Few people know much about the piper; for every documented sighting of him, there are dozens of unconfirmed tales of a musician matching his description. Many of these hail him as a hero, ridding towns of plagues or conjuring food for a famine-stricken village, but others hint at a more sinister nature.
Rumours abound, for instance, that he enchants children and steals them from their parents. Some insist that he sells them as slaves to beggar-kings and land-owners, others believe they are led to a magical land where they never grow up. A few dark tales suggest that he is in league with the devil himself. No-one, however, knows the truth about this mysterious figure and his motivations, or, indeed, what he is capable of.
Recent reports place him somewhere in Britain, though some must obviously be erroneous- after all, there's no way he could be spotted in Bristol one day and Edinburgh the next, is there?
DESCRIPTION
It's unclear whether anyone alive today knows his true name. Not many people are in his company long enough to find out much, and when questioned, no two can quite agree on what he looks like. Most accounts agree that he is tall, very tall, and gaunt- almost like a skeleton. He is commonly described as wearing a long coat, patched so often it's hard to tell what the original garment looked like. He speaks quietly, never shouting, but somehow able to be heard by everyone in the room. In his posession at all times, attached round his neck by a leather thong, is a flute made of bone.
Rumours abound, for instance, that he enchants children and steals them from their parents. Some insist that he sells them as slaves to beggar-kings and land-owners, others believe they are led to a magical land where they never grow up. A few dark tales suggest that he is in league with the devil himself. No-one, however, knows the truth about this mysterious figure and his motivations, or, indeed, what he is capable of.
Recent reports place him somewhere in Britain, though some must obviously be erroneous- after all, there's no way he could be spotted in Bristol one day and Edinburgh the next, is there?
DESCRIPTION
It's unclear whether anyone alive today knows his true name. Not many people are in his company long enough to find out much, and when questioned, no two can quite agree on what he looks like. Most accounts agree that he is tall, very tall, and gaunt- almost like a skeleton. He is commonly described as wearing a long coat, patched so often it's hard to tell what the original garment looked like. He speaks quietly, never shouting, but somehow able to be heard by everyone in the room. In his posession at all times, attached round his neck by a leather thong, is a flute made of bone.
