It also shows that Kull's rebelliousness against stifling old laws and traditions long antedated his becoming King of Valusia, and that he was very much an outsider even in his earlier life in Atlantis.
Long before it became a great empire, the continent of Atlantis was populated by various tribes of barbarians.
Ala dared to marry a Lemurian pirate, and was exiled for breaking the age-old feud.
When the lovers' ship crashed and she washed ashore, Ala's people found her, and now intend to execute her - with her own mother disowning her while leading the vengeful mob.
Kull finds himself bewildered and disgusted by the laws which insist an Atlantian must be put to death for marrying an enemy of their race.
Kull takes out his hunting knife and throws it at the girl's chest, killing her in an instant and sparing her from her fate of being burned alive.