CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
While the wilderness was home to a greater number of inhabitants than the cities,
1.
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it was the subgroup known as the Ferals that particularly contributed to this population surge.
2.
These Ferals, governed by instinct alone,
CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
were segregated into designated wilderness cities,
where they were sustained by the broader community until their natural deaths.
3.
In these segregated zones, the Ferals often procreated,
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resulting in numerous offspring who suffered from severe genetic disorders and rarely survived infancy.
4.
CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
Yet, among these tragic beginnings, a few remarkable individuals emerged, known as "Splicers."
5,
Unlike their predecessors,
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Splicers possessed enhanced abilities surpassing those of the Proto-Splicers and led full, healthy lives,
untouched by the cancers or genetic diseases that had afflicted their parents.
6.
They did not descend into ferality.
CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
With the help of these Splicers,
the tide turned against the encroaching forces of the old cities.
These robust children grew to become influential leaders within the Feral communities,
7.
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celebrated and urged to take on roles of authority.
As the century waned,
8.
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the dynamic within Feral societies shifted.
9.
By the start of the 24th century,
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these fully realized Spliced individuals,
born from Feral unions without the burden of disability,
10.
CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
began to reintegrate with the Proto-Splicer and wilderness societies.
Armed with superior instincts and abilities,
11.
CHAPTER 10 - Reinforcements
they led the charge against the Mergers,
12.
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steadily driving them back toward the urban strongholds from which they had first emerged.