FO4 | Book 0: The Diaries of Anarchy ✔️

August 4, 2263

I clambered into the gates of Goodneighbor while holdin' my arm above the bicep. I'd received a gunshot wound from an aggravated Super Mutant. I had heard that the roads to Goodneighbor were dangerous, but this shit was ridiculous.

I walked up to the first shop I saw, run by a polite-lookin' ghoul woman with thin hair up in a small bun on her head. She wore a three-piece suit and was wiping down the counter in her shop.

"You got any Stimpaks?" I asked quickly. 

"Oh, my goodness, are you alright?"

"Super Mutants."

"Those damn mutants. I wish they'd all burn in Hell. Here, let me get you a Stimpak, free of charge. And a new shirt, too."

"You serious?"

"Of course I'm serious. A little help goes a long way around here."

She went through a box behind the counter and took out a familiar red and white syringe and handed it to me. I took it from her and quickly injected myself with it.

"Who's in charge of Goodneighbor?"

"That would be Mayor Victor Van Buren. Most folk just call him 'Vic' or 'Mayor Vic.'" She went through a suitcase on the counter behind her and looked through various articles of clothing.

"This mayor — he doesn't do anything about how dangerous the roads are out there?"

"Oh, goodness, no." She lowered her voice and handed me a shirt. "All he cares about is Goodneighbor — or at least the chems and caps that come flowing through here."

"How much business does a place like this get?"

"Loads if you're into shady deals involving tampered goods, spiked chems, and rotgut." She shook her head. "My shop just might be one of the last honest businesses in this town."

"Damn shame. What's your name, beautiful?"

"Oh, hush, you. I know you don't mean that. The name's Daisy Mayfield. A pleasure to meet you. You seem like a decent sort; not the kind that we get out here usually."

"Daisy, huh? Nice name. I'm John McDonough."

"John McDonough? The same John McDonough that got our very own Marowski banished from Diamond City?"

"Oh, God. I guess he's been talkin', huh?"

"Of course. A man like Marowski doesn't take his losses with grace. He's in good with Mayor Vic. Practically partners, if you ask me. He's had better business here than he did in Diamond City, but I know he's still smuggling chems there through agents. It's all he brags about — how he outsmarted the mayor and all his guards."

"Eh, his dealings ain't my business. Ain't like I'm too fond of Diamond City myself. Place is full o' judgy assholes anyway."

"Well, you'll find less judgment here, but ten times more backhanded dealings. Keep your caps close and your gun closer is my advice to you. If you need a place to stay, Hotel Rexford is open for business. If you need a drink, check the Third Rail. And if you need guns or ammo, try the shop next door."

"Thanks, Daisy. You've been a doll."

I changed my shirt, put my bag back on my shoulder, and tossed the old shirt in the piles of garbage surrounding the city's walls. Then I walked the streets to see what there was to see.

Goodneighbor's walls didn't look as tall or secure as Diamond City's, but they did offer some serious protection. They stood about eleven feet tall and were lined with rolls of barbed wire. Some sections of the wall were made of junk like scrap metal and sheets of aluminum pulled off of other buildings. Then the other parts of the wall were made of the old buildings themselves, using their outer walls as a part of the city's perimeter.