A small tapping noise reached his ears. Was someone headed this way?

He swore softly. It was probably Dylan, coming to talk one last time. Seeing the boy again would only make this harder, and Alek needed to start toward the engine pod.

But the noise was coming from behind him....

He turned around - one of the eggs was moving.

In the rosy light of the heaters, he could see a tiny hole forming at the top of the egg. Little chips were breaking free and sliding down the smooth white surface. Fleck by fleck the hole grew larger.

Alek stood there, his hand on the doorknob. He should be heading up, leaving these godless creatures behind. But he'd spent seven long nights watching the eggs and wondering what would emerge from them. In another few moments he would finally see.

Alek pulled the door softly closed.

The odd thing was, it was the middle egg hatching - the one Dr. Barlow had said was sick.

Something was poking its way out of the hole now. It looked like a claw - or was it a paw? There was pale fur on it, not feathers.

A small black nose poked its way out, sniffing the air.

Alek wondered if the creature was dangerous. Of course, it was only a baby, and he had a rigging knife sheathed on his belt. But Alek stayed close to the door, just in case.

The beast emerged slowly, reaching out to grip the edge of the box with tiny four-fingered hands. Its fur was damp, and its huge eyes blinked in the glow of the heaters. It looked about attentively, twitching as it pulled itself farther from the broken egg.

God's wounds, but the thing was homely. Its skin seemed too large for its body, drooping like an old man's. It reminded Alek of his aunt's hairless cat, bred for its bizarre looks.

The beast stared at him and made a soft, plaintive noise.

"You must be hungry," Alek said softly. But he hadn't the first idea what it ate.

At least it was clear enough that the creature didn't eat humans. It was far too small for that, and too ... appealing, even with its strange excess of skin. Somehow the large eyes seemed wise and sad. Alek found himself wanting to pick the animal up and comfort it.

The creature extended a tiny hand.

Alek put down the tool kit and took a step closer. When he reached out a hand, the animal touched his fingertips, squeezing them one by one. Then it leaned forward, letting itself slide from the edge of the egg box.

Alek caught it just in time. Even in the sweltering machine room, the creature's body felt warm, its short fur as soft as the chinchilla coat his mother had always worn in winter. When Alek held it closer, the beast made a cooing noise.

The huge eyes blinked slowly, staring straight into his. Thin arms wrapped around Alek's wrist.

It was strange, how the creature didn't give him the same uneasy feeling as other Darwinist creations. It was too small and sleepy-looking, and gave off an air of preternatural calm.

The engine sputtered again, and Alek realized that he was behind schedule.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, "but I have to go."

He placed the creature back in the box amid the warm glow of the heaters. But as his hands pulled away, the animal made a high-pitched mewling noise.

"Shush," Alek breathed softly. "Someone will be along soon."

He wondered if that were true. Dylan would be here at dawn, but that was hours away.

He took a step backward, kneeling to pick up the tool kit. The creature's eyes grew wider, and it let out another cry that ended in a high, sweeping note, as pure as a flute.

Alek frowned - that last sound was oddly like the whistles the crew used to command their beasts. And it was loud enough to wake someone up.

He reached out again, shushing the creature. The instant his hand touched it, the animal went silent.

Alek knelt there for a moment, stroking the soft fur. Finally the large eyes closed and Alek dared to pull away.

The beast instantly sprang awake and began to mewl again. Alek swore. This was absurd, being held hostage by this newborn. He turned away and crossed the room.

But as the door opened, the screams shifted into a burst of whistling noises. The glowworms in the machine room reacted, green light spilling from the walls. Alek imagined the whole airship waking up, message lizards scampering from all directions in response to the creature's cries.

"Quiet!" he whispered, but the beast didn't stop until he went back and picked it up again.

As Alek stood there stroking its pale fur, he came to a horrible realization.

To have any hope of escaping, he had to take the newborn animal with him. He could hardly leave it sitting here, bawling its tiny misshapen head off for the whole ship to hear.

He had no idea what to feed the creature or how to take care of it, or even what it was. And what would Count Volger say when he showed up with this abomination in his arms?

But Alek didn't have much choice.

When he lifted the animal up from the hay, it scampered up his arm and clung to his shoulder like a cat, the tiny claws stuck fast in the wool of his mechanik's suit.

It looked at him expectantly.

"We're going for a walk now," he said softly, hefting the tool kit again. "You're going to stay quiet, right?"

The creature blinked at him, a look of smug satisfaction on its face.

Alek sighed, and went to the door. He opened it again, looking up and down the corridor. No one was coming to investigate the strange noises - not yet, anyway.

He loosened his jacket, ready to shove the creature inside if he encountered anyone. But for the moment the animal seemed happy on his shoulder - and quiet. It felt as light as a bird there, as if designed to travel this way.

Designed, Alek thought. This animal was fabricated, not born of nature. It had some purpose in the Darwinists' plans, a role in Dr. Barlow's schemes to keep the Ottomans out of the war.

And he had no idea what that purpose was.

Alek shuddered once, then strode into the darkened hall.

Chapter Fourteen

"There you are!" Count Volger called softly from the support strut of the engine pod. "We'd almost given up on you."

Alek made his way along the ratlines, feeling the creature move inside his jacket. It was flexing its claws again, like tiny needles piercing his flesh.

"I had a small ... problem."

"Did someone see you?"

Alek shrugged. "A few crewmen on the way. But they didn't ask where I was headed. You play a very convincing broken engine, Maestro Klopp."

From down in the pod the master of mechaniks saluted, a broad smile on his face. Beside him was a very angry-looking Mr. Hirst, gagged and bound fast to the control panel.

"Then it's time to get moving," Volger said. "I trust you're all ready for a fight, if it comes to that."

Bauer and Hoffman brandished tools in their hands, and Volger was wearing his saber. But Alek could hardly wield a knife with the creature hiding under his coat. The time to tell them was now, not in the middle of the escape.

"There's still my small problem."

Volger frowned. "What are you talking about? What happened?"

"Just as I was leaving, one of Dr. Barlow's eggs hatched. Some sort of beast came out. Quite a loud one. When I tried to leave, it began to howl, like a newborn baby crying, I suppose. I thought it would wake the whole ship up!"

Volger nodded. "So you had to strangle it. Most unpleasant, I'm sure. But they won't find its body till morning, and by then we'll be long gone."

Alek blinked.

"You did get rid of it, didn't you, Alek?"

"In fact, that strategy didn't cross my mind." Inside his jacket the creature moved, and Alek winced.

Volger put a hand on his sword hilt and hissed, "What in blazes is under your coat?"

"I assure you, I have no idea." Alek cleared his throat. "But it's perfectly well behaved, as long as one doesn't try to abandon it."

"You brought it with you?" Volger leaned closer. "In case it has escaped your notice, Your Highness, we are currently trying to escape the Darwinists. If you have one of their abominations with you, kindly fling it over the side!"

Alek tightened his grip on the ratlines. "I certainly will not, Count. For one thing, the beast would make considerable noise on the way down."

Volger groaned softly, his fists unclenching. "Very well, then. I suppose if it comes to a fight, we could use it as a hostage."

Alek nodded, unbuttoning his jacket. The creature poked its head out.

Volger turned away with a shudder. "Just keep it quiet, or I shall silence it myself. After you, Your Highness."

Alek began to make his way toward the bow, the others following in silence. They climbed along the ratlines just above the airship's waist, the ropes sagging under the weight of the five men and their heavy bags. It was slow going, and poor old Klopp wore a look of terror on his face, but at least no one on the spine could see them.

When the newborn beast began to squirm, Alek opened his jacket the rest of the way. It crawled out and climbed onto his shoulder, its huge eyes narrowing in the breeze.

"Just be careful," he whispered. "And stay quiet."

The creature turned to him with a bored expression, as if Alek were saying something terribly obvious.

Soon the awful flechette bats were everywhere.

The bow of the airship was covered with them, a seething mass of small black shapes all softly clucking. Dylan had once explained to Alek that the clicks made echoes, which the creatures used to "see" in the dark. They had eyes as well - a thousand beady pairs were following Alek expectantly. No matter how carefully he moved, the bats fluttered about him. It was like trying to sneak through a flock of pigeons on a footpath.

"Why are they watching us so keenly?" Klopp whispered.

"They think we're here to feed them," Alek said. "Dylan always feeds the bats at night."

"You mean they're hungry?" Klopp asked, his face shiny with sweat in the moonlight.

"Not to worry. They eat figs," Alek said, leaving out the part about metal spikes.

"I'm glad to hear - ," Klopp began, but suddenly a bat fluttered up in front of him. As it shot past his face, his boots slipped from the ratlines.

Klopp jerked to a halt a moment later, his hands white-knuckled on the ropes, but his large body swung into the side of the airship's membrane, sending it billowing out in all directions. Around them bats launched into the air, their clicking noises changing into shrieks and calls.

Alek grabbed for Klopp's wrist as the man struggled to get his feet back on the ropes. A moment later he was safe, but the disturbance was spreading, bats fluttering outward like ripples in a dark pond.

We're done for now, Alek thought.

The creature on his shoulder perked up, its claws sinking painfully into Alek's shoulder. A soft clucking noise came from its mouth - the sound the bats had been making a moment before.

"Keep that beast - ," Volger hissed, but Alek waved him silent.

All around them the bats were growing quieter. The screeches faded out, the carpet of black shapes settling back onto the airship's skin.

The creature went silent and turned its big-eyed gaze upon Alek again.

He stared back at it. Had the thing, whatever it was, just silenced the flechette bats?

Perhaps ... by accident. It was some kind of mimic, like the message lizards. And yet the creature had required no training, no mothering at all. Perhaps that was the way with all newborn Darwinist beasts.

"Keep moving," Volger whispered, and Alek did.

The mooring tower stretched into the air before them, but Alek found himself staring downward. In the foggy darkness the ground seemed to be a thousand kilometers below.

"Does that rope look strong enough?" he asked Hoffman.

The man knelt to feel the slender cable that stretched across to the tower, perhaps thirty meters away. It seemed too thin to hold a man's weight, though the Darwinist's fabricated materials were always stronger than they looked.