Elak of Atlantis is one of Sword & Sorcery’s great characters that did not receive the 1960s splendor that others got. I attribute this to two things: his creator was dead and there was no novels about the swordsman and his best pal. Otherwise: he would have been a contender.
Henry Kuttner (1915-1958) created Elak out of a love for the work of Robert E. Howard, the master who had killed himself in 1936. Weird Tales felt the loss of the man who wrote of Conan and Kull. Others like Clifford Ball tried to pen some new Sword & Sorcery but it was of a very inferior cloth. Kuttner’s Elak was the first true son of the Cimmerian. The influence of A. Merritt and h. P. Lovecraft also lurks in these stories.
“Thunder in the Dawn” originally appeared in Weird Tales, May 1938. This first novella, when combined with the last one “Dragon Moon”, forms a kind of short novel. the stories were collected for the first time in 1985 by Gryphon Books then in 2007 by Paizo Press.
Lycon is waiting for Elak in a tavern in Poseidonia. He notices two men, one bald and frog-like, the other suspicious and nervous, having a dyed beard and hair. Lycon picks a fight with the second man and almost gets killed. Elak shows up at the last second and deflects the killing stroke.
The man apologizes, then takes something from his shirt. It is a flying serpent that nearly kills Elak. The bald man jumps forward and burns the serpent with a spell. Elak slays the attacker but before he dies he says “Elf”, the name of the warlock who sent the assassin. The man is a disguised Viking.
The bald man leads them away to a deserted hut to talk. His name is Dalan and he is a powerful druid and worshipper of Mider. He reveals to Lycon that Elak, the wanderer, is actually Prince Zeulas, heir to the throne of Cyrena. Elak left the throne when he killed his step-father Norian in a fair fight. Orander, Elak’s younger brother became king. Now Elf has Orander captive and Vikings raid and pillage in Cyrena. Dalan wants Elak to come back and rally the chiefs and rescue Orander.
Elak agrees but first he must see a woman, Velia, the wife of Duke Granicor. Elak has been sleeping with her and wants to say good-by. He goes to her window but Granicor discovers them. Elak pulls Granicor over the balcony and flees with Velia from the manor house. They are pursued but meet up with Dalan and Lycon and disappear in the forest.
They go to the central lake near Poseidonia where Dalan has a ship. They sail the central river that will take them to Cyrena. Dalan’s crystal shows him that Granicor is in pursuit in his own ship. While Dalan’s sails are limp, Granicor’s are blessed with strong winds. Elf’s magic is working against them. Elak sees the face of Elf, who looks like a blond youth except for his eyes. Granicor’s ship catches them near Crenos Isle and during a pitched battle Elak falls overboard.
He wakes to find himself on a beach on Crenos isle. His hands are tied. He has been captured by a Pikht, one of hairless blue-skinned dwarfs who live on Crenos. Once they held the entire continent but humans have pushed them back to this one island. They are allies of Elf, as long as he provides victims for their ancient sacrifices. Elak is taken inside a cave-like fortress. He sees the forlorn victims of the Pikhts.
Elak is placed in a small stone cell with a water hole at one end. Inside the cell is another man who is a Viking traitor given to the Pikhts. He says his son Halgar has disappeared down the watery hole. The man dies from terror. Dalan locates Elak by magic and warns him not to stay in the cell. Elak can see a shadow in the water. Elak plunges into the water when a Pikht armed with a knife attacks him. They struggle and Elak kills the Pikht.
Elak finds himself no longer in the water but in a weird realm that Dalan calls Ragnorak, the place where gods go to die. The Shadow inhabits this world, attacking and devouring those caught there. Elak meets Solonala, the faun-girl. She reanimates the dead Pikht and feeds it to the Shadow, allowing them to flee. Solonala explains she is a powerful magical rival to Elf, who sent her there to die from her world. She tells Elak about all the worlds outside his own. Dalan tries to rescue Elak with magic but Elf’s harp stops him.
Finally the god Mider’s eight-fingered hand comes to pull Elak and Solonala out. Elf’s magic begins to stop them. Solonala throws herself into the Shadow, sacrificng herself so that Elak may win free. Lycon rescues Elak from the Pikhts.
They head north to Cyrena on foot. In the forest Granicor and his men attack their camp. During the fight Vikings, lead by Guthrum the chief of the invaders, captures Granicor and Elak. The Vikings crucify Granicor and are about to do the same to Elak. Dalan returns and uses lightning to kill the vikings. Elak insists on freeing Granicor from the tree he has been crucified on. They leave him to die. They go to Sharn where the chiefs are meeting. The individual leaders fight among themselves. The older chiefs join Elak. One young chief, named Halmer, openly defies Dalan and Mider, fearing Elf and the Vikings more. Dalan challenges him to walk away into the forest. He does and died horribly.
The rest of the chiefs join Elak. Elak leads his army against Elf. Lycon and Velia fight beside him as does Dalan. In the Valley of the Skulls, they cross the Monra River and fight the Vikings. The battle swings back and forth but in the end Elak makes the difference and the Cyrenians win. Elak and Dalan head for Elf’s castle. The druid gives Elak the one thing that can kill Elf, the dagger of sacrifice from the Druids. Granicor secretly follows them. Dalan melts the metal doors that guard the castle, then kills the gargoyle that comes to life and attacks Elak.
Once inside they must jump inside a magical bowl-shaped car and ride over a great chasm. Granicor hides. He sees Guthrum and his surviving men returning. Granicor attacks them as they try to get into a flying bowl-car. He shoves two into the void before fighting a desperate final battle.
In the end only Guthrum remains, his ax embedded in Granicor’s dying back. Granicor tackles him and they both plunge to their deaths in the void. Dalan and Elak go on and find Orander sitting in a room with an altar. Orander is entranced, staring into a large yellow gem. Elf pulls Elak away magically and shows him that Orander is now the god of an entire universe inside the gem. The inhabitants are winged sphinxes.
Elf tries to convince Elak that Orander is much happier now and that Dalan has deceived him. Dalan’s voice convinces him that if he frees Orander the truth will come out. Elak breaks the gem and frees Orander, who is grateful. Elf attacks Elak but Elak stabs him with the enchanted dagger that Dalan gave him. Orander is restored to his throne and Elak, Lycon and Velia ride on for more adventures.
The longest of the Elak tales and probably the most important piece of Sword & Sorcery after “The Shadow Kingdom” and “Queen of the Black Coast” by Robert E. Howard. Kuttner was able to mold the clay of Conan as well as Jirel of Joiry and create what modern S&S would look like. Was there a flood after him? No, but in the 1960s his work would be influential despite Elak never getting a paperback collection until 2004. One Howardism that seems a little undigested to me is the Pikhts, who are based on Howard’s Picts.
“Spawn of Dagon” originally appeared in Weird Tales, July 1938.
Elak and Lycon are thieving and drinking in San-Mu. The city guard almost catch them except a mysterious figure rescues them, and takes them into a dark, secret tunnel. The mystery man is named Gesti and he offers Elak a job, to enter the tower of the wizard Zend, to destroy a magical gem he has there and kill the wizard. Elak leaves his drunken friend and goes into the tower through a secret door in the floor.
He sneaks about before he hears footsteps. He escapes capture by climbing up into the shadowy ceiling. From there he sees the dwarf Zend and his undead servant carrying a beautiful young woman into his inner sanctum. Elak opens the secret door after them, enters and finds different rooms separated by curtains. In one of them is the ruby gem he has been sent to destroy.
While doing this, he is discovered by the undead servant. Elak fights him though his sword can not really hurt him. Elak destroys the zombie by tripping it out a high window. Soon after the tower is invaded by a race of squidgy creatures, the Children of Dagon, lead by Gesti. Their squidgy bodies are immune to weapons and Elak and Zend are tied up. Gesti removes his mask, revealing he too is a Child of Dagon. He explains that his race wishes to destroy all humankind and take back the world. Elak, Zend and the unconscious girl, Coryllis, are to be used as blood sacrifices.
Left alone, Zend tries to untie Elak’s bonds. While he is doing this he explains more about the evils of the Children of Dagon, how they have sunk many continents and would do the same to Atlantis with their blood. The ruby gem had held them at bay for its extraterrestrial rays are deadly to the Dagonites. Lycon wakes from his drunk and shows up to free them. Zend is sent to fix the gem while Lycon and Elak hold off the invaders. The battle is not going well when a wave of red illumination destroys the Dagonites, turning them into grey-colored ooze. Elak and Lycon wisely choose to leave then before Zend tries to recapture them. Lycon heads for the inn with Elak’s stolen purse while Elak and Coryllis lie down together.
The most Lovecraftian of the Elak tales it also follows a plot/theme created by Howard in which a barbarian is hired to rob/kill a wizard by a dishonest third-party. Howard used it in “Rogues in the House”, John Jakes in “Devils in the Walls”, and Jack Vance in “Eyes of the Overworld” to name three.
“Beyond the Phoenix” originally appeared in Weird Tales, October 1938.
Lycon and Elak have moved onto Sarhaddon, a minor city inland from the coast. They rise through the ranks to become part of King Phrygior’s personal guard. The duo are sent on a fool’s errand before rushing back to the King. They find him in battle with traitors lead by the priest Xander. The door is protected by a minor spell but Elak crashes through and kills many of the traitors. Xander escapes by using magic but not before Elak wounds him. They find the King dying from his wounds. He wants his daughter Esarra but dies before she can come. The king places a magical bracelet on Elak’s wrist instead.
Xander has taken the city and drawn an evil god, Baal-Yagoth from the shadows where Assurah, the Phoenix, put him long ago. Elak and Lycon take the princess and the dead king to the funeral barge that will take King Phrygior to his resting place beyond the Gates of the Phoenix. Xander’s men harry them as they launch the barge and Elak must jump desperately onto the ship. The barge goes through the gates and then plunges into darkness.
Elak has a vision of another place where weird, evil flower-like monsters are pressing to get into our universe. He sees two people, Tyrala and Ithron, rulers of Nyrvana, the city beyond the gates. When Elak awakens he finds himself locked in a chamber with Lycon. Their prison is in Nyrvana. They are taken to meet the rulers (the people from the vision). Esarra is reunited with them. The rulers are to judge the newcomers but Tyrala reveals she helped Xander take over Sarhadden and release Baal-Yagoth. She rejoices and calls to the dark god. Ithron and Elak’s party go behind the Phoenix altar, into a dark chamber containing the dead King Phrygior. Ithron goes to fight Tyrala but has his life sucked out of him.
Elak is filled with the power of the Phoenix, through the enchanted bracelet. Assurah speaks to him and gives him a sword of flame. He strikes down Tyrala, causing the evil flowers to wither and die. The three of them are transported back to Sarhadden to face Xander. The evil wizard summons Baal-Yagoth, who appears as a giant head. Elak strikes the demon then cuts the priest in half with his flame sword. The sword is taken from Elak when his job is done. The bracelet he gives to Esarra. The Princess is placed on the throne and becomes queen. She hopes Elak will stay with her in Sarhaddon. He plans to (for a while) while Lycon plans to get drunk.
Another Lovecraftian intersection in this tale. The villainous god is named Baal-Yagoth and there is also a mention of Iod, one of Kuttner’s Mythos deities. The barge in this story most likely inspired John Jakes’ “The Barge of Souls” in Brak the Barbarian as Baal-Yagoth may have inspired Jakes’ Yob-Haggoth.
“Dragon Moon ” originally appeared in Weird Tales, January 1941.
Elak has a fight in a bar over a wench, with a nasty brute named Drezzar. Dalan shows up and uses his fire to end the scuffle. The druid takes Elak aside to ask him to return to Cyrena to become king, for Elak’s brother is dead. An evil being named Karkora attempted to possess Orander and the king killed himself. Elak refuses.
That night Elak has a dream that shows him the terror that has taken the throne of the neighboring country, Kiriath. The Pallid One, as Karkora is known, has possessed the king Cepher and plans to invade Cyrena. Elak changes his mind but he can’t find Dalan. He and Lycon jump aboard a ship leaving for the north.
Unfortunately it belongs to Drezzar, who enslaves them and sets them to rowing. Elak bides his time. When the ship stops at an island for water, Elak uses a wire from his shoe to pick the locks. Free, he manages to take the whip from the overseer and begin a revolt that ends with the skeleton crew dead and Elak and Lycon free.
At that moment Drezzar and his warriors return. Lycon holds them off long enough for Elak to free the slaves, who kill their masters. Elak has another dream in which Dalan tells him to find Aynger of Amenalk. This proves to be a giant of a man living in a remote but free land next to Kiriath. Aynger agrees to gather his barbarian brothers to fight on Cyrena’s side. He also points out to Elak where he must go to find a weapon against Karkora, an ancient ruined tower near by and he is to go alone.
Leaving Lycon behind, he crosses a skinny arch bridge to a cave that leads to an underground lake with an island and ruin at the center. It is here that he will find Mayana, who will give him the weapon. The water surrounding the island pulls at Elak as he swims over. He calls to Mayana to save him from drowning. He wakes on the shore by the ruin. Here he hears Mayana first, then sees only her thin, green hand through a screen. Mayana explains that Karkora is her son. Long ago, she was married to Cepher and had wanted a child so bad that she turned to a wizard named Erykion. The sorcerer’s price was that she would give up the child. The result of the spell is the Pallid One, who dwells in a realm not entirely of Earth. If Elak will stay for a month, Mayana promises him the weapon but only at the moment of greatest need.
Elak leaves a month later, charged with Mayana’s magical essence. He goes to Cyrena where the barons and chiefs are once again at each other’s throats. Elak claims his right but has to sit on the Dragon Throne and survive, for those who have tried to claim it have burned in magical flame. Elak sits (Dalan works the spell in secret) and a flame rises in the form of a dragon. The Lords cheer and Cyrena prepares for war. They go to meet Karkora’s army in the narrow valley between the two kingdoms.
The battle begins and the Amenalks show up with their war hammers, led by Aynger. Their chief is slain by an arrow in the throat and the barbarians flee. The tide turns against Cyrena and a rout is imminent. The Kiriath army presses the attack but the barbarians return, bearing Aynger on a shield. Attacking from two fronts, Elak and Dalan are able to swing their forces and attack. Elak faces Cepher/Karkora and stabs him with the sword blessed by Mayana. This kills Cepher’s body but not the Pallid One.
Elak is sucked into Karkora’s weird dimension of Cthulhuian geometery. There he sees the wizard Erykion, mad and glibbering. Elak’s own mind is about to break when he feels the weapon that Mayana promised in his hand. It is her own heart. Elak throws the heart into the pit in which the Pallid One sits, a white, twisted abortion of a creature. The blood from the heart destroys him. Elak awakens to find his army victorious. Everyone is happy except Elak, who will now be king, for he remembers Mayana back in her tomb, unmourned. A woman of the sea has given her life to save a world virtually unknown to her.
The last chapter in Elak’s life doesn’t feature Velia (who I guess either died or ran off since “Thunder in the Dawn”) but Lycon and Dalan are featured again. Not as many monsters this time either but the Merritt-esque sadness of Mayana is almost worth it. Kuttner, no doubt, inspired by the Snake Mother from The Face in the Abyss.
This was not the end of Sword & Sorcery tales by Kuttner. He wrote a second series about Prince Raynor for a rival magazine, but more on him another time. The publishing of “Dragon Moon” by Dorothy McIlwraith signaled a closing chapter for Weird Tales and S&S. The magazine’s new owners did not like fantasy in their horror magazine. Farnsworth Wright (who left the editorship months before) had rejected Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd & Gray Mouser series because of this change. (They ended up in John Campbell’s Unknown.) McIlwraith probably published Kuttner because it was part of a series already established. Sword & Sorcery had to continue its tale elsewhere.
Great article