The Jackal's House
Page 35
(iii) autohansom: a cab, plying the streets of Londinium for hire.
Bandolier—ammunition belt, worn over the shoulder, having loops or pockets for cartridges.
Birefringence—formally defined as the double refraction of light in a transparent, molecularly ordered material. In the world of Lancaster’s Luck, this double refraction allows aether rays to pass through hemimorphite crystals (a mineral whose doubly terminated crystals have two differently shaped ends) and fracture into two linear rays, creating an electromagnetic field. Used primarily in security fences—a breach of the field triggers an electric impulse to power alarms or deliver a shock to an intruder that causes neural disruption.
Brimstone—a flashlight.
Britannic Aero Carriers—the national aeroline (airline) carrying both goods and passengers.
Britannic Imperium—the empire comprising the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom: Canada, India/Pakistan/Burma, Australia, and a wide strip of Africa from Cairo to the Cape. The largest empire in history, on which the sun never sets.
Brunel—the engineering and technology company founded by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806–1859). One of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution, Brunel was the inventive, creative brain behind much of the aether-powered technology upon which the Imperium built its power and influence. Brunel was the first to harness aether to power machines, and can be considered the founding father of modern society. His work was carried on by his sons after his premature death.
Brunel Sky King—a large aeroship designed and built by Henry Marc Brunel (1842–1903), Isambard’s second son who carried on his father’s inventive approach to mechanical engineering. The Sky King, built for private clients, is a large, unarmed aircraft powered by aether/phlogiston/petroleum distillate engines. It can carry thirty passengers with ease, and is fitted with a small, two-seater aerocraft.
Cadet—
(i) a student at a military school who is training to be an officer.
(ii) a younger son or brother.
Cadet Branch—of the Imperium’s oligarchic Houses, a subsidiary branch descended from the younger sons of the patriarch/founder member.
Chronometer—clock or watch.
Cigarillo—a thin cigar.
Cold fusion—a hypothetical type of nuclear reaction that would occur at, or near, room temperature. In the world of Lancaster’s Luck, cold-fusion components power artifacts as diverse as a slow-drip coffee machine and Rafe’s small hideaway gun.
Convocation House—one of the eight ruling Houses of the oligarchic Britannic Imperium, ruled by the Queen or King. The Convocation Houses hold all political power and divide government departments between them, staffing them with their own House members and those of their allied Minor Houses. See Minor Houses.
Cowens Flash Box—an electric flash lamp igniting flash powder to produce a burst of intense light (photographer’s flash).
Crank—a device for transmitting rotary motion, consisting of a handle or arm attached at right angles to a shaft.
Cutpurse—pickpocket.
Datareader—a small, portable type of analytical engine (computer) used for storing and reading electronic texts of books and pamphlets.
Datascope—an analytical engine (computer) with a screen to access the data. May be portable or desk-sized.
Datascreen—device to read data on a datascope or analytical engine, consisting of a flat surface displaying text and/or images generated by tightly focused aether rays lighting up tiny receptors on the back of the screen.
Decoction—an extraction or essence of something, obtained by boiling it down.
Discharge—
(i) release of stored energy in a capacitor by the flow of current between its terminals.
(ii) conversion of chemical energy to electric energy in a storage battery.
(iii) a flow of electricity in a dielectric (an electrical insulator that can be polarized by an applied electric field), especially in a rarefied gas—in the Lancaster’s Luck world, the means by which phlogiston enhances an aether tube in a weapon.
(iv) elimination of net electric charge from a charged body.
Doxy—prostitute.
Emissarium—exhaust pipe.
Ether—see Aether. Also, an anesthetic.
First Heir—the eldest son of a House Princeps, who will inherit the title and influence when his father dies. A system of male primogeniture. Women may not be First Heirs and may not lead Houses.
Fléchette—a pointed steel projectile with a vaned tail for stable flight, the fléchette carries a warhead filled with a luminiferous aether/phlogiston mixture. Fired from laser-guided cannons.
Fusillade—a discharge from a number of firearms, fired simultaneously or in rapid succession. May also be used in a literary sense for any rapidly repeated noise, etc.
Gilt—a thin layer of gold or simulated gold applied to another material. Applied by gilding.
Harquebus—a long firearm, like a rifle, powered with a mix of aether and phlogiston. Capable of also firing a neural disruptor beam which, while unpleasant, is not fatal.
Havey-cavey—irregular, unsavory, possibly criminal.
Hermetic—completely sealed, especially against the escape or entry of air.
House—oligarchic political unit, based on familial bonds. See Convocation House, Minor House.
House Dress—formal clothing based heavily on British Court Dress, which has changed very little since the Regency. While ladies’ dresses are no longer the hooped and panniered gowns of the mid-eighteenth century, elaborate ball gowns, tiaras, and feathers are required at Court events. Gentlemen are expected to don military-style jackets heavy with goldwork embroidery, cream pantaloons, stockings, and court shoes, and also carry ornately decorative cavalry swords. For daywear, the embroidered jackets are less elaborate, and boots may be worn instead of stockings.
House Lineage Annals—a formal record maintained by the Lord Chancellor’s Office, outlining each House’s members, marriages, births, and deaths.
Humors—one of the basic principles of medieval medicine was that the human body is composed of four humors (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile). The balance between these four humors was essential for the well-being of a person.
Intelligencer—spy.
Ionic Exchange Ice Box—a refrigerator, powered by the exchange of negatively charged ions. See Ion Exchange.
Ion Exchange—exchange of ions between two electrolytes. The exchange leaches out heat, producing a form of refrigeration, hence the ionic exchange ice box.
Ionic Gas Discharge Lamps—fluorescent lamps.
Journeyman—one who has fully served an apprenticeship in a trade or craft and is a qualified worker in another’s employ.
Kinetoscope Camera—a visual recording camera used for surveillance and monitoring.
Laudanum—an opiate, freely available in an apothecary. Pain reliever. Addictive.
Lucifer—match with a sulfur head, used to strike a light.
Luminiferous—light-bearing.
Luminiferous Aether—in nineteenth century physics, a postulated medium that would propagate light (since disproved by quantum physics and relativity theories). In the world of Lancaster’s Luck, it is the fifth element, an energy source for machines, engines, and weapons of all kinds.
Marconi—device for communication through the air, a radio receiver.
Metropolis—city.
Minor House—one of the sixty-plus subsidiary Houses, allied to the eight Convocation Houses that rule the Britannic Imperium. The Minor Houses owe their wealth and position to their Convocation House ally and are dependent on the Convocation House for posts within the government that can provide careers and profit.
Neophyte—beginner, convert, learner.
Nobel’s Blasting Powder—dynamite.
Ocular—the eyepiece of an optical instrument, as of a telescope or microscope.
Pantech
nicon—
(i) a depository or place where all sorts of manufactured articles are collected for sale.
(ii) a van, especially a large removal van. Originally pantechnicon van.
Petroleum Distillate—petrol.
Philtre—a love potion. In The Gilded Scarab, Philtre Coffee is the fanciful, punning name of a chain of coffeehouses.
Phlogiston—a particle that determines the combustibility of materials. According to that theory, wood has a good amount of them, oil is saturated with them, and rocks have none. Phlogiston particles, when combined with luminiferous aether, enhance the energy output (discharge) of an engine or weapon.
Phlogiston Particle Projector—a machine or component that produces a plasma bolt, the essential component powering weapons, particularly harquebuses and pistols.
Photic—
(i) adj. of or relating to light.
(ii) adj. penetrated by or receiving light.
Photon Globe—lamp; either domestic or large-scale on posts in the streets.
Plasma—one of the four fundamental states of matter, the others being solid, liquid, and gas.
Plasma Bolt—a bolt, stream, or pulse of plasma (that is, very hot, very energetic “excited” matter) from an aether/phlogiston-powered pistol or harquebus.
Pneumatic—
(i) adj. of or relating to air or other gases.
(ii) adj. of or relating to pneumatics.
(iii) adj. powered by or filled with compressed air.
Princeps—(plural, Principes) leader and patriarch of a House, whose word is law to House members. Referred to and addressed by their House names, as with British titles. For example, the Gallowglass House Princeps is named Henry Winter but referred to as “the Gallowglass” and addressed as “Gallowglass.” Women may not be Principes.
Security Fence—a system of alarms and intruder detection based upon the controlled passage of luminiferous aether through hemimorphite crystals to cause birefringence. See Birefringence.
Security Net—a form of wireless internet used principally by House guards to store data. Not in general use.
Submersible—small naval submarine.
Tincture—alcohol solution of a nonvolatile medicine, e.g., tincture of iodine.
Transparent Aluminum—clear, strong metal used for see-through aeroship canopies and autocar windscreens.
Trevithick’s Catch Me Who Can—historically, one of the earliest locomotives, created by Richard Trevithick, an inventor and mining engineer, in 1808. In the Lancaster’s Luck universe, the name given to a fairground ride where drivers of small steam locomotives on a flat track try to “bump” other drivers out of the way—a precursor to later “dodgem” rides.
Vapor—steam.
Vaporius—steamy.
Vaporium—steam pipe.
Vulcanized Rubber—natural rubber or related polymer converted to a more durable material via the addition of sulfur or other equivalent curatives.
Water Closet—lavatory. A toilet.
Wireless Transmitter—a device for sending or broadcasting communications through the air. Communications are received by a radio (receiver) device. See Marconi.
Wireless Power Transmitter—device designed to deliver electrical current to distant devices through the air; e.g., a Tesla coil.
Wireless Telegraph—sends and receives communication through the air. Transmitter and receiver.
More from Anna Butler
Lancaster’s Luck: Book I
When Captain Rafe Lancaster is invalided out of the Britannic Imperium’s Aero Corps after crashing his aerofighter during the Second Boer War, his eyesight is damaged permanently, and his career as a fighter pilot is over. Returning to Londinium in late November 1899, he’s lost the skies he loved, has no place in a society ruled by an elite oligarchy of powerful Houses, and is hard up, homeless, and in desperate need of a new direction in life.
Everything changes when he buys a coffeehouse near the Britannic Imperium Museum in Bloomsbury, the haunt of Aegyptologists. For the first time in years, Rafe is free to be himself. In a city powered by luminiferous aether and phlogiston, and where powerful men use House assassins to target their rivals, Rafe must navigate dangerous politics, deal with a jealous and possessive ex-lover, learn to make the best coffee in Londinium, and fend off murder and kidnap attempts before he can find happiness with the man he loves.
Readers love The Gilded Scarab by Anna Butler
“The author created a world filled with danger, intrigue and society ‘Houses’ that pulled me along with her gripping, complicated and fast paced plot. I liked it… no I really enjoyed it, and found it vastly entertaining.”
—Literary Nymphs Reviews
“I give this superbly woven tale top marks and my highest recommendations to anyone who likes a slow-build M/M romance filled with suspense and intrigue, even if you’re not a fan of steampunk or historicals.”
—Long and Short Reviews
“This is steampunk at its best, a world lovingly crafted and vividly presented so that all the little nuances are instantly understandable…”
—Joyfully Jay
“Butler’s newest book is a marvelously creative alternative history that perfectly captures the spirit of exploration and derring-do that is at the heart of the best Victorian adventure novels…”
—RT Book Reviews
ANNA BUTLER was a communications specialist for many years, working in UK government departments on everything from marketing employment schemes to running an internal TV service. She now spends her time indulging her love of old-school science fiction where handsome heroes save the planet from alien invasion and get into passionate scrapes with equally handsome space pilots. Or good-looking Victorian Aegyptologists get entangled with gorgeous coffeehouse owners in a steampunk version of London.
Anna lives deep in the Nottinghamshire countryside, in the historic Dukeries, with her husband and the Deputy Editor, aka Molly the cockerpoo.
Contact Anna at annabutlerfiction@gmail.com
Website: www.annabutlerfiction.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/anna.butler.9822 and The Butler’s Pantry: www.facebook.com/groups/584417195037925
Twitter: @AnnaButlerFic
By Anna Butler
Contact Sport
LANCASTER’S LUCK
The Gilded Scarab
The Jackal’s House
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The Jackal’s House
© 2017 Anna Butler.
Cover Art
© 2017 Reese Dante.
http://www.reesedante.com
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
Map Art
© 2017 Margaret Warner
mwa2808@gmail.com
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
ISBN: 978-1-63533-943-7
Digital ISBN: 978-1-63533-944-4
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017912373
Published October 2017
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America