Chapter Text
The blinding light that emanated at the end of the tunnel was cause for some kind of hope, Ben figured. It meant the storm subsided and they wouldn’t have to huddle in a damp cave while they figure out their next move. So when he emerged and found what Darius described as ‘Australia’, Ben was flabbergasted to say the least.
“Okay, so… definitely not Costa Rica.” Brooklynn muses.
This… where the hell are they?
Disbelief. Uncertainty. Dread. Anger. All of these pass through Ben’s mind as he stares at the desert before him, the searing heat harsh on his exposed skin. He considers removing his now iconic headband, which is actually the dress shirt he was wearing when everything went to pot on Nublar all those months ago, to get at least some kind of covering for his poor skin. He decides against it, thinking he’d probably be worse off for it.
Truth be told, he has no idea what to do here.
He knew how to survive on Nublar- a jungle filled with dinosaurs. Here? Not a clue.
But still, how can it compare to running for your life almost everyday? They can handle a little heat.
Ben is pulled from his thoughts as Kenji, who he can always rely on to make a bad situation at least a little humorous, starts feeling Darius’ face, saying it was to prove they weren’t ghosts and this isn’t the afterlife. He smiles watching the pair of them, taking some comfort in the repaired friendship of the other two boys.
His smile drops, however, as he watches them make their way to Brooklynn, who has taken residence further down the cliff, the trio thinking out loud. He makes it a point not to look in their direction any more.
From where he is, Ben has a very good view over what lies before them.
And then he notices something in the distance.
“Hey guys! Look at that!” Ben slides down to where the others are- smoothly, he might add- and points it out for them.
“I see it!” Sammy exclaims. “Looks like the sun is glinting off some sort of metal thingy?”
“Something metal means someone had to make it. We gotta go check it out.” Ben is enthusiastic now. See? This will be cake compared to Nublar.
“Hang on.” Kenji speaks up. “You wanna go walking across a blazing hot desert just because you saw something shiny?”
Gee. Thanks for the support, love.
Still, he won’t let it damper his spirits. He stands on a rock above the group and gives what he considered to be a very rousing and inspirational speech. Lots of emphatic arm gestures and deliberate emphasis on words he’d personally find motivating.
So when the others just kind of shrug it off, but move along anyway, Ben considers it a win.
He chooses to ignore the dismissive hand wave Kenji gives him before shuffling along as well.
–
It’s been ten minutes into their trek through this desert and Ben is already on edge. He doesn’t know why, but he’d thought they’d be much closer by now- that they’d be able to see something. As it is, all he sees are cactus and a whole lot of nothing.
His mood certainly isn’t helped by the fact that he can hear Kenji chatting up Brooklynn behind him, the pair laughing at some comment Kenji made about aliens.
The sour mood he’s feeling must be plain on his face because suddenly Darius is a lot closer than he remembers and speaks to him in a hushed tone.
“You doing okay, Ben?”
“Never better. Why?”
“It’s just- You’ve been kind of scowling since we climbed down from the rocks.”
“What? No I haven’t.” Before Darius can reply, an irritated Yaz pipes up from the rear.
“‘Cause dinosaurs weren’t bad enough, now we’re washed up on some deserted island.” Thank goodness for Yaz. He didn’t want to explain to Darius what’s up with him. He knows he told the younger teen about his feelings for Kenji before they left Nublar, but he hasn’t told him- or anyone, actually- that the two of them got together recently. It didn’t seem right to just tell him right now, especially since the others are right there and he doesn’t know if Kenji would be okay with him sharing that.
“Well, at least it’s a nice day.” Ben muses loudly, hoping Darius gets the hint he’s done talking about it.
Thankfully, the conversation between everyone shifts into sarcastic “At least…” kinds of statements.
They keep going for what feels like hours, and by the time Yaz let’s out, tiredly, “At least we’re not being tortured by demons in a fiery pit of fire” Ben thinks this trek may have been a dumb idea after all. Everyone is drenched in sweat, dragging their feet, and exhausted.
It’s too late to go back and they have no other plan, so they push on.
–
Ben has no concept of time anymore. Somehow, it feels like they just left the rocks and that they’ve been at it for days. This desert is proving more challenging than he initially thought it would be. He should have listened to Kenji and Darius when they questioned his plan.
A sudden breeze caresses his skin and his mood improves almost instantly.
Then he hears the yelling behind him.
A sand storm.
“We always outran those storms on Nublar! Run!” He exclaims at the others before sprinting as fast as his legs can take him.
Ben is not fast by any metric, and this is apparent when Yaz and Darius pass him. He fears he’ll be swallowed by the storm alone if he doesn’t pick up the pace, an impossible feat no matter how hard he pushes himself. He’s at his limit and he’s falling behind.
He hears Sammy gasp behind him, and he catches a glimpse of her before she’s enveloped by the sand. He yells in shock, but finds his legs at a standstill, caught in two minds. He should find her, guide her to safety. But that means running toward the storm.
This can’t be happening.
A hand wraps around his wrist and he’s running again. Kenji's grip is strong as he pulls Ben along.
“Bu-But Sammy?!”
“I have her! Where are you guys?!” He barely hears Yaz’s voice over the near deafening sound of the wind and sand blowing.
“Over here! Follow my voice!” Kenji yells back at her over his shoulder. “C’mon Ben, we gotta find shelter!” Kenji urges him.
It’s all for naught as the sand takes them too.
Once again, he finds himself unable to move. Kenji let go to shield his face from the sand, Ben doing the same with his. He can hear everyone yelling to each other, but he has no clue where anyone actually is. He feels around aimlessly, hoping to find at least Kenji again.
“Brooklynn?!” He hears Kenji exclaim.
“OH! Kenji!” he can hear her reply.
Then screams.
Then nothing.
“Guys?! What happened?!”
No answer.
“Kenji! Where are you?!”
Only the wind and the calling of the others can be heard.
How could this have happened…?
–
The sandstorm eventually subsided. All they found of the missing pair was Brooklynn’s jacket. They search and search and search.
There's no sign of them.
Ben yells for them until his throat is raw, none of the concern and desperation hidden. They’ve been at it a while already and they're all tired. Sammy voices as much.
“I hate to say it, but maybe we should stop for the night?” Sammy hesitantly says.
“No!” He says helplessly to her. “We have to keep going!” Yaz looks at him and speaks up.
“We might find an opening into the canyon if we look for–”
“There’s no time for that!” He exclaims in exasperation, fed up with this conversation. He has to find them. He has to find Brooklynn.
He has to find Kenji.
This is all his fault.
Darius, of course, is the voice of reason and gets him and the others to calm down and find the slope at the end of the canyon- an easier way to get in and search for Brooklynn and Kenji.
Ben, determined, sprints there, spurring the others to follow him.
–
Ben almost trips as he descends the slope. He reaches the bottom and finds… a wall.
“No, no!” He slams the thing with his fists, willing it to disappear or make way so they can get in there and find the others.
The tears he’s been holding back for a while now are flowing freely. He hits the wall one last time before he slides himself against it and buries his face in his hands as he sits on the ground. He pulls his legs up, cradling himself.
“This is all my fault.” He whispers. Darius kneels next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. He recoils, not wanting to be consoled. Ben doesn’t feel worthy of it. He probably looks a mess- crying, whimpering, curled up in fear and defeat.
He probably looks like ‘Old Ben’.
He hates ‘Old Ben’.
Darius tries again. “Hey- At least…” He can’t seem to find the words. Neither can Ben.
“That’s the best ‘at least’ you can do?” A voice calls from nearby. Ben would recognize it anywhere.
“Lame.” A second familiar voice calls.
“You guys!” Ben is up and gets to them faster than he thought possible after all the running he did earlier. He practically slams right into Brooklynn and Kenji, the two safe and sound. He hugs them as tightly as his arms would let him.
When he lets go, Brooklynn begins to regale the rest of them of her and Kenji's time in the gorge, but all Ben can do is stare happily at the tallest teen, relief filling him. Kenji returns the gaze, eyes lingering and expression soft.
“What? Kenji not taking credit for something cool he did?” Darius says in mock disbelief.
“Huh?” Kenji says, snapping out of the trance he was in.
“I told them about how you moved a boulder. Keep up, man.” Brooklynn whispers to him.
“Oh. Right. It was cool.” He says lamely. Ben smiles at that. “Wait, we’ve got some good news! C’mon.” He gestures for the others to follow. Ben walks alongside him.
They hear it before they see it. Then, the sight is enough to make him cry again.
“Ta-da!” Brooklynn shows off the small watering hole.
They whoop and holler and drink to their heart's content.
“The weird thing is,” Kenji speaks up. “We heard water pipes in the caverns. Somebody built this.”
Huh.
Honestly, not the weirdest thing he’s heard.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ben spots them: Red berries, just like the ones on Nublar, as far as he can tell. He excitedly calls them over, everyone picking and starting to eat.
Ben stuffs a handful in his mouth, the sweetness making his mouth tingle.
“Good find, babe.” Kenji whispers as he passes by him and starts picking some fore himself.
Finally. Something he did that went right.
Then it dawns on him. What if these aren't like the ones on Nublar...?
He spits the berries out, then slaps them out of everyone’s hands.
“Stop! Don’t eat them!”
He then notices Kenji has a mouthful already. He bolts over to him, pulling his face down to meet his. Kenji mumbles and moans, unable to communicate clearly. Ben looks right into his eyes, hoping that he doesn’t seem some kind of sign of poisoning. Heck, is this even how you tell if someone is poisoned? He’s panicking now.
It was already his fault they went into the desert.
It was his fault they were separated during the storm.
He doesn’t know what he’d do if it ends up being his fault Kenji gets poisoned. He couldn’t live with the guilt.
Kenji, whether it be because of Ben’s warning or a look he sees in Ben’s eyes, ends up spitting the berries out as well.
They’re all looking at him in concern.
Then he starts rambling, trying to make sense of it all. What if he’s wrong? They should be okay if they find the shiny thing, right? Wait, the sun is going down. No sun means no reflection. They’ll lose sight of the metal thing, their only lifeline to a way off this island.
“Come on, guys. We gotta move!” He begins running in any direction, praying he’s going the right way. He searches for a bit and sees the shine again, then runs ahead, the others close behind. They’re so close, he knows it.
They’re there.
It’s just a sheet of metal on the ground.
This can’t be it.
“Maybe there’s more. We gotta look!”
So they look.
All they find is bones.
This is not good.
“No people. No help. Just… questions.” He flops onto the ground and starts pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes, willing himself not to cry again. He fails when a whimper escapes his lips.
A hand once again finds his. He doesn’t need to see to know who it is, the warmth and feel of it familiar to him by now. Still, it is small comfort in the face of... everything.
They sit there for who knows how long, silently, until the sky is dark.
