“Beautiful figure, isn’t it?” The old man gesture to the marble statue in the central foyer. The figure is a woman standing about 20’ tall. In one hand she holds what looks like a fisbree and in the other she’s holding an entire tree. She’s a gorgeous,striking figure but she also looks wild. Her hair unkept and Her clothing is unadorned.

“Yes, she is.” You agree. “Who is that?”

The man shakes his head. His look of disapproval is barely hiding his delight that someone is willing to hear his story.

“Have they stopped teaching classical history these days?” He was now definitely smiling at you. “It’s a pity. Even though the myths have surely been embellished through the year, they are the best window for understanding how our civilization came to be. Sure, the archaeologists have their place dusting off pottery shards but the myths tell you how the people of that time understood themselves.”

The man got up from where he was sitting. He hesitated before placing his hand carefully on the leg of the statue.

“This is Romulina. She is the woman who allowed human and titan societies to progress from small villages into empires. But like the best tacticians of history she did more with wit and diplomacy that martial prowess.” He continued, clearly the start of what was going to be a long winded story. You sat down on the bench and let him continue.

---------

Romulina was the youngest of the three sisters. Not only was she the youngest but she was also the smallest of her family. Remy was the eldest sister and tall even by the standards of the titans. Temara was a stout girl but as strong as They came. It was said that Temara could carry both of Her siblings in Her arms.

When Romulina was old enough to join Her sisters in the hunt She was teased for ineffective attempts to catch scurrying humans. In a full run, Remy could outrun horses and would make quick work of tiring humans who tried to run away from Her. The force of Temara’s step would cause a great imbalance in all who tried to flee Her. As a duo many humans simply accepted their fate when ambushed. But poor Romulina had no such strength. Her sisters said that She was too scrawny to be a giantess. They gave Her but one captive of Their bounty, telling Her that one should suffice for someone so scrawny. But Romulina would not accept this fate. She carved a stone knife and used Her knife to cut and work with wood. No titan had the patience for wood working but Romulina was able to carve and lash planks together with a dexterity that could rival a team of human craftspeople. She created discs that She could toss with great speed and practised incessantly to perfect her aim.

The next trip that She went on She stalked a procession of travellers with Her sisters. The elder giantesses stalked in the night, creeping into position. Romulina followed Her sisters until She was in range. She broke cover, immediately Her sisters barked at Her to get down. Instead Romulina threw Her discs. They slammed into the procession, knocking over and trapping many beneath the heft of the disc. Her sisters were unaware of what She had done. They forced Her down and ran to capture the few captives who had not fled. To Their surprise, over a dozen people were trapped under Romulina’s discs.

The elder sisters broke Her discs and feasted upon those had been caught under them. They chastised Romulina for Her cowardice. Was She so afraid of these people that She had to throw discs? Was She so scrawny that their spears and arrows would pierce Her skin? The sisters took all but one of the captives. Romulina was filled with spite. She had given them a great weapon that had proved its worth but still Her sisters treated Her like a burden.

Romulina waited for Her sisters to fall asleep before escaping into the night. She walked for days to be sure that She was free from their eyes. She found a trail and camouflaged Herself beside it. She cut twine and branches to cover Herself so that in low light Her front looked indistinct from the area beside it. She waited until one day a couple approached Her on the trail heading west. They could not see Her in the overwhelming brightness of the setting sun. She pounced on them and cupped them between Her hands. Though She was starving She did not eat the man nor his wife. She was much too clever for that.

Romulina followed the stars through the night. She wanted to get away from the territory of Her sisters and to separate Her two captives from their tribal homeland. She scavenged for edible fruits and leaves during the day, then built Herself a shelter in the evening. She constructed a table, set it in the middle of Her shelter and placed the bag with the two captives on it. The table was tall enough that they could not escape. Romulina loosed the drawstring of the bag. In front of the open end She placed an array of fruits. The two humans who had no eaten in a day came out of the bag thankful for a meal.

The woman stopped first and pointed to the titan. Romulina studied them carefully from a distance but made no movements. She sensed their fear, She spoke to them in a whispering voice. She spoke in soothing tone knowing that Her words were incomprehensible to Her captives. Romulina put Her hand palm up onto the table in front of them and tapped Her pointer finger into Her palm. Eventually the man realized he had no option but to comply and climbed onto Her hand. Romulina smiled. She brought the man up to Her lips. He winced in fright but instead she kissed him and put him back onto the table. She crossed Her arm over Her chest and made a slight bowing motion, then produced more fruits for the couple. She let them be for the rest of the night.

Over the next few weeks, Romulina would feed Her captives and try to engage them in conversation. The woman was the more talkative of the two. It started with simple nouns and evolved to some complexity such as separating the word ‘food’ from the specific items in front of them. Romulina did not want them to learn Her language, though. After saying a word in Her language to prompt them, Romulina would only use their word for it. Less tangible words took longer. Eventually She learned to separate their pronouns from their names. Her captives names were Ellie and Ram. Romulina would practice speaking their language out loud, while She went out scavenging during the days. Day-by-day She was able to communicate more complex ideas.

Relations between Romulina and the pair eventually became jovial. Romulina did not hunt humans during this time hoping to keep their fears to a minimum. Instead, the three hunted game together and picked fruits. Game animals would flee from titans. So instead Ram came up with an idea to use Romulina as a wall. Ram and Ellie would chase deer towards where Romulina was lying down. The frightened deer would have to bolt suddenly to get around Romulina’s imposing figure giving them the chance to get it with a spear. The two humans actually ate better than they had back in their village.

Romulina stopped putting on them at the table during the night. This gave the pair total freedom to leave if they wanted. Ellie and Ram debated this while Romulina slept. She had shown no malice towards them but they did want to return home. On the other hand – She kept them safe. A protection that had never been afforded to a human before.

Over time this hesitant acceptance of their situation morphed into satisfaction. The pair slept on a small bed of hay and evergreen branches that they had built up. But the spring rains made everything damp. They could not build a fire to warm their bed because of their bedding was so flammable. Before bed on a day of a terrible rain storm, Ram called out from Romulina as She was getting ready for bed. He asked hesitantly, if they could sleep together. He tried to place things as delicately as he could – they were cold and Her body heat would help them sleep better. But Romulina’s heart jumped. She tried to hold back H giddy smile but She couldn’t. She picked them up before they could even respond and cupped them against her bosom. From that night on wards, the pair slept between Her breasts. And as much as they had been a pair they were becoming a triad.

Sleeping together eventually became less innocent. The pair of humans became more relaxed and showed their affection more frequently. Romunlina encouraged them to keep opening up. Romulina loved to watch them have sex on Her body. Her body shook with excitement watching Ellie getting overwhelmed until she orgasmed. Romulina’s pheromones were a powerful aphrodisiac to the couple and eventually Ram’s sense was overpowered. Ram and Ellie were playing with Romulina’s clit when he poked his leg. Romulina breathed deeply with surprise. He made eye contact with Her and gently brought his second leg in. Then he dropped in entirely. The motions were chaotic and not particularly pleasing this first time. But with practice, Ram could drive Romulina wild and in return Romulina would engulf Ellie in Her mouth. She played games with Her tongue. Overpowering Ellie to hold her down while the tip of Her tongue explored every crevice of her body. Up until this point it was not clear if a human and titan could have child together but it was soon discovered that they could.

Now, I see you have a bit of discomfort hearing about a human and titan having sex. But you have to remember these stories are of a different time. The moralizing religions that became popular with humans had not been created yet. Titans often stood stark naked in this era. Things were unapologeticly horny in this era.

Before Romulina knew of her pregnancy, She finally revealed Her plan to her two lovers. She told them that She wanted to take them home. Ellie and Ram were conflicted at first. They did want to go home but not at the expense of losing Romulina. But that was not Her plan. Romulina told them Her vision. Not titans and humans living apart, but what if a titan were to ally with a human village? With a titan protector the humans would have more protection against both humans and titans alike. Working together they could be more powerful than any of their rivals.

“But our village elders will never agree to this. They know your sisters. Temara sacked our city. She stepped over our walls like they were no obstacle at all. She stole all of our priests and stomped our temples under Her boots. She was callous and cruel. She stayed in our village for several days eating through our grain supplies. I remember hiding in our cold cellar for a week. We watched helplessly as She used our longhouse as Her toilet. The memory is burned in everyone’s mind. No one would trust you.” Ellie said.

“That’s why I wanted to make friends with you.” Romulina replied. She explained that she originally caught them to help learn their language. But the feelings that She had developed for them proved to Her that there could be mutual understanding.

“Still, I do not know what to tell the elders. This titan and this titan alone is supernaturally understanding and doesn’t eat humans. I know Her sister ate your daughter in front of you but Romulina , She’s a good one.”

“I’m not a good one.” Romulina said. Ellie stepped back and Ram held her. “I have eaten your kind. I am not one of pacifistic virtue. My kind will always eat your kind. The only difference between me and my sister is that I am more clever than Her. She is lazy. She has no great plans for the future because Her present is comfortable. Mine was not. So I adapted.

“Temara’s way is one of wanton destruction. Instead, I will offer to your people order. When a titan attacks your village the damage is deep. She ate your grain bins and so your people starved over a winter. Many soldiers were killed under foot and many humans in the prime of their life were taken. The cold truth of it is that this is inefficient. It would be better for humans and titans to have an agreement. A certain number sacrificed in an orderly procedure to save from the destruction and chaos of the arrangement with my sisters. Your elders, I believe, will also see the wisdom in this proposal.”

Ellie was concerned. “You – you still see us as food?”

“No. I see you as kin. I – I love you.” The confidence of her previous tenor was disrupted by the nervousness of admitting her love. “I want nothing more than to be with you both. I want to meet your families and I want them to be my family. I hope that you can understand my nature and still love me in return.”

Ram released his grip on Ellie. He stepped out and put his arms out wide. Ellie followed suit. Romulina picked both of them up and embraced them. The tears running down her cheeks washed over them and their tears fell onto Romulina.

After this encounter their days continued. They agreed to return to their small village of Samnia once the spring rains had died down. While waiting Ram made a peculiar request. He asked Romulina to go hunting for humans. Romulina was shocked by this request and said no, of course not. But Ram persisted. He said that he needed to see Romulina eat a human. He needed to know that his feelings for Her would not be overcome with fear or grief at Her nature. Romulina set to work finding trees and stones that She could form into Her hunting discs. Ellie worked to chip the stone part of the disc into a sharp blade. When the day came, the couple climbed into their special pouch in Romulina’s shorts. She walked dozens of kilometers away from their camp. They came upon two men on horseback who immediate fled when they saw Her. Romulina threw Her discs low to the ground. The sharp points cut through both horses and then men feel into the mesh in the centre of the disc, helpless trapped in the thicket.

Romulina and Ellie prepared dinner as normal. This time though Romunlina brought out a bowl that neither of the others had seen. It had steep wooden walls three times taller than any human. The two men were kept in there. Romulina stripped them of their clothes and washed. She put them cold and shivering into the bowl and then crushed fruits between Her fingers to rub the syrup onto their bodies. The men yelped in resistance but were otherwise resigned.

“How do you feel about this?” Romulina asked.

“I feel pity for them.” Ellie said. “But no anger, no disgust.”

As they ate, Romulina pulled out Her first man. She made no spectacle of eating him and swallowed him a few seconds after putting him into Her mouth. The sensation of his struggles filled a deep primal desire in her. She looked at Ellie and Ram who were staring at her. She asked if they were all right.

“I saw the look of pleasure that you had when you swallowed.” Ram said. Romulina looked away as though She had done something to hurt him. “Please don’t hide that pleasure from me. Seeing you with that satisfaction made me happy.”

Romulina with relief pulled out the second man. She placed him onto Her tongue and this time took more time to enjoy his struggles. She slurped the berry syrup off of him and then swallowed as She enjoyed the salty sweet flavour.

“That was terrifying.” Ellie said as she walked closer to Romulina. “So much raw power that a man stronger than me was defeated by a flick of your tongue. A tongue that has pleasured me is more powerful than any human alive. If I’m being honest, the thought makes me more excited than I have been in my life.”

The spring rains eventually relented and the three broke camp to make the trek to Samnia. When they had spotted the village, the village had also spotted them. The bells of alarm clanged a cacophony that was loud even for Romulina. She kissed Ellie and Ram before placing them on the ground. Romulina raised Her arms into the air and then sat down on the ground. Just as Romulina had predicted, the village elders cautiously accepted her plan. While they originally were afraid that there could be some kind of trick, they realized that displeasing a titan who is at their door may not have been good for their collective health.

They settled into a new life together. Romulina built a home for herself at the edge of the village. Ellie and Ram lived with Her but took more active roles in the village. Ram became de facto head of their militia because of his connection to Romulina. Ellie went back to helping her mother with sheep rearing and making wool clothing. In contact with many women in the village, she used it as a form of soft power. Spreading legends and rumours about Romulina. She said to the others that Romulina was the daughter of a titaness and an earth spirit. She therefore had the destructive capacity of the titans but the nurturing spirit of the earth and forest spirits.

The harmony of the new agreement lasted for summer. Romulina took no sacrifices during this time. Instead she won fame for clearing more fields in a single summer than the total amount the villagers had cleared in their entire lives. The woods She cleared brought lumber for new long houses. It was a wonderful summer but the harmony was disrupted when Her sisters discovered where She was.

The sisters found the rumours hilarious. Their little sister had run away only to make friends with humans? Was She so naive as to believe that those frail little beings could protect Her? The idea of a titan living by human rules was a farce that They had to see. But it was also a mockery that They had to end. It could not be tolerated that other villages learn that titans can live under their control. So they set out with three goals in mind – laugh at Their incompetent sister, raze the village, and bring Their sister back into line.

At the outset the sister’s expedition seemed like it was going to be an easy victory. A single titan could sometimes encounter enough resistance to give up but two titans were almost impossible to deal with. Human militias could tie up one titan but with another titan that could threaten their homes and families. A practical defence was nigh impossible. Maybe having a titan on their side would help but the people of Samnia had meet Temera before. Her body was chiselled from marble. Muscles that outshone their strongest warrior that would tear threw their stone masonry with ease. Even to Her own kind Temera was to be feared.

Believing in their protection, the people of Samnia had grown accustom that summer to wandering further than they would have dreamed before. Temara and Remy found them easy pickings and made a game of trapping foraging parties between them and stomping on them like grapes. A hunting party tried to use their spears as deterrents by stabbing at Remy’s foot. This only incensed Temara who quickly captured them. For the crime of giving Her sister a splinter, She grabbed them with such force that many of their joints popped from their places. The screaming hunting party was feed one by one to Remy. Remy opened her mouth and with sick delight cut at each victim with her teeth before swallowing. She grabbed the last one and put up him on the ground. Stripped naked and in tremendous pain he waited to be squashed. But instead Remy pointed to his village. He understood, he was to be the messenger of their doom.

All was not lost for Samnia though. This messenger had provided a few minutes to prepare by the time he was spotted. Romulina prepared Her throwing discs and Ram rode out with a small band of warriors on horseback. Ellie took command on the civil preparations – getting people into hiding and small phalanxs of spear men in strategic places to harass the marauding titans, if it came to that. As the titans approached, They overcame another hunting party that was fleeing back to Samnia. They captured the group and continued Their advance.

“Sister!” Temara shouted. “Didn’t mother teach you it was wrong to hoard your spoils? We have come to partake in your catch.”

These words made the militia that was with Ram antsy. The lieutenant of the militia asked him if they were about to be betrayed. Ram shouted back that now was not the time to lose faith. A faith that was quickly restored when Temara lifted one of Her captives up to Her mouth. Romulina shouted that Temara was not allowed to eat Her citizens. Temara, of course, saw no reason to stop. But She was stopped as one of Romulina’s discs clipped Her jaw and knocked Her out cold. Remy furious with this betrayal charged towards Romulina. But Ram’s horsemen rode out with rope to catch her ankles now that She was distracted. Remy fell with a crash that shook the entire village. She fought to free Herself, Her kicking feet knocking over multiple horsemen including Ram. She got Her feet free and was going to crush the fallen horsemen into pulp when She was hit in the head. Romulina had grabbed a great boulder and smashed it again and again into Her sister’s head.

After the battle, the citizens of Samnia realized how great their protector was. But Romulina spoke to no one that week. She said no words and every morning left the village. She cleaned Her sisters with cloth and water. Then She buried them with handfuls of earth. Their bodies became the two great hills that we still call Temarine and Remine to this day.

In those days, Romulina mourned the loss of Her connection with peer titans. The old order was gone as were Her only biological kin. After a week of morning, She began speaking again. Ellie told Her that the village wanted to hold a celebration in Her honour. The villagers remade the centre of Samnia. They constructed a seat from Romulina at the edge of the forum and built a raised table painted with decorations. With the extra fields available to them, the women of the village cultivated large squash plants that were meant for Romulina. The men of the village set to work brewing the largest vat of beer that they had ever made, all for Romulina.

On the day of the celebration, a toast was offered to Romulina by the lieutenant of the militia.

“I became the leader of our militia after our village was sacked. During the sacking, the brave warriors who had trained me to become the man that I am today were lost. I used to believe that the honour of these men could only be reclaimed with the blood of a titan. I trained our warriors so that we could fight a bloody skirmish and with the blessing of our gods, perhaps we could fight to a draw. It turns out their honour was reclaimed not because of the sacrifice of two titans, but because of the friendship of one.

“When our village was sacked, we lost many men to the enemy. A sacrifice that we bore because we had to. This time none of our men were lost. Today, I will pay a sacrifice not because we need to but because we choose to. Romulina, I pray that I am a worthy sacrifice to you. I give myself happily knowing that my people are safe in your tender care.”

The display took Romulina by surprise. She shed a tear at his willing sacrifice. She accepted but decreed that a willing sacrifice should receive 36 nights to be celebrated and adorned by his community. The public sacrifice though, was not a surprise to Ellie. Behind the scenes she had choreographed it with the Lieutenant. He was truly a man of honour and Ellie knew that if he showed his submission others would follow. Romulina’s 36 nights became what we know today as the jubilee, the twilight between life and one’s final sacrifice. The rituals, celebrations, and notoriety that someone got during this period kept the system going remarkably on a volunteer basis.

As the winter came and life in the village became quiet, but a special night would come to the village. On the third night after the winter solstice, Romulina gave birth to a baby girl. This girl, Numa, was born of both titan and human but took after Her mother’s size. In any other context, She would have been called titan. But titan was the name of an alien danger. And Numa was beloved by the village. Instead, She was Samnite through and through. The people called Her “Lady” or “the Lady” as the only honourific that distinguished Her from them. While Her mother was always a bit of an outsider, Numa grew up with deep ties to the village. Ellie gave birth to two half-brothers creating the first mixed family of titans and humans.

The divine intelligence of Romulina changed the world. Where life had once been a brutish, short struggle for survival in a hostile world the alliance between titan and human birthed civilization. Peace and order took root in one place in the world and soon Numa’s children founded villages of Their own. The ways of the titans had to change as they were no longer feared monsters who raided with impunity but mere brigands who stole what they could to survive and feared the law.

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“You seem like you’ve had enough of this story. I get it, it’s not the great dramas of more recent history. But this one event set so much in motion for how the multitude of civilizations on this planet came to be.”

“Thank you for the education. I do think I’ll be going thought.” You tell the man.

“Come back anytime. Numa’s children formed the empires that succeed their grandmother’s city state. But that’s a story for another time.”

 “I didn’t think I’d see you again so soon.” The old man said looking up at you. He was in the exact same place as yesterday.

“I spend my days mostly in the library of this museum but I’m old. It’s nice to have sit and actually admire the art in its entirety. There are only so many days left in my life for the appreciation of art.” He paused. “Have you come back to learn how our modern day states came to be?”

You hadn’t come here for that. Honestly, you had kind of hoped to just look around but you were quite obviously corned by this man. He took your silence for consent.

“Perhaps, I haven’t told you the secret yet? Many people think the titans ruled for so long because of their sheer power. That seems obvious. But humans aren’t prey animals. Romulina’s story shows the pure conquest model to be a lie. Romulina was able to form the first great empire in world history because she worked with humans. It was synergy. We ate ourselves. Because factions of humans saw their advantage in the titans. So, smart as you are, what do you think the actual secret to it was?”

You thought for a minute about what to say. You could just walk away but where was he going with this. Maybe it’s religion that civilized early people? “Religion?”

“Close.” He said. “An orthodox historian might take you down the path of ecclesiastical history and state formation. But there’s something you should keep in mind. Anatomically modern humans have been the same, more or less, for 200,000 years. If Ellie from our previous story had been born in the same year as you, she wouldn’t stand out at all. Our ancestors were the same us. So tell me are you so zealous that it’s your love of God that gets you out bed in the morning? If not what is?”

“My job, most days, I guess.” You replied. “I need money.”

“Precisely.” He smiled. “See, I knew you were a sharp cookie. It’s money. Money and the pursuit of money by the shrewd, the unscrupulous, and the fearful has driven much of human history. But it did not exist until Romulina’s granddaughter, Sahmaran, branched out. See the economist tells a half-truth. He will say that money is a store of value that can be exchanged for goods and services. And he is right that is what we use money for – but it’s not why we have money. When you ask the anthropologist, she will tell you that money is the tool used for social cohesion and control. Money is politics. Religion can codify this but only money can create the same stakes for all people.”

“But how? Society needs money or we’d all just barter. It’s straight-up efficient.”

“Do you barter with your siblings? Parents? Friends?” You shook your head at his words. “People have always been the same. Exchange is often dominated by social dynamics and familial-community ties. Even in our heavily market economy today, your spouse would probably be quite sour if you charged your sister-in-law a fee to borrow your drill. Some version of that was how most societies worked. But it was this new disequilibrium caused by empire that created money. Will you stay around for my story, today?”

You saw no other option and sat down.

----On the Origin of Money----

Life before Romulina’s transformation of Samnia was dominated by the power of the titans. Small groups of humans fortified their communities or lived nomadic lives to avoid being captured by nomadic titans. Human communities were united by a common enemy and built weapons to protect themselves. But Samnia changed everything. Suddenly there were titans and humans on the same side. In Samnia, the first armies were raised not for defence of a human community from a predator but for domination over another human community.

Samnia’s army was better understood as a militia. In the century since Romulina’s ascension in the village it had grown rapidly. Protected from the threat of attack, the residents of Samnia pushed further into the woods, dug great mines, and built large agricultural fields. Teramine and Remine were settled as the village expanded into the city. Remine became the centre of government in the now sprawling city. This expansion put pressure on nearby tribes. They would try to raid the edges of the rich city and when the plows of Samnites approached, many tribes resisted.

During the reign of Numa, a militia system was instituted. The young men of wealthier families would arm themselves in the winter months and pledge themselves to the protection of Numa and her realm. These military units guarded the border lands and fought punitive expeditions against local tribes. Numa herself often did not have to aid the battles. The overwhelming population of Samnia did most of the work. She simply arrived for the spoils. Numa ate the vanquished in their towns and reduced the sacrifices from Samnia to celebrate success in battle. This greatly increased the prestige of the militia whose fortunes made life easier and easier in Samnia.

This state of affairs was transient though. Internal and external pressures put pressure onto Samnia. The external pressures became quite severe as tribes became better organized against the incursions of the Samnites. They built better defences and developed ambush tactics that trapped the Samnite militia. As this went on, Numa spent the last years of her reign mostly in battle. She was an older woman by this point but an old woman who could crush a score of men by sitting down.

She earned her stripes fighting another tribe that had tried to ally with a titan. The other titan’s name is lost to history but he was younger and more naive. Titans in a land battle have more degrees of freedom than human military units. But novice titans often hyper focus on the battle. They don’t want to lose sight of their troops because their actions can be decisive against other humans. But in fighting with another titan this approach is folly. Numa used this to her advantage. Numa left her disciplined troops to hold the line and went wide around the battle field. Her opponent knew that he had to protect the rear flank of his troops from Numa. But he couldn’t keep track of her because he kept checking on his own troops. His attention divided he totally lost sight of Numa until an arrow from her bow caught him between the eyes. His lifeless body came crashing down upon his own troops.

The internal pressures were also significant. Numa took several lovers throughout her reign simultaneously to create familial ties to all of the old families of Samnia. This approach meant that she had four children. And as these children became adults, the human cost of feeding them was steep. All empires are founded upon a contradiction – a force so great that they can conquer their neighbours but so unstable that without neighbours to feast on, it will implode. Like a star that could explode violently into a supernova or collapse into a black hole.

To the city fathers of Samnia the youthfulness of their rulers was grating. They resented that all of their personal prestige was subservient to a titans who from their perspective were daft and naive One successor of the queen can be tolerated. A monarchy is just a succession of opulent mouths to feed. But three other brats? Imagine that it’s your father who is scarified to some snot-nosed teenager who isn’t even an heir? It was intolerable to the elites of Samnia who by sheer volume of sacrifices required were touched by this.

Sahmaran was exactly this snot-nosed brat. She was the youngest of her sibling but also the tallest. Nomadic titans still had to hunt to feed themselves. But the domestic titans had an unlimited food supply and could also eat a balanced diet of grains, legumes, and other vegetables. So they were substantially healthier than their nomadic counterparts. Being the youngest, Sahmaran also had no responsibilities. Like many youngest children, the sternness that Numa had brought down upon her older childrenwas forgotten by the time Sahmaran was born. Her older siblings were expected to participate in local politics. But Sahmaran? She liked to play games.

Games of this era, like today, are playful facsimiles of war. Ancient games didn’t have fixed rules as far as we can tell. The most common game was called charge. It was sort of like capture the flag but all of the human players played against a titan. The titan would stop opponents by knocking them over but the titan would have some sort of impediment. One of the only engravings we have of Sahmaran has her in the push-up position over a field with humans running underneath her. My best guess is that she had to stay elevated in that position, which limited her to using one limb at a time or maybe a strategic thrust from her pelvis or chest – I’m sure the young men were delighted by this – and by the fatigue of holding this position for an entire game.

The end result of this was that young Sahmaran was titan among titans. Taller than her fellows by dozens of feet. She was stronger than titans of this era. Being big means that you don’t have to be strong. Numa is depicted as quite slender. Male titans of the ancient world rarely are depicted with abs or striking physical features, as is common among depictions of humans of this era. Sahmaran, for lack of a better word, was ripped. Biceps that dwarfed domiciles. Quads so powerful she could force everyone in a village to their knees with a deliberate stomp. And from her teenage years of playing sports, she was agile and tactical in ways that titans had never been.

So that was her fate – a great military leader. Sahmaran was given control of a relatively meagre force of soldiers and a few settlers to set out to conquer a village far outside the bounds of what had been normal for the Samnites. This was sold is glowing terms to the population as the great expansion of the frontiers. But in reality, a few too many noble’s sons had been used to feed this titan’s muscle-bound form.

The conquest of Campania was not a great military battle. Sahmaran stood taller than anything the inhabitants had ever seen. She did not even notice the town’s walls as she walked to the city centre. The true battle was what came next. Sahmaran had to deal with competing interests that her lack of political education left her unable to navigate. The soldiers who kept order wanted a reward for their service. She could offer them land in Campania but they didn’t want to stay. They had families in Samnia and wanted prestige back home. The inhabitants of Campania chaffed under her rule. Sure Sahmaran had vanquished the local nomadic titans but she had quite the appetite herself. As did her soldiers who fed themselves by putting swords in the faces of local bakers. A tight balance had to be maintained between the soldiers who enforced the new order and the citizens who she had to have at least some support from to govern. No strong ruler is so strong that she can rule with the opposition of every single person. She wanted to discipline her soldiers who did what soldiers always do – drink, loot, gamble, fuck. But they were her only base of support, so she could only distract them with games and never meaningfully discipline them.

Now, we get to the real story of money. But I should pose a question first. Which sort of person made early human civilization possible? The great ruler or general? A religious movement? Perhaps, if you are of a romantic disposition then you think it is the philosophers. It’s none of them, actually. Great ideas and policy require purchase from society. Some way to integrate and make the new norms feel like something that should be accepted. It’s usually regular people who do this. And in cases where it’s relations between a transient armed population and the locals – it’s usually sex workers who build society.

Milda was similarly a youngest child. She was renowned for her beauty within Campania – long flowy, dark, curly hair hiding bright green eyes that enraptured those who held her gaze. A smile that emanated comfort. She was sought out for marriage, naturally, but resisted. Our ideas of heterosexuality and homosexuality don’t map well onto the ancient world. But Milda was the dominant partner in her relationships, a total inverse of societal expectations. This beautiful woman who wanted to penetrate both men and women, made her proclivities taboo. We probably would call her a bisexual woman today or perhaps a trans-masculine person, it’s hard to say through the sands of time.

Milda was definitely not the conventional straight woman expected of young women in Campania. She was married older for the time. Her family had so many suitors that her marriage was more of an auction where each year that passed drove the bidding up to get her parents to finally give up her hand. When such an offer finally arrived, Milda refused. She was not subject to physical coercion into the marriage but she was iced out socially. She was banished from her parents house and set-up a small hovel on the frontier between town and forest.

It was there that she met Salvia. She had heard of this mystic woman but had only seen her once before. Salvia was older and similarly lived on the fringes of acceptable society. Seeing herself in Milda, she paid a visit to her soon after. For years following she taught Milda how to live on the margins of society.

“The bark of this white tree, when boiled with some sage relives headaches.” Salvia said one day while they were out foraging together.

“So women in town must request it for treatment of menstrual pains then?”

“No.” Salvia shook her head. “I freely give it out. No request needed. Women when they request pain medicine from me usually ask for their husbands. Did you know that men apart from being headaches themselves can also have headaches? It was news to me. But the men simply won’t accept advice and the same medicine from the old Salvia, the woman who makes medicine for menstruating women.”

“So then what difference does it make if the women come, if their husbands will not take it?” Milda asked. They were stopped in clearing where Salvia was bent over propagating ginger.

“Medicine is not always the herbs. Some times it’s simply the presentation – a smidge of deception. This is bitter root.” Salvia dug up the root from a flower with bright purple flower. “It tastes like a donkey’s asshole and as far as I can tell it has the same medicinal value. But it covers up the flavour of sage and eating something this awful feels masculine. It feel courageous to take this medicine now. But it’s the exact same thing I give to their wives.”

Salvia gave her a wry smile. She cut the root into pieces and chewed on the root with little hesitation. She cut a piece off for Milda who immediately spat it out.

“Milda don’t be such a performer. Swallow it.”

“You can’t be serious. You just told me this did nothing.” Milda said incredulously.

“Still so naive. The performance of medicine is confidence. Word gets around that I can eat this stuff and not even flinch. It appears as magic but it’s truly just practice and knowledge. The magic is why I’m left to my own devices.”

Milda made daily trips to visit Salvia and came to like the idea of becoming a medicine woman. She was surprised one day to hear the sounds of vigorous sex coming from Salvia’s residence. She lingered awkwardly out of view until she saw a portly man leave. Milda was shocked. Why would a woman of Salvia’s gifts be knocking boots with such an ugly fellow?

“You’re a prostitute?” Milda said pointedly when Salvia emerged from her home.

“Politician.” Salvia retorted. Milda contorted her face. “Come with me to the ginger patch. Don’t speak. Just think. Why go about it.”

They walked silently through the woods to the same clearing. Salvia went to a shaded portion a pulled up some white ginger. Milda wracked her brain trying to figure out what was meant by politician. She traded favours for sex, maybe?

“See this plant, white ginger, is an aphrodisiac. Makes men erect and women drip. An absolute bastard to cultivate because it only like to make its tap root when its in the vicinity of pine mushrooms. Do you want some?”

“I don’t really want to make men erect. I’d rather make myself erect.” Milda confided. Without missing a beat, Salvia smiled and went on to the next plant.

“Ah, then you want the oil that comes from the broad leaf. It’s a superb lubricant especially if you appendage happens to be literally made of wood.” Salvia ran her knife up the leaf and a sheen of oil came off. She placed the oil in Milda’s hands and began rubbing her hands until the oil melted. “So have you figured out what I meant?”

“You mean that you can trade favours as a politician does?” Milda ventured.

“Not exactly. Sex is intimate. When you open yourself to it, people speak freely about what they mean. It feels natural. I tell you about a plant that makes men horny and you venture without prodding that you wish to have penis yourself. Information flows from the vulnerability of sex.”

“So you trade in information. But to what end? You’re not a city elder. I hate to say so, but honestly, but you are seen with a certain amount of contempt.”

“Part of the show, m’dear.” Salvia put her hands on Milda’s shoulders and looked into her eyes. “This is my most important question for you. You are prettier than I ever was. I think that you could learn lots of information and plant many ideas into people’s heads that will be stuck swirling and entwined in their desire for you. You stay far out of the fray but others will take your advice and act upon it. So tell, truly, what would you have people do under your spell?”

Milda stared back into the grey eyes of Salvia. Her hair was thin and her face was frail but still with a charm to it. She thought about what she would like.

“I’d like them to get along. To not fight so much over stupid things. To respect the young people in our village more.”

“Good.” Salvia replied.

Sahmaran’s arrival in the town was a shock. Milda had seen a few titans in her time. But this one was shockingly tall. She had joined the others in the square and from the vantage it was impossible to see the face of the titan when she was standing. Most of what was visible was her sandaled foot and calf that would have been impressive proportion on a woman of normal stature. A troop of soldiers with wooden shields and spears made a formation around the crowd but did not take a hostile posture otherwise. The titan spoke but her voice bellowed in a way that was hard for them to follow. The captain of the squad of troops whose hair was elaborated woven with feathers spoke to clarify. The city father’s were to write a prescription list with 12 people to be sacrificed in a feast that everyone would watch.

The list was composed mainly of outcasts, which included Salvia. The list was read aloud and Milda took off running to find Salvia. She relayed the news to her but Salvia did not seem very bothered. Instead Salvia picked up a bag and set off walking to the square.

“Are you nuts?” Milda protested. “Of all people, surely you can take to the woods and wait this out!”

“And have some other poor person take my place?” Salvia retorted. They walked in silence towards the town. Milda was distressed. She grabbed onto Salvia’s hand as they walked. Salvia looked at her surprised and gave her a gentle smile.

“I also have a plan.” She opened her purse which was filled with white ginger. “It won’t save my life but it will make the village have a good laugh at the expense of our new titan. I knew some of our local titans and they loved white ginger. Even meagre doses for beings of their size drove them wild with lust. I don’t think civilized giantess have ever experienced anything quite like that. I plan to eat all of this before hand.”

Milda laughed, “You’re serious?”

“Remember what I said about politics. It’s about the gentle nudges. Letting people think it’s their own ideas and their own game to play. You said that you want our people to get along. Well, they’re afraid. People who are afraid betray their own – often for a bad deal in their panic. I want them to panic less so that they can extract a better deal. You cannot will people to give up back stabbing but you can make the practice a little more productive. So while the Samnites expect this to be a great show of force, I want our people to laugh at an uncontrollably horny giantess. Show them that she’s just a person.”

That night, a feast was held. Soup was cooked in large pots and shared between the soldiers and the residents who ate together. It was a lovely summer evening were it not for the looming being watching over them. At the appointed time, the 12 were stripped naked and ritually bathed. Then walked onto a hastily built platform. There they waited to be picked up one by one.

The scene was horrible. Carried up, wordlessly inspected then slipped between the titan’s lips and swallowed. The first two were crushed between her teeth ending their lives in a single piercing shriek but the remaining were swallowed whole once terror had rendered them paralyzed. All of them except for Salvia who was seated in the last spot. Even from a distance, Milda could see that her face was flushed. The old woman shifted in her seat. Her arms were crossed over the shoulders and rhythmically running up and down her chest. When her turn came she moaned at the sensation of fingers gripping around her. She reached her hands up to run them across the lips of her predator. The titan let out a little cough to contain Salvia as it appeared that she was dancing on the titan’s tongue. Bemused whispering started among the crowd but the soldiers hushed everyone down.

What the soldiers could not contain was Sahmaran. That night everyone was woken up by the shaking of their homes. Confused they wandered out. In the dim light they could make out the figure of Sahmaran rocking back and forth. They could hear the sounds of her fingers driving into herself. In her excitement she bit down on her finger to hold back her moan but the muffled moan was audible to everyone. The titan climaxed. She was not done yet. A few minutes later the shaking started again. This time Sahmaran was on all fours while she fingered herself. Her back arched and she began playing with nipples over top of where her troops had been sleeping. She held back no moans this time. Shrieks of delight lit up the night and the smell of lust drenched every corner of the town.

Still the titan was not satisfied. Moments after everyone had tried to return to bed the titan was at it again. This time she bellowed for her soldiers to attend to her nipples. A score of men climbed up the titan's breasts. She held them against herself. When she relented the soldiers set to work kissing and massaging her nipples while the titan masturabted again. Milda watched as the townsfolk laughed and made merry. Many of them made rude gestures to mock the soldiers who had to attend to their titan's sexual needs. The mood of the town which had been sullen was riveted now with laughter. 

Milda was not sure if Salvia was still alive within the titan. Hopped up on the white ginger herself, Salvia was probably putting on quite a show inside Sahmaran’s stomach. Her plan had worked. There was indeed no way that everyone in the town – civilian and soldier – would not think of watching Sahmaran masturbate over their heads all night long.