leviathan

Slayt: 1
Alek (Thought): "I am heir to an empire, but tonight I must flee in a war machine."
Count Volger: "I am heir to an empire, but tonight I must flee in a war machine."
Following the assassination of his parents, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Sophie, Prince Alek is snuck out of Prague at midnight by his tutors in a two-legged Cyklop Stormwalker.
Slayt: 2
Disguised as a boy to join the British Air Service, Deryn Sharp shows her incredible daring and natural skill high above the earth on the living Darwinist airship, the Leviathan.
Deryn (speech) "Hey, all you sods, I can fly and you can't! A natural airman, in case you haven't noticed" (Westerfeld 42).
Deryn (thought) "If anyone discovers my true identity as a girl, my dream of serving in the Air Service is over."
Slayt: 3
Alek: "If I promise to avoid funny business, could you perhaps remove this knife from my throat?" (Westerfeld 214).
Deryn: "Barking machines! I've never seen a beastie that couldn't get up on its own" (Westerfeld 218).
When the Leviathan crashes in neutral territory, political enemies, a runaway Clanker prince and a disguised Darwinist cadet are forced to unite to survive against common foes.