May 24th, 2028

The floor still smelled like fresh paint.

Half of the cubicles were empty, only a few desks had active terminals, and the company sign — TG Energy Systems, Inc. — wasn't even mounted yet. Some cables still stuck out of the walls, waiting for installations. Whiteboards filled with scribbles of radiation shielding metrics and fuel cycle viability hung beside architectural sketches of a modular reactor campus.

It didn't look like a corporation.

It looked like something still being built.

Timothy walked in, sleeves rolled, holding a folder marked CAPITAL SOURCING – PRIORITY. No assistants trailed him today. Just him.

Inside the conference room, Jose Reyes was already waiting. Senior nuclear engineer. Quiet, patient, and scary-smart. He stood when Timothy entered.

"Good afternoon, sir."

"Afternoon, Jose."

He set his folder down and opened it.

Three consortium names.

Pacific Infrastructure Trust (Singapore)

Nippon Energy Investment Group (Japan)

Evercore Capital Holdings (Manila/Middle East)

Jose leaned forward slightly. "You're meeting them all?"

"In fourteen hours," Timothy replied.

Jose blinked. "That soon?"

"We don't wait," Timothy said calmly. "We set the pace."

He spread out his notes. Realistic financial models. CapEx requirements. Risk projections. Return models—ten-year, twenty-year options.

"Jose," he said, "we don't need financing for everything. We only need to fund the first pilot site. Once it's built, once it runs—we won't be asking for money anymore. We'll be choosing it."

Jose nodded slowly. "Once they see it working, it funds itself."

"Exactly."

Timothy paused, glanced at him.

"And you're coming with me."

Jose looked mildly alarmed. "Sir, I'm not… very presentable to investors."

"They won't be investing in suits," Timothy said simply. "They'll be investing in people who built real work."

Jose exhaled. "Then I'll prepare the stability models."

"Not too technical," Timothy reminded him. "Explain it in terms of reliability, not just engineering."

Jose gave a rare smile. "I'll do my best, sir."

—

May 25th, 2028

Shangri-La at The Fort – Private Conference Lounge

9:40 AM

The first meeting.

Pacific Infrastructure Trust (PIT) — the Singapore-based group that funded several Southeast Asian airport expansions and a hydrogen energy trial in Osaka.

The investors weren't loud. They weren't flashy. They were quiet professionals in dark suits, listening more than talking.

On the screen, Jose stood beside Timothy, presenting Hypercore.

"No water-based pressurized cooling," he explained. "Instead, liquid sodium composite — higher boiling point, zero-pressure stress. Full passive cooling. Walk-away safe design."

One of the Singapore investors finally asked, "Walk-away safe means…?"

"If power is lost," Jose said, "it cools itself without pumps. No operator intervention. No meltdown risk."

The Singaporean consultant adjusted her glasses. "You're describing a Gen-IV function, but on a commercial scale?"

"Yes," Jose replied.

"First in ASEAN?"

"Yes," Timothy answered.

"First in Asia?"

"Possibly," Timothy said calmly.

Silence.

Then the lead investor looked at them both.

"Corporate guarantee?"

"We'll establish TG Holdings Corp. with a dedicated nuclear subsidiary under TG Energy Systems," Timothy said. "Full compliance structure. No mixing with semiconductor or automotive."

"And public acceptance? Local opposition?"

Timothy answered that directly.

"We'll open demonstration sites. Tours. University partnerships. Full transparency. No slogans. Only data."

The investors exchanged looks.

They didn't say yes.

They didn't say no.

But they didn't say impossible.

—

Later that day

1:10 PM

Virtual Conference – Nippon Energy Investment Group (Tokyo)

This meeting was different.

The Japanese investors weren't just money.

They were experience.

Nuclear operators.

Grid specialists.

Safety regulators.

Jose explained containment vessel specs.

Timothy explained commercialization models.

Then an elderly advisor, former TEPCO executive, asked:

"Mr. Guerrero. Why should the Philippines enter nuclear now?"

Timothy didn't blink.

"Because we are still importing energy like a poor country," he said. "More than half our industrial zones rely on coal, diesel, or imported power. We're electrifying vehicles, factories, transport — but we're not electrifying the grid."

He continued.

"We can't run a digital economy on brownouts."

Silence.

Then one Japanese investor said:

"That is the most honest answer we've heard from a Filipino businessman."

That didn't mean approval.

But it meant respect.

—

6:30 PM

Evercore Capital Holdings – Makati Boardroom

This was the toughest one.

Evercore wasn't interested in technology.

They were interested in returns.

One investor leaned back in his leather chair.

"We've funded airports. Tollways. Power grids. Everything made profit. But nuclear?" He shook his head. "Nuclear doesn't pay back quickly. Too long. Too political. Too many risks."

Timothy didn't argue.

He just flipped a page.

Projected ROI — SMR Energy Model (Philippines)

6 Years – 11%

10 Years – 32%

18 Years – 68%

The investor frowned. "Eighteen-year return?"

Jose glanced at Timothy.

Timothy answered.

"For nuclear, eighteen years is fast."

Then, a younger investor — probably late 20s, foreign-educated — spoke for the first time.

"Sir… do you honestly believe small modular reactors will power the Philippines?"

Timothy didn't look away.

"Not just power," he said. "It will make the Philippines an energy exporter."

The room fell silent.

"Energy exporter? We're still importing gas—"

"Exactly," Timothy cut in. "That's why we must build."

He leaned forward.

"And when the energy is here — industries follow."

Factories.

Data centers.

Transit systems.

Semiconductor fabs.

Battery plants.

The Philippines won't just consume energy.

It will produce it.

Silence again.

Then…

The young investor smirked.

"I want in."

The senior investor glared at him.

Timothy said nothing.

But the door had opened.

—

May 25th, 2028

TG Tower.

9:12 PM

Only two people remained in the operations floor.

Timothy and Jose.

They sat quietly in the dim room, the only light coming from the city skyline outside and the cold glow of the reactor schematics on the screen.

Jose finally spoke.

"Sir… do you think they'll fund us?"

Timothy didn't answer immediately.

Finally.

"They're not investing yet," he said.

"But they're no longer asking if it's possible."

He looked at the Hypercore render.

"They're asking when it will be ready."

Jose exhaled slowly.

"That," Timothy said, "means we start building."

Jose nodded.

He stood, looked at the screen one last time, then headed out.

Timothy remained.

He looked at the models again.

Funding talks would take months.

Approvals — years.

Public acceptance — a battle.

But that was fine.

He wasn't trying to rush.

He was building foundations.

And foundations take time.

Just before leaving, he wrote one note on his tablet.

"Begin preparation for Phase 1 SMR pilot zone."

He saved it under a new folder.

"Aurora Power Project."

The first of many.

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