The jungle passed by quickly as Ben ran with every ounce of speed that he could. Panting, the adrenaline that pumped through him kept him going. Something was in pursuit of him and there was no where he could hide. Ben looked behind him as he ran, glancing back into the darkness trying to see if the danger was still behind him. Suddenly, he was falling. He grunted with the impact of meeting the ground. In the blackness he hadn't seen the tree root that had tripped him up. Ben didn't move. There was an uneasy silence. The only sound that could be heard was his own unsteady breathing.
Relaxing, slightly, he pulled himself up to sit. He brushed off the dirt as best as he could, standing up feeling stunned. Ben closed his eyes, grabbing a tree to lean on for support. He felt exhausted, as he tried to catch his breath. A flash of movement in his peripheral vision made him stiffen in fear. He was the proverbial deer in the forest, innocence hunted by the great predator. Unable to resist, he turned slowly to see his pursuer… A frightening voice rasped inside his mind. "Benjamin, I need you."
Benjamin started awake, his dream quickly fading into oblivion as if he had never had it, He was lying inside a tent, on a cot, covered with a blanket. Ben all at once felt a feeling of safety and calmness come over him, as if he were protected by some great light, a force field that no evil would be able to penetrate.
Noises such as birds and people murmuring outside could be heard, as if there were activity somewhere unseen. Daylight flooded through the canvas. There was a dull ache in his side, that stung if he dared move, but curiosity took the better of him. Ben sucked it up and grimaced slightly from his injuries as he pulled himself up just enough to take a look around from where he lay. He wondered vaguely who the tent belonged to. There was a chair nearby, and a small table with papers and notebooks on it.
Not seeing much else, Ben laid back down with a groan, trying to remember how he had gotten to be there. Moments later, as if to answer his questions. the entry to the tent was pulled back and a dark haired man entered. Ben quickly turned his head to see the visitor. He looked familiar, very familiar. Pausing for a moment, testing his voice, he whispered, "…Richard?" The dark eyed man smiled, his face was warm, as he approached, taking a seat in the chair.
"Hello, Ben. Glad to see you're finally awake. How are you feeling?" Richard asked. Ben gave him a small smile in return, "I'm fine." There was a silence for a moment. Richard looked at him, a hint of pity was in his expression as if there were some things that he regretted.
Ben watched him, wondering what he was thinking. "Richard?" Ben asked cautiously. "How did I get here?" He said slowly.
Richard's smile returned once again at Ben's question, and he blinked, shaking his head. "Some of the members of the Dharma Initiative brought you here to me. You were injured, and they asked for my help to make you better."
Ben frowned, feeling confused. "How was I injured, Richard?"
Richard bit his bottom lip, shrugging. "I'm not sure. I suppose you can ask the Dharma Initiative, when you go back there."
This wasn't what Ben wanted to hear. Emotion flooded through him at the thought of having to return home to his father who loathed him. "Go back? I don't want to go back Richard! I want to stay here!" Ben cried out.
Richard put a hand on his shoulder, not wanting him to get worked up. "Ben… Try to understand this… It's only for your safety. You're one of us now, and nothing is going to change that. But for the time being, you can't stay here."
Tears filled Ben's eyes at the unfairness of it all. "Why?" He asked, his voice breaking.
Richard gave him a look of sympathy, leaning forward to give him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Because…" Richard paused, as if he were trying to choose his words carefully. "Because, This is what Jacob wants. Jacob is our leader, Ben. He is a great man and he knows many things, and if you don't go back when the time comes Ben…" He stopped at once, as if fearful of saying something he didn't want to.
Ben blinked, clearing his teary eyes. Richard sighed, "I'm sorry, Ben. This is just the way it has to be, for now. I would like nothing better than to have you stay here with us, but it isn't up to me. Don't worry, Ben… This will all change, someday. Now just rest, our leader will be here shortly, and I'm sure he'll want to speak to you." Richard left then, and Ben lay alone in the confines of the tent, staring at the canvas ceiling above him. He would be seeing the leader later, and he would be able to tell him that he didn't want to go back, that he wanted to stay at the camp with the hostiles. His thoughts became muddled as he sunk into sleep.
Ben entered the house at the barracks, holding his first birthday present he had ever received. His friend Annie, was leaving in the morning on the submarine to Ann Arbor and had gifted him a thoughtful present in order for them to feel like they would be together forever. Ben, of course knew, that he would probably never see his best friend again. Living with his father, Roger, it was only natural that his pessimistic reality of life would pass on to his son. The house was dimmed, and Ben saw his father, lying on the couch still in his janitor uniform, completely wasted. A can of beer barely suspended in his left hand that dangled off the side. Ben approached, setting the present on the coffee table littered with empty cans of beer. Quietly, Ben came to his father and took the half full beer can and set it down on the table so that he wouldn't spill it. He knew his father would be unhappy to try to remove a stain from the carpet. In attempt to make him more comfortable, Ben tugged at a shoe, pulling it from his foot. Ben backed off humbly when his father snorted to life, his heavy eyes opening blinking, recognition entering his features. His father's eyes went down to the gift on the table.
"It's your birthday. Sorry I forgot." Roger said, his voice slurred from the alcohol. Ben blinked, staring down at his shoes modestly. Roger continued, "It's kind of hard to celebrate on the day you killed your mom." Ben glanced up in surprise. He had never heard this story before. "She was only seven months pregnant, we went for a hike… But you-" Roger eyed Ben with distaste, "-had to come early." Ben blinked away the tears that were forming in his eyes. "Now she's gone, and I'm stuck here on this island with you." Roger settled back on the brown and yellow couch. He shut his eyes, heaving a sigh. "Happy birthday, Ben." He said unhappily.
Unable to stay his tears, Ben tore out of the house, and ran as fast as he could. He didn't care where he went, or what happened. He only wanted to get away. Trees passed him quickly as he fled into the jungle. His tears fell freely as he ran, his mind working on the words that his father had said. It suddenly occurred to Ben that he now knew the reason why his father despised him so much. Ben never could understand the resentment until now. He didn't want to kill his mother, he hadn't had a choice, he never wanted her dead. It wasn't his fault was it? Ben wished desperately that he could have died, and she could've lived. Why was life so unfair? Why did everyone hate him? He didn't mean to do anything. "I need you mom!" He thought desperately.
Suddenly the jungle broke apart, and he was in a clearing. He stopped as he saw the pylons that he recognized from the orientation video he had watched the first day he had come to the island. What had Doctor Chang said about the fence? It was protecting them from wild life? Ben suddenly felt small and defenseless as if there were eyes on him that were studying or judging him. Unseen whispers surrounded him, they were unintelligible like a room full of people that were all talking at once. As his fear heightened, A man's voice laughed at him, at his vulnerability.
Ben searched the skies, and the tree tops of the jungle from across the line. "I'm scared." He thought over and over again. "I'm scared mom."
There was an eerie silence as the whispers ceased. Ben felt a presence before him and his eyes lowered. To his surprise, There his mother stood, on the opposite side of the pylons. Standing no more than ten feet away from him, in a blue dress, barefoot, her long blond hair reaching waist length…She was just as she had appeared in the only photograph he had of her. She had been standing outside of his room window too. Just looking at him. Ben had wondered if he had imagined it, but now he knew that he hadn't. The only thing he wanted was to go for her. She would save him, she had to know that he never wanted to kill her. She had to love him. She had to. Ben began to run to her, but she put up her hand and exclaimed, "Ben- Don't!" Ben halted, his tears beginning again. Didn't she want him either? "Mom!" He cried out in anguish. He wanted to tell her many things, but he couldn't.
His mother merely shook her head. "It's not time yet, Benjamin." With that, she turned, and walked away, disappearing into the jungle.
"Are you completely insane, Richard?" Charles exclaimed angrily as he paced back and forth in his tent. Everyone was asleep, and this was the only chance to show in private his extreme discontent with Richard's decision to bring Benjamin Linus to the camp. He had spoken to the boy earlier the same day, and had informed him that he would be returning to Dharma shortly. "Bringing him here? Even after you know what he is?" Charles slammed his fist down on his table. "What were you thinking?"
Richard looked down, obviously not enjoying the conversation and disagreeing with Charles Widmore's opinion. "The boy has free will, just like the rest of us." Richard said calmly.
Charles threw up his hands in exasperation with Richard's coolness. "The boy is also corruptible, just like the rest of us! You don't think he'll be given a fair bargain? The boy has been chosen!" He shouted.
"He wants to be one of us, he made that decision on his own. If he chooses to change, he will. Jacob knows this, and he wants-" Richard was cut off.
"This wasn't Jacob's idea; It was yours, Richard. You really think I would be stupid enough to believe that Jacob would knowledgeably let this…this monster?!-"
Eloise entered the tent, wearing a light blue robe over her dressing gown. "What is going on?" She hissed. Her blond hair was pinned up as she wore it when she slept. The two men fell silent at her sudden appearance. Eloise eyed the both of them, waiting for one of them to speak. "Charles?" Eloise said expectantly, waiting for an explanation.
Richard spoke instead, "It's about Ben. Charles believes it was a mistake to bring him here, because… he chose him."
Eloise tutted, "A Mistake? The mistake would be not bringing him here."
Charles scowled at the fact that he was now outnumbered in his opinion. "And why is that, Ellie? One day, that boy will be the downfall of everyone here! You can see his path, can't you? You certainly should know-"
Eloise interrupted him, "What I know, Charles, is that if this boy would have died, someone else would have been chosen. Then our problems would truly begin, because we would have no idea who it might be." Eloise stated firmly. Richard nodded in agreement, which only made Charles more agitated. He would not admit defeat.
"So, we are just suppose to keep the child here, and let him do whatever it is he wants? If his destiny is to kill Jacob, perhaps we should just march him over there now and let him be done with it." Charles said sarcastically.
Eloise rolled her eyes. For all the time she had known Charles Widmore, she had known him to be the most stubborn, pig-headed man she had ever met. But within that loathing for one another's view points and opinions, bloomed an odd relationship that couldn't be classified as a normal one. "Don't be ridiculous. His path isn't written in stone. Free will means that, if he chooses, he can become whatever he wants to." Eloise replied.
"That's right." Richard added. "Ben said that he wanted to become one of us. I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt, and a chance to redeem himself."
Charles sniffed. "He only said that because he doesn't want to live with the Dharma Initiative. He told me that earlier. He has lived with them for four years, and decided he wants something better. He has no loyalties, Richard. Not to them, and not to us. One day the both of you will find out that I'm right."
A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Sorry about the formatting, it seems to get a little messy after I upload it on here, but in the future I'll edit it on the site and fix some of the spacing. This wasn't really meant to become a story, as it had just been something I happened to write one day while I was bored, but I'm having fun with it. So, More chapters coming soon!