The Castle of Terror

Last updated
"The Castle of Terror"
Short story by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre(s) Fantasy
Publication
Published in Conan of Cimmeria
Publication type Collection
Publisher Lancer Books
Media typePrint (Paperback)
Publication date1969
Series Conan the Barbarian

"The Castle of Terror" is a fantasy short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. [1] [2] It was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback collection Conan of Cimmeria (1969), [1] [2] which was reprinted several times, first by Lancer and later by Ace Books through 1993. [2] It has also been published by Sphere Books in the omnibus paperback collection The Conan Chronicles (1989). [3] The story has been translated into German, Japanese, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, French, and Czech. [1] [2]

Contents

Plot summary

Conan, having been exiled after a drought struck his Bamula tribe and murdering the high priest who blamed him for it, journeys across the savanna of Kush. He instinctively feels that something is watching him, but sees nothing. However, he is being followed by a pack of hungry lions.

An hour later, an exhausted Conan has fought off three lion attacks and is out of arrows. He runs through the darkness, with a lioness lapping at his heel, as a beam of moonlight peeks out from behind the clouds. Soon, Conan realizes the lions have stopped their pursuit as the vast plain mysteriously ends. Suddenly, Conan finds himself within the center of a giant circle of dead vegetation. At the edge, the lions simply look on as Conan examines his surroundings.

Not knowing how long the lions will be kept at bay by whatever force is preventing them from crossing into the circle, Conan travels deeper into the dead area. Soon, he discovers a ruined castle. As a storm begins forming right above him, Conan realizes his only shelter is the crumbled and misshapen structure ahead of him. Conan makes his way inside the ruined building, noting the black onyx stone and bizarre architecture before him. In fact, the halls and stairs appear to be built for a creature larger than human-sized while strange carvings riddle the walls. Conan wonders if perhaps this was an ancient citadel of the long-extinct Serpent Men he has heard of in legends.

Conan sleeps peacefully as the storm passes overhead, frequently jerking awake with his sword at the ready, seeming to hear whispering voices. He becomes convinced that the shadows are ghosts unsuccessfully trying to devour him. He's unaware that in one corner of the castle, the shadows are converging into a sentient mass which is planning to consume him.

Meanwhile, a band of Stygian slave traders are searching the savanna for tribesmen to capture. Caught in a violent storm, the men spy the castle in the distance and make their way towards shelter. They burst inside and distract the shadowy black mass that was slowly approaching Conan. Conan, now awake and contemplating the horror he had finally noticed, hides in the shadows while watching as the Stygians eat, drink, and finally fall asleep, with one standing guard. As the sentinel stands, back to his sleeping companions, a hideous shape made from the spirits of a thousand dead souls appears in the center of their camp. The monstrosity, with a hundred heads and a dozen feet and arms, throws itself onto a sleeping Stygian and rips him to shreds.

The Stygians rise up and attack the beast to no avail, as it methodically kills one after another. Conan, still hiding, decides to leave the scene while the monster is distracted by climbing out a window. He finds the slavers' horses and begins to mount one, when a lone Stygian, driven mad by his experience, bursts out of the castle. Conan is forced to kill the man to end his insanity. Soon, Conan hears the shuffling of movement towards the door. He doesn't wait to see who or what comes out, swiftly taking the Stygian's armor and spurring his horse into a gallop far away from the cursed castle.

Adaptations

The story was adapted into comic book form in Conan the Barbarian no. 105 (Marvel Comics, Dec. 1979) by writer/editor Roy Thomas and artists John Buscema and Ernie Chan. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The God in the Bowl</span> Conan short story by Robert E. Howard

"The God in the Bowl" is one of the original short stories featuring the sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard but not published during his lifetime. Set during the fictional Hyborian Age, the plot sees Conan robbing a temple museum only to become the prime suspect in a murder mystery. The story first saw publication in September 1952 in Space Science Fiction and has been reprinted many times since.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Colossus</span> Fantasy novelette by Robert E. Howard

"Black Colossus" 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 Weird Tales magazine, June 1933. Howard earned $130 for the sale of this story.

"The Hyborian Age" is an essay by Robert E. Howard pertaining to the Hyborian Age, the fictional setting of his stories about Conan the Cimmerian. It was written in the 1930s but not published during Howard's lifetime. Its purpose was to maintain consistency within his fictional setting. Howard opens the essay stating "When I began writing the Conan stories a few years ago, I prepared this 'history' of his age and the peoples of that age, in order to lend him and his sagas a greater aspect of realness."

<i>Conan of the Isles</i> Novel by Lin Carter

Conan of the Isles is a fantasy novel by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published October 1968 in paperback by Lancer Books, and reprinted in July 1970, 1972, and May 1973; publication was then taken over by Ace Books, which reprinted the novel in May 1977, May 1979, April 1980, July 1981, April 1982, November 1982, November 1983, June 1984, September 1986, February 1991, and May 1994. The first British edition was published in paperback by Sphere Books in December 1974 a number of times since by various publishers. It has also been translated into French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Spanish, Russian and (supposedly) Japanese.

<i>Conan of Aquilonia</i> Book by Lyon Sprague de Camp

Conan of Aquilonia is a collection of four linked fantasy short stories by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. The stories were originally published in Fantastic in August 1972, July 1973, July 1974, and February 1975. The collected stories were intended for book publication by Lancer Books, but this edition never appeared due to Lancer's bankruptcy, and the first book edition was issued in paperback by Ace Books in paperback in May 1977. It was reprinted by Ace in July 1981, April 1982, November 1982, August 1983, July 1984, 1986, June 1991, and April 1994. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978, and reprinted in July 1988. The book has also been translated into French.

<i>Conan of Cimmeria</i> Collection of short stories

Conan of Cimmeria is a collection of eight fantasy short stories written by Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp, and Lin Carter and featuring Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. Most of the stories were originally published in various fantasy magazines. Lancer Books first published the paperback collection in 1969, and reprinted the book in 1970, 1972, and 1973. After Lancer's bankruptcy, Ace Books took over publication. Ace published its first edition in May 1977 and reprinted it in August 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982 (twice), 1984, 1985, 1990, and 1993. Sphere Books published the first British edition in 1974 and reprinted that edition in 1976 and 1987. The book has also been translated into German, Japanese, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish and Italian. It was gathered together with Conan and Conan the Freebooter into the omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles.

<i>Conan</i> (short story collection) Short story collection

Conan is a 1967 collection of seven fantasy short stories and associated pieces written by Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter featuring Howard's seminal sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. Most of the stories were originally published in various pulp magazines. The book was first published in paperback by Lancer Books in 1967, and was reprinted in 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 (twice) and 1973. After the bankruptcy of Lancer, publication was taken over by Ace Books. Its first edition appeared in May 1977, and was reprinted in 1979, 1982 (twice), 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1990. The first British edition was issued by Sphere Books in 1974, and was reprinted in 1977. The book has also been translated into German, Japanese, French, Spanish, Italian, Swedish and Dutch. It was gathered together with Conan of Cimmeria and Conan the Freebooter into the omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles.

<i>Conan the Buccaneer</i> Novel by Lin Carter

Conan the Buccaneer is a 1971 fantasy novel by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Lancer Books, and has been reprinted a number of times since by various publishers. It has also been translated into German, Japanese, Spanish, Swedish, French and Dutch. It was later gathered together with Conan the Adventurer and Conan the Wanderer into the omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles 2 (1990).

<i>Conan the Swordsman</i> 1978 Bantam Books short story collection

Conan the Swordsman is a collection of seven fantasy short stories and associated pieces by writers L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter and Björn Nyberg featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in August 1978, and reprinted in 1981. Later paperback editions were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in December 2002. The first British edition was issued by Sphere Books in 1978. The book has also been translated into Italian and French. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.

<i>The Conan Chronicles</i> Book by Robert E. Howard

The Conan Chronicles is a 1989 omnibus collection of three fantasy collections by American writers Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Howard's seminal sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian, published by Sphere Books. The component collections had originally been published by Lancer Books in 1967, 1968 and 1969, and later reissued by Ace Books. The omnibus collection was followed by The Conan Chronicles 2.

<i>The Conan Chronicles 2</i> Book by Robert E. Howard

The Conan Chronicles 2 is a 1990 omnibus collection of two previous fantasy collections and one fantasy novel by American writers Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian, published by Orbit Books. The component books had originally been published by Lancer Books in 1966, 1968 and 1971, and later reissued by Ace Books. The omnibus collection was preceded by The Conan Chronicles.

"Black Tears" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback collection Conan the Wanderer (1968), which was reprinted several times, first by Lancer and later by Ace Books through 1982. It has since been published by Orbit Books in the omnibus paperback collection The Conan Chronicles 2 (1990).

"The Lair of the Ice Worm" is a fantasy short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback collection Conan of Cimmeria (1969), which was reprinted several times, first by Lancer and later by Ace Books through 1993. It has also been published by Sphere Books in the omnibus paperback collection The Conan Chronicles (1989).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Witch of the Mists</span> Short story by Lyon Sprague de Camp

"The Witch of the Mists" is a fantasy short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published in the August 1972 issue of the magazine Fantastic, and in book form by Ace Books in the paperback collection Conan of Aquilonia in May 1977. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Sphinx of Nebthu</span> Short story by Lyon Sprague de Camp

"Black Sphinx of Nebthu" is a fantasy short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published in the July 1973 issue of the magazine Fantastic, and was first appeared in book form by Ace Books in the paperback collection Conan of Aquilonia in May 1977, which was reprinted several times through 1994. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadows in the Skull</span> Short story by Lyon Sprague de Camp

"Shadows in the Skull" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published in the February 1975 issue of the magazine Fantastic, and first appeared in book form by Ace Books in the paperback collection Conan of Aquilonia in May 1977, which was reprinted several times through 1994. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978.

"The People of the Summit" is a short story by Swedish writer Björn Nyberg, subsequently revised by L. Sprague de Camp, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. Nyberg's version of the story was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback anthology The Mighty Swordsmen in December 1970. The revised version was first published by Bantam Books in the paperback collection Conan the Swordsman in August 1978. Later paperback editions of the collection were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in 2002. The book has also been translated into Italian. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.

"Shadows in the Dark" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published by Bantam Books in the paperback collection Conan the Swordsman in August 1978. Later paperback editions of the collection were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in 2002. The book has also been translated into Italian. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.

<i>Conan and the Emerald Lotus</i> Book by John C. Hocking

Conan and the Emerald Lotus is a fantasy novel by American writer John C. Hocking, featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in trade paperback by Tor Books in November 1995; a regular paperback edition followed from the same publisher in September 1999.

<i>Conan the Gladiator</i> Novel by Leonard Carpenter

Conan the Gladiator is a fantasy novel by American writer Leonard Carpenter, featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Tor Books in January 1995 and was reprinted in August 1999. Carpenter dedicated the book to L. Sprague de Camp.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Laughlin, Charlotte, and Levack, Daniel J. H. De Camp: An L. Sprague de Camp Bibliography. San Francisco, Underwood/Miller, 1983, page 136.
  2. 1 2 3 4 The Castle of Terror title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  3. ↑ The Conan Chronicles title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
Preceded by Complete Conan Saga
(William Galen Gray chronology)		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.