Bang. Shannon felt the pain before she even registered the shot. The burning sensation and the rapid spreading warmth on her abdomen were all she could focus on. She stumbled through the trees and fell into something soft. The greenery blurred together and something dark came into her view. She focused as much of her effort as she could on the dark shape. Sayid. It was Sayid. She felt cold and then darkness crept into her vision and Sayid was gone. She could feel her body shutting down. Her lungs stayed still, her heart beat it's last beat, she could feel the light pulse of her blood slowly stopping circulation.

Then her eyes shot open and she gasped for air. No matter how she gasped she felt as though she still couldn't get enough oxygen. Her lungs burned, the bright light in the room blinded her causing her eyes to water.

"Welcome back to the world, Shannon Rutherford."

Her eyes were starting to adjust. She could see a dark shadow hovering to her left. More details started to come to her notice now that she could breathe again. There was a soft beeping noise behind her. She could hear more people walking about in the room. As her eyes continued adjusting she could see them walking around beds that had people strapped in on them. It was then that it dawned on her that she too was strapped in. She struggled against it but the wide white strap across her arms and and stomach kept her down. Her ankles were bound too as she discovered when she tried to kick her feet.

"Hold on now Missy we just need to check your vitals before we release you."

"Where am I?" She tried to demand but her throat was dry and it came out as an unattractive croak.

"You are in the Loup Labs testing room B."

"What?" She was just on the island. She was just shot! She lifted her head to look towards where her wound had been to find nothing. Her body was just as she remembered. Slim and sexy and no bullet wound. She was wearing the outfit she'd been wearing on the plane.

"You and your brother volunteered for our trial program." Boone! He knew about Boone. "The two of you came in here two days ago, remember?"

"If I say yes will you untie me?" Shannon spat. The man, who judging by the white coat was a doctor of some sort, sighed and sat down on a stool next to her.

"No need for the attitude. Your confusion is perfectly normal. You're strapped in for your own safety." As he spoke Shannon stopped struggling with a huff.

"Much better. Now as I was saying you and your brother," he flipped a piece of paper on his clipboard. "Boone, answered our ad for testers for our new virtual reality pill."

"We did?"

"He said something about you needing the cash."

Shannon tried to remember this. She thought of Boone, his face bloodied and his body covered by a blanket. She thought of him yelling at her on the beach. You're useless Shannon! Screaming for him after the on the plane when he handed her the inhaler and arguing at the cafe in the airport. But then it changed and he was talking to her outside a large white building.

"Do you remember it now?"

Shannon nodded, still a little dazed. She could remember Boone dragging her in the building. How it smelled like a hospital and how rude that receptionist had been to her. She looked back up at the doctor. He was checking his charts again.

"So...none of it was real?" He started undoing the straps that held her to the bed. She rubbed her upper arms where the straps had made them tender. He held a flashlight and waved it in front of her eyes.

"All you need to know is that what you felt was real."

Even more confused Shannon looked around the room, earlier she noticed the other people but not much more. Kate, Sun, some blonde women she vaguely recognized, a still very pregnant Claire, and Rose also lay in beds in a circle formation. A few other doctors were buzzing around checking on them.

For once in her life Shannon was speechless. A nurse brought her a bottle of water and then she was left alone to collect her thoughts. Her arm started to itch without even thinking about it she started to scratch at it. The instant her nails dragged across her skin it burned with an unexpected pain that caused her to swear out loud.

She looked down to see the source of the pain to find the crook of her elbow broken out in a rash. Red, painful bumps covered about two inches of skin in a were now two red lines running across it where her nails had touched it. She looked at her other arm to see if the rash was from the straps but the other arm looked clean. She gently touched the edge of the rash even though it burned and from where she touched it the veins in her arms started showing under her skin as though her touch had sent ripples of dark ink through them.

Horrified, she moved her hand away and the veins disappeared again. Her curiosity overpowered her fear and this time she touched the center of the rash. The burning was much worse and this time the darkness in her veins seemed to shoot out. Whatever it was caused them to bulge out as she watched the dark run down to her hand and she could feel the burning spread to her hand and up her shoulder and towards her neck.

A wave of panic hit her and she couldn't breathe. Her arm locked up and in her panic she failed it about trying to get it to work again. As she swung it around she knocked over a tray of scalpels. A nurse came by and pushed her back down on the bed. The burning spread through her entire right side and she could feel it crawl up her neck and onto her face. She could hear yelling over her own desperate breaths. Then the world tipped to one side and went black.