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"A Darwin,a cuddly trifle like that? Don’t be absurd And what use would it be aboard a warship?"

"It was ift for the sultan," Alek said "As a way to keep the Ottomans out of war But then it hatched, umahead of schedule"

The old woman raised an eyebrow

"You see, Nene? He’s a liar!" Lilit said "And a fool to think anyone would believe his nonsense!"

"Believe," the creature said, and the room fell silent

Zaven took a step backward "It speaks?"

"It’s just a parrot," Alek said "Like a e lizard, one that repeats words at rando, critical stare

"Whatever it is, I’ve never seen one before Let me take a closer look"

Alek opened the cage, and the beast climbed out and up onto his shoulder He went closer to the bed, holding out a hand The creature crawled slowly down his araze

Alek saw the woman’s expression soften, just as Klopp’s and Bauer’s did every tie eyes and wizened face seeenerate affection Even Lilit was struck silent

Nene reached out and took Alek’s hands "You have never worked for a living, that’s for sure But there’s a bit of engine grease under your fingernails" She rubbed his right thumb "And you fence, don’t you?"

Alek nodded, i about the Leviathan that a liar wouldn’t know," she de to recall all the wonders he’d seen aboard the airship "There are flechette bats, flying creatures made of jellyfish, and haear steel talons"

"Those beasts have been in the penny papers all week Try again"

Alek frowned He’d never read a newspaper in his life, and had no idea as public knowledge about the Leviathan He doubted the Darwinists had shown hiht the Goeben and the Breslau on our way here"

There was a long moment of silence From the looks on their faces, it seemed that little fact hadn’t been in the papers

"The sultan’s new toys?" Nene asked "When exactly?"

"Eight days ago We stumbled on them due south of the Dardanelles

Nene nodded slowly, her eyes sliding to one of the chattering wireless receivers "It’s possible So was certainly afoot last Monday"

"It was quite a battle," Alek said "The Goeben’s Tesla cannon allances, then Zaven said, "Tesla cannon?"

Alek s that these revolutionaries ht look like a wireless trans I know that sounds absurd, but - "

Nene silenced him with a raised hand "It does not Come for a ith me, boy"

"A walk?" Alek asked He’d assumed the woman was an invalid

"Onto the balcony," she ordered, and suddenly the delicate sound of a clockwork s took a slow, shed from across the rooiggle

"Haven’t you ever seen a turtle etting out of the bed’s way as it luht of sleeping on one"

"You sleep on one every night, boy The world itself rests on a turtle’s back!"

Alek smiled at her "My mother used to tease me with that old wives’ tale"

"Old wives’ tale?" Nene cried, her voice crackling "The notion is perfectly scientific The world rests upon a turtle, which itself stands on the back of an elephant!"

Alek tried not to laugh "Then what does the elephant stand on,man" She narrowed her eyes "It’s elephants all the way down!"

The bed made its sloay from the bedroo its turtle’s pace, Alek wondered at the perfection of the s instead of noisy steaines, so the bed’s movements were s in it had to be mad, with her talk of elephants All three of them were a bit peculiar, in fact They reminded Alek of his own poor relations, once-wealthy families who’d fallen on hard times but still had an inflated sense of their own iht before, Zaven had said they’d been part of the Young Turk uprising six years ago But was this strange fa in past glories?

Of course, Zaven’s walker had been nothing to sneeze at

Out on the balcony Alek realized that the family’s apart them like a s views of the city Froht they could see both the Sea of Mar inlet of the Golden Horn

There she was, just as Eddie Malone had said - the Goeben, resting beside a long pier Her huge kraken-fighting aro

Nene pointed a withered finger at the docks "How do you know about this Tesla cannon"

"It fired at us," Alek said "It almost set the whole ship aflauessed it"