Part 1

A sci-fi retelling of Snow White + Sleeping Beauty + genetic engineering.

Like most engineered kids, Amara can't wait to turn sixteen. Sixteen means confirmation of immunity to the aging infection that plagues mankind. And confirmation means freedom, leaving behind the quarantine of the Tower where she's lived all her life for a new life in the city -- no filtration veils required.

But the queen has other plans. The queen is dying and needs a new heart. Daughter or not, Amara's will do. A Guardsman wants to save Amara -- but is it for love, or his own dark want?

(~8950 words)