Michael has a hard time admitting Walt is not around, and Locke and company investigate the mysterious arch.
The caves now resembled an infirmary. Shannon and Sayid had been laid next to Sawyer. It was not a coincidence that Shannon was in the middle; Jack was playing it safe by keeping the men separated in case hard feelings were still present. Was it bad luck to have your name start with "S"? No, just a coincidence; Sun was still physically fine. Jack was very busy with his new patients. Sun had done an excellent job with the limited supply of medicine she had, and it made his job much simpler. The bulk of the remaining antibiotics had been left in the cave, and the doctor cleaned and redressed the wounds in his professional manner. When awake, Sawyer was his usual sarcastic self, which had to be a sign of encouragement. But it was clear to even an untrained eye that he was bored, and annoyed at his state of being useless.
Shannon and Sayid both felt responsible for their injuries. Shannon had been a bit reckless in picking up the booby-trapped shirt, and Sayid was a bit slow in recognizing the danger. In a sense it was appropriate they would have to recover together. Jack, being cautious as usual, insisted they rest for a few days. That wasn't so bad for Shannon, but Sayid had a much more difficult time accepting this fate.
Michael was in a state of denial. The day after the round-the-island excursion ended, he was back organizing another search party to take another look at the area where Walt's clothes had been found. The other castaways didn't want Michael searching alone, so another group of half a dozen was formed and made the expedition to the western part of the island. Thanks to Vincent, Michael found Walt's remaining sock and a piece of the other leg of his shorts, but there was nothing else to be found. No more booby traps, no footprints, no trails of broken twigs or anything that gave any indication that anybody had gone past the point of the booby trap that Shannon triggered. After three days of searching Michael had to admit that everyone else was right. The Others had set this all up as a diversion. As the group headed back to the caves, ominous rain clouds developed. They made it back just as a storm started.
As Michael walked past his injured friends, he realized that he had been so obsessed with Walt's welfare that he hadn't shown enough consideration for those who had been wounded in the rescue effort. Looking at Sawyer, Sayid, and Shannon, he said, "Hey guys, I really appreciate what you've done for me. I'm sorry all this happened to you …"
"Think nothing of it," interrupted Sayid. "You would have done the same if our positions were reversed. We all know what it is like to lose a loved one."
Shannon agreed, while Sawyer quietly came up with,
"Mike, you can save your thanks till when you find your boy," in a voice loud enough for only Michael to hear.
"You know I'll never give up," answered Michael. "And you're going to be around to see him when he gets back."
During this latest expedition Jack felt compelled to remain near his patients at all times. In a few days Shannon and Sayid should recover, but Sawyer's wound was more serious. However, Sawyer didn't want attention and preferred to be left alone. In any case, Locke and Kate were left alone to explore the tunnels below the hatch. Hurley remained nervous yet curious as their guard, and noticed that as a side benefit he was getting more exercise and losing a little weight with all these trips and pacing around in general at the top.
Naturally Locke couldn't wait to see what was past the hole that only Kate could get through. The next few days were spent moving more rocks out of the way. At one point, the structure collapsed so that the hole Kate had crawled through collapsed, but through sheer determination a path around the top of the mound of rocks was created, large enough for anyone except perhaps Hurley to climb over. Locke lost no time in getting over at his first opportunity. He marveled at the spectacle Kate had seen three days earlier. Several more tunnels terminating in dead ends were present, but there was that fascinating arch with the curious figures etched into it. While gazing at those, his flashlight started to flicker.
Locke desperately wanted to remain, but reason took over. It would be too dangerous to stay in pitch-blackness, and it would be risky for Kate to climb over as well, or toss her flashlight over the rocks. The arch would be there tomorrow. He climbed back over the rock pile, up the rope ladder with Kate, and headed to the caves with Hurley, who had become agitated over what looked like an impending storm. They weren't quite quick enough and got soaked near the end, arriving fifteen minutes after Michael and his crew.
This time Locke underestimated the severity of the storm. It rained all night, and all the next day. Arzt had been right; monsoon season was here, with all its heavy downpours and thunder and lightning. It wasn't safe to make any long trips under these conditions. The rain let up at night, but returned in full force the next morning. An annoying pattern developed, with heavy rainfalls for most of the day for the next two weeks. In the brief intervals of sunlight, repairs had to be made to the castaways' living quarters, trails cleared, gardens attended to, and food gathered. The only good thing was that they now had a vast supply of fresh water.
During that fortnight Locke tried to remember if he had ever seen those symbols before. He wanted to think that he had, but that was more likely wishful thinking. In any case, he had to find out what was through the hallway guarded by that arch. Eventually the rain let up, and Locke was off. Shannon and Sayid had pretty much recovered from their wounds; though there were some small cuts left as evidence of their mishap. Sayid again questioned Locke if he was certain investigating the hatch was a good idea.
"Nope," Locke answered, "but I have to." Locke felt that the island demanded him to find out.
With Shannon and Sayid in better shape, and Sawyer requiring and insisting on less attention, Jack accompanied Locke and Kate on the next visit to the hatch. Hurley remained the trustworthy guard as always, curiosity winning out over fear that the numbers inscribed on the hatch were bad. Jack made a trip over the rock pile, which was barely low enough below the ceiling for him to crawl through, and then returned to make that rock barrier more passable. The trio felt that many more trips through there would be made soon, so an easier path might as well be made. Locke again took some tools to the arch, and started hacking away at the latest rockslide. One month after blowing open the hatch, he was certain something of vital importance was in that blockaded corridor.