Not Like You (The Simian Forest Saga: Vol. I)

The Escape [XXVI]

Krissa's pulse throbbed between her ears as panic began to set in. The woods seemed to stretch on forever as she flew across the needles, Liepa's face buried deep within the hood of her coat. The white-tail wept into her hair and held onto her shoulders for dear life, begging her not to let her fall. The ravenette clutched her pistol tightly, ears pricked in case anyone had followed her back from town. 

Her morning had started off like any other. She had found herself waking up with the young baby curled into her for warmth amongst their sheets and pillows, the springs creaking as she sat up on the mattress and rose for the day. It hadn't even been dawn yet when she had pulled on her change of clothes and her socks, heading out into the kitchenette to make herself something hot to drink. The little cabin had been so cold, frost forming in incredibly intricate designs across the window panes. Jack Frost had always been such a creative fellow.

After a spot of breakfast, Liepa had pulled on her scarf and Krissa had collected her ration tickets, and they had headed out the door. A fine dusting of snow had fallen the night before, kissing everything with the faintest layer of powdery silver. The air had been so frigid that their breath had been visible in great coils of vapour. She had found herself wondering if she would run into Jonas, completely prepared to shoot that man if necessary. She had been ready since the day his blue-grey eyes had washed over her with the prickliness of a goddamn cacti.

Liepa wasn't a fan of him either, especially after their interesting introduction.

Things were going as they usually would: Krissa would follow the path and try out her singing voice, her throat growing better and better each day as time grew on. Winter had come finally, bitter cold and relentless, the wind coming off the lake shaking the entirety of the small little village. The chatter over their shared radio would sometimes become too much to handle and she would shut off the system, ignoring those concerned about the strength of the storm, some wondering if they would get buried in snow and be unable to reach one another. It was all so... annoying. Not that they were afraid of losing one another, but that they were afraid of the very force that had created them, created their land.

She had found herself stopping in her tracks as the sudden pop of a gun caught her attention. Liepa had grown horribly rigid, to a point where her little hands had dug into her skin too hard and she had ended up grunting in discomfort. Her pace had hastened despite her growing dread, finally reaching town in a hurry, her hair blustering everywhere in the nipping wind. The first thing she noticed was that everything was busy-- too busy for such an early hour. Smoke billowed from chimneys, lights on in shops, the docks buzzing with life. The gunshots became more frequent, yet nobody seemed to flinch. It wasn't until she rounded the corner among the shops that she was confronted with something startling.

Her heart leapt in her chest as she recognised a handful of familiar bodies: Thistle, Gregory and Sharp stood a few feet from some old hunting targets set up in no particular place, guns held confidently in their leathery hands and sinewy arms. The more Krissa searched their humble town square, the more apes became visible. She swallowed and backed up a few steps, trying to calm the wave of nervous nausea suddenly creeping up from her twisting belly. "Who's that?" whispered Liepa in her innocent little voice. She huddled close in the cold, ambling up onto her shoulder and using her head as an easy place to put most of her weight, leaning forward.

"Bad apes," she whispered softly. "I don't like this... stay quiet, okay?"

"Okay," Liepa agreed, hugging closer. There was a beat as she adjusted her scarf. Hopefully they wouldn't recognise her with her hair cut so short. "Why shoot?"

Krissa swallowed and shook her head. "I don't know. I think they're... getting ready for something."

"Some.. thing bad?"