Religion: Hyborian religion
Name: Kyrie
Other Names: Queen Aala; Aala
Classification: supporting character clergy/religious leader
First Appearance: "The Gods Of Bal-Sagoth" (short story); (comic) Conan the Barbarian (vol. 1) #17 (Aug. 1972): "The Gods of Bal-Sagoth"
Creators: Robert E. Howard
Number of Appearances: 3
Enemy of: Conan the Barbarian, Fafnir, Goroth
Defended or Helped by: Conan the Barbarian, Fafnir
Occupation: queen
Location: Bal-Sagoth, Cimmeria
Gender: female
Note: Kyrie was worshipped as the goddess Aala.
Kyrie was the queen of the island city of Bal-Sagoth, where she was worshipped as the goddess Aala. Then she was ousted from her position by the high priest Goroth.
Kyrie met Conan and his ally Fafnir, and enlisted their help. Conan and Fafnir restored Kyrie to her position as queen of Bal-Sagoth.
Then Kyrie tried to seduce Conan and compell him to abandon his friend Fafnir. Conan refused, and in retaliation Kyrie ordered her soldiers to kill both Conan and Fafnir.
Conan and Fafnir escaped and Kyrie was crushed under a massive idol of Goroth's god.
Clearly the religion of her era and specifically the religion of Bal-Sogoth were major factors in Kyrie's life. She was even the central figure in religious worship for the people of her island. The degree to which Kyrie herself was sincere in her religious expression, versus simply using the religion for her own selfish desires, is unclear. One would need to read the stories in which she appears to evaluate this. Despite the fact that Conan allied himself with Kyrie for a time, the woman clearly turned out to be somewhat evil, vindicative and self-serving. There is obviously some intended irony in the fact that she met her demise be being crushed by the idol symbol of her religious rival's god. Whatever the merits of the "actual" goddess Aala (whether real or believed), Kyrie was not this goddess, and was not even a true representative of the ideals this goddess embodies.
The title of this story ("The Gods of Bal-Sagoth") refers to Aala (and Kyrie) and the god of the High Priest Goroth.
Suggested links for further research about this character and the character's religious affiliation:
- http://www.marvunapp.com/master/kskz.htm
- http://www.marvunapp.com/master/aaac.htm
- http://solex2001.blogspot.com/2008/04/its-april-and-ive-got-some-new-stuff-to.html
- http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/fafnirhh.htm
- https://www.comics.org/issue/25362/
- http://comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=72592