Author's note: I again apologize for the long delay. This part has been difficult to write. I hope this is worth the wait.

Michael and Walt finally reunite in the heat of battle.

As the armed Other approached, Alex pretended not to hear him, and pushed Walt into the room where he had been chained on his second day of captivity. She led him to one dark end, and set down the long hammer in a corner where she hoped it wouldn't be noticed. Then holding the crowbar, she ordered in a voice loud enough for the approaching Other to hear, "Chain yourself to this wall now, or I'll hit you with this!" When Walt was too stunned to react, Alex dropped the crowbar, and took each of his arms in turn and snapped a manacle around the corresponding wrist. These were the manacles attached to the chains, leading to pulleys near the ceiling, that left Walt barely able to stand on his heels three and a half months ago, but now there was fifteen centimeters of slack.

Walt was shocked. "I've grown this much?"

"I'm afraid you have," replied Alex quietly. "You don't remember being so much shorter than I when we first met, and now we're about the same height? But that's not important now. You can reach the key like that, right?"

Walt stepped a little to one side, and with one hand reached into his hair until he felt the key.

"Yes."

"Good. The Others will leave you alone for now. A time will come when it will be safe for you to free yourself, and you may be able to use that hammer in your hair. You should hold your arms straight up, to make yourself look more helpless."

Walt did as instructed, grasping the chains over his head. Alex rotated the manacles so that the keyholes were facing inside, to make it easier for Walt to unlock the manacles himself. She then picked up the crowbar just before the Other carrying a gun entered.

"I said, what's going on here?"

Alex remained composed and replied, "The boy heard gunshots, and ran past me in this direction. I got one of the tools from the wheelbarrow, and chased him here. He didn't seem to know where to go, so I took care of that." Alex pointed to a very dejected looking Walt, arms straight up and head hanging down.

Never letting go of his grip on his gun, the Other went over to Walt. The Other checked the manacles to make sure they were really locked. Then he punched Walt in the stomach. "We'll take care of you later," he informed Walt in an angry tone. Fortunately, Walt saw the punch coming, and just had time to tense his abdominal muscles, so the blow was not as damaging as it might have been. Compared to many of his other experiences here, this was among the least painful, but Walt put on an act, recoiling backwards with his rear end hitting the wall, and letting out a loud groan.

"Come with me," the Other ordered Alex as he yanked the crowbar out of her hand, and then grabbed her by the arm. They exited the room and turned toward the main entrance by the waterway. As Walt heard the sound of their footsteps fade, he practiced reaching the key in his hair and then the keyhole in the manacles. Quickly becoming adept in this unusual skill, he wondered when would be the best time to free himself, but he would not have long to wait.

Having heard the noise in the laboratory from the connecting side room, the castaway foursome planned their strategy. Sayid and Jin would go through the connecting door, while Michael and Sawyer would go back through the hall and enter from that direction, hopefully surrounding them. Unfortunately, as the latter pair went back into the hall, the Other who had just chained up Walt also entered the hallway. He took aim at Michael and Sawyer. But just as he was pulling the trigger, Alex hit his wrist, knocking the gun loose and sending the bullet wild. The Other shoved Alex hard into the wall, incapacitating her. Seeing that this girl may have just saved their lives, Michael and Sawyer sprinted toward her and the second Other.

The gunshot had attracted the attention of a third Other who had just entered the laboratory from a back door. Reacting quickly, he ran out the same door, and watched through a window as Sayid and Jin entered. The Other then pushed three buttons in a control panel, locking all the doors to the lab. Then he ran into a side corridor that connected with the main hallway, and reached it as Michael and Sawyer were passing by. As Sawyer was closer, he was the one the Other blindsided with a hard tackle, stunning the one-time con man.

Michael hesitated, but Sawyer insisted, "Get the gun!"

Michael resumed running toward the second Other and Alex. The second Other reached the gun on the floor just before Michael grabbed his arm. In the ensuing struggle all the remaining bullets were fired, ricocheting wildly off the walls, floor and ceiling. Then the third Other, leaving the stunned Sawyer alone, caught up with his colleague and Michael. Michael fought ferociously, holding out much longer than could be expected in a two-against-one fight, but was eventually forced into another room and pushed against a wall. The Others turned briefly toward the far wall, and out of the corner of his eye Michael thought he saw a man chained against that wall. Apparently the Others were making sure that poor soul was safely in place.

As the Others were trying to chain Michael to the wall closer to the door, he saw the figure sneaking up quickly in the darkness from behind the Others. Michael continued to resist, buying some time as it was taking the Others a few more seconds to snap the manacles on him. As the person got closer, Michael realized that the figure was not a full-grown man, but rather a youth with an enormous Afro a foot in diameter. This person appeared to be naked, with skin that was indeed dark, and not just appearing that way because of the bad lighting in the room. Of course Michael thought about Walt, but this boy had to be about six inches taller, even without the hair. Michael pretended not to see anything as the manacles were clamped around his wrists. As he drew close, Michael could tell that the youth wasn't quite naked, but wearing what could be considered very brief shorts, more like a loincloth in fact, and he was pulling something out of his hair. The object turned out to be some kind of hammer, and only as he drew back his hand preparing to strike, could Michael make out his facial features and get one tremendous shock.

When Walt heard the gunshot outside his prison room barely a minute after Alex and the Other left, he promptly decided he needed to be out of the manacles. He had just released himself when he saw his father and two Others struggling and entering this room. Walt immediately raised his hands straight over his head, to give him time to assess the situation. The Others only gave him a quick glance, and Michael gave no hint of recognition. Walt tiptoed silently across the room, pulled the hammer from within his hair, and swung it as hard as he could at the Other who happened to be on Walt's right. The blow landed on the back of the Other's head, sending him crashing to the floor. The other Other had enough time to react, and punched Walt in the jaw, knocking him down and causing the hammer to fly away. This action enraged Michael even further. While shackled by his hands, Michael gave that Other a vicious kick to the groin. As the Other howled in pain and bent over double, Michael grabbed the chains with his hands, and jumped up to knee the Other in the face. With one more jump, with both feet Michael kicked the Other so hard in the chest that ribs could be heard cracking. The Other crumpled to the floor next to Walt.

Scarcely believing what had just happened, Walt regained his composure enough to retrieve the key to the manacles from the only place he had time to put it: in his loincloth, and freed his father. There followed an intense but short hug, as their friends lay about injured and in trouble. Had it not been for the dire situation, tears would have been flowing copiously.