Pen-name Disclaimer: Hi, this is potionsmaster. I'm posting my friend's story on here while he decides whether or not to get his own account. For now, happy reading! ^__^

Disclaimer: Planet of the Apes and all affiliated characters are NOT my property. Just thought I'd let all the wonderful people at FOX know that.

A/N: And now, for the story. I'm kinda a Planet of the Apes fanatic, and, if given the opportunity, would put on a Thade mask and yell "HORSES?!?" all the time. Unfortunately, for my sanity's sake, I only wrote a story about it. Please let me know if it's worth the time to continue this or not. Thanks, all!

The soft ground of the soggy farmland squished under Kila's bare feet as she sloshed towards the trees in orchard. Her mother lead her and her brother, Loolo, to the center of the orchard, and the three of them split up to gather fruit for the tribe. At 10 years old, Kila was quite small and very adventurous. She had been the first to explore the forest and was the first to come across the orchard a few days ago. She remembered running up to her mother in sheer excitement, barely gasping for breath as she described the juicy red fruit that grew on the trees.

Now it was time to pick that fruit, when the sun was just rising above the eastern mountains and the air was crisp and sweet. Kila took her little brother by his dusty hand and lead him up to the closest tree. She reached up as high as she could and picked one of the fruit. Loolo squealed with excitement as she handed it to him. Suddenly, a hand was over her brother's mouth.

"Children! You must not make any noise!" Her mother frantically whispered, looking around in the trees.

Kila was confused. What was her mother looking for? The only predators that Kila knew about were the large, black cats that fed off the colts that strayed too far from the wild horses' herd, but those feline menaces lived out on the plains, not in the forest. What could possibly worry her mother in this wild haven? Kila shrugged and continued picking fruit and putting them in the leather sack she had at her side. She glanced at her brother to make sure he was watched over.

Loolo was munching on the fruit and strangely staring at the crown of one of the trees in the center of orchard. He giggled as Kila heard a rustling of branches. A few leaves fluttered down and landed at Loolo's feet. He reached up and yelled, "Kitty!"

Kila's mother turned to scold him as a large, black cat leapt from the tree and knocked Loolo to the ground. The animal placed a heavy paw on his shoulder and pinned him down. Kila's mother screamed in terror and rushed at the cat. It seemed to work, as the cat flinched away from her mother's flailing arms. Suddenly, out of the early twilight shadows, Kila saw two large arms grab her mother around the waist and lift her up far above Kila's head.

"RUN, KILA!" her mother screamed franticly as a rag was placed over her mouth. Kila turned and fled into the jungle. She pumped her legs as hard as she could, her lungs exploding with each breath. She heard rustling behind her, and she turned her head slightly to see what was there.

A large form blocked her vision and she was slammed on her side. She looked up to see another cat standing in front of her. The large shape landed lightly next to the cat and scratched it behind the ears. The sound of purring was like thunder in Kila's ears. She saw the shape turn, and saw that it was an ape; one of the demons that her mother always warned her about. The creatures that stole little children that wandered from their parents or left the safety of the tribe. She had always dismissed the stories as fantasy…until now

Kila screamed as the ape looked down at her and growled deep and low. It reached up and grasped something behind its back, and Kila saw the glint of a sword in the dim light.

Suddenly, a larger shape entered the jungle. Another, more massive ape materialized out of the gloom.

"What do you think you are doing?" The larger ape rumbled low.

"Teaching this creature proper manners, Krull….sir." The smaller ape snarled, slightly sarcastic, and looked down at her. "It's not polite to steal." Kila was crying now.

"Your father would disapprove if you killed our profits, you know." The ape called Krull said, stepping towards the smaller ape.

Kila saw the small ape smile slightly and it dropped it's sword. The blade arced in the air and sliced through Kila's foot. She screamed in pain.

"Tsk, tsk, she's no good to us wounded like that, now is she?" The small ape growled at Krull. It slowly removed the sword from Kila's foot, making sure to cut more flesh on the way out. Kila could barely make any noise now because the pain was too great.

"Thade, you have to stop this!" Krull growled.

"Do I?!?" the smaller ape growled deeper. He narrowed his eyes and looked down at the human child. "Fair enough, I'll stop it right now."

Thade swung the blade down suddenly at an angle. Kila saw nothing but metal as her head was cleaved in two.

Krull looked on in disgust.

Thade grinned.