Just a reminder, YN means your name. Happy reading!

Soon after Morro leaves you, Bansha appears in your room. She looks around. "Ghoul-Tar, I know you're here. I can sense you." She hisses.

Ghoul-Tar pops up beside you, a safe distance from the sorceress. You yelp in surprise, still not used to the perpetual appearing-disappearing of the ghosts.

"What does Bansha want from Ghoul-Tar?"

"Master wants me to bring YN to him." You look at her, startled. "How do you know my name? I never mentioned it."

"I am a sorceress, child. I have my ways of knowing things."

Oh, dear. Now I have to worry that she'll find out too. You think. It'll be doubly difficult. She can know my thoughts at any time if I'm not careful to conceal them.

"If master want YN, then Ghoul-Tar allow her to go."

"Oh, thank you so much. You have no choice, Ghoul-Tar, you know this. Whatever master wants, master gets, no matter who or what gets in his way." She says disdainfully, sneering at him, though it seems she is addressing you. Ghoul-Tar shrinks away from her in fear. Then Bansha grabs you by your arm and single-handedly frogmarches you out of your room. You're shocked by the ghosts' strength. It feels as if it's Cole dragging you through countless corridors, not a dead woman. Is it her magic that makes her so powerful, or is her strength that's making her magic stronger? You wonder idly. She stops, and you think she must have heard you. But then, to your utter surprise, she removes your cuffs. You stand in mute silence for a few moments, rubbing the circulation back into your wrists.

Just as you're thinking that maybe you misjudged her, she lets out an unearthly howl and attacks you. That's when you realize why she is called Bansha. Her wailing really does remind you of a banshee. It shakes the building to its foundations and is almost deafening in its intensity. You can barely concentrate on defending yourself at first, but then, in a moment of realization, it becomes clear that she doesn't want you dead. At least, not yet. She wants Morro to see this, but why? She begins chanting, and tentacle-like tendrils of ghostly light snake towards you. You conjure a sword and start to slash wildly at them, but they keep on coming. In desperation, you throw your sword at Bansha, who flickers momentarily to avoid it. You seize your chance and run to the closest door in the corridor. You yank it open and race inside. This room is full of crates, as if it was a warehouse. You let out a strangled sob and try to hide behind a stack of the crates, but you know that the ghosts will just be able to float right through them.

"What's all the commotion?" You hear Morro ask.

"Master, the girl escaped! She attacked me! I was just about to retrieve her."

"Fine. I'll bring reinforcements." Bansha lets out a wicked laugh as soon as he's gone. "Morro isn't here to protect you now, girl." She uses her sorcery to cause the crates to explode one by one.

As she blows up one of the ones you're hiding behind, you create a shield out of the debris. Too late, you realize your mistake. You've revealed your hiding place! You brace yourself for another blast, but nothing happens. It's quiet. Too quiet. You peer cautiously around the crates and see nothing. Then you hear Bansha utter another spell and you whirl around. You don't notice the tendrils creeping towards you from behind until they grab you. They lift you up off the floor and you dangle there, struggling helplessly. Morro returns as she's about to kill you. He yells "NO!" and hits her with a powerful gust of wind. She disintegrates and so does her spell. You fall to the floor, and the force of landing knocks you out.

You're unconscious for the second time in two days. You don't see Morro carefully carry you back to your room and lay you gently onto your bed. And you don't see him anxiously pacing the room all night, waiting for you to wake up. There is only blackness..

In the next chapter, the romance really begins! I'll post it as soon as possible!