Attar was torn. He really should go home, get some sleep, maybe a shower But he wasn't sure he could just leave Ulysses alone. What if someone came and took him? Pacing restlessly around the room Attar went over his options. He could just be paranoid and if that was the case he should just leave. If not then what. He could some guards but he still felt uneasy leaving the human. Too bad he couldn't take him home with him. Even if he got permission Attar knew how impractical and unsafe it would be to take the human out of the lab. Picking up the phone Attar dialed Thade's number and waited impatiently until he picked up.
"Thade here."
" Thade, its Attar, listen I need a favor. I really need to go home, just for a quick shower and a change of clothes but I don't want to leave Ulysses so could you come down and watch over him while I'm gone?" All this came out in a rush and there was a pause on the phone as Thade tried to process what Attar had just said.
"Ummm, yeah, I can do that, just give me a me a second to gather up some things, I'll be right down." Attar released the breath he hadn't even been aware he'd been holding a hurried to gather up some of his own materials before Thade came down.
Slowly Leo came awake. The first thing he was aware of was the various aches and pains all over his body. His back especially hurt. Well, getting squeezed like a go-gurt couldn't be good for a person. Next Leo noticed how silent it was in the room. Usually when he woke up it was to lots of noise, lots of apes. Opening bleary eyes Leo struggled to take in his surroundings. Man, what kind of drugs had Attar given him? Blinking to bring the room into focus Leo fought against the effects of the drugs. Attar didn't seem to be in the room, in fact, the lab looked empty. Movement out of the corner of his eye caused him to whip his head around and adrenaline to surge through his body. An ape was sitting hunched over a desk, but the ape's body was too small to be Attar. Fear raced through him. It was Thade. Leo must have made some noise or movement because Thade looked up and right into his eyes. "Well, well. Looks like our little man finally woke up." Getting up from his chair Thade strolled over to his cage and crouched down by the bars. "How ya feeling?" Leo just looked at him. Thade had never addressed questions to him before. He looked like he really expected answers too. What had changed? Vague memories drifted into Leo's head. He remembered lots of yelling, apes yelling, then Attar's gentle voice. Attar's voice asking him questions. Leo paled. Questions he had answered. Warily he backed away from Thade. "What, no answers for me?" Thade's eyes went from inquisitive to hard and flat. "I know you can understand me, at least a little. What I need to know is how much."
Quicker than Leo's drug addled eye could follow Thade had whipped open the cage and was tugging him out. "Let's go human. I need some answers and I need them now, or you're done for." Absolute terror chased away the last of the drugs in Leo's system. He remembered what happened when Thade got angry. Leo allowed himself to be dragged out of his cage. He needed room to maneuver if he was going to fight. Thade seemed to read his mind because he grinned and backed up a little. "Go ahead and try and fight little man, but don't forget you're still chained up." Leo turned his head to look at where Thade was pointing and was caught off guard when Thade swung one meaty paw at his head. The blow sent him sprawling and struggling to remain conscious. Thade bent down and picked him up by the throat. "Do you understand what I'm asking human? I need to know if you can talk, think, reason like any ape. If you can't, you're likely to 'disappear,' if you get my drift. So answer me, can you do those things?" Thade's hard brown eyes bored into Leo's as his hand tightened until Leo's vision started to go black. Almost imperceptibly Leo nodded his head.
Just then the door opened and Attar walked in. "Thade!" Attar was shocked to see his best friend and most trusted ally, strangling Ulysses. Immediately Thade dropped the human who slumped to the floor, coughing.
Putting his hands up Thade tried to explain. "Now wait just one minute Attar. I had to, we need answers and he has them. We couldn't wait until he trusted us enough to tell us, we don't have that kind of time." Attar just stood there, looking utterly betrayed. "He's fine Attar, really and now we have the surefire answer to keeping him safe. Don't you see Attar, I had to know." Attar's surprise had started to turn to anger now.
"Did it ever occur to you to just ask?! No wonder he doesn't trust apes, look how he's been treated since he arrived!" Attar clenched his big paws into tight fists to keep himself from hitting Thade. "Well, was it worth it Thade? Did attacking a defenseless human give you the answers you need?" Attar advanced on Thade, shaking with anger. "Was the answer worth betraying your friends trust?" Thade was getting angry in return.
"You don't understand Attar! The higher-ups are getting ready to make their move, to nab the human and pass of the whole crash landing as an experiment we were conducting. Now we have something concrete enough to go to the press with and protect him!"
Leo lay still on the ground, ironically forgotten in the fight. As he listened to Thade and Attar argue he started to understand. He had kept quiet for fear of standing out more than he already had. If they figured he was just a dumb human involved in an experiment he had had a better chance of escaping. But it was coming clear to him that by keeping silent he was in more danger. Drawing a deep breath he interrupted the apes. "Thade's right. This is my only chance." Leo hated that his voice came out sounding ragged and weak. Both apes stopped and stared at him. Leo was suddenly aware that he was naked and he hurt. Thade had certainly done a number on him, again. Gingerly he tried to get to his feet but swayed and would have fallen if not for Attar's supporting arms. As he fell into blackness Leo felt irritated that he couldn't seem to stay conscious very long around all these apes.