Young Writers Society

Search for the Planet of the Apes
Chapter 1

Caesar sat at the table lost in thought. He missed Cornelius terribly and he felt like a knife was penetrating him in the stomach. Most of the time he just thought about his son and it was difficult to concentrate on the “human problem”. Since the war with the mutants he decreed that humans were to be set free. This didn’t work out. Some humans chose to stay with their ape masters because they didn’t have anywhere to go to. Those humans who did choose to live on their own ran into a variety of problems. Gangs of apes often hunted them down and some humans couldn’t survive the elements. Society as a whole was still dominated by apes and discrimination against humans was rampant. Caesar in his quest for a peaceful society, had few simian allies. This was going to be a long, hard struggle and he didn’t see a bright future for humans anytime soon.

Lisa sat down across from him. She knew he was thinking about Cornelius because she too thought about her beautiful son all the time. A human friend had drawn a picture of him that she kept nearby and she talked to him frequently. Some days this helped her, other days it didn’t. She wished she could help her husband with his grief. Unexpectedly, she belched out loud. Caesar was startled and jumped slightly. “Excuse me, dear. This nausea is driving me crazy!” Caesar stared at the floor and mumbled,“Get the doctor to give you something for it!” “I will not! I’m pregnant!” Caesar stood up. “You’re kidding! Are you sure!” Lisa suppressed her anger. The nausea was making her crabby. She stifled yelling at him. She did plan on telling Caesar that she was expecting but there never seemed to be the right moment. Caesar walked over to her and put his arms around her. “I am looking forward to being a father again.” Lisa held him tight but stayed silent.

There was a knock at the treehouse door. Lisa shouted “Come in” without thinking. She usually asked who is it and peeked out the window to get a look at any potential visitors. The door opened and in walked Shangar. Shangar was one of the gorillas in Aldo’s group and was there the night Aldo murdered Cornelius. Both chimps stood up in surprise. Caesar suppressed a growl. Shangar was calm and made eye contact with both chimps. He seemed slightly nervous. His speech was distinct and deliberate, as if he rehearsed what he was going to say. The brown color in his face and silver streaks on his arms were unusual markings for a gorilla. It was almost like his silverback extended onto his arms. “I had to speak to both of you. Just to say how sorry I am that you lost your son. It never should have happened.” Caesar was angry but kept control. “You watched Aldo murder our son and you did nothing!” Shangar maintained eye contact. “That was wrong. I should have stopped him. It’s a mistake I will regret the rest of my life.” Lisa spoke, her voice shaking. “He was a child………just a child! If he were your child, how would you feel?” Shangar breathed deeply and cast his eyes downward. “The loss of your son is something that should not happen to any ape. You just need to know how sorry I am.” Caesar was getting frustrated. He didn’t know if he could forgive Shangar or any of the gorillas who watched Aldo murder his son. “You have no idea how we feel or what we are going through! How come you were there with Aldo and his followers. You have always been a loner. I didn’t realize you that you felt any one way or another about humans.”

Shangar’s voice was harsh. “Humans are not to be trusted and their reign is long over with! Apes were meant to rule, not humans. I am not behind you when it comes to humans. Later today I am meeting with Aldo’s followers and we will decide the next step in preventing humans from taking over or living with us as equals. They should remain as our servants.” Caesar became calmer and put his arm around Lisa.

“You came here asking for our forgiveness for allowing our son to die, yet you cannot forgive the humans who mistreated you.” Shangar did not respond to Caesar’s statement and left the treehouse.

As soon as Shangar left yet another visitor came to Caesar and Lisa’s home this time it was a young human that Caesar had met not long after Cornelius died. Like Caesar, Bret knew what it was like to have lost a child under cruel circumstances. A year before Bret had lost his son Maxx to a bunch of power crazed humans who did not believe in apes and humans working together as one. Though Bret knew that the men who killed his son were a bunch of nutcases, and being a psychologist Bret knew about nutcases, he could not bring himself to trust another human.

“I’ve come because I heard all the commotion from my nearby teepee and wanted to make sure nothing happened that I’d need to call the AHPD(Ape Human Police Department) on,” Bret said looking around the apes’ well furnished home or at least the most furnished you can get in a culture where technology hasn’t existed in years. “I’m so sorry for the loss of your son, he wasn’t much younger than my son when he was killed. How sad it is to lose a child especially ones as young as Maxx and Cornelius,”.

“Thanks Bret you’ve been a real help to Lisa and I. We don’t know what we would have do without you,” Caesar said shaking his 35 year old friend’s husky built hand.

“So what have you two been doing lately,” Bret asked trying to get a conversation started.

“Lisa and I will be parents again,” Caesar said proudly.

“Congrats to both of you,” Bret said seeming to share Caesar and Lisa’s excitement, picking up is glass of water in the form of a toast.