The progenitor of all Titans, speculated to be origin of all life on Earth, the “source of all living matter” is an organic anomaly which gave Ymir Fritz the Power of the Titans when she first encountered it nearly 2,000 years before the start ofAttack on Titan. An entity whose true characteristics and qualities are still quite unclear, the organism was quite symbiotic in its existence, constantly looking for other hosts it could bond with. By fusing with other organic-life-forms, the entity was able to dramatically alter their characteristics, as seen in how the tree it originally resided within grew to a massive size when compared to neighboring vegetation in its vicinity. In addition to being the root of the Power of the Titans, it is also the source ofthe Founding Titan’s power, such that it binds intself to the spine of each holder of this particular Titan. Ymir first encountered the anomaly while being pursued by the soldiers of King Fritz, when she was condemned to death for opening the gate to a pen which released a group of pigs belonging to the Eldian tribe. After stumbling into a massive tree in her wounded state, Ymir fell into a pool of liquid inside the trunk which contained the entity. On noticing Ymir, the organism reached out and bound itself to her spine, turning her into th first Founding Titan.
While the name given to the entity is quite tentative, it has been known by other monikers throughout history, depending on which side of the Eldia-Marley conflict is narrating the story. The aftermath of Karl Fritz’s migration to Paradis Island and Marley’s takeover of the continental mainland saw the creature cast as the “Devil of All Earth,” in accordance with the slanderous propaganda spread by Marley about thePower of the Titans. Resembling Hallucigenia, an insect-like organism that existed during the Cambrian period, the source of all living matter can also alter its own size at will, and displays behavior that ranges from sedentary and inactive to autonomous and even aggressive at times, when separated from its host. To understand the Power of the Titans, it is imperative to study the true nature of this creature, whose existence is responsible for much of what happens in the narrative ofAttack on Titan.
RELATED:Attack On Titan: The Paths, Explained
Origins And True Nature
Described as a “shining centipede” by Gabi Braun, as she saw it emerge from Eren’s decapitated body, the source of all living matter has a spiny appearance, but is devoid of any distinguishing features such as eyes, a mouth, or a face of any sort. The entity did possess an array of feelers across its head and back, which spread out across other parts of its body as it alters its size and shape. In contrast to most arthropods, which it bears a striking resemblance to, the anomaly’s limbs and feelers are continuous with its main body, with no segmentation in its structure. Hence, the organism’s appearance retains an amorphous character which is the cause of its ability to take on different forms as needed. The organism was perhaps only a meter long when itfirst bonded with Ymir’s spine, but grew to gargantuan proportions rivaling those of Reiner’s Armored Titan.
Zeke Yeager hypothesized that the source of all living matter could have been the origin of all life on Earth, although this theory was not entirely confirmed after he first proposed it. Questions on the entity’s self-awareness are debatable, since it seems to always seek out hosts that aid in its propagation, but is still more than capable of acting on its own if the situation demands it. For instance, it was able to reattach itself to Eren’s severed head after exiting his body to trigger his transformation into the Founding Titan. It also actively moved to fuse with Ymir’s spine when she fell into the pool of liquid inside a massive tree, nearly two millennia prior to the start of Attack on Titan. Finally, during the Battle of Heaven and Earth at Fort Salta, the anomaly leftEren’s Founding Titan bodyand desperately attempted to find a new host after Jean destroyed the link between its head and spine. When held back from doing so by the efforts of Reiner and Armin’s explosive Colossal Titan transformation, the entity grew increasingly aggressive and writhed against its restraints in an effort to reunite with Eren.
Granting The Power Of The Titans
As it is the reason behind the existence of Titans, the source of all living matter is also responsible for the creation of the Paths, which link all Eldians across boundaries of space and time. It has often been speculated that the origins of the Power of the Titans, and the invisible bonds that connect the collective consciousness of all Subjects of Ymir are a product of Ymir Fritz’s own fear of vulnerability, which stem from her time spent in servitude of King Fritz, as well as her desire to escape the finality of death. The Paths can even transcend death, as Titan shifters were able to access the memories of past holders through them. All the flesh and bones constituting Titan bodies are transported through the Paths during Titan transformations, in a manner that has been likened to magic. Furthermore,a Titan shifter’s regenerationcan also be attributed to the entity’s ability to enhance life.
Beyond its role intriggering and facilitating Titan transformations, the entity also exhibits certain characteristics that bear similarities to the Founding Titan’s power. First off, it is quite durable, as seen in it being able to survive the full explosive brunt of a Colossal Titan transformation at point-blank range in its exposed form. When separated from Eren’s body during the Battle of Heaven and Earth, the organism even emitted a gaseous substance that behaved in a manner similar to Zeke’s spinal fluid, transforming all Eldians who inhaled it into Pure Titans. Once this took place, it was able to command all the Pure Titans to come to its aid and repel the Armored and Cart Titans who were struggling to prevent it from fusing with its host body once again in order to prevent the Rumbling from resuming.
A Mind Of Its Own
Even though there is strong evidence to hint at the anomaly having a consciousness and agenda of its own, its need for a host body and lack of autonomy after attaining one indicates its symbiotic nature, which hints at a more complex set of parameters governing its existence. Since the entity is responsible for granting the Power of the Titans to individual hosts, it may be safe to assume that small segments of its body may dwell inside each Titan shifter, with the bulk of its main body contained within the holder of the Founding Titan. This is further reinforced on observing the manner in which Titan powers are inherited — through the consumption of an existing shifter’s spinal fluid. As this process began with Ymir’s daughters, Maria, Rose, and Sheena, being force-fed their mother’s corpse by their oppressive father King Fritz, it is quite likely that it resides within a shifter’s spine. Finally, in the closing panels ofAttack on Titan, after thedestruction of Paradis Islandby artillery fire decades into the future, the tree below which Eren is buried also grows to gargantuan proportions, restarting the cycle that began with Ymir.
