An Unstoppable Dawn

9. Awakening Trust

I felt a hand shake me to awake myself from out my sleep. I fluttered my eyes slowly to see a blurry image of an ape in front of me. When my vision cleared and was viewable, I saw that the ape was Caesar who woke me and Blue Eyes up in a panic.

"I was looking for you two!" Caesar fearfully signed at the two of us who were still sleepy. "What's wrong, father?" Blue Eyes asked his father who looked distraught in his green eyes. "Your mother... she's in a bad state. You two, come!" Caesar pressured us, going over to the horses to prepare for the trip back to the colony. When me and Blue Eyes stood up and crawled out of the shelter space, we gazed at each other where I noticed that he was a few inches taller than me to which I adored. The weather transformed into sunny daylight as we mounted on the horses. "Cornelia..." My voice fainted as we galloped to the colony quickly. When we got into the village and dismounted off of our horses, one of the female nurses hollered at us to come to the hut. We raced up on the ramp and we approached by a heartbreaking sight. Cornelia was ill on her bed as her husband came to her, placing his hand on his head. I watched as Caesar leaned his forehead onto his wife's and began to sign.

"You are going to be alright, honey." He signed with reinsurance. Cornelia turned her head over to me which prompt me to walk over slowly and get on my knees. "Kiara. I'm glad to see you." The ape queen signed, trying to keep a smile for me in her unwell moment while I was incredibly sad to see her in such a state. Suddenly, we heard ape guards coming up the ramp as we watched the entrance intensely. The guards had Malcolm and Ellie in their mob and I was joyful to see them.

"Caesar... I'm sorry about earlier... I know it's my fault but I'll make him leave-" Malcolm was silenced by a distressed Caesar. "This! Is my home... you should not be here." Caesar spoke, feeling distrustful from before. I ran over to the human couple to hug them. "Are you alright?" Ellie motherly asked me. I nodded my head until she looked the other way, breaking our eye contact. "Guys..." Ellie patted out arms to look over at Cornelia, who was wheezing poorly from her mouth. "She's sick." Malcolm let out, alerting the other apes to look in his direction. "How long has she been this way?" Ellie sympathetically asked as the ape king turned to her with a distrustful look on his face. I lifted my eyes over next to Ellie as she held one hand to her chest before speaking.

"I have medicine. Antibiotics." She told them. I bounced my gaze between the two adults. "Maybe she can help." Malcolm suggested, stepping in closer. Still distrustful, Caesar gazed at Malcolm with a stone face. "Do. Not. Trust you." He simply said, returning his gaze onto his sick wife. "I don't blame you. But believe me... we're not all like him." Malcolm said, trying to get Caesar to listen. "Please... let us help you." Ellie begged, wanting to help Cornelia. Caesar looked at me for a second then to his wife until he looked back over to Ellie. The surrounding apes began to move slowly to create a path for me and Ellie to walk. I walked behind Ellie as she began to kneel down and jumbled inside her bag for the medicine. Caesar tenderly pulled me over so I can stand safely next to him as I watched Ellie prepare to cure Cornelia.

"One day." Caesar's unforeseen words made Ellie's head rise up where they locked eyes. "You stay. One day." He told her, causing Blue Eyes to worriedly chime in the conversation. "Father,no..." He agonizingly signed. "I think we'll need a little more time." Malcolm said in a soft voice that sounded like whispering. "One day!" Caesar furiously reasoned with Malcolm which made his heart leap. "Ape will help." Caesar said, slowly turning his head to his teenage son. "I will not help." Blue Eyes singed with disagreement on letting Ellie cure his sick mother and my human group being gifted the privilege to stay near their territory for one day. Blue Eyes locked eye contact with me as he began to stand up. He gave me a timid look before storming passed Malcolm out of the hut and down into the ape village. Ellie pulled out a syringe as Rocket and the female apes began to hoot hysterically. I calmly raised my hands at them to ease them down.