CHAPTER 3

Now that spring had come at last, the forest was full of life. All of the creatures and animals that survived the harsh winter left their homes in search of food. Do had taken the role of chief from his father, and as such was taught how to hunt animals. He used his spear to kill any wildlife he came across.

The other apes scavenged for food in the forest; bird eggs, berries, fruits, and the like. The apes stuffed themselves full, quickly growing stronger. The last decade had been one of hunger and starvation, but now, their stomachs were finally full.

After the encounter with the bear, Do realized he alone wasn’t strong enough to protect the tribe. He found long sturdy branches and used his knife, a sharp narrow rock, to craft the branches into spears. The other apes watched curiously as he crafted. When he was done, he stood up and commanded. “Go, Po, Bo, take spear.”

The three apes that were called out were young males full of vigor. Excited, they each took a spear. Do walked to the entrance of the cave. “Come.”

Go, Po, and Bo followed their chief to an open clearing in the forest. There, Do began to instruct them on how to use a spear. Do was taught one thing from his father: a thrust. Do had used this one move to kill many animals. It worked perfectly.

With Do as the chief, and Go, Po, and Bo as his soldiers, the ape tribe gained confidence and began to travel further into the forest. Their territory increased, giving them access to more food. There seemed to be no challenge for them. There was plenty of food, allowing the tribe to give offerings to the statue.

The years continued to pass, and soon the next generation of apes was born. Do now had a son, leaving him very happy. Do had one hoppy: carving. He passed this down to his son. The harsh winter that seemed to last forever had long been forgotten by the apes. Their future was now full of hope.

One day, Do and his soldiers were traveling along the edge of their territory. Do raised his nose and sniffed. He smelled the scent of blood. The four apes grew cautious and slowly followed the smell to its source. Awhile later they found a small clearing. Do saw the carcass of an ape laying in a pool of blood.

Flesh was torn apart as a big black bear ripped through the ape, chewing down chunks of flesh. Bo shivered. “Bear!”

Go, Po, and Bo, staggered backwards and prepared to flee. Do stood strong. He could see that the ape on the ground was not one from his tribe. Did that mean there were more tribes out there?

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Do held his spear firmly. “Fight!”

“Fight?” The three apes paused.

Do felt his heart pounding in his chest, but he didn’t let it show on his face. “Bear threat to tribe. We kill.”

The three apes looked at each other before looking at the dead ape. Do continued. “Bear alone, we together. We win!”

The three apes nodded hesitantly. Do pointed forward. “Surround!”

The bear was busy stuffing itself so it didn’t hear the apes approach. When Do was ten feet away from the bear, he gulped. The flank of the bear was facing him, so ran forward and stabbed. The spear sunk into the bear’s flesh without much resistance.

The bear roared in pain as it spun around. It swiped with its paw, knocking Do’s spear to the side. He stood there, frozen in fear as the bear prepared to swing again. At this time, the other apes ran forward with fierce shouts. Three spears sunk into the bear, causing it hollar in pain.

Do took this chance to grab his spear. When he turned around, he saw the bear swipe its paw across Go’s chest. Blood sprayed into the air as Go fell to the ground. Do felt his heart leap into his throat. Seeing that the bear was about to finish off Go, he charged forward and rammed his spear into the bear’s neck.

The bear’s roar was muffled as blood poured out of its mouth. The light in its eyes disappeared as it slumped to the ground with a thud. Suddenly, Do’s body lit up with a flash of light. He felt himself grow stronger, but he wasn’t happy in the slightest. He spun around and ran up to Go.

Crouching down, he saw blood pouring out of Go’s chest. It wouldn’t stop. Go glanced up at Do. “Chief. I dying. My son…”

The other two apes stood next to Go, tears in their eyes. Do shook his head. “Not dead yet!”

He picked up Go and carried him over his shoulder. For some reason, Go was as light as a feather. Do didn’t know why, nor did he have the time to question it. He ran back home as fast as he could. The other two apes followed, but they were soon left behind.

Around an hour later, Do entered the cave and ran up to the statue of the strong ape. He gently laid Go in front of it. Do saw that Go’s eyes were closed, so he thought he was already dead. When he pressed his ear against Go’s chest, he was relieved. His heart still beat.

When Do saw a puddle of blood start to form, he grew anxious. He glanced at the statue and begged. “Save Go. Please.”

Before his words could finish, a dim yellow light flew out of the small statue and covered Go. Before Do’s eyes, the lacerated muscles and skin slowly grew together. In less than a minute, his wounds disappeared, leaving not even a scar.

‘

When Do entered the cave and laid Go down, the other apes surrounded him, full of concern. When they saw the wounds close and Go’s eyes open, they looked at the statue with awe. “It save Go!”

“What going on?” Go slowly stood up before looking down at his chest. It was covered in blood.

Do pointed at the statue. “It save you.”

Go slowly walked up to the statue before bowing his head. “Thank you, statue.”

Po and Bo arrived not long after. When they saw that Go was fine, they let out relieved sighs. Go left the cave with Po and Bo and returned with the corpse of a giant bear. Instead of eating it, they offered it to the statue. Go once again thanked the statue.