Seeing the front of the plane like that, a massive metallic bird torn apart, made Kate feel uneasy. It reminded her all too clearly of the horrifying seconds before she blacked-out and ended up in the water. Sitting in her seat, she'd noticed, terrified, that the plane had broken in three. First the tail had broken off, then the front. She'd been sitting in the middle part, and she hadn't been lying when she'd told Sawyer where the fuselage should be. The two other parts could have fallen into the ocean for all she knew. Truth was she hadn't expected to find the cockpit so close to the spot where they had fallen from the sky.
The jungle was silent around the plane and for a moment Kate stood there, unmoving. There was no one outside, and to Kate that could only mean that all the passengers in there were too badly injured to leave the plane, if any had survived at all. Maybe some had been well enough to get out and were now wandering around like she was? She swallowed the lump in her throat, feeling the same way she'd have felt in a cemetery. Filled with sadness and respect for those who had died.
Even though Kate knew she had little chance of finding anyone to help, she couldn't just leave. She had to check, she had to be sure, even though it was going to delay her escape. She walked over to the dark, gaping hole at the end of the cockpit, the jagged edges of metal a scar that would forever be a sign of the trauma inflicted on it. She stared into the endless darkness. That was where she was going to enter. Before she did, she put her Halliburton down and cast a look around again. Not a soul in sight.
Gathering all her courage, Kate went inside. The darkness was smothering, and she couldn't hear a thing. The plane was steeply inclined, making the climb difficult.
"Does anyone need help??" she yelled, but she got no answer.
Slowly, trying to detach herself from this ghastly task, she went from person to person, checking their vitals. Although the bodies were still warm, she had found no sign of life by the time she finally reached the cockpit door. There, she took a moment to breathe deeply, trying to keep the tears at bay. She had seen way too many dead people these last few years, and today was just too hard. Once again, she wondered why she had survived and they hadn't. They were far more deserving of life than she was, she had no doubt.
It suddenly started to rain and it became ever darker inside the cabin, reminding her of some horror movie. All she wanted right now was to get out. She had been there far too long for her taste, but there was still the cockpit itself to check. Reluctantly, she tried the door, but it was either stuck or locked.
"Well, well, look who's here!" a voice suddenly said, nearly making Kate jump out her skin.
What was Sawyer doing here? she asked herself, frozen, waiting for her heartbeat to slow down a little. How had he found her?
"What, didn't expect to see me again, Sweet pea?" he added as he began climbing towards her. That's exactly what she'd thought, but she certainly wasn't going to tell him. So she stayed silent and checked the last man's pulse, secretly glad she wasn't alone anymore, even though she'd have to figure out a way to get rid of him later.
Finding the man unresponsive, Kate looked up to see Sawyer glancing around and she noticed, for a fleeting instant, how affected he was to see death so close. But the next second the mask of indifference returned to his face and he climbed on an empty seat to open the overhead compartment.
"What are you doing?" she asked as she saw him extract a backpack and rummage through it.
"Just trying to find a dry shirt, cupcake," he replied without looking at her.
Kate was about to go at him for stealing dead people's stuff, but she stopped herself. Thing was, since she was going to run away blindly in the jungle, she should try to get a few things for herself, like water or a blanket.
"Girl stuff," she heard him mutter to himself before he threw her the backpack. She caught it and put it on her back. "No need to thank me, Freckles," he added, waiting.
"I'm going to check the cockpit," was her only response. Maybe, against all odds, someone was still alive in there.
Looking around, she saw a fire extinguisher and managed to get a hold of it. She banged on the lock and the door finally flew open, causing a body to come flying out. Kate gasped in shock. Still going through the luggage, Sawyer was able to avoid the flying body and they exchanged a meaningful look before she climbed inside the tiny room.
Inside, the pilot was still sitting on his seat, unmoving. Kate sighed. To touch another dead person was just above her strength right now. Suddenly, the pilot took a breath and Kate let out a surprised scream.
"Are you okay?" she managed to say as she went to him, heart pounding.
"Yeah," he replied weakly as Sawyer showed up inside the cabin, obviously worried. He relaxed when he realised what had happened and finished buttoning the shirt he had found.
"Does anything feel broken?" Kate asked, tearing her eyes off Sawyer's abs.
"No. My head's a little dizzy, that's all," he answered feebly. "How many survived?"
"Two, so far," she told him, trying not to let her pessimism show.
"How long has it been?"
"About an hour," she informed him. It felt like ages ago already.
"Has anybody come?"
"Not yet."
With effort, the pilot explained:
"You should know that… 6 hours in… Our radio went out, no one could see us. We turned back to land in Fiji, by the time we hit turbulence we were 1000 miles off course. They're… they're looking for us in the wrong place."
Kate and Sawyer exchanged a stunned look.
"What?" Kate finally let out.
"The strangest thing is that... this island where we are... it wasn't on our maps," the pilot added.
"How is that possible?" Sawyer wondered, incredulous.
"You mean that… that they won't find us?" Kate added.
"We have a transceiver. If I could use it…"
The pilot moved to go get it, but Kate stopped him.
"Let me help you," she said.
"Transceiver's right there. It's right there," the pilot told her, pointing to where it was behind his seat.
Since he was closer, Sawyer got it and handed it to the pilot, who started to fiddle with it.
"It's not working," he announced gravely before he started to cough.
"Sawyer, go and see if you could find some water," Kate told him.
She saw him hesitate a little, but at last he complied without arguing.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Trying to progress carefully, Sawyer began searching the cabin for water or food. As he did, many things were going through his mind. Okay, so the rescue team wasn't going to find them unless they found a way to fix the transceiver. That didn't really concern him, he figured, since he hadn't planned on ever going back… back to what? He had nothing and no one to return to. No one needed him in this world, not even Kate, he realised dejectedly. Now that she had the pilot as a companion, there was no doubt she wasn't going to miss him when he disappeared for good, he thought as he opened a cabinet.
"Bingo" he murmured to himself, having found what he was looking for.
Grabbing three water bottles, he put two inside his backpack, keeping the other one in his hand as he proceeded to climb back to the cockpit.
"We'll get out of here as soon as the rain stops," he heard Kate tell the pilot. "We need to find out if there are other survivors."
So now she really was planning on finding the plane? Sawyer smiled sarcastically. The girl was hiding something and he was going to find out what.
At that moment, the plane started shaking. A deafening sound, clicking and metallic, filled the air, blocking out all other noises. Then it stopped, as suddenly as it had started. Complete silence followed.
"What the hell…" Sawyer began, before stopping still when he saw a shadow pass the window. Quietly pulling himself on a seat, Sawyer tried to look out the window, to see what had cast the ominous shadow. Nothing. Resuming his climb towards the cockpit, he could see the pilot get up and climb part way out of the opening above to try to see what was going on. Suddenly, he disappeared out the broken window as the roaring started again, snatched by an unseen enemy, and Kate screamed as a torrent of blood splashed over the window.
"Kate!!!" he yelled, terrified at the idea that the same thing could happen to her.
"Sawyer!" she cried in response.
Just then, the plane started shaking again, and a second later the plane finally finished its fall from the sky, crashing heavily to the ground. Sawyer's head was brutally bashed against a seat as the plane fell, but nevertheless he was finally able to get back to the cockpit. He saw Kate hiding behind the pilot's seat, and was relieved to see she was alright.
"Come on, let's get out of here!" he yelled, grabbing Kate's arm and pulling her up. Before leaving, he had the presence of mind to grab the transceiver, which the pilot had put down in the co-pilot's seat.
Hurriedly, they exited the plane, Sawyer not letting go of Kate's hand. Outside, it was still raining and it only made the scene even more terrifying. Looking around, Sawyer couldn't see a monster or whatever it was, nor anything else, and decided they could take the chance of running into the depths of the jungle. But suddenly, Kate let go of his hand.
"What are you doing?" Sawyer yelled so she'd hear him despite the rain. He slowed down, but as he did he realised she had just picked her Halliburton up in one swift motion.
"I'm okay! Run!" she replied, passing before him.
Seriously irritated with her, Sawyer followed her. Behind them, he could hear the same frightening sounds they had heard earlier and he increased his pace. Running in the mud wasn't easy, and all of a sudden Sawyer fell, his leg trapped in some vines. Oblivious to his fall, Kate kept on running.
Lying there, Sawyer watched her disappear. He didn't want to call out for her. There was no point in having her risk her life for someone who intended on killing himself, was there? For a brief moment, he even thought of not trying to escape at all. The monster, or whatever it was, could have him. That way, Kate would be safe and he'd get what he wanted. What he deserved.
But then he realised that, now that the pilot was dead, she'd be all alone and he didn't want that either. He had to keep himself alive until they could find other survivors. The terrifying sounds approaching, he finally freed his foot, got up and ran in the same direction she had.
"Sawyer!!" he heard after long seconds, telling him where Kate was. She had found refuge amidst a circle of close growing trees, the long hanging branches completely hiding her from view and Sawyer was relieved to see she was fine. When he came up behind her he startled her, and she turned and knocked him to the ground.
"It's not really the perfect time for that kind of thing, Pumpkin," he drawled, a smile playing on his lips.
"Sorry," she replied with a weak grin, getting off him. They got up.
"Did you see it?" she asked, unable to totally mask her fear. Sawyer had only known her for an hour or so, but one thing he knew about her was that she didn't scare easily.
"No," he replied, now serious. "What the hell was it?"
"I don't know", she said, sombre. "All I know is that we're alone… and no one is coming for us."
They let the realisation sink in for a moment. Sawyer, never one to show his true feelings, grinned nonchalantly, but his eyes were serious when he said:
"Ever seen 'The Blue Lagoon', Freckles?"