.'

'True, but in recent years it has been the law that all purchases or renting of lands or buildings worth more than ten thousand dollars must be recorded and verified by the City Council,' Farder Coram explained. 'In practice, this simply means the information goes into the Council archives. But it's there, and if Mrs Coulter is renting a property somewhere, with Magisterium money –'

'There will be a record of it at the Town Hall,' finished Asriel, a look of fierce satisfaction on his face.

'Almost certainly,' nodded Farder Coram. 'Mrs Coulter may be masking her intent, but she'll be following the Magisterium's rules regarding funding, to avoid attracting suspicion. The information will be written down somewhere.'

'Can you ask one of your associates to pass it onto us?' Lee asked straightforwardly.

'Yes, I can ask,' Farder Coram answered, and Lee noted he hadn't promised to obtain it.

'But will they?' he pressed. Farder Coram sighed.

'They will try, I am sure, but I cannot promise anything,' he acknowledged. 'They may not be willing to take the risk right now, or our contact may not be able to access the files. The Council has been growing increasingly paranoid under Danvers's leadership.'

'Just do your best, Farder Coram,' said Lee.

'How long will this take?' Asriel demanded.

'Hard to say,' Farder Coram answered frankly. 'I will approach my contact at once, but as to when they will come back to me with an answer… it might be hours. It might be days.'

Asriel looked unhappy at this appraisal but said nothing. Lee eyed him carefully. He hoped Asriel wasn't going to take matters into his own hands. He didn't think he had the energy for a second rescue mission.

'So, we find out where this laboratory is,' he mused out loud. 'Then we raid it, destroy the research, get the pack up to the Lake Country –'

'And we head for the North,' Lyra finished for him. Lee nodded. He cast another wary glance at Asriel, having already learned the man did not take kindly to having decisions made for him. But Lyra's father actually looked approving.

'I have contacts in the North, men who can be trusted, or at least coerced,' Asriel commented. 'And I know plenty of decent hiding places. The difficulty will be getting up there to begin with.'

'Lee has his balloon,' Lyra chimed in.

'And the Gyptians will assist you, I am sure,' Farder Coram said, smiling a little. 'We are used to moving without attracting Magisterium attention.'

'Much appreciated,' said Lee, with his habitual tip of his hat.

'Contact your source as soon as possible, Farder Coram,' said Asriel. 'In the meantime, I will head back to the forest, begin packing up my research.'

'I can help,' Lyra suggested, but Asriel shook his head.

'No, I have a specific method of organising my files that would take too long to explain,' he said, not unkindly. 'Remain here with the Gyptians and wait for news.'

Lyra looked rebellious. Lee exchanged glances with Hester.

'Actually, Lord Asriel, I was thinking we could head back to the forest with you,' he suggested, keeping his voice casual. 'The pack will be wondering about what's happened to us, and I reckon Lyra's the best one to explain to them that they're going to be moving on. For my part, I want to get Iorek Byrnison away from the river. Too much chance of him being spotted hereabouts.'

'That makes sense. Very well, Scoresby, we'll set out in a few minutes, once I've spoken with Lord Faa,' Asriel said, easily enough, and Lee heaved an internal sigh of relief. 'I will return here this evening, Farder Coram, to check on progress with Oakley Street.'

'No need,' said Serafina, who had been silent throughout the discussion, but no doubt listening intently. 'I will remain with the Gyptians and wait for news. I will fly to the forest, or send Kasia, as soon as we have word.'

'Thank you, Serafina Pekkala,' Asriel murmured, quite courteously for him. 'Come on then, Lyra, Scoresby. Let's make our farewells and return to the forest.'

#

Their goodbyes to the Gyptians took a while, as Ma Costa wasn't willing to bid farewell to Lyra without a fight. Tony and Derrick were also reluctant to say goodbye, even asking to accompany them back to the forest, and Lee had a hard time persuading them that they would be better off with their families. Eventually Van Buskirk pointed out that they had promised to source some gas for Lee's balloon, and they subsided, though Derrick hung round Lee and Hester till the last possible moment.

At long last, after Lee and Lyra promised faithfully to return as soon as it was safe, the Gyptians, Van Buskirk and a recovering Wilf let them go. With Iorek in tow, they set off back to the den.

Their journey back to the forest was obviously far too slow for Asriel's tastes. Although unconcerned by their circuitous route, he chafed under the need to scout ahead, to avoid all rubber-neckers and to hide when it proved impossible to avoid encountering walkers or farm workers. But with Iorek Byrnison accompanying them, they had little choice. And as Lee pointed out to Asriel, no doubt the Council had concocted some tale about a wanted criminal with a snow leopard daemon by that point, and secrecy was paramount.

Asriel, unmoved, continued to be aggravated by their sedate pace and after thirty minutes or so strode on ahead, head held high and all his lineaments proclaiming that he feared neither man nor beast. Lee wasn't sure whether to despise his arrogance or admire his fearlessness. He thought Lyra might hurry on ahead to walk with her father, but she stayed beside him and Iorek, sauntering along happily enough.

Asriel walked on, though Lee noticed he was never out of their view, nor they out of his if he cared to turn round. After a while, Lee saw Asriel's daemon looking up at him, Asriel looking down, obviously carrying on some conversation. Realising that they were safely out of earshot, he turned to Lyra.

'Lyra, what did you and your father talk about earlier?' he asked.

'Not a lot,' Lyra shrugged. 'But he told me he was sorry, that he'd been too hard on me.' She paused, giving Lee a sidelong glance. 'And he mentioned the reason he'd been angry was… well, he said whenever a human is turned into a wolfwalker, it's a huge risk. All he's taught me, all I've told you…he said we've barely scratched the surface of what we're capable of.'

Lee mulled this over for a few moments as they strolled along. Iorek, striding along behind them, made no remark, though Lee knew the bear was listening closely.

'Is he worried I'll turn on you, perhaps?' Lee asked. But Lyra shook her head.

'No, I don't think so. Father's impressed with you.'

Lee snorted indelicately.

'He is,' Lyra insisted. 'He's always impressed by people who can stand up to him. And he asked me if you'd done a good job taking care of me, and I told him no-one could've done a better one.'

'Hmm,' said Lee, slightly reassured by this proof of parental concern, no matter how fleeting.

'But I think what he's worried about is if our power gets out of control, or if we get swallowed up by it,' Lyra continued. 'He's never mentioned that before, I didn't know it was possible.'

'All power is dangerous, kid,' Lee muttered, wondering what the hell Asriel had meant by those cryptic statements. 'I think we need to have a talk with Asriel sometime, find out exactly what he means.'

'You'd better ask him,' Lyra grumbled. 'He never wants to tell me anything.'

'He's gonna have to start,' Lee commented. 'If he's worried about us getting – overwhelmed, by what we are, by being wolfwalkers… well, we're not gonna be able to fight against it if we don't know what we're fighting.'

They walked on a little further. The butter-yellow spring sun was climbing towards its zenith. Lee peered up at it from beneath his hat brim, marvelling that it wasn't yet midday. He felt as if he'd lived an entire day already. He recalled his conversation with Ma Costa, the revelation about Lyra's mother. Should he tell her? Ma Costa hadn't sworn him to secrecy, but then it was clear that for whatever reason that Asriel didn't want her to know. Surely as his father, he had his reasons…

Lee sighed. He thought of the way Asriel regarded everyone, his detached expression and appraising gaze, as if the world were his chessboard and its people pieces to be moved for his amusement or benefit. He thought of Asriel's cool treatment of his only daughter. People expressed love in different ways, Lee knew that, but Asriel's attitude towards Lyra disturbed him. It was as if she were merely a responsibility to be discharged, rather than a daughter to be loved.

'What are we going to do next? Will we move the pack first, or destroy Mrs Coulter's lair?' Lyra asked him and Lee dragged himself out of his sombre musings.

'Well, we need to confirm it with Asriel, but I suppose it depends on how quickly Farder Coram can find out where this secret lab is located,' Lee answered. 'If it takes him a while to get the information, we might as well move the wolves on. But if his contacts are quick, we'd better strike at the lab and destroy it first. Either way, once we've done both, we light out for the North.'

Lyra nodded assent.

'Will we fly to the North?' she queried. 'In your balloon?'

'We could,' Lee answered. 'It'd be a long journey, though.'

'Too long for me,' grumbled Iorek behind them. 'I am not fond of flying. Bears are not meant to fly.'

Lyra giggled, and Lee grinned.

'Perhaps there's another way, old fellow,' he said. 'The Gyptians will be willing to help, I'm sure. If we could get to a northern port, maybe up in Scotland, that would shorten the journey. Or even go by ship as far as Trollesund or Bergen, and then go from there to Bolvangar.'

'Much better,' grunted Iorek.

'It all depends on the winds, though,' Lee informed Lyra, glancing around to check if there was anyone other than Asriel in the vicinity. He spied no-one, so carried on talking. 'An aeronaut's always at the mercy of the weather. If you want to go one way and the wind's blowing the other, well, you either wait for it to change or you change your destination.'

He glanced up at the sky.

'Like today. There's a shift in the weather coming, and it's likely to turn wet, which is good in some ways, bad in others. Fair weather means you don't have to deal with rain and hail and so forth. On the other hand, it can mean the winds aren't as strong. Getting becalmed is a nuisance.'

Lyra stared up at the sky in puzzlement.

'How do you know the weather's going to change?' she asked him. Lee pointed to some thin, wispy clouds high overhead, covering half the sky.

'See those? Cirrus clouds. When there's that many of them, it means there'll be a change in the weather, usually in the next day or so. It's probably going to rain soon. That's no trouble for the balloon, so long as the rain's not too heavy, but if there's a thunderstorm, it's better not to be in the air.'

'Cirrus clouds,' murmured Lyra. Pantalaimon, a blackbird on her shoulder, chirruped enthusiastically.

'Yeah, I'll have to teach you how to read the sky if we're going flying,' Lee murmured without thinking. He could have smacked himself a moment later (who knew what plans Asriel had, once their tasks here were accomplished?) but Lyra looked so thrilled at this prospect he didn't have the heart to squelch her joy.

'What sort of things do I need to know to be an aeronaut?' she demanded.

'Well, knowing the weather for one thing. Astronomy – using the stars for navigation. I have a compass, and a spare compass, but if they get busted or lost, I need to know how to find my way. And math is good for a pilot, too. Calculating the weight, depending on what you're carrying, what adjustments to make to the instruments…can be a complicated business. I go by instinct, if I'm in a hurry, but it's better to work things out properly or you'll run into trouble down the road.'

'I'm good at maths,' Lyra beamed. 'Father always insisted on teaching it to me. And I'll study the weather, too. What about those clouds over there?'

'Cumulus clouds, kid. Means the weather's fair for the time being.'

They made their meandering way back to Badbury Forest, chatting about clouds and weather systems as they went, Iorek occasionally butting in with information about the currents in the oceans and how they affected the weather. Once they reached the forest edge, Asriel speeded up yet again and was soon lost to view amongst the trees.

No-one seemed to mind.

#

They reached the den not far behind Asriel, despite their slower pace and occasional pauses to look at cloud formations. Iorek settled himself outside while Lyra and Lee squeezed through the tunnel to be swarmed over by an exultant pack of wolves. Once they'd greeted everyone (and Rattail had chased Hester round the den until the daemon had finally given in and allowed the wolf to cuddle her) Lee went to see what Asriel was doing.

The man was in his sleeping cave, methodically sorting through his belongings and riffling through sheafs of paper, sorting the wheat from the chaff. He was preoccupied, and merely grunted when Lee volunteered to begin sorting through their supplies, seeing what would be needed for the journey to the North. Lee chose to take that as a yes.

'Lyra, honey,' he said, as he walked back into the centre of the den. 'I'd have a word with the wolves, let them know they'll have to move on very soon. I'm gonna sort through your supplies, see what you can take to the North.'

Lyra nodded assent to this plan, and immediately began chivvying the wolves away from whatever they were engaged in, ready to explain matters to them. As much as she could, anyway. Lee left them to it and began rummaging through the supply cave, seeking out what would be useful in the North and what could be safely left behind.

As Lee suspected, Asriel had plenty of equipment that could be used or adapted for an expedition to the North – crampons, climbing ropes, blankets, lightweight cooking gear – but very little in the way of warm clothing. He began packing up items, nonetheless, chatting with Hester as he did so.

'We'll have to get the kid some proper cold weather gear,' she remarked as Lee stuffed some gloves into the kitbag he'd found. 'Specially if we're heading up to Bolvangar. Is there a tent in there?'

'Can't see one,' Lee muttered. 'I'll add it to the list. We can use the balloon's basket in a pinch. Or Iorek might be able to give us shelter.'

He tossed aside an old jumper that looked very much as if it had been worried by a wolf pup at some point, and began rummaging in another box, when his hand closed on something cool and heavy.

Lee pulled out what looked like a small box worked in some sort of golden metal. He prised it open and beheld what looked like a strange kind of compass, or a small clock. It was extraordinarily weighty in his hand and was beautifully crafted. There were pictures painted all around the dial, exquisitely rendered by the finest of paintbrushes. A beehive, a compass, an elephant, a tree… and hands to point at the symbols, three of them.

Hester loped over to peer at it, just as fascinated as Lee was.

'What is it?' she murmured.

'I'm not sure,' Lee whispered back. He wasn't sure why he'd lowered his voice, but something about the object had inspired awe in him. 'It's beautiful – but what's it for?'

'Ain't sure,' said Hester. 'Is it a toy?'

'I don't think so,' Lee answered. 'Too finely-worked for that. And feeling the weight of it, I think it's made out of gold.'

'Cripes,' breathed Hester. 'Shall we ask Asriel what it is?'

'Looks valuable,' Lee murmured back. 'We'd better ask him what he wants to do with it.'

As if their mention of his name had summoned him, Asriel came striding out of his sleeping cave. Lee glanced over at him and Lyra, who was playing with Towser and Acorn, stopped dead and stared at him, waiting for a cue.

'Scoresby, Lyra,' Asriel said without preamble. 'We need to have a talk. I have some questions about what's transpired in my absence and I think I ought to explain a few things about the wolfwalkers to you, Scoresby.'

Lee rose, stuffing the golden compass into his coat pocket as he did so, resolving to ask Asriel about it once the other man had said his piece. Asriel was standing, arms folded in what seemed to be a habitual pose. Lee walked over and settled himself on the rock he and Lyra had been using as a bench. He wasn't thrilled about having Asriel looming over him like a schoolteacher, but it would be ridiculous to stand opposite as if they were about to draw on one another.

Lyra skipped over and settled herself besides Lee and Hester. Pantalaimon, in ermine shape, nestled against Hester and peered at an impassive Stelmaria.

'Scoresby,' Asriel said at once. 'What has Lyra taught you, about being a wolfwalker?'

'All she knows,' Lee said, rather pointedly. 'I'm a man when I'm awake, a wolf when I'm asleep. We can talk to wild wolves, ask them to help us out. We can heal injuries, and we're stronger than most humans.'

'That's a good start,' Asriel remarked. 'But there's more to it than that.'

'You never told me about more,' Lyra muttered.

'I preferred you to learn about it gradually,' Asriel returned, unruffled. 'Wolfwalkers have tremendous power, and I thought learning too much at once would be overwhelming for you.'

Lyra looked mutinous but said nothing. Lee regarded Asriel carefully.

'Are you going to tell us now, then?' Lee enquired, politely enough. 'I for one would like to know exactly what I've become.'

'Yes, I think I must,' sighed Asriel. 'As much as I am aware of, at any rate.'

Lee narrowed his eyes as he stared up at Asriel.

'You weren't born a wolfwalker, were you?' he asked – though there was no questioning in his voice. 'You're like me. You got bitten and had to work it all out for yourself.'

Asriel pressed his lips together and said nothing for a long moment. Lyra gazed at her father consideringly, as if she'd just had a suspicion confirmed. Lee waited patiently. Then Asriel spoke.

'When I was twenty-two, I went on an expedition to Eastern Siberia,' he said, voice flat. 'As part of an experimental theological team gathering data about the aurora in the Eastern Hemisphere.'

'Remarkable place,' said Lee to Lyra, as Asriel paused. 'The only place in the world where leopards, tigers and brown bears all live alongside each other.'

'True, though I wasn't there for the wildlife,' Asriel continued. 'I was there for knowledge, but a month in the expedition wasn't going well. The weather wasn't in our favour, and we hadn't gotten any decent readings of the aurora. I grew… impatient. And then, when we were visiting a fishing village to replenish supplies, the villagers made mention of a shaman. A powerful one, who could work remarkable magic. Who could make the skies do her bidding.'

'Did you go to find her?' Lyra asked eagerly. Asriel huffed.

'Of course, I did. I didn't have any belief in magic or so forth – at the time – but I'd heard of the witches in the North and thought perhaps she'd learned a trick or two that would clear the skies. I set out into the wilderness, alone, in search of her. For three days, I had no luck, found nothing. On the fourth day, I found a wolf. Caught in a trap, starving to death. For some reason I felt compelled to set it free and got bitten on the arm for my pains.'

Asriel fell silent for a moment, remembering.

'It wasn't a bad wound. I stitched myself up and carried on. The next day, I was hiking through the woods and I saw the wolf again,' he continued. 'It wanted me to follow it. It wasn't a rational decision on my part… I simply knew that the wolf wanted me to accompany it. It led me to a temple, on a mountainside. A very steep, quite hazardous ascent. Once I got up there, it led me inside and I saw a woman sleeping in there. A woman with a great owl for a daemon, of a kind I'd never seen before.'

'Was she a wolfwalker?' Lyra asked eagerly. Asriel nodded.

'She was. She jumped back into herself, turned human, and woke. I was stunned, but she was quite composed. She sat me down, gave me hot soup and explained what had occurred. I had quite a shock when it turned out she could speak decent English, but it was useful.'

'What was her name?' interrupted Lyra.

'That's not relevant –'

'I'd like to know her name, too,' said Lee.

'As I was saying –'

'Her name, Asriel,' rumbled Iorek from outside the den.

'Her name was Khadne and her daemon was Ilia. Now shut up and pay attention. She was the daughter of a rich nobleman from Muscovy, an ambitious man. Before she turned fifteen, before her daemon settled, she'd been betrothed to an eminent politician three times her age. She refused to marry him, and her father beat her. So, she took all her jewels, sold them and then fled into the wilderness.'

'Brave girl,' remarked Lee. Asriel regarded him coldly.

'A foolish girl. But she showed her courage in what came next. She ran as far and as fast as her money would take her. Ended up in a fishing village in Eastern Siberia, working in the local tavern. A man tried to take what wasn't his and she beat him over the head with a log. Then she ran again, into the mountain, to the temple she'd led me to.'

Asriel paused then, fierce expression softening slightly as he reminisced.

'She hadn't known of the temple's existence until she was fleeing the village. Khadne told me she'd been wandering, cold and exhausted, through the forest when she saw a light from the mountainside. She followed it and came to the temple. It was an ancient, sacred place. Built in the eighth century, I found out afterwards. She found sanctuary there, but it wasn't long before she realised that there were strange phenomena occurring.'

'I didn't witness anything during my stay, but she mentioned strange lights, objects being teleported from one side of the temple to the other, footsteps when no-one was there to make them… and one night, not long after she arrived there, Khadne had a vision.'

'She said she had come into the temple from setting snares, and found a woman waiting for her. A woman with red hair, she said, who spoke in a language she didn't understand, but which her daemon did. This…woman, lay down and turned her spirit into a wolf. She offered Khadne the power to do the same, on condition she remain and guard the temple until someone came to relieve her of her duty. Khadne agreed, and the wolf bit her, before healing the injury. Then the woman vanished, and Khadne never saw her again.'

Asriel paused, examining Lee and Lyra closely for their reactions. Lyra was wide-eyed, open-mouthed, but Lee kept his face impassive.

'A couple of nights later… well, you can guess what happened. Khadne had been there ever since, a wolfwalker in the midst of the wilderness, guarding the temple as she had been instructed.'

'And she instructed you in turn?' Lee guessed. Asriel nodded.

'Yes. I transformed for the first time two days later. Khadne told me all she knew – the healing abilities, the power over wild wolves. But there was more.'

Asriel sucked in a deep breath and plunged into his revelation as a man might jump from a clifftop into the sea.

'That temple, the place where it was built… for centuries, the locals believed it was a gateway, a door between the spirit world and our world. They were partially right. It was a doorway between two worlds – not the spirit world, but a world similar to our own.'

'Holy hell,' muttered Lee. Lyra looked entranced.

'The power of the wolfwalkers originated in this other world, according to Khadne,' Asriel continued. 'The wolfwalker who gifted Khadne came from there. And Khadne's duty as guardian of the temple was to protect this doorway – prevent any threats that might emerge from the other world, but also stop anyone with ill intent going through from our world.'

'I'm guessing you mean the Magisterium?' Lee asked. Asriel nodded.

'Yes, although I know of a few conglomerates that would be eager to exploit such a discovery. Regardless, she told me that the greatest gift the wolfwalkers possessed was an ability to move between worlds. The human world and the world of the wolves, of course, but also this world and others.'

'There's more than one?' Lyra queried, eyes bright. Asriel's daemon laughed softly, and Lyra's face twisted into a scowl. Hester bristled and kicked a glob of dirt right in the snow leopard's face, causing her to sputter in outrage. Pantalaimon turned into a magpie and crowed a defiant 'ha! Ha!' Lee looked down at his boots to hide the smirk on his face.

'Less horseplay, you lot,' Asriel snapped. 'Scoresby, get your daemon under control.'

'Been trying to do that all my life with no luck,' Lee answered cheerily. 'Your daemon's a big girl, she can handle it.'

'Hmph,' said Stelmaria.

'As I was saying,' Asriel continued with feeling, 'there are other worlds besides this one. Hundreds of thousands – millions of other worlds. They aren't part of this universe at all – even the furthest stars are part of our universe, but not the other worlds that exist alongside our own. We are as close as a heartbeat, but we can never see or touch or know these other worlds. Except in a very few places, like Khadne's temple.'

Lee studied Asriel's face painstakingly, seeking out even the merest suggestion of deception, any indication that the man was lying (no way was Asriel joking, the man took himself far too seriously for that) but perceived nothing untoward.

'Lee,' murmured Hester at his feet. 'Do you remember, a few years ago, flying across Nova Zembla? The northern lights – we thought it was just an accident, a beautiful accident…'

The memory surfaced in Lee's mind like a whale breaching the ocean waves, crashing into everything he thought he knew about the world.

'I remember!' he exclaimed and turned to an inquisitive Lyra before she could jump in with questions. 'Two years ago, we were flying above Nova Zembla, and the northern lights were dancing across the sky… Hester and me were watching them, and then, as clearly as I see you, kid, we saw a city in the sky. Only for a moment – but it was a city. Towers, buildings, bridges, all as if the aurora itself had made them. It was there in the sky and then it wasn't. We thought we'd dreamed it, or that it had been the aurora making shapes that looked like a city…'

'But it was another world?' asked Lyra, spell-bound, her eyes shining.

'It was,' interjected Asriel. 'I have seen similar phenomena myself. The charged particles of the aurora have the property of making the matter of this world thin, allowing us to see through it for a short while.'

'Cripes,' said Lee. 'So, you think the wolfwalkers come from one of these worlds?'

'I know it,' Asriel answered, voice adamantine with certainty. Lee wondered what that was like: the ability to never doubt, never wonder, never deviate from your planned course. Or perhaps it was an inability.

'This is the wolfwalkers' greatest gift,' Asriel carried on. 'Not only to see other worlds, but to move between them. Our spirits leave our human bodies at night, enter another world, the world of wolves, of animals and wild things…why should we not move between different universes? Khadne did so all the time. Her spirit would leave her body, and pass through the matter of this world, and into another.'

'Her daemon?' asked Lee. He felt Hester's little heart thumping with fear and excitement, as if it were beating in his own chest.

'Ilia could accompany her,' Asriel acknowledged. Then, bitterly: 'Though I am not sure how.'

The silence that followed was so taught Lee felt as if he could extend a hand and twang it like the string on Serafina Pekkala's bow. So, of course, he broke it.

'Because she never taught you,' Lee said recklessly. 'You pissed Khadne off before she got round to showing you how to move between worlds, and you've been trying to work it out ever since.'

Lee had expected Asriel to lose his temper following this blunt, tactless guess. To glare at the aeronaut with eyes full of poison, to curse at him, even to swing for him. But Asriel did none of those things. He merely looked at Lee, one corner of his mouth turned upwards, as if pleasantly surprised.

'You're an astute man, Scoresby,' said Asriel. Lee felt Lyra's hand squeezing his upper arm and looked down at her looking up. Her face was full of pride.

Told you, she mouthed. Lee, embarrassed for some reason he didn't care to examine too closely, turned back to Asriel.

'So, what happened?' he asked, rather needlessly.

'Khadne had one rule for me – never go into the central room in the temple,' Asriel answered shortly. 'I believe it was where the doorway to the other world was located, but I'm not sure. I was young and stupid and curious. So, I went in.'

Pause. Two wolves yipped at each other. Lee and Lyra waited. Asriel sighed, very faintly, and carried on.

'To this day, I don't know what that room contained. One moment I was stepping across the threshold, the next I was running through the forest in wolf form, utterly alone. Not even Stelmaria was with me. I was raving, desperate – I couldn't remember my name, let alone that I was a man, a man with a daemon. All I had were images, feelings, of the life I'd had, and I could make no sense of them. I lived as a beast in that forest, I don't know for how long. I lost all track of time.'

'I hunted for prey as a wolf would, I had those instincts at least, but I was unpractised. I started to raid human settlements when I began to starve. One day, I fell into a wolf pit, a hole dug by hunters, and I couldn't free myself. I was trapped there, until Khadne found me. I remember seeing her, at the rim of the pit, calling me every name under the sun, and that was when I came back to myself. I recalled my name, and hers.'

'She rescued me, got me back to my human form and Stelmaria, and then threw me out of the temple, cursing me, saying that the way to that sacred place would be barred to me forevermore. I thought she'd just lost her temper with me, that she'd relent… I went to the nearest village, waited a few days, and then went seeking the temple again.'

'I hunted for months. Combed every inch of those blasted, uncharted mountains. Followed up every lead the locals could give me, but I never found the temple again, and I never saw Khadne again. Eventually, there was nothing for it but to return to civilization, return to my work. And try and puzzle out for myself what I might have learned, had I not been so headstrong.'

'And have you?' Lyra asked with eager impatience. 'Have you learned how to travel between worlds?'

'I've made some progress,' Asriel answered coldly, his demeanour turning harsh and unwelcoming. 'But it's a difficult, almost impossible thing to accomplish. I've nearly driven myself mad more than once – and I don't mean that in a metaphorical sense. We walk a dangerous path, Lyra, Scoresby. It was why I have always been loath to create new wolfwalkers. Such power in the hands of the wrong person would be perilous, and if they learn such things as moving between worlds – or if they go crazy attempting such – the results could be catastrophic.'

'So, why keep attempting it?' Lee asked, genuinely curious. 'You've got extraordinary abilities already. Why keep trying to find a way into another world if it might drive you insane?'

Asriel's answering smile put Lee eerily in mind of a glutton sitting down to consume an enormous banquet.

'Because our world is subject to powerful, oppressive forces,' he informed Lee and Lyra, eyes lighting up with fervour. 'The Magisterium being one, but there are others. Corporations, corrupt governments, men with obscene amounts of wealth and no morals… I want to stand against those forces, drag them down and expose them for the hollow, shabby facades they are. I want to be free of them – if I could prove beyond all doubt that there are other worlds, that the Magisterium's teachings are incorrect, then it would be a serious blow to them. The greatest since they conceded the earth orbits the sun.'

Lee surveyed Asriel thoughtfully. His statements sounded lofty, noble even, but his zeal put Lee in mind of some of the Magisterium fanatics he'd encountered over the years. They were the kind of men who would sacrifice everything, everyone to their aims, convinced they were doing God's work and unconcerned with the pain and suffering they inflicted in the process.

His emotions must have shown on his face, for Asriel paused to survey the aeronaut in turn.

'You seem… unconvinced, Scoresby,' Asriel said.

'I'm no supporter of the Magisterium,' Lee answered frankly. 'Anything that will curb their power, I'm broadly in favour of. But I ain't the kind of man who's willing to do anything and everything to achieve that. If moving between worlds is gonna cost me my sanity, well…'

'This is greater than any one man, Scoresby,' Asriel returned, his voice flat but his eyes assessing.

'Ain't saying it isn't,' Lee answered. 'But I'm not the kind of man who's prepared to do anything to realise his aims. I've met plenty of people who'll do just that. Problem is, those aims don't always come to pass. The world changes, or their circumstances change, and then all they're left with is the consequences of their actions. Ain't a pleasant position to be in.'

'The world needs men prepared to take that risk,' Asriel argued back. Stelmaria narrowed her eyes at Hester, who returned her gaze steadily. 'You may have principles of your own, Scoresby, but you can be sure our enemies won't. Adhering to some abstract code of conduct, some concept of personal honour, is a weakness the Magisterium doesn't share.'

'That's why it's so important. It separates us from them,' Lee said. His voice was mild, but as far as he was concerned that was his last word on the subject. He glanced down at Lyra, who was listening avidly. Her hand was still gripping his arm, tighter and tighter.

'Kid? Care to add anything?' he asked her. Asriel scoffed.

'She's too young to understand,' he began.

'She's old enough to learn,' Lee shot back. 'And this is Lyra's struggle, just as much as yours or mine. She deserves to have a say.'

Asriel frowned but made no riposte. Stelmaria glanced up at him, then back at Lee and Lyra, tail flicking disapprovingly. Lyra let go of Lee's arm and propped her chin on her fists, staring thoughtfully into the middle distance.

'The Magisterium are our enemies,' she murmured after a minute. 'We got to fight against them, and if that means going into another world, then I agree with my father. But –' raising her voice, '– we shouldn't hurt people to do it. We're part wolf. The wolves hunt and fight for survival, not because they get angry or want to prove summing or anything like that, and I don't think we should neither.'

'Yeah, the wolves ain't dumb,' murmured Hester. Pantalaimon turned into his ermine form and leapt over to snuggle against Hester in agreement.

Asriel raised an eyebrow, and Lee knew he was preparing to argue back against Lyra. But whatever rebuttal he was about to hurl was destined to remain unspoken, for someone else spoke before he could.

'Wolves are indeed intelligent creatures,' said Serafina Pekkala, making everyone jump. She had landed in the den so softly and skilfully that even Asriel hadn't heard her coming. She was clad in a shabby brown coat and even wore a pair of shoes, though there was no concealing her grace and beauty. Kasia perched on the bluff and peered down at them all with gentle amusement.

'Ma'am,' Lee greeted her. 'Got some news for us?'

'Yes, and it came quicker than we anticipated,' Serafina replied. 'It seems Oakley Street had already acquired the information we seek and are willing to pass it to us. They have named a meeting place and time. If we leave now, we shall just about be there in time. Farder Coram and Dr Van Buskirk are already on their way.'

'Brilliant! Let's go!' cried Lyra, bolting for the tunnel before anyone could say anything more.

'I should make her wait here,' Asriel muttered to himself. 'She's a handful at the best of times.'

'I'll keep an eye on her,' Lee told him. 'Besides, she'll get into less trouble with us than hanging about here.'

Asriel gave a curt nod and strode off towards the tunnel. Lee and Serafina exchanged wry glances.

'I'll have a word with Iorek, ask him to stay here with the wolves,' Lee said, smiling to himself as Tracker and Acorn played tug-of-war with a sturdy stick. 'Whereabouts are we headed for, ma'am?'

'To a property belonging to a school,' answered Serafina. 'A school overseen by a woman called Hannah Relf. Now, here –'

She tossed him a long, narrow bundle. Lee unwrapped it and found an old but clean blue coat and cloth cap, and for some reason, a canvas bag containing a fishing rod.

'Courtesy of Derrick Volantyne and Tony Costa,' Serafina informed him. 'They were worried you'd stand out too much in your current garments, it's why Ma Costa lent me this coat and shoes. The bag is for hiding your rifle in.'

'Those guys are smart,' murmured Lee, impressed. 'Remind me to buy them both a drink if I get the chance.'

'Lee, where are you?' came Lyra's voice from outside the den. 'Father's in a hurry – so am I!'

'On my way,' Lee called back, shucking his hat and coat off and donning his disguise, stuffing his own clothes and rifle in the fishing rod bag and slinging it over his shoulder before going to shuffle his way through the tunnel.

It wasn't until their journey was well underway that Lee recollected the golden compass, stuffed into his coat pocket, which in turn was stuffed into his bag. But as there wasn't anything, he could do about it, he refrained from mentioning it.

Author's Notes: Khadne is based upon a real person. A naturalist called Jonathan C. Slaght has written an amazing book called 'Owls of the Eastern Ice' about his efforts to conserve the Blakiston's Fish Owl (the largest owl species in the world). In the book, he describes meeting a hermit near a temple atop a mountain. The hermit describes strange occurrences at the temple, and is confident that it has a purpose for him. Khadne is loosely based upon this man - and her daemon is of course a Blakiston's Fish Owl.

So, the alethiometer has turned up! It's not going to play a big role in this story, but it's there. But what has Oakley Street uncovered? You'll have to wait and see!

Till next time, dear readers...