As Dawn started with the apes, Birth will start with the humans

The plan is to give this a bit of a movie vibe, switching between characters and viewpoints as it goes along. I won't be giving the character names for each chapter but I feel like it's pretty obvious once you start going ;)

There will be a few chapters mixed in with Malcolm and Caesar but the main focus will be on the younger generation (IE - Blue Eyes, Alexander, etc.)

And off we go...

The Attack

Malcolm had just received his lunch from outside one of the colony's few food coolers when his son, Alex, came sprinting up to him, eyes wide and face brightly flustered.

"D…dad…You've got to come here…they…the soldiers…"

Malcolm tried to calm his son with a strong hand on his shoulder, "Woah woah woah, Alexander. What's wrong?"

Alex took a few breaths before he managed to talk clearly, though he held back the volume for fear of being overheard by those around them, "They killed one dad. An ape!"

Malcolm's eyes shot wide, "Take me there, now!"

Alex led his father to the edge of the colony, the twenty-foot barbed-wired walls looming over them like thorned vines. A large group of people were massed around a radio tower, running around in hysteria and shouting all sorts of profanity. It was within this mass of moving bodies that Malcolm could just see the strawberry-blonde head of Ellie crouching over a mound of black fur.

He ran over to her and the dead ape, pushing through many opposing men to do it. She had handfuls of blood-soaked cloth on its abdomen, their purpose of no further use. The ape was gone when it hit the ground, its head now twisted up in an abnormal position, mouth gaping. Ellie was crying hard, her fondness for the apes, especially after healing Caesar, shining strongly through her tear soaked eyes.

He knelt beside her, rubbing her back to try and calm her down, "He's gone, Ellie."

"I…I know…I just…"

Malcolm looked over the ape. He was and older chimp, probably a scout of some sort he assumed, not one he recognized.

He turned to the nearest soldier, "Who did this? I need to speak with him, now." He spoke with authority but made sure to keep his voice calm to try and keep those around him from growing even more worried.

She motioned to the opposite side of the circle of people, "Parker shot it, sir."

Malcolm looked at the soldier in question, a younger man, probably in his early twenties, with eyes still as wide as saucers.

"What happened?" his voice came out a little harsher than expected.

"It…was coming right at us. Screaming and...and yelling like it was insane or something! I…I just reacted."

"Was it alone?" Malcolm asked, quieter this time.

Parker nodded along with a few others.

Malcolm turned questioning eyes back at the ape. Why would an ape attack alone? Why would he be alone? Why now? So many thoughts ran through his head that he almost missed another man run up to the group.

"You are requested in The Tent, sir. Colonel Fremont wishes to speak with you."

Malcolm begrudgingly nodded, wrapped Ellie in his arms, and followed the soldier, while Alex and Parker followed behind.

Lieutenant Colonel Greg Fremont was the new commanding officer of the colony. He was a harsh, no nonsense kind of man, and actually reminded Malcolm of Caesar on his good days. He spent most of his days in The Tent, a large canvas and brick structure built next to the main soldier barracks.

Fremont wasn't his usual calm and collected state of mind when they entered The Tent. Instead, he was stomping around the room, barking orders to everyone in sight to try and keep panic from setting in. Malcolm was sure word of the ape attack would spread throughout the colony quickly and knew Fremont would have that same theory.

Once the silver-headed colonel glanced at the group, he calmed, if only for a second. "Malcolm," he said in quick acknowledgment, his deep accent betraying his southern roots.

"Greg." Fremont wasn't fond of the first name use, but it was all he ever received from Malcolm so he didn't protest.

Fremont inclined to the blood covered Ellie, "I see you've been briefed on our little situation?"

"Yes, sir."

"Parker here says the ape was alone. Can you verify any of this?"

Malcolm shrugged, "I…can't be too certain. I've never seen apes, especially chimps, travel alone. The likelihood of him…"

"That's what I thought," Fremont cut him off, "If this is the case then we need to…"

"Nothing happened afterword," Ellie broke in, "I was helping with a wounded leg when I heard the screams and…"she dropped her head and fought with a few returning tears, "…and after the shot, there was nothing. Any others would've had some sort of reaction. They are...powerfully protective of one another."

Fremont's thick eyebrows shadowed his eyes in thought. "Is this true?" he didn't ask anyone in particular, but Malcolm assumed the question was directed to him.

"Yes, sir. If anything, your men would've heard something. Apes can be quiet, but the…death of another ape would've most certainly gotten them to yell out."

"Unless they've learned that calling out would give away their position..."

The colonel's far too serious stare showed his decision all over his weather-worn face, and if the gut-wrenching feeling Malcolm had was any indicator of what could happen, the lives of many an ape were in jeopardy.

"Send me up there," Malcolm said without a second thought, "Let me find Caesar and see if we can figure this all out."

"And do you have any idea where to start?" Fremont said matter-of-factly.

Malcolm looked over the colonel's face, trying to think of a good response but returning nothing but silence.

"That's what I thought," Fremont gave a small smirk and Malcolm lowered his head in defeat, "Unfortunately, even with your relationship with Caesar, the likelihood of you finding the apes' whereabouts is slim. They vanished completely over a year ago now and all contact with them is nonexistent. You said yourself that Caesar told you any peace between the apes and us was impossible after that incident with Koba, and the only reason we didn't hunt them down when my men and I arrived was because you assured me he wouldn't attack unless instigated."

"This wasn't an attack it…" Malcolm was cut short by a raised hand, yet another trait Fremont shared with Caesar.

"Attack or not, this event still happened and the people of this colony will want answers," he stayed serious and to-the-point, crossing his arms across his chest, "I can't just sweep this under a rug and forget it ever happened, Malcolm. My men might not've been here during the ape attack, but your people were. And let me tell you, they were more than descriptive when recalling what happened. Shutting down memories of that will be impossible. As such, I've decided to take action."

"You're not going to kill them are you?" Alex's question was almost urgent.

Fremont shook his head and gave a reassuring smile, "No, son. I'll not take that action unless I'm forced to."

"But what if more come!" Parker shouted from behind them, "If we put our guard down then that'll be the perf…"

"Parker!" Fremont silenced him harshly then calmed, "Your opinion's been noted. You're dismissed."

Clearly flustered by Fremont's non-arguable order, Parker saluted and left The Tent with a huff. Malcolm could sense Carver seeping out of that boy; the same 'the only good ape is a dead ape' viewpoint mirrored in his eyes.

"Malcolm," Malcolm glanced back at Fremont, knowing the reflection of his memories from the year before were running over his face. "As I just told your boy here, I'll not take action unless there's no other choice. We'll defend our borders at any cost. You know this. If the apes do plan an attack, then the best mode of defense for civilian lives is to stop them before they get here."

"You realize Caesar will do the same thing you're doing? He'll defend his home with everything he has. If you send soldiers, he'll see it as a threat."

"Well that's why I'm not sending soldiers," Fremont smiled.

Malcolm had to blink his eyes a few times to make sure he heard the man clearly, "So…I can go and talk with him?"

"No, I need you to stay here in case your knowledge of the apes is required on the front."

"I'll go," Alex said, raising his hand slightly.

Fremont shook his head, "No. You, your father, and Miss Ellie will stay here."

Malcolm's eyebrows furrowed, "Then...who are you going to get to go out there?"

Fremont almost laughed, "I haven't decided yet! This just happened, Malcolm! You can't expect me to have made a decision after fifteen minutes can you?"

Malcolm averted his eyes, still not happy with the situation.

"I've sent for the files of each able member of the colony, non-military, to look over tonight. Hopefully by tomorrow I'll have chosen a proper representative to go out and search for Caesar. Let's just pray that this ape was, in fact, alone and that word hasn't spread to him."

Malcolm heard Ellie start to protest but he calmed her before she got any farther. "I understand," he said with a nod.

"I shall see you tomorrow then, 0800 hours. Dismissed."

Malcolm nodded again and left, Ellie and Alex in tow.

"You can't let him do this Malcolm," Ellie said once they got out of the soldiers' earshot, "This is going to end up being just like last year."

"I know. I get that same feeling," Malcolm said to the ground, "But…there's honestly nothing we can do about it right now."

"We could sneak out," Alex came in, "Get out of the colony and warn Caesar."

Malcolm just shook his head, "You heard Greg earlier. None of us has any tracking skills. We wouldn't be able to find Caesar unless he was looking for us."

"What if he is looking for us, Malcolm?" Ellie said, "What if that's why the chimp was here in the first place and the soldiers just mulled over this fact and attacked him? That boy was too angry at Fremont for deciding not to hunt them down."

Malcolm was quiet for a while, "It could be true but…I trust him."

"You trusted Dreyfus…" Alex mumbled under his tongue.

Malcolm gave his son a quick glare, "Dreyfus was desperate," he sighed and turned back to the ground, "I…don't blame him for what he did. If he hadn't been so blinded by fear I think things could've ended a lot differently. The least we can hope for is that Greg will think things through better than Dreyfus did."

This story is actually based off a very vivid dream I had one night.

Till next time, can't wait to hear what you guys think of so far ;)