Chapter 1

It had been less than a year since they had disbanded the Primes and reworked the government on Sanctum. Emori was elected to be the Chancellor less than 5 months ago.

Emori lead with grace and humility. John was by her side through each meeting with the council.

Granted he was on the council along with Clarke, Bellemy, Raven, Echo, and Gabriel. They made decisions for Sanctum as a team, one united unit.

Everything was finally peaceful for them. There was currently an ongoing effort to build homes for everyone. Emori and Murphy were still living in the castle as Chancellor and Chancellor's ...boyfriend? Fiancé?

Murphy had proposed with the mind drives before the uprising/war. The wedding customs were messy because of how many cultures were now mixed into Sanctum. They had been so busy rebuilding humanity, that marriage was the last thing on their minds.

As of late, John Murphy's daily life was building homes. Custom homes per the majority vote of Sanctums Council.

Emori was supposed to be looking over and approving the laws of the land or a Constitution as it was many centuries ago. But recently Emori had fallen ill.

She hid as much as she could from her fiancé's attention but they were close and very attuned to each other at this point. He saw her appetite fluctuations and noticed how weak she seemed to be. Emori brushed it off with a light claim of exhaustion and how she was still adjusting to their new normal.

But today was too much for her. She felt so sick and could barely hide it from Murphy this morning. Enough was enough. She had a feeling that she couldn't delay the inevitable any longer.

So she marched into the medical building. (More like dragged herself) She found Jackson quickly. Luckily they weren't busy.

"Emori? What brings you here?" Jackson asked.

"I…" She tried. Taking a deep breath, Emori mustered up the courage to confess what's been plaguing her. "I think I'm pregnant."

A pleasantly surprised smile spreads across Jackson's face. "Oh, congratulations!" He leads her to a small examination room.

Jackson runs a few tests after talking with Emori about her symptoms.

"Pregnant," Jackson confirms.

"How- Why now? John and I have… Okay, we've been together a lot over the years. Why has this never happened before?"

"I think that because you were in survival mode for so long. Has your… intimacy with John increased in frequency?"

"It may have doubled or tripled…" Emori shares in a quieter tone.

"I think the frequency and your body to ease out of a long period of survival mode is how this happened," Jackson concludes.

"John's going to be floored-" Emori is cut off by a scream of pain coming from the front door of the building.

The sounds of rushed medical staff barking orders followed.

"Someone go fetch the Chancellor!" Bellemy's unmistakable deep voice booms.

Emori and Jackson both rush to catch a view of the chaos that's outside their examination curtain. They walk out to see the chaos is being taken into their own examination space.

Jackson sees the errand boy sent to find Emori and catches him and pointing to Emori who is approaching the people that sent for her.

Yanking back the curtain she finds Bellemy and one of the other home builders holding John up by his arms and helping him into the bed.

Emori rushed to his side and grabbed each side of his face, meeting his eyes. She then turns to assess his body and any injuries with her eyes, still holding his cheeks.

His right leg was cut and bruised and the pant leg that covered him was ripped to shreds.

"Oh, John!" What happened?" She demanded.

John winced in pain, trying to pull her closer to his upper half while Jackson and another doctor began to work on cleaning his wounds.

"It's nothing, just-" Murphy tried to say before he hissed in pain.

Bellemy takes over by saying "We thought we finished one of the brick walls but it came tumbling down and Murphy tripped trying to move me out of the way."

"The cement mix must have not been made correctly" the other home builder, Jerry added.

Murphy squeezes Emori's hand as the doctors tend to him.

"How did you get here so quickly?" John asks.

Without thinking Emori replies "I was in the other room."

"Why were you here?" Murphy says with concern for her over himself.

"It's not important right now. I'm fine." Emori tries.

"Mori-" he tires again before another pinch of pain comes again.

The doctors worked on cleaning his cuts, which stung like a bitch. That pain kept Murphy from questioning her any further, but his head still swam with those unspoken questions.

John Murphy had a broken leg. He would be out of work for at least the next 6-8 weeks. Emori had finally gotten him into their bed in the castle.

He was propped against the pillows with his eyes closed. Jackson had given him some pain medicine to make him more comfortable.

Emori changed into a nightgown and skipped into bed with her fiancé. She cuddled into his side, trying to get comfortable without disturbing him.

"Are you ready to tell me why the hell you were in medical, today?" John mumbles without opening his eyes.

"I went there to find Jackson."

"Why?" John asks, further prying information from her.

"I haven't been feeling well." She didn't want to just come out with it because that would make it all too real.

"Mori, I know. Did you find out what's going on?"

"John," She said softly to catch his attention. He opened his eyes to meet her. "I'm pregnant." She feels tears fill her eyes and a few slip down her cheeks.

"What?!" He exclaims. Murphy reaches to cradle the side of her face. "Mori, oh sweetie" He pulled her into a hug.

He was speechless but she could tell he had the same questions that she had.

"Jackson said that my body has been in survival mode for so long it was like birth control. My period has been so irregular my entire life because of malnutrition. Since living in Sanctum, I've been healthy and not just surviving… and we have been doing it a lot more than we had." Emori explained quietly.

"Are you happy about this?" John asks.

"Yes… I think I am. Although I feel really scared right now." She admitted.

"I'm happy," John tells her.

"You are?"

"I am."

"How are we supposed to do this though?"

"Together. It'll be an adjustment but our friends will help us."

John kisses her forehead lovingly. He holds her close for a long time. They talk about her fears and John tries to point out the fun exciting things. He is being the positive one today, knowing just what she needs.

Emori falls asleep in his arms, the same as every night.