In the original drone design that Castle obtained from Stark Industries in the Marvel universe, the drone used a small turbofan engine. After installing this engine, the drone's performance would drastically improve, boosting both its maximum speed and altitude. The originally designed embedded propeller would now serve solely for vertical takeoff and landing, while the two Pratt & Whitney turbofan engines would power the drone in flight.
Although this design was more complex, it significantly increased the drone's top speed, taking it from just over 700 kilometers per hour to a supersonic speed of at least 1,300 kilometers per hour. This improvement not only enhanced the drone's survivability but also made it far superior to any current U.S. military drones. This alone had Northrop Grumman's executives ecstatic.
And that wasn't even the biggest surprise. When Castle presented the plans for the "Jericho" missile, a missile capable of devastating an area of at least one square kilometer with a single strike, the researchers were stunned.
American military weaponry rarely followed the "bigger is better" philosophy seen with Russian designs. But Castle's missile, which he had essentially copied from Tony Stark, completely overturned the researchers' understanding of conventional design. The new high-explosive formula Castle introduced had an explosive power at least fifteen times stronger than TNT. The sheer magnitude of this potential made the engineers reconsider everything they thought they knew.
No wonder they say the most dangerous minds are often the most educated—Castle, a mere novelist turned weapon designer, was proving it true.
Castle stayed at the high-level Northrop Grumman lab for several days, barely pausing even for Christmas. After a quick dinner with his daughter and mother, he dove back into drone construction and missile development. Beckett, swamped with the ongoing investigation into Senator William Bracken, barely had time for the holiday either. With both of them busy, Castle had no choice but to pour all his energy into the project.
The person most surprised by this turn of events was Castle's mother, Martha. Having moved in with her boyfriend, she had no idea that her son had transformed from a novelist into a Northrop Grumman shareholder and designer, leading a team of engineers. Alexis, Castle's daughter, was equally astonished. Her carefree, playful dad had suddenly become a serious, expert engineer. While it was a positive change, at least her dad wasn't wandering around aimlessly anymore, Alexis couldn't quite reconcile this new version of him.
Meanwhile, Castle's agent, Paula, and his ex-wife Gina were furious about his delay in delivering the second Nikki Heat novel. However, Castle didn't have time to care. With Northrop Grumman racing to meet the U.S. military's March deadline for the new drone prototype, Castle and Fat Tony had been living at the lab throughout the entire Christmas-to-New-Year period.
Their hard work paid off. Under Castle's leadership, the drone frame was quickly outfitted with various reconnaissance equipment. The fast progress earned praise from Northrop Grumman's board of directors, though Castle couldn't have cared less about their meager rewards. For the team of engineers, however, it was a small consolation for missing the holiday season with their families.
During this time, Castle also managed to complete the chemical formula for his high-energy explosive (which, of course, he copied). This explosive, boasting over ten times the power of TNT, completely shocked the lab's researchers, who could no longer see Castle as merely a novelist-turned-hobbyist engineer.
Finally, after several weeks of relentless work, the first prototype of the new drone, dubbed the "Super Falcon" by Northrop Grumman's higher-ups, was completed. When Fat Tony personally conducted the test flight, the entire project team approved it.
At the same time, Castle's "Jericho" missile was also finished. Since he had a complete set of blueprints in his mind, it was merely a matter of manufacturing the parts. They didn't even need wind tunnel tests, so the missile and drone were completed almost simultaneously. During the test in the Nevada desert, when the drone, piloted by Fat Tony, launched the Jericho missile and filled the sky with smoke, the entire Northrop Grumman evaluation team erupted into applause.
The team leader, a member of Northrop Grumman's board, was visibly excited as he approached Castle. The performance of both the drone and the missile had exceeded expectations. The missile, in particular, was nothing short of astonishing. It covered nearly a square kilometer with a single strike, yet was only the size of a standard AIM-120 air-to-air missile. This suggested that the new high-explosive material Castle had developed had enormous potential for a wide range of military applications. Drones were one thing, but this missile opened up entirely new possibilities.
The board member, now eager to secure exclusive rights to the new explosive, pulled Castle aside to discuss a deal. The explosive's potential to vastly outmatch current explosives, while remaining tightly controlled within Northrop Grumman, was an opportunity the company couldn't afford to miss.
Back at the tent, Fat Tony remained at the drone control station, fielding questions from the rest of the evaluation team. After weeks of hands-on work, Tony had transformed from a reclusive hacker with mild social anxiety into a bona fide expert, confidently answering the evaluators' questions.
Castle's discussion with the Northrop Grumman board member was brief but fruitful. In exchange for the Jericho missile and, more importantly, the formula for the high-explosive, Castle secured an additional 1.5% share in Northrop Grumman, bringing his total stake to 2.5%. This was no small feat.
The reason was simple. Advanced weapons systems, like drones, would eventually become outdated, with rapid technological advances making replacement inevitable. However, a new explosive formula like the one Castle provided was foundational technology, the kind that could keep a defense contractor like Northrop Grumman at the forefront of the industry for years. This was why they were willing to pay such a high price to secure Castle's cooperation—they saw him as a golden goose.
With the drone test complete, Castle no longer needed to stay in the sweltering Nevada desert. Satisfied with his achievements, Castle and Fat Tony—now officially hired by Northrop Grumman as Castle's special assistant with a six-figure salary—returned to New York. By then, January was almost over.
During their time away, New York had seen several major developments. Chief among them was the downfall of Senator William Bracken. Once a rising star, Bracken was now facing dozens of criminal charges following the public exposure of his illegal activities. His impending trial had captivated the city's attention, particularly with the Democratic party's presidential candidate gaining momentum. Meanwhile, the Republican party, still reeling from Bracken's scandal, hastily pushed forward a less prominent candidate after a rushed internal election, making it clear they had little hope for the upcoming presidential race.
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