UnLocke’s Means of Getting Off the Island/Widmore’s Part to Play

This theory has to do with how I believe MiB intends to “return home”…and by that I am assuming he means off the island..sorry to anyone who already proposed Widmore’s sub is MiB’s way “home”…enjoy!

In the last episode, we see UnLocke (MiB) approach Ben (while Ben is digging his own grave) and tell him that “there is no better man for the job” to take care of the island after he (UnLocke/MiB) and his group of followers (Kate, Claire, Sawyer, Sayid and Jin? Also, whoever survived the temple massacre) leave. Additionally, he asks Ben to come to the Hydra station (isn’t that the underwater one?) where he’s headed. Last but not least, we see Widmore returning to the island on a submarine at the end of the episode.

Does anyone find it ironic that Widmore has been searching for the island for YEARS and YEARS, but just happens to find it and hop on a sub headed there IMMEDIATELY after Jacob dies? What if Jacob was the reason Widmore couldn’t find it for so long? It certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. Afterall, Widmore has many resources available to him, and I’m sure somehow he could have used Eloise Hawking’s Dharma station to predict its location. I’m sure he was smart enough to be spying on her off-island activities… What if Jacob was using his “powers” to mask the island from Widmore for all these years? Perhaps along with the ability to bring people to the island, he has the ability to hide the island, too! Then it would make sense that once Jacob died and no one was masking the island from Widmore, he immediately found it, and thus we are shown Widmore approaching the island.

Now back to UnLocke…what if Widmore’s sub is HOW UnLocke plans to leave with his followers and get off the island?!? The only way people (namely Locke and Ben – we don’t know how Richard and Jacob show up off-island periodically) have left the island so far involves the donkey wheel, but that can only transport the one person who turns it, and that person ends up in a Tunisian desert…so let’s eliminate that choice. Assuming UnLocke can’t turn into a smoke-monster shaped as a boat and float everyone to a mainland (ha ha!), I think that Widmore’s submarine is going to play a key part in UnLocke’s scheme to get off the island. The Hydra station, if I recall correctly from when Desmond and Charlie were there, has a means of communicating with submarines in range…thoughts anyone?

Now, we know that Jacob (or, should I say his spirit, since he is technically dead) already knew someone was coming because he told Hurley so. Jacob never mentions Widmore’s name, but let’s assume that Jacob did know exactly who it was. Jacob told Hurley something like, “he needs help getting here” and thus, sends Hurley and Jack to the lighthouse. Now, if Jacob had been exerting effort to mask the island from Widmore, I doubt he would all of a sudden be trying to help him get there just because he died. Perhaps, masking the island from Widmore POSTPONED Widmore’s arrival until the correct time (big surprise – more scheming) when his presence was needed. Perhaps now that Ben disappointed Jacob (as we are lead to believe from Miles’s explanation of Jacob’s last thoughts before Ben killed him), Jacob now has need to revert back to a previous leader – namely Widmore, because he was the leader before Ben (as far as we know). Simply stated, Jacob didn’t want Widmore there because Ben was handling things fine until Ben killed Jacob, so Jacob’s death allowed Widmore to find the island and Jacob now also wants Widmore back because Ben is disappointingly unreliable…AND apparently UnLocke/MiB wants Ben to take over the island, which can only mean Ben is now useless to Jacob’s cause.

It is interesting to note that Ilana lets Ben stay in her “group”, but we do not know if Ilana and Jacob’s plans are aligned because they no longer communicate now that Jacob is dead. So even if Jacob finds Ben useless, Ilana might not know this, or she simply might be trying to prevent UnLocke from getting one more person on the wrong side, so she lets Ben stay with her.

Whether or not Widmore knows what he is in for….well, who can say? Widmore did say to Locke that if he did not return to the island, the wrong side will win…Locke technically DID NOT return to the island because Ben had already killed him before he returned. Only his body went back…so I’m guessing that doesn’t count.. What if Widmore heard of Locke’s death and is now coming to the island to help Jacob’s side of the war (because he knew Locke’s not-returning would cause the war/provide the loophole)? Conversely, what if Widmore is returning because after hearing upon Locke’s death, Widmore knew MiB would win/want to leave the island, so he is providing MiB’s way off the island (the sub) in exchange for taking over the island after MiB leaves (in which case Ben will probably fight with him over right to the island)?

I think the second scenario might be more fitting as Widmore is conniving, but I believe something will happen to Ben so that Widmore is fighting against Jacob’s chosen candidate (in place of Ben) just like MiB and Jacob have been fighting for so many years….

I hope this makes sense, as I wrote it in a hurry as soon as it popped into my head! As always, thanks for reading my ramblings =)