(Chapter 19) Appendix 17 - Human children found in the wild

(The Wild, Lost Ones etc.)

Persistent during Reclamation Period

An interesting topic if there ever was one. Mystery, intrigue, the depth of human nature. The Wild, as they were deemed, seem to embody it all. While there is not much to discuss the outward mystery these lost children represent, it's what is not noticed that makes them so fascinating to me. They are, at their source, human children. It's quite that simple. Human children, usually ranging in age estimates of seven to ten years of age, mixed-gender, no mutilations, mutations or permutations of a regular human form. Undamaged, save for any trouble they may have gotten themselves into, falling on broken glass, some broken bones and so on. What were once considered regular childhood dangers.

They are found by scavenging teams from local villages or refugee camps. It's been documented that The Wild come willingly with the group of adults, though the reason has not yet been discovered. Perhaps it is the sight of a familiar form, the need for security or something more primal and heartbreaking. Whatever the reason, I give thanks that they do so. To live alone in the civilised wilderness would break the mind of a strong man or woman, who knows what it would do to a simple child?

I use 'simple' as a qualitative term here, not a derogatory one. The Wild are simple in the most fundamental way, they do not speak, read, or write. They have had no fundamental education of which to speak, there has not been a case of an educated Wild found. They are usually found in good health as I say, they seem well nourished and their muscles have found a good use. These are not children who have been idle, imprisoned or abused, they are simply children who are lost or possibly outcast.

Less known about them is their origin. No one to date has been able to ascertain where The Wild originate. As I say, they are perfectly human in every way, they become educated in the new towns and adapt well to their new society. But, and I'm beginning to sense a pattern here, they have no recollection of their previous lives. By all accounts, their memory seems to begin when they are found by other humans.

There have been a handful of incredibly rare circumstances where several Wild have found each other in the wild and been able to use their base, primal instincts to seek out other humans. But still, this has not led to a better memory recall concerning their origination. After extensive medical analysis by human doctors, it has been established that these children are made traditionally. They are created by a man and a woman and born to a woman in the same way human children are.

Several salvage teams have created large-scale search & rescue operations within the vicinity of a Wild. They have always yielded zero results. There are no traces of where these Wild come from or why they are outcast from their homes. Another thing I find fascinating about these so-called Wild is how they are immediately treated by the humans that find them. I have been part of several salvage teams to stumble across a Wild in the wild, and I have even visited a few settlements where they have search & rescue teams dedicated to finding Wild and bringing them back into the fold. I have also had the misfortune to visit one settlement and find how they treat The Wild there.

The Wild are immediately accepted by the entire community. They are always adopted by the kind and loving people who may have a little extra space in their homes. They are always provided for by the people and assimilated into that society's childhood groups. They begin learning with the other children in whatever education establishment the town has to offer. They often start with the younger children, learning the basics of reading, writing and speaking. For all intents and purposes, they behave like children born and raised in the community.

Possibly even more astounding is how they are treated by the other children in the towns. They are accepted immediately, brought into the fold and established as a member of the social norm. It is easy to assume there may have been cases of bullying or neglect from the other children and adults the first few times a Wild was re-integrated into humanity, but those prejudices have since been utterly destroyed. It's amazing that human nature, even now after everything they have been through, shines through at its best. In the darkest hour of mankind, human nature is the guiding light by which all find their way.

Many of the reclaimed Wild have been questioned extensively a few years after their integration. Unfortunately, their new education does not aid memory recall and not a single one of them has been able to remember where they came from or how their lives were before they were found. I do have several theories on this topic, but again, they can be found in 'Appendix 17'. I try to keep from rambling but sometimes it cannot be helped.

My biggest concern regarding The Wild is their respective parents. It stands to reason that there may be hundreds, if not thousands, of human survivors living out there in the ruins of the old world. Who cares for them? How do they survive? Why do they cast out their own? It could be for a specific reason, maybe they keep most to continue breeding and outcast certain children due to a defect that we have not been able to find.

Where are they living? Surely the number of human adults that can produce this many children at a fairly stable rate would need to eat and drink a not-insubstantial amount of food and water and produce quite a large amount of waste that we have, as of yet, been unable to find any trace of. It's a bizarre situation, but we can take some solace in the fact that these children are cared for and, by all accounts, happy and well-adjusted members of human society.