Even during the night, Diamond City remained as bustling as ever. While the human population of the city sleep, their synthetic and Ghoulish counterparts wander the streets. Nobody knows what they are doing. Some of them are looking upwards, towards the sky and the stars above them. Others sing. Others are just walking, aimlessly, within the Jewel of the Commonwealth. After the destruction of the Institute, many of the Synths that escaped their creators were accepted by the new mayor of the city, an elderly but amiable gentleman named Adrien Hicks. The populace's fear towards the Synths also decreased due to the destruction of the Institute as they considered that the Synths who defected were "the good guys". Also, the Ghouls were allowed to live in the city again as citizens with full rights.

Another one of Hicks' decisions as a mayor was the creation of a council, formed by one human, one Ghoul and one Synth that had the ability to veto any of the mayor's decisions provided that there was unanimity. The representative of the humans was Piper who, as a journalist, knew about all the problems that plagued the humans of Diamond City and was more than happy to receive a position of power after years of "exile" under Mayor McDonough. The Ghoul council member was none other than John Hancock. His position as mayor of Goodneighbor provided him with a lot of experience which he used to better solve the problems of Ghouls in Diamond City. This appointment also had the purpose of creating a closer relationship between the two settlements. The Synth representative was Nick Valentine, as he was the most influential of his kind in the city and who also provides a much needed voice of reason within the upper echelons of Diamond City. Since the time of the council's inception in 2294, Mayor Hicks' decisions were vetoed only once, in 2296, when he wanted to exile Sheng Kawolski from the city after he brutally attacked a man who tried to steal water from him. While Adrien Hicks wanted to exile the young man as a lesson for others, Nick convinced the other two councilors that Sheng should receive a second chance. Thus, Hicks' decision was vetoed and Sheng remained in the city.

Nate walked towards his house, where his wife and son awaited him. He saluted several inhabitants on the way and, after reaching his home, entered slowly, thinking that he may wake up Daniel. When he was in the house, he felt a small body cheerfully hugging him.

"Daddy, it's you! I knew Jamie was a liar! He told me that you ran away with another woman and you left me and Mommy forever! But I never doubted you! Not for one second! I always felt that you will return!"

Jamie was one of Daniel's older friends who enjoyed teasing him, but Daniel never listened to him. He loved and trusted his father with all his heart and knew very well that his work at the Agency was extremely demanding and important.

"Well, tell Jamie that if I catch him, I'll…"

"Ahem…"

Nate was interrupted in the middle of his threat by his beautiful wife, Sandra.

"Mommy, Mommy, Daddy is back home!"

"I know, sweetie. I saw him from the stands when he entered the city. I didn't tell you because I wanted to be a surprise."

"It's an amazing surprise. Tell me, Daddy, will you stay long? Please, say yes! I want so much to show you my drawings and my school stuff and that cool baseball bat Uncle John gave me!"

"What baseball bat, Danny?"

"Stay here! I'll go get it!"

Daniel went upstairs to search for his baseball bat.

"Honey, do you have any idea what Hancock gave Daniel?"

"I remember he came last Monday from Goodneighbor to attend a council meeting and he gave Danny something giftwrapped. I suppose it is the bat."

"Well, only one way to find out! God, he has so much energy!"

"He misses you, Nate."

"I know... Tell me, did you miss me too?"

Sandra smiled and planted a hot kiss on Nate's lips.

"What do you think? Did I miss you?"

"Wow…"

Their tender moment was interrupted by Daniel who arrived with his baseball bat.

"See, Daddy? It's one of a kind in Diamond City. This one is pink and vibrates!"

If it was possible, Nate's eyes would have exploded seeing the "bat". It was something from before the War… something used to give pleasure in… certain situations.

"Uh… Danny, this is not a baseball bat. This is… something else!"

"What, Daddy?"

"It's a… well… a blunt sword!"

"A sword?"

"Yeah, and if you play with it, you can hurt someone!"

"Ugh… Why would Uncle John give me a sword? I hate swords, and guns and war and…"

"I'm sure John gave you this sword to destroy it. He knows how much you hate violence and wanted you to have the honor of disposing of such a dangerous weapon!"

"Really? Wow! I'm a defender of justice and peace, just like Daddy!"

Nate and Sandra laughed, watching their son trying to break the "sword" using a hammer.

"Danny, go to your room and destroy the sword there. But be careful not to hurt yourself!"

"Don't worry, Mommy! I'm always careful. Daddy, will you come upstairs to tell me a story?"

"Of course, son. I'll be there soon!"

"Yippee! I can't wait! But please, don't tell me that one with the little Red Caravan Girl and the Big Bad Deathclaw. It gave me nightmares!"

"Don't worry, son!"

"Bye!"

"Good night, sweetie!"

After Daniel went upstairs, the only sounds heard in the house was the way the boy bashed the "sword" with his hammer. Downstairs, Nate held Sandra in his arms, desperately wanting to kiss her, to love her. He knew that it was impossible as Daniel waited for a bedtime story and if he would be late, the boy would descend and would catch them in the act. Then, the discussion would be a lot more embarrassing than a "blunt sword".

"He is so innocent… A blunt sword! How could John give that thing to him?"

"He is like this… Living in Goodneighbor does that to you. He means well, Sandra, don't worry too much! I will talk to him when I will go back there."

"Thank you! So… do you need to go again?"

"Yes, a woman disappeared in Lexington. Me and Nick will depart in the morning. He is preparing the equipment as we speak, at the Agency."

"Tell him I said hi. He's a good man."

"The best. Well… I must be going… Story time!"

"Of course, Daddy!"

Nate smiled and kissed his wife again. After that, he went upstairs. Daniel managed to destroy the "blunt sword" and he proudly showed the pieces to his father. The boy was dressed in blue pajamas with anchor models on it that looked extremely new. They were bought from Far Harbor when Nate and Nick visited the place a couple of months ago.

"So… what story should I tell to my little hero?"

"Umm… Tell me about you know… before the War?"

Nate's face suddenly darkened. Memories started to return to him, repressed memories of a time long passed.

"Sorry, Daddy. I didn't mean to make you angry!"

"You didn't make me angry, son. You could never make me angry. Of course I would tell you. What would you like to know?"

"Tell me about my brother. You promised to tell me!"

"Oh… Well… Before the bombs were dropped, I was married to Nora, as I told you a while ago. We were very happy and after our son, Shaun, was born, we were even happier. Shaun was only a baby, not even a year old when the planet was destroyed. We took refuge into one of those vaults, the Vault 111, thinking that everything was going to be fine. Shaun was in Nora's arms when we were put into those… pods… I only felt the cold and then… nothing. I was frozen!"

"How did you feel, Daddy?"

"I only recall the darkness, like a dreamless sleep. The next time I woke up… Nora was dead and Shaun disappeared. Then I fell asleep again and I woke up almost 60 years later."

"Wow… 60 years…"

"Then, the only purpose of my life was to find Shaun… I wasn't even sure about what I am going to find. And then, I found him… the Director of the Institute. But that's a story for another day. You must sleep now. Tomorrow, you go to school."

"Fine… Thank you for the story, Daddy, and I am sorry for what has happened to you. Let me tell you something: I love you! I will never leave you, so you wouldn't need to find me! I promise you!"

Nate kissed his son and left his room, while Daniel slowly succumbed to sleep. After saying goodbye to his wife, Nate left for the Agency only to find out that Nick was approaching him.

"Hey, I wanted to say hi to Daniel and Sandra, but I guess they are asleep now."

"Yeah… Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time after we return from the mission."

"I hope so. Why didn't you remain home for the night?"

"I need to prepare too for tomorrow. I couldn't use the workbench there, as it would have woken up Daniel."

"I understand. Care for a walk?"

"Sure."

Nick and Nate climbed the stands to their upmost level. The view of the entire stadium was breathtaking.

"Daniel told me that he will never leave me. He even promised me… But this wasteland, this hell… I can't shake this feeling that my life will be ruined again! It's like a curse… Every person I've ever got close to died."

"That's bullshit and you know it. I'm not dead, well… I'm not alive as you would define the notion of being alive, but you understand what I'm talking about. Hancock is alive, well, sort of. And Piper is alive too. Magnolia. Deacon, Desdemona. So why the dreadful thoughts?"

"And what about Preston? Or Mama Murphy? Or the Longs?"

"Preston's death couldn't be avoided. He was irradiated. As for Mama Murphy, well… she was a chemhead. She overdosed. And the Longs… well… they died together, peacefully!"

"I don't think shooting yourself in the head with a laser pistol counts as peaceful death, Nick."

"Nate, the Longs' depression broke them. They had nothing to fight for, not even the Minutemen were enough for them to convince them to live. They lost their son and their lives but your son is still alive and you still have your life. Look to the sky and tell me what you see!"

"It's that a trick question?"

"Just do it!"

"Well… I see stars!"

"Good. I always loved astronomy… remnants of the original Nick I suppose. Do you know that even if a star is long extinguished, its light can still be seen thousands of years later on Earth?"

"Your point?"

"My point is that the people we love will always remain with us, their light will still be with us, even after death. You will always remember your son, your wife Nora, Preston and the others, but also remember that we fight for the good of the Commonwealth! Such tragedies should never take place again. Your son Daniel… his light still burns, brighter than the sun and it would only get brighter! I know it sounds strange that a Synth talks about it, but I will gladly give this thing I call life to maintain his light. Never think about Daniel's potential death again, Nate. Think only about his life and what he will do if we protect him. He may change the Commonwealth, hell, he may change this entire wasteland. Not only him, but all the other children born in this relative peace and prosperity we have in Diamond City! It's time for the Commonwealth to shine again, just like before the War. Maybe even better."

Nate thought for a moment about what Valentine said.

"You're right, Nick. I woke up into this world, a fucked up version of everything I knew before the war and I survived until now. But survival isn't everything. We must build a world for our children, not just for us."

"Exactly!"

"So… would you help me and Daniel build that world?"

Nick smiled:

"Well… I don't think I have something better to do… In fact, I think this is the only thing that is worth doing!"

"Thank you, my friend. So… let's get ready! We will depart for Lexington in the morning!"