013. . Get the replacements up front, I don’t want any of our lads buying it

Huu did a little jig.

Grinning at the sheer losses that he was making, Huu couldn't help himself from dancing.

Fingers shaped like guns, forearms jigging up and down, body bent forward at a forty five degree angle.

Shotgunning his arms to the sound of his childhood, feet bouncing up and down as he did so.

~~ Carried away by a moonlight shadow ~~

The songs had been so incredibly dull as a child, hearing them again and again the disc that his father kept in his Toyota Camry. Paint faded, windows rolled down, the whispers of 'Best of 2000s' in his ears.

~~ He passed on worried and warning ~~

Now the nostalgia had hit, and he couldn't help himself. Of course, he was singing, sure he was tone-deaf, but none could hear him in his cottage. Belting the next line out at the top of his lungs, Huu was exhilarated. Who knew old songs were so catchy?

~ Carried away but a moonlight shadow ~~

There had been a little worry when the songs were all over the radio. All over the forums.

It seemed that anyone with a set of ears was listening to the music. Music he was selling through Eggers Media.

~~ Lost in a riddle that Saturday night ~~

Worry that dissipated when he had discussed the issue with Chisao. The profits rolling in were enormous, but! But, she was spending them as fast as they arrived. Purchasing different songs, different movie rights (cough, he had her purchase Pacific Rim, the one movie he had watched in full before his transmigration, cough), and anything else that might be considered entertainment. The amount of money she was spending offset any profits she made.

Hell, some of the things she was buying he had no idea still existed here... in this strange alternate reality where it wasn't Gundams that were the future but blocky robots. That being said, he was rather happy he wasn't in a universe where an angsty teenager was able to turn the tide of war by defeating the enemy army on his own.

Some of the things she had been purchasing included mascot characters.

Why she was chortling evilly over securing the rights for Doraemon and Astroboy he didn't pretend to understand. Maybe it was a girl thing to gush over cute characters or something.

Anyway, she was spending the money, setting up a production company and... well... it wasn't really a worry.

Because he had his money pit! The hole in the ground! The Cradle!

Every profit that she made over on that side of the business would be offset by the losses that were running from the construction.

Oh, the peace of mind that the construction costs had on him was amazing.

He hadn't felt this relaxed in ages.

~~ I just can't get you out of my head ~~

Ooooh, another banger of a song. Listening to it on the radio to school, wishing, like so many other teens, male and female, that Kylie Minogue would look in his direction at least once.

~~ Boy, your loving is all I think about ~~

He started to sing along, belting the lyrics out to the mental anguish of the guards outside. Who, very definitely, could hear him.

One more month before the cycle ended, and he would achieve losses again!

+_+

Hunter Bek was supervising the laying of a new experimental moulding technique.

One that, quite simply, would reduce costs by nine-tenths when it came to fortress construction.

Huu Eggers would be incredibly happy with the progress, he was sure.

Standing by his side, Erwin Jaxon and Guðlaug Jónasdóttir (good-lig yorha-s-scottir... or something) looked on with appreciation in their eyes.

It was hard not to appreciate the marvel that was unfolding.

The pre-moulded design was something one might think belonged to a particularly badly worded joke.

The snort from his right certainly punctuated that thought.

"You'd think something so simple would have thought of prior." Erwin spoke, derision dripping from his voice.

"It is not as if fortress construction was ever standardised, especially not with Battlemechs. You know this Erwin." Guðlaug, head of the Construction Union on Blackjack was just as invested in this particular construction site.

"But a mould? Why didn't anyone ever try it before? I know those Capellans have their whole fortress construction underneath mountains and everything. Why don't we have something like that?"

Hunter coughed. "Hesperus."

"I mean other than Hesperus. And even then, wasn't it the SLDF that built those factories? Why haven't we done something like this on our own? We're the Lyran Commonwealth, dammit."

Erwin's frustration was rather understandable. The plan that had been devised by Guðlaug and Erwin together had been genius in its... simplicity.

Working out how it was that they could reduce the cost of the structure that would be housing them and their families in the future had the construction and machinist teams working together. The faster and cheaper they could get this done, the safer that they would become.

Simple really.

Cost analysis, working out just what it was that caused the construction to take so much time and money had led to some startling conclusions. Discussions with architects, the materials suppliers, the construction team themselves had finally led to a concrete answer.

It wasn't the material as such, it was the time that it took to cure the rockcrete, to lay the wires, the pipes, to ensure that each 30 metre hexagonal block was self-sufficient and more. All the different parts that turned each block into its own bunker required it to both be independent, yet draw power, air, and other amenities from elsewhere.

Overengineering, in other words to ensure it survived internal and external attacks, all handled on-site.

All the behind the wall complexities were what caused the price to rise and a small army of technicians worked to wire each block after the rockcrete had cured, drilling holes, routing cables, piping, installing the environmental sealing. All of it done in a set order to keep the protections and structural integrity. All requiring those with specialised skills waiting for their thirty minutes of work, before another week of waiting. All the miscellaneous work that took the most important resource of all.

Time.

And time was money.

"Each fortress was unique enough that there was no real need to standardise you know?. Hidden away from the world underground, it was not as if they wanted to broadcast what it was that they were constructing in secret. A mould or even a factory line producing moulds is just one more failure point in secrecy. You know this." Guðlaug continued, pointing at the Cradle.

"Can you imagine what it would have been like if the Star League brought thousands of workers to a planet, started massive, standardised production whilst digging a giant hole in the ground? Their Castle Brians would have become 'here be valuables. Steal me' you know? So, everything was kept secret, kept small scale, and definitely not following what we are doing here." The union master continued, her men at work, waving at the team as they went past. To her fury of course, their focus should be on their work, only those without anything to do could wave with impunity.

Smile and wave her ass.

"This is not a concern with the Cradle. It is above-ground, all can see it, all know that we are building it. There is no reason to keep the construction a secret." Hunter carried on, beaming widely. The faster they completed the construction, the more he could build. The mythical thousands of kilometres squared facilities were something of a dream to him, imagine building something of that scale. Something even the SLDF couldn't defeat at their height without WMDs.

"What about saboteurs? If everything is standardised, then aren't we at risk here?" Erwin rubbed his shoulders, worried, retreading the same argument grounds for the same of his own mental health more than anything else. He would be setting up inside after all, the safest place in the Inner Sphere it looked like.

"Well, it would have been simple for saboteurs before we did this. Are not each pipe and cable labelled to ensure ease of maintenance? Now they are in one place, routed through walls metres thick, with space for foot patrols to check physically for issues. We create one weakness, and immediately solve it. Worry not, Erwin, I know what I am doing." Guðlaug laughed, her voice booming. A woman of middling stature, made up for with the sheer mass of musculature on her frame. Some whispered that she had some gene-editing in her bloodline.

No-one was sure exactly where it was that such musculature came from, that much was certain. Their entire family being rather larger than average, all being mech qualified. Emerging on Blackjack from a Union a century earlier in 2835, they had not budged since. If they were spies, they were incredibly passive, not even going to a HPG for the first five decades of life on planet... even if they had appeared out of nowhere from the Periphery.

Information courtesy of LIC, checking anyone involved with Eggers General Utilities. Those who failed to meet the standards were watched, as standard protocol of course. LIC involvement had increased greatly, as had Military Intelligence. This was a gold mine, every spy worth their salt (and had freedom of movement) would be coming here.

In any case, she was a gregarious woman, working construction and piloting her IndustrialMech with consummate skill. The entire family was extremely skilled, easily the equal to those of Eggers retainers for all their line of work included construction and not destruction.

Her presence on this worksite was a providence of the Buddha in the eyes of Hunter. Trying to imagine trying this out on his own would have been impossible, he was just the middleman, the one who connected the experts with each other. Perhaps he had done some great good in his previous life and was born with good karma.

"Construction is proceeding apace, with the moulding technique we can accelerate the process safely by ten times with ten times less crew. Splitting what we have now into ten teams to get this all constructed... one hundred times faster?" Guðlaug counted on her fingers, unsure as to the exact mathematics.

"One cell is now ten times faster, but there are now ten cells and not one... ten times ten? One hundred! Right, one hundred. No, would not it be more? We do not build these on-site anymore, we build them down below, then lift them up. That means that speed is basically as fast as it takes to connect the utilities between each unit..." Talking herself around in circles, Guðlaug tried to count on her fingers before running out of patience and taking out an abacus. A few moments later, she gave up and very pointedly stopped speaking, refusing to look at her companions.

Erwin and Hunter very carefully did not look at each other. Each with their own computers they would have used rather than their hands. Save themselves the time and difficulty of mental calculations, in other words.

"Right, while we are here, let us take a tour over what's already been completed. We have got tenants moving in already and the defences are being prepared from the lessons learned from Leftnant-General Mutou. Cradle has its own militia designation as well, Duke-Colonel Kleist wants us safe to keep producing goodies for his boys and girls." Guðlaug pointed to the mechs visible in the distance. The infamous Steiner lance weight, obvious from the sheer size and menace of the Atlas and its companions consisting of Zeus Battlemechs and a Thunderbolt.

The enormous grey walls that seemingly spread to the horizon an optical illusion. Really, it was slightly less than 1225 metres long, the first 'row' of construction laid down. The surrounding area slightly flattened to make space for roads.

Inside the plots for each hexagon had been designated, labelled and were now waiting for the construction teams to swarm over them.

Underneath a foundation 600 metres by 1225 metres had been laid in pieces. Itself a careful piece of engineering, the understanding that there would be an underground component to the Cradle had forced construction to account for this future complication. Made yet more difficult by not building the underground sections before the above ground areas.

The solution, ad-hoc as it was, was to simply build it as if it were a standard hex and leave the wiring and pipes unconnected. Each was strong enough to support many more levels above and below, that was for certain.

The currently under construction units, due to the fact that they were made pre-mould, had to be finished normally.

But... well, after a month they would be able to start accelerated construction for all teams, constantly expanding as more and more individuals arrived to take part in the construction, or the expansion of Eggers Armaments, or to cater to the needs of those already here, or a myriad of other tasks that something of this scale required. With Eggers General Utility having so many different branches under its banner in its less than a year of existence, more job openings were always opening up.

Worse, and he did mean worse here, there were those from off-planet arriving, wanting to be part of this grand undertaking, to build a Castle Brian with their own two hands. It wasn't that they weren't welcome in principle, it was just their sheer number.

Others still arriving to be part of the cultural renaissance overtaking the Commonwealth.

It was making for an extremely crowded and chaotic environment. He was just glad that they were going to be accelerating construction. Getting them into the structure where they were both safe... and out of his way. What with each section being a self contained structure, insulated from the outside world.

And...

Well, a 30 metre diameter hexagon was a great deal of space with which to work. All were being rented, Huu having made it policy to not sell permanent property. The rent was not just monetary. One could pay it off with services. In the vein of levee labour in ancient times, maintenance, patrolling, defence duties, and so on would count towards the rent. Incredibly attractive to those who wanted to save their money whilst living in safety.

In short, the more people there were, the more secure the Cradle was, a self-correcting problem. The population was its own guard force.

As the small group continued to walk onwards, they noticed just how lively things were. The different hexes would be converted into proper structures, of course, the ground floor dedicated to defensive measures.

"Is that safe? One of the aides pointed at the people who were running what looked like semi-permanent businesses inside a completed hex. The hex they were walking through was clear (save the walls of course), leaving a 30 metre wide concourse, the sides filled with stalls and hawkers.

The spirit of the Commonwealth was profit. Profit improved one's spirit. It is in this way that by pursuing profit, one pursues spirituality. Or so said Galde, the latest of the fortune telling programs that had emerged from Tharkad.

From Nashsan Diversified, the largest corporation in the Inner Sphere.

Its intentions might be suspect.

"Yes, we have completed the construction in this area and the rockcrete has been completely cured. You can walk a mech on the ceiling, and it will not do much more than annoy those inside. Each hex is completely self-contained in terms of structural integrity, you know this. One might consider building these and shipping them off world, but not today. Today, we are using them on-site." Guðlaug replied, hand pointing at the ceiling above them... that was actually transmitting the noises of construction going on above.

"Good thing too," Erwin rumbled, "my boys are stretched getting the moulds we're using on-site as it is."

But, in the here and now, the completed areas were left for civilians to use for the time being. It was not as if they needed to use the interiors, plugging each hex in was all that they needed to do... essentially. It was going to make the completion rate of this section of the Cradle a very, near future thing.

"These are the first of the Hexes which may need to be scrapped in the future and replaced with moulded ones. You can see how there are no ways for service teams to get to the utilities, they are all on the interior walls or inside the walls themselves. Impossible to get to. The moulded hexes have service doors that allow patrols to check the utilities for structural integrity, are hidden away from public presence, and allow foot patrols to move without disrupting everyone else." The construction union chief pointed at the mass of wiring that ran up the top half of the walls and the ceiling. Looking, like messy, ugly things.

In keeping with a military facility no doubt, but a majority of Castle Eggers' was devoted to mixed use, civilian and military, with it weighted to civilians. This would be unacceptable for a civilian structure in the Commonwealth, why would it be acceptable here?

"Whoever did the wiring did the best they could. Not my area, but I've been hearing rumblings. Following whatever the LCAF handed us as construction plans is not working out well. The only thing it's good for is building a hard to break block of rockcrete and armour. You wouldn't want to live in one, that's for sure." Erwin jabbed an accusing finger at the wiring.

The tour group continued to walk as Guðlaug pointed here and there, different businesses using the already connected utilities to start their work. Water and power being just two examples, a dentistry making a killing from a new fad with teenagers.

Inspired by what they called 'Pre-Space City Rap,' the youths had taken to engraving their teeth with a variety of different words or images. He had been glad Eggers Media hadn't started that craze, looking back on it... being involved with it at all would be incredibly embarrassing. Even if it were them sharing a parent corporation.

Hunter had no idea what possessed them to do it, but he was keeping his teeth inside his mouth... thank you very much for the offer.

Finally, the noise of industry increased as the tour group came to an end of the 'civilian' section. He could see the enormous hex being lowered down in front of them. The militia guard holding them back, for their own safety of course, a small crowd of children joining the tour, gaping in amazement as all children did when encountering mega-construction. The hex underneath was coated with rockcrete, locking lugs, and nubs, ready to accept the hex above. Ready to lock and seal to create a single, impermeable structure. The same applied to the hex they were in as well, one just couldn't see it from inside.

The block of grey with wires carefully taped to their tubing, gaps for service corridors, nubs for locking the hex with those around it, the entire block glimmering with a sort of... grease?

"We lubed the moulds you know, otherwise the rockcrete sticks, and we would need to scrap the entire thing. Complete waste, you know?" Guðlaug raised her eyebrow at the question, as if Hunter was a complete idiot for asking.

He rolled his eyes.

She grinned back, "I noticed you looking at your computers earlier, could have helped, no?"

He shrugged, letting his friends rib him would be fun, but not a good way to end the afternoon.

"Anyway, I have been talking with immigration at the Space Port and it looks like we will be getting more people than I can actually employ on this project. Unless I get the go ahead to start the next section of the Cradle, they will be idling. They are coming here to find work, it is hard to turn them away, but I am not sure what I should be doing with them, you know?"

The group pondered the question as the hex settled onto the bottom nubs with a decisive snap. The interlocking layers of standard armour, rockcrete, service tunnels and more blocking out the sunlight as it did so. The small crowd around them cheered for a successful landing. The small crowd of construction personnel with their newly standardised overalls descended on the newly dropped block, ensuring that the utilities were connected properly. The cables, running on the inside of the service tunnels, made it all that much easier. Just as Guðlaug had said.

In fact, just from watching he saw them finish connecting the hex within 15 minutes, most of that involving splicing the cables and pipes together.

Standardisation like this would change everything, imagine just dropping a fortress onto your planet with just a few words and a call to a drop... ah. Something she had said earlier pinged his mind.

Shipping offworld...

"Guðlaug, get a few of your designers to meet me after this. I think we've found a way to stop the losses we've been experiencing... and make money. Money we can use to finish the rest of the Cradle years ahead of plan. And more importantly, stop losing money. We won't be a burden on the Little Boss in the future!"

Both Erwin and Guðlaug turned to look at him with eyes wide.

"Your idea?" Erwin rumbled.

"Modular Fortresses, build anywhere, quality guaranteed."

Their grins no doubt matched his from the way his cheeks were hurting.