A DEMIGOD (1886) – ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION

A DEMIGOD (1886) – Written by American author Edward Payson Jackson, this work preceded Philip Wylie’s Gladiator by more than 4 decades.

We readers are told that in the early 1600s physician Kenelm Vere decided that human beings were not living up to their potential. He established a remote laboratory in Greece, and purchased a female he deemed physically perfect. Dr. Vere mated with her and began a selective breeding program with their offspring, with their children and grandchildren enhanced by his own scientific tweaking over the decades.

In 1880s Greece, Kenelm’s sole surviving descendant Hector, now spelling the family surname as “Vyr”, is a human wonder. Hector has Adonis-like physical beauty, intelligence far ahead of his time, greater than human strength and amazing reflexes that allow him to dodge bullets fired at him.

These abilities put Hector Vyr in a class with other “Platinum Age” sci-fi and pulp magazine superhumans like Oliver Leeming in The Man in the Black Cloak (1886) and Dr. Cunliffe in his eponymous short story collection (1913). Puttering away in his laboratory hideout in the Greek countryside, Vyr has perfected a cheap way of producing artificial diamonds for industrial and conventional use.

Over the years, our title “demigod” has also withstood multiple attacks by regional Greek bandits, whom he has defeated with his physical prowess and his custom-made gun. That weapon uses compressed air to shoot small darts with incredible force and it outclassed any guns the bandits had access to.

Enter the American trio of Major Warren Paul, his beautiful and brilliant daughter Madeline and her cousin Robert Griffin, who are on holiday traveling the forests of Greece. Peschino, one of the bandit leaders that Hector Vyr has been feuding with in recent years, leads his gang in seizing the vacationers and sending ransom demands to America.

The Major’s family and friends in the U.S. are less than loyal and make only token gestures toward raising the ransom, relying mostly on American governmental pressure on the chaotic Greek government to recover the hostages.

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Meanwhile, Hector has learned of Peschino’s captives and mounts a raid to single-handedly save Warren, Madeline and Robert from the bandits and take them to his hideout. In the days ahead, our hero and Madeline fall in love, as Hector realizes she is the kind of perfect woman who would make an ideal mate. 

The jealous Robert Griffin, infuriated because he has the hots for his cousin Madeline (eewww), betrays Hector into the hands of Peschino’s gang. At first the bandits offer Vyr a role as their leader, given his incredible abilities. Our hero refuses and the bandits proceed to torture him.

Hours later, Hector is so enraged by the torture that he breaks free and begins to take on the entire gang. He and the Americans are aided by the sudden arrival of Greek troops, finally galvanized into action by U.S. political pressure.

EPILOGUE: Peschino dies from the wounds that Hector inflicted on him during the final battle, Madeline helps nurse our hero back to health and they decide to marry. Cousin Robert repents and is forgiven. Hector and Madeline will be very wealthy thanks to Vyr’s method of artificially producing diamonds. 

A Demigod is fun and is basically a more serious attempt at the kind of pulp heroes who would eventually give way to the more childish comic book superheroes in the 1930s. Hector Vyr lacks the angst and soul-searching of Hugo Danner in Gladiator but is likeable enough.

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