Adam pushed himself up, but something was wrong. His body still lay on the ground. A perfect copy of himself, motionless. Rage surged through him—he had no time for this. He only wanted one thing: to get his daughter back.
He took off after Pictoria. As he ran, a shockwave erupted behind him, flattening the trees in his path. Ahead, a spaceship loomed, its thrusters igniting. He sprinted harder, leaping onto the hull just as it lifted off.
The force of takeoff sent him tumbling, somersaulting across the metal surface. His fingers scraped for a hold, and at the last moment, he caught the edge of a panel, hanging on with everything he had.
Higher and higher they climbed. The air thinned. His lungs burned. His vision blurred.
Then—darkness.
When Adam came to, they were no longer in the sky. No longer on Eden. The ship floated in the vastness of space, encased in a shimmering bubble of light.
Time passed in a daze. Then, a planet appeared below. Unlike Eden, it was barren nothing but endless stretches of red soil.
The ship landed with a dull thud. Adam climbed off, eyes locked on Pictoria as she strode ahead. He followed her through the dusty streets, scanning his surroundings.
People in cages. Packed behind rusted trucks like livestock. Others haggled over prosthetic limbs—metal arms, mechanical spines, even artificial eyes gleaming under dim lights.
Pictoria led him into a building. The air smelled of rust and sweat.
"Pic, come on. I told you—no babies," a gruff voice said. A man with metal dentures sat at a cluttered table, prosthetics scattered around him.
She ignored him.
The man's gaze shifted to Adam. "Who's your friend?"
"I don't know him," she said flatly.
The room tensed. Chairs scraped. People stood, forming a loose circle around Adam.
"I don't want trouble," Adam said, stepping forward. "I just want my child."
A man shattered a bottle against the table. Another swung a metal pipe from behind. Adam ducked, shoving him back.
The crowd surged.
He grabbed a chair and swung it wide, forcing them to step back. Mid-swing, he let go, using the distraction to leap onto a table.
Jump. Another table.
Mid-air toward the third—something slammed into his chest. A shockwave sent him crashing through chairs.
Dazed, he looked up. The man with metal dentures stood over him, aiming a gun.
"Leave. Now."
Adam winced, pushing himself up. "I'm not leaving without my baby."
The man pulled the trigger.
A deafening blast. The bullet tore into the crowd. People collapsed. The impact rippled through the room like a shockwave.
In the chaos, Adam lunged, twisting the gun from the man's grip. Panting, he backed into a hallway lined with doors.
He yanked open the first on his left—
A greenhouse. Artificial lights mimicked daylight, feeding rows of plants.
The first door on the right—
A room wrapped in plastic. The walls glistened.
He moved on.
The second door on the right—
Storage. Boxes and barrels stacked high.
The second door on the left—
Pictoria. Standing with her back turned.
Adam leveled the gun. "Put the baby down. Slowly."
She turned, cradling the infant.
"You put the gun down," she said, voice cold.
Adam's grip tightened. He couldn't shoot. Not with the baby so close.
Pictoria tilted her head. "Have you forgotten what happened to your wife?"
His breath caught. His hands trembled.
The gun slipped from his fingers.
You guys are a cute family, but I have a job to do," Pictoria said before lunging at them.
Adam instinctively shielded Chavah and Yves once more. "Go ahead," he told Chavah, urging her to move.
Pictoria and Adam exchanged blows. She threw a punch, but Adam caught it mid-air. With a swift, brutal strike of his elbow, a sickening crack, he shattered her forearm breaking both the ulna and radius.
Pictoria screamed in agony, clutching her broken arm as she stumbled backward. Adam advanced, his expression dark with determination.
Hearing the scream, Chavah hesitated and turned back. She saw Adam closing in on Pictoria, his hands tightening into fists.
Adam seized Pictoria by the neck.
"No! You don't need to kill her!" Chavah's voice cut through the tension.
Adam hesitated, then let go. He stepped back, exhaling sharply. Turning to Chavah, he gently took the baby from her arms, his anger fading for a moment as he played with the child.
Then, something shifted in the air.
Before he could react, Pictoria—her face twisted in pain and rage—wrapped her uninjured arm around Chavah's neck.
"No, please—" Adam's voice barely escaped his lips before the sickening crack echoed through the space.
Chavah's body went limp.
Adam rushed forward, eyes wide with horror. He carefully placed the baby on the ground and gathered Chavah in his arms.
"How… how could this happen?" he whispered, grief consuming him. Then his gaze caught something—her clothing, torn near Pictoria's broken arm. Realization struck like a blade to his heart.
Shock numbed him, but when he finally looked up, his stomach dropped.
The baby was gone.
Pictoria had taken Yves.
The sorrow inside him twisted into something darker.
He clenched his fists. Recalling what happened to his wife made him angrier.
Adam stood there, helpless. He was at her mercy, and he hated it.
Desperate to turn the tide, he glanced around for anything that could give him an advantage. Just as he was about to lose hope, the door behind him creaked open.
A man rushed in, attempting to attack him from behind. But Adam reacted instantly—grabbing his attacker's arm and twisting it behind his back.
"Let him go," Pictoria commanded.
Adam hesitated but ultimately released the man.
"You okay?" the man asked, concern in his voice.
Pictoria nodded, dismissing him with a glance. Without another word, the man turned and left the room.
Adam exhaled sharply, his patience wearing thin. "What do you want?"
Pictoria sighed and sank into a chair, cradling the baby like a lifeline. "I think I already have what I want." Her grip tightened, as if she knew the child was the only thing keeping her alive.
Adam's jaw clenched.
"What assurance do I have that you won't kill me if I give you the baby?" She met his gaze.
"I give you my word."
A tense silence stretched between them before Pictoria slowly placed the baby on the ground and stepped back.
In a flash, Adam seized her and slammed her against the wall. Before she could react, he pressed a knife—one he had stolen from the man earlier—against her throat.
Pictoria smirked. "Wow. Kinky."
Adam's grip tightened. He remembered how Chavah had died, all because she didn't want him to kill Pictoria. The memory twisted in his chest.
With a deep breath, he let her go.
Pictoria reached into her pocket and pulled out a small vial, pressing it into his hand.
Adam frowned. "What is this?"
"The antidote," she said simply.
Without hesitation, Adam scooped up Yves and quickly administered the antidote. The baby let out a sharp cry, her tiny body trembling in his arms.
Holding her close, Adam whispered soothing words, his focus now on calming his child.
Without looking back, he walked out of the room, cradling Yves against his chest.