The Oracle and the Mountains
"The Oracle and the Mountains" is a short story by American writer Stephen King, originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in February 1981.[1] In 1982, "The Oracle and the Mountains" was collected with several other stories King published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction as The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger."The Oracle and the Mountains" formed the third chapter of the book, and was slightly revised for the inclusion.Roland restrains Jake at their campsite and gives him the jawbone taken from the skeleton in the way station, as a means of warding off the Oracle's influence.Roland asks Jake to make his choice as to whether he wishes to leave the gunslinger or accompany him, and Jake agrees to come with him, knowing that Roland plans to sacrifice him in order to reach the man in black.