Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Vinny Nzema turned a bolt on the copper ring for the 3rd time, even though it was probably tight enough. The garage was hot and the capacitors hummed low. Regina sat on the floor with her legs crossed, staring at the generator screen.
“86% failure,” Regina said. “I have done everything, Vinny.”
“Maybe that is just the number,” Vinny said. He wiped his forehead on his sleeve. “Nothing we ever tried had perfect odds.”
Regina did not answer. She kept looking at the screen.
Vinny stood up and walked to the workbench. He picked up a chess trophy from when they were 10. The gold paint was peeling off. His mind drifted back, way back, to the beginning.
‘I was 7 years old,’ Vinny thought. And then the memory unfolded like a movie.
Vinny Nzema and Regina Nzema had known each other since they were 7 years old. Their first fight happened in a sandbox over a broken shovel, and neither of them backed down. That day ended with both of them covered in sand and laughing on the ground while their mothers scolded them. From that moment, they understood something about each other that no one else ever seemed to grasp. They both craved challenges that other people found exhausting or pointless.
Vinny learned chess at 8 and beat his father by 10. Regina learned piano at 9 and could play Rachmaninoff by 12, not because she loved music but because everyone said it was too hard. They competed in spelling bees, math competitions, and eventually martial arts tournaments. By the time they turned 18, they had accumulated 23 trophies, 4 broken bones, and a relationship that confused everyone who knew them. Most couples went on vacations or bought each other flowers, but they went on vacation to train with different coaches.
They started their 1st business at 19, a logistics company that delivered medical supplies to rural hospitals. Within 3 years, they sold it for $12,000,000. Then they started a real estate firm, then a law practice, then a private security consulting group. Each venture succeeded because they treated every problem like a puzzle. Vinny handled strategy and logistics while Regina handled negotiations and legal frameworks. Money was just the scoreboard, and the game was the thing.
By the time they were 30, their net worth had crossed $50,000,000. They owned 4 properties across 3 states, a portfolio of 12 rental buildings, and a small stake in a tech startup that made medical devices. None of that mattered to them as much as the next challenge. And the next challenge was sitting right here in this garage.
“Vinny,” Regina said. “Hey. You are doing it again.”
“Huh?” Vinny said. He blinked and put the trophy down. “Sorry. I was thinking about the sandbox.”
“The sandbox?” Regina said. She raised an eyebrow. “We are about to open a portal to who knows where, and you are thinking about a sandbox?”
“Well, yeah,” Vinny said. He smiled a little. “That sandbox is why we are here.”
Regina looked at him for a second. Then she smiled too. “Yeah. I guess it is.”
She stood up and stretched. Her back cracked real loud. “Alright, enough remembering. The number dropped to 84.”
Vinny walked over and looked at the screen. 0.84 blinked back at him. “Oh. That is... better?”
“It is less bad,” Regina said. “That is all I know right now.”
Vinny looked at the copper ring. The capacitors were humming louder now. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket but he ignored it. “So we do the coin 1st, then the seed, then the light pulse, then the drone?”
“Yeah,” Regina said. “If all 4 work, we go.”
“That is 4 tests,” Vinny said. “What if the 3rd one fails?”
“Then we fix it and try again,” Regina said. “Same as always, Vinny. Same as always.”
Vinny nodded. She was right. They had been doing this since they were kids. Try something, fail, figure out why, try again. That was the whole game.
“Alright,” Vinny said. “Put the penny in.”
Regina picked up the old copper penny from the workbench. It was tarnished and had a scratch on it. She placed it on the small platform inside the copper ring.
“Ready?” she asked.
“Ready,” Vinny said.
End of Chapter 1
