Beneath Istanbul lay the "Basilica Cistern," built on the orders of Emperor Justinian, supposedly because he feared a siege would make supplying water difficult.
Pomona leafed through a travel magazine. The two lower pages showed photographs of the place, which looked mysterious and dark, as if some sort of monster were hidden inside.
In fact, the stone columns there really were carved with Medusa's heads. Some columns were also inscribed with runes, making it seem unlike a "Water Temple."
She put down the travel magazine in her hand and opened another one, an introduction to Paris, France. There was a place called Montsouris Park, and not far from the park stood a reservoir. Like the reservoir Justinian had ordered built, it was meant to supply drinking water to the entire city.
Montsouris Reservoir likewise had many arched columns. Perhaps because light shone inside, it did not look so gloomy. The French had turned the underground waterways into a tourist attraction, where visitors could take boats for a tour.
Then she set the French book aside and went back to reading about the "Basilica Cistern" commissioned by Justinian.
This "Basilica Cistern" had been built in 542. Ten years earlier, the Nika riots had erupted in Constantinople. Medusa, the Gorgon, had originally lived where the other shore met the Land of Night.
She flipped back several pages to an introduction to a thermal spa in Budapest. Its name was Gellert, the same name as the famous Dark Lord.
It was an Ancient Roman-style bathhouse. Water could be used not only for drinking, but also for bathing. Wherever the Romans went, the Roman way of life followed.
Hungary had the most dangerous dragons, while Romania had a Dragon Reserve. Yet the factors affecting the region went far beyond the Crimean War.
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