Chapter 19 19. Imprisonment

The armored bear escorted Lyra up a valley on the cliff.The fog was thicker than on the coast.The cries of ghosts on the cliff and the pounding of waves became less and less as they went higher.After a while, only the endless calls of seabirds could be heard.They climbed rocks and snowdrifts in silence.Lyra stared wide-eyed at the gray world around her; her ears pricked up to hear the voices of her friends.But maybe she was the only one on Svalbard, maybe Iorek was dead. The bear officer didn't say anything to her.Then they came to flat ground and stopped.Judging by the sound of the waves, Lyra thought they were reaching the top of the cliff.She did not dare to run away, for fear of falling off the edge of the cliff.

"Look up," said the bear until then.A breeze came, blowing the thick mist. Although there was little light, Lyra took a look and found herself standing in front of a large stone building.It's at least as tall as the tallest building at Jordan College, but much larger, and it's covered with battle scenes depicting armored bears triumphing and Skrelin ugly surrendering, Tartars chained Working as a coolie in a fire mine, zeppelins fly from all over the world to pay tribute to the armored bear king Iofur Laknizon. That's what those carvings depicted—at least that's what Officer Bear told her.Lyra had to take him at his word, for every ledge and ledge deeply carved in the front door was taken over by herring birds and skuas, hooting loudly and hoarsely, circling overhead.Everywhere in the house was smeared with bird droppings in a thick white filth.

However, the armored bear doesn't seem to see everything that is dirty and messy.They led her through the great archway, over the ground covered with ice and snow and dirty bird droppings.Inside is a courtyard, high steps and several gates.Every time they passed a place, the armored bear ordered the visitors to stop for identification, and they answered the password.Their armor looked very fine and shimmering, and their helmets were full of feathers.Lyra couldn't help comparing every bear she saw to Iorek Bernison, and it always came out that Iorek beat them all.He was stronger and more decent than them, and his armor was also real armor, with a rusty color and blood stains, and the battles left uneven marks on it, unlike what she saw at this time As elegant, polished, and flashy as most of the armor around him.

Going further in, the temperature increased, and certain smells became stronger.The smell in Iofur's palace was disgusting: the smell of rotting seal meat, dung, blood, and all kinds of garbage.Lyra pushed back her hood to cool off a little, but she couldn't help wrinkling her nose—hopefully armored bears couldn't read human expressions.On the ground at intervals of a few yards stood iron shelves holding whale oil lamps.It wasn't always easy to see where she was walking under the flickering lights. At last they stopped outside a heavy iron gate.A bear sentry dropped the huge latch, and the bear officer swung his paw suddenly at Lyra, pinned her head, and shoved her inside.Before she could understand what was going on, she heard the door behind her being bolted shut with a bang.

It was dark inside, but Pantalaimon turned into a firefly, casting a faint light around them.This is a prison, the surrounding walls are very damp, dripping with water, and there is a stone bench inside, which can be regarded as furniture.In the innermost corner was a pile of rags, where she slept.That was all she could see. Lyra sat down with Pantalaimon on her shoulder.She reached into her clothes and touched, the alethiometer was still there. "Pan, it must have been hit badly," Lyra whispered. "I hope it's not broken." Pantalaimon flew to her waist and asked, squatting there glowing.Lyra tried to compose herself.Part of her mind was at work again: she found it remarkable that, despite the dire danger she was in, she had maintained the composure required to read the alethiometer.Yet this part of her mind was so active that the most complex problems were transformed into symbols as naturally as her muscles moved her limbs: she hardly had to think about it.

She turned the pointer, thinking about the question: "Where is Iorek?" The answer came at once: "It's a day's journey from here. He was carried there by balloon after you landed; but he's coming this way." "Where's Roger?" "With Iorek." "What is Iorek going to do?" "Although there are many difficulties, he intends to break into the palace and rescue you." She put the alethiometer aside.She was even more worried than before. "These armored bears wouldn't let him do that, would they?" she said to Pantalaimon. "There are too many of them. I wish I was a witch, Pan, so you could leave me for him." , take him a letter, etc., and we can work out a proper plan..."

Speaking of this, she developed a kind of fear for her own life and death. At this moment, a man's voice suddenly came from a few feet away from the darkness.The voice asked, "Who is it?" Lyla jumped up with a yelp and backed away from the wall; Pantalaimon immediately turned into a bat, screaming loudly, and circled around Lyra's head. "Huh? Huh?" said the man. "Who? Talk! Talk!" "Go back to Firefly, Pan," Lyra said in a trembling voice, "but don't get too close." The flickering light that Pantalaimon had become was flying in the air, hovering over the head of the man who spoke.It turned out that the pile in the corner was not rags at all, but a man with a big gray beard.

He was chained to the wall, his eyes gleaming in the dim light of Pantalaimon, his hair unkempt over his shoulders.His daemon was a weary viper, perched on his lap, spitting poison as Pantalaimon flew near. "What's your name?" Lyra asked. "Josham Santria," replied the man, "I am the Royal Professor of Cosmology at Troyster University. Who are you?" "Lila. Belacova. Why did they lock you here?" "Out of hatred and jealousy... where did you come from? Huh?" "Jordan Academy," Lyra said. "What? From Oxford?" "yes."

"Is that rascal Trelawney still around? Huh?" "The one who was Professor Palmer? Yes, he's still there," Lyra replied. "Really? My God! Huh? They should have asked him to resign a long time ago. Cunning plagiarist! No name!" Lyra snorted noncommittally. "Has he published a paper on gamma-ray photons?" the professor asked, jerking his face up, looking straight into Lyra's face. Lyra took a step back. "I don't know," she said, but immediately began to make up the habitual nonsense: "Not yet," she went on, "I remember. He said there were a few more figures to check, and . . . he said he And going to write about Dust—that’s all.”

"Rogue! Thief! Scoundrel! Scoundrel!" cried the old man, shaking so violently that Lyra feared that he would lose his temper.The professor pounded his fist on his thigh, and his daemon slid listlessly from his lap.A few drops of saliva flowed from his mouth. "Yes," said Lyra, "I always thought he was a thief and a rogue, yes." How could it be possible that a dirty little girl appeared in her own prison and knew the person she was so jealous of?However, the royal professor was unaware of this.He was indeed on the verge of madness, no wonder--poor old man.Maybe Lyra could find some useful bits and pieces of information from him, though.

She sat carefully close to him, keeping a distance so that he could not reach her, but still allow the little light of Pantalaimon to illuminate him clearly. "One thing, Professor Trelawney used to brag," she said, "about how well he knew the Bear King—" "Blowing? Huh? Huh? I'd say he's bragging! He's nothing but a dude! And a plagiarist! He didn't do any original research! Stealing it all from smart people Come!" "Yeah, yeah," said Lyra earnestly, "when he does try to do something himself, he keeps getting it wrong." "Yes! Yes! That's it! No ability, no imagination, a complete liar!" "I mean," Lyra said, "take the armored bear, I bet you know more than he does." "Bear," said the old man, "ha! I could write a whole treatise on them! That's why they locked me up, you know." "why?" "I know so much about them that they don't dare kill me. They don't dare, but they want to very much. I know that, you know, because I have friends, yes! And they're powerful friend." "That's it," Lyra said, "I'm sure you're a really great teacher," she went on, "because you have so much knowledge and experience." Amidst his extreme anger, there was still a flash of judgment at this moment.He stared at her sternly, as if suspecting that she was making a mockery of him.Yet Lyra had spent her life dealing with suspicious, eccentric Academicians, and she too gazed at him with natural admiration.This relieved him. "Teacher," he said, "those teachers . "Your knowledge shouldn't just disappear," Lyra urged him. "It should be passed on, so people will remember you." "Yes," he said, nodding gravely, "you speak very wisely, my boy. What's your name?" "Lyla," she told him again, "can you teach me about armored bears?" "The armored bear..." he said hesitantly. "I really want to know what cosmology and dust stuff is all about, but I'm not smart enough and it's too hard for me. To teach these things, you need really smart students. But I can learn to wear armor What about bears, you can teach me about them, maybe we can try here first, and then go up to the dust." He nodded again. "Yes," he said, "yes, I think you're right. There are similarities between the microcosm and the macrocosm! Stars are alive like people, do you know that, child? Everything in the universe There is life, and ambition is everywhere! You know, the universe is full of intentions. Everything that happens has a purpose. Your purpose is to remind me of that. Fine, fine - I Already forgotten in desperation. Good! Great, boy!" "Have you seen the king, then? Iofer Laknizon?" "Yes, yes. I'm here, you know, at his invitation. He's going to build a university, and he wants me to be vice-chancellor. From the Royal Arctic Institution's point of view, it's an order. Coveted position! Ok?At this time, that rascal Trelawney!what! " "What's wrong?" "I was betrayed by these villains. Of course, Trelawney was one of these villains. You know, he was there, in Svalbard, and he spread rumors about my abilities. Slander! Slander! Who Found the final proof of the Barnard-Stokes hypothesis, eh? eh? That's right, this person is Santria. Trelawney couldn't accept this fact and shamelessly fabricated a lie, so Iofer ? Laknisson has me locked up here. You know, one day I'm going to get out and I'm going to be the vice principal, oh yes. Then let Trelawney come to me and beg for forgiveness! When the time comes Let the Royal Arctic Institution Publishing Committee despise my submissions again! Ha! I'm going to expose them all!" "I think Iorek Bernison will believe you when he comes back," Lyra said. "Iorek Bernison? It's no use waiting for him to come back. He'll never come back." "He's on his way now." "Then they'll kill him. You know, he's out, he's not a bear, and like me, he's in the low class, and he doesn't have any of the privileges of a bear." "But suppose Iorek Bernison does come back," Lyra said. "Suppose he challenges Iorek Bernison to a duel..." "Oh, they won't allow this to happen," said the professor decisively. "Eofur will never demean himself to admit that Iorek Bernison has the right to duel with him. He doesn't have that." Right. Now, Iorek could be a seal or a walrus, but not a bear; or worse: a Tartar or a Skrelin ugly. They wouldn't treat him as decently as they would a bear. A duel; before he comes near, they will burn him and burn him dead. There is no hope, no mercy." "Oh," said Lyra, feeling desperate. "What about the other prisoners that the armored bears got? Do you know where they keep them?" "Other prisoners?" "Like... Lord Asriel." The professor suddenly changed completely. He retreated to the wall, flinched against it, and shook his head warningly. "Hush! Be quiet! They'll hear!" he whispered. "Why can't we mention Lord Asriel?" "They won't let it! It's very dangerous! Iofur Laknisson doesn't allow anyone to mention him!" "Why?" Lyra moved closer, also lowering her voice so as not to make him nervous. "The detainment of Lord Asriel is a special task entrusted to Iofur by the sacrificial committee," the old man replied in a low voice, "Mrs. All sorts of payments to get him to make sure Lord Asriel doesn't get in her way. You see, I know that because Iofer was on my side at the time. I've seen Mrs. Coulter! No Wrong, had a long talk with her. Iofer was so dazed by her that he kept talking about Mrs. Coulter, and would do anything for her. If Mrs. Coulter wanted Lord Asriel to stay a hundred miles away from her, Iofer would keep him a hundred miles away.Anything Mrs. Coulter wants to do.He also plans to name his capital city after Mrs. Coulter, did you know that? " "So, no matter who it is, he will not allow him to see Lord Asriel?" "Yes! Never! But, you know, he is also afraid of Lord Asriel. Iofer's game is not easy, but he is very clever, and he meets both of their needs. He puts Lord Asriel quarantined to please Mrs. Coulter; at the same time, he also let Lord Asriel get all the equipment he wanted, and also please him. However, this balance will not last long, yes Unstable. Please both sides, eh? This balance will soon be over, and I say this with real evidence. " "Really?" Lyra said absently, thinking nervously about what he had just said. "Yes, you know, my elf can pinch and count." "Yes, mine will do too. Professor, when will they serve us?" "Give us something to eat?" "They must have put in something to eat at some point, or we'd be starving. There's bones all over the floor, seal bones, I suppose, aren't they?" "Seal...I don't know, maybe." Lyra stood up and groped her way to the door.Naturally, there was no handle, no keyhole, and the whole door was sealed from top to bottom so that no light could come through.She pressed her ear to it, but could hear nothing.Behind her, the old man continued to mutter to himself.She heard the clank of his chains as he wearily turned over, lay down in the other direction, and snored. Lyra groped her way back to the stool.Pantalaimon couldn't bear the darkness around him and turned into a bat, which was very fitting for him.He fluttered his wings, spun around, and screamed softly.Lyra sat there biting her nails. Suddenly, without warning, she remembered what Professor Palmer had said long ago in the lounge.It's been haunting her ever since Iorek Bernison first mentioned Iofur's name, and now it's recurring in her memory: Professor Trelawney said at the time , what Iofur Laknisson needs most is an elf. Of course, she didn't understand what he was talking about at the time. When he mentioned the armored bear, he didn't use the word in English, but the local dialect. It doesn't belong to humans, because people have elves anyway, so what the professor said at the time didn't make any sense to her. But now, it's clear that if all she's heard about the Bear King is put together, it's this: the mighty Iofur Laknisson needs nothing more than to be human, to have own sprite. Thinking of this, a plan popped into Lyra's mind: a plan to force Iofur Laknisson to do something he would never normally do; a plan to restore Iorek Bernison's The rightful throne; eventually, the plan was also to take himself to where they were holding Lord Asriel, and hand him the alethiometer. This thought was like a soap bubble, floating gracefully and shimmering. She was afraid of it breaking, so she didn't dare to look at it.However, she was very familiar with the ins and outs of various thoughts, so she let it flicker, and she turned her head to look elsewhere, thinking of other things. Just when Laila was about to fall asleep in a daze, the latch clicked and the door opened.The light shone in, Lyra stood up instantly, and Pantalaimon slipped quickly into her pocket and hid. Warden Xiong lowered his head, picked up a seal waist and threw it in.Taking advantage of this moment, Lila jumped to his side and said, "Lead me to see Eofur Laknisson, or you will be punished. I have something urgent." Warden Xiong let go, threw the seal meat on the ground, and looked up at her.It was not easy to read the bear's expression, but Lyra could tell he was angry. "It has something to do with Iorek Bernison," Lyra said quickly. "I know something about him. The king needs to know." "Tell me, and I'll pass it on for you," said Bear. "That's not right. You can't let people know until the king knows," Lyra said. "I'm sorry, I'm not being rude. But you see, the king knows everything first. That's the rule." Maybe it was because the guard was stupid, but anyway, he hesitated, threw the seal meat into the cell, and said, "Well, come with me." He led Laila out of the cell and outside, and Laila suddenly felt better.The fog had lifted and the stars were twinkling above the high walled patio.The guard said something to the other bear, and the bear came up and spoke to Lyra. "You don't see Iofur Raknisson when you want to see him," he said. "You have to wait until he wants to see you." "But what I'm going to tell him is urgent," said Lyra. "It has to do with Iorek Bernison. I dare say His Majesty would like to know what it is, but nothing but King, I still can't tell anyone, don't you understand? Telling you first is disrespectful to the king, if he knows we disrespect him, he will be angry." The remark seemed to help a little, but it was also possible that she had confused the bear.He hesitated.Lyra figured she must have read things right: Iofur Laknisson was pushing so many new ways that no bear was sure what to do, so she could take advantage of the uncertainty, Meet Eofur. So the bear withdrew and asked his superiors for instructions.Not long after, Laila was taken into the palace again, only this time to the king's quarters.Compared to other places, it is not clean here.In fact, the air was more suffocating here than in the cell, for in addition to all the natural stench there was a thick, cloying smell of perfume.They made her wait first in a corridor, then in a reception hall, then outside a gate.The armored bears were discussing, arguing, scurrying around, and Lyra had time to look around at the absurd decorations: the surrounding walls were thickly smeared with gilt cement, Falling off, some crumbling from the damp, the rich carpet was trampled and soiled. Finally, the door opened from the inside.Six chandeliers were blindingly lit, the floor was covered with a deep red carpet, the smell of heavy perfume in the air was much stronger, and there were half a dozen bear faces, all staring straight at her.None of them wore armor, but all wore something like jewelry: a gold necklace, a hood of purple feathers, and a crimson sash.It is incomprehensible that there are still a group of birds living in the house.Terns and skuas perched on the plaster cornices, swooping down now and then to snatch the fish flakes that fell from their nests built on the chandeliers. At the end of the house is a raised platform, on which stands a huge throne, made of granite, representing power and grandeur.But, like many other things in the palace of Eofur, it was garishly hung with gilt pendants and ornaments, making it look like a layer of gold leaf had been applied to the mountainside. On the throne sat a bear—Lyra had never seen such a big bear.Eofur.Laknisson was even taller and burlier than Iorek, and his face was more flexible and expressive, and there was something human in it—she had never seen anything like it in Iorek's face. expression.When Eofur looked at her, it seemed to her that she saw someone watching her from behind his eyes, which was a bit like Mrs. Coulter she had seen, a cunning politician accustomed to power. eyes.Around his neck was a heavy gold necklace, with a precious stone hung gaudy.His claws were six inches long and were all covered with gold leaf.It's all about great strength, energy, and cunning.His stature was very large, fully worthy of those absurd and excessive decorations; but in him, all these did not look ridiculous, on the contrary, there was something wild and solemn. Lyra was terrified, and her ideas suddenly became so feeble that she could hardly speak. But she moved closer because she had to.Then she saw Iofur holding something in his lap, like people sitting with cats—or elves—in their arms. It was a big stuffed doll, made in human form, with a blank, stupid human face, dressed in the sort of clothes Mrs. Coulter would wear, and with her It's kind of like that too.Eofur was pretending he had elves—now Lyra knew she was in no danger. She stepped forward to the throne and bowed deeply.Pantalaimon had been lying quietly and motionless in her pocket. "Great King, we greet you," Lyra said quietly. "I said hello to you, not him." "Who is he?" Iofur asked.His voice was softer than she had imagined, but it was meaningful and elusive.As he spoke, he waved his paw in front of his mouth to dislodge a mass of flies that had gathered there. "Your Majesty, this is Iorek Bernison," Lyra said. "I have something to tell you. It's very important and very confidential. I think I should tell you alone, really." "Is it related to Iorek Bernison?" Laila stepped cautiously across the bird droppings to get in front of him, reaching out to buzz the flies that were buzzing at her face. "It has something to do with the elves," she said, in a voice so low only Iofur could hear. His expression changed.Lyra couldn't see what his expression meant, but there was no doubt that he was suddenly interested.Suddenly, he left the throne and walked straight forward with a thud, so frightened that Lyra jumped aside.He growled at the other bears and gave them an order, and they all bowed their heads and backed toward the door.Amidst the roar, the birds flew up in panic, screeching piercingly, and flitted rapidly overhead before returning to their nests to settle down. Only Iofur Laknisson and Laila were left in the house.He turned to her impatiently. "How?" said he, "tell me who you are, and what is the matter with the elves?" "I am the elf, Your Majesty," Lyra said. He froze there for a moment. "Whose?" he asked. "Iorek Bernison's," Lyra replied. It was the most dangerous sentence she had ever said.She saw it clearly, and if he hadn't been too taken aback, he would have killed her right away.She continued: "Listen to me, Your Majesty, let me tell you what happened before you kill me. You can see that I risked my life to come here, and it is impossible for me to hurt you." , I wanted to help you, so here I am. Iorek Bernison was the first bear to have an elf, but this first should have been yours. I'd rather be your elf than give him Do, that's why I'm here." "How is it possible?" he said, his breathing becoming more rapid, "how did the bear get the elf? Why him?How can you be so far away from him? " A group of flies flew out of his mouth like words. "It's very simple. The reason why I can stay away from him is because I am like the witch's elf. You know they can be hundreds of miles away from their masters? The reason is the same. As for how he got me, that's all. It was at Birvangar. You must have heard of Birvangar, because Mrs. Coulter must have told you, but she may not have told you the whole truth about what they were doing there. " "Cut with a knife..." he said. "Yes, cutting with a knife, it's just a part, or cutting, but they also do various other things, such as making artificial elves, and doing experiments on animals. Iorek Bernison heard After that, he offered to do an experiment on himself to see if they could create an elf for him, and they actually created one, which is me, and my name is Laila. Human elves are all animals, the same reason Well, the bear's elf is human, and I'm his elf. I can see what he's thinking, and know exactly what he's doing, where he is, and—" "Where is he now?" "On Svalbard, he's coming at full speed in this direction." "Why? What does he want? He must be crazy! We'll tear him to pieces!" "He came after me to get me back, but I don't want to be his elf, Iofer Raknisson, I want to be your elf. When the men of Bolvangar saw the bear After having the elves, they became so powerful that they decided not to do that kind of experiment again. Iorek Bernison will be the only bear in history with elves. With my help, he can lead all the bears to come. Against you, that's why he came to Svalbard." King Bear roared so loudly that the crystals on the chandelier jingled, all the birds in the hall screamed, and Lyra's ears buzzed. But she held back. "That's why I like you best," she said to Eofur Laknesson, "because you're warm, strong, and wise. I had to run away from him and come here to tell you, because I don't want him to rule the bear kingdom, you should. There is a way to get rid of him and make me your elf, but you won't know unless I tell you, you'll just Wrestle him the way you normally do to an outcast bear like him. I mean, fight him the wrong way, throw fireballs at him and burn him, etc. If you do that, I'll blow the torch out Wax, died with him." "But you—how could—" "I can perfectly become your spirit," Lyra said, "but you must fight him alone and defeat him so that his power will flow into your body and my mind will flow into you." In our minds, we will be like one person, knowing each other's thoughts. You can send me far away to scout for you, or you can let me stay with you, as you like. And you If you want, I'll show you the way; shoot down Birvanga and let them make elves for your favorite bears; if you just want to be the only bear with elves, then we'll give Birvanga Destroy. Eofur Laknisson, you join forces with me, there is nothing we cannot do!" All the while Lyra was holding Pantalaimon in her pocket with a trembling hand.He turned into a mouse, smaller than ever, trying to stay as still as possible. Eofur Laknisson paced back and forth, as if he was going to explode with excitement. "Alone?" he muttered. "Me? I have to fight Iorek Bernison? Impossible! He was expelled! How is it possible? How can I fight him alone? Only this Is there a way?" "That's the only way," Lyra said, but she really hoped otherwise, because in her eyes, Iofur Laknisson was growing taller and fiercer.As much as she loved Iorek and trusted him so firmly, it was still hard for her to believe that he would defeat the giant of the bears.However, this is their only hope. If they burn them all to death in a distant place, there is no hope at all. Suddenly, Eofur Laknisson turned around. "Bring me proof!" he said, "that you are an elf!" "Okay," Lyra said, "I can do this, it's easy. I can think of things that you know that no one else knows, and only an elf can do that." "Then tell me, what was the first life I killed?" "I'll have to go to a room alone to figure it out," Lyra said, "and when I'm your elf, you'll be able to see how I figure it out, but not until then. " "There is a reception hall behind this hall, you go there and come out after you know the answer." Lyra opened the door and found herself in a room lit by a torch, empty except for a mahogany cupboard with a few dull pieces of silver.She took out the alethiometer and asked, "Where is Iorek now?" "There are still four hours away from here, and we are rushing here at the fastest speed." "How do I tell him what I did?" "You must trust him." She thought wistfully that he must be exhausted, but she realized at once that she hadn't listened to the alethiometer: she hadn't believed him. She put these thoughts aside, and asked the alethiometer the question that Iofur Raknisson wanted the answer to: What was the first life he killed? The answer came out: Iofur's own father. Lyra asked some more questions, knowing that when Iofur was young, on his first long hunt alone in the ice and snow, he met another bear who was alone.They quarreled and then fought, and Iofur killed him.It was a crime in itself for him to do so, but worse than mere murder, Iofur later learned that the bear was his father.Bears are all raised by their mothers and rarely see their fathers.Eofur naturally kept what he had done a secret from anyone but himself, but now Lyra knew it too. She put the alethiometer aside, thinking about what to tell him. "Flare him!" whispered Pantalaimon, "that's all he wants to hear." 于是，莱拉打开门，发现埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松正等着自己，脸上透着得意、狡黠、忧虑和贪婪。 "How about it?" 她在他面前跪下，低下头去触摸他的左前爪。这只爪子比右边的更有力，因为熊是左撇子。 “请原谅我，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松！”她说，“我原来不知道你这么强壮、这么伟大！” “怎么回事？回答我的问题！” “你杀死的第一个生命是你自己的父亲。埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，我认为你是一尊新的神，你一定是。这只有神才有力量做得到。” “你真的知道了！你真能看得出来！” “是的，因为我是精灵，我说过的。” “再告诉我另外一件事，库尔特夫人到这儿的时候给我的保证是什么？” 莱拉又进到那个空荡荡的房间，询问了真理仪之后，带着答案返了回来。 “她答应你，要让在日内瓦的教会当局同意，即使到时候你还没有精灵，也可以给你洗礼，让你成为基督徒。唔，恐怕她还没跟他们说呢，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，而且说实话，你要是没有精灵，我想他们永远都不会同意。我想这个她是知道的，只是她没有跟你说实话。但不管怎么说，等你有了我做你的精灵以后，你要是愿意，就可以接受洗礼，因为到那时候谁都不能反对了。你可以提出这个要求，而他们却拒绝不了。” “是……说得对。她就是这么说的。没错，一点儿不差。她欺骗了我？我相信她，她却欺骗我？” “就是，她是骗你了。不过她已经没什么关系了。对不起，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，我希望你别介意，我要告诉你，现在埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松离这儿只有四个小时的路程了，你是不是这时候最好命令你的熊警卫，别像通常那样去跟他打。 你要是为了得到我而去跟他亲自决斗的话，那就得让他到宫殿这儿来。 " "yes……" “还有，等他来的时候，也许我该假装还是他的精灵，说我迷了路，或者编个别的什么理由。我就假装是这样的，他是看不出来的。你要告诉别的熊，说我是埃欧雷克的精灵、你把他打败后我就属于你了吗？” “我不知道……我该怎么办？” “我想现在最好先别说，等我们——你和我——成为一体后，我们就可以想一想最好该怎么做，那时候再作决定。现在你要做的是向别的熊解释，虽然埃欧雷克被驱逐了，你为什么还要允许他像披甲熊那样跟你单打独斗，因为他们不会明白，我们得找个理由。我的意思是，他们当然会遵守你的命令，但是，要是他们知道为什么这样，那他们就会更佩服你了。” “是的，我们应该怎么跟他们说？” “告诉他们……告诉他们说，为了让你的王国绝对安全，你亲自把埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松召了过来，跟他决斗，获胜者将永远统治披甲熊。你看，你要是能让他们觉得埃欧雷克到这儿来是你自己的主意，不是他主动来的，他们的印象会非常深刻，他们会觉得你能在很远的地方就能把他召过来，他们会觉得你神通广大。” "yes……" 这只伟大的熊已经完全身不由己了。莱拉发现自己对他控制得简直令人陶醉。 要不是潘特莱蒙使劲捏了捏她的手，提醒她周围凶险的环境的话，她差不多就会得意忘形起来。 但是，她最终还是醒悟过来，谦卑地往后一退，看着披甲熊在埃欧弗尔兴奋的命令下，为埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松准备战场，耐心地等待着。与此同时，对此一无所知的埃欧雷克正疾速地向这边赶来，她真希望自己能告诉他，这是一场关乎他生死存亡的决斗。 “有一件事，特雷罗尼教授过去总是吹嘘，”她说，“说他跟披甲熊国王有多熟——” “吹嘘？嗯？嗯？我要说他确实是吹牛！他什么都不是，只不过是个纨绔子弟而已！还是个剽窃犯！原始研究他一点儿也没做！全都是从史聪明的人那儿偷来的！” “就是，就是，”莱拉认真地说，“等他真的要自己做点儿什么的时候，却总是弄错。” “对！对！就是这样！没什么能力，没有想像，彻头彻尾的骗子！” “我的意思是，”莱拉说，“就拿披甲熊来说吧，我敢说，你知道的肯定比他多。” “熊，”老人说，“哈！关于他们我能写出一大篇论文！你知道，就是因为这个，他们才把我关起来的。” "why?" “关于他们，我知道得太多了，他们不敢杀我。虽然他们不敢，但他们非常想。这一点我是清楚的，你知道，因为我有朋友，没错！而且是很厉害的朋友。” “就是，”莱拉说，“我敢肯定你是一个非常了不起的老师，”她继续说，“因为你有那么多的知识和经验。” 在他的极度愤怒之中，这时依然闪过一点点判断力。他严厉地盯着她，似乎在怀疑她是在挖苦自己。然而，莱拉这一辈子一直都在跟多疑、怪僻的院士打交道，她也目不转睛地盯着他，目光中流露着自然的钦敬。这让他释然了。 “老师，”他说，“那些老师……是的，我会教书。给我个好苗子，我能点燃他心头的火花！” “你的知识不该就这么消失了，”莱拉鼓动他道，“应该传下去，这样人们就会记住你了。” “对，”他严肃地点点头说，“孩子，你说得很有见地。你叫什么？” “莱拉，”她又告诉了他一次，“你能不能把披甲熊的事情教给我？” “披甲熊……”他迟疑不决地说。 “我真地想知道宇宙学和尘埃这些东西是怎么回事，可是我不够聪明，这些对我来说太难了。要是教这些东西，你得找真正聪明的学生。不过我可以学学披甲熊是怎么回事，你完全可以把有关他们的知识教给我，说不定我们可以先从这儿试试，然后再往上学尘埃。” 他又点了点头。 “对，”他说，“对啊，我认为你说得对。微观世界和宏观世界是有相似之处的！星星像人一样是有生命的，孩子，这个你知道吗？宇宙中的一切都是有生命的，到处都是雄心壮志！你知道，宇宙中充满了意图。任何事情的发生都是有目的的。你的目的就是提醒我不要忘了这一点。很好，很好——我在绝望中已经忘记了。很好！太棒了，孩子！” “那么，你见过国王吗？就是埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松？” “见过，是的，见过。你知道，我是应他的邀请才到这儿来的。他打算建一所大学，想让我当副校长。在皇家北极研究所看来，这是个令人垂涎的职位啊！ Ok?这时候，特雷罗尼那个无赖！what! " "What's wrong?" “我被这些小人出卖了。当然，特雷罗尼就是这些小人中的一个。你知道，他当时也在，在斯瓦尔巴特，他对我的能力到处造谣中伤。诽谤！诋毁！谁发现了巴纳德一斯托克斯假设的最终证据，嗯？嗯？没错，这个人就是桑特里亚。特雷罗尼接受不了这个事实，无耻地编造谎言，于是，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松就把我关在了这里。你要知道，总有一天我要出去，我会成为副校长，哦，没错。到时候让特雷罗尼到我面前祈求饶恕吧！到时候再让皇家北极研究所出版委员会轻视我的投稿！哈！我要把他们全都曝光！” “我想等埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松回来的时候，他会相信你的，”莱拉说。 “埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松？等他回来是没用的，他永远也不会回来了。” “他现在就在路上。” “那他们会杀了他。你知道，他被驱逐出去了，不是披甲熊了，跟我一样，属于下贱的一类，没有披甲熊的任何特权了。” “可是，假设埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松确实回来了，”莱拉说，“假设他向埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松挑战，要进行决斗……” “哦，他们不会允许出现这种情况的，”教授断然道，“埃欧弗尔永远不会自贬身份，去承认埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松跟自己进行决斗的权利的。他没有这个权利。现在，埃欧雷克可以是海豹，也可以是海象，但不是披甲熊；或者更糟糕：鞑靼人或者斯克雷林丑人。对他，他们不会像对待披甲熊那样体面地进行决斗；不等他靠近，他们就会用火来烧他，把他烧死。没有任何希望，没有任何怜悯。” “哦，”莱拉说着，心里觉得绝望极了，“披甲熊抓到的别的囚犯呢？你知不知道他们把这些人关在什么地方？” “别的囚犯？” “比如……阿斯里尔勋爵。” 教授突然完全变了一个样子，他退到墙边，畏缩地靠着墙，警告似地摇着头。 “嘘！小声点儿！他们会听见的！”他低声说。 “为什么我们不能提阿斯里尔勋爵？” “他们不让！非常危险！埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松不允许有人提到他！” “为什么？”莱拉凑近了些，也压低了声音，以便不让他感到紧张。 “关押阿斯里尔勋爵是祭祀委员会交给埃欧弗尔的一项特殊任务，”老人低声答道，“库尔特夫人曾亲自到这儿拜访过埃欧弗尔，给他提供了各种各样的报偿，目的就是让他确保阿斯里尔勋爵不碍她的事儿。你看，这我知道，因为当时埃欧弗尔还是支持我的。我见过库尔特夫人！没错，跟她进行了一次长谈。埃欧弗尔被她弄得晕晕乎乎，张口闭口都是库尔特夫人，为了她，什么事情都愿意做。 要是库尔特夫人想让阿斯里尔勋爵离她一百英里远，那埃欧弗尔就会把他弄到一百英里外。只要是库尔特夫人要干的，什么事情都行。他还打算以库尔特夫人的名字来命名自己的都城，这个你知道吗？ " “所以说，不管是谁，他都不会允许他去见阿斯里尔勋爵了？” “对！永远不会！不过，你知道，他也怕阿斯里尔勋爵。埃欧弗尔搞的这套把戏很不容易，但他很聪明，他们双方的需要他都满足了。他把阿斯里尔勋爵隔离起来，以此来讨好库尔特夫人；同时，他也让阿斯里尔勋爵得到了他想要的全部设备，也讨好他。但是，这种平衡持续不了多久，是不稳定的。讨好双方，嗯？ 这种平衡很快就会完蛋，我这么说是有真凭实据的。 " “真的？”莱拉心不在焉地说道，同时紧张地思考着他刚才说的话的意思。 “是的，你知道，我的精灵能掐会算。” “是，我的也能。教授，他们什么时候给我们吃的？” “给我们吃的？” “他们一定在某些时候放进些吃的东西，不然我们就会饿死的。地上到处都是骨头，我猜是海豹的骨头，是不是？” “海豹……我不知道，也许是吧。” 莱拉站起身，摸索着走到门口。自然而然地，门上没有把手，也没有钥匙孔，整扇门从上到下都密封得严严实实，一点儿亮光也透不过来。她把耳朵紧贴在上面，但什么也听不到。在她身后，老人嘟嘟囔囔地继续自言自语。她听见他身上的锁链哐啷啷地响着，那是他疲倦地翻了个身，换了个方向躺了下去，随即打起了鼾声。 莱拉摸索着回到凳子那儿。潘特莱蒙受不了周围的黑暗，变成一只蝙蝠，这在他来说是非常合适的。他扑楞着翅膀，转着圈儿，轻轻地尖叫着。莱拉咬着指甲，坐在那儿。 突然之间，没有任何先兆地，她想起了很久以前在休息室里听到的帕尔默教授说过的话。从埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松第一次提到埃欧弗尔名字的时候起，那件事就一直在困扰着她，现在它又在她记忆中重现了：特雷罗尼教授当时说，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松最需要的就是一个精灵。 当然，她当时并不明白他说的是什么，他当时提到披甲熊的时候，用的不是英语中的那个词，而是当地的土语，她当时也不知道埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松不属于人类，因为不管怎么说，人都有精灵，所以当时教授的话对她来说没有任何意义。 但是现在，一切都很清楚了，如果把她听到的有关披甲熊国王的所有信息全都综合到一起，那就是：强大的埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松最需要的莫过于做一个人，拥有自己的精灵。 想到这儿，莱拉的脑子里一下子进出了一个计划：这个计划要迫使埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松去做他通常绝对不会做的事；这个计划要恢复埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松的合法王位；最终，这个计划还要把自己带到他们关押阿斯里尔勋爵的地方，把真理仪交给他。 这个想法就像肥皂泡一样，优雅地飘动着，闪着微光，她怕它破碎，所以都不敢正眼看它。但是，她很熟悉各种念头的来龙去脉，于是便任由它闪着微光，自己则扭转头看着别的地方，想别的事情去了。 就在莱拉迷迷糊糊地快要睡着的时候，门闩“咔哒”一响，门开了。灯光照了进来，莱拉立刻站起身，潘特莱蒙迅速地钻进她的口袋里，躲了起来。 熊看守低下头，提起一块海豹腰扔了进来。趁这个当儿，莱拉一步跳到他旁边，说道：“领我去见埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，不然你就会受到惩罚，我有急事。” 熊看守松开口，把海豹肉扔到地上，抬头看着她。要看懂披甲熊的表情并不容易，但莱拉看得出来，他很生气。 “跟埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松有关，”莱拉快速地说，“我知道他的一些情况，国王有必要知道。” “告诉我，我替你转告，”熊说。 “这样不对，在国王知道之前，不能让别人先知道，”莱拉说，“对不起，我不是不礼貌。不过你看，什么事儿都得是国王最先知道，这是规矩。” 也许是因为这个看守笨头呆脑，总之，他迟疑了一下，把海豹肉扔进牢里，然后说：“好吧，跟我来。” 他领着莱拉出了牢房，来到室外，莱拉心情一下子舒畅起来。雾气已经散去，星星在围着高墙的天井上空闪着光。看守跟另外一只熊说了句什么，那只熊便走过来，跟莱拉说起了话。 “不是你想什么时候见，就能见到埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松的，”他说，“你得等着，等他想见你的时候再说。” “可是，我要告诉他的这件事很急，”莱拉说，“这事儿跟埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松有关。我敢说，国王陛下肯定很想知道是怎么回事，但是除了国王，我还是不能告诉任何人，你难道不明白？先告诉你们是对国王的不尊重，他要是知道我们不尊重他，会发火的。” 这句话似乎起了点儿作用，不过也可能是她把这只熊弄糊涂了。He hesitated.莱拉觉得自己对事情的理解一定是正确的：埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松正在推行大量的新方法，弄得没有哪只熊敢肯定该怎么办，那么她就可以利用这种不确定性，见到埃欧弗尔。 于是，那只熊退出去，向他的上级请示去了。过了不长时间，莱拉便又一次被带进宫殿，只是这一次去的是国王的住处。跟别处相比，这里并不干净。实际上，这里的空气比牢房里更令人窒息，因为在所有的天然的臭气之外，还笼罩着一股厚重的令人生腻的香水味。他们先是让她在一条走廊里等着，然后在一个接待厅里等，接着又让她在一扇大门外等。披甲熊们则在讨论着，争吵着，急匆匆地跑来跑去，莱拉也就有了时间环顾一下荒唐可笑的装饰：四周的墙壁上抹了一层厚厚的镀金水泥，有的地方已经脱落，有的因为潮湿而碎裂开来，华丽的地毯被踩得污秽不堪。 终于，那扇大门从里面打开了。六个枝形吊灯耀眼地照着，地上铺着深红色的地毯，空气中那股厚重的香水味又浓烈了许多，还有六七只熊的脸，全都径直盯着她。他们都没有披盔甲，但却都戴着些像首饰的东西：一条金项链、一块紫色羽毛做成的头巾和一条深红色的绶带。令人难以理解的是，房子里居然还住着一群鸟。燕鸥和贼鸥站在石膏飞檐上，不时地猛扑下来，争抢从它们建在吊灯上的窝里掉出来的碎鱼片。 房子的尽头是一个高台，上面矗立着一个巨大的宝座，是用花岗岩做成的，代表着力量和宏伟。但是，跟埃欧弗尔宫殿里的很多别的东西一样，上面花里胡哨地垂挂着镀金的垂花和挂饰，看上去像是在山腰上贴了一层金箔。 宝座上坐着一只熊——莱拉从来没见过这么大块头的熊。埃欧弗尔。拉克尼松甚至比埃欧雷克还要高大、魁梧，他的脸更加灵活，更富于表情，里面有一种类似人的东西——她从来没有在埃欧雷克的脸上看到过这样的表情。当埃欧弗尔看着她的时候，她觉得似乎看到有一个人从他的眼睛后面注视着自己，那眼神有点儿像她见过的库尔特夫人，那是对权力习以为常的狡猾的政客的眼神。他的脖子上套着一条沉重的金项链，上面俗不可耐地挂着一颗宝石。他的爪子足有六英寸长，上面全都包着金叶。这一切体现出了巨大的力量、充沛的精力和狡诈的技艺。他的身材十分高大，完全配得上那些荒诞的过火的装饰；然而在他身上，这一切并不显得可笑，相反，却透着野性和庄严。 菜拉觉得非常恐惧，她的主意一下子变得那么苍白无力，简直说不出口了。 但她还是凑近了一些，因为她不得不这样。这时，她看见埃欧弗尔在膝盖上抱着一个东西，就像人们抱着猫——或者精灵——坐在那儿似的。 那是一个肚子里填满了东西的大个儿玩具娃娃，做成了人的模样，长了一张茫然、愚蠢的人脸，身上穿着库尔特夫人才会穿的那种衣服，而且跟她也有一点儿像。埃欧弗尔是在假装自己有精灵——这下，莱拉明白自己不会有什么危险了。 她朝前走近宝座，深深地鞠了一躬。潘特莱蒙一直安安静静、一动不动地趴在她的口袋里。 “伟大的国王，我们向你问好，”莱拉静静地说，“我说的是我在向你问好，不包括他。” “他是谁？”埃欧弗尔问。他的声音比她想像的要轻柔，但语气中却意味深长，令人难以捉摸。他一边说着话，一边在嘴巴前面挥动着爪子，赶走聚在那儿的一堆苍蝇。 “陛下，是埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松，”莱拉说，“我有件事要告诉你，这件事非常重要，也非常机密，我想我应该单独跟你说，真的。” “跟埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松有关？” 莱拉小心翼翼地迈步走过满是鸟粪的地面，凑到他前面，伸手轰着嗡嗡地向脸上扑过来的苍蝇。 “跟精灵有关，”她说，声音低得只有埃欧弗尔听得到。 他的脸色一变。莱拉看不出他的表情是什么意思，但毫无疑问，他一下子有了兴趣。突然，他离开宝座，咚咚地径直朝前走去，吓得莱拉赶紧跳到一边。他冲着别的熊咆哮着，给他们下了一道命令，他们便都低下头，朝门口退去。吼叫声中，那些鸟惊慌失措地飞了起来，刺耳地尖叫着，在头顶上方快速地飞来飞去，然后才回到窝里安静下来。 屋子里只剩下了埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松和莱拉。他迫不及待地转向她。 “怎么样？”他说，“告诉我你是谁，什么事跟精灵有关？” “我就是精灵，陛下，”莱拉说。 他一下子僵立在那儿。 “谁的？”他问。 “埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松的，”莱拉答道。 这是她说过的危险最大的一句话。她看得很清楚，要不是他太吃惊了，他会马上杀了她。她继续说：“请听我说，陛下，让我把事情经过全都告诉你，然后你再杀我。你看得出来，我是冒着生命危险到这儿来的，我也根本不可能伤害你，我想帮帮你，所以我就来了。埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松是第一头拥有精灵的熊，可是这个第一本来应该是你的。我宁愿做你的精灵，也不想给他做，这就是我为什么到这儿来的缘故。” “怎么可能呢？”他说着，呼吸变得急促起来，“熊是怎么得到精灵的呢？ Why him?你怎么能离开他那么远呢？ " 一群苍蝇像一个个单词似的，从他嘴边飞了出来。 “这很简单。我之所以能离他很远，是因为我跟女巫的精灵一样。你知道他们能离开他们主人好几百英里吧？道理是一样的。至于他是怎么得到我的，那是在伯尔凡加。你一定听说过伯尔凡加，因为库尔特夫人一定跟你讲过，不过，他们在那儿都在做些什么，她可能并没有把全部真相都告诉你。” “用刀切……”他说。 “是的，用刀切，这只是一部分，又叫切割，但是他们还干别的各种各样的事情，比如制造人工精灵，并且在动物身上做实验。埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松听说后，就主动提出在自己身上做实验，看看他们能不能给他造一个精灵，他们还真地造了一个，就是我，我叫莱拉。人类的精灵都是动物的样子，同样的道理，熊的精灵就是人的样子，我就是他的精灵。我能看出来他在想什么，能准确知道他在干什么，在什么地方，还有——” "Where is he now?" “在斯瓦尔巴特群岛上，他正全速朝这个方向赶过来。” “为什么？他想干什么？他一定是疯了！我们会把他撕成碎片！” “他是冲我来的，要把我弄回去，可是，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，我不想做他的精灵，我要做你的精灵。伯尔凡加的那些人一看到熊有了精灵以后变得那么强大，他们便决定再也不做那样的实验了。埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松将成为历史上惟一拥有精灵的熊。有我帮助他，他能率领所有的熊来反对你，这就是他为什么要来斯瓦尔巴特群岛的原因。” 熊国王愤怒地大声吼叫起来，震得枝形吊灯上的水晶叮当作响，大厅里的鸟全都尖叫起来，莱拉的耳朵也被震得嗡嗡直响。 但她还是忍住了。 “我就是因为这个才最喜欢你的，”她对埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松说，“因为你热情、强壮，而且聪明。我不得不从他那里逃出来，到这儿来告诉你，因为我不想让他统治披甲熊王国，应该由你来统治。有一个办法可以让我摆脱他，让我变成你的精灵，不过，除非我告诉你，否则你是不会知道的，你只会用通常对待像他这样被驱逐了的熊的方式来跟他搏斗。我是说，跟他搏斗的方式不对，向他扔火球烧死他等等方法。你要是这样做，我就会吹灯拔蜡、跟他一块死了。” “可是你——怎么能——” “我完全能够变成你的精灵，”莱拉说，“但你必须跟他单打独斗，打败他，这样，他的力量就会注入到你的身体里，我的思维也会注入到你的头脑里，我们就会像一个人那样，彼此知道对方的想法。你可以把我派到很远的地方，替你侦查；也可以让我留在你身边，你喜欢怎样就怎样。而且你要是愿意，我就给你带路；把伯尔凡加打下来，让他们给你喜欢的熊制造些精灵；要是你只想让自己成为惟一有精灵的熊，那我们就把伯尔凡加给毁掉。埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，你跟我联手，没有我们做不到的事！” 说这些话的时候，莱拉一直用一只颤抖的手在口袋里握着潘特莱蒙。他变成了一只老鼠，比以往任何时候都小，尽量地一动不动。 埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松来来回回地踱着步，激动得像要爆炸开来似的。 “单打独斗？”他嘴里念叨着，“我？我必须跟埃欧雷克?伯尔尼松打？不可能！他被驱逐了！怎么可能呢？我怎么能跟他单打独斗？只有这一个办法吗？” “这是惟一的办法，”莱拉说，心里却真地希望不是这样，因为在她眼里，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松愈来愈高大，愈来愈凶猛。尽管她是那么地爱埃欧雷克，又是那么坚定地信任他，但她还是难以相信他会打败这个巨熊中的巨无霸。可是，这是他们惟一的希望了，要是在很远的地方就被他们用火全都烧死了，那就一点儿希望也没有了。 突然，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松转过了身。 “拿出证据来！”他说，“证明你是精灵！” “好的，”莱拉说，“这个我能做到，很简单。你知道而别人不知道的事情，我都能想出来，这只有精灵才能办得到。” “那你告诉我，我杀死的第一个生命是什么？” “我得单独去一个房间才能猜出来，”莱拉说，“等我做了你的精灵之后，你就能亲眼看着我是怎么猜出来的了，但在这之前，不能让别人看见。” “这个大厅后面有个接待厅，你就去那儿，等知道答案后再出来。” 莱拉打开门，发现自己来到了一个房间，里面点着一枝火把，空空荡荡的，只放了一个红木橱柜，里面摆着几件暗淡的银器。她把真理仪拿了出来，问道：“埃欧雷克现在在哪儿？” “离这儿还有四个小时的路程，正以最快的速度赶过来。” “我怎么跟他说我做的这些事情？” “你一定要相信他。” 她忧心忡忡地想，他一定会累得不行，但她马上意识到，自己没有听真理仪的话：她没有相信他。 她把这方面的想法放到一边，向真理仪问埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松想知道答案的那个问题：他杀的第一个生命是什么？ 答案出来了：埃欧弗尔自己的父亲。 莱拉接着又问了些问题，知道埃欧弗尔年轻的时候，独自在冰天雪地里进行他第一次长途捕猎，路上遇见另一只形单影只的熊。他们争吵起来，然后动了手，埃欧弗尔把他杀了。他这样做本身就构成了犯罪，但比单纯谋杀更为糟糕的是，埃欧弗尔事后得知，那只熊是自己的父亲。熊都是由母亲抚养长大的，很少见到父亲。埃欧弗尔自然把自己干的这件事隐瞒了起来，除了他自己，谁都不知道，不过现在，莱拉也知道了。 她把真理仪放到一边，心里盘算着怎么跟他说。 “奉承他！”潘特莱蒙低声说，“他就想听这个。” 于是，莱拉打开门，发现埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松正等着自己，脸上透着得意、狡黠、忧虑和贪婪。 "How about it?" 她在他面前跪下，低下头去触摸他的左前爪。这只爪子比右边的更有力，因为熊是左撇子。 “请原谅我，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松！”她说，“我原来不知道你这么强壮、这么伟大！” “怎么回事？回答我的问题！” “你杀死的第一个生命是你自己的父亲。埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，我认为你是一尊新的神，你一定是。这只有神才有力量做得到。” “你真的知道了！你真能看得出来！” “是的，因为我是精灵，我说过的。” “再告诉我另外一件事，库尔特夫人到这儿的时候给我的保证是什么？” 莱拉又进到那个空荡荡的房间，询问了真理仪之后，带着答案返了回来。 “她答应你，要让在日内瓦的教会当局同意，即使到时候你还没有精灵，也可以给你洗礼，让你成为基督徒。唔，恐怕她还没跟他们说呢，埃欧弗尔?拉克尼松，而且说实话，你要是没有精灵，我想他们永远都不会同意。我想这个她是知道的，只是她没有跟你说实话。但不管怎么说，等你有了我做你的精灵以后，你要是愿意，就可以接受洗礼，因为到那时候谁都不能反对了。你可以提出这个要求，而他们却拒绝不了。” “是……说得对。她就是这么说的。没错，一点儿不差