It has been a couple of days since Blue Eyes had left the protection and safety of the woods, still keeping to the shadows and what available vegetation for cover. Traveling by foot alone was an arduous, as well as dangerous task for a lone ape. Especially one without a horse to help ease his burden along the journey, where danger could spring out without notice. Even if he has traveled before, there are still so many dangers out in the world that Blue Eyes did not know. That, and all the wonders as well. But he had to carry on, should he ever get back to their new home in one piece.
During his travels, Blue Eye was lucky enough to have not come across anything that would be too troublesome to him. He had seen several wolves and other predators in the distance but those creatures were too busy hunting their own prey in the wild to pay any attention to him, thankfully.
And he would like to keep it that way. Wisely staying to the shadows and foliage, rather than drawing any attention at all.
During his travels, Blue Eyes had come across fields that had various rows of trees bearing fruit and vegetables. Cautiously, Blue Eyes quickly glanced about his vicinity, knowing well that with the way that the vegetation was grown like this, was definitely the work of humans. However, the more he looked around the area, the more he noticed that there was not a single human that was tending to the care of the trees or rest of the vegetation. It was rather quiet, save for the chirps and songs that came from various birds.
Wherever the humans were supposed to be here tending to the vegetation, has long since abandoned this place.
Although, seeing this as an opportunity for sure, Blue Eyes still took the necessary precautions of scouting out the perimeter, just in case. After quietly sneaking around the orchard he came upon some dilapidated homes that would usually house the humans. While cautiously checking the interior of the old homes, Blue Eyes only found them to be strewn about and abandoned.
Looking up at some of the walls of the abandoned homes, Blue Eyes could see old faded pictures, containing smiling humans. Walking to some of them, he could see that this home contained several individuals, all looking so happy. Of course, those were bygone days and these humans may not be around anymore.
Thinking on the pictures though, Blue Eyes couldn't help but be reminded of the individuals within his life. He pined to be within their embraces again and was sick of traveling alone. So, pushing those feelings down for now, Blue Eyes quietly left the old home and made his way back to the orchard.
Taking a moment to rest, Blue Eyes spent some time picking out any of the fruits and vegetables that were readily available to him. Knowing well that this journey was going to take quite some time, he would best be prepared as much as possible. Once he had gathered what was enough to be carried without causing any burden to himself, Blue Eyes left the area to continue on his journey.
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"You should be resting."
With a single blink, Caesar was brought back from his thoughts and into his body. Slowly turning away from the window he could see Ellie standing by the doorframe to the room.
"Is something the matter?" Ellie had asked as she quietly crossed the room, standing next to the chimpanzee.
Caesar shook his head side to side slowly in response to the woman.
"No, just… thinking." Caesar said quietly as he set his gaze back out into the starry night sky.
"I see," Ellier responded in relief before she relaxed her posture. " Is there anything I can help with?" she asked.
Caesar thought on Ellie's offer and looked at the woman. He could see the sincerity within her gaze as she stared back at him, wanting nothing more than to help him and the others. Why, why were there no more humans that were like Ellie and her family? Who would go out of their way to make peace instead of destruction. Just like the Colonel and his many followers. But nature in both humans and apes is a fickle thing and could abruptly change at any second, like the speed of a small fire into a giant inferno.
"No. You all already have done enough. Found us and kept us safe. Saved me from dying.. And I thank you."
A small breath escaped from the woman who simply nodded once back towards Caesar's words.
"You're welcome. It's the least we can do," Ellie responded.
There was another brief moment of quiet as Caesar had directed his attention to the stars once more, pondering on his thoughts again. Again, he was very grateful for their human friend's hospitality but they needed to get moving again soon. There were too many factors that might go on and Caesar did not want to risk their friends and wanted to get back to his son as fast as he could.
Caesar knew naught how long he stood there but noticed that Ellie did not leave his side, as if she were keeping watch over him. Taking a second to glance at the woman, he could see that she was quietly staring at the opposite side of the room. Curiously, Caesar followed Ellie's gaze and could see that she was watching Koba sleeping soundlessly in one of the chairs.
"He has been very tired," Caesar explained. "With what has happened, I am not surprised."
"Well, that and other factors too," Ellie responded, catching Caesar's attention. "When we found you. All of you. We were at a loss for words when we saw your conditions. What those soldiers did to you all. It's unimaginable. But… going back to the story at hand. You had lost so much blood, there was little else that we could have done for you."
At this point, Ellie had paused and returned her gaze back to the sleeping ape, a small smile to her lips.
"However, someone wouldn't give up on you."
Caesar looked back and forth from the woman and to the sleeping bonobo. He had remembered Maurice letting him know that they were found by their friends when he had woken up prior. However, as to the exact details of what happened during his state of unconsciousness, he was not quite informed of what they were.
"What happened?"
Ellie shifted her gaze back to Caesar and her smile seemed to have grown more softly upon her features.
"Well, let's just say that if it weren't for Koba there, who knows what would have happened. When he had overheard what your condition was and how it was impossible for us to provide you with more blood that would be compatible with an ape, Koba was the one to immediately offer himself as a donor. Of course, this is no surprise as you've done so for him before but with the amount that was needed, it was very risky. However, Koba didn't care. Only as long as you lived, he would give himself up for you."
Hearing this, Caesar couldn't help but let his gaze wander back to Koba, seeing the scarred bonobo sleeping there. When hearing what Ellie had told him, Caesar was reminded of that strange dream that he had, with a red string that was embedded within both his and Koba's arms. Was that supposed to be where he got the blood from, that kept him alive? In that dream, Caesar could clearly remember seeing Koba there, who begged him to wake up and not leave him. Asking him to stay.
And Caesar had given his word.
Looking down at his arm, Caesar could see the bandage there, where most likely the intravenous line had transferred Koba's blood into him, saving him.
"He would have done anything to save you. Even at the cost of his own."
Hearing Ellie's words, Caesar's eyes darted back to the bonobo and feeling a gentle warmth blooming from within his chest.
"Yes, I know," Caesar responded.
"Of course, I was not going to choose one over the other but am just happy that we were able to save you, without the cost of another," Ellie sighed.
The woman had let her gaze wander out towards the starry sky before letting them fall onto the chimpanzee at her side once more.
"He cares for you, Caesar. Very much so," Ellie said quietly between the both of them, with only the chimpanzee slowly nodding in return.
Ellie knew that Caesar was processing a lot of information and feelings at the current moment. So, she gently placed a comforting hand upon her friend's shoulder.
"Don't think too much about it, alright? Promise me you'll get some rest?"
At Ellie's words, Caesar continued to silently nod trying to not let his emotions spill over. Seemingly satisfied with his response, Caesar watched as Ellie quietly left the room, leaving the two apes there.
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About sometime later Blue Eyes had found himself kneeling by a creekbed, refilling his canteen of water. It had run out a little while ago and thankfully, he happened to come across a small stream that ran through the area that he was in. It wasn't exactly the most ideal location for him but being surrounded by tall grass did help a bit. So, he took the necessary time to catch his breath and restore on the precious life giving liquid.
Reaching into the backpack, Blue Eyes fiddled through the various objects within until he took out a strange looking package of some sort. It crinkled and made noise as he flipped it back once before turning it back to the front. It was clearly see through and it looks like it contained what looked like pieces of dried meat within. Remembering how the humans would open these strange containers, Blue Eyes took one end of the bag and pulled the two flaps apart until one side was opened fully. Reaching in, he then took a piece and plopped it into his mouth. The meat was chewy and salty, but not too bad. Once he was done with the first piece, Blue Eyes took another one.
While he sat there, Blue Eyes took a moment to ponder to himself, allowing his mind to wander. It was mindfully taxing to keep one's guard up all the time, so this brief respite was much needed for him as he took a moment to rest.
At the moment, Blue Eyes couldn't help himself as his thoughts had wandered back to his friends and family. He once again wondered how they were all faring. Was his father and younger brother doing well at their new home? Was Ash and his family okay? He can't wait to see all of them again, hoping to see their smiling faces and possibly welcome him back into their arms.
Especially Lake's own, his dearly beloved.
Oh, how much his heart ached and longed to be with her touched-starved of her sweet and tender affections.
With a small huff, Blue Eyes snapped out of his trance and looked around his surroundings, finding himself still by the creek bed. Letting out an annoyed huff, Blue Eyes cursed himself for losing himself to his thoughts again and quickly finished his meal. Capping the top of his canteen and throwing it back into the bag, Blue Eyes swung the backpack onto himself once more.
Blue Eyes had only but taken a couple of steps and stopped when he heard the sounds of something clicking nearby. Without a second thought, Blue Eyes quickly ducks down as something fires off from nearby. Flying over his head and missing him by mere inches. Scrambling back onto his feet and knuckles, Blue Eyes darted off into the tall grass, just as shouting and hollers erupted from around him. Running blindly through the foliage, Blue Eyes didn't know exactly where he was going but made an effort to get as far away as possible from the noises behind him. This was a dangerous situation that he did not want to be in and needed to get out of there, fast.
Running through the tall grass, Blue Eyes darted around, hoping to confuse his chasers. Unfortunately for him, there were no trees for him to climb onto for safety. So, he had no choice but to continue running forward on the ground.
Like a speeding bullet, Blue Eyes launched right out of the tall grass and continued bounding forward. Taking a second to glance backward, he could see several of the human figures running out of the tall grass as well, all of them shouting at each other, knowing that they had lost him. Blue Eyes' hope was only short lived as one of the humans had spotted him and quickly altered the others. Growling in frustration, he bounded across the land with more vigor, in hopes that he would be able to distance himself enough from his aggressors.
Further and further Blue Eyes was able to bound away from his chasers and towards safety. Thankfully, they did not have any weapons, other than that strange contraption that was shot at him earlier. Otherwise, he would have been shot dead.
Just as he crested the next hillside, Blue Eyes' heart stopped when he saw several more humans in front of him. Skidding to a halt, he was just about to dart off to the side until something was shot right at him. Blue Eyes was not prepared to brace himself as the object-a net-knocked him off of his feet, sending him tumbling down backwards. Yelling and struggling within the bindings, Blue Eyes tried his best to desperately get himself free. Fear fired from within his chest and he needed to get out immediately, lest these humans kill him. Try as he might though, the rope was too strong and kept him bound.
At that very moment, Blue Eyes remembered that he had the knife that was set onto the front strap of his backpack. Reaching up towards the object, he tried to unsheath the blade. As he did so, however, Blue Eyes heard approaching footsteps, causing him to look up from where he was. And then the last thing that he saw was the butt end of a weapon, striking him in the face.
