Arak, aka Bright-Sky-After-Storm, is a DC Comics hero who fights mythical creatures and figures from many cultural traditions. He is a great fighter, skilled swordsman, he is good with a tomahawk and a bow and arrow, and he is an expert tracker. He has magical abilities including weather manipulation, spell and illusion casting, and he can control the earth.

Arak’s Unusual Origin Story

Roy Thomas and Ernie Colón created Arak and introduced him in The Warlord #48 (August 1981). Arak was born from unique circumstances. His mother, Star-of-Dawn, of the Quontauka Native tribe was bitten by an evil serpent god. He-No, the Thunder God, saved her and took her to his realm to recover from the wound. The two were married and she gave birth to a son she named Bright-Sky-After-Storm. He-No could tell that she missed her home, so he returned Star-of-Dawn and their son to her people.

A tribe that followed the serpent deity attacked Star-of-Dawn’s a tribe few years later. He-No saved Bright-Sky-After-Storm, while most of the tribe was killed. He sent Bright-Sky-After-Storm out to sea where he was saved by Vikings. One of the crewmen adopted the boy and renamed him Arak, then raised him as a Viking.

Arak followed them on raids for years, which ended when they were attacked by a sea serpent. It killed most of the crew, including Arak’s adopted father. Arak killed it by piercing its brain with the broken pieces of a cross. After that, Arak befriended Carolus Magnus, joined his knights on adventures, and was in a relationship with Valda the Iron Maiden. He set out on his own adventures, taking on many creatures from legend, meeting gods and mythical heroes along the way.

A Second Chance

When he died, He-No told Arak all about his origin and invited Arak to serve as his side. Arak refused the offer because he wanted to find the surviving members of his tribe. He-No was angry by Arak’s choice, but he resurrected Arak and set him back to Earth with a feather from his Headdress of Power. After that, Arak could see spirits and resist magic, becoming a shaman as well as a warrior.

He traveled around the world, and eventually found his people then led them to an island off the Canadian west coast where they could live in peace. Then when Arak died, his father came to his deathbed to leave behind a mystical cloak that would help his descendants. Knowing that the future will be protected, Bright-Sky-After-Storm died peacefully.