Iron Plate

The next day Matt similarly went to the observation room and watched the morning training. There was nothing he had to do so he started reading through the notebook about Martha again. The training was just as difficult as yesterday, except this time it lasted the whole day. Surprisingly, everyone managed to keep up until lunch time. Alexis had put in a request for various packets of the high-calorie powder and mixed it in with a few bottles of water. She gave the five candidates a fifteen-minute break and then they continued.

Alexis had downed a whole packet where the others didn't dare to take a third of one. The excess calories could severely impair the bodies functions for a while. They continued that way until dinner and the candidates collapsed on the floor. Alexis was still fine, but her muscles were aching. Although her stamina could keep up, there was simply a biological limit to her strength. However, it seemed to be slowly increasing.

Several automatons entered the centrifuge and carried the collapsed soldiers out. This was a common occurrence and there was an established protocol to remove any injured or unconscious people from the rings. Because of this, Alexis wasn't worried and went straight to the observation room where Matt was reading while occasionally looking at the monitors. She removed and stored her combat suit in the adjacent military bay and then went to meet up with Matt.

Matt had been reading the notebook and looking for very specific data and notes. Project Synapse was explained on several occasions however Martha's connection to it was never explicitly mentioned. However, Matt did discover some very valuable information. It seemed that once Martha accumulated enough nutrients, and was then given a chemical compound containing a concentrated mixture of nucleic acids, she would begin to flower and produce those nuts.

This reminded him of what Willard did to Martha. He either had access to the original, or read it off of Matt's device. It seemed that the viable seeds are very important to Project Synapse but Matt couldn't find the reference to why anywhere. Fortunately, he gained the method to synthesize the compound. He would first ask for Martha's permission, since this was a great way for him to get stronger.

He got to the last book and noticed that Bradshaw's handwritten started to get sloppier. Matt wasn't a handwriting analysist otherwise he may have noticed the progressively worse handwriting until now. However, the stark difference between the third and fourth book made him realize something was wrong. There was a tremor in his hand that caused random marks or crooked letters. As he read on, he saw a very difficult to read entry that he couldn't decipher.

And suddenly, as he flipped the page, the handwriting went back to being normal. Matt flipped back and looked at the last entry. Something happened between these two. The dates at the top showed a three-day difference. Matt suddenly thought of something and flipped back. He calculated the dates of the entries and created something of a schedule. It seemed that since the handwriting started to deteriorate, a gap began to appear in the entries. One missed day every few weeks, then two, then the three and it began to happen closer and closer to each occurrence.

'What the hell were you up to, Bradshaw…'

The door swished open and Alexis walked in. She was wearing a clean and dry uniform since she had likely sweated through the other one. She walked over to the sofa and collapsed on it with her limbs sprawled out. She groaned tiredly but Matt was completely focused on the notebook. She groaned louder but he didn't seem to notice again. She clicked her tongue and went over to the chair he was sitting in.

She came up behind him but he was still engrossed in what he was reading. She stood there for a moment and tried to see what he was looking at but the text was too small and at a weird angle. She put her face really close to his ear and he still didn't notice her.

"What are you reading?"

Matt yelped while falling forward out of the chair and tumbling slightly on the ground. He was so focused on the notebook he hadn't noticed Alexis walk in and get behind him. She had scared him quite a bit that his heart was beating rapidly. Alexis was leaning on the back of his chair with her hand over her mouth trying to hold back her laughter.

"That's not funny." Matt says with a frown.

"It's pretty funny."

"Why did you sneak up on me."

"Hah! You were so focused you didn't notice me. What if it were someone else?"

Matt didn't respond because she made a good point. If someone had been trying to sneak up on him he wouldn't have even noticed. He decided to start fixing this by always being aware of his surroundings and not get too focused on one thing. This tunnel vision was a habit he had from his past life. It was also the reason why he often forgot about things like the notebook and the medicine until much later. He rubbed his temples and saw that it was almost lunch time.

They made their way to the cafeteria and had a good dinner. Alexis was full of energy when they returned to their room because of her ability and having plenty of nutrients to make use of it. Because of this, she took the initiative to have a joint exercise with Matt at night under the sheets. Needless to say, he woke up late the next morning after Alexis had already left and started her torturing of the five candidates.

Matt arrived just in time to witness a fight between Alexis and the man in the Pyrotechnician suit. Watching the fight, he realized the gap between them. The 'Space Marine' suit is not simply just the beginner's suit because it is the weakest. In fact, some veterans still use that suit due to its applications. Instead of relying on heavy machinery and explosive weaponry, the suit lets the user utilize their skills and techniques at the highest level. Alexis activated the various features of the suit and was able to run circles around her opponent. She struck at the joints with perfect precision. Matt didn't know when this fight started, but it seemed to be ending quickly.

However, instead of giving up, Matt noticed something strange happening in the man's suit. He didn't recognize it, but Alexis did. A compartment opened up in the large tank on his back and a powerful flame blasted forwards where Alexis was standing. She dodged it since she expected it, and the floor where she stood began to melt. This was no longer a spar but an attack. Matt was afraid that contacting her now would distract her. This was a risk to her life.

'So that's your play, huh? I was going to leave you alone and let Alexis deal with you, but now it seems you have overstepped.' Matt thought to himself. He planned to make his life miserable from now on. He continued watching the fight and tried to draw parallels between the game and reality.

The 'Pyrotechnician' suit was a very powerful demolition suit. The flames generated by the suit were as hot as magma. If it were not for the special metal that the suits were made of, it wouldn't even be able to handle its own heat. This is why the 'Pyrotechnician' suit was so heavy duty. Alexis did her best, but she didn't have her weapon so needed to close the distance to attack. The fight seemed to be going downhill fast until one of the candidates jumped in to help.

That was when Matt noticed the three candidates waiting at the side watching, frozen in shock. One had taken action to help. They struck at the heavy unit on the back of the suit and it seemed to disable some of the flames. The only thing remaining were the arm units but they had a very small quantity of chemicals to create those flames. When the others saw the candidate take action, they joined to fight, but only after the main danger was neutralized. Eventually, they took him down.

Alexis seemed to be ordering them to do something and then they all left the centrifuge. Many automatons came out to clean up and repair the damages as well as bring the unconscious soldier out. The centrifuge was damaged quite a bit because of those flames.

Matt went to go meet them as they exited. When Alexis and the other four came out of the lift, they removed their helmets. It turned out that the person that helped Alexis at the key moment was Ren.

"The tests have concluded. I will send you all a message tomorrow with the results. You are dismissed. Lieutenant Ren Yamamoto, stay behind I wish to speak with you."

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Thanks to everyone that gifted. You're awesome. Enjoy the chapter.