“Uuuhhhnnnnn…”  A pained, rasping groan sounded from the debris surrounding the crumbling remains of the Skelos Pyramid.  The only one in the area with Set’s Followers having fled the destruction from the fight.  

Hazy recollection reminded him of what he’d witnessed within the walls while they’d been intact.  How had he been there?  He had personally been witness to his Death.  He had been there when he confirmed it with his own eyes, and burned the body.  

Whatever the reason, he knew Conan would not survive Set himself, a massive discharge from the Black Ring to awaken his Master from his forced slumber.  The revelation of what Mighty Set had truly used Jezmine for, that had been a shock for him, and as they fought…

…now he knew where he was, the pile of wooden fragments and abandoned goods confirming that he’d been sent through the wall!  The stands having broken his fall.  

The deathly silence permeating this place informing Wrath-Amon that it was just himself there.  Either Conan had perished in the destruction, or was not long for this world.  There could be no other option for that Barbarian Ghost?  Demon?  Whatever was the case.  

Set would not be pleased with him, that much was clear to his Chief Servant.  But he certainly wouldn’t tolerate his just laying there for someone to find him.  Time for him to rise up and…wait…?  

“M-my legs?  W-why, can’t I?  M-move my-y l-legs-s?”  In spite of his furious commands, they refused to respond, or return any sensation to speak of.  

It was now that he could open one eye enough to see, his leg bent at an impossibly awkward angle, clearly broken yet no pain.  Covered in scales and barefoot.  No armour, no weapons, just a ragged loincloth.  Any and all effort to move his leg, or the other, or even his tail futile.  

His back was broken.  

Without the Black Ring (which was not on his finger) there was no means for him to repair the damage to his body, and unable to move he couldn’t even begin to search for it.  

A crumbling noise reached him and in the corner of his sight he could make out the outline of a ruined wall failing, toppling over.  Towards him.  

‘Is this?  How I, meet my end?’  The Lizardman chuckled at the pathetic nature of his imminent demise.  All his power, all his achievements in the name of Set, and this is how he would go?  

A moment of clarity, of epiphany came to him in his last moment.  All his life, ever since he had first hatched.  Never, had he performed a task for himself.  Everything he had ever done, his every act, speech, threat.  All he had done for another.  First Ram-Amon, then Set.  That barbarian fool.  At least he had made his own decisions.  Acted on his own for his own purposes.  

Now, at the end, he knew why he hated Conan so much.  He hated his freedom, he hated his companions, he hated the life Conan had that he could not!  

The wall crushed him, extinguishing his Life Force.  

Synopsis:  While taking a break from their travels, Conan, Snagg, and Jezmine are approached by Tarana who alerts them to the fact that her father, Torrinon appears to have gone Mad.  When they travel to Eruk to investigate, they are swiftly captured by the seemingly-mad Torrinon.  Who after chaining them to the wall, has the real Torrinon join them, revealing himself to be Wrath-Amon.  

As Wrath-Amon leaves to begin the preparations for having their Star-Metal Weapons melted down, Torrinon admits that having spent time learning more about the proper application of Magic, he grew rather cocky and sent a prank to Wrath-Amon, to tell him he wasn’t afraid of him.  Inevitably this is what led to Torrinon’s imprisonment in the first place.  

Fortunately for them all, Torrinon is also an accomplished Escape Artist, and is able to free them from their shackles, and comes up with a plan - thanks to a combination of his pick-pocketing skills and a magical artefact (a Glove of Doubling) to make a copy of himself to facilitate said plan.  

The plan works in that Torrinon is able to steal the Ring moments after their ruse is found out, but are still forced to fight Wrath-Amon, who despite being bereft of the Black Ring’s Power (and thus revealed to Conan and his companions to being a Lizardman), and thanks to being hit repeatedly by the Glove of Doubling, there are three of him to contend with once they stop fighting each other.  

During the fight, the workshop takes damage and with the fire for the forge burning, once debris enters it, it blows clear and sets the entire room ablaze.  And despite their best efforts - they are able to recover their weapons and cool them before they could be melted down - Dregs accidentally swallows the Black Ring and is forced to flee from Wrath-Amon (plus copies) while Conan needs to put out the fire that cut them off from him.  

Despite Wrath-Amon’s escape and their not having the Black Ring, they are able to celebrate the fact they kept the Star-Metal from him, as Torrinon holds a dinner for them by way of gratitude and apology.  

Review:  There’s to me, a definite Aesop here concerning picking fights with those you aren’t a match for, as Torrinon was made to learn the Hard Way.  His idiotic prank against Wrath-Amon being the catalyst that set off the sequence of events leading to this Episode.  

Another serious detail to be covered is that episode marks the very first time that there is absolutely no question that Conan is now aware of what Wrath-Amon really is, which means that now Conan has one new weapon to use against him, one that isn’t really used however, but given the requirements needed to force out this truth, it’s an understandable omission.  That said, it wouldn’t be surprising that Wrath-Amon would grow more fearful of Conan than he had been, and given that later he attempts to just kill Conan, it’s a theory that has at least some weight to it.  

There are notable animation issues here.  As well as moments when Wrath-Amon’s limbs bend in ways they shouldn’t and the proportions are way off, there’s also the constant changes to the colour scheme used for his Lizardman form.  Having first used two tones (green and sand-yellow) for the body and a darker green for his face, they switched to a single green throughout, and now the last one which used the first scheme save for a light green-white on the face with purple highlights around the eyes - and is the one they keep for the remainder of the show.  While they did settle on one colour design, it does feel like there had been a lack of oversight during the animation process as evidenced by the changes such as the aforementioned.  

Back to the plus side.  The producers did show a willingness to return to past points and stories, the events/encounters of ‘The Terrible Torrinon’ being referenced briefly, and bringing back characters first introduced in that episode - namely Torrinon and Tamara.  Details like that, showing that they could build on past episodes, not dropping them once done, this is what allows the show to hold up.  Especially as this was neither the first nor last such occurrence.  

Synopsis:  After learning of the Spellbinder: Conan; Zula; and Falkenar travel to his mountainside home where he lives alone to see if he knows of a way to reverse the Spell of Living Stone cast upon Conan’s family.  While he does not know the means or wish to divulge it, he does offer Conan the option of travelling through time to before the Spell was cast and preventing it from ever happening.  

Once sent back in time, Conan is quick to realise that he’s been sent too far back, as Wrath-Amon is nowhere to be found and there’s a man named Ram-Amon who wields the Black Ring, which is what Conan is interested in.  

His first attempt to seize the Ring fails, and Ram-Amon blames Dregs (who is alive even at this point in time, and just as incompetent and useless as he is under Wrath-Amon) and in an effort to prove that anyone and anything would make a more competent underling than Dregs could ever amount to, uses the Black Ring’s power, sparing no attribute when reforming an ordinary Gila Monster Lizard (that was used as a Sniffer to find slaves attempting escape amongst other things) into a Lizardman.  

Later it’s revealed that the Spellbinder never intended to bring Conan back, and after stealing what he suspects (and later confirms to be) the Amulet of Vathelos, and attempting to kill Zula and Falkenar, is forced under threat of being returned to Civilisation (something he despises, and is extremely fearful of) agrees to return Conan to his correct point in time.  

Unfortunately for Conan, he’s pulled back just before he can steal the Black Ring of Set, which rolls to a stop by (literally) the Lizardman’s feet, to which he responds by taking it as his own, imprisoning Ram-Amon, becoming the new Chief Servant of Set, becoming Wrath-Amon.  The one who cursed Conan’s family.  

Review:  Ouch!  >_<  Conan really made (with the benefit of hindsight) a serious error here!  His effort to free his family from the Spell of Living Stone sending him through time, where his actions aided Wrath-Amon in becoming Chief Servant of Set, and in turn casting said spell to Close the Stable Time Loop.  

Ram-Amon really made a blunder when creating the Lizardman to prove that anything could make a better underling than Dregs.  The Strength of 100 Men.  Cleverness.  Cunning.  In sparing no attribute, he made him more powerful physically than himself.  Furthermore, you see the look on Wrath-Amon’s face when he sees the Black Ring being recharged, and how he replies to Ram-Amon when he gives his warning to never “defy the Master of the Black Ring”.  Wrath-Amon wasn’t stating that he understood (though that is also true), he was indicating even then, his intention to claim it as his own.  His crushing the skull with his foot within the dungeons (while searching for Conan and Needle) and declaring that that would be Ram-Amon cementing this fact.  

And when you stop to think about it, Wrath-Amon had incredible good fortune to claim the Black Ring when he did, perhaps not even an hour after becoming a Lizardman thanks to his Predecessor.  It is thanks to Conan’s interference, some quick thinking, and blatant opportunism that he won that particular round.  

The obvious result here is that the number who’d be aware of what Wrath-Amon truly is, how he came to be most likely peaks at no more than 4.  Himself, Ram-Amon, Dregs, and Set.  None outside the Pyramid, and very few inside know of this, combined with his changing his form to appear almost human, I suspect leaves him very insecure, and utterly dependant on Set recharging the Black Ring in order to maintain said form (as mentioned in an earlier post) which may also explain why Set would be so willing to permit it, as doing so would keep Wrath-Amon loyal to him.  

While it is true that this makes Wrath-Amon appear to be shallow, rather self-conscious, and more than a little fearful.  To make this his Origin and tie in properly with what had already happened demanded this be the case.  Especially if that development came (as I suspect) after the series had already started and was some way through, making this design one of the few that could work properly.  

This does make me wonder though, why he felt it necessary to hide that form from the others.  After all while Ram-Amon was human and the Cult of Set was comprised mainly of Serpent-Men, they did follow his instructions without question.  The most likely explanation for this is that Ram-Amon had the time and patience to establish his hold as Chief Servant, to use his leadership skills and sheer power through both the Black Ring and his own to secure it.  Things that Wrath-Amon apparently lacked, and still does, indicating impatience and (in his earlier days) not thinking his moves through.  

All of this leads to the conclusion that by far Wrath-Amon’s greatest downfall was his early, and rapid, rise to power.  A rapid rise that left him without the time needed to become more known within the Cult of Set, to grow comfortable with himself, and to learn the key leadership, strategising, and diplomacy skills to be an effective leader when he attained his title.  That in retrospect, having 10-12 years from his becoming a Lizardman before stealing the Ring would have worked far better for him in the long run.  Although, in the final analysis, not being able to claim the Ring at all would have given him the best outcome in the end.  

Dawn had yet to break over the Stygian Priestly Capitol, Khemi, and its Pyramid remained dark and silent, save for the moonlight-guided patrols along its walls and perimeter.  Inside, more guards kept vigil over the passageways and chambers though in its interior they could forgo their guises, dull olive-green scaled, snake-headed, the Serpent-Men who swore their loyalty to Set, the Serpent God.  

Security was tight with even the food shipments held up for up to hours as they were searched, in case of attempts to smuggle in unwanted items, poisons within the produce, or people hidden inside.  To be expected as along with the other Great Pyramids spread across Hyboria, this one was vital to their goal of releasing their God from The Abyss, its Black Disc of Corrupted Star-Metal at its top waiting for the others to be ready.  

But here, even more so thanks to the one who resided within.  

Wrath-Amon.  High Priest and Chief Servant of Set.  Leader of the Serpent-Men.  Tasked by Set to release him from his Millennia of Imprisonment.  Awake, as of a few minutes ago.  

The last part was not unusual for him, being a light sleeper by nature and able to manage on little more than four hours a day if needs be.  

It wouldn’t be the size of the room that would give anyone entering pause - that said it was admittedly extremely spacious - or the sparse furnishings for its size, the immense four-poster bed centred along one wall, a row of tables and desks opposite and a few stands for his armour and equipment to their right.  Or even the relatively humble look of them with their earthy greens and browns.  

The clawed feet that struck the stone floor however would, for they belonged to the occupant of this room.  

Not a Serpent-Man, as his scales were of two colours, an emerald-green that almost shimmered in the right light, and a sandy-yellow for the front.  Nor did Serpent-Men have long tails, or any tail at all.  An Elevated Lizardman was what Wrath-Amon was.  

“Again?”  He hissed between gulps of drink to quench his thirst, the goblet slammed to the bedside table once drained.  “That’s how many times now?”  

These nightmares were not unusual for him, but in the past few months they’d been more frequent.  Ever since first his forced Moulting that his life had depended on, then the disaster in Eruk where Conan saw him, what he truly was, where he’d barely made it out, forced to leave the Star-metal behind.  Forced to extract the Black Ring that Dregs had so foolishly swallowed while the chariot returned them to Stygia.  

Usually he would face the same nightmare, something happened that saw him exposed, humiliated, in front of either the Followers of Set, or the general populace, sometimes both.  This time he’d been in a Star-Metal cage, paraded throughout the Barbarian Lands, the gloating face of that Barbarian Fool, the jeers of too many faces to count.  His armies, his followers abandoning him to that fate.  

“No!”  He struck the wall, pushing the images from his mind.  

Forcing himself to stop shaking, Wrath-Amon made his way to one of the desks, littered with reports and updates that he’d put off for the sake of a few hours troubled sleep.  They were all mostly the same, progress reports, income and expenditure, the vast bulk of which he delegated to better focus his efforts on the Key Goal.  The one he did take notice of, was the one that stated that the fifth of the great Pyramids needed to release Set was complete and ready to take the Star-Metal Disc.  

This would be some welcome Good News to deliver to Set when he went to recharge the Black Ring - and it was quite low on Power now - with His release from the Other Dimension one step closer.  The remaining pair would be some weeks at least from completion but they would be complete, and enough Star-Metal for half the final disc.  As for Conan…

“My Lord!  I have urgent news…for…you…”  Wrath-Amon was wrenched from his thoughts by the arrival of the Draconic Windfang, who now stood by the open door, gawking at the one who’d risen from the seat, and turned to face him.  

The doors!  Both of them!  They were supposed to be locked, with additional bars across to keep the others out!  How had he forgotten to lock them!?  

And he couldn’t even blame Dregs for this one.  

“Close the door.”  Wrath-Amon realised he’d been staring at Windfang while he’d been scratching nervously at one of his lower arms, and if he was to salvage this possible catastrophe, he had to make sure Windfang knew just who was in charge.  Once his order was complied with, he moved to the point of the intrusion.  “Well?  What is it?”  

“Well…”  Windfang faltered, now under no illusion as to who he was speaking with.  “Conan…and some of his companions.  They were sighted not far from the Stone Gardens.  They…should be there…sometime mid-morning.”  

About the middle of the morning?  That left Wrath-Amon with little time to complete the trap he had waiting for him.  In fact, he’d have to leave soon if he was to be there to finally rid himself of that accursed Barbarian for good.  

“Have my Chariot prepared.  I will leave for the Stone Garden as soon as I am able.  You, will come with me.”  Wrath-Amon instructed his underling, who was about to leave when he paused.  

“Wrath-Amon?  If I may ask?  What…are you?”  

“Not now.  There must be no delay if Conan is to be rid of.  See to the Chariot as I ordered.”  When Windfang did not appear to be satisfied he added.  “Another time, perhaps, if, I feel like it.  And remember this.  What you saw here, stays in this room.”  He added, the threat in his tone clear.  

“Of course, my Master.”  Windfang realised he couldn’t press his luck further, leaving the Lizardman alone with his thoughts.  

Not for the first time, Wrath-Amon wondered if he’d made the correct choice more than two centuries past, in Spiting Ram-Amon with his new form thanks to the Power of Set, from the Black Ring that he kept on his finger at all times.  Perhaps, had be instead allowed himself to be seen as he was, is, and not need to expend so much of the Black Ring’s reserves on simply maintaining what he’d come to see as his own face.  Then he would remember Windfang, Skulkar.  Two inhuman minions under his command who’s only real followers were the reanimated skeletons in the latter, and the Dragonspawn created by him for the former.  The Serpent-Men and Human followers operating under his (and Set’s) instruction only.  

As he always intended.  

In any case, after so long, it was too late for him to change that tactic.  The fallout from it?  He didn’t even want to think about it.  Even if it meant he could at least have some armour and clothing made to fit in this…form.  

Actually, given the recent close calls, that was an idea he’d been harbouring for some time, if nothing else it would trim some of the Power needed to maintain his illusion.  

The previous wielder of the Black Ring of Set, granting him Set’s Power and conferring him the title of Chief Servant of Set.  His fall from Set’s Favour was brought about largely by his own Hand when he sought a replacement for Dregs, sparing no effort in his creation of the Lizardman who would become Wrath-Amon.  

In some ways, Ram-Amon was a rather more competent and capable Villain than Wrath-Amon, seemingly greater control over his emotions than Wrath-Amon (who was prone to raucous outbursts) and able to not only devise good plans but leave himself an escape route were it to fail.  

Ram-Amon was also more than loyal to Set for even after Set all-but-abandoned him after Wrath-Amon took charge, he was still seeking to reclaim the Black Ring and resume his place as His Chief Servant.  How much of this was due to his own loyalties and how much to be safe from Wrath-Amon isn’t made abundantly clear - although Mesmira did warn him that neither of them would be safe from Wrath-Amon were he to gain the Full Power of Set.  

Perhaps Ram-Amon’s greatest asset however, was that even without the Black Ring, he was still an extremely powerful wizard, able to perform a number of complex spells up to and including opening small portals to The Abyss.  

But he is not without his flaws, and the principal one would be his own Hubris.  For the sole purpose of proving to Dregs that anybody would make a better servant than he could ever be, he chose to invoke the Powers of Darkness to reform a simple lizard into a Lizardman, gifted with strength, intelligence, and cunning.  It worked.  Too well.  For that very Lizardman would overthrow and imprison him, taking his place at Set’s side for more than 200 years before his escape thanks in part to the very one partially responsible for his imprisonment in the first place.  

And like Wrath-Amon, he is very self-centred.  While willing to ally himself with Conan twice and once with Mesmira, as soon as he seemed to have what he wished he would break his end of any agreement made.  Attempting to attack Conan when he refilled his own Power and again when the recharged Amulet of Vathelos was in his grasp.  

The remaining downside to Ram-Amon is that really, he doesn’t seem to be in it for any other besides Power, indeed, in spite of the power he already wields, it’s clear that for him, it’s not enough.  For while Wrath-Amon needs Set to maintain his illusion, and Mesmira has a whole Kingdom to worry about (amongst other things), Ram-Amon lacks that.  And not much else is known about him.  

One interesting detail is that after Set’s defeat, he was able to escape.  Likely a Sequel Hook for a possible follow-on series, and so remains a credible threat to Conan and his allies.  

“Uungh…”  A dull moan heard by just one from deep within the Khemi Pyramid.  

“Oh ‘Master’, you’re awake at last.”  The other spoke with a distinct rasp, through a throat that wasn’t originally built to support speech.  

“You…creature…what…?”  Vision returned slowly, the haze dissipating to greet him with the sight of cold stone walls and iron bars.  

“I do hope that you enjoy your stay, Ram-Amon.”  His name spat with venom.  “It will be your home now, for as long as I see fit.”  His captor peered down with piercing yellow eyes through the bars to face his one-time Superior.  

Said Captor stood tall on the very edge of the opening, green and yellow scales covering his well-built body with just a ragged loincloth.  That and an all-too familiar ring worn on his left hand, even with his reptilian face, triumph could clearly be made out.  

“You, Traitor!”  Ram-Amon made a lunge through his prison, only for his former servant to step beyond his reach with a cruel chuckle.  

“My, aren’t we upset this day.  Though I don’t think I could blame you.  He dropped to one knee, a mere two foot between their faces.  “After all, you made me, the instrument of your own downfall.”  

“And you presume to have triumphed over me!?”  Ram-Amon’s deep booming tone bouncing off the walls of his own dungeon.  “That you can just take the Title of Chief Servant!?”  

He didn’t have an answer for his accusations, and after some moments of silence, Ram-Amon suspected he had struck a nerve and pressed his attack.  

“Do you expect the Serpent-Men, or indeed any other to follow your orders?  From one who is far less than them?  From one who owes all their intellect, strength, and skill to me?  From one who is a virtual unknown?  From ultimately, just a lowly lizard?”  The way the Lizardman’s face twitched and scowled informed Ram-Amon that he was striking him where it hurt.  

The Lizardman’s response was to spit a large globule in his direction, hitting the bars and slowly dripping.  “We shall see.”  Were all the words he had as he left him.  

Partway through the empty corridor and he had to stop.  Why did his words cut so deeply into him?  Why couldn’t he answer back?  Why couldn’t he stop shaking?  A fist struck out to smash into the stone wall.