Part 340: Rescue Part 2

The deck of the USS Montana was already awash with activity in the early morning sun. The large gray helicopter was prepped for launch with a compliment of 12 marines on board. Tony held onto John’s shoulder as they crossed the deck following Lt. Monday. Mia held onto John’s hand. One of the soldiers made a joke that the archer was a seeing eye dog. It freaked him out silently when Tony looked back at him, even though he was a good ten feet away.

The three friends boarded the helicopter, sitting in the appropriate seats designated by the soldiers. Monday sat down on the opposite end with Inman already on board. One of the soldiers proceeded to pass out headsets to the survivors. Within moments, they were up off the deck and soaring toward the air. Lt. Monday then spoke onto the headset toward Tony. “Sergeant, we’ve tapped into the radio frequency you gave us. When we’re about 20 miles in, you can call them.” He spoke.

“ETA?” the blind man asked.

“40 minutes.”

“Wait a minute,” Inman piped in through the headset,” Why do you need to them know we are coming?”

“Would you quit being so paranoid, Inman?” John retorted, “We have to let them know we are coming cause we fought the Liberation, remember?”

“They see a military helicopter, they are going to assume the worse.” Tony joined in.

“He has a point, Inman,” Monday looked at him, “Besides, there is enough to repel a ground force if that is all there is waiting . ..which there isn’t.”

“How do you know?”

“Cause the Admiral said there wouldn’t be. I trust the Admiral’s judgment in regards to his comrades.”

Tony smirked, glad that his old friend was still taking up for him. Inman just leaned back and stared angrily at the open ocean in there present course. John held onto Mia as she sat next to him. The Lakota girl had her hair in a pony tail so it would be flapping in the massive wind. The view of the ocean was incredible. It was even more beautiful from the sky. She didn’t want to admit to John it was her first helicopter ride. Even though she was slightly afraid, she knew she had to come on this small journey back.

She just knew.


After about 20 or so minutes, the group had sat mostly in silence. The marines were speaking to themselves but it was just idle conversation. Lt. Monday was reviewing a document for a brief second but then leaned up his head when he heard the pilot speaking to him. “Copy that, “ he said, “Sergeant Largo.”

“Yeah?” Tony perked up.

“We are now within radio contact range. We’re piping the feed into your headset down.”

One of the soldiers walked over to Tony, pulled down a black cord from above his head and plugged it into one section of his headset. He then tapped him on the arm, letting know it was ready to proceed. The blind man put his hand on his mouth piece. “Sayid, do you copy, this is Tony, over?” he spoke.

John and Mia watched their friend as the helicopter sped on. “Sayid, give me a signal, this is Tony, over?” the blind man repeated.

A few minutes went by with no answer. Tony leaned his head against the bulkhead of the copter. “I know Sayid, he wouldn’t have let the radio go dead.” He leaned back in, “Sayid, this is Tony, do you copy over?”

A burst of static then erupted into the headset. “Tony?” answered Shannon.

“Shannon!” the blind man laughed, “Yes, I am reading you. We’re on our way to pick up you up!”

“REALLY?” she screamed.

“Yes, we were picked up by a battleship, the USS Montana. We’re on route in a helicopter right now.”

“RIGHT NOW?” she screamed again.

“Can you tell she’s excited?” John laughed.

Then another burst of static came onto the headset. “Tony, this is Sayid, do you copy?” the Middle Easterner said.

“Yes, Sayid, I read you. We are in route to your position in a military helicopter designed to transport a large quantity of people. ETA is 19 minutes.”

“Understood. We will be on the beach and we’ll be using those red flares you requested.”

Tony paused for a second. He didn’t remember anything about red flares. But if anything he knew about Sayid was smart and he probably didn’t trust the open channel for the soldiers to wonder where they could have gotten red flares. “Understood, Sayid, we’ll be watching for them.” The blind man responded.

“Ask him if everyone is okay?” Mia tapped him on the leg.

“Sayid, is everybody okay?”

“I’m afraid not, Tony,” the Iraqi said with a deep sigh, “We lost Lydia.”

Tony paused yet again. He barely remembered the old woman who gave her spot on the Butterfly Rogue some one else. And how she was lost was probably not something that needed to be discussed over an open channel either. “Understood, Sayid. We’ll discuss it when you get one board.” The blind doctor said.

“Copy that. See you in twenty minutes, my friend.”

“Likewise. Tony out.”




“EVERYBODY COME ON!!!” Jack screamed, “WE GOTTA GO! WE GOT TO GO NOW!!!”

The survivors were gathering their smallest amount of stuff to take. Flower and Andra were nervous about leaving but Shannon was by their side. Natasha came over and took Flower’s hand, leading her out of the living area. Jilly helped Barbara load up her small backpack and then began to follow her out of the bunker. Hal then walked over to a nearby table, pulled out his gun and unloaded the clip onto the table. “Leave your guns behind!” he called to the remaining ground, “You ain’t gonna need them!”

Micheal then pulled Walt by his side as he made his way out of the bunker. He waited for a second then made sure Yolanda was right behind him. Jack quickly put on his back pack and then walked over Desmond. The two friends quickly shook his hand. “I hate to leave you guys behind.” The doctor whispered.

“And we both know why you have to go.” The stranger smiled, holding out his hand.

Jack immediately shook it. “Will we ever see you again?” he asked.

“I’m like a bad penny, brother. You never know when I’ll turn up.”

Eddie left the majority of his stuff behind. He made sure to get his dad’s watch and Bunny’s locket . As he put them into his pocket, he started to walk out of the living room area but noticed Locke was still in the control room. He was just looking around and the young boy couldn’t tell what he was feeling; sad? Lonely? Happy? He walked over to the doorway and looked at him. “Time to go, sir.” Eddie said.

Locke looked him and smiled warmly. “I know.” He sighed, “I just wanted . . .one more look before I leave it forever.”

“The magic of this Island will always been with us, sir,” the little boy assured him.

Locke then grabbed his backpack and quickly placed it on his side. “I hope so,:” he said as he motioned for Eddie to get moving.

Eddie walked to the hallway but then noticed Sebastian. The small boy was crying as he looked to the kid who saved his life. Eddie then walked over toward him and embraced him. Sebastian cried into his shoulder, knowing full well he was gonna lose him. Isabella tried to stifle a tear but she couldn’t. He had already been farewell to Walt and at that moment, he was bidding farewell to the only other friend he had every know. Eddie parted from him and then put a piece of paper in his hand. “That’s my address back home in California.” He told the boy, “You’ll be able to get off this Island in 7 years. Feel free to come look me up.”

Sebastian then shook his head. Eddie hugged him one more time and looked to the boy’s older parents. “You guys will find a way off this Island?” he asked.

“Don’t worry about us, little man,” Desmond smiled, “You get going.”

Eddie patted Sebastian one more time on the shoulder, then proceeded to run out with the others. As they filed through the hallway, Sayid was out by a corner of the clearing area. “Follow the others! Follow the others.” He motioned, “Keep tracing the path until you get the shoreline. We must hurry, so the military do not find this place.”

Eddie then saw Jilly and ran over to her; taking her head. The deaf woman stayed with him and Barbara, leading them down the path. Charlie was right behind them, helping Claire carry the little Aaron with a blanket wrapped around her. Back at the clearing area, Ecko was watching all the survivors quickly leave. Raven stood next to him, then looked at him; his eyes glowing a soft blue. “Time to go, Ecko.” He told his friend.

“I do not feel comfortable leaving you, my friend.” He told him.

“Your fate doesn’t lie on this Island, Ecko,” the unique man told him, “Your destiny has already been fulfilled. It’s time for you to find a small corner of America, make it your own piece of Heaven and live out your days in peace.”

“You almost speak of yourself, my brother.” The tall black man smiled.

“Yes,” Raven grinned under his mask, “Perhaps if you do this . . .you also do it for me.”

Ecko then extended his hand and Raven slowly shook it. “It was an honor, Raven.” He told him.

“No, the honor is mine.” He nodded.

“:ECKO!!” Natasha screamed.

The black man turned to the distance to see his brunette friend looking at him from the trail. She was holding up her hands in mild confusion, wondering why he wasn’t following them. The Nigerian smirked, realizing that Raven wasn’t the only person who wanted him to come back with them. He gently picked up his Penance stick then proceeded to jog over to his other friends. “God go with you, Raven!” he called as he joined them on the trail.

Raven then looked as the remainder of the survivors were about to leave. Jack walked up to him and extended his hand. Raven shook it, clearly smiling at him. “I wish Jenny got to know you the way I did.” The doctor confessed.

“Tell her everything I told you and she will.” The security system agreed.

“I don’t suppose there is anyway I can convince you to come with us?”

“We both know there is no place for me in your world, Jack. Besides, I don’t even know if I can leave.”

“Watchman left in MOLE’s flying chassis. Why can’t you?”

“I’ll admit it is tempting but . . .in all honesty . . .I am not ready.”

Jack shook his head. It was easy to understand, considering what Raven was. The last thing the doctor wanted was for his new friend to be captured by the government and chopped up, trying to figure out what made him tick. “Any last words for Jenny?” Jack.

“Yes, tell her . . . .tell her I’ll always cherish our friendship.”

“Likewise,” Jack shook his hand.

“Go on, my friend. Watch after Ecko for me.”

“I will.” Jack turned and ran down the trail to catch up with the others.

Raven watched the man disappear into the small cropping of palm trees as he ran toward the beach area where they would be picking them up. The mysterious man felt an intense wave of sadness wash over him. These group of people had touched his life and helped him to end the suffering of his people. He knew that the modern world wouldn’t understand him. But the prospect of leaving the Island was definitely on his mind. As he proceeded to walk back into the jungle, he wondered what he would need to do to leave this place.


Jack finally caught up with the others. After a good several yard jog, they already arrived at the beach area. Sayid and Hal were igniting the red smoker flares they found in the Shark Tank, and tossing them everywhere. The last bunch they were putting on a pile to create one large pillar of red smoke emitting into the sky. Libby kept her eyes open, holding her palms at her eyebrows; making sure she could see a helicopter. Jack leaned forward on his knees, catching his breath. “Sayid!” he called to him.

“Yeah?” the Iraqi responded.

“How much longer?”

“If Tony’s calculations are correct, less than six minutes.”

“Okay, look alive, people,” Jack said, “Our ticket home is almost here.”

“How are we leaving?” Andra asked.

“By a helicopter.” Shannon answered for her.

“What is helly-cop-tar?” asked Flower.

“You’ll find out,” the tall blonde smirked.

“WAIT, THERE!!!” Jilly screamed when she saw it.

The group looked into the distance and sure enough; there was a large grey helicopter. The survivors started to leap up and down for joy at the sight. Jack was almost brought to tears. He wanted to go home and be reunited with the people he cared about. He wanted to see Kate one more time. Libby laughed and jumped up then down and grabbed Hal, smothering him with kisses; almost to the point where he fell over. Eddie smiled brightly, then wrapped his arm around Walt’s neck. The two kids laughed at the sight of the approaching chopper. Micheal looked at the helicopter and imagined it as the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. “Sweet bird of freedom.” He smiled.

The helicopter tilted on it’s side and proceeded to approach the beach. The survivors backed off as the wind splashed water all around, engulfing the red flares into the water. Once the helicopter had landed, the door slid open. Inside John and Mia beckoned the survivors toward them. Two soldiers jumped out of the copter and proceeded to motioned them toward the copter. One by one they proceeded on the copter. The marines motioned for them in spots to sit down. Tony then laughed as he felt the thrust of Eddie hugging him. He grabbed the boy and held him closer, happy to see him. A gentle kiss on his cheek also got his attention. “Thank you for coming back for us, Tony,” Barbara wept with joy.

“Welcome aboard, Barbara.” The blind doctor smiled.

The group began to pile in and almost had difficulty finding a spot. Mia then looked outward, making sure everybody was on board. Then she saw Locke slowly approaching them, hesitant. She knew exactly why he didn’t want to get on board the chopper. She quickly put down her headset and stepped forward toward the door. She then held out her hand toward him. “COME ON, LOCKE!” she screamed.

Locke looked at her with fear. He then looked back toward the Island. “DON’T BE AFRAID!!” she screamed, “THIS . . .IS YOUR LEAP OF FAITH!!”

Locke knew how much she meant. He had been preaching to many others about a leap of faith with many things. At that very moment, it was his turn. He gritted his teeth and then proceeded to walk toward the helicopter. Would the Island let him keep his gift or would it take it away the moment he leaves it? He was about to find out. Locke gently took Mia’s hand and stepped on board the copter. He immediately sat down next to her. The young Lakota girl held onto his arm. “It’s gonna be okay.” She assured him.

Locke just shook his head in agreement. John then leaned over past Mia. “Locke, you still have Fender’s Journal?” he asked.

“Yeah, why?” he called back.

“I need it. Can you give it too me, please?”

“You didn’t tell me why!” Locke pointed out.

“Cause it’s our ticket home.”

Locke saw that the archer was serious. He looked to Mia who shook her head in agreement. He didn’t understand why they wanted it but he was certain they would explain it to him later; in fact, he would demand it. The bald man then unzipped his backpack and pulled out the journal, handing it to John. The archer then in turn handed it to the awaiting mitts of Inman. The CIA agent sat back down and immediately opened it. He started to browse through it, and the more he did, a bigger smile began to produce on his face. “Mia, I think he likes it,” John said, sarcastically.

“Not even a simple damn thank you.” She muttered.

“It doesn’t matter,” Tony told them, “We got what we came for.”

“WE’RE GOING HOME!!!” Eddie screamed.

The helicopter then proceeded to lift up off the Island head off into the sky. It began it’s ascent toward the air, making it’s loud whirring sound. As it began to fly away; back at the Shark Tank, Desmond and his family looked outward threw the trees as their friends flew away. Isabella wiped her tears, already having the house feel so lonely. Sebastian stood by himself watching the helicopter fly away. Isabella though about saying something but Desmond just pulled her closer as they made their way back into the bunker. They thought they’d leave their son alone for a while.

Sebastian looked at the piece of paper Eddie had given him. He gently folded it back up and placed it in his shirt pocket. He looked up into the sky to see the helicopter had disappeared beyond the horizon. The little kid wiped his tears and looked one more time. “Goodbye, guys,” he whispered, before turning around to head back into the bunker.