-Broadcast-
While the rest of Dressrosa descended into hell, the port had become a staging ground for panicked evacuation. Minutes earlier, Marine officers had ordered the civilian crowds to clear the coastline, making room for military landing operations. None of them could have anticipated that chaos would erupt from within their own ranks first.
When that bone-chilling roar echoed across the island, waves of golden light burst forth throughout the port district. Anyone standing too close to the luminous transformations was instantly incinerated, but those who died immediately were the fortunate ones—their suffering had ended before the true nightmare began.
A handful of Marine soldiers who had penetrated deep into the civilian crowds were caught in the initial wave of transformations. Most of the landing force could only retreat to their ships as billowing white steam obscured the entire harbor, leaving the actual situation shrouded in mystery.
"What the hell is happening out there?" Gabi muttered, unslingling her sniper rifle with practiced efficiency. Years of military training had taught her to be ready for combat at a moment's notice, and whatever lurked within that concealing mist posed a clear and present danger.
An eerie silence had fallen over the port like a burial shroud.
"Why is it so quiet?" whispered one of the Marines, his voice barely audible over the lapping of waves against their landing craft. "There were thousands of people screaming just minutes ago."
"Marine units, report in!" called their squad leader. "If you can't speak, just shout so we know you're alive!"
The well-trained soldiers raised their semi-automatic rifles to ready positions, muscles tense and fingers hovering near triggers. Several were already theorizing whether this phenomenon might be the result of an enemy Devil Fruit power—some kind of area-of-effect ability designed to sow confusion among their forces.
Heavy, ragged breathing echoed from somewhere within the mist. A figure in Marine uniform stumbled through the layers of vapor, his left arm missing and his face a mask of absolute terror. When he spotted his comrades on the shoreline, he found the strength to shout a warning.
"Run! There are giants—!"
Before the wounded Marine could finish his desperate message, a colossal head emerged from the steam behind him. Under the horrified gaze of his brothers-in-arms, the titan's jaws closed around the man's torso with a wet, crunching sound that would haunt the survivors for years to come.
Human bones snapped against yellowed teeth like dry kindling. The grotesque giant noticed more prey gathered on the beach and began moving toward the Marine gunline—but instead of walking upright, it dropped to all fours like some nightmarish reptile.
"OPEN FIRE! OPEN FIRE!"
Dense salvos from semi-automatic rifles created a wall of lead that hammered into the giant's flesh, tearing ragged holes in its hide. But the aberrant titan showed no reaction to pain, continuing its relentless advance even as bullets shredded skin and muscle.
"Stand aside and let me handle this," Captain Gabi commanded, already prone behind her specialized sniper cannon. The massive weapon had been custom-built by Marine engineers specifically for her use, its dark barrel gleaming with deadly promise.
Through her high-powered scope, she acquired target lock on the creature's skull and squeezed the trigger. The thunderous report sent vibrations through the ground beneath them as the anti-material round found its mark.
The sniper rifle's devastating power left only half of the giant's head intact, creating a gaping crater where the projectile had passed through. The seemingly unstoppable titan finally collapsed, but strange wisps of steam began rising from its wounds.
"Impossible," Gabi breathed, keeping her eye pressed to the scope. "Its fingers are still moving. What kind of monster can survive that?"
The fatal head wound was regenerating at a pace visible to the naked eye, steam accelerating the healing process until a complete eyeball reformed in its socket. The partially-decapitated giant regained its vision and immediately resumed crawling toward the Marine positions with single-minded determination.
As the thick vapor gradually dispersed across the harbor, it revealed a scene of cannibalistic horror that would be seared into every witness's memory forever. The port contained not just one giant, but dozens upon dozens of the creatures scattered throughout the district.
These naked, grotesquely-proportioned titans were systematically devouring every human they could find. Some bore fresh bloodstains around their mouths, while others clutched severed limbs and torsos like macabre trophies.
"Please... someone save me..." A man whose lower body had been bitten away somehow remained conscious, his agonized voice carrying across the water.
The titan holding him seemed fascinated by his victim's death throes, watching with childlike curiosity as life slowly drained away. Another giant, apparently impatient with such waste, snatched the dying man and tore him in half with casual brutality. Internal organs spilled from the ruined corpse as the upper torso disappeared into one monster's gullet while the legs became another's prize.
One particularly unlucky Marine had drawn the attention of five competing titans simultaneously. Each creature seized a different limb and pulled in opposite directions until the man came apart like a wishbone, his blood painting abstract patterns across the harbor stones.
"I'm going to be sick..." Several rookie Marines lost control of their stomachs at the sight, their vomit mixing with seawater as some actually tumbled from their landing craft in shock.
Through her sniper scope, Gabi confirmed the worst possible scenario. Aside from their own forces, no living humans remained in the port—they had either transformed into titans or become food for those who had.
Having consumed every available victim in their immediate vicinity, the giants turned their attention toward the hundreds of Marines clustered on the shoreline. The first wave consisted of abnormal titans with bizarre locomotion methods, while tens of thousands of standard giants followed behind them like a mindless horde.
Some smaller titans were trampled underfoot by their larger brethren in the chaotic charge, creating a stampede of flesh and fury that shook the very foundations of the port district.
"Fall back to the landing craft!" Captain Gabi ordered, her tactical mind already calculating their odds. "This position is no longer defensible!"
The Marines executed their withdrawal with disciplined precision, loading into available boats as quickly as possible. Fortunately, they had deployed sufficient landing craft for this operation—a single wave could evacuate all personnel from the compromised shoreline.
"Look at the fleet!" one Marine called out, pointing toward their offshore support. "All guns are training on target!"
The Marine warships had assumed battle formation, presenting their broadsides to the enemy while maintaining a safe distance from shore. Each ship in the modern fleet was a steel leviathan armed with five 400-millimeter main guns and ten 300-millimeter secondary batteries—enough firepower to level entire cities.
A sea breeze caught the edges of a justice-emblazoned coat as two figures stood side by side on the command deck. Admiral Gin and Admiral Smoker observed the approaching titan horde with professional calm, showing no trace of fear despite the overwhelming numbers they faced.
"Time to show these monsters what our new warships can do," Smoker growled, white smoke trailing from his cigars as his eyes fixed on the black muzzles of the main battery.
Each shell fired from those cannons possessed many times the destructive power of the previous generation of Marine artillery. If such advanced weapons had been available during the War of the Best at Marineford, countless Marine lives could have been saved.
There was something deeply satisfying about the sight of those massive gun tubes—a primal appeal that spoke to every warrior's soul. Many of the Marines found themselves genuinely excited to witness these "steel angels" in action.
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