It Answered You

Wealthgiver 18

This is the eighteenth chapter of Wealthgiver, an alternate history serial romance about nationalism and cave-Thracians. For the back-of-the-book description and an index of chapters, click here. For the beginning, click here. For the previous chapter, click here.

MOOD MUSIC

"Am I doing this right?"

Andrei's voice fled across the surface of the water and vanished.

With no echoes to define its borders, the Moss Pool seemed to stretch infinitely up and out, a stone sky over a gently steaming sea.

"Zída an na drapótat?" Bogdan spoke in Good, although Andrei's question had been in Russian. That meant something about the three-legged stool on which Andrei was sitting.

"Néi?" He hazarded.

"Bass. Ia fáza!" Good. So breathe!

Andrei had received instructions on that, too. He inhaled deeply through his nose and out through his mouth, feeling is belly rise and fall. There was a little poem he was supposed to recite in his head each time he did that. Something about three goats negotiating with a dragon.…