[content warning: adult themes are discussed at length in this episode] Bolvangar shows its ugly face and we're here to talk about it. We were ready for a thrilling pair of chapters but the rollercoaster of horror, thrills, highs and lows were more than we expected.
As the chaos of the fire drill subsides, Lyra joins the children inside the compound for warm drinks as they discuss Mrs. Coulter’s arrival. Lyra informs the other children of the plan to escape Bolvangar and instructs them to be prepared for the signal: another fire drill. Groups of anxious adults are hurrying around and whispering, no doubt talking about the daemon escape and how it happened. With the help of some girls, Lyra climbs into the drop ceiling and makes her way across the compound towards the conference room, so she can listen in on the adult’s conversation. Once there, Lyra overhears Mrs. Coulter questioning three male scientists. They tell Mrs. Coulter that they have invented a new instrument to more effectively cut daemons away from their children. She also hears that Lord Asriel now has a death sentence hanging over his head in Svalbard. Lyra accidentally gives away her position in the ceiling and is caught. The men realize that Lyra has heard too much, and take her away to silence her by performing an intercision. At the last moment, Mrs. Coulter intervenes and rescues Lyra and Pan. She takes Lyra back to her personal quarters and takes the small oilcloth pouch from around Lyra’s waist. She opens the small tin expecting to find the coveted alethiometer but instead her golden daemon is attacked by the vicious spy-fly that Lyra cleverly hid in the tin with the help of Iorek Byrnison. Without hesitating, Lyra and Pan flee from the room and pull the fire alarm to alert the other children, then start a fire in the kitchen. Lyra leads the other children to freedom, using snowballs to fight off a band of Tartars. They run from the building just as the Gyptians and Iorek Byrnison arrive, and a battle between the wards of Bolvanger and the Gyptians ensues. Just when it seems that Lyra and the children have escaped, Mrs. Coulter drives up in a motorized sledge and tries to seize her. Roger and Lyra fight her off, and Lee Scoresby rescues the two children and Iorek Byrnison in his balloon. Lyra finally meets Serafina Pekkala, a beautiful witch queen. With the help of her clan, Serafina guides the balloon toward Svalbard, where the armored bears are holding Lord Asriel prisoner.
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