Beyond the Horizon.

[lost-lover]

An update is WAY overdue on this. I haven't posted since beofre season 4 started. By Thursday a should have a new chapter up include the freighter folk that we know from S4.

[Beach Crew]

Oh, I've never noticed this before (I don't think). Just had a skim of the first chapter and it seems wonderful. I'll read it once my headache clears

Seems everyone is updating of late

[lost-lover]

Hope you feel better soon Beachy!

[lost-lover]

Right. New chapter up tonight and it will include our new freighter friends from S4. You'll just have to excuse the other ones who were there already because I began this before S4 was aired.

[lost-lover]

CHAPTER 9: THE BOND OF BETRAYAL

"Jack?" Said Jin uncertainly. Jack stared back dumbstruck, his confusion seemingly equal to Jin's - clearly he hadn't expected to see 5 of his fellow survivours here.
"What are you doing here?" Whispered Jack, his voice cracked in his throat as he seemed to fight his shock.
Sawyer stepped straight towards Jack and delivered a right hook to the man's jaw. "What are we doing here? What the hell are you doing here Doc? We thought you were dead!" Roared Sawyer as two of their captors ran forwards and restrained him. "They shot Kate because of you!"
Jack slowly stood up, his hand held to his now bloody jaw, looking at Sawyer with an expression of disbelief. "They what?" The man called Bill looked uneasy, but Jack failed to notice.
"Jack, you'd better tell us your story if you expect to be told anything from us." Said Locke, reverting from his dumcstruck state to one of neutral calmness.
Jack nodded to show his agreement; his eyes had not left Sawyer since he'd revealed Kate's predicament. Tearing his gaze from Sawyer, Jack turned to the man called George. "Can you give us a minute?"
George shook his head. "You're not gonna talk to your friends until we do Jack."
"I told you they don't know anything!" Said Jack angrily.
"Well Doc,unless we report back to Minkowski and the captain with some good news, they're gonna fry our a$$es for leaving the freighter and coming here ahead of the main expedition." Said George.
"Leaving the freighter? I thought we was on the freighter!" Said Sawyer.
"Then you don't know jack about boats pal." Smirked the man called Bill.
"The freighters still anchored 80miles off shore." Said Jo from the corner.
"You said you are not the main expedition. If you took this boat, how will they arrive?" Asked Rousseau, cutting off Sawyer's chance of responding to Bill.
"Same way as Naomi. Frank's bringing them in a chopper." Said Mel. "Let's just hope he doesn't crash it."
Desmond opened his mouth to ask another question but was interuptted by Bill. "Where is Naomi anyway?"
Desmond and Locke exchanged glances while Jin looked confused. George noticed the exchange. "Right. Mel, you Tony and Jo take those three to one of the other rooms, find out what they know about Naomi." He looked over at Danielle. "Second thoughts, take the lady too."
The small group filed out of the room until Jack and Sawyer were left alone, not counting the two men stood in the doorway.
"Can we get a little privacy?." George shook his head.
"Do we really look that dumb to you?" Asked Bill.
Sawyer smirked. "You really want me to answer that question Popeye?"
"Bill, go down and check on the others." Said George. Bill started to splutter an angry response. "I've got a gun - I can handle them. Go Bill."
Bill left muttering to himself.
"Jack you've got five minutes. You take any longer and your friends are gonna regret coming after you." Said George.
"Too late." Muttered Sawyer as George shut the door.
Jack looked at the door, and then at Sawyer. "We don't have long so I'll get straight to the point." Whispered Jack. "They're not here for us. Apparently thewreckage of our plane was found off the coast of Bali-"
"-Cut the crap Doc I know all that from the chick Rambo used for knife practice." Said Sawyer angrily. "How about you tell me something I don't know. Like how the hell your alive?"
"They shot me with a tranquiliser. I woke up on this boat, they questioned me for a day, found out I'm a survivour of 815, then decided to keep me hostage. They thought it might make some of you come after then on a revenge mission. Clearly they were right." Said Jack.
"You think we came for you Hoss? Locke came to scout the camp and Rousseau tagged along 'cause she wants to protect Sally Slingshot and her boyfriend. Chewy and the Bagpiper stayed at the caves to hold off those guys long enough for Ali to lead everyone to Othersville so that the triple Other agent has long enough to operate on Freckles. And me Jack? I came for Kate, and if she dies it's on your head. Cause Jules ain't no surgeon, and the only reason she's doin' the op is because we all though you were dead!" Sawyer finished his rant and took some deep breaths.
Jack was silent, absorbing every word Sawyer had just thrown at him. "Kate? Is she-?"
"Looking mighty like the Marshall from the old days." Growled Sawyer.
Jack looked disturbed.
"You got two more minutes!" Yelled George from the other side of the door. Both men jumped, having forgotten he was there.
Jack dragged Sawyer to the far side of the room. "He doesn't know Naomi's dead."
"Well I sort of figured from the way they dead everyone out of here for interrogation." Said Sawyer.
"It's a facade." Said Jack, speaking quickly. "There's two things you need to know." Sawyer nodded so Jac could continue. "The real reason they're here, the freighter, it's for Ben." Jack held up his hand so Sawyer wouldn't interrupt. "They all work for a company which is looking for him, the main expedition was headed by Naomi. I heard Bill talking to George yesterday, another four people willl be coming by a chopper today. The pilot is a guy called Frank, from what I heard they'll be three other people, two guys and a girl. I think their names were Miles, Daniel and Charlotte. These guys we're with are like lackeys."
"Thanks for the update but names ain't much good. How bout we tell them where the little weasel is in exchange for a ticket off this rock?"
"It won't work because they'll already know by the time we get out of this room, and Ben already knows they're coming." Jack said quietly.
"How?" Asked Sawyer.
"Because that's not the only thing I found out yesterday." Said Jack. "The freighter been in the area for a few weeks now, and Ben knew about it, it's one of the reason he was jamming transmissions off the island."
Jack sighed. "When he let Michael leave the island, they cut a deal. Michael is on the freighter, and he's spying for Ben."
Sawyer was almost speechless. "You said they'd know where to find him, did they turn the ba$tard?"
"No, and we can't tell them, it's the one card we have to play. They'll know where Ben is because Rousseau is working with them."

[lost-lover]

Stupid computer! It keeps crashing when I try to post.

[firebreathingfishies]

i need to catch up with this, i haven't read for a while. don't worry, i will eventually

[lost-lover]

Cool. I'm just about to read Changing Fate so I'll let you know my view soon.

[Beach Crew]

I've just read this chapter and it's brill. Totally loving the fact that Sawyer is in it all the time! I haven't read any previous chapters though so I'm kinda spoiling myself, lol.

I will read the full thing soon though as it looks awesome

[lost-lover]

Glad you like it, Beachy. Hope you enjoy the rest of it too.

[lost-lover]

Next chapter up tonight.

[lost-lover]

CHAPTER 10: THE MARK OF ALLIGENCE

Juliet removed her surgical robes and tried not to shudder. The operation on Kate's gunshot wounds had been over for half an hour. Her helpers had left her and returned to their respective comrades, clearly struggling to cope with the aftermath of what had happened. Juliet had stayed behind and pretended to finish clearing up everything; in reality she had stood stock-still on the same spot for the past 30 minutes unable to fully register what had happened. Now, all her emotions came together and the whole situation had came together in full force. She was struggling to keep it together, but knew that she still had worse to come. She still had to face the people she'd lived with for three years, for Isabelle had undoubtably just announced her traitorous alligence to the Oceanic crash survivours - the alliance which they would no doubt blame for the deaths of 10 of their people.
She leaned against the wall of the surgery and tried to compose herself. She would go outside and face them all, Others and Oceanics, without showing the torment inside. If she was to go down as a traitor, she would go down fighting. Juliet knew it would be better not to make assumptions or guesses about what would happen, but she was fighting a losing battle. She was mentally weighing her chances of getting out of the situation unscathed; on the one hand, she'd been revealed as a double agent and had alot of blood on her hands, not to mention the beating Ben had suffered. On the other hand, Ben had been in love with her since her arrival to the island, could she still count on his feeling for her? Somehow she doubted it. On to her defence; she'd risked her life to save other people on several occasions, though considering one of those times had led to 10 deaths she doubted it would count in her favour. She'd also been on the island a virtual prisoner for the past three years, denied the chance to see her sister give birth, her neice grow up, yet she'd helped the Others with their problems in hope of a passage home, and she'd been conned again. She decided not to include Locke's part destorying her and Jack's ticket home. Juliet had to drag her thoughts away from Jack - his predicament had been over since he'd been murdered, hers was just beginning.
Without warning her emotional block burst and she couldn't hold it in any longer. Juliet felt tears well up in her eyes and didn't fight them, she just let them go, started crying and wouldn't stop. Better to get it out now than start bawling in front of an audience full of friends and foes. On second thoughts, she realised it looked likely to be just foes. On that note she just cried more, and was still sobbing when the surgery door opened to reveal Ben. Great, she really did not need him here right now. Juliet turned her back to him and wiped her face with her hands.
"Juliet?" He said softly. She didn't answer. "Juliet?"
"Come to toss me to the wolves Ben?" She said.
"You've just saved a woman's life Juliet, I hardly think it's fair to condemn you for that." He said.
Juliet turned to face him, not daring to hope. Ben was a master of double crossing, as she'd learnt through experience. "The last time I saved her life you had me marked." She said.
Ben's face dropped an inch. "Well you killed one of our people, sorry, my people to free her and Ford, Juliet, what did you expect? I couldn't do nothing, and it was either a marking, or an execution. I could argue that I saved your life." He said with an infuriating smile. "Which I think was quite generous considering you asked Jack to kill me."
Juliet knew she was being baited, knew she shouldn't respond, but she just didn't care. "If you'd let me off this island when I asked then none of this would have happened." She said, outraged. "If you'd let me go home to my sister after I told you my research had reached it's limit, if you'd not been so damn obsessed with me, Ben, then we'd both have alot less blood on our hands."
Ben's face was a mask. "If you'd have just excepted that you were mine, Juliet, rather than betraying me and all our people, then alot of things needn't have happened." He said.
"I'm not property, Ben, you can't claim me and keep me hostage and expect me to just except it." She retorted angrily.
The surgey door opened and both Juliet and Ben turned to face the newcomer. Sayid. "If I;m interrupting something I can come back later." He said, taking in the scene; no doubt he'd heard some of the conversation from outside.
"No, it's fine. I was leaving anyway." Replied Ben, walking off, as he reached the door he turned back and faced Juliet, showing no sign that they'd been arguing only seconds before. "We'll be wanted to talk to you outside shortly."
"I'll come in a few minutes." She replied, not looking at him. Ben nodded and left.
Sayid looked at Juliet questioningly. "I would ask what has happened, but I know you won't tell me." He said.
"You wouldn't believe me if I did." She muttered.
"I just wanted to thank you for saving Kate's life." He said. "How is she doing now?"
"She's stable, but it's really all down to her now. She fights it, she'll survive, if she doesn't..." Juliet left the statement hanging, regretting speaking and mentally kicking herself. She knew this man didn't trust her, and what little trust she'd gained from the surgery had undoubtably been lost again with one careless statement.
Both of them looked to the surgical table where Kate was laying, pale and still. Were it not for the slow, steady beeps from the moniter, Sayid might have believed she was dead.
"I know you're not a surgeon, so the procedure must have been difficult, especially with the Others still waiting to question you." Sayid said after a short silence. "Are you nervous?"
"I'm pretty good at coping with them being hostile to me now. The last time they put me to trial they marked me." She said bitterly.
"I've heard of such things been done before." He nodded.
"I know you don't trust me Sayid, but I want you to know that there is no chance that I'd tie myself to Ben and his people again. I left my whole life behind to help them on this place, after they lied about where their research centre was, I thought I was going to Portland for God's sake! After I realised I couldn't help them anymore I asked Ben if I could go home to Miami, but he wouldn't let me leave." Juliet knew she was babbling but just couldn't stop herself. "Because I'm his." She gave a bitter laugh. Sayid watched her in silence. "Then when I finally got a chance to go home, Locke came along and blew the damn thing up."
"Why are you telling me this Juliet?" Sayid asked.
"Because, Sayid, I want you to know, I want to leave this place just as much as you do. And if there's a chance to get off of this island, I don't care what it takes to use it." She said.
"That makes two of us." He replied.
They both stood in silence for a few seconds until a shrill, continuous beep sounded from the moniter by Kate's side.
"She's crashing, get help!" Yelled Juliet, a sick feeling in her gut.
Sayid ran outside screaming for anyone who heard him that Juliet needed help: Kate was losing her battle for survival.
Juliet was trying to resecitate Kate when Sayid burst through the doors with Hurley, Sun and Claire close behind him. He didn't need to hear the words from Juliet to know it was too late.
Kate Austin was dead.