Lost Virtual Season Three

Important Editor's Note: The continuation of LVS3 continues
the drama directly after the reappearance of Michael from The Others camp. In
that regard, LVS3 deviates completely from the Season Finale of LS2.

Writers: Act I: Aimz, Act II: MidnightRiot

Full Credits and Disclaimers: Will appear at the end of this post

Rating for Episode One: PG-13

Special Thanks to: Leigh and mru-forum.com for hosting and supporting. Props and Congrats to Leigh for michelle-rodriguez.com becoming the The Official Site for Michelle Rodriguez

Feedback: Would love it. Please Read and Feed.
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Episode One: Baptism of Fire

ACT I

Scene One: The Hatch

It has been a living hell for Ana Lucia. Ever since she boarded the doomed Oceanic Flight 815, it was a waking jungle nightmare. She was always living on borrowed time anyway, using up her nine lives. Always cheating death. But now, lying on concrete sprawled out like the beginnings of a chalk outline at the crime scene of her own murder, Ana fears her time is up.

She tries to roll herself over and pull herself up, but her body seems ten times heavier, like the weight of a thousand years is upon her. She wishes she could float out and above her body and conduct her own investigation, rather than wait for someone to stumble upon her corpse and take pity on her. First, check her own vitals for any sign of life, but she can't move or feel her own pulse.

She tries to recall how she ended up here with her face pressed up against concrete and for how long. She tries to recall who pulled the trigger.

She swears she heard a gun fire. Yes she's certain a gun fired, but she feels no pain of impact. Perhaps the bullet killed her instantly. That's the only explanation. She's dead and this is hell.

She licks her lips to taste any possible tinge of blood in her mouth. If she had been shot, there would be blood. She analyzes like a forensics expert. Even while dying, she deduces: Where did the bullet enter her body and at what range? Had it hit any vital organs? Will Dr. Jack be able to save her with Band-Aids and a hunting knife, and a spool of thread ... and a shot of Tequila? Is it too late?

She wants to laugh at the absurdity of her making it out of this one alive. But she can't laugh, or scream, or run, or move. She is frozen, splayed out along cold concrete that had never seen the light of day.

As a kid, Ana was in the hospital so many times that they joked about naming a wing after her. She was always breaking a limb, or getting a concussion, or severing skin to the point of needed stitches. And she was shot before too, yes. Four bullets to the chest, yet she survived. She's survivor, a hard kill. Not easy prey. But in this place -- some sort of Purgatory, something short of Hades -- there is no Medavac on its way. No emergency room. No way out.

If she's dead, she clearly hasn't made it to Heaven.

She used to be Catholic. She made the mistake of telling Eko that one day. And when he decided to start talking again, Eko did nothing but preach to Ana about repenting, spouting out bible verses to the like. She half expected him to whip out his homemade holy water and sprinkle it on her like she were some possessed demon in need of an exorcism. So goes without saying that she avoided him like the plaque.

Now Ana needs Eko to come hear her confession before it's too late. She cries out to him in silent screams. Because Hell seems eerily similar to the hatch. It smells and tastes like jungle rot and rust. And Henry is Satan himself coming to wrap his clammy paws around her neck, again and again, a vice grip squeezing every last breath out of her, flinging her around as if she were some rag doll for all eternity. Eternally Damned.

This is not the way she wants to die.

But she recalls Sayid, and the harsh wisdom of his words. You can not kill someone who is already dead. And she had died along time ago, long before she set foot on this god-forsaken island.

Bless me father for I have killed people, good people who were leaving me alone.

Bless me father for I have fornicated for no other reason than to get a gun, so I could kill again. Bless me for enjoying it too. I am willing to do extra penance for secretly coveting my neighbor named Sawyer.

Bless me father, for nobody can hurt me without getting hurt back.

Bless me father for I haven't much fight left in me.

She feels the steady cadence of her heartbeat slow to a near standstill. She listens to the soft hum of computer equipment until all goes silent. She feels her blood run cold, slipping deep into the abyss.

She gives cheating death one last go.

“Help. Someone help.”


:Cue Lost title and creepy music. Commercial Break:


Scene Two: A remote beach on the outskirts of the Losties' Camp

Sitting on a sand dune, Locke gazes out into the hazy horizon with his injured leg stretched out before him, mindlessly twirling his crutch. If he could burn every crutch and wheelchair in the universe, he would. Not that it would matter. He had cheated paralysis by landing on this mysterious place, only to have half of that taken away from him with this leg injury, an injury that was caused by the very place that he had held so sacred. The island giveth, and the island taketh away.

“Well there you are Mr Locke. It's a gorgeous morning isn't it?” Squinting, Rose holds her hand above her eyes to shield them from the sun and pauses to catch her breath. She had walked about a mile outside of camp looking to round up the troops for this morning’s important event, Aaron’s baptism, the first real gathering of all the island castaways from both ends of the plane. The prospect brings her both excitement and anxiety. So many different personalities in all in one place was bound to drudge up tension, but she was willing to give it a try.

Locke grasps the revolver and tucks it under his pant leg, attempting to quickly hide it from Rose. The beauty of the early morning sun, the sweet smells wafting through the island breeze somehow escapes his appreciation. In all honesty this is the first time Locke has spent more than an hour outside of the hatch since they blew it open. Right now the hatch is the last place he wants to be with Henry and his mind games, making him believe that there is some greater purpose to all of this, that he is more than a mere pawn, a mockery.

He's beginning to believe that the island and everything on it is one big apparition, all a figment of his once painkiller-induced imagination, and soon he'll wake up in his rundown studio apartment pulling his useless lower half into a wheel chair. His destiny was amounting to nothing.

“ I suppose so.” The non-committal tone of his response is intended to give Rose the polite brush off. A pep talk from her is not welcomed right now.

“You suppose so? Well look around you. You are not seeing what I am seeing.” Rose pauses. Becoming concerned, she helps herself to a seat next to him.

“Sorry Rose. I am not . . . I mean excuse me if I am not feeling the beauty of nature today.”

“Oh Grumpy are we? Well, Aaron's baptism should cheer you up. Nothing like celebrating new life.” With an eyebrow raise, Rose gives a knowing glance towards Locke's legs. “New life, new chances.”

Locke releases a long sigh. He is a bit weary of Rose dropping hints about his pre-island paralysis. It's serves as a constant reminder of a past life that he just as soon leave dead and buried. So far Rose is the only person on the island who knows his secret and he wants to keep it that way.

“You are going to Aaron's baptism aren't you? The ceremony is set to begin in about 30 minutes in the new church.” Rose glances up to the shanty wooden structure on the edge of the cliffs high above. “I am rounding everyone up. I mean it's not like everyone has a working wrist watch to make sure they make it to the ceremony on time,” she chuckles sarcastically.

“I wasn't planning on going Rose. So you can continue on.”

“Well why aren't you going? You are fond of Claire and her baby. She'll be disappointed.”

“I was never the religious type Rose.”

“Really? That's surprising. I was never one for organized religion either, but what I have is faith. You seem like a man of faith to me. And if there ever was a time to have faith . . .”

The word faith hit Locke like a slap in the face. “My faith is shaky these days,” he answered her sternly hoping she would drop the subject. He strokes the barrel of his gun. The heat of it nearly burns his fingertips.

“I am not one to take no for an answer John.”

“Rose, there you are. Good morning John. Can't find em. . . .Jack, Kate. . . I've looked all over for them.” Bernard approaches them, slightly exasperated. Beads of sweat line his sunburned forehead and his khaki shirt is nearly saturated.

Locke nods hello to Bernard, relieved to see him, hoping that he will lead Rose away.

“Well they were around an hour ago Bernard, Did you check in the hatch?” Rose’s patience with Bernard is never in abundance. She sent him on a simple mission and he’s failing.

“I don't think they are in the hatch.”

“Well did you look Bernard? Honestly. John doesn't think he wants to go to the Baptism. Bernard, tell him he has to go.”

“I can't tell him what to do Rose. If the man doesn't want to go, he doesn't want to go.” Bernard senses Rose going into her bossy Martha Stewart mode and he decides to nip it in the bud before it gets out of hand.

Rose stand defiantly with her hands on her hips. “That's not the point Bernard,” she retorts angrily.

While the couple bickers, Locke rolls to his side, props himself up with his crutch and struggles to get up. Needing both hands to bring himself to a standing position, he leaves the gun laying in the sand in full sight.

Bernard diverts his attention away from Rose and towards the gun. While Locke hobbles to balance himself, Bernard reaches down for the gun. Locke becomes nervous.

“Don't forget this,” says Bernard handing him the gun.

Nodding his head, Locke accepts the gun and shoves it in his back pocket.

“I'll see you two.” Locke turns to leave but is halted by Bernard.

“The guy in the hatch. I heard about him,” says Bernard. “What do you guys plan on doing with him?”

Locke turns and pauses. “Everything will be worked out.”

“What guy in the hatch?” asks Rose, darting her eyes between the two men.

“He's one of them isn't he? Isn't he John?” Bernard’s voice shakes at the prospect of a confrontation, yet he pushes on.

“One of them?” Locke feigns confusion. He wasn't in the mood for an interrogation.

“Yes, them. They are dangerous, John. So he's dangerous. When are you and Jack planning on telling everyone what’s going on?”

Locke shakes his head.

“Let's go Bernard.” Rose grabs Bernard's elbow as he becomes visibly upset. She doesn't want him to get his blood pressure up over something silly.

“Wait a second Rose,” he says pulling himself away from her grasp. “You and John seem to think the island is some kind of paradise. Don’t let all of this fool you.” He directs his attention back to Locke. “Are you aware that them, The Others, kidnapped half of us on the other side of the island, including children. I don’t think you and Jack fully understand what we all went through. ”

“Oh here we go again. Bernard you are fine, let it go,” says an exasperated Rose, fed-up with Bernard’s war stories.

Locke releases a deep sigh and fights the need to defend The Others, people whom he doesn’t really know, but yet, he can’t help himself. “There is no proof that they have hurt anyone . And Henry, the guy in the hatch . . . he hasn’t hurt anyone.”

“What about Charlie. Didn't one of them kidnap Claire and try to hang Charlie?”

“That didn't necessarily have anything to do with Henry, Bernard.”

“What about Ana Lucia,” Bernard says in a halting voice, realizing before it’s too late that he spilled too much information. He made a promise to Libby not to tell anyone, a promise that he is on the verge of breaking.

“What do you know about Ana Lucia?”

“That your friend Henry tried to kill her. Yes he tried to choke her to death, Rose. And what’s with the gun Locke? Did you try and finish the job?”

“Bernard!” exclaims Rose preparing him to yank him away.

Locke glares coldly at Bernard, not responding, before quickly leaving the scene.



Scene Three: Entering the Hatch (Sawyer, Jack, Kate)

“Can ya'll give me some room, dang it.”

Sawyer approaches the hatch with Dr. Jackles and Mrs. Hyde hot on his heals. He can practically feel them breathing down his darn neck like two salivating hyenas. He's had more than had his fill of militant broads today, and by broads he means Ana Lucia, Kate . . . and Jack. Yes Jack. Ole Doco is actually worst than a whiney harpy on the rag, barking orders like he owns the damned island. He's fed up with the lot of them.

He is supposed to be leading them to the guns now. Ha, fat chance. Like he's supposed to just hand them over because Dr. Goodbar starts breathing steam about going to fetch that little rugrat Walt. Out of sight, out of mind. Life on the island is much more peaceful without the chatty little manchild anyways. Not gonna happen.

The only gun he's aiming for is the one Ana Lucia lifted from him. Lil' LuLu aint getting away with stealing his piece no matter how good the sex was.

She aint getting that lucky twice.

Sawyer pauses and stretches to work out the soreness in his bones. He rubs his stiff neck, and is quite sure he has bruises on quite a few parts of his body thanks to Rambina and her rough lovin. Not that he doesn't appreciate a take charge kind of woman in the sack. But he barely had enough time to brace himself for Speedy McHotpants, who just came out of nowhere and jumped him. She wrapped her little tight body around him like an Olympic wrestler, and to be honest she was just too ripe to push away. He always found the Militant Muchacha to be tempting. Truth be told she was one hot piece of arse. That was of course when she wasn't being a pain in one. But, being the tender lover he is, he prefers sex that doesn't involve getting scratched and kicked in the shins with combat boots. Something a little less reminicient of Saturday night at the WWF.

While Sawyer smirks to himself, recalling his romp in the jungle with Ana, Jack grows more impatient with his casual attitude.

“Okay. Damnit, where are they Sawyer?” Near the computer terminals, Jack paces about angrily, wild-eyed and at his wits’ end.

Standing close by, Kate folds her hands across her chest and taps her foot. “Sawyer quit screwing around. You don't need the guns, give them up,” says Kate in a weary tone. She no longer understands why Sawyer needs to play this childish game of hoarding to feel empowered. Any delusions she had about Sawyer being good at heart were quickly dissipating. “You think this makes you a big man?”

Sawyer lowers his brows as his voice takes on a sinister tone. “Slow it down Freckles, you don't want to go there.”

Swiftly, Jack yanks a revolver from the back of his pants, and aims it square at Sawyer. “The guns Sawyer. I am not going to ask again.” His grey eyes darken like angry thunderclouds as he releases the safety of the gun.

Sawyer stands tall and clinches his jaw tight. “Or else what? You gonna shoot me Jacko? Well that wouldn't be too smart now would it? If I'm dead, y'all ain’t never finding them guns.”

“Stop it you two.” Kate makes a move to position herself in between the standoff, feeling both proud and frustrated.

“Back away Freckles, you don’t want to get in the middle of this.”

Before Kate can respond, their attention is diverted towards the beeping alarm, however none of them make a move to tend to the button.

“Well well Jacko, ain’t you gonna push that button over there and keep the island from blowing up.”

“Jack, who was watching the hatch?”

“Ana Lucia was,” Jack answers Kate. He looks around and suddenly notices that nobody is stirring. Ana Lucia surely would have come out to greet them. “Shhh.” He hears a voice calling for help and moves quickly towards it while ordering Kate to handle the button.

“Oh my god, Ana,” gasps Jack as he spots Ana’s lifeless body sprawled out at the armory opening. He rushes towards her with Sawyer following behind.

“What the hell happened here?” Sawyer peers into the empty armory and back down at Ana Lucia. Jack falls to his knees next to Ana and feels at her neck and wrist to check for a pulse.

“Crap is this blood?” Saywer lifts his foot, shocked to find the soles of his shoes covered in red. “It’s all over the floor. Is she dead?” Sawyer is more frantic than he realizes at first.

“Ana, Ana Lucia,” Jack whispers sternly, trying to coax her awake. “No she’s not dead.”

He furiously examines her body to see if Ana has any wounds, but he doesn’t detect any. Her complexion is ghostly white, but he does feel a weak pulse and shallow breathing. He is relieved to detect some sign of life, but still senses foul play. “Check around the hatch. Check for Michael.”

Sawyer hesitates. If the Muchacha is not really dead, he needs to see for himself. “What, did she pass out? What, Doc?” Must have been heat exhaustion as a result of all that rough tumbling she did with him. Yes, she passed out from heat exhaustion. Serves her right, but no way is Rambina dead.

“Sawyer, go!”

“Jack, Michael’s gone,” Kate rushes up, reporting through gasps of breath.

“Looks like your little prisoner escaped too,” informs Sawyer nodding his head towards the empty armory and abandoned shackles. “Yea, remember the one you didn’t think anyone knew about Doco. Word travels fast around these parts.”

“Everyone knows about Henry by now Sawyer. What happened to Ana-Lucia,” asks Kate?

“I am not sure.” Jack continues to try to revive Ana, this time gently pulling her head towards his lap. He feels an open wound at the back of her skull and realizes she may have been attacked. He continues coaxing her as she begins to stir. “Ana, Ana.”

While cradling her head at his chest, he reaches down and whispers close in her ear, and begins to rock her a bit more gently, almost mimicking what he witnessed Kate do with for Sawyer after he had returned with a bullet wound. Ever since then, he was determined to work on his bedside manner. “Come on sweetie, wake up.”

Sawyer steals a look at Kate as Jack’s tender bedside manner, which some may have thought to be non-existent, comes to the surface. Her reaction gives him sick amusement. Freckles is way too easy.

“Ow,” Ana coughs lightly and begins to regain consciousness. She gulps hard and it feels like a dozen shards of glass stabbing at her throat. “Wha wa happened?” she asks in a voice so gravely it is barely audible. She makes a sudden move to jerk herself up, only to grimace and succumb to her massive head pain.

“Take it easy.” Jack slowly helps her to sit up, allowing her to lean back into his chest. “It looks like you were knocked out. Do you remember what happened?”

Ana Lucia squints in pain and blinks hard a few times trying to focus on her surroundings. Jack has his long arms wrapped around her. She is sitting in-between his legs with her head on his chest. And Sawyer and Kate of all people are hovering above her scowling with confusion.

She rolls her eyes while trying to prop herself up and move away from Jack. Although Jack's tenderness is comforting, she doesn’t want to be in the middle of this scene, especially if Sawyer had been running his mouth about their little tryst. Still not all of what had transpired is coming to her. All events seem to be bleeding into one. Yet she remembers sex with Sawyer, oddly that recollection is as clear as a bell, an image forever to haunt her. . . like a recurring nightmare.

“Ouch,” she exclaims as Jack presses his fingers into her sore head.

Jack reaches in his backpack to pull out patch of gauze. “Sorry, someone knocked you in the back of the head. You are not bleeding too badly. The wound is superficial. It will be tender for awhile until the swelling goes down, but you’ll live. Can one of you grab her some ice?”

“Y’all got ice down here,” asks Sawyer? “The things us peons don’t know. I don’t know if ice is going to help her though.” Sawyer laughs to himself. The Ice Queen turned out to be one hot mama all on her own.

“Kate, please,” Jack pleads in exasperation, knowing full well he would get nothing from Sawyer but a bunch of smart ass remarks.

Kate glances between the two men, curiously, before walking off.

Ana reaches her hand around to the back of her head, as Jack helps her to fully sit and lean her against the hatch wall.

“I am not sure, what happened,” speaking through strained vocal cords, Ana struggles to remember, angry at herself for being unable to fully put the pieces together. Henry chocked her, someone hit her. She had sex with Sawyer at some point in-between. Michael had a gun, but Michael was missing, wasn’t he? Locke had a crutch. She wasn’t shot?

“I am not sure how long you've been unconscious Ana. It may take a bit for you to remember everything, but try,” says Jack trying not to push her too hard, but clearly in need of answers sooner rather than later.

“Henry.” She jerks to fuller attention as her memory becomes clearer. “He, he tried to choke me. He tried to kill me. Locke, Locke had a crutch.”

“Henry did this Ana? But how? Who let him loose? What happened?”

“Looks like Ole Henry flew the coop,” offers Sawyer. “Good thing you have a hard noggin Lucy. Guess that's why you ain’t dead,” he quips feeling the need to get a jab in on Ana Lucia while she is at her most vulnerable.

Sawyer's voice manages to make her head worse, and it hurts too much to scowl at him or even acknowledge his useless presence. “No, no Locke, um…”

“Locke!” Jack stands quickly, and slings his backpack in one swift move. “Ana, Locke was lying, wasn’t he? He told us Henry attacked you earlier and he was covering up.”

Jack waits a spilt second for an acknowledgment from Ana, then everything becomes clear. While they were arguing with Sawyer about the guns on the beach, Locke slinked away and made it back to the hatch before them, knocked-out Ana and let Henry go free in attempt to save him. Jack quickly puts the pieces of the puzzle together, filling in the blanks where his mistrust of Locke lets him. “Just, just keep pressure on the back of her head.”

“Where are you going Jack?” asks a confused Kate with a towel full of ice in her hand.

“To find Locke.”

Scene Four: The Beach – Losties’ Campside.

“Fancy meeting you here Sayid,” says Charlie in a jovial tone. “It being the island water cooler and all . . . get it, water cooler. You know like in an office, everyone congregates at the water cooler…”

“Hello Charlie.” Sayid mildly acknowledges Charlie while continuing to search for the right sized empty water bottle to fill. He gets Charlie’s sarcasm, but the humor in it escapes him.

Feeling defeated, but believing he can bring a smile to anyone’s face, Charlie gives it another try.

“Oops sorry, I forgot that you probably didn’t do the nine to five office job, you know with the suit and tie. You were a soldier.” Charlie mocks a salute. “Eh, Can’t say that I blame you. I did it once and it was hell. Hellish, hellish gig. I sold photocopy machines in fact. But that’s a long story. You don’t want to hear about that one, it was all for a girl, you know how that goes . . .”

“What is it that I might do for you Charlie,” interrupts an impatient Sayid. He was never one for beating around the bush and he knew Charlie was after something.

“Um well, don’t suppose you heard about the ceremony this morning. Eko and I, well we finished building that church, and well Claire thought it would be a good idea for a christening. You know to baptize Aaron.”

“Well I am sure that will be lovely,” Sayid responds matter-of-factly while shoving water bottles in his backpack.

“Yes, well I was hoping you would come.”

Sayid, pauses with puzzlement then shakes his head no. “I am afraid I will have to pass on attending.”

“I mean I know you are not Catholic, maybe not even Christian. But not to worry. I mean we wanted it to be a memorial service too. I mean say a prayer for the people who have lost their lives,” he pauses as Sayid suddenly stops movement. “Shannon especially. I was hoping you could maybe say a few words about her. . . in her memory. “

“No Charlie. I will not do that.” Trying to ignore the pang in his heart that the mere mention of Shannon always conjures up, Sayid starts to rush off but halts abruptly in his tracks. He spots a flash of human movement in the bushes.

“But, wait. It will be good I promise.” Prepared to chase him down and convince him, Charlie nearly rams into Sayid.

“Do you see that Charlie.” Sayid tip toes closer, and sees the image of a young boy. The image turns, dripping wet, shaking with wide, fear-filled eyes. He raises a finger to his mouth and makes a hushing noise. Sayid recognizes the image as Walt. He grabs Charlie's arm desperately and spins him around squarely towards the apparition. “You don’t…. see that.” Sayid nearly shakes Charlie, demanding acknowledgment.

“Sayid, there is nuthin’ there man. Have you gone mad?”

“Go back,” Sayid commands to a shocked Charlie, while shoving him away forcefully. “Go to your baptism ceremony. Do not follow me.”

“Okay man, try to stay out of the sun a bit.” With a puzzled expression, Charlie resolves himself to stand back and simply watch as Sayid rushes into the jungle. “And get some rest.”

Not wanting to believe what he saw, Sayid keeps moving anyway. He never was able to forgive himself for not believing Shannon when images of Walt appeared to her. He dismissed her until is was too late. If only he had believed her, she would not have run away from him and straight into Ana Lucia’s bullet.

Approaching a clearing he stops as a strong gust of wind kicks up and holds him back like a force field. His heart beats wildly as he hears what he remembers as the same strange whispers he had heard while escaping from Danielle a month ago. He spins around with eyes darting around his surroundings.

He gasps and doubles back, stumbling and falling on his rear as the image of Walt appears again, suddenly, out of thin air.

“Walt,” he gasps. “What are you doing?”

Shhh, the apparition responds. Sayid wants to get up and charge after him, but the shock of it all stunts his movement. ”Walt?”

“The rains are coming. Things are not as they seem. Shhh.”

“What?” Sayid rolls himself over and jumps into defense mode. The whispers die down and he spots movement in the bushes a few feet away.

A larger image appears, that of a man. He stumbles and falls at Sayid’s feet.

“Michael?” Sayid rushes closer to his long lost friend, noticing that his left shoulder has been wounded.

“Sayid, help.” Michael’s eyes roll to the back of his head and he passes out.


Scene Five: Flashback, The Others Camp

“Why, why can’t I see my son?. Why are you asking me all of these questions? Who are you people?” Michael pleaded to the dark-skinned woman who s identified herself by only the name Mrs. Klugh. He has lost all control, all powers of negotiation, and certainly all patience. “And what you are asking me to do is crazy.”

“Crazy,” answered Mrs. Klugh matter of factly. “Four of our people were killed. Four. So you listen to me Michael. We will let you go tonight, and here is what you are going to do. You will return to your camp, and you will execute the man named Eko and the woman named Ana Lucia. That is if you ever want to see Walt again.”

Michael paused. He was not a killer, but these were desperate times. He nodded slowly, almost involuntarily. He would do anything to get his boy back.

“Your friends, a Jack and Kate, the doctor and the brunette woman. They are out searching now. We’ll let you out, you’ll stumble upon them. Let them lead you back to the hatch. There you will find a man. They have him captive. You will release that man. Then you will execute who I told you to.

“Yea yea Eko…and

“And Ana Lucia. They must die.”

Michael had to do what he had to do. He hung his head and stared at the dirt floor of his tent, mumbling. “Deal.”


Scene Six: The Hatch inside the armory.

“Ow damnit.” A shock of cold and pain surges through Ana Lucia as Sawyer attempts to position ice at the back of her head. It causes her to abruptly elbow him in the side.

“Watch it Lucy. What the hell.”

“You are pressing too hard, probably on purpose.” Ana is sitting up now on the bench with Saywer sitting next to her. It didn’t escape her awareness that Sawyer had also snaked his arm around her waist, and positioned his hard, sweaty body close to her. Too close without her permission. She felt like a high school girl trying to fight off a her date at the movie theater. She felt like telling him to keep his hands to himself. He wasn’t getting to cop a feel for free. “You can back off me now,” she rasps, then decides not to waste her weakened voice on him

“I aint doin nothing but wasting my time trying to help you. You want to do it yourself?” He lifts his hands in surrender and prepares to stand up.

Ana sneers at him and snatches the make-shift ice pack. She winces and struggles to move her arm up and behind her head.

“You ain’t never gonna to bring down the swelling at the rate you’re going there.” Saywer laughs and hands her a bottle of water. “Here drink this. All that growlin' must have you parched.”

Ana sighs and cranks her neck around. She decides to take a swig and bears down as the water, going down, hits her throat like a fist full of needles.

“So O'Henry tried to choke the life out of you huh? He he.” Saywer chuckles while going to grab a fresh piece of gauze. “What did you do to him?” He moves closer to her and pushes back a loose trendel of her hair to reveal a gash below her hairline. “You got a nasty cut on your forehead too. Want Sawyer to kiss it and make it better, sugar?”

Sawyer's playfulness and utter inability to take any situation seriously brings a reluctant warmth to the pit of her stomach. Ana fights back a grin, and fights enjoying the way Sawyer's moist t-shirt is clinging to the hard curves of his chest as he hovers above her. She can't believe that the thought of him kissing her forehead is comforting if not completely childish. She curses the thought. Still, she can't help but note that Sawyer looks cute semi-tending to her needs, but she isn’t about to let that cheshire grin and dimples fool her. There will be no kissing. Nothing of the sort

“Move away man. Did you poison this water?”

“Don’t go giving me any ideas.”

Ana purses her mouth, which makes her lips look extra juicy and plump. Sawyer wants to grab hold of one and suck. His gaze follows the creamy expanse of her neck, so smooth and copper-toned. Damn, He hates the thought and loves it at the same time. He’s had one taste of her, and it’s taking way too long to get her out of his head. This woman would be the death of him.

After forcing a few more swallows of water down her raw throat, Ana starts to come back to her senses. She looks around and realizes just where she is, in Henry’s pseudo prison cell. She spies the abandoned ropes and shackles in the corner and shuts her eyes tight at the memory of Henry choking her as her blood runs cold. She curses herself for not killing him when she had the chance, for punking out and failing at her mission. Now the creep has run away, gotten off scott free.

“You should change that bandage there. Maybe eat something.”

“I’m alright,” she insists, not believing that Sawyer was still sticking around.

“Woman you are awful hard headed. You sure Locke did that much damage to that noggin? Oh and we have to talk about your rough lovin. I aint one for wrestlin’ as a means of foreplay.”

“You think what happened is going to happen again?” Ana sighs and rolls her eyes. It was about getting a gun, what part of that remained unclear to him. “Think again. And, where’s Jack, anyway?”

“Jack? What I am not good enough.” Sawyer rips open the pack of Dharma gauze with his teeth and spits the wrapper onto the floor.

“Well sheeze. He’s the doctor, not you. Are you his new nurse-maid? No thanks, I'd rather see the doctor.”

Sawyer cranks his neck ready to pounce on that statement, protesting and sticking up for his manhood. But seeing Ana smirk at him, he changes his tune. “Why, the good ole boy scout went to defend your honor. He went a huntin' for wabbits.”

Ana scowls.

“Locke, Muchacha Locke.”

“Locke?”

“Yea, Locke. And you bet your cute little ass, it will happen again between you and I. You can't take a trip on the Sawyer ride just once, sweet cheeks “

“Shut ... Can you focus on something else, please? What do you mean Jack is hunting Locke?” Ana grimmaces again as the pounding pain grows more severe, thanks to Sawyer and his mindless yapping.

“Locke's the one that cold-cocked you ain't he? And let Hank loose.”

“No, no it wasn't Locke.” Her body stiffened in recollection.

“Well who was it then?”

“It was Michael. I remember Michael.”

“Wait what's that.” Sawyer shushes Ana and stains to hear someone entering the hatch. “That's Muhammad.”

“Jack! Anyone! Come help.”

“What da?”

Sayid shuffles towards the armory dragging a barely lucid Michael along side him. “Sawyer, where is Jack. Michael has been shot. I found him in the jungle.

Ana grips the edge of the bench tight, seething with anger until everything around her nearly turns into a red haze. The memories flood back to her instantly, like a light switch was turned on. Michael had come into the hatch while she was there with a gun trained on Henry. She was unable to kill him, she was trembling at the thought of taking another life. Michael convinced her to give him the gun. But he turned on her. She trusted him and he turned on her.

“Yea Ana-Lucia got hit. No she aint dead. Locke hit her, or we think.”

Ana hears Sawyer and Sayid faintly outside of the armory, but their voices become inaudible to her. Her full attention is now on Sawyer's gun that he left there. The image of it beckons her. Two people, two, tried to kill her today, or they wanted to. This time they wouldn't get away with it.

Fighting against the pain rioting in her head Ana gets up and grabs the gun, with one target in mind -- Michael.

Feeling drunk she stumbles towards the three men. Sawyer and Sayid are pulling Michael up. All Ana sees between them is a man marked for death.

The click of the safety release echoes and reverberates throughout the hatch, immediately making the men before her jerk to attention.

“Ana Lucia what are you doing?”

“Whoa Rambina, put the weapon down.”

Ana moves herself within inches of Michael. She presses the cold hard barrel of the gun against his skull. Shuddering, Michael says not a word, yet looks at her with pleading eyes.

“This bastard here tried to kill me. Now he has to die.”


Scene Seven: The Church

Jin tilts his chin towards the sky soaking up the early afternoon rays. He smiles as Sun sneaks up behind him and wraps her arms around his waist. They comment to each other about how nicely the church had turned out. Jin had assisted Charlie and Eko with the final touches. Jin, looks around to the dozen of fellow castaways gathered in the church, and tells Sun it was a labor of love to see everyone so at peace and happy.

Claire enters with Aaron wrapped in blanket and makes her way towards the altar. Jin and Sun smile at the site

“Baby,” Jin manages to say in clear English, much to Sun's surprise. He puts hhis hand on her bulging tummy and utters a second English word. “Pregnant.”

Sun commends his effort while smiling and blushing. The two snuggle, and Sun says a silent prayer, hoping the happiness between the two of them lasts.

“Here he is. He's all ready.” Claire presents Aaron to Eko. The infant smiles, and kicks his pudgy legs as Eko takes him in his massive arms. Out of the corner of her eye, Claire spots Charlie entering the church and becomes visibly uncomfortable. “I don't know how to thank you Eko. I mean I have never been particularly religious, but strangely this means alot to me.”

“I think this will be a good thing for alot of people Claire.” He gestures to Charlie to join them at the front of the church. “You can thank me by letting Charlie be a part of this ceremony.”

Claire shifts her weight and rubs the back of her neck nervously. “I don't know Eko. I mean you don't understand.”

“I understand Claire. This is a time for forgiveness though. Forgiveness and understanding.”

Charlie sheepishly approaches the altar. Eko nods to Claire then slowly hands Aaron over to Charlie

The feel of Aaron in his arms, for the first time in weeks, brings a warm smile to Charlie's face. His whole body is filled with more joy than he has experienced since before Claire banished him. “This little bloke has gotten heavy.” He laughs as Aaron grabs at the bottom of his tie and attempt to shove it in his mouth. His heart is content.

“You are wearing a tie Charlie?” exclaims a surprised, and pleasantly pleased Claire. She notices that the white shirt he is wearing is a few sizes too large.

Oh yea. I borrowed it from Bernard. The shirt too. I don't own a tie ya know. I barely know how to tie one. But I thought, well I thought it was appropriate.”

“Well you clean up nicely.”

“I am happy to be here Claire. I love this little guy.” Charlie lifts Aaron's tiny foot and gives it a peck.

Charlie's warm reunion is cut short by the appearance of Locke, who hobbles into the church and looks around cooley. He is the last to get seated as the ceremony begins.

“You bastard!”

By the time Everyone can turn around and react, Jack has Locke in a full choke hold

“You think you can get away with this Locke. Why did you do it? Why did you let him loose, and almost kill Ana Lucia?”

Now fully on the ground with Jack ontop of him, Locke puts his hands in front of his face to block Jack's wild punches. “What? Wait! Jack you have the wrong guy.”

“Jack get off him. Jack stop.”

Jack hears Kate, Eko, Charlie urging him to stop until all voices become a blur. He is blinded by rage, moving by primal instinct, unable to stop himself from pummeling Locke, his arch enemy, into oblivion.


Take a snack break and stay tuned for Act II.

Episode 3x1-Baptism of Fire

ACT II

SCENE ONE: THE CHURCH

Ana, Sawyer, Sayid and Michael enter, Michael wincing from a self-inflicted bullet wound, Ana with a gun trained on Michael. Jack has started pummeling Locke, yelling at him. “You let him go!” he rages viciously. “I know it! Where’s—” He is cut off as Sayid and Sawyer sprint forward, grabbing his arms and pulling him away from Locke.

Eko stares stonily at the panting, still enraged Jack, while everyone else at the ceremony watches Ana-Lucia and Michael fearfully.

The hand that clutches Ana-Lucia’s gun shakes slightly as it continues to be pointed at Michael. “Tell him, Michael,” she says angrily. “Tell him what you did.”

Eko silently and calmly helps a shaking Locke to his feet, as all eyes are trained on Michael and Ana.

“Ana, what—” Jack starts, his eyes clouded both in anger and confusion. But he is cut off by Michael’s shaky confession.

“I—I hit her,” he says, his voice barely above a whisper. “I attacked Ana-Lucia, and I let the prisoner go.”

Fearful whispers race through the crowd; no one can believe it. After all, this is Michael; their Michael. Jin sub-consciously moves closer to Sun; Hurley rests a hand protectively at Libby’s elbow, silently thankful that she had gone to the ceremony with him that day; Charlie looks over to where Claire holds Aaron tightly, wishing he could go over and hold them both. Kate stares at Michael, her eyes wide in shock and fear.

“Michael, why would you—” but Jack is cut off again, this time by Locke.

“Henry, he’s gone? He really left?” His tone of voice says that he really can’t believe it, and it is not silenced by Jack’s angry look.

“Y-Yeah, man,” says Michael, before taking a deep breath and facing the rest of the crowd, mainly Jack. His face twitches nervously, and his eyes avoid the still-shaking gun pointed at his face. “But you need to understand,” he says desperately. “They have him. They have my son. I had to do it. I have to get him back.”

“You—You son of a bitch,” Jack practically growls. “You sold us out to Them? We tried to help you. We would’ve helped you. How could you—you attacked Ana-Lucia? Was that really your plan? Was that why you were sent here? Or was this a distraction? Are They on their way now, ready to ambush us?” He takes a threatening step forward, and Kate cautiously reaches out to him, trying to calm him.

“Jack—”

“This wasn’t the plan,” Michael bursts out suddenly. “This wasn’t the plan at all!” He turns to Ana-Lucia, who still hasn’t lowered her gun. “I was supposed to kill you. You and Mr. Eko. But—But I couldn’t. I couldn’t do it. I thought I could do anything to get my son back, but I was wrong. I was wrong, and now I need your help.” He stares into Ana-Lucia’s eyes, hoping to touch something in there, persuade her, find some common ground. This is their link, he knows, and he wants her to know it, too. They share this need to reclaim those they were responsible for, those they had lost. And they share the fact that they both fall short of doing so; they can’t kill, they can’t avenge, and they can’t succeed.

Michael wants to tell her that this is their chance, their baptism of fire, their opportunity to succeed. He wants to tell her this, but he doesn’t know if he can, what with her short temper and the gun in his face and all.

“You would have killed me,” she says, tightening her grip on the gun. “You would have killed me if you could.”

He doesn’t deny it. “And you would’ve killed me, if you’d had the chance,” he says. And she knows she can’t argue. And Ana-Lucia lowers her gun. “But now I need your help. I can’t do this alone. I need you to come with me to their camp. I’ll take you there. We’ll get my son. And we’ll get them back.”

She sees their common ground, and she acknowledges it; she almost appreciates it. She thanks him silently for giving her this chance, this opportunity to do things right. It doesn’t matter that she doesn’t trust him. This is what she needs to do.

“Fine,” she says coldly, slipping the gun into her waistband. “Let’s go.”

“Ana,” says Jack, looking unsure and almost angry that the decision had been made without him. “Are you sure about this? I mean, he attacked you. You were hurt. This doesn’t seem right to me.”

Ana-Lucia glares at him with finality. “This is what we’re doing, Jack,” she says firmly. “You don’t have to come.” She turns to Sayid and Sawyer. “I take it you two are in?”

Sayid smiles grimly. “I have a feeling you will need my assistance, despite my lack of a weapon.” He glares at Sawyer, who grins happily back at him.

“Sorry, can’t help ya there, Muhammad. Unfortunately, one of my very own weapons was stolen right out from under me,”—he moves his grin to Ana, who can’t help but roll her eyes—“so I’m just as weaponless as you right now. Though, I might just be able to scrounge up a little somethin’ while I’m gettin’ my replacement. I’ll have to see what kind of mood I’m in.” Now he winks at Ana-Lucia, who has to resist the urge to stamp on his foot.

This doesn’t go unnoticed by Kate, who moves forward immediately. “I’m coming too.” She looks at Jack. “Jack?”

He doesn’t look at Kate, instead focusing on Ana. “I don’t like this,” he says. “But—I should come. Your injury might need to be taken care of. I don’t want to run that risk.”

She nods in understanding, before turning to Eko. “And what about you? I know you want this just as much as I do.”

Eko nods, still calm and silent, before speaking. “I will go. But not now.”

Ana-Lucia glares in response. “What do you mean, not now? We have to go.”

“We will continue with the ceremony,” Eko states. “Then we will go. This is something that needs to be done,” he says firmly, sharing a look with Claire.

SCENE TWO: FLASHBACK TO NEARLY-BUILT CHURCH

Eko and Charlie were putting the finishing touches on the church when Claire entered with Aaron in her arms. She shifted the baby slightly, then cleared her throat nervously. “Hello, Charlie,” she said coldly, then turned to Eko. “Hello, Mr. Eko. Nearly done, then? It’s coming nicely.”

“Hey, Claire,” Charlie called out from where he was adjusting the branches that made up the doorframe of the church. He tried, but failed, to hide the eagerness in his voice. “Need help with something?”

She avoided eye contact, instead seeming preoccupied with Aaron. “Ah, no, really. I was actually just hoping to speak with Mr. Eko about something.” Claire looked at Eko nervously. “If you don’t mind.”

“Of course,” he said kindly, and Claire’s anxiety dissolved slightly. Eko led her out of Charlie’s ear shot, and neither of them noticed Charlie’s disappointed look. “What is it, Claire?”

She took a deep breath, as though preparing herself, and then spit it out. “I wanted to ask you if you would baptize Aaron. And I know, you already have. But what I meant was, if you could do it in a sort of ceremony. You know, like a christening ceremony. We could have it here, at the church. It is almost finished, right?”

"Why do you need a ceremony?" Eko wanted to know. "The baby has already been baptized. He does not need a ceremony for that to be proven to God."

Claire took another deep breath. "I want to be sure of this. I want it to be, well, sort of official. I need to know that my baby is going to be okay. And I know that this is the way to do it."

Charlie suddenly appeared by Eko’s side. “It’s not a bad idea, really,” he says, looking away from Claire’s heated glare. “Might be a good way to bring people together. It’s been pretty tense around here lately, hasn’t it? Well, you know, with Sun getting—getting grabbed—and now she’s having a—a baby now, everyone’s nervous about that—” He broke off, swallowing quickly, realizing how nervous and guilty he sounds, before looking right into Claire’s eyes. “Besides,” Charlie whispered. “We all need a little reassurance sometimes, don’t we?”

Claire looked away, reminded of the fact that reassurance had sort of been what their relationship was built on. Charlie had been her reassurance for a while; part of the reason why their relationship had ended so badly was because he couldn’t reassure her anymore. Claire forced her mind to stop thinking about this and instead turns her pleading eyes to Eko.

Eko looked between Charlie and Claire, feeling their tension and insecurity, before nodding. “I will perform the ceremony,” he said solemnly. “This is something that needs to be done.”

SCENE THREE: THE CHURCH

Sawyer leaves to get another gun while Jack, Ana, Sayid, Kate, Locke, and Michael join the gathered crowd of castaways. Michael can feel the heated, fearful glances of his fellow survivors but ignores them, savoring the fact that soon, he would have his son back, and none of this would matter.

Claire watches while Charlie prepares the basin of holy water. Eko stands solemnly next to him, before seeing that he is done and motioning for Claire to come forward with Aaron. She sees Charlie look at Aaron almost proudly before stepping back. Eko looks out at the congregation of survivors, before starting his sermon.

“The sacrament of baptism is one of the most sacred. It is a cleansing, a spiritual rebirth, a chance at new life. We receive our second chances.” He studies the faces of the castaways. “Atonement is received.”—Michael looks away from Eko quickly—“Sins are washed away.”—The eyes of Kate, Charlie, and Ana shift downward, all fearful, and yet all slightly hopeful—“Control and power are taken away, because we put our destinies in the hands of God.”—Jack closes his eyes, listening to the heavy thud of his heartbeat while Locke shifts on his crutches—“And the hands of God are open to all of those who seek redemption.”—Sayid, Sun and Libby all look up at his words, welcoming them and understanding them in different ways.

Eko pauses for a moment, before starting to recite the Apostle’s Creed. “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of Heaven and Earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord:”—Claire isn’t sure why she’s surprised when Charlie starts to recite it along with Eko, closely followed by Ana-Lucia, Jack, Hurley, Michael, Libby, Rose, and Bernard.—“who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,”—from where Sawyer is now studying the scene, he can see Charlie’s face visibly flinch but keep going, reciting it stronger now, and Sawyer wishes for a brief moment that he knows how the words go; wishes that someone had taught him.—“suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.”—Sayid, Jin, and Sun have now started to recite in their own languages, and Locke has to hand it to them; they may believe differently, or in another language, but at least they believe.—“He descended into Hell. The third day he rose again. He ascended into Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.”—Kate remembers going to church as a little girl, and she wishes she remembers the words.—“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.”

Eko sees that every single person in the congregation says that amen, even Locke, and it makes him smile. He nods at Claire, who leans forward with Aaron. “And now, I baptize you, Aaron Littleton, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.” Again, he is joined by all in the amen, and he relishes in this moment, this moment of unity.

SCENE FOUR: THE JUNGLE

Michael, Ana, Eko, Jack, Kate, Sayid, and Sawyer are walking through the jungle, heading for the Others’ camp, Jack having half-heartedly bandaged Michael's wound. Sawyer and Ana are trailing behind slightly, while Kate and Jack glance nervously back at them. “What’sa matter, Chica?” Sawyer quips. “Can’t keep up? I didn’t tire ya out before, did I?”

Ana-Lucia glares at him, trying to force her mind not to remember what he’s talking about. It’s hard, though, as she thinks back to his hot, sweaty skin on hers; the heat of his body, so close; the sound of their thudding hearts, joined together in wave after wave of passion—No! She mentally snaps at her head to shut up, then concentrates on coming up with something clever to say back to him.

“You’re the one who’s all the way back here, big shot. Are you sure you’re not the one who’s tired out? Cause that’s perfectly understandable, you know.”

Sawyers smirks at her devilishly. “Funny you should say that, muchacha. You did give me a run for my money back there, didn’t ya? I guess that’s just how Lu-Lu gets her guns. Rough an’ all.”

Again, she has to force her mind to think elsewhere. But it’s a futile attempt; she can’t help but replay the scene in her mind. She watches as their clothes came off and they rolled over; she smirks inwardly at the memory of him, rolling over again and again so that he was on top. Typical man, of course. But she let him have his control, and she let herself lose hers. She would get what she came for, and have a good time while doing it. And contrary to popular belief, Ana-Lucia did enjoy a good time every once in a while.

Before Ana-Lucia can counter Sawyer’s last remark, Jack suddenly makes his way back to them. “You okay?” he asks concernedly. “You’re trailing behind. I’m a little worried about that head of yours.”

“I’m fine,” she insists, trying to pick up her pace a bit. Jack notices this and smiles slightly.

“Do you have any pain, or nausea or dizziness? You need to let me know these things. Don’t be ashamed of it; we can stop if you need a rest.”

Ana-Lucia glares at him determinedly. “I’m fine, I do not need a rest, and I’m not ashamed of anything. There’s some pain, but I did get clocked in the head, so that makes some sense.”

“Are you sure? Maybe you shouldn’t have come.”

She gives him an ‘are you kidding me?’ look and doesn’t answer him. Sawyer cuts in, obviously annoyed that Jack interrupted them. “Well, it’s a little late for that, ain’t it, doc?”

Jack rolls his eyes at him. “I’m just concerned, Sawyer. A concussion gone untreated can be dangerous out here.”

Ana speaks before Sawyer can shoot something back at him. “Well, it’s a good thing I’ve got a doctor around then, isn’t it?” She can’t help but smirk back at Sawyer, even though it’s small and subtle. Sawyer’s eyes harden in return, but he smiles lazily and pulls something out of his pocket.

“Want some meds, sugar? Help with that headache of yours.”

He has to suppress a triumphant cheer when Jack’s eyes practically spit venom. “Thanks, Cowboy. I appreciate that.”

“You’re very welcome,” says Sawyer, and the group continues walking through the jungle.


SCENE FIVE: THE HATCH

Locke's staring into the empty armory, when Libby comes up behind.

“What’s wrong, John?”

He doesn’t answer at first, as though contemplating what he wants to say. "He had a way of getting into my head, you know?" says Locke. "He really had me going for a while there. He really made me believe he would never go to back to Them."

“Who? The prisoner?”

“Yes. He told us his name was Henry Gale. That was a lie, of course. I believed it, though. I believed everything he said.”

Libby’s quiet for a minute, before responding thoughtfully. “You know, there was a man that was with our group, on the other side of the island. Goodwin, his name was. And we all trusted him; I trusted him. He and Ana-Lucia were our sort of self-proclaimed leaders. They took care of us. They helped us survive. I put all my trust, all my safety in his hands.” She pauses, looking right at Locke. “I wanted someone to believe in so much over there. And there was this man, who was willing and ready…but he shouldn’t have been trusted. He was one of Them. He was an enemy. He didn’t have our safety in mind. And it was so hard to believe at first, because I was so invested in him. I had made myself believe in him, because I needed to.”

John avoids her eyes. “I’ve always needed something to believe in. But I don’t have anything anymore.”

“Maybe you do, John. Maybe you just need to find it.”

“I appreciate your help, Libby, really, but—” The sound of the alarm cuts Locke off mid-sentence, and he stares at it disdainfully for a minute, before starting to hobble away.

“Aren’t you going to push the button, John?” Libby stares between Locke and the button, looking interested.

“No, Libby. I’m not. Not today.”

“I think you need to push the button, John.”

“And why is that? Why do I need to push the button?”

“Because it’s what needs to be done. And you know it.”

Libby and Locke exchange a look, Libby studying his face carefully. Locke considers it for a minute, before sighing contemptuously and hobbling over to the computer.


SCENE SIX: THE BEACH

Hurley, Libby, Sun, Jin and Bernard are sitting around the fire after the ceremony, talking and laughing happily. Charlie sits there as well, but a little detached from the group.

“So, that Cindy chick, she was a flight attendant?” Hurley asks Libby and Bernard.

“Yeah.”

“Ooh. Short brown hair, right? I remember her. She was hot.”

Libby glares at him playfully, then hits him lightly on the shoulder as everyone laughs. “Hey! What was that for?”

“You know what that was for!”
Charlie chuckles at the happy couple, then turns in time to see Claire coming over with Aaron. “Hey, Charlie,” she says nervously, and Charlie smiles at her cautiously.

“Hey Claire. Hey Aaron. Did you two have fun today?” He grins at the squirming baby, who coos and gurgles in response. Claire smiles down at Aaron before turning back to Charlie.

“Yeah, we did. It was a very nice ceremony.”

“Yeah,” Charlie answers. “Eko and I were thinking of having another ceremony, you know, sort of a memorial to the people we lost. Kind of what we did with the Fuselage burning, only with a priest this time.”

“Guess we’re lucky we’ve got a priest around now, then, huh?”

Charlie’s face darkens slightly. “Yeah. Yeah, we are.”

Claire studies his face for a minute, before gesturing at the log next to him. “Do you mind if I sit for a minute?”

His face brightens. “Of course not, go ahead.”

“Thank you.” She sits down and looks at Aaron, smiling as he fingers strands of her hair, noticing Charlie studying the baby, too. “I just wanted to say thank you, you know. For helping to build the church, and helping with the ceremony, and convincing Eko to do the ceremony—just, I appreciate it. Really.”

He smiles warmly at her. “It’s fine, Claire. Really, it wasn’t a problem. I was happy to do it.”

She smiles back at him, then touches his hand lightly. “Thank you. I’m going to go get Aaron ready for bed now. I’ll see you later, Charlie.”

Charlie’s grin lights up his face, and he watches Claire walk away, replaying her last words over and over in his head. ‘I’ll see you later, Charlie.’ She would see him later! Later! Oh, he can’t wait for later to come.


SCENE SEVEN: THE JUNGLE

Ana-Lucia has quickened her pace, refreshed by the aspirin Sawyer had given her. She walks alongside Kate now, not saying anything and trying to ignore the glances the woman keeps shooting her.

Kate turns to Ana and smiles at her. “How’s your head feeling?”

Ana has to stop herself from rolling her eyes at the repeated question before nodding. “I’m fine. I’ve got a hard head.” Behind them, she hears Sawyer chuckling. Kate looks back at him, confused, then rolls her eyes and smirks at Ana.

“Ignore him. He laughs at the voices in his head.” Ana smiles back at her, knowing what Sawyer’s laughing about but appreciating Kate’s effort anyway.

“Yeah. It’s cause no one bothers with him. He’s gotta get attention somewhere.”

“Oh, I know someone who bothers with me—” Sawyer starts to drawl, but he’s cut off by Sayid quieting him.

“Shh! Michael says we’re close. We need to take them by surprise.”

Jack huffs and addresses Sayid in a whisper. “And how are we supposed to do that when half of us don’t have weapons?” He eyes the gun that Sayid has, given to him by a surprisingly willing Sawyer. Jack doesn’t even have to look at Sawyer to know he’s smirking.

“Jack, you and Kate should stay behind. Keep watch. If anyone approaches, find a weapon and use it against them.” Sayid turns to Michael. “You will stay with me. Stay close. Do not make any sudden movements. I will cover you. But this is not the time to act rashly, Michael. You what’s at stake here.”

Michael nods solemnly. “O-Okay, man. I got you. The—the camp is just past these trees.”

They continue walking silently, Sawyer, Ana and Sayid with guns drawn, Eko with his stick raised threateningly. Sayid signals for Sawyer, Ana, Eko and Michael to wait for his yell before charging in after him, and they do so.

A few long seconds tick by until Sayid suddenly yells out, “It’s clear!”

“What?” says Michael, eyes wide in fear and astonishment. The rest of the group followed out from the cover of the trees, entering the camp to find it completely deserted.

“There is nothing here,” says Sayid, walking up from where he had just checked into the huts. “The camp has been completely abandoned.”

“What are you pulling, Michael?” Jack exclaims angrily, turning on him, but Michael ignores him, continuing to stare around at the camp in dismay.

“N-no!” he whispers, tears rolling down his face. “NO!” He kicks at the ground angrily, sobs wracking through his body as he falls to his knees, breaking down in a complete mess. The castaways watch him in pity and sympathy, and Ana-Lucia finds herself having to brush away tears of her own. They were so close, she realizes. So close. But again, they had fallen short; she had fallen short.

So close, and now she had failed.

SCENE EIGHT: THE JUNGLE

The group is making there way back to camp. Dusk has fallen, and they want to hurry back before night sets completely. Again, Ana-Lucia brings up the rear, this time joined by an extremely crestfallen Michael.

“Hey,” she says quietly. “It’s not your fault, you know. They move around all the time. You couldn’t have done anything.”

Michael nods but doesn’t answer. He avoids her eyes and keeps his head down. Ana sighs and looks away.

Suddenly, up ahead, Sayid stops and his eyes go wide. “What?” says Jack urgently. “What is it?”

And suddenly, Ana can hear it too. Pounding, thudding footsteps, and the rustling of leaves as the feet met the undergrowth. She tenses up, pulling out her weapon quickly, and sees Sayid and Sawyer do the same.

“Jack,” she whispers. “Take Kate and Michael and run. If they ambush us—”

“What?” Jack sputters. “No. I’m not leaving you guys here. I’m not.”

“Jack, this is—” But suddenly, Kate grabs Jack’s arm and begins running with him, and Ana-Lucia makes a mental note to thank her for seeing reason. Michael doesn’t prove to be so easy.

“Michael, go!” The footsteps draw nearer, and Ana-Lucia finds herself waiting to hear the whispers, waiting for the oncoming attack. She raises her gun and exchanges a look with Eko. “Michael, now!”

He ignores her and, as if on instinct, yells out, “Walt!”

Sawyer glares at Michael. “Would you shut the hell up, Mike? How is that gonna help?”

“WALT!”

“Michael—”

There’s a sudden explosion of leaves and trees as two figures come hurtling through. Ana’s hand tenses on the gun, but she hesitates; she was not one to make the same mistake twice. But suddenly, the sight of the two figures registers, and she realizes she recognizes one of them.

“Oh my god…” She involuntarily lowers the gun as the smaller figure quickly stands up and hurls itself at Michael.

“Dad! Dad, they’re coming! They’re almost here!” At the same time, Ana-Lucia and Eko quickly move towards the larger figure, the adult.

“C—Cindy?”

LOST.

Lost Virtual Season 3: Episode 1, 'Baptism of Fire' full credits:

Writers: Aimz and midnight riot.


Executive Producers:
Scouse
ConfidenceMan
so-jealous
nycjoc
Skayla
InMemorium
FloatingOnACloud

Associative Producers:
Dark Huntress
Iorwen
Hoba
radioxlovesongs

Brought to you by Leigh and mru-forum.com. Thank you, Leigh, for all your help and support through this. It wouldn't have been possible without you. And special thanks to all the board members who have been just as excited about this project as we are. You guys totally motivated us.

Disclaimer: None of the writers or producers have made any money on this project. It was purely for entertainment purposes. No copyright infringement is intended.

I do believe this will be a very succesful season.

this was absolutely amazing!!! loved every word of it!!

every character was involved in some way or another...and brilliantly so....

...the banter between sawyer and ana was wonderful....just as it should have been.

wow! i was on the edge of my seat and am definately waiting with excited anticipation for the next eppy!!

definately worth the wait and surpassed all expectations.

well done you talented bunch!!!!!

and thank you :)

linda

EEe, aww Allie lookee our first review!!


That was so very sweet of you Linda. I am thrilled that you enjoyed it!!!! Thanks for reading and taking time to leave detailed feedback. Much appreciated. :D

i'm very sincere guys...that really was terrific...i mean it.

i'm going to read it again when i get these "screamers" (i mean that affectionately of course!) out of the tub and into bed.

linda

I THINK I LOVE YOU.
I haven't finished reading yet, but I had to write it :P

And this is officially one of my top favourite Lost and Lost related quotes <3

Awe, yay, guys, thanks! Glad you liked it! *squees*

Wow, this was great! It really was worth waiting for. I don't think I wouldve like to see things goin any other way. I love the interaction between Ana and Sawyer, it's just like it should've been.
You're all are doin a great job at staying close to the actual characters. Got lots of respect for u guys in making this virtual season happen.
Thx for the first ep and I can't wait to read more :D

I LOVE YOU ALL for the idea (!!!), the hard work, the immense talent, the 100% Lost-ness and of course the Sana! :dance: :love:
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. :bow: :bow: :bow:

That was great! :) I worship this episode! Thanks so much for composing it so well. It was a huge treat.

You guys did an amazing job on this! I think all of you guys work great together. I can't wait for the next episode :).

Amazing job! :bow:

OMG....I think that I'm in love...it's realy, REALY, REALY!!! good... love it..

amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOved the sana and evry other part too- thanks you for your amazinf hard work and putting good talent to good use! YOu're all :angel:

i loved it! i can't wait for the next episode! great job! i wish that would have really happend...i love the sana and everything else! it just as it should have been..

it's amazing, you're all amazing :)

that was sick aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

That was great, I really enjoyed it :)

That was awesome guys. The Sana interaction was EXCELLENTLY written....the Eko/Claire stuff was great....and the group heading out was quick paced but got the job done.

Awesome! Keep it up. :)

L.

FRICKIN Awesome! You nailed the characters! Great job! So glad this is started! :D

For some strange reason, i am now shipping Kana... :P

great Kate-AL chemistry, same goes to Sana...

Good work, guys... keep 'em coming. :D

i only saw it by reading this i dont have my tv working lol so i couldnt watch it on tv...and i didnt see it on abc.com...will it be there soon? or will they even put it on abc.com? i just really wanna see the video of that episode of lost..

I like that even though this is a Michelle site and you want to focuse many of the scenes on Ana but you still keep alot of the original characters here with their own stories. Like not everything and every scene is about Ana. Beccause if it was it wouldn't be LVS3 it would have been Ana's Lost Adventures or something. But I love the way it is. Because it is a Lost Virtual Season... I mean what would have happened if Ana wasn't killed, and you guys (the writers) take on what would and should have happened. It's like I'm reading the episode and I can picture it all in my head at the same time.

Good Job :) Keep it up! At least you haven't lost this viewer...or rather reader ;)

I totally agree! You guys were able to make it seem like an actual Lost episode. In true Lost fashion, the story skipped around to different scenes with different characters. I was totally. Blown. Away. I guess you weren't kidding with the "evil geniouses at work" board.
Ciao,
Alex

^_____________________________________^

I'm completely in awe of your talent,thank you everybody involved,you simply rock,this is greatness ;)

Why couldn't this be how it played out?why?why? :cry:

^Because the AL haters won't agree... and they would stop at nothing to get what they want... :ph43r:

is that episode ever gonna be on abc.com?

No it is never going to be on abc.com or on aired on television. This is a fanfic, and completely and utterly unaffiliated with ABC or the creators of LOST the TV program.

i meant the episode that was on tv on wednesday...wasnt that episode one of season 3? is that one ever going to be on abc.com?

All of you guys, that are involved in this project are doing a beautiful job. To the writers of this ep you kicked ass and the story was very well written and very entertaining. I loved that Kate didn't talk that much, dream come true. Love the Ana/Sawyer-Ana/Jack relationship. All the other stuffwas amazing. Specially how you balanced all the other characters and stories and I can't wait for the next one.

Thank for doing this for us guys!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Yariene I love you.




lacyjo92, I don't know, but season three begins this fall. Please go to lost-forum.com and ask your question there. This is not really the forum for it.


Thanks all for the great feedback. I am thrilled you enjoyed it.

Thank you so much. I love that you guys liked it. When I think of all the great stuff we have planned for this, seriously, I just sit here and grin. You guys are gonna love this season, I promise, and this is just the beginning. =)

lacy....the ep that aired on Wednesday was Season 2 eps 6 and 7 repeats.

Anyway, still can't get over it....this was GREAT!

L.

O my god,I love you guys :D !!! This was so good,couldn't be better (especially the Sana moments ;) ) !!! Keep up the good work and pleaaaaseee update soon :P :angel:

Oh thank you! But I love you more just for shutting Kate up.

Wow, this was awesome! Lots of action, was very Lost-like, and there's no huge gaping Ana-less hole! Wunderbar job guys!

Remember - Cliffies are Cruel! ...Although I'm sure ya'll know that already...:P

I am officially dedicating the Kate-centric episode to my dear Yariene.


Tee hee.

AH. I finally got around to finishing the first ep, and OH MY GOD. It is beautiful. Everything I liked about all the characters is back in full form, Jack is not his usual assy self, Kate is not her usual indecisive self, Locke is mysterious and cool and not the pathetic mess he's become over the past season, Libby is intriguing and mysterious (really wanna know more about her, DAMN YOU LOST), Ana Lucia is the awesome jungle leader she was MADE TO BE, Sayid is actually doing stuff, Sawyer is not played out...aah I could go on and on. The Charlie/Claire "reunion" is so much more realistic than "HERE TRY OUT THESE 30 YEAR OLD INJECTIONS I FOUND IN THE HATCH THAT I KNOW ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT BUT SOMEHOW I FIGURED THEY MIGHT BE GOOD FOR THE BABY!!!" And I'm no C/C shipper but I like their interactions in this story. They're true to character.

But ya know, I also got a little bit sad reading this. I was thinking why is it that a couple of fanfiction writers can write the show so much better than the actual writers who do this for a career? I mean I know parts of the show are probably influenced by the network (the total nonsensical killing of Ana and Libby for example) but if they HAVE to kill them, can't they at least do it in a way that makes SENSE? Such as exactly the reason Ms. Klugh (or whatever) stated in the fanfic, that Michael kill Ana and Eko in some sort of revenge or something. At least Ana might've died for a cool reason, Libby would've been a legitimate accident, and Eko would've been a failure (which would make for a pretty cool scene). See, even I, who can't write, can probably write the show better than whatever they're doing now. GRR, that's what makes me so mad.

Anyways, just a small rant.

I'm guessing there won't be any reruns for this, right? lol

so what's in store for next week?