Chapter 178: Charlie The Prophet
When Zack landed in front of Aegis, the sheer scale of the aircraft was overwhelming. Standing before it in the sleek and compact Apex Mk-2, Zack felt positively diminutive. The new armor, designed for portability and defense, made him just over two meters tall—smaller and more streamlined than any of his previous suits. It exuded advanced technology, a product of Zack's finest engineering, yet it was dwarfed by the hulking presence of Aegis.
Raising his head, Zack gazed at the enormous rhomboid-shaped body of the aircraft, its armor a mix of gold-titanium alloy and alloy steel. Aegis resembled a Avalon, scaled up dozens of times. Its foldable wings housed four massive turbine engines for vertical takeoff, landing, and hovering. At the front, four steering thrusters provided stability for low-speed maneuvers and sharp turns.
The tail featured four jet propulsion engines, two on top and two below, enabling a top speed of Mach 5 and a maximum flight altitude of 5,000 kilometers. With an external booster, Aegis could even reach the first cosmic velocity and enter space.
Despite its size, Aegis's radar signature was smaller than a sparrow's—less than 0.1 square meters—thanks to its stealthy design. When its mirror camouflage and optical cloaking were activated, the behemoth, spanning thousands of square meters, would vanish entirely from sight and radar. Even stationary, its immense presence radiated deterrence. "Can this thing really fly?" Zack murmured, tilting his head to get a better look at the colossal machine. Despite being its creator, seeing Aegis in person made him doubt it could lift off.
Ego's voice broke the silence, launching into an introduction: "Air Command Center—Aegis. Length: 88.4 meters. Wingspan: 98.4 meters. Maximum takeoff weight: 840 tons. Maximum cargo capacity: 300 tons. Powered by eight Singulium reactors—"
"Alright, alright, that's enough," Zack interrupted, raising a hand. "Forget the specs. Let's see what she can do in action."
"As you wish, Sir. What kind of test would you like to conduct?" Ego asked.
"Actual combat," Zack replied without hesitation.
After a brief pause, Ego said, "Coordinates for all hostile forces within Aegis's strike radius have been marked on your HUD."