“So… There are mysterious aliens that we can’t see or hear or even feel who use mind tricks to slowly build up fear until they can drive us insane, take control, and then force us to go a murder rampage…” Nippy summed up in a dubious tone.

Lus ran his hands over his face. “Yes. For the third time, they’re called Shaquine.” Even after sitting out in the open air for an hour, his companions struggled to believe that he was in his right mind, and given that the notebook with the evidence he and Wsr had found was locked in with the psychotic would-be killer and Wsr was still completely knocked out from her injury, it was his word alone they had to go on.

“Sorry, Lus. That’s a little hard to believe. Are you sure that you still believe it? You’ve been out of the gas for a while now,” Zer-Dasht said.

“There is no gas. Our suit sensors would have gone off,” Lusac reminded them. At this point, they were talking in circles. “Look, let’s get Yonnex-Quniwel back and then we can argue this. The notebook with the evidence is in the room where we left him.”

“With a cutter in his eye. I doubt he’s still alive,” Nippy pointed out.

“We have to check. The longer we wait, the more likely it is that we’ll be going back for a corpse,” Lus replied. Suns, why didn’t they believe him? The evidence was all there if they could just acknowledge it.

With a sigh, Lus realized he hadn’t been all too sure about it either until saying it completed his [Quest] to discover the secret of the mine.

“Nippy, can’t your system give us a hint as to what’s going on?” Lusac asked in a sudden change of subject. If he got the [Quest], maybe the Kremel had too, but then why hadn’t it completed for him yet?

Nippy laughed. “What in Suns’ names would my system do? I’m a [Raging Warrior]. My [Skills] are all based on fighting. We’d need something like [Sixth Sense] to be sure.”

“[Sixth Sense]?” Lus’s eyes went wide. That was one of the three available [Skills].

“Yeah. It gives a person the ability to sense when something is around, even if it’s invisible to their other senses,” Nippy explained.

“So if you had [Sixth Sense], you’d know where the Shaquine are? You’d actually be able to interact with them?”

“I don’t know about full on interacting, but at the very least, I’d know where they are and, more importantly, that they exist.”

“But if someone else had [Sixth Sense], they could at least avoid the Shaquine or be aware when they’re nearby and trying to mess with their head,” Lus posed.

“I suppose, but we’d need someone with a stealth or hunting [Class] for that.”

Lusac swallowed. At some point he was going to have to reveal that he had a system, right? Why couldn’t it be now, when they needed his [Skill]—his ability to buy a [Skill] at least. There was no defined age at which one had to get a system. Elderly people could get a system just the same as the young. It wasn’t too much of a stretch for him to have suddenly gotten one.

The Kremel’s narrow eyes studied Lus, and Dasht watched him with similar curiosity.

“What if I, perchance, had a system… One that gave me [Sixth Sense] as a skill,” Lusac said quietly.

Nippy’s face broke out into a smile. “I wondered if that’s what was happening. Why didn’t you tell me sooner, Lusac? I could have helped you figure it out.”

He shrugged. “I was embarrassed by my [Class]. I’m a [Chef] so it’s kind of lame.”

“When did you get it?”

“Just after the warehouse mission,” Lusac supplied.

“So that’s why your cooking suddenly became edible,” Dasht added.

“I’ll admit, it certainly helped to have the system and the [Cooking Skill].” He looked at Nippy. “What do you mean you ‘wondered if that’s what was happening?’” What could have tipped the Kremel off besides his improved cooking?

“Your stats were increasing a lot faster than normal,” Nippy answered with a smirk. “I like to monitor the stats of all the crew so I know who’s a good fit for missions.”

“Oh. Yeah. I guess I’ve leveled up pretty quick with making dinner so often,” Lus admitted. He was more than a little embarrassed to think that Nippy had been aware not only of his low [Strength] in the beginning, but also his -1 [Common Sense] that he started out with. Luckily his current stats weren’t quite as shabby.

“If you’re a [Chef], how do you have [Sixth Sense]? Last I checked, [Chefs] weren’t stealth or hunters.” Dasht stared at him.

“Oh, uh, since I’m just a lowly [Chef], my system lets me buy [Skills] from other classes that could be useful. I’m limited in my options, but [Sixth Sense] is available and I even have the [XP] to purchase it.” Lus disliked explaining that part of his system since it might lead to a lot more uncomfortable questions about the origins, and he was definitely not ready to confess to keeping a Demon in the interbox. That was a discussion for later, or hopefully never.

Nippy frowned. “I’ve never heard of a class that can do that.”

“Well have you met any other [Chefs]?”

The Kremel grinned. “Good point. I guess those housekeeping [Classes] aren’t so useless after all.”

“It’s also how I know that the Shaquine are the cause of all our problems,” Lus said. “I got a [Quest] to discover the secret of the mine, and I completed it when we found the notebook talking about them.”

Both Nippy and Dasht seemed to accept this as valid reasoning.

“Very well. I can’t say I still entirely believe you, but you might as well get [Sixth Sense] just in case so we can go back for Quniwel,” Nippy replied with a sigh.

Lusac’s smile faded as he realized he would have to use his system in front of them, and that seemed very… awkward. Nippy did notice his discomfort and pulled Zer-Dasht away with him to check on Wsr and resupply the packs.

Stolen novel; please report.

With a thought, the blue screen appeared before Lus. He first went to the [Quests] tab and received his [500 XP] for completing [A Step in the Shadows]. Then he navigated to the [Skill Shop] and selected [Sixth Sense]. He exhaled in partial disappointment that he was using so much of his [XP] on a [Skill] that he would only need once, but this was the only chance they had at saving Quniwel and salvaging the mission.

Upon buying it, a small screen popped up giving an in-depth run down of the [Skill].

[Sixth Sense]

[Type: Passive]

[Description: Allows the user to sense objects or creatures which would normally go unnoticed by regular senses. This includes [Invisibility] up to an equal level of the user.]

“Huh. Maybe it will come in handy later in life too,” Lus murmured. He stood up from the chair and walked over to where Nippy and Dasht were readjusting Wsr to take some pressure off her wound.

“Ready,” he declared.

“Great.” Nippy straightened from his crouch. “You and I will go in and get Quniwel. Zer-Dasht will stay here to watch Wsr. I’d rather not risk any more of us going insane than I have to.”

Lus nodded, and they got their resupplied packs. This time Nippy had him lead the way into the mine. The same red and gray swirled walls greeted them, alongside a coolness that caused Lusac to curl his arms close, the lantern hanging low in one of his hands.

They hadn’t made it more than a few steps when Lus became aware of something ahead of them.

“One straight ahead,” he warned.

“I see it. Or rather, I saw the flash in my peripheral vision,” Nippy said. “Maybe there is something to this wild theory.”

“It’s not so wild once you think about it.”

They continued in silence for the rest of the first tunnel, no more of the Shaquine showing up. Upon entering the lake room, however, Lus sensed that there were at least a dozen in the area.

“Careful. There are a lot more in here,” he said to his companion.

Nippy kept a tight face as they walked among the equipment. Lus was aware of the Shaquine approaching him and recognized their effect by the strange crawling feeling on his skin or the glimpses in the corner of his vision, but knowing where they were already made it significantly less freaky. Even with his warnings, though, Nippy did not seem to be doing as well.

“So blasted creepy,” the Kremel said mostly to himself once they made it to the three branches.

“Focus, Nippy. Fear is how they control you,” Lus recited.

“Easy for you to say.” Nippy’s voice was far more aggressive this time, and Lusac tried not to think about what would happen if the Kremel lost it the same way Quniwel had. Nippy was far more powerful, so Lus’s chances of survival might as well be zero in that case.

“Tell me one of your battle stories, to keep your mind off the Shaquine,” Lus suggested, eager to do anything that would stem the insanity from taking over the second-in-command.

Nippy grumbled a few complaints under his breath before complying and telling Lusac of some of his adventures when he first joined the Runners as just a teenager. Unsurprisingly, most were quite bloody, but Lus didn’t mind as long as it meant Nippy was thinking about something besides the Shaquine induced fear and the flashes in the corners of their vision.

By the time they reached the branch off that Lus originally met Yonnex-Quniwel in, Nippy was on a roll, and it was difficult for Lus to find an opening to interrupt him.

“We should be close now. I think I remember the way,” he said once the Kremel finished yet another gruesome tale of ripping an alien creature apart with his bare hands.

“I hope you do. This place can be a maze.” Nippy dug in his pack and removed his all-in cutter. “Here. We’ll mark the walls so we can track our path.”

Lus agreed, and Nippy used the tool to carve the generic Runners symbol into the stone wall closest to them. He then did the same at every branch they took while also adding an arrow to guide them back to their starting point in case they did get lost.

It took a few tries and wrong corridors, but eventually Lus did guide them back to the welded door.

“You unseal it. I’ll stand at the ready in case Quniwel is still in his murder phase,” Nippy commanded while handing his cutter to Lus.

Lusac worked efficiently, and in a few minutes the door was unwelded. He glanced at Nippy who nodded his consent and then pushed it open to reveal a disaster in what had been the neatly organized space.

Quniwel’s silent body sat in the center, surrounded by ripped apart books and the bones of the Nemarian skeleton. The desk was overturned, spilling more random objects into the fray.

“I guess being locked in didn’t do much good for the whole insane thing,” Lus mentioned as he shone his lantern on the mess. He grimaced at the sight of the cutter still in the Nemarian’s eye. If he’d died, it hadn’t been a pleasant or quiet death.

Nippy pushed past Lus to kneel beside the assistant pilot. He felt the chest, his eyebrows knitted together before shaking his head.

“He’s alive, but just barely. We have to get him out of here, but even with the emergency supplies we have at camp, I’m not sure he’ll make it unless we get back to the Argo fast,” the Kremel said.

“What about the artifact?”

Nippy looked up at Lusac. “I don’t know how we can get it. Exploring further is only going to make things worse. I can feel my fear building, Lusac. I’ll be lucky to make it back to the surface with my mind intact.”

“The Shaquine are worse down here in these tunnels,” Lus admitted. In this room alone he sensed five.

“Let’s get Yonnex-Quniwel back to base. We can return to the Argo and explain the situation to Captain Tave. Maybe with specialized equipment-”

“I can go alone,” Lusac cut him off. “I’m basically immune to them with my [Sixth Sense].”

“No. It’s too dangerous,” Nippy argued as he wrapped the Nemarian’s injured eye.

“Come on, Nippy. Let me do this. I have the [Skill]. Wouldn’t it be better to get the artifact now so we don’t have to risk anyone else on this rock?”

“The [Skill] doesn’t make you immune to their effects, Lus. It just allows you to keep track of them.”

“It makes a difference. A huge one,” Lus assured him. “Let me try at least while you get Quniwel back to the camp and stabilize him.”

Nippy bit his bottom lip. “I’m not sure I can safely get out on my own. Telling you stories is all that kept me sane coming down here. I don’t know how you can stand it.”

“Tell the stories to Quniwel. He’ll love it.” Lusac gestured to the unconscious Nemarian with a tool sticking out of his bandaged eye.

The Kremel sighed. “Okay. Set a timer. You have two hours. After that, come back to the surface so we can get out of here. That artifact isn’t worth anyone’s life.”

“Alright. Are you sure you can get Quniwel back alone?” As much as he didn’t want to make the trek to the surface and then back down, he’d much rather know Nippy and Quniwel were safe.

“I’ll be fine. I have my stories,” Nippy said. He hefted Quniwel up over one shoulder. “I’ll see you back at camp. Two hours.”

Lus watched Nippy’s light fade away as the Kremel walked back down the corridor, leaving him completely alone. Lusac then grabbed the fallen notebook which had miraculously survived Yonnex-Quniwel’s rampage and started off in the opposite direction. He used his own cutter to mark the walls the same way Nippy had as he worked his way deeper into the maze. Based on the drawings in the notebook, the temple was going to be distinctive, something he couldn’t miss. It was just a matter of finding it.

As he walked, the same hints of something in his peripheral popped up, alongside the faintest sensations on his skin, but he remained calm, even without company. As much as the Shaquine tried to mess with his head, he knew what they were and where they were, so they couldn’t affect him the way they had before. He was better now.

Lus winced at the sound of footsteps behind him, but he refused to look back and give the Shaquine the satisfaction of their distraction working. It was a trick of the mind, and nothing more.

After about half an hour of walking and mentally reminding himself that every strange noise or sight was coming from the creatures which surrounded him, Lusac came to his goal.

The entrance of the temple.