The captain was not able to expect his scout team, Jack and Walter, to return back to New London so soon. Not that he has any doubt of their capabilities. But just the time they took to go out and retrieve their lost expedition members in less than three days of estimation to complete their mission.

While surprising, it was very concerning to see that they had also returned with lots of injured survivors barely keeping awake from collapsing onto the ground. Everyone was helping to carry the exhausted survivors to the medical tents to warm and heal them for a job well done on getting back here alive.

Even for Jack and Walter, who were in the midst of receiving tons of thanks from the others. Jack did most of the interactions telling stories of their mission, while Walter sat in the corner, on a crate to rest his legs. He wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now.

It was not even two days, and these two had already completed their mission much faster than anticipated. The captain did not expect that at all.

It was only two young boys to do the job that no one wanted to do, it was a dangerous and very risky job. But it needed to be done and they volunteered for it, sounds crazy. But, here they are, back home safe and sound. And with the rest of the expedition that was left behind.

The captain did a head count on the survivors. With the new addition of the recovered survivors, that would add up their numbers up to at least over a hundred people now. It is terrifying to remember that there used to be more of them initially when they set out. Over a thousand, reduced to barely reaching two hundredth of them.

A harsh reminder that their journey was not an easy one.

But every life that was saved was a given, and that's all that matters right now. The captain would have to reward Jack and Walter for their efforts and a job well done. For now, the only thing that the captain can do for his scouts is to watch them from afar. They seem to be busy with the others for now.

The captain could talk to them later.

"Papa!" A little girl shouted in happiness. She rushed in a frantic paste as she jumped into her father's arms, crying as she hugged him tightly, "You're okay!" she said. Her father cried with her as he held his daughter tight. The mother joins them soon after.

"I was so scared. I thought I lost you two forever." Said the father.

"We didn't, papa. It's because of them. They found us." Said the little girl, pointing toward Jack and Walter. The father walked up to them and gave a sudden apology, "I'm sorry for doubting you two, frankly, a lot of us were very skeptical about you two doing this for us. We thought that you might not be able to find them out there. But you did. Thank you, thank you both so much." he said with gratitude.

Walter had heard what he said and turned his head away. It was obvious that the others back here would doubt them behind their backs. But it was normal, Walter had his own doubts too, but it was hurtful to know that.

Jack just smiled in return as he shook hands with him and the rest. It is obvious that Jack was just as tired as Walter, but there was much needed reception with the families that had reunited with their loved ones. Jack felt that it would be impolite if he didn't respond back to them.

The father who had thanked them probably did have their doubts behind their backs. But it was alright, even if Jack and Walter didn't know.

However, their efforts were not in vain, maybe the people's morale would be greatly improved with this boost of great news, and the newly discovered existence of a working automaton nearby and a bridge that connects the path to another settlement in the area.

Which reminded Jack, everyone was also talking excited about meeting the other people living in Winterhome. But for now, it was better to rest and enjoy their rewards with thankful comments and commendations.

"You two did a great thing today!" One of the people said.

Jack shakes his head and waves it off, "It was nothing. We're glad to help. We are all together in this, after all." Jack said.

"With what you did, you saved them in the nick of time, kid. You and your partner."

Jack nods, "You're right about that. I wouldn't have done it without Walter. He was the strongest out of all of us. He fought off those wolves like they were nothing. I could never ask for a better partner than him." he said. Trying to divert some of the attention towards Walter.

Walter continues to rest on the crate, taking deep breaths and sipping some water from his container. He had looked worse for wear, but he was still breathing. But unbeknownst to him, someone was appreciative of his rescue effort.

"That's him, papa. He's the one with the rifle. He shot those mean wolves and guided us with his map." Said the little girl from before.

The father gets down on his knees and takes Walter's hands, catching him by surprise.

"Thank you, young man. Thank you so much." The father said as he shook his hand profusely. Walter was tired, he could not manage enough strength to smile, but he was able to crack a little smile for them and returned the gesture.

"You're welcome. And like what Jack said, it's no big deal. We're glad to have found the others in time." Walter said, keeping the conversation as simple as he could.

"What you two have done can never be forgotten. I hope you two continue to do great things together." Said the father.

"Thank you. Thank you two so much. We owe you."

"Thank you."

"Thank you for giving us your rations."

Another wave of gratitude was given their way once more, Jack was more than happy to accept them on behalf of Walter. "You don't owe us anything. And think nothing of it. We're just glad that you're back with your families again." Jack said, no matter how many times he had tried to humble it down. There will always be countered with even more praises.

One of the survivors suddenly hugs Jack out of the blue. Surprised, but glad, Jack returned the hug. The survivor then proceeds to hug Walter as well, much to his dismay. Walter gave her a quick hug and let her go. "Thank you two again. Your help means a lot to us." She said, returning back to her family.

"I'll say, you two make a great team."

Jack felt a sense of pride when he heard that, "Yeah, we do make a great team, don't we, Walter?" he said.

Walter nods, looking his way, "We do, Jack."

"Thank you, misters." Said another child.

"The heroes of New London!" Someone cheered in the back, it was followed by others doing the same and cheered for them as well. Clapping their hands and throwing their fits in the air.

Both of them did well, and yet, Walter doesn't feel like a hero. He wasn't sure what Jack was feeling at this moment. Being seen as a 'hero' is not always good. If they mess up, even for a little bit. Then there would be major repercussions coming their way.

Was this credit well deserved? Walter thought, what about that stranger that helped them with the wolves? Who was that? Friend, foe?

"Alright, settle down, lads. Settle down. It's been a long day for everyone, but we still have work to do tomorrow, and you all need your rest. Go now, rest well." The captain said, the crowd slowly
dispersed, thanks to the guards, finally leaving Jack and Walter alone to get some space. They looked at the captain and Walter started looking nervous.

"Well done, both of you. You two did it, come with me, let's get you two somewhere warm and we can talk. I'm sure Finn is still awake to harvest those wolves you brought back." the captain said.

The trio head over to the cookhouse, inside, Finn was already in his kitchen looking at the wolves laid out on his table. Jack and Walter let out a sigh of relief as they were greeted by the warmth inside.

Walter was in the midst of falling asleep, Jack was also having similar effects as they sat down on their seats.

"I'm sure you two are exhausted right now, but I wanted to give my two cents on your accomplishments as well, as I was the first to put my faith in you two, not that I'm biased." Said the captain.

Jack yawned, "It went better than expected. But maybe we should have taken it slow, we were rushing everyone to get back as soon as we found them." he said.

"I lost the map on the way back; I slipped and fell on some ice. Sorry, captain." Walter said, looking quite ashamed of himself. But the captain didn't look annoyed by it, not one bit.

"It's fine, I knew that you would lose your map at some point, which is why I have brought another one here, tell what you two have found out there and I'll mark it down. The engineers would take care of the rest. Maps are replaceable, but you guys are not. I'll get you a new one before you head out again on your next mission" The captain said.

Jack and Walter looked at the captain, their faces were now replaced with shocked expressions, almost wiping the sleep off their eyes, "Next mission!? So, you're telling us that this was not just a one job thing?" Walter said.

"Well, there's a lot of problems that can't be solved here, and I need scouts to venture into areas that could help us. Like finding more resources, food, and maybe even some machinery, like an automaton." The captain explained.

Jack looks at Walter with an 'I told you' Look, Walter returns with a glare before coming back to the captain. The new map had been placed on the table, ready to be filled with new findings that Jack and Walter encountered.

They told the captain everything they had encountered, from the dead forest, the spot where they found the expedition, the ravine and the bridge. Even telling him about the lone automaton they left back at the bridge.

"Really, you two found a working automaton. And you said this bridge was built by another city called Winterhome?" The captain asked for confirmation.

"The others had seen it too as we crossed. But getting back to the crater was a little difficult to spot, thanks to the bright light from the generator barely peeking out of it. Maybe a beacon or something would be helpful?" Jack suggested.

The captain nods, "Yeah, good idea. A simple hot air balloon might do the trick, I'll let the engineers know about this."

"Maybe a couple of sleds to carry our stuff more easily? I hate to carry everything on my back." Walter also pitched in his own suggestions.

"Right, some proper snow gear too, snowshoes, everything. I would imagine that you two would be doing a lot more exploring as time goes on." the captain said. He looks at Walter's rifle resting on his pack.

"I'll check with our armory, see if I can arm you both up. Only one of you is armed with a firearm. And that rifle is not enough to protect you two. Walter, you are already well versed in using guns, Jack, I need you to start learning how to use them too." The captain instructed.

Walter's eyes lit up at the mention of receiving new guns for his job, "I'm interested," he said. Now it was Jack's turn to feel nervous about this.

"I don't think I've ever shot a gun before. I think it would be useless for me. Can I request a bow or some knife instead? I have this ax with me, but I know I would need to take on whatever is out there."

"Okay, some guns, knives and snow gear, I think you two might be the most expensive I have ever invested and planned out of this whole place." The captain jokes, but he wasn't wrong on that. The city planning itself had already been draining more resources to keep it with its development.

The captain might have to close down any other applications for the scout mission for the time being, he needs all the help he can get to focus their efforts elsewhere. Despite having only, a team of two, they should move a lot faster to cover more ground.

"Hm, maybe the engineers could build a steam sled for you. Would that help?" The captain asked.

Jack beams at the thought of it, "A steam sled? That sounds great! I would gladly take that over walking any day," he said in excitement.

"A steam sled, that would be nice. It would make our job much easier to travel on the snow." Walter said and nodded to the idea.

"However, it might take a while to make one. So, you two will still have to be on foot for the time being."

Jack's excitement dies down and nods, "We understand. By the way, the others told us of the other sites they discovered. We want to check it out tomorrow." Jack said.

"Oh, was there something else besides Winterhome? I was hoping maybe you two could head straight to Winterhome next. They could help us get our footing in this place. Do you two want to go back out so soon?" Said the captain.

Walter sighs, "Well, it's not that far from here, it looked like an observatory. We'll just take a quick look and head over to Winterhome. Couldn't be that bad." he shrugged.

The captain thought about it for a moment, contemplating their next move and where they should go, he's not in a rush and they don't know where exactly Witnerhome is at, "Okay, I need you two to go check out that observatory, see what you can find, maybe there might be some documents to bring back to our engineers to see. Might prove useful." he said.

"We can do that, don't worry, captain. We won't be long until we make contact with Winterhome soon. I think the others will talk about it too, and they've all seen the sign and the bridge now." Jack said.

"By morning, Winterhome will be the talk of the town." Walter agrees.

"Yeah, I'll make a formal announcement on that first thing in the morning. The people need to hear the good news." Said the captain.

Jack yawns as he gathers his gear, "You do that, captain. Right now, I'm going back to my tent. I need to sleep, and it's been a long day for us."

Walter follows behind, grabbing his pack as well and slowly heading out of the cookhouse. "Goodnight, captain," they both said in unison.

The captain waves, "Rest well, you two. And congratulations on your first mission. You've earned it." he said.

Jack and Walter waved back.

He watches the two of them leave the cookhouse to get some sleep. He felt that those two would continue to be scouts for a while. Maybe from another team, if he can muster someone brave enough, and besides, the captain can't push all the work on them.

"I think we would be fine for a while, that's a lot of meat to cut." Finn said, nodding at the pile of dead wolves.

The captain turns his head to face Finn, "What do you reckon you make do with this? Quite the haul they brought back."

"It's not beef, pork, or chicken. But I can make something out of this. I'll skin them and give it to whoever can turn it into something. The organs and bones will have to be made into soup and sausages for easier consumption. The rest of the meat will be added to the daily rations for the others. Do you have anything else in mind, captain?" Finn asked.

"No, make sure to use whatever you can to feed the others, we got a lot more people here to feed. Maybe some plantation would help, a hot house, to keep the vegetables warm and healthy to grow. Do we still have vegetables?" Said the captain.

"Sure do, but I can spare a few in storage till you make some plan for farming. A bunch of seeds and some potatoes, we'll be able to have more to spare. Maybe give those boys of yours more rations while they are out there scouting." Finn suggested.

The captain yawns, "Yeah, sounds like a plan. I'll get back to you tomorrow, Finn. Make those extra portions for Jack and Walter before they head out tomorrow."

"Will do, captain. Go get some rest," Finn said.

The captain takes his leave and exits the cookhouse. So much has happened, and he couldn't ask for a better outcome. Winterhome was certainly an interesting discovery, the thought of New London no longer being alone was comforting.

Hopefully they could make the journey soon and form an alliance with Winterhome. As of now, sleep is needed, and there is lots to do tomorrow.

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A/N; I'm not sure if wolf is safe to eat. But in the 1800s, this was a likely approach, and in this situation, it was better than nothing. I hope this chapter was good, I had trouble trying to write the scene where everyone was thanking Jack and Walter. And how they were going to discuss their findings to the captain.

I can't wait to start on the next chapter, thankfully my old draft helps to quicken the writing process, and I needed to do some regiments and help improve the flow of the story. For those who are reading this for the first time, the next mission also involves a certain cave with bears. Get ready for that.

Also, in my old draft, the furthest I have reached in "A New Home" was Jack and Walter finding the man that came from Winterhome. They never reached the city, that was when I decided to do a rewrite. I know that timing couldn't be any more stupid, but I had to as the first part of the story didn't match well with Jack and Walter as the main protagonists.

I hope that the next few chapters will be exciting and intriguing for you guys.

Thank you all so much for reading.