"Hey, let go of me."
Two burly black bodyguards, one on each side, picked up Ethan and threw him in front of Ms. LaMaya.
"Choose one: internal or external fertilization," Ramaya said coldly, her piercing gaze making Ethan feel exposed, as if she could see right through him.
"Fertilization? What are you talking about?" Ethan asked, bewildered. He tugged at his torn shirt, glancing warily at the bodyguards beside him.
"This guy's new. Codename 324."One of the bodyguards leaned down slightly and explained in a low voice.
Ramaya scoffed, clearly annoyed by Ethan's ignorance. "Let me explain it to you, then. You've been selected for a 'pregnancy opportunity.' If you choose external fertilization, we'll implant a test-tube embryo into your body. If you choose internal fertilization, you can pick any woman from this screen for artificial copulation." She handed a selector to Ethan, adjusted her glasses, and leaned back in her chair.
"But… I'm a man! How can a man get pregnant?" Ethan's eyes widened in shock, struggling to grasp the absurdity of the situation. Everything felt surreal, as if he were trapped in a nightmare.
In reality, Ethan had no idea where he was. He was in Omega Fortress, a secret cloning facility hidden deep within Death Valley, USA. The place was controlled by an organization known as the Phoenix Guards. Ethan Black had been synthesized just the day before, with no memories at all, and was completely unaware of what was happening around him. And now, he was being told that he had to get "pregnant"!
"Can I choose neither? This is completely insane." Ethan stood up in frustration, intending to sneak out through the door, but the bodyguards quickly drew their guns, stopping him in his tracks.
"You can refuse," Ramaya said, crossing her arms over her chest, her tone icy, "but if you do, I'll deal with you right here and now."
With a heavy sigh, Ethan reluctantly sat back down. "Alright, I'll choose. I guess it's not so bad if I go with external fertilization. I mean, I'm a guy, after all."
"So if I choose external, can I pick any of the women on this screen?" Ethan asked, gesturing to the selector in front of him. He glanced at Ramaya, who simply nodded and made a dismissive hand gesture, signaling that he was free to choose as he pleased.
Ethan began swiping through the screen, silently judging each option. "This one's too fat, this one's too skinny, this one's a bit old… Oh, this one's got a nice figure.The key is big breasts."
"That's the one," Ethan finally decided, his finger stopping on a picture. The woman in the photo had a slim figure, with long, thick eyelashes, and most importantly, a body with the perfect curves. She was Elia Wells, one of the female clones at Omega Fortress. She had been there for two years but had never been chosen.
"Are you sure it's her?" Ramaya asked, raising her head slightly, a subtle and nearly imperceptible emotion flickering in her eyes.
"I'm sure," Ethan replied without hesitation, handing the selector back to Ramaya.
"Alright, the rule is you have 30 minutes to complete the pairing," Ramaya reminded him calmly.
Ethan was led by the bodyguards into a small, empty room—Room 18 of the artificial fertilization section. The room had only a white bed, a small bathroom, and a countdown display above the door, which now began ticking down from 30 minutes.
He noticed a red light blinking on a camera mounted above the bed. Approaching it, Ethan cursed under his breath, "What the hell? They're recording everything, even broadcasting it live? Who's that perverted?" He tried to cover the camera with a towel from the bathroom, but the camera was too high. No matter how much he jumped, he couldn't reach it. His actions triggered the security system, and suddenly, an alarm blared through the room.
"I was so close… just a bit more…" Ethan muttered, still jumping, desperate to block the camera.
Meanwhile, Ramaya's voice came through the bodyguard's earpiece, "Stop him, now."
The bodyguard burst into the room and jabbed Ethan's thigh with an electric baton.
"Ah—my leg, my…!" Ethan doubled over in pain, clutching his groin, his face contorted in agony as he collapsed to the floor.
Just as Ethan was beginning to recover from the pain, he heard the sound of high heels clicking on the floor. Elia entered the room, her long, silky hair cascading down to her hips, and her alluring figure barely concealed by her V-neck uniform. Ethan immediately forgot the pain, his gaze fixed on her with a goofy grin spreading across his face.
After the bodyguard escorted Elia inside, he exited the room and locked the door behind him. The countdown timer above them began ticking down.
"Hey there, Elia, I'm Ethan Black," Ethan said quickly, trying to break the ice.
"I don't care who you are. Just shut up and get this over with," Elia's voice was unexpectedly rough, tinged with a hoarse edge, and her tone was filled with impatience. She sat on the bed, swiftly pulling off her stockings and tossing them aside with the efficiency of a no-nonsense tomboy.
Ethan turned his back to her, mumbling under his breath, "Oh God, can I get a do-over?"
"Are you gonna do this or not?" Elia barked, her irritation palpable.
Ethan glanced down at himself. Maybe it was the electric shock, but no matter how hard he tried, his body just wouldn't cooperate. The timer continued to tick away relentlessly.
"Give me ten more minutes," Ethan pleaded, looking back at Elia, who stood there with her arms crossed, glaring at him.
"Come on, man, it's live-streaming right now!" Ethan thought, trying to psych himself up, but five more minutes slipped by with no progress. The countdown reminded them that time was running out, and Elia's patience had all but vanished.
She strode over to Ethan, roughly pushing him onto the bed before climbing on top of him.
"She's so… intense," Ethan thought, stunned by her forcefulness. Elia glanced up at the timer, which showed only one minute remaining. She urged Ethan to hurry up.
"Faster! Come on!" Elia's breathing grew heavier.
Ethan felt a surge of heat wash over him, his mind going blank as he let out a long, drawn-out moan.
"Ah~ah!"
As the timer hit zero, Ethan finally came to his senses.
"Wait… does this mean I'm pregnant now?"
"You better give birth to my child," Elia demanded as she quickly put her stockings back on, giving Ethan one last stern look before walking out of the room.
"This place is insane… Everything's upside down, even the roles between men and women. I've got to find a way out of here," Ethan thought to himself.