 Of the short stories, five feature Gezun, also of Lorsk, kidnapped from his native country by slave raiders to become a roving adventurer.Neither is a hero of the Conan stripe, as de Camp's estimation of heroics is more realistic than Howard's, and includes a healthy dose of skepticism regarding human motivations.Though Gezun's life story unfolds over the course of the tales featuring him in Conan-like fashion, it is no Horatio Alger progression to kingship like Conan's.