Quote:
Originally Posted by SoylentOrange
Mary wandered across the parking lot, the black asphalt stained glossy by the morning's dew. The sun wasn't really out yet, not for the pacific northwest anyways, but it was bright enough to be pleasant. Mary saw a pair of birds flying through the sky and thought about going back into the forest, but with the Body's incessant needs for more genetic material it was beginning to feel like work. No, what she needed was some human contact. Not anyone too familiar with her, but just to be around faces that weren't green and voices that didn't come from inside her head.
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Everybody is doing favors in this chapter. Mary buys a fruit pie for Katie and The Body amplifies Mary's senses beyond human capacity. It's the little things.
Mary's desperation for a slice of normalcy is turned on its head when the body feeds on a normally less than appetizing hot dog.
It seems that Mary's relationship with The Body is dynamic. The Body can be in control if Mary isn't paying attention but Mary can exert control over The Body, even in high stress situations if she concentrates hard enough.
Hey, and Mary actually has a good idea about the CDC inquiries! But sadly she is interrupted by those pesky questions about where that repairman went...
The inhumanity of Mary is driven home in small ways by not having any physical reactions to mental stress and nervousness. She probably could have used that to her advantage in the interview if she hadn't been so preoccupied with keeping The Body from murdering the two officers on the spot.
The officers did seem a little too eager. They apparently were planning to take her in before they talked to her. I wonder what they were going to charge her with?
But the confrontation revealed several things. That electricity can hurt The Body and just how dangerous it can be in combat. Once the Taser came out The Body dispatched them in seconds. And now there are more on the way. Mary could win in a confrontation but that will only escalate matters. I wonder if she could assume the form of one of the officers and call in a response to head off the backup and then ditch the cruiser somewhere. Things seem to be spiraling out of control at the moment and I hope Mary can calm things down. I am hoping for a lot more story before we reach the climax.
And something makes me suspect that The Body may not trust Mary as much now, with her trying to stop it from killing the "predators".
Will Mary tell Katie about the encounter when she gets back? This is of course assuming that there isn't a phalanx of police cruisers parked outside when she returns to clue her that something is wrong.