Chapter 3.
Over the next few months there were dozens more births. The new infants were accepted and nurtured by their mothers, even though their appearances were different from normal simians. The protruding brow ridge, typical of the simian, remained, together with the protruding jawline. But there the major similarities ended.
This new species was, with the exception of more hair in the genital and chest area and facial features as previously described, very similar to humans. The trunk and arms were slightly longer and more heavily muscled. The legs were also slightly shorter.
Sef and his father were at first alarmed by these differences, but as time went by and life in the clan remained relatively normal, their fears lessened. It appeared that this new species was viewed by the simian clan as normal, though a few of the mothers had difficulty coping with differences in temperament exhibited by their infants.
Sef maintained contact with the ‘darkness,’ or the ‘transceiver,’ as he now called it. The images that he conversed with were seldom Evander’s, unless Sef made a specific request to speak with him.
Sef’s father became increasingly distant, unwilling to converse at all regarding his new offspring. He seemed preoccupied with maintaining his status, and seldom initiated conversation with his human son.
The clan itself was increasingly absorbed in caring for the unusual new infants. The young ones grew quickly, and by the age of puberty, had become much more aggressive, unlike ‘normal’ simians.
Recognizing that they were less like their parents and more like Sef, the new race naturally gravitated toward him, and quickly learned to speak, though their phrasing and idiom were less sophisticated than his.