(CHAPTER TWO: www.plurk.com/p/4rnx)

It wasn't easy to travel to SF. As a human, Jonny could walk into a travel agency and buy a ticket. As a flamingo, his options were limited.

maybe he could go by train? he had no money but he could find an old rain mac and boots to cover his trotters...

... which he did, but what about the rabbit ears - not even his old top hat would hide them!

So he decided to hang out at the airport and blend into the next Hawaian shirt travelling to the city by the Bay.

Once arriving in San Francisco,he faced another problem - extracting himself from the shirt, without letting the man wearing the shirt know.

but the opportunity never came and Johnny eventually fell asleep. The next day he awoke in the bottom of someone's laundry basket.

: "And strangely, his first thought was not "Why am I at the bottom of a laundry basket?" "

: "..but: 'F**k it! I'm a flamingo! Why didn't I just FLY to San Fransisco?!?' "

Jonny decided to leave the bigger questions for later. He was trying to think with a bird's brain. He flapped his wings and lunged out.

Taking half the contents of the laundry basket with him including the day old, smelly pink Hawaiian shirt used as camouflage the day before.

San Francisco was as altered as Boston had been but instead of jungle there was desert. The wharves and piers were derelict but for

hordes of screaming banshees who demanded chocolate from tourists.Jonny tried to ignore the noise by covering his ears. But where were they?

A newspaper fluttered across his path. Jonny noticed the headline: 'President denies Seattle leak' accompanied by a photo of a pelican.

He picked up the newspaper and started to read.

"The President today denied the alleged leakage of the Pelican virus from a Seattle research facility."

" The virus, which was the cause of the revolution 3 years ago, is highly dangerous and can cause metamorphosis in humans." Jonny gulped.

"The Pelican virus?" Jonny thought. "But I was under the impression that I was the only one!"

He looked down at his betrottered feet and flapped his wings. So that was the cause of this mutation. But why was the Government denying it?

He suddenly felt very scared and alone. But then again, if more people caught this virus from him, he wouldn't be so alone.

then jonny ran. he ran like he had never run before. his head held forward with his long neck stretched out as far as it could go.

banshees were screaming out of his way.everything melted from his mind - watches, train cars and smelly Hawaiian shirts.

he thought of nothing but running. running and stretching his wings and flapping as if there were no tomorrow. then it happened...

He ran right into a wall. Lying stunned on the street, with people walking over them, he wanted to yell out that their time was nearly over.

but "SQUAWK" was all that came out. SQUAWK? SQUAWK? SQUAWK?

A man leaned over him and kneaded his wing, near the shoulder. "Big bird," he said to the crowd. "Wonder if it's good to eat." Jonny sqawked

The flight to Seattle was smooth. The landing wasn't but trotters weren't designed for that. By now it was dawn; the sky pink, the air cold

and once again Jonny emerged from a dank side street, only this time the street ran alongside a massive concrete warehouse...

which, unbeknownst to Jonny, contained some of the answers he'd been searching for.

A female voice shattered the calm. "What do you want?" A young girl, with pink complexion and dressed in pink, stood in front of him.

"Even if I talk to you, you won't understand," he said morosely. "Of course I can," said the girl."I'm a flamingo, just like you.We see each

other as humans."She raised her arms and Jonny could see pink feathers on the skin connecting her arms to her sides. "When everyone turns,we

will all look like humans, just with feathers." Jonny pointed to a nasty looking man nearby. "What about him." The girl lowered her voice.

"Watch out for that one." Jonny noted the beak of a nose, wattles along his neck and dusty feather. "He's the Pelican of Doom, the girl said

Dum dum dum Dummmmmm!