"A wise man once said that war was coming to this island. I think it just got here."
Chapter one: LA X
From deep within the wreckage of the Hatch came a faint cry. A sound barely audible, but enough for him to find the one thing he had given up on the moment she let go of his hand.
Hope.
She was alive.
"Juliet?!" he cried, uncertain if what he had heard was simply a cruel trick of his imagination.
"… James?" came a muffled reply that cast aside any doubt in his mind that she was gone. If he needed more of a confirmation, he needn't look further than the shocked expression on Kate's face as she frowned in disbelief at the voice calling out from beneath the wreckage.
"Oh my God… She's alive!" Kate choked, as she turned to the others.
In a heartbeat Sawyer was bent over the hatch calling down to her as he frantically began shifting the barricade of metal that separated him from her. "JULIET!"
For what seemed like an eternity, he waited for Jin to arrive with the van that contained the chains needed for them to be able to shift the beam that was blocking entry into the hatch. If he wasn't already scared out of his mind, he was now. He hadn't heard her call out since saying his name – and he prayed he wasn't too late.
Although Kate tried her best to reassure him, she wasn't helping the situation in the least. In fact her very presence was a painful reminder of why he and Juliet found themselves in this grave situation – because he had looked at her.
Why did'ya look at her dammit?
"Sawyer she knows we're here," Kate tried to reassure him. "She's probably just resting. Jin will be here any minute now..." She placed her hand firmly on his shoulder as if to say, 'everything is going to be okay' but everything was far from okay. Juliet needed him now and he couldn't get to her.
She could be dead for all he knew?
He shuddered, quickly dismissing the thought. She was going to be okay, he'd make sure of it.
He wasn't about to lose her because of some asshole, who decided to wreck their lives by detonating a hydrogen bomb in hope of changing the past. Sawyer had known the plan was destined for failure from the outset, and unfortunately he was proven right. The plan had failed, and now Juliet was facing the consequences of Jack's actions.
His mind raced to an image of her bloody and alone, buried under the rubble, and his body tensed with anger. This was Jack's fault.
"If she dies, I'll kill him." he declared darkly through gritted teeth, and he looked over to Jack who was busy clearing the entrance to the hatch. Sawyer didn't look to see Kate's reaction to his words. He already knew what her response would be, and quite honestly he didn't care. It was Jack who deserved to be lying in the bottom of that pit, not Juliet.
The seconds that it took Jin to pull up with the van seemed like hours as Sawyer watched impatient and helpless, but Jack wasted no time as he ran towards the rear end of the vehicle to attach the chains. He made sure that they were secure whilst Sawyer made himself useful by fastening the other end of the chain to the metal beam. Anything to speed up the process and get her out of there.
Once it was fixed in place, Sawyer shouted for Jin to start the engine and on the count of three, the rest of them used all their strength to shift the beam. But no sudden movements. To Sawyer's growing distress everything had to be done slowly, or else the whole wreckage could cave in, and he didn't want to think of what that would mean for Juliet. To his relief, the beam shifted and opened up a small entrance into the hatch, or what was left of it.
"Gimme' a flashlight!" Sawyer cried as he scrambled down into the hatch. Jack quickly handed him a torch and Sawyer began to make his way down the dark tunnel of debris, pushing aside the metallic objects that blocked his path.
"Sawyer, be careful down there!" he heard Kate call down to him as he lowered himself further down into the hatch.
It was dark, damp and the place was unstable. How was he supposed to find her amongst all the wreckage? The thought lingered, but he pushed it to the back of his mind and kept moving forward. He couldn't give up. He wouldn't.
He called out her name, but was wary of the tremors that shook the debris each time. Instead he resorted waving the flashlight frantically at his surroundings, looking in all the shadows and crevasses for any sign of her. He shoved aside more metal debris when his flashlight caught sight of something… And then he saw her.
"Juliet?!" She was lying unmoving and still. Her eyes closed, her face bloodied, and her body crushed beneath the fallen debris. He fought back the urge to wretch and turn away, the sight before him was so horrific, and it tore at his heart. "Juliet…" He rushed to her side, scrambling over the protruding metal until he was by her side. A barrel pinned her to the ground, and he didn't hesitate to lift it off of her, freeing her upper body. But her legs remained wedged under a metal beam. "Wake up!" he pleaded no louder than a whisper as he crouched down beside her and stroked her bloodied face with his shaking hands, but she didn't open her eyes. Panicking, he shook her shoulders in attempt to wake her up. "Juliet open your eyes. Open your eyes, baby…"
To his relief her eyes flickered open and her beautiful blue orbs stared back at him.
Thank God…
"Hi" she said, smiling up at him weakly.
"Hey…" he choked back in response. He gently stroked his fingers through her blonde hair that was matted in blood. She was in a dazed state, and it was clear that she hadn't really processed where she was or what was happening. This relieved Sawyer, because it meant that for now he could try and keep her calm.
Her eyes left his and she looked helplessly at her surroundings, "Wh-where are we?"
"Don't you worry about that, you're fine," he assured her. "I just gotta get you outta here, okay?" He forced his eyes away from her and turned his prompt attention to the piece of metal that was trapping her lower body. How was he going to get her out of this?
She shook her head in disbelief when the realisation of what had happened dawned on her. "No, we're still on the island…" He could hear the defeat in her voice and it killed him. If he could trade places with her, he would do so in a heartbeat.
He cupped her bloodied cheek with his hand, "It's okay… I just gotta get this loose enough to get you out." he explained, failing to hide the panic in his voice as he looked around at the metal boulder crushing her legs.
She shook her head, ready to burst into tears, "No… I hit the bomb and your still here!"
"What? You hit the bomb?!" He felt his stomach flip. "….Why?"
She placed a bloodied hand on his cheek and smiled at him tearfully. "I wanted you to be able to go home. I wanted to make it so that you never came to this damn Island – And it didn't work!"
She had sacrificed herself for him, for everyone… she had tried to save him. Now it was his turn to save her.
He brought a finger to her mouth, hushing her with his gentle words. "Ssshhh its okay… I'm gonna get you outta here and we're all gonna go home together, ya' hear me?" She shook her head at his words. She wanted to believe him, she really did, but she knew it wasn't going to happen. She wasn't going to make it home.
"Sawyer, is she okay?" Kate called down to him from above.
"I'm working on it!" he groaned in reply as he struggled to lift the metal beam that entrapped her lower body. He bit back the tears and focused all his strength into lifting the beam. He let out a cry of pain as the beam shifted, giving him just enough time to free her legs. He could hear her cries of pain as he lifted her up from the ground to cradle her broken body in his arms. "I've got you…. don't worry…" He whispered as he stroked the back of her head that rested weakly in the crook of his neck.
It relieved him to feel the steady rise and fall of her chest against his as the two of them took a moment to just hold each other. Silence fell as they were content with hearing only the sound of others breathing. In a way it was the most beautiful sound, and it was the only noise either of them needed to hear.
It showed they were still alive. Still together.
"We should get coffee sometime?" he heard her say quietly, and he knew then that she was starting to slip away…
"I gotta get you outta here." he choked, looking up at the exit of the swan hatch.
"…We can go Dutch?"
At hearing her words, he closed his eyes trying desperately to bite back the flow of tears. He broke away from her, just far enough so that he could lift her chin to face him. Her blue eyes looked up at him with a blank expression, and it broke his heart to realise that she no longer recognised him.
"Juliet, it's me."
Please, please remember me baby…
"…James?" His heart melted when she said his name, and he surrendered to his tears that he had fought so hard to conceal.
"Yeah, it's me baby."
She gazed up at him with her piercing blue eyes that were now rimmed with tears, "Kiss me." she said softly, as though requesting a dying a wish.
"You got it Blondie."
Her lips were warm and gentle, and their touch gave him the strength he needed. He ignored the bitter taste of blood in his mouth and focussed on the feel of her lips against his. He tried to savour the moment, making sure that he would never forget the feeling. They parted from the kiss but their lips remained in close proximity, and he could feel the warmth of her breath as she spoke.
"I have to tell you something," she began, her voice weak and tired. "And it's really, really important."
He let her head to fall back in his arms and he nodded for her to continue, "Tell me." he said, stroking her face with the pad of his thumb. Her mouth was moving but no words came. "…Juliet?" He shook her gently in his arms, encouraging her to continue. "You tell me, you tell me…"
Then her head fell heavy against his chest.
"Juliet?" he pleaded tearfully, "Baby, you tell me… Juliet…" Her bruised and broken body fell limp in his arms, and his heart caught in his chest. "You don't get to leave me! Not now…" he pleaded, shaking her violently, but she didn't respond. He cradled her in his arms, clinging to her as tightly as he could, refusing to let go. "No, I'm not letting you leave me… not now." He scooped her broken body into his arms and made his way through the metal debris as quickly as he could, careful not to hurt her. "Hey, I need some help down here, now!"
. . . . . . . .
After hearing Sawyer's call for help, Kate rushed over to get Jack who was busy tending to a wounded Sayid in the back of the Dharma van.
"Jack!" she said breathlessly as slid open the van door, "It's Sawyer, he needs your help. You need to go now!"
Jack made sure Sayid was comfortable before stepping out of the van and running off towards the Swan hatch. He stopped at the edge of the crater and stared down at the wreckage of the hatch, taken aback by the sight that lay before him. Sawyer was looking up at him from the bottom of the crater, with Juliet in his arms.
"….She's not opening her eyes… Jack… help her…" Sawyer pleaded.
Jack wasted no time in climbing down into the pit to help his friends. He ran towards Sawyer and examined the woman in his arms.
"I've got a pulse," Jack confirmed as he placed two fingers on her wrist, "but it's very weak…"
"Thank God…" Sawyer breathed, relief flooding his features.
Jack knew he needed to act quickly and carefully if he was going to save her life. "Okay, bring her to the van." he ordered Sawyer assertively.
Together they lifted Juliet from the Crater, and Jack ended up with Juliet in his arms while Sawyer ran ahead to the van. He couldn't bring himself to look down at the woman in his arms, the guilt too much for him to handle.
"Alright, I need everybody outta the van," Sawyer ordered as he approached the van "Come on, move it!"
Hurley and Kate quickly stepped out of the vehicle. "Oh my God… is she going to be okay?" Kate asked fearfully, as she stared at Juliet's lifeless form in Jack's arms.
Sawyer ignored Kate's question and pushed passed her, lowering himself into the back of the van. Jack carried Juliet over to the van and carefully lowered her inside, placing her in Sawyer's lap. Once making sure she was safely inside, Jack slammed the van door shut and climbed into the driver's seat.
"Okay, so what's the plan Doc?" Sawyer asked desperately.
"There's a medical station not far from here," Jack told him. "It has supplies we can use." Before starting the engine, Jack looked back at them in the rear view mirror, "Sawyer listen to me. You have to keep talking to her. Try and get her to respond in some way, you understand?"
Sawyer nodded his head and reached for her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers. "Everything's gonna be alright, Baby. Me and the Doc are gonna get you some help."
Kate tapped on the window of the van. "Hey, where are you going? What's going on?"
With no time to answer her questions, Jack started up the engine and began reversing the vehicle. "Sawyer, I need you to check for injuries. Tell me what you see, okay? I need to know how severe the damage is."
Sawyer grimaced when he lifted up the hem of her shirt. "There's a lot of blood…"
"James, I know this is hard but I need you to focus."
Suddenly the passenger door of the van swung open and Hurley jumped inside the moving vehicle.
"Hurley, what are you doing?!" Jack exclaimed as the large man fastened his seatbelt.
"I'm saving them," Hurley answered matter-of-factly. "Come on dude - Drive!"
In confusion, Jack slammed his foot on the break, bringing the vehicle to a sudden halt "Hurley, you need to tell me what's going on?"
Hurley shuffled around in his seat to face Sawyer, who was sat in the back of the vehicle alongside Juliet and Sayid. "Jacob told me that there are people at the temple who can save Sayid's life. They might be able to help Juliet too." His gaze shifted to the very pale woman resting in Sawyers lap. "It's worth a try, Dude."
"Who the hells Jacob?" Sawyer cried in a fit of panic.
"It doesn't matter who he is. All that matters is that you listen to me."
"Hurley, how do you even know this will work?" Jack asked incredulously. He didn't want to gamble his friend's lives by following the orders of a man named Jacob, who could quite easily be one of Hurley's delusions.
"Let me ask you something Jack," Hurley began. "Can you fix them?"
Jack slammed his fist against the steering wheel in frustration. "We don't have time for this Hurley!" he said, shaking his head. "I'm taking them to the medical station. There will be medical supplies, which means-"
"Can you save them, Jack?" Hurley asked again.
"Answer the question Doc." Sawyer demanded from the back of the van. Juliet's life depended on Jack's answer.
Jack looked over his shoulder at Sayid and Juliet and sighed in defeat. "No…" he admitted quietly. "I can't save them."
"Then it looks like you going to have to trust me." Hurley stated confidently. "So drive."
Jack turned to Sawyer, who was clinging tightly to Juliet's hand. "This is your call James. What's is gonna be?"
"In that case what are you waiting for, Doc? Put your foot down!"