Chapter 77
A shot rang through the jungle, making Kate and Sawyer jump; Sawyer almost bolted outside but Kate snagged his shirt and jerked him back. He kicked himself as she wrapped her arms around his waist, holding him in place; Eko's voice floated in to them and Kate sighed silently with relief, feeling Sawyer relax just a hair. "What was that, Locke? Trying to draw them out? I told you they are not here." Sawyer groaned a little; John's ploy had almost worked.

Locke laughed. "They're here. I'm betting in that cave right over there. Why don't I take a look?" His feet moved towards the cave and Sawyer tensed, pushing back against Kate even harder, trying to hide her as far back as possible.

She felt him tense and press her back even further and she held him as hard as she could; it was a bluff, and he knew it, but his irrational fear of losing Kate, of Them getting Their hands on her, distracted him and he was glad that she had her hands locked around his middle, holding him to reality. Holding him to her.

The khaki pants were walking towards the cave entrance, but Eko's ragged legs stepped in front of him, and his voice was pleading and soft. "John, think about what you are doing. Not just for yourself, but for them too." Sawyer couldn't see who he was talking about, but he didn't think it was he and Kate. "You are bringing them down with you. Stop, now, before it is too late."

"It's already too late. It can't be stopped. I am fulfilling my destiny, Eko, this is why I was brought here; I am supposed to save the Island." He sounded a little crazy and Sawyer paled; They would stop at nothing to get him and Kate would be the one to suffer. She was shaking a little behind him, he could feel her scared breath on his neck as her hands gripped him tighter.

"What good does it do you to gain the Island if you lose your soul, John?' His voice was soft and easy. "What good is fulfilling your destiny if you are just a shell of a human?"

The glade was quiet again and the legs of the two men flickered in the torchlight; black and white. Sawyer realized he was holding his breath but the silence was so complete he worried it would be heard if he let it out so he kept it in as the hush deepened.

The silence was shattered suddenly by another gunshot; Kate and Sawyer both jumped and Eko fell to the ground, his eyes rolling to the cave as he saw Kate and Sawyer's horrified stares; he smiled at them and only Kate's terrified, horrified panting and her fingers clutched into his waist kept Sawyer from running out to heal him as black blood spread out across his chest.

Eko's eyes were fading as they rolled back to John. "And so Gilgamesh wins the battle, John. But what will he do when the Forest Demon turns on him? Enkidu will be gone." He smiled serenely as light filled the jungle, blinding them all. He laughed and it was heavenly; the sound of angels and harps and trumpets and victory and he said, "Good luck, Locke, not even your destiny can save you now." The light went out in a flash and the glade was black; the torches didn't come back on and Locke stared at the ground. Eko was gone, vanished in the light, and as John stared at the place where he had been his heart turned cold and he glanced at the cave, then turned and walked silently from the clearing.

As Locke's legs walked away Kate started shaking, trembling violently as her tears soaked the back of Sawyer's shirt; he held her hands and stared into the blackness, loss and anger engulfing him. Kate gasped as a surge of energy so powerful it burned her flashed through him; he was different, and as he turned to look at her she gasped again. He was terrible to behold; anger and love and sorrow snapped across his face like lightning flashes and his eyes burned with...determination as he kissed her, hard, crushing her to him. "Kate," he said, and even his voice was different; it was deeper and stronger and it chilled Kate's blood even as it warmed her heart. He was all things, black and white, heaven and hell, earth and sky, Sawyer and James and Kate was suddenly in awe of him, of the power that radiated from him as he looked into her eyes. "You see now, Kate, why this place must be destroyed?"

"Yes." She stared in shock at the ground; she was sad that Eko was gone but she had the feeling that he had let John do it, to anger Sawyer and push him down the path he needed to follow. And he didn't really feel gone; she could hear him inside of her, swimming around in the light that Sawyer filled her with. "I can't believe John did that."

Sawyer kissed her again, softly and smiled gravely. "Jack and Ana were there too."

She paled but didn't say anything; it wasn't surprising. The division between them was unfortunate and she mourned the loss of Jack as friend, but the past weeks had separated them; they had drifted too far apart to ever go back. "Yeah, well, I guess it's us against the world, baby."

"It always has been, Freckles." He sighed and glanced out into the glade. "Think we can risk it?"

She clutched him tighter, her head against his chest; his heart was pounding crazily and she could feel the sparks flying through his nerve endings. "No, James. Don't go."

He felt tears pricking at his eyes at the pleading, helpless tone in Kate's voice; it was so unlike her it broke his heart. "Kate, Kate," he whispered, smoothing her hair from her eyes, "I won't." They stood together in the dark for a long time as the terror and horror faded a little in the warmth and light they gave each other; then a long mournful howl split the silence and Kate cried as the warbling, haunting notes wavered into nothing.

The howling echoed again, and again and Kate thought her heart would shatter if it kept up; Sawyer was standing still, gazing in the direction of the haunting notes and Kate gazed at him. "What is he saying?"

Sawyer didn't answer right away and Kate could see tears of anger and frustration welling up in his eyes. "He's singing."

For some reason that made Kate cry harder; she buried her face in Sawyer's chest and her sobs blended with Vincent's melancholy music as James held her and Sawyer protected her, tears running down his cheeks at the howling, sad lament.

-----

Locke was met inside the tree line by Bluebeard; he was snarling and John shrugged him off angrily. He was disgusted by what he had just done, and his heart sank at the thought of what he would have done to Kate. "What was that, John? That wasn't supposed to happen. Do you know what you've done?"

Locke shoved him away and kept walking; Jack and Ana trailed him nervously and in shock. He had shot Eko down in cold blood; he hadn't hesitated. "Yes, Alvar, I know exactly what I did. What had to be done." He knew it was false as he said it; he had killed Eko because what he said had the ring of truth to it and Locke couldn't face that.

Bluebeard wasn't buying it. "Bullsht, Locke. He freaked you out and you lost it. Good job. Now you have given Him a reason. His power will increase and we will lose; is that what you want?"

Locke glared at him; at the moment that was exactly what he wanted; he caught sight of Ana, who was looking at him, coolly and he shook his head. "Of course not. I know he has to be stopped. I...made a mistake."

"I'll say," Jack said, angrily. "You killed Eko, John." Old Jack was back with a vengeance, and Locke amended to himself, Big mistake.

"Twenty minutes ago, Jack, you agreed with me that torturing Kate was the only way to win this battle. So, you draw your ethical lines at murder, but torture is okay?' He snorted. "Didn't you have feelings for her at one time? Where the hell do you get off, Jack, spouting moralities at me?" Jack was a little taken aback; he had never seen Locke get so worked up and now he was almost shouting, his eyes gleaming crazily.

Jack just glared at him; he didn't have an answer for that. Bluebeard interjected. "You made him a martyr, Locke, and you know what Ben Jonson said, about martyrs, don't you?" He smiled through his thick beard but it was a crazy, insane smile. "He said, 'Who falls for love of God shall rise a star'. Well, guess what, Locke, defeating a star ain't easy. So I suggest you get to work, or you know what will happen."

The strength suddenly went out of Locke's legs and he fell, helpless to the ground; Jack ran to him but Locke waved him away. He pulled himself on his elbows to Bluebeard's feet, dragging his useless legs behind him, pushing the panic away. "What the hell do you expect me to do?"

Bluebeard smiled and said softly, "That's somethin' you're gonna have to figure out, John." The feeling came back into his legs and he rose slowly, all of the insecurity and fear back again. He couldn't let personal feelings get in the way; he had to do what he had to do because he was never going back to helpless, weak John if he could help it. Bluebeard chuckled and Locke glared at him. "He is a beast. Kill her, John, and you will have cut off the head of the beast."

As if in response a low, mournful howl knifed through the trees and John frowned. "No," he said, softly, "I will have cut out his heart."