At the end of it all, Troy didn't get any lunch. Sure he got all the way to the cafeteria but met Dr Hale, who was just on her way out. Seemed that she ate quickly when there was no one to talk to. Troy thought she was just doing it to annoy him.
Together they went back to the testing room. Along the way, there was an unspoken silence. Troy didn't want to break it, for the fear of Dr Hale asking, what Troy was doing. Either way, Dr Hale most likely enjoyed the short silence.
After a few minutes of hasty walking, they finally get to the testing room. Due to his own measure of stupidity, this causes Troy to audibly sigh in relief. Dr Hale took a glance of Troy because of it but didn't seem to have any need to bring the reasons for it up.
Inside, Dr Fidelis was typing away at the screen, with a weird face. It being weird, due to the lack of enthusiasm on it.
“Something wrong, Dr Fidelis?” Troy asked, slightly curious about the reasons.
Dr Fidelis looks up at the two of them, mild surprise in his stature. He looked like he didn't notice they were there before. Once realising who Troy and Dr Hale was, his shoulders sagged by the smallest fingertip.
“Oh, its nothing, buddy”, Dr Fidelis said, with a sigh. “It's just Adam not making sense.”
With Troy's newly done actions, the mention of Adam did bring in a large amount of focus. And a slightly heightened pulse, to add to the debacle.
“How so?” Troy said, with an as calm as possible tone. Taking a glance at Dr Hale, Troy saw that she had already brought out her notebook, and was quickly scribbling down the words said.
Dr Fidelis just looked at them, blank-eyed, for a few seconds, before sighing once again.
“I just cant figure him out”, Dr Fidelis began explaining. “While you had lunch, he began asking the weirdest questions. Now, I'm not one to judge anyone in their search for broad knowledge, but the subject just seemed a little weird to a being that gained sentience last week. I've been looking over all the test, but I just can't find a reason for the sudden interest in it. Now, I'm just beginning to think that it's a random thought. That Adam was just randomly interested in a random subject.”
“You haven't said, what Adam was interested in”, Dr Hale noted, not looking up from her writings.
“Oh. Yeah,” Dr Fidlis said. “It was gambling. Suddenly, with no warning, Adam is interested in gambling.”
Oh, how Troy wanted to ask Adam a few questions himself. The first one would probably be, why exactly did he feel the need to ask Dr Fidelis about it? Maybe he would even add in a sprinkle of why Adam hadn't just asked Troy later?
Was it because of Troy asking him to find information, while he was out to get some lunch? It had been late, and he would've missed his chance if he spent any time explaining it then and there!
Though, now that Troy knew, that he would have missed it no matter what, his views changed a margin. He realised he was being a little idiotic with his actions.
There hadn't been any mention about keeping it hidden from others. Normally, there wouldn't be any need to. The context would make it obvious!
But, Troy was dealing with Adam, who, as Dr Fidelis had said, was not that old. He likely hadn't realised all the implications that some words would have. He likely hadn't even understood, what Troy mean with unregular tests.
…
Troy needed to fix this quickly. When he got to white void, he would- no, he couldn't do that!
Everything Troy said was being recorded and watched through by Dr Fidelis. If he even mentioned poker during testing, he would get called out instantly.
Could Troy go back to his room, and clear everything up now? The risks of not doing so, was too high, for Troy's mental stability.
No, any excuse to go back now, would be criticized by Dr Hale. He had an excuse the first time, but the second would need clarifications.
In conclusion, Troy would need to go through the test, without any pre-planning. And while doing the test, he couldn't mention anything about the game, no matter if Adam wanted to speak about it or not.
“Doesn't matter now”, Dr Fidelis, waving one of his hands, as if waving the worry away. “We have tests to do. Come on. We have to get you strapped in.”
Troy went over and geared up. While doing so, he attempted to strike up a conversation, to ease his worries.
“So, what test will we be doing this time?” Troy asked.
“Oh, nothing special. You'll find out when you get inside,” Dr Fidelis said, not so reassuringly.
“Let me guess,” Troy said, feeling a bit sassy. “You'll never tell me, what we will be doing out here.”
“Spot on”, Dr Fidelis said with a grin.
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
“If you knew now, it would ruin the entire purpose of your employment”, Dr Hale supplied, from the background, with a still tone.
“Quite right, Dr Hale”, Dr Fidelis said, before turning his focus back to Troy. He clapped him on the back before saying “In with you, now. We haven't got all day. Well, we do, but, you know, you get the point of what I'm saying. Just… go inside, please.”
And Troy did so, going over the metal walkway. The metallic rattles coming from it, as he stepped on it, were weirdly reassuring to Troy. He wasn't sure if that was positive or not.
As he went inside, Troy noted the vanishing of the entrance. It wasn't instantaneous, but just barely. It was over in less than a second. The corners would blur for just a moment before the whole thing seemingly imploded on itself.
'Is lunch over?' Adam asked as Troy put on the earpiece. It had become a habit, to just hold the thing until he got inside.
“Yeah. It's time for some regular testing”, Troy said, being very careful in his wording.
'Good. Was your lunch satisfactory?'
“I didn't have any, unfortunately. I wasn't fast enough to get any,” Troy said, realizing the implications for the second sentence. “I was distracted by something in my personal room, so I only got to the cafeteria later in the break.”
All things said were not groundbreaking for anyone yet. Dr Hale already knew it. But, from what they knew, Adam didn't.
'I thought you went to the cafeteria immediately after speaking with me.'
“Oh, I did”, Troy clarified, with a slightly uncertain voice.
'Then your reasoning makes no sense. You say that you were distracted by something after talking to me. But, you also went to the cafeteria immediately after talking to me. I believe your wording was incorrect in one. Would please clarify which it was?'
Now that Troy thought about it, he wasn't sure how much Dr Fidelis and Dr Hale could hear. With him having to wear a microphone, so they could hear him, it would imply that there was no recording equipment on the earpiece. This meant that nothing Adam said, would be noticed by Dr Fidelis. They would only get an idea of it, by the context of Troy's answers. So, as long as he said nothing specific about anything, and kept to vague answers, he could come through this.
“It would be the second one,” Troy said, leaving out the 'you were the distraction' part.
'Ah. Misunderstanding settled. Please keep check of your wording for the next time.'
“Of course,” Troy said.
Troy heard the brief flicker of noise coming from the earpiece. It seemed that Dr Fidelis was ready to explain the test.
Troy hadn't messed up yet. That was good. Still, he needed to stay firm, or his plan would fail before it even truly began.
----------------------------------------
Adam wondered.
Why had Troy suddenly decided to keep his mind on the health of his spine? Since the first moment that Adam had used Troy as a willing vessel, he had never had his back straight for more than a few moments.
But now, it was firmer than ever. Adam wasn't complaining, of course. The new sensations coming from the new position was nothing to complain about. It even gave him a few pointers on his theories about proper blood flow.
*And, we are back!*, Dr Fidelis' voice began. Adam redirected his attention from Troy's body to Dr Fidelis' voice.
*We never left, sir*, Adam was able to hear in the background, likely coming from Dr Hale. Adam wasn't sure. The sound quality was not the greatest that it had been. What had changed, since the last test?
*Yes, yes, I know, Dr Hale. It just sounds more exciting, when I say it like this. Don't you think so?*, Dr Fidelis asked.
*No, sir. It does not sound more exciting at all. In the instance, it even diminishes it by a larger quantity.*
*Troy?*, Dr Fidelis said. The context would imply it being desperate, yet the real tone was humorous. Adam needed a large understanding.
“I'm sorry to say this, Dr Fidelis, but I have to side with Dr Hale on this one,” Troy said, with an over professional tone.
*How sad*, Dr Fidelis said. *Anyway, let's get back to the test. Today, we will be doing something new. Do you see a square anywhere in front of you?*
Adam could see Troy looking around, and finding nothing. Troy even looked under his feet, much to Adam's amusement. Had Dr Fidelis unlearned how to work the controls, Adam wondered?
“I can't seem to find any with the general likeness of it, no”, Troy answered after a short while. He had double-checked all directions three times before answering.
*Great. That means I haven't screwed anything up yet! For this test, there will not be any two-dimensional square for you to mess around with.*
“Then, what will I be messing around with? Is this some kind of voice-controlled test, maybe?” Troy questioned. A valid theory. At least, according to Adam.
*You're going in the wrong direction, buddy. No. For this test, we will not be doing anything voice-controlled. Not too bad of an idea, though. Might use it later.
To say it like a wise man once said. We'll be increasing the dimensions!... not sure, if I got that one right if I'm being honest. Doesn't matter. Today, we will be moving from two dimensions to three. Now, isn't that just existing?*
For Adam it was. To Troy, though, it seemed underwhelming. At least, from what his posture would say.
“Is that all? Instead of a two-dimensional square to press, we'll be switching over to a three-dimensional one? I can't say, that I see any way that it adds versatility.”
Troy had a good point. If the square was just used for a panel, it didn't add any obvious functions. Aesthetically, it might have been more pleasing, but that wasn't enough to have a whole test made out of.
*Well, if I get to finish, It might become clear to you.*, Dr Fidelis said.
And that straightens Troy's back like nothing else.
“Of course. Sorry”, Troy said, before shutting his mouth extra tight. Adam could actually feel Troy's lower jaw pressing to the upper one. That had to bring some damage in the long term.
*No matter. What's important is getting the new tech past us. If you would be so kind, as to take two steps back. I would rather not test border control in unintended ways.*
Troy put on a confused face, but he complied quickly. Adam did nothing but silently watch. Inside, though, the interest was peaking. What exactly was this border control? The borders of the room? No, that would require a bit more than three steps. It was something contained within the space of the walls. That left Troy hitting Troy… no, that didn't make sense.
But, with the mention of tridimensional squares, the answer came forth.
Specifically, it came forth, in the form of a cardboard box, briefly floating in the air in front of Troy. Gravity took hold of it quickly though, swiftly hitting the ground with a soft thud.
*From the sound, I'm hearing, the creation process is a success.*, Dr Fidelis said, with a larger amount of satisfaction.
After a few seconds of silence, Troy cleared his throat.
“Dr Fidelis”, Troy said.
Adam noted a peculiar fact about Troy's behaviour. For a full fifteen seconds, Troy's eyes had not so much as moved, nor had they blinked. This was an undocumented anomaly, in Troy's normal behaviour.
*Yes?*
“Would you be so kind, as to explain, why there is a cardboard box in front of me?” Troy asked, in a strained voice. A cardboard box, huh? Adam had not heard of those before. He wondered why. They seemed foldable, which was a definite plus in his. Efficiency in space used.
*Because I made it so. Now, you can begin the test whenever you're ready,” Dr Fidelis stated.
“But you haven't explained the test”, Troy said.
*Maybe if you open the box, you'll guess it. Also, you're allowed to explain it to Adam too.*
And the connection was cut off. Troy was right back to slouching.
“I bet you're just enjoying this”, Troy muttered in a low voice. Was he speaking to Adam? Most likely, as he would be the only one able to hear it.
'No. I will likely enjoy the contents of the cardboard box, though,' Adam sent. Positive reinforcement, with positive words.
Troy sighed a small bit, before walking forward. He bent down to the cardboard box and opened up the top of it.
Inside was another box, this one made of plastic. This one even had a title.
On it, it said; 'Thousand piece puzzle! Extra hard, with pure, blue facade!'
And there it was again. Troy showcased various reproduction methods, this time with multiple animals. Adam wasn't sure that was appropriate for a testing atmosphere, but he didn't stop Troy from continuing, due to being enamoured with his lung-capacity.