The consequences didn't come immediately.
They never do.
Three weeks after Elias declined the council's offer, funding shifts began—quiet ones.
Research grants rerouted.Training partnerships "reconsidered."International invitations stalled in limbo.
No announcement.
Just friction.
Celeste noticed first.
"They're squeezing," she said, scrolling through documents. "Not you. Everything around you."
"Yes," Elias replied.
"They're testing whether you'll bend."
"No."
She smiled thinly. "Good."
Then came legislation.
A proposed "Global Medical Accountability Act."
Neutral language.
Sharp teeth.
Mandatory oversight for "outlier practitioners."
Special review thresholds.
Designed for exactly one person.
Dr. Lim slammed the document onto the table.
"This is punishment."
"Yes."
"And it's dangerous."
"Yes."
"They'll slow you down in emergencies."
"Yes."
"People will die."
Elias met her gaze. "Only if we allow delay to become obedience."
The first enforcement happened faster than expected.
A complex trauma case.
Elias intervened.
Saved the patient.
An hour later, compliance officers arrived.
Formal review.
Temporary suspension pending evaluation.
No accusation.
Just procedure.
The hospital froze.
Nurses furious.
Doctors afraid.
Reporters waiting.
Celeste arrived before the ink dried.
"They crossed a line," she said coldly. "Now it's personal."
Elias removed his gloves.
"Not yet."
She stared at him. "Elias."
"They want reaction," he said. "We give structure."
The suspension lasted forty-eight hours.
Forty-eight hours without Elias.
Not catastrophic.
But noticeable.
Two cases transferred out.
One delayed.
One lost.
No fault assigned.
No one said his name.
When he returned, nothing was the same.
He was watched.
Timed.
Logged.
Measured.
Shaun spoke quietly.
"External constraint has been applied to optimize conformity."
"Yes."
"Is conformity acceptable?"
"No."
Shaun nodded. "Then escalation is inevitable."
Celeste filed suit that night.
Not dramatic.
Precise.
Challenging the act on constitutional, ethical, and international grounds.
"They want to slow you," she said. "I'll stop the clock."
The battle had moved fully into politics.
And politics didn't care how many lives Elias had saved.
Only how much control he refused to surrender.
Elias stood alone in the OR afterward.
Hands steady.
Eyes gold.
No fear.
Just resolve.
Because this wasn't about him anymore.
It was about whether excellence could exist without permission.
End of Chapter 26