Chapter 20-Jake
I had nowhere to go. I had no place to sleep. There was no grand plan that I had made. I just had to get away from it all.
After I was sure no one was following me, I morphed to bat. It was the best morph for seeing in the dark. I assumed it was near midnight, and if no one was out during the day, surely no one would be out at night.
I went back to my home. What was left of it, actually. I landed in the park a few blocks away and demorphed. The street lights were still working, one of the few things the Yeerks hadn't destroyed.
My home was a big pile of dirt. I searched through everything, and found nothing. My computer, pictures, it was all now reduced to its basic elements. The only thing I had was my memories. This place, where I had lived the first sixteen years of my life, was gone. My family was gone. I was the only one left to carry on my family's legacy.
It must have been the combination of tiredness and utter, complete hopelessness I felt. My legs collapsed under me, and I fell asleep on the remains of my house.
I slept a long time. I dreamt horrible nightmares that I could never talk about. Somehow, I managed not to awake myself, freaked out by the unholy willies.
BOOM! BOOM!
I was instantly awake. It was a clear sky, and the sun was shining brightly. I figured it was near noon.
What was that booming noise? Were the Yeerks attacking again? I struggled to my feet and looked around. Kids were outside, playing games. Everyone seemed to be having a barbecue. Fireworks were being shot into the sky. I sauntered over to one of my neighbors and asked what the celebration was for.
"Don't you know? A few kids and an alien kid beat this whole other alien empire!" my neighbor said excitedly. I didn't know him. He must have been the new guy in town. "I didn't even know there were other aliens out there! They don't look like the ones in Star Trek or Star Wars, though." He actually sounded disappointed.
"Yeah, that's good," I absently answered. I had to get out of here. Undoubtedly, news of our victory had gotten out. The secret we had kept for so long was finally public. If they knew our names, I would be found fast.
I didn't possess another human morph. There was nowhere to hide, and I couldn't morph in full view. This was going to get dicey quickly.
"Jake!" One of the adults had recognized me! I had to get out of there instantly. I turned and ran down the street.
"Hey, everybody!" the man yelled. "There's Jake! He's one of the kids that saved the planet!" He started running after me, and about one second after he had identified me, the whole block was running to me.
"Not smooth, Jake," I said to myself. Even though it would get me noticed quickly, I began to change as I ran. Orange-brown hair sprouted from my neck, and my ears began to grow. I was morphing my dog Homer. I wondered where he was.
"Ahhhhhhhh!" a woman yelled. She dropped her bags and ran the other direction. Guess she had never seen a boy changing into a dog.
"There he is! Look, he's changing into a dog!" the man who started the stampede shouted. "Catch him!"
I blew past the people on the sidewalk. But they, too, started after me. It was crazy. Half the town was chasing me.
Now that I was fully dog, I could run faster. My hearing was much better, and I heard music in the distance. It was coming from the park.
That was it. I could lose myself in the crowd. Then I could find an alley to demorph in, and then find a place to stay.
I burst across the street, and into the park. For a brief second, I turned around and looked. Hundreds, maybe thousands of people, were running down the street, straight into the park. It reminded me of a scene from the movie, "The Bachelor". All these people, running after one dog. It might have been comical, except they were catching up. The first people were just starting to cross the street.
I tore through the park and headed straight for the crowd. The charging group of people ran right behind me. My body was tiring. I wouldn't hold out much longer.
The music! My big dog ears picked it up as I weaved in and out of the crowd. It was my favorite group, the Offspring. I had all their CDs. Used to. They were singing "Gone Away". An appropriate song for the way I felt.
I looked back. Yes! The people chasing after me had collided with the music crowd. I had lost them. I wanted to stay and listen to the music, but I knew I couldn't. Sooner or later, I'd be found.
I walked out of the park and into a deserted alley. No homeless guys were in the Dumpster, so I demorphed. As soon as I was human, I looked around and groaned. I had run straight into the bad part of town.
There was a TV shop across the street. I walked in and turned one of the TVs to CNN. I gaped at what I saw. All of my friends, along with Ax, were in the White House, answering questions from reporters. Rachel was taking it in stride, like she did with everything else in life. Marco had this goofy, 'I can't believe I'm in the White House press room!', smile plastered on his face. Tobias had his hawk's look on his face. Cassie seemed to be happy. I couldn't tell.
"Yes, one of our members isn't here," Rachel was saying. "Jake, my cousin, isn't with us right now."
"Can you describe what he looks like?" a nameless reporter called out.
When those words left the reporter's mouth, I dashed out of the shop. I didn't want another mob running after me.
Where was I going to hide? Any place I went, I might be recognized. I didn't want to be found, at least not yet. Barely had I had any time by myself, and I was being pursued by people who wanted to meet me.
I was going to stay at a hotel. I wouldn't enter the normal way, though. In bird morph, I would dive-bomb through a window and spend the night there. I knew it was wrong, but I could have cared less.
Late at night, I found a Holiday Inn. I morphed to falcon and found an empty room. I shot through the window at almost two hundred miles an hour. After a quick demorph, I looked outside. No one had come out. That was good.
I put the 'Do not disturb' sign on the door. I locked all the locks on the door. No need to have people bursting in on me while I was sleeping.
The next morning, I woke up. There was a ladder next to the broken window! I rolled under the bed and held my breath.
Someone climbed into the room. I heard footsteps walking around, and the sound of cabinets opening and shutting. They were searching for the vandal.
My plans had not been working well lately. I had gotten my family killed, and now I was breaking into hotels. You're being stupid, I told myself. Use your instincts, not your mind. The problem was, my instincts were getting me into trouble.
"Nothing in here," a man said. "I don't know what it was. Probably some punk threw a rock. We'll fix it in a few days." The footsteps moved towards the window, and faded as the man went down the ladder.
I breathed a huge sigh of relief and rolled out from under the bed. The rest of the day, I spent watching TV, and keeping a watchful eye on the window.
I watched the eleven o'clock news. A typical newswoman was droning off the headlines when I saw a picture of myself show up. It was a couple of years old, but anyone who saw the picture would know who I was instantly.
"The leader of the Animorphs, sixteen year-old Jake Berenson, is missing. His whereabouts are unknown," the lady said. "During the final battle with the Yeerks, his parents and brother were both killed. Jake's cousin, Rachel, has arranged for the funeral to be held tomorrow. Details will be broadcast here live when they are made available."
I clicked the TV off. Rachel was clever. She knew I would not miss my family's funeral. It would be the only way to come back.
But did I really want to go? I still didn't have time to think about what had transpired the past few days. I was spent, a car without gas. My brain was scrambled. I was not ready for the immense pity that would come forth. Did I need to deal with it?
I spent the whole night thinking.