The Golden Compass: Chapter Twenty-Three Summary & Analysis

Lyra feels weak, alone, and frightened. Pan comforts her as she wonders out loud why people do these horrible things to children. When Lyra composes herself, she walks along and admires the brilliant Aurora. Pan flies up and points Lyra in the right direction. He says that Lord Asriel has instruments laid out and that Roger is stuck. Suddenly, the Aurora flickers and Lyra thinks that she can feel the Dust. Roger cries out for Lyra and Lyra runs to him as Pan changes form rapidly in distress. When Lyra reaches the ridge, she sees that Stelmaria has Roger's dæmon in her mouth while Lord Asriel fiddles with wires and batteries and brushes Roger aside.

As Lord Asriel connects wires, the Aurora becomes even brighter. Lyra sees a wire heading into the Aurora and knows that a witch put it there. Lord Asriel beckons to Roger and Lyra shouts for Roger to run. Pan attacks Stelmaria and the two young dæmons fight her. Lyra fights the thick Dust and sees palm trees and boulevards in the sky. She pulls Roger away, but Stelmaria catches Roger's dæmon again. Lyra and Roger start to slip off a cliff and can't stop as Lord Asriel attaches a wire to Roger's dæmon. As Roger is torn from his dæmon by the fall, a bolt of light shoots into the sky and illuminates the city with a tearing sound. Lyra stops falling.

Lyra watches the golden monkey and Stelmaria meet and touch each other. Mrs. Coulter steps into Lord Asriel's arms. Lord Asriel invites her to come with him and says that this will mean the end of the Church. Mrs. Coulter is nervous and refuses to come. They argue about Lyra and Lord Asriel kisses Mrs. Coulter, but Lyra thinks the kiss looks cruel. Their dæmons behave strangely; Stelmaria presses her claws into the monkey as the monkey relaxes. Lord Asriel again invites Mrs. Coulter to go with him and says he doesn't care about her lies or her lovers. They kiss again and when they break apart, Lord Asriel says that if she doesn't come, he'll forget her instantly. Mrs. Coulter refuses, and watches Lord Asriel and Stelmaria step into the other world. Then she walks back down the hill, sobbing.

Lyra looks at the city in the sky. The sun from it starts to melt the ice on Roger's clothes. Lyra holds his body and feels betrayed by Lord Asriel. Pan scratches her hand and confirms that Lord Asriel is going to find the source of Dust and destroy it. He says that the Oblation Board, the Church, Bolvanger, and Mrs. Coulter all want to do away with Dust, so Dust must actually be good. Excitedly, Pan says that they believed the adults even when they saw them doing evil things. They stare at each other, and Lyra says that they too could look for Dust and maybe get to the source before Lord Asriel. Lyra and Pan decide that this time, they'll ask every question they can think of and go it alone, even though they're never really alone. Lyra says they still have the alethiometer. She puts Roger's body down and she and Pan step into the sky.