Xuthal of the Dusk
Encyclopedia
"The Slithering Shadow" is one of the original short stories
starring the fictional sword and sorcery
hero Conan the Cimmerian
, written by American
author Robert E. Howard
and first published in the September 1933 issue of Weird Tales
magazine. The story's original title was "Xuthal of the Dusk". It is set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age
and concerns Conan finding a lost city in a remote desert and encountering therein a Lovecraftian-esque demon known as Thog.
The story was republished in the collections The Sword of Conan
(Gnome Press
, 1952) and Conan the Adventurer
(Lancer Books
, 1966). It has more recently been published in the collections The Conan Chronicles Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle (Gollancz
, 2000) as "The Slithering Shadow" and in Conan of Cimmeria: Volume One (1932-1933)
(Del Rey, 2003) under its original title, "Xuthal of the Dusk."
From that slaughter, when the Stygians and the Kushites surrounded the trapped remnants, Conan had cut his way clear and fled on a camel with Natala into the southern desert. For days they pushed on, seeking water, until their camel died. Then they continued on foot.
When their canteen is empty, Conan prepares to slay Natala as a mercy-killing
, but he spies a distant city: Xuthal. At length, Conan and Natala enter Xuthal only to be attacked by a trance-like guard. They soon encounter Thalis, a beautiful Stygian, who reveals the history of the peculiar city and the existence of Thog.
Thog is a monstrous demon from the city-states of ancient Valusia; his present form spun by the ancient sorcerers of Xuthal from the darkness between the stars. For an ageless time Thog has haunted the halls of Xuthal in search of living flesh to assuage the continuing manifestation of his body on the physical plane.
Thalis falls in love with Conan and, to eliminate her rival, kidnaps Natala in the hopes of sacrificing her to Thog. However, Thalis pauses to strip Natala of her tunic and, with a jewel-handled whip, flagellates
her. In the middle of this whipping, Thog clandestinely appears, snatches Thalis, and devours her. The demon returns for Natala, but Conan intervenes and saves her. Conan fights Thog with all his might but scarcely harming its supernatural form, while receiving hideous crushing wound in the coils of its pseudopods and tentacles until he manages to pierce what he perceives as the 'head' of the monster from below and to precipitate it down into a well. Conan frees Natala who sets forth to help him but he's rapidly dying (this is the closest Conan ever gets to death in all of his saga), the Brythunian girl then brings him a jade decanter full of golden wine, retrieved from a room with a dreaming woman of Xuthal in it. The beverage proves to be a life giving elixir briefly mentioned by Thalis in a previous exchange, which miraculously heals all of Conan's wounds. Finally the couple retrieve food and water to cross the rest of the desert with and depart toward the horizon with Natala jokingly blaming Conan for having aroused Thalis' lustful nature and him retorting playfully about women's jealousy.
, John Buscema
and Alfredo Alcala
in Savage Sword of Conan #20.
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
starring the fictional sword and sorcery
Sword and sorcery
Sword and sorcery is a sub-genre of fantasy and historical fantasy, generally characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent conflicts. An element of romance is often present, as is an element of magic and the supernatural...
hero Conan the Cimmerian
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...
, written by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
and first published in the September 1933 issue of Weird Tales
Weird Tales
Weird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
magazine. The story's original title was "Xuthal of the Dusk". It is set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age
Hyborian Age
The Hyborian Age is a fictional period within the artificial mythology created by Robert E. Howard, in which the sword and sorcery tales of Conan the Barbarian are set....
and concerns Conan finding a lost city in a remote desert and encountering therein a Lovecraftian-esque demon known as Thog.
The story was republished in the collections The Sword of Conan
The Sword of Conan
The Sword of Conan is a collection of four fantasy short stories written by Robert E. Howard featuring his seminal sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian, first published in hardcover by Gnome Press in 1952. The stories originally appeared in the 1930s in the fantasy magazine Weird Tales...
(Gnome Press
Gnome Press
Gnome Press was an American small-press publishing company primarily known for publishing many science fiction classics.The company was founded in 1948 by Martin Greenberg and David A. Kyle. Many of Gnome's titles were reprinted in England by Boardman Books...
, 1952) and Conan the Adventurer
Conan the Adventurer (collection)
Conan the Adventurer is a 1966 collection of four fantasy short stories written by Robert E. Howard and L. Sprague de Camp, featuring Howard's seminal sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. Most of the stories originally appeared in the fantasy magazine Weird Tales in the 1930s...
(Lancer Books
Lancer Books
Lancer Books was a series of paperback books published from 1961 through 1973 by Irwin Stein and Walter Zacharius. While it published stories of a number of genres, it was noted most for its science fiction and fantasy, particularly its series of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian tales, the...
, 1966). It has more recently been published in the collections The Conan Chronicles Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle (Gollancz
Gollancz
Gollancz often refers to the British publishing house Victor Gollancz Ltd.Gollancz, a family name originating from the Polish town Gołańcz , is mainly known as the name of a prominent British Jewish family, including:* Sir Hermann Gollancz , rabbi* Sir Israel Gollancz , scholar of...
, 2000) as "The Slithering Shadow" and in Conan of Cimmeria: Volume One (1932-1933)
Conan of Cimmeria: Volume One (1932-1933)
The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian is the first of a three volume set collecting the Conan stories by author Robert E. Howard. It was originally published in 2003, first the United Kingdom by Wandering Star under the title Conan of Cimmeria: Volume One , and shortly thereafter in the United States...
(Del Rey, 2003) under its original title, "Xuthal of the Dusk."
Plot summary
Conan the Cimmerian and Natala the Brythunian are the sole survivors of Prince Almuric's army which swept through the Lands of Shem and the outlands of Stygia. With a Stygian host on its heels, the prince's army had cut its way through the kingdom of Kush, only to be annihilated on the edge of the southern desert.From that slaughter, when the Stygians and the Kushites surrounded the trapped remnants, Conan had cut his way clear and fled on a camel with Natala into the southern desert. For days they pushed on, seeking water, until their camel died. Then they continued on foot.
When their canteen is empty, Conan prepares to slay Natala as a mercy-killing
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
, but he spies a distant city: Xuthal. At length, Conan and Natala enter Xuthal only to be attacked by a trance-like guard. They soon encounter Thalis, a beautiful Stygian, who reveals the history of the peculiar city and the existence of Thog.
Thog is a monstrous demon from the city-states of ancient Valusia; his present form spun by the ancient sorcerers of Xuthal from the darkness between the stars. For an ageless time Thog has haunted the halls of Xuthal in search of living flesh to assuage the continuing manifestation of his body on the physical plane.
Thalis falls in love with Conan and, to eliminate her rival, kidnaps Natala in the hopes of sacrificing her to Thog. However, Thalis pauses to strip Natala of her tunic and, with a jewel-handled whip, flagellates
Flagellation
Flagellation or flogging is the act of methodically beating or whipping the human body. Specialised implements for it include rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails and the sjambok...
her. In the middle of this whipping, Thog clandestinely appears, snatches Thalis, and devours her. The demon returns for Natala, but Conan intervenes and saves her. Conan fights Thog with all his might but scarcely harming its supernatural form, while receiving hideous crushing wound in the coils of its pseudopods and tentacles until he manages to pierce what he perceives as the 'head' of the monster from below and to precipitate it down into a well. Conan frees Natala who sets forth to help him but he's rapidly dying (this is the closest Conan ever gets to death in all of his saga), the Brythunian girl then brings him a jade decanter full of golden wine, retrieved from a room with a dreaming woman of Xuthal in it. The beverage proves to be a life giving elixir briefly mentioned by Thalis in a previous exchange, which miraculously heals all of Conan's wounds. Finally the couple retrieve food and water to cross the rest of the desert with and depart toward the horizon with Natala jokingly blaming Conan for having aroused Thalis' lustful nature and him retorting playfully about women's jealousy.
Adaptation
The story was adapted by Roy ThomasRoy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
, John Buscema
John Buscema
John Buscema, born Giovanni Natale Buscema , was an American comic-book artist and one of the mainstays of Marvel Comics during its 1960s and 1970s ascendancy into an industry leader and its subsequent expansion to a major pop culture conglomerate...
and Alfredo Alcala
Alfredo Alcala
Alfredo P. Alcala was a Filipino comic book artist, born in Talisay, Negros Occidental in the Philippines. Alcala was an established illustrator whose works appeared in the Alcala Komix Magazine. His 1963 creation Voltar introduced him to an international audience, particularly in the United...
in Savage Sword of Conan #20.
External links
- Conan wiki • Xuthal of the Dusk • Synopsis, characters, locations, and publishing history
- Conan the Barbarian at AmratheLion.com
- Conan.com: The Official Website