Will was reluctant to learn at first because he was in so much pain. They walked for a long time towards the valley that Lyra was being held. Will was the sole child of John Parry, an explorer, and Elaine Parry. Inside was a series of letters from which Will learned that his father discovered another anomaly - a window - during his expedition in Alaska. Once Will was taken care of, Giacomo Paradisi informed Will that the loss of his fingers was the sign that he was the new bearer of the knife. He had his chauffeur take them all to the location of the window as he explained the task to the children. Will asked Lyra to use the alethiometer to find out about his mother, and he was extremely relieved when Lyra told him she was safe. They also briefly spoke about the differences between the worlds they came from, such as how the phenomenon known as electricity in Will's world was known as anbaricity in Lyra's world. When they arrived at the manor in Old Headington, they were allowed entrance by his servant. With Lyra missing, Will refuses to take the Subtle Knife to Lord Asriel until he finds her. Sir Charles is unable to retrieve the knife himself due to the Spectres which infest Cittàgazze and feed on the consciousness of adults. When it became clear that one of the children had spotted them making their escape, Will determined that they wouldn't make it to the trees, so they should take refuge in a tower that was closer. They talked about Lyra's mission to find out about Dust, and she demanded that he show her the window to go into his world. It is twenty years since the events of La Belle Sauvage: The Book of Dust Volume One unfolded and saw the baby Lyra Belacqua begin her life-changing journey. The books further chronicle the adventures of Lyra Belacqua and her battle against the theocratic organisation known as the Magisterium, and shed more light on the mysterious substance called Dust.. Family In the BBC radio dramatisation of the His Dark Materials series, Will was played by Daniel Anthony. She explained that she had been tricked and told a couple of agents in the other world that she knew Will, and after escaping from the agents, she had accepted a ride from a man - Charles Latrom - and he had stolen her alethiometer. William 'Will' Parry (born 1984)[5] was a young boy from England, and the final bearer of the subtle knife. She also explained that she had overheard the cliff-ghasts speaking of something or someone known as Æsahættr, and how it was the ultimate weapon, before she was attacked by them. Will collapsed onto the ground as the man felt Will's hands. He proceeded to explain that he was going to take poison before the Spectres could get to him. Arrows upon arrows rained down on the rooftop in aide of Will and Lyra, prompting the mob of children to disperse and run away. The book will continue on from The Secret Commonwealth, taking place after the events of The Amber Spyglass. He visibly relaxed and felt tension leave his body. A look through one of the windows revealed a group of fifty children headed towards them, some of them armed with guns. He was rereading his father's letters when Lyra returned in a terrible rage. As he was going to retrieve Lyra, Marisa woke due to the sound of the zeppelins and, when he was going to cut a window, she turned around and reminded him about Elaine Parry. The witch flew off, and Will and Lyra continued on their journey. However, Mr Perkins was unable to reveal any meaningful information because he could not confirm Will's identity over the phone. Before he crossed the road to go in, he noticed the blond agent appear and walk into the office. He began leading her away from the scene of the accident, telling people that she was his sister and he was going to take her home. When they were within sight of the study where Charles kept the alethiometer, Will relayed his plan to Lyra: he would open a window back to the world of Cittàgazze and leave it open as he walked to the position of Charles' study. Will learned her name was Lyra Silvertongue, and she was from a different world than the one they stood in. 5.0 out of 5 stars 1. Will tended to the cat's wounds and eventually Lyra went to bed, leaving Will to finally investigate the contents of his father's writing case. However, just as Will recognises that the man is his father, the man is killed by a witch, bitter that he had once rejected her. The man realises that Will is the bearer of the Subtle Knife and instructs him to take it to Lord Asriel. Before they part, Lyra leads him to the University's Botanic Garden where she finds a certain bench, one that also exists in her world in the same place. Baruch and Balthamos work for the angel that found out his secret and was exiled as a result. Baruch would go to Lord Asriel on his own and relay his information, and ask Lord Asriel to send help for Will to rescue Lyra. It was late-afternoon when he finally made it there. Once Will's hand was bandaged, the man laid down beside him and spoke. In these universes, Dust is attracted to consciousness, especially after puberty; the Church within the series associates it with original sin and seeks its end. 1. Lyra was calling up at a group of witches in the sky, inviting them to come down, but the snow goose - a dæmon named Kaisa - explained that there were Spectres all over the ground and the witches could not land. A while later, still unable to sleep, Will got up and climbed the mountain a bit more to get rid of his restlessness. The old man then tried to teach Will how to close the window by pinching the edges with his hand. He told his father that he would fulfill his duty by finding Lord Asriel and fighting for him. The city was near the sea, and the crashing of waves was the only sound aside from Will's own footsteps. Will bowed and told the priest that he was looking for his family, and the priest invited Will into his house for refreshments. The two of them, Angelica and Paolo, told Will and Lyra that they were in a city known as Cittàgazze. Days passed as the boat approached the mountains, and Will occupied himself with resting and regaining strength. They had been following John Parry for a long time in order to find Will. Not much is known of Kirjava's distinctive personality, other than she most probably took on board qualities such as independence, common to cat-dæmons. His Dark Materials is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of Northern Lights (1995) (published as The Golden Compass in North America), The Subtle Knife (1997), and The Amber Spyglass (2000). As they ate and drank tea, Semyon Borisovitch spoke of the town that Will was headed towards, explaining that the armoured bears were going south and the town would not let them refuel. When they were outside, he told her that they would use the knife to steal her alethiometer back. His Dark Materials is an epic trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of Northern Lights (published as The Golden Compass in North America), The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass. Giacomo Paradisi said he would teach Will how to use it because it was now his by right. They made their way there and climbed the spiral staircase up to a viewing platform, where they could see the children running towards them. Will turned back to the body of his father, and he touched him. Will loved his mother so much he would have died to protect her. Will promptly fell asleep after his request. Armed with it, Will and Lyra return to Sir Charles’ house and steal back the alethiometer, narrowly evading Sir Charles and his guest, Marisa Coulter. They made their final approach to the manor while in Will's world. Since Kirjava settled only shortly after being separated from Will, she was not seen in many forms. Once they had their bearings, Iorek dismissed the bears to go hunt and start their new life in the mountains until it was time to move back to the Arctic. He suggested that they focus on what Marisa Coulter and Sir Charles might be planning. Will agreed to go with them once he woke up Lyra. Once he reached the Institute, he learned from an archaeologist that he was the second person that month to show up asking questions about the Nuniatak dig expedition. Serafina then told them about a cave in the woods that was not far away, instructing them to meet her and the other witches there. I can't let you know when it will be published, but it's a lot longer and more advanced now than it was when I last answered this question, so progress is being made. Will ran out of time on the payphone before he could learn more, and he contemplated calling his mother at Mrs Cooper's house. Warning: SPOILERS ahead for His Dark Materials season 2, episode 3, "Theft". Will told Pan that he was scared to die, but Pan reassured him and spoke of how Lyra believed him to be very brave. He also explained to her that he'd never had any friends except his cat Moxie. Will could hear strange noises as he descended back to where Lyra was sleeping, but before he reached her, he saw two men that weren't quite human. It was then that she revealed she knew about Will's search for his father, and Will became even more furious when she revealed her ability to use the alethiometer and ask about his affairs. During their absence, they travel through many worlds and though they return and reconcile with their humans, they agree to keep what they did and saw a secret until they feel the time is right to tell their humans. Age He answered that it was because of the knife, but before he could go back to trying to kill a nearby Spectre, Lyra launched herself into Serafina's arms and expressed her gratitude for the rescue. As with Pantalaimon, after this separation Kirjava developed a witch-like ability to travel distances much further than ordinary dæmons. After assuring they were safe, Baruch and Balthamos explained everything about their mission to Will. He explained that the young man had stolen the knife from him but he wouldn't be able to use it. Some of the children left the tower and tried to rush up the outside rooftop, but Lyra went to the edge and Pan changed into a leopard causing the children to pause. He also told Will about the rules of the knife. Will was woken a little while later in the night by the witches. 2: That Side of the River' is available now. It will focus on Will Parry, as the dark red book focused on Lyra Silvertongue and the dark blue book focused on Lee Scoresby. When Sir Charles stood up from the sofa, Will grabbed the alethiometer and darted through the window into Cittàgazze. He read about when they disappeared and the search parties, and even read an article about his mother's reaction to her missing husband. He even noticed an event that he almost believed to be his imagination: an emerald snake briefly appeared in Sir Charles' sleeve, looking between Will and Lyra before disappearing back into the sleeve. He gave the knife to Will and warned them against giving the knife to Charles Latrom, who would ultimately betray them. Later, Will would always be reminded of the angel when he ate it. Will infiltrates the cave using the knife, but just as he prepares to pull Lyra out, the presence of Mrs Coulter reminds him of his sick mother and his concentration slips, causing the Subtle Knife to shatter. In the National Theatre's production of His Dark Materials in 2003, he was played by Dominic Cooper. The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage is ... Malcolm reminds one of the adage "still waters run deep" and like Lyra and Will Parry he is young enough to be naive but a bit reckless in his bravery; not classically educated but instinctively intelligent, and always curious. He explained that he needed to take the knife to Lord Asriel, but not before rescuing Lyra, which Iorek agreed to help with. He spoke to Balthamos briefly and learned that the angel could change into any form, so Will instructed him that whenever they encountered someone in this world, Balthamos should turn into a bird and pretend to be Will's dæmon. Biographical information At one point, Lyra spoke to him briefly about the kids from Cittàgazze, saying she never thought kids could be so cruel. Hearing this, Will told Iorek Byrnison to stay behind while he went ahead to investigate. Two angels named Baruch and Balthamos, who had been following Will's father, appear to him, urging him to follow them to Lord Asriel. They would come back and question his mother when Will was at school, and one time they even broke into the house when neither of them was home. Will was closest to her and acted the fastest, beheading the creature with the subtle knife. Will slept deeply for the rest of the night. When Lyra learns that Will's world also has an Oxford in it, she decides to go there and speak to the physicists about Dust. He first appears in the series at the start of the second novel, The Subtle Knife, and continues through to the final book, The Amber Spyglass. Will soon realized the alethiometer was not where Charles had put it in before, and he determined that he would have to go through and search the study. They flee from the city and are rescued by a group of witches from Lyra's world, led by Serafina Pekkala. The fight among the witches and the creatures continued above in the sky until Serafina Pekkala finally landed with her companion Ruta. Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Will_Parry_(His_Dark_Materials)&oldid=997870432, Characters in British novels of the 20th century, Characters in British novels of the 21st century, Articles needing additional references from September 2017, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 2 January 2021, at 17:10. Will's mother would often have times of clarity where her disease seemed to disappear, but these moments were always short-lived. He briefly lost consciousness from the surprise and blood loss, and when he came to, Lyra had to support him as she led the way downstairs to the old man they had rescued. Will Parry is one of the protagonists in Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials, along with Lyra Belacqua. During this time, Will noticed a shadow moving around the room and eventually realized it was Marisa's dæmon, some sort of monkey. He decided that they would go down to the camp so he could get water and any other supplies that had been left. Book cover Later in the day, Balthamos picked up on the trail of Baruch and pointed out a window. Will eventually managed to calm Balthamos, speaking words of strength and courage into him. Will realised that the journalist described was one of the agents that had been harassing he and his mother - the one he had not killed. The Golden Compass (its US title), The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass.Omnibus volumes containing all three volumes have appeared. Serafina Pekkala explained to Ruta that she had to stay and continue helping Lyra and Will find his father. Philip Pullman calls it an “equel” that sits alongside His Dark Materials. The Book of Dust is a story in three parts.The first part, La Belle Sauvage, is set 10 years before the events of His Dark Materials, and the rest of the story takes place 20 years after that: in fact, 10 years after Lyra comes home to Jordan College after her adventure in the Arctic at the end of The Amber Spyglass. Whilst thinking about his mother, his mind left the point of the knife and the knife broke. His Dark Materials Original Television Soundtrack, His Dark Materials Series 2 Original Television Soundtrack, The Musical Anthology of His Dark Materials, The Musical Anthology of His Dark Materials Series 2, Scholastic - Philip Pullman Interview Transcript, https://hisdarkmaterials.fandom.com/wiki/William_Parry?oldid=34484. They tell her about their adventures and in return Mary tells them about the time she first fell in love and how she stopped believing in God (she had previously been a nun). Will and Lyra search the tower but are attacked by another man, an inhabitant of Cittàgazze, who wants the knife for himself. The mob started throwing things at them, so Will used the knife to cut two sword-length pieces of metal which he and Lyra used to attack the children. Will closed the window in front of the cabinet and created a larger window that would come out behind the sofa in the study. They released him and he introduced himself as Giacomo Paradisi, the "bearer." 12 The last letter of John Parry's is dated 24 June 1985 and Pullman states 'Will had been a year old when that letter was written' (. After cooling off in the water, he came to the realisation that he was finally safe because he had a whole world in which to hide from the agents. Will is described as having straight black eyebrows, dark hair with a strong, jutting jaw. Later, at her reuniting with Will, she had taken corporeal form and settled as a large multi-coloured cat. After travelling to the land of the dead, however, his dæmon was torn from him and left on the shores of the suburbs. Before any of them could move, another angel came out of the sky and crashed into Balthamos. He was sitting on a bench when Lyra appeared on the bench beside him. Lyra did so, and her throwing the rock through one of the study windows interrupted the adults' conversation. He asked Ama, who had the medicine needed to wake Lyra, to stay silent and managed to make an opening into another world and then to the place where Lyra was lying. Many grown-ups found themselves feeling uncomfortable at the thought of looking him in the eye, owing to his imposing and unchildish demeanor, and he was quite able to dominate in a situation involving those older than him. He lifted the bears' helmet and cut through it like butter with his subtle knife. Furthermore, despite being outwardly controlled and strong, he was prone to worrying about the well-being of those he loved and felt uncomfortable with the idea that he had killed for a long period of time. 1. Will captures the witch and berates her but she kills herself.