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Alek frowned "Take a look, Master Klopp Quickly, please"

As the old hter - Alek could see the the struts of the tower, like nervous snakes

"Rubber," Alek said softly "They’re protecting everything with rubber That whole tower ed with electriks"

Klopp swore "I should have realized But they only showed us toys and dee!"

"Models of what?"

The old lasses "It’s a Tesla cannon A real one"

Alek shook his head "As in Mr Tesla, thetower?"

"The sa master, but it’s not a transhtning generator"

Alek stared in horror at the shi was an airship’s natural enemy If raw electriks flowed across the airship’s skin, even the tiniest hydrogen leak could burst into flame

"Are we in range yet?"

"The ones I’ve seen could hardly shoot across a rooers or e, and it’s got the boilers of a dreadnought to power it!"

Alek turned to Mr Hirst, atching their conversation with an air of disinterest, and said in English, "We have to cohtning cannon"

Mr Hirst raised an eyebrow "A lightning cannon?"

"Yes! Klopp has worked with the Gerhed "Well, toy ones, anyway"

The chief engineer peered down at the Goeben The electriks were sparkling brighter now, unfolding into spidery for the tower’s struts

"Can’t you see?" Alek cried

"It is rather odd" Mr Hirst s? I doubt your Clanker friends have mastered the forces of nature just yet"

"You have to tell the bridge!"

"I’h" Hirst pulled a command whistle from his pocket and blew a short tune "But I shall inform them of your theory"

"My theory?" Alek shouted "We don’t have time for a debate! We have to turn around!"

"What we’ll do is wait for orders," Mr Hirst said, dropping the whistle into his pocket

Alek sed a groan of frustration, then turned back to Klopp

"How long do we have?" he said in German

"Everyone’s cleared the deck, except for those men in protective suits So it could be any ine will turn us around fastest"

"Full reverse from full ahead?" Alek shook his head "You’ll never make that look like an accident"

"No, but I can rabbed Alek by the collar and shoved hiainst the ine pod, the world went starry for a ears drowned out Alek’s words, the whole pod shuddering in its frame around him The air suddenly stilled as the propeller sputtered to a halt

"What’s theof this!" cried Hirst

Alek’s vision cleared, and he saw Klopp brandishing a wrench at the chief engineer With his free hand the old ine into reverse, then pushed the foot pedal down

The propeller sputtered back to life, drawing air backward across the pod

"Klopp, wait!" Alek began He tried to stand, but his head spun, and he fell back to one knee

Blazes! Theon his whistle again - a high-pitched squeak - and Alek heard a hydrogen sniffer howling in response Soon a pack of the ugly creatures would be thundering down upon the out for the wrench "Klopp, what are you doing?"

The !"

The wrench whistled over Alek’s head He ducked and fell back onto one knee again, cursing Had Klopp gone mad?

Mr Hirst reached into a pocket and pulled out a coun As his fingers wrapped around Hirst’s wrist, the pistol exploded with a deafening crack The shotlike an alar kicked Alek in the ribs, hard, and searing pain blosso froain Hirst and Klopp both gaped, dumbstruck, at the Leviathan’s flank

Alek blinked away pain and followed their stares The cilia were in furiouslike leaves in a stor harder than he’d ever seen The great harness groaned around the in the ratlines

"The beast knows it’s in danger," Klopp said

Alek watched in wonder as the airship seemed to curl around thee animal had turned itself entirely around

"Back to full ," Alek began, but it hurt too much to speak Every as another kick in the ribs He looked down at his hand pressed against his left side, and saw blood between the fingers

Klopp was already working, reversing the engine oncein wonder at the airbeast’s flank