Fornax Rising

By Nicole Ross

Life in the early twentieth century isn’t easy for women, especially if that woman is an outspoken, intelligent, headstrong, augmented amputee with prosthetic technology that is the envy of armies. Enter Cassandra Leigh Fornax.

Daughter of the shipping magnate John Fornax, Cassandra has had a harder life than most young people of her social standing. After a tragic childhood accident leaves her an amputee, Cassandra’s uncle and engineer, Philip Fornax, builds her a revolutionary prosthesis which replaces the hand she lost. As Cassandra begins to make her own decisions about her future, she finds that her domineering father intends her to live a radically different life. She emancipates herself loudly and publicly at her eighteenth birthday party, scandalising her parents and putting paid to her father’s scheme. When Philip receives an offer to work in an airship factory in Germany, Cassandra follows him so she can put some distance between herself and her father. As the threat of war looms over Europe, the German army has the talented engineer’s most advanced creation firmly in its sights. Cassandra had hoped to leave her troubles behind when she left Britain, but finds they have just begun.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nicole Ross
• Release date: Jun 5, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458064394

Nicole Ross

Nicole Ross lives in Canberra, Australia with her husband and their pets. She is a translator, mature-age student, bibliophile, Trekkie, podcaster, atheist, and a future laboratory technician. She has a website at clfornax.com. "Fornax Rising" is her first novel.

Book preview

Fornax Rising

Nicole Ross

Cover by Aimee Stewart

Smashwords Edition

Fornax Rising

Copyright © 2011 Nicole Ross

ISBN-13: 978-1-4580-6439-4

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For Luke, who challenged me to dream again.

I love you.

I rose from off of the doctor’s slab

Like Lazarus from the pit

Now everyone wants to take a stab

And decorate me

With blood, graffiti and spit

Enemies and adversaries

They try to tear me down

You want me, baby, I dare you

Try and tear me down

Stephen Trask

Freiheit, Freiheit

ist das einzige was zählt

Marius Müller-Westernhagen

One

5 July 1908

Rio de Janeiro

Children! Come and look at this! The voice of Philip Fornax carried through the early morning breeze, mingling with the chattering of monkeys and bird song. Twelve year-old Cassandra bounded out of bed first and made a beeline for the door of the stately Spanish colonial house, which looked oddly out of place at the edge of the rainforest. She was followed by her older sister Christine, and her younger brother Michael. Uncle Phil always found the most interesting things, and he was Cassie’s favourite (and indeed, only) uncle, so naturally she wanted to see what he had found. Uncle Phil was dressed in a loose-fitting white linen shirt and light brown pants and the early morning sunlight danced on his dark blonde hair. He stood by the tree line with Miguel Gutierrez, a good friend and business partner of her father and uncle. A slender, bright green snake with a dappled white pattern across its back, no more than a metre long, wound along his arm. Cassie ran ahead and launched herself into her uncle’s arms before turning her attention to the reptile.

This is a green tree boa. You can find them all through the jungle here in Brazil, explained Miguel. This is a young one. Would you like to hold it?

Cassie was intrigued by this unusual animal. She had seen pictures of snakes, but this was her first time to see one in the flesh. Eagerly, she reached out her hands and said, Yes, please!

Miguel guided the snake’s head towards her outstretched hands. It hesitated, its forked tongue flickering, before it cautiously moved towards Cassie and slowly slithered towards her elbow.

Christine and Michael had caught up by this time. When Christine realised what was climbing on her younger sister, she shrieked and ran back into Miguel’s house – no doubt to let her parents know that dear old Uncle Phil was allowing Cassie to play with a dangerous animal. Michael was as fascinated as Cassie, and reached out to gently stroke the snake’s back.

Miguel allowed the children to hold and pet the snake for a few more minutes, then said, That’s enough, now. We’ll let the snake go so it can find its breakfast.

Michael exclaimed, Yes! Breakfast time! I’m hungry! and sprinted back inside.

Cassie was loath to leave her new friend behind, and promised herself to come back later. After a leisurely breakfast of exotic fruits, she ran back to the edge of the jungle to marvel at the animals and flowers, and to look for the little green snake. Eventually, she heard a soft rustle at her feet. Sure enough, a small, thick-bodied green snake was winding its way over the leaf litter. Feeling a rush of excitement, she reached out her left hand to pick up the snake. What Cassie had failed to realise in her youthful ignorance was that not all animals are docile, and that a great many snakes are venomous. The stout little viper, startled by being picked up, rapidly twisted its body to face Cassie, and plunged its fangs into her forearm. The sting of a hundred needles pierced her skin, causing her to drop the snake, which turned and escaped into the leaf litter at her feet. She was too stunned to make a sound, even as a burning sensation spread across her skin and seemingly, to her very bones. She heard shouts and saw the outlines of her parents John and Julia, her siblings, Uncle Phil and Miguel sprinting towards her, before everything turned black before her eyes and her legs gave way.

***

11 July 1908

Rio de Janeiro

Cassie was awoken by the sunrise, after what felt like a days-long sleep. She sat upright and looked around, trying to remind herself of where she was. She found she was in one of the bright, airy guest rooms in Miguel’s home, which she shared with her brother and sister during their stay. Cassie raised her arms and moved to rub her tired eyes. A dull ache in her left arm stopped her, and she paused to rub the sore spot. Where her entire forearm should have been, she felt a rounded stump which was covered in bandages. At this odd sensation, she opened her eyes to inspect her arm. Her hand and part of her forearm were missing, and she screamed at the sight. She had not noticed her mother sleeping in the arm chair beside her bed. Julia was instantly roused by the sound of her daughter’s dismay, sat beside her and held her, and let her cry away her pain and shock. John and Uncle Phil had entered the room as Julia held her distraught girl.

None of them knew how much time had passed until Cassie was calm enough to ask, What happened to my hand, Mother?

The adults looked at each other in apprehension. John cleared his throat, moved across the room to Cassie’s bed, sat beside his daughter and across from Julia, and began to explain.

Do you remember the green snake that you picked up? It didn’t like being picked up, and bit you because it was scared and tried to defend itself. Well, the snake’s bite is venomous and its poison damaged your hand. The doctor had no choice but to cut it off, or the venom would have killed you.

Cassie looked stunned, her sleep-befuddled mind trying to make sense of what her father had just told her. Though part of her realised it was impossible, she asked despite herself, Will my hand grow back?

John sighed deeply, anguish wearing deep lines into his face as he replied, I’m sorry, darling, but I’m afraid that hands don’t grow back.

Cassie dissolved into tears again. Julia held her and continued, The most important thing is that you’re alive, my dear Cassie. You were very lucky.

Uncle Phil piped up, Maybe there is something we can do. I have an idea.

This lifted Cassie’s melancholy a little. Uncle Phil was always designing new contraptions, which never failed to pique her curiosity. Perhaps he could invent something to help her? She looked at him through her large, teary, green eyes and waited for him to share his idea. Uncle Phil sat beside John and unrolled the paper he had been holding. Julia took hold of the opposite edge to help keep it flat. The poster revealed drawings of a mechanical hand and part of a forearm. The fingers featured movable joints, and the interior of the prosthesis contained wires, springs and spools to open and close the metal fingers. The point at which the prosthesis joined the wearer’s arm was outfitted with leather belts to attach to Cassie’s arm and shoulder, and the end of the prosthetic arm contained a series of rubber pads, which were connected to a network of wires that ran the length of the prosthesis. Uncle Phil hoped that these could detect the nerve impulses in his niece’s arm, and permit her effective control the prosthetic hand.

I can build you a new hand, Cassie. It won’t be the same as the hand you lost. I have designed a mechanical hand for you to wear and I think it can go some way toward replacing your original hand. Cassie smiled at the thought of having a new hand, built by her favourite uncle, but she was anxious all the same.

Will I be able to use it just like my old hand, Uncle Phil?

Uncle Phil’s brows knitted as he replied, I don’t know, Cassie. I’ve never built a new body part before. But I swear to you that I will do the best I can.

Uncle Phil’s reassuring words were a comfort. Cassie knew him to be capable and resourceful. He would find a way as he had so many times before, and she would be all right.

***

16 July 1908

Somewhere on the Atlantic Ocean

After Cassie’s doctor was satisfied that her condition was stable, the cargo hold of the Fornax Clipper was loaded with bags of coffee and cocoa beans, and a generous amount of coal to power the furnace for the journey home to Dover. The family’s shipping business had gained the upper hand in importing foreign goods to England thanks to engineering ingenuity. Together with their father and company founder, Irving Fornax, Phil had designed and built a series of high-pressure steam engines which powered an array of propellers, enabling the family’s ships to journey from England to South America or Australasia and back within a week, where other cargo ships of the day could take up to eight weeks. The furnace refilled itself, so no unfortunates needed to stay in the oppressive heat of the engine room to feed the fire. The Fornax family ships were rightly described as wooden bodies with hearts of steel. Moreover, Phil had recently had a diesel engine installed aboard the Clipper and had been conducting test runs of that promising new fuel type.

The family was able to supply the English market with the freshest products from the New World, bringing them success and renown. This was not Cassie’s first trip on one of her family’s ships, as her father liked to take everyone on a summer holiday in a different corner of the world every summer. Cassie spent her days alone on the ship’s deck, reading one of the novels she’d brought along, dreaming as she gazed out at the horizon with the wind whipping through her hair. She had mixed feelings about returning home. None of her friends had ever lost a part of themselves. How would they treat her when they found out about her accident? She tried not to think about it.

One night, she woke up and stumbled towards the galley in search of a glass of water. Passing the ship’s drawing room, she noticed that the room was candle-lit and the door slightly ajar. Her parents and Uncle Phil sat together, talking in hushed tones.

What are we going to do about Cassie, John? She heard her mother ask in a cracked voice.

We look ahead, Julia. We can do no more than that, replied John, as practical and business-like in a crisis as ever. Uncle Phil nodded in agreement.

Julia snapped back, You know very well what I mean, John! Who will play with Cassie? Who will be her friend? Who will marry her when she is grown?

Julia, we know it will not be easy on Cassie. Nobody else in Dover has the same kind of infirmity, and children can be such cruel little beasts. Even so, life must go on for her, and the tribulations she will face will make her a stronger person, Phil tried to reason.

But what about marriage and family, Philip? Is Cassie going to be an old maid who will always be with John and I? Julia cried.

Uncle Phil reminded her, Julia, I’m not married, nor do I have children. You, John and your children are my family. I know unmarried people are a rare breed in our society, but we do exist, and we also live lives of purpose and joy. Even if Cassie doesn’t marry or have a family of her own, it will still be possible for her to find happiness in other ways.

Julia nodded, but her face betrayed the fact that she remained unconvinced. She had found happiness in marrying John and a purpose in raising his children and managing his household, after all. Saddened by her mother’s pessimistic attitude, Cassie quickly and silently continued on her way, sated her thirst, and snuck back to her cabin, where she cried herself to sleep. She found no solace in her slumber. Her dreams were plagued by visions of monstrous serpents with fangs to match, which lunged at the terrified, cornered girl.

***

23 July 1908

Dover

When the Clipper arrived in Dover, it was business as usual for John, whose first priority was delivering the coffee and cocoa beans to his customers. John was in the habit of burying himself in work at the best of times, and now that he was facing one of the most traumatic things that would ever happen to his family, working was all he could do in order to cope. While Julia, Christine, Cassie and Michael settled back into the family estate on the Western Heights, Uncle Phil also showed that Fornax family characteristic, hiding himself in his modest house and workshop which adjoined the tall white family mansion on the meadows that gently sloped towards the white cliffs. Phil put aside his latest designs for engine improvements and expanding the use of diesel to other fleet ships, and set to work on building the prosthetic arm and hand he had designed for Cassie. The family only saw him at meal times, and then only fleetingly. Uncle Phil, being preoccupied with the task at hand, literally ate and ran. The dark circles under his eyes were testament to his dedication and diligence. Cassie spent most of her time with her sister, afraid of the reactions of her classmates if she sought them out. Christine, although she found recent events distressing, went to a lot of effort to cheer up