Connects to: 25.04, 37.01, 46.10, the Lands of the Night Cattle and the World’s Edge.
Overview
In the Withered Moors, atop a stony ridge, there is a hut built on stilts. The man who lives there is known as Crossbow Henry, a violent and paranoid man who believes beyond all reason that anyone he meets is conspiring to kill him. The area around the hut is strung with fine wires, some attached to bells that sound the alarm, others to crude but vicious traps. More traps are built into the ladder that leads up to the door and into the hut itself. Inside the hut crouches Crossbow Henry, clutching his poison-tipped crossbow and staring out across the plain, watching for enemies who many never come.
It is said that Crossbow Henry was once a prosperous trader on the Welt Road (which passes through the Lands of the Night Cattle), a jovial sort whose caravan was welcomed by all who knew him. But then, it is whispered, Henry made the mistake of gazing into Mirror Lake (37.01). There he saw himself reflected with blood dribbling from his mouth, and dark lacerations all across his face. Thinking this to be a vision of the future, Henry was driven half-mad with fear, and has since devoted his every waking moment to a desperate attempt at cheating fate.
Connections
- A woman who might be Henry’s disowned daughter frequents the Sundial Inn (25.04).
- It seems that Crossbow Henry must leave his hut at least some of the time, for he has seen the light of the Lost Lighthouse (46.10) shining at the World’s Edge.
- Henry once lived somewhat north of here (41.02) but there were too many monkeys there.
Hooks
- What happened to Henry’s fortune?
- What is Henry’s destiny really?
