God of War: Equestria

The morning of the attack had arrived, the sun sat low in the crisp, empty blue sky as mist clung to the ground. Kratos found the Princesses in their tent, studying maps on a small make shift desk, and their manes were not suitable for a Princess, clearly they didn’t sleep much. Kratos stood in the entrance of the tent, casting a long shadow over the two Princesses and the maps.

“We were wondering when you would show,” Celestia spoke roughly, keeping her eyes fixed on the map “We are still waiting for your input on this attack plan of yours.”

“I know my plan Celestia, I leave at night!” Kratos spoke confidently.

“Wait tonight? We have told the troops it was this morning, what is this plan?” Luna turned from the maps to face the Demi-God.

“I go alone, use the small river to hide any noise,” Kratos seethed, staring at the Princess of the Night.

“Alone? Against an unknown number of foes? What chance will you stand?” Celestia questioned, joining her sister in facing Kratos.

“Your soldiers are not ready for war. I have killed hoards of beasts, I have killed Gods and one small army will not stop me from getting my vengence!” Kratos seethed, before turning and heading out, the chains of the blades rattled as he went. The Princesses stared at each other, amazed at Kratos' determination, before returning to their maps.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Swift Edge was enjoying this morning a lot more than he thought, with the recent moving and running around getting prepared to make an attack, the peace was an unexpected delight. He had woke early with the rest of the guards expecting to be lining up against enemies, his fate unknown, yet here he was sitting in his tent with nothing to do. Claymore and Gauntlet were out practising attacking straw dummies, should the expected fight go ahead, Swift never saw the point dummies can't retaliate.

The waiting become annoying, Swift decided to get out of the cramped tent and go a walk. His eyes took a while to adjust to the noon sun, but he noticed the camp was deserted, nopony was wondering about, were they all training? Should he be training? He decided that if he was needed his friends would have collected him by now. The forest seemed appealing for a quick trot, even though Princess Celestia had made it forbidden to enter, Swift noticed the Yellow friend of Twilights enter now and again. 'If she can do it then so can I' he thought as he entered past the first line of trees.

The forest, at this point, wasn't dense the trees were tall and slim though there was certainly a lot of foliage. Swift trotted through the trees, the ground changed a lot from being firm to soft and muddy; the way the sunlight burst through the leaves and branches made him smile,he could hear birds chirping away, a bear roaring, the gentle slosh of a nearby stream, sounds he had forgotten in the city. The forest seemed to free him and all his burdens were gone, he was guilt free for the first time in a very long time.

Then it all flooded back to him, the apparent war, this beautiful, wonderful place could easily be his burial ground, a tree his unmarked grave. He decided to head back, he was beginning to think about the war again, it brought him to this beautiful place then showered it in blood. He began to panic. He tried listening to the birds, to the slow rustle of leaves, to the river. He couldn't hear the river anymore, he swore he was close-by he heard it only seconds ago. His mind began to race as he thought he was now lost. Where did the river go? Was Somepony playing tricks? Was this Kratos? He felt an ice cold slither up his leg and tried to run, but whatever it was grabbed him and held tight. Swift Edge screamed in fright as he was dragged across the ground. He tried to pull himself up and away, only for a second tentacle-like arm to attach itself to his other hind leg.

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The sky was turning to night, only a strip of red remained in the sight as if standing fast against the oncoming darkness. Princess Luna's moon was not raised, Kratos had told her not too as it would give too much light off, though the stars remained as if to watch Kratos. Kratos stood up on his rear legs at the edge of the forest, his rags blowing on the wind, staring as if he could see right through it, and slid out his blades. Princess Celestial approached him, and stood behind the fierce warrior, both remained silence staring into the darkness.

"Are you sure about this, Kratos?" Celestial spoke softly, breaking the silence "We are one pony down, I do not think he betrayed us but where he has gone I cannot say."

Kratos retracted the blades and returned to a normal standing position, "I will not fail Celestia!" He seethed, before turning to face the princess. Seconds past before Kratos took off galloping into the starlit forest.

Kratos slowed his gallop to a trot, the ground of the forest was undulating with roots, night critters could be heard in the distance as well as the river Kratos planned on using to help with his attack. As Kratos approached the river, he heard a voice behind him followed by a giggle. He turned to face the culprit, and grunted, Pinkie Pie emerged from behind a tree, before Rainbow Dash floated gently down from a gap in the foliage. Kratos only stared at their slightly disappointed faces, thinking on why they were here.

"Why did Celestial send you here?" Kratos demanded, the starlight struggling to break the dense foliage leaving his face darkened and mysterious.

"We aren't here to help you silly!" Pinkie giggled, " We are here to search for Swift Edge, the missing pony," her voice becoming serious.

"He's gone" Kratos replied same anger filled voice as usual.

"What do you mean 'gone'?" Asked Rainbow, landing beside Pinkie with a confused look.

"Listen!" Kratos commanded, equipping his blades.

"Ehhh I don't hear anything" Rainbow pointed out.

"That can't be right! What happened to the river? Rivers can't move can they? Well..." Pinkie began, scratching her head with her hoof, stopping only when she realised that was what Kratos was pointing out.

Kratos spun swiftly, launching a blade into the darkness. Pinkie yelled as a watery tentacle wrapped around her rear leg. Rainbow managed to avoid some by flying, but one caught her. Kratos swiftly cut several heading for him, before freeing Rainbow who, in turn,  grabbed Pinkie. Rainbow released the now free Pinkie a safe distance from Kratos, who was cutting and slicing in the darkness.

"Poseidon!" Kratos called into the darkness, his voice filled with fury. The jungle seemed to shiver with his voice, before calming down, Rainbow and Pinkie watched from a distance.

Ice blue eyes appeared, shining through the darkness, staring at the Ghost of Sparta; their light illuminating enough of the surroundings for Kratos to figure that this was not the God of the Ocean. The shadows created by the glow showed no sign of a horn, allowing Kratos to assume this was no Alicorn. Kratos began to approach, blades at the ready.

The stranger made no move, only focused the icy eyes towards the approaching Kratos. As Kratos drew near, the Pony made a gurgling sound, almost a scream, that took Pinkie and Rainbow by surprise, but they too approached silently.  Kratos stopped several metres short of the Pony and, in the light of stars, recognised him to be from Princess Celestias' army. In a quick motion the neck of the Pony snapped to focus on the two ponies approaching from his left. His mouth opened and gargled words tumbled out, almost sounding forced. A rush of water sounded as two Scylla Broods formed beside the pony; they had the body similar to a spider, yet only four legs, the mouths were large with huge claw like fangs at the top and smaller normal fangs at the bottom. They wasted no time in scurrying towards Pinkie and Rainbow, using the shadows to fade in and out of sight.

Kratos moved quickly aiming for the pony that he trained, and meeting its' body with the Nemean Cestus sending it crashing into a nearby tree. The pony quickly stood, and summoned two more Scylla Broods, this time for Kratos. The Broods again wasted no time in rushing Kratos, as they approached their larger fangs clicked together as their mouths opened wide. Kratos stood firm and as the first jumped to attack and bite, he shoved a Blade of Creation through its mouth, the body sliding up Kratos' leg before sloshing into water. The other Brood remained on the ground hiding in the shadows, Kratos had lost sight of it.

Pinkie Pie giggled as the Broods approached her and Rainbow, Rainbow seemed a bit more worried. The Broods charged with their mouths open, clamping and clawing, as they got too close for comfort Rainbow swooped in and picked up the giggling Pinkie. Rainbow released Pinkie close to Kratos and heard the Broods coming again. She noticed Kratos watching the shadows, then leaping on a Brood before ripping it apart. Rainbow decided that these creatures were weak, even with Kratos' strength, and as the two original Broods leapt to attack she flew in with a rear hoof and kicked one against a tree, narrowly missing the other one. Pinkie turned and stopped giggling as she saw the mouth of the creature prepare to bite, and then simply side-stepped out of the way, alerting Kratos as she moved. Kratos swung round with a blade showing and sliced the creature in two, getting splashed by water for his effort.

"They were fun" Pinkie said, before giggling again.

Kratos replied with a low growl, as Rainbow smiled getting used to fighting. The Pony with the ice cold stare, continued to watch the three ponies. Kratos swiftly launched himself at the pony, blades drawn, and was meet with no resistance. The blades pierced the body of the pony with ease this time, one entering just below the neck and the other above the hind legs. The ice blue eyes began to fade as Kratos pulled his blades out, as well as a large volume of water gushed forth from the ponys' mouth. Pinkie and Rainbow trotted gently up behind Kratos and watched as the water flowed from the pony, draining it of life.

"Can't you do anything?" Rainbow asked. Kratos didn't reply, but turned to walk away. "He was fighting with us! We can't just let him die" Rainbow Dash continued.

"He was already dead" Kratos informed her, in his usual dark tone. He stood to face the darkness in the direction of the camp he was going to attack. "Leave now, take his body if you must" he finished.

"We can't leave you, what if you turn into whatever he became?" Rainbow asked, not wanting to go.

"I won't" Kratos simply replied, showing a slight smirk. Pinkie and Rainbow realised that there would be no negotiating with the Ghost of Sparta and began to get the body ready to move.

Kratos moved silently through the forest, well aware that the commotion caused from the soldier would have alerted the enemy camp, though Kratos still moved closer. He saw a small fire at the edge of the forest, two shapes surrounding it, he waited to observe any movements, and to trick them into thinking that the noises in the forest were of him losing.

As dawn broke, and the two figures began to move, Kratos made his move. Charging the two unsuspecting Griffins, Kratos launched his blades at them. The blades hit with deadly accuracy, lodging themselves deep in the necks of each Griffin, keeping them silent, the only sounds made were the sounds of the limp bodies collapsing onto the grass and the chains from the blades.

Kratos left the bodies, and went looking for some more Griffins, or better. He heard voices from inside a grey, scabby tent and didn't give entering a second thought; with blades drawn he made short work of the three Griffins he found. He moved quickly and fluently to the next tent, listening for voices. He spotted one just leaving a another tent, he made his move, but the Griffin saw him and let out a short, loud scream. Kratos had embedded the Blades of Creation in the Griffins skull.

The camp sprang to life, the panicking of enemies, the clanking of steel, and (to Kratos' slight amusement) the roar of a Cyclops. Kratos galloped towards the closet sounds, and attacked the unprepared griffins. By the time Kratos had left the tent he found himself surrounded by the Griffins, both in the air and on the ground. He couldn't help but smirk at how little they looked like warriors. Then the Cyclops showed up, looking like a gigantic Earth Pony, at least 3 times bigger than Celestia, muscles bulging, the giant eye in the middle of its deformed and damaged face. Then there was the the dirty pale skin, and the horrible oder that came from the beast. Kratos' smirk disappeared a little, he had faced many Cyclopes before and know of their sheer power. The Griffins backed away as the Cyclops destroyed several tents as it approached,  by the time it reached Kratos all the Griffins had took flight.

Kratos stared the beast down, but had to roll quickly to avoid a hoof from the Cyclops, which left a large crater as it grounded. Kratos sent a blade towards the hoof he had just avoided, but it hardly scratched the tough skin. Kratos charged the beast, sidestepping another clumsy, yet powerful hoof and managed to sink both blades into the right rear leg of the beast. He used the chains to swing up on to the back of the Cyclops, pulling out the blades as he landed and sticking them back in the beast for stability. The Cyclops roared, and two Griffins moved in to help the beast.

Kratos stabbed the several times, drawing thick green blood. A Griffin, tried to stab him with a spear, but kratos dropped from the Cyclops and rolled on the ground. As the Griffins closed in, Kratos jumped placing a blade perfectly in a Griffins skull before landing on another. The Griffin could not fly with the extra weight and fell to the the earth, Kratos quickly ended its' life before returning his attention to the agitated beast. He managed to avoid a crushing hoof, but the earth-shaking impact stunned him a little, giving a Griffin time to get close. The Griffin managed to claw Kratos hind quarters, taking a piece of Kratos' rags, before he bucked and crushed its' skull. Kratos again charged the beast, this time jumping onto the slamming leg. Using the Blades he climbed to the neck of the beast, and then on to the head, green blood littered the ground as the beast panicked. Kratos leapt off of the beasts head, keeping a blade sunk into the skull using it as an anchor for the chain, allowing him to swing and stab the eye with the other blade. The beast reared in agony, letting out a large roar. Kratos kept stabbing the eye, letting chunks of it fall to the earth, the beast reared one last time,  and fell on its back.

Kratos rode the Cyclops down to the blood saturated ground, turning as he landed to face the dozen Griffins that watched him take down a Cyclops. The Griffins glanced at each other before some charged, the ones that didn't took flight. Kratos stood his ground, the Griffins charging un-orginised, spears up. Kratos deflected the first spear past with ease, cut the tip off the next one, side-stepped the next but left his blade to slice right down the Griffins torso. The next two Griffins came together flying low, allowing Kratos to jump over them with ease, sending his blades down into their backs. When Kratos landed he simply swung the chains over his head and the griffins crashed in front of him in a bloody, feathery mess.

The Griffins that fled returned with cross-bows, keeping their distance they fired the arrows. Kratos simply lifted the Golden Fleece and deflected them harmlessly aside. Kratos collected a spear from behind him and launched it towards a Griffin, it pierced right through its' helmet and sent the body crashing down. The commotion had given the other five Griffins time to reload and fire, three hitting Kratos in his rear legs. Kratos cut the ropes off, but was impaled by another three, he lashed out but missed his mark. The two Griffins that remained on the ground charged again, Kratos prepared to defend but another volley of arrows struck, his rear legs collapsed, allowing the Griffins to close in.

Kratos was down, arrows littered his rear quarter two Griffins on the ground placed their spears next to his head. Kratos tried to stand, but another arrow put an end to that effort.

"Lord Zeus will be proud" explained a Griffin, Kratos assumed it was a female. She clawed down the left side of his head, leaving three trails of blood to trickle down.

"It's not over!" Kratos spat, unflinching at the newly inflicted pain.

"It looks over" the Griffin replied, before letting out a loud laugh.

A bush rustled and drew the Griffins attention, before ponies jumped out, swords swinging, led by Shining Armor. Kratos laughed. The ponies quickly took the Griffins hostage without much damage or hassle, before the Princesses and the mane six appeared. Celestia looked at Kratos and gave a slight smirk, which just angered Kratos. With the Griffins taken hostage, Fluttershy and Rarity helped Kratos, though it took some Twilight magic to allow him to stand, however the arrow heads remained inside for now. Kratos quickly trotted over to the Griffin that scratched him, and pushed Rainbow Dash aside.

"Where is Zeus?!" Kratos demanded.

The Griffin only spat at the blood on the ground and grinned.

"Tell him Gilda! Please!" Rainbow begged, but it didn't stop Kratos putting a hoof across the Griffins face and sending her to the ground. "Gilda!" Rainbow cried "just tell him!"

"No Dash, I won't" Gilda replied, smiling.

Kratos didn't need a second opinion he swiftly moved to behind Gilda, and grabbed her wings, in a quick tear they came off. Kratos flung the wings on the ground and heard Rainbow Dash crying. Gilda screamed and spluttered. Kratos laughed and made sure every pony and Griffin was watching, before putting a swift hoof through Gildas' chest. He left the spluttering Griffin gasping for air with some entrails hanging out. Rainbow was staring through tear filled eyes as Gilda passed from this world. Kratos asked the other Griffins collectively the same question, but they too remained silent. Kratos ordered their death, the ponies panicked then realised how afraid they were of Kratos before doing the job quickly.

"We could of used them as hostages" Princess Celestial said, as she walked back through the forest with Kratos.

"They were dead as soon as they joined Zeus" Kratos replied, in his usual angry tone. Nopony argued with him, especially after what he just did.

The walk back was silent, only Rainbow Dash could be heard weeping over her lost friend, but her friends were comforting her as best they could. Kratos walked ahead, his wounds healing faster than normal, but his coat remained smeared in blood, and not just his. The Princesses dropped back to walk with the mane six, making sure they were all still coping with what they had witnessed. The walk seemed to take a lot longer than the one going, the ground was solid and tree roots tripped more than most ponies, who were still shaken by Kratos' anger and vengeance. Kratos noticed a small, muddy mound to his left, under a large rock which had been carved with the words

'Here lies a soldier,

Who fought and died for all he loved the best,

Friends, Family, Strangers,

He gave his life for the rest.

Swift Edge'

Kratos gave the rock a stare, but the army behind him bowed their heads in respect at the first one to pass from the realm of the living. The tension was soon relieved as the army reached the opening of the forest and the now familiar scabby tents that was their home. The army disbanded almost immediately, Kratos and the Princesses went straight to the main tent.

Maps littered the floor, and Kratos noticed a gleam from under some rags but gave it no second thought, not when he was no closer to Zeus. The Princesses removed what armour they had and placed it magically aside before turning on Kratos, "What was that?" Princess Celestial asked "You almost got yourself killed!"

"I didn't need your help" Kratos grunted.

"That's not what it looked like" Princess Luna chipped in cheekily.

"They were afraid" Kratos replied, anger raged in his words.

"And they were about to kill you" Celestia added.

"They would have taken me to Zeus!" Kratos spat, edging closer to the Princesses.

"You are no use in chains Kratos, you are our only hope!" Celestial spat back, before quietly adding "We would be lost without you."

Kratos did not reply, he felt Celestias plight though he did not ease up. He turned and left the tent without a word.

"What are we going to do with him, Sister?" Luna asked sadly.

"He will come through in the end Luna. Have faith." Celestia replied, comforting her sister.

"But what if he..." Luna was interrupted by a bright flash followed by a loud noise outside.

"ZEUS!" Celestia cried out, before galloping out of the tent. There was nothing, but a singed circle in the grass. Luna gasped when she saw it, and gripped her sister tight.

"We must get him back!" Princess Celestia said softly to her sister.