Lost Episode 4.09 The Shape of Things to Come

BAM Alex is shoved down on her knees. A hand reaches in and yanks her blindfold off. Alex finds herself staring at the sonic fence surrounding the barracks. A voice orders her to turn it off and shoves a gun into Alex's neck. Alex enters a code, and they continue forward.

Hurley, Sawyer and Locke enjoy a game of Risk when the telephone rings. It's such an odd, out of place sound. Locke answers it and hears an even odder message: code fourteen-J. He goes to Ben and asks what the code means. Ben immediately is activated. He explains they have to get back to his house. It'll be easier to fortify and offers a better position on the tree lines. Locke doesn't understand, and Ben tells him they're here.

WHOOSH to the desert, close on Ben's eyes as they snap open and he gasps. He's wearing a parka, and his whole body seems to be steaming. There's a bloody gash on his forearm, and the parka is torn. He rolls to his hands and knees and suddenly vomits. Two men on horseback crest the dune behind him. They're just as surprised to see Ben as he is to see them. The leader points his AK-47 at Ben, but Ben uses the second man as a human shield and kills the leader. Then he knocks the second man out cold, takes one of the horses and leaves.

At the beach camp, Bernard calls out for help. Everyone runs over to him and as a body washes ashore. They pull it out. There's a deep gash across his throat. Faraday and Charlotte recognize him, and Jack sees the look between them. Faraday says he was their doctor on the freighter.

At the barracks, Ben explains the code is an early warning system. Someone tripped the panic switch at the security fence, which means one of his people has been captured. Sawyer runs off to get Claire and her baby. Ben turns to Locke and tells him it's important Locke survives what's about to happen. The people coming won't risk hurting Ben, so if Locke wants to live, Ben's his best chance. Ben explains that only Jacob can help them now, but Locke doesn't know where Jacob's cabin is. Ben says yes, but Hurley does.

WHOOSH to a hotel lobby in Tozeur, Tunisia. Ben asks for a room, and tells the clerk he's a preferred guest. His name is Dean Moriarty. She promptly passes him a room key. Ben asks what day it is. The clerk tells him October 24, 2005. Ben thanks her, and heads to his room but stops when he hears a familiar name on a news report: Sayid. Ben looks over and sees paparazzi try to catch a quick shot of him, and Sayid tells them he just wants to bury his wife in peace.

WHOOSH to the barracks as Sawyer heads to Claire's house but PFAFT! PFAFT! Automatic gunfire kicks up the earth around Sawyer, and he bolts for cover. Then one of the assailants fires a rocket propelled grenade and KABOOM! Claire's home explodes in a deafening blast. Sawyer searches through the smoldering ruins and finds her in the back yard under a basket of laundry. She has a bloody cut on her forehead but she's alive. Shots ring out from the distant tree line, so Sawyer scoops Claire up and runs for Ben's house!

WHOOSH to Tikrit, Iraq. Ben is dressed as a cameraman and makes his way through the war-torn city up to the roof of a building. From there, he uses his telephoto lens to scan the faces of a crowd watching a funeral procession. He finds the one he wants and clicks a couple pictures. Then Ben swings his camera around and sees Sayid carrying the coffin. Suddenly Sayid looks up directly into the camera. Ben leaves quickly, runs down the stairs, and flies out the door towards his car when WHAM! Sayid tackles him, expecting it to be a paparazzi, but he is shocked to see it's Ben.

Sayid asks him what he's doing there, and Ben tells him he's there to find the man who murdered Sayid's wife. Ben explains that there was a man watching Nadia's funeral. His name is Ishmael Bakir, and he's one of Widmore's men. He was last seen three blocks from where Nadia was killed. Sayid asks why Widmore would want to murder her, and Ben says he doesn't know. Sayid blinks back his tears and replaces it with growing rage.

WHOOSH to the beach camp where Jack tries to figure out what's going on with the dead doctor. Juliet asks if Faraday could fix the smashed sat-phone because then they could just call. Faraday says the mic is busted. They'll only be able to broadcast tones. Bernard suggests using it like a telegraph to send Morse code. Faraday tells them if he could find the material, they could send a message.

At the barracks, the doorbell rings. It's Miles. They let him in, and Miles hands Ben a walkie. Says they want to talk. Ben refuses to talk to them, but Miles tells him they have a hostage. It's Alex, his daughter. Ben takes the walkie and talkes to Keamy. If Ben gives himself up, then Keamy promises not to hurt anyone else in the house. Ben won't accept the terms. He tells Keamy once they have him, there's nothing to stop them from killing everyone on the island. Keamy seems offended and asks what kind of guy Ben thinks he is? And Ben quickly rattles off the type of guy Keamy is: he's a former sergeant in the Marine Corps and served with distinction from 1996 to 2001. Since then, he's worked for several mercenary organizations, specifically in Uganda, and he knows what Keamy did there.

Keamy whistles to his team, and one of them drags Alex out from the jungle and forces her down on her knees. Keamy orders Ben to come out or he'll kill Alex. Ben contains his rage and horror and offers a counter-proposal. Keamy takes his team, leaves and forgets they ever heard of this island. Keamy begins to count down as Alex pleads for help. Ben steels himself and says Alex means nothing to him. He's not walking out of the house and tells Keamy to get on with it. Fair enough Keamy shoots and kills Alex! Ben is shocked! He did not expect that to happen.

Keamy's team disappears back into the jungle. Locke says they won't be gone for long. Sawyer wants to know why they just don't hand Ben over, and Locke tells him those people don't have any intention of letting them leave alive. Ben mumbles that he changed the rules and disappears into his hidden room, locking himself in. He shoves aside some suits and slides back a panel of dry wall. Behind it is a large stone brick that is weathered and ancient. Carved into it is an intricate pattern of runic symbols. Ben pushes the brick back, revealing a dark passageway, and he goes inside it.

WHOOSH to Tikrit where Ben sips coffee in a cafe. Across the cafe sits Ishmael Bakir. Ben is trailing him. Ishmael gets up and quickly walks away. Ben follows but loses him in the crowd. However, Ishmael comes up behind Ben with a gun and forces Ben into a deserted alley. He asks why Ben is following him. Ben asks him to deliver a message to Widmore for him when FFFT! Ishmael is shot by Sayid. Sayid empties his clip into Bakir's body, and Ben tells him it's enough. Ben tells Sayid to go home, mourn his loss and get on with his life. If he lets his grief become anger, it will never go away. It's his war, not Sayid's. But Sayid says he spent eight years looking for the woman he loved and they tore her from him. It is his war, too. Who's next on Ben's list? Ben tells him he'll be in touch.

WHOOSH to the barrack as Ben exits the hidden room and warns Locke, Sawyer, Hurley and Claire that they are going to need to run away from the guys with the guns as fast as they can. When he gives the order, they need to move. And then MMWWRROORR! The smokes monster roils past them like a freight train, shaking the house and ground. Ben yells for them to run now! The smoke monster heads into the jungle after Keamy's team. The jungle lights up with ethereal flashes as the monster roars and men scream. A soldier stumbles out covered in blood and dies. The smoke monster whips out, grabs the body and yanks it back into the jungle. Hurley stares at Ben in disbelief and asks if he called it. Ben tells them to head to the creek. He'll join them, but first he has to say good-bye to his daughter.

At the beach camp, Faraday finishes rigging the sat-phone and types out their message: what... happened... to... the... doctor? A response comes back, and Faraday tells them it didn't say what happened to the doctor but that their friends are okay and the helicopter is coming back in the morning. Everyone is relieved, but Bernard tells them it's a lie. That isn't what the message said. Jack confronts Faraday and asks if they were ever going to take them off the island. Faraday says no.

In the jungle, Sawyer tells Locke and Ben that he's going back to the beach camp, and that Claire and the baby are going with him. Hurley starts to walk off with them when Locke stops them and holds them at gunpoint. He says Hurley is going with him and Ben. Sawyer aims his own gun at Locke and says he won't let that happen. Hurley finally tells them to stop. He'll go with Locke and Ben. Sawyer warns Locke he better not harm one curly hair on Hurley, and Locke agrees.

WHOOSH to London late at night as Ben enters an apartment building. He enters a penthouse and wakes up the sleeping man inside. It's Charles Widmore. Widmore isn't surprised to see him. He was wondering when Ben would show up. He asks if Ben is there to kill him, and Ben says they both know he can't do that. He's there because Widmore killed Alex. Widmore tells him not to lay the responsibility of her death on him. It was Ben who was responsible. Widmore can't believe Ben has the audacity to pretend to be the victim. Widmore knows that everything Ben has he took from him. Ben says he's there to tell him he's going to kill his daughter, Penelope. And once she's gone, Widmore will understand how Ben feels... and Widmore will wish he hadn't changed the rules. He turns to leave, and Widmore yells out that it's his island. It always was, and it will be again. Ben tells him he'll never find it. Widmore says the hunt is on... for both of them.