Apes Chapter 20

 

20.

Leroy gunned the vehicle into the gathered creatures there between the mound and the boulder. The vehicle was added with a set of extended beams in the front but the edges were jagged. The side of the vehicle was added to the same beams but shorter with the edges designed to slice. The vehicle rammed the servants there which were of five silverbacks and six chimpanzees. The jagged front beams tore a gap among the servants, with one chimpanzee skewered on the right one. The side beams sliced up those that jumped aside. Three silverbacks shrieked out in pain with their bodies cut.

Leroy then did a left turn and rammed the other servants. Those he did slay; he drove over them.

“Now we are even.” Leroy turned the vehicle towards the Outpost Three. It was a long drive but the distance was covered by the servants there. He saw the silverbacks and chimpanzees all in concerted direction to attack the Outpost. They were racing the vehicle to get there. When they reached the Outpost, they saw the dead bodies of gorillas, and men laid on the open ground were the result of failed attempts to take the Outpost. There were also feedings by the chimps on the bodies. The gorillas had no appetite for meat however took their anger out on the dead men They trampled on the dead carcasses to release their anger. There was not left that was not salvage then. Lances saw a dead Security Border body that was dragged far out. He got Leroy to stop and then retrieved the sidearm with the belt.

“Step on it, Leroy.” Lances shouted at the driver when he fired his retrieved sidearm on the charging ape at the right. The shot went wide and missed the ape but Leroy did the final act. The ape was sliced on the limbs when the vehicle roared past with the jagged blades.

“Let’s go,” I called out to Leroy. He was driving not in a straight line but he was in a zig-zag move to reduce the odds among the servants toppling the vehicle. He turned the wheel to ram the silverback there and sliced open the back flesh. His extended beams and frame structures were coated with blood then. A chimp managed to get a hold on the vehicle and Lances shot it in the face.

“Go for the wall!” Lances called out again.

“I am…” Leroy gunned the engine to its maximum level and headed for the wall. He needed leverage to scale the wall and saw his opportunity. He rammed into a silverback and the vehicle lurched upwards for him to press on the speed, and then hit the low mound to go airborne. The vehicle was lighter than the cruiser and it soared over the wall. It did also take down a silverback standing there stomping its feet on a dead Enforcer.

The vehicle went down with a hard landing but the frame survived the descent. It did skid to the left before it stopped near PJ.

“I thought we asked for the Calvary. Are you all they have?” The voice was PJ was using an old cliché for the call of reinforcements. He saw then Lances and reacted.

“What the….” PJ reached for his sidearm but Lances had leveled him at the other officer.

“We will square off later. We have an Outpost to save on.” Lances then looked around and saw the different vehicles strewn there. The Outlanders have never learned how to park their vehicles properly. The vehicles were in different designs on salvaged materials.

“You go with an extra hand.” Lances glared at PJ.

The servants have gathered and mounted a counter-attack then. Lances stepped out and ran to the wall. While he was climbing up, he fired the sidearm at the charging chimpanzee. He found himself next to PJ who was using the rifle as a club on the silverback before Lances placed a projectile into the ape’s head. He then tossed the pack of projectiles at him.

“I got that from the Armoury. Load up while I cover you.”

“As if I was in the bathroom having my pants down.” PJ rammed the rifle stock into the chimpanzee's face. She then loaded the rifle and fired from his hips. He looked at Lances. The battle was over and the Outpost won once more but with higher casualties.

“We are now at twenty fighting fit and another set of wounded. Where are they from?” PJ did the headcount. “We have to withdraw or die fighting. Ammo is low too.”

PJ has handed them each the last two spares and salvaged some rifles.

“Well, it isn’t over till it’s over.” Lances muttered out. He then hollered out.

“Withdraw to the Main Building. We will hold them there.”

Doctor Lanceston looked up from his console to look at the two guards standing at the exit. He was protected for his safety while the City is in chaos. For his safety, he was not allowed to leave the unit nor communicate with anyone outside of his unit. He was a prisoner in his unit.

But Astrid was missing.

Doctor Lanceston then saw the door opened and the Colonel stepped in.

“Doctor Lanceston, I want results. Those servants out there are your creations. You ….”

“I did for over two decades and all of you benefited from it. Then you re-programmed my routines. Does that make it my problem? They are yours.” Doctor Lanceston hit back.

“Doctor, the city in a …. “

“I am still studying the chips and there is nothing wrong.” Doctor Lanceston cut in. “I am still the creator.”

“Well, if there is nothing wrong then why are they behaving like that? Half the City is gone, and the other half barely holding on.” The Colonel looked at the two guards. “You are darn lucky to have guards.”

The Colonel stepped up to the guards. He motioned to the rifle held by them.

“M500 huh? I hear they are show stoppers.” The M500 fires two projectiles per shot and it reloads automatically from the five shots per load. The barrel was shorter and each projectile was modified with an exploding charge.

“Keep him alive until he finds the cause. I got a City to save.” The Colonel stepped out and bumped into Doctor Julius outside. They backed up to an empty spare unit there to speak.

“I don’t know what happened too. Our specimens are also going …. Apes? They have not responded to our commands and went berserk. Even the one we named Mack it went crazy. I was there.” Doctor Julius recalled that harrowing event just then. He was with the Technician then in a discussion on the latest test with Mack the Silverback seated on its haunches at the side. The rioting had happened then and the Doctor noticed the silverback was in a state of agitation with its rubbing of the face with its hands.

“The servants that we were testing were all fine until recently.” The Technician reported back. “They started hesitating.”

“Hesitating?” The Doctor asked then and it was when the silverback charged out and grabbed the Technician by the back. The Silverback did not hit the Technician as expected but reached for the head and pulled it back to snap it off the spine. It was a skill inoculated into the new enforcing rules. The Doctor managed to escape by the doorway before he called up the guards. The two guards assigned to him rushed to assist but they had to shoot the rampaging servant.

With that threat done, the Doctor had rushed to meet the Colonel.

“So, shut down the new routines.” The Colonel told the Doctor but the latter told him that the system won’t work.

“We can’t access the communicating units to shut down the routines. We’re being blocked. Or terminated from the communication.” Doctor Julius sighed. “I need Lanceston assistance but I doubt he will help unless we open up.”

“We don’t. And we will work alone.” The Colonel told the doctor. “I have arranged assistance. The other cities will assist us.”

The other is made up of three cities but in terms of numbers, they are a lot smaller than the City. Despite their smaller inhabitants, those cities were militant in their approach with multi groups controlling the city like in Purgatory. There are Enforcers there but they are inefficient to manage the order there and left it to the different groups.

 “You called the other cities? Those militant bastards will ruin our City.” The Doctor looked at the Colonel. “Did you inform the Senate? Or the others? Rome?”

“The Senate? They are dead in power or will be. Rome is safe for now. We still have the Fortress. It will be our last stronghold.”

“We can only pray hard that their servants are not affected.” Doctor Julius mumbled to himself.