 |
| Pocket Books 1985, Boris |
- An
introductory text notes that the following account (as related by German nobleman Graf Ulrich von Bek in 1680)
had only just been discovered in a monastery at
Renschel during a renovation. The text of the manuscript has been
modernized and translated into English by Prince Lobkowitz and Michael
Moorcock.
- It is 1631, during the height of the bitter Thirty-Years' War, an internecine conflict between Catholic and Protestant political forces. A soldier-of-fortune named Captain Ulrich von Bek (also known as Krieghund, or the "War Hound") abandons his plague-ridden infantry company shortly after the notorious Sack of Magdeburg (historically, the worst massacre of the entire war). He eventually wanders into a strangely-silent forest and discovers a forbidding, unoccupied castle. Eventually, a carriage arrives, accompanied by a small retinue of animated corpses. Von Bek initially tries to flee, but the appearance of a mysterious woman from inside the carriage convinces him to change his mind.
- Over
the next few weeks, von Bek develops passionate feelings for Sabrina
(the lady of the carriage). Eventually, he learns that she is a "servant
of Lucifer". Sabrina then takes a skeptical von Bek to an audience with
the Prince of Darkness in the castle library. Intrigued by Lucifer's
desire to be restored to Heaven (and a bit disturbed to learn that his
soul is already considered damned), von Bek accompanies him to Hell in
order to hear a bargain.
- Lucifer gives von Bek a Dante-esque tour of the different punishments inflicted on the unfortunate residents of Hell. He then asks von Bek to obtain for him the "Cure for the World's Pain", otherwise known as the Holy Grail. Lucifer hopes use the Grail as a peace offering to God so that he can be reinstalled in Heaven. With his eternal soul at stake, von Bek accepts the quest. After they return to Lucifer's castle on Earth, Sabrina provides von Bek with several mystical artifacts and maps with which he will be able to navigate through both the natural and the supernatural world during his quest.
- Von Bek soon leaves the castle and the surrounding "Silent Marches", and heads towards Ammendorf, where von Bek must first seek out "the Wildgrave". While stopping at an inn, von Bek encounters an unpleasantly-severe witch-hunter (a self-proclaimed "Knight of Christ") named Johannes Klosterheim. Klosterheim hires a young, red-headed Muskovite (Kazak) mercenary named Grigory Petrovitch Sedenko to slay some Jews in the nearby town of Teufenberg, lying ahead.
- Later, while heading away from Teufenberg, von Bek is attacked by a small group of brigands and almost overcome by their numbers. However, aid comes in the form of Sedenko. After the battle, Klosterheim also appears, but he scoffs at Sedenko's act of chivalry and departs alone. Sedenko tells von Bek that he had not killed the Jews after all, as they had been essentially harmless (although Klosterheim then had then slain them himself). In any case, Sedenko decides to accompany von Bek on his quest.
- In the rubble of the stone city
of Ammendorf, the two travelers encounter a giant humanoid creature
with green glowing eyes, accompanied by white ghouls and devil hounds.
Von Bek realizes that this is the Wildgrave (Lord of the Hunt), another
servant of Lucifer. The Wildgrave informs von Bek that there are some in
Hell who oppose his Grail quest, for they fear that Lucifer will
abandon them for Heaven.
- The Wildgrave leads von Bek into a strangely wintry landscape which the Lord of the Hunt identifies as Mittelmarch ("Middle March", supernatural territories dotting the world which serve as transitional regions between Earth and Hell). Von Bek is dismayed to find that Sedenko has also been able to enter the Mittelmarch, implying that his new friend is also damned to Hell. In any case, after the Wildgrave and his Wild Hunt departs, the two men enter a village which appears to be another version of Ammendorf. There, a corpulent priest named Christoffel (named after Gothic author Christoffel von Grimmelshausen) directs them to a mountain pass where they must seek Philander Groot, rumored to be a former wizard's apprentice.
- In the wintry
mountain pass, the two men come across a maggot-ridden, God-fearing
hermit and his female servant. After questioning the hermit about the
whereabouts of Philander Groot, von Bek slays the disgusting creature.
Sedenko then defiles the girl. Von Bek wonders at how a just God can allow such a world to exist.
- After
fighting off two pony-sized eagles, the two warriors reach the entrance
to a summery region named the Valley of the Golden Cloud, where they
are halted by a warrior in old-fashioned armor. He allows them to enter
the village but tells them that they must Steal Nothing, Examine
Everything, and Pay a Fair Price.
Finnish Edition - Von Bek and Sedenko enter a palace where they meet the 15-year-old Queen Xiombarg the 25th. She explains that her realm lives in peaceful enjoyment of the arts without fear of strife from the outside world. Following her directions, von Bek and Sedenko later reach a glade where, after some days of waiting, Philander Groot appears, dressed as a "dandy" and smelling of rosemary perfume ("Hungary water"). The light-hearted (but sagacious) Groot tells von Bek that he must go to the Forest at the Edge of Heaven, which lies at the western border of the Mittelmarch. After leaving the Valley of the Golden Cloud and entering another wintry mountain pass on their way west, von Bek and Sedenko are intercepted by Klosterheim and a pack of glowing warriors. Klosterheim reveals that he opposes Lucifer's desire to reunite with God, and is therefore in direct opposition to von Bek's mission. He calls on aid from his new patron Duke Arioch, one of Lucifer's rivals in Hell. In response, von Bek uses some incantations derived from a book given to him by Sabrina which slows down Klosterheim's Knights of Arioch.
- After emerging from the Mittelmarch in Italy (near
Venice), von Bek and Sedenko are confronted by Klosterheim's human
henchmen. However, Sedenko manages to surprise Klosterheim from behind
and takes him hostage, after which von Bek then orders the
witch-hunter's brigands to disperse. Von Bek and Sedenko then leave
Klosterheim behind, tied to a tree.
L'Atalante 2002 Gilles Francescano - During the next year, von Bek and Sedenko travel throughout Europe and through various patches of the Mittelmarch, encountering various natural and supernatural dangers, and fighting in several armed conflicts. As the months go by, von Bek feels that the war in Hell between Satan and his Dukes has caused strife to also increase on Earth. One day in the Mittelmarch, they encounter a group of Tatars (Sedenko's natural enemies) who ride mechanical horses, apparently created for them by Philander Groot. The Tatars tell von Bek that they had been given their brass mounts in return for their services as Guardians of the Genie. Von Bek eventually discovers that they only protect the world from a tiny, pathetic creature trapped inside a glass bottle. Von Bek and Sedenko next enter the city of Bakinax, also known as the City of the Plague. The city magistrate promptly threatens to sacrifice the two travelers to the Demon of the metal sphere located in the middle of the city square.
- Just after catching a glimpse of
Klosterheim in the crowd, von Bek is forced into the sphere. There, he
encounters a giant Demon of Hell, who has no wish to eat von Bek, since
he recognizes that von Bek's soul is already promised to Lucifer. The Demon
explains that long ago it had been trapped in the metal sphere by
Philander Groot, but now only desires to return to Hell without causing
further trouble. When von Bek emerges from the sphere unscathed,
Klosterheim and his armored warriors attack. Suddenly, a vision of a
gigantic black cat appears over the city square, preceding the arrival
of Philander Groot in a bird-drawn chariot. Groot releases the Demon
from the metallic sphere on the condition that he attack Klosterheim's
henchmen (the Knights of Duke Arioch). While the battle between
supernatural forces goes on, Groot whisks von Bek and Sedenko away on
his chariot. Groot tells his guests that the civil war in Hell is going
badly for von Bek's current patron. Additionally, if Lucifer falls, then
Armageddon will arrive on Earth.
Heyne 1985, Atelier Ingrid Schütz - Groot also tells von Bek
that, now that he is no longer a neutral actor in the conflict, he will
soon be deprived of his powers as a neutral Grey Lord. After Groot's
flying chariot disappears, the three men mount horses and briefly visit
Wolfshaben (known for its harlots). (In the real city of Wolfshagen im
Harz, people gather at the end of spring in witch costumes in order to
celebrate Walpurgis Night.) Afterwards while heading west, they
encounter a convoy of refugees fleeing from an army of hostile,
uncommunicative soldiers. After parting ways with the refugees, they
come across the abandoned aviary of Count Otto of Gerantz-Holffein, a
giant crystal structure containing innumerable exotic birds. Suddenly, a
"limping" dragon attacks them. During the ensuing battle, the aviary
crystal structure is damaged, and von Bek manages to lure the dragon to
impale itself on a fallen piece of the aviary roof.
- The three warriors soon come into view of the Forest at the Edge of Heaven, a blue-green forest which reaches into the sky. However, from the east, a massive horde of undead creatures led by Klosterheim can also be seen approaching. Von Bek, Sedenko and Groot race for the Forest, but the Army of Arioch quickly closes the distance. At the last moment, Groot halts and uses the last of his vitality to hinder the monstrous creatures' advance with golden fire. Von Bek makes it to the Forest, but Sedenko dies from a wound in his back.
- After riding for several hours in the forest, von Bek nears a farmhouse occupied by a grey-haired (but vital) woman and her three children. The woman comforts von Bek with food (milk, bread and honey), and then tells him that she has the Grail which he has been seeking. Klosterheim had also arrived there once seeking the Grail, but had disbelieved in it and then tried to kill the woman. Von Bek however, is deserving of the Grail because he has learned not to put faith in the "marvelous", but in one's own humanity: the World's Pain is caused by lack of this insight, and the Grail is only an artifact which brings "harmony". After von Bek is given a brief view of Heaven (a blue-green haze seen from a precipice), the woman gives von Bek a clay pot and reveals her name to be "Lilith". Finally, she tells von Bek that he must confront Klosterheim's force before he can return to Lucifer with the Grail.
- Outside the
Forest at the Edge of Heaven, Klosterheim confronts von Bek and tells
him that his disappointment with the Grail had led him to turn to
Lucifer, his once-master. He asks von Bek to join him in his assault on
Heaven, but when von Bek brings forth the clay pot, the corrupted creatures of
Klosterheim's hellish army fall down into a peaceful unconsciousness.
Klosterheim alone is unaffected by the "harmony" of the Grail, but he
soon drops dead anyways after Arioch draws away his soul. Using a final
gift from Sabrina, von Bek uses an incantation which brings him back to
Lucifer's castle, now no longer devoid of animal life (i.e., no longer
residing in Hell).
J'ai Lu 1985, Boris - After reuniting with Sabrina, von Bek meets with Lucifer, who now holds the Grail Von Beck had brought back. Von Bek learns that in return for the Grail, God has commissioned Lucifer to bring Reason and Humanity to the world, and thus help cure the World's Pain. Under Lucifer, the "miraculous" will eventually be replaced by "analysis and investigation", and Armageddon will belong in the hands of Men, not God or the Devil. After Lucifer departs, von Bek and Sabrina journey to Bek where they marry and have children and, after a time, believe they have achieved a level of Harmony. In 1648, the Thirty-Years' War peters out. Sabrina dies of natural causes in 1678. Two years later, von Bek writes an account of his Quest for the Grail on his deathbed, believing that, through Lucifer's efforts, some level of Reason has surfaced in the world. He advises mankind to continue "doing the Devil's work" in order to achieve true peace.
