The Stranger is the driving force behind the plot in the play Carcosa, or The Queen and the Stranger. His arrival shocks Cassilda and the people of Yhtill out of their stasis. Unfortunately, his defiance of The King in Yellow lands him and the people of Yhtill in big trouble.

The stranger is always seen wearing a mask, but in the end insists that he is 'The Pallid Mask' and 'The Phantom of Truth'. He wears The Yellow Sign as a mark of defiance of The King in Yellow. According to the script of the play, the stranger's name is Haita, and he hails from Alar.

The stranger claimed Aldebaran as his star.