Literary plot genre: Dystopian, dramatic | Berlanorax, 2222
Main characters
There are few livable physical spaces left on earth and they are occupied by the population that has reached 70 billion individuals. The cause is in climate change: the poles have almost melted completely causing the flooding of vast territories. In addition, much of the remaining landmass is inhospitable due to high atmospheric temperatures.
Against this backdrop, the population has continued to grow by flocking to the last metropolises that survived the events. Arda, a prospector for precious minerals lives on the margins of society, along with her husband Corx, a laborer. The two love each other and desire a child but births are forbidden and when accepted, can only be artificial and piloted.
The call to adventure
Despite the desire, institutions deny Arda permission to seek a child. There is bad feeling between Arda and Corx, and when Arda proposes to try, Corx himself refuses. The penalty for getting pregnant without permission is the most severe of all: death, and the young man does not want to lose his wife. But Arda decides to skip the sterilization cycle anyway. Without telling her partner she manages to get pregnant with him. The pregnancy changes her and she decides that for nothing in the world will she give up the creature she is carrying.
The conflict
Arda has to hide her pregnancy and it is very complicated. As time goes by, it becomes more and more difficult for her to hide her physical form and continue her active seeking. When she decides to confess the truth to Corx, the man is stunned, but he loves his wife too much not to help her.
However, the risks are high: anyone could turn them in and get a reward in return. Arda, amidst a thousand vicissitudes, manages to conceal her state, but when she is sick she will have to turn to a doctor whom she greatly esteems. The man will also help the woman and assist her in the following weeks, proving to be an important ally.
The key
Arda seeks the space to be a woman and a mother. It will be her own doctor who will denounce her, forcing the couple to flee. It will be a desperate attempt, and Corx, not to make it valo, will sacrifice himself so that his wife and daughter can survive. Arda flees to the most inhospitable territories on the planet to give birth to Libera, her baby girl. And no one will ever know if she has succeeded or not.
The alternatives
This plot can be altered in important ways by changing the activities of the protagonist couple: they could be two soldiers who are themselves engaged in enforcing the birth law. Or the couple could be children of wealthy families that have fallen into disgrace.
The key role of the plot is played by the situation on the planet and its overcrowding.
Finally, by abandoning Earth references and moving to a fantasy planet, the genre can easily become Sci-fi. Or it can be set in the fantasy genre.
