'Adam, we are ready to start. Troy should be getting on the earpiece at any moment,` Dr Fidelis sent to the AI.

Huh. It was surprising. According to his internal clock, they were five minutes ahead of schedule. The doctor was not supposed to send him anything for at least three minutes. That it was about Troy entering the puzzle was a staggering revelation. Though, it could also have been due to his speed being messed up a little bit. It seemed to be adjusting itself as of late. Or maybe he just wasn't paying enough attention. By now, it could be either of them.

'Thanks for the information, Dr Fidelis. Is there a reason for the early entrance?` Adam sent back, question in hand. It had been a while since he had synced the clock up with the one outside.

He wondered briefly how long until the watch would be assimilated into his body. It had been a long time since the doctor said he was nearly done, but the AI was beginning to think that he had not yet begun on that project, delaying it until he couldn't. Was there ever a time where he needed to be done with it? There probably wasn't.

'Oh, nothing in particular. It's a mix-match of coincidences. Troy and Dr Hale came in a few minutes early. I think there might be some drama there between a mutual friend of theirs, but I haven't dared to ask yet. Might do so when I get your buddy inside the puzzle room. A little talk between co-workers is perfectly acceptable, last time I checked,` Dr Fidelis wrote back, seeming to have a hyper-fixation on what Adam could only guess to be Charlie.

The AI wondered just what kind of drama had come forth. Could it be that the muscular one had made a joke that was not accepted? He could imagine that to be the case. That man did not have an off button at the best of times. However, Troy had always seemed forgiving enough with the harsher jokes. Could it be that Dr Hale had gotten angry instead? With a face set in stone, Adam had trouble understanding it. Charlie must have told a very cruel joke,

'You only told one reason. Are there any others?`

'Yeah, but the other one is not really as interesting. This time, there was nobody who decided to have some problem that needed to be fixed. No unknown person tried to break down my expensive door, Troy did not decide to have extreme signs of masochism, and Dr Hale did not give me a dead-stare while I mistyped my password three times. I have begun putting time in for these types of emergencies, but there was nothing to use it for today. Since they also came a little early, I just decided to get the test over with now instead of later. Oh, and do not take that as me stopping this test early. We are using all the time we are allowed to, and going a few minutes over is something we just can't help but do sometimes.`

While Dr Fidelis might have been annoying at times, he was a nice man at others. Adam was happy about being created by him. One could see that he really did care about the project. He did not mind if the AI received a few more minutes than what was allowed, as everybody in it did not have anything against it either. Breaking the rules but only just. If it helped, he would do it. And the AI could respect that, going out of his way for the good of others. He might not have been like that always, but what could Adam expect? Humans were flawed beings. It was in the times that they were good where they truly showed what they could do. So what if they messed up the first few times?

Those were the last thoughts the AI had before the feed began back up, Adam able to yet again see through Troy’s eyes. This time, the man had timed it perfectly, the AI only able to barely see the edges of the entrance, as he entered into the puzzle room. Like the doctor had promised, the young man ended up a few meters away from the staircase, unable to suddenly fall if distracted. It also helped that Troy came to a full stop the moment he got inside. He was properly prepared to not fall down a flight of stairs that time around. A good mindset to have, Adam had to give him that.

Doing his customary sweep of every sensation sent to the AI, Adam quickly noted an anomaly. As in, a sensation he had not expected for him to have, as it would hint at something that did not make sense at all.

Troy’s arms were tired. Not any tiredness that was related to becoming tired in general, but the tiredness that came from having over-used the muscles to an extent that they had gotten micro-tears. It was the kind that would have been found on people who had recently done some kind of weight-lifting. Since Troy had just gotten back from dinner, there was doubt that was it.

'Did you have a nice dinner?` Adam sent the man. This time, he could definitely say that the man’s fill had been received, the stomach at work with whatever had been down. From the taste remaining in the mouth, the AI guessed it to be a soup of some kind, hurriedly eaten with that burnt top of the mouth.

“I did indeed, yes. Could have been a bit colder, though,” Troy answered, sounding fully casual about it. A little bit too casual, actually, to the point where it sounded forced. Going over it again, Adam was not able to determine it to be a lie. Yet there was still some form of truth missing. He had done something else while on the break as well. What could that be?

'What caused you to have so sore arms? Was there an accident in the cafeteria that caused you to lift heavy objects repeatedly?` Adam asked. It could also have been due to continually lifting a single object without letting go of it.

Had he been carrying something? It could be that Troy got one of the boxes of snacks back to the testing room. He had talked about how Dr Fidelis would always stay back there. The doctor would need to replenish his food stocks at some point. Making the two do it during their break would be both time-efficient and would make sense since food could only be gotten at the cafeteria.

Troy did not seem to appreciate that answer, the face straining to not move too much. For whatever reason, the young man was doing his best to fake an indifferent reaction. While Adam was not one to draw conclusions too quickly, the AI had to wonder if the man was hiding something. It did not need to be outright incriminating, of course, but there was most definitely something.

“It might just be from walking too much. I should probably go relax after this test ends,” Troy concluded, nodding to the side. “Anyways, are you ready to start? Dr Fidelis doesn't seem to have any reason to give us a set time to begin the timer, so I think he already started it the moment I entered.”

'… You can go ahead and begin the trek. Expect to take fifteen seconds on each floor as a maximum. We need to have some time for preparation when we get to the top,` Adam said, not sure how to take it. Giving instructions to the man allowed him time to think.

How ironic it was, wanting conversation when he was alone, but also wanting to be alone when he had a conversation to join in on. He could not think quickly enough to draw conclusions when he thought a thousand times faster than any human could hope to. Was he just not able to grasp these concepts the right way? Differing perspectives give different experiences, but they should not have been on so high a level.

Troy… was not answering him. From experience, that hinted at it being a subject Dr Fidelis was not meant to hear. This normally meant that he would be told later that day when the young man got back to his room. However, there was not a chance that he would be contacted after the tests, as the man did not use his own earpiece anymore for whatever reason.

The only way to get an answer was for the man to answer him during the test. Adam knew that, and Troy knew that as well. Both understood the situation enough to know that they needed to be able to talk to each other.

Still, he needed to confirm it. If not for himself, then for Troy. What exactly that meant, the AI was not too sure. Yet, he would do his best to find out.

'Troy, I am beginning to think you are hiding something from me. I do not know what it is, but I know that it is there. I have realised that you do not want to tell Dr Fidelis about it, or that you are not allowed to tell him about it. If any of this is right, can you please cough?` Adam sent the man.

It had been silent for the first few minutes spent thinking, and breaking it now would cause mild curiosity from the doctor. Anything said would be noted down. Therefore, what if nothing was said at all? An innocent cough created by tiredness and constant movement. The young man had done it several times during previous tests. It would surely not be questioned if he did again once more, right?

The AI had deliberated hand signs instead-but felt that it was not the most secure of things. The doctor already knew of it, as they had spent time letting Adam learn it during previous tests. While the doctor might not have been able to understand it during the test itself, later footage would allow the man to translate it manually. That could cause questions.

It would also have allowed for more complex answers, but he did not want to risk it. Right now, he did not need to know exactly what was happening. He just wanted a direct confession that something was indeed happening behind the scenes, something that he was not a part of for whatever reason. Adam just needed for Troy to answer.

…

Troy continued his walk up the stairs, as if there hadn't been anything said at all. The eyes were focused, making sure the man did not trip at any time. Precision was perfect, an average of eleven seconds taken for each floor. If anything, the AI saw the man doing a perfect job.

Except that he did not answer. Nothing showed any signs of even having heard it. That did not make sense. Adam knew he sent the message, he knew what port was used. He had double-checked to make sure he did not accidentally send it to Dr Fidelis.

'Troy?` Adam sent the man, just to check that something had not messed up. If he was sending the message somewhere it was not meant to, then he had a serious problem.

“Yes?” Troy asked innocently.

'Were you able to hear my last message?` Adam asked.

“Oh, most definitely. I heard it well and clearly,” Troy confirmed, the forced casualness heard once again. It might not have been heard in the tone itself, but the tightening of the stomach was more than enough to see it from.

'Then why did you not answer?` Adam asked, not able to understand. He had set it up perfectly. The man would be able to innocently cough, and nobody would ever think anything of it. He had given the man a chance to reveal it to him, and it was ignored.

“Because I did not want to answer?” Troy said as if it was more of a question than anything. “It is not that hard to understand, really.”

'Do you not have enough trust to tell me?` Adam asked. That caused a reaction. A momentary pause in his steps faked to be a slight misplacement of the left foot. A stellar act for everybody but Adam.

“Do you really want me to answer that of all things?”

'Yes, please.`

“Then, no,” Troy answered, sounding a little cheerful about it all. It might have been meant to fool those listening, but it was not a tone that Adam liked to listen to. “I think of myself as a supporter of individualism more than anything else. Is there anything else you want to know?”

'No. Please continue to move up the stairs.`

“Of course.”