The hatch of the submarine opened and out poured marines in black tops and pants carrying a custom rifle. The shore was slowly filled with soldiers running about in a well-trained manner into a formation. Soon officers made their way in front of the formation, leading their soldiers in salute towards the hatch as the Captain emerged from the vessel.
The giants watched as the little men ran about and eventually saluted the young marine who made his way from the submarine. From their understanding, the person coming should be the highest-ranking officer on the vessel and most likely the person who introduced himself as Rose D. Ezra.
“Admiral!” the marines all yelled.
“We are guests at Elbaf, so I expect the best behaviour from each one of you. While your commanders are away, necessary arrangements will be made for your training. A war is coming and we Atlanteans will be playing the most important role.” Ezra briefed the soldiers. Looking at the Giant Chief Rorul he asked “Chief, would it be possible for us to use these shores and rock formations as our training grounds for the duration of our stay on the island?”
“Your Majesty. Yes, I will send an instructor here to monitor the training as well. I know you all are different from us giants but some of our training plans can be modified to help increase their strength in a short amount of time.”
“Thank you Chief, I will leave it to you to make the arrangements” Ezra replied before walking towards Bomber, giving him a nod.
“Everyone, you heard the Admiral. The Atlantis will be used as accommodation and training will be on the shores, everywhere else on this island is restricted! GET INTO YOUR SQUADS, AND AWAIT YOUR TRAINING PLANS. Dismissed” Bomber yelled
Not too long Ezra and his officers were perched on the shoulder of Chief Rorul who was making his way into the village.
“Chief, I must apologise for the inconvenience,” Ezra said
“Don't worry about it. It is much quicker for us to move like this. It is also my honour to do this! Never in my life did I think I would meet you. Meeting you is a blessing but also foretells the End.” The Chief said as he increased his pace.
Elbaf Village was built in the middle of a forest surrounded by tall trees which Ezra and the others have never seen before. The houses were wooden and simple, the people where lived a very basic life. Everyone regardless of sex was trained as a warrior first as soon as they came of age, and then they had 3 career paths to choose from. They could work with metal, be it forging or mining. They could work with food, be it farming or selling and lastly they could join the border defence team. These were the people who responded to the battle bell when the water giant approached the shore.
Unlike the rest of the village, the town centre had the biggest tree which extended into the clouds. The circumference of the tree was huge, someone carved out the inside of the tree to build a village square.
“We are here,” Chief Rorul said
“Where is the portal?” Ezra could not help but ask.
“We are standing on it, Your Majesty. This information is something passed down from Chief to Chief. The portal has been inactive for years and we have never found any information on how to operate it” Chief replied honestly
“Soru”
Ezra jumped off the Giant, and in a flash, he appeared on the floor. He placed the palm of his right hand on the floor and closed his eyes as he channelled part of his power into the runes.
Water slowly flowed out of Ezra’s hand pouring into the engraving on the concrete floor. The badly worn-out town square slowly lit up as the runic patterns made the whole place look mystical.
“Your Majesty, I knew if there was anyone who could activate this, it had to be you,” Chief said as tears poured down his eyes. “I am too old to follow you on for the next part of the journey. Is it possible to send my Son, Blyvue, in my place? He is the only giant on the island with the power of a devil fruit. He ate the Mini Mini no Mi Fruit which allows him to change his size at will.” The Chief Rorul said as he dropped to his knees. “When the transformation is completed and you ascend to the throne, I will renounce my title as Chief, reforming your Giant Legion once again”
Ezra slowly stood up.
His mind was still sensing the changes to the runic pattern on the ground. He could feel that it was 99% complete. A key was needed for that last 1%, but the keyhole was in the shape of a small circle? The diameter of a pole? A pole?
“Clever, Uranus, your planning still seems to amaze me!” Ezra mumbled to himself. Although his mind was focused on the channelling to activate the rune, he still noticed the commotion Chief Rorul caused.
“Chief. I have only known you for a short while and my impression of you is good. You have kept to the old ways, in my eyes, people like you are very important. I approve of Blyvue joining The Atlanteans as an officer. You, on the other hand, can step down as Chief as of immediate effect.”
Ezra’s announcement brought joy and confusion to the village chief. ‘It was over just like that”
“Rorul since you will no longer be the chief. I want you to take the role of General. I want you to get the Giant Legion ready for battle”
Rorul jumped to his feet. The impact made the ground shake.
“Your Majesty, Rorul will not let you down”
Ezra smiled as he pulled out the pole which had been his companion all these years inserting it into the whole activating the portal.
The sounds of gears shifting and clicking could be heard. The portal was meant to be magical, no one could understand why it sounded like a mechanical entrance.
The ground around the pole slowly sunk into the ground revealing a golden trident head that had now been attached to the pole. The weapon shot up into the air as if having a mind of its own.
Ezra noticed that his power activated on its own as the water was being drawn to the trident which was spinning in the air.
The speed increased and more water started gathering forming a screen. As soon as the screen was formed the trident flew towards Ezra changing its size as it fixed itself as a trident badge on Ezra’s uniform.
The shock, awe and impact of what they had just seen left the officers, Blyvue and Rorul in shock.
“Everyone, time is of the essence,” Ezra said as he made his way into the screen disappearing from the square. One by one the officers walked in leaving Blyvue and his father alone in the square.
“Go on my son, This is your destiny!” Rural said as he pushed his son into the screen.
