Page 46 of Anatomy of the Immortal Species

Jaguar nodded. “What’s interesting is the locals don’t care about security or restricted areas, but they avoid those hills, convinced the place is cursed. Ivan refused to get closer than the nearest village. He told me that years ago, his friend led an expedition there. None returned. Ivan’s convinced a deity lives on the mountain and doesn’t want to be disturbed.”

“So, is there witchcraft involved?” Platinum’s brow furrowed.

Jaguar shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

“Then the place really is cursed?” Her voice dropped to a whisper, almost as if she were speaking to herself.

“I’m still alive, aren’t I?” Jaguar’s expression turned grim. “That night, while Ivan slept, I transformed and approached the mountain. The climb was tough, even in animal form. Near the summit, the vegetation thinned, and I found myself in a snowy clearing facing a cliff. My intuition told me I was close, for in this desolation, at minus twenty-five degrees Celsius, I sensed life. The hairs on my neck stood on end… And I nearly stumbled over a corpse preserved in ice – probably an explorer. Cursed, he might have been, but this poor soul was also shot. Right in the forehead.”

Nyavolski spread his arms wide. “And wild animals didn’tdevour him?”

“Oddly, no. And it’s not like there’s a shortage of hungry predators there.”

“Could there have been something unusual about the corpse that repelled the animals?” one of the women at the table suggested.

“Not about him.Aroundhim.” Jaguar’s gaze grew distant. “I’ll get to that… The body confirmed something was there, so I hid. Just in time – one of the guards nearly saw me. I made out human figures in military uniforms, draped in furs and ushankas. They were heavily armed.”

Braba scratched his temple, frowning in thought. “You say human figures?”

“Definitely. And they were guarding something. At the base of the cliff was an archway through which they patrolled. Only four of them. Since I’d come this far, I had to know what they were protecting. I hadn’t taken three steps when a surge of electricity hit me so hard I thanked the gods I was in animal form.”

“I didn’t know you were a believer.” Platinum quirked a brow, her lips curling into a sly smile.

“I wasn’t.” Jaguar’s tone turned solemn. “My mistake attracted the guards. One opened fire, and missing only encouraged him. At that distance and in the dark, it wasn’t likely he’d hit me. Plus, the electric fence was between us. So I planned to hide and try again. But I miscalculated. While one shot blindly, another hit me. With a sniper. It was pure luck – and those gods I now respect – that the bullet only took two fingers off my paw.” Jaguar raised his hand, revealing the missing joints. “And I ran for it without looking back.”

The room buzzed with hushed whispers.

“What do you think that place is? What are those people guarding?” The silver-haired man in the extravagant suit leaned forward, eyes sharp with curiosity.

Jaguar shook his head. “I have no idea. I’m hoping the Oracle can provide some clarity.” He glanced at Amelia, a playful glint in his eye. “I hope our brief encounter didn’t make you dislike me so much that you’d send me to the soldiers just to see me dead?”

Amelia had been expecting the question ever since Mikhail had called her to the Council. She pressed her lips together. “I’m sorry. Those coordinateswerethe entire message. I’ve seen nothing new since.”

“Looks like working with this Oracle won’t be any easier than with the last one,” Nyavolski remarked dryly.

His wife nodded from across the table. “I’m confused. We’re talking about a new immortal species. We’re talking about humans. All this ambiguity, but the truth is we’re suffering. We need to do something.”

“What do you suggest?” Mikhail’s voice cut through the tension, commanding attention.

“I want to conduct a genetic analysis of a being that lived before the Changes of 1744. I want to take a body from the Temple of the Dead Immortals.”

It was what Amelia had suggested! Well, not exactly to take a body from the temple, but to perform genetic analysis. She straightened up, her focus shifting to Mikhail.

For a moment, the room was silent. He seemed to weigh the proposal, the tension in his jaw evident to Amelia from where she sat. Then he stood, breaking the silence. “Let’s take a thirty-minute break. We’ll discuss it afterwards.”

17

“It’s the future.” Helena moved her hands in energetic gestures.

“It’s a desecration!” Nyavolski shouted from the other end of the table. “And you’re completely insane if you believe otherwise!”

Helena scoffed. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of ghosts, Nyavolski.”

“I’m not afraid!”

“Prove it!”

“By desecrating graves, damn it?”