Appearing in "Chapter Seventeen: A Cooler King"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Night Flyer (First appearance)
Antagonists:
- Symbiote Dragons
- Conan's Symbiote (Resurrection)
- Knull (Behind the scenes)
Other Characters:
- Wolverine (Logan) (Mentioned)
- Weapon X (Mentioned)
- Kulan Gath (Only in flashback)
- Prisoners in Ryker's Island
- God (Yahweh) (Invoked)
- Crom (Invoked)
Races and Species:
Locations:
- Earth
- Astral Plane
- Cimmeria (Vision or hallucination)
- Hell (Mentioned)
Items:
Synopsis for "Chapter Seventeen: A Cooler King"
As the symbiote invasion of Earth causes chaos around the world, plunging the already cold winter city into a deep-freeze, Night Flyer - a recently arrested inmate at Ryker’s Island - notes that he'd rather be safe in prison than outside. A group of guards drag the time-displaced Conan of Cimmeria into the prison as he shouts for them to unhand him and that he defended himself. A corrections officer angrily retorts that he assaulted a police officer and is going to do hard time, Conan snapping that a dog can't be an officer of the guard and that either way he let it live. Picking the guard's pocket, Deadpool quips that if the guard has irrefutable evidence he should submit it to the district attorney and get Conan convicted before a jury of his peers, the guard snapping at Deadpool to shut up and smashing his hand into the lockup bars hard enough to break it. As Deadpool complains, the guard snaps that he is stressed out keeping the city safe from criminal scum like them while also keeping the criminal scum safe from the attacking aliens. Approaching Deadpool, Conan comments that he saw him pick the guard's pocket, Deadpool snapping his mangled hand back into place and introducing himself. As Conan reacts in amazement, Deadpool asks if Conan plays Dungeons & Dragons before quipping he has a maxed-out constitution stat - belatedly noticing he stole the guard's personal keys rather than the keys to the cell. As Conan comments that the only person he met with healing powers is Logan, Deadpool quips that he usually only hears Wolverine name-dropped when a comic's in need of a sales-boost but that Logan stopped returning his calls ever since moving to Krakoa. Conan asks if Deadpool could put him in touch, commenting that he wants a set of retractile arm-blades for himself, Deadpool incredulous that he'd want to subject himself to Weapon X's cruel experiments.
As Deadpool asks what his escape plan is, Conan asks how good Deadpool's healing factor is and Deadpool boasts it's better than Wolverine's. Remarking that that's perfect, Conan grabs Deadpool and shoves him through the cell bars - leaving him a mangled mass of mutilated flesh and shattered bones. As Deadpool heals enough to ask why he shouldn't just leave, Conan snaps that if he's even half the man Logan is he won't. The guard returns to check on the noise and slips on Deadpool's intestines, Deadpool knocking him out as the guard threatens to cram him back through the bars. As Deadpool tosses Conan the keys, Night Flier asks to come with them but Conan refuses, Deadpool cutting in that the book is less of a premiere and more of a team-up. Deciding to sweeten the deal, Night Flier introduces himself and offers them a safe place to wait out the invasion and a cut of his latest score.
Several minutes later, Deadpool retrieves his katanas from the evidence room, Night Flier reclaiming his flight pack and Conan claiming a large knife and a shotgun - quipping that he's leaving prison richer than when he was brought in. Stealing some horses, Deadpool and Conan ride for the city with Night Flier gliding above them; Deadpool quipping to his horse that it's most-likely going to be eaten by a monster before the end of the issue and that its sacrifice will not be in vain. No sooner does he say this than a symbiote dragon swoops down and devours Conan's horse, Deadpool griping about how people write clickbaity articles complaining about fridging characters when they should be complaining about the sheer number of horses getting eaten by monsters. As Conan is knocked off the bridge, Night Flier catches him and carries him to safety; Conan vengefully slashing the symbiote dragon's face with his sword. To Conan's shock, the symbiote dragon asks if he remembers it; Conan invoking Crom as the symbiote dragon engulfs him.
Finding himself on a snowy mountain in Cimmeria, Conan gazes down to see a sword imbedded in the peak. As he draws closer, the sword changes into a Necrosword and the voice of his symbiote speaks - reminding him of how it saved him when he'd been mortally wounded by Kulan Gath. The symbiote exposits that while it had perished not long after, its codex had remained within Conan and that it has been resurrected through the symbiote dragon's living abyss. Stating that they both want revenge, the symbiote asks Conan to bond with it once again - saying they can go their separate ways once Kulan Gath is dead. Reaching for the Necrosword's hilt, Conan hesitates and warily asks what will happen if he refuses; the Necrosword latching onto him and snarling that if he refuses its offer it will kill him.
Backing away from Conan's symbiote-cocooned body, Night Flier asks if anyone minds if he bails, since the situation is way out of his depth; Deadpool - in the middle of fighting another symbiote dragon - snapping that he has his own problems to deal with and is all out of horses.
Solicit Synopsis
“BLACK SKIES” PART 1!
CONAN rings in the New Year on Ryker’s Island — which he promptly breaks out of with the help of...DEADPOOL. The two warriors fight together against the symbiotes of KNULL, and Conan makes a surprising discovery that may help him overcome KULAN GATH.