Happiness turned to heartbreak, however, when Mia came down with the disease only weeks after the former Earth women had been welcomed to Pandora. Good nursing pulled her through, but when she was examined afterwards, she was discovered to be barren, much to the shock of all present. Her new husband, Abir, was just as stunned as she, but he refused to divorce her, stating that he cared deeply for her, and he would not put her aside. This eased some of Mia's pain, but the heartbreak showed clearly in her eyes every time Hope saw her, and her heart ached for her friend.
Penny was next to take ill, and it wasn't long before all of the former Earth women also became ill. Penny was one of the unfortunate casusalties, followed by Annie, Lola, and their unborn children. Emily survived, but lost her baby, much to the heartbreak of Agni, her new husband. Like Abir, Agni stuck by his wife's side, despite the pain of losing yet another precious life. Before long, Emily, Hope and Mia were the only survivors, but with Mia and Emily now being rendered barren, Hope found all eyes were on her. She didn't blame everyone for being worried that she or her child might be the next to succumb, but all the same, she felt like a lab rat. Her baby had, against all odds, survived, but even so, it was a very tense time, and though Hope submitted to regular tests without complaint, she had the nasty feeling that, despite their strict code, the Pandorans were going to find a loophole in their promises not to separate her from her unborn child.
Arjun was very grim when she broached this towards the end of her pregnancy. "No one can find 'loopholes'," he said shortly. "It is literally impossible for us to break our word, either directly or indirectly." He sighed and gently stroked his wife's hair - they'd been married for two months, and Hope had found him to be a very satisfactory spouse. "But I understand your fear," he said. "If they try to take your child from you, I will personally hold them answerable. Your child is the very last chance we have of survival, but no one shall force him or her to become an 'incubator' for the next generation. You have my word on this."
Hope felt infinitely better, but the fear persisted despite her best efforts to rein it in. Arjun would, naturally, be the first to vehemently protest his veracity; being a Pandoran, he'd jump to the defence of his people in a heartbeat, and Hope couldn't help but wonder if he was lying in some way to try and make her feel better. It was all very well for him to promise to stand up to anyone trying to take her child from her, but he hadn't won her over fully. Hope, however, had the good sense to keep her mouth shut, and though it pained her to deceive her husband, she knew better than to broach further doubts to him. It would only get him angry, and Hope didn't want to risk another man turning on her. Her scars from James' treatment were still raw in many ways, but Arjun had, on the surface at least, proven himself to be an exemplary man, and Hope prayed, as she got ready for another test, that her fears were groundless. She didn't want to go on the run again, but if she had to, she was ready.
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