Well, it IS about parallel worlds...

[elwen]

So I've been reading Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy lately, and I finished the second book, The Subtle Knife, a few days ago. And the end of it ran through my head like this:

Will saw the broken bodies on the ground. He was recovering from his shock, and now a wild fury was on him. 'I got it all wrong!' he cried. 'I knew I would. Now they've got her, the devils! the filth! Never leave your friend, never, never: that was my right rule. And I knew it in my heart. May I be forgiven! Now I've got to get back to her. Somehow, somehow!'

He drew his knife again and beat on the stone with the hilt, but it only gave out a dull sound. . . . Will yelled and brandished the knife, but his little voice was drowned in the tumult. The angels ignored him.

The great doors slammed to. Boom. The bars of iron fell into place inside. Clang. The gate was shut. Will hurled himself against the bolted brazen plates and fell senseless to the ground. He was out in the darkness. Lyra was alive but taken by the Enemy.

Apologies for my inability to execute parody. But seriously, that last sentence wouldn't leave me. I guess it's not that astonishing a parallel -- there's a literary theory out there that the second installment of a trilogy has to end at a moment of utter despair, or something like that, right? Like Two Towers, and Empire Strikes Back, and all.

Comments

[superpan.livejournal.com]

The third book gets pretty crazy, although the second one really threw me off too. I think you'll like it though. :)

[ctrl-a.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the third book is getting pretty crazy. And I kind of want everyone in it to die right now. Well, not Will, Lyra, and Iorek, but pretty much everyone else.

You did realize that I was quoting Lord of the Rings, not The Subtle Knife, right? >_>