Human Detention Facility – Section 14 – level 1

Prefect Sullen pulled back on the chains as hard as he could. The gorilla was powerful while the Prefect was still weak from hunger. He did however have leverage on his side as he pulled back hard to choke the life out of the ape. That combined with the fact that Sullen had clubbed the ape with his cast was proving to be sufficient. The ape twitched for a few brief seconds and eventually died.

On the opposite side of the room Private Berry's heart was beating so hard he thought it was going to break through his chest. He dropped the bloody remains of Corporal Stewart and sadly reported that his friend was dead; A fact that didn't need reporting. It was clearly evident.

The two men and Sullen had managed to pull the chains free from the old deteriorating concrete wall. Once he was free, Sullen hid himself in behind the door while Corporal Stewart stood at the opposite end and yelled. The noise drew the guard's attention immediately. As soon as the ape's head was in view, Sullen brought his forearm around and caught the soldier square on the snout. Without hesitation, he'd leapt on the gorilla and simultaneously threw the chains around his neck. What neither the Prefect nor humans were expecting was for the guard to accidently discharge his weapon in the scuffle. He'd fired, purely by reflex, hitting the Corporal at point-blank range. Stewart died instantly.

"Take his pistol, boy and hand me the rifle…hurry we don't have much time" Sullen said as he removed the clothes from the gorilla. Thank the great ape their Contingents are not strictly gorillas, he thought as he dressed himself in the ape's uniform. What a mess, he thought looking at Stewart's remains all over the cell.

The uniform was large and hung unevenly but it would have to do. Sullen grabbed the weapon pushed the Private in the room and said "Trust me" as he closed the door. His peripheral vision picked up on something as he stepped into the corridor. Sullen's mind raced and he didn't know where it came from but he shouted out the first comment he could think of.

"And next time I'll shoot you for real" The Prefect stated as beads of sweat formed on his head.

"Praax, are you insane? …discharging your weapon like that…" the somewhat distant voice shouted.

The area was dimly lit but Sullen turned to see two chimps coming his way. They looked more surprised than anything. As they approached, one took note that the gorilla was missing and suspiciously asked Sullen who he was and how he'd gotten in. Sullen quickly tried to improvise before they figured it out.

"He's fine …he's here…there was an accident…wait let me just show you." Sullen replied in a loud voice. The Prefect fumbled with the keys and pushed the door open hoping that the human soldier heard the advanced warning. The door swung open and the nervous Private stood there with the pistol pointed right at Sullen.

"Here, look for yourselves" Sullen said. "Just a misunderstanding."

"What kind of nonsense is this? Who are you?" One of them demanded.

As soon as the two chimps looked into the room, Sullen raised his weapon. He ordered the soldiers to strip and instructed Berry to take their weapons and equipment and toss it in the hall. Sullen grabbed the uniforms, changed the bulky blouse he was wearing, and locked the soldiers in the room. He told them that if they shouted or made trouble he'd kill them.

"Here put it on and try and cover your face." The Prefect said tossing the second uniform at the man.

Berry began to question the request but did as he was told when Sullen explained it would be easier for him to blend in this way than to scurry through in his smelly blood soaked rags.

"Man…poor Stewart. He …he didn't deserve that. What do we do now?" Berry stated panting between words. The young mans heart was still beating like a jackhammer. He was seventeen years old, skinny as a rail, and scared beyond belief.

"It's ok boy. Unfortunately in war unexpected events happen. We've come this far. It's ok …you'll be ok, do you hear me?" Sullen said trying his best to reassure the man. …If Ndola could see me now… He thought. …consoling and allying with animals, he'd never believe it. Not in a hundred years.

Berry exhaled noisily and gave a half-hearted bob of the head as he repeated his last question; "What do we do now?"

"Good question. We try and make it out of here. Unless you have a better idea" Sullen claimed as he tried to think of way to get through his situation alive.

"Actually I just thought of something." Berry replied as an idea formed. "There are only two guards at every entry and exit. The only soldiers stationed at a particular cell are for select prisoners and that's rare; especially since they took such a pounding in the last skirmish. They don't have the manpower…um I mean…well you get it. Anyway, you and I now have keys. The cells have prisoners; human prisoners. The monkeys have guns…are you getting the picture?"

"We let the prisoners out, overtake the guards, arm the animals, and let them run amuck." Sullen said aloud as he stepped through his thoughts. "That might work. Ok, this section is clear of guards, let's open the cells and get this going…Just do me one favor?"

"What's that?" Berry asked.

"Make sure you tell them to shoot the right …monkeys" Sullen said sternly. "I don't want an accidental musket-ball to find its way into my skull."

"Musket-ball; you sure have an odd sense of humor, but no worries, I'll let them know you're one of the tame monkeys. …my new pet" Berry added with a smirk.

The man was smiling but also contemplated shooting the ape himself. He hadn't forgotten the Prefects words, back in the cell. Words about killing him without hesitation, if the situation were reversed. Apes were un-honorable liars as far as he knew. That was common knowledge too. Besides, Berry hadn't dismissed the idea that this might be one big rouse designed to get the information they wanted in a more subtle way. Private Josh Berry and Corporal Matthew Stewart were with the Ninety-Third Combat Engineers. They were one of the few soldiers who knew how to navigate through the eastern defenses. That had been the only thing keeping them alive.

Territorial Central Command

The winded soldier opened the door to Polk's office without even knocking. He darted in apologized for the unprofessional entrance and began to explain that a small riot was in progress.

"They're moving through the city and shooting at anything that moves. They have the element of surprise …or they did anyhow… and they've managed to do a lot of damage. Somehow several of the prisoners broke out of their cells. They're armed and hitting targets of opportunity; probably to try and draw as many soldiers away from them as possible. They appear to be moving in this direction," The ape stated as he slid his finger across the city map on Polk's wall.

Polk cussed loudly almost in unbelief. He began to ask how it happened but realized the irrelevance of the question and changed in his thoughts in mid sentence. "…What targets of opportunity?"

"The food stores on the western side of the city; one was hit with a grenade. It's burning. They're also targeting civilians. Crews are working on the situation but there's more. At least one ape was spotted with them, an orangutan; the imprisoned Visitor most likely. I'll never understand their love for humans." The soldier said.

Polk shouted, cussing once more. "Sullen! How in the world? … I swear he's dead as soon as I find him. I want him tracked but do not kill him unless forced to do so." he spewed out. "Look, get back there and find out if anyone has assumed command. If they haven't, you're to do it. Eventually they'll run dry on ammunition. After that they'll try and make it to the hills and then the Flat Lands. You are to gather as many soldiers as you can muster and force them to move towards the city limits. Keep yourselves between them and our vital installations. Our research labs are in that area."

Major Polk opened a closet door and pulled out some military web-gear. He then turned to the soldier as he strapped the pieces together, "I'm going to contact our artillery batteries and have them pre-target select points in the city outskirts. As soon as they make their break I'll bring a wall of molten steel down on top of them and end this once and for all. Go …do as I said."

"Yes Sir" the ape replied. He went in one direction while Polk headed in the other.

The Human Settlement of Rockwell – Somewhere in Old West Virginia

Colonel Neal and Captain Yuden walked into the old building. It seemed odd to Neal. He'd lived and spent most of his life in the outdoors, even in some of the cold winter months. To suddenly be inside, confined by walls and rooms seemed foreign to the man; almost suffocating.

Rockwell was one of three permanent human settlements that existed. It was one of the few places left where vegetation and water were mildly present. There was even game in the area. It also held a strategic value. Minerals and metals had been mined or salvaged from this region. There were huge factories in the city going day and night. It was a major source of both food and supplies and was heavily guarded. It was a large settlement and housed over eight hundred people, including the military. The city was far enough from the apes and provided some stability from the normal chaos.

Word had spread about the Nuclear Cells, the apes, and there were even some jokes going around about the two crazy astronauts from the clouds. Captain White's analysis and tests on the Cells had confirmed that they were legit. That news was the biggest rumor of them all. As soon as General St. James heard the gossip, he'd sent for Neal and his entire Battalion. A full strength combat Regiment had been sent forward in its place. Search and Destroy elements had been deployed even farther. Artillery support was also on their way but that was a bigger task. St. James wasn't messing around.

Neal and Yuden entered the room where March, Hayes and their fellow gorillas sat under heavy guard. It was evident from the looks on the guard's faces that they carried one emotion when it came to simians; hatred. As they looked at the three apes, it was almost as if they were goading the gorillas into making a move. …Any excuse, whatsoever, just so they could kill them. As soon as the two officers entered they hastily assumed a more neutral posture.

Grazot shook his head as he listened to Hayes snoring in the corner. How ironic, he thought to himself, these two arrive in our most northern territory and I not only help them get out but get myself put on the opposite side of the development, in the process. Now I'm the chained misfit and they're just two humans among many. He laughed deep inside as looked at all the men. Besides March and Hayes there were at least twelve to fifteen armed guards. That's five guards per ape, he went on to ponder. He'd spent his whole life thinking there were only a dozen humans in existence. Heck, in reality, he hadn't thought much about man at all. To him they'd been no different than a bird, a dog, or a cow; just one of many created animals. He felt a bit of self-imposed shame at letting the Ndola's in life dupe him so easily. "Zig should be here", he mumbled as his thoughts drifted to his old friend.

"He'd have probably gotten himself shot fifteen times by now." General Narr stated picking up on Grazot's words. "I still can't believe the Magistrate killed the ape."

Grazot grunted and made a few censored comments regarding his thoughts on the situation. "… and he claimed that humans were the savages."

"Well I'm beginning to see that humans and apes have more in common than simply having the ability to speak." Narr replied.

Minutes later the door opened and several more people arrived. They began setting up a table and putting down chairs.

"Not another one of these blasted inquires." Ogden whispered. "Why don't they just release us or kill us? I don't know if I can sit through another one of these things"

"Patience, Troop Sergeant," Narr responded. "Believe me, if they didn't think there was credibility to our story, they would have shot or hung us long ago. And I have a feeling we're about to finalize this one and for all"

The Gorilla's had been questioned extensively about the Territorial Capital, the ape military presence, and their current defenses. They hadn't hesitated to cooperate. Narr wanted Polk just a dead as these humans did. Their information had been helpful. It quelled the rumors that Voss was MIA and that a subordinate ape was now in command. The facts were still not enough to gain total trust. That would probably never fully happen.

Once the equipment was in place, one of the soldiers called the room to attention. It was so loud that Hayes almost fell off the bench he was napping on. A rough looking older man, entered the room, accompanied by two others. His eyes immediately met Narr's. He motioned for the guards to bring him forward and seat him just opposite the table. St James introduced himself and handed Narr a canteen of water. Neal had filled the ape in on their customs prior to their departure. Narr picked up the canteen and took a drink. He handed it back and watched St James take a swallow.

"You're the Five-Star among your people? I want to thank you for the intelligence update. It was most helpful. I was also informed about that incident with that boy. Oddest thing I ever heard." St James said. He didn't care that he'd referred to Narr and his nation as people. St. James was direct and to the point. He also wanted more than just intelligence and information. He wanted answers and if he wasn't happy with them, these clever spies were going to die before the day was out.

"Five-Star?" Narr asked not following the implication.

St James explained the meaning and Narr concurred as he went on to explain that his societal hierarchy was not military. "We're run by a council that gets appointed by land owning apes. The military has representation, through a Magistrate, but it's our science ministry that carries most of the weight" He explained.

"Land owners…Right" St James stated as if he could have cared less. "Ever seen this before?" The General said as he tossed a Nuclear Cell on the table. He studied the ape's reaction with great suspicion.

"Only recently…I mean …umm" Narr stated not sure where St. James was headed.

"You" He said pointing at Hayes. "Come here".

Hayes walked forward and sat as St James motioned for him to take the chair next to Narr. As Hayes took his seat, St James whispered to one of the other officers. The man mumbled a quick Yes Sir and got up and left the room.

St James stared at Hayes for a second without saying a word.

What is this guy's problem? Hayes thought. Friggin Generals, Six hundred years later and they haven't changed a bit.

"Sir?" The Captain asked but St James just held up a finger, signaling for Hayes to be patient. To kill some time, he pushed the canteen towards the two and offered them more water.

The man was just as baffled as Narr as he picked up the canteen and drank. Moments later the male officer returned with a female Captain. At least that was what the rank on her chest resembled, Hayes noted. She walked in and sat across from the two.

"Have you ever seen this before?" The General asked again, this time looking at Hayes.

Hayes answered and began to reiterate his adventures in the old warehouse they'd stumbled across. He'd told the story several times already. Telling it once more didn't bother him. St James cut him off and handed him a piece of paper.

"Tell me about this." He said as he slid the paper across the table.

Hayes studied it half heartedly. What now?, He said to himself. Why am I always the go-to guy with this crap?

It was an old schematic of advanced networked equipment. It remained Hayes of what he'd seen on the island. The only difference is that this one was enormous and more complex. It looked to be a piece from a much larger diagram. Hayes folded a section back and noticed the faded words; US Defense Department in the corner.

"No United States, huh" he said glancing over at Neal.

"Your thoughts Captain, not your opinions. Forget the Colonel" St James stated tapping his finger on the desk.

"Looks like a computerized generator or electric power grid … You tell me." Hayes said shrugging his shoulders.

"They're design Specs, Captain. Look at the relays…here. Look at the method and equations …here. …Just tell me what it means" The female officer said sliding paper back a Hayes.

Hayes picked up the paper again and ran his fingers across it. After a minute or two, he laid it down and said, "It isn't electric, it's nuclear …a reactor of some kind."

"That's it; A reactor? …of some kind? This is a waste of time" St James replied.

"Look, General is it?" Hayes stated. "What is all of this? As happy as I am to be with my own kind again, I'm getting sick of having my chain jerked in fifteen different directions. I've been questioned and re-questioned for two days. Why don't you, and your girlfriend here, just explain what the frock do you want?" Hayes stated, except he didn't say frock. Like Ogden he'd had his fill of it. He'd even endured quite a bit of taunting during his brief visit to the city. He and March had gone through hours of questions on the relics they carried as well as the gold and silver found on them. His neck was kinked from sleeping in the corner of a hot room and his patience was running dry.

One of the offices, a Lieutenant Colonel, reprehended Hayes, reminding him that he was talking to a Superior. The man added something about possibly believing the rumors of his being a lunatic.

Hayes just stared at the man and sarcastically replied "What are you going to do? Chain me and put me in a cell?"

"Explain it Jon." The somewhat stern voice in the far corner said. "Settle yourself down Captain and explain it to the General."

Hayes glanced over his shoulder at March; his friend, colleague, and immediate superior.

"Do it Jonny. That's an order." March added.

Hayes shrugged again and rubbed his hands through his face and hair. "Fine" the man answered. "Give it here" he added reaching for the paper.

Hayes picked up the document a third time and began to explain what he could. "Figure 6 isthe schematic diagram of an atom. The protons and neutrons are located in the center, and the electrons orbit the nucleus. The electrons are located here …in this picture of the electron cloud surrounding the nucleus. These lines here represent their oval orbits. This where it begins at the basic level"

He took in a breath, looked up and said. "Ya got that?"

"Keep going." The female said pointing back down at the paper.

Hayes exhaled and continued. "Before I get to the what, you all need to understand the why; Nuclear energy may be defined as the energy found within an atomic nucleus, sometimes referred to as the nuclear binding energy. They represent a helium nucleus here. The mass of its parts is less than the mass of the nucleus itself. Using Einstein's equation E = mc2 … You do know who he was right Colonel Klink?"

"Klink?" The Lieutenant Colonel said as he looked at Hayes in confusion. Before anything came of the comment March spoke up again ordering Hayes to stick to the subject and skip the editorial remarks.

"Ok, E = mc2, where C is the speed of light we can see that a tiny bit of mass can make an enormous amount of energy." Hayes continued.

He laid the diagram down, spun it around so that it faced the General and the other as he went on. "This small box here represents a chamber where a mini nuclear reaction occurs. An unstable nucleus will become more stable by emitting particles and rearranging the neutrons and protons into more stable nuclei. As I'm sure everyone in the room knows that like charges repel. So I'm sure you're asking yourselves, then how can positively charged protons exist together in a nucleus?"

"Stop messing around Captain and stick to the subject." The female Captain interrupted in an irritated tone.

He paused for a second and then in a mild, but still mocking, pitch he stated, "Because there is a force called the strong force that holds protons and neutrons together at very small distances. The electrons are bound to the nucleus by an electric charge because the unlike positive and negative charges of the protons and electrons, respectively, attract. Now, this energy is broken down even further …right here …and that information escapes me but these symbols here and here represent the sub-atomic; If that even exists. The force is used against itself and cycled here in these conduits. It looks like it loops and repeats and repeats gaining a constant speed and feeding into these things over here. I have to be honest; I'm lost as to what happens here…and here." The man said pointing to another set of equations and boxes on the drawing.

"But my guess is that it resembles some kind of Fusion and joins a number of the nuclei together. It's actually quite ingenious. …An almost endless power supply really. I'd go so far as to say impossible. Nice theory, if you can account for heat, waste, and radiation levels so high they'd vaporize half of Texas; it's power is something similar to nuclear fission that the sun's energy produces, but there's a lot more to it than I just explained. How is respective stability and force balance managed? What about a possible chain reaction? How does it handle primary supremacy consistency within the nuclei? And like I said earlier there's the heat. That high of a temperature could never be controlled. If you miscalculated you'd be in a world of hurt. This thing is beyond even Star Trek" He said in conclusion.

St James turned to Captain White. The expression on her face answered his question before he even asked it. The man may indeed be a lunatic but he understood enough for the mission he was about to embark.

"I've heard enough." St James stated. "I'm not going to pretend I understand even two words of what you just explained, but if Karen's convinced then I am too. Release their restraints and bring in some food."

*** Later that Day

The astronauts were briefed and given information on the particulars of St. James's unusual request; if you wanted to call it that. Like or not they'd volunteered. According to the briefing, there was a tunnel entrance about three miles from the old capital. Access to it was tricky at best. Inside was a passage that led deep into the ground. It ended at a pseudo-mechanized area where the reactor equipment sat.

The vicinity had been referred to as the CDC, for Civil Defense Center. It tied in with something called the ODN (*Orbital Defense Net). The men had heard about that from the hologram they'd seen in the device Sullen revealed in Old Buffalo.

From the information available the area had been ransacked over the decades. It had been highly compromised during its last days as an inhabited city. The CDC power links lie ruptured due to a massive air barrage. Once that happened the fail-safe protocols were initiated. The system locked itself down. Anything that moved within two to three miles of the city was targeted and destroyed. For centuries no one had been able to get near it. Any who tried were instantly vaporized; no matter what the number. The cities old inhabitants suffered grueling deaths as the defensive sensors tagged them as a threat. Any man, woman, child, or animal that escaped the bombardment were eradicated from within.

With the discovery of the Nuclear Cells, things were now different. If the reactor could be stabilized and the conduits repaired, the fail-safe could be powered down and the CDC interfaces could reinitialize, granting access to the defense computers. Once that happened every ape city on the planet could be targeted. The city and technology inside would also be ripe for the picking. It was like winning the lottery.

"Why the change in attitude, Jonny?" March asked.

"There's nothing like a hot meal and a good bath." Hayes replied slapping his superior on the shoulder. "…Even if the bath was a rather cold one, at that. I can't remember the last time we took one. Had to be just before we left those tunnels and hit the desert."

"Yeah probably" March replied as he plopped himself in the nearest chair and rubbed his forehead.

Hayes took note of his friend for the first time in quite awhile. His neck was red with pink and dull purple mixed in from the knife he'd used to cauterize the musket wound. He was walking with a slight limp as well. Probably from the wound to his leg and his face and hands were still scratched and scabbed. His hair was long, shabby and looked grayer. They both had recently bathed and shaved but March hadn't cut his hair and it was getting long. He looked pale and was sweating.

"You ok Boss? You look like hell." Hayes stated without really thinking about what he'd just said.

"Old age, Mon Cap-e-tain" March replied in a poor French accent. "Just a headache and a little tired. It'll pass. Looks like we've been drafted…again. We might be stuck here for a long time"

There was a momentary pause and then March spoke up again with a laugh. "This is the part where that geek-o-matic brain of your goes into action and tells me you've rebuilt The Dreadnaught out of old paperclips and toothpicks."

"And what if I told I think there was a shot?" Hayes said.

"A shot at what? Did you just find a few paperclips?" March asked not noticing the serious look on his friend's face.

"A shot at getting us into space again. About possibly mapping a way home." Hayes stated plainly.

"Ok, I'll bite. What's on your mind? And please don't explain the workings of the atom to me." March said sighing a little and rubbing his temples. "Is it hot in here to you?"

Hayes spoke of the probe and explained that it used the same navigation protocols as The Dreadnaught. He claimed that both landed on the same planet but in different times. Once Humpty Dumpty had hit the barrier it was uncertain as to what caused it to land a good thirty years in the past, but one thing was certain; their trajectory, navigational paths and routs of entry were key.

Hayes stated that he would have never brought it up but during their discussion of Washington's defenses he'd asked if anything had even gotten through, around, or under the city. Supposedly, a hundred or so years ago an object had. Its origin was unknown but it had descended from the sky like a missile. That was about all St James and his staff had told him. Hayes however had looked into some of the old logs that were kept.

"What's ironic Tom," Hayes said "… is that something …someone that is, came out of the object. The only problem was that it was cut down once outside the thing's protection. It's here in the old logs."

"You think it was some kind of ship or escape pod? Even if it was ship and even if we did find a way into it, we'd need Dreadnaught's flight logs and the CIS tracking data. That stuff is long gone." March replied.

"It's not long gone, Sir. I transferred it to the field-pad when I was plotting our escape from that city we crashed into." Hayes said with a smile.

Hayes anticipated the next reply and spoke up "…and yes and it's in the city we just left, right?" Well, what about the command backup? That isn't in that city and that does have the log and the tracking info because I backed it all up when we were on the island." The Captain said again tapping his forefinger against his skull.

"That's hope, Jonny but it's a long shot; a very long shot. Look, I'm really tired and need to sit down for a bit" March answered.

His face looked even paler than before to Hayes. "You get some rest; I'm going to see if I can find a medic or something."