The Mayor (Chapter)

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"The Mayor" is the seventeenth chapter of Into the Forest. It is the second chapter to be narrated by Isandòrno.

## Summary

The chapter opens up on May 17, 2014 at 15:31:46 in Mexico City, Mexico. The entire first page of this chapter is printed in Spanish. On the second page, the Narcons call this a glitch and say that the Spanish of TF-Narcon9 Isn is supposed to always render in English. Another Narcon states that "sometimes the smallest glitch hints at a larger revolution in progress."

The third page shows the first page again, only this time correctly rendered in English. Isandòrno is at one of The Mayor's zoos. He says that he knows the locations of at least three zoos and the one he is currently at is likely the smallest. The Ranch near Nogales is not a zoo, however. The animals do not stay long. The Mayor shows Isandòrno a young chimpanzee in a cage and tells him that someone is going to pay €27,810 just for the opportunity of hunting and killing it. One of the zookeepers approaches The Mayor with a bowl of fruit. The Mayor chooses a pear and a tangerine then sends the zookeeper away. The chimpanzee begins climbing the bars of the cage and sticking its arm out to reach for The Mayor.

Isandòrno is "unable to anticipate the outcome of situations involving The Mayor." The Mayor is taller than Isandòrno and is a decade older than him. The text states that The Mayor is forty-three years old. The Mayor eats both the pear and the tangerine. The chimp begins making noises of pleading so The Mayor gives it the core of the pear.

The Mayor says it is incredible how much a person is willing to pay just to kill something. He also finds it interesting how little it costs to have a person killed. He asks Isandòrno his thoughts on this but Isandòrno says nothing. He follows The Mayor past a pen that contains a wild boar. The Mayor continues talking about how "both violate the law. In both cases penalties apply. Is then the difference in cost due to differing penalties? Or is it perhaps the guarentee? In the first case, because the animal is released from a cage into an enclosed area, where no experienced hunter will miss, the kill is certain. In the second case, well... killing another man is never certain." He then claims that Isandòrno is the exception to this, saying that Isandòrno's results are always certain.

They visit another cage, this one containing a baby black bear. The Mayor continues talking for a bit longer but then stops. The text states that "the sparks of laughter in The Mayor's gaze are always vengeful because successful vengeance depends on misdirection, which is just another name for concealment. Isandòrno has no use for vengeance. He once enlisted her service years ago. She led him to his service here."

The Mayor wants Isandòrno to join him for dinner. The table they sit at has enough chairs for forty people, but they are the only two there. The Mayor's staff brings out multiple courses. The Mayor sets out nine different glasses and fills each one with a different wine. Isandòrno tastes everything but never actually finishes anything. After dinner, The Mayor leads Isandòrno out on the veranda and he continues talking. The Mayor informs Isandòrno that he recently got a report from Juan back at The Ranch. All of the crated animals survived the trip there and they are being looked after by zookeepers and veterinarians. There was some trouble, however. The Mayor mentions how there is a problem regarding the number of crates being incorrect. Isandòrno says he will leave tonight.

Later, The Mayor receives a phone call from his wife. She is currently in the Canary Islands with their children. The Mayor tells her that he will join them soon, even though he has no intentions of doing so. He tells Isandòrno that if he had arrived earlier then he would have been sent there, but The Mayor had to send someone else. Isandòrno is relieved, thanking the incident with the dead goat and donkey from before. The Mayor then tells Isandòrno that his new job is to look after someone named Téodor Javier de Ignacio Salazar.

The Mayor brings up the trouble in Los Angeles a few days ago. The Mayor is friends with Teyo. This is the first time that The Mayor has mentioned "trouble" and "Teyo" together. Isandòrno asks if it regards the shipment of pink balloons. Later, The Mayor invites some people over for a party. He also tells Isandòrno that he would like to go on a picnic soon.

The chapter ends on May 18, 2014 at 07:07:07.