SCAVENGERS

     After the GreatFire, those who lived in the great cities of Mankind knew nothing about living in the wilds; they were used to cities of steel and glass and a ground covered with concrete and asphalt. They knew nothing about hunting or fishing or building shelters or . . . anything. Their skill was ordering lattes at coffee shops, or getting take-out, or buying things online; none of those skills would help them after the world was burned away. So instead of fleeing their crumbling cities, they stayed. 

     The aftermath of the GreatFire was terrible. With a cloud of ash and smoke encircling the globe, the LongNight made it difficult for any of the survivors to grow crops (not that they really knew how) or raise livestock. So they took to the tunnels and basements nestled under the crumbling remains of skyscrapers. They hid in the rubble of their cities, searching for anything that would keep them alive. Eventually, these people figured out how to grow food underground, producing just enough to keep some of them alive. They thought the worst was over . . . but they were wrong.

     The GreatFire brought with it the ColdHeat (radiation). Because of the long exposures to the ColdHeat, the survivor’s bodies started to betray them. Organs failed, lungs worked poorly, hearts labored to pump blood; survival was a lesson in pain and misery. But then the smartest of the survivors found technology that could be installed into their bodies, to help those failing organs and keep them alive. Word spread, and quickly the main focus of the survivors was the hunt for any technology that could be used to keep one alive. Sometimes, they modified the technology themselves, for being able to make a device to help you breath or make your liver more efficient became a necessary skill if you wanted to survive. Many died, but the most clever survived and found tech that could be used on their own bodies or traded for food.