Re: Antirius/Yemalio/Elmal

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From: Peter Metcalfe, CAPE Canty (CHEN190@csc.canterbury.ac.nz)
Date: Sun 28 Aug 1994 - 13:23:52 EEST


Pam Carlson wrote

>GRoY also mentioned that Shargash fought Orlanthi/Elmali at one point. All
>through GRoY, Shargash is depicted as being restrained by Antirius; although
>Shargash resents this he never breaks free. If Antirius=Yelmalio=Elaml, how
>could S be controlled by Antiriusyet used against Elmal?
>Therefore, Antirius isn't Emal, and Antirius most probably isn't Yelmalio
>either.

This is a valid set of points raised and I attempted to explain it by the following proposed version of events as to what really happened.

  1. Antirius dies after being mortally wounded at the Hills of Gold. I am presuming Zorak Zoran rips out his heart making it a very bloody affair to satisfy all aspects of Solar God being wounded at the hill of Gold. Normally he would have been able to waste Orlanth and kick the crap out of ZZ with one hand tied behind his back but the six wounding errors got to him...
  2. Shargash now free rules Dara Happa. It seems from the history that Manimat fled Dara Happa with seventy families, not so much as Dara Happa was uninhabitable (the last part of the dome breaks after his coronation and he rules Dara Happa for 239 more years), but because the basis of his right to rule (by Anitirius is now dead). A new 'unmentioned' reign of Shargashite Emperors rules from Alkoth. This lasts for 178 years until 'Shargash destroys the World'.
  3. Antirius is captured and brought to life by the Elves of Winterwood forest. He is renamed Yelmalio.
  4. Yelmalio meets Orlanth on top of a river and they fall in. Yelmalio swears to becomes Orlanths friend and they travel back to Kerofinela to warm Orlanths people. Yelmalio is known as Elmal. This is KoS p195.
  5. Elmal is left in charge of the Orlanthi when Orlanth goes to find Ernalda. He then sends emmisaries to see if Dara Happa is still all right. Shargash recognizing his old dominator rebuffs the emissaries (who are naturally in that troubled time armed) and a myth is born that Shargash stopped the raids of Elmalus and the Vingkotlings. Elmal is discouraged and presumes that manimat and his followers are lost.

>Therefore, does Yelmalio = Elmal? The names are pretty similar. And there
>are sun dome temples in Sartar - both are the only acceptable solar dieties in
>the Orlanthi pantheon. But does Elmal has fire spells?

Elmal according to KoS p196 gives "...blessings upon the earth, good barley crops, healthy horses, and winter protection". I interpret Winter protection as when the light in the world is weakest. The Orlanthi already have Mahome and Gustbran to give them fire.

You must note this is the version of the cult in King Tarkalor's time and it probably has not changed much since the dawn. "Blessings on the earth" and the "Good Barley crops" I interpret Elmal has having obtained these secrets with his time among the elves (and his marriage to Ernalda?). The bleesing on horses came much later. Orlanth is seen as deciding the *Heortlings* needed a steed to ride and not the Vingkotlings. I presume that this is the result of a Heortling king heroquesting for a stead to ride and having obtained the secret from Elmal. The myth (mentioned on page 223) might even be the other side of the battle in the sky in GRoY p40 and have occured during time. Orlanth tames the horse and rewards it to his loyal thane Elmal. Note that the Yelmalions of Praxian Sun County do not have any spells relating to horses although we know that they were required to do so when originally gifted the land by King Jhoraz Kyrem.

>Maybe Yelm had a lot of fiery sons by all those concubines whom the DH's fail
>to acknowledge because they weren't out of dendara.

True. Daga is nowhere mentioned in the GRoY despite him being the child of Yelm and Molanni/Entekos. (I presume his worship was to bring warm air during the great darkness). Yelorna is the daughter of Yelm and Ernalda (who appears to be Rernalada in the GRoY). The only concubine I believe that Yelm did not father a child upon would be Verithurusa for reasons the commentator makes allusions to.

>Better yet - highly secret bastards of Dyazatar?

True! Vrimak is cited in Heroes (vol 1, issue ?? Writeup of Hykim) as being the child of Dayzatar and Hykim. Perhaps a god learner who was pissed off at a dayzatarian monk decided to prove that Vrimak was his child...

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