Chapter Nine: Solitary
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He had been staring at the picture in his hand for a good twenty minutes. Faith kept her eyes on the incoming waves, hands casually placed on her knees from where she sat beside him.
"Was she on the plane?"
Sayid flipped the picture back to the image of the dark-haired woman, her head covered in a traditional Arabic Jalabib scarf. She had a penetrating, yet honest gaze and Faith found herself staring at the image before she looked back out at the ocean.
"No." Sayid tucked the photo back into his backpack. "I was going to America to see her."
"Ouch." Faith turned her head to study Sayid's side profile. "Bet she misses you."
"I do not know. She wasn't aware I was coming to see her. I have not spoken to her for many years." Sayid finally looked in her direction. "How about you Faith? Who is missing you back where you call home?"
"Beats me really." She smirked. "Wouldn't surprise me if that answer was a big fat no one now."
"Surely there's someone wondering where you are or if you're alive?"
"I'm not sure anymore." Faith shrugged and looked away. "The last time I saw anyone familiar, a plane ticket was being shoved into my face."
"Have you seen my bag?"
"Stop for just one minute and answer me. Are you really just going to let them shove you onto a plane for some crusade?"
"What other choice do I have?" Faith lifted up the bed and frowned as her search came up empty. She sat it back down and began to riffle through the dresser drawers. "It's kinda my job."
"I thought we were all going to do this together."
She paused turning to eye Robin Wood from his seat on the edge of the bed. "Is this about Buffy and the Brat Pack or about us?"
"How can there be an us when you won't let that happen?"
Faith snorted and went back to searching around the room. "I already told you that it's nothing personal." She paused and looked back towards him. "Being the slayer, having this responsibility, it's a burden I can't ever share with you Robin. No matter how bad I might want to or how bad I wish that things were different and I could lead a normal life… That won't ever happen. I went into this alone; I'll leave the same way."
"If I'm not mistaken, I thought I told you I don't go for the whole defensive, isolationist Slayer crap you still spew out all the time." He rose from the bed. "Back in Sunnydale, I asked you to let me surprise you so I'm going to let you walk out that door without trying to talk you into staying."
The surprise was evident on her face and Faith stopped moving completely, her attention focused on the man standing before her, the silence creeping between them.
Robin let out a sigh and rubbed at the back of his neck. "I understand you have a responsibility to find these new slayers, and I know that everyone else has separated and gone to different places… Buffy and Dawn are taking off for Europe soon. Hell, Xander just left for Africa but if you think that by throwing yourself into this without a plan is going to help you prove that…"
"I don't have to prove anything to anyone!" She turned and slammed a drawer shut with one hand and watched as the entire dresser rattled. "I'm going because Buffy thinks it's a good idea and I agree. Slayers are everywhere all over the world and if I don't do my part, who will?"
"One of these days Faith, you're going to have to start making decisions based on what you think is a good idea, not on what other people think, especially not Buffy. You're right, you don't have to prove anything to anyone and that should include yourself as well."
"Why are you saying all this?"
"I just wish that you'd think this over before you jump on a plane and disappear."
"You think that's what this is about?" Faith's question dangled between them heavily in the air. "That I'm doing this so I can disappear?"
"Part of me thinks you've already started to Faith."
"And the other part?"
"The other part of me knows that I've lost too much of you already."
"Where you in Australia on vacation?"
Faith blinked drawing her attention back to Sayid. "Something like that." She glanced past him, blinking again and her eyes narrowed.
Sayid immediately noticed, turning his head to look as well. "What is it?"
"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
He was silent for only a few seconds. "I believe so."
They rose to their feet at the same time, each grabbing their own bags before making their way a short distance down the beach. Sayid dropped his bag as they stopped beside the gray cable buried partly in the sand and he reached down, tugging it up for a closer look.
"It seems to disappear straight into the ocean."
He nodded and glanced towards the bushes, eyes following the cable as it continued. "And in towards the island as well."
"Well, I don't know about you," Faith swung her bag onto her back and grinned, "But I think I know which direction I'm headed."
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"How do you think this got here?" Faith's eyes were glued to the cable as she followed behind Sayid. "Random cable on the beach, goes into the ocean and the island… Who knows how far it goes…"
"Do you remember the distress call?"
She nodded as he stopped and turned to face her. "Of course, how could I forget, it was the same day we found the polar bear."
"Well, the call has been running for sixteen years nonstop right? There has to be an energy source for that to happen."
"And you think the cable has something to do with it?"
"That would be my guess." Sayid turned to take another step when he paused again. She watched as he bent down, motioning to something in front of their feet. "I seem to have found a booby trap."
"Looks like someone doesn't want their energy source to be located." Faith smirked as she glanced around. "Let's trigger it and see what happens."
"How about we find a way around it and not alert whoever it is that we're coming?"
"Suit yourself." She shrugged. "I'm a drop me in the hornet's nest kind of girl but we'll do it your way. You go first but if something happens, I get to laugh at you." Faith took a step back as he lifted his leg up over the line.
Sayid turned to grin at her as he cleared it successfully. "Come on."
Faith shrugged again, stepping over the line as well. "Maybe I was wrong..." She froze as they heard something snap, the ground shifting at their feet and she frowned, eyes narrowing at him. "I hate you."
They both yelled as ropes snapped around their ankles and immediately they were pulled up into the trees. Faith cursed as her bag slid down her back and pelted her in the back of the head. Sayid collided with the tree to his right and she craned her neck towards him.
"You alright there Captain Intelligence?"
"There is a stick in my thigh." He grunted and she listened as he let out a strangled scream and ripped it free from his leg. "Other than that, I am fine. Are you okay?"
"Oh, I'm perfect… if by perfect I mean hanging upside down by my feet while all the blood rushes to my head. Yeah, I'm five by five Sayid."
"Just… remain calm." Sayid cleared his throat as they continued to swing back and forth. "We'll get out of this. We just have to remain calm and think."
"Great plan. You do that and I'll go get help." Faith rolled her eyes and reached for her knife. She gripped the handle tightly, taking a deep breath before she bent herself up from the waist and stretched her arms towards her feet.
Sayid continued to hang there, watching as Faith cut herself loose.
She grunted as she hit the ground with a loud thud. Faith glanced up at Sayid still hanging there, eyes following the trail of the rope from his feet towards the trees. "Someone put a lot of work and effort into rigging this."
"Glad to see you appreciate it." Sayid quipped. "Do you think we could discuss this after you cut me down?"
"I don't know." She grinned up at him. "But eh, might as well." Her eyes scanned the trees again and she moved to the nearest trunk, tucking her knife into her belt again before grabbing branches in order to climb it. "I like my men tied up but this might be pushing it."
She was halfway up the tree when she heard something else snap. "You have GOT to be kidding me."
Faith had barely begun to move back down when another trap snapped into action. She yelped in surprise as ropes tightened around her feet, the line to the tree pulling tight. Faith gritted her teeth as she was yanked, the line pulling her down to the ground and her body was dragged away from Sayid.
She found herself being jerked upside down again and cried out as she hit a tree with her head, body swinging back. The dense trees around her covered her location and she rubbed at her temple, frowning as her fingers came away coated with blood.
"Someone is so gonna die." Faith reached for her knife again and growled as her search came up empty. "A lot."
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It was dark before she untangled herself from her restraints. The jolt landing back on the ground seemed even rougher this time around and she stayed lying on her back for a few minutes, eyes closed.
A strange noise in the trees made her open her eyes again and Faith glanced around as she sat up. "Hello?" She climbed to her feet, rubbing at the back of her head. "I know someone's out there; come on out."
No one answered and her eyes narrowed. "I mean it. Come out."
The wind picked up, trees shifting back and forth, and Faith stepped forward. Her eyes widened at the sight of a shadow standing only a few feet away from her. Any thought of speaking up again or reacting was lost as she recognized the face staring back at her as her own.
"Okay, I'm seeing things… again." She shifted uneasily on her feet, eyes glued to image standing in front of her. It was Faith from a few years back, eyes outlined in heavy black, her body covered in a black tank top, matching jacket and tight leather pants. "You're not real. I know you're not."
Her duplicate said nothing, simply turning away, and Faith hesitated only a second before she followed it deeper into the dense jungle.
When she cleared the bushes out of her path she found herself alone again. Faith gazed around, listening to the noises of the animals and the wind rushing around her. She heard another twig snap and turned to come face to face with the image of the deputy major she had killed in Sunnydale.
Faith took a step back. "I killed you." She swallowed hard as he stood there and said nothing. "It was an accident, I didn't know you were human and … and I killed you."
"You killed a man Faith, not a demon or a vampire, a real human being. You can ignore it, you can run but if you do, you're going to see his face for the rest of your life."
"I'm not going to see anything! Shit happens B. One mistake versus the thousand good things we've done as slayers makes it wrong? In my book, that puts me in the plus column and makes this whole deal not such a bad thing."
"We help people Faith! We help them, not do whatever we want!"
"The guy I offed was no Gandhi Buffy, he was messed up in dirty dealings. We're warriors, built to kill, and evil is evil."
"Demons, not humans, don't you get that!" Buffy yelled. "We don't get to pass judgment on others just because we're different."
"Well, I'm tired of being different B. We're not different, we're better and people need us to survive. When it all comes down to the balance, no one is going to care one bit about some dirty bystander who was caught in the crossfire. I'm not going to dwell on the fact that man is dead. He's dead! It's over and he's dead."
"You're dead." She turned, rubbing at her temple again and she stared down at the blood as she rubbed it between her finger tips. "….and I'm sorry."
Faith looked back at Allen but he was gone. She glanced down at her feet to see the Jackal where he had once been standing.
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She kept running, not stopping for anything in her way, and Faith leapt easily over a fallen log. She landed steadily on her feet, pushing back branches and she went even faster as the sun broke through the trees.
A voice traveled towards her and she skidded to a stop as she recognized the speaker.
"Put the gun down, Danielle."
Her hand floated over her knife as she crept forward, eyes glued to Sayid as he held a gun and was pointing it at a tall brunette who held one as well.
"Put it down on the ground." Sayid ordered firmly. His eyes shifted past her to see Faith and the woman lifted her gun, moving so she could see them both.
She seemed confused as to what direction to point the gun.
"Don't."
Faith was unsure which of them he was speaking to but she stopped moving, lowering her hand as she continued to stare at the mysterious woman.
Danielle shifted her attention back to Sayid and pointed her gun. "Who is this? Is she one of you?" The French woman jerked her head in Faith's direction.
"Yes," Sayid nodded, "We both left our group to map out the island."
"You said you had done something to shame yourself, did she as well?"
"No. Now just lower the gun Danielle."
"I can't do that. Besides, your gun is broken, I removed the firing pen."
"Fine," He tossed the gun to the ground. "Shoot me but there's no point. I'm not your enemy and I'm not sick."
"Not to mention if you shoot him, you still have me to deal with." Faith growled. She didn't move forward but she grabbed her knife handle again. "And it won't be pretty."
"I…" Danielle shifted the gun uncertainly between them. "I do not want to shoot either of you but I cannot let you go… You will need me against the others."
"Others?"
"You'll find me in the next life, if not in this one."
Danielle turned her attention away from Faith and her question, her wide eyes focusing in on Sayid in shock. "What did you say?"
"The writing on the back of Nadia's photograph." He explained. "I know what it's like to hold on to someone. I've been holding on for the past seven years to just a thought, a blind hope that somewhere the woman on my photographs still alive. But the more I hold on, the more I pull away from those around me." He took a step towards her, hands up. "The only way off this ... this place is with the help of the people stranded here."
Faith watched as the woman bent down and began to cry softly, Sayid moving to knee close to her.
"Come with us. You could help us. There's no reason to be alone."
She shook her head and stood again, placing her rifle onto her back. "I cannot leave… but the people you go back to, watch them closely." She shot a look at Faith then turned away. "Especially the dangerous ones."
Sayid scrambled to his feet as she started to disappear back into the forest. "You never told me who Alex was!"
Danielle paused only a second. "Alex was my child." She didn't look back and was gone, the branches and leaves shifting shut behind her.
"Who the hell was that?"
Sayid focused his attention back on Faith, her eyes still glued to the direction Danielle had disappeared. "It was the French woman, the one from the distress call."
"You're telling me that woman has been here for sixteen years?"
He nodded and bent down; retrieving a long stick from the ground which he used to lean on as he began limping away.
She immediately followed after him, grunting as he began to walk as quickly as he could through the forest. "What's the rush! You're hurt, we should look at your leg and-"
"There is no time! We have to get back to camp and tell the others."
"About what? That you found a crazy French woman who's been here for sixteen years?"
"She says we're not alone on the island."
"Did you happen to miss the crazy part?"
Sayid paused to say something when the shrill of an eerie hiss cut through the air. He stopped at the same time as Faith, both looking around as low whispers began to crawl through the rushing of wind.
"Do you hear that?"
She nodded and her gaze shifted, freezing as her image appeared once again in the trees. The illusion stepped back, dark eyes locked on them until the figure vanished completely.
Faith glanced back at Sayid. "Maybe the French woman isn't so crazy after all."
