Surviving in a World Without Women

“Aria, sign your name here and give up the inheritance your father left you. I’ll let you go. Do we have a deal?” A chilling voice demanded.

At the cliff’s edge, Aria Ashcroft, dressed in a simple school uniform, was forced to her knees. A strong grip held her shoulders in place.

Facing her were two women in elegant attire.

One was her stepmother, Chloe Ashcroft. The other was her stepsister, Bella Ashcroft.

Aria had lost her mother when she was very young. After her father remarried, Chloe moved into their home, bringing her own daughter, Bella. Now, with Aria’s father gone, his entire estate had passed to Aria.

When Chloe and Bella discovered this, they were consumed by bitter resentment. They had Aria kidnapped and brought to this desolate place, determined to force her to relinquish everything.

Bruised and battered from their abuse, Aria looked up at their twisted faces. She gave them a cold, defiant smile. In a split second of distraction, she twisted free and threw herself backward over the cliff’s edge.

She would rather see everything donated after her death than let those two vipers claim a single credit.

Aria’s father hadn’t died in an accident. He had been murdered by Chloe and Bella. After her abduction, Aria had activated a hidden tracker. It had already sent out a distress signal.

Along with that signal, the evidence of Chloe and Bella’s crime had been transmitted.

She had no family left in this world. Worse, she was afflicted with an incurable disease. Living on would only mean more suffering.

If life was nothing but misery, she would choose her own end.

She would use her death to ensure Chloe and Bella paid a far heavier price.

As her consciousness dimmed, Aria wondered if she would see her father again in another life.

Her lips formed a final whisper. “Dad, I miss you.”

In the Aetalaca Era, Lilith Graham, the last living female in the Andromeda Sector, passed away at the age of 1,072. The time was 6:45 this morning. The cause was the Clyssia Virus.

[From this day forward, not a single female remains in the entire Andromeda Sector.]

[The long winter of the Aetalaca Era has begun.]

In his living quarters, Marshal Nathan Evans listened to the obituary through his Optic Brain implant. A deep ache settled in his chest, his expression turning grim.

The last female was truly gone.

With no females left, the genetic chain was destined to collapse. Doomsday had finally arrived for them all.

“Marshal Evans, Dr. Cortez has arrived,” the butler announced quietly.

Hearing the report, Nathan’s voice was edged with ice. “Let him in.”

Sensing the Marshal’s dark mood, the butler didn’t dare speak further. He slipped out silently to usher Gabriel Cortez inside.

When Gabriel entered, Nathan turned to study him.

Gabriel’s face was etched with fatigue, yet a stubborn resolve lingered in his features. His eyes, however, betrayed a grief he couldn’t conceal. He was the finest physician in the Andromeda Sector, yet even he had failed to save Lilith.

“Marshal Evans, I…” Gabriel began, his voice rough with emotion.

He faltered, unsure what to say to Nathan. This man was not just his superior, but the guardian of their entire civilization.

Only a month ago, Gabriel had vowed to Nathan that he would find a way.

“Gabriel, tell me truthfully,” Nathan said, his voice low. “Is there truly no cure for the Clyssia Virus? It took those we cherished most. Now it has taken Ms. Graham.”

“Ms. Graham was the final flicker of hope for everyone in the Andromeda Sector. With her gone… it feels as if all hope has vanished with her.”

Gabriel’s shoulders slumped. “I am sorry, Marshal. The Clyssia Virus is… relentless. It targets females exclusively. We have exhausted every avenue. Nothing has proven effective.”

“I failed. I… I could do nothing.”

“However, we have made progress with the artificial female synthetics. Even minimal interaction can significantly soothe the genetic instability in beastmen.”

“Furthermore, the new generation of Genesis Pods has been deployed. They can reduce the incidence of genetic disorders in newborn beastmen.”

Nathan’s gaze was piercing. “Is it truly impossible to cultivate a viable female within the Genesis Pods?”

Gabriel shook his head, defeated. “Yes. The Clyssia Virus is omnipresent and too potent. Even with complete isolation from creation, none survive upon decanting.”

“Not a single female has ever emerged alive from a Genesis Pod, despite all our efforts.”

“I am sorry, Marshal. I have failed you.”

Hearing this, the young marshal closed his eyes. A wave of profound hopelessness washed over him.

Ever since the Clyssia Virus scourged the Andromeda Sector two millennia ago, it had systematically eradicated every female.

They had tried everything. Nothing worked.

Now, the Genesis Pods maintained their population, but every beastman born from them lacked female genetic material. From birth, they were cursed with genetic disorders, doomed to a life of pain.

With Lilith’s passing, it felt as if the last thread of hope had been severed. Despair was a tangible weight in the air.

Without females, the Andromeda Sector was truly doomed.