Chapter 32: Mechanical Dog & Spider
Five days. Just five days to prepare for an onslaught of millions. Zack knew he had to turn the MV-02 into a full-fledged war machine and find additional manpower. Even with its advanced armor, facing such numbers alone would be a death wish.
"Ego, pull up the data on drones and automatons," Zack commanded.
A display appeared on the screen, showing various designs: cutting-edge quadcopters, spider-like robots with four legs, and humanoid android models.
"No... these are too expensive and complicated to mass-produce quickly," Zack muttered, shaking his head. Even if he had all the materials, producing enough reactors to power them would be impossible.
"I need something simpler, something I can produce in bulk," Zack muttered to himself as an idea began to form. He moved over to his workbench, grabbed a pen, and started sketching.
Since the apocalypse, Zack's physical abilities had improved in ways he couldn't fully explain, and his mind had sharpened as well. It allowed him to tackle challenges that would have been out of reach before. Building two generations of power armor had also given him valuable knowledge and experience in mechanical design. Though he still lacked professional expertise, Ego easily filled in those gaps.
"It doesn't need to be cutting-edge, just functional," Zack thought, his pen moving quickly over the paper. "In our situation, an animal form would be more useful."
Zack's mind raced. "It doesn't even need advanced AI—just enough to tell friend from foe. A simple face recognition system should do the trick," he said to himself, pausing to write down some additional notes. "Energy will be the real challenge. Cold fusion reactors are too expensive, and graphene batteries take too long to make. Maybe something using hydrogen... it'll be easier to produce."
Two designs started to take shape on the drawing board. The first was a mechanical dog—sleek and fierce, with a long, sharp tail that could help with balance and double as a close-combat weapon. The second was a mechanical spider—a smaller, lethal version inspired by a famous RTS game from 2001, one that Zack regretted never having a true sequel. Unlike natural spiders, which have eight legs, Zack's design featured four strong limbs. The tips of the spider's legs were razor-sharp, capable of piercing even steel plates. The simpler, four-legged design saved on materials and improved balance, allowing the spider to move smoothly without the need for a complex stabilization system.