God of War: Equestria

It was a long, silent walk home for the Ponies, the moon was on its’ way down and soon Celestias’ Sun would rise. Not many words were spoken; they were tired, and had witnessed some horrible things at the hands of their companion. The only problem the ponies encountered was when Fluttershy met a cute little yellow Parasprite that she wanted to keep, but the others refused to let her bring it back to Ponyville. It was Dawn when the Ponies got back to Ponyville; Kratos had never seen Ponyville before only Fluttershys’ cottage on the edge of town. He looked at the straw thatched houses, and wondered how ponies could build such designs.

The Ponies reached Twilights Library, and went in for a sleep only to be met by the Princesses.

“Hello,” Said Celestia, looking worried. Luna was almost hiding behind her “We have a problem, please come closer.”

The Ponies, except Kratos, all looked worried and slowly edged towards the Princesses in the middle of the room. Kratos stayed standing at the door, staring at the Alicorns, his expression never changing.

“What’s wrong?” questioned Twilight, fearing the worst.

“It’s Princess Cadence.” Celestia said solemnly bowing her head in sadness; Luna put a wing over her big Sister to comfort her “She has been taken.”

“What exactly do you mean by ‘taken’?” AppleJack enquired, perking up at the word.

“We have had word from Shining Armor, The Crystal Empire was attacked and the Princess was gone.” Luna spoke this time, her voice stern, but filled with grief.

“I thought you said she was taken?” Rainbow Dash pushed, searching for answers.

“That’s the thing, Shining Armor mentioned ‘arms from the ground, rising from a black mist’ in his letter; it was a sentry that saw the hands disappear into the ground, where Cadence was supposed to be. There has been no sighting of her since,” Celestia told the Ponies, walking towards Twilight who seemed to be taking the news harder than the others.

“We can find her. We can help.” Twilight pushed, her eyes watering up, determined to help.

“Why are you smiling Kratos?” Luna asked, looking to the Pony at the door, his stare was still there though his face appeared to be grinning.

“Hades,” Kratos replied, his voice as strong as always.

“How… How do you know?” Celestia pressed “He isn’t in this world!”

“Hermes was in this world. There will be more,” Kratos said, throwing the Golden Wings he took from Hermes onto the wooden floor with a soft thud.

“How can this be? I can’t sense them, Athena mentioned nothing of this.” Said the white Princess, shocked by the news

“What else happened in the Castle?”

The ponies looked at each other, before Pinkie pulled the head of Trixie out her bag.

“Ahhh, so you weren’t exaggerating Twilight.” Celestia fumed, turning her stare to Kratos “How could you do that, she

was under Zeus’ illusion due to the Amulet.”

“Where is Athena?” Kratos shouted, wanting answers.

“She is in Raritys’ boutique; it’s the big white building. Go now, I will meet you there soon Kratos. First I will hear about everything you did from your companions.” Celestias’ voice was now one of anger rather than sadness, though she did not wish to argue.

Kratos left the library, leaving the Princesses with the Ponies. The Library remained quiet, each pony processing and coming to grips with the news they had been told.

“I’m sorry girls.” Princess Celestia sighed “I did not know who he was, what he had done or anything about him. It was anger that brought him here. Ever since Zeus wanted to control us, he has threatened war, Luna overheard another God from his world mention Kratos, and we thought he would help. We didn’t know why he was feared amongst the Gods, however, two of them came to us earlier this night. They are our friends, they do not want war or death only peace, and told us about Kratos’ history in his world, it is one of power and regret. He is dangerous, and I am sorry for making you go with him, if I had known before I would never have sent you with him.”

The library fell silent once more, the Princess’ words fading into the wall.

“But what about Princess Cadence?” Twilight asked, tears now forming.

“I fear Kratos was right, one of his Gods took her. Athena, one of our God friends, must know where, however things are different in their world. Our only hope is Kratos, and Athena is telling him that as we speak.” Princess Celestia explained, her voice filled with regret.

“Can we trust him?” Rarity enquired, she was hugging AppleJack fighting back tears.

“Yeah” said Rainbow Dash, trying to hide her sadness “You saw the way he fought, he killed a god, and he might be the only way to get Princess Cadence back.”

“That is true, yet he knows no limits. Look what he done to Trixie, and only because she was in his way, I know you girls would have changed her back to good. I fear if we sent him alone, he would not care for Cadence and her wellbeing, only about getting his vengeance.” Celestia replied.

“What was his history?” Pinkie Pie asked, her hair had become straight, her face only expressed sadness.

“You don’t know Pinkie? You know a lot earlier?” said Applejack, puzzled.

“I know of his world, it’s just me. Yet I know nothing of him, when I look into his eyes, it is sadness and guilt that stares back.” Pinkie sulked.

“It is not for us to tell you girls. It is his history and one only he should tell.” Luna spoke with sorrow in her voice.

“Luna is right.” Celestia agreed.

“But how will we save Princess Cadence?” Twilight asked, wiping tears from her cheeks.

“Athena has a plan, one that could fail. However, if it works then I will know roughly where the Princess is” Celestia said, hopeful that the news would cheer up the ponies.

“But if Kratos is there first, how will we get there before he finds Princess Cadence?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I fear you will not be going. I will not risk you ponies again” Celestia said forcefully, yet sadly.

“B… but we want to help?” Fluttershy was the speaker, which shocked everypony, considering she fainted twice in the castle.

“I fear where we suspect Cadence to be, is not a place for young Ponies. It will be filled with traps, and unimaginable scenes.” Celestia explained.

“We cannot trust Kratos to help.” Twilight objected.

“I will not send you all!” Clestias voice became firm.

“Then what about Rainbow Dash and I? Dash helped Kratos in the castle, and I can help with Princess Cadence.” Twilight offered, thinking she knew the dangers.

“We will see, but first you Ponies should get rest.” Celestia began “I will wake you, if there is any further news.”

It took Kratos a while to find the Boutique, which he felt looked more like a brothel, but Athena was waiting for him, and she had questions to answer. Kratos entered, almost knocking the door down, to be met by the two golden Alicorns that had been waiting. Athena had a transparent green mane, while Aphrodites’ was pink. A sweet stench of perfume was strong inside the building, enforcing Kratos’ initial thought of the building.

“Where is Zeus?” Kratos Demanded.

“He will come in time, Kratos,” Athena said, inspecting the pony that stood before her “You were brought here to stop Zeus, although they were rash, they did not know what they were doing. Your arrival angered Zeus, and so he moved quickly, Hades has almost finished building his Underworld as we speak, and that is where you must go Kratos. I did not tell them that Hades was here, they would of acted and put themselves at risk.”

“You want me to be a slave?! You will not deny me my vengeance, Athena” Kratos seethed.

“Nor will I Kratos. However we have caused pain and destruction in this world. You need to set things right, first by saving the Princess from Hades. There is only one guaranteed way to send you there in this world.” Athena informed.

“You would have me dead?” Kratos’ voice was unchanged, his muscles tense.

“Yes. If I kill you, Hades will take your body, but he will keep you alive for torture. You can then face Hades yourself.”

Athena said.

“And my return from the Underworld?” Kratos was seemingly calm considering his task.

“This world has a Pit of Tartarus, however there is no entrance to the Underworld, we have checked. Though Princess Celestia has said it was previously used to bring the dead back in Ancient times. We have faith you will come back via her magic Kratos. You will not go alone.” Athenas’ voice never changed tone.

“You would have me look after those Ponies in the Underworld?” Kratos objected.

“No, they would look after you Kratos. Look around, what do you see? What do you hear? This world is not one of violence, Celestia did not believe you decapitated a pony; we had to tell her what you were.  The ponies are going to be keeping you to killing nothing but what needs to be killed.” Athena ordered.

“I will not show mercy to the Gods, Athena,” Kratos’ voice was one of anger and guilt.

“Hades must be stopped Kratos, it is the ponies that must not be hurt.” Athena corrected.

“I will not be held responsible for the Ponies” Kratos argued.

“They can look after themselves, Kratos. I will go inform Princess Celestia of the plan.” Athena stated, heading towards the door “Aphrodite will deal with you, I shall return at Dawn.”

It did not take Kratos long to understand what Aphrodite in store for him, as she opened a door and entered. Kratos followed.

As dawn broke, and the light shone through the many windows of the Boutique, Celestia stood in the middle of the main hall. Kratos emerged from a door at the far end, he had been cleaned, his coat was clean, and the red ‘tattoo’ was vibrant amongst his ash white coat. Kratos walked towards the Princess.

“Thank you, Kratos” said Celestia, her mane sparkling as the light struck it “I apologize for the inconvenience.”

“Where is Athena?” Kratos demanded, his blades glinting and he walked past windows.

“She will be here shortly; she is bringing the ponies with her. They will help you Kratos, they are not as weak as you think.” Celestia informed.

Kratos did not reply, just paced around the room, knowing the task that lay ahead. He was not nervous or afraid, he was impatient. Hades had always blamed him for Persephones’ death, which was although true, was done in the name of the Gods. Hades, however, refused to believe that the Gods wanted Persephone dead and claimed it a lie by Kratos. It was not long until Athena appeared.

The ponies entered first, led by Twilight, with Spike on her back, and Rainbow Dash with their saddle bags full. The other ponies followed with Athena and Luna at the end, Kratos noticed Athena had a sword on her back. There was a moment of silence as the ponies formed around Kratos, Athena stepped forward, the sword was the Blade of Olympus, Kratos knew what was to come.

Athena used magic to control the sword, hooves not being ideal for swords, and brought it in front of Kratos. Kratos reared up, and felt the blade brush his ribs and exit through his back. Athena did her best to miss any vital organs. She withdrew the Blade of Olympus, and returned to her back, blood running down to the tip and dripping. Kratos lay there, bleeding, eyes open and, finally closing them.

The Ponies stepped back as mist appeared, similar to the mist that the hydra sunk into and five large green grey arms from the floor. The arms were bony; the fingers were slim and long. Each one wrapped its’ fingers around Kratos’ body and pulled him down. Rarity stood opened mouth at what was taking place in front of her, Fluttershy was hiding behind her pink mane, but the other ponies watched with interest. With Kratos’ body gone from sight, the mist disintegrated, and only a small puddle of blood remained. The silence was intense, nopony could understand what they just witnessed, though in the search for an answer, it appeared Athena had disappeared.

“Ready girls?” asked Celestia, her voice soft, turning to Twilight and Rainbow Dash. “Please be careful.”

Before the ponies could answer, Celestias’ horn was glowing gold. A golden bubble enveloped the ponies, lifting them off the ground, and then with a pop they were gone. Celestia bowed her head, exhausted from the spell; Luna moved to comfort her Sister.

Kratos awoke, his chest in agony, his wound was gone, though a scar was in its place.

“You must hurry, Kratos” Athenas’ voice was soft, though the source could not be found.

Kratos quickly composed himself, Twilight and Rainbow Dash arrived suddenly, appearing in front of Kratos. They were afraid; this was not what they were expecting. The walls of the cave they appeared in were charred, a river rushed close by, the ground was littered with bones, the stench was foul yet it was the screams that the ponies found most off putting. The screams of thousands of ponies echoed throughout the area. Kratos did not seem to mind, he walked forward; the ground crunched with each step, and exited the cave. Twilight hesitated at first but soon found herself outside of the cave, Rainbow by her side. They were high on what seemed like a canyon, the ledge they stood on was narrow, and the cliff to her right led straight down to the river, a river that ran red like blood. The ponies gulped, and went to catch up with Kratos.

“Where are we?” called Rainbow, still examining the surroundings.

“The Underworld” Kratos replied, unfazed.

“The Underworld? This isn’t in any of my books.” Twilight sounded puzzled.

“This is where souls go. It is ruled by Hades.” Kratos was growing impatient.

“So all souls get tortured? And what of Princess Cadence? Is she dead?” Twilight was now worried, watching her step was no longer her priority.

“No, there is Elysium for those who are innocent. No, Hades will have taken her, if what Celestia says is true.” Kratos informed his companions.

They ponies sighed in relief, but didn’t dare ask more questions, they just followed. The path never widened, as it snaked round the canyon, the walls were always charred; the remnants of flames were engraved upon them. The screams were always there, though the river had meandered earlier. Kratos continued walking.

Kratos soon stopped on the path. The path gave way, and below was black; the cliff descended forever. Kratos looked around; he could see nothing but scorched canyon walls. Looking at the wall beside him, he deemed it climbable, and started his ascension. Rainbow flew up beside Kratos, Twilight in her hooves. The top of the wall face was far above them, but Kratos made climbing look easy, using his blades.

Finally, the ponies made it to the top, the view was much different. The canyon stretched for miles, flames could be seen all around, and the Palace of Hades was in the distance. It almost blended in with the charred wall it was built onto; however, the large stone Alicorn sitting on a throne was in contrast with the surroundings. The Alicorns’ hind legs were spread, and between them, on the throne, was an arch. The fore legs were on the rests of the throne, it looked almost human, but the weirdest detail of all was the spikes protruding from its body. It was a long walk to the Palace; though the screams became quiet and distant as they approached.

The ponies arrived at the large iron and oak gates of the palace; the courtyard was littered with stone statues of all kinds of creatures and ponies. Two large Cerberus statues were placed either side of the door, both in different poses; one was ready to attack the three heads reared up, jaws open, the other looked as though it was walking, one paw off the ground, the heads looking around. Fires were burning from the mouths of the Cerberus statues, illuminating some of the courtyard, casting long shadows. The ponies studied the gates looking for a way through, Rainbow Dash tried kicking them and Twilight tried magic, both failed, the gates were impenetrable.

“What was that?” Rainbow shouted, turning round to face the courtyard.

“What was what?” Twilight asked, straining to find something amongst the statues.

“There!” Dash screamed, pointing towards a dark corner where the statues seemed to huddle together.

“What did you see?” Kratos demanded, preparing for the worst, readying his blades.

“A tail, like a dragons’. It was ….” Rainbow was knocked to the ground by Kratos before she could finish, landing in front of Twilight.

By the time Dash got to her feet, Kratos was facing a giant snake, except its’ top half was more pony, it had forelegs but had claws instead of a hoof. Its’ head was of Earth pony species; however its mane was alive. The hair was thick and green; it appeared to move, though that could be the flickering of the flames. Kratos looked like a filly, compared the large Gorgon he faced, it was twice the height and width of Kratos, and still had its tail trailing behind.

Kratos never looked the creature in the face, keeping his head lowered; Twilight and Rainbow found statues to hide behind, they had never seen anything as fearsome as what Kratos was facing. The beast hissed; its hair pointed to face Kratos, each hair being a separate snake, each one eager to get a piece of the pony that stood before them. The gorgon attacked first, whipping its large tail around, smashing several statues as it moved. Kratos rolled back, but got caught by the tip, knocking him back. It did not draw blood. He had to compose himself quickly as the tail slammed down from above, Kratos just getting away in time, though the shockwaves shattered the statues Rainbow and Twilight were cowering behind. Twilight quickly teleported to behind the attacking Cerberus statue, while Rainbow took off vertically leaving a cloud of dust in her wake. The gorgon paid them no mind.

The gorgon continued its attacks towards Kratos, using its claws for when Kratos got too close and tail for meduim ranged attacks. Kratos, never looking the beast in the face, kept rolling and dodging; sending the Blades of Creation towards his enemy at every opportunity. The dusty ground was littered with scales and blood. Still the beast lunged at Kratos, its’ attacks becoming more frequent, and erratic. It sent a claw towards the Ghost of Sparta, who easily dodged and countered with his own attack, a simple blade towards the chest. Blood sprayed across the ground as the blade struck. The gorgon and its mane hissed furiously, rearing up in pain. Kratos went for the kill, forcing his right blade into the beasts’ belly, slashing with the left. The beast, whipped its tail round, missing its target, but Kratos removed his blade and rolled back. A claw of the creature struck where he was, before the tail came from above to strike at his new position. The Ghost of Sparta anticipated the attack and stood firm. The tail rushing towards him, Kratos jumped. Both blades were inserted into the tail, and as the tail landed on the ground the blades were pushed in deeper, severing the end of the tail. Blood began to leak out from both parts of the tail.

The Gorgon hissed, and frantically slithered towards whence it came, trailing blood as it crawled. Kratos chased it. Both blades were soon embedded in the Gorgons tail, Kratos using them to pull the beast back towards him. The Gorgon panicked and smashed statues as it tried to free itself. Kratos kept pulling; removing the blades and implanting them further them up the tail when he needed to. The beast tried attacking but, Kratos simply ducked, or swayed out the way. Soon, Kratos ran out of tail and was face to face with the snakes in the Gorgons mane, with a quick slash most fell to the floor; wiggling as blood sprayed onto them. Kratos soon stood on the beasts back, one blade in its shoulder, the other in his hand pressed against its’ neck. The beast hissed and screeched, as the blade began to cut through the skin, it writhed in a futile attempt to get free, but Kratos removed the head with ease. The headless body fell with a lifeless thump, the blood pouring onto the floor. Kratos tossed the head aside.

As Kratos dismounted the Gorgon, Rainbow Dash landed beside him, and Twilight emerged from the shadows. The area was covered with rubble from the statues, scales and a large volume of blood that gave off a very strong metallic smell. The large oak doors creaked open, gears could be heard rotating and vibrations could be felt from the ground.

“That was awesome! But what was that thing?” Rainbow stated, looking at the corpse.

“It was a Gorgon. I’ve read about them in my books they turn anyone who makes eye contact to stone.” Twilight answered, surprising Kratos with her knowledge.

“So… all these statues were people?” Rainbow asked shocked, assessing the damage.

“Yes,” Said Kratos abruptly, walking towards the large doors.

“Wait what do we do now? We can’t just walk in there, if this was out here.” Twilights’ voice was now one of fear.

“If you want your Princess, then we go in. Hades awaits,” Kratos spoke as though he was addressing a child, though he continued walking.

The unicorn and Pegasus looked at each other before following, carefully avoiding the puddles of blood that had formed.