Lee Scoresby looked do to    and to , and so searc he Yenisei.

        "And t; he said.

        " born in it," said Stanislaus Grumman. "As old as yours or mi Asriels done    more profoundly ts ever been s I spoke of—ted plaow.

        Its o navigate, but t;

        "Nes a strange ; said Lee.

        "Yes," said Stanislaus Grumman. "It is a strange    some feel at ;

        "It looks empty," said Lee.

        "Not so. Beyond t y t s still ined by ts of ts and nobles , ts fallen on imes in t t;

        A fees later, as ted on, Lee sa a ligone breaker, toiful city around a uous building like an opera    els, and little streets wrees hung over shaded balies.

        And Grumman ed closer, Lee o see t t an adult in sigo see t t of cafes, or eating and drinking, athering bags full of goods from houses and shops.

        And ting, and a red-tle boy too smas y,    a teac; it was a world of children.

        But t to rub , but t about it: ns of mist—or sometenuous t—a tever ty ed along tered ered in tyards. them unseeing.

        But not ued over ty, t    some of terest to t tain celescope) all transparent beings t line seemed to s. And t, time to time o clear his vision.

        " t; said Lee.

        ters."

        " do tly?"

        "Youve ;

        "Oales."

        "ters feast as vampires feast on blood, but ters food is attention. A scious and informed i in turity of ctractive to t;

        "te of t Bolvangar, t;

        "On trary. Botion Board and ters of Indifference are becrut    innoce is different from experieion Board fears and es Dust, and ters feast on it, but its Dust bot;

        "tered around t kid do;

        "tack    misery. ;

        "For Petes sake! t we rescue ;

        "No. ters    o toucc;

        "But    tell me t;

        "ter-orp living on s flee. And ty to find, as you    see.

        t starve. It looks as if a multitude of Specters y, and ts o safety. You notice s to no ;

        "Except for t poor kid do;

        "Mr. Scoresby, t is t to put ao cruelty and injustice, you must take me farto do."

        "Seems to me—" Lee said, feeling for t;seems to me t cruelty is    needed. Or is t wrong, Dr.

        Grumman? Im only an ignorant aeronaut. Im so damn ignorant I believed it    s of flig ."

        "O I ;

        " out?"

        ting loooly in t seem to iced.

        "I o fly," said Grumman, "so I summoned you, and ;

        ly a    t . And in perfect time, Lee Scoresby leaned over t and pulled t. t, and ted gently to clear to or so. A dozen crourbed, rose cahem.

        "I guess you are," said Lee. "Ye    you, Dr. Grumman. You ever spend any time among tc;

        "Yes," said Grumman. "And among academis, and among spirits. I found folly everyream of it. No doubt t I failed tnize. Life is    o it all t;

        "And t folly or ;

        "test ;

        tell me again o find tle knife, and ;

        "tell    ask is."

        "And ts a task t includes proteg Lyra," t reminded him.

        "It ect all of us."

        ty    of sighem.

        Lee cruments. till gyrating loosely, but timeter ioning accurately, as far as o be floating about a t above t. Some y of ballast.

        But tle c . er felt it too, and flicked up urned    one gold-ed on his face.

        ucked    of , and opeelescope again.

        No,    mistaken. Far to t ion ting in t sance made it impossible to see aails, but ther balloon was larger, and flying higher.

        Grumman    too.

        "Enemies, Mr. Scoresby?" o peer into t.

        "t be a doubt. Im uain    and go o catcay lo t a zeppelin; t, Dr. Grumman, Im going    balloon Id    t."

        er do to jettison t. t once, and Lee kept telescope to his eye.

        And a mier ain ted, for tir of movement in tself into a line of smoke streaking up and a an angle from t ance up, it burst into a flare. It blazed deep red for a moment and to a patc it o in t.

        " you summon a stiffer breeze, Dr. Grumman?" said Lee. "Id like to make tfall."

        For taking t over a y or forty miles across. A range of    , Lee sa t more trutains.

        uro Grumman, but found ra stood out on ly bad fort, and , equally entranced.

        And    of gaining    or ir to c sohe hills.

        But t moved tly oo. It     it beurelescope on it again,    in tae.

        "Zeppelins," ;ell, t ;

        ried to make aimate of tance, and a similar calculation about toe tips off the waves far below.

        Grumman sat resting in a er of t w Lee knew he was awake.

        "tuations like t; ;I do not    to be caug by t no defee. Nor do I    to land in ter, by free c;    for a h grenades as easy as fishing.

        "So I    to reae.

        "And meano su, by my calculation.

        And its o say, but I t time, ao this bay.

        "Noand o take us up into taiion no co say    our    on ter.

        "So sometime tonigs gonna be over. You ever landed in a balloon?"

        "No," said t;But I trust your skill." "Ill try a as    range as I . Its a question of balance, because too close beo see ake us dooo early,    find ter of trees. Eito be some sing before long."

        Grumman sat impassively, moving a magical token of feato ttern t Lee could see    the pursuing zeppelins.

        An    by, and anot cigar and sipped cold coffee from a tin flask.

        ttled loself, and taintops, hed in gold.

        And be lost    glare, ttle dots of taken t. And across tiny but clear, an insistent mosquito whine.

        ill a fees from making t t of ticed somet up into till-brigo notice? If a storm ter.

        And tain of rain drifted doo be c along toy flaser a cras sime from tains.

        tning, and time truck do from t one of t t. A brig t drifted doed, still blazing, on ter.

        Lee let out tanding beside ion deep in his face.

        "Did y t storm?" said Lee.

        Grumman nodded.

        tiger; bands of gold alternated cripes of deepest     brotern ce, for t. tcer and p foam, and t of to not sank.

        ted    keeping to tning flasorm came closer, Lee began to fear for trike could    tumbling to eart suppose trol torm so finely as to avoid t.

        &qu; ;Im going to igrate oing us safe into tains and on t I    you to do is sit tigo jump ry to make it as gentle as I , but landing in tions is a matter of luck as muc;

        "I trust you, Mr. Scoresby," said the shaman.

        ba a er of t wher binding.

        t gasbag ss. trained, but Lee    go some more ballast and cimeter closely. In a storm,    t drop against timetric reading, and very often it ion. Lee ran t of . trol    go higher; he could only desd.

        ently tormy air and made out t bulk of t tony beac    earing trees. So far, already! ter t.

        And    leave it too long before    too cool by nature te at fate; o raise an eyebro it laically. But    orm a bloself out—eed to get t down.

        er and tucked o , buttoning t up close to keep    steady and quiet; orn, g firmly alons deep in t rim and .

        "Im going to take us do; Lee sed above t;You sand and be ready to jump clear. ;

        Grumman obeyed. Lee gazed do, and blinking t of     to til Lee could hunder.

        "; ed. "You cooked up a fiorm, Mr. S;

        t around a cleat to keep it open. As treamed out of top, invisible far above, to itself, and a fold, and te before.

        t ossing and lurcly it ell if ts    t easily o t kno after a minute or so Lee felt a sudden snag and kne on a branc emporary c it shey were.

        ed, "Fifty feet above trees—"

        the shaman nodded.

        t, and t t. Lee o it and found    once, but took Grumman by surprise.

        lose o swing himself clear.

        A moment later came t jolting s    fast.

        t tilted at ond a sed later reetops, and amid t leaves and tormented branc jolted to a precarious .

        "Still t; Lee called, for it o see anything.

        "Still ;

        "Better keep still for a miill uation clearly," said Lee, for t settling tle jerks against wever was hem up.

        till a strong sidey, but c crossed Lees mind to cut it loose, but if it didnt fly aoget ops like a banner and give tioo take it in, if they could.

        tning flaser torm     torn only partially, for t ing on it    ill attaco trunk.

        "Im going to t a rope and climb do; ed. "As soon as our feet touc plan."

        "Ill follo; said Grumman. "My daemon tells me ty feet do;

        Aer of s as ttled again on t rim.

        "S far?"    put t out of    to to t even if t did fall, it    fall far.

        ter secure in ,    of till    solid grou. trunk; tree, a giant of an oak, and Lee muttered a to it as ugged on to signal to Grumman t he could desd.

        as tumult? ened    o tell ion it    te or so, and t was gone.

        the ground.

        "Did you ?" said Lee.

        "Yes. Going o tains, I tulations on landing us safely, Mr. Scoresby."

        "e aint finis. I    to git t gasbag ull sion from miles ao some manual labor, Dr. Grumman?"

        tell me o do."

        "All rigo you. One of tent.

        You    git t set up o ;

        time, and in peril at one point,    finally broke and pitc; but    fall far, siill trailed among treetops and    suspended.

        t made cealing t of it ning, tugging and    of sight.

        till beating treetops bad fort t of time    t only pitt but o being, and was brewing some coffee.

        "t; said Lee, soaked and stiff, easing o tent and taking the mug Grumman handed him.

        "No, you    ts for t; said Grumman. "Do ts in your arting a fire, t is dry matcravel    te, Mr. Scoresby."

        "You ;

        Grumman ened, and sure enoug engine sound, easier to make out no ttle.

        "t; said Grumman. "t kno;

        And a mier a flickering glo    it ent, and Lee kne for a flare.

        "Best put out t; ;sorry as I am to do    it. I t opys t you never knoo sleep no t."

        "You ; said the shaman.

        ook a    eart dled to lie dotle tent and closed his eyes.

        range and po one point o see tting cross-legged, o leave only a on beill seated in a mound of glole and vulnerable, rangeness of it, and    really asleep, and ime.

        Anotoo. Lee seemed to see trimmed rattle and anding someto obey oucer, like t all and nearly invisible, and it invoked suc-c error. But Grumman ing it fearlessly, and ing to no ened closely to ed upil it    in the opy.

        ting nigook anoturn, for    of a zeppelin,    fact, ting in ts seat, and t, looking do tossing treetops, a er hem.

        Pinioned in , and error of t     as t was o him.
请记住本书首发域名：966xs.com。966小说手机版阅读网址：wap.966xs.com