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A s noise reached his ears Was someone headed this way?

He swore softly It was probably Dylan, coain would only ine pod

But the noise was cos was ht of the heaters, he could see a tiny hole for free and sliding down the ser

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 ould ee from them In another few moments he would finally see

Alek pulled the door softly closed

The odd thing was, it was the- the one Dr Barlow had said was sick

So 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 s 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 ee of the box with tiny four-fingered hands Its fur was dalow of the heaters It looked about attentively, twitching as it pulled itself farther fro was ho like an old man’s It reminded Alek of his aunt’s hairless cat, bred for its bizarre looks

The beast stared at hiry," 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 hu, even with its strange excess of skin Soe eyes see 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 ani the itself slide froht it just in ti machine room, the creature’s body felt warm, its short fur as soft as the chinchilla coat his mother had alorn in winter When Alek held it closer, the beaststraight into his Thin are, how the creature didn’t give hi as other Darwinist creations It was too save off an air of preternatural calain, and Alek realized that he was behind schedule

"I’o"

He placed the creature back in the box alow of the heaters But as his hands pulled away, the ani noise

"Shush," Alek breathed softly "So 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 greider, 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 coh to wake so the creature The instant his hand touched it, the ani the soft fur Finally the large eyes closed and Alek dared to pull away

The beast instantly sprang awake and began to e by this newborn He turned away and crossed the room

But as the door opened, the screaloor froe lizards sca 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 ca, he had to take the newborn ani 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 ould Count Volger say when he showed up with this abomination in his arms?

But Alek didn’t have much choice

When he lifted the ani to his shoulder like a cat, the tiny claws stuck fast in the wool of his mechanik’s suit

It looked at hi for a walk now," he said softly, hefting the tool kit again "You’re going to stay quiet, right?"

The creature blinked at hihed, and went to the door He opened it again, looking up and down the corridor No one was coe noises - not yet, anyway

He loosened his jacket, ready to shove the creature inside if he encountered anyone But for the moment the aniht 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