In the middle of the 21st century, the birth rate between boys and girls suddenly and unexpectedly changed. Where previously the rate was more or less 50-50, in 2042 the rate was closer to 65-35, female to male. At first, scientists tried to explain it away as a statistical anomaly, but year on year the number of boys being born kept falling, until by 2055 less than 1% of all new-born babies worldwide were boys.
As the phenomenon showed no sign of stopping or reversing, the scientific community desperately looked for answers, all to no avail. The years ticked by and national governments began to lose hope that there would ever be a way to restore the gender balance in birth rates, and they began to restructure societies in an attempt to adjust to the new increasingly female dominated population.
In the beginning, government resources were focused on monitoring and protecting the welfare of the remaining males. Within 20 years however, as women began to occupy every major position in government and industry, the policy began to change. Political thinkers understood that the biggest threat to national security was the impending population crisis, as there were simply not enough men to maintain the birth rate by normal methods. Leading politicians proposed emergency measures requiring men to report for a new national service, requiring them to provide regular sperm samples. Human rights groups led vocal protests against the proposals, arguing that it would be de-humanising and a moral obscenity, and eventually the idea was dropped.
Female-led right wing groups, recognising the consequences of major and rapid population loss, began subtle campaigns of propaganda against the rights of men for self determination, arguing that men who refused to sign up were selfish and unpatriotic. At first, while society still clung to the liberal outlook of the past, these ideas were kept to the fringes. But as resources began to dry up, and public services starting to decline due to staff shortages, anti-male attitudes began to become commonplace, and men began to take more of the blame for the crisis.
By 2068, men, who were now a small minority and considered by many to be responsible for societies plight, had been subject to a long and sophisticated campaign of propaganda, and the first all-female political party was elected on a platform of male segregation and 'population control' measures. Boys were taught in separate schools, and girls were brought up to believe that men, although physically stronger than women, were much less intelligent and socially sophisticated, much like other members of the ape family. Men were still officially allowed equal right in most areas, although there were many who thought that this was an unnecessary hangover from the previous era, and was simply political correctness. Left wing political groups had also adjusted to the new understanding that men were inferior, but there was still resistance to the suggestion that men should be denied their freedom, even for the benefit of national interest. Slavery, it was agreed, was not a characteristic they wanted to be associated with the new matriarchal society they were building. Instead, those men that were deemed acceptable physical specimens were incentivised to volunteer to become donors at government-funded clinics. Leaflets were distributed encouraging men to apply, making dubious claims about what national honour (not to mention physical pleasure) they could expect to receive.
The clinics themselves were shrouded in mystery, enjoying the freedom of minimal regulation, and many rumours circulated about what methods were employed there, though there were very few first-hand accounts from men who had actually checked out. Regardless, the clinics were a reasonable success, and productive enough to keep the population at a functional level.
***
Kane had become tired of his job in the mines. He'd moved around the few job roles that were available to him, each one physically demanding and badly paid. The one thing he had to look forward to was his weekly drink with the guys after work on Saturday. They were only allowed a couple of course, but it gave him an hour or two to unwind a little and share a joke with his colleagues, always under the watchful eye of the staff and various cameras.
Nothing much was said or done by the men in the social spaces without the organisation being aware of it. One week, Kane and his friends were discussing one of the 'honeytrap' posters they had on the noticeboard. Most guys knew it would be unwise to sign up for one of those places, and they had all heard a different story about what happened to the poor saps who had. Most believed the 'resorts', as they were called, were little more than prisons. Some even suspected that a stay in the resort would mean a drastic shortening of your life expectancy, as your body was taken apart for research. The conversation moved on, though at the back of his mind, Kane was a little curious about the resorts, though he kept this to himself. 'Could they be any worse than this?' he wondered to himself. He figured it would likely be a hospital type building, where he had to jerk off into a cup a couple of times a week. Honestly, with his back and shoulders aching after another 70 hour week down a mineshaft, that didn't seem like a bad life at all.
All the following week he worked in silence, as he pondered on his life. What was keeping him here? He didn't want to spend the rest of his life risking his neck for peanuts. As he finished another gruelling shift, he looked around at his friends and decided to himself he'd had enough, that he was ready to try something new. He was sure he could always come back to the mines if it didn't work out. He reported to the manager's office and told the woman behind the desk that he wanted to sign up for national service. The manager looked at him warily, then sent for the rep from the resorts.
