Chapter 12
Angelina felt that the workload assigned to her every hour was increasing. Like today, she had not yet gotten rid of the image of the snake man who died with his body torn apart. However, she already had to listen to non-stop explanations from Fonda about her duties and responsibilities towards other animals.
“Each golden cat has a unique code,” Fonda explained as she pointed to the files lined up neatly in one of the cabinet drawers before pointing her finger at a small cabinet next to the cabinet that contained various types of medicine bottles. “They must get vitamins once a week.”
Even Nixon felt bored. Angelina glanced at him while he was almost asleep in a standing position near the exit.
Angelina pulled out a file and read the content. Golden cat number 3021. The result of a natural mating between female number 3011 and male number 3014. Her eyebrows knitted in confusion. Is this sequence number related to the number of golden cats Genma has? But there were only twenty kittens. Where are the other three thousand?
“…every Tuesday…”
Fonda’s words shattered Angelina’s reverie. The woman looked up with a puzzled expression. “Excuse me, could you please repeat what you said?”
Fonda huffed before her tone became harsh. “Doctor Angelina, I hope you’ll stop daydreaming when I’m explaining important things.”
Why is she so grumpy? Angelina grumbled to herself. She placed the file on the table and mumbled lazily. “Excuse me, could you repeat what you said?”
Fonda snorted impatiently. However, she finally complied with Angelina’s wishes. “Your guard duty is only from morning to evening, taking care of the golden cat and Inyiak, while night duty until dawn and other animal training is the responsibility of Doctor Erick.”
“Therefore, you should monitor physical training every Monday, Thursday, and Friday. Every Tuesday and Friday at nine, you must shave his hair until it is not too long.”
“Golden cats’ hair?” asked Angelina with growing curiosity. It was almost four in the afternoon. She honestly felt in desperate need of rest. Too much screaming since this morning had exhausted the woman. “Do their fur grow like sheep?”
“Oh my! Can you focus?” Fonda snapped and clicked her stilettos. Her action startled Angelina and woke Nixon’s chicken sleep.
The big man rushed to stand straight and exclaimed, “Yes, sir!”
Is he delirious? Angelina spontaneously turned to Nixon before she felt the threatening aura of her senior, who was still glaring at her.
“Doctor Angelina, don’t you have any perfume?”
Fonda’s strange and insulting question about her body odor made Angelina unable to hold back her sour expression. “For your information, Doctor Fonda. I have my taste in body fragrance. I think your question is invading someone’s privacy.”
Fonda strangely did not look offended. Instead, she tilted her head slightly as she observed Angelina. The woman’s lips suddenly curled faintly. “Maybe that’s why you don’t need to use anesthetic…”
Angelina was stunned when she heard the comment. “Sorry, I am confused. What is the relationship between perfume and anesthetic—”
“All right,” Fonda cut in suddenly. “I was just discussing Inyiak’s schedule. Every Tuesday and Friday, at nine, you are to trim his hair with scissors and an electric razor. You can find them in his tool cabinet.”
“I have to cut Ramaik’s hair and shave his beard?” Angelina gasped. The image of her being in a cage and touching her patient’s human hair made her heart beat faster with panic. Do I have to sedate him first?
“Are you suggesting that he should go to a barber?”
Even with the intelligence of an elementary school child, it was obvious that Fonda was being sarcastic. Angelina returned the scornful stare and replied curtly. “Of course not! I mean, I’m a veterinarian. Genma should have sent someone else to take care of such things.”
“And, what would you do when someone else is to take care of ‘such things’? Slacking off, perhaps?”
Angelina took a quick breath. She had been patient enough! The woman in front of her needed a slap or two!
Angelina was about to move forward when the artificial wall leading to the exit suddenly lifted. The three people who were there turned their heads.
There entered the figure of a fat, tanned man. He was about 170-centimeter tall. The four men the size of Nixon escorted him. They were all carrying long-barreled stun guns, covered by helmets, and even the brown uniforms of the four coated up to the fingertips.
The forty-year-old man smiled at Fonda and glanced curiously at Angelina. “Good afternoon, Doctor. Is this your replacement later?”
“You are correct. Doctor Angelina, this is Doctor Erick. He’s in charge of the fighting animals and the autopsy room,” Fonda said with her arms crossed. She glanced lazily at Angelina before speaking back to the man. “Today, our Liger will compete with the Green Anaconda from America. I saw him during my visit to the Entertainment Floor. Tough opponent.”
“Greetings, Doctor.” Erick smiled briefly at Angelina, who was trying to follow the conversation with confusion. A few dots of sweat were visible above his lips. The man pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his face nervously. “Only a miracle can make us win today. The female snake weighs seventy kilograms and is six meters long. I’ve given up.”
“Perhaps it’s time we look for another species to fight the boa constrictor. I think the King Cobra could be an interesting choice.” Erick looked serious. “We’ve lost against them twice already.”
Fonda looked down with a frown as if in thought. The cats’ growling and meowing became the backdrop for the silence.
Angelina kept silent. However, she more or less knew what was going on. The Green Anaconda was the largest species of giant snake. They were also known as the Elephant Crushers. It’s no surprise that they’re pessimistic.
What does it mean for animals to kill each other later? Angelina’s mind raced. Her heart was beating restlessly. However, she was afraid to interrupt the conversation.
“The battle location is in Serengeti, Africa,” Fonda murmured. “Lots of trees. There’s still a chance if we use a Smilodon.”
Erick’s face contorted in confusion. He stuffed his fat hands in his pockets. “Sorry, I didn’t—”
“During training, Inyiak defeated Naga Basuki.” Fonda now leaned on the table behind her in a more relaxed position. “He climbed into a tree and attacked when his opponent caught up. Smilodon is only as big as a lioness. It is more agile than Ligers and has long fangs. We hope the training you’ve given her has made her dexterous. Also, Smilodon number 17 is pregnant. The loss of one female Smilodon is tolerable.
“I will pass on your suggestion about the King Cobra,” Fonda continued. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with adding a new species.”
“Okay, Doc. Female Smilodon number
19, it means.” Erick agreed with Fonda’s suggestion. The man raised his hand and pulled the sleeve of his white coat. “It’s almost five o’clock. I have to check on them first.”
He nodded to his two colleagues, then walked quickly to the cage where the beasts were. Angelina’s clenched lips finally spoke when the five men had walked away.
“Doctor Fonda, will the fight be like a training session? The beast clashes with the hologram?”
Unfortunately, the woman she spoke to just smiled sarcastically. She turned to Angelina and said curtly. “Doctor Angelina, you better focus on your task before staking out other people’s work. I hope you’ll be ready tomorrow by 7.40 A.M. and not keep me waiting.”