Maurice
They found the 'human zoo' in the afternoon the next day, staying a safe distance away from it, perched on top of a nearby mountain outcrop as the snow fell thickly all around them.
The place was bustling with activity – human activity – though even with the binoculars, it was hard to tell whether or not these were the humans they were looking for.
The vehicles and uniforms seemed to fit, but with the knowledge that another army from up north was coming to meet the Colonel's, Caesar soon opted to go down for a closer look, taking Luca with him as back-up.
Maurice didn't much like that idea, and if the look on Lydia's face told the orangutan anything, it was that she liked it even less. Especially when Caesar turned to Rocket next.
"Keep them safe." The Ape King had softly ordered his second-in-command, to which the balding ape had chittered in concern, but otherwise offered no further protest on the matter.
The quick glance in Lydia's direction didn't go unnoticed by the aging orangutan's keen gaze, though he was relieved to find that it seemed to be a look of reassurance rather than preparation for an argument.
Lydia must have recognised this as well, for she kept quiet and subtly nodded at the Ape King in response.
All in all, the two had been less tense around one another for the last day and a half, and though the wise, elder ape could make a few qualified guesses as to what had brought on this change, he pointedly chose to ignore that inclination altogether. He didn't want to assume anything.
He was just relieved to have found that this awkward tension that had permeated the atmosphere in the group had finally gone away. It had been excruciating, to say the least.
Rocket hoisted his gun onto his arm and nodded as Caesar and Luca turned to leave, stealthily making their way further down the rocky mountainside to get a closer look at what the soldiers were doing down below.
Storm whimpered at their departure, not liking for the 'pack' to be split up – at least that was the explanation Lydia had given.
But after the initial separation, even she had to admit that the dog seemed uncharacteristically anxious, prowling back and forth with her tail low but still wagging, seemingly very interested in the camp down below.
And after about half an hour or so, a timespan wherein the snowfall had intensified, and the sky had darkened considerably, Lydia herself became just as agitated, convinced that something was wrong for her dog to continue this odd behaviour.
That's when Rocket hooted lowly at them, with an urgency that told Lydia and Maurice to stay alert.
Before they could inquire as to what was wrong, the balding ape had turned and handed Lydia his gun, not even bothering to explain the reason behind his actions before he bolted down the same path Luca and Caesar had taken just a few moments prior.
Maurice laid a heavy hand on Lydia's arm as she attempted to follow the chimp.
"Stay, Lydia. Trust them." He implored in sign before discreetly eyeing the girl and Bad Ape, who were both watching the exchange with large, curious eyes. "You are needed here."
For a moment he didn't think she would listen, what with the way her head turned to stare concernedly in the direction the other apes had disappeared, biting her lip in what Maurice interpreted as deep anxiety.
He was anxious too, he wouldn't deny that – but while large and several times stronger than any human male, Maurice wasn't a fighter. Wasn't a warrior.
But Lydia was, and she was needed here in the absence of the others.
Finally, the woman turned her head back to him and nodded, although reluctantly, and Maurice breathed a sigh of relief and gratitude as she sat beside him.
There was an uneasy silence from that point on, in which Maurice desperately wanted to say something, anything, to distract both Lydia, Bad Ape and the little girl. But it was hard to do when his own mind was so preoccupied with everything – what they had found, what it meant and what they were going to do about it. What Caesar was going to do about it.
Part of Maurice had hoped that they would never find the soldiers again. That the border base would be abandoned, and the Colonel's trail would be forever lost in the snow. That, eventually, the Ape King would give up on his endeavour to get revenge and accept that the humans were gone.
But as it had been proven to Maurice so many times before, nothing was ever that simple.
Which only became all the clearer in the most horrific way as Caesar, Rocket and Luca returned, the latter practically being carried up the slope by the other two, huffing out strained breaths.
"Oh no…" Lydia spoke, her voice all but a silent gasp of dread.
She was the first to get up and hurry over, followed shortly by Maurice himself, Bad Ape and the girl.
Luca was laid down on the ground as everyone crowded around him, horrified at the obvious, deep stab wound between his ribs, the injury bleeding profusely and staining the pristinely white snow beneath him.
Storm began whimpering again, head low as she inched close to Luca to lick at his fingers. He only briefly acknowledged the canine, brushing his large hand over her head once before returning his attention to the Ape King standing over him, cradling the gorilla's head.
His huffing was getting shallower by the second.
"At least this time… I was able to protect you." He signed with difficulty, though it only seemed to enhance the distraught look on the Ape King's face as he stared down at Luca.
Maurice had laid his arm around the little girl's shoulders in an attempt to comfort her, wanting more than anything else to shield this innocent child from this, but was struck by worry and surprise as she went closer to kneel beside Luca, across from Caesar.
And then she began crying, tears trailing down her cheeks with a look of pure sorrow on her small face as she took the flower resting behind her ear and placed it by Luca's instead.
It broke Maurice's heart to watch as he sat down beside her.
Vaguely, the orangutan was aware of a soft sniffling and small, strained breaths behind them and knew without a doubt that Lydia was crying too, if more discreetly than her smaller counterpart.
But cry she did, and the distinct sound of crunching footsteps which immediately followed told Maurice that Rocket had stepped over to comfort her – Caesar clearly wasn't going to, after all.
No, he was staring at the girl instead, a mixture of sorrow, slight confusion and surprise on his face at the affectionate scene between the human child and the dying gorilla. Would this be what it would take to finally make Caesar understand what she was – or more importantly, what she wasn't?
It seemed a needlessly cruel lesson to Maurice, who pulled the girl away once Luca's breathing ceased, his gruff face relaxed as the pain – and his life – slowly left him.
The child continued to cry as the elderly orangutan laid his large arm around her shoulders, squeezing her gently in a comforting manner before he turned his attention to the Ape King.
"Caesar…" He signed after having gained the chimp's attention with a gentle huff. "This must stop… It's not too late to join the other apes."
But even as he said it, the look in Caesar's eyes, deadly beneath his heavy brow, told Maurice that his king wouldn't listen.
But he had to try anyway.
"We cannot turn back! Luca gave his life!" Rocket argued, his dark face indignant and hurt by the notion.
Maurice knew it wouldn't sit well with the balding ape to turn back any more than it would Caesar, but the two of them possessed a warrior's sense of honour that Maurice simply didn't. Yes, Luca had sacrificed his life, but he would have done so no matter the threat to Caesar's life – be it a vicious bear on a hunt or the cunning, deadly soldiers they had found here. It had been his duty as a gorilla guard and he had known that it might happen when they had all first set out with the Ape King.
It could have happened to any of them. To Rocket, to Maurice himself – even to Lydia.
And speaking of the woman, why wasn't she saying anything? If anyone could convince Caesar to turn back now, Maurice suspected it would be her… Right? The two of them had reconciled, hadn't they?
But looking back over his shoulder, Maurice found the woman, still with fresh, wet streaks of tears down her pale cheeks, staring with trepidation at her secret mate.
Waiting, watching – not saying anything.
But then he realised that she was trying. Trying to catch Caesar's eye. To capture his gaze and hold it hostage until he would cave.
But it wasn't working. Caesar seemed to know what she was trying to do, because he pointedly avoided her gaze. Avoiding the sway he undoubtedly knew she held over him.
And Maurice knew that he would do so even if Lydia spoke to him.
"Please…!" The orangutan begged again as he turned back, watching with bated breath as Caesar looked down at Luca's face once more.
Maurice's heart dropped when his king shook his head.
"They must pay." He spoke resolutely, his tone as tight as the pull of his lips over his teeth.
That sentence jolted something inside Maurice's chest, an unpleasant memory of an ape long dead.
That expression.
Those words.
This hatred….
A daring impulse overtook him then, and he reached out to lay a hand on Caesar's on top of Luca's chest.
Then, he signed the words he had been wanting to sign since the beginning of this journey but hadn't had the courage to make.
"Now, you sound like Koba."
He knew it wasn't what Caesar wanted to hear, but at this point, Maurice felt that he needed to hear it. Things had gone too far now, and the orangutan felt at this point that he could no longer sit idly by and ignore the change in his king because of his own deep sense of loyalty. Even someone as patient and understanding as the aging orangutan had his limits in that regard.
And, unsurprisingly, Caesar took it about as well as Maurice had expected he would, his breathing getting heavier as anger overtook his features.
"It was a mistake bringing you all. This is my fight." He spoke harshly – accusingly – as he looked from one to the other. "I will finish this alone."
Maurice felt how shock overtook his features as his king rose to his feet, a firm hold on his firearm.
And his words seemed to startle Lydia out of her silence as well. The woman suddenly straightened beside Rocket, eyes wide and disbelieving as she stared at her secret mate.
"Caesar?!" Came her voice, almost reprimanding at his tone and harsh words.
He ignored her just as he had before, the only sign that he had heard her being the quick flicker of his eyes towards where she stood.
Then, they were back at Maurice and Rocket interchangeably.
"Caesar don't be-" Lydia started, though she didn't get to finish before the Ape King spoke again.
"Go. Now!" His dark voice sounded through gritted teeth. "Join the others."
There was an underlying, mocking tone to his words. Like he thought they were cowards running scared. Like he resented them, and Maurice in particular, for wanting to go back. For wanting to turn tail now, when they had come so far and one of them had just been slain.
Then, he turned away and stalked menacingly back down the trail, ignoring both Rocket's worried chitters and Lydia's calls of his name, her voice turning more desperate with every step he took away from them.
"Caesar, come on, don't do this… Caesar! Caesar!"
And he was gone between the trees.
They all stood there for several minutes, quiet as they stared down the trail their leader had used, the lot of them equal parts hurt, saddened and dumbfounded.
It was, unsurprisingly, Lydia who broke the heavy silence.
"That fucking idiot!" She cursed, startling both Maurice and Rocket. She had been angry at Caesar before, furious even, but neither of them had ever heard anyone speak of the Ape King like that. And at this point, Maurice wouldn't put it past her to dare say it directly to the chimp's face.
Which seemed to be exactly what she intended to do.
"Lydia, what-?" Maurice began as she angrily picked up her bow and quiver from beside her backpack on the ground.
"I'm going to see if I can't talk some sense into him… Or at least try and keep his sorry, reckless hide safe, whether he likes it or not." She answered before he had even finished signing his question.
Had the situation not been so dire, Maurice might actually have laughed at that.
"There's a few rations in my backpack. Help yourself to them and keep out of sight. Storm will warn you if anyone is nearby."
Before they could say anything else, the human woman trudged down the path after the Ape King, shoulders tense and her long steps underlining her anger and determination.
She was gone just as quickly as Caesar had been, leaving Maurice, Rocket, Bad Ape and the human girl to set up camp – at least that was what Rocket began doing, a heavy sigh leaving him as he set about gathering twigs for a small fire.
Maurice urged the girl and Bad Ape to go take shelter in the large hovel they had found in the cliff face further back from the ledge. He and Rocket would lay Luca's body to rest with dignity later, when the others were asleep and didn't have to watch. It seemed the most appropriate, given the sensitive nature of the two. Especially Bad Ape, who had been uncharacteristically quiet during this whole thing.
Storm cuddled up to the little girl, keeping her warm as the four of them sat around the small campfire Rocket had now started.
And that's how they stayed until the girl and strange chimp had fallen asleep, both swathed in spare pelts from Lydia's backpack and saddlebags.
It was peaceful enough, though the orangutan was beginning to get anxious as darkness fell. If Rocket had been of the same mind, which Maurice suspected he was, the chimp did not mention it.
No, it seemed to be something else that occupied the balding ape's thoughts right now.
"Maurice… I don't like to ask this but… I have speculated it for some time now." Rocket began, and the aging orangutan somehow knew exactly what he was going to ask even before the balding ape had gathered himself enough to fully articulate the question.
"Caesar and Lydia… They are mates now, are they not?"
I shouldn't really say anything, Maurice reasoned. He had always firmly believed that this was his friends' secret, and that they would reveal it to everyone when they felt the time was right. Maurice had no right to take that choice away from them.
But what was the use at this point? If Rocket had already come to the correct conclusion on his own, what harm was there in confirming it?
And so, Maurice nodded his large head, sighing in unexpected relief. He hadn't realised what a burden it was to be the only one in their little group who knew for sure, especially with the tension that had been going on lately.
"For how long?"
Ah, that question. Maurice should have seen that coming as soon as Rocket had asked. They had both known Cornelia long before Caesar had turned up at the Ape Prison all those years ago, and neither would have stood for it had the relationship begun immediately after the Ape Queen's death.
Not that Caesar would've ever done that to his beloved wife, nor Lydia to her dear Roy – but nonetheless, Maurice couldn't blame Rocket for wanting to know either way.
"A little over a year." The aging orangutan replied, warming his large hands by the small campfire.
They couldn't make it as big as they usually did, since it would most likely attract the attention of the humans down below, but they also needed the flames to keep the cold at bay come nightfall. This small fire, in this regard, was a compromise that so far seemed to keep everyone present somewhat content – Caesar and Lydia's absence and Luca's recent death aside.
"You worried it had been longer?" The aging orangutan asked curiously.
The balding ape pursed his lips thoughtfully, stoking the fire with a wet branch.
"I'm ashamed to admit it has crossed my mind…" Rocket signed in a sheepish manner, shoulders hunched. "I should know that they would not be disrespectful like that… It's just that Roy and Cornelia were good friends, so when I first noticed, I could not help but wonder."
Maurice nodded at that, rubbing his hands together for warmth before signing.
"I understand." He said with his usual, slow movements. "How did you figure it out?"
Rocket shrugged modestly, still staring at the military facility down below. It was beginning to get dark already, the glare of several artificial lights now dotting the buildings.
"The way they are together. Look at each other." He explained, pursing his lips. "Reminds me of Tinker and me. The way she gets frustrated with me when I don't understand. Lydia looks at Caesar in the same way sometimes. That was what had me thinking."
The aging orangutan couldn't help but be impressed at his friend's keen eye and attention to detail. Rocket had never prided himself on being the smart one out of the Royal Ape Council's members, leaving that particular contest to Caesar, Maurice and, in the now distant past, Koba. Instead, Rocket had focused on brute force and carrying out Caesar's orders down to the smallest detail, his abilities in battle unmatched by most other males.
Perhaps that was why, with his concise attitude and straight-forward approach, that Maurice hadn't thought he would figure out the relationship between their king and the human woman by their behaviour alone. Especially since the two hadn't exactly been on the best of terms almost since the moment Rocket came back with the boys.
The orangutan shook his head, more at himself than at his old friend, slightly ashamed of having doubted him like this.
"And you call yourself a simple ape, my friend?" He signed, brow raised in both intrigue and slight amusement, despite recent events.
At those words, Rocket looked over at Maurice, and a slight smirk gracing his dark lips.
"Simpler than Caesar and Lydia, that's certain."
And how very true that was.
Lydia
Lydia sat crouched on top of one of the many smaller, snow-covered ledges that dotted the mountain. This place provided her with a good vantage point from which she could see most of the soldier's camp as well as the strange X-shaped contraptions they had placed on top of the hill further down that same day.
Both were quite a distance from where she sat now, but mercifully, the snow had stopped some time ago, and she now had a moonlit vision of the Ape King as his dark form purposefully glided through the thick snow down the steep slope of the mountainside.
Anger welled up inside her chest at the sight of him, her mind returning to the conversation – or rather the argument – that they had had an hour or so prior to her sitting down on this little ledge.
"Caesar!" She had called once he had come into view through the trees, and she had almost fallen as she miss stepped in her effort to get closer.
The only sign that had given away that, yes, he had indeed heard her, had been the slight hunching of his shoulders and a barely-noticeable turn of his head. Seemed like he was still ignoring her.
That had just served to irk Lydia further.
"Caesar!"
Still nothing – and thus, more kindling to the pyre that was Lydia's rising temper.
"Will you just stop and listen to me for once in your life, you insufferable ape!?" She had finally snapped, literally able to feel the deep crease forming between her eyebrows as she had stared hard at the back of the chimp's head.
At that, Caesar had abruptly stopped, though he remained with his back to her as Lydia had made her way to him. As she had gotten closer, the woman had clearly been able to see how the chimp's shoulders moved with each deep, restrained breath as he tried to control his temper.
"What do you want, Lydia?" He had asked evenly, still with his broad back to her. "I told you to go join the others."
Lydia had stopped a few feet away from him, doing her best to hide how out of breath she had been as she had crossed her arms expectantly over her chest. She had known he couldn't see her face with them standing like this, but that hadn't kept the woman from regarding the Ape King with an unimpressed sneer all the same.
"I wanted to talk some sense into you! What exactly do you think you'll be able to accomplish all on your own, huh? You'll have enemies all around you if you go down there alone with no one to back you up!"
He hadn't moved a muscle and, more importantly, hadn't acknowledged her inquiry with any sort of response.
So, Lydia had continued.
"Listen, I know you're angry about what happened back there, trust me, I do, but abandoning everyone in the last moment isn't the way to do this. You need us, Caesar… So please, please come back with me and let's sort this out…"
The quiet that followed those words had stretched on for an unbearably long time, neither of the two moving an inch as she had waited for his reply.
When it had finally come, it hadn't at all been what Lydia had imagined.
"Do you agree with Maurice?"
"What?" She had asked then, a puzzled frown appearing on her features.
It was only in that moment he had turned around to face her, and the human woman had almost been floored by the severity of the ape's frown, mouth twisted and eyes aflame with barely-suppressed fury.
Almost.
"Do you agree with Maurice?" Caesar had asked again, much slower this time. "Do you also think that I am like Koba?"
Lydia's shoulders had slumped then as she took a moment to study the chimp standing in front of her, hackles raised and eyes flinty as he regarded her with a critical stare – like he already knew the answer and just wanted her to confirm it so he could let his anger truly show.
Had there been a shred of vulnerability in his voice, any sign that he actually regretted any of this, Lydia might have answered differently.
"Right now? I'm beginning to." She had spoken drily instead, an unimpressed look on her face as he continued to breathe heavily, those green-and-golden orbs staring into her own deep blue ones with not a flicker of the tenderness he usually reserved for her.
No… It had been that look again. That same dangerous glint in his eyes. The one that had scared Lydia beyond anything else since that dreadful night. The one that sought only one thing.
Vengeance.
Lydia had chosen to disregard it completely.
"And I know you're not this angry because of what happened to Luca. That's only part of it." She had continued, knowing she was treading on thin ice at this point. He had already been furious and at this point, with that look in his eyes, the human woman quite honestly had no idea how the Ape King was going to react.
And by then, she hadn't much cared anymore, too furious herself to stop.
"You're this angry because you know that it's true. And because someone finally built up the courage to call you out on it."
Caesar's eyes had been mere slits at this point, his nostrils flared and his broad chest expanding as he had drawn in a deep, laboured breath – obviously in an attempt to calm himself.
It hadn't worked all that well.
The simmering fury in his voice had told Lydia as much.
"Don't pretend that you know-"
"Know what's going on inside your head? Oh, trust me, I gave up on doing that a long fucking time ago." She had interrupted him tersely. "But don't you for a second think I haven't heard how you mumble his name while staring into the campfire at night, when you think everyone else is sleeping. When you think, or maybe hope, that nobody's noticing – because trust me, I do notice!"
That had seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back for Caesar, as he had stepped forward, quick as a flash, to stand only a hair's breadth from her, his face twisted in quiet rage. Had he been anyone else, she might have feared that he would strike her for something like this. Truthfully, she had been preparing for it either way, because this Caesar wasn't the one she knew and loved.
No, this Caesar was someone completely different.
That was the very root of the problem.
"Go. Back. Now" He had spoken almost threateningly. "Leave."
It was the most severe tone he had ever used on her, and there had been no trace of tenderness in his eyes just then. Nothing to indicate that she, out of everyone in the group, might be able to reach him right now.
Nothing whatsoever.
But a part of Lydia – the stubborn, bordering-on-insolent part –simply refused to accept that.
"No." She had said with a voice full of defiance, refusing to show the hurt that had lurked just beneath the surface.
She would have showed that side to the old Caesar. The one who was loving and understanding and not hell-bent on destroying everything around him. But this Caesar? She couldn't show her vulnerability to him. He hadn't earned it.
Effectively, it had felt to Lydia like their relationship was back to square one – even worse, it was like she had never known him to begin with.
Especially when he had heaved in a deep breath, as if preparing himself for something, and Lydia found herself resisting the urge to flinch in case he actually wanted to hurt her this time, on purpose, unlike that time a few weeks ago.
To her shameful surprise, he didn't hurt her. Not physically anyway.
"Fine. Then stay here, then." The Ape King had growled instead before he had whipped back around to stand with his broad back to her, hackles raised in obvious irritation. "And don't follow me."
And then he had marched away, just like that, leaving Lydia standing there in the snow, visibly shaking with anger and with no opportunity to reply as he took to the trees in order to avoid further pursuit from her.
She hadn't realised how much she had been shaking until he was out of sight and the only sound around her had been that of her trembling breath. A small, pathetic sound in the quiet of the forest, coupled with hot tears suddenly flowing unbidden down her pale cheeks.
Betrayal. That was the emotion that had flooded through her in that moment – utter and unadulterated betrayal. And it had been from the one she loved. The one who was supposed to love her.
More tears had come forth as that thought had struck her, the hot trails down her cheeks turning cold and painful as the frigid winds had hit her face.
But after a few, short moments of letting herself give in to the heartbreak, Lydia had soon exchanged the sadness and hurt with anger and defiance – as was her custom.
Ape King my ass!
She hadn't done either of the things he had ordered her to do.
Instead Lydia had opted to search the area for a place from which she could easily scout the area, getting a closer look at the military facility down below, as well as an opportunity to act as a lookout for Caesar – whether he actually wanted her assistance or not.
Because while he might be angry with her, while he might not be the same ape, and while he might have forgotten her promise from a few nights ago to stay with him through this thing no matter what, Lydia certainly remembered.
And she intended to go through with it despite her mate's recent fall from grace.
She was nothing if not a woman of her word.
…And also, that same, stubborn part of her still hoped, still believed that somehow, her Caesar was still in there somewhere.
Which was why she was now sitting here, freezing her ass off as she kept a close eye on his progress through the wintry landscape, having made his way to the strange, blockade-like structures on the hill further down towards the military base.
Lydia squinted and tilted her head to the side as his progress came to a slight halt once Caesar reached the first of the crosses, only for him to go from one to the other in an almost panicked-looking manner.
What was he seeing down there that she wasn't from up here?
She inched closer to the edge, mouth slightly agape as she studied the ape.
He had reached the edge of the outcrop the crosses had been placed on, having come to a complete stop before he seemed to fall to his knees.
The hairs on the back of Lydia's neck stood on end, the woman alarmed by this odd behaviour.
What was going on!?
Panic slowly replaced the anger that had previously simmered inside Lydia's chest, coming into full bloom once Caesar suddenly got up, turned to one of the crosses and then seemed to pull a figure from it, cradling it as it slumped into his arms.
Was that… Was that an ape?!
Lydia's blue eyes widened in horror and she quickly rose from her crouched position, ready to go down and help the Ape King when a sudden, soft crunch behind her made her whip around…
And just in time, as a rather large, camouflage-wearing man quickly stepped forward and, with a grunt, attempted to hit her in the head with his gunstock.
What the hell?!
She dodged with only an inch to spare, dropping down and rolling to the side as best she could while reaching for her hunting knife – the bow would be useless with her assailant so close.
"Damn hellcat we've got here!" He spoke menacingly, though he didn't immediately charge at her once he realised he had missed.
That confused Lydia for only a moment, and she didn't get to grab her knife before she felt an arm reach around her neck from the back.
Realising what was going to happen, she put her chin down to prevent being choked and reached up to grab the offending limb, pulling it as far down, away from her neck, as she could.
It had been years since she had last properly been able to train her jiu-jitsu, with the few months of her training Malcolm and his family two years ago being the only refresher on the techniques in recent memory… But somehow, instinct and muscle memory kicked in in that moment, and Lydia bent forward, using her hip for leverage and pulling the new attacker forward over her shoulder to drop him on the ground with a dull 'thump'.
"Argh!" The man groaned painfully as he hit the rockface beneath the snow, landing with all of his weight on his shoulder.
It would surely bruise – Lydia hoped it would break something.
She didn't get to ponder too long on the outcome of her move before the first attacker was back at it, charging towards her menacingly, though his large bulk made it hard for him to move as quickly as the nimble woman, who sidestepped him every time.
But avoiding blows and grabbing arms wasn't going to get her out of this situation anytime soon, and Lydia was hard-pressed for ideas as the second soldier began to recover from the takedown and slowly got up to help his companion.
She cursed herself for having been so careless.
How had she not heard them coming? She should have!
But then Lydia remembered that she had always relied on the dogs to warn her of such things and suddenly felt immensely stupid for leaving Storm with Rocket and Maurice. What had she been thinking, going out here alone without her dog?!
No, Lydia reasoned, the group had needed the canine too, to warn them of oncoming dangers just like the one she was facing now.
She just hoped that other soldiers hadn't found the rest of the group as well.
Suddenly, from out of nowhere, a deep, distinctly non-human grunt sounded behind her, and a pair of long, hairy arms wrapped around Lydia, locking her arms in place against her sides as they grabbed her, vice-like, from behind.
She was pulled to a hard chest, immediately aware of the fact that it was a chimp holding her in place once she felt the size and shape of the body against her back.
The force with which they held her squeezed precious air from Lydia's lungs and her struggle, no matter how vicious, was useless against the new assailant's inhuman strength.
"Hold her there, Donkey, hold her still!" Barked the soldier who had first appeared behind her and as soon as Lydia looked up, face full of fury, something unforgivingly blunt hit her against her temple.
Hard.
Must have been the gunstock he tried to hit me with before… The woman only just managed to think as darkness began to creep forth from the edges of her vision. A horrifying dizziness soon overtook her as well, and Lydia felt herself involuntarily go limp in the traitorous ape's hold.
Whoever he was, he promptly let go of her once he seemed to realise that she wouldn't be able to put up a fight anymore.
Fucking asshole… Lydia's mind echoed disdainfully as she fell unceremoniously to the ground, feeling the sharp edges of the rockface beneath the snow poke at her pliant flesh through her thick leather clothes.
A large boot kicked the knife, which had fallen to the ground in the commotion, away from Lydia's limp hand.
"Pick her up and let's get back. It's fucking freezing out here." Came a hard, distinctly male voice, sounding far away and blurred as Lydia struggled to keep conscious.
"Wonder if the others caught that straggler down below, huh?" Another voice sounded somewhere above her.
She couldn't tell exactly where from.
"Like I give a shit, I just wanna get back inside." The first voice responded, now barely-decipherable.
Straggler down below…? Lydia's mind groggily registered, her head swimming as realisation flooded her. Oh no…!
But there was nothing she could do about it now…
The last thing Lydia was able to think of just then was how very cold the snow beneath her felt against her cheek.
Then, everything turned black.
