Caesar

Though he had been slow to regain consciousness, Caesar's awakening had been a rude one all the same.

He had returned to the waking world to find himself a prisoner of none other than the Colonel himself, finally coming face to face with the man who had taken so much from him yet being unable to go through with what he had planned to do once they would finally meet.

And the way the man had spoken, so calm and nonchalant as he had asked who exactly it was he had killed that night…

It only served to fuel Caesar's mounting rage the longer this man drew breath in front of him but finding himself chained and at the mercy of Red's brutish gorilla strength, there was nothing the Ape King could do about it.

Not a single thing.

Not even as he was being rudely brought out into the blinding spotlights outside the building they had held him in, the Colonel making sure to show the Ape King off as a grand prize to both the soldiers – and Caesar's own apes.

Shock didn't sufficiently describe the feeling that overtook the chimp just then.

Now he was getting a close-up view of what his departure from the colony had resulted in, as his people stared back at him through the bars of their enclosure, eyes dejected and decrepit.

The shame Caesar felt just then was almost unbearable.

But what really tore at the Ape King's heart were the sounds of his son, desperate and haunting as the little chimp tried to reach for his father through the thick bars of his cage.

And Cornelius' piercing cries continued to echo throughout the compound as Caesar was pushed towards the opposite pen by Red, each shove more insistent than the last until finally, the gate was opened, and the Ape King was thrown to the ground face-first.

It didn't hurt per se, but it did manage to briefly knock the wind out of Caesar as he landed and was turned on his back, Red undoing the chafing shackles with a key provided by the accompanying soldier with the crossbow. Getting them off was a small relief, with the cold metal no longer digging into his skin or weighing down his limbs.

But as the gate was slammed shut and the Colonel, the soldier and Red disappeared from Caesar's peripheral vision, a new, yet familiar kind of weight was placed onto Caesar.

The weight of deep, gut-wrenching guilt that filled his heart once he managed to prop himself up onto his elbow and look up at the apes, his apes, who now sat there all around him, staring down at him, eyes in countless shades of green filled with betrayal and disdain.

And there the Ape King lied, in the dirt, defeated as his apes, one after one, turned their backs to him, collectively rejecting Caesar for the first time ever since they had escaped to the forest over a decade ago.

All of them… All but Lake and Orion, though the latter's stare was considerably harder than the former's as they sat facing him.

All the same, Caesar thought ruefully. He wasn't sure he could even properly meet the young male chimp's eyes right now… not after the way he had left his mother behind in the woods… Not after…

Caesar spoke Lake's name in recognition and slight awe instead. She had always had a good heart, and had loved his firstborn dearly, which had been plain for all to see. But right now, Caesar was just baffled and grateful that someone, anyone, would not turn away from him. Would still look at him with kind eyes.

"Forgive them." She signed gently. "They've been through much."

Orion merely nodded, his frown deepening.

Yes, I see that now… Caesar thought, feeling an unbearably tight clenching inside his chest.

It had been his fault. His own damn fault.

Another wave of guilt washed over him, this time consuming his entire being as the desperate chitters of Cornelius reached his ears once more and Caesar turned around to look at his last living son, who was still desperately trying to reach for him.

"What have I done…?" The Ape King whispered to himself, stricken with horror.

But he didn't get much time to dwell on this as suddenly, the doors of the central building, the one Caesar had been led out of just moments ago, opened once more.

"NEXT PRISONER!" Someone shouted, and once his green-and-golden gaze saw exactly who this prisoner was, it was like a boulder hit the bottom of the Ape King's gut.

The entire adult ape pen grew eerily quiet, while Cornelius' wailing in the children's' cage seemed to intensify.

It was Lydia being brought forth, a soldier walking beside her and directing her with a firm hold on her upper arm. Her hands were shackled behind her back, the heavy chains clinking with every step.

And yet Lydia's posture was poised, her head held high and her calm face etched in stone as she walked with purposeful strides. Had her clothes not been dirtied and rumpled, and had she not been bound and held in a vice-like grip by an armed soldier, one might have been led to believe that she was merely taking a purposeful stroll.

The man charged with bringing her out looked frustrated beyond belief in trying to keep up with her strides, attempting several times to discreetly jerk her backwards by her arm with a slight grunt. Lydia ignored it completely and continued her pace once more each time it happened. Her blue stare was cold as it focused straight ahead, zeroing-in on the Colonel, who stood calmly between the two ape enclosures, ready to meet her.

At his right side stood the young soldier with the crossbow, at his left Red's hulking form.

It was an imposing sight, even from the side-lines, and yet Lydia seemed largely unaffected by it, the pace of her strides making her seem almost eager to get right up into the Colonel's face. It was clear that she was trying to make the soldier holding her look incompetent in front of his superior by having him fall behind. Whether it worked or not, Caesar couldn't tell.

He wasn't looking at the Colonel now.

Only at her.

She didn't look back.

"Oh." The Colonel's voice sounded, his tone one of feigned surprise. "Another familiar face."

Lydia said nothing as she and the soldier came to a halt in front of the him.

"Last time I saw you, you had a great big beast backing you up – what happened to that, hm?"

"Last time I saw you, I had your face all scratched up and bloody. Things change, it would seem." Lydia responded with a shrug, the movement hampered by the soldier still keeping her arm in a bruising grip, further rumpling her deerskin coat.

Caesar would've broken the man's arm without hesitation if he hadn't been chained and behind bars already.

"Looks like we've got ourselves a jester here." The Colonel spoke, the smirk on his lips barely there at all. Then, he reached up to gently grab the frame of his shades, pulling them off his face and hanging them on his breast pocket.

His pale eyes, previously hidden behind the dark, reflective glass, were revealed to be calm and calculating as he stared at the woman in front of him.

"You know," He began. "I was quite surprised seeing a woman there that night. Caught me off-guard, to say the least… Trust me, that's not something that happens every day."

He didn't receive a response, though it seemed like that suited him just fine.

"Tell me," The Colonel continued as he gestured towards Caesar and the other apes in the pen with a sideways jerk of his head "What were you doing there? With them?"

"Living." Came Lydia's simple reply, her expression now one of slight annoyance.

Caesar knew that this was a far cry from what she was truly feeling. He had learned all her little tells through the years, even before they had become mates. The crease of her brow, the sneer in her voice, the flinty glare in her eyes.

Lydia was far from being merely annoyed right now – no, Lydia was absolutely disgusted and simmering with rage.

And maybe, just maybe, a tiny bit fearful – but she hid that extremely well.

"Aha." The Colonel exclaimed slowly, either oblivious or simply indifferent to the woman's state of mind. Caesar guessed it was the latter. "And why is that? Why choose animals over us? Your own species?"

As he said this, he raised his arm, gesturing first to himself, then the soldiers he commanded, who were to be found scattered around the compound. Most of them were observing the exchange with great interest.

Lydia shrugged, and once again the action was made difficult by the soldier's grip on her arm.

"A hard-learned lesson resulted in me taking some drastic measures, I guess… It was a choice I made a long time ago." She spoke matter-of-factly, before shooting a pointed look at Red, her stare cold and piercing before it returned to the Colonel once more. "Nonetheless, even now, I stand by my decision."

The meaning behind this stare and the words that accompanied it wasn't lost on Caesar and judging by the deepening frown on the red-furred gorilla's face, he understood too.

The Colonel noticed the interaction as well, brow raised in mild curiosity, perhaps even slight amusement at Red's expense before he turned back to Lydia, pursing his lips.

"A hard-learned lesson, hm? I wonder…" He spoke, still in that drawling, almost bored-sounding voice. "What happened to you that was so much worse than it was for anyone else, hm? What happened that was so bad that you chose to reject your own kind?"

The Colonel leaned a fraction closer to Lydia, and Caesar felt his hackles raise in what would have been a warning, had he been in any position to pose a threat to the human male. Luckily, he wasn't the only one, seeing as just beside the Ape King, Orion too had his fur beginning to stand on end at the sight of the enemy so close to his mother.

The Colonel was completely oblivious to it, one brow raised as he continued questioning the woman.

"How did you become this ashamed of being human?"

In response, Lydia shot the man an unimpressed look.

"I'm not ashamed of being human. Never have been." She spoke calmly, her stare even as she looked directly into the Colonel's eyes. "I'm ashamed you are. You and all your ilk."

A low murmur could be heard from around the compound, in places where soldiers were gathered and watching, either while taking a break or while being on guard-duty. Many whispered to each other, though Caesar could hardly make out anything from his current position. The onlookers' expressions, however, were easier to read, and as Caesar briefly took his eyes off the scene to take notice of this, he saw how the soldiers' expressions ranged from wary to indignant, angered to curious. A select few even seemed impressed at Lydia's foolhardiness, much like Caesar would have probably been if he hadn't currently been fearing for his mate's very life.

The Ape King chose to ignore the few leering stares at Lydia altogether, instead electing to focus on the more immediate threat.

The Colonel.

Always the Colonel, who gave raised a brow at the woman in front of him.

"Tell me, then… Would you beg for them? Would you beg for me to let them all go, hm?" He asked with a mixture of intrigue and disdain in his voice. "You'd plead for the lives of these animals?"

"I would." Lydia replied without hesitation, poised and proud and oh-so frustratingly reckless. "I would be on my knees right here and now, pleading with everything I had."

"Then why don't you?" The Colonel asked, his voice feigning softness. It was like the calm before the storm.

"Because I know something like that wouldn't work on a man like you."

An amused chuckle, short and barely-audible, sounded from the Colonel, as if he somehow found Lydia's words entertaining.

"And what do you know about men like me, pray tell?" He asked then and to Caesar it sounded almost condescending. Like he thought her to be a naïve little girl, a child speaking big words with no true bite behind them.

But that illusion was quickly shattered with the woman's sharp reply. One that had Caesar wish he could clamp his hand over her mouth to prevent her from uttering it in the first place.

"Safe to say I've had to kill a few over the years." Lydia answered with a sneer, eyeing the Colonel as if to tell him that he would be next.

It was an obvious threat as much as it was an answer to his question, and the Colonel knew it too – hell, everyone who had been listening knew! A quiet hum of murmuring had begun around Caesar as well now, the apes taking an obvious interest in Lydia's open defiance. Her show of courage – or recklessness, as Caesar would prefer to call it.

To openly challenge this madman like that, in front of his prisoners and his men… What was she even thinking?! Did she want him to kill her?

Caesar definitely knew the Colonel would, should he find it necessary. This was a man without mercy, nor time for games.

The commander of the soldiers pursed his lips, seemingly in thought, as he openly stared Lydia up and down. It wasn't a predatory or lustfully appreciative stare, like some of the surrounding soldiers'. No, he didn't see Lydia as a vulnerable female…

He saw her as an opponent now, just as much as he did Caesar.

Someone he needed to make an example out of, in front of the apes and in front of the onlooking soldiers.

And the Ape King knew that that was way worse.

A lump formed in his throat as the Colonel turned his head towards Red, giving a single nod to the traitor before he turned back to watch his silent order being carried out.

The Ape King's breath came out in panicked pants as the enormous gorilla stepped forward, ominous as he towered over the human woman, who stared up at the ape with blue eyes full of defiance.

Then, with only a huff of warning from Red, a resounding slap echoed through the compound, the noise bouncing off the concrete walls and steel cages as Red's hand connected with Lydia's cheek.

She would have been sent sprawling onto the muddy ground had it not been for the soldier still holding onto her arm, forcing her to keep on standing, but doing nothing to straighten her as she bent over sideways from the force of the slap.

Knowing the strength of a gorilla, Red could have easily broken her neck, though he had obviously held back this time, keeping this a show rather than a public execution.

Even so, it was hard for Caesar to take comfort in that fact, what with his mate being treated like this with no way for him to step in and defend her.

Now, her face was turned towards the adult apes' pen, and everyone, including Caesar himself, got a clear view of how red liquid began dripping from Lydia's mouth. Her bottom lip was split, and she was squeezing her eyes shut as she heaved in strained breaths in an obvious attempt to bite back the pain.

Caesar's pants became heavier than ever, his nostrils flaring and his green-and-golden eyes glinting with a newfound rage as he saw how they abused her. A defenceless female, a member of his Ape Colony, his mate!

Beside him, Orion released a deep, protective growl, his fury matching Caesar's own. Had he been in a position to do anything, Caesar was certain that the younger ape's state of mind alone would have been enough fuel for him to have taken on Red by himself, chimp against gorilla or not.

The rest of the apes had similar reactions, waves of outrage and indignation rolling through the entire group and making them all hiss, growl and gibber.

The Colonel and those around him turned to stare at the reaction the scene had caused, the leader of the soldiers beginning to slowly reach for his belt, where his gun sat snugly against his hip.

Whether he intended to give a warning shot or actually kill Lydia to make the apes settle down, Caesar didn't know. Didn't want to know.

And he wasn't going to find out, because in that same moment, his eyes finally locked with Lydia's, the woman, still standing bent over, staring from between the dark tresses that had come loose from her braid to hang in front of her face.

She was mouthing the word "don't" while discreetly shaking her head.

The flow of blood intensified with the movement of her lips, the crimson colour kindling Caesar's rage. How did she expect him to just sit idly by while she was being dishonoured in this way?! How was he supposed not to respond to something like that? How was Orion not supposed to respond to that?!

But nonetheless, both he and the apes closest to the scene chose to listen to her silent urging and began to reluctantly quiet down once more. It travelled backwards through the ape enclosure like rings in the water and soon, the entire gathering was back to staring silently at the scene just beyond the bars.

The hateful stares remained, however, Caesar knew this even without looking behind him to check.

The Colonel raised a brow at them before he had Red move back and lifted his hand from his gun. Then, he inclined his head at the soldier holding onto Lydia, having the man promptly pull her back to stand up straight as the woman released an annoyed grunt

It only took a moment for her eyes to find the Colonel's once more, brow furrowed and her frown severe, even as blood trailed down her chin and onto her coat collar.

He met her stare with cold indifference.

"And now?" He drawled with feigned interest, gesturing towards Red as he spoke his next words. "Would you still beg for your precious apes? To me, they seem just as likely to betray as humans…"

Lydia remained silent, the only acknowledgement she was willing to give his question being the straightening of her posture and a slight upturn of her chin, making her stare down her nose at him, even if he was several inches taller than her.

The eerie silence stretched out for what seemed like an eternity to Caesar, the only interruption being Cornelius' soft whimpers as he stared at his adopted mother. No doubt seeing her being treated this way was affecting him as well, probably even more so than it did Caesar himself.

"Hm." The Colonel huffed in what Caesar interpreted as part amusement, part resolve, before he jerked his head towards the pen with the adult apes. "Lock her up with them and put her to work in the morning. If she wants to be an animal so badly… why, it's only appropriate she works like one."

What Caesar felt wasn't exactly relief as Lydia was led towards the pen he and the other apes were currently kept inside, but it did put a small damper on the anxiety he had been consumed with since they had first brought Lydia out.

The Colonel didn't even stay to watch as the woman was thrown onto her hands and knees into the pen by Red, the ape putting a shackle around her ankle, just like the captured apes had, before following the soldier with the crossbow back out of the enclosure.

The moment the gate slammed shut, Lydia seemed to be surrounded by apes, many of whom came forth to comfort her after her ordeal and examine the injury Red had dealt her, and none of them doing so more diligently than Orion, who had rushed over as soon as the traitorous gorilla had turned away.

And despite it all, his apes being imprisoned and rejecting Caesar for having left them, despite the cold, the despair and the chafing chain around his leg, the Ape King looked on with a flicker of relief and warmth in his heart as his mate was so readily welcomed back among his people.

Her people, he corrected himself inside his own mind. They're her people too.

Lydia chose them. Had made a show of doing so. Had suffered for doing so.

And she would continue to do so, Caesar was certain of it.


Lydia

Tinker and a female orangutan named Daisy were the first to reach Lydia once Red and the crossbow-wielding soldier had closed the gate behind her, several other apes soon joining the first two until Lydia felt quite swarmed.

The attention was overwhelming, to say the least.

Many hooted worriedly and offered comforting pats on her back or encouraging slams of fists against their own chest, while others signed gentle reprimands about the recklessness of her defiant display.

Some apes, like Hillock, who Lydia had trained in archery, couldn't come over to greet her due to the chain attached to his ankle being too short, but he did manage to convey an approving nod above the heads of the other apes once Lydia managed to look up. She returned the gesture.

Then, all else fell away as a familiar voice reached her ears and Lydia turned her head to see Orion make his way over to her, Ivy close behind him.

Caesar stayed where he was, observing rather than interacting.

Perhaps that was a good thing. Lydia wasn't sure what she would even say to him, had he come over to greet her as well.

"Mother!" Orion exclaimed worriedly once he reached her, and Lydia immediately extended her arms to wrap them around his broad shoulders.

Thank goodness he wasn't hurt and that he wasn't stuck on the other side of the pen, away from her!

Lydia wasn't sure if she would have been able to stand having him be so near and yet not being able to reach him.

It was the little things that counted, she supposed.

The hug didn't last as long as he would have liked it to, Lydia could tell as she drew away after only a brief moment to look suspiciously at the soldiers scattered around the compound.

When Lydia was as sure as she could be that none of the soldiers were able to see what she was doing through the wall of apes surrounding her now, she reached up and grabbed hold of the necklace she wore. The very same as the one Orion was wearing right now, as he sat in front of her.

"Mother…?" He spoke confusedly, with just a trace of hurt in his voice. Beside him, Ivy hooted softly, touching Lydia's arm as if to stop her as Orion spoke again. "What are you doing?"

"They can't know, Sweetie." The human woman attempted to explain as she pulled the necklace over her head. She hadn't had it off in years, having worn it even when she had bathed and slept…

Now, Lydia felt oddly naked without it, and unsettled by the weight of the decorative claws and fangs suddenly missing from her upper sternum. It was like shedding a part of her very identity, not unlike she had done when she had left her human colony all those years ago… Only now it wasn't liberating, but rather something akin to suffocating.

But even then, it was nothing compared to the hurt present in Orion's green gaze as she stuffed the piece of jewellery deep into her coat pocket, making Lydia's heart ache with shame and regret. This was their family's symbol, after all. Roy had been buried wearing his and throughout Orion's absence these last two years, Lydia had found comfort in tracing hers every single day… It was a proof of what they were. It connected them.

Which was precisely why she couldn't wear it now. Not here.

"Orion, if he or any of the other soldiers notice that we're somehow related, they'll take advantage of it. I know they will, and I can't let that happen. Please understand…" Lydia spoke, not being able to keep the plea out of her voice. The whole world could be mad at her for all she cared – if only not her son. "I have to protect you…"

Orion's lips formed a thin line as he tried to keep the desperation and sadness at bay, and the sight alone was enough to make Lydia's eyes moist with unshed tears. She wanted nothing more than to put the necklace back on and embrace him – truly embrace him this time – like she knew they both needed.

But it wasn't an option right now, if she wanted to keep him safe. She knew the Colonel sought to make an example out of her now – otherwise he wouldn't have kept her alive. That was just how men like him worked. How places like this worked.

Her son, though clearly not at all pleased or even slightly at ease with her explanation, nodded despite everything and reached for Ivy's hand, seeking comfort and reassurance. At least he had her. That, if nothing else, soothed the aching in Lydia's chest.

She reached over and embraced the small, silver-furred female chimp as well, offering a pained, yet sincere and thankful smile once she pulled back. Ivy returned the gesture, accompanying it with a subtle squeeze of Lydia's shoulder.

"You should let someone look at that." Her daughter-in-law spoke gently, nodding towards Lydia's injured lip. It hadn't stopped bleeding completely, but the cold of the air had helped greatly in hampering the flow, meaning Lydia only had to wipe the crimson liquid off her chin from time to time now.

The pain that accompanied the smile tugging at Lydia's lips had the human woman wince, but it did nothing to put a damper on the warmth she felt at being reunited with her family once more, dire circumstances put aside.

"I've had worse, but thanks for the concern, dear."

"Where have you been all this time?" Tinker signed next, her movements gentle and careful. "Where… where are Maurice and Luca… and…"

So, either they hadn't had time to question Caesar about this, or they simply hadn't bothered. Considering how he sat slightly apart from the group instead of being at the centre of it like usual, Lydia assumed it was the latter option.

Either way, she chose not to worry herself with that fact right now, focusing instead on easing her old friend's worries concerning her mate and the fate of their group.

"Luca… Luca is dead…" Lydia spoke with a pained look, her stare downcast at the collective gasps of those surrounding her.

"How?" Another ape, a silverback member of the Gorilla Guard, asked grittily.

"Ambushed by soldiers." She was quick to explain, though she didn't feel the need to go into details right now. It hurt too much to do so. "He managed to take the man down, but…"

The gorilla who had asked, along with several other members of the colony's official guard corps, nodded solemnly, respect clear in their eyes.

Lydia turned back to Tinker once more after a brief moment trying to gather herself.

"Rocket and Maurice were safe last time I saw them. I left Storm with them for protection when I went to scout around this place. That's how the soldiers manage to capture me – I didn't have her to warn me that they were coming."

The relief that emanated from Tinker as Lydia spoke those words was almost tangible, the sigh that accompanied the emotion visible as hot fumes of breath in front of the female ape's face.

At least I can provide some sort of comfort, Lydia thought ruefully, regarding her old friend with a sympathetic stare.

Suddenly, a low, threatening growl came from Orion, and Lydia's gaze shifted to see her son stare above her head at something behind her. Before she had had the chance to turn, several other apes around her, including Ivy and Tinker, also began growling, huffing and hissing, the sounds varying in intensity from one ape to another.

It was only when Lydia's head had fully turned that she saw exactly what had caused this reaction.

Or rather, who had caused it.

It was Red, standing at the other side of the bars, his gaze locked onto Lydia and completely ignoring the threatening behaviour from the enclosure's other occupants.

Her gaze turned stone-cold at the sight of the red-furred gorilla, someone she had hoped never to meet again, and the cause of her currently-throbbing bottom lip.

Orion made to get up, a mighty and angry huff accompanying the movements as he took a step forward, only for Lydia to lay a hand on his furred arm, stopping him.

She only shook her head at the confused look he gave her in response, silently urging him to sit down again and keep calm. Her son wasn't usually one to be controlled by his emotions, even-tempered and patient as he was, but Lydia knew better than anyone that what had just happened would have been more than enough to set him off.

Though she was touched at his protectiveness of her, they didn't need that right now – a stand-off between him and Red through the bars of the ape enclosure. That would only draw attention to the fact that there was a deeper connection between them, something Lydia wanted to avoid right now at all costs.

And besides, she had a faint idea of what it was Red wanted, and it had nothing whatsoever to do with any of the apes inside this pen.

None of the surrounding apes, not even Orion or Caesar, said anything as Lydia slowly got up from the ground to walk towards the edge of the enclosure. Oh, there were plenty of confused and warning hoots, alright, but no outright protests as she walked towards the traitor, the chain of her shackle chinking as it was dragged across the ground.

Soon enough, she stood before Red, only casting a brief, reassuring look back over her shoulder at the colony's apes before turning to meet his unnervingly dark gaze with her own flinty stare.

"Come to apologise, huh?" Lydia asked, though she kept her voice low, so the other occupants of the pen wouldn't hear – especially not Caesar or Orion. That'd just be a mess. Then, making a show of narrowing her eyes at him, Lydia tilted her head. "No… You wouldn't do something like that, I suppose."

He avoided her pointed stare as she spoke those words, which told Lydia that he, at least, did seem somewhat sorry for having slapped her – at least that's how she chose to interpret it. Then, once he found it within himself, Red's eyes sought out Lydia's once more, though he ignored her words completely.

"You should have. Listened to me." The large ape spoke darkly, almost as if he was blaming her for all of this. "Back in the forest... Then, you would. Not be in there."

Lydia couldn't help the sneer that found its way to her face just then. Had he really just come here to gloat? To point out that he had been right all along and rub it in her face? Especially after having split her lip open like that?

It still fucking hurt, but she wasn't going to let him know that. Even if the wound felt like it was going to tear her mouth apart from the severity of her frown.

"You think he'll spare you once you cease to be useful to him?" She spoke with a scoff, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're just as much a prisoner as I am. Only difference is that your shackle is up here instead."

She reached up to tap her own temple, obviously referring to the branding the soldiers had made in that same spot on him, where the letters AO were written in white, scarred flesh.

His nostrils flared as he inhaled slowly, those small, green eyes full of anger as he stared at her.

"It does not change the fact. That you chose the losing side." He spoke, head held high. "You could have joined them. Lived good. You still had the chance. Speaking with the Colonel."

"You're saying I should have betrayed the apes to save my own skin, huh? Reject the best thing that's ever happened to me, just like that? My family?" Lydia asked, indignant and disbelieving all at once, while Red's expression remained stony and calculating. "No, Red. That was never an option. These… people you serve – they're not my people. The apes are, and I won't abandon them just to save myself."

For a moment, Red said nothing in response to her words, opting for merely staring her down with a hard, searching gaze, as if she was a mysterious object he was trying to pick apart with his eyes to inspect each individual piece. To try and understand her.

Evidently, he didn't succeed in this endeavour, considering his next statement.

"So, you will die. Just like them…" He spoke coldly, inclining his head towards the large group of apes chained up behind her. "Just like I said. Back then."

The look he regarded her with just then was one of pity, which soon turned into a leering stare as his eyes travelled down her form and back up again. He had looked at her in a similar fashion two years ago, back in the forest. Lydia hadn't forgotten that, nor the way his fingers had ghosted across her cheek, sending unpleasant chills down her spine.

But Lydia was not going to give in to that feeling a second time around, and she was pretty sure she knew exactly how to wipe that look off his face.

She had had enough.

"Well, since you like being right so much…" She answered coldly, reaching up to her coat collar and pulling it aside as discreetly as she could, but also with enough of a jerk in her movements to underline her words. "Here's something else you were right about."

Lydia knew he saw them. The purple bruises Caesar had left on her a couple of night's prior. Even if she wasn't standing directly underneath one of the projector lights placed at the top of the enclosure's high fence, she knew Red saw them. The sharp intake of breath and hardening of his gaze told her as much.

He raised one of his massive hands but didn't reach through the bars to take hold of Lydia as she had initially thought he would. Instead, his fist closed around the bar itself, squeezing hard – she could tell by the sharp protrusion of his knuckles.

Red was staring down at her underneath a heavy, lowered brow, his eyes glinting ominously.

"Him…!?" He asked darkly, letting the word hang dangerously in the air.

She didn't ask who he meant, nor did she answer his question. They both knew exactly who he was referring to and the only thing Lydia did was raise a slender brow at Red, letting the barest hint of a triumphant smirk touch the corners of her lips. It felt good to finally be able to get under his skin. To get back at him.

Two years ago, back in the forest, she had only managed to sense Red's… lusting for her, when he had caught her alone and had come so close she wouldn't have been able to escape if he had actually done something to her. Even then, she hadn't truly understood the true extent of it until after he had left the Colony and Lydia had had the time to let what he had done and said truly sink in.

He had intruded on her personal space, his touch on her cheek and the look in his eyes having conveyed his intent. All the while, he had insulted Roy and her, and made her aware of her vulnerability. To a point where she had been paranoid for weeks afterwards, fearing he would come back for…

She didn't even want to finish that thought.

It didn't matter right now, anyway.

Now, thick steel bars kept him away from her just as much as they prevented her from escaping, and she had the entire colony behind her in case he would try to actually reach through and attempt to harm her.

And though she was aware that what she had just done might have repercussions, Lydia still felt an immense wave of satisfaction wash over her at the way his face looked just then: Bitter, resentful and defeated.

And still he tried to come out of this argument on top.

"He led you here." Red's voice sounded, more a low growl than actual speech by now. "Choosing him. You choose to suffer."

"And still, I stand by that choice." She spoke, just as she had to the Colonel earlier, her voice full of conviction. "And deal with the consequences."

Red's eyes narrowed into slits, glaring at her as if looks alone might break her apart.

Then, with a mighty huff and a death glare at every ape inside the pen, he stormed off – where to, Lydia had no idea, and truth be told, she didn't care much either.

What she did care about, however, was the ape child that came into view once the giant gorilla moved out of the way. The child currently whimpering for her in the pen across from where Lydia now stood, his green eyes watery and his hands signing one simple word.

"Mother."

We have to get out of here… Lydia thought, her anger at Red exchanged for that now-familiar ache of maternal love, thumping in tune with her heart as she stared back at Cornelius.

Somehow, we just have to…!