Though Sharon had greater experience than the clone of how to take advantage of a mermaid's abilities, the clone had a weapon whereas Sharon's bag did not contain one - perhaps the Men in Gray had not trusted her sufficiently. She didn't know whether the prod would incapacitate her or just be painful, and was not eager to find out.
The fight did not last long. The clone was slow to realise that Sharon's tail was her main weapon, and failed to dodge in time when Sharon lashed it at her. It smashed into her arm, probably breaking it. At any rate, she dropped the prod, which started to sink, and clutched her arm with her other hand, wincing in agony.
Seeing that the other would be no threat for a while, Sharon thought it safe to take her eyes off her for a moment, and dived to reclaim the prod before it sank too far. It appeared to have no controls; presumably it would operate automatically on contact with anything. She poked it in the direction of the clone, though did not touch her with it. The expression on the clone's face now showed fear as well as pain. Sharon guessed that this must be a fairly formidable weapon. She began to interrogate the MiG operative: "Are you really a clone, or did they somehow transform you into my double?"
Fri Jul 16 10:16:13 1999