Page 62 of Anatomy of the Immortal Species
‘The creatures aren’t indifferent to Mikhail’s arrest,’Constantine had said, ‘but in a situation of uncertainty, sometimes you don’t know which god to worship.’
‘Loyalty exists only when you’re present. Once you’re gone, it’s impossible to keep it going for an empty seat.’
And Viktor had said:‘The times are unstable. Creatures fear diseases. They hear whispers of a new enemy who has the key to solving the regeneration issue. Everyone with even a bit of brains knows now is not a good time for conflict with the Tribunal.’
But it was Zacharia’s words that had toppled the glass of her desperation.‘Mikhail’s arrest means he’s lost Presiyan’s support – one of the most powerful and influential men on the planet.You can imagine how that reads in the eyes of his enemies.’
What could she say to that, when they knew this world better than she ever would?
Constantine cleared his throat, drawing her focus once more. “What happened with the rebellion in Cardiology?”
Nyavolski took a deep breath and burst into a monologue. “This is getting out of hand! Those damn vampires think they can push us around while Korovin’s away. But hey, if they don’t like it here, they’re free to find work elsewhere! Let’s see how far they get. And yeah, they’re threatening to move to ahumanhospital – can you believe it? Finding decent staff is a nightmare already! Bloody vampires! They never bother to ask about the Hospital’s funding or the cost of all this expensive equipment…”
Amelia sank deeper into her chair. The additionalresponsibilities were clearly overwhelming the surgeon.
“And this next absurdity, listen up! A few nymphs from Orthopaedics are threatening to strike, but not for cash. For a change in work hours. They claim I’m too demanding… Fuckin’ nymphs! Fuckin’ vampires! Fuckin’… little bastards!”
“I don’t know what you’ll do with them, but attempt to quiet them down. I don’t want the hysteria to take over my department as well,” Dimitri, who had taken over the ICU, mumbled.
Zia recommended appeasing them for now, while Platinum suggested making an example out of someone – gutting them to make a point. They agreed to meet the workers’ demands until they could find replacements.
Around this point in the meetings, Amelia’s attention would drift away, her thoughts wandering to Mikhail’s ring. She had searched for iteverywhere,damn it,and was starting to doubt its existence.
Helena’s words snapped her back to the present discussion. “Since we’re on the problems-at-the-Hospital topic, I would like to put something to a vote. As you all know, we recently discovered a mass in the left lung of a lycanthrope. More specifically, a small cell carcinoma.”
Amelia had witnessed the mass in question because she’d been assisting Nyavolski with an abdominal surgery. Another vampire had come across the discovery and called the chief of surgery.
“Correct. The vampire with the colon carcinoma is no longer the only creature with cancer in their body,” Nyavolski said.
“There is a way to figure out why this is happening and how to fix it.” Helena lifted her chin and stared at the creatures around the table. “It is time we perform the genetic tests I’ve been trying to convince Korovin to do for so long.”
As if he’d been waiting on standby, her husband wasted no timein expressing his displeasure. “Don’t start again, woman! We’ll burn in Hell because of your nonsense! There are sacred things in this fuckin’ world that even you should respect!”
“That respect will bring us to the flames!” Helena bared her teeth. “But first we’ll go under Volk’s scalpel, as he digs through our bodies in search of all kinds of abominations that are probably eating through our flesh as we speak…”
“Shut up, woman! Do you always have to be so… so…”
Amelia observed the family feud. It was a regular occurrence at every meeting. Despite their frequent disputes, there weren’t many couples in the immortal world who had been together for as long as they had. Helena and Vladislav were even married according to human traditions.
Nyavolski shook his head. “The cave has a special access regime. Those vampires are nuts! They live by outdated traditions. They eat the bodies of their dead…”
Amelia wrinkled her nose at that last bit of information. She’d heard the Temple of the Dead Immortals was located at the foot of Mount Triglav in Slovenia… but cannibalism?
“I doubt those vampires are as wild as you’re trying to paint them,” Helena said.
Constantine gave the table a light tap with his palm. “The Beduin tribe is tasked with protecting the sacred heritage of the immortal species. They won’t be pleased if someone tampered with said heritage.”
Nyavolski nodded. “The creatures resting there have all shown incredible qualities throughout the centuries. Disturbing their final peace would be sacrilegious!”
Helena smiled. “The dead are hard todisturb, wouldn’t you agree?”
“The problem is notdisturbingthe dead, but the Beduin vampires,” Viktor chimed in.
“What if we explain it’s for scientific purposes?” Amelia asked.
“Ha! I don’t think they’ve ever heard ofscience.” Platinum sneered. “Despite that, I support Helena’s proposition for the genetic tests. I would certainly not want to be ill. Let alone grow old.”
Amelia hid her surprise that Platinum was also willing todefilethe temple. She, as someone with a medical background, believed a genetic test was the only logical move at the moment. She also knew, however, that Mikhail had found the idea unacceptable.
