Lena couldn't breathe.

Water was pouring in on all sides, and the waves coming in pushed her down. She struggled to get to the surface, coughing and gasping for breath.

Then she remembered.

No.

Lena looked in the direction he had gone, the direction that water was pouring from. There was no way he could have survived, not a chance, but in the moment, Lena couldn't see that. Her mind was reeling, everything was spiraling out of control…

She hadn't realized she had been swimming in that direction until she hit a wall, which knocked her back into the water. But she had to keep going, had to get there-

"Lena? Lena!" Jack pulled her back from the current, stopping her from swimming any further.

"No, I- I have to get to him-"

"He couldn't have surv-"

"No! No, he can't-"

"He's gone!" Jack shouted. "Lena, he's gone. You have to get out of here, he would have wanted you to live."

In all the chaos, Lena didn't want to believe it, she wanted to have hope, but even she knew: Sayid was dead, and this time, he wasn't coming back.

"Jack!" Sawyer shouted from across the sub. Lena looked over as well, and she could see that Hurley and Kate had already left, probably since Kate was wounded, and that Sun was trapped by something.

Lena half-swam, half-ran over along with Jack, thinking that she could probably help by cutting through whatever it is that was holding Sun back.

While Jin, Sawyer, and Jack attempted to move it, Lena dove under the surface and looked at exactly what the problem was. A large assortment of pipes and the heavy materials were blocking Sun from moving, and, unfortunately, Lena doubted that she could cut though it with her sword, and even if she did she would end up injuring Sun so badly that she wouldn't recover.

"I can't cut through it," Lena gasped as she rose to the surface again. "I can't help her." Sawyer swore quietly, but the four of them continued to try and move the pipes and wreckage, all while the submarine was filling up with water even more.

Suddenly, a giant piece of metal fell from the ceiling, hitting Sawyer in the head. He gasped and fell underwater, going unconscious.

"Sawyer!" Jack exclaimed as he and Lena pulled him up from the water immediately. He was unconscious, but thankfully alive. However, that was one less pair of hands in saving Sun.

"Please, go!" Sun yelled, directing it mostly at Jin. "Save yourself."

"No," Jin insisted, before turning to Lena and Jack. "Go, I'll get her free. Save Sawyer."

"No, there has to be another way-" Lena began to insist.

"There isn't," Jin cut her off. "You have to go."

She looked to Jack, who reluctantly nodded. Each of them supported one side of Sawyer, and they prepared to swim away.

Lena took one last glance at Jin and Sun, and she knew that there was no hope for their survival. She wanted to stay, she wanted to help, but she knew that there was nothing she could do.

She took a deep breath before nodding to Jack, and the two of them began the ascent to the surface, all the while carrying Sawyer the entire way.

Her lungs felt like they were on fire, but she kept going, for Sayid, for his sacrifice. She could make it for him.

She didn't even realize that they were out of the water until she realized that she could breathe again. Lena gasped for air as they paddled to the shore of the island, where she clawed her way onto the beach.

Lena collapsed onto the sand, everything that had happened finally catching up to her.

I lost him.

"Where's Jin and Sun?" Kate asked, her voice full of concern. Lena knew she had to tell them what happened, but she couldn't bring herself to say it, only managing to choke out a sob. The responsibility fell to Jack, who just shook his head sadly.

Lena had felt grief before. So many people she cared about had died. But the pain she was feeling, on the sand, so few survivors left… it made her want to sink right into the ocean.

However, she knew she couldn't. Lena had to honor them, to make Sayid's sacrifice worth it.

And so, there she was, sobbing in the sand, all the while silently vowing to kill the one responsible for their deaths.

…

Everyone else had stayed on the beach until they were ready to form some kind of plan to beat Locke, but Lena decided to go into the jungle. She knew that, long ago, she said that it would be good to not be alone in that type of situation, but she couldn't be at the beach, looking around at the ones that remained and knowing that they were all that was left of the 815 survivors.

It wasn't something she wanted to truly acknowledge.

With a loud cry, Lena drew her sword, wanting to be able to do something about what had happened. But there was nothing to be done, not while everyone was scattered across the island and still preparing for what was to come.

Instead, she dropped it, and then dropped to the ground herself, crying into her hands.

She wished that Sayid was still there, even just for a moment, so she could tell him… well, what would she tell him? That she wished they had more time? That she was sorry? That she loved him?

Maybe a combination of all three.

"Pull yourself together," Lena muttered to herself. She had a job to do, a smoke monster to kill. Then she could grieve for not just Sayid, but everyone who had died on the island, and off of it as well.

"Lena!" She whirled around to see Jack, Kate, Hurley, and the now-conscious Sawyer running towards here. It was Kate who had called out to her, and she still seemed to be recovering from her wound. "There you are. We have to go now."

"What?" Lena asked after hastily wiping away the tears that had fallen from her eyes. "Why, what happened this time?"

"Locke's coming, dude," Hurley explained, out of breath. "He wants to kill us. He came to the beach, he'll be here any second-"

"Then I'll hold him off," Lena interrupted. "You guys get out of here." They all looked at her like she was crazy, but the more she spoke, the more she knew it was the right decision. "Locke is made of smoke. It doesn't matter how fast you run, and none of you would stand a chance fighting him one on one. I do."

"Blue, he'll kill you," Sawyer reasoned. Lena took a deep breath, knowing that he could be right in that fact. It didn't change anything in her mind, however.

"I'm supposed to do this," She insisted. "This is why Jacob chose me, so I could fight him. Maybe I'll die, but that doesn't matter anymore. What matters is stopping Locke, and that's why I have the sword. Please let me do this."

She looked at her remaining friends as they all looked back at her. Hurley, one of the nicest people Lena knew. Sawyer, who had become such a genuinely good person. Kate, who wouldn't hesitate to help or protect someone who needed it. Jack, the reluctant leader who had always stepped up from day one.

"Be careful," Kate said quietly.

"I'll try my best," Lena replied. She quickly cleared her throat and looked around, knowing that Locke couldn't be far behind. "You guys should go, he'll be here soon."

One by one, Lena's remaining friends walked past her, all looking a little reluctant to leave her behind. At least, if she did die, she knew that there were still people that cared about her.

But once they were gone, it was just Lena, her sword, and the oncoming smoke monster.

"Hello darkness my old friend," She whispered the lyrics of the song, almost as if to distract her from the all-consuming terror that any rational person would be feeling. "I've come to talk with you again…"

…

Lena still wasn't exactly sure what was going on. The man who had called her, Hurley, had told her to come alone, which she did. Something about it gave her an odd feeling, but not that it felt wrong. It was odd in the sense that it felt so right.

She arrived on the street corner that she was told to go to, and she saw that Sayid Jarrah was there. She had no idea why he had stayed, but she wasn't going to question it.

"Wait," He said upon seeing her arrival. "You're one of the ones who arrested me, what are you doing here?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure," She replied. "Someone told me that you would be here… but I don't think it was because they wanted me to bring you in. I don't know why, but I think someone wanted us to meet. Although, you did kill three people, so…"

"Three criminals," Sayid added.

"Alright, I'll give you that," Lena admitted. "Look, you seem like a good person, and I don't want to send you to jail. Maybe we could figure something out-"

At that moment, they both froze. Lena had put her hand on his arm when she had suggested trying to work something out, and there was a bright flash before her eyes as she did so.

And then it all came flooding back.

Flash! Sayid and Lena meeting at the beach, the first night after the crash. They had been creating a signal fire together, and they were just starting to know each other.

Flash! Lena and Sayid, in the jungle, just talking and confiding in each other about what had been happening on the island.

Flash! Sayid and Lena, trapped at the swing, finally letting themselves open up about who they were and what had happened in their past.

Flash! Lena kissing Sayid on the beach, right before they were separated by the moving of the island.

Flash! Sayid and Lena in the jungle in 1977, finally reunited after years apart.

Flash! Lena and Sayid in the jungle, the moment Lena realized that he could be saved from Locke's control.

Flash! Sayid and Lena getting to the submarine, fighting the people trying to stop them.

Flash! Sayid sacrificing himself on the submarine to protect her and the others, and Lena doing the same when she stayed behind to fight the smoke monster.

"Sayid?" Lena whispered, remembering everything, every little detail, every last memory of the island.

"Lena," He said in disbelief. Tears shone in his eyes, and Lena could already tell that she herself was already becoming emotional. She embraced him tightly, not ever wanting to let go again, even though she knew that nothing could take them away from each other anymore. "I'm so sorry, Lena."

"I thought we agreed to stop apologizing to each other," Lena replied through happy tears, pulling away from him after a few seconds.

"Lena… I never said this before, and I regret never telling you," Sayid began. "I've known this for a while now, I was just too afraid to admit it to you… and to myself. I love you, Lena."

"I love you too," Lena said. "I love you more than anything." And then they embraced again, never wanting to let go, finally, finally able to be together without worrying about the island or the smoke monster or whatever other problem they had to face. There was none of that now, just the two of them, and one moment that could last forever.

…

Lena stood, her sword at her side, facing the smoke monster barreling towards her. She slashed with her sword, making an X that caused a temporary shield to form, blocking Locke from going any further. The smoke came together, and once it was all in one place, it disappeared, leaving Locke in its place.

"I'm impressed that you're alive," Locke commented.

"You killed the man I love," Lena replied. "You killed my friends, my family. I'm not only alive, Locke, they are alive, through me, and we're all calling for your death."

"Is that so?"

"It is," She continued. "You said I wasn't strong enough to kill you, and I wasn't. But now? I'm ready." The shield had almost faded, and soon, it would be time for Lena to fight the most important battle of her life.

As soon as the shield was down, she sprang into action. Unfortunately, so did Locke. He managed to use his smokiness in all different forms, but Lena was able to combat that. She stabbed and slashed at him, blocking his attempts to knock the sword away. It truly was a part of her. Not just a weapon, but a friend.

Thank you, she thought. Thank you to everyone who got me this far. This is for you.

"Goodbye," She whispered, knowing what had to be done.

She drove her sword into the ground, into the very heart of the island. It began to glow, brighter than anything Lena had ever seen, it's light encompassing anything and everything it could reach.

Lena smiled.

She embraced it.

…

It was light inside, although Lena wasn't sure if it was from actual lights or the fact that everyone was there. Everyone from the island, everyone who had impacted her life in astronomical ways.

These were the people that made her who she was. These were the people who helped her realize that she was not alone. She couldn't imagine her life without them.

She took her seat, smiling at the fact that they made it, they were all there. After everything they had been through, they were finally able to all come together as one.

To remember.

To let go.

To move on.

A/N: Well everyone... this is it. The last chapter. Wow.

Thanks to everyone who read this fic and stuck through it the whole way. It has been such a joy for me to write Lena's story, and I hope you enjoyed reading it