Against The Dying Of The Light
is a Fallout 4 fanfiction by EthanTheRenegade and SwanOfMischief. Against The Dying Of The Light is an adaptation and expansion of the main story of Fallout 4. The original version of the fic covers the events of the game from the prologue to just after the protagonist gets into the Institute for the first time, but on Valentine's Day 2024, the authors announced that they would be taking the time to re-write the entire story with a greater emphasis on creating a coherent narrative and satisfying story arcs.
This fanfic includes examples of:
Coming Soon...
On October 23rd, 2077, Rhiannon DiMaggio's life is changed forever when the world is engulfed in nuclear fire. Taking shelter with her husband Vincent and son Shaun in Vault 111, Rhiannon is cryogenically frozen with all the other residents. After her husband is murdered and son kidnapped, Rhiannon emerges from the Vault 200 years later, where she encounters a wandering tinkerer named Simon Lopez. With his help, Rhiannon goes out into the Commonwealth Wasteland to find her lost son. Meanwhile, the raiders of Nuka World, led by a new Overboss, prepare to invade the Commonwealth...
- Action Girl: For the original characters, Lily is one, and Rhiannon becomes one as she adapts to the Wasteland.
- Ambiguously Brown: Simon is noted as having a tanned skin tone and having Hispanic heritage, but this is not expanded upon.
- Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Overboss Caldwell.
- Author Appeal: Caldwell's appreciation for music reflects EthanTheRenegade's musical tastes, and ETR even notes that Caldwell killing Vulpes Inculta in Chapter 4 was a result of his personal bias against the character.
- Badass Longcoat: Caldwell has one from his days in the Brotherhood of Steel as the Lone Wanderer. Rhiannon gets one too in Chapter 29, the Minuteman General's coat.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Rhiannon is truly a terrifying force of nature when she wants to be. To a lesser extent, Simon seems to have the Nerd Rage perk, given his reaction to Rhiannon being grazed by a stray bullet in Chapter 12.
- Can't Kill You, Still Need You: Forcibly invoked by Kellogg, who managed to linger in Valentine's head, and no one is happy about it.
- Christmas Episode: Chapter 7.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: Moira inflicts this on the Gunner who ruined her life in Chapter 36.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Caldwell dishes these out often.
- Dark Action Girl: Moira, Scarlett.
- Deadpan Snarker: Everyone has their fair share of moments, but Valentine takes the cake.
- Decoy Protagonist: The first chapter gives Vincent and Rhiannon equal focus, and only at the last second clarifies which one is the Sole Survivor as per Fallout 4.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: Vincent DiMaggio is racist, sexist, and homophobic, befitting of the culture of the 1950s that Fallout is set in as well as his backstory as a veteran of the Sino-American War. However, great lengths are made to show that Vincent's beliefs and opinions are neither supported nor shared by any other characters.
- Did You Just Have Sex?: Moira is uncharacteristically chipper in the beginning of Chapter 34, after spending a very long evening with Caldwell.
- Door Stopper: At 53 Chapters, Against The Dying of The Light hit a word count of 456,205, until the update announcing the re-write pushed it to 460,505.
- Do Not Call Me "Paul": Caldwell threatens to kill anyone who refers to him by his first name, James. The only person who he gives permission to refer to him as such is Moira.
- Early-Bird Cameo: A few Harbormen show up in Chapter 25.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Caldwell and Moira, while both sadistic raiders, love each other very much.
- Exactly What It Says on the Tin: Chapter 17, One Week, takes place over the course of one week.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: For the "Good Scars", Simon has quite the collection of scars from his time as Courier Six and Cherry has an "ugly scar" marring her face, but is nothing but kind and bubbly. For the "Evil Scars", a Harbinger called Stitches has a notable facial scar, and Caldwell and Brownstone are both noted to be covered in them, with Brownstone in particular having a Glasgow smile reminiscent of Heath Ledger's Joker.
- Interrupted Intimacy: Sierra Petrovita walks in on Caldwell and Moira in Chapter 29.
- I'm a Humanitarian: The Harbingers are an entire gang of cannibals, and so is Caldwell.
- Just Friends: While Rhiannon and Simon share a kiss in Chapter 15, they mutually decide they're better off as friends.
- Last-Name Basis: Caldwell goes only by his surname. This is mostly due to his attempts to put his past as the Lone Wanderer behind him.
- Meaningful Rename: Rhiannon changes her surname back to her maiden name after divorcing Vincent in the beginning of Chapter 27.
- Official Couple: Simon and Lily as of Chapter 21, Caldwell and Moira as of Chapter 38, and Rhiannon and Preston as of Chapter 43.
- One-Man Army: Caldwell takes three of the Nuka World parks in a single day in Chapter 7.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Vincent Di Maggio.
- Ready for Lovemaking: Sierra Petrovita shows up in Caldwell's office dressed in nothing but wrapping paper in Chapter 7.
- Robot Buddy: Percival DeRobo, as Simon's automaton companion.
- Rousing Speech: Caldwell uses the spoken intro of "Pulse of the Maggots" by Slipknot as one in Chapter 20.
- Ship Tease: Between Rhiannon and Simon at first, but then between Rhiannon and Preston before their Relationship Upgrade in Chapter 43.
- Spared by the Adaptation: Kellogg... at first..
- Time Skip: Chapter 20 takes place one month after Chapter 19.
- Unholy Matrimony: Caldwell and Moira.
