A bunch of gorillas and chimpanzees in cages were being transported through the Maltaka region. The people driving the truck were illegal poachers. They were speeding through the jungle, running over trees, bushes, and flowers. Animals were running away from them.
Unbeknownst to them, a tall chimpanzee with anger in his eyes stood within jumping distance of the truck. The tall chimpanzee made a gesture. Other gorillas and chimpanzees shouted and roared. The drivers of the truck couldn't cover their ears, but the windshield cracked to the noise. As they turned towards the road towards the city, a gorilla opened its arm and shattered the glass and the door. The gorillas jumped down from the trees and slammed the front of the truck, crushing the roof. The gorillas pulled the drivers out of the truck and threw them against the trees, killing them. The chimpanzees then came down, got the keys, and freed their fellows and relatives.
The tall chimpanzee opened a bag it carried on its back. It was a picture of him and Sheena, when Sheena was younger. The tall chimpanzee growled and put the photo away.
"Honey, who is this?" Chris said, walking out of their bedroom, shirtless, with a photo of Sheena and a chimpanzee.
"Oh," Sheena said, surprised, "that was my pet Chim."
"You never told me about Chim."
"There's not much to tell," Sheena said, putting on a stud earring. "I found him after his parents died from a rogue leopard attack. We were friends until he was kidnapped by poachers."
"I'm sorry." Chris put his arms around Sheena.
"I never knew what happened to him, but for the longest time, I did go after poachers."
"Was he a sidekick?"
"For my many adventures saving the LaMistas? I'd say so, but you make me sound like Wonder Woman and her friend Cheryl who knew nothing. It amazes me how people don't see what's in front of their eyes."
"Yes, well, I see what's in front of mine and I can't help but be in love with it." Chris started kissing her neck.
"That's sweet. Seriously though, people who can't tell Clark Kent and Superman apart. Superman does not wear glasses but how can people not see it's Clark in a pantsuit?"
"Sheena, dear…" Chris turned her around and the two went back to the bedroom and they made love.
Mendlesohn was looking out the window. Matt was preparing the truck.
"They are a half hour late!" Matt said. "Do we still have their first payment?"
"No, Cutter, we still don't accept payment until the job is done."
"Damn it!" Cutter slammed his hand into the side of the truck.
"It's okay, they could be late. What could hold them up?" Mendlesohn pondered.
"Yes well, I am starting to get worried," Cutter said, "Maybe I should drive out and find them."
"Still want the money's worth?" Mendlesohn joked.
Cutter just smirked and got into the truck. He turned on his radio and sent a message to Rashid.
"Rashid, did you or anyone in your unit notice any trucks passing by out of the west LaMistas?"
"No, Cutter, we haven't."
"Okay, thanks. A client was bringing a valuable trip for me and they are late."
"I will have my unit keep an eye out."
As Cutter took a turn to the right, he came across a battered truck in front of him and pressed the brakes. Cutter got out of the car and saw two dead men under a crushed windshield, and cages opened and destroyed. He recognized the insignia on the door was the same from the invoice he received. He noticed a piece of fur stuck on the door. He grabbed a piece and put it in his pocket.
He then went to the radio and messaged Rashid.
"Found the truck, passengers are dead, here are my coordinates- "
Unbeknownst to Cutter, Chim was watching him survey the scene. Cutter got into his car and drove to Sheena and Chris's in the Mitubi region. Chim grabbed a piece of cloth and smelled it. He then smelled the air and caught a whiff of Cutter's muskiness. It smelled familiar.
Chim remembered years ago, not too long after his spat with Sheena that he was a deeper part of the jungle and was captured. He remembered seeing a man who tipped his hat and got a ton of money for finding and capturing monkeys and gorillas for scientific experiments. He heard a "ma" sound at the time and the "cut" sound as well. Before he was experimented on, he only had sense memory of things and people. It's not like the scientists testing genetic enhancement on him were looking to replicate Planet of the Apes, but when Chim was able to free himself of the illegal experiments, he vowed to seek revenge on those who put him in harm's way. After years of figuring out a plan after killing the scientists and amassing like-minded but ungenetically enhanced peers, as he still couldn't talk but signal, he knew it was time. He knew Sheena had to pay for her betrayal. He found his target.
Sheena and Chris were laying in bed after making love. Within a glance, Sheena saw Cutter's truck pull up. She rested her hand on Chris's sweaty chest to catch his attention.
"Sweetie, Cutter's here."
"What does he want?" Chris said, smiling and trying to sound frustrated but not succeeding.
"We have to find out, darling," Sheena said, getting out of bed and putting on a white shirt, "because we left the door open."
Matt came in.
"Sheena? Chris? The door is open."
Sheena came walking out of the bedroom, buttoning her white shirt.
"Did I come at the wrong time?"
"No, Chris should be out soon."
Matt looked the other way as Sheena finished buttoning in front of him.
"What's going on that you couldn't call?" Sheena said, getting a glass of water.
"A client of mine was murdered before our planned job, which was just to move formerly caged monkeys and gorillas to a wildlife reservation in the LaMistas. I found this next to their dead bodies."
"What's this now?" Chris said, coming out shirtless and putting on a t-shirt.
"Cutter's clients were murdered by gorillas."
"Isn't this more Rashid's jurisdiction?" Chris added.
"I've already called him to remove the bodies, but this is wildlife, and this is the LaMistas, and I figured you and Sheena would be willing to help."
"Unexplained animal attacks, I wonder if the Rogues have returned."
"If they have, then we need to figure out why this time. When was the last time they attacked? It's been years," Cutter said. "I say we scope the region, starting from that place."
"Good idea," Sheena said, "It may be a good idea to talk to Kali about this too. She notices."
"I'll leave the fur sample here. It looks like gorilla, and maybe you and Chris could study it and tell me what you find."
"Sounds good," Chris said, "we'll get on it as soon as we are done with our village relief."
Cutter smiled and said goodbye. He got into his truck and hoped that he'd see them soon. In the meantime, he would drive to Kali's village as instructed by Sheena, as he would communicate what Kali would tell him.
When Cutter got to Kali's village, it looked like it was ransacked. Matt grabbed his gun from the glove compartment and carefully scoped the side of the truck. He saw a basket blow in the wind and then carefully went behind a hut. Someone tapped his bare shoulder and he pointed a gun at them. It was Kali.
"Cutter! What are you doing?" Kali said, grabbing the basket that the wind blew.
"Sorry, the place looked ransacked."
"No, we were just cleaning our huts. We do it communally. Why the suspicion?"
"Well, Sheena, Chris, and I were wondering whether the Rogues have returned. Clients needing me to ship somethings were found dead on the street and there was gorilla fur in the windshield."
"The Rogues wouldn't be that deliberate, Cutter."
"They've never been deliberate, but maybe they've shifted their tactics." Matt put his gun away and tipped his hat.
"It's possible. It is also possible that natural rituals were interrupted with unfortunate casualties."
"Meaning?"
"Your clients probably caught gorillas off-guard and the gorillas didn't know how to respond." Kali noticed a blue glimmer in Cutter's eye.
"Is something wrong?"
"No," Cutter shrugged. "Why do you ask?"
"Just thought I saw something."
"As long as you didn't see any gorillas and Rogues aren't back, there isn't anything to worry about." Cutter got into his truck and drove off.
Chim saw Cutter drive out of Kali's village. Chim communicated to his army of chimpanzees and gorillas that soon the trapping would be nigh. A plan was being formulated.
Chris and Sheena were driving towards Cutter Unlimited and heard a sharp howl in the jungle.
"That wasn't a Rogue." Sheena said, touching Chris' wrist.
"I hope Cutter got back okay," Chris said, watching the road. "I'll try to drive faster."
Cutter was driving nearly opposite of Chris and Sheena by fifteen miles wide. He heard the howl and looked around to see if there was anything suspicious. He did not want his truck to be smashed in, and he started to speed up a bit. As he turned a corner where several roads met, he noticed a large pile of dust that semi-blocked his truck. He rolled the windows up, unlocked the trigger of his gun, and unbuttoned his knife socket. He opened the door and pulled out his gun, looking around first, and then closing it. He heard another vehicle in the distance. He walked toward the other road.
Without a notice, an orangutan jumped from a tree and slid down Matt's back, knocking Matt's hat off of him in the sudden push. When Matt recovered, he saw a large gorilla in front of him and the gorilla slapped Matt across the face and onto the ground, face first. Another gorilla grabbed Matt by the back collar and pushed his head into the dust pile. Matt flailed his bare arms trying to resist and the orangutan took the gun and shot it in the air, clearing the bullets. The gorilla was pushing Matt's full torso into the dust pile as Matt was slowly losing oxygen. The gorilla that slapped him grabbed Matt's knife as Matt wasn't struggling as much.
Sheena and Chris saw this as Chris pulled the car up to the dust pile. Sheena jumped on top of the pile and dropkicked the gorilla stuffing Matt in the dust. Chris took out the orangutan with the butt of his gun and Sheena tried looking into the eyes of the other gorilla. The other gorilla roared and slapped Sheena. Sheena quickly recovered as Chris went over to help as Matt came out of the dust pile, panting.
"Are you okay?" Chris said, noticing Matt's torso was covered in dust.
"I'm….fine…." Matt said, "Where's my gun?"
The gorilla Sheena knocked out first got up and ran towards the gun. Cutter ran towards the gun too. Cutter jumped on the gun as the gorilla jumped on Matt. Chris tried to push the gorilla off but Matt turned around, tearing the right shoulder strap of his black tank top, and shot the gorilla on the cheek.
The other gorilla noticed his injured kin, punched Sheena to the ground, and charged at Cutter. Chris grabbed his rifle from his car and the gorilla grabbed Matt's collar and shoved him against the dust pile strong enough for the top of the pile to collapse onto both of them. In the melee, Sheena recovered from the punch with Chris next to her as the gorilla Matt shot in the cheek was holding it and ran into the jungle, where the orangutan, upon recovery, soon followed. Also in the melee, Matt slipped with his tank top torn to the chest, and the gorilla suffocated and choked by the dust, fell into the pile, dead. Cutter ran to Chris and Sheena.
"Are you okay?" Matt said.
"I'm fine. We need to head back to Cutter Unlimited, though." Sheena said.
The three of them watched each other's' backs as they went into their trucks. They got in, looked up, and drove off. Chim was at the top of a tree, unseen from the road. He saw glowing eyes in the distance, and gave a signal.
Back at Cutter Unlimited, Chris and Sheena were waiting outside of Matt's office. Matt came out shirtless, as he was wiping off from the shower he took and the last of the dust.
"That was close," Matt said, wiping his left shoulder before grabbing a clean tank top, "I don't know why they would target me though. Are we sure they aren't' rogues?"
"They did seem coordinated," Chris said, "As if someone or something was helping them."
"But, why would it affect this particular population?" Sheena said, "Rogues have indicators to let me know they are rogues. I can't indicate from what I saw, my eyes can't match them."
"I was watching how they were interacting as I was fighting them off," Chris said, "It's like they knew you could see into them or something."
"Who would know that to communicate to them?" Matt said, sitting down with a tank top in his elbows.
Sheena remembered something, paused, and went to the truck. Cutter and Chris didn't know what to make of it, but followed her out. Matt put on the new tank top on the way out and grabbed his hat as he came out to the busy, city street and saw Sheena holding something and tearing up.
"It's Chim."
"Chim?" Cutter said.
"After Shebatha was murdered, I befriended him. He was a very smart monkey. We were friends for five years. But, one day he wasn't there, and I read of scientists in the area doing life-saving medical work. I assumed he died, and I hated your civilization much more and had reason to. When I went to the trees of where he lived, all I saw was evidence of a fight, and some human materials left behind. One of them was for a lab in the mountain range where I live."
Sheena stopped mid-sentence. There was a rumble from the ground, but it wasn't an earthquake rumble. There was a crash heard in the distance. All of a sudden, people were running away and some were hiding in buildings. All three of them turned around and saw a stampede charging and destroying cars, trucks, and anything streetside in direction.
The three joined the crowd running while trying to take shelter where they could from the destruction. Matt was running and breathing hard, and he heard a scream of a child. A child was standing a few feet away from a charging rhino. Matt turned around and grabbed the child and started running. The child was okay and was touching Matt's bare, sweaty arms for comfort. He ran but couldn't see Chris and Sheena, as the stampede was still going and destruction still was taking place. He eventually found a tall building corner and ran towards that direction.
"My baby!" A woman yelled, running towards Cutter.
"She got stuck in the path. Here you go." Matt handed the child to the mother as he walked towards the street.
He heard a howl like a monkey and a roar like a gorilla. He pulled out his gun, and was amazed his safari hat was still on from that distance. As he peaked outside, he saw a trail of destruction. Not many buildings were damaged, but every automobile in sight was totaled, street poles and signals were bent and altered, and there was minor damage to several buildings, even though profound cracks presented themselves. No one was hurt. Still, he saw glowing eyes in a dark corner across the street. Matt lifted his gun.
"I don't want any trouble. I know about Chim. Did Chim cause all of this?"
The glowing eyes fell into the darkness. Matt lowered his gun for a second. All of a sudden, a gorilla jumped down from behind him and knocked Matt out. The gorilla then grabbed Matt and ran off with him to the jungles. His safari hat was left, and it blew towards the destructive path.
Sheena and Chris ran farther ahead of the stampede, but helped the people running to dissipate without getting injured. Then, Sheena jumped onto a building, took off her civilian clothes, and went into action to stop the stampede in its tracks. Chris moved towards the side to the best of his ability. Sheena was able to find long rope from a broken construction line and wrap it around two street lights before she held her hand up and then matched eyes with the elephant. The elephant caught her eyes and the two communicated. The elephant then stopped and swung itself towards the other animals. The other animals took heed and stopped. The animals then saw the jungle on the short side of the street and walked towards there.
By the time Chris came to where Sheena was, Sheena had cut the ropes and was in the center of the street, crying.
"What is wrong, Sheena?" Chris squatted down to where she was.
"It was Chim. It is Chim. The elephant told me everything. Chim's army scared the other animals and caused this destruction. Chim is out to get me, Chris."
Chris took his wife into his arms and held her through her tears. After a while, they got up and started walking back towards Cutter Unlimited, amid the destruction the stampede left in its path. A black safari hat blew close to Sheena's feet. She picked it up and smelled it.
"Cutter."
Cutter woke up on the ground, but all he saw was damp sunlight. His tank top was filthy and he was wet in sweat. He wasn't tied up, but he felt trapped. He tried finding walls to climb, but there were none there. Maybe he was in a dark depth of jungle.
"Matt Cutter." A voice said. Matt looked up and saw no one, not even glaring animal eyes.
"Who are you?" Matt said, standing up and trying to find his gun.
"It's not there, and neither is your knife. But you wanted to know who I am."
"Yes." Matt said, scanning his entire body for something sharp.
"The gorillas told me you do have something sharp, but you have yet to show me."
"How do you speak to the gorillas? Are you a rogue?"
"I am related to them, and unlike the serum I received, I can still understand the languages of my peers."
"What serum?"
"A company was doing some genetic testing. They needed animals. The scientists found a chemical that was natural in the jungle. They did not harvest it though. They kidnapped me from my home, and no one tried rescuing me. They injected me with this serum, and I responded violently."
"Who did you want to rescue you?"
"The scientists injected me with this naturally based serum, and I found myself talking. I also killed the scientists when I realized I could save my peers from human oppression."
"Chim?" Matt said, in astonishment.
"Now, I find out that the person whom I thought would rescue me was distracted and found another sidekick. No, I am not a rogue. But, I can see why you'd confuse me with one. I have no spirit anymore."
Matt stopped looking for the source of the voice. He just looked up, hoping to be rescued.
"You see, Matt Cutter, she'll come for the sidekick."
"Sheena." Matt said with purposeful centering.
"She'll never come for me."
The voice stopped. The sun was high. Matt looked up.
"Hello?"
A roaring gorilla jumped down and threw Matt against something. Matt got up but shrunk himself to not agitate the gorilla further. The gorilla grabbed Matt by his tank top collar and threw him to the other side of the hole. Matt got up and made brief eye contact. The gorilla's eyes were bright purple. The gorilla roared violently and charged at Matt. Matt bounced back from the gorilla and jammed his elbow into the gorilla's stomach. The gorilla grabbed Matt's shoulder before Matt swung a punch at the gorilla's face. The gorilla went down with a piece of Matt's tank top. Matt, assessing his lost shoulder strap, saw the gorilla's eyes close. Thinking he killed it, Matt looked at the eyes to see they were no longer purple.
A chimpanzee jumped on top of the gorilla and grabbed Matt's collar. The chimpanzee had a vial of what looked like a particular herb he didn't recognize. The chimpanzee shoved the vial into Matt's nostrils. Matt swatted the chimpanzee away as the chimpanzee did the same for the gorilla.
The gorilla awoke in a fury and grabbed Matt's whole body and threw it down again. Matt recovered but felt a huge rush of adrenaline in ways he never knew. He yelled a blood curdling yell, tore his sweaty tank top off and charged at the gorilla. With nothing but the strength of his body, Matt pulverized the gorilla who was openly attacking him back to no avail. After several attempted final blows, Matt sucker punched the gorilla down on the ground, grabbed him by the neck, and broke the gorilla's neck. He let out a monstrous yell before collapsing next to the gorilla.
Sheena and Chris were in the lower LaMistas where an abandoned scientific lab was. Chris and Sheena got out of the truck.
"This is where Chim was taken to. This is where I couldn't do anything. I was a teenager at the time. Kali and I walked here, but we found security too tight. She did not want to risk my life in danger, not when I wasn't ready. This was two years after Sibatha's death." Sheena was walking through the gate with Chris saying this.
Chris touched her left hand, which was beginning to tremble.
"I'm here."
"We're here to see what altered Chim, if we can find anything. Maybe even find an antidote."
Chris and Sheena walked into the laboratory. There was broken glass everywhere, along with rusted materials. They walked past a destroyed truck. Sheena spent a minute looking at the damages, but couldn't find any dents a gorilla would have made. She found corroded wires though, and they looked cut. They walked into old rooms. There was an office that looked unshaken by the ravages of time. The door was open, but nothing looked touched in a decade. Sheena sat at the desk while Chris watched the door.
"Find anything?"
"Outside of bills, reminders, and a calendar," Sheena started before uncovering a report, " 'Henbane as an Tool for the Study of Violent Behavior in Animals.'"
Sheena began to read about this study, it's funding and lack thereof. She read how because no animal husbandry had offered to help, they unfortunately used 'illegal means to acquire animals. She read about acquiring a family of chimpanzees and a couple of gorillas. She then read about adapting henbane to modify towards the intensity of a chimpanzee's immunity and that of a gorilla's immunity. She read about modifying the henbane to also include added intelligence to counter act the henbane's effects.
Sheena read aloud: "We are testing on an already intelligent chimpanzee today, who was and remains very resistant to our experiments. Though intelligent from tests, the chimpanzee distrusts us, almost like he distrusts all humans now."
Sheena put the report down, as there were many more pages.
"What did you find?"
"Genetic testing with a violent herb."
Sheena took the report with her and her and Chris continued exploring the abandoned laboratory. The two entered an already open laboratory with the same amount of damage. There were broken beakers and equipment strewn through the lab. There were marks of something unexplainable on the floors. There were open cages.
"Sheena, come look at this!" Chris said, after noticing something in the corner of his eye and in the farther reaches of the laboratory floor.
There was an herb garden still alive, but next to the herb garden was a dried pool of blood and a painting of blood on the walls, leading to a collection of skeletons. One of them was holding something.
Sheena opened the report. She continued reading about testing the various effects on the chimpanzee and finding that the chimpanzee became addicted. Vials of the herbal intelligence booster were reported stolen. The other chimpanzees and gorillas were beginning to act out too.
Sheena read aloud: "We realize the dangers of henbane modification and combining it with intelligence boosters. We initially wanted to understand by easing it along. I'm afraid it will be the death of us. Today is our last test, and I will begin on an antidote. I'm afraid the monkeys will take to it violently."
Sheena and Chris looked at each other. They understood without saying. Sheena went to the skeletons and grabbed the vial. They also grabbed excess of the henbane.
Chim saw the fight between Cutter and the gorilla. His peers communicated to him how having a human on the force be good for the general advancement. Chim told them that he cannot be turned against Sheena, and that luring her to them through Cutter only to find Cutter joining them will lose her completely. He said henbane is known to have violent effects on human beings as it was studied and recorded in history. Chim said that drugging Cutter is a form of submissiveness and that they needed him a low fighting capacity. Chim commanded that one of his chimpanzee peers grab Matt's torn tank top and drop it off. One of the chimps did just that. There were chimps in a down area of branches, leaves, and dirt, and Matt laid on the ground, passed out from the henbane.
When Matt Cutter woke up, he couldn't see. He was sweaty and muddy, but he couldn't make it out. Some of the chimps were on the branches around him. He rubbed his eyes as often as possible. He could feel the hot sweat dripping on his chest. He rolled up to standing. He started feeling around.
"Where am I?" He moved his body where he heard a noise. "Who was that? Chim?"
Two chimps decided to shove Cutter on his chest.
"Stop that!"
The two chimps moved and shoved him on his sweaty back.
"Stop that!"
The two chimps played around with Cutter until Cutter tried grabbing a chimpanzee by the neck before a gorilla pushed Matt from the back and straight into the dirt. He heard a snap of fingers. The chimps and gorilla cleared out and Chim sat next to Cutter's head.
"The temporary blindness wears off in another minute."
Matt got up and felt his front half completely dirty. Matt blinked repeatedly for a minute. Chim sat there in peace. When Matt was able to see clearly, he saw Chim. Matt posed defensively.
"We have no plans on killing you, Matt Cutter, we need you as bait."
"Who do you plan to kill?"
"I think you know."
"Why Sheena?"
"She left me. I was her sidekick. I was kidnapped. My entire family was kidnapped. Sheena could have saved me, but she didn't. She found you."
Chim tripped Matt and he fell on the ground again. Chim climbed on Matt's torso and put a knife to Matt's neck.
"You will not suffer the same fate Sheena left me too. I could kill you like I killed the scientists who tested something on me. Instead, I will leave you to your wares." Chim opened a vial of the henbane compound and whiffed it under Matt's nose.
"You already killed one of my gorillas. Let's see if you embrace the spirit within you."
Chim left and the head of the gorilla was still next to Matt as he got up. Matt felt a rush of adrenaline rage and he grabbed his pant legs and tore them off his legs, leaving his belt loop and a semblance of shorts. He picked up the gorilla head and tore through its jaw and fashioned a pelt and roared like a gorilla would. He then grabbed his shoes and threw them at the chimps on the branches, who scurried away. The gorilla that was with then felt threatened but Chim advised the gorilla to not engage. Chim climbed up the branched opening as Matt was raging with the henbane mixture. Eventually, Matt swatted at the branches to the point where they cracked. An entire pile of branches fell around him and on him. Matt was buried under the branches.
"He'll come out. He always does."
Matt was buried in the branches. The henbane was still running through his veins. He climbed through the branches, his shoulders getting scratches from the wood. No bleeding though, as the henbane protected against the bleeding. Finally, he popped out of the branch pile and saw he was in a dark corner of the jungle. However, the henbane caused all the energy to drop quickly in hot sunlight. Matt fainted headfirst into the dirt and leaves.
"Restrain him." Chim advised.
Sheena and Chris were at their laboratory with the report and the genetically modified henbane. They were testing and testing, but to no avail. Mendlesohn pulled up in Matt's jeep and banged on the door. Chris opened it.
"Mendlesohn, what's going on?"
"Hi Chris," Mendlesohn walked in and made his way towards the laboratory. He found Sheena and slapped a wet rag on the table, "This is part of Cutter's tank top I found with a note. I don't know if you forgot that every day I don't see Cutter, I don't get paid."
"I know it's been three days, but Chris and I are about ready with an antidote. What does the note say?"
"To get him back, we ask for Sheena," Mendlesohn read aloud, "Unless you want to see Cutter die, then you are no good as to how you left Chim."
Sheena stopped what she was doing. Tears weld up in her eyes, and she went outside. Chris followed her, leaving Mendlesohn calming his former frustration. Chris went outside and saw Sheena crying in the corner. He came over and kissed the back of her neck.
"Sheena?"
"Chim kidnapped Cutter to make up for the fact that I left him. I was going to rescue him, but I was young. I wasn't the Darakn'a yet. Now, who knows if Cutter is even alive if all I have is a part of his wet tank top."
"Cutter is alive," Chris said, holding the torn cloth, "this is still wet in sweat. It's dirty too. You can save him."
"I can't save him without you."
"You have to, because Cutter might die if you don't. You have to face your fear."
The two kissed. The two started making out. Mendlesohn stepped on a branch and the two stopped.
"Sorry Mendlesohn, this whole ordeal has been rough."
"More important question, did you two find an antidote?"
"Sheena, dear, we have one more trial to do this afternoon, then you are going to put the antidote into your sack and rescue Cutter." Sheena nodded her head and wiped away her tears.
Mendlesohn gave a subtle smile.
"I'm sorry if my frustration was harsh. I didn't want to replay two years ago again."
"It wasn't harsh. Chris and I have been up mostly all night for the past couple of nights working on an antidote. The only thing we could do was genetically unmodify the henbane solution the original scientists worked on to retarding the original effects. We have tested this on other herbs, but we have one more test."
"We only change clothes to match the time of the hour." Chris said.
"Then, after this test, rest, both of you. Then save Cutter."
The two did just that. Mendlesohn went back to Cutter Unlimited. Chris and Sheena tested and the results were positive. They put the antidote in two vials. They went to bed once they were done.
Matt could feel heat once again on his back and sides as he opened his eyes to find himself restrained in the trees. He had a minor headache but could not touch his face nor wiggle his legs. The sweat on his bare back wasn't enough either. Matt was glad to move his head at most. Chim was to Matt's right, but Matt didn't know it.
"I'm glad to see you awake. With the henbane we gave you, I was uncertain whether you'd survive the dosage."
"Chim, why are you doing this?"
"I told you why. Now you will be left to watch as my peer army kills Sheena in front of you."
Matt looked at Chim angrily and tried tugging at the tight vines. Chim slapped Matt across the face, punched him on his mouth and near his eyes, and bruised Matt's right knee.
"SHEEENNNNNNAAA!" Matt yelled, causing a swarm of birds to fly.
"That should keep you." Chim said, climbing down the tree.
Matt growled in his pain.
"SHEENA!" Matt yelled. "SHEENA!"
Sheena and Chris were already on their way to where they believed Cutter was being held. They heard him in the distance. Sheena was already in her jungle gear. Chris was in a more subdued safari outfit. The two got out of their car, separated, and went around. The shouting stopped, and Sheena gave Chris a look that it might have been too late. The two continued scoping. A drop of sweat fell on Chris' gun.
"Cutter?"
Matt looked up then looked down and saw Sheena and Chris. Matt tugged at the ropes but they were too tight.
"Help me out of this," Matt said. "Before Chim and his army come back."
Chris and Sheena started climbing the trees that Cutter was attached to. Sheena pulled out her knife and Chris had his out and were starting to cut. As they each got one completely cut, a loud chimpanzee scream was heard and chimpanzees jumped on Chris and Sheena. Sheena threw the chimpanzees off as did Chris, but Sheena lost her balance and fell down to the ground. The other chimpanzees jumped off of Chris to attack Sheena. Matt pulled on the rope Sheena mostly cut and the rope snapped. One of his arms was free. Chris was quickly trying to cut so Matt would be completely free.
On the ground, Sheena was fighting off chimpanzees while trying to look at them in the eyes to communicate to them. They dodged her glances and attacked her. She finally fought most of them off, knocking them cold. She didn't want to hurt them. One of them could have been Chim.
"Chim!" Sheena shouted, "You've wanted to fight me for so long, where are you?"
A loud roar was heard and before Sheena could turn around a crowd of gorillas charged at her, knocking her down and throwing her against the ground and the trees. Sheena got hit in the head, but wasn't bleeding as she tried to hold down a gorilla in the same way she tried to hold down the chimpanzees to the same success. The gorillas kept attacking her and tossing her around.
"We have to do something!" Matt said, as Chris was cutting the last of the ropes around Matt's left leg. "She is getting hurt."
Sheena was rebounding as much as she could. She realized she couldn't fight them the way she was fighting them, but she was also getting exhausted. Two gorillas were about to attack from her right and left side. Before they could charge her, Chris and Cutter jumped on them and started fighting them off. The other gorillas started attacking Cutter and Chris as the two started fighting them off the best way they could. Sheena was able to regain her strength and join in, before the chimpanzees recovered and started in on the brawl between humanity and monkeys. Cutter, Chris, and Sheena fought off as much as they could given their states.
"Enough!" a voice said. The gorillas and chimpanzees stopped fighting and held Cutter, Sheena, and Chris' hands behind their back and forced them on the ground kneeling. A chimpanzee jumped down from the highest tree and walked towards them.
"Chim?" Sheena said.
"Yes, Sheena, it's me. I knew you'd come back for your sidekick. You never came back for me."
"That's not true!"
"Who is this other person with you?"
"He's my husband."
"Take the husband and Cutter and dispose of them." The gorillas dragged them away.
"No! Chim, don't do this, please! I'm here. It's what you wanted, right? Revenge?"
"Revenge will be the death of your husband and your sidekick. The same way my family died when hunters and scientists took my family away and eventually me. The same way you abandoned me after I was kidnapped and didn't save me."
"Chim, Kali and I tried to come back for you. I was too young to fight you and Kali didn't want to endanger me. The lab was too secure and too protected. I realized I could have saved you when I got older, but it hurt me to think you were gone forever. Cutter and Chris have nothing to do with the pain and hurt I caused you. Please, let me go. I know about the henbane. I know about how you killed those who harmed you. I don't want to harm you."
Chim took out a hunting knife and pointed it at Sheena's neck. Sheena looked in fear he was going to kill her.
In the meantime, Cutter and Chris were dragged towards a rocky river edge. Cutter and Chris were gesturing to themselves a potential escape plan. Cutter was a sweaty, dirty shirtless mess and Chris' sweat soaked through his safari clothes. The two stood in front of a steep, rocky ledge as there were gorillas behind them with big rocks. The two were freed from the hand tie and pushed in front of the gorillas. As the two gorillas with rocks were starting to lower them to kill them, Matt and Chris jabbed the gorillas in the stomach and ducked out of the way as the rocks fell and then rolled the gorillas down the ledge to their deaths. The other gorillas charged but Chris threw Matt Sheena's knife and the two stabbed the other gorillas. Another gorilla who was guarding the action attacked Chris and shoved him off the ledge. Chris held on tight to a branch though as his knife fell where he saw carcasses and skeletons. Chris climbed the tree to see Cutter above the gorilla who shoved him whom was also stabbed.
"We have to save Sheena." Matt said, panting through the sweat and the dirt. The two ran back to find Chim pointing a hunting knife and Sheena. Sheena looked like she was about to cry.
"Chim, please don't do this. I don't want to harm you. I'm sorry for leaving you. I'm sorry for not being there to save your family. I'm sorry for not saving you. I'm sorry I didn't come back to save you when I was able. I'm sorry that the henbane modified herb you were given destroyed you as well as amplified your intelligence. I'm sorry it made you hate all humans. I'm sorry."
Chim grunted like the chimpanzee he still was.
"I can help you. Chris and I found an antidote from the original laboratory. It can cure you and make you you again. All you have to do is take it. Please, let one of us give it to you." Sheena took out the vial from her boot.
"Someone must pay, Sheena."
"You've paid, Chim. You've paid the most."
Chim lowered the hunting knife. Sheena touched his shoulder. His mouth opened and she put the vial's contents in his mouth. Chim directed the hunting knife towards himself.
"I'm sorry Sheena. It's not your fault anymore. It's been all of mine." Chim stabbed himself and fell to the ground. The other gorillas and chimpanzees came out and saw their leader die in Sheena's arms. Cutter and Chris saw too.
"Talk to them, tell them the truth. I…." Chim's language suddenly came back to regular chimpanzee. Chim let out a last noise and died. Sheena looked up to Chris and Cutter and was crying.
Chris came over to comfort her. Matt walked over too, guarding the moment and keeping vigilant towards the other animals there.
Sheena found a way to talk to the other gorillas and chimpanzees, and arranged a burial for Chim close by. The gorillas and chimpanzees made peace and went their separate ways. Sheena, Chris, and Cutter went back to the laboratory where Chim was experimented on and spent the next week making sure the families of the deceased knew what happened, and that any operating scientific equipment was reused for good and away from the area. It was decided that the laboratory be burned down in a controlled fire. Sheena, Kali, Cutter, and Chris all attended the burning.
Three months later, Cutter was told that Sheena was in the same area that Chim died. He walked over and sat next to her as she was sitting in a kneeled position.
"Cutter, I didn't see you."
"No, I didn't want to be seen. I just wanted to check on you."
"Why do you think Chim killed himself?
"Oh, Sheena…."
"I'm asking honestly, Cutter, why do you think Chim killed himself? Please don't patronize my feelings."
"I don't know Sheena. It's hard when you have seen the world and all you see is how you destroyed it for others. I felt that way when I killed that innocent in the CIA. I couldn't live with myself. I moved here to escape myself. Chim couldn't escape himself."
"He took the antidote."
"Yes, in his final moments, he wanted to be innocent again, before the corruption. I wish I could have the chance again."
"What would it take you?"
"I don't know, Sheena, I don't know."
Sheena got up and walked away. Cutter looked at her just to make sure she was okay. He knew in his heart she was not, and wouldn't be for a while.
