Part 452: Jack's Dilema
9:49 am
Jack grunted as he was shoved into a chair. He felt his hands being handcuffed to a hard aluminum chair. The doctor could tell because he has sat on similar chairs in hospital staff meetings. Which also meant, he had no chance of breaking out. After they secured him, they removed the black bag off the top of his head. He coughed, getting the cloth fibers out of his mouth. He then looked across the table at the smirking face of a man he’d never seen before. However, he could tell their was a “steely” glance behind his eyes. “Hello, Dr. Shepard.” The man whispered, “I’ve wanted to meet you for so long.”
“Who are you?” Jack asked.
“Linus. Dr. Benjamin Linus. You may call me Ben. May I call you Jack?”
“What is this all about?”
“It’s about you, Jack. And your experience on the Island.”
“My . .my what?” he gulped.
“You were the doctor on the Island, where Flight 815 crashed,” Ben sighed, “You made yourself well known. The people chose you as their defacto leader. You were able to hold them together, especially when you split up into two separate parties, not to mention . . .take out a good portion of the Liberation.”
Jack tilted his head. The one thing he immediately didn’t like about this man was his arrogant attitude. “Well, why are you asking me about my experience?” he grunted, “You seem to already know a great deal.”
“Yes, but there are some things we are still missing.” He said, pulling out a notepad, “Such as how you managed to kill the Fleshmonger?”
“The . . “ Jack raised an eyebrow, “WHO THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE?”
Ben tilted his head, crossed his legs and rested his hands in his lap. “I was unaware that Jenny meant anything to you.” He calmly whispered.
Jack felt a cold rush creep down his spine. In his own subtle way, Ben was telling him he could hurt Jenny. And when he tried to be with his little sister in the elevator, it tipped his hand that she was indeed important to him. The doctor leaned down his head, trembling in rage. He then looked up at Ben, tears forming in his eyes. “If you hurt her, I’ll kill you.” He said, blankly.
Ben then leaned forward and sighed. “Then answer my questions . . .and I won’t have to.” He admitted.
Jack leaned back, trying to breath. Being in this situation made it difficult and hard not to react violently. He didn’t like being in a cage; nor any sane human would. He looked over at the scientist and practically spit at him. “Ask your questions.” He said.
“How did you defeat the Fleshmonger?” Ben asked again.
“One of my friends shoved a shotgun in his mouth and pulled the trigger.” The doctor grunted.
“Yes, I know that part. But the Fleshmonger was designed to be fast as a cheetah. So how could your friend have done that unless he was also fast as a cheetah?”
“Maybe he was.” Jack smiled.
“Sarcasim doesn’t suit you, Jack,” Ben said, tapping a pen on the table.
Jack winced at the man’s statement. The doctor felt helpless, because he didn’t have enough information to go on. Meaning, he didn’t know where Jenny was nor her current state of being. The doctor shook his head, giving into the scientist’s demands. “I saw the video,” he whispered, “And I was able to figure it out.”
“Figure what out?” Ben asked.
“Fleshmonger has a weakness mechanism. It was designed to make the Lost Kids use their brains. They could defeat the monster if they figured out why he never showed up during the rain. It’s because that freak was programmed to shut down when it was soaked in water.”
“Really?” Ben said, writing this down.
“Yeah, I stopped him by slamming a back pack full of water against his head. He froze like a statue.”
“Fascinating.”
“I’m glad you think so,” Jack grunted, “Now do you want to tell me what this all about?”
Ben calmly flipped up his notepad and tucked it back into his white lab coat. He leaned back into his chair and smiled. “It’s all about natural selection, Dr. Shepard.” He smiled.
“I . .don’t follow.” Jack admitted.
“You place a group of people in a foreign situation and slowly they fight, slowly they prosper and slowly. . ..they die. The ones that are left are a result of Natural Selection. Those people . . .will survive anything.”
“So, you’re forcing me to take place in an experiment?”
“No, doctor. I’m wanting to learn about yours. And when the time comes, I’ll require your expertise. I’m going to need you to examine some children.”
“Why me?”
“Because they trust you.”
Jack was about to say something. The way that Ben said that statement, there was an unusual amount of coolness behind it. And the context was all wrong. Ben said these children trust him. Meaning he knew them. “What . ..what children are you talking about?” Jack asked.
“Why, simply Bridget Carlyle, Aaron Pace, Brendon Butler and Shelley Riggs.”
“What?” Jack yelled, “WHAT THE . . .what the hell do you want them for?”
“Because they are the Unnatural Selection, Dr. Shepard.” Ben smiled, “Oh, come now. Surely you’ve noticed . . .they are SMARTER than normal?”
“So, they are well raised, so what?”
“No, that’s not it.” The scientist said with a smug grin, “It’s the Gratus Plant.”
Jack froze. The name of the planet was very familiar. He remembered it being mentioned in the orientation video tape back on the Island for the Red and Black project. Jack then started to shake in his head in disagreement. “No,” the doctor reject his explanation., “ The Gratus Plant’s airborne particle only affect kids through age 1 or 2. The majority of those kids were not born on the Island and Aaron was only a few weeks old, so the Gratus Plant didn’t get the chance to infect him!!”
“But that’s the marvelous part, Jack.” The scientist said with an almost boyish glee, “You want to hear the cool part?”
“What? What is the damn cool part, Ben?”
“You were all infected with the Gratus airborne particle.”
Jack froze yet again. What the man was telling him was going against everything that he believed in science. But yet, from his time spent at the Shark Tank, it made all the sense he could fathom. Watching poor Sebastian change skin color and contract labored breathing, meant he was going through a physical change. The only way he could stem off the plant’s particles affecting his brain, was to drink a liquid derived from a fluid that’s found only in sharks. Jack still didn’t have the information he needed in order for this to make sense. “Suppose I believe you for one instance,” he whispered, “If we were all infected, why didn’t we suffer pigment change or labored breathing?”
“You saw the orientation video,” Ben drew his conclusion,” No, the orientation video was correct. Only children with ages between 1 and 2 would be infection to the point where they would need the Desonium to ward off the effects of psychotic-breaks. Aaron was born long enough to be infected, but not over saturated. You understand, Jack?”
Jack blinked with a hint of understanding. “So . . .since he wasn’t oversaturated with this particle . . .he never had the chance to need the Desonium.”
“Precisely!” the scientist snapped his fingers.
“Wait a minute,” Jack said, closing his eyes, “I can understand how Aaron would have been infected but how did the other . . .”
Jack almost gasped. Ben giggled, looking at his face. The scientist could tell that the doctor was putting it all together. “Their parents.” Jack whispered.
“Exactly.” Dr. Linus smiled, “Their parents were infected and they had a natural immunity to the Gratus Plant. However, they past their infection into their offspring and the mother’s womb offered an even stronger filter to the particle. The side effects were . .astounding.”
“Increased brain activity.” Jack concluded.
“These children will herald a new age. A new age of reason.” Ben stood up, “But now we must make sure, they are apart of the Natural Selection.”
“By doing what with them?” the doctor asked.
“All in good time, Jack.” The scientist stood up, “I’ll let all this sink in and we will speak more later. I’m very interested in what you remember about the Liberation’s men, speaking two men.”
“What men?”
“The ones called Texas and Brooklyn.”
Jack could understand why the mad scientist would be interested in those two men. The men were brothers and for some strange reason, the moment they stepped onto that Island, they did, for lack of a better word, mutate. They became bigger, stronger and their hair went pale white like an albino. Jack was never sure of the cause, because he had been things to do than perform an autopsy. Before he had the chance to ask anything else, two men came into the room and began to unlock him. He felt like fighting back but he was still worried they would hurt Jenny.
He stood up and allowed them to move him out of the room. He tried to take in as many surroundings as he could. There were several more doctors and nurses, all with white lab-coats bearing the Dharma symbol. Jack then was taking into a smaller hallway, with even more doors. The guard pressed a series of buttons on the door panel and it creaked open. The men then shoved Jack forward, making him trip and landed on the cold, hard floor.
Jack massaged his eyes and twisted over from the floor; laying on his back. He slowly leaned up and looked at the door; hearing the hinges click shut. The doctor took a deep breath, taking in all that Linus had told him. He wasn’t sure if Kate was alive, he didn’t know the state of Jenny either. If it meant what he thought he meant, then it was going to be horrible for his friends; when they take their children. “Could this day get any worse?” he whispered.
“Oh, trust me, brother,” a voice said behind him, “it can get a whole lot worse.”
Jack turned around and gasped; seeing Desmond resting in the corner of the room.
Jack grunted as he was shoved into a chair. He felt his hands being handcuffed to a hard aluminum chair. The doctor could tell because he has sat on similar chairs in hospital staff meetings. Which also meant, he had no chance of breaking out. After they secured him, they removed the black bag off the top of his head. He coughed, getting the cloth fibers out of his mouth. He then looked across the table at the smirking face of a man he’d never seen before. However, he could tell their was a “steely” glance behind his eyes. “Hello, Dr. Shepard.” The man whispered, “I’ve wanted to meet you for so long.”
“Who are you?” Jack asked.
“Linus. Dr. Benjamin Linus. You may call me Ben. May I call you Jack?”
“What is this all about?”
“It’s about you, Jack. And your experience on the Island.”
“My . .my what?” he gulped.
“You were the doctor on the Island, where Flight 815 crashed,” Ben sighed, “You made yourself well known. The people chose you as their defacto leader. You were able to hold them together, especially when you split up into two separate parties, not to mention . . .take out a good portion of the Liberation.”
Jack tilted his head. The one thing he immediately didn’t like about this man was his arrogant attitude. “Well, why are you asking me about my experience?” he grunted, “You seem to already know a great deal.”
“Yes, but there are some things we are still missing.” He said, pulling out a notepad, “Such as how you managed to kill the Fleshmonger?”
“The . . “ Jack raised an eyebrow, “WHO THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE?”
Ben tilted his head, crossed his legs and rested his hands in his lap. “I was unaware that Jenny meant anything to you.” He calmly whispered.
Jack felt a cold rush creep down his spine. In his own subtle way, Ben was telling him he could hurt Jenny. And when he tried to be with his little sister in the elevator, it tipped his hand that she was indeed important to him. The doctor leaned down his head, trembling in rage. He then looked up at Ben, tears forming in his eyes. “If you hurt her, I’ll kill you.” He said, blankly.
Ben then leaned forward and sighed. “Then answer my questions . . .and I won’t have to.” He admitted.
Jack leaned back, trying to breath. Being in this situation made it difficult and hard not to react violently. He didn’t like being in a cage; nor any sane human would. He looked over at the scientist and practically spit at him. “Ask your questions.” He said.
“How did you defeat the Fleshmonger?” Ben asked again.
“One of my friends shoved a shotgun in his mouth and pulled the trigger.” The doctor grunted.
“Yes, I know that part. But the Fleshmonger was designed to be fast as a cheetah. So how could your friend have done that unless he was also fast as a cheetah?”
“Maybe he was.” Jack smiled.
“Sarcasim doesn’t suit you, Jack,” Ben said, tapping a pen on the table.
Jack winced at the man’s statement. The doctor felt helpless, because he didn’t have enough information to go on. Meaning, he didn’t know where Jenny was nor her current state of being. The doctor shook his head, giving into the scientist’s demands. “I saw the video,” he whispered, “And I was able to figure it out.”
“Figure what out?” Ben asked.
“Fleshmonger has a weakness mechanism. It was designed to make the Lost Kids use their brains. They could defeat the monster if they figured out why he never showed up during the rain. It’s because that freak was programmed to shut down when it was soaked in water.”
“Really?” Ben said, writing this down.
“Yeah, I stopped him by slamming a back pack full of water against his head. He froze like a statue.”
“Fascinating.”
“I’m glad you think so,” Jack grunted, “Now do you want to tell me what this all about?”
Ben calmly flipped up his notepad and tucked it back into his white lab coat. He leaned back into his chair and smiled. “It’s all about natural selection, Dr. Shepard.” He smiled.
“I . .don’t follow.” Jack admitted.
“You place a group of people in a foreign situation and slowly they fight, slowly they prosper and slowly. . ..they die. The ones that are left are a result of Natural Selection. Those people . . .will survive anything.”
“So, you’re forcing me to take place in an experiment?”
“No, doctor. I’m wanting to learn about yours. And when the time comes, I’ll require your expertise. I’m going to need you to examine some children.”
“Why me?”
“Because they trust you.”
Jack was about to say something. The way that Ben said that statement, there was an unusual amount of coolness behind it. And the context was all wrong. Ben said these children trust him. Meaning he knew them. “What . ..what children are you talking about?” Jack asked.
“Why, simply Bridget Carlyle, Aaron Pace, Brendon Butler and Shelley Riggs.”
“What?” Jack yelled, “WHAT THE . . .what the hell do you want them for?”
“Because they are the Unnatural Selection, Dr. Shepard.” Ben smiled, “Oh, come now. Surely you’ve noticed . . .they are SMARTER than normal?”
“So, they are well raised, so what?”
“No, that’s not it.” The scientist said with a smug grin, “It’s the Gratus Plant.”
Jack froze. The name of the planet was very familiar. He remembered it being mentioned in the orientation video tape back on the Island for the Red and Black project. Jack then started to shake in his head in disagreement. “No,” the doctor reject his explanation., “ The Gratus Plant’s airborne particle only affect kids through age 1 or 2. The majority of those kids were not born on the Island and Aaron was only a few weeks old, so the Gratus Plant didn’t get the chance to infect him!!”
“But that’s the marvelous part, Jack.” The scientist said with an almost boyish glee, “You want to hear the cool part?”
“What? What is the damn cool part, Ben?”
“You were all infected with the Gratus airborne particle.”
Jack froze yet again. What the man was telling him was going against everything that he believed in science. But yet, from his time spent at the Shark Tank, it made all the sense he could fathom. Watching poor Sebastian change skin color and contract labored breathing, meant he was going through a physical change. The only way he could stem off the plant’s particles affecting his brain, was to drink a liquid derived from a fluid that’s found only in sharks. Jack still didn’t have the information he needed in order for this to make sense. “Suppose I believe you for one instance,” he whispered, “If we were all infected, why didn’t we suffer pigment change or labored breathing?”
“You saw the orientation video,” Ben drew his conclusion,” No, the orientation video was correct. Only children with ages between 1 and 2 would be infection to the point where they would need the Desonium to ward off the effects of psychotic-breaks. Aaron was born long enough to be infected, but not over saturated. You understand, Jack?”
Jack blinked with a hint of understanding. “So . . .since he wasn’t oversaturated with this particle . . .he never had the chance to need the Desonium.”
“Precisely!” the scientist snapped his fingers.
“Wait a minute,” Jack said, closing his eyes, “I can understand how Aaron would have been infected but how did the other . . .”
Jack almost gasped. Ben giggled, looking at his face. The scientist could tell that the doctor was putting it all together. “Their parents.” Jack whispered.
“Exactly.” Dr. Linus smiled, “Their parents were infected and they had a natural immunity to the Gratus Plant. However, they past their infection into their offspring and the mother’s womb offered an even stronger filter to the particle. The side effects were . .astounding.”
“Increased brain activity.” Jack concluded.
“These children will herald a new age. A new age of reason.” Ben stood up, “But now we must make sure, they are apart of the Natural Selection.”
“By doing what with them?” the doctor asked.
“All in good time, Jack.” The scientist stood up, “I’ll let all this sink in and we will speak more later. I’m very interested in what you remember about the Liberation’s men, speaking two men.”
“What men?”
“The ones called Texas and Brooklyn.”
Jack could understand why the mad scientist would be interested in those two men. The men were brothers and for some strange reason, the moment they stepped onto that Island, they did, for lack of a better word, mutate. They became bigger, stronger and their hair went pale white like an albino. Jack was never sure of the cause, because he had been things to do than perform an autopsy. Before he had the chance to ask anything else, two men came into the room and began to unlock him. He felt like fighting back but he was still worried they would hurt Jenny.
He stood up and allowed them to move him out of the room. He tried to take in as many surroundings as he could. There were several more doctors and nurses, all with white lab-coats bearing the Dharma symbol. Jack then was taking into a smaller hallway, with even more doors. The guard pressed a series of buttons on the door panel and it creaked open. The men then shoved Jack forward, making him trip and landed on the cold, hard floor.
Jack massaged his eyes and twisted over from the floor; laying on his back. He slowly leaned up and looked at the door; hearing the hinges click shut. The doctor took a deep breath, taking in all that Linus had told him. He wasn’t sure if Kate was alive, he didn’t know the state of Jenny either. If it meant what he thought he meant, then it was going to be horrible for his friends; when they take their children. “Could this day get any worse?” he whispered.
“Oh, trust me, brother,” a voice said behind him, “it can get a whole lot worse.”
Jack turned around and gasped; seeing Desmond resting in the corner of the room.
posted by Jason | 1:43 PM
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