The group followed Dexter through the open doors and into the corridor beyond. The change from the exhibition hall was immediately noticeable.
The bright displays, polished platforms, and carefully arranged demonstrations of the main venue were replaced by something more functional. The walls were reinforced and mostly undecorated, with narrow strips of illumination running along the ceiling. Doors lined both sides of the corridor, each equipped with identification scanners and small digital panels displaying the department housed behind them.
The faint hum of machinery could be heard through the walls.
Mary looked around with growing curiosity.
"Okay," she said while walking beside Susan, "this already feels more like a real laboratory."
Susan adjusted her glasses as she examined one of the security panels. "The access system is considerably more sophisticated than the public section."
Dexter glanced back at her while continuing down the corridor. "That's because this part isn't designed for visitors."
He stopped beside one of the doors and placed his hand against the scanner.
The panel flashed.
ACCESS GRANTED.
The door opened.
"This is the materials and fabrication wing."
The scientists entered behind him. The size of the facility immediately became apparent. The room stretched far beyond what could be seen from the entrance. Automated fabrication machines operated along one side while robotic arms worked on partially assembled components. Several enclosed chambers were running high-temperature and cryogenic processes, while large industrial printers produced intricate mechanical parts layer by layer.
A robotic arm carried a freshly fabricated component from one machine to another before placing it into a precision testing rig.
Mabel's eyes widened. "This is where you make everything?"
"Not everything," Dexter replied while walking between the equipment. "Some components require specialized facilities elsewhere, but most of our prototyping can be done here."
He stopped beside a large enclosed machine.
"This system can manufacture components directly from digital designs. Researchers can modify a prototype, send the updated design here, and have a physical version ready without waiting weeks for an outside manufacturer."
Lisa looked through the transparent panel at the machinery. "How precise is it?"
Dexter smiled slightly. "Depends on the material. With some composites, we're operating at microscopic tolerances."
Lisa's expression became noticeably more interested.
Dexter continued walking. "We also have dedicated material-testing systems. Tensile strength, thermal resistance, impact resistance, electrical conductivity, fatigue testing. If someone develops a new material, they don't have to send samples somewhere else just to find out whether it works."
Professor Utonium examined one of the sealed processing chambers. "That's an impressive amount of infrastructure."
"It's expensive," Dexter admitted. "But infrastructure is one of the biggest limitations researchers face. If I can remove that limitation, then the investment is worth it."
They continued through the facility. The next room was significantly quieter.
Rows of large computational systems occupied the walls, their displays filled with constantly changing simulations. Holographic projections showed complex models of structures, chemical reactions, weather systems, biological processes, and mechanical designs.
Dexter stepped into the center of the room. "This is our simulation center."
Mr. Cockroach immediately looked around with interest. "You're running multiple models simultaneously."
"Thousands," Dexter answered while gesturing toward the displays. "Researchers can test an idea digitally before building a physical prototype."
He approached one of the terminals. "For example, if someone designs a new structural system, they can simulate stress, temperature, impact, and material fatigue before manufacturing anything."
A holographic model of a bridge appeared. Dexter adjusted several parameters. The structure began experiencing simulated stress until one section highlighted in red. "Instead of discovering the problem after construction, you find it here."
The model changed.bThe weak section was reinforced. Dexter ran the simulation again. This time, the structure remained stable. "Then you build."
Mr. Cockroach stared at the simulation. "How much computational power does this place have?"
Dexter gave him a sideways glance. "Enough."
Mr. Cockroach narrowed his eyes. "That's not a number."
"I know." Dexter smiled faintly and continued walking.
The next section contained something considerably different. The smell of sterilizing chemicals filled the air as they entered the biological research wing. Unlike the previous rooms, this section had several layers of transparent barriers separating individual laboratories.
Automated microscopes operated inside sterile chambers. Robotic manipulators carefully handled samples while large screens displayed cellular structures and biological data.
Dexter stopped beside the observation window. "This area is for biological and medical research. Every laboratory can be isolated from the others if necessary."
Professor Utonium looked through the glass. "You've thought about containment."
"Very carefully." Dexter's answer was simple.
He didn't elaborate.
Instead, he continued the tour. The group eventually reached another large laboratory. This one was filled with unfinished machines.
Unlike the polished robots displayed in the exhibition hall, these were clearly works in progress.
A humanoid frame hung suspended from a mechanical rig while several robotic arms worked on its joints. Nearby, an artificial hand repeatedly opened and closed as sensors measured its movement. Another machine was testing different types of optical sensors while a small autonomous drone repeatedly navigated an obstacle course.
Flint stared at the humanoid frame. "You build your own robots here?"
Dexter nodded. "Among other things."
The scientist group continued walking. They passed another reinforced chamber containing what appeared to be the remains of several experimental devices.
One machine had a melted casing. Another had a severely bent frame. A third had several components scattered around its base.
Mabel stared through the glass. "Those look like they exploded."
"They did," Dexter said casually.
Mabel looked at him. "All of them?"
"Most."
A few scientists laughed.
Dexter smiled. "Those are our failed experiments."
Dexter folded his arms. "A failed experiment tells you something. Maybe the material was wrong. Maybe the design was wrong. Maybe the theory was wrong. Whatever the reason, throwing away the evidence means losing part of what you learned."
He turned toward the group. "I don't want researchers here to be afraid of failure."
That statement seemed to linger with several of them.
Dexter resumed walking.
The tour eventually brought them to one of the largest sections of the facility. Unlike the specialized laboratories, this area was designed around collaboration.
Several workstations surrounded a central research floor. Chemistry equipment stood beside computational terminals. Fabrication equipment was positioned close enough for researchers to move prototypes directly from one area to another. Biological analysis stations occupied another section while several large tables provided space for teams to work together.
There were no walls separating every discipline.
The entire facility seemed designed around the idea of scientists crossing into one another's fields.
"This is our collaborative research floor," Dexter explained.
He gestured around them. "I don't want someone working on a problem in one room while the person who could solve it is sitting three floors away."
Lisa looked around thoughtfully. "So the departments aren't completely isolated."
"They aren't supposed to be." Dexter walked toward one of the central tables. "If you're working on something that requires materials science, computational modeling, robotics, chemistry, biology, or engineering, you can bring those people into the same project."
Lisa glanced toward the equipment around the room. "That would significantly reduce development time."
"That's the idea."
Mr. Peabody smiled. "I think I understand your philosophy now."
Dexter looked toward him. "What do you mean?"
"You aren't simply providing laboratories." The Professor gestured around the floor. "You're building an environment where different fields can overlap."
Dexter smiled. "Exactly."
The group eventually reached the central atrium.
From there, they could see several floors of laboratories connected by walkways and elevators. Researchers moved between departments while robotic systems transported equipment and materials. The building no longer felt like a collection of laboratories. It felt like a single organism.
Every part connected to another.
Dexter stood near the railing and looked down at the facility. "This is what I wanted Dextrotech to become."
The scientists were quiet.
"I know most research institutions have departments, funding restrictions, approval boards, and administrative procedures. Some of those things are necessary. But sometimes they also become walls." Dexter looked at them. "I want to remove as many of those walls as I can."
Once the tour was finished, Dexter deliberately stepped aside.
The scientists immediately began talking among themselves.
Flint approached Jimmy first.
"So," Flint said while pointing toward the direction of the simulation center, "that computational system you were staring at earlier. You know if it could help optimize the FLDSMDFR?"
Jimmy on the side smiled. "I was thinking the same thing."
Lisa joined them while carrying her small analysis device. "If your machine can produce different molecular structures, my analyzer could potentially map the output and compare it against your target."
Flint's eyes widened. "Really?"
"Probably."
Jimmy looked between them. "Actually, if we connect all three systems, we could automate the testing process."
Flint grinned. "I like where this is going."
Nearby, Professor Utonium was already speaking with Dr. Nisha about chemical stabilization while Mary and Susan examined one of the fabrication systems while talking with Phineas and Ferb.
Mr. Peabody had found himself engaged in a discussion about computational modeling, while Dr. Cockroach had somehow gathered several scientists around him and was enthusiastically explaining something involving miniaturized technology.
Dexter watched from a short distance away.
This was what he wanted. He didn't need to force them to collaborate. He only needed to put the right people in the same room. Dexter turned toward the deeper section of the facility.
There was one final door.
Unlike the others, it had no department name displayed. Only a security panel.
Dexter walked toward it.
The conversations behind him gradually quieted as several scientists noticed where he was going.
Dexter placed his hand against the scanner. The panel illuminated.
Then another security system activated and another.
The door remained locked until the final confirmation appeared.
AUTHORIZED.
The heavy door slowly opened. Dexter looked back at the group. "There's one more thing I'd like to show you."
He stepped through the doorway and the scientists followed.
None of them knew it yet, but this final room contained the invention Dexter had deliberately saved for last.
The invention he believed could change the way every person in this room approached science.
The Neurotomic Protocore.