| "Rogues in the House" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short story byRobert E. Howard | |||
| Country | United States | ||
| Language | English | ||
| Genre | Fantasy | ||
| Publication | |||
| Published in | Weird Tales | ||
| Publication type | Pulp magazine | ||
| Publisher | Rural Publishing Corporation | ||
| Publication date | January 1934 | ||
| Chronology | |||
| Series | Conan the Cimmerian | ||
| |||
"Rogues in the House" is one of the originalshort stories starring the fictionalsword and sorcery heroConan the Cimmerian, written by American authorRobert E. Howard and first published inWeird Tales magazine in January 1934. It is set in the fictionalHyborian Age and concerns Conan inadvertently becoming involved in the struggle between two powerful men fighting for control of a city-state. It was the seventh Conan story Howard had published. It features a fight between Conan and an intelligent ape-like hominid.
"When did a priest keep an oath?” complained Conan, comprehending the trend of the conversation. “Let me cut his throat; I want to see what color his blood is. They say in the Maze that his heart is black, so his blood must be black too..."
— Robert E. Howard, "Rogues in the House"
The story begins in an unnamedcity-state between Zamora and Corinthia during a power struggle between two powerful leaders: Murilo, anaristocrat, and Nabonidus the "Red Priest", aclergyman with a strong power base. After he is delivered a threat by Nabonidus (the ear of a corrupt secretary that worked with Murilo), Murilo learns of Conan's reputation as a mercenary and turns to him for help.
Prior to the story's beginning, Conan kills a corruptpriest ofAnu, who was both afence and policeinformer. However, Conan was arrested after he becameintoxicated and aprostitute turned him in. Languishing in ajail cell while awaiting his execution, Conan receives Murilo's visit and is proposed a bargain: in exchange for setting him free and getting him out of Corinthia with a bag of gold, Conan will assassinate Nabonidus.
After accepting his offer, Conan is given food and wine by Murilo. However, while he's eating, the jailer who should release Conan when Murilo has left (thus with analibi) is arrested on unrelated corruption charges (corruption seems to run rampant in the city). Soon, his replacement is flabbergasted to see a prisoner awaiting execution while chomping down on a slice of beef. As he's entering the cell to confiscate it, Conan splits the man's skull with the very bone he was gnawing on and makes his escape. He briefly considers leaving Murilo on his own, but then decides to follow the original plan and keep his word.
After taking revenge on the prostitute who turned him in (he slays her new lover and throws the woman into a foulcesspit), Conan sneaks into Nabonidus's trap-filled mansion. However, he finds that Murilo and Nabonidus himself are being held captive by a mysterious third party who took control of Nabonidus's position while impersonating him. This turns out to be Thak, a primitive ape-like creature who Nabonidus had captured as a cub and trained as his personal bodyguard. The three observe Thak, via a series of hiddenperiscopes, and see that the creature has learned to imitate Nabonidus well enough to activate a toxic pollen trap, which eliminates yet another party of assassins (nationalistic agitators) penetrating the villa.
Finally, Conan and the other two men manage to escape from the basement and regain entry into Nabonidus's mansion. Later, Conan defeats Thak in hand-to-hand combat. The Red Priest soon betrays both Conan and Murilo; but, while Nabonidus is gloating over his plans in a villain monologue, Conan slays him with an expertly hurled stool. The surviving pair leave and go their separate ways.
In a January 1934 letter toH. P. Lovecraft,Clark Ashton Smith (discussing the January 1934 issue ofWeird Tales) praised "Rogues in the House". Smith stated, "Conan, as usual, put on a very entertaining and imaginative show."[1]
The story was adapted byRoy Thomas andBarry Smith inMarvel Comics'Conan the Barbarian #11 (Nov 1971), and byTim Truman andCary Nord and Tomás Giorello inDark Horse Comics'Conan #41–44 (2007).
| Preceded by | Original Howard Canon (publication order) | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Original Howard Canon (Dale Rippke chronology) | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Complete Conan Saga (William Galen Gray chronology) | Succeeded by |
