Behemoth l-2

by Scott Westerfeld

  The problem was how to get them there without being spotted.

  Alek and Dylan had tried their best to buy disguises at the Grand Bazaar, but the results hadn’t been entirely successful. Bauer looked too fancy, like one of the hotel doormen, and Klopp’s voluminous robes had turned him into a silken airship.

  “We don’t have to pass for Ottomans,” Alek said. “We’re just going through the lobby and into a taxi, then straight to the warehouse. Hardly anyone will see us.”

  “Then why aren’t you dressed like a Hapsburg prince, young master?” Klopp pulled the fez from his head. “Seeing as how these anarchists already know your name.”

  “They’re not anarchists,” Alek said for the hundredth time. “Anarchists want to destroy all government. The Committee just wants to replace the sultan with an elected parliament.”

  “It’s all the same nasty business,” Klopp said, shaking his head. “Murdering one’s masters. Have you forgotten those Serb boys throwing bombs at your parents?”

  Alek bridled at Klopp’s impertinence, but kept his anger in check. The old man had a dim view of revolutions in general, and Lilit’s chatter about women’s equality had hardly helped.

  But meeting Zaven and the iron golems would put Klopp at ease. Nothing brought a smile to his face like the sight of a new walker.

  “The Germans were behind that attack, Master Klopp. And allying with the Committee is our only way to strike back at them.”

  “I suppose you’re right, young master.”

  “Indeed,” Alek said simply. He looked at Bauer, who promptly nodded his head.

  Dylan, however, was proving more difficult to convince. He’d taken an instant dislike to Lilit, and refused to tell Alek anything about his mission in Istanbul, saying only that it was too secret to share with “a bunch of daft anarchists.”

  Still, it was enough that Dylan was here in Istanbul, ready to help. Something about the boy’s brisk confidence made Alek remember that providence was on his side.

  “We have to bring the beastie,” Dylan said in English, pulling on a silk jacket. His clothes fit perfectly—he’d spent an hour alone with the tailor getting them just right. “Dr. Barlow says it can be quite useful.”

  “But all it does is babble,” Alek said, pulling his most important cargo—a small, heavy satchel—onto his shoulder. “Did she explain exactly how it’s meant to help?”

  Dylan opened the birdcage, and Bovril scampered over and jumped inside. “Only that we should listen to it. Because it’s quite … perspicacious.”

  Alek frowned. “I’m afraid that word is beyond my English.”

  “Aye. It’s beyond mine, too.” Dylan reached into the birdcage and scratched the creature’s chin. “But you’re a cute wee beastie, aren’t you?”

  “Perspicacious,” the creature said.

  When Klopp was finally ready, Alek used the switchboard to call for a steam elevator. A few minutes later the four of them were downstairs and headed across the lobby.

  The hotel was bustling, and no one stared at their clothes or asked why they were carrying toolboxes. Alek dropped the key off at the desk, and the doorman saluted smartly as he led them all outside. One thing could be said for Istanbul, people minded their own business here.

  Several of the city’s scarab beetle taxis were waiting, and Alek chose the largest. It had two ranks of passenger seats, the rearmost big enough for Klopp’s ample frame. Alek climbed into the front rank with Deryn, then handed the pilot some coins and told him the name of Zaven’s neighborhood.

  The man gave him a nod, and then they were off.

  Above the noises of the street, Alek heard a rumbling from the birdcage. It was Bovril imitating the walker’s engine. He leaned down to shush the beast, then slipped the small, heavy satchel under the seat.

  “A lot of soldiers about,” Bauer said. “Is it always this way?”

  Alek looked up, frowning. The walker was striding down a wide avenue lined with tall trees. Ottoman soldiers stood on either side, forming themselves into double ranks. Most were in dress uniforms.

  “I’ve never seen this many,” he said. “Perhaps it’s a parade.”

  The taxi was slowing now, the traffic growing heavier. Ahead of them a cargo walker in the shape of a water buffalo began to belch black smoke, and Klopp made a rude comment about poor maintenance. Hot steam clouds billowed from the surrounding engines, until the four of them were all tugging at their new clothes.

  “Sir,” Bauer said softly, “something’s going on up there.”

  Alek peered through the water buffalo’s exhaust. A hundred meters ahead a squad of soldiers was stopping every vehicle that passed.

  “A checkpoint,” Alek said.

  “Foreigners are meant to carry passports in this country,” Klopp said softly.

  “Should we get out and walk?” Alek said.

  Klopp shook his head. “That’ll just make them curious. We’re carrying these toolboxes … and a birdcage, for heaven’s sake.”

  “Right,” Alek sighed. “Well, then, we’re tourists who’ve left our passports at our hotel. And if that doesn’t work, we can bribe them.”

  “And if bribery doesn’t work?” Klopp asked.

  Alek frowned. They were carrying too much to run, and there were too many soldiers here to start a fight.

  “Let me guess,” Dylan said in English. “You’re thinking about bribing them. They’ll refuse. No soldier takes a bribe with so many captains about.”

  Alek swore softly. It was true—officers with tall plumed hats were everywhere.

  “Can’t you pilot this contraption?” Dylan asked.

  Alek peered over the pilot’s shoulder at the strange controls. “With six legs? Not me, but Klopp can handle anything.”

  Dylan gave him a grin. “Enough with your blether, then. When it comes time, I’ll give the pilot a heave, and you and Bauer shove Master Klopp in front of the saunters!”

  “I suppose that sounds simple enough,” Alek said.

  But of course it wasn’t simple at all.

  The next five minutes were quite excruciating. The line oozed along like heavy engine oil, while Klopp listed every conceivable disaster under his breath. But finally the belching water buffalo ahead of them passed the checkpoint, and the taxi strode into place.

  A soldier stepped forward and gave them all a long, puzzled look. He held his hand out, saying something in Turkish.

  “I’m sorry,” Alek said, “but we don’t speak your language.”

  The man offered a polite bow, and said in excellent German, “Passports, then, please.”

  “Ah.” Alek made a show of checking his pockets. “I seem to have forgotten mine.”

  Klopp and Bauer followed suit, patting their silk robes and frowning.

  The soldier raised an eyebrow, then turned to his squad and lifted a hand in the air.

  “Oh, blisters!” Dylan cried, grabbing the startled pilot under his armpits and lifting him up. “Do it now!”

  As Dylan dropped the man over the side of the taxi, Alek helped Bauer shove Klopp toward the front seat. He felt as heavy as a hogshead of wine, but a moment later he was sitting at the controls, his hands gripping the saunters.

  The taxi reared up like a stallion on its four hind legs, scattering the guards around them. Then it bolted forward, sparks flying from its metal feet. Past the crowded checkpoint the avenue was clear, and soon Klopp had the machine at full gallop.

  The soldiers cried out, unshouldering their rifles, and soon gunshots echoed around the taxi. Alek ducked, feeling as though his teeth were being shaken from his head. Dylan’s arms were wrapped around Klopp’s waist to keep them both from flying out of the taxi. Bauer had his hands on the toolboxes, and Alek reached down to secure the small satchel on the floor.

  The only sound from the birdcage was Bovril’s maniacal laughter.

  “Hold on tight!” Klopp shouted, and leaned the taxi into a tight turn. Its six insectlike feet skidded along the
cobblestones, making a sound like sabers dragged along a brick wall.

  Alek stuck his head up. This side street was narrower, and pedestrians were scattering as the taxi’s beetle jaws hurtled toward them.

  “Don’t kill anyone, Klopp!” he shouted, just as the machine’s right foreleg clipped a stack of barrels. One barrel split as the stack tumbled, and the sharp scent of vinegar sprayed into the air. At the next turn the taxi began to skid again, threatening to slide sideways through the large windows of a butcher shop, but Klopp wrestled it back under control.

  “Where am I going?” he cried.

  Alek pulled Zaven’s hand-drawn map from his pocket, and made a rough calculation. “Head left when you can, and slow down. No one’s behind us yet.”

  Klopp nodded, and brought the machine down into a six-legged canter. The next street was lined with mechanical parts shops and crowded with cargo walkers. No one looked twice at the taxi.

  “I don’t know how you can stand these daft contraptions,” Dylan said, sitting up straight in his seat. “They’re pure murder when they go fast!”

  “Wasn’t this your idea?” Alek asked.

  “It worked, didn’t it?”

  “For the moment. They’ll be after us soon enough.”

  The taxi made its way deeper into the industrial part of town, with Klopp following Alek’s guesses. The markings of the Committee’s mix of languages soon filled the walls. But streets signs were rare here, and nothing matched the few avenues labeled on Zaven’s map.

  “This is all quite familiar,” Alek said to Klopp. “We’re close.”

  “That might be a problem, sir,” Bauer said. “Didn’t you tell the cabbie where we were headed?”

  “I told him what neighborhood.”

  “The Ottomans must have questioned him by now. They’ll be here soon.”

  “You’re right, Hans. We have to hurry.” Alek turned to Klopp. “Zaven’s warehouse has a view of the whole city. We should be able to see it from higher ground.”

  Klopp nodded, turning whenever a road led upward. Finally the taxi eased to a halt at the crest of a hill, and Alek saw the cluster of warehouses, with Zaven’s apartments nestled on top.

  “That’s it! Maybe half a kilometer!”

  “Do you hear that sound?” Dylan asked.

  Alek listened. Even with the taxi idling, it was there—a buzzing at the edge of his awareness. He looked around, but there was nothing in sight except cargo walkers and a clockwork messenger cart.

  “It’s not down here,” Dylan said quietly, staring at the sky.

  Alek looked up and saw it.…

  A gyrothopter hovering directly overhead.

  THIRTY-TWO

  “Find cover!” Alek cried.

  Klopp urged the taxi forward again, rounding a corner into a narrow alley.

  Stone walls loomed over them, the sky hardly wider than a sliver. The gyrothopter darted in and out of view. But however the alley twisted and turned, the machine’s buzzing echoed in Alek’s ears.

  He noticed that the streets had cleared—the people knew that a military operation was on, and were anxious to get out of the way. Only a few dogs were left to scamper out of the taxi’s path.

  A light sparkled overhead, followed by a crackling sound.

  “Fireworks!” Dylan cried. “The gyropilot’s signaling that he’s found us!”

  Alek heard the shriek of whistles dead ahead.

  “Klopp! Slow down!”

  As it rounded the next corner, the taxi skidded to a halt, too late. A squad of soldiers waited, their rifles ready. Klopp pulled the saunters back as they fired, and the taxi reared up again. Alek heard the ping of bullets ricocheting from the machine’s underside.

  Klopp wheeled the taxi around with its forelegs still in the air, and bolted back the way they’d come. Another volley of shots followed, dust spitting from the stone walls on either side.

  The taxi careened around a corner, but gears were grinding beneath the floorboards, and the smell of burning metal filled the air.

  “Our engine’s been hit!” Bauer cried.

  “I know a trick for that,” Klopp said calmly.

  He turned them aside into a small plaza with an old stone fountain, and walked the machine straight into the water. Hissing clouds of steam rose up around them as the tortured metal cooled.

  “She won’t go much farther,” Klopp said.

  “We’re almost there.” As Alek stared at his map, he noticed a rumbling sound coming from the birdcage. What in blazes was the beast imitating now?

  Then he heard it above the hiss of boiling water.

  “A walker’s coming.” Dylan pointed ahead. “From that way, dead fast.”

  “It sounds big. We’ll have to turn back and face the soldiers.”

  “Not if we take those,” Dylan said, pointing at a stone staircase that led down from the plaza.

  Alek shook his head. “Too steep.”

  “What’s the point of legs if you can’t take the barking stairs? Just get moving!”

  In English or not, Klopp could tell what they were talking about—he was also staring down the steps. He looked at Alek, who nodded. The old man sighed, then grasped the saunters again.

  “Hold on, everyone!” Alek shouted, planting one boot on the satchel at his feet.

  The machine tipped slowly forward, then slid, its hooves rattling like a rock drill as they skidded down the steps. Stone dust flew as the taxi bounced back and forth, battering the ancient walls. Klopp somehow kept the machine from tipping over, and at last it reached the bottom, sliding onto level pavement.

  Alek heard a crack and looked up. Soldiers were taking positions in the plaza above, their rifle muzzles flaring. A two-legged walker strode into view.

  Alek blinked—it had Ottoman markings, but it was a German design, not like an animal in any way.

  “Get down!” he cried. “And keep going, Klopp!”

  The taxi ground back into motion, its gears whining with every step. As it rounded the next corner, Alek dared to glance back up. Soldiers were streaming down the stairs, but the walker had come to a halt, its crew unwilling to dare the stairway on two legs.

  Alek checked the map again. “We’re almost there, Klopp. That way!”

  The taxi was limping now, one of its middle legs flailing. But it managed to drag itself onto Zaven’s street, staggering sideways like a drunken crab.

  Lilit and her father had heard the commotion, of course—they were waiting with the warehouse door wide open.

  “Go fast, Klopp!” Dylan shouted in crude German. “The gyrothopter!”

  Alek looked up. He couldn’t see the gyrothopter, but its buzzing sound was building in the air. They had to disappear now.

  The taxi took another step toward the open warehouse door, then sputtered and died. Klopp whirled the starting crank, but the engine only hissed and spat like a fresh log tossed onto a fire.

  “Barking stupid contraptions!” Dylan cried.

  “Lilit, if you please?” Zaven said calmly, and she leapt to the controls of the mechanikal arm on the loading dock. It rumbled to life and reached out to slide the taxi through the warehouse door.

  The door rolled closed behind them, and Zaven stepped inside just as the last view of the street disappeared, plunging them all into darkness.

  Alek reached down and checked the satchel at his feet—it was still there.

  A moment later an electrikal light switched on.

  “A most dramatic entrance,” Zaven said, his smile gleaming.

  “But won’t someone tell them?” Alek panted, looking at the crack of sunlight beneath the door.

  “Fah! Not to worry,” Zaven said. “Our neighbors are all friends. They have ignored greater disturbances than this.” He offered a deep bow. “Greetings, Masters Klopp, Bauer, and Sharp. I welcome you all to the Committee for Union and Progress!”

  The Committee’s walkers towered over them like five huge misshapen statues.

  “
What an odd collection,” Bauer said. “Never seen any of these before.”

  “A few of those fought in the First Balkan War,” Klopp said, pointing at the Minotaur. “They were a bit old-fashioned even then.”

  “War,” said Bovril, staring up from Alek’s shoulder.

  Alek frowned. The first time he’d seen the walkers, he’d assumed the dents in their armor were from training battles. But with the noon sun flooding the vast courtyard, there was no denying it—these machines were ancient.

  “You can fix them up, can’t you?” he asked.

  “Perhaps,” Klopp said.

  “Fah! We shall fix them together!” Zaven proclaimed. He was already treating Klopp like a long-lost brother. “You may have modern knowledge, sir, but our mechaniks have those skills that can only be passed from father to son—and to daughter, of course!”

  “These machines are like family to us,” Lilit said.

  Klopp set down his toolbox. “Hmm … grandparents, I suppose.”

  No one laughed at this joke except Bovril, who climbed down and scampered across the courtyard to inspect the giant steel hooves of the Minotaur.

  Dylan had been standing silently since they’d arrived, his arms folded. But now he spoke in halting German. “How many are there?”

  “How many pledged to the revolution?” Zaven rubbed his hands together happily. “We have a half dozen in every ghetto in this city. Almost fifty in all; enough to sweep away the sultan’s metal elephants. We could have done so six years ago, but we were not united then.”

  “And now, sir?” Bauer asked.

  “Like a fist!” Zaven said, demonstrating with both hands. “Even the Young Turks have rejoined us, thanks to all the Germans marching about.”

  “And thanks to the Spider, too, of course,” Lilit said.

  Alek looked at her. “The Spider?”

  “Shall we show them?” Lilit asked, but didn’t wait for her father to answer. She ran to a large metal door in the courtyard wall, and jumped up to grab a chain hanging beside it. As she climbed it, her weight drew the chain down, and the door began to slide grudgingly upward.

  A huge machine stood in the shadows.