The laboratory was a symphony of frantic precision. Espresso Cookie stood amidst an elaborate array of glassware and polished copper equipment. His dough contrasted sharply with the plume of violet-tinged steam currently roaring from a high-pressure brewer.

Fixing his glasses, which momentarily flashed against the intense heat, he consulted a chart etched onto a small chalkboard. His visible eye narrowed.

“The kinetic energy transfer in the siphon must be exactly 98.6 joules, not 98.5,” he stated, voice calm despite the violent bubbling nearby. He then slowly adjusted a tiny rotary dial on the apparatus.