All individuals engaging in sexual conduct can be assumed to be of the legal age of consent. 18+
*
The beast’s lair was a full three days’ journey from his town, but the trip was pleasant enough. They rode in convertibles with woolen pillows stuffed with hay, the late summer heat relieved by a breeze off the sea, their hair and clothes tinged with the scent of salt and the warmth of the olive trees of the hills.
The road cut an uneven path across the rugged countryside with a high mound at the top, and from this height Calliope could see a thin line of pale blue-green glowing in the hazy distance, marked only by the pale sky and the rolling hills forming the mountain frame.
The girl sitting beside her began to cry again, only to be sobbed out by a girl with equally swollen, red eyes. She turned away and looked out at the hills, shifting uncomfortably.
Calliope joined the group two days ago, and since she joined they have done nothing but cry.
Two carts were swaying slowly along the road. Both carts could seat ten passengers, and about ten passengers. A small guard led by a stiff-necked captain on horseback accompanied them on foot. Their purpose was not to protect the ladies’ goods but to prevent their escape.
She grimaced. She tried to distract herself with the blue sky and fragrant air, but the cold soldiers and the incessant sobs brought her back to the same dilemma. Well, maybe not a dilemma, but a scary and hopeless situation. She volunteered to attend the memorial services to save her family from losing her more promising sister, who had already received several marriage proposals by the time she was 19. Tributes were paid every five years, sometimes in gold, sometimes in livestock, and each town made its contribution. This year the creature needed maidens.
She suppressed a shudder. Most of these girls were not voluntary. They were the youngest marriageable daughters in their families, they were all from prominent families, and there were more than three daughters from various cities. Each city’s council believed this was the fairest way to select the women. Asking parents, mothers and fathers, to choose between their beloved children is so hard that there would be riots if they demanded such a price from poor citizens who had suffered enough.
She looked at them silently for the hundredth time in the last two days. There were two or three people sitting there, more or less resigned to their fate, just as she was. One man next to her prayed to Artemis to protect her. No one said much.
Another breeze blew over them, carrying the Mediterranean on its wings, as if the south wind itself were giving them some comfort. Her stomach turned, and she gave in a little to her fear, silently praying and pleading under her breath. The young woman next to her prayed to the maiden goddess Artemis for protection. Calliope prayed to Athena. Not for protection, but for wisdom and courage. For strength.
None of them knew their fate. She assumed death, which made it easier for her to deal with. While some might disagree, she feels it’s actually the worst possible fate. If she’s expecting to die and find something else, she’s the one who’s in the lead, right? She had no pride in saving her life through slavery or servitude.
She sighed heavily and looked away from her swollen eyes to see a young shepherd leading his flock over the rocks on a nearby mountain. He stopped and looked at them, a lamb squirming under one arm. She raised her hand and he smiled, raising his free hand in response. Suddenly, she felt calmer and more centered. It’s okay, it’s going to be okay.
To her family, it was as if she were marrying a man living in a far-off land. They would not suffer much loss. She thought of her sister’s tear-stained face as she left with the soldiers, and touched the snake-shaped silver bracelet on her arm, which she had been forced to take with her. Her sister’s bracelet.
Fighting the sadness rising in his chest, he wrapped his arms around himself and rubbed his exposed skin.
In the distance, the thin blue line grew larger and larger. They are almost there. They stop at the last town and witness the final heartbreaking scene of a family being separated from its children. The girl is gently led to another carriage by a guilty-looking guard. She is beautiful, even though her eyes are red and welling up with tears. Only her father waves to her, her mother and sisters collapse in the dust in grief. Calliope watches the carriage move forward, and he stands like a statue, stiff with cold pain, one arm raised, his family piled at his feet. He leaves his family behind again and takes a deep breath. Despite this, his honor is still intact, and so is his little self-control.
Not far from the village, about an hour’s journey in, the road gradually narrowed and they were led through a nice wooded area that opened up into rolling pastures with brown rocks along the sea in the distance, the water of the sea falling slowly and rhythmically. Under any other circumstances, she would have been overwhelmed by the beauty and tranquility of the place. Now she was just scared.
In front of them, a cliff turned into a rock pinnacle, and where the gray stone met the emerald grass, a dark opening appeared.
Calliope suddenly felt fear and instinctively stopped. She is not alone. The guards let them stare for a moment, then encouraged them to move on like frightened sheep. The cave stretched upwards, the size of at least five tall men. She had heard that the creature was a giant. Some say he is a Titan who escaped Zeus’ wrath, others say he is a Cyclops. Some even say he was a giant snake, like the one Perseus killed.
She took a breath as she entered the cave. The air was strangely dry and smelled only of seawater, not death and decay like she had imagined.
The guards stopped them at the entrance, most of them looking around curiously and nervously fingering the hilts of their swords. A man emerged from somewhere at the back of the large cave. He is at least average looking, that is, there is nothing strange or scary about him, even if he is a little fat and tired. He had a light beard on his square chin and long, loose hair that touched his strong-looking shoulders. He nodded familiarly at the captain, who looked at him questioningly, but nodded in return.
There was a guard standing behind her. She came up to him and asked in a low voice: “Who is that person?”
He leaned forward and brought his lips to her ear. “The creature’s servant.”
“आह।”
The man passed the Captain and glanced at each of the girls, quickly noting each one and pausing briefly in front of one or two. When her gaze shifted, he caught them and held them there for a moment. They were a deep blue-gray. She wondered if she saw the question in his dark eyes. If she did, she couldn’t see his answer.
“This?” he asked coldly.
The captain became frightened.
“This is a tribute.” “Very well. You may go.”
He motioned for the women to follow. “This way.”
The Captain’s jaw dropped and after a moment’s hesitation he signaled his soldiers to leave. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked back to see the guard looking at her with sad and apologetic eyes. She gave him a reassuring smile and followed the man who had disappeared before her. No one else moved until she was halfway across the wide cave floor. Slowly, one by one, they staggered forward. She didn’t look back, but she could hear their sobs.
She straightened her shoulders and walked uneasily into the unknown darkness.
They walked through the stone hall lit by torchlight until they stopped in front of a heavy door that looked like it was cut straight out of the stone. He opened the door and stood aside. She tentatively walked in first. The room was empty, which made people involuntarily sigh with relief. The room wasn’t large, but it had benches with pillows and a table at the end with some food and water. At least it was much more comfortable than a cell or cage, and that brought a dangerous hope to her heart. But as the others came up to her, she reconsidered that maybe this was the only place to keep them temporarily.
“Wait a moment.” was what the servant said before closing the door. They all just stared at each other for a moment, some hugging others for comfort.
Calliope turned and tried to open the door. As she suspected, it was locked.
“What will happen to us,” a young girl whispered, her brown eyes wide and full of fear. She was like a deer cornered by a hunter, trembling with fear.
“It will eat us!” shouted another.
“No,” Calliope replied, “I don’t think so. If that’s the case, why don’t they just put us in a cage or prison.” No one answered. “Besides, I’m sure we’re both too skinny to make a good meal.” She tried to smile easily, trying to ease the burden of their shared fear.
“Maybe young girls have better taste,” whispered another, causing her neighbour to cry.
“What more could the giants want from us?” said the other, almost angrily. “We are going to die!” This brought on another round of tears and sobs, which, frankly, bored him and did not help him to keep calm.
“Why are you not afraid?” asked the doe-eyed girl.
“I am,” he admitted. The girl just nodded and folded her knees up to her chest on a bench.
No one touches the food.
After a long time the servant returned.
“The boss is here.”
They all stared at him, some in obvious fear. He sighed impatiently.
“Okay, don’t jump right in. Come on. Everybody get up and head for the door.” Calliope sat down on the floor by the door and waited until they were all up and out. She wanted to turn around and run, but then she thought of those poor girls who were left alone facing their fate while she hid like a coward. Besides, she looked back and saw who knew where those corridors led. She climbed out of the pot and walked to the fire, thinking.
They had returned to the large cave, and the group stopped in the center, facing the entrance. Only a moment later, a black shadow passed in front of the cave entrance, and then a figure occupied the entrance of the huge cave, blocking the last rays of the sunset.
He is terrifying. A giant, at least, no… more than twenty feet tall, only half clothed, like a laborer in the hot sun, his huge upper body was bare, revealing strange brown skin, taut with great knotted muscles. He looked as if he could crush a man’s head between his thumb and forefinger. She could not suppress her shudder. Two girls fainted and fell into the arms of a neighbor, while several girls screamed.
He looked at them with his big, glowing amber eyes. As the harsh sunlight hid behind him, she saw two small horns sticking out of his bald head, like tiny horns. She looked at his feet and thought they were hooves, but they looked more or less normal, like a man’s, only big enough for the tree trunk to support their legs. He seemed to look at them, and snorted funny, causing some of them to let out another scream of terror, which turned into more uncontrollable shrieks. He shook his head, his strangely colored eyes darkening in color. She thought he looked…disappointed. She wondered what that meant. She decided it wasn’t good. When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice echoed above them like distant thunder.
“Take them, Dimitri.” The servant Dimitri nodded and began to lead them back into the hall. Calliope stopped and did not follow him, but looked at the huge beast. Dimitri did not notice, perhaps he was busy saving an unconscious girl. She watched as he picked her up and ran the rest ahead of him.
She looked back at the huge figure. He turned and stood up, looking back. She swallowed hard and took a step forward. She thought their lives might depend on what she did next, so she better not do anything stupid. She cleared her throat softly. He didn’t seem to hear.
“Your Majesty,” she called tentatively. He saw the muscles in her neck move, indicating that she had heard his voice. She turned her head slowly and looked at him with mild curiosity.
“Yes?” Her voice rumbled deep in her chest, echoing in the cavern and her whole body shook. She took a breath. “I-I’m sorry.” She stuttered. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Are you now?” He raised his eyebrows at her and turned around. Now, looking straight into her face, he saw the thin canine teeth that had been visible as she spoke, which were slightly pressing against her lower lip. They frightened him.
More importantly, she didn’t know how to answer this question. She should think about it.
“I…I don’t want you to be angry…My Lord.”
“I see. Is that all?” She paused.
“I think so. Yeah.”
“Very well.” He turned and left.
“Adult.”
“Yes.” He didn’t turn around.
“Have you decided what’s going to happen to us?”
It was her turn to pause. “No.”
“I understand.” She lowered her head and closed her eyes. “My lord, is it possible that we will die?”
This time he didn’t look back at her.
“No,” she said softly, “you’re not going to die.”
Her heart leapt out, and as she raised her eyes to meet his horrified gaze she felt relief. She will not die! No one is there.
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” she breathed, feeling the first true smile on her lips in many days. He softened visibly and leaned closer to her, surprisingly close enough that he could take a step or two to touch her bent knees. She didn’t break free, but the urge to escape was strong. I’m not going to die, she reminded herself, and took another deep breath.
“Is that why they were screaming and crying? Did they think they were going to die?”
“Well… partially. But you have to forgive them,” she added, “They were all upset, and you might, uh, be surprised to see it all happen all of a sudden, but damn, it didn’t work.” That’s good.
“I think you mean scary.” She opened her mouth to argue, but she found it pointless and ridiculous. She could only nod apologetically.
“What about you? Why aren’t you screaming and shaking in fear?”
“I promised myself I wouldn’t do that. But if it’s any consolation,” she added, “I’m scared out of my mind right now.” He tried to smile cheerfully, but she felt it was more like a grimace. He gave her a small smile and then stood up.
“That’s fair enough. Well, if it’s any consolation to them, you can tell them they’re not in any immediate danger and certainly not fatal.”
She nodded. “This might help.”
It looked like he was going at it again.
“One more thing, Master…”
She sighed. “What is that?”
“Yes, is there anything I can do?”
“to do?”
“…to serve you.” Or to make you less miserable, he thought.
“Will you serve me?”
“You were very kind in saving our lives. It seemed like the least I could do.” He looked at her for a long time before speaking.
“Dimitri will have dinner ready for me soon. After that I think I’ll take a bath. You can give him a bath. Okay?”
“Yes, my lord.” She glanced at him again before heading back to the pasture surrounding the cave so he wouldn’t bother her again. “You’re an idiot,” she scolded herself. “How are you going to complete this task?” How did you draw a giant bather? She didn’t know where to begin. It seemed impossible. It must be a test, she thought. The only person who would know is Dimitri, but if it were a test, he probably wouldn’t help her. He probably wouldn’t help her because he seemed like a pathetic kind of guy. “There’s only one way to find out,” she mumbled, then walked down the smooth stone hall in search of Demetri. She found him in what looked like a kitchen or something. She looked in wonder at the roast lamb he was carving.
“What are you doing here? How did you get out-” Before she could stutter, he walked towards her and reached out to hold her hand.
“I need your help. I’m never going back. Please.” He pulled her out of the room into the hall. “Please stay, Master… He, he has given me a task…”
Finally, he stopped. “Have you spoken to him?”
“Yes.” He let go of her hand. “And?”
“She also asked me to help her take a bath…is that possible?”
“Of course it is possible.” She looked at him as if he were a fool.
“I mean, is there a bathtub that’s his… size?”
“Look, there’s a room with two doors on the left, and there’s a bath tank. If you don’t believe me, go and see it, but I still have work to do.”
“Can I help you?”
“Yes, take this,” he pointed to a tray with olives, grapes, fruit, and a large jug of black wine, “and take it to the room next to the bathroom…the first door there.”
“Where did it go.”
“Wherever that means.”
She nodded, picked up the tray and headed down the hall. “Throw this away and I’ll kill you…” he yelled after her. She stopped at the first door, balanced the tray on one knee and pushed it open. The interior is surprisingly pleasant. There were a few tapestries, some of them very pretty, and a few benches, and countless skins and pillows placed around a low table. The table seemed like a suitable place for plates, so she arranged them carefully before taking a closer look around her. It’s a little sparse, but other than the gray stone walls, it could be considered a normal room in most houses. On a small table against the wall is a large decorative vase with an image of a warrior fighting a three-headed monster, and on the other wall is a large, somewhat ornate chest. She thought about looking inside, but immediately gave up on the idea as an image of Pandora standing over her god-forsaken box flashed through her mind. Instead, she gave in to temptation and left the room in search of the huge bathtub. There was a bathtub in the next room, but she immediately thought it was a joke or someone playing a trick on her.
Sure, this sunken stone bathhouse is large enough to comfortably accommodate four or more normal people, but definitely not giants like the owner of the place.
Her heart sank… she thought maybe it wasn’t that difficult. There was nothing she could do except prepare the bathwater and feign ignorance later. At least she could claim she was trying to obey, or some such nonsense.
She saw a faucet on the side of the square tub, and she knelt down and turned the little crank attached to it, letting water slowly flow out, smelling fresh, like some nice bathrooms. At least this way she wouldn’t have to haul dozens of buckets of water. She filled the tub until it covered the built-in bench and returned to the kitchen. The water is cold, but warmer than ice cold water, which means less boiling water is needed. Another thing that worked in their favor. When she reached the kitchen she was calculating the time it would take for the water to boil and was surprised and delighted to find that four kettles were already boiling on the ovens.
“Tell me they’re for me.”
Dimitri looked up with a serious expression and snorted. “Someone has to start something.” He sounded angry, but she was sure she heard the laughter in his voice, albeit with some sarcasm, and that comforted her a little.
