PENNY'S BOAT

CHAPTER 10: LOST AND FOUND

The light subsided slowly, fading away and revealing the sky once more. The survivors stepped forward to take one last look at the island that had been home for 3 months and found… nothing.

"What's happening?!" Claire shouted over the still fading hum that had accompanied the flash.

Hurley shook his head, "I-I don't know."

A light turned on on Charles' phone. He tapped a button and the light faded. I never expected you'd go that far, Benjamin. To activate it… That's something only HE is supposed to be able to do. Have you gone mad?

He silently lifted the receiver and dialed a code into the phone. 422-3161... She had better be there. The phone rang for a moment before being answered.

"Hello?" A female voice inquired.

"Hello, Eloise. It's me."

"I told you never to contact me here. It might compromise everything we've worked for."

"Just listen, Eloise, for God's sake. It's Linus… He's activated the hidden function of the Orchid station. I need you to pinpoint his exit point for me."

"That will be a challenge. The entrance point's gone dark and it look's like the Flame is out of commission as well. And I can't guarantee the exit point will exist in this timeframe."

"That shouldn't matter. Not for you."

"There are rules, Charles. Rules that cannot be broken."

"I make the rules."

Sawyer looked into the night sky in a daze. He could hear footsteps in the distance. What's…? Everything was a blur. Finally it began to come into focus, and he was looking not at a dark sky, but at a cave ceiling. Water dripped on his face as he pulled himself to his feet.

"I should kill you right here." Came a voice from the other side of the cave.

Sawyer rubbed his eyes, "…The hell? Who's…?"

A figure came into view, "It's Miles. The guy you knocked out, remember? How 'bout you start explaining to me why putting a bullet between your eyes isn't my best option here?"

Sawyer looked uncharacteristically thoughtful, "I couldn't stand to lose her."

Miles threw his arms into the air and turned away, "Great! So you didn't want your girlfriend to leave you, so you trap yourself, her, and of course, just my damn luck, me on some island in the middle of nowhere. And we're stuck in here by the way."

The haze in Sawyer's mind started to clear and he grimaced, no longer docile, "What the hell do you mean 'we're stuck'?"

Miles was running his hands along the cave wall, "When Linus turned that wheel, the exit leading to the Orchid station disappeared. We're sealed in without a way-"

Miles abruptly stopped speaking as another wave of light rushed through the cave, knocking him to the ground in surprise. As it faded away, a more natural light began to shine through into the cave.

Sawyer smiled, "Looks like we got ourselves a way outta here."

The survivors had begun to panic. Penny and Desmond stood next to the Captain's quarters, unsure of what to do. Desmond turned to Penny.

"Ah need you to help us out, Pen. From what ye've told me, ya know the woman down there with Jack isn't Shannon Rutherford. And-" Desmond almost laughed, "It should be pretty obvious ah'm not Boone Carlyle, but I need you to trust me that-"

Penny put a finger to his lips, shushing him, "I know, Des. Jack explained everything to me earlier. Now let's just go down there to the deck and we'll explain everything to your friends."

Desmond smiled. Penny always understood.

Jack looked around the room. Michael had run off while they were blinded by the light that had whisked the island away. He didn't really care. Michael wasn't a problem now that they were all headed home.

Juliet smiled at Jack, "You can let go, you know."

Jack realized how tightly he was clinging to her and quickly let go in embarrassment. Juliet laughed. Jack smiled a little, feeling the mood had lightened.

"Do you have any idea what that was just now?" Jack asked.

Juliet shook her head, "No… It looked like when the sky turned purple, but bigger. More intense."

Jack walked over to the porthole to confirm once again that the island was gone, "Kate, Sawyer, Ben, and one of the guys from the freighter were still there. Do you think…?"

Juliet carefully shifted herself over to his side, "I think they'll be alright, Jack. I mean after the hatch exploded we were all alright, weren't we? Maybe the island didn't just disappear, maybe it went somewhere else."

Jack looked at her inquisitively, "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Juliet frowned, "There were some Dharma stations we didn't understand. One was called the Orchid and the instructions for it said something about shifting time and space. I thought it was crazy, but now…"

Jack put on a brave face, "Don't worry about it. Wherever they are now, they'll find their way home."

Juliet stared out of the porthole sadly, "I'm not even sure where home is anymore. Everyone must think I'm dead by now. My parents are gone. All I've got left is Rachael and she's got her own life now."

Jack followed her gaze to the void where the island had once stood and smiled, "You know I haven't really got anything to go back to either. My father is… Well I'm not sure where he is, but he's not going to be around much anymore. My wife left me before the crash… I've got nobody to go home to. So how about you and I go home together like I promised?"

Juliet smiled and hugged Jack. Tears ran down her face as it finally became real. I'm going home.