FIRST
STEPS
Seeking
a use for his newfound powers, Leo Saint-Clair begins debunking
mediums alongside his friend Robert Champeau. He attends a séance
held by the Prillants. Among those in attendance are the Baldwins and
the pregnant Mrs. Anne Jones and her chaperone, Ms. Loveday Brooke.
The medium is Simon Orne, who conjures a demonic being. Leo later
discovers another attendee at the séance was Lily Flowers, a member
of the gang called the Vampires. Leo and Robert meet the Sâr
Dubnotal, who reveals Orne summoned the creature, Baal, using a page
from the Necronomicon.
Inspector Milfroid accompanies Leo to another séance in order to
arrest Orne.
Short
story by Travis Hiltz in Night
of the Nyctalope,
Jean-Marc and Randy Lofficier, eds., Black Coat Press, 2012;
reprinted in French in Les
Compagnons de l’Ombre (Tome 11),
Jean-Marc and Randy Lofficier, eds., Rivière Blanche, 2013. Leo
Saint-Clair, aka the Nyctalope, is a hero in novels by Jean de La
Hire. Robert Champeau and the Prillants are also from the Nyctalope
stories. The Baldwins, Lily Flowers, and the Vampires are from Louis
Feuillade’s serial Les
Vampires.
Anne (or Anna) Jones is the mother of noted archaeologist Dr. Henry
“Indiana” Jones, Jr. Since Indiana Jones was born in 1899, the
date of 1900 assigned to this story must be incorrect. Loveday Brooke
is from The
Experiences of Loveday Brooke, Lady Detective by
Catherine Louisa Pirkis. Simon Orne is from Lovecraft’s The
Case of Charles Dexter Ward.
The Necronomicon
is
a mainstay of Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. The Sâr Dubnotal
appeared in his own self-titled pulp magazine penned by an anonymous
author (possibly Norbert
Sévestre).
Baal is from the novel of the same name by Renée Dunan. Inspector
Milfroid is from Gaston Leroux’s The
Phantom of the Opera.
Pretty hand book, The Necronomicon.
ReplyDeleteDoes Anna Jones actually participate in the story, or is she only name-dropped?
ReplyDeleteShe actually participates.
Delete