[Skill Unlocked: Constitution (1)], the System notified him of. 'Constitution'? What is that? He asked himself. His headset answered curtly: "Mental Fortitude. Or mental resistance, this is the Constitution skill. Increase your Constitution skill through many mental exercises and stimulating courses of study," the headset spoke directly into his mind.

  Wondering about and then receiving his answer to the question in a fraction of a moment, he returned his consciousness to the matter at hand: the hallway. And their next passage.

  To his friends, he said, "Guys, thank you back there. You saved my hide!"

  "No worries. That is what teammates and friends do, right?" Whiskey said, Jiehong agreeing.

  He looked at the space. It was now completely ordinary in every way. To MAC he asked, "What are fae exactly? You said they come from magical by-products, right? Whatever that means..."

  "Fae bodies are semi-corporeal. Being mostly an amalgamation of spirit, their only tangible components are those pieces which are harvested from the mortal plane, facets such as hand tools, bones, and organic growth. Fae creation is most likely to transpire within places of the physical world most in contact with the magical realm. Forests and the deep earth, and structures belonging to Ancient Societies of a Certain Kind, are the most common places to find fae Creatures," MAC explained to them once more.

  "I only found it strange, is all," Zan said, looking at the hole where the Fatal Graze had come for him. "I unlocked a new skill, so that's something!"

  The next couple of rooms were uneventful. No more fae, no cabinets bearing odd crystals. Just empty rooms bearing the marks of many years of neglect.

  "How are we feeling, guys?" he asked his Party. 'Party,' being a term he remembered overhearing from how travelers talked and how they spoke of their adventures with their unusual friends.

  He thought his System would update him on the condition of his friends automatically after the fight with the fae. But the headset never did. Whenever he glanced toward the status icons for his teammates, it only ever said the same thing: "Good." Thinking of the logic behind how it updated, it made sense. The headset knows nothing he does not know. If he wants to know something, he can ask, and trust that piece of information to be properly organized using the headset's aesthetic.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  First, he had to ask. He had to remember; he must ask.

  Answering his attempts at being a better leader, Jiehong answered first. "I think I am fine. It's been a tense little bit but no reason not to continue advancing. Unless Whiskey or you have a better idea, that is. You bore a larger brunt of that fae creature's maligned influence, so you have more right than either I or Whiskey, if you feel the need to turnback for the day."

  Thinking on his condition, and happy hearing his teammates were still rearing to continue, he told them, "I am fine. A little spooked but fine, otherwise."

  "That is good," Whiskey said. "It's everyone's first time encountering these creatures. This is not our usual fare. I know we need to activate this bunker and all, but we shouldn't take all the responsibility for ending the war upon our shoulders. If you want to call it an early day, Zan, then I think we should."

  "No, no. I really am fine. Let's pause and take a break then continue on our way," he told them.

  Pausing to catch their breath and stretch, check for damages, they soon moved on to the next and thirteenth room.

  "Drop down to your knees -- now!" MAC spoke with a violent urge.

  He obeyed and dropped to his knees, his heart a race. "Roll forward. Good!"

  To Jiehong and Whiskey, whom he saw frozen at the door's precipice, MAC told, "Stay where you are: observe the crack from which the door has slid into..." he followed along with his teammates and pried his head to try and see what MAC wanted them to see. He focused. He saw light refracted from something metallic. A glint in the crack.

  "What is that?" he asked, scooting to a keeling position, leaning his head almost over and into the crack, but just enough to ward against any warnings from MAC.

  "I want you to quickly place your hand over the crack in the doorway and then remove it before the entity which is inside attempts to strike," MAC told him. 'Entity which lives in the doorway? What was happening?!' he asked himself. But he did as he was instructed; and to his surprise, as he did so, he saw a thin needle jab out from the door, barely missing his hand.

  "What the heck is that?!" he exclaimed, followed by the scries of his teammates.

  "This," MAC continued, "is a fae creature called 'Poison Needle.' This simple fae manipulates ancient machinery, creating a nest for itself within the folds of gears and levers. Like all fae, they feed on the life force of living, willed entities. Using by-product from the breakdown of ancient machinery, they generate a poison which saps their victim's will, leading them defenseless as their life essence is slowly drained. Their weaknesses include water-oriented incantations."

  Thinking over what MAC told them, he asked his friends, "Does anyone know any water magic?"