The droning sounds of heavy machinery echoed faintly through the corridors as Johnathan Jones checked over the progress. Supply shipments had been irregular at best, but a recent rush surrounding a general upgrade to the station's defenses had left the project ahead of schedule.
It helped that Aquila Defense Systems was accustomed to doing more with less. They directed most of the thought-to-be waste metal from maintenance to their wing, where it was melted back down and re-worked. It wasn't perfect, and it wasn't a reliable supply, but it was far better than just throwing out all the extra materials.
"John, that you out there? Little help here?" a man called from inside a nearby room. Later, it would be where specialized starship consoles are assembled, but for now it was bulk storage. Jones jogged in to see him trying to load a heavy box onto a cart, and helped pick it up. "Thanks, gotta get these to the factory."
Without another word, he took off down the hall with the cart, and Jones continued surveying the work. The internal factories were already complete; all that remained was the final portion of the drydock. Installing an aftermarket fighter bay takes far more than bolting on another turret, after all.
"Wait, this is what we're working on?" Jones asked, incredulous. The diagram on the table in front of him was certainly not what he expected Project LIMELIGHT to be.
"If your people are up to the challenge," Escher replied, leaning over the table.
"We can't possibly build something this large."
"That's fine, because it's a refitting project. We're sourcing the frame ourselves, we'll say it was salvaged. It wasn't, details don't really matter. The point is, we're providing the hull, you just need to handle the refitting process."
"Huginn-class, huh? Interesting choice. There a Muninn to go with it?"
"... In a manner of speaking."
"Goddammit, Escher, I'm not building a ship for the Hessians." It was as though Escher simply couldn't get away from this routine; when it's not Kelly, it's John.
"That's right, you're not. That refit will be a slower process overseen by Raider engineers. I want Aquila on the Huginn because you have more manpower. You can get it done faster." He paused, and added, "It'll be good for your reputation, too. Think about it - you're taking an outdated pirate cruiser hull and turning it into an advanced electronic warfare and support platform. No other company has shown an interest in this sort of project."
"Yeah, but... Escher, we already talked about LIMELIGHT. Publicly!"
"That's fine. A transport-scale prototype will help with the testing anyway. And I don't intend to stop you from selling them... to a degree. I imagine the Division would be particularly interested in the design."
"Christ... Kelly was right, you've always got a plan."