The Slow Mutants
| The Slow Mutants | |
|---|---|
| Author | The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction |
| Publisher | Mercury Press |
| Media type | Print (Magazine) |
| Publication date | July 1981 |
| Preceded by | "The Oracle and the Mountains" |
| Followed by | "The Gunslinger and the Dark Man" |
The Slow Mutants is a
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in July 1981.[1] In 1982, "The Slow Mutants" was collected with four other stories King published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction as The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger. "The Slow Mutants" formed the fourth chapter of the book, and was slightly revised for the inclusion.[2][3]
Plot
hand car cart created by the Great Old Ones. During this time, to distract the boy, Roland tells him a story of his childhood (which is also told in Wizard and Glass and The Gunslinger Born
).
At age fourteen, Roland discovered his mother having an affair with his father's court magician,
Good Man and Crimson King
to whom Marten secretly swore allegiance. Roland faced his teacher Cort, using his hawk David as his weapon and deliberately sacrificing him in order to gain the upper hand, and passed the trial.
While traveling through the mountain, Roland and Jake are attacked by a pack of
slow mutants, who block the track in an attempt to catch them. Jake clears the obstruction just in time for them to escape, and they travel on to the edge of a deep chasm spanned by a dilapidated trestle. They abandon the hand car and start crossing on foot. Nearing the other end, Jake slips and Roland catches him, but the man in black
arrives to offer Roland a choice: let the boy die or never catch him. Roland lets Jake fall to his death and exits the tunnel with the man in black.
See also
- Short fiction by Stephen King
References
- ^ "Bibliography". The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger". StephenKing.com. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Peckham, Matthew. "The SF Site Featured Review: The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger (2003)". SF Site. Retrieved 16 April 2019.