Louis J.

Prosperi
ENG 395
Gary K. Wolfe
April 27, 1999

Beyond Against the Fall of Night

Alternative Game Narratives within the setting of Against the Fall of Night by Arthur C. Clarke.

Introduction
This essay explores the development of a fictional setting originally conceived and designed for a
single narrative for use in other types of narratives, specifically the narratives that take place within the
context of games. The games referred to here include both traditional roleplaying games (RPGs) and
single-player RPGs such as computer games. Specifically, this essay seeks to explore some of the possible
ways in which the setting presented in Arthur C. Clarke’s Against the Fall of Night can be developed for
use in ‘story games.’
The premises upon which these narratives (referred to as ‘alternative narratives’) are built come from
some of the unanswered questions and ‘loose ends’ in Against the Fall of Night, and whenever possible,
they do not violate the ‘facts’ presented in the story. The background of the story is extensive, accounting
for millions and millions of years of future history. It is against this immense background that these
alternative narratives are designed to take place.

Goals and Objectives

Beyond the above stated goal of exploring the setting of Against the Fall of Night in alternative
narratives, I had a number of other goals and objectives for these stories.
These ‘alternative narratives’ are not intended as substitutes for the original story, but rather as simply
‘other’ stories that could take place within the setting of Against the Fall of Night. These stories should also
allow for a similar narrative development as in the original story, one that “moves in ever-widening circles”
(Wolfe 110). Where the story begins with a relatively small scope (such as Alvin seeking a way out of
Diaspar), it eventually grows into a story of significant scope, one that involves the history and ultimate
destiny of mankind.
Another goal of these alternative narratives is to convey some of the same themes and topics as
Against the Fall of Night. Specifically, this includes the relationship between man and technology and the
evolutionary destiny of humanity.

Narrative Considerations
In developing these alternative narratives based on the goals and objectives stated above, I encountered
a number of narrative considerations that necessitated certain choices about the how the narratives
developed. These considerations are discussed briefly below.

Chronology
All of these ‘alternative narratives’ take place prior to the events in Against the Fall of Night. Given
the story’s extensive background, it follows that many different events could have taken place which were
subsequently lost to history (or at least to recorded history, an important distinction when discussing this
story). One of the challenges with this approach is that the resolution of these narratives can’t duplicate that
of the original, nor can they prohibit the events in the original narrative from occurring. One way I’ve
chose to address this is simply to assume that none of the characters in the alternative narratives described
below share Alvin’s level of determination to uncover the truth of Earth’s history. For some, simply leaving
Diaspar and joining the people of Lys would be enough, as noted when Seranis tells Alvin that “all your
predecessors came here to stay” (50).
Parallel Plots and Shared Premises
Some of these stories closely mirror elements in the original story, while others take a more divergent
path. Specifically, most of these alternative narratives eventually lead the central character(s) to discovering
that there is life on earth beyond Diaspar.
Also, a number of the alternative narratives described below share a number of narrative elements.
First, nearly all involve a character or characters that at some point in time wish to learn what’s outside of
Diaspar. Second, more than one also include references to Alaine of Lyndar, the former Keeper of the
Records who left clues pointing to the ways out of the city in the event that those like Alvin would arise
from time to time. In addition, Alaine’s instructions to the Keeper of the Records to aid any who come
looking for help in getting out of the city also play a role in some of the stories outlined below.

Assumptions
The narratives below are described as though they are traditional narrative, with the actions of the
characters determined by the writer (in this case, me). In a true game situation, however, the character(s)
would be faced with options and choices at several points in the story, each of which could lead them to
different outcomes. The stories as described below represent the expected outcome, based on the assumed
motivations of the characters involved.

Alternative Narratives
Following are four alternative narratives, each of which explore other story possibilities based on the
setting of Against the Fall of Night.

The Other Ways Out of Diaspar

Perhaps the most obvious premise to build an alternative narrative from the story is the most similar to
the events of the story itself, namely, getting out of the city of Diaspar. According to Rorden, “There are
three ways out of Diaspar” (19). However, Alvin and Rorden find only one of these, leaving two other
ways out of Diaspar.
This story involves a single character, most likely one of the people for whom Alaine prepared his
clues out of the city. As noted in the story “Alaine foresaw that people like you (Alvin) would be born in
future ages: he realized that they might attempt to leave Diaspar and he set out to help them” (19). But
where the clue Alvin discovers, “There is a Better Way. Give My Greetings to the Keeper of the Records.
Alaine of Lyndar.” (14), leads him to Rorden, other clues might lead to other avenues.
One such possibility involves leading our main character, who I shall refer to as Samantha, to the
Master Robots, the “greatest of all machines” (85). For instance, instead of the above message from Alaine,
when exploring one of the abandoned areas of the city Samantha finds the following message: ‘There is
Another Way. Seek Out the Master Robots, and Ask for Alaine’s Map. Alaine of Lyndar.’
Samantha must first find the Master Robots, a task that while not difficult for Alvin and Rorden (“It
had not been difficult to locate the maps of the underground city…” (85)), could prove to be more
challenging without the help of the Keeper of Records. Still, with a little persistence, she soon finds maps
leading to the underground city where the Master Robots are found. Samantha (or Sam) then travels to the
underground city, approaches the Master Robots (specifically the Interpreter), and asks for ‘Alaine’s Map.’
After a few moments, one of the many synthesizers glows briefly, and before Sam’s eyes, a map appears.
The map (which is more akin to a treasure map or a scavenger hunt map than a traditional road map)
includes references to locations within the city that area unknown to Samantha, and she spends
considerable time deciphering the map and finding her way along the remote and haphazard path Alaine
has left for her. All along the way Sam must decipher additional clues, based solely on the information
provided on the map. Eventually, the map leads Sam to long abandoned moving walkway far beneath the
city, one that leads takes her out of the city, and eventually leads her to Lys. In this story, Samantha
becomes one of Alvin’s predecessors who “came here to stay” (50).

Previous ‘Alvins’
Another alternative narrative involves these previous people whom, like Alvin eventually found there
way out of the city and encountered the people of Lys. When Alvin arrives in Lys, he’s told that he’s not
the first to have escaped. He is then given a choice: to either remain in Lys, or return to Diaspar, but with
his memories of outside erased. Alvin is told that “This has never arisen before: all your predecessors came
here to stay” (50). But what if others before Alvin chose to return to Diaspar, even if that meant their
memories of Lys and the world outside the city would be erased?
In this story, a small number of ‘previous escapees’ begin to have dreams and visions of a place
outside the city, one with trees and forests, lakes and streams, and people the likes of which they’ve never
before encountered. These visions are their memories of Lys and the world beyond Diaspar, returning to
them after the ‘erasure’ imposed by the people of Lys begins to wear off. When news of these individuals
reaches a past Keeper of the Records (one who held the position before Rorden), the Keeper arranges for
them to be brought together, so that they might share their experiences. Like the assistance Rorden gives
Alvin, the actions of this Keeper are at the behest of Alaine of Lyndar, who had left instructions for the
Keeper of the Records in case of such a situation.
Once together, the characters begin to share the specifics of their dreams/vision with each other, each
corroborating each other’s stories. While at first these visions scare the characters, over time the fear of the
outside subsides and the curiosity that once lead them to find their way outside the city returns. With this
curiosity comes a renewed desire to venture beyond the walls of Diaspar, to see the world that inspired their
visions.
Again following the guidance of Alaine of Lyndar, the Keeper of the Records aids the characters is
making their way out of Diaspar (either via the same way out used by Alvin, or one of the other two ways).
When they reach Lys, the characters are confronted with the same choice given to them so long ago: stay in
Lys, or return to Diaspar, but with their memories erased.

NOTE: This option slightly violates one of the ‘facts’ depicted in the story. It assumes that Seranis is not
telling Alvin the truth when she tells him that all of his predecessors chose to remain in Lys. Since she has
much to gain by telling this ‘possible untruth.’ I believe it’s fair to assume this is the case.

Lysians within the City

Another alternative narrative involves a small group of Lysians who long ago left the ‘country’ to
discover what life in Diaspar is like. This group takes up residence in one of the deserted areas of the city,
such as the great towers that “had been lonely now for a hundred thousand years” (9). This group has lived
within the confines of Diaspar for perhaps hundreds (or even thousands) of years, keeping their existence
secret from the populace of the city. The technological devices of Diaspar such as synthesizers and moving
walkways have remained operational in these areas, and have allowed the Lysian ‘refugees’ to feed and
clothe themselves since first settling here.
But while such a community of adults might not appear to be that unusual in Diaspar, the presence of
children would be most conspicuous. Given the effective immortality of Diaspar’s population, they rarely
see children. As Alvin notes “I’m the only child to be born there for seven thousand years” (46), it is likely
that children are so unique that nearly the entire city knows whenever one is born (suggested by the line
“everyone knew Alvin” (27)).
In this story, while walking through one of abandoned areas of the city, the character encounters one of
the Lysian children wandering about, having gotten lost in the labyrinthine hallways of one of the towers
near their home. After calming the child, the character helps the child find their way back to their
community, where he (or she) discovers the entire Lysian community.
It quickly becomes obvious to the character that these people are not from Diaspar, but from elsewhere
on earth. Intrigued by learning of the existence of life outside the city, he asks to be taken out of the city,
that he might see beyond the city’s walls and learn more about the outside world, where people live much
shorter life-spans and children are common. With the help of the Lysians, the character finds his way out of
Diaspar (most likely using the underground rail system used by Alvin) and takes up residence in Lys.
[One interesting additional possibility here is that the character’s arrival in Lys exposes the Lysian
community in Diaspar, who are brought back out of the city, since their presence and possible exposure
represents too big a threat to the people of Lys. Upon their return, the former ‘refugees’ have their
memories of living in Diaspar erased. Likewise, the character is returned to Diaspar with his memories,
both of Lys and of the Lysian community within Diaspar also erased. One last twist would involve this
character being one of the ‘Previous Alvins’ as described above.]
Communication With the Outside World
The following alternative narrative involves a pair of characters, who, unlike most of the population of
Diaspar, are intrigued and fascinated by the technology that surrounds their lives. Most of the people of
Diaspar accept the role of technology in their lives, but take it completely for granted. They see no need to
understand the how and why of the technological devices that serve them. As far as most people are
concerned, man has mastered technology and need not concern himself with it. The characters of this story,
however, are awestruck by the workings of technology. Like Alvin, these characters are curious. But
whereas Alvin (and his predecessors) are curious about the world outside Diaspar, these characters are
curious about the workings of technology.
In their search for understanding the ways of technology, these characters, a man and woman, spend
considerable time in the underground city in hopes of learning more about the ancient engineers and the
computers which keep the machines of Diaspar running. With the help of the computers and the Master
Robots, these characters begin to gain an understanding of the design principals used in the construction of
some of the technological devices commonly used by the people of Diaspar, including the synthesizers, and
in particular, the visiphones (see Note, below). [Though their knowledge is elementary and rudimentary
compared to even the most novice engineer of the Empire, the characters’ knowledge far exceeds that of
nearly all of the people of Diaspar.]
It is the character’s curiosity and fascination with technology that leads them to learn of the outside
world. Experimenting with visiphones while in the underground city, the pair finds themselves somehow
connected to one of the viewers in an ancient city, long abandoned. The characters soon realize that they
have connected with someplace outside the city, and this discovery leads the characters to seek a way out of
Diaspar, with hopes that the secrets of the Engineers might be found beyond the walls of the city.
The characters eventually find their way out, and learn that the place they saw through the visiphones
was nothing less than the legendary Shalmirane. Here they encounter the ‘old man’ of Shalmirane and the
robots that serve him. Speaking with the old man and the robots leads the characters to uncover an ancient
spaceship hidden beneath the earth, a ship that holds untold knowledge of the ancient technology they so
wish to uncover, and the characters eventually leave Earth in search of even greater knowledge.

Note: This option assumes that visiphones are in common use in Diaspar. The story notes that Rorden “had
always suspected that the worldwide communication network might still be in existence, but that the keys
to its operation had been lost and the billion of circuits could never be traced by man” (52). Rorden’s
ability to use the visiphone to speak with Seranis suggests that they are still in use in the city.

Other Possibilities
In addition to the alternatives outlined above, there are other possibilities for narratives to be derived
from the setting depicted in Against the Fall of Night. Below are a number of brief descriptions of ideas and
other possible narratives.

A Psychic in Diaspar
All humans once had the same psychic abilities as the people of Lys. Over time, the people of Diaspar
lost the ability to do anything but communicate with machines. In this story, one of the rare children born in
Diaspar is born with the psychic powers of the people of Lys, those once possessed by all humankind.

Contacting Diaspar
In this story, a small number of Alvin’s predecessors who chose to stay in Lys decide the time has
come to re-establish contact between Lys and Diaspar. When the leaders of Lys attempt to stop them, the
confrontation leads these characters to seek out the truth behind the relationship between Lys and Diaspar,
and the importance of the isolation of each from the other.

Beyond Diaspar and Lys

Though Lys and Diaspar are the only settlements depicted in the story, it is also possible that other
such inhabited areas exist, totally isolated from both Diaspar and Lys. Such settlements could be home to
devotees of the Great Ones, or even the Engineers (see below). This alternative could also tie-in to The
Other Ways Out of Diaspar described above, as one of the other ways out of the city might lead to one of
these ‘other’ settlements.

The Engineers
When Alvin and Rorden visit the Master Robots, a brief discussion between the twoconcerning the
‘Engineers’ suggests that no one with knowledge of the ancient technology is still living at the time of the
story. But what if in fact, a small ‘cult’ of engineers does exist in Diaspar? This group might be comprised
of either engineers from the past who have for some reason kept their true nature hidden from others, or
those who have investigated the lost secrets of technology, such as the pair described in Communication
With the Outside World, above.

The Master
One of the more mysterious and unexplained facets of the story involves the Master. What if the
Master in fact is alive within the confines of Diaspar, and has been waiting for the proper time to aid
mankind in reclaiming his place among the galaxy?
 Works Cited

Clarke, Arthur C. and Gregory Benford. Beyond the Fall of Night. New York: Ace Books. 1991.

Wolfe, Gary K. The Known and the Unknown: The Iconography of Science Fiction. Kent, Ohio: Kent State
University Press. 1979.