SMITH, CLARK ASHTON –THE CHARNEL GOD in THE EMPEROR OF DREAMS. 2002. Fantasy Masterworks #26. Gollancz Books.
Fantasy short story of intense power.
Phariom, and his wife, Elaith, get themselves lost in a desert. As they find a
small town in an oasis, Elaith collapses into a catatonic coma, which makes it,
look as if she has died. Phariom is not too worried, as he has seen her do this
before. He explains the situation to the medical experts in the town, which is
called Zul-Bha-Sair. Unfortunately, the medics there declare her truly dead,
refusing to listen to Phariom. They insist
that she be interred immediately in the temple of their carrion eating God,
Mordiglion. Phariom protests and even reacts violently as the temple priests
escort his wife to her final resting place, but he is powerless for now to
prevent her fate. He does however decide to raid the temple to recover her
sleeping body after dark, though he could be executed if the god who is said to
reside within the temple does not devour him. Phariom’s raid coincides with
plans by a trio of necromancers to raid the same temple at the same time and
steal the corpse of a young woman who really has died. Phariom gets into the
temple and he has just found the bodies of both his wife and the other girl
when the evil grave robbers arrive. Phariom hides away as the necromancers
raise both women from their eternal sleep. Phariom’s presence is now
discovered, and he is involved in a fight to save his wife, Elaith, when the
temple god himself intervenes. The god rekills the girl who was dead, but he
recognises that Elaith was never dead anyway and respectfully allows Phariom to
take her to safety. He then releases his priests, with faces like jackals, on
the temple desecrators. Phariom hears their screams as he leaves the temple and
the town for safer havens. A powerful, well told, if rather unlikely little tale.
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/s/clark-ashton-smith/
Arthur Chappell
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