NOVEL WEB Chapter 180: The Archipelago Corridor
Astra HQ, Subic — January 12, 2024 | 7:30 AM
The conference room lights buzzed to life as Matthew entered with a mug of black coffee in one hand and a stack of annotated blueprints in the other. The entire east wall had been converted into a live projection display, showing a digital map of the Philippines—Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao—stitched together with planned and proposed expressway segments.
Angel was already there, standing beside a JR East delegation and a team of structural consultants flown in from Cebu. A fresh printout labeled "PHASE TWO – INTER-ISLAND CORRIDOR INITIATIVE" sat on the table between them.
"We've been studying terrain profiles for the Leyte to Cebu bridge section," Angel began as Matthew set down his coffee. "It's not going to be easy. The channel is deep, and seismic activity in the area is historically volatile. But JR East believes they can bring in their floating support column system. It's untested here but worked well in parts of northern Japan."
Matthew nodded. "We don't cut corners, but we don't play scared either. If they're confident it can be done safely, we explore it. Let's pilot it in an isolated section first—something we can monitor."
A JR East engineer, speaking through a translator, gestured toward the digital terrain model. "If we begin pile testing by March, it's feasible to begin superstructure work in Q3. The larger bottleneck will be inter-island logistics and material ferrying."
"We'll lean on Subic and Batangas for that," Matthew replied. "The shipping lanes are clear. What we need now is the permits—and the people."
Angel passed him a folder. "I've already scheduled a stakeholder summit in Tacloban. Provincial leaders, barangay reps, co-op heads. If we get their buy-in, everything else falls into place."
Matthew exhaled. "Then we move."
Tacloban City — January 16, 2024 | 9:00 AM
The Provincial Capitol was packed.
People spilled out into the covered courtyard where screens had been installed to broadcast the summit live. Journalists, business owners, farmers, fisherfolk—even students—all came to see the man behind the movement that had started in Luzon and now threatened to rewire the nation.
Matthew took the podium wearing a simple barong. No security entourage. No stage theatrics.
"Maayong buntag," he began, drawing an appreciative cheer. "We are not here to ask for your land. We are not here to build a road through your towns without your consent."
He looked around the crowd, making eye contact with as many people as he could.
"We are here to ask one question: will you help us connect this country for the next generation?"
A beat passed. Then another.
And then the applause began.
It started soft—then swelled into a full wave of claps and cheers. Many hadn't expected to be asked. They were used to being told. But this? This felt different.
Angel joined him on stage afterward, giving updates on job programs, land compensation tiers, and local vendor registration drives. When she spoke of integrating coastal barangays into rest stop markets, several fishermen stood up to clap.
A man in a worn camisa de chino approached them after the talk.
"My daughter is finishing civil engineering this year," he said, clutching a folder of her credentials. "If there's room on your team… please."
Matthew took the folder. "There's always room for someone building something real."
Department of Public Works and Highways — January 18, 2024 | 2:00 PM
Inside the modernized DPWH main office in Manila, tension buzzed under the surface. Though much of the department had cooperated with Astra out of necessity, others were more reluctant—tied by years of old deals, favoritism, and political obligation.
Matthew sat across from Secretary Diaz, a career engineer who had once fought bitterly to fund public roads and now found himself caught between two worlds.
"Your projects are making us look bad," Diaz said without malice, flipping through a portfolio of Astra's published financials and construction timelines. "Which is why some of my colleagues want to stall them."
Matthew leaned forward. "Then maybe they should try building something that works."
Diaz chuckled. "Easy for you to say. You don't have to answer to Congress."
"I answer to the people who ride buses for four hours on what should be a ninety-minute drive," Matthew shot back. "If that's inconvenient for politicians, maybe it's the politicians who need replacing."
Diaz closed the folder, leaning back. "I'll greenlight the inter-island permits. But Matthew…"
"Yes?"
"You've started a race. And it's one the government can't afford to lose."
Matthew stood. "Then let's stop racing. Let's build side by side."
Diaz gave a dry smile. "You've got the momentum. Don't waste it."
Visayan News Channel Interview — January 21, 2024 | 8:00 PM
The primetime segment aired just after dinner.
The interviewer, a Cebuano anchor named Margo Valera, leaned toward the camera.
"Joining us now is Matthew Borja, the man behind Astra Expressway. Mr. Borja, you've begun talks about connecting Visayas and Mindanao through a national corridor. What's your ultimate vision here?"
Matthew's answer was steady, grounded.
"Unity. Not just symbolic—but literal. A child in Cagayan de Oro should have the same road quality, the same access to goods, the same chance at growth as a child in Cavite. That doesn't happen with slogans. It happens with steel. With concrete. With trust."
Margo nodded. "And what's the biggest challenge ahead?"
"Old thinking," Matthew said simply. "But we're clearing that away, one kilometer at a time."
Sentinel HQ Rooftop — January 23, 2024 | 9:30 PM
The city beneath them was alive with light, the expressways glowing like arteries against the dark.
Angel leaned on the railing, sipping hot ginger tea. "We've started a second wave of job applications for Visayas—2,400 new positions in the next quarter alone. Engineers. Laborers. Site cooks."
Matthew turned, thoughtful. "We're not just laying roads. We're laying lives. Routes for them to follow forward."
Angel looked over. "You tired yet?"
"Of what?"
"Being the one who drags everyone forward."
Matthew gave a quiet smile. "No. Because I'm not dragging anymore. They're starting to walk beside me."
Angel nodded. "And tomorrow?"
He raised his cup in mock salute.
"Tomorrow, we keep walking."
And so they did. From Luzon to the Visayas, and onward to the islands yet unpaved.
For now, the line moved forward—and the country followed.