Chapter 3
later that day, I went home to see that Sam wasn't there. Of course he wasn't. He said he was going away for a while, he had just been traumatized. Then again, Sam doesn't get traumatized, but at the same time, he was never infected by a yeerk.
I dismissed it and thought instead about my discovery. I considered what we could do.
At first, I thought we could get Sam to make us a bomb and blow it up, after all it wasn't like we needed to go through a huge building a security to get to the entrance. But that wouldn't work, Sam was nowhere to be found.
Then I considered just using the weapons we had stored, but then I realized that in the end, any attack on the yeerk pool would be catastrophic. They could react in ways that we were unprepared for.
So, instead of trying to carry the entire burden myself, I got Tobias and Ax together to tell everyone to get together the following morning.
Tobias said he was unable to find Whitney, which wasn't a big deal. Knowing that family, they were probably just out to see a movie or something.
So we told Rachel to get her the following morning before she came to the meeting, there was no problem there. Not at first.
But the next morning, we were all waiting at the barn when Rachel finally made it there. She seemed confused and almost nervous.
"Is Whitney here?" She asked.
"No, why?" Jake said. He was already trying to figure things out. I could practically feel the wheels inside his head running. Through this small bit of info, he was already producing false theories and possibilities.
"Well, I went to her house, and she wasn't home. Her parents were, but she wasn't." Rachel said. "And when I asked where she was, they acted like they didn't know."
"No big deal." Cassie said. "You know the way sam and Whitney feel about each other. Sam probably made Whitney go on the vacation with him." She suggested.
{Makes sense.} Tobias said from beside me in the rafters.
But Rachel shot down that possibility. "No, that can't be it. I asked where they were last night and she aid they were at the school. At a sharing meeting." We all stopped.
"S-s-s-s-sharing?" Marco stuttered. He was kinda joking, but this could very well be a serious matter.
"Yeah, they said the school was endorsing the sharing and everybody was there. She then offered to take me next time the family went." Rachel said.
We all shuddered.
"So, you're saying that the school is now endorsing the sharing?" Jake asked.
"Well, not exactly. Mrs. Dickson said that it was an advertising campaign for the guy running for mayor. Said something about joining all the different groups in town or something." Rachel said.
{What does this all mean?} Ax asked inquisitively.
"Ax, the sharing is what the yeerks are using to recruit new members." I said simply.
{Members?} he was puzzled.
But Marco took over for me. "In our society, people feel the need to be part of something, to fit in. So we have made organized groups that meet at certain times to get together and have fun. The yeerks have manipulated people high enough in our society to create such a group that pretty much makes them accept a yeerk in their head to be one in the crowd." It was an odd way of putting it, but he was right.
{That's Preposterous!} Ax cried. {who would voluntarily allow such a thing?} he was clearly outraged.
"Ax, to put it simply, people don't even know what a yeerk is. For all we know, the yeerks could be telling the people it is an implant to improve their intelligence or something. People are ignorant and desperate, and will do anything to fit in." I said, but then added, "just like Marco said."
Marco smiled a bit. "Yep, people don't even know you exist, Ax."
{But I have seen images of my kind in your archives on the computers.} Ax said. {I used your computers to investigate some human culture.}
{Ax man, that was the internet.} Tobias said dryly. {And that site you were on was a fairy tale site. Those are myths, legends. Our fiction tells of creatures called centaurs that look like you.} He explained.
{Ah, I see. So your people truly are blind.}
"Yeah, that is it." I said. Jeez, you would wonder how Ax could have made it this far. We have told him th at many times.
But I saw Jake with his head in his hands, shaking it slowly. "People, can we get back to reality?" He was exasperated and needed us to get back on task. "We kind of have the issue of missing Whitney."
Oh, right. That was the important thing now.
"Umm, so how are we going to go about finding her?" Cassie asked as she put a cage back up on a shelf. It was her job to keep the place clean and did it even when we had meetings.
Marco sighed. "Guys, come on. I know you are all thinking it, but I am going to be the first to say it. We have to put two and two together."
But Rachel actually finished what he was going to say. "Whitney is said to have been at a sharing meeting last night, and now her mom is pretending to not know where she is. Knowing Whitney, she would fight in any way possible." She let it sink in.
We all winced. We all knew what that meant. I hate to spell it out for you, but I think Whitney was at a sharing meeting. We all know what happened at sharing meetings. She probably fought and is now down at the yeerk pool waiting for a fresh one.
"We need to go down there." I said with conviction. "There is no way I am letting her be taken. I will not let this war end so early."
"Agreed." Rachel said instantly.
Cassie and Tobias were quick to agree. But Jake and Marco both stayed silent.
"Jake, Marco." I said. "Don't you think we need to go down there?"
Marco sighed. "Gordon, man, I don't think that is a risk we are ready to take. If she has been taken already, then the yeerk will know that we would come down to save her. They have probably upped the defenses." Marco was reluctant to write someone off, but unfortunately, it looked like it was right.
Then Jake spoke up. "If we do go, we need to go in a way that Whitney wouldn't expect. And be ready to retreat to the mountains." Jake said. "I will do anything to make sure we are safe."
"I have an idea." I said.
"What?" Marco asked. "and it better be good."
"It is the reason we are here, Marco. I only called this meeting because I found a way to the yeerk pool."
I saw a line of blank stares. "Thank god you said something, I almost didn't think of that. I figured we would go in through the school." Rachel said.
"Umm, that wouldn't work, Rachel. The school is closed for the day off, and they sealed that entrance up long ago." Jake said.
{Well, either way, I am staying out of this one.} Tobias said.
{Shall we go now?} Ax asked urgently. We all turned and walked out to morph to our respective raptor morphs.
So we were going, but how? I mean seriously, what way would we go that the real Whitney wouldn't expect? And how would we do anything that would help save us, short of killing Whitney?
All this seemed to blind my normal ability to figure out the truth, and I wondered why so many things went looked over, like the timing, and the truth. So many things were clouded, even that in which only I would know.
Like the blind and utter truth.
later that day, I went home to see that Sam wasn't there. Of course he wasn't. He said he was going away for a while, he had just been traumatized. Then again, Sam doesn't get traumatized, but at the same time, he was never infected by a yeerk.
I dismissed it and thought instead about my discovery. I considered what we could do.
At first, I thought we could get Sam to make us a bomb and blow it up, after all it wasn't like we needed to go through a huge building a security to get to the entrance. But that wouldn't work, Sam was nowhere to be found.
Then I considered just using the weapons we had stored, but then I realized that in the end, any attack on the yeerk pool would be catastrophic. They could react in ways that we were unprepared for.
So, instead of trying to carry the entire burden myself, I got Tobias and Ax together to tell everyone to get together the following morning.
Tobias said he was unable to find Whitney, which wasn't a big deal. Knowing that family, they were probably just out to see a movie or something.
So we told Rachel to get her the following morning before she came to the meeting, there was no problem there. Not at first.
But the next morning, we were all waiting at the barn when Rachel finally made it there. She seemed confused and almost nervous.
"Is Whitney here?" She asked.
"No, why?" Jake said. He was already trying to figure things out. I could practically feel the wheels inside his head running. Through this small bit of info, he was already producing false theories and possibilities.
"Well, I went to her house, and she wasn't home. Her parents were, but she wasn't." Rachel said. "And when I asked where she was, they acted like they didn't know."
"No big deal." Cassie said. "You know the way sam and Whitney feel about each other. Sam probably made Whitney go on the vacation with him." She suggested.
{Makes sense.} Tobias said from beside me in the rafters.
But Rachel shot down that possibility. "No, that can't be it. I asked where they were last night and she aid they were at the school. At a sharing meeting." We all stopped.
"S-s-s-s-sharing?" Marco stuttered. He was kinda joking, but this could very well be a serious matter.
"Yeah, they said the school was endorsing the sharing and everybody was there. She then offered to take me next time the family went." Rachel said.
We all shuddered.
"So, you're saying that the school is now endorsing the sharing?" Jake asked.
"Well, not exactly. Mrs. Dickson said that it was an advertising campaign for the guy running for mayor. Said something about joining all the different groups in town or something." Rachel said.
{What does this all mean?} Ax asked inquisitively.
"Ax, the sharing is what the yeerks are using to recruit new members." I said simply.
{Members?} he was puzzled.
But Marco took over for me. "In our society, people feel the need to be part of something, to fit in. So we have made organized groups that meet at certain times to get together and have fun. The yeerks have manipulated people high enough in our society to create such a group that pretty much makes them accept a yeerk in their head to be one in the crowd." It was an odd way of putting it, but he was right.
{That's Preposterous!} Ax cried. {who would voluntarily allow such a thing?} he was clearly outraged.
"Ax, to put it simply, people don't even know what a yeerk is. For all we know, the yeerks could be telling the people it is an implant to improve their intelligence or something. People are ignorant and desperate, and will do anything to fit in." I said, but then added, "just like Marco said."
Marco smiled a bit. "Yep, people don't even know you exist, Ax."
{But I have seen images of my kind in your archives on the computers.} Ax said. {I used your computers to investigate some human culture.}
{Ax man, that was the internet.} Tobias said dryly. {And that site you were on was a fairy tale site. Those are myths, legends. Our fiction tells of creatures called centaurs that look like you.} He explained.
{Ah, I see. So your people truly are blind.}
"Yeah, that is it." I said. Jeez, you would wonder how Ax could have made it this far. We have told him th at many times.
But I saw Jake with his head in his hands, shaking it slowly. "People, can we get back to reality?" He was exasperated and needed us to get back on task. "We kind of have the issue of missing Whitney."
Oh, right. That was the important thing now.
"Umm, so how are we going to go about finding her?" Cassie asked as she put a cage back up on a shelf. It was her job to keep the place clean and did it even when we had meetings.
Marco sighed. "Guys, come on. I know you are all thinking it, but I am going to be the first to say it. We have to put two and two together."
But Rachel actually finished what he was going to say. "Whitney is said to have been at a sharing meeting last night, and now her mom is pretending to not know where she is. Knowing Whitney, she would fight in any way possible." She let it sink in.
We all winced. We all knew what that meant. I hate to spell it out for you, but I think Whitney was at a sharing meeting. We all know what happened at sharing meetings. She probably fought and is now down at the yeerk pool waiting for a fresh one.
"We need to go down there." I said with conviction. "There is no way I am letting her be taken. I will not let this war end so early."
"Agreed." Rachel said instantly.
Cassie and Tobias were quick to agree. But Jake and Marco both stayed silent.
"Jake, Marco." I said. "Don't you think we need to go down there?"
Marco sighed. "Gordon, man, I don't think that is a risk we are ready to take. If she has been taken already, then the yeerk will know that we would come down to save her. They have probably upped the defenses." Marco was reluctant to write someone off, but unfortunately, it looked like it was right.
Then Jake spoke up. "If we do go, we need to go in a way that Whitney wouldn't expect. And be ready to retreat to the mountains." Jake said. "I will do anything to make sure we are safe."
"I have an idea." I said.
"What?" Marco asked. "and it better be good."
"It is the reason we are here, Marco. I only called this meeting because I found a way to the yeerk pool."
I saw a line of blank stares. "Thank god you said something, I almost didn't think of that. I figured we would go in through the school." Rachel said.
"Umm, that wouldn't work, Rachel. The school is closed for the day off, and they sealed that entrance up long ago." Jake said.
{Well, either way, I am staying out of this one.} Tobias said.
{Shall we go now?} Ax asked urgently. We all turned and walked out to morph to our respective raptor morphs.
So we were going, but how? I mean seriously, what way would we go that the real Whitney wouldn't expect? And how would we do anything that would help save us, short of killing Whitney?
All this seemed to blind my normal ability to figure out the truth, and I wondered why so many things went looked over, like the timing, and the truth. So many things were clouded, even that in which only I would know.
Like the blind and utter truth.