Quaraun The Insane 
The Summoner of Darkness
The Banshee Sisters: Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah In the Swamp of Death

Quaraun The Insane 
The Summoner of Darkness
The Banshee Sisters: Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah In the Swamp of Death
(No clue what chapter it is, it's anyone's guess; I did not chapter this novel)

The Summoner of Darkness:
The Banshee Sisters: Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah In the Swamp of Death

 Quaraun woke up and stared up at the beams overhead. He didn't often wake up to see a ceiling. He tried to remember when he last time it was he had slept indoors. It had been several months at least. He sat up, stretched and looked around. He felt like he was being watched. He could not shake the feeling that they were not alone and that someone was here with them, watching their every move. Unicorn and GhoulSpawn were asleep on either side of him. Unicorn partly draped over him and GhoulSpawn snuggled up beside him, something Quaraun had not expected to find. 

The first night GhoulSpawn had slept on the other side of the room, refusing to get close to any of them at all. The second night he had joined them in the soft fur nest bed, but stayed well out of reach of any one. Now on the third morning of their stay in the chapel, GhoulSpawn was laying right beside Quaraun, their bodies touching. Quaraun could feel the warmth of the half-Elf's flesh against him. He reached out and touched the sleeping Sun Elf, brushing his glowing yellow hair out of his face.

Like Quaraun, GhoulSpawn was an incredibly beautiful Elf. Unicorn had often joked that Quaraun was so vain, he was only truly in love with himself, and that being only because he possessed a beauty the defied all logic. Unicorn had also said he worried what Quaraun would do, should he ever find another Elf with his same haunting beauty, joking he'd either kill it to get rid of the competition or keep it for his lover, replacing Unicorn. The problem was it was not a joke and Unicorn was right, Quaraun did lust after his own beauty and it was his intense lust for GhoulSpawn's beauty that had inspired Quaraun to invite GhoulSpawn into his bed. Every reason he had given before was true, but he knew now, seeing GhoulSpawn up close for the first time and feeling the warmth of his body this close, that sexual desire had been the root cause of the request.

Quaraun sat watching GhoulSpawn sleep, watching his slow, relaxed breathing, and lusting for the young Sun Elf, in spite of the fact that Unicorn, his partner, lover, and soul mate was lying right beside him on the other side of the bed. He found himself wishing to feel the kiss of GhoulSpawn lips. The danger of wishes. Quaraun knew he had to get these thoughts out of his head. He was still not yet able to full control his psionic powers. Should he accidentally say "I wish..." the results could be terrible. He tried to remember what it was he had said just before GhoulSpawn had come crashing out of a hole in the sky, landing at his feet. Had he wished for GhoulSpawn? Had he been lusting for GhoulSpawn and wished the Sun Elf was in his bed?

Quaraun lay back down, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. He didn't know how much longer he could hide his lusts for the Sun Elf from Unicorn. Quaraun closed his eyes, trying to block out the thoughts of how much he wanted to have sex with GhoulSpawn just now. Think of something else. Think of the strange events this week had held. GhoulSpawn had fallen out of the sky and into their lives twice this week. No. Three times. The Gremlin. Wasn't he too GhoulSpawn? Older and from a distant future. A future where he and Unicorn was dead and the heartbroken GhoulSpawn was left alone. What had he said?  

"I loved you very much. I still do. I never stopped loving you. I'm not trying to save the world. I just want to change the events of the past, so you don't have to die. You shouldn't have died. Not like that. I will lay a thousand years of legacy and tradition at your feet, if your heart will beat but once more."

The Gremlin had looked as though his heart was breaking when he'd said those words. He'd been visibly shaken up over seeing Quaraun alive again, after so many years. The Gremlin had looked so old. So sad. His containace was that of an Elf who'd survived a broken soul bond and had dipped into the madness of grief and despair. 

Quaraun wondered, had he and GhoulSpawn been lovers? What about Unicorn? And what about the Gremlin. How long had he been alone?

Quaraun opened his eyes and looked at GhoulSpawn again. He looked so young. So peaceful. So different for the deeply distraught and very ancient Gremlin he would one day become. The Gremlin had indicated they were lovers. But what about Unicorn? Quaraun could not shake that question from his mind. What about Unicorn? Would a time come when Unicorn was gone? Dead. Forever. No longer able to come back. Quaraun didn't want to think about it. He loved Unicorn so much. Unicorn was dead. Is that not what the Gremlin had said? The Lich's many lives had run out. Another Phooka would kill him some day and he wouldn't come back to life that time. He'd stay dead forever. Quaraun felt a horrific pain in his heart at the thought of losing his beloved BoomFuzzy again. Quaraun squeezed his eyes shut and tried to block out ant thoughts of a future without Unicorn. He didn't want to see it. He didn't want to think about it.

Quaraun's mind wandered back to wishing he and GhoulSpawn would kiss. Quaraun's wishes were dangerous. Every time he said the words "I wish" some thing bad happened. But he couldn't stop is mind, thinking of wishes. Wishes that went beyond kisses. Wishes that went to a warm embrace. Flesh on flesh. Skin against skin. Flesh inside of flesh. Their bodies coming together as one. Quaraun felt his dick go hard and erect as he imagined GhoulSpawn on top of him. Inside of him. Something Unicorn would never allow. The Lich was so possessive of Quaraun. Quaraun knew if Unicorn ever got a hint of Quaraun's desires for GhoulSpawn, the Phooka would kill them both. He would not allow for any wavering of Quaraun's affection. 

The thought of Unicorn's anger excited him even more. Quaraun loved the dominant stance Unicorn took with him. Quaraun half began wanted to be fucked by GhoulSpawn, just to incite Unicorn's jealous range, so he could feel the full force of the Phooka rage targeted fully against him. Quaraun's thoughts shifted back and forth between GhoulSpawn's gentleness and Unicorn's fierceness, both thoughts exciting him, and he found himself wishing they would both ravish him together. And just now the need to relieve himself was more then he could bare. He needed to escape this position he was in, squished between the two men he was lusting for.

Quaraun looked around. It was still early morning. The sun was not quite up. The stained glass windows sent erry shadows across the room. ZooLock was asleep at his feet. Morning had arrived and the storm had left. Chickadee and Titmouse were singing in the pine trees. There was a fresh, musty wet smell to the air. The smell of fresh rain in a mossy forest. 

Quaraun got up and went to the door to look outside. Though the rain had stopped, everything was drenched through. Tree branches hung low, water dripping from them. Dark puddles stood in places all around. The rich black earth was mushy and boggy, waterlogged from the heavy torrents of rain that had kept the Elf and his companions trapped in this church, now for three days.

"Take GhoulSpawn with you and go back the way you came," a female voice said. "Leave ZooLock behind. Take the half-Elf away from here."

Quaraun was suddenly alert, his foot long ears perked up high over his head instead of drooped backward as they normally were. With his ears twitching and listening like a scared rabbit, he looked all around for the source of the voice. His sight was not nearly as keen as his hearing though and he could see no one.

"Don't let him go back to that village. They're gonna kill him. He's too innocent. He doesn't know who they are. He doesn't know what they have planned. What they're gonna do. Take him with you. Don't let him go back to that place. Now that you have him go back the way you came. Don't keep following this path."

"Who's there?" Quaraun asked.

The sound of Quaraun's voice woke Unicorn.

"Who ya talkin' too?"

“I heard something.”

“I can see that,” Unicorn said. “Ya sexy little ears is gone errect.”

“Someone was talking to me.”

Quaraun was looking all around, scanning the trees for signs of life. His body was tense and alert, ready to run at the slightest sound. 

Unicorn kicked ZooLock.

"What?"

The Thullid jumped up ready to attack, then relaxed when he remembered where he was. The commotion woke up GhoulSpawn, who sleepily sat up and tried to remember where he was and how he had gotten here.

"What for did you kick me?" ZooLock demanded.

"Our Elf busy being terrified bunny having nervous breakdown again."

"What? Oh." 

ZooLock looked over and saw the panicked look on Quaraun's face and the stiffness of his tall alert ears.

GhoulSpawn had never seen Quaraun like this before so wasn't sure what was going on. He sat on the bed of furs and watched as Quaraun began trembling in sheer terror.  Unicorn and ZooLock both went to the door beside Quaraun and looked around with him, but neither of them saw anything, partly due to the fact that Unicorn was nearly blind while ZooLock was a nocturnal, underground dwelling beast who was blinded by sunlight and could see nothing in the day time.

Quaraun continued looking around then gasped and fell back away from the door. There it was. Right in front of him. The black cat was watching them again. This time it was right there. Inches in front of him. It's green-yellow eyes gleaming at him. 

“Look at that,” Quaraun pointed to the cat, but when he did the cat lept up and ran into the bushes.

“Look at what?” 

Unicorn looked to see where Quaraun was pointing. There was nothing there.

“A black cat, with a jeweled collar.”

"Ya seeing cats again."

"Kats?" GhoulSpawn asked. "You see Kats?"

Unicorn went back to the fur bed and plopped himself down beside the half-Elf.

"Him been seen cats all over the place for the past week or so."

"Where?"

"Every where. Every where we go. We turn 'round and there him go gibbering about cats talking to him and following him..."

"Are they following him too?" GhoulSpawn's eyes widened in terror.

"Aye."

"They're everywhere!" GhoulSpawn gasped.

"Eh?"

"I can't get away from them," GhoulSpawn said, now sounding as scared as Quaraun.

The half-Elf began trembling in fear and started crewing on his nails, and twisting his yellow hair nervously around his fingers, while his gold flecked eyes darted fearfully around the room.

"Ya what?"

"They've been following me for weeks."

Unicorn leaned back, looking at GhoulSpawn, then turned to ZooLock.

"What it with Elves being scared of cats? This one doing it too."

ZooLock toddled over to get a closer look at GhoulSpawn.

"What do the cats look like?"

"There's a black one. Wearing lots of green jewelry. And a white one. With purple wings. And another black one. And a grey one. With tuffted ears. And an orange one. With long fur. And a flat face. And they talk. They won't stop talking to me. They show up every where I go. I thought I was going mad. No one else sees them. No one will believe me. The other half-Elves laugh at me. They say I'm crazy. They've started calling me GhoulSpawn the Crazed. I don't know what's real and what isn't any more."

"Those are the same ones I've seen," Quaraun said, coming back into the room and sitting on the floor beside GhoulSpawn. "We should leave while the rain has stopped

Quaraun ordered Unicorn to pack their things and the Phooka quickly obeyed.

"Travel with us," Quaraun said to GhoulSpawn.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"HellBorne needs me..."

"HellBorne? You mentioned him before. Who is he?"

"He's an old man. Ancient. Can't get around good any more. He's got a withered arm. Been that way since birth. It's like there's no arm there are all. Just skin over bone and the bones are like too short. It looks like he has one arm. He needs help doing things and now that he's old, just getting around."

"Have you known him long?"

"No. My father knew him before I was born. I only met him a about two months ago. He's a half Elf and he takes in half Elves. There's a lot of half Elves there. It's kind of a half-Elf community."

"So you have a place to go?"

"Yeah."

"And you're not alone?"

"No."

"Are you happy there?"

"I.... Uhm ... Not really. They're the ones killing the sheep."

"You're hiding the sheep from HellBoorne?"

"Yeah."

"Are you in trouble?"

"Kind of. And I will be even more now."

"More now?" Why what do you mean?"

"I've been gone three days."

"Do you not have freedom to come and go as you choose?"

GhoulSpawn looked away and didn't answer.

"Tell me about HellBorne. Who is he? What does he want with you?"

"He calls himself the Summoner of Darkness. Darkness is coming and we have to be ready."

"Meaning?"

"He's gathering up Thullids. A lot of them. Some type of cult. A lot of priests. Like him." GhoulSpawn pointed to ZooLock. "They're all gathering in the next village from here. If you keep going done that road you was on, you'll come to it. They're getting ready for something. Don't know what. They've been gathering up sheep to sacrifice to some ancient Elder God."

"Elder God? A Thullid Elder God?"

Quaraun looked over at ZooLock.

"Why haven't you run away? I've not been holding your chains since the field of poppies back there."

"No reason to run away my lady," ZooLock answered.

"Stop calling me that."

"Why's he call you that?" GhoulSpawn asked.

"He thinks I'm a god. Or goddess. The Thullids call me The Elder Brain. I'm supposedly... I don't know. They think I'm an ancient Jelly Fish living inside this Elf body of mine."

"Are you? You did say you were a Thullid."

Quaraun stopped talking to think. He tried thinking about what the black cat had said. He tried thinking about everything ZooLock had said before they reached the Witch Pond. He tried to think about everything GhoulSpawn had said these 3 days trapped in the storm with them.

"Gremlin," Quaraun said. "Unicorn what did he say to us?"

"A five o clock curfew. King Stephen and his thin Gypsies. Tiny houses on the beach. Apple orchards. You being the father of two evil kings. Ongadada. Twighlight Manor. Don't go near Black Tower. Stay away from HellBorne. Trouble brewing ahead. Sun Elves are dead. White rocks are bad. Trapped souls. My grandson is gonna murder me. He had a headache. Humans take over the planet. You're gonna die. He loves you. He's here with the cats to stop HellBorne. Don't follow that road. Don't trust ZooLock. If you see GhoulSpawn, don't let him go back to Black Tower."

"If you're lonly you can stay with us. We all like you," Quaraun said to GhoulSpawn.

"Why the concern?" GhoulSpawn asked.

"I get the feeling you're unhappy there and that you're happier here with us."

"I'm the only High Elf among the half-Elves. The others are all common Elves and Wild Elves and Wood Elves and the like. I'm the only one not half-Human too. They pick on me. I'm... I always had servants. I...  I'm not... I'm not good at d..do..doing things. At all. Basic every day things they do every day... I... I've... I've never done them before. They're all half Elves, but their Elf parents were Common Elves, not aristocrats. Not royalty. Wood Elves mostly. They know how to do things. Farming and building and crafting and working with their hands. I try to help and end up getting in the way. I'm more bullied there by them, then I was by the Sun Elves. I just want to belong some where."

"You can belong with us."

"Aren't you both wanted for murder?"

"Yes. We are."

"You live on the run."

"That's true."

"You don't have a place to live. Don't you just, live like this. Camping out in whatever abandoned building you find."

"Yes. And taverns. And inns. Brothels. Sometimes we stay with friends. There's a Leprechaun travels with us sometimes. He has a Vardo. We live in that when we're with him. I have a tent. We set that up and sleep under the stars. It's not a bad life, living on the road like we do. You can stay with us. Travel with us. We don't mind your company."

"You're a full blooded High Elf."

"I was raised by Demons in a Human village. My lover is a Faerie. I'm not like other High Elves. I don't mind other races, including half-Elves. And I don't like seeing you unhappy. And I like talking to you. It doesn't happen often that another High Elf to talk to. Please consider travelling with us."

"I need to go back home. I've been gone too long already. HellBorne will be furious."

"Then you will not come us?"

"I need to go back."

"Do you mind then, if we travel with you?"

GhoulSpawn couldn't think of a logical reason not to travel with them, seeing how they were walking on the road leading back to his village and he would have to walk this direction any ways. And so they finished packing their things and set out for GhoulSpawn's village, rather then turning back as the black cat had advised. They walked for about an hour with nothing of any significance happening to them, following the path around Witch Pond, until they came to the other side. It was once again becoming windy as dark clouds hung low in the sky.

"Looks like it gonna rain again," Unicorn said.

"I hate being wet," Quaraun said as he looked up at the storm clouds.

"We are on the other side of Witch Pond," ZooLock said. "Look there is the witch's house we saw from the other side. Perhaps we can stop there until it passes?"

"I don't want to stay at a witch's house," Quaraun mumbled. "Did that before. Mariasma. And look where that got us."

"Where did it get us?" ZooLock asked.

"She killed me dead," Unicorn said. "Him had to resurrect me all over again. Now I a VampiLich."

Thunder crashed near by. Quaraun's foot long ears laid all the way back, down flat against his back.

"I hate being wet," he said again.

A sound at his feet, caused his ears to go back up. The water, in the shape of a hand, rose out of the pond and grabbed hold of his ankle, pulling in forward n the slipper moss.

"How is it you had to resurect him again if he is a Lich?" ZooLock asked.

Quaraun wasn't listening to ZooLock, he was in a trance, staring down at the water.

"Are you alright?" GhoulSpawn asked.

"The water intices me."

"Intices you?"

"Something is trying to pull me into the water."

GhoulSpawn looked at the water.

"There's nothing there."

"There's something there. Something invisible. In the water. Crawling over the edge. Grabbing at my feet. Trying to pull me in. Trying to drown me."

"There ain't nae no 'ting t'ere, Quaraun," Unicorn said.

ZooLock inched cautiously closer to the water, leaned over the edge and brought one of his large fish eyes to the edge of the water.

A purple blue bolt of lightening flashed across the sky.

"Nope," ZooLock said at length. "I sees nothing."

"You can not see an invisible entity," Quaraun said. "I don't like this place."

Another crack of thunder smashed through the air as the winds picked up. 

"The water is gettin' choppy," Unicorn said. "Ya should nae be so close to the edge."

"Water that entices you in until you drown," Quaraun whispered. 

"Come, ya drown from falling in and being crashed under the waves iffy ya does not come back from the edge."

Unicorn forcibly dragged Quaraun away from the pond.

The thunder claps were growing louder, the lightening flashes bigger, and the wind was howling fiercely now. Angry black clouds, blotted out whatever sun light there had been. In the near distance the sound of ocean waves crashing on the shore could be heard. The strong smell of seaweed and crabs filled the air.

Quaraun thought for a few seconds. "We are in an enchanted forest."

"Is it is Faerie Forest," Unicorn asked.

"You're a Faerie, can't you tell?"

"Usually, but I does nae sense no Fae in these woods."

Quaraun nodded.

"It doesn't feel like Faeries. I'm Faeries sighted, I can usually tell if there are Fae around. Can you tell if there are any Fae around," Quaraun asked GhoulSpawn.

"Hmm... that's a good question. There's no way to be sure, to be honest."

"Implying everything else you said was a lie?" Quaraun pointed out.

"What?" The remark caught GhoulSpawn off guard.

"No one who is telling the truth, ends a sentance with 'to be honest'. It means every thing else you said was a lie."

"I don't lie," GhoulSpawn hung his head in shame. "That's kind of my problem I can't lie."

"I've noticed. You keep trying to lie and you act like someone's cast a spell on you that prevents you from lying and you just blurt out the truth while trying to lie."

"Yeah, something like that," GhoulSpawn said quietly.

"What happened?"

"To what?"

"Why can't you lie?"

"I... uhm... well... it... I ..."

"GhoulSpawn... why are you trying to lie about why you can't lie?"

"I don't know."

"You're trying to hide something from me, aren't you?"

GhoulSpawn didn't answer.

Quaraun thought some more then looked at GhoulSpawn.

"You said something about Chaos Magic before. And you keep talking about Chaos Demons. You're a Chaos Wizard, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Do you work with Chaos Demons?"

"Uhm... I... uh... sort of."

"Chaos Demons would explain a lot."

"What a Chaos Demon?" Unicorn asked.

Quaraun shook his head and took another drink.

"They create Chaos every where they go. They can't help it. They're not from this dimension, their bodies react to the gravity or some thing. I don't know. I've never tried to do Chaos Magic. It's dangerous. Energy goes mad around them. Things start happening at random and half the time they don't know they're causing it. It's common for Socerors and Demonologists to summon Chaos Demons than hold them captive

Quaraun paused and looked back at GhoulSpawn again.

"Are you a Sorcerer?"

"Kind of?"

"Kind of... question mark? You don't know?"

"My father was a sorcerer. I... I... I learned magic from him, but I... he... uh... he..."

"Killed Unicorns. You're father was evil, wasn't he?"

"Yeah. He's dead now. A group of wizards killed him. I think. I don't know. I'm trying to find him."

"The Guild?"

"I don't know. I wasn't very old. They burned all his books and scrolls and... they... we... they killed all his children too. I'm the only one who survived. My mother protected me. They spared me, because she was an Elf and they said I was young enough to not know what he was doing so I wouldn't be able to do the stuff he did."

"I'm sorry. The Guild has been killing a lot of wizards and their families. Usually without any real evidance to support their reasons."

"My father was evil. Nations rejoiced on his death."

"I'm sorry. Did he work with Chaos Demons?"

"Yeah."

"You don't know much about wizardry, do you?"

"Not really."

"Why Chaos Magic? Of all the things you could do, all the types of magic out there, why focus on Chaos Magic?"

"I'm good at it. Sort of. Not so much good at it. I'm trying to gain some control over it. Have less Chaos and more normalcy in my life."

Quaraun raised a questioning eyebrow, but didn't comment of this for a while. Instead he went back to deep thought.

"Is Chaos a problem for you?" He asked GhoulSpawn.

"Yeah."

"You know it is every time you show up that life for us goes to Hell, right?"

"I kind of noticed that. I'm sorry. I try to avoid people. It's why I can't stay married. Weird things start happening and she'll get scared and I just... I leave and don't go back. Let her have a life without my bad luck following her around. I hate being alone, but people get hurt whenever I'm near them. I'm not doing Chaos Magic to... I'm not doing what other Chaos Wizards do,.. I'm trying to stop it... find a cure so I can live with people and not have to be alone any more."

"You're welcomed to stay with us."

"I cause Chaos in your life."

Quaraun shrugged.

"I've got a Phooka here. I guarantee you can't cause as much Chaos in my life as he does. You're welcome to stay. Though I have no home and wander."

"Why is that?"

"Why do I wander? Never become famous. I can't stay any where long. Disciples, worshipers, and cultists follow me every where. And I'm wanted by the Guild, so wizard hunters are after my head. I wish I had a place to stay. A house to live in again would be nice..."

"That's bad, " ZooLock interrupted. "Why did you do that!"

"What? What did I do?"

"You're a wish granting wizard and you just said 'I wish'. Every time you say 'I wish' something bad happens."

"Oh dear. I do need to guard my words better. And I don't wish for this house."

"Did that erase your wish?" ZooLock said.

"I don't know, did it?"

"Hmm... that's a good question. There's no way to be sure, to be honest."

"Implying everything else you said was a lie?" Quaraun pointed out. 

Quaraun turned to GhoulSpawn.

"You keep trying to lie to me."

"What?" The remark caught GhoulSpawn off guard.

"No one who is telling the truth, ends a sentence with 'to be honest'. It means every thing else you said was a lie."

"I don't lie," GhoulSpawn hung his head in shame. "That's kind of my problem I can't lie."

"I've noticed. You keep trying to lie and you act like someone's cast a spell on you that prevents you from lying and you just blurt out the truth while trying to lie."

"Yeah, something like that," GhoulSpawn said quietly.

"What happened?"

"To what?"

"Why can't you lie?"

"I... uhm... well... it... I ..."

"GhoulSpawn... why are you trying to lie about why you can't lie?"

"I don't know."

"You're trying to hide something from me, aren't you?"

GhoulSpawn didn't answer.

Just there there was a sound at the door. The sound of someone coming home. Coming home to find that there were four very strange men, siting in their front parllor, uninvited. After a few moments of clattering at the door, the jingling of keys and scraping of shoes, the voices of to elderly women could be heard.

"It's already open."

"What's popping?"

"Not popping. Open."

"What?" Screamed the old woman.

"Open."

"Who's doping?"

"No not...Never mind. You forgot the lock the door again."

"Who let a whore in?"

"No. The door."

"What whore?"

"No, the lock."

"Mr. Spock? Who's Mr. Spock? I don't know any one named Spock."

"Look, someone unlocked it without a key."

"On birds knees?" The deaf woman yelled.

"No. I said, without a key."

A few moments of silence passed, followed by more scuffling noises at the door.

"Magic," whispered one old lady to the other.

"What'd ya say?" the other yelled loudly. "Talk louder. I'm deaf ya know."

"Perhaps I could help," Quaraun said as he opened the door.

Both women screamed from fright.

"Who are you? What are you doing in our house?" Demanded the younger of the two. By younger, she was about 80 years old.

"Is that Mr. Spock?" said the deaf woman who was closer to 90.

"I'm sorry for the intrusion. It was raining and there was no place else to seek shelter from the storm. Plus the water was inciting me to drown myself and I thought it would be nice to meet the witch who cast the spell on the pond."

The two women chattered between themselves.

The younger turned back to Quaraun.

"Are you a wizard?"

"Yes. We all are. All four of us."

"The water compelled you?"

"Yes."

"All four of you or just you?"

"Just me," Quaraun said.

"How very strange. Did you hear sister? The water compelled him."

"How did he get in our house?"

"How did you get in our house?"

"We just..." Quaraun started to answer. "Uhm.... I think I wished us here. I'm not sure how we got inside. I don't remember coming in, actually."

"How did you even see our house?"

"I'm sorry?" Quaraun did not understand what they meant.

"No one ever sees our house."

"No one..." Quaraun was confused.

"No mortal ever sees our house."

"No man can see our house."

"No Human has ever seen our house."

"You are no mortal man."

"You are not Human."

"None of them is Human."

"Is it a goblin?"

"No it's an Elf."

"Are they all Elves?"

"No. Just this pink one."

"What are the others." 

"A Faerie and a Demon and another Demon."

"What type of Fae are you," one woman asked Unicorn.

"I is a Phooka," Unicorn answered.

"A Phooka."

"Then not a true Fae. A Water Demon."

"How interesting."

"An Elf with three Demons."

"And you say the pond compelled you?"

"Yes," Quaraun answered, looking at GhoulSpawn and not the old women. "There are two Elves here, one Faerie and one Demon."

"No. There is only one Elf and three Demons. I am Bean-Nighe and this is my sister Ben-Neeyah."

"Banshees," Unicorn whispered to Quaraun.

"We wash the blood stained garments of those about to die." 

"We died the childbirth." 

The two old women grabbed Quaraun and dragged him out of the house to Witch Pond. The others followed.

"We stay here are the mouth of the stream."

"Where the water empties into the pond."

 "And wash clean countless dead."

"Look out over the water."

"What do you see?"

Quaraun looked and saw the same pond they had seen before. Clear blue to it's center, somewhat swampy to it's edges. Lily pads on the road side, reeds and cattails in the low parts. A beaver dam blocking the flow of the stream. There was nothing unusual or remarkable about Witch Pond. It was like the thousands of other ponds that dotted the coast of Canada.

"I see a pond, no different from any other pond," Quaraun said.

"You are Faerie sighted, Necromancer. Close your eyes and look again."

"I never told you I was a Necromancer."

"But you are, aren't you?"

"Yes. I am."

"The water would not have compelled you otherwise. There is a darkness in your soul. A darkness that comes only from Necromancy."

"I am not evil."

"No one can take the life of the innocent and use their souls to raise the dead, without blotting out a piece of their own soul. You have the blood of innocents on your hands. You have murdered children. Their souls scream for redemption. Close your eyes and look again. See the water as we see it. Know the truth."

Quaraun closed his eyes, and when he opened them, he gasped and took several quick steps back. The pond was gone, replaced by black brackish waters of a stagnant bog. A dense fog hung low over the surface. Dead trees, the bark long ago fallen away, their wood bleached white as bones, sunk into the mire. It was a creepy, gloomy, dreary scene, but the thing which made Quaraun gasped was the ghostly spirits pacing to and fro across the surface of the water. Their arms and legs in chains. As they reached the water's edge, each ghost reached out trying to grab hold of Quaraun and pull him into the bog.

"What are they?"

"The souls of the dead. Trapped between the realm of the living and the Swamp of Death. Look at how they reach for you. Listen to their words. Their screams. Their cries."

"Why are we back at the Swamp of Death? We escaped it."

"Have you walked through the Swamp of Death, Necromancer? Did you take your own life?"

Quaraun clamped his hand over his wrist. The memory of The Mournful Lamb Inn burned in his brain. He had tried to kill himself. He had sliced his wrists and almost died. Unicorn had saved him. Nursed him back to health. But he'd spent weeks lost in the Swamp of Death, wandering among the lost souls of suicide victims.

"One of you will die soon."

"What?"

"In a few days, one of the four of you will be dead."

"Who?" Quaraun asked.

"Many will die."

"Hundreds will die."

"Thousands will die."

"But one of you four, will be dead before the year is over."

On those final words the two Banshees, their house, and the soul filled bog all vanished and Witch Pond was back as they had found it.

"Quaraun?" Unicorn said, while shaking the Elf, trying to bring him out of his trance. "Quaraun!"

The Elf looked down at Unicorn.

"What just happened?" Unicorn asked.

"What?"

"Ya went all spaced out there for a minute."

"Where did the women go?"

"What women?"

"Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah."

"The Banshee sisters?"

"Yes."

"Is feeling alright, Quaraun?"

"What?"

"Ya was spaced out for quite a bit there."

"Where did the Banshees go?"

"What Banshees?"

"Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah."

Unicorn gave Quaraun a puzzled and worried look of concern.

"Has ya been seeing t'ings again?"

"You didn't see them?"

Unicorn shook his head.

Quaraun turned to ZooLock.

"Did you see them?"

"No, my lord. But I doubt nothing your ladyship sees."

"Did you?" Quaraun asked GhoulSpawn.

GhoulSpawn said nothing.

Quaraun looked around.

"Where are we?"

"At the church," Unicorn answered. "Big ass turtle chased us here, remembers?"

"We never left?"

"No. Did ya t'inks we had?"

"I don't know what I think any more."

Quaraun sat down and tried to make sense of what had just happened. He didn't think it was a dream, as he had not been asleep. Nor did he think it was the drugs, which admittingly did make him hallucinate, but usually he could tell afterwards what was real and what was the opium, plus he hadn't taken anything since yesterday and that had worn off hours ago.

"I don't know what's real and what isn't any more."

"Was a dream. They be very real some times."

"I wasn't asleep. Was I?"

"Not dat I saw."

"What happened to me?"

"Just now?"

"Yeah."

 "Ya kind of spaced out. Like no one was in ya head."

"Outer body experience?"

"What dat?"

"Like when I was lost in the Swamp of Death. Not dead, but... not in my body either."

"What ya see while ya was there?"

"We left the church and followed the path around the pond, until we came to a house. I stopped to look at the pond and something tried to pull me in, but there was nothing there. And it started raining so we went inside the house. No one was home, but we waited for them. Two old women, Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah arrived. You said they were Banshees and they agreed with you. They addressed me as an Elf and the rest of you as Demons. they said they died and were cursed to spend eternity washing the blood stained clothes of people about to die. And then every thing disappeared - the forest, the pond, the house... and a vast swamp, a peat bog, that spanned for miles, was all I could see. The Swamp of Death. And that's when I could see what was pulling me in the water..."

Quaraun stopped talking. A look of horror spread across his face.

"What was it?" Unicorn asked, seeing that the Elf would not finished what he was saying.

"Children. Murdered children. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them. Wrapped in chains. Being sucked down into the mud. Drowning. They weren't trying to pull me in. They were trying to get me to pull them out. It was like the Swamp of Death... only worse... much worse. What have I done?"

"Did ya do somet'ing?"

"I cast a horrible spell. A long time ago. I forgot. Why did I forget?"

"Ya has a habit of blocking out the memories ya does no wants to see. Would nae be the first time ya forgot doing a horrible t'ing."

"So many souls."

"What did ya do?"

"I changed your spell. The Lich spell. I altered it. It's why you're different from other Liches. It takes a hundred years for a Lich to regenerate after they've been killed. They come back, but not quickly. But not you. You die. And you resurrect again in hours. Some times sooner."

"I had noticed. Ya never tells me how ya did that to me."

"I made a Golem out of ice, and I killed innocents to capture their souls inside the golem. As many souls as was put in you, that's how many times you can die and come back again."

"How many souls did ya put in me?"

"I don't know. Hundreds. Thousands. All the Moon Elves. All the Pixies. All the Katopas. All those children in Witch Pond, guarded by Bean-Nighe and Ben-Neeyah."

"Ya murdered children?"

Quaraun did not answer.

"Why children? Ya love children."

"I murdered my own children. Why did I do that? I loved my children."

"Where ya children there? In the swamp?"

"They were the ones pulling me in."

"Quaraun, ya never left t'is building. Ya been right here with us. Ya seeing t'ings that is no t'ere again."

Quaraun fell silent for several minutes.