Conan the Barbarian 35

Major Characters

 * Conan (Previous appearance CB-34; next appearance in second story of SSOC-153).

Minor Characters

 * Bourtai (Previous appearance CB-34; dies in this issue).
 * Kai Shaah (Previous appearance CB-27; dies in this issue).
 * Various bandits (First and only appearance to date).

Location

 * The desert west of Khitai and the abandonded city Kara-Shehr.

Time Frame

 * One day.

Synopsis
Conan, and Bourtai head through the desert when they encounter a man hassled by bandits. They ride to the man's rescue, but are too late; with the man's dying breath he tells them about the Azure Eye, a great jewel from the city of Kara-Shehr. A sandstorm consumes them, and when it disperses, they find the lost city. Conan is wary, but Bourtai wants the jewel, and they search through the ruins. In the castle's throne room they find a skeleton clutching a great blue gem, and, although Conan is sure the instant anyone touches the gem the skeleton will come to life (he's been in that situation before), Bourtai takes the prize, to no seeming skeletal resurrection. Conan makes him put it back, and the skeletal hand closes on the gem. At that moment, the bandits appear, having tracked Conan, and their leader, Kai Shaah, who encountered Conan before, takes the gem. A mysterious creature of mists and fangs bursts from the wall and kills Kai Shaah, as Conan works on the bandits. In the melee, Bourtai also grabs the jewel and the creature turns on him, leaving only a skeleton. Conan, the only one remaining, turns and walks away.

Reprinted

 * Conan Saga #73
 * The Chronicles of Conan Volume Six: The Curse of the Golden Skull and Other Stories