The Alpha Protocol: Alpha Protocol Book 1 by Duncan Hamilton (read more books .txt) 📕

and power plant to make sure they could run all the new systems at optimum levels. After that, computer upgrades, then maintenance, repairs, and replacements of all the other systems that might be putting more strain on the power plant than was necessary.

Vachon was busy programming the depot’s service drones. It was rare that so many would be re-tasked at one time, so it took him a while to complete, with them lifting out of their storage racks at the side of the hangar bay one by one and hovering over to the ship to begin on their new assignments. They carried out a detailed scan of the hull, then set about their work, sealing cracks and mending micro-meteor damage while Kushnir scrambled about with a high-pressure washer.

If the Bounty was to carry a naval designation, Samson wanted her to look the part. The drones could complete a full hull repaint in only a couple of hours, and Samson tried to picture what the beige and rust-streaked Bounty would look like with a fresh coat of dreadnought grey. It would certainly be an improvement.

With ship’s controls transferred to the depot’s systems, Samson was able to move to the hangar’s control bay and open the Bounty’s cargo hold doors remotely. He moved a boarding gantry and freight elevator up to it, which would allow them to get all of the internal components inside. After that, it was time to make good on his promise that they would all get their hands dirty.

Most of the tasks on the ship’s exterior could be completed by the drones and the various other automated cranes and gantries in the hangar bay, but the station lacked the specialist robot units for the interior work that Samson had planned.

Samson’s first task was to switch out the reaction matter for some from the depot’s stores. The matter he had bought from Sirion Bates had done its job, but Samson didn’t trust it enough to rely on it for venturing out into deep space. The fuel at the depot was all naval grade, and would guarantee reliable performance. While he was at it, he reckoned replacing the containment magnets was a good idea. That would allow him to use a larger piece of reaction matter, giving them a higher output. Gauss guns were thirsty beasts, and charging one shot would likely cause a blackout given the current state of things. To fire two of them at an effective rate would need a lot more power than the Bounty could currently provide, but there was no reason the little ship couldn’t manage it with a few upgrades.

Recalling the somewhat ‘ripe’ smell that had persisted on the Bounty, he added replacing all the air recycling filters and processors to his list. Simply getting the air filtration upgraded wasn’t going to get the smell out of the ship, though. From his datapad, he tasked the Marines with pulling out every perishable item—from fabrics to foam fillers and unrecycled waste. It would all be processed in the depot’s system, and fresh replacements fabricated. The command chair on the bridge also needed a new lease on life if he was going to spend a lot more time in it. While they were at it, he wondered what more could be done about the faded and stained interior panelling, now so starkly contrasted against the depot’s. He’d have to ask Vachon if one of the drones could be tasked to refinish it.

The noise of work that filled both the ship and the hangar was satisfying. They were no longer doing whatever they could to get to safety—they were taking matters into their own hands so they could act, rather than react.

He did a survey of all the stations of the bridge—of which they could only realistically man three—and decided on what should be replaced and what should be left to save on the human labour that would be required there. As it was, he would need two Vachons to get everything done in time.

He supposed Price was an ideal choice to man the weapons systems. He was a crack shot with a carbine, and would most likely have trained using fixed gun emplacements. Samson also decided he had to have another talk with Harper. Every upgrade they made could be the difference between life and death. She could be a big help, and he was doing a disservice to the people in his charge if he didn’t do everything within his power to improve the ship. She might not like him, might consider his decision making to be flawed, but until she was tried by court martial she was still an officer and had the same duty to their crewmates that he did.

With that decision made, he moved the control bay’s diagnostics on to the Bounty’s engine bay. Arlen really hadn’t been interested in his engine—it seemed that so long as it ran, that was good enough for him. Computer modelling suggested upgrades and replacements could double its output, which would comfortably power all the new additions Samson was planning on making. He added these to the work order as a priority.

He had to consider another matter that would be equally important on an extended voyage. Weapons and power were all well and good, but ships only ran flawlessly when they had a happy crew. With one mutiny under his belt he didn’t want to tempt fate, so that meant replacing the food fabricators and making sure the refurbishments of the crew quarters were up to naval standard. Price had seemed verging on gleeful when Samson sent the instruction to strip out and burn all the old soft furnishings on board. He could only hope a freshly overhauled mess would lift their moods even more. It certainly made the idea of venturing out again in the Bounty a lot more palatable to him.

Satisfied that he’d created a list of all the major items needing attention—a list that was already too long for them to complete