Gordon Linzner’s Saga of Horan is a Sword & Sorcery cycle I completely missed. It appeared in a magazine to which I had no access. The episode I did stumble upon, not being aware it was an episode was “Rune of the Dwarf-King”(Space & Time #14, February 1972) This is a lengthy tale with many excellent illustrations. (The illustrations were done by Mark Gelotte. They remind me of early Stephen Fabian.)
The Tale of Horan
The story begins with Burgundy the thief master doing a Fagin routine with his apprentices, Arachne and Carlyn. While counting the night’s haul, two mysterious figures show up in cloaks. It is not the Kalimar guard but Horan, Burgundy’s old apprentice returned. He has a very beautiful woman with him named Shalima.
Horan explains that his sorcerer father, Lembol, is dead at the hands of his rival, Nolfur. Burgundy agrees to help kill the wizard, partly out of guilt. When Horan chose to become a thief instead of a sorcerer, his father was hurt.
Nodrog the Necromancer
Horan also tells of his encounter with Nodrog the necromancer (just reverse that name, folks!) who offers help because he knows one day he will have to face Nolfur. If Horan would rid him of the ambitious sorcerer, all the better…
To assist Horan, Nodrog tells the thief of a powerful rune. The Dwarf-King is in possession of this magic relic that would allow the son to avenge the father. Having a magical backgrouund, Horan can not enter the dwarven kingdom, his unused magical powers setting off another rune of protection. Burgundy has no such limitation. The master-thief agrees to retrieve the rune.
Interlude in a City Square
There is a short episode in Kalimar when a mistaken man approaches Shalima. The thieves are surrounded, out numbered. Horan is forced to think of the little magic he has learned from his father’s books. He teleports the duo through the wall, leaving the attackers confused.
Burgundy and Arachne enter the dwarf’s stronghold through deception. Carlyn shows up at the gates with two trunks full of jewels. The dwarves roughly take them from him, kicking him in the gut. The injured apprentice rides away smiling. When the captain of the guard sneaks a peek at the treasure he gets a sword in the throat. Burgundy and his apprentice climb out of the trunks and head for the king’s bedroom.
Of Traps and Treasure
After searching for hours, they stop and rest. It is then they think to look outside the bedroom. Guards come and chase them behind a tapestry. Arachne, luckily finds the secret lever. They climb stairs to the rune-room. Arachne steps into the room but Burgundy pulls him back. The floor is a pit trap. Using a rope they lasso a giant log that hangs over the glass case with the rune. Burgundy snatches the rune and they run…
…Because something is following them. They hide in the shadows as the flying demon hovers over them, searching. Arachne loses his nerve and runs. The monster flies off with him while Burgundy makes his escape. He goes to the arranged rendezvous at Lembol’s cave.
Curse of the Dwarf-King
Unfortunately for Burgundy, the dwarf-king discovers his rune gone, his demon eating the last of poor Arachne. Turning to sorcery, he might not be able to get his rune back but he can punish the thief. As Burgundy is giving the rune to Horan, he begins to writhe in pain. His entire body turns inside out, exposing his organs and brain. Horan tries to give him a quick death but it takes time. Carlyn accuses him of letting Burgundy die. He could have used the rune to save him.
Horan loses his temper when Shalima joins in the complaining. He drives the underlings out of the cave. Rejected, Shalima turns to the arms of the young apprentice. Horan cares nothing for what is going on outside…
Not Born of Dice
My first reaction to “Rune of the Dwarf-King” was that this was a piece of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fiction. The thieves, the Dungeon Master-like Nodrog, he floor trap, secret doors, etc. But according to Gordon, he never played any AD&D, not even the early form known as Chain-Mail that existed in 1972. He sites Fritz Leiber’s Newhon stories as his inspiration. Which only goes to show how much Fritz influenced AD&D. Despite not playing the game, Linzner sold two fantasy stories (not Horan) to The Dragon in the 1980s.
The Saga Continues
Linzner leaves it there for now. Horan will be back in November 1973. As it turns “Rune of the Dwarf-King” is episode four of this series. “The Battle of the Wizards” (Space & Time #3, Spring 1968) was the first, with the account of Lembol and Nolfur’s wizardly duel that is alluded to at the beginning of this tale. “Encounter” (Space & Time #5, Spring 1969) is Horan’s tale of a sword duel with Reynold. “The Revenge of Nolfur” (Space & Time #17, August 1969) followed the first two.
Two stories appeared after “Rune”: “End of the Quest” (Space & Time #21, November 1972) and “The Final Battle” (Space & Time #36, May 1976). This stretches the series over eight years and six stories, making it hard to stumbled onto more than one segment at a time. Gordon really needs to gather these together in a book along with his Jakor & Rayun stories from The Literary Magazine of Fantasy and Terror and the two tales from The Dragon. Now wouldn’t that be a book!
