Forthing

Character Profile

Name:	Forthing
Date of Birth:
Service:	Aerial Corps
Rank:	Lieutenant
Nationality:	British
Billets:	New South Wales covert, lieutenant on Temeraire

Biography

Forthing was abandoned as a child in the dockyards of Dover. He crept into the covert at night to sleep by the warm dragons, and thus was taken in by the Aeral Corps. He was said to have fought bravely at the Battle of Shoeburyness.

Lt. Forthing was one of the Aerial Corps officers sent with the three eggs to Sydney, New South Wales. He was in favor of William Laurence going to hard labor when they arrived, but Temeraire and John Granby shot down the idea. Temeraire had also overheard him and his fellows talking of drawing lots to see who should get a shot at being captain to the eggs, which Temeraire did not approve of in the least.

Laurence was willing to forgive these sins and suggested he captain one of the eggs, rather than Jeremy Rankin. But the egg hatched before Laurence and Temeraire could take it away, and the dragonet, Caesar preferred the rich Rankin to poor Forthing.

John Granby also had a good opinion of Forthing. Of the aviators sent to New South Wales, he believed Forthing alone was competent, and suggested him for Temeraire's crew, and when Laurence explained that Temeraire did not like him, Granby thought it was all the better for Forthing to make it up to Temeraire. While Temeraire tended to think Forthing spent too much time with the eggs, once one was stolen he pleased Temeraire by rigging a more secure harness, which attached to Temeraire himself, for the second egg.

Still, by the end of their journey, Temeraire had not quite reconciled himself to Forthing and still missed Ferris.