The Howler

From Glen Cook Wiki

The Howler is one of the Ten Who Were Taken. He appears as a small figure completely swathed in cloth and rags. His trademark is an earsplitting howl which he apparently cannot control and which he is compelled to do frequently. Croaker is not sure originally if The Howler is male or female, but eventually it is discovered that he is a very small and very old man.

He is not one of the stronger personalities among the Taken, seeming to prefer solitude. Croaker notes that The Howler, despite the fact that he's a crazy evil old sorcerer, seems to be more comfortable following than leading. He is particularly talented at creating flying carpets. He is not much good at healing magic however.

History

Nothing is known about The Howler from the days of the Domination, other than the fact that he is much older than the Lady. He is one of the Taken who remains loyal to her after their release from the Barrowland. He has a particular talent for creating and flying the magic carpets used by theTaken, and is often used to fly larger groups of people on extra-large carpets. During the Battle of Charm, his carpet careens out of control and crashes, apparently sabotaged by Soulcatcher. He is presumed dead after the crash.

Howler survives, however (probably due to a small emergency carpet concealed on his person) and fled in secret to the swamps south of Gea-Xle, where he makes the indigenous swamp-dwellers his own and establishes a "fetid little kingdom". His people help pirates prey on river traffic, to a point where commerce is nearly halted. The Black Company breaks the blockade, countering Howler's magic support with that of Shapeshifter (it is then that they hear the howling in the jungle and realize that The Howler is still alive).

He remains in the jungle for a while longer, but the Shadowmasters, facing military pressure from the Black Company and the renewed powers of the Lady, eventually convince him to come to their aid. (The Shadowmasters know Howler through Stormshadow, aka the renegade Taken Stormbringer). Croaker observes Howler traveling south with about a hundred of his followers, trying to stifle his howls.

Once in Shadowcatch, Howler begins to realize that Longshadow means to betray him and begins hedging his bets, maneuvering to counter Longshadow's curse on Shadowspinner and making a secret alliance with Soulcatcher. He attempts to capture the Lady, despite still being afraid of her, but accidentally takes Soulcatcher instead; during the fight he is stabbed by the Lance of Passion, which surprisingly causes him a great deal of damage and pain. Eventually, he and Soulcatcher move against Longshadow, but in the escape attempt afterwards, Soulcatcher kicks Howler off the overburdened flying carpet. He falls into the snow and is frozen.

The Company captures him, frozen, and keeps him prisoner for lack of a better plan. They bring him to the Fortress on the Glittering Plain, where Howler is trapped by Soulcatcher, along with most of the Company. He remains imprisoned in ice for fifteen years.

When Sleepy eventually manages to free Croaker and the rest of the trapped Company, they leave the Howler trapped in the ice. They eventually return to release him; he helps build carpets with Lady keeping a close eye on him. His attitude improves dramatically when Croaker has the demon Shivetya cure him of his "howling and shrinking" problems. He even becomes somewhat "grabby" with the young sorceresses Shukrat and Arkana.

He continues to work with the Company as they return to Taglios and oppose Soulcatcher and Mogaba, playing second fiddle to the more powerful Tobo. The Howler is killed, along with Murgen and several other Company members, during a failed attack on Mogaba's quarters, which releases scores of deadly Shadows instead.