Lena was skeptical of Danielle's story until the black smoke appeared, just as she had described it. A giant column of it, standing out against the blue sky. It sent fear coursing through Lena, and she wasn't someone who was scared easily
"How many of them are there?" Jack asked Rousseau, who seemed slightly smug that she was right.
"I told you all I know." She replied.
"There has to be more than you told us." Sayid countered. "How did you know?"
"You have a bigger problem." Danielle said, changing the subject. A little suspicious, but Lena ignored that to hear what the bigger problem was. "I can vanish into the jungle, but I'm just one person. You have 40 people. Where will you hide them?"
Jack and Sayid glanced at each other, clearly both thinking the same thing, and Lena had no idea what that was.
"What?" She asked.
…
Holy shit.
"Whoa." Was all Lena said out loud. It was all she could say as she stared down at the giant hatch in the ground. This was what Locke and Boone had been working on all that time. And that hatch was the reason Boone died.
"What is this?" Danielle asked.
"We were hoping you could tell us." Jack sighed. Clearly his plan relied partially on that.
"I have never seen anything like it." Danielle replied.
"Um, question." Hurley piped up. He seemed to be just as shocked as Danielle and Lena, meaning he didn't know about it either. "How do we know we can all fit in there?"
"No handle on the outside, means there's another way in." Locke explained. Glancing at him, Lena wondered how he managed to keep it a secret the whole time. And how the hell had Boone of all people managed to keep it a secret? "Another entrance means space."
"This is a mistake." Sayid said. "We don't know anything about these Others. We're reacting with no information, no intelligence. This hatch might even be theirs. Black smoke on the horizon doesn't mean they're-"
"It means they're coming!" Danielle exclaimed.
"Yeah, we got that." Lena muttered, prompting the French woman to glare at her.
"You booby-trapped your shelter with explosives." Locke began. "You have any more?" Smart, Locke.
"Dynamite, at the Black Rock." Danielle said. "In the dark territory."
"That sounds like a lovely place." Lena commented sarcastically.
"If we're to make it back by sunset, we have to leave within the hour." Danielle added. Lena glanced at Jack, but she couldn't read his expression. Using the dynamite - and going to the Black Rock, whatever that was - didn't seem like the best idea.
But it was the only one they had.
…
They had gone back to the beach before going to get the dynamite so Jack could tell everyone the plan.
By the time they were about to leave, there were two new additions to the group. Kate, who could be helpful, and Arzt, not so helpful but apparently a dynamite expert. Sayid, meanwhile, had stayed behind to get everyone to safety and make sure the raft got out in time.
So, there they were, walking through the jungle to get dynamite so they could blow up a hatch and hide from enemies that were signaling their approach with black smoke.
You couldn't have made this up, not even in your craziest dreams, Lena told herself, kind of as a reminder that it was all real.
"La Territoire Fonce." Danielle announced as she stopped walking, causing the rest of the group to stop as well.
"The Dark Territory." Jack translated, although it wasn't really necessary. Even if Danielle hadn't identified it, Lena would have known all the same. Something about that area was pure evil.
"The Black Rock is not far." Danielle said. "This is where is all began. Where my team got infected, where Montand lost his arm. We must move quickly."
"You know what?" Arzt said quickly. "I'm going back."
"Hey, I thought you wanted to help." Jack said.
"Yeah, I wanted to help, but that was before Montand lost his freaking arm." Arzt replied, backing away from the Dark Territory as fast as he could and running away. "Just be careful with the dynamite!"
Lena sighed, and Jack looked annoyed, but the group continued forward into the Dark Territory. A cold feeling settled over Lena as it started to rain, and her hand curled around her sword.
There was something about her sword that made it feel like more than just a weapon. It was almost as if the blade was a part of her, moving in perfect sync with her mind. She couldn't bear the thought of someone taking it away from her.
Congratulations, Lena, she thought. You have become emotionally attached to a sword.
"RUN!" A voice shouted, interrupting both Lena's sarcastic and sentimental thoughts. With the voice came a loud noise, a noise Lena identified with the monster.
The person shouting was Arzt, who was currently running towards them. No, running from something.
Lena ran as fast as her feet could carry her, hearing the pounding in her ears as she ran. Danielle, who had been just ahead, motioned for her and the others to follow her into a bamboo stand.
Lena obliged not seeing any other idea. She slid into the bamboo, along with Jack and Kate.
As the noises died down, the rain stopped as well, and Danielle visibly relaxed.
"We're safe now." She whispered.
"What the hell was that thing?" Kate asked, her knees tucked to her chest.
"It's a security system." Danielle replied. That's a hell of a security system, then, Lena thought. Then again, Danielle did blow up her own shelter, another crazy security system.
"Security system?" Jack echoed. "What is is guarding?"
"It's protecting the island."
From what?
At that moment, Locke and Hurley walked over. Lena sighed in relief at seeing the two of them alive, and they seemed to be unharmed as well.
"Uh, where's Arnzt?" Hurley asked.
"It's Arzt, you idiot." Arzt chided as he walked into the cleaning. Still as obnoxious and annoying as always.
"Dude, I thought you were dead!" Hurley exclaimed.
"Can we just go get the dynamite?" Arzt said dismissively. "This place gives me the creeps."
…
They kept going through the Dark Territory, until Danielle suddenly stopped, gazing out at something.
"Why are we stopping?" Locke asked.
"Because we're here." Danielle replied. Lena followed her gaze and was utterly shocked by what she saw. She had been thinking that the Black Rock was a literal black rock. But that was not what stood in front of her.
The Black Rock was a pirate ship.