There was a whole factory to loot but Adam and everyone else was tired after a day of fighting. Mira had already found herself a bed and was resting while everyone else was slowly making their way over to the barracks.
Adam took the opportunity to grab his APC and drive it closer and then waited for Deccanus to give the all clear before heading for bed. It took about another 15 minutes but Deccanus eventually came back with the all clear, granting Adam the peace to go to bed himself. However before going to bed he asked Eve and Hades to watch the factory overnight to make sure no unexpected surprises come. Of course Buddy, Rae, and Sgt. Fyre were given the order as well, but those two were asked. Both agree without issue letting Adam finally get some much needed rest.
The next day came without much ceremony. Mira was already doing a lot better, able to walk on her own without help, though she was still careful to not overtax her leg while it healed and so Adam gave her the time off. Everyone else split up to begin a proper looting of the building.
It became clear to Adam, quite quickly, actually, that this was in fact a RobCo protectron factory. He probably could have figured that out last night if he had been more observant but last night he was wary of remaining cultists, not checking the products and materials on the factory floor. The machines and conveyors all looked in moderately decent condition too, which was a minor miracle in itself. They needed some serious maintenance, but just maintenance. With time they would work like new. In addition to all of that, ignoring the robot parts, there was certainly enough loot to make this run more than worth it, not just to help the vault by opening a new trade route with The Pier. The cultists had stockpiled a number of things from food to ammo and there were also various other things such as conductors and sensor modules laying around that would sell for a good bit.
However that was where the good news stopped. First of all, this was a protectron factory. There were protectron parts laying around and naturally even the charging pods that the protectrons deactivate into were stored here as well. One would assume there would be at least one singular fully built protectron here for Adam to take. Some one more optimistic would think there would be a host of protectrons for Adam to reprogram and make use of. However there were none. Not one fully assembled protectron was available anywhere in the facility.
One then might naturally think: 'well why not assemble one from the many parts lying around the factory floor? Or in storage?' Again there was only a disappointing answer. If Adam had all the parts he could certainly build a protectron from scratch. It would be a pain in the ass but certainly not impossible. Protectron were designed to be simple and modular, after all. However while there were many protectron parts throughout the facility there was not a single head. The head, the most critical part of the protectron where its sensors and internal computer lay. Without the head the body might as well be an oversized paperweight. Adam could even whip up some mock arms or even a mock torso if needed, those things would take time, but were still within his wheelhouse. However, the head was simply impossible. That would basically be creating a robot from scratch. He could possibly do it. But it would likely take far too long to even produce one head. At that point the effort isn't worth it.
So this protectron factory, which only produced protectron and protectron parts and pods, did not have a single protectron Adam could add to his arsenal of robots. This was clearly done by design. Something had happened when the bombs fell that led to the removal of all protectrons and parts that could be of use to him. Perhaps someone else had the idea to make an army before him and marched off? Who knows. The foreman's logs on his computer revealed no answers.
So instead, Adam was left with this factory that was able to produce protectrons in ideal circumstances having held up well against both the test of time and the nuclear bombs that had destroyed the world. Most of the machines still seemed to work and he could theoretically pump out an infinite number of protectrons from here. However, realistically, it was nothing more than a golden facade. The resources to produce protectrons simply didn't exist anymore. Not in any meaningful form anyway. There were no shipments of new materials brought in, the facility's fusion generator was on its last legs and certainly couldn't power the building as-is, and the manpower to run the facility alone would be a non-starter. In every practical sense this factory was completely useless to Adam.
As close as he had come to finding a way to produce a robot army for himself, he had been stopped short by the availability of resources and materials. It was a pipe dream. Maybe with a few decades of slow serious work he could get this place operational again but then again, why would he need an army of protectrons? The external threats to Chicago were gone. No, the effort to make this place run again was simply far too great. A mountain too high for a single man like Adam to complete alone. Even with all of the Vault's resources at his back. A pipe dream, as he said. However, that sweet taste of nearly finding a big break was intoxicating enough. For a moment he really did consider it.
In the end the thought was pushed away for more immediate matters. The dead.
Adam had been lucky to not lose a single friend on this excursion, but the Hunters had not been so lucky. Three of their number had perished in the battle. While they were sorrowful they did not blame Adam or each other, they felt that their lives were lost in a noble cause.
Still, they had a long trek home and they were adamant about bringing their bodies back with them to The Pier for a proper funeral. They were eager to leave, not even taking most of the loot or spoils home with them, seemingly willing to hand almost all of it over to Adam since they had to carry their comrades home.
However Adam had a different idea. He had fought alongside these men, and they had come out from the Pier to help him handle the remnants of the cult. There were not many things he could do to help them, but he could ease the burden of their comrades. So Adam offered to drive The Hunters back to The Pier himself. He would have enough time to go to the Pier, drop off the Hunters and their fallen comrades, get back to the factory, load up the APC with the loot and then get back to the vault before the day was over. He would just need to ask his friends to handle loot collection while he was gone. Luckily for him, everyone seemed on board with the plan.
Milla was resistant at first, wanting to shoulder the burden alone, but Adam talked her down and eventually got her to agree to his plan. So, with the hunters and their comrades loaded up into the APC, Adam left his friends behind and headed to The Pier with Salvatore in tow. The only thing he could do to help honor these men.