i made corrections on previous chapters. that is all there is to this update thing. yep. there probably was a easier way to do it, but i have no idea how to do it. the next chapter will come out on july 5th.

FADE IN. NOON. INT. DERYN is lying crumpled on her side with the sack still over her head with her hands tied behind her back and her feet bound. NEWKIRK, tied in the same fashion, is beginning to stir and he suddenly jerks out with his legs and kicks DERYN in the back. She jumps, just proving that she had been awake for quite some time, and lets out a muffled yelp.

NEWKIRK

Sharp? Sharp, are you awake?!

DERYN(her voice cracks)

Aye.

NEWKIRK(groans and rubs his head)

Where are we? What happened?

DERYN

In the back of the German's truck, you ninny. We got re-captured.

NEWKIRK

Are you alright, your voice sounds odd.

DERYN clears her throat and falls silent.

NEWKIRK(after a while)

Did you find the beast?

DERYN(making a point to keep her voice deep)

No…. (she pauses.) I guess you were right. It was a bad decision

to come back. Now we're just in as much of a pear-shaped mess

as we were before. Bovril's probably frozen to death out there by

now anyway. And I'm sorry.

NEWKIRK turns around the best he can, to see that DERYN's shoulders are shaking in a silent cry. He awkwardly scoots closer to DERYN

NEWKIRK (more to himself than to DERYN)

It'll be okay, we'll get out of this.

CUT TO ALEK. He is following to tire tracks down the snow covered mountain road. The dragon is walking patiently beside him

ALEK (thinking out loud)

I wonder why they don't have a walker.

The dragon looks quizzically at him.

ALEK

I mean, they are Clankers after all. And yet they drive a regular

military truck… (He falls into a thoughtful silence)

You should have a name, I think. Deryn wouldn't approve,

But I feel weird not having anything to call you. Just temporary,

you know, until we can get you delivered to the troops. ….

I rather like Draco. (the dragon looks quizzically at him again)

It means dragon in Latin.

DRACO, looking satisfied with this, turns its head forward again. Then it stops and looks hard a certain part of the snow. ALEK glances were DRACO is looking and notices the snow moving. He runs up to it and digs out a very cold, very ticked off BOVRIL.

BOVRIL

Alek. Alive.

ALEK

Yes Bov. I'm alive. Why would I not be?

BOVRIL crawls his way up ALEK's arm and slides into the front of his coat, and murmurs nonsensical whispers into ALEK's chest. ALEK chuckles at that and gets up from his couch. He catches small words of what BOVRIL is saying from the nonsense.

BOVRIL

Avalanche. Deryn Sharp… thinks you're dead

ALEK(shocked at this discovery, after a moment of stunned silence )

Well then. We'll have to show her I'm not dead just yet.

(he smiles when BOVRIL pokes his head out of his jacket front)

Do you know where we can acquire a walker?

BOVRIL giggles

CUT TO sunset ALEK sneaks into a seemingly empty Clanker camp. He spies an empty walker standing next to what seems to be the superior officer's tent. There is a German flag flying at the top. BOVRIL pokes his head out of ALEK'S jacket. ALEK pauses to listen for any sound that might indicate that there are soldiers nearby. Silence. He keeps moving.

ALEK(whispering)

Where do you suppose the soldiers are?

BOVRIL

Not here.

ALEK gives BOVRIL a look and BOVRIL responds with a snicker. ALEK takes a closer look at the walker that he is about to steal.

ALEK

Well, it's simpler that the one's in Istanbul. Still I'm a bit rusty.

I wonder if they have some sort of security system. (He looks at

BOVRIL expectantly. The loris shows no signs of noticing any kind

danger) or the just leave their war machinery unattended so

ex-princes can steal it.

ALEK climbs up the leg of the kneeling walker and opens the hatch. He clumsily clambers inside and then whistles for DRACO, who has been waiting in the trees. The dragon romps out of the cover of the forest, trips on a tent string and brings the tent down on top of it. The contents of this tent, which happened to be the cooking area, clattered as they fell. As it turned out, the camp wasn't as empty as ALEK hoped it would be. The noise woke a sleeping sentry, who came fairly quickly to see what had caused the ruckus. But by the time the soldier made it to the mangled heap of what used to be the kitchen, ALEK,BOVRIL and the very clumsy DRACO were long gone in there stolen walker. FADE OUT.

i tried to get all the typos... but knowing me, i probably missed a lot of them. thanks for reading anyway.