The Banshees

The Banshees are minor characters on Level 4 of Poorthwart. They appear to spend all of their time wailing in agony as they wait for a traffic light to change, and when it does, they become crestfallen in woe as they realize they have left something valuable on the other side of the street, and must again wait for the light to change before they can retrieve it. It is implied from the text that this light can take days or even weeks to change. It is not made clear what street they are crossing, or why they feel compelled to wait for the light before crossing it.