Chapter 10: New Idea

Thomas and his assistant had been working tirelessly on the Nexusgate project, trying to find a way to prevent the invasion of Earth by the people of AK07. They had spent countless hours in the laboratory, testing different theories and designs, but none of them seemed to work. They were running out of time, and they knew it.

They decided to take a break and grab a coffee at the NASA canteen, hoping to recharge their energy and clear their minds. They walked to the canteen, chatting about random topics, trying to distract themselves from the looming threat.

They reached the canteen and ordered their drinks. Thomas opted for a black coffee, while his assistant chose a Frappuccino, a cold coffee drink with ice cream and whipped cream. They found a table and sat down, waiting for their drinks to arrive.

"So, how do you like the food here?" Thomas asked his assistant, noticing the satisfied look on his face.

"It's delicious, sir. I love the variety and the quality of the dishes. They always use fresh ingredients and cook them to perfection." The assistant replied.

"I agree. They do a great job here. I especially like their coffee. It's always hot and strong, just the way I like it." Thomas said.

"Me too, sir. Their coffee is amazing. I also enjoy their Frappuccino. It's a cold coffee drink with ice cream and whipped cream. It's very refreshing and tasty." The assistant said.

"That sounds good. Maybe I'll try it next time. I've heard that they use a special blend of coffee beans that gives it a unique flavor." Thomas said, curious about the drink.

"Yes, sir. They use a blend of Arabica and Robusta beans, which are grown in different regions of the world. They roast them separately and then mix them together to create a balanced and rich taste." The assistant explained, demonstrating his knowledge of coffee.

"Wow, you really know your stuff. You're quite the coffee connoisseur." Thomas said, impressed by his assistant's expertise.

"Thank you, sir. I've always been fascinated by coffee and its history. Did you know that coffee was first discovered in Ethiopia in the 9th century?" The assistant asked, eager to share his passion.

"No, I didn't know that. That's very interesting." Thomas said, intrigued by the fact.

"Yes, sir. According to legend, a goat herder named Kaldi noticed that his goats became more energetic after eating some red berries from a bush. He tried them himself and felt the same effect. He then took some of the berries to a local monastery, where the monks brewed them into a drink that helped them stay awake during their prayers." The assistant narrated, enjoying the story.

"That's amazing. I wonder what they would think of our modern coffee drinks." Thomas said, amused by the thought.

"I'm sure they would be amazed and delighted by them. Coffee has come a long way since then. It has become one of the most popular beverages in the world, with millions of people enjoying it every day." The assistant said, expressing his admiration for coffee.

"I agree. Coffee is a wonderful drink that brings people together and stimulates their minds. It's also a great source of energy and inspiration for our work." Thomas said, appreciating the benefits of coffee.

"Indeed, sir. Coffee is our ally in our quest for scientific discovery." The assistant said, smiling at Thomas.

They continued to chat about coffee and other topics, trying to relax and enjoy their break. They knew they were facing a difficult challenge, but they also knew they had each other's support.

The waiter brought their drinks and placed them on the table. Thomas thanked him and was about to reach for his coffee when his phone rang. He checked the caller ID and saw that it was his manager. He sighed and answered the call, wondering what he wanted. His assistant did the same, but then he noticed something strange with their drinks.

He saw that there was hot steam rising from the surface of the black coffee, while the cold air in the Frappuccino was sinking. He leaned forward to look at it closer and realized that the cold air from the Frappuccino was neutralized by the hot air of the black coffee. He felt a spark in his brain as he thought of an idea.

As soon as Thomas finished talking to the manager,

"Sir, I think I have an idea." His assistant said excitedly.

"What is it?" Thomas asked curiously.

"Well, you know about reverse engineering, what if we reverse engineer the Nexusgate so that instead of opening a portal, it can close one?" The assistant asked.

"Ohh" Thomas said curiously.

"What if we use the same principle as these drinks?" The assistant suggested.

"What do you mean?" Thomas asked.

"Look at them. The hot air from your coffee is cancelling out the cold air from my Frappuccino. What if we can do the same thing with the portal? What if we can create a counter-portal that can neutralize the portal from AK07?" The assistant explained.

Thomas looked at him with astonishment. He realized that his assistant had just come up with a brilliant solution.

"That's genius!" He exclaimed.

"Really?" The assistant asked.

"Yes, really! Think about it. If we can create a counter-portal that has the opposite properties of the portal from AK07, we might be able to close it or at least disrupt it. We just need to figure out how to generate such a counter-portal." Thomas said.

"How do we do that?" The assistant asked.

"Well, we need to study the portal from AK07 more closely. We need to understand its characteristics, such as its shape, size, frequency, energy level, etc. Then we need to create a counter-portal that has the exact opposite characteristics." Thomas said.

"That sounds complicated." The assistant said.

"It is. But it's not impossible. We have some data from our previous experiments with the Nexusgate. We can use that as a starting point." Thomas said.

"Okay. So what do we need to do?" The assistant asked.

"We need to go back to the lab and work on this idea. We don't have much time left. We need to act fast." Thomas said.

"Alright then. Let's go." The assistant said.

They quickly finished their drinks and got up from their table. They hurried back to the lab, eager to test their new theory. They hoped that this would be the breakthrough they had been looking for.

Thomas and his assistant rushed back to the lab, eager to put their new idea into action. They had a possible solution to stop the invasion of Earth by the people of AK07, but they needed to act fast. They had to reverse engineer the Nexusgate, the machine that had opened a portal to the parallel universe, and make it close the portal instead.

They entered the lab and gathered all the members of "Operation AK07", a team of scientists and engineers. Thomas explained the situation to them, telling them about his assistant's discovery about reverse engineering the Nexusgate.

"My assistant came up with an idea that might work." Thomas said.

He turned to his assistant and nodded at him. The assistant stepped forward and cleared his throat.

"Hello, everyone. I know this sounds crazy, but hear me out. I think we can use the Nexusgate to close the portal. We just need to reverse its properties so that instead of opening a portal, it can close one." The assistant said.

The team looked at him with curiosity and confusion, wondering how that was possible.

"How can we do that?" One of them asked.

"Well, I got this idea from our drinks at the canteen. It's how the hot air from Thomas's coffee cancelled out the cold air from my Frappuccino. What if we can do the same thing with the portal? What if we can create a counter-portal that can neutralize the portal from AK07?" The assistant explained.

The team was intrigued by his idea, but they still had doubts.

"That sounds interesting, but how can we create a counter-portal? What do we need for that?" One of them asked.

"We need to study the portal from AK07 more closely. We need to understand its characteristics, such as its shape, size, frequency, energy level, etc. Then we need to create a counter-portal that has the exact opposite characteristics." The assistant said.

"That sounds complicated." Another one said.

"It is. But it's not impossible. We have some data from our previous experiments with the Nexusgate. We can use that as a starting point." The assistant said.

"Okay. So what do we need to do?" A third one asked.

"We need to work together as a team and divide our tasks. We have two parts of the Nexusgate: the top part and the bottom part. The top part is where the energy converges into a beam and blasts through the tip of the cone to create a portal. The bottom part is where the energy is created and made denser. We need to reverse both parts so that they can create a counter-portal instead." The assistant said.

He took out a file from his bag and handed it to Thomas. It was labeled "The Nexusgate". It contained all the details about the Nexusgate and how it worked.

"Here you go, sir." The assistant said.

Thomas took the file and opened it. He scanned through its pages, looking for relevant information.

"Thank you," Thomas said.

He then turned to his team and addressed them.

"Alright, everyone. Listen up. This is our plan. We're going to split into two teams: Team A and Team B. Team A will work on reversing the top part of the Nexusgate, while Team B will work on reversing the bottom part of the Nexusgate. I'll be supervising the plans to reverse engineer both the top part and the bottom part, while my assistant will be helping both teams to create it." Thomas said.

He then assigned each member of his team to either Team A or Team B, making sure that each team had an equal number of scientists and engineers with different skills and expertise.

"Once we have reversed both parts of the Nexusgate, we'll put them together and test them," Thomas said, motivating the members.

As the sun set on the horizon, the team felt a surge of hope and excitement. They had made significant progress in their quest to save the world, and they were eager to continue their work the next day. Thomas and his assistant shared a smile of satisfaction, knowing that they had overcome many obstacles and challenges along the way. They had started this journey alone, but now they had allies and supporters who believed in their cause. They knew that they were close to the final confrontation, but they also sensed that something was wrong. A chill ran down their spines as they looked at the sky, wondering what would happen if everything went the other way around.