Apes Chapter 19

 

19.

 The City was still recovering from the previous rioting by the servants although it was only isolated cases the fear lingered on. Their living conditions were dense and with the servants seen at every corner, it was distressing at times.

Maybe not for all like the Electrical Officer at Nontaka Tower; a seventy-level structure with over five thousand inhabitants. Taro Suzuka who had over twenty-five years of doing the task himself at Nontaka Tower took on a servant a year ago when he found open high places give him the jibs on his nerves. His Medical Officer told him it was his age causing it and so he got the servant who was taught the workings. He was standing there at the window overlooking at the ledge on Level Fifty-Four where the servant was perched on the extended metal beam at Level Fifty-Five.

“Grab the switch box for me,” Taro called out to the servant that was a silverback. The servant reached for it and just then the howls of the wild vibrated in the surrounding area. The servant looked up at its owner and then it leaped off the beam to land on the unit below. Its landing was rough for it crashed into the glass screen there which was the high window. It rolled with the crash and then rushed for the exit. The crash had alarmed the inhabitants of two older persons who had then reached for their canes. Their servant; a chimpanzee had rushed out from the bedroom unit and joined the gorilla ape to the exit.

It was happening everywhere in the City.

“Get the officers armed. I don’t care what it may take as long as they can trap or shoot those infernal servants.” The Colonel slammed the communicator down. He looked at the outside of his unit from the opened doorway. The officers were all rushing from all corners and were armed with a sidearm. Their numbers were adequate to handle contained riots or even the raid of a tower but complete mayhem in the City was unplanned.

“Colonel, we got reports from the five Outposts. They are under siege or on verge of collapse except for Outposts Three and Five; that one has been taken on Outlanders and holding up.” The officer had reported in. “The cause of it was the servants and others from the Outland. It’s complete chaos there.”

 “Recall the Border Security. Recall them all. I want the Fortress protected. Let the City take care of its own.” The Colonel barked the order. He then muttered it out his last words. “To Hell with them.”

“Colonel, the Senate members are on the communicator.” Another officer popped in the head. The Colonel raised his middle finger on his left hand and then stormed out. He had no real concern about those idiots.

“Try to get me Outpost Three.”

At Outpost Three, it was chaotic like in the City but the walls were manned by the surviving officers and Outlanders. They had returned from Purgatory after they dropped the explosives into the canyon. They had dropped the explosives from and left the place burning. They were using incendiary explosives. He had suffered no casualties. Then they retreated to the Outpost. The officers at the Outpost had defended well and were holding at bay the creatures which outnumbered them by two to one then.

“We are back to reinforce you.” PJ had taken three cruisers and the heavy vehicles to bomb Purgatory. They had ignored Senior Officer Lances and left him to his venture. Some of the other survivors had followed them back and soon reinforced the defenses.

PJ then calls for a meeting then among the leaders which consist of PJ representing the Enforcers, the Chief of the Independences who survived, the new Head of the Tribal, and the appointed leader of the others which were not affiliated.

The last headcounts were twenty officers, forty-one Independence, eighteen Tribal, and forty-five of the others.

“I don’t give a care for them.” The new Tribal leader cursed out. He was a squat figure but made up of muscles on the frame. He was carrying a makeshift double blade ax. “I heard that it was their issue which created this.”

“Say one…” The Independence Chief was cut off by PJ with his voice above the calls of the other two.

“I say we stay calm or you can all leave my Outpost,” PJ warned them. He was still holding the advantage with his officers all armed with rifles and sidearms. The others were armed too but few had rifles and sidearm. They make to do with machetes and sharpened rods. Or even tools that could crack bones.

“I stand with the Border Security Officer.” The self-appointed leader of the Outlanders voiced out. He was a huge figure but age may have dampened his figure with the wider girth seen at the waist level. He held a thick iron pipe with a jagged end. “We escape with barely our lives to be here.”

“Thanks, Officer Joel.” PJ looked to the huge leader. Once he was an Enforcer but he gave up and was with the Outlanders. “Now we are down to about a hundred of us. I am going to be fair to all. There are some extra weapons with me which I will now pass out to you. Not everyone will be armed but we will be better off with it.”

“What about the cruiser? We could ride out.” PJ knew that they have the cruisers out there. It was not much help then.

“We will hold out here for now.” The Independence Chief muttered a curse and was to be confronted by PJ when the alarm went off.

“Incoming!” That was the alert of the creatures mounting another attack. 

Out on the land was Lances having managed to escape Purgatory. However, he knew that he had to head towards the Outpost. It was a long trek by foot across the wasteland. He had on the belt with the sidearm but he was low in projectiles. He turned to the left with the wind blowing from the right. He wanted to shift the scent from the servants if they were to hunt him. He learned that from his youth when he used to play with them. It was taught to him by the old staff of the Research Facility when he was not fiddling engines.

Lances knew his trek was going to kill him unless he has access to water and maybe more useful as weapons. He needed the last for he feared the servants will find him. He heard the roaring sound of the engine and looked back.

It was a vehicle or with its bare frame. The engine was mounted on welded frames and then with supporting cross mounting, two-seat harnesses were added with overhanging beams should the vehicle turn over. It rolled on four wheels; the front two are smaller than the rear ones but given the horsepower of the engine, it was a derby vehicle made for the rough terrain but the engineer who built it added some gross design suspension and thankfully a braking system.

“Someone needs a lift?” The driver of the atrocious vehicle was dressed in the sleeveless shirt that was cut off above the midriff to cover his upper chest. He had on knee-length shorts and made to do sandals but his bearded look made him look menacing.

The vehicle swerved to the left before it stopped.

“Barney…. Barney Leroy, is that you? I thought you died.” Lances rubbed the dirt off his face. “I heard….”

“I died in the City and was buried in Purgatory. I heard you were there. And must you create its downfall in one day?” Leroy growled from the vehicle. “I hear the Outpost Three is still holding.”

“How did you know?” Lances asked.

“My communicator is still working.” Leroy showed his unit at Lances. “You got a pack of chimpanzees looking to eat your flesh. I could help you there.”

Without hesitation, Lances climbed on the vehicle. He then asked the pertinent questions.

“You have water? Or projectiles?”

“The first, off my back the water is there. The second, look beneath your seat.” It was a sidearm with five loads of projectiles. Water was crucial but rare to find at the Outland unless you know the locations.

“Pardon the joke. Help yourself at the canteen in the rear.”