Cease To Exist by darkshoe

Chapter 1: The island is a geographic place, and the castaways need to cross an ocean to be rescued.

Chapter 2: The island is a special place. It is surrounded by an invisible bubble. There is a portal, but you have to follow a special compass bearing to leave. This bubble separates the non-lost world outside from the lost world inside. The non-lost world is the ordinary real world where the real and the imaginary are keep separated by social institutions. Like the Santa Rosa Mental Hospital. The lost world is our jungle of mystery, where what is real and what is imaginary has to be decided by the losties themselves.

So when Jack sees his dead father, it's because he needs to see him. Ghosts come and go, but they are not manifestations of MIB or Jacob. There is no man behind the curtain. Each is unique and have their own reasons for being on the island.

There are two kinds of people, lost and non-lost. Some like Jack go into the jungle and seek adventure. The others, the nameless ones just sit on the beach and wait to be rescued, or wait for someone to tell them what to do. What separates the losties is their desire for mystery and their passion to make things reveal themselves. Losties may leave the island but they're still lost. As when Michael tries to shoot himself. Rescue from being lost is not that easy.

The smoke monster can shape shift. But it only takes on a human appearance twice, when it needs to talk. (1) as MIB when talking to Jacob on the beach. And when trying to convince Ricardo to kill Jacob. And (2) one hundred and fifty years later when it becomes Flock and Alex in it's desire to kill Jacob. Otherwise the smoke monster is seen in the jungle on it's own, doing whatever, and for whatever reasons we don't know yet.

Jacob says he has a plan. Jacob is conducting an experiment to prove a point about good and evil and free will. About human nature and smooth white stones, bottles and corks, or something or other. Jacob may bring people to the island, but then he hides in his little den under the big foot. And just lets things happen. Jacob's famous last words, as Ben raises his dagger, "You don't have to do this if you don't want to.

Chapter 3: The bomb goes off. Jacob is dead. There are two timelines. The boundary between lost/not-lost is gone. Non-lost doesn't matter any more. It's only the losties in the island timeline, and their lost counterparts in the sideways timeline, where their actions are somehow reflected back to the island. This correspondance is not a time-space portal, but a streetcar named desire. In regards to which, my hat is off to Sun for her,um, performance in the episode The Package. Where she is both revealing, and shot with a gun. Will any of the new Sun bleed through?

So for those of you who are afraid of the boogie man, and want to hide under the bed, OK. But Flock is not evil incarnate. He has the smoke monster under control. Evil is not about to spill off the island. Sayid is not claimed by the Prince of Darkness. The only thing in darkness was the way Jacob keep his apostles, Richard, Ben, and Dogen.

John Lock has distinguished himself for 5 seasons by his love for the island, and his steadfast pursuit of it's secrets. Flock deserves our respect.

It's a new day. There are no more answers to be found in looking at black and white stones. Widmore has set up his camp. He's looking for pockets of exotic matter. He's got Desmond. There is a sideways timeline. And what does he mean when he tells Jin that everyone we love will "cease to exist"?

Sayid is alive and well and out there looking for answers. And if he's lost his love, his lust for killing will see him thru.