Charwin didn’t push or lean forward, just quietly finding a place to sit with a view of the table in the middle of the room between the heads of people crowding the front row. The wooden table was stained red, the smell of bleach almost unbearable, but a tiny bit better than the smell of decomposition it barely covered up.
The door to the operating theater opened and the smell intensified. The murmurs died down as the surgeon, Dr. Jones, came in, with a fresh body to dissect. The old woman had passed in her sleep, and Charwin had robbed her gave.
But as far as the law was concerned, these people, these students and teacher, were also criminals. The surgeon spotted Charwin in his relaxed stance, nodding to him.
Anatomy wasn't a new subject, and Charwin had a feeling some of the ideas on how the human body worked were a little of based on other life forms Charwin knew of, but it was something new to have a seat near the table while these curious minds thought of as criminals did their best to piece it all together.
“Tonight we shall begin with the muscles, nerves, blood vessels, and bones in the arm.”
Charwin watched as the surgeon peeled back the skin with great care, revealing the thick layer of muscle underneath. Names were thrown out by the surgeon, the muscle and the blood vessels, explaining how it moves and what it feeds blood respectively.
The surgeon had to make several cuts near the bone in order to get the muscle completely free.
“Excuse me,” Charwin raised his hand, “what is that you are cutting through to remove the muscles?”
Dr. Jones didn’t actually look up, just answered the question as the muscle tore. “The sinew is what I have to cut through.” Then the lecture continued with showing the Radius bone. Cutting it free and holding it aloft. Even breaking it with an echoing crack, to show everything on the inside.
Charwin held back as the other students filed out. Jones eventually approached them, after some quiet words over the body and throwing a stained sheet over it.
“Are you sure you don’t want to become a doctor? You’ve attended more lectures than some of my students.”
“I don’t think I want to be so well known.” Charwin smiled and held out a hand.
“Then why are you so interested in attending lectures?”
“I like to understand how Earth works.”
Jones raised an eyebrow before clearing his throat. “We’ll I’m mighty grateful for your talents.” Jones put a wad of money in the palm. “But you understand once there is a legal way to get bodies, you’ll be out of a job.”
“Once I’m done with this,” Charwin slipped their hands in their pockets. “I think I’m going to farm. It sounds like a nice quiet life.” Dr. Jones smiled, but also rolled his eyes as the grave robber disappeared into the shadows of the night.
Word count: 500
