Sanctuary was now a community which hosted 120 souls, one of the most important in the western part of the Commonwealth and also one of the safest. The Minutemen guarded the place fiercely and it became their secondary HQ, after, of course, the Castle. The mayor, Stanley Charlton, was a Vault dweller, like Nate, however with a far different life story. He was born in 2250 in Vault 98 underneath Lanta, the name Atlantic City possesses now. The shelter was a control Vault so no weird experiment took place there. As a result, the community thrived and became one of the greatest trading posts on the East Coast, so critical for the stability of the region that even Raiders wouldn't dare attack it. Stanley, an explorer by nature, left Vault 98 at a young age and travelled extensively, reaching so far as the Mojave Wasteland. Due to his experience, he was elected mayor of Sanctuary after he decided to settle there. Stanley was tending to the water purifier when he saw the group bearing Nora arriving from Vault 111. After a few minutes, he approached them:
"So, you did it, Nate?"
"Yes, Stan. We even managed to bury the other residents. All in all, the mission was a success!"
"How do you feel, man?"
"Like shit but far better than before. The thought of her being inside that pod even more than 70 years after her death…"
"I understand. Tell me, do you need any help with the funeral?"
"No, thank you, but I would need help in another matter. Can you send some of your guys to the Vault later? Inside it there is so much technology! We will need it in order to build the car at Corvega."
"Of course. I will go with them, since I grew up in a Vault and I know how they work. Besides, I still have my Pip-Boy so I will manage to bypass any lock inside 111."
"Thanks, Stan. I appreciate!"
"Don't worry. It's for a good cause. The return of transportation in the Commonwealth! Now, rest for a bit. I'm going to find some boys to help me with the Vault thing."
"Bye!"
Nate wanted to rest, even to sleep, but he remembered what Nick said while inside Vault 111, that with every minute that passes, Nora's body decays even more. They needed to do it quickly. Luckily, a grave has been prepared before they entered in the Vault.
After Nora has been put in the ground, Nate decided to speak a bit about her with almost the entire population of Sanctuary listening to him:
"Uh… Well, Nora was awesome. That's the only way I can describe her. She was so full of life and so courageous! Far more courageous than me, even though I was a military man. She was a lawyer… Nora believed in justice, the rule of law and defending the innocent. We've met in 2074. I was at some friends, we were having a party… she came in, all eyes were on her but she only looked at me… We married and we had our son, Shaun. He was just ten months old when the bombs fell. That day I lost my family, my friends and everyone I loved. Only because of a War that destroyed the world. I love you, Nora. Thank you for everything that you've done for me, thank you for your love and for the fact that you've made me the happiest of men! Rest in peace, my darling. Now, you are home!"
Some of the Sanctuary citizens cried while the others clapped. Nick was deeply saddened while Hancock looked like he would start to cry every minute from now, even though, as a Ghoul, it wouldn't be very easy for him to do so, biologically speaking. Piper sobbed too. After the funeral, the guys Nate brought from Diamond City decided to go to the newly founded Freedom Hotel while Nate and his three friends went directly to his old house which have been rebuild. A family lived there but the room that once belonged to Shaun was still Nate's to do with it as he pleased.
"Here we are…"
Piper went directly to the bed, being tired as well as sad. While tired too, Nate couldn't even think about sleep. He needed to think. His other two friends, the Ghoul and the Synth were with him.
"Poor Piper… She needs this rest."
"Absolutely. Let her sleep!"
After a few minutes of silence, Nate pointed towards a half-destroyed drawer near the bed.
"Into that drawer was an angel costume we bought for Shaun for Halloween. It was the last thing I ever bought for my son before the apocalypse. I remember it being so cute, with little wings and a halo…"
John Hancock sighed:
"I never understood why people needed to disguise in all kind of things!"
"Well, it was tradition and it was funny. When I was a kid, I used to disguise myself into a fireman. I never would have thought I will get to live inside a permanent Halloween for the rest of my days… A disturbing, deadly, miserable Halloween."
"Or that you would eat iguana-on-a-stick!"
"Yeah, that too, Nick. I remember Nora's cooking… So delicious! She made such amazing pancakes!"
Hancock looked surprised:
"What's a pancake?"
"Well, it is a dessert prepared in a frying pan, flat and delicious…. Nora's were the best I've ever eaten."
After a small amount of time in which Nate told the others about pancakes and other pre-War foods, Hancock went to sleep. Even though he is a Ghoul, he still needed to recharge his batteries, so to speak. Nick Valentine went outside the house for a walk. Nate decided to accompany him.
"The sky is so beautiful. Daniel loves it. He said once to me that humans should go to other planets, to escape the nuclear wasteland."
"The kid has good ideas, and he is only 9. Imagine what would he do when he will be older and more experienced!"
"If he lives until then…"
"Again with this crap? Everything can kill you, not just raiders and Super Mutants and radiation. You can choke on food, you can overexert and have a heart attack, but that doesn't mean humans should stop eating or should never lift weights, for example! Death comes for all of us, friend. Even Synths or Ghouls. I will eventually die, you will die, Daniel will die, everybody dies, but that doesn't mean that we should fear it. It's not the destination which is important, but the road!"
Nate continued to look at the sky. He remembered Daniel and his smile. It made him feel happiness. Nick was right. It's not the destination, but the road.
The next morning, an entire convoy led by Stanley arrived in Sanctuary from Vault 111. Nate awaited them:
"Stan, did you find anything important for our project?"
"Of course! We found something absolutely amazing. See, any Vault has a reactor that powers up the entire shelter but this one is different. It has not one, but eighteen smaller devices similar to fusion cores, but they produce an enormous amount of energy. Probably they were needed to maintain this entire cryo experiment. We also found computers, entertainment tapes and books. And check this out: we found a strange device that maintains the temperature of everything it touches below zero degrees Celsius, very useful for lowering down the temperatures in the Corvega facility. So, all in all, we stripped the Vault bare."
"Thanks, Stan. Part of me wants to close it forever, to let it rot in darkness, but…"
"Well, close it up if you want. Take one of those cores and power up the door only to shut it forever."
"…But we certainly can use the Vault, at least for now. You Sanctuary people could use it for spare parts, especially for the water purifiers."
"Absolutely."
After half an hour, before leaving for Diamond City, Nate visited once more Nora's grave.
"So, I guess this is farewell, at least for now. I will come visit next time I'm in Sanctuary. Goodbye, Nora!"
Outside the cemetery, the entire Diamond City crew awaited new instructions from Nate. After saying his farewells, the sole survivor proceeded to plan the next move:
"So, we have the pieces of tech found by Stan in Vault 111. I want a few guys to take them to the Corvega facility. The rest of us will return home."
"Guys, would you mind if I go with the Corvega crew? I want to write an article into the Publick Occurrences about our adventures and how the first pieces of technology return to the facility."
"Sure, Piper."
"Thanks."
After Piper left on her road towards the assembly plant, the others left Sanctuary to return to Diamond City. Nick spoke to Nate:
"Hey, Nate, I've got something for you."
"What?"
"Found this in the Vault when I went to get those body bags. I think is from Vault-Tec's database."
Nate couldn't believe his eyes: a photo of himself, Nora and baby Shaun. After so many years, he has the possibility to look at the family he lost, even in this form.
"Oh God… Thanks, Nick. It's incredible."
"Hey, don't mention it. Maybe we will manage to repair one of those pre-War cameras and take a photo of you, Sandra and Daniel as well."
Nate smiled:
"I hope so, buddy… I hope so!"
