Secret Meetings

Beginnings

That day, when Blue Eyes raced out of the colony with Ash close behind him, he had no reason to suspect anything overly exciting would happen. It was just like any other day they'd left. They would run around, chase each other, wrestle, and other things like that.

At least that's what the prince assumed, until they wandered further away from the colony than usual and stumbled upon a strange, wooden hut in the trees. And, since seeing something like that was one of the strangest parts of their eight year existence, Ash was immediately dragging Blue Eyes up the trunk to explore. Although the more cautious of the two, the young prince's curiosity won out over his hesitant instincts and he allowed his friend to lead him inside.

They entered through a large window on the side of the structure, quickly noticing a twin window on the opposite wall. There was very little inside, aside from another object in the corner with four legs, a thick slab of wood connecting them, and a small, shiny box beneath it. Overall the structure was more spacious than it looked from the outside, only slightly smaller than Ash's hut, and built entirely out of worn looking but smooth wood. Naturally the young apes were quickly drawn to the strange objects, especially the shiny box, and dragged it to the middle of the room for a more thorough examination.

The two looked upon it curiously, wondering what this thing was that reflected the light and cool the the touch. Eventually Ash grew tired of staring and picked the box up, placing it in his lap and attempting to open it. No such luck. He could partially open it, but there was another tiny object with numbers and a knob keeping the box closed. It refused to budge no matter how hard Ash, or Blue Eyes, pulled. Finally, the young prince grabbed and shook it out of frustration, but quickly set it down.

"There's something inside," he signed to Ash, still looking at the box. "We have to open it. I want to know what's in there."

Ash said nothing, but reached forward and poked at the lock again with a thoughtful expression on his face. Then, after a few moments had passed, he finally backed away.

"Wait here," he told Blue Eyes before leaving the way they came in. Once he was out of sight the prince went to the window, looking down at his friend. He was confused, especially since Ash appeared to be looking for something.

"What...Ash...Doing?" He called out. Ash didn't answer, but finally came back up after a minute of searching on the ground. Once he was close enough, Blue Eyes realized Ash had a rock in his hand.

"Ash?" He questioned, completely puzzled.

The dark grey chimp, still silent, went to the box and tilted it on its side, leaving the lock lying on the floor. Then, making sure he had a firm grip on the rock, finally looked towards his friend.

"Open," he said, before raising the rock and bringing it down on the lock. It didn't budge, so Ash smashed it a second time. Finally, after five times, he stopped and tried pulling the now badly dented lock away, but it still wouldn't give.

Blue Eyes, now very impatient, grabbed the rock and tried to break the lock himself. It took time, but after the lock had taken a lot of damage, the two managed to twist and tear it away from the box. Satisfied, Blue Eyes threw the troublesome thing out the window before turning to Ash again.

"What are you waiting for, Blue Eyes? Open it!" He signed eagerly. Blue Eyes chuffed irritably before flipping the lid back and exposing the contents inside.

Although neither one really had any expectations for what they would find inside, this was just...

"A waste of time," Blue Eyes signed to Ash while glaring at the box, the previously excitable mood now gone.