Hello Everyone! I little heads up before you begin reading. Bold means sign language 'between apostrophes means the character is thinking' quotation marks inside apostrophes means the character is remembering something they or another character said. That's all hope you guys like it.
'"Caesar is home"' those simple 4 words had changed everything in the last 24 hours. Those words meant something that brought the dark mood he was currently in.
'I'm not his home anymore' the thought made him feel like he had failed as a parent. It's not like he wasn't happy for his for son but could he even call him that anymore? he had become indeed a great ape, a leader and a savior to all other apes. Apes that now are his family, his home.
But what about them? What about all the years of love, care and effort him and Caroline had devoted to Caesar? Sure somethings weren't perfect but they did their best to raise him.
Even so nothing could change the truth. And the truth was Caesar left by choice he wasn't forced to go.
'And now he can't come back even if he wanted to' Will concluded. The police was dead set on capturing Caesar and his "army" of apes. Hiding in the Muir Woods was their only chance of survival. He had to stay there for his own safety even if it meant they wouldn't see eachother again.
Not many knew about Caesar. But after the battle on Golden Gate Bridge an investigation was started to identify all of the apes involved and were they came from. The moment they found out that Caesar, the one they labeled as the leader of the rebelion, came from the San Bruno Primate Shelter and that Will had been his original owner a officer was sent to their home to make some questions.
The sound of someone clearing their throat snaped the man out of his toughts.
"Good morning mister Rodman" the blue eyed blonde middle-aged officer probably on his early thirties carrying a folder was sitting on a chair in front of him.
"I'm officer Brent but you can call me just Brent it's a pleasure to meet you" Brent extended his hand and Will shook it.
"Good morning" Will awnsered tiredness etched on his voice. Thanks to yesterday events he didn't sleep at all last night.
"Rough night?" The man asked.
"You could say that" Will anwsered rubbing his eyes.
"Oh i can imagine i wouldn't sleep well either if my pet turned crazy".
Will wasn't sure if it was because the man had called his son a pet or if it was the tone he used when he said it or maybe it was the fact he was sleep deprived but whatever it was, it made him angry.
"He's not a pet" Will said firmly.
"Isn't he?" Brent asked as he opened his folder of papers.
"The information i have tells me otherwise mister Rodm-" "Will" Will said interrupting Brent.
"Just call me Will"
"...Will...the information i have says that the chimpanzee known as Caesar is the leader of the apes who escaped from the San Bruno Primate Shelter, attacked the Gen-Sys Laboratories, The San Francisco Zoo, The Golden Gate Bridge and not to mention partialy destroyed the city" Brent read the contents of the folder out loud.
"It also mentions that you're the one who gave him up to the shelter in the first place which means you are his previous own-" "Don't call me that" Will said interrupting Brent.
"I'm not his owner, i'm his father" Will knew that Brent wouldn't understand but even so he still wouldn't let him say such things.
"...Ok Will i wanna ask you something did your mother ever teach you it's rude to interrupt someone? Especialy when you don't have a good reason to do it? Because come on i mean yeah i guess female chimps have their charm and that maybe you have exotic tastes but even if you were courageous enough to try it there's no way something could come out of that specialy not something healthy even a scientist like you can't convince me of that". Brent anwsered grinning.
"...What?"
"Though it would explain why he's smarter than the others being half human should make him more intelligent and able to talk too" Brent faked a thoughtful face.
"I'm not his biological father!"
"Really? well that's a relief then" Brent started laughing.
"Okay okay i'm kidding...mostly" Brent changed back to his serious mode.
"I wasn't sure what to expect i mean that ape could talk! I've no idea how so i was ready to consider all the possibilities".
"Now that we're on this topic i'm gonna go ahead and say you aren't in trouble because of the things that your...son did because you're no longer responsible for the him however that still doesn't change the fact that he can speak and that's exactly the reason why i'm here...Will i don't think i need to say it but...you're scientist with what we assume is a genetically modified ape" Brent picked up a small notepad and a pen.
"If you don't mind that's a history i would love to hear" Brent stared at Will expectantly.
For a second Will considered not telling the truth. He had tested a experimental illegal drug untested on humans on his father without authorization not to mention the fact that the very same drug is responsible for Caesar and his whole ape army's intelligence. Before saying anything he looked at Caroline asking for her opinion silently. Caroline who was standing on the other side of the room looked just as tired as him she didn't sleep either. Their eyes connected for a second and Caroline simply noded and left the room. After she left Will inhaled deeply and slowly exhaled.
"...It all started with Bright Eyes..."
So what if he had sneezed blood today?
'"You drive with all kinds of people every day honey only God knows what kinds of sickness they carry! You should go see a doctor to make sure you're fine"' and that was the reason why instead of driving his taxi and going for a normal day of work David took his wife's car too go to a clinic to do a thorough examination.
'This is stupid i already know how it's going to be the doc is gonna say i'm fine and it's probably just stress or i'm just not eating and exercising right or whatever i'm just gonna waste time for nothing' the only reason why he had agreed to go was to calm his wife she worried about him and he didn't want to worry her like that.
Maybe it wouldn't have made such a difference if he had taken his taxi instead. After all the ruckus caused by the apes yesterday the streets were almost empty all schools and workplaces except hospitals and clinics are closed today and people are too scared to go outside anyway. He parked his car in the parking lot and entered the clinic after talking to the receptionist he sat down in the waiting room took his phone from his pocket and was about to call his wife. Except she was faster than him.
"Hey honey" he anwsered the call with a smile.
"I hope you're already at clinic by now" "Yeah i'm waiting my turn"
"Good don't forget to call me and come home after your exam i've been married to you long enough to know you are going to try to work today even though the whole city decided to rest today"
"Haha! you know me too well honey but don't worry i'm gonna rest today if that's gonna make you calm and don't worry about my exam i'm sure there's nothing wrong with me"
"Okay i know i'm probably sounding a little annoying but it's just because i love you"
"I know i love you too"
"Mister Wane?" The receptionist called him.
"That's me! Sorry hun gotta go talk to you soon bye i love you"
"I love you too good luck". David finished the call the receptionist told him where to go after finding the room he was supposed to go he walked right in.
"Good morning mister Wane i'm doctor Selphy pleased to meet you" Selphy a black long haired woman in a medical lab coat with deep brown eyes extended her hand and David shook it.
"Good morning doc" David greeted sitting down on a chair in front of her.
"You came here for a full exam correct? Any particular reason for that?"
"Well i'm feeling alright doc but i sneezed some blood during breakfast earlier and my wife got worried so that's why i'm here"
"Sneezed blood? that's what you call feeling alright? your wife has very good reason to be worried mister Wane" "Jeez doc you're making me feel old with all of this mister talk just call me Dave like all of my friends do"
"Very well Dave please lie down on that stretcher".
Dave got up and obeyed the doctor he knew everything was okay but the sooner this was done the sooner his wife would feel calmer and then he would be able to work in peace again.
"Mister Dreyfus do you have any comment on the ape rebelion incident from yesterday? we are aware you were the one leading the operation that tried to stop and capture the rebelious apes"
"No comment"
"Mister Dreyfus there has been a rumor that the apes were geneticaly modified biological weapons created by the government that ran out of control is that true?"
"No comment"
"Mister Dreyfus please does the police have any leads on who or what is responsible for the creation of these apes and were they are hiding? are they going to come back? what do they want? are we in danger?"
"No comment"
After finaly going through the sea of reporters that surrounded him Dreyfus finaly reached his car got in the drivers seat and closed the door letting out a big sigh of relief.
'There's no way this is going to help me win the election' up to this point Dreyfus was leading the pool to become mayor of San Francisco. Being the cheif of police and promising to increase the safety of the city were the main reasons behind his popularity but yesterday incident had done a blow in his image when the media found out he was the leader behind the operation that tried and failed to stop and capture the apes.
Tired of thinking about his problems he decided to turn on the small tv on his car's panel as a distraction and started driving back home.
"-nd i think Dreyfus still has a good chance to win".
Well so much for distraction.
"Yes i know his failure might make the people uneasy but you all have to remember that the moment the incident started he was the only one who was quick enough to take action when everyone else just panicked and made things worse, if it wasn't for him God knows how many people those beasts would have hurted or worse not to mention he's the one who organized the search party that's hunting the apes down, he's doing his best for the sake of our safety just like he promised which is something i don't see his rivals doing most of them just talk and don't act and think that right now this city needs a mayor that knows when and how to take action and i'm sure most people agree with me".
Well at the very least someone was still on his side, and not just anyone he reconized the voice of the man everyone could.
"I understand your opinion mister Ramos and your arguments are valid thank you for sharing your thoughts with us it's a honor to have a famous lawyer like you in our humble show" "Oh no thank you for inviting me Clarence it beats sitting on a chair reading and writing all day" the whole audience laughs.
"Haha! i can imagine, well folks looks like that's it for today i hope we can count with your audience next monday on the next episode of Clear up with Clarence have a good morning and goodb-" Dreyfus turned the tv off.
'Hahaha! Who's without support now?' he was smiling from ear to ear now this certantly turned the tables in his favor. He could already see the entrance of his home too.
He parked his car in the garage and as he was opening the door his phone started ringing. He got inside closed the door and anwsered his phone.
"Dreyfus speaking"
"Please tell me you like watching tv shows"
"Now i do" the Dreyfus said smiling and started laughing with the other man.
"You do realize how amazing this is for your campaign right?"
"You bet i do ohhh how i wish a was able to see Victor's face now"
"I'm sure he's not one bit happy haha!".
Victor was sure he would beat Dreyfus from the very beginning.
'"No one is gonna vote on a old grumpy cop Dreyfus especialy if i'm running for mayor"'.
Oh how he wished he had recorded him saying that just to shove it up his butt now. A well known and respected lawyer had defended him on a live popular tv show.
"Now we can't get too cocky even with the public support of a well known figure we can't let anything go wrong again another surprise like that and even the president wouldn't be able to save you"
"No kidding can't belive a bunch of animals almost ruined my campaign"
"Well your bunch of animals destroyed about 9.87% of the city and defeated our whole police force on the same day"
"They are animals Anthony they attacked us destroyed our homes, hurt and killed our people i won't forgive them for that"
"Well you're not alone on that thought but i personaly want to study them first their behaviour is...intriguing to me"
"Don't start with your mad science crap Anthony you and your weird fascination for beasts doesn't interest me one bit"
"Haha! I suppose not how's the search going by the way?"
"As good as you would expect when a bunch of animals is searching for other bunch of animals"
"Hahaha! Surrounded by idiots are we?"
"You have no idea one of them a girl i think her name was Maryann got hurt on the first day"
"Believe me i do i fact i think i should check to make my idiots aren't destroying anything remember your press conference in 4 hours i'll be waiting you there"
"Yeah don't worry talk to you latter"
"Don't forget to inform me if you get any progress in the search" "Got it".
With the call over Dreyfus finaly threw himself in the sofa and relaxed.
'Can't wait to give this city the mayor it deserves'.
Knowing that Will was telling the full truth was scary because it meant that sooner or later he would be arrested for sure.
Caroline knew this could happen from the moment Will told her the truth and when the officer appeared on their door she felt like her worst fear was about to come true.
This wasn't fair the only crime Will was guilty of was trying to save the lives of his father and their son. Father that in the end he couldn't save and son that now was being hunted down like some aggresive animal.
Caesar...she hoped he was safe he's barely 8 years old he shouldn't have to deal with so much hostility so early in life and now that he's an alpha a big responsibility was thrown on his shoulders. When Will came home yesterday saying that Caesar had taken the position of alpha she couldn't believe it. '"What do you mean he's the alpha?"' Disbelief was evident on her voice '"I mean exactly what i said he's their alpha i don't know how or when it happened but it did"' '"But he's just 8 Will! How did a 8 year old chimpanzee became an alpha? there were Orangutans Bonobos and Gorillas in that army Will how did he force them to follow? how did he force gorillas to follow him?!"' '"I don't think he forced anyone from what i saw i seems like they are following him by choice not because they are submissive to him or because they are afraid of him"' '"What? but...that makes even less sense"' '"less sense than the fact that he can speak?"' '"What?!"' '"Yeah that guy back at the shelter wasn't listening things because he was scared, he was telling the truth Caesar can speak"' '"But Will that's-"' '"Impossible? I thought so too but then he spoke to me i heard him Caroline i heard him speak i think it's because of the ALZ-113 i think it enhanced his intelligence even more than the ALZ-112"' '"Oh God Will i...i don't even-"' '"I know it's a little too much information to process just try to calm down ok?"'.
And calm down she did but even now it was difficult to believe. Caesar...a 8 year old chimpanzee that's already an alpha.
And an speaking alpha to make it even more impossible. It was indeed to much.
The sound of voices snaped her out of her thoughts.
"Will i have to say this was a very...intresting conversation but now i have to go back and report to my cheif" Brent offered his hand and Will shook it once more. And then before he left he turned to her and noded and then the officer was gone.
Will instantly threw himself in a love seat. After Brent was gone Caroline was already by his side.
"Are you okay?" "Not after telling him so much" Will let out a sigh "Don't worry i'm here" Caroline gently grasped his hand "I know" the both of them were scared and confused but over it all they were tired. Hand in hand they got up and walked to their room where they feel asleep in a comfortable embrace and for that breif moment all of their troubles were gone.
"Hey captain i found something!" "What is it Landon?" "Look" Landon an officer who was curently working on the ape search party pointed at the ground were a tuff of black fur was in the mud. "Do you think it's from them?" "Maybe...it's worth checking" The captain turned to call the rest of his crew "Dodge Nova! We got a something!" a black male officer and brown skinned female officer came running to them "Really? finaly! i thought we were running in circles" relief was clear in Dodge's voice he was almost giving up by now. Nova also looked happy with the news "Well gentlemen...and lady shall we move?" "As long as we find something this time we're all for it captain" the now re-animated Dodge said with enthusiasm "Great then lets find or monkeys" "They are apes Taylor" "Oh? i'm sorry Landon didn't know you were an expert" Captain Taylor laughed with his crew now with hope that this time they would have something to report to Dreyfus.
In a deep area covered by tall trees in the woods someone was swinging from branch to branch. Then he jumped and landed on the ground and waited. Then after a few seconds another form landed in front of him. The chimpanzee and the orangutan who just arrived were scouts assigned to keep an eye on humans.
"Found anything?" The orangutan asked. "Humans they follow us must warn Caesar" the tired chimp came as fast as he could to warn the others about the danger. The orangutan noded and then both of the apes rushed deep into the forest were no human had ever set foot at least not for now.
Finaly! I can't believe it took me so long to finish this. Well guys here it is the very first chapter of my first multi-chapter PotA fanfic. I'm still a bit nervous about it but that's exactly why i need to know your thoughts about it. Please review even if you think it's bad i want to know.
Also yes, the search party is formed by the human characters of the original Planet Of The Apes movie. Since i love those characters a lot i wanted to include them somehow and that was what i came up with.
See you guys next time!
