So everything after the Leviathans crash landing goes the same until my story picks up again right after Lilit left them at the Tesla Cannon.

DISCLAIMER: I own no characters, contraptions, or beasties mentioned in the Leviathan Trilogy.

December 1914

The iron golem lay in a heap of train cars and scattered cargo, its legs twisted and torn . Only its upper half remained intact, the huge head leaning back against the wreckage of two freight cars, a sleeping giant with a crumpled metal pillow.

Deryn and Alek made their way closer, through electrical parts and shattered glass. The railroad tracks had been torn from the ground, and lay among the other debris like tangled ribbons of steel.

"Blisters," Deryn said as they passed an overturned dining car, its red velvet curtains spilling through broken windows. "Lucky there were no passengers aboard."

"We can get up to the golem's head that way," Alek said, pointing at the huge hand lying splayed in the dirt. They climbed onto it and up the walker's arm, and soon saw to moving forms unstrapping themselves from the pilots chairs.

"Master Klopp!" Alek cried out. "Hans!"

Both figures snapped up. "Junge Meister," Klopp called. "Du lebst."

"Ja" came Alek's heartfelt response.

Deryn saw Bauer grown and rub the back of his neck. "Was uns getroffen" he asked.

"Der Orient-Express," Alek explained.

Bauer gave him a befuddled look, then saw the wreckage around them, belief dawning slowly in his face. Klopp let out a grown. "Unten von einem Zug gebracht," he moaned. "Wenn Wort steigt aus werde ich nie leben sie nach unten."

"Are you two alright?" Deryn asked. "Do you need to get to a doctor"

Deryn's eyes swept the battlefield. Not a single walker remained standing. But in the sky the Leviathan's silhouette had swung into profile. It was just as she'd expected—now that it had dispatched the Goeden, the airship was coming about for a closer look at the wreck of the Tesla cannon.

She opened her mouth to point it out , but suddenly the beastie on her shoulder was imitating a soft thumping sound.

Alek heard it too. "Walkers."

Deryn turned toward the city. A dozen columns of smoke rose from the horizon.

"Could they be from the committee?"

Alek shook his his head. "They don't even know we're here."

"Aye, it was meant to be that way. But that anarchist lassie told her uncle, didn't she?"

Bauer lifted a pair of field glasses to his eyes. One lens was shattered, so he held the other to his eye like a telescope.

"Elefanten," he said a moment later.

Alek swore. "At least those things are slow."

"Wir mussen jetzt gehen." Klopp said. "Ich werde sammeln liefert was ich kann, dann mussen wir gehen, Schnell!" He hurried off to the wreck of the train.

Alek nodded. "They will come to investigate the tower, we 'll head out into the hills and then we can make a loop back to the city." He turned back to Deryn. "We need to go now."

But Deryn had turned around and was staring of toward the Leviathan.

"Isn't there some way we could signal the ship?" She said hopefully . "It'd be a quicker getaway."

"They'll take use prisoner again!" Alek said.

"Aye, and what do you think the barking Ottomans will do, after all this?" Deryn swept her arm across the wreckage. "At least with us you'll be alive!"

"They won't find use in the hills, we can skirt around them and be back in the city by nightfall"

Deryn's jaw dropped. "Have you gone barking mad?"

"The Ottomans will never spot us in all this mess." Alek clenched his fists. "And just think, if the Committee wins tonight, they'll throw the Germans out. And they owe both of use a debt, Dylan. We can stay here, among allies."

"Not me, you daft prince! I have to go home!"

"But I can't do this alone . . . not without you." His eyes softened. "Please come with me. There's more to do here, Dylan, you're the best soldier the revolution has."

"Aye, but that's my home up there. I can't live with . . . your machines."

Alek spread his hands. "It doesn't matter. Your crew will never see us."

"They have to." Deryn stared out across the battlefield, looking for something to signal with. But Alek was right; even if she had ten-foot semaphore flags, no one would ever see her among the wreckage of the train.

Then she saw them—the golem's arms stretched out in both directions. The right one was straight out, the left one at an angle, almost making the sign for the letter S.

"Can this contraption still move?"

"What, the walker?"

"A, B, C," Bovril chimed.

"Aye. A giant sending signals would be barking hard to miss."

"The boilers are cold," Alek said. "But I suppose the pneumatics might still have some pressure in them."

"Then take a look!"

Alek gritted his teeth, but climbed back up to the head and knelt by the controls. He rapped two of the gauges, then turned back, an uncertain look on his face.

"Can it work?" she called. "Don't lie to me!"

"I would never lie to you, Dylan. We can signal perhapes a dozen letters."

"Then do it, follow my lead." Deryn, Bovril hopped off her shoulder and to the ground as she held her right arm out straight, her left angled down.

Alek didn't move. "I won't be able to go with you." He said sadly. "If I give myself up to the Darwinists, they'll never let me escape again."

Deryn didn't respond, only nodded once. Alek stared at her another moment, then sighed and turned to the controls, placing his hands in the saunter. The hiss of pneumatics filled the air, then the great arms scrapped slowly across the ground, exactly matching Deryn's stance.

"S . . . ," the perspicacious loris said.

Deryn swung her arm across herself. This letter was harder for the iron golem, half lying in the dirt as it was, but Alek managed to bend its elbow just enough.

"H!" Bovril announced, and kept up as Deryn continued' "A . . . R . . . P . . ."

By the fifth letter the Leviathan's huge kraken spotlight had found them, and together they repeated the sequence twice more before the giant arms' last squick of pressure hissed away into the night.

Deryn grinned and looked back at Alek, but the grin vanished when she saw the expression on his face.

"I have to go now Dylan." Alek said. "Or we'll never make it."

"You don't have to run." Deryn said. "There could still be a place for you on the Leviathan."

Alek stared at the ship for a moment then shook his head. "They will never allow it, soon news will spread of who I really am. Do you think the Admiralty will want royalty from an enemy nation working on one of their most powerful ships?"

"Well," Deryn said desperately. "Maybe Dr. Barlow can arrange something, if you don't actually work on the engines."

Alek starred at his feet. "What good could I do then? With it's mission over your ship will go back to the fighting, then I will be just another nameless soldier. I have to do something to make a difference. It is what my father wanted."

Deryn looked away, she didn't want him to see her eyes water.

"Goodbye Dylan, tell Volger I'm okay and I haven't given up."

Impulsively Deryn threw her arms around Alek and hugged him tightly. "Good luck Alek." She replied hoarsely, fighting the lump that was forming in her throat. "Your gonna need it."

Not able to bare to say anymore Alek climbed out of the walker down to Bauer and Klopp who shouldered a pack of supplies he had gathered and together they took off fast toward the nearest hill. Deryn watched them go, not taking her eyes off them till they disappeared over the hill.

As the airship came to a rumbling halt overhead ropes tumbled from the gondola's cargo door, and seconds later a giant lizard the size of a horse came sliding down.

"Ahoy Sharp," A sailor Deryn recognized called from its back. " What in Gods name are you doing here? Just a box full of surprises, aren't you."

Deryn forced a grin "Aye, thats me, always up to something. What sort of fancy beast are you riding there?"

"Basilisk," He rubbed the goldish light brown scales on its neck. "We picked up a few of these in Crete for our next mission."

Another lizard, a dozen or so riggers, and several hydrogen sniffers climed to the ground and began inspecting the area. One rigger with an air rifle(who for some reason was wearing high altitude goggles with his cap) came straight to Deryn.

"We saw three people run off as we were landing, was it that Austrian and his men?"

"Yes sir," Deryn replied before she could stop herself. "They helped save the shi-

The man had already turned away from her. He went right up to one of the lizards and swung the butt of his rifle at the man on it, knocking him to the ground. As he and another man climbed on to the creatures back he fired shots into the air, sending the crewmen ducking for cover. He dug his spurs(why did a rigger have spurs) into the creatures side sending it running off in Aleks direction.

A sharp whistle went off, sounding the intruder alarm. The Hydrogen sniffers went charging after the lizard.

The man driving the creature put a whistle to his lips and sounded another sequence, dinner call. The sniffers scrambled to a halt and eagerly ran back to the riggers expecting food. The rider dug his spurs into the lizard again and it jumped up onto it's hind legs, taking of like a shot. The second man had to throw his arms around the first to stay on.

"Barking idiots!" The Bosun yelled, turning to the other lizard as they disappeared over the hill. "After them, they're deserting!"

A feint rumble came out of the north. Everyone turned to see smoke rising from the approaching walkers. The shots fell short, but they were closing in.

"Damn, no time. We need to get out of here now." He said grabbing the nearest rope.

"But-"

"NOW, ALL MEN UP!"

Deryn took the rope and began climbing, staring out at the hills.

Alek huffed for breath, trying to keep a fast pace as they moved through the hills. They'd stopped running but were trying to walk as fast as possible. Trying not to think about Dylan he turned his thoughts to what he would do now. He was determined to start working against the war, but how to start. He basically had one gold coin to his name, he had no were to stay, and only a few people really knew he was involved in the revolution. He would have to try and stay with the committee until-

"Did you hear that?" Bauer asked.

They all stopped. There was a faint rumble north of them, the walkers opening fire

"There!" Pointed Bauer. Some bizarre creature was coming down the hill behind them.

"Oh, Scheite."

They all took of at a dead run

"Wait!" called there pursuer. Alek put on a little more speed as the others struggled to keep up. The lizard easily caught up to them, getting down on all legs. "I said wait you dummkupf."

Alek froze in his tracks, nearly being knocked over by Klopp who was right behind him.

It couldn't be! But that voice was unmistakable. "Volger"

"Finally." Volger reigned his creature to a halt with Hoffman grinning from behind him. "I thought I was going to have to chase you all night before you noticed."

Alek was speechless. Volger looked a lot different with an airman's hat and goggles covering most of his hair and-

"You Shaved your mustache!"

Volger raised an eyebrow "Thats the first thing you have to say" He said, resisting the urge to self-consciously rub his upper lip. "That and the uniforms were the only disguises we could get. And I don't think we should stop to talk here with those walkers still out there. Do you have somewhere near by we could stay?"

"No." Alek sighed. "We were going back to Istanbul"

"I thought as much" Volger sighed. "We should get moving," he and Hoffman dismounted the lizard. But once it was riderless it refused to leave. In spite of several kicks, shouts, and shots fired in the air, it kept pace with them. Finally Alek had Klopp and Bauer ride it to have some rest after their crash, much to their dismay.

Volger and Alek walked slightly ahead of the others. After several minutes of silence Alek couldn't take it anymore. "It might save time if I began."

"As you wish."

" You want to to tell me that it was mad to get involved in Ottoman politics. By now I could be safely hidden in the wilds.

Count Volger nodded. "Yes there is that." The man kept his gaze on the hills watching form walkers.

"In not taking your advice, I risked my life and the lives of my men," Alek continued. "I led Klopp and Bauer into an all-out battle. Things could have turned out much worse."

"Much worse," Volger said, then fell silent again.

"Let's see . . .Ah, I've thrown away everything my father left me. The castle, all your plans, and finally his gold." Alek reached into his pocket and poled out the last bit of gold, a coined shaped piece of the Hapsburg crest.

Volger blinked and Alek let himself smile. At least he'd finally provoked a reaction.

"Did you finance this revolution entirely on your own?"

"Only the finishing touches- a little spice on top." Alek shrugged. "Revolutions are expensive, it seems."

"I wouldn't know. I avoid them on principle."

"Of course," Alek said. "That's what you're really angry about isn't it? That I forgot that revolutionaries want to overthrow all aristocrats, including me and you."

Volger nodded "There is that, too, I suppose. But there's one thing you've forgotten."

Alek tried to think what his final failure was, then sighed and gave up. "Enlighten me."

"You also saved my life."

Alek frowned. "I did what."

"If you had disappeared into the wilderness as you were supposed to, that Tesla cannon would have sent me and Hoffman to the bottom of the sea, along with the rest of the ship's crew. I owe you my life. Quite an annoying turn of events." Alek hid his surprise by pretending to scan the hills.

"This doesn't mean that you are any less of an idiot, of course," Volger added.

Alek sighed "Of course not."

"And there is also the matter of your newfound celebrity." Volger reached into his jacket, pulled out a newspaper, and handed it to Alek.

Alek unfolded it. It was English—New York World, read the masthead. And there on the first page was a photograph of Alek, above a long article by "Istanbul Bureau Chief" Eddie Malone.

Alek gripped the newspaper tightly. He'd never seen a photograph of himself before, and the effect was distinctly disagreeable.

"Are my ears really that large?"

"Almost. What on earth were you thinking"

"That reporter, Malone, he knew too much about the Committee's plans. An interview was the only way to distract him." Alek dared another glance at the photo, and noticed the caption—THE MISSING HEIR. "So they know, the captain and the crew on the Leviathan know who I am?"

"Not just the crew, Alek. Britain has a consulate in New York of course. Even their bumbling diplomats could hardly have missed this. Lord Churchill himself sent that newspaper to Captain Hobbes, carried by some sort of beastly eagle."

"But how in blazes did you get it?"

"Dr. Barlow and I were sharing information for some time. She proved to be a most interesting woman."

Alek stared at the man, a slight shudder passing through him. Those two together couldn't be good.

"Don't worry, Alek, I didn't tell her all my secrets. The little you haven't already revealed." Volger gave Alek a critical look. "I'm almost afraid to ask, you do still have it don't you?"

"As if I would lose it!" Alek replied, annoyed that he almost had. "I'm not a complete fool, volger. In fact, this letter is why I ignored your advice and stayed in Istanbul."

"What do you mean, Your Highness?"

"A pointless feud among my family started this war, so it's up to me to stop it." He reached into his jacket and took out the case. "This is the will of heaven, which tells me what I'm meant to do. Not skulk in hiding but take my rightful place and put an end to this war!"

Volger stared at him for a long moment. "That letter is no guarantee that you'll take the throne." While you've been in the land of heathens and heretics, I've heard news from the Vatican."

"News?"

"The Holy Father is dead."

Alek stared at the man. "But. . . this letter represents the will of heaven. The Vatican will still confirm it's real, won't they?"

"We must hope so, we may be returning to the Empire sooner then you think."

Any further talk was interrupted. Klopp, on the beast behind them reached into his pack for water. He then sreiked , an unusually high pitched yell for someone his size and age, and dropped something he'd pulled out of the pack.

Alek didn't have time to react before something small and furry clung to his leg. Alek looked down in suprise. "Bovril"

"Guten tag!" The creature replied, happily climbing up to his shoulder.

Volger glared at the creature. "Owe joy," he said "The Loris is here to help."

This is still sort of a prologue. Oh man this took to long to write. My love of Fanfic is battling with my hatred for typing. Upcoming chapters won't follow the books and should be updated faster.

Well the newspaper in the last chapter didn't quite come out right, but close enough. The agreement the germans made with russia would have greatly upset the Sultan, and it would have taken time for the kaiser to smooth things over. So even though they were delayed three months, Alek and Deryn would have still gotten to Istanbul before the Ottomans joined the war.