Transcendents can change their shape and size but they can't do so drastically or their existence will fracture. Origins gods can take the transformation further to inanimate objects but it has to conform to their concepts. It is very rare to transform into a 10km being. Such a being also consumes a tonne of Origin energy and deprives others of it.
The ancient battlefield is filled with conflicts. Transcendents from various planes converge there. They are the top dogs in their plane but they become one among many. It led to a lot of conflicts. The numerous cultures and racial differences make cooperating a problem on the ancient battlefield. But that changed when the giants of order arrived at the ancient battlefield. They all gained something that they can agree on unanimously.
The powerhouses of the ancient battlefield didn't care too much about environmental mana deprivation because they have had enough of it from their home plane. They came to the ancient battlefield for Origin energy. So that general crossed their bottom line. The concentration of origin energy drops precipitously for miles around a Colossus anytime one transforms.
The irony is that the giants of Order would have been ignored if their general didn't lead them to the ancient battlefield. If the giants of order had gone to the ancient battlefield on their own without any Origin energy-siphoning giants then they might have been left alone. But it is a must for a transcendent to open the portal plane that connects the plane to the ancient battlefield.
It is the mark of potential greatness for a plane to create a transcendent. The portal was created to be unlocked by a transcendent and thus validate the plane has useful.
If a plane cannot produce a transcendent after a while, that plane will be scrapped by the will of the realm and recreated. Those are the rules. A race has to have potential or it will be eliminated. If all the races in a plane cannot break their limits, then their entire plane will be destroyed and re-created. It is not a problem for divine races to become transcendents though. That's why a plane with a divine race survives.
The giants of Order are a divine race. They have a divine ability. Even though their divine ability made it difficult for them to become transcendent, they achieved it at the end of the day. And like most cases, they wiped out most of the other races in the plane and subjugated the rest.
Then they turned their focus to the ancient battlefield and were beaten back like unwanted guests. It is not like a transcendent will open the portal and then return to the plane refusing to see what else lies beyond their plane.
The colossus looks like any other giant of order except it doesn't have tattoos on its body. It is also naked because making clothes for such an entity is a hassle. It can grow taller than what it currently is but there isn't Origin energy in the plane.
The absence of origin energy is also why there are lesser and lesser colossi. Most giants of order don't become colossi anymore when they become transcendents. Instead, they become behemoths. Behemoths are strong and have their own advantage but they can't grow as tall as a colossus.
The colossus reached the camp. It began to reduce in size until it became a giant of order about 20 meters tall.
Helios shook his head and turned away. The Colossus reminded him of Cardinal Hak which means whoever this Colossus is, it is probably a high-ranking figure of a church. A free unbelieving colossus won't come here where the gods have important business. He will find out soon anyway. That's why he is returning to his tent to wait.
Meanwhile In The Temple.
The gods are arguing and are about to come to blows. The silent and calm air in the temple is nowhere to be found. The only one calm and silent is the Celestial Supreme who has chosen to keep quiet and watch. His implicit permission has allowed the brewing stress to explode.
The stress lit a fire within one god which then spread to others and finally is exploding to cause this situation.
"You selfish, pompous, and arrogant god. You will doom the demigods with your impatience. It has only been a year and you called a colossus. This is going too far." One god screamed at the god that is the root of this problem.
Harkam shouted back, "I've had it up to here. I can't take any more of this. Something has to change."
The gods that are arguing are the parents of the kidnapped demigods. On one side is Harkam, the source of the sudden change. On the other side are the other gods with demigods at stake. It is predictable that the Sky god will be the first to break. He is not a fan of doing nothing. Doing nothing for a year is already commendable for him. So he called for a colossus when he couldn't sit still anymore.
These other gods don't agree though. A year is a short amount of time to wait. Plus they can all sense that their demigods are alive. So what's the rush? They planned to give the ants 10 years at least. If nothing changes in a hundred years, only then will they use force and take drastic actions. They live longer lives than most and can be patient. 100 years is the time it takes a baby giant to become of acceptable age. So there's no need to rush.
It is not only Harkam that cares about those demigods. These gods also care, that's why they don't want to do anything to jeopardize the lives of their demigods. The presence of a colossus is sure to threaten the ants and might lead to unfavorable events. The tension within the temple began to increase because of Harkam's brash move.