“Should we go wake the others?” Ben asked.
“No, I don’t see the need to disturb them. There is nothing we can do anyway, except wait, dude” Hurley replied as he glanced back out the window. Lightning lit up the sky, but the storm seemed to be diminishing.
“What do you think happened?” Ben inquired.
“Walt happened,” Hurley confirmed.
“You think so? This soon?” Ben questioned.
“Oh, I am sure. Which means, we need to go turn on the sonic security fence,” Hurley warned.
“What do you mean … it’s not turned on??” Ben asked very concerned.
“Walt. He is as unpredictable and unstable as he is special, man. I couldn’t risk harming him if he would’ve tried to come running back through here,” Hurley answered.
“YOU are as unstable as you are special,” Ben chided, “Hugo, you know how dangerous it is to leave the fence off.”
“Dude, the focus isn’t on me anymore now that Walt is back,” Hurley snapped, “You of all people know that.”
“What kind of a Number Two would I be if I didn’t warn you all the time, Hugo?” Ben asked. “I’m trying to protect you. There are a number of things you still don’t know about this island.”
“That’s because you won’t tell me, dude!” Hurley accused, “Every time I ask you about something, you either pretend that you don’t know, or you change the subject.”
Ben scoffed at the accusation, “I do not.”
Hurley stared back at him with discontent.
2007
Ben moved branches out of his way as he slowly walked through the jungle. He was cautious not to make a sound as he moved. He could hear Hurley talking but could not make out what he was saying. Ben carefully moved closer to listen. He saw Hurley standing in the middle of a clearing, but there was nobody else around.
“What?” Hurley asked surprisingly, facing away from Ben.
Ben moved some branches to get a clearer look to see who Hurley was talking to but a branch broke with a snapping sound. Hurley turned to look. Ben, knowing that he was just caught spying, walked out of the brush. Hurley turned back the way he was facing and sighed, “Aw man,” as he sulked in disappointment. “Dude! Were you just spying on me?” Hurley asked as he turned back to face Ben.
Ben continued to walk toward Hurley, “Define ‘spying’?”
“Look what you did. You scared him away and now he’s gone,” Hurley whined.
“Scared who away exactly?” asked Ben, watching his step as he walked swiftly.
“Locke,” Hurley answered.
Ben stopped short in his tracks, only a short distance away from Hurley. Ben’s face had a look of shock for a moment, and then he calmly walked the few short feet to stand next to Hurley. “You’re joking,” he scoffed.
“No man, I’m not … and he said we have to go to the Temple,” Hurley advised.
“The Temple?? Why? There is nothing there, Hugo,” Ben answered quickly.
“Locke said there is more of what I need there,” Hurley informed.
Ben stared at Hurley, “Locke said? … Locke said.” Ben nodded his head, “I get it. You’re mocking me.” Ben sighed deeply, “I know you are mad at me but jeesh, you don’t have to bring him up do you?”
“Dude! I am serious, and after that, we’re gonna go get Rose and Bernard. And then, we are gonna move into those Dharma houses,” Hurley said as he started walking away, “Are you coming, or not? Cuz I could really use the help, dude.”
Ben stared blankly, “Yep.”
The two of them walked through the jungle for an hour. The sun glared through the trees like blades of fire. Hurley led the way with Ben close behind
“Do we know what we are looking for?” Ben asked.
“No, he didn’t say,” Hurley answered. “He just said I would find what I need.”
“Kind of cryptic, don’t you think?” Ben inquired, as he lost his stride while he walked on loose gravel. “I mean…” Ben chuckled, “How do you know it was even him and not the smoking pillar of death?”
“I could just tell it was him,” Hurley responded as he moved branches out of his way.
“That’s it? You could just ‘tell’? Sorry for being a bit skeptical, but that’s not very reassuring, Hugo,” Ben scoffed.
“Dude, if you could talk to dead people, you would know what I mean,” Hurley commented.
Ben stopped walking and thought for a moment, then continued walking after Hurley. “You know what? I used to be able to see dead people.”
Hurley stopped as he turned to look over at Ben for a moment, and then continued walking, “Really? Who?”
“My mother… On my 9th birthday,” Ben advised in a shallow, cold tone.
Hurley stopped walking, as did Ben. Hurley looked at him with a little compassion and said, “I’m sorry man, I – I didn’t know.”
“I never knew her. She died giving birth to me,” Ben explained, “She was the first and last ghost I ever saw.” Ben paused, “Then I met Richard.”
“So… you saw … one ghost?” Hurley asked.
“Yes, and because of that, Richard seemed to think I was special,” Ben scoffed, “So I ran with it.”
1977
Young Ben lay quietly on the cot inside the tent where he was to heal from his gunshot wound when the ground shook. A large boom of an explosion was heard along with people screaming outside. Ben jumped out of bed. The wound felt a lot better now. He looked out the front of the tent and people were frantically rushing around. The sky was an eerie purple and pink color. A loud magnetic sound roared with intensity. People were blocking their ears and ran around without direction as if they were going completely insane. The ground continued to shake. A young Charles Whidmore rushed up to Ellie. Ben ducked back as to not be noticed.
“We have to do something! These Dharma intruders have gone too far. It ends now!” Charles yelled over the thunderous sound.
“No, we can’t!” Ellie yelled back, “We don’t know enough about this. Nor do we know what this will do to…” Ellie looked at her stomach to her unborn child.
“You are right,” Charles agreed and thought for a brief moment, “They are evacuating in submarines! Go to the docks and tell them you are pregnant! There will be too much confusion and chaos for them to care who you are!”
“But I don’t want to go, Charles! You want me to abandon my people?!” Eloise asked.
“You both will be safer! We both knew this day would come eventually, Ellie! You were going to give birth off the island anyway,” Charles advised.
“I don’t know what to do, Charles! This baby is going to die by my hands! How can I raise him knowing that?!” Ellie cried.
“No worries, darling! I have a plan,” Charles admitted.
Ellie looked up at him, “A plan?! What plan?!”
“The journal you told me about! We will use it! We know what happens now,” Charles explained, “This child … this boy needs to be protected off the island! You will see to it that he learns the sciences to explain all of this! He is the key to all of this!”
“But what about you, the island … and Richard?!” Ellie asked.
“What about Richard?!” Charles asked.
“Yes, what about Richard?!” Richard shouted as he walked up from behind them.
Charles, looking a bit shocked turned to Richard and continued to yell over the loudness, “WE have to get her out of here! She is pregnant and this is the perfect time for her to escape with the evacuees in the submarines!”
Richard turned to Ellie, “He is right, you must get out of here! You could get onboard and say you are a new recruit! When you make safe port, I am sure you can get away before they realize you are not one of them!”
The loud sounds seemed to skip on and off again. The skies remained a bright purple and pink in color but the ground no longer shook.
“What is happening to the island, Richard?” Charles asked.
Richard seemed uneasy by the question and responded, “I don’t know.”
Charles knew that Richard was not telling the truth. Instead of arguing, he decided to stay on task. “Take Eloise to the dock now, Richard! I will handle things here in her absence,” Charles demanded.
Richard looked at Charles, “What are you going to do?!” he asked.
“I am going to take control of the situation,” Charles answered. “I also expect answers when you come back,” he advised.
Richard ignored the demand and rushed Ellie off.
Ben noticed that Charles was walking toward the tent. He quickly jumped back into the bed, which had been moved around from the quakes. Charles came in and walked over to him.
“Now you listen to me, boy!” Charles shouted, “I know you were listening! There is no way with all of this confusion that you would have stayed in your bed!”
“What’s going on?” Ben shouted back as he stood up again.
Charles walked over to him. “That is precisely what you are going to find out,” Charles explained, “I have the perfect plan for you. Go back to your Initiative friends and learn all you can about what happened today.”
Young Ben nodded his head in compliance.
“Report back to me personally … regularly. I want to know what they are up to.” Charles looked down at the ground. “I am sure what they are doing is a direct violation of the treaty,” Charles said, more to himself than to Ben, “When the time comes, we will strike back at them.”
Ben smirked and replied, “Aren’t they evacuating everyone?”
Charles looked up him, “Only non-essential personnel. The scientists will remain here. Your father is a janitor, yes?”
Ben nodded, “Uh huh.”
“I am sure with the mess they created they will need people to clean up,” Charles advised, “Now go. The confusion will make it easy for you to return.”
Ben smiled subtly, and then hurried out of the tent to fulfill his quest.
To Be Continued…
