Bad Ape

Rocket gave a shrug, not knowing what to say. He was not the smartest of apes when it came to abstract questions, despite his great knowledge of hunting and horses. The burly chimpanzee had not been able to even imagine apes beyond the original Muir Woods colony until he had met Bad Ape.

Yet there were, indeed, more apes coming.

The group that emerged from the forest was by no means as large as Cornelia’s troop, or even Koba’s, but there looked to be several families there – chimpanzees, orangutans and gorillas. No bonobos or gibbons, and the adults mostly seemed to be on the youthful side. In fact, there were no elders at all in this motley crew of apes, though there were quite a few adolescents, children and infants.

A female chimp carrying a baby on her back approached – she appeared to be the “Mother” that the little male had called out to, and a leader of sorts. She was a pretty ape with freckles, and both her children bore a strong resemblance to her. Beside her was what Rocket initially thought to be a reddish-furred gorilla, but then he saw the flanges and realized that this male was in fact the largest orangutan he had ever laid eyes on. The orangutan too was carrying an infant, which was very strange, as males of his species did not usually carry their young around… he appeared to be second in command to the female chimp, and was presumably “Reuben”.

Even more oddly, there seemed to be no silverback with the gorillas, who appeared to be led by a bushy-furred female with the scar of a healed bullet wound on her left arm. Another female with a suckling infant was close by her side, and something about them suggested a mated pair to Rocket rather than friends or sisters. Bonobos were the ones most likely to take mates of the same gender, but occasionally female gorillas in their own troop had done so…

“Tommy? What you find? Who are these apes?” the female chimpanzee called. And then she stopped and stared – not at Blue Eyes, Lana or Rocket, or even the food her son was holding out to her.

The mother of the oddly named Tommy was staring at Bad Ape.

“Can’t be… humans drive you off… all grown apes died…” she cried out in an anguished voice.

Bad Ape gasped, and drew closer.

“Missy?” he cried out, and the female chimp rushed up to him with an excited hoot that alarmed all the other apes.

“FATHER!” she shrieked, and pressed her forehead against Bad Ape’s.

@exoduswounds

It wasn’t just chimpanzees. Somehow, that might have been easier to swallow. But here, there were no less than three species of apes represented. Three species that Caesar’s tribe hadn’t known were out here at all. How hadn’t they heard longcalls from this massive male orangutan? Or chestbeats from the gorillas? Even panthoots from the chimpanzees?

Had they always been out here, or was it that they had happened to be traveling towards the burned village by chance? Migrating from a different village, a different tribe? Maybe if this was the case, they could talk of what lay in the direction they came from, or why they were leaving it?

In any case, Blue Eyes’ small band were outnumbered, and that was cause for concern. If these apes turned out to not be so friendly, would they be able to fight back, or escape?

Blue Eyes watched them warily, his brows rising in surprise and confusion at the look that the female gave the strange little chimpanzee that had recently joined up with Blue Eyes’ group. He followed her gaze to Bad Ape, brows furrowing a little because at first, it wasn’t quite adding up. Only when the two of them came together for what was evidently an emotional reunion did the pieces click together in the young ape’s mind.

The prince found himself wrinkling his nose and turning away. Not out of disgust or embarrassment at the scene playing out before him, but because he felt a deep seeded swell of jealousy. Maybe even resentment. He would never see his own father again. There would be no reunion in the woods after all hope was lost. Caesar was dead, and he would always be dead, and he would eventually become dirt and bones and no longer Caesar. Maybe he already was no longer Caesar. Just a body of an ape laying in the woods.

It took a moment for Blue Eyes to gather enough control over himself to face them again, trying his best to mask his emotions, although his face betrayed them as it so often did.

“…Know these… apes…?”

He addressed the question to Bad Ape, although the answer was obvious. But the acting alpha of the group hoped for a more detailed answer than a simple ‘yes’. He wanted to know exactly what was going on, here.

One of the chimpanzees, a skinny, nervous-looking young male slightly older than Blue Eyes, began to clap and jump about, uttering a couple of loud hoots.

“Old Thomas! We thought humans kill you like all the other adults!” he shouted. Missy chuffed at him, partly in admonition and partly in reassurance.

“Calm down, Ozzy!” she told him, and he sat down in a hurry. The new apes seemed to speak aloud even more clearly than either Blue Eyes’ group or Bad Ape, but like Bad Ape, none of them seemed to know how to sign.

Bad Ape acknowledged Blue Eyes’ question with a nod. He did know most of them – including Reuben, as in the zoo the orangutan enclosure had been visible from where the chimpanzees lived. Some were new to him, including the gorillas whose enclosure the chimps had been unable to see, and some of the other chimpanzees and orangutans who must have somehow joined Missy’s group along the way.

‘Yes, I know most. This one is… my daughter, Missy, who I thought might be dead… and I think… these her children,” he whispered, a note of awe creeping into his voice. He had grandchildren!

“Their names Tommy and Jasmine,” Missy said, indicating her son and daughter, and Bad Ape gasped – they were named after him (his old name, anyway) and his now-dead mate! “And Ozzy… he my son now too – his parents killed when we broke out of zoo. He was only white-tail then.”

Blue Eyes still appeared wary, and Rocket was ready to act in any way his young leader commanded, but Lana seemed to relax a little as the new group did not seem hostile at all, only tired and hungry. Apparently these apes did not know how to hunt and fish, in the same way they did not know how to sign. They were smart enough, but they appeared to be ill-prepared for the wilderness.

The apes sat on the grass, and Lana introduced herself and her fellow scouts, making sure to impress upon them that Blue Eyes was family, and the group’s leader. Judging by Lana’s reaction to the look on Blue Eyes’ face, Lana seemed to Bad Ape to be sensing that Blue Eyes could use some support right about then.

Reuben, the large orangutan, introduced the rest of the newcomers, including his own baby daughter Meryl. The female gorilla leader with the scar on her arm was called Frieda, her mate was Oona, and Oona’s little son was named Nico.

Missy then tried to explain what had happened to Bad Ape and the others.

“After zoo… adult apes killed, humans take young ones to place called lab. They try to use us to find out what make apes smart and humans sick, find a cure, but they fail. They get sick and die… and we escape. We met some other humans, kind humans, who had other apes with them that they rescued. They shelter and feed us… we stayed with them, until they got sick and died too. Then we all had to move on… but we did not know how to find anything much to feed ourselves. It was hard trip… along the way, we met bad humans, all dressed the same – and they carry those things.”

She indicated the guns that the three scouts held with a visible shudder.

“Some of our group were killed – including my mate and Reuben’s, and the father of Oona’s child. We all here the survivors.”

arabian92knight:

Emily looked from Koba to the child, a bruise appearing on her jaw from being kicked by the little tyke. She opened her mouth to try and calm the child, but realized too late that her voice wasn’t there anymore. 

She lifted her hands to sign when she heard the female speak. She straitened like a rabbit on alert and looked in the direction of the mother. She moved closer to Izzy, putting a hand on the mares shoulder. 

Izzy nickered comfortingly at her before sniffing at the child. She kept an ear on where the mother was, but was curious about little Tommy. What a curious name for an ape. He was small and thin. She looked at Emily and nickered this report. Emily gave a nod and dug around in her pack before offering the child some dried fruits. She didn’t like how thin the little one looked, and wondered if the offering of food would settle him at least a little bit.

Bad Ape could not take his eyes from the child. He did not know this white-tail, so why did he somehow feel as if he did?

Still holding the young male ape, Koba acknowledged Goblin’s question by answering aloud.

“We see… if this female alone, and where she came from. I do not think… she sounds like enemy. But stay on guard… just in case.”

The juvenile ape’s eyes grew round as saucers at the sight of Emily, as if he had never seen anyone like her before. He shrank slightly away, writhing more in Koba’s grip, fearful despite his earlier bravado. But the lure of the dried fruit Emily held was too much to resist, and he hesitantly took it from her. He did not eat it immediately, however, but called out in response to the voice of the female ape that his sharp young ears had picked up.

“Mother – I am… over here! With strange apes! One has no voice, and two have no fur! There food here!”

The female ape came closer, and it was clear to see that she had another child with her as she approached, a younger infant clinging to her breast. Bad Ape gasped, unable to look away from the adult female chimp, and hardly able to believe what he was seeing.

It had been years – but that pattern of delicate freckles on her face was unmistakable! No other ape could have those exact same markings – this could be one ape and one ape only!

“MISSY!” the old chimpanzee cried out, and the female looked in his direction.

“How you know my name?” she began to say, and then her eyes suddenly grew wider than her son’s.

“FATHER!” she almost shrieked, and rushed forward to press her forehead against Bad Ape’s.  

Koba gingerly placed the young male on the ground, and he crept carefully closer to his mother, sister, and grandfather, finally lost for words.

Goblin’s eyes were fixed on this new ape, his hands gripping the gun tightly in case she proved a threat. Maybe if she was from the troop they were looking for, it would be better for them to meet one ape first – but not if she was hostile. If the war had taught the chimpanzee anything, it was to expect the unexpected, to always be ready from violence from any direction if at all possible. Not all apes were friendly, they’d had to learn…

But it seemed as though this was not going to be the case. His brows raised at the moment of recognition between the newcomer and Bad Ape; hadn’t the old chimp’s family been killed by soldiers? So they had thought… Either way, he lowered the gun and huffed through his nostrils. Was suspecting every strange ape of being an enemy as harmful as Grey’s thoughts on humanity had been? He didn’t know… But Goblin sure did see where the traitor ape had been coming from, now.

Gaze turning to Koba as if looking for direction of some sort, Goblin remained quiet and did not make effort to introduce himself just yet. It was not his place to intrude upon this moment that Bad Ape and Missy were sharing. One that Goblin desperately wished he could share with his own daughter, with his mate… But he, unlike Bad Ape, knew for certain that soldiers had killed them. He had seen their bodies for himself…

Izzy snorted as she moved over to her rider and nuzzled her. The mare then turned her nose to the new comers and Emily could see how gaunt they were. They weren’t emaciated, but it was clear they were short a few meals.

 ‘I… thought you dead. Like Mother… and other adults. Humans… kill adults, took all us young ones – as we were then – to place called lab. There humans they call… scientists… tried to find cure for sickness that kill them and make us smart. But even they got sick, and we got away.”

 Little Tommy recovered from his surprise, and came over to look more closely at this newly discovered relative.

 “Are you really… my grandfather?” he asked. “Mother not look like you!”

 Bad Ape smiled. “Yes. Your mother – look more like her mother. Her name was Jasmine.”

 “Same as my sister!” Tommy exclaimed.

 But Bad Ape was suddenly distracted by Missy giving a soft hoot – she was calling to more apes!

 Out of the darkness a small group of various kinds of apes came, most of them looking as famished as Missy and her children. A straggly-looking male chimpanzee stared at Bad Ape as if he had seen a ghost.

 “Is that old Thomas?” he shouted. “Thought he died like the other older zoo chimps!” He began to hoot and jump, and Missy frowned at him.

 “Calm down, Ozzy!” she gently admonished. “Where is Reuben? Did his group find fruit?” Bad Ape noticed that Missy appeared to be a leader of sorts. “And yes, this my father, he is alive!”

 “Here, and no – none to be found,” a voice said, and what Bad Ape initially thought to be a reddish-furred gorilla stepped out of the shadows. But as the male ape came closer, he saw the flanges and the very long arms.

 Reuben was no gorilla – he was the largest orangutan Bad Ape had ever seen. His size was still impressive despite his looking hungry like the rest of the group. He carried in his arms an infant orangutan, which was unusual for a male of his kind. Where was his mate – and where was Missy’s, come to that?

 Most of the group seemed to have at least one child with them…

arabian92knight:

It was Izzy’s snort that had alerted Emily to wakefulness. She sat up and scanned the dark, straining her ears to listen. Looking around, she could see Goblin was already awake and had his gun at the ready. She moved away from him and the weapon, wishing they hadn’t brought it.

She looked at her mare, who looked back. She pawed a foot and pointed her nose to where the bags were. Following her mates gaze, she could see a small shape rummaging around them.

Emily crouched and silently started moving in that direction. She was still used to hunting on her own so she hadn’t mentioned it to the other apes.

Slowly she approached the bags, staying low as she approached. Once close enough she realised it was a young ape. Still a white tail. The youth was so engrossed with her saddle bag, it didn’t notice Emily approached.

She waited one moment until the youngster had its head and shoulders in the saddle bag before Emily pounced, quickly closing the bag over the youngster and held on as the white tail yeeped in fright and started fighting to escape.

Emily grunted as her catch kicked and fought, but she was glad for the leather of the bag that protected her from teeth.

“Wraa!” Emily managed, calling to the other apes for aid. She would have signed, but she was afraid of letting go of the bag.

All the commotion brought Bad Ape to Emily’s side immediately, with Koba and Goblin not far behind. Izzy the mare had been right – there was an intruder in the camp, and Emily’s quick thinking had meant the immediate capture of the interloper who had tried to steal the scouts’ provisions.

Koba, as leader of the group, spoke first.

“I will see… who this is… then decide… what we do.”

Watching breathlessly, Bad Ape kept his gaze closely on Koba as the old warrior carefully took the writhing, screeching ape from the bag Emily had been holding… and then his eyes widened incredulously as Koba uttered a harsh bark of… laughter.

“You a baby!” he chuckled, and the youngster bristled with indignation, glaring up at the old bonobo.

The small ape who had been caught in Emily’s bag was a young male chimpanzee, and truly was a white-tail – older than Cornelius and Koba’s children, and more around the age of the bonobo triplets. His fur was pilo-erect as he tried to puff himself up to look as big as possible, and his voice was a quavering squeak that he desperately, and vainly, tried to make sound like an outraged roar.

“NOT BABY! WHO YOU UGLY APES, ANYWAY?”

Koba was so surprised he nearly dropped the ape child, but he kept himself surprisingly calm despite the insult. He was obviously used to those who were not accustomed to his appearance finding him startling.

“This our camp, and our food,” Koba said gruffly, still keeping hold of the young chimp, who was unlikely to know sign language. “Who are you, and why you try to take our food? Are you alone?”

The defiant ape child, however, merely blew Koba a raspberry and refused to say anything more. Koba looked over towards Emily. He was obviously thinking that since the human girl was good with children, maybe she could help with this one.

Bad Ape could not help but stare at the slim, wiry little ape in fascination. He had never seen the little chimp before, of course, but there was something uncannily familiar about him, just the same…

And then he heard a voice – a female voice, it seemed, calling from a short distance away.

“Tommy? Tommy? Where you go?”

Goblin kept his weapon pointed firmly at the unknown stranger up until Koba extracted it from the bag, and Goblin’s eyes widened a little. A child? An ape child? All the way out here?

He lowered his gun, but did not set it down. No child that young could survive on its own for long, especially not in an environment as harsh and unforgiving as a desert. There had to be others nearby that made up his group, that or the child had run away from home. Either way, the most important detail was that Goblin didn’t recognize this little ape. It didn’t seem that Koba did, either. That had implications…

The chimpanzee grunted to Koba for his attention and signed, his brows lowered heavily.

‘Think he from other ape troop? One Emily taking us to?’

If so… It was entirely possible that the colony of strangers were far closer than Emily had thought. And this, well, wasn’t the best first introduction to them. Goblin knew only too well how protective apes were over their children. This scene would set off an alarm to any parent-

And from the sounds of it, the white-tail’s mother was very near indeed. That didn’t necessarily bode well for Goblin and the others, who of course hoped to avoid conflict…

‘Sounds like his mother close. Koba, what we do?’

She lifted her hands to sign when she heard the female speak. She straitened like a rabbit on alert and looked in the direction of the mother. She moved closer to Izzy, putting a hand on the mares shoulder. 

 Still holding the young male ape, Koba acknowledged Goblin’s question by answering aloud.

 “We see… if this female alone, and where she came from. I do not think… she sounds like enemy. But stay on guard… just in case.”

 The juvenile ape’s eyes grew round as saucers at the sight of Emily, as if he had never seen anyone like her before. He shrank slightly away, writhing more in Koba’s grip, fearful despite his earlier bravado. But the lure of the dried fruit Emily held was too much to resist, and he hesitantly took it from her. He did not eat it immediately, however, but called out in response to the voice of the female ape that his sharp young ears had picked up.

 “Mother – I am… over here! With strange apes! One has no voice, and two have no fur! There food here!”

 The female ape came closer, and it was clear to see that she had another child with her as she approached, a younger infant clinging to her breast. Bad Ape gasped, unable to look away from the adult female chimp, and hardly able to believe what he was seeing.

 It had been years – but that pattern of delicate freckles on her face was unmistakable! No other ape could have those exact same markings – this could be one ape and one ape only!

 “MISSY!” the old chimpanzee cried out, and the female looked in his direction.

 “How you know my name?” she began to say, and then her eyes suddenly grew wider than her son’s.

 “FATHER!” she almost shrieked, and rushed forward to press her forehead against Bad Ape’s.  

arabian92knight:

Emily watched them sign and nodded. Maybe sleep would help. Besides, they had a long trip to make in the morning. She curled up under her blanket and looked up at Draco.

Izzy also stood watch, lightly dozing as she listened to the night around her. She knew a certain wolf was nearby, but didn’t alert the apes. She knew his smell, and knew he wouldn’t bother them tonight.

Emily looked at the apes around her before signing a good night to them. She knew she couldn’t be safer, and hoped the New Apes would be allies rather than the enemies Goblin suspected they were.

As planned, Goblin took the first watch, and then Koba.

All seemed to pass uneventfully for a while, for Bad Ape slept peacefully until he felt the bonobo gently nudging him awake.

With a small grunt, the old chimpanzee acknowledged his comrade, took a large wool sweater from among his belongings to keep himself warm, pulled it over his head and went to take up his position on watch until the dawn.

It was a quiet night, with the moon bright overhead and only a few creature-sounds, seeming to come from small and harmless animals, to break the silence. Bad Ape kept his focus mainly on his surroundings, although now and then he looked back towards his companions to make sure they still slept tranquilly.

He felt happy to have a purpose, and to be with friends who wanted and needed him. A mission such as this kept him from dwelling on memories of the past, or on the forlorn hope that somewhere his daughter Missy was still alive.

Emily’s horse Izzy occasionally awoke from her slumber and softly nickered to Bad Ape, as if letting the old chimp know that she was on watch, too, and that she was there to keep him company. Bad Ape gave her a small smile and a gentle stroke or two.

“Wish I… spoke horse,” he whispered, before turning his attention back to the expanse of dark desert out before him.

Several hours passed with very little occurring, and Bad Ape kept a watchful eye on the surrounding environment and on his sleeping friends. He took a few sips of water from his gourd every so often, waiting for the first rays of the morning sun to fall upon his face so he could go and awaken the others to have breakfast.

But just as he had settled comfortably back down next to where Izzy was, he heard the mare snort harshly with alarm. Her sharp ears had picked up strange sounds!

Moments later, Bad Ape heard them too. He crept stealthily over where Koba and Goblin slept, and carefully shook them awake.

Goblin’s sleep was light, as a warrior’s so often was. It didn’t take much prodding from Bad Ape to wake him, and out of habit the chimpanzee went from groggy to ready to jump and kill an attacker in moments, hands finding his gun almost before his eyes had a chance to attempt to focus in the dark. His body and mind had become springs turned once too tight; the war had, and probably always would, a lasting effect.

Thankfully, Goblin realized quite quickly that it was a comrade and not an enemy who had caused him to wake, and he looked to the older chimp with concern, but also a fierceness behind his eyes that had never existed there before humans had shown up and caused everything to fall apart.

‘What is it?’

He signed, but realized his mistake quickly – beside the fact that it was dark, Bad Ape was still not fluent – and gave a huff through slightly parted lips to communicate to his companion that he was ready to fight if he had to, without making too much noise as to alert whatever had alarmed Bad Ape so. Goblin could hear that at least one if not more of the horses was becoming anxious, their breathing slightly quicker, ground shifting under hooves that couldn’t quite keep still. That, he thought, is not a good sign.

She looked at her mare, who looked back. She pawed a foot and pointed her nose to where the bags were. Following her mates gaze, she could see a small shape rummaging around them.

Emily crouched and silently started moving in that direction. She was still used to hunting on her own so she hadn’t mentioned it to the other apes.

Slowly she approached the bags, staying low as she approached. Once close enough she realised it was a young ape. Still a white tail. The youth was so engrossed with her saddle bag, it didn’t notice Emily approached.

She waited one moment until the youngster had its head and shoulders in the saddle bag before Emily pounced, quickly closing the bag over the youngster and held on as the white tail yeeped in fright and started fighting to escape.

Emily grunted as her catch kicked and fought, but she was glad for the leather of the bag that protected her from teeth.

 Koba, as leader of the group, spoke first.

 “I will see… who this is… then decide… what we do.”

  Watching breathlessly, Bad Ape kept his gaze closely on Koba as the old warrior carefully took the writhing, screeching ape from the bag Emily had been holding… and then his eyes widened incredulously as Koba uttered a harsh bark of… laughter.

 “You a baby!” he chuckled, and the youngster bristled with indignation, glaring up at the old bonobo.

 The small ape who had been caught in Emily’s bag was a young male chimpanzee, and truly was a white-tail – older than Cornelius and Koba’s children, and more around the age of the bonobo triplets. His fur was pilo-erect as he tried to puff himself up to look as big as possible, and his voice was a quavering squeak that he desperately, and vainly, tried to make sound like an outraged roar.

 “NOT BABY! WHO YOU UGLY APES, ANYWAY?”

 Koba was so surprised he nearly dropped the ape child, but he kept himself surprisingly calm despite the insult. He was obviously used to those who were not accustomed to his appearance finding him startling.

 “This our camp, and our food,” Koba said gruffly, still keeping hold of the young chimp, who was unlikely to know sign language. “Who are you, and why you try to take our food? Are you alone?”

The defiant ape child, however, merely blew Koba a raspberry and refused to say anything more. Koba looked over towards Emily. He was obviously thinking that since the human girl was good with children, maybe she could help with this one.

 Bad Ape could not help but stare at the slim, wiry little ape in fascination. He had never seen the little chimp before, of course, but there was something uncannily familiar about him, just the same…

 And then he heard a voice – a female voice, it seemed, calling from a short distance away.

Lana wrinkled her nose again, nodding in agreement with Rocket and Blue Eyes at how bad the human-made substance smelled. She hoped it would fade away eventually, as she really did not care for its sharpness. Neither did poor Bad Ape, who was sneezing once more as the stink tickled his sensitive nostrils.

‘I think humans must have weak noses,’ she signed. ‘No ape could bear that stench for long!’ She translated her words aloud to Bad Ape, who gave an assenting grunt.

“Even… that mess smells better!” the funny little chimpanzee quipped, waving his hand in the direction of a pile of animal excrement. Lana did not exactly concur with his opinion, but she gave an amused chuff anyway.

“Sooner we… get out of here, the better,” she told her companions, and was glad that they seemed to be feeling the exact same way. Blue Eyes was expressing a desire to move as far from human-inhabited areas as they could, and Lana never wanted to see this place, or anything like it, ever again. It was making her nervous in an unfamiliar way… not like any anticipated forest dangers ever had, but in a manner that was even more disturbing. Humans were much smarter and more vicious than bears and mountain lions, and nobody knew if or when the family who had owned this dwelling would choose to return. If they believed that the dangers of sickness and strife were past, they could very possibly come back, and Lana did not want the apes to be there if they did.

The scouts collected the candy and cookies, and any other items they deemed useful, and trooped outside to put them into saddle-bags or attach them to the horses in other secure ways. Lana decided to keep the sparkling necklace – although it was not a useful object, she felt it was too beautiful to leave behind. Perhaps she would give it to Cornelia when the troop was united once more – it seemed the type of ornament that would be fit for a queen.

It was a relief for Blue Eyes when he mounted his horse, sighing a breath of fresh, outdoor air untainted by the stink of humanity. Hopefully that scent would never find his nostrils again, if he chose the right direction to travel in.

Ahead of them was a human road, but not the kind that was hard like rock; this was just dirt, and at one point all of the foliage had been cleared away from the path. Now, it was overgrown again, nature reclaiming what was rightfully hers. That was an encouraging sign. It meant that no humans had been through here with their… cars, was the word, in quite awhile. Maybe that meant the humans who had lived here had gone another way when they left this dwelling behind.

Blue Eyes turned in his makeshift saddle to look at his companions and pointed ahead, in the direction they had been traveling when they found this cabin.

‘Not look like humans been this way for long time. We keep going.’

From what Blue Eyes could tell, it looked as though they were set on a path that would take them higher up the mountain. Maybe there would be something promising on the other side; the apes had never explored this far in this direction, so anything was possible. He hoped so, at least.

Well, none of their apes, anyway…

The young prince turned his attention to Bad Ape.

 He was glad when the horses were moving in the opposite direction and towards open country, where they were far less likely to run into humans. Although the road they were riding on was human-made, none of the hairless creatures seemed to have come this way in ages, judging by the manner in which many plants had re-established themselves in the area and the fact that forest creatures had used this route with some frequency, as traces of tracks and droppings appeared now and then as the scouts rode along.

 In answer to Blue Eyes’ question, Bad Ape nodded enthusiastically as he replied.

 “I have… only come small way… in this direction. Not this far… not explore other side… of mountain, no. Not sure… what lies over that side.”

 That had been the direction where some of the unusual sounds had come from, a few of which, the old chimpanzee now realized, were very likely to have come from the human dwelling they had now thankfully left behind them. But there had been other, louder sounds, and Bad Ape had no idea at all what could have made those.

 Despite Bad Ape’s apprehension, however, his new young leader seemed intent on going in the direction they were all now heading in, and the little chimp was prepared to put his trust in his new friends. They seemed to know what they were doing, and they had saved his life, protecting him from that dreadful gorilla and his gun.

arabian92knight:

As the apes signed, Emily was momentarily lost in her memories. Draco had been the constellation she could see out her cell window. And it’s what she would focus on when Pota couldn’t help after she was experimented on.

Goblins gruff voice when he mentioned she was cold made her jump as if she was shaken awake from a bad dream. She took a sharp breath as she came back to the present and sat up.

Izzy looked at her rider from where she lay and whinnied an all clear. Emily relaxed again before realizing her nose was bleeding again. She groaned and grabbed her handkerchief to stop the blood and laid down again.

‘It is a bit chilly..’ she signed, hoping her signing weren’t too muddled by using one hand. ‘Would tell white tails about dragons now and then.. dragon in hobbit story. Apes lucky to have Buck though. He real Draco.’

She looked at Koba and gave a small smile under her handkerchief. ‘I’m okay. Just chilly. Think bad ape getting blanket or coat.’

Seeing Emily shiver and her nose begin bleeding, Bad Ape uttered little “ooks” of alarm and ran to his bag of supplies. The little chimpanzee was back within seconds, carrying a thick padded jacket which he draped around Emily’s shoulders. He also gave her another handkerchief which had been in the jacket pocket, in case she needed a second one.

Bad Ape sat close by Emily, his hand resting on her arm and his eyes wide with concern. He did not speak for a while, just waiting until the human girl looked more relaxed.

Finally his nervous sounds stopped and he spoke aloud.

“I like… stories Emily tell. Maybe tomorrow… Emily can tell some more. I do not have… many stories. Just… memories. Of being zoo ape… and my family.”

Bad Ape had not meant to turn the conversation back to loss, and realized his error immediately. He decided to bring up a completely different topic, and when he spoke next, he addressed Koba and Goblin that time.

“Which way… we travel tomorrow? I think… if we head further into desert… may need to hunt a bit, get more rabbits. I still have berries, but will not last long. Need to refill water gourds, too.”

He patted Emily’s arm reassuringly, then yawned.

“Think time… to sleep soon,” he said.

Koba or Goblin, no doubt, would go on watch, and Bad Ape was fine with taking a turn as lookout if they wanted him to. He decided to let them know he was willing.

“If Koba or Goblin… want to rest… I can help with guarding any time… you need,” the little ape offered. “I may… be small… but good with spear and slingshot.”

He turned his attention back to Emily then, and smiled kindly.

“I also have… extra blanket… if Emily need. Have many supplies… found in old human camps.”

After all that he had been through, Bad Ape still held as much concern for the well being of this human girl as he would for another ape. It was a puzzling concept for Goblin, who found it considerably harder to let go of what humans had done, not only to himself and his family, but to all of the apes.

But if he got into thinking too much about that, he knew, he would be distracted. And since Goblin’s shift was the first, none of them could afford for his focus to be elsewhere.

‘Might not be safe to go straight to other apes,’

He signed, after thinking over Bad Ape’s question for a moment.

‘Maybe safer to take many turns. Harder for them to follow our trail back to our home, if they not friends.’

Goblin wasn’t certain that Bad Ape would understand all of his signs, but Emily and Koba would, so his point would be made. Afterall, Koba was the leader of this expedition and Emily the guide. Their opinions weighed heavy, which meant that it was especially important that they made decisions influenced by careful thought.

However, Bad Ape’s offer to guard did pertain mostly to him, enough that Goblin thought it worthwhile to speak rather than sign to respond.

“Could… use… your help. Later… in night.”

Having a third guard meant that he and Koba would each get more rest, which was not a bad thing. They all needed to be as alert as possible as they traveled tomorrow, especially if they were as close to the other ape tribe as Emily thought they were. Tomorrow could well be the day they locate the village belonging to the strangers…

Izzy also stood watch, lightly dozing as she listened to the night around her. She knew a certain wolf was nearby, but didn’t alert the apes. She knew his smell, and knew he wouldn’t bother them tonight.

 All seemed to pass uneventfully for a while, for Bad Ape slept peacefully until he felt the bonobo gently nudging him awake.

 With a small grunt, the old chimpanzee acknowledged his comrade, took a large wool sweater from among his belongings to keep himself warm, pulled it over his head and went to take up his position on watch until the dawn.

 It was a quiet night, with the moon bright overhead and only a few creature-sounds, seeming to come from small and harmless animals, to break the silence. Bad Ape kept his focus mainly on his surroundings, although now and then he looked back towards his companions to make sure they still slept tranquilly.

 He felt happy to have a purpose, and to be with friends who wanted and needed him. A mission such as this kept him from dwelling on memories of the past, or on the forlorn hope that somewhere his daughter Missy was still alive.

 Emily’s horse Izzy occasionally awoke from her slumber and softly nickered to Bad Ape, as if letting the old chimp know that she was on watch, too, and that she was there to keep him company. Bad Ape gave her a small smile and a gentle stroke or two.

 “Wish I… spoke horse,” he whispered, before turning his attention back to the expanse of dark desert out before him.

 Several hours passed with very little occurring, and Bad Ape kept a watchful eye on the surrounding environment and on his sleeping friends. He took a few sips of water from his gourd every so often, waiting for the first rays of the morning sun to fall upon his face so he could go and awaken the others to have breakfast.

 But just as he had settled comfortably back down next to where Izzy was, he heard the mare snort harshly with alarm. Her sharp ears had picked up strange sounds!

Looking around the ramshackle house at the items scattered about on the creaky floor, Rocket gave a brief nod as he wrinkled his nose at the smells coming from everywhere near him. From the looks of things, Lana and Bad Ape were also not impressed by the stench. Although the apes were used to animal droppings in the forest, so much excrement in a confined space was altogether a different and much more unpleasant thing.

‘I know what some of these are. Humans wear them. And him,’ he signed, indicating Bad Ape.

The burly chimpanzee picked up a ruined child’s sweater – a massive hole in the front making it of very little use as clothing – very similar to the one he had torn from Caesar in the primate shelter in the bad old days before freedom, when Rocket had been alpha of the captives. The memory pained him, and he cast it on the ground.

“Maybe we can use some of these…”

He indicated some bits and pieces of rope that were scattered about, and some shards of metal that could perhaps be made into spear points.

Bad Ape, however, had seen something else on the dilapidated shelves behind where Rocket was standing, and was uttering small “ooks” of excitement.

“See these… they food!” the odd little chimp declared with a wide, proud smile.

What Bad Ape had indicated were cans, possibly items that were too heavy for the humans, who seemed to have left in a hurry, to have carried with them. Bad Ape uttered a small hoot and picked up first one, then another.

“I have tool… to open these. Know the pictures… on outside. Meat in this one. And vegetables, here… we can take, and eat. Not have to forage or hunt so much!”

Lana came forward and curiously picked up something with a lemon scent, sniffing it and  then taking a small, testing bite before making a face and throwing it aside. Of course, soap was not something she, or any of the apes for that matter, knew anything about.

‘Not eat this. Tastes bad!’ she signed at the others, and Bad Ape could not help but chuckle a little at the youngster’s reaction, understanding her facial expression if not her signs..

‘I… not know what that is, but is not food!”

Well, Blue Eyes supposed, they wouldn’t have much use for the weird cloth coverings humans – and Bad Ape – wore. They got along just fine without clothes. Rocket’s reaction to the sweater was puzzling, given that Blue Eyes didn’t know many details of what had happened back in the primate shelter, but he didn’t press into it. He had learned by now that the older apes still suffered in some ways and it was best not to question it.

The rope and pieces of metal were much more interesting finds. Blue Eyes nodded his approval to Rocket, happy that investigating this cabin had been worthwhile at least in some small way, so far. It made him feel good about his decision, and encouraged him to make his way deeper into the house, though he stayed within eyesight of the others. Must be safe, he thought brushing his fingers lightly over the healing wounds across his chest.

He had busied himself with rummaging through a flimsy box of loose odds and ends to prevent a thought spiral regarding the bear and what his father had said to him, when Bad Ape cried out in such delight. Blue Eyes looked up from what he was doing, having found nothing useful inside of the box, blinking at the strange cylindrical hunks of metal. Food?

Blue Eyes hoot-grunted at the older chimpanzee and approached him, holding his hand out to take one of the cans of food, frowning at it as he puzzled. Shaking it definitely produced a sound of something inside, but there was no obvious way to open it, even with a tool. There was so much about the human world that Blue Eyes knew nothing of, but Caesar would have known this. He seemed to have known everything…

“How… open? What… tool?”

The young ape asked him, curious to learn about this oddity. He had seen something similar to this inside of the camp that the group of humans who had murdered his father – he wrinkled his nose at the thought, glancing off to the side and downward with a flare of his nostrils – had stayed in. Maybe the rest of their tribe would find that campsite and take what food and tools were left from it… Afterall, the humans had burned the village. That thought lit more anger within him.

In answer to Blue Eyes’ question, Bad Ape touched the top of one of the metal cylinders and tried his best to explain how he opened them.

“My tool… cut into this part… and open so… we can take… food inside. Tool is in… Lana’s saddle-bag… I will show you when… we go back outside.”

The old chimpanzee busied himself with looking around for more cans, but did not find any. He decided to venture into one of the other rooms and see if there was anything edible or useful in there.

In that room, there seemed to be a place where humans may have slept, and some other things which Bad Ape did not recognize. He caught sight of something moving, and gave a startled hoot, but upon moving closer and waving his hand in front of the glassy surface, he found that it was his own reflection in a mirror.

Upon the dresser below the looking glass stood a strange little black box. He picked it up and twiddled one of the knobs on the side, but it only made a strange hissing noise. The chimp had no idea what it could possibly be, but he decided that he definitely did not like it.

Casting the object aside, Bad Ape snorted in irritation at his own nervousness and returned to his companions.

“Not much… in that room. Only box… that make strange sounds, like… angry snakes. No food in there!”

Lana nodded, and looked to Rocket and Blue Eyes.

arabian92knight:

Emily smiled as she turned to her side to draw out a rough picture of a dragon. ‘big lizard with bat wings.’ She described as she drew the constellation of Draco next to the dragon picture. ‘They also breathe fire, in some stories speak. Many stories about dragons; some are bad, others good, some are wild, others let humans ride them.’

She laid down again as she looked up at the stars. ‘Best story was of a knight who begged a dragon to save a prince’s life by sharing heart. The boy was spoiled and greedy, and turned the dragons gift bad.’ She told the story best she could in sign of Dragon Heart, her favorite movie growing up. She smiled as she ended it and pointed to the Draco constellation. ‘Draco in the story is supposed to be the eye, there. Watching over man.’ She chuckled. ‘Guess he watch over ape now.’

She looked at the thick constellation and smiled. ‘I see Buck.’ She told him. ‘There arms. Gorilla’s good protectors. Remember seeing them on TV. I was playing in living room with baby sister when news showed apes escape.’ She paused in signing. That was a couple months before she had been caught by Robert and put in a cage. 

She folded her arms as a cool night breeze brushed past them, it didn’t bother the apes, but it chilled Emily and her sunburnt shoulders. She shivered, trying to drive back memories of those cold lonely nights.

Koba gave a slow nod at the mention of Buck.

‘I believe Buck is in the stars too. I heard many stories of him from Caesar and Maurice, about what he did and what he was like. He was indeed brave ape. I hope that somewhere, he is happy. Perhaps other apes who are gone now are with him…’

But as he signed about Buck, it was another gorilla who had perished in the war that Koba was remembering – valiant, kind Luca, who had been a friend to all. It had been Koba who, years ago, had recommended Luca for the position of gorilla general. And although the bonobo had the greatest respect for Luca’s successor, Winter, no ape could ever replace that courageous and stalwart warrior who had still remained gentle at heart despite all that the apes had been through.

‘Koba like to think that Buck protects all our loved ones who are gone, and mighty Caesar and Cornelia now lead them.’

He realized that he was trembling a little, and knew that he was dangerously close to being overcome with memories of the past and an outpouring of fresh grief for those he had lost. That would not do – it was up to him to be brave and keep his spirits up for the sake of his companions.

Koba decided to change the focus of the conversation to these “dragon” creatures.

‘Dragons sound strange… but wonderful. A pity there are none here. Maybe apes could ride them, in hunt and in war. They could protect us well. I think my Kanzi would like them – he is brave little ape. Emily ever tell dragon stories to the white-tails?’

He cocked his head at Emily inquiringly, and looked over at Bad Ape who was watching everything the human girl signed with a rapt fascination. The old chimpanzee was certainly unusual – he had the wisdom of an elder combined with the innocence of a child – but Koba had found that he quite liked Bad Ape.

Koba’s attention was then drawn to Emily’s shudder that seemed to mirror his own, and his eyebrows shot up.

‘Emily all right?’ he signed.

Lizards with wings… That much, Goblin could swallow. But breathing fire? Surely that was a product of wild imagination. From the story Emily told, that definitely seemed to be the case. Well, Goblin reasoned, one less creature for apes to need to worry about. As long as dragons stayed in the stars, he would be content. If that dragon wanted to continue watching over however many humans remained alive, that was alright with him. Apes had Buck… If any of these stories were to be believed, of course.

‘Gorilla Guard always kept apes safe… until humans came.’

Goblin shrugged his shoulders a little and scratched roughly at the laboratory tattoo below his chest before he continued.

‘Many gorillas die to save other apes. Still many other apes die. Glad war is over now….’

No ape left alive hadn’t lost a loved one, family member, or friend. Some more than others. But of course, they had all lost their king and queen… The chimpanzee cast his eyes upward at Koba’s signs, towards the stars, with a heavy sigh. He owed Caesar everything; all of the apes did, even those who had turned on him in the end. Without their king, they would all still exist in cages at the mercy of humans who didn’t see them as worthy of empathy and compassion. Now he was gone, and it felt like a piece of each of them had died along with him. And Cornelia, who had ruled at his side with love in her heart and a fierceness in her spirit. Goblin had followed Grey and Cedar during their brief rein, this was true, but he had ultimately returned to the original royal pair… It felt strange for them to not be there. Like the tribe was incomplete, and forever would be. This was not the future any of them had envisioned.

Movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention, breaking his train of thought. Goblin flicked his eyes toward the human girl and blinked for a moment of hesitation before he grunted for Bad Ape’s attention.

“Cold.”

Goblins gruff voice when he mentioned she was cold made her jump as if she was shaken awake from a bad dream. She took a sharp breath as she came back to the present and sat up.

Izzy looked at her rider from where she lay and whinnied an all clear. Emily relaxed again before realizing her nose was bleeding again. She groaned and grabbed her handkerchief to stop the blood and laid down again.

‘It is a bit chilly..’ she signed, hoping her signing weren’t too muddled by using one hand. ‘Would tell white tails about dragons now and then.. dragon in hobbit story. Apes lucky to have Buck though. He real Draco.’

 Bad Ape sat close by Emily, his hand resting on her arm and his eyes wide with concern. He did not speak for a while, just waiting until the human girl looked more relaxed.

 Finally his nervous sounds stopped and he spoke aloud.

 “I like… stories Emily tell. Maybe tomorrow… Emily can tell some more. I do not have… many stories. Just… memories. Of being zoo ape… and my family.”

 Bad Ape had not meant to turn the conversation back to loss, and realized his error immediately. He decided to bring up a completely different topic, and when he spoke next, he addressed Koba and Goblin that time.

 “Which way… we travel tomorrow? I think… if we head further into desert… may need to hunt a bit, get more rabbits. I still have berries, but will not last long. Need to refill water gourds, too.”

 He patted Emily’s arm reassuringly, then yawned.

 “Think time… to sleep soon,” he said.

 Koba or Goblin, no doubt, would go on watch, and Bad Ape was fine with taking a turn as lookout if they wanted him to. He decided to let them know he was willing.

 “If Koba or Goblin… want to rest… I can help with guarding any time… you need,” the little ape offered. “I may… be small… but good with spear and slingshot.”

 He turned his attention back to Emily then, and smiled kindly.

Her brow furrowed now, lips moving silently for a second as she worked out how to say it exactly.

“Family,” he repeated. He would guide and protect this foster-daughter of his as if she were his own long-lost child.

“Come home... with me? We will never... be alone again.”

Lana’s fur stood slightly on end at Bad Ape’s words. She too picked up on the fact that humans had been in the vicinity in fairly recent times, and she was not at all keen on running into any of them. By the sound of things, they were every bit as dangerous as Koba’s followers.

“Yes… best we go… stay away from… path humans took. If they see us… will shoot. Just like Koba’s soldiers will.”

  The hoot-yeep exhaled with a sharp chuff of exasperation, and saw Rocket nod glumly at her words.

It was almost as if the scouts’ problems were increasing in intensity. Like Blue Eyes, the young hybrid had managed to work out that the humans who had taken refuge in the city under the leadership of Dreyfus were only the tip of the iceberg. If there were more bands of armed people wandering through the forests and elsewhere, it was going to be extremely hard to find a safe haven for the apes.

She nodded enthusiastically at her brother’s announcement that the scouts would go far away from where the gun-wielding humans were supposed to have headed, and look for a place that seemed relatively free o the hairless creatures.

“Best… stay away… from all of them.”

Not all humans were evil, of course. But enough of them had shown many times over how much of a danger they posed to apes.

Lana waited patiently until Bad Ape had gathered up all the belongings he had wanted to take with him, and began to help him load some of these items into her saddle-bags. Rocket then offered to carry some of the things Lana did not have room for.

She stroked her horse soothingly again, hoping that the mare had calmed down enough for her and Bad Ape to mount and begin the journey, along with Blue Eyes and Rocket, away from the humans.

After Bad Ape had finished gathering and packing his belongings, Blue Eyes mounted his horse and inhaled deeply, releasing it slowly through slightly parted lips as he looked over his group. They were still willing to follow him at least and he wouldn’t take that for granted. He couldn’t. All of his decisions from here on out had to be sound, but the young chimpanzee didn’t know how to judge that. He thought that his choice to leave Red was sound, since they would have been killed if they had tried to free him… But half of the group didn’t agree. He didn’t know where he had gone wrong. But he couldn’t do it again.

What he did know was that humans had gone southwest, recently. So, naturally, Blue Eyes would lead his band northeast instead.

He steered his horse in the direction opposite of the one Bad Ape had indicated and urged him forward, sure to take it easy on him. It was obvious that Red had shown little regard for the mount that he had stolen and Blue Eyes would go as far to say that the stallion seemed a little skittish… It was sad to see his father’s horse in such a state. Hopefully it wouldn’t last very long before he realized that he was in safe hands once more.

Until then, he kept the pace slow, as much as he was tempted to gallop the horses to get farther, faster. They would have a long journey ahead of them, and then another just as long to return to the rest of the troop. They couldn’t burn out their mounts. It was frustrating; Blue Eyes was impatient. The sooner they finished all of this, the better. Who knows what could happen to the rest of the tribe if they were gone for too long.

To distract himself from the frustration, Blue Eyes looked over his shoulder towards Bad Ape and grunted until he had the chimpanzee’s attention.

 Soon the group was moving gradually northeast, leaving that patch of forest behind them and following the river towards what looked to be more open country, although the old chimpanzee suspected that there could be more wooded areas ahead in the direction they were going.

 At the sound of Blue Eyes’ voice, Bad Ape obediently answered the young prince immediately, glad to be of help to his new leader.

 “No… not very far, at least… thought of doing so, when humans come… wanted to get away from them. But… heard strange things… from that direction. Not sure if human… or something else. Whatever it was… did not want… to face it alone.”

 He tried to flash a small smile at Blue Eyes and his other companions, hoping that it did not look like a fear-grimace, and that he did not seem to be a coward in the eyes of the other apes.

 “I stayed… where I was. Nothing came… to find me, so I think… it safe to travel now.  Have not heard the sounds… in while now. Safer with group than alone.”

arabian92knight:

Emily smiled as she passed the allow leaves to them, keeping one for herself. She carefully applied the Aloe to her pink shoulders and neck, hissing a bit as the cool gel made contact with the hot skin.

The smell of the cooking rabbits distracted her from the discomfort and smiled. ‘Dinner smells good! Didn’t think I was this hungry!’ She signed, watching Koba cook. She didn’t know that he had taken up such a hobby. It made her wish she could find a cookbook for him and other cooking tools.

Goblin was still hard to read though. She wished she could figure out something they could have in common. She then looked up at the stars and smiled. ‘Does Goblin know the stars well?’ She asked, taking another shot at breaking the ice.

Koba nodded in assent to Goblin, satisfied with the guarding arrangements. It made sense that the two experienced warriors would share the duty, so that they both could get sufficient rest to continue traveling the next day.

He smiled as Emily commented on the delicious smell of the meat. ‘It will be ready soon,’ he signed, and then gave another smile as Bad Ape came up to him with more food offerings held in his hands.

The old chimpanzee was not only a very good hunter, but an expert forager also. He had managed to find nearby some plants with edible leaves, to serve as vegetables to accompany the meal, and he had also discovered plentiful amounts of one of Koba’s favorite foods, wild blackberries. It was almost uncanny how Bad Ape had unwittingly picked up human customs when it came to food – the inclusion of vegetables with meat, the concept of dessert… with a small grin, the bonobo wondered if Bad Ape had discussed such things with Emily before he had made his contributions to the meal which was starting to take on the dimensions of a modest feast.

Koba signed his thanks to a happy Bad Ape, and gratefully accepted the aloe leaf that Emily handed to him, carefully applying it to the places most affected by the sun. His human friend had been right about the leaves – they did seem to have soothing properties to them.

At last the rabbit meat was perfectly cooked, and Koba took it away from the fire to cool a little before he divided it amongst his companions, serving himself last. Bad Ape took the initiative to hand out the salad greens he had picked, and after the meat and vegetables had been eaten and savored, he passed around the delicious ripe blackberries.

Replete with good food, the four scouts sat by the camp fire and Koba began to discuss via signs his plans for the next day’s travel.

The scent of the cactus leaves was strange, and wrinkled Goblin’s nose a little. It truly was a strange plant. As promised, though, the inside was filled with strange goop. It was enough to spread over the worst of his sunburns, after he had made certain to clean the mud from his skin. The cooling feeling was quite different from the mud he typically used for this purpose, but it did seem to be working. They would need to remember this plant for future use.

By the time the meal had been prepared and eaten, Goblin was feeling much better than he had. The sun was no longer beating on them, his burns had been tended to, and his stomach was full. The desert cooled considerably after the sun disappeared, but the warmth of the fire was enough to be comforting. Goblin definitely preferred nighttime in the desert…

He was absentmindedly chewing at a piece of rabbit bone to clean his teeth when Emily signed to him. The chimpanzee looked to her, frowned a little, and looked up to the sky for a moment. It was obvious that he was distracted by thoughts rather suddenly, and it took a moment before he turned his eyes back to the fire with a glazed over expression. A heavy sigh inflated his chest and left through his nostrils before he replied to her, thinking with his hands more than anything else.

‘Daughter liked the stars.’

Thinking of his family left Goblin feeling numb, which is why he avoided it if he could. But sometimes he would see something, or smell something, and memories couldn’t be stopped from filing past behind his eyes. Sometimes a word or statement spoken or signed by somebody else would make his thoughts drift.

He was watching his companions with interest as they all sat by the fire, and caught the signed interaction between Emily and Goblin. A soft sigh escaped his own lips as memories returned to him. He had heard from the others about Goblin’s sad loss and his heart ached for the lonely warrior.

“I… too once had… wife and child… gone now,” he said softly. “I… feel sorry for your loss. Know how it feels…”

His beloved mate, Jasmine, had been killed by humans before his very eyes, and his daughter Missy had been taken away by that same human group, along with many other youngsters. The old chimpanzee had no way of knowing if his only offspring was alive or dead. As far as Bad Ape knew, he was the sole survivor of his former troop. At least Goblin still had the support of his ape tribe, although Bad Ape did not speak this thought aloud as it would not bring much consolation to Goblin.

 “Yes… I learned… to use stars as map in sky. Helped me… find my way… when hunting and foraging. I would… like to hear… some of the stories you know about them.”

 He gave the human girl an encouraging smile, wanting to reassure her that he was friendly even if Goblin chose to be more stand-offish for his own reasons. All apes had different ways of coping with the past, and as long as Goblin did not cause antagonism among the scouts, Bad Ape reasoned, it was his prerogative to conduct himself as he wished.

 The mention of stories, however, made the old chimpanzee wish he had been a smart ape when his little daughter had been a white-tail. He would have loved to have taken Missy in his arms, cradling her close and telling her about the stars above, the adventures of other apes, or anything else. As a father, he had been more attentive than most male zoo chimps.

 Missy had been an adolescent when her mother was killed and the humans had taken her away. If she was still alive, his only child would be fully grown, and he could not help but wonder if she lived, and if so, whether she might be a mother now. And if she was alive, perhaps she even would remember Bad Ape’s real name, the name kinder humans than the ones who called him a “bad ape” had bestowed on him.

 Bad Ape sighed audibly, unable to restrain himself. Humans were not likely to capture apes and let them live, and most likely, Missy had died along with the rest of the zoo chimpanzees, of which, even before the sickness had come, he had been the smartest. He had never been an alpha, but he was a leader of sorts, the ape that others looked to in order to learn new things. Being so loved had even enabled him to couple with Jasmine behind the back of the zoo troop’s alpha, Rufus, who was not a bad sort as far as alphas went, although Bad Ape believed that Blue Eyes was a much better and kinder king. Rufus had been the first chimp killed by the humans, but he had fought bravely to defend his followers.

arabian92knight:

Emily smiled as she passed the allow leaves to them, keeping one for herself. She carefully applied the Aloe to her pink shoulders and neck, hissing a bit as the cool gel made contact with the hot skin.

The smell of the cooking rabbits distracted her from the discomfort and smiled. ‘Dinner smells good! Didn’t think I was this hungry!’ She signed, watching Koba cook. She didn’t know that he had taken up such a hobby. It made her wish she could find a cookbook for him and other cooking tools.

Goblin was still hard to read though. She wished she could figure out something they could have in common. She then looked up at the stars and smiled. ‘Does Goblin know the stars well?’ She asked, taking another shot at breaking the ice.

Koba nodded in assent to Goblin, satisfied with the guarding arrangements. It made sense that the two experienced warriors would share the duty, so that they both could get sufficient rest to continue traveling the next day.

He smiled as Emily commented on the delicious smell of the meat. ‘It will be ready soon,’ he signed, and then gave another smile as Bad Ape came up to him with more food offerings held in his hands.

The old chimpanzee was not only a very good hunter, but an expert forager also. He had managed to find nearby some plants with edible leaves, to serve as vegetables to accompany the meal, and he had also discovered plentiful amounts of one of Koba’s favorite foods, wild blackberries. It was almost uncanny how Bad Ape had unwittingly picked up human customs when it came to food – the inclusion of vegetables with meat, the concept of dessert… with a small grin, the bonobo wondered if Bad Ape had discussed such things with Emily before he had made his contributions to the meal which was starting to take on the dimensions of a modest feast.

Koba signed his thanks to a happy Bad Ape, and gratefully accepted the aloe leaf that Emily handed to him, carefully applying it to the places most affected by the sun. His human friend had been right about the leaves – they did seem to have soothing properties to them.

At last the rabbit meat was perfectly cooked, and Koba took it away from the fire to cool a little before he divided it amongst his companions, serving himself last. Bad Ape took the initiative to hand out the salad greens he had picked, and after the meat and vegetables had been eaten and savored, he passed around the delicious ripe blackberries.

Replete with good food, the four scouts sat by the camp fire and Koba began to discuss via signs his plans for the next day’s travel.

The scent of the cactus leaves was strange, and wrinkled Goblin’s nose a little. It truly was a strange plant. As promised, though, the inside was filled with strange goop. It was enough to spread over the worst of his sunburns, after he had made certain to clean the mud from his skin. The cooling feeling was quite different from the mud he typically used for this purpose, but it did seem to be working. They would need to remember this plant for future use.

By the time the meal had been prepared and eaten, Goblin was feeling much better than he had. The sun was no longer beating on them, his burns had been tended to, and his stomach was full. The desert cooled considerably after the sun disappeared, but the warmth of the fire was enough to be comforting. Goblin definitely preferred nighttime in the desert…

He was absentmindedly chewing at a piece of rabbit bone to clean his teeth when Emily signed to him. The chimpanzee looked to her, frowned a little, and looked up to the sky for a moment. It was obvious that he was distracted by thoughts rather suddenly, and it took a moment before he turned his eyes back to the fire with a glazed over expression. A heavy sigh inflated his chest and left through his nostrils before he replied to her, thinking with his hands more than anything else.

‘Daughter liked the stars.’

Thinking of his family left Goblin feeling numb, which is why he avoided it if he could. But sometimes he would see something, or smell something, and memories couldn’t be stopped from filing past behind his eyes. Sometimes a word or statement spoken or signed by somebody else would make his thoughts drift.

He was watching his companions with interest as they all sat by the fire, and caught the signed interaction between Emily and Goblin. A soft sigh escaped his own lips as memories returned to him. He had heard from the others about Goblin’s sad loss and his heart ached for the lonely warrior.

“I… too once had… wife and child… gone now,” he said softly. “I… feel sorry for your loss. Know how it feels…”

His beloved mate, Jasmine, had been killed by humans before his very eyes, and his daughter Missy had been taken away by that same human group, along with many other youngsters. The old chimpanzee had no way of knowing if his only offspring was alive or dead. As far as Bad Ape knew, he was the sole survivor of his former troop. At least Goblin still had the support of his ape tribe, although Bad Ape did not speak this thought aloud as it would not bring much consolation to Goblin.

Lana grunted in assent. She did not want to remain anywhere near the pit, or the sound of gunfire. The young princess instead walked up to her brown mare, and stroked the side of the animal’s face affectionately. She had become rather fond of this placid, gentle steed of hers, and from a more practical standpoint she was glad that the apes now had transportation again.

“Yes… we should go,” she said aloud for Bad Ape’s benefit. Bad Ape and Rocket finally nodded, but still looked reluctant.

Bad Ape smiled a little shyly in answer to Blue Eyes’ question.

“A few things… that might be useful. I have clothes… I need to wear, shield from sun and wind… these ones ruined. Also hunting weapons. And some food, so… I can share with you, my friends.”

Lana looked around at her companions. “Yes…I think we should go to Bad Ape’s camp, get these things… and then go on our way. Maybe find somewhere to bathe… we covered in dirt, still!”

The hybrid snorted a little as she contemplated the state of them all.

She began to lead her horse in the direction Bad Ape was pointing in, not wanting to mount her tired animal as yet.

As the group moved on, Lana was also thinking about the matter of how to transport their new fourth member, and directed her next words to Bad Ape.

“Do you… have horse of your own?”

The old chimpanzee looked a little doleful. “Did have one… found him wandering… in woods. But group of humans with guns… they steal him. So now I have… to walk.”

Lana nodded thoughtfully. “I think… when we go on our way again… you ride on my mare with me. You and I… lightest and smallest. Easy for one horse… to carry two apes our size. And my mare steady and quiet… will be gentle… for you to ride.”

She looked towards Blue Eyes and Rocket to see what they thought of this plan.

Blue Eyes was satisfied with this plan, and nodded his assent to Lana. The young ape hadn’t given the hybrid much thought before everything that had happened, but she seemed to have a good head on her shoulders despite her initial support of Koba… Blue Eyes couldn’t fault her for that, though. He had followed Koba at first, too.

He had to admit, though, that Bad Ape’s mention of armed humans was alarming… Their goal was to distance themselves from humans – and ape traitors – as much as possible, so this was confirmation that their exploratory search would need to go ever further away from the home that they knew. Preferably in the opposite direction that the thieving humans had set off in after stealing Bad Ape’s horse.

“How… long ago… you see… humans? Which way… they go?”

As he awaited Bad Ape’s response, Blue Eyes gave Lana and Rocket’s horses a glance over and found that their bags seemed to be empty of guns. The young ape had a sneaking suspicion of where he would find them, and when he opened the saddlebag carried by his own mount, he proved himself right. Red had taken them all for himself. The chimpanzee wrinkled his nose a bit and furrowed his brows, but snorted and shook his head. He couldn’t afford to be too angry. He had seen first hand what anger had done to Koba.

 He turned his attention next to Blue Eyes, furrowing his brow a little as he thought about what the young leader had asked him, trying to remember the direction the armed humans had taken.

 “That way… it must be,” Bad Ape said finally, pointing in a vaguely south-westerly direction. “I tried to… get as far away… as I could. Don’t like humans as they are now… seem savage, angry. Kill apes.”

 A look of intense sorrow flickered across his face as he remembered the loss of his family, but he managed to pull himself back to the present almost immediately through sheer force of will.  

 “Saw them… some time ago. As long as it takes… for moon to grow… and shrink in sky.”

 Bad Ape did not understand the concept of a month, so that was the best way he had to explain what he meant.

“I... know I can never... replace your father. But... I hope you and I will be... like family now.”

arabian92knight:

Ape changes (continued)

@kobafightforape @aplanetofapes

Goblins thoughts were interrupted when Izzy gave a little huff. It wasn’t an alarm or a greeting, but certainly to draw attention to something.

Emily was focused a moment later, following her horses gaze to a bush that was moving a bit. Emily looked at Izzy who gave a nicker. The human smiled before signing to the apes. ‘Found some dinner,’

She drew her bow and an arrow, quietly pulling it back with as much focus as a mountain lion would a hare. Then she fired, earning a squeak as the arrow made it mark. A moment later Emily was off her mare and on the prey, soon pulling up a jack rabbit by its feet. It was nearly as long as half of Goblins height. Emily returned to the group and tied the rabbit to the saddlebags. ‘Keep eye out for more,’ Emily suggested. ‘They are fast, but good eating.’

Koba smiled broadly, visibly impressed not only at Izzy’s perceptiveness but at Emily’s skill. He wondered if his human friend would like to accompany the big game hunters on their next excursion, and resolved to ask her later. Her archery was more than competent enough to bring down even the largest deer, and perhaps she could even teach some of the ape archers an extra thing or two. Some of the techniques the human had developed with her own bow and arrows could very well benefit the apes in future hunts.

‘Emily did well! Let’s see if Koba can find a rabbit too.’

It didn’t take the experienced old hunter long at all to spy another jack rabbit. He was tempted to show off a little by throwing his spear towards it, but instead decided to boost the confidence of another member of the group.

He waited to catch Bad Ape’s eye, then made a silent movement with his hand in the animal’s direction. Quietly Bad Ape withdrew a small, more easily portable weapon he had brought with him, a slingshot, and slipped down from his borrowed horse as slowly as he could without startling his prey, reaching for the nearest stone.

Koba watched, amazed, as the old chimpanzee made short work of the rabbit, soon holding it aloft with a small smile on his face. Bad Ape was a better hunter than Koba ever thought he could be! However, Koba had forgotten that Bad Ape had spent so many years alone, fending for himself, before he had been found by Caesar and become a member of the colony.

‘Not bad at all,’ he signed approvingly, and looked towards Goblin to see what he thought, and to check if his comrade wanted to partake in a little light hunting too. ‘With so many good hunters in our group, we can never starve!’

  Speaking of food, it would soon be time to find a place to build their camp for the night in order to eat and rest.

As much as the chimpanzee hated to admit it, even silently to himself, the human girl was quite adept at using a bow. It was a weapon that Goblin had not learned to use, himself. He had left that to the young and the old – apes who were perhaps to small, weak, or inexperienced to charge into battle like he could. The colony had had to start over from scratch three times total, now, and supplies were limited at best, especially those used to craft bows, namely the twine. It made more sense to leave archery to those who needed to use it in order to stay safer in battle, and stick to spears and guns himself. Goblin strongly disliked the manmade firearms, but he could acknowledge and appreciate their effectiveness…

Admittedly, Goblin wasn’t certain that he could in fact manage to hunt a rabbit with the type of spear that he currently carried. Emily’s bow and Bad Ape’s slingshot were much more suited to the small, quick creatures. One of his first priorities would be to work on this weapon of his, improve it, when they made camp. Even so, he kept his eyes peeled for any sign of potential prey as their mounts carried them further into the desert. Maybe they would get lucky and find a very lost deer, or something.

‘Spear not good for rabbits.’

He indicated his weapon, bulky as it was, and gave a shrug to the bonobo who had looked to him with the unspoken invitation to take part.

‘Not go fast through air. Too big.’

‘You make yourself?’ She asked the ape, certain that they’d be well fed by the end of the day with the skilled hunters. She admired the sling for a bit, trying to figure out where she had gone wrong with her own.

“Yes. I made this when I was alone. I had some food but had to learn to catch more, so I found this worked. Saw some humans using things like this.”

So much of Bad Ape’s existence had consisted of being on the fringes of the world since his fellow zoo apes, among them his beloved mate and child, had either been killed outright or taken away by humans. He had survived the best way he could, the only way – by taking what the humans left behind for his own use, or pilfering whatever he could from wandering human groups without being seen, and by observing their ways so that he could adapt to survive as they had done.

Given the eventual fate of most of humanity, it seemed that the old chimpanzee had done a better job of survival than they had.

Bad Ape looked a little disappointed that Goblin and Koba were not going to make an attempt to secure prey – he always enjoyed seeing competent hunters at work – but he gave another nod in assent at Goblin’s assessment of his own spear.

“It is good strong, spear, though. If larger animals around, it would be good for hunting them. Can defend us well, too, sturdy weapon like that.”

The spear Koba carried was very similar in type to Goblin’s, and it was obvious that both the experienced warriors had had defending the group in mind when they decided to bring those particular weapons. Bad Ape briefly wondered if Koba and Goblin had also brought guns with them. The old chimp did not like guns, but he supposed that they might be necessary if some sort of confrontation should eventuate with the other apes, if perhaps by some misfortune they did turn out to be a hostile troop.

He perked up at the mention of the antelope, however.

arabian92knight:

Izzy took third place in the troop, walking right behind Goblin and his steed. Emily held on with her legs, her spear in easy reach and her bow and arrows at her back. She waved to Blue Eyes, though wishing she could stay a little longer. She guessed the road was calling her away again, and she had to heed that call.

She listened to the sound of the hooves in the ground, smiling at the sounds before looking at Goblin. She wondered how she could show him she was an ally. For Blue, it was talking, but now she didn’t have a voice to speak with.

She sighed. There was a long road ahead for the troop…

With a last loving look back to Stone, and to Blue Eyes and other friends and family members who had come to see the group off, Koba gave his horse’s reins a tug and the animal set out in the direction he had indicated. The stallion was young compared to the mount he had previously ridden, but seemed stable enough and was a healthy, energetic beast.

He kept an eye on Goblin and Bad Ape to make sure that their horses were progressing and behaving well, and was satisfied that they were. Of course, the bonobo had no concerns about Emily and Izzy – the bond between those two was unbreakable and Izzy was intelligent enough in her own right to sense any problems that might arise.

Koba felt a pang of sadness as the village was finally behind them, but he reassured himself that all would be well with Blue Eyes in charge, and with Rocket and Maurice still there to advise him. Not to mention Lake, who was showing herself to be a strong and competent queen in the manner of Cornelia, her predecessor.

Although he was very confident about the strengths and abilities of his companions, a few worries still nagged at the back of Koba’s mind. The possibility of tension between Goblin and Emily was still very real, although so far Goblin had shown himself willing to cooperate and as usual, Emily was open and friendly. But Goblin had experienced plenty of loss thanks to human actions, and as a trauma survivor himself, Koba could understand his pain and anger.

And there was also Bad Ape to consider. The old chimpanzee was a good-hearted little fellow who had shown himself capable of great courage, but occasionally he was given to bouts of insecurity and stress, and Koba hoped that these would not interfere with the mission in any way should unforeseen difficulties occur.

Still, the day was a good one for horseback travel, and Koba’s mood lifted a little as the scouts finally lost sight of the last of the ape dwellings.

Its peaceful out here, Goblin thought to himself as they rode towards the beginnings of the sandy desert, the forest and village now well behind them. It was quiet and still and from here, one would never guess that there was a village of apes just beyond. That had been the reason behind Rocket and Blue Eyes’ decision to move the troop to this particular place… The two of them truly had found an eden. No humans had any reason to look for apes out here. It had been years since Goblin had felt truly safe.

But they were leaving that safety behind, riding towards uncertainty. Part of the chimpanzee was excited by this fact. He was a warrior by nature and had the scars to prove it, even if his paled in comparison to Koba. At least Goblin’s weren’t earned in a laboratory, he supposed. He was lucky that the only physical reminder of his time there was the tattoo on his stomach.

He couldn’t help but glance in Emily’s direction. She, too, had spent time as a prisoner in a lab… But that didn’t make her an ape.

Either way, almost despite his better judgment, he turned in his saddle and snorted at her to catch her attention so that he could sign to her.

‘How far into desert did you see them?’

Unknowing of Goblins dislike for desert heat, Emily looked skyward to feel the warmth in her face. She preferred the desert some days, where the bitterness of winter couldn’t reach her.

She lifted a hand and measured the time with her fingers. ‘Won’t make it there today most likely,’ she reported. ‘May need to make camp half way. But learned tricks about desert. Shouldn’t be too bad.’

She smiled at Goblin, hoping to somehow break the ice with him, but he seemed as disinterested in her as Blue Eyes was at first.

Izzy bickered at her rider, suggesting patience was the key in this situation. Emily nodded and patted the mares neck. Izzy was getting older, though her greeting fur was hidden in her already silver fur. And with that age came wisdom that Emily took to heart and shared when she could.

In the eyes of Emily and the other apes, he supposed, he must look faintly ridiculous. But with an irritable shake of his head, the old chimpanzee tried to banish those thoughts. His attire may not have been very attractive, but it was practical and afforded him valuable protection from the unrelenting sun.

He guided Stone’s brown mare closer to the other horses, and watched Emily and Goblin sign to each other. Although Bad Ape had begun to learn sign language since becoming part of Blue Eyes’ troop, it still took him a little while to decode what the others were saying.

Bad Ape watched the conversation with intense interest, and nodded in agreement at what Emily had said. As he was still not very confident in his ability to sign, the chimpanzee spoke aloud.

“Yes… if tracks were… that far ahead, camping half way is best idea,” he said, loud enough for Koba to hear him also.

The scouts’ mission was an uncertain one – who knew what they might possibly discover out beyond the desert wasteland? But Bad Ape nevertheless felt himself to be in safe hands. He trusted and respected Koba and Goblin immensely, as they were seasoned warriors, smart and strong and more capable in a fight than he could ever be should trouble arise. And he already regarded Emily as a friend – he had seen how good and kind she was with not only the apes, but with little Nova, and he had also heard so many stories of how much she had done for the apes and how brave she was, having even rescued Koba and his children.

Lana’s eyes widened with worry and she heard Bad Ape gasp beside her as Blue Eyes lost his footing and slipped into the mud of the pit.  It was all she could do not to utter a wraa of alarm. But thankfully it was only her brother’s pride that seemed to be hurt, and Rocket was there to help him up and vainly try to brush some of the muck from the young prince’s pelt.

“You two… all right down there?” she called, although neither chimp seemed to be injured as far as she could tell.

Watching as Blue Eyes clambered onto Rocket’s shoulders, Lana hoped that the hole all of them had struggled to dig would be deep enough. And thankfully, it seemed to be. Blue Eyes’ raised hands did not touch the edge of the pit at all – Red would be well and truly confined there once he fell in.

Lana chuffed in disgust, feeling sorry for the pair who had had to clamber into the pit to check its depths. Digging the hole had been unpleasant enough, but being down there where it was colder, wetter and muddier than the surface by far must have felt almost unbearable.

Red would not like it down there one bit, but Lana did not feel any remorse for his anticipated suffering after the way she had seen him treat his fellow apes. At least she herself had only showed hostility to humans when she had been one of Koba’s soldiers, and even then she had never done them any physical harm.

The gorilla was different. He seemed to have a much more savage nature than any other ape Lana had encountered, except perhaps for Koba. And the young silverback did not even have the excuse of insanity as Koba did.

After making sure again that the pit was ready, the two apes standing on the outside of the muddy cavity wasted no time in hauling Blue Eyes and then Rocket back up to stand on the bank beside them.

Blue Eyes couldn’t get out of the hole fast enough, and he was sure the same was true for Rocket. Now that he was actually in the sunlight, Blue Eyes could see just how much mud and muck his pelt had taken on. He was a sorry sight indeed, as was Rocket, although there was more skin than fur on the older chimpanzee. His eyes flicked to the river. It was so tempting to rinse himself off, and it wouldn’t take very long…

But, no. There were more imperative things.

“Cover hole?”

He signed the words as he spoke them, feeling sorry for the exhausted group staring back at him. If nothing else, they would all sleep soundly that night, assuming they got the chance to. There was no guarantee that this plan would work, only hope. Red was a smart gorilla. He had always been regarded as intelligent by his peers, Blue Eyes among them. But he never would have guessed that he would be pitted against that gorilla brain this way.

For all they knew, Red was formulating a plan of his own even as they worked out the kinks in theirs.

Their issue now was that the hole needed to be covered and masked in a way that didn’t stick out from the environment around it. It would take time to lay out a frame and cover it with vegetation and dirt. None of them had any idea how much time they would have, only how much time they needed.

 As swiftly as possible, the old chimpanzee joined his comrades in laying hands on whatever could be used for a foundation for the cover. As soon as a sturdy layer of broken branches and other suitable items had been put in place, Bad Ape began seizing handfuls of vegetation and piling them on to thoroughly disguise the hole that all four apes has dug together.

 Everyone was working as fast as they could, and although Bad Ape’s muscles and limbs were so sore he could hardly stand, let alone move, he kept doggedly at his task. Of course, he could not have known that the others were thinking the same thing, but he found himself wishing that there were at least two or three more apes there to help them. Burly chimps the size of Rocket, preferably, or even a gorilla or two who were friendlier than this Red was.

 From what little Bad Ape had seen of gorillas in the past, they had mostly seemed to be a gentle, peaceable lot. As he briefly paused for breath, Bad Ape wondered why this particular gorilla had such an attitude problem.

 At last the pit appeared to be sufficiently covered, and Bad Ape stood back and looked towards his companions, in particular his young leader, hoping that they would consider all the work they had done to be enough.