The laboratory doors closed behind Elias and his team, leaving a heavy silence in the air. Around them, the machines hummed softly, ready for use. Elias ran a hand through his messy hair and gestured for Yann, Clara, and Daniel to gather around the central workstation. In front of them, a screen displayed the intricate schematics of the prototype they had been working on for weeks.
Elias spoke, his serious tone revealing the tension in the room.
"We've finalized the assembly. This is the first prototype of the Aegis-1 processor." He placed a compact casing on the table, letting his colleagues examine it.
Clara was the first to react. "It's… tiny." She picked up a magnifying glass to inspect the golden connectors.
Yann, arms crossed, leaned over the schematics projected on the screen. "Five nanometers? Seriously? Even the biggest companies spent years of research before reaching this level. And you think it's going to work on the first try?"
Daniel, who had remained silent, muttered, "It's not just the size. Look at this." He pointed to a series of complex circuits. "You integrated hybrid cores and an adaptive network. This type of architecture has never been tested in real conditions. What exactly are you hoping for, Elias?"
Elias gave them a determined look. "I expect us to prove it's possible. And I'm not interested in what's already been done. We're building something new. Now, let's power it up."
Daniel inserted the processor into its socket while Yann handled the connections. Clara adjusted the thermal sensors and power monitors. Elias watched the main screen, ready to log every anomaly.
When the system booted up, a low hum filled the room. Numbers began scrolling across the monitors, showing energy consumption 30% lower than industry standards. Elias smiled.
"We're making progress. Keep going."
The first test simulated a moderate workload. The processor responded with impressive fluidity. Yann nodded.
"Forty percent faster than the best chips on the market. Not bad at all."
Clara adjusted a series of settings and launched a more demanding test—complex 3D simulations combined with real-time image processing. For a few seconds, everything ran smoothly. Then, the first signs of stress appeared.
The screen flickered, displaying memory errors. The processor's temperature spiked, crossing 90°C despite the fans.
Clara jumped to the station and immediately stopped the test.
"Stop! The heat sink is overwhelmed. Temperatures are exceeding tolerance levels."
Yann reviewed the error logs. "It's not just a thermal issue. There are conflicts in the core interconnections. They're crashing into each other. This is going to cause irrecoverable bugs."
Elias clenched his jaw. "This was expected. We're pushing this architecture to its limits. But we can fix it. Clara, focus on thermal dissipation. Yann, rebalance the core traffic flows. I want solutions within the hour."
---
Adrian appeared in the doorway with a concerned look. "Master, the team seems to be running into complications."
Lassen put down his book and looked up, visibly annoyed. "They're panicking already?"
Adrian pressed. "Not panicking, just facing technical challenges. They might need help."
Sighing, Lassen activated the system interface.
"Find an algorithm that dynamically redistributes load between cores. Optimize it to reduce heat generation."
[Done. File ready for testing. I remind you that solving their problems for them undermines their autonomy, host.] the system replied.
"And I remind you that I have no patience for failure." Lassen closed the interface and sank back into his chair.
---
With the adjustments implemented, Elias restarted the tests. This time, the memory errors disappeared, and the temperature stabilized. But another issue quickly arose.
The heat sink began to emit a high-pitched whine, and signs of overheating reappeared after several minutes of intensive use.
Clara groaned. "The Graphenium-X material can't handle sustained high frequencies. It fractures under stress."
Yann took frantic notes. "We'll need to switch to liquid cooling, like high-performance servers. It'll take time to adapt the design."
Elias looked at his team and declared, "We've proven the concept works, but it'll take months of work to make it stable. If anyone here thinks this will be easy, leave now."
Clara crossed her arms, ready for the challenge. Yann smirked, already immersed in calculations. Daniel remained focused but visibly concerned.
Meanwhile, Alex left the room to contact the Prime Minister.
---
In his office, the Prime Minister took Alex's call. The reports on progress and technical problems reassured him about the project's potential, but he worried about delays and repercussions.
"I want constant updates, Alex. And if more resources are needed, request them immediately."
Alex nodded. "Understood, but be prepared. If this works, the whole world will be watching us."
---
Back at the villa, Lassen turned another page in his novel and muttered, "They can watch all they want. As long as I can read in peace, I'm fine with it."