God of War: Equestrian Quests

Chapters

Chapter 1 - The Strange Realm
Chapter 2 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All
Chapter 4 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All, Part 3
Chapter 3 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All, Part 2

Chapter 1 - The Strange Realm

Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, and Sony Interactive Entertainment present

In association with Hasbro and Lionsgate

An AllSpark Pictures and SIE Santa Monica Studio Production

Mimir's FPV

The violence. The bloodshed. The great trek towards a single minded purpose, just one simple, bitter goal--to reach the highest peak in all the Nine Realms to scatter the ashes of a loved one as her only, dying wish.

Aye.

It has been many months since that there adventure of a lifetime came to pass, and I was there.... to witness it all…… Or, at least all the parts from what might be considered the ‘rising action’ onwards and a bit of the falling action at the end there. At least I can rightly say I have proper first hand knowledge on all the stuff I wasn’t there for from the two primary sources it all happened to.

Who are these two primary sources you might ask, as if yer feignin’ daftness and can’t already guess despite bothering to listen to the tale of an old kook who can’t even see through the eyes Yggdrasil gave him any longer? Why, they are Kratos and Atreus of course... ya adorable cheeky little breeki you.

KRATOS! The Ghost of Sparta! The destroyer of the Greek pantheon (except for maybe, Aphrodite… maybe…)! The--uhum--excuse me--bastard child of Zeus, whom he bloody obliterated without mercy after a painstakingly painful battle, only to somehow find himself flung into the realm of mankind again after it was all said and done--in the boreal climes of Midgard, one of the Nine Realms. There he met a stunning and courageous beauty by the name of Faye and was smitten enough to wed and have a bouncin' baby boy with, which brings me to...

ATREUS! Son of Kratos! A halfbreed between a Giant, which he and daddy dearest had learned his mother was (along with her true name of Laufey), and Olympian god, human mix! Named after a very smiling warrior of a Spartan Kratos once lead in battle whose jollity proved infectious amongst the rank even in the direst of circumstances (even to Kratos himself)! And one of the finest and most potent archers these old, fake eyes of mine ever did see, I tell ya what!

I was also there, in their journey towards Jotünheim, the highest peak. However they were stopped in their tracks by the Æsir son of Odin, and the Witch of the Woods, Freya. We also had to deal with the stupid sons of Thor, Modi and Magni, whom we later made silence out of, well.... the boy fell ill that moment. By the way, the son, Baldur, whom resented his mother very much, because of his being unable to feel anything, or any pleasure.... he tried to pick a fight on the Spartan and his boy, after a bloody battle, he finally brought him to silence.... endin' the cycle of paricide. But as for Freya, distraught and seeking vengeance.... I guess we're the bad guys now.... And who am I, you might ask? Why, MIMIR! Smartest Man Alive, former consul to the would be ‘Allfather,’ ol' one eyed Odin himself (the cruel bampot), and the most insightful and the so-called good humored commentator from Asgard to Muspelheim! And although nowadays I’m just a decapitated, reanimated, head, I don’t mind it a bit. For one thing, being attached to the right side of Brother's rump half the day is better than being imprisoned in a tree for all eternity. Least I get to see (some of) the sights and help a brother out by warning him of any nasty creatures trying to sneak up from behind. Plus the table the man chucks me onto after the day is done is quite cozy in a rustic sort of way, which I thought was crazy considering me and wood haven’t been on the best speaking terms since I got trapped in a tree for a hundred and nine winters.

In fact, it’s that very same table within the very same, single roomed (yet roomy) cabin in the woods belonging to Brother and his BOY where our sourrie into lands far beyond the roots and branches of the World Tree begins...

E Q U E S T R I A N . Q U E S T S

Midgard -
The Nine Realms -

Narrated by Mimir

Though the morning sun was already well and truly up, t'was still a tad gloomy in the room. The sun hadn’t been shedding its light nearly as bright as it had been only a month ago. Ya can thank Fimbulwinter for that and Brother for initiating Fimbulwinter because... you know what happened, though accidentally, and admittedly, unknowingly.

C H R I S T O P H E R . Ω . J U D G E

Without nary a peep out of him and only a little bit of stretchin’, Brother awoke and then stood up from his bed.

S U N N Y . S U L J I C

Still, if I had me spine back, it’d be all sorts of tinglin’ at the thought that, in just two more years and eleven short months, three summers of winter to be exact, Ragnarök would be at our door. And there I was, not too far from the slumberin’ forms of the two most responsible for bringing it about... while being a solid number three on that there list.

Ah well. The past is the past and can’t be helped… unless you’re Jormungandr and Kratos, in which case, since both are friendly and mighty indeed, I’m sure between them, the lad, and yours truly, something good will turn out of Ragnarök yet where we all live happily ever after… or, at least, take down Asgard with us with Surtr. And Nidavellir, but for completely unrelated, dwarf concerning, reasons.

T'was starting to get brighter this first month of Fimbulwinter, and now, aye, here we go, he's waking up, let's see how this goes:

"Ah, good mornin' brother,” I said, cheery as as clam. “So, ready to start yer' day this lovely day of Fimbulwinter? Have you finally reconsidered my proposal to turn this place into a chicken and pig farm, because I don’t know about you, but eggs and bacy every wakie sounds divine," I asked politely.

Brother Kratos said nothing and grunted in response to my question. A bit rude if you ask me, but, ah, well, he's him after all. Besides, he’s always been more the hunter-gatherer type and not the kind of person to enjoy farming, even basic, humble subsistence farming as I was askin’ of him.

His eyes, already so steely and alert from who knew how many hours of experience, fell upon his still sleepin’ son.

"Boy. Wake up now. It is time."

"Whuhhhh?” Atreus asked with a snort and a start. “What… what is it father?" he yawned.

"Get up now. We must start the day."

"And do what?" Lad asked sleepily.

T A R A . S T R O N G

"What we have been doing for thirty moons: continue exerting and building your skills as a warrior, hunting, and whatever we can to alleviate our boredom."
Atreus stretched out his arms, yawned some more, and said, "Alright. Maybe if we’re lucky, I’ll finally find another map to lead us to some more buried treasure."

A N D R E A . L I B M A N

Within a quick, ten second drill his father had instructed him in, Atreus was armed and ready to go, quiver full of arrows sung over his shoulder, bow in hand, and mother’s knife sheathed at his side. "Okay. I'm all set, Father." "Good.” Kratos turned around towards my table and grabbed me by the thin rope tied about me horns. “Then let us begin the day’s journey."

Attaching my head firm to the right and backside of his belt, Kratos and Atreus opened the front door of their humble little home to begin yet another long trek towards wherever the Nornir might take them.

A N D . A L A S T A I R . D U N C A N

Dangling my head to his belt, Brother Kratos and his son opened the doors of their humble little home to begin yet another journey towards whatever he wants to go, along the way.

As we travelled down the snow covered path just beyond that village sacked by Draugr just before Freya’s hut, a horde of the undead dobbers got in their rotting heads to up and ambush us rather than run away screaming in the opposite direction if they what was good for them (which they evidently didn’t). As per usual we had to fight them off, the lad using the tried and true method of spamming out light arrows to stun the walking corpses that weren’t Brother's focus. This gave the hulking man in question ample time to take out those that were the immediate object of his ceaseless wrath and rip the others limb from putrid limb afterwards. Within no time, Brother and the lad had shot and hacked the Draugr horde back down into the Earth from whence they had come and we were able to continue unopposed to Freya’s grove and the big gaping hole in the ground there that lead to the watery cavern beneath her home from which we’d get access to the Lake of Nine.

W I T H . A S H L E I G H . B A L L . N I C O L E . O L I V E R . T A B I T H A . S T. . G E R M A I N . A N D . C A T H Y .Ω. W E S E L U C K

Without a fuss from the angry and grieving goddess, we all hopped up on the boat waiting at the little dock there in the cavern and Kratos rowed us to the lake, towards the Temple of Tyr. All seemed quiet on our journey ‘till the lad asked, “Um, father?”

Kratos: "Yes?"

"Um, if you came from Sparta, besides what you told me… what were you doing there? You know, what was your job or profession? Did you… well… fight in an army?"

"Yes, though I was not merely a simple soldier in the Great Army for long, boy. In short order, I became its General, one of legend bordering on myth. I led my people into victory through many a battle, some brief, some protracted, some massive, some miniscule, though they all tended be pitched in nature and ended in great losses for my the enemy and, occasionally, my own forces. Truly, most everywhere we marched towards, bloodshed, limbs torn off one after another, and many other grizzly sights were not far behind, and we conquered many lands and civilizations around the world.”

“Whoa.”

“Yes. Though many scholars and philosophers and rulers more inclined to think like and side with those pompous, pretentious fools of Athens would later try and--”

“Wait. What’s ‘Athens’?”

“A tale for another time, boy. As I was saying, though many would later try and diminish me and my men’s accomplishments, when it came to warfare and how to conduct it, I was a great mind, and even the worst of my enemies would grant me this if not easy victory. Using strategies and tactics unknown to my land and neighboring ones at the time that also maintained the benefit of being brutally effective even when the enemy caught on to what I was up to, we carved a path of destruction and tears throughout the peninsula, The Peloponnese, our land was situated on and even started to build up a Great Navy with the added manpower and resources to challenge our greatest rivals, which astonished even my people, for we were never known for our maritime prowess before. Indeed, if there was any one thing that lead most to our success that we would have been lost without it, it was this--” he stopped rowing for a moment to point towards and tap the side of his head, “up here.”

As he continued his labor, he added, “Unfortunately, soon enough, I came to learn the hard way that success can take away from a man just as much as failure, and all the fruits of my victories, so sweet and so numerous, poisoned me. Corrupted me.”

"Corrupted you? How?" Atreus asked, as captivated by his father’s tale as ever he was.

"Greed. Bloodlust. Pride. Triumph upon triumph had consumed me with these things until my ambitions for glory and power lead me to dream of a world in which Sparta ruled over every square cubit of land, sea, and even air and everything in it. A world where Sparta was the world. Such an end… I actually thought I could accomplish it.”

“Whoa.”

“Yes.”

Aye. Brother sure had some history for a mortal.

“And despite someone who cared for me very much pleading for me to stop the madness, to check the Hubris that had grown out of control to choke my soul like Hel’s bramble, I did not listen. And, eventually, I came to bite off more than I could chew. But that in itself is a story all its own. One that, much like what Athens was, is reserved for another time, boy.”

"B-b-but, Father, who was it that cared for--"

"Another time, boy."

Atreus looked at his father with wide, pleading eyes for a moment, but finding his 'da's face as scowly and stoney as it tended to be, he gave up with a sigh and said, "Okay, okay. I’ll wait until the next time you feel like talking about your past."

"Hmmm," and a nod was the only reply he got from his father.

There it is... the temple... which contains the roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, that allows traveling to various realms, the very place we're tryin' to reach. After a bit more time on the boat, we finally made it to Tyr’s temple, the bits of it that were gold still gleaming and glittering as they did since the magnificent work of architecture was first constructed even after a hundred and fifty years under water. We docked and went up the nearby staircase with nary a suspicion that we were about to be attacked by hordes of Nightmares and some Draugr on our way to the entrance into the temple proper before, oh and behold, we were attacked by hordes of Nightmares and Draugr on our way to the entrance into the temple proper. There was an even bigger problem, though. Namely, that both groups of the aforementioned fodder were being supported by another kind of monster that most assuredly could not be properly classified as fodder. Not fodder at all.

An Ogre.

Yes. One big, savage, Ogre was accompanying the Nightmares and Draugr, and as the much larger beast lead the charge against us, Brother called out, "Ready yourself, boy! Focus on the chaff!"

"I am! I will!" cried out the wee lad, firing lightning arrow upon lightning arrow at the Nightmares and Draugr and bogging them down in chained arcs of golden electricity whereas his 'da sprinted towards the savage beast sprinting towards them. The Ogre roared and hurled its fists at him. He sidestepped, threw his handy dandy Leviathan Axe right into one of the creature’s eyes, and after a bit more evadin’ and axe throws and axe swipes, he performed his usual finishing maneuver on the poor thing. He grabbed it, climbed on top of it, and punched its head to force it into moving as he rode it towards the lesser foes that the son was still keeping busy. "Boy, out of the way!"

"Okay!" The lad did as he was commanded, dodging out of the way from the rampaging Ogre and its massive, tree trunk like limbs that it kept swinging wildly about. The Nightmares and Draugr on the other hand… well… they weren’t so lucky, all of them falling at the hands (or arms, as things were) of their big, siege weapon of a comrade. With the ogre now having served its purpose and outlived its usefulness, Brother proceeded to
mercilessly execute the foul beast in that specially brutal way he was found of. He chopped its wide-open jaw with his axe, causin’ it to collapse onto its back where the beast was met with another chop of the axe to the jaw that put it down once and for all.

With the battlefield clear of enemies, we did our usual post battle routine of lootin’ any of the dead bodies for, well, loot.... Brother made sure the boy was alright, Atreus insisted he was fine, he nodded, and we went back along on our merry way to the temple entrance and past it in silence, though the lad did wave to Brok and Sindri as we made our way to the entrance into the realm travel room, the two dwarf brothers returning the gesture before going back to work on yet, another pet project of theirs.

The quiet though, as was so often the case, did not last long before the lad's curiosity got the better of him, and he asked, "Father, why are we doing this? Were exactly are we going? I mean, we’ve been to all the realms we can go to and done all that we could already, so, why the temple today?"

"In a moment,” Brother said as he opened the doors and the two of them stepped into the realm travel room. “First, let us get to the selection table.” In a few more moments, said circular table was precisely where father and son stood before, lad on the side opposite his father as per usual, and Brother on the selector’s side.

The Spartan jammed the Bïfrost into the very hole designed to connect it to the table. Casually, he then turned the oversized, dial like wheel, that surrounded the lightforged artistic representation of Yggdrasil itself, the temple, its bridge, and the realm towers outside at the center of the table until the temple and bridge were allied with one realm tower in particular.

"Oh! So that's where you're plannin’ on headin’ too, brother. Alfheim," I said.

"Hmph," was all I got from the Spartan in response.

"Alfheim? Why are we going there, father?" Atreus asked.

"Business."

"What business? Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think after the cold shoulder you gave them during the Dark Elf invasion, the Light Elves don’t like you very much... even though you did end up saving them all."

“Coincidentally.”

"Well then, take heart in knowing that our trip to Alfheim will not concern any elves, except for perhaps some pockets of Dark Elf resistance we may encounter. Instead, we are going there for--”

Suddenly, the ground, indeed, the entirety of the room, began to shake like me from Brother's belt whenever he really decided to book it.

"I think I'm getting a wee bit dizzy around here, lads!" I said in a wobbly voice.

Aye. T'was like an earthquake, and I couldn’t help but have flashbacks to when a lot more Giants than Jormmüngandr roamed Midgard and had their yearly wrestling championship finals. So, suffice to say, I was utterly thrilled as much as I was utterly terrified.

Brother and the boy, however... seemed to fall more into the later camp as they tried to keep their balance and braced themselves to leg it in case more than a dozen of ancient dust and slab decided to fall on top of us.

"Hold on, Boy!" Brother cried, almost losing his own footing as he did.

"I am!" the lad replied right before he took a little lunge so that most of his body was leaning onto the selection wheel for support.

"Brother!" I called to him, as I noticed a chunk of debris about to fall on the unsuspecting lad far larger and more metallic than dust. The Spartan, alarmed by my call, rushed to his son's aid. He jumped over the table, covered Atreus with his shield, and took the full force of the falling metal before leisurely shovin’ it aside like so much flotsam and jetsam.

And then, after a few seconds, the shaking slowly began to slow. Likewise, Brother and the lad slowly regained their stances, but what they noticed next was most peculiar indeed, for never before had the Bïfrost, glowing blue as it was want to do, ever floated midair as though held in place by an unseen hand.

"Whoa! It’s just… hanging there. But… how?"

Kratos looked on, surprised a little, but ultimately little to not at all fazed by the sight. He’d seen weirder and more off guard putting things, if the rumors I heard were even a hundredth of a percent true. “I do not know, boy. Perhaps the head might--”

"Father! Mimir! He's gone!" Boy alerted his father.

Brother looked at where I would usually be hangin’ from his belt and found Atreus’ words to be true. "The Head! Where did he go!? Boy, look around for--"

"Down here, lads! Other side! Oh I feel like I’m going to vomit, and I don’t even have a stomach any longer! Tell me how that’s supposed to work!” They both hopped back over the selection table to find me on the ground right where Kratos had been, lying aa helpless as a bodiless head tends to be.

"A little help here, brother?" I asked the Spartan.

“How did you--”

“Well, between all the shakin’ and you crossing over the table like ya did, I figure I must have got knocked loose.”

"Well that's a relief. I'd thought we'd lost you, Mimir," the Boy said.

"Aye. Relievin’ indeed," I answered as the hulking man picked me up. "Thanks, brother. Didn’t see that special suprise comin.’ Wonder what all that was about."

"Your answer hovers right in front of you, Head." Brother turned me head around and dangled me up a bit so I could see what exactly he was goin’ on about, and I reckon I felt just as surprised as he and his son did.

"Whoo! Now that’s even more of an unforeseen happenstances. Not a bad omen, per say, but it’s certainly been a while since the last time this happened.”

"You know what’s wrong it, Mimir?" Atreus asked.

"M'lad, there’s nothing ‘wrong with it’ at all. Well… sort of, but not in the impending, apocalypse instigating, Fimbulwinter causin’ way you and your da' are familiar with.” Kratos growled at this.

Ignoring his growl, I continued. “What we have here lads is a very rare anomaly of sorts involving the Bïfrost and its power.”
"What do you mean by this anomaly, Head?" Kratos asked.

"Why, one where a sudden overload of power within the Bïfrost summons a gateway towards a realm completely separate from all the Nine Realms, of course, brother. Damnest thing, to, for it to decide to act up now of all the days it could have.”

"What do you mean by sepera--"

Kratos was cut off when, all of a sudden, the Bïfrost glowed a VERY brilliant flash of light, blinding all of us there on the spot and causing enough agony that we were all driven to their knees. Or, rather, Father and Son were since, well, you know.

"Cover your eyes, boy!" the Spartan shouted.

“I am! But the light’s still shining through my hands somehow!”

“At least ya got hands, little brother! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! Why I couldn’t I have been born with thicker eyelids! Oh what a world, what a world! EEEEEEE!” I yelled at the top of my lungs.

After a bit more of the total, white brightness, and my high pitched, completely undignified shrieks, everything finally, thankfully dimmed, thoughmy eyesat least were still smarting something fierce. “Woo Oy! For a while there, I thought we had bit the arrowhead there, lads! Man that was intense! Even more so than all the other times this happened!”

"Ahhhh!” Atreus said, rubbing the pain that apparently lingered in his eyes too.

“You’re telling me!”

"Boy, are you alright?” Brother said, blinking a few times as he got back up.

"Yeah. I’m fine," the lad answered simply, getting back up himself, "What happened?”

"We're all good, m'lad. That light was just the light the Bïfrost gives off whenever it goes ‘off the path’ so to speak away from the Nine Realms. Lookin’ at it’s always been a bit like starin’ at the sun, but that time, man! That was like stickin’ one’s head inside a furnace.”

“Again, you’re tellin’ me.” Atreus said, massaging his temples.

Brother stared at the still floating, still glowing Bifrost for a bit longer before grabbing it and putting it away in the pouch he usually reserved for its storage. “If what you say is true, then perhaps we should investigate this ‘new realm’ we seem to have gone to before returning.”

"Perhaps we should. Who knows, maybe this realm turns out to be a right dandy one,” I said.

"I hope so," said Atreus.

"Come then. We will know for certain once we are outside."

"Couldn’t agree more, Brother."

Brother, his lad, and yours truly began to travel outside the temple to inquire more about whatever realm we landed in. In no time at all, the Spartan opened both sets of doors that lead to the entry hallway, and we made our way to the main doors. Surprisingly or not, dependin’ on one’s view, Brok was to our right at his forge, but at the time, none of us thought it pertinent to raise any questions at what with dwarves known for comin’ and goin’ between realms at a whim and moment’s notice.

With one final flex of Brother's absurd brawn, we were past the front door and got our first glimpse of this mysterious new realm. The first thing we noticed was that, behind us, rather than just the usual, solid front door leading back into the temple, there was a massive, shimmering blue portal in the shape of one of the realm tower doors back at the Lake of Nine. After realizing that we had stepped through the portal upon exiting the temple without realizing it the portal and door were placed so close to each other, Lad asked:

"Whoa! That’s... weird. Really weird.”

“Took the words right out of my mouth, lad. Usually when this sort of thing happens, the Bifrost doesn’t have to make its own doorway to whatever destination it had in mind. Curiouser and curiouser.” Brother unclasped me from my belt and pointed me towards the portal so that I could get a better look see.

“Head: will this portal remain stable?”

“Oh, I sure hope so. Otherwise, we could end up stuck here.”

“I asked ‘will’ it remain stable, head. Not ‘should’ it.”

“Oh! Right, right. Yes. Well then… uhhh… I do believe… yes?”

“Believe?”

“Well, ya see, the funny thing about extra-realmular travel is that--”

“Father! Come look at this! Quick!”

It was then that Brother looked to his left and realized for the first time that the boy had run off to go farther down the mountain path the portal had dropped them off on, the boy standing at the path’s end at the mountain’s edge and looking at something far off into the distance. Not saying a word, Brother jogged after his son to see what he had, and what the both of them saw there that day, was like nothing they had seen before in their lives entire.

The view was as bloody wide and painting perfect as one could ask for, everything that a man’s sight could see across a vast, verdant, and rolling plain being as visible as Thor’s ego.

The sky was clear. VERY clear. Unnaturally clear, which, despite my better judgement, sent my weather magic--and thusly, my mjolnir senses--a tinglin’ even though I knew the redhead that wielded it couldn’t have possibly followed us. I managed to assuage the fear that I was about to have my day ruined like I was Thamur wonderin’ the world late at night by finding solace that there was not a dark cloud full of fury and thunder, the clouds that were there being unusually swirled, somewhat curly--and, more unusually--puff in their shapes. Like sheep’s wool. While there was little doubt that the air and sky reeked of arcane tampering with, the magic involved did not smell… inherently malevolent in the way that mjolnir or, well, or Spartan brother's blades did. I also calmed myself down by looking off towards the series of snow capped mountains in the distance. They were purple. That was nice. Odd as can be, but nice.

"Whoa, would you take a look at that." his father never said anything, just continues lookin' at it, it didn't surprise him at all, not even a single bit...even if everything here was quite, new to him.

"Look there! It’s a village!” Atreus exclaimed

"Indeed! Curiouser and curiouser and curiouser!" I said.

To our left, buttressed between the hills of the plain and wide acres of a forest with trees larger than any I had seen on Midgard, lay a simple, quaint little village with houses and buildings of various kinds--some very familiar and others rather foreign--strewn about. Logically, this lead to several questions. Who lived there? What purpose did it serve? Who made the village? Mankind? Elves? Giants? Vanir? Bloody Draugr? Dragons or Dragon Draugr of all things?

All these questions and more, the lad voiced, but rather than give his usual brand of non-answers to things he knew not of, Brother instead turned his gaze over to the far right and gruffed as he was want to do at what he say. “Boy. Look there.”

The Spartan raised a finger towards where his attention was now focussed and his boy followed said digit there. He also pointed my face in that direction too. That was nice of him.

“Well, would ya look at that…” I said.

“That’s… that’s incredible!’ Atreus shouted.

Truly, this other sight was far and above more magnificent than the village, but also far and above the stranger.

Two immaculately white temples stood close together beside a tall waterfall, the larger behind the smaller and the larger possessing multiple, towers that made the realm tower-esque portal behind us look puny in comparison. Most amazingly of all though, both temples seemed to be but the centerpiece of an entire town… no… CITY… seemingly BUILT INTO the side of entire, fairly large, mountain peak. Not a city around, atop, within, or over a mountain peak, but built INTO it.
Naturally, the only word the lad could find to say at this was, "Whoa…”

Just as naturally, the only word Brother could find to say at this was, “Indeed.”
Just, JUST as naturally, I started gettin’ a bloody bad feelin’ about all this, the site of the temples and the surrounding cityscape mixing with everything else about the strange realm I had thus far witnessed to give me a serious sense of deja vu as ya call it, that's definitely new of a word, as though this place was a place I had been seeing... or been to before. “Oh boy, lads. I think it’s all startin’ to come back to me now. Not as much as I’d like, but, I think it’s a safe bet to say that somehow, someway, somewhen, I’ve visited this here little locale before.”

“Really?”

"Yes. Perhaps I really do know this place quite well and would be able to tell you right off the bat if Odin’s enchantment on my knowledge wasn’t still in effect. That, or it could all just be brain damage suffered from between when your da' had cut my head off and dallied about his damnest before getting me to Freya making me thing this realm is or was known to me at one point. Or Odin’s magic. Or both. Don’t tell your father, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the latter."

“Still your tongue, head. We have been over this.”

"Brother! Ya could have freed that dragon AFTER getting me to the hut! Ya could have been zapped without me watchin’ your back! I could have been zapped!”

Kratos brought me over threateningly close to his face. "I said: we have been over this."

The coldness in his voice made the winds of Helheim seem warm and inviting by comparison.

“Point taken,” I said, trying not to squeak.

He then clasped me back onto his belt, took one last glance over at the temple and its city and mountain, and then slowly, carefully, stated to traverse down the side of the mountain we lot were on.

“Father? What are you doing?” the young Atreus asked before asking, much more excitedly. “Are we heading where I think we’re headed!?”

“Yes. It would appear to be the finest heading we have found thus far in this realm, so, why not?”

Oh, we had no idea how right that big lugger was then.

None at all.

Neither, I suppose, did Brother himself.

"What... is... this?"

To be Continued...

Author's Note

Here we go, first chapter's done, and remember folks, this is one of my first attempts in making a story, tried to make the characters as faithful as their source material, also, there is another earlier story of mine that isn't published yet, so this one ain't my first, so I hope you folks enjoyed it (or not).

Chapter 2 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All

E Q U E S T R I A N . Q U E S T S

E P I S O D E . II

THE CYCLE ENDS HERE, ONCE AND FOR ALL

PART ONE

Equestria -
The Cliff -

Narrated by Mimir

There we were, standing on a very high cliff, overlookin' one of the most absurd looking places we'd ever seen, its name was Equestria if you don't mind me explainin', to make it short, it is the land of small magical sentient horses called ponies, and here came the question, where did this realm came from? And how did it came to be? Aye, lads, we are going to find out soon enough:

"This place is so weird, don't you think, Father?" Young Atreus said.

"Do not distract yourself, Boy." Brother Kratos spoke up, "Head, do you know were we are?" He asked me.

"I don't know a tad bit, brother, but I felt somethin' quite familiar about this strange land, I can feel it, lads, it's all startin' to get back to me." I said,

"Then we would have to scowl the rest of this land to rejuvenate your mind." Brother suggested, deciding on what to do with this rather, odd, realm.

"But Father, wouldn't that take too long? I mean, it's a very, very, wide place." Young lad said.

"Do not question, boy." Brother replied with sternness in his very heart,

"Okay."

With that said and done, we started our long and quite perilous journey, with new and unpredictable places out there in the horizon waiting for us, strange and unknown creatures we're about to encounter, and there we were, trudging down a very high cliff, intent on scowling this entire world in hopes of making me remember all about this place, since I said I felt something familiar with this world if I do say so myself, there we was, Brother, little Atreus walking down to, whatever place they were going, and I, well, per usual, hanging on the back hip, of Brother's arse, as on our current location, we were now gaining closer and closer to the tall waterfall that stands that temple, or should I say, castle, for that matter, beside. Now, let's see how this goes lads, shall we...

"Atreus, your bow, is it alright?" He started to ask.

"It's fine, but, the sky, why is it dark, I mean, this place is weird and all but-

"Aye, lad, it's probably starting to rain, perhaps a storm maybe?" I interrupted the lad,

"If it is raining, then we are going to find shelter." Brother said.

"Agreed, Brother." I agreed to what he said

"Yes sir, I'm gonna look for shelter now." Brother nodded, and so we decided to stop right on our tracks to find any sort of shelter we can find in this place for the upcoming rainstorm, or is it, a rainstorm?

"Weird, look at the sky, it's darker than what we saw back in Neiflheim, I wonder if this place is connected to it, or if Seiðr magic had something to do with it."

"Focus, boy." He reminded the young lad,

"Aye, we will get to the bottom of it once we know more of this strange place." I told him

"And to get out of it." Brother said with nonchalance.

"Bollocks, Brother, if we leave right away, we will never get to find out what's really going on here." I said.

"Let them be, this world or whatever is inhabiting here is not of our concern." Brother said, not a hint of concern for the well being of this very realm.

"But Brother, your son could never learn new and exciting things, all about this realm, creatures, the indigenous peoples living here and, of course, he'd never develop his skills as a warrior, well, not that I mention strange and unseen creatures we've never encountered before, that would be of great opportunity for the young lad, what do ya say? Can we stay here for longer?" I told and asked Brother, whose son was eager to learn a bit more about this strange new world.

"Fine, but only if the boy's development in his skills is the concern here, and restoring that gap in your memory, Head." He answered, thankfully for me and the lad, he agreed that we stay in this whole new world, for a bit longer that is.

"That's the spirit, Brother." I said joyfully. Here we are, wondering what do do now that we're bloody stuck here, while little Brother was finding our shelters in our surroundings until...

"Father! Father! Take a look! Look at the sky!" Little Atreus called out to his father.

"What is it, boy?" Brother did as he was told to and turned his head towards the night sky that reminded us of stinkin' Neiflheim, and what we saw above was very shocking on our part, absolutely shocking! We never seen something as moreover absurd and as ridiculous as what we just saw before us! Was it the work of the Æsir? Was it the work of Odin? Or was it the work of Seiðr magic? Ooh, we'll see lads, we'll see.

"The sky, i-it's flashing day and night, what's happening here?!" The boy wondered, Aye, it was a very strange sight indeed.

"What treachery is this?" Brother asked, but not as loud as his son could ask.

"Brother, what's going on there? why's it suddenly dark, and bright and so on? Could ya please bring me to what you're looking so I could see." Brother then picked me out of his belt and then held me out forwards so that I could see whatever is going on out there.

"Oh, no, by Tyr's beard. Now this is more unusual than what we've seen before brothers, day and night are flashin' back and forth bloody rapidly!" I said with utter surprise on my face.

"Okay, now this is even more wierder than before, Mimir, do you know who or what's behind this?" He asked me about what is happening to the weather above.

"I don't know for sure, m'boy, but what I know is that this, all of this, must be the work of a sort of Dark Magic, and someone, or..something must have been using and manipulating it to control the day and the night." I said, at the time I was still processing about me being familiar about this bloody realm.

"We will get to the bottom of this, come, Boy, we must go."

"Aye, Brother." I agreed to what he said, preparing for what we're about to do next.

"Yes sir." He said as he placed me back in his belt, and as we began ourselves on a very long race for the mysterious castle overhead, so we could get some answers, and find out who, or what is responsible for the bloody horrid jeopardy that's now happening in the sky.

As we are trekking towards our destination, walking our way across the cliff facing that village we just saw, nearing close to what appeared to be the castle standing beside the waterfall, as we got ourselves closer and closer, then all of a sudden, Brother held out his palm to his right, stopping little Atreus in his tracks, he stood still, seemingly alert, of what? What made him stop us? Did he saw, or sense someone, or, something, behind or afar?, hmm. I wonder...

"Stop." Brother suddenly ordered, stopping in his tracks.

"But Father, why-"

"Stay down and low." He interrupted the lad,

"Brother, why did we-" I was cut off as well.

"Shh, be quiet, Head." I did stay quiet, but why? Anyways, Brother spotted something, and it was a rather an odd sight, a sight he had never seen before, it was a someone, or a something, a creature he's familiar with but had never seen such an appearance. Then, Brother heard this creature talk with what appeared to be some other creature...

"Uh, yeah, I got a delivery here for a Mister "The Storm King". I was given explicit instructions to bring this here cake to this here castle's throne room." it spoke, with a rather faint but echoing voice, aye, Brother heard it talk to some creature miles away from him, and by the looks of it, it, or should we call a he, judging by the voice and the hairstyle, appeared to be a creature very familiar with our Spartan brother.

It was an animal, common within some other realm, it was a cat, that's right, lads and lassies, a cat, a common animal back in some other world. But what's strange about this cat is that he is legitimately bipedal, you know, standing on just two hind, or back, legs, and letting the front limbs free to grasp things as hands, or in this case, paws for that matter, and what's even stranger about this cat here is that he wears a jacket of sorts, that's right, based on what he wore, he must be the captain of a ship, well as a matter of fact, where is this ship, and where is his bloody crew? We'll figure it out, lads:

"What is it?" Young Atreus asked on whatever his father saw out there, a creature or someone, maybe, we'll see.

"Stay down, boy." Brother ordered his son, as he kept his sights at the cat-like creature conversing with a duo of, whatever they are, well to me, they looked like a couple of, masked Ogres with spears, they appear to be guarding the gate entrance to the castle, aye, things are aboit to get interesting as this is starting to go on:

"What is that big thing? And why does it smell, sweet?" Young Atreus curiously asked the big thing behind the cat creature he just saw beside his father, it looked tasty, was it food? Aye, I've seen that kind of food in some other world years before, lads, it was of a rather, unusual design with elaborate craftsmanship, they call it, cake, and man it was bloody sweet and tasty, anyways:

"Do not distract yourself with it, focus on what we are doing here, and stay low, maintain silence." Brother told his son, telling him to remain focused, avoid any sorts o' distractions, and avoid being spotted.

"Yes, Sir." He replied.

"Hmm, those four-legged creatures, they looked like a group of horses, must be the inhabitants of this world." Brother said.

"Really, horses? Lemme look." Little lad said quietly, then, upon slowly peeking from his father behind, what he saw, beside the cake of course, was an oddity of a sight before him, they were, seven creatures standing side-by-side, each wearing collars by their necks, they seem to be the ones pulling the cake, well, judging by the looks of despair on their faces, they appear to be sapient, with intelligence, smart, and what's even strange about them is that they come in different colors, and their manes, well, not exactly the ones you always see in yer' average horse, aye, their manes were of various designs, the colors, of course, there was the white, with what appeared to be some sort of swirling horn, judging by it, the white one appears to be Unicorn, well at least from what I've heard in stories, and there's pink, blue, with a strangely designed mane with colours arranging a rainbow, who also had wings, and of course by the looks, appeared to be a sort of a Pegasus from the pantheonic stories, the yellow one, also a Pegasus, orange, who is wearing a hat of an, unfamiliar design, and of course, finally, the purple one, which judging by the unusual combination of wings and that same swirling horn from the white one, appeared to be their leader, it was a rather unusual sight the lad had seen, but let's just go back shall we:

"Wow, I've never seen things such as these before, I thought they were myths, Father, did you ride horses before?" Little Atreus asked his father whether he did ride on one of the four-legged creatures.

"Yes.", Brother confirmed, aye, yes, lads, during his glory days, he used to ride one of these babies, during his time when he was a General in the bloody Great Spartan Army.

"Oh. I see." Young Atreus agreed.

"Let us not worry them, that will be a distraction, if that cat and those horses get inside that entrance, we follow them, but first we those take those two guards guarding the entrance down, then we get in." He planned, well for a bastard of pure brawn like the Ghost of Sparta, he certainly is quite clever planning out strategies, anyways, let's continue.

"Wait, did you say cat-"

"Boy." Brother cut off his questioning son, silencing him.

"Oh, sorry. No more distractions." Brother chuffed agreeably.

The lad then began to write all what he saw in his book, about the new creatures he saw, then kept the book within him.

"That certainly is a great plan, Brother, now, let's see how this goes out." I said, then, at that moment, the cat and the horses pulling the big cake were now beginning to go inside the gate, apparently, the guards allowed them entrance, but the gate, which I initially thought was a second temple, or castle, so yes, they went in, and it was our turn to spring this little strategy of ours into action, as we snuck slowly to the entrance of the huge castle, which by the way, is not a castle at all, my friends, it is actually a city! By the name of Canterlot, where, is inhabited by those spoiled-rich pompous bastards, oh, believe me, you might not want to like its populace, because they're not all that good-mannered in front of anybody socially inferior to them, except for a select few.

Back to us, we snuck slowly into the gate, hiding from rock to bushel to avoid getting seen by the two not-so-smart guards, reaching another rock, now we're already at the perfect distance, the precise range for little Atreus to accurately shoot his arrow, just the perfect spot in initiating our plan:

"Atreus, get ready to fire on my mark, aim for the eyes, the only vulnerable part of its mask." Brother commanded,

"Yes Sir." Preparing his bow and arrow to shoot the unsuspecting masked guard's eye, the young lad began to aim his shot for his small and narrow target, on this guard's mask were two holes so that he can see, and that's where the arrow hits, as he pulled the string of his bow, holding it steadily, pointing with careful accuracy for the eye.

"Keep it steady, hold it until you shoot on my command." Brother told him.

"Okay.", keeping the aim as sharp as possible. As he was about to bloody do it.

"Now." Our Spartan brother ordered as his son lets go of the bowstring, launching forth an arrow bolt, empowered by electrified dragon magic.

(shwing)

"Þruma!" He cried out, as the arrow soaring towards its target hit the guard square in his eyes with pinpoint accuracy, as was intended, electrocuting the bloody life out of the poor unsuspecting bastard, well his mask and his armor made from metal to worsen the damage already done in the eye, the other guard, alerted, tried to come to his aid, but this was a grave mistake for him, as he let his sorry little guard down, being not as smart as we was always, then came all of a sudden:

"RUAAARGH!!"

SHHRRIIKK!! KKKKKKTTTT!!

That is the mistake I was referring to for the poor guard's part, as he was suddenly met with a slice to the abdomen, as well as being shouded with some ice shards, by a bladed weapon, and you lads can guess what this bladed weapon is and whom did it belong, aye, it belonged to our guy, the Ghost of Sparta, he was reponsible for finishing that dumbass of a guard's life by a stealthy attack while he turned his back on him, he collapsed to the ground, as well as the one electrocuted by the arrow shot, the latter dropped a cold as ice, lifeless body, dead, the other, well I don't know what to say about that.

"That was quite a nice aim, m'boy." I complimented young Atreus' shot by his arrow.

"Thanks, I never knew that arrow'd done that damage, besides, his mask and armor didn't protect him, it's made of metal, so that oughta made worse for him."

"I would not say that." Brother alarmed us, as the guard struck by the arrow earlier, bad news lads, he was still but barely alive, he started to weakly raise his arm, but it was too late for him as the moment he tries to get himself up:

TSHHHHLK!!

It was finished, the guard was put into a gruesome silence when his face was quickly slammed by the foot of the mighty Ghost of Sparta, blood bursted on a small area, smudging his foot, he scraped it off on the dust, "It is finished, now, come, let us go inside.", Brother announced.

"I'm right behind you, Father."

"Now, we'll see what really is going on here and find out who's responsible for all this bloody mess.", I said as Brother only replied with a chuff, then we began to our way inside the gate, leaving the cold, lifeless bodies of the two guards we made short bloody work of.

There we finally made it to the outskirts of the elegantly crafted city, although at this time, is not as elegant as we thought it always was, aye, it was the complete opposite of what we perceive the city, beautiful, rich, and peaceful, instead, what we walked before us, well, lads, it's a total mess of civilization, a shadow of what I've seen as its former glory, everything, from buildings, to streets laden with debris, no sign of life, much like a ghost town, all a total mess, and as we walked through the ruined streets of the once prosperous city of Canterlot, our Spartan brother, Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta, began to question regardin' this matter:

Equestria -
Canterlot Ruins -

"What, happened here?" Lookin' around as we walk through the streets of this once rich civilization, we looked around at the surroundings, all devoid of any color, life, not even a scream of a single person, or pony for that matter, aye lads, the only sounds we hear are nothing more but creakin' wheels from wrecked-up carts, and buzzards screeching as they circle around the ruins, tch, tch, tch, aye, now that's one heap of big mess we got in our hands, and we're going to find out who's the bastard responsible for all this heartless treachery.

"Someone is coming." Brother suddenly alerted us, who is coming?

"Who?", asked his son, as we are alerted, within some buildings, a guard, similar to the previous two we just took down, came out marching, along with a group of his own kin, "What do we d-"

"Over there, quick." Brother cut off his son, and pointed where to go, as we were heading towards the alleyway to hide from the masked dobbers, while Brother peeked his head out to see what's bloody happenin' there, "More of them." He said.

"What? Those masked guys, the same ones we killed earlier?".

"Yes." Our Spartan brother confirmed his son's question.

"What do we do, Father?", the lad said in a very low voice, hiding in the alleyway, not knowing what to do now that we're surrounded by these hulkin' bloaters.

"We wait here until they are-" Brother was cut off his words when he heard someone speaking in the streets behind him and the alleyway.

"Mmm! Pie! Oh, hello, cake! Ooh! Don't mind if I do!", a voice behind Brother attacted his attention, a bit curious, "Mmm! That's some, like, gourmetithing! Who putth eyeballth in filling?" he decided to turn the other way, to peek on what's goin' on there, and upon setting his sights on the street on the other side of the alley, what Brother saw was something he saw before, it was the little ponies, their cart of that big cake, and of course, the bipedal cat leading them. Among what he saw were The inhabitants of the city, also wearing the same despaired looks and wearing collars, being treated around like slaves by those bulking podders, some locked in small cages, but they mattered little to our Spartan brother, as his main focus was with the ones pulling the big cake to, whoever it is they want to give it.

"It is the horses and that cat again." Brother called out, his son laggin' behind him.

"Really?" Taking a look, it was them, "It is those horses, but, whom they will give that thing, and who's that little guy?", he asked.

"It does not concern us, Boy, do not make distractions."

"Yes, Sir.", the boy replied quietly.

"Do not take your eyes off them.", Brother ordered.

"Right." As we were watching the ponies, the cat, and the little one, I think the lad's name was Grubber, right? Aye, Grubber, anyways, we were keepin' watch over them, hidin' from plain sight, until:

"GUARDS!!" The little lad called Grubber hyperventilated, alerting all of the guards patrolling the streets, only to be pulled into the cake by a sort of a, parrot, creature, thing? Well, anyways, the guards were on full alert upon that, poor little horses, unable to find a way to escape, let alone a plan of course.

"Uh-oh, Plan B?" Brother heard the cat speak, but that mattered little to him.

"The jig is up!" The blue Pegasus with the rainbow mane started to speak, but that also mattered little to him.

"Father, they talked. So they are smart.", young Atreus said, who was behind his father all this time.

"Aye, of course, little brother, who else would build this surprisingly magnificent city, although it's a mess now, but, judging by those horses tied like bloody slaves, they must be the ones who built it."

Then suddenly, out of the bloody blue, three creatures suddenly burst out of the tasty dessert, all three of them look like parrots, but judging by their clothing, they were pirates or Reavers, and oh, guess what, the one in the middle, aye, she must BE the captain if I'm not mistaken, by Tyr's beard, it only took us by surprise a little, well except for Brother, who was simply watching on the events transpiring right know, considering he's not a rather, surpriseable, type, anyways, the three bird creatures screech as they were preparing themselves for a bloody full-throttle battle against the guards surrounding them, holding swords, wait, so they have swords? Eh, anyways, the three bird creatures started to battle it out against the guards, or should we say Storm Guards for that matter, for us, we were simply watching the not-so-bloody spectacle right in front of us.

"Come on!" The female parrot creature commanded as they prepare to assault the Storm Guards, the green parrot sliced off three of their spears, with his hook, being a pirate that's for sure, then this horse-bird like creature swooped down on another one and took him to the skies in its, or judging by her looks, her talons, but we didn't pay any attention to it, focusing more on the main battle before us, then, this other green one, with a seemingly crazy attitude, shoved a what they call a life preserver into another guard, squeezing him silly into it, aye, now that's a rather childish way to fight these bloaters, anyways, then this other pink one delivered another guard a swift kick right in his sweet sensitive groin, eye, not gory, but still excruciating for the guard's part of course, and then, on the other half, the orange colored horse that wore a hat used some sort of a rope to dangle another guard's legs, pulling it, thus bringing him down to the ground, biting the dust, I must say that was quite an impressive feat if I do say so myself. Next, three guards, not lookin' down like the dumbasses they were usual, tripped over what appeared to be a string of sorts, or ribbon, should I call it, then it was, a-hem excuse me, magically wrapped over by the white Unicorn, probably using that spirally horn on her head, judging by it glowin', of course, helped out by that cat creature.

"Lovely" we heard her spoke.

The next one, as taken on by the pink horse, who "generously" gave him, "Surprise!" a gift box of sorts, a dumb bastard he is, he was surprised by a-hem, the same one, she was supposed to zoom away at this moment but suddenly appeared in the box for whatever reason, "DOUBLE SURPRISE!!!", she yelled, slamming what we call a cupcake, into the baffled Storm Guard's masked face, blinded, the pink one started to spin her forehooves and "Weeeee!!" flung an unlimited barrage of cupcakes, while the guard smacked himself silly into a wall, the pink one laughing bloody maniacally as she continued her assault. As for the yellow Pegasus, well, let's not talk about that one shall we.

It was one of the most absurd fighting we've ever witnessed back at the sidelines, although they're still fighting for the safety of this here city, meanwhile, amidst the battle, Brother, who was watching the battle unfold, had finally spoke up regarding the events transpiring in front of him, not by amazement, but rather, disappointment:

"Pathetic." He said all rather, coldly, lamenting the ponies' rather pathetic and unviolent way of fighting their enemies.

"Why? They're fighting the bad guys, shouldn't they-"

"They do not fight like warriors, they fight, like a group of inexperienced children, who does not know any idea of what true fighting is." He cut the Boy off.

"So..shouldn't we help 'em?" He asked Brother.

"No, we are going to see this to the end, to see how they will keep up with those guards.", Brother said.

"Okay."

As the fighting raged on, the white parrot creature and her crew, along with the blue Pegasus, were holding the Storm Guards off, while the rest escape the battle, the white parrot ordered, "Head to the castle! We'll hold them off." As the group of horses were heading straight to their destination, the Castle itself, they were, unfortunately, stopped in their tracks, you know why? Because there is someone, something, very big, that just got in their way, blockin' their path ahead of the castle.

"Ah, c'mon!" Yelled the orange horse. It was another bloody Storm Guard, but no worries, sure, as a pushover he can be, they can take him down in mere seconds but wait, is it? there's somethin' different, no, strange about this guard, and he was standin' just right there, right in the way of the ponies, somethin' looks wrong about him, and why is he glowin' brightly yellow-

Wait...

Lads, Oh-oh no...

This can't be, this is not very good...

Real ugly...

"You will have to face me first if you want to pass!" The Storm Guard spoke in a very intelligiable voice, surprising the livin' shit outta the four little ponies, and the cat.

"Make me!" Said the blue Pegasus, as bold as she can be, she assaulted the guard head-on, confident that she can take the so-called stupid guard, but she made a grave mistake, her confidence about to fail her, her arrogance blinding her on the way, as the guard simply put his palm forward, and in a rapid succesion, swatted the flying blue Pegasus away, sending her slamming into a house, then into some debris, knocking the unfortunate Pegasus fully unconsious.

This definitely surprised the bloody crap outta the ponies, who made a mistake in judging the Storm Guard, who seemingly obtained vast intelligence, as the next one's about to make the move and attack, "Come, you fools, any of you who wish to attack me, try it."

The orange mare attacked. "Ya cornsarn varmint! Nopony hurts my friend!" She threw another rope from her jaw in an attempt to ensnare his legs, but that ultimately led to failure as her rope was rapidly snatched by the guard's hand.

"Is that the best you can do, you equine bitch!" I've never seen him mutter such foul language in this world before, aye, lads, with the rope in his hand, he then, without mercy,

SLAM!!
SLAM!!
CRUNCH!!
CRUNCH!!

slammed the life outta the orange mare, side to side, to the complete shock and utter horror of the others, she was slammed, grunting in pain, and slammed uncontrollably by the berserk Storm Guard, and to end his furious assault, he tossed the orange pony away, sending her crashing and sliding on the ground and finally resting next to her friends, unconsious. A very gruesome near-death experience indeed, lads, tch, tch, tch, what a poor creature.

As the other ponies gasped in utter horror of what they've seen, "APPLEJACK!!" They all yelled, the orange mare apparantly with a name, what was it, Applejack? Yes, Applejack, what an odd-soundin' name, anywho:

Looking at the empowered Storm Guard at complete terror, he said, "Puny mare. She doesn't realize how overwhelmed she is, now, you foolish, insignificant, equids, witness, MY FULL POWERRR!!!! HA, HA, HA, HA, HA!!!!", He laughed with all pure evil in his heart, a laugh as evil and malicious as Odin's himself, as he started to unleash a huge torrent of a yellow-colored wave of energy spiraling with a bluish one that's- wait, Oh, I know what he's plannin'. Aye, As the yellow and blue wave glew more brightly, blinding everyone but us in its wake, it split, yes, split, into smaller yellow and blue waves, and you know what they're going, they were heading straight into the other Storm Guards, perhaps maybe empowering them as the one himself did, not good.

They started to groan, then screamed in excruciating pain, they began to feel overwhelming power flowing through their veins, they became much more stronger, more intelligent, more brutal than ever, the other one ensnared by the rope ripped off the knot tying his foot with all the rage he's got, roaring angrily as he did so, the three guards tied by the ribbon string easily ripped their way out, roaring as well, meanwhile amidst that, let's see how our little yellow Pegasus was doing with the other batch of Storm Guards:

"You seem tense. Do you wanna talk about it?", she said, the Storm Guard looked at her in confusion.

"Uuh?-Eergh!", but it was too late to show him her power of kindness, when suddenly, his body strangely began to stiffen, like he was havin' a seizure, the yellow Pegasus lookin' on in confusion, then, after a few minutes, he screamed in extreme pain, "RRRRAAAARRRRGH-RRGH-RRGH-RRGH!!!"

"Oh my! Mister, are you alright?" The little lassie asked, concerned about what's happenin' to the poor, poor, bastard, he screamed, and screamed, clutchin' his head and banging his head into a wall, then...he stopped, his body began to twitch, what's goin' on here? Oh, I'll tell ya my friends, his body, began to glow in a bright blue aura, his eyes burning bright blue with all pure fury, shockin' the livin' hair out of the sweet little Pegasus. Then, more shockingly for her, he began, to laugh, coldly, and more, evily, with maliciousness plaguing his very heart, his laughing echoed, scaring more of the terrified little lassie.

"No, I don't need your petty little kindness, pony, because I already have it all, RIGHT HERE!!" After saying those bloody, horrifying words, the yellow Pegasus began to back away, struck in pure terror, as the empowered Storm Guard began approaching her, nearing her, slowly, intent on seeking her body as only lifeless...then..he stopped, the yellow lass still purely terrified, and then at this very moment:

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWR!!!!''

He roared, straight at her face, now struck with pure terror as the empowered Storm Guard unleashed a terrifying ear-piercing roar, right at her sweet little face, who was now as still as a statue, a single teardrop slidin' from her eye as what she was seein' right now, ooh, he was not the same Storm Guard she was tryin' to tame, but rather somethin', different, more cruel, more vicious, more untamed than ever, and as for the blue aura surrounding him, aye, we'll find out lads, as I'm going to tell you first what happened to us back in the alleyway, watchin' the bloody scene unfold before our very eyes:

"Father, what's going on, that light! I-it hit the guards, what happened to 'em?"

"They were empowered by the big one there on the left, the horses fought well, but was not enough, seemingly the big one was possesed by some sort of magic." Brother said to his son's question, then, I finally found the provocation to speak, and I told them:

"Oh, no, oh, no this can't be good, brothers, do you feel that? I can feel this strange power going around here".

"What is it, Mimir?"

"It's a, very powerful magic I feel so familiar with, aye, two forms of powerful magic, that I can feel them no doubt, and it's-..Oh, bloody damn.".

Brother brought me to his front, "What do you mean, Head?", he demanded.

"What are you trying to say?" The young lad asked.

"It's very bad, Brother, what I just sensed, not good, it's, Seiðr magic, if I'm not mistaken. Oh no, not that, I'm not mistaken, I can really feel it, brothers, it's the Seiðr magic."

"That is not possible." Brother said in disbelief.

"That can't be, if that's Seiðr magic you're sensing, h-how did it get into this world?".

"I don't know, little brother, but somethin' tells me that those horses and their friends won't stand a chance, Seiðr magic is too much tor them, and once it possesses and empowers you, you become, well, pretty much not, yourself." I said.

"So you mean those guys we killed earlier were now infected by Seiðr magic? oh, no. That's not good. Those guys are now stronger than ever."

"Wait, lad, I sense another one and it's," I used my senses in the air to snuff out this emanating source of magic and what I unfortunately found, is: "Ooh, man, how could it be that of all bloody things.", I lamented, sensing yet another powerful source of magic emanating from the battlefield.

"What is it, Head?" Brother asked me what magic or a source of power that i just snuffed out from the air.

"Oh, aye, it's it alright, it's the frozen mystical energy from Helheim, and I'm not mistaken, Brother, it is the energy from the frozen pits of Hel itself. Even more worse for the horses."

"No way, you mean those other groups of guards are now infested by Hel energy?".

"Not a wee doubt, little brother, if those guards are infected with this amount of that nasty Hel energy, their souls and life force get consumed slowly, under the weight of its raw untamed power, killing them from the inside, once their souls are gone and leaving nothing but a shell of a body, the energies take them over and they became a new batch of-"

"Hel-Walkers." The lad finished what I was explainin', so it was confirmed, and it's really really bad, no, from bad to more worse, bad news for our little ponies and their friends, not only we have those Storm Guards empowered by Seiðr magic, but we now have those other guards that are now slowly becoming Hel-Walkers thanks to that nasty bloody energy from Helheim.

"Hel-Walkers! Those guards are starting to become Hel-Walkers. Father, what do we do? please, Sir, we should help 'em, those horses don't know what they're up against, they won't stand a chance, c'mon, please!", young Atreus pleaded his father to help the unfortunate ponies, he simply looked on silent, the boy's words seemingly fell on deaf ears, then suddenly, Brother came up with his decision and then:

"Very well, if that meant fighting those creatures, and the horses leading us to whoever is responsible for this treachery, then it is our turn to fight, let us finish this."

"Yes!" The lad exclaimed excitedly, preparing his bow and arrow for the big fight that's about to come for him.

"Atreus, ready yourself, this fight is going to be serious, keep your expectations low, and anticipate your enemies' attacks, remember that.".

"Yes, Sir." He answered to his father, getting ready to jump into action to stop the infected Storm Guards from finishing off the ponies and their companions.

Meanwhile, the yellow Pegasus, completely terrified to her very bone and flesh, backed away anxiously as the Storm Guard powered by Seiðr magic slowly neared the poor mare as she backed away in utter fear, crying, intent on choking the life outta her, oh the poor lassie, as her fate is about to be sealed, "Foolish little pony, now is the time for you to say your farewell!" he laughed evilly, as he did so, he held out and opened his palm, intent on blasting the sweet lassie with a bolt of Seiðr magic, she closed her eyes, she seemingly about to be finished off for sure, until, at this very moment, she heard a sound, a sound of something spinning, but that mattered little to her, as she's about to die, anyway, "SAY GOODBYE, ALONG WITH YOUR DAMN FRIENDS AND THIS WORLD!!" The Storm Guard yelled as his hand was fully charged with magic.

"I failed you, my friends, I, I couldn't fight them, I, I, I...wasn't strong enough, Twilight's right, Friendship failed us, and it failed me.", she said tearfully. Aw, what a poor little lassie she is as she's about to be reduced to magical dust by the empowered Storm Guard, "Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Everypony, Angel Bunny, I don't know what I am gonna say but, this is it, I'm now...done for." She sobbed as she spoke her mind, "Goodbye my friends, and even though I'm not gonna be around, I will always love you, friends forever...Friendship...lives...on." the yellow mare said as she was about to accept her ultimate fate, the poor mare, is now about to be reduced to oblivion, the end of her very precious little life, that is, until:

(shwing)

WHOK, WHOK, WHOK, WHOK

TSHHHHHLK!! (Blood splattering)

The Pegasus shot her eyes open, as the Storm Guard about to blast her, suddenly dropped his hand, when she looked at his face...she was completely shocked to see the guard's face. His left side of his head, what she saw, was a blade, aye, lads, a bladed weapon, a blade on the side of a wooden stick, dug deeper, punctured and stuck on his left side, blood spurting out of it, yes, it was an axe, a very mysterious axe, where did it came from? it belonged to somebody, whom the young pegasus doesn't know who.

"W-What? What just happened?" The guard then fell down to the ground with a hard thud, his aura slowly fading out, he was dead, all of his life force leaving him, dead on the spot, but who did it? Then, suddenly, what she heard, the sounds of feet, stepping on the floor, the noise growing louder and louder as who or whatever it is is slowly approaching the already fear-stricken yellow Pegasus.

"Hello? W-Who's there? Somepony?", as what she saw in the dust, a figure, slowly growing bigger as it approached her, she ducked down, ears lowering, scared as always was, the the dust began to clear its way to reveal the figure's identity, whatever it has business on the mare, it better be good.

"Wh-What is-?" Then, after the dust cleared, what the mare saw was completely something she didn't see everyday...

It, was a creature, nothing had ever seen in her humble little life, an existence, unlike any other, a being, of an unknown origin, nothing she found familiar about this strange being, but the question is, what was its purpose? Why did it came here? What was its business with her? Was killing anyone or its sole only purpose? Or was it willing and saving her life was its only goal? No lads, what she saw doesn't look like any savior that best suits her kindly demeanor, what she saw in the creature, was completely different. It was tall, big, and mysterious, this, what she saw, what she thinks as a bald, hairless minotaur who wore clothing.

What made the Pegasus more curious, is that what she saw in its features, first off, the skin. This creature had the color of the skin that is as white as any archetypal ghost, it also had red markings running down its right arm, to the left side its face, sliding downward and ending in a point, to her opinion, was it its natural skin? Part of its body? I wouldn't think so if I were her laddies.

Aye, it then sported a full grown bushy beard, obscuring a part of what appeared to be its lips and a very, frown expression with narrowed chestnut-colored eyes, as if it was looking at her in a very angry expression...this definitely intimidated the shit outta the young lassie, as well as being more nervous than before, as this creature continues to stare at her, herself not knowing what this figure is going to do with her, then, she asked with a small hint of fear in her heart.

"Wh-Wh-Who, are you?", the figure simply stared her on, eyes still narrowed, as if he was staring at her with a seemingly agitated expression, startling the young Pegasus a bit. Yes, lads, ya guessed it...he was the one.

Our man...

Her savior...

The one responible in bringing the Seiðr empowered Storm Guard to a gruesome silence...

A fierce warrior...

A legend...

Our Brother...

And his name, a forbidden name born from legends...is Kratos...the Ghost of Sparta.

T O . B E. Ω . C O N T I N U E D . . .

A T R E U S' . B E S T I A R Y

? ? ?

What is he? Father saw him, he called him a cat, if he's a cat, then why is he standing on two legs? He can also speak perfectly, we heard it. How's that possible? Hmm.

Author's Note

Here we go, second chapter done, and done, part 2 will be comin', and like before, I expect mixed reviews from you guys, so feel free to comment whether it's good or bad or whatnot, remember, this is one of my first attempts in making a story, so till the next chapter folks. And May the 4th be with you.

Chapter 4 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All, Part 3

E Q U E S T R I A N . Q U E S T S

E P I S O D E . I V

THE CYCLE ENDS HERE, ONCE AND FOR ALL

P A R T . T H R E E

Narrated by Mimir

Aye.... we're back lads, and where were we, oh yes, that part. A-a-a-hem, after Brother spotted what appeared to be the white Unicorn resting flat on the far side of the ruined streets of Canterlot...

Aye....

Out the pouch came Healing Stones, droping to rest on his open palms.... aah, yes... Now I know what he's gonna do with them. Very clever and wise for a big lug he is, yes.

Tossing some of the little stones to his son, of course the mare still in his painful grasp, hissing in bloody agony, hsss, what a pain for the wee girl, but the man held still no intent on unhanding her. Not now. Not until.

As done so, the boy questioned his father on why would he do such a thing? Why would he even bother to give the prone lady keeled on side such a remedy?

I'll tell ye me curious lil' breekies, because that already confirms us the answer as he only gave the lad a simple yet somewhat, questionable chuff, from his fat old nose...

And honestly, my friends, I've been wondering about that meself, but whether his decision is pure or simply a desperate mean to... well, ye know.

"Hmmph."

"Why these, Father? Who you wanna use them to-"young Atreus was cut off in the middle of what he's sayin' when at the flowing rapids of seconds that he trailed his vision across the misshapen landscape, past the avian seafarers. And as his eyes kept steering on the floor searching for something of some significance. He had finally stumbled into something.

Or was it a "something"?

That sort of a something that his ice-blue eyes had just captured. More than something. It was beyond that it should. It was a someone... one with the head, the spine, and the limbs, all to name a couple. It was a body—A body that moves, that lives, that sleeps. That talks. And that body his eyes had stuck on, turning away never...

Her.

"Oh, yeah, I see her. But.... why?" He looked on to his father as the same could be applied to the young lad... guessing what he meant.

He guessed it, he'd need not abide by word of mouth...

What he was supposed to do.... was to give the stones to the white Unicorn distant on the dusty streets to apply the treatment, bring her back to consciousness, waking her up. That is the plan.... sure that would sound like something very plausible, but, why would he do something like that? That lads, I thought deep in my head's cranking machinations, only so that the wheels that turned in my head had bound in realization, at a later time.

"I have my reasons, Boy. Now go. Do it." He ordered. Reasons, huh? Back there lads, I wondered, silently. Usually there the Ghost is not one capable of delving
himself upon the sympathy for others, if he would—he could probably had turn his plump ass acoil, leave that someone rotting on a snowy grave, to have pry their spirits the gates of Hel for certain—but in retrospect, it appeared that, he had made some sort of an exception on that subject.

Curious, I thought, for I'd been wondering about why a fellow with a "don't care about stuff and bollocks" attitude like this man would do this whole thing in the first bloody place?

Without any sort of question as to avoid attracting another scorn from his father, "Okay." he complied, the Health Stones rested still on hand as he headed across the now eerie and dusty streets straight towards the white Unicorn in order to make useage of the small pebbles.

"Oh, no. Rarity." The baby dragon lamented, worry and fear far from fresh, but still dribbling within his system, obvious as your big eyes can witness that he is truly, and no doubt concerned in her welfare. As he hurried, the seafarers, some others, the bastard... with me bumping helplessly against his leathery rump, lagging abut...

He followed last.... but simply ambled on with the pink lassie still dangling on his grasp as he gave her a brief but a very hostile glimpse.... her with a very sad and lowly mane, literally, before turning forward.

Interesting, I thought. That mane of hers molded in shape whenever extreme emotion befalls her... now that's quite interesting and peculiar indeed. Even to this flow of days m'lads.

At last making a seal on the distance between, where lied the unresponsive white Unicorn. Reaching her keel, boy kneed, unfolded his palms, revealing the emanating glimmer spewing from the Health Stones his father delivered him. Reaching out his left, he gave the mare's forefoof arise, as the others watching in a state of curiosity, and Brother in wait...

"What's he trying to do? I-Is Rarity gonna be okay?" The baby dragon asked, curiousity and worry on the mix, and still uncertain about the boy's doing, the nearby feline dobber only shrugging as the drake gave him a gaze that indicated questions, well, questions that are yet to be realized...

Apparently, this dragon had some sort of a crush on the white Unicorn, well....for that young an age, an equine and a dragon. Scales and fur. Hoof and Claw. I bet my discernible gut, a-. I, well, I don't have a gut anymore but still, I can bet my Jötunn-given eyes that I hold this to be a very odd romance.... between a meat-eater.... and a plant eater, actually speaking the latter to be a jewel eater, all to be considered.... quite the irony, innit?

Sorry for that anyhow, I forgot how dragons indulge in diets in this realm, like I mentioned firsthand, I am smart yes, but there are limits concerning my knowledge... and everything, even you, are not without limits.

But... let's not scribble that down in lengthy detail, we wouldn't flutter off into another bollocks-full of subjects now shall we?

Anywho, as the big boar-warts still had pink lass in hold... still in hold... not lettin' go of her yet...

However...

As m'boy had his opportunity brought down upon her to cut and crack the stuff to get the bloody task done with, to see her get back to the world of reality, so that the hot-headed axe-mullet and his son can finally be off with everything around them. The boy stopped all of a sudden. He hesitated, and for some bloody reason, he couldn't bring himself to do it. I could tell ye, lads, young Atreus usually had his wills full in helping anyone in the most desperate need... but in his current circumstance... he couldn't do it. He couldn't, but why? Oh, we will see lads, we will find out why.

"Umm, Father. I don't think I'll... do it. It's, your idea, yeah but, if, if... why would you-"

"Fine. I will do it." Brother bent his words, becoming so opt as to lay down the treatment himself. Actually lads, I'll tell ye somethin', the former God of War did in inclination this whole contrivance not because he is altruistic or anything, he is of no interest in people's personal affairs and not because his boy is too drowned in fear, nor he was too weak or indifferent. He was doubting on his deed. He was, is all. He's not so bloody sure as to whether he should put this in or not, because something in his gut told him that, his father could be up to something, not ulterior, he knew he would not. Because he would be up to something that he would never be aware of, to expect. So in hindsight, da' had to do things himself just to prevent his little pint from dunking his head further in his thoughts. And so he almost did, so... that is why he had to do it, because he expected his son to turn on his inner doubt, whether he can trust what he is to confer or refuse. So in a way, he was merely testing the boy's sense of judgement. Doubtfully for you, but Brother is never a dumbass, anything cannot fall him over... but he still has a blind spot where foes can exploit though.

H-hmm, I think we are being flung off, let us go forth. As the man neared the Unicorn in order to hand off the Health Stones from the lad's hands so that he may do the treatment himself, before that, he gave the pink mare he harshfully grabbed against the ear brief, but a venomously deadpan gaze... a gaze that probably would give her the shivers for the following weeks...

The lassie smiled as bloody wide like a Giant embarrassed in front of the Æsir, as nervous as ever, shiverin' with all fear in her heart.... oh lads, this rarely ever happens to her, well, at least what I've heard about her...

Seconds passed and at last, our rotten toes unwraps the girl from his immense grip, sending the poor little creature crashing down the ground with a hard solid thud...

BSHOOK!! (Dust flying)

"Oowie-zowie. I can't feel my ear." She clutched her ear, the numbness almost unbearable from our Spartan brother's agonizing crushing hold. Such harsh treatment.. but she was finally let go after that short time of what it felt like torture to her... well, at least for now, if she never buggers the lugger one more.

Blowing a tongue scornfully in response to his harsh disposition.

Like usual in his mindset, the Ghost of Sparta paid that scornful entering ears absolutely no heed. Of course he need not, for he'd met history's load of a more fiery and ear-prickin' forms of derision and mockery for the Allfather knows how long, so such as this wouldn't be so much of a pinch on the skin for him.

Now closer to him, the lad then handed over the Health Stones to his father, him accepting shortly thereafter. Now with the stones in his possession, Brother then proceeded to face the unconsious Unicorn, lifting her frontal hooves up against the air with his other hand, he then placed the said stones underneath her and then, what did he do?

He did it...

BOOM! (Green energy exploding)

"Wait? What did he do to-"

"Just wait and see. You'll find out." The lad cut off the words of the pint-sized dragon who was a tad bit confused of what his father, the used-to-be God of War, was doin' to that Unicorn whose name was... Rarity? Yes, Rarity of course. No wonder her beauty's such a rarity, a fitting name for that characteristic.... If Odin ever chose to marry her instead of Freya, then she could've suffered bloody more worse.... another, she kind of reminded me of oh, yes... the beautiful ol'.... Eir. Sorry, kind of distracted there, but I'll promise I won't pull meself off too much... if I could.

"AAH!!, haah, haah, haah. Oh, that was horrid!" The Unicorn suddenly shot her head up from the dust, breathin' heavily as she did so. How the stone did its job well done, she was now awakened from her slumber of unconsiousness, oh thank Týr for that. Immediately after wakin' up, which didn't startle Brother though, only gazing at her, she began to shake off her mane to make it nice and neatly clean. Aye lads, she must be in heft when it comes to looks, no wonder she's this over-stylish, very sensitive to her appearance physical.

"Rarity! Rarity you're okay." The young dragon then shot up past Brother, striding for the Unicorn named Rarity, and then gave her a warm and affectionate hug. The Unicorn was startled a bit, but nontheless patted the dragon's shoulder in return, a big sigh of refreshing relief entering his lungbags, overpowering that of his worries, for now...

Aye, such irony of romance for the two... very, charmed.

"Of course I'm okay Spikey-Wikey, why should I be not okay? Well except for my mane of course, oh which is now a bit of a mess, and my fur...oh, looks like I would need hours of bathing to clean off this icky filth." She said, while lamenting all the dirt scrapin' on her fragile body as well as her now-scruffy mane. Aye, I've never thought she'd had this much vanity within her. She must've really careful concernin' her looks...

"Thank Celestia you're okay Rarity." From behind, Fluttershy came about for the Unicorn, Brother and the lad simply lookin' on at her as she galloped and went past him and straight for her, still beside the young dragon, more relieved that one of her closest friends was safe thanks to our Spartan brother although he wouldn't give a shit about that.

Linking eyes towards Brother, Fluttershy thanked him for the effort he somewhat exterted to haul her up from unconsciousness. "Thank you, Mister. Whatever you did to Rarity, thank you very very much." A snort in return, for he cares little about gratitude, while the rest is as shocked out as some of those ponies.

"Oooh, Rarity!" The pink pony suddenly jumped out of nowhere and began to give Rarity a tight and air-restricting hug against her, "Ooh, I was so, so, so, so, so worried about you. I thought you were a goner there!" Close to constricting the air out of the Unicorn, who wasn't able to escape her air-depriving restraint the moment she jumped in.

"O-k-kay, darling, I'm al-alright, (wheeze) you may-kindly..let..go..now." she continued to be crushed by the pink lass's monstrous hug until she finally let her go, the white Unicorn gasping heavily for that fresh, cool, life-givin' air. Now that's a what's callin' a feat of mettle for a wee little horse like her.

"So, are we good now?" The seconds of eerie asundered by the young lad, everyone locked eyes at him. As this goes on, the white Unicorn began perking up as she trained scope on Brother, she asked:

"Ooh, I beg your pardon darling, but, who is this humongus tall creature standing few distances from me? I haven't seen somepony like him around here, is he new? Is he from here? Or did he came from somewhere?"

"Excuse me? Some "pony"? You mean some "body"? The lad muttered, himself hearken of the ponies' useage of the word "somepony" rather than "somebody" as we are familiar with. It trapped him some interest. Aye, for it is true to be frank—no trace of mankind existed in this realm, not even a trace as a single bone, a femur, mention, legend or even records of their presence from an earlier time. In conclusion, the dominant race here, in every soil, location, kingdom, civilization, of land, sky, and oceans alike, wherever one would seek to bound, that would be the ponies—bit peculiar it was, even for me, lads, the way they twist our spoken vocabulary into their own fittings is quite something worth an assess...

"Um, Rarity, this is Mr.-"

With just a measly, but understandable huff, Brother held off the yellow amidst her sentence, not actually fond of that mutterance she gave the beard-bristled bastard, startling her a tad bit, but...

"Oh, sorry. Rarity, this, this is, um... Kratos, and that's his son, Atreus. And he saved me from those baddies." Again Brother didn't respond, just peeling eyes stiff at the Unicorn.

"Ooh, he may have been a meanie to me, but you should have seen it, Rarity. The way he swings his axe and beating up those baddies, it was so bl-" as she rambled, she stumbled from her slew of sentences when Brother, instantly alerted by that single her utterance of that word would probably risk the Unicorn falling into unconsiousness, once more gave her another sickening handful.... on her right ear this time, giving a very quick hoist.

"Do not tell her, everything, understand?" After piercing a small but painfully sharp hole in her fearful face as his eyes ignited with what fierceness he mustered in his petty irascibility, he demanded the lass. A shaky but giddy simper streaking her teeth, she nodded anxiously, before she was unhanded down shortly after.

BOSSHK!

The lass clutchin' her right ear in massive pain, while scoffing right at the man. C'mon Brother, you know better than spite innocent a creature like her...

"Somebody, oh of course, you're not ponies I see darling. Non-ponies usually say "someone" but "somebody"? I am sorry."

The Unicorn, whispering something inaudible following that sentence— being with a passion for fashion as well as a frolic for cleanliness, had saw in her jewel-studded sapphire eyes of what Brother was encompassing himself around, in other words sporting. An armor suited for battle and battle alone, it was seen as of a barbaric appeal as it was unclean, equally unclean as the bearer that sported it. Being somewhat of a fanatic when it comes to conditioned outfitting, the Unicorn was born, and held within herself a deep but a somewhat carefully mannered intolerance surrounding unkempt and uncivilized clothing, and she had always satisfied this intolerance with all weight of her passion by taking the most sanitary possible action to those deemed unclean and those riddled with filth. And that's precisely what she withheld in deep thought upon taking her first glance of the way the Son of Zeus was dressed in, the sight of it threw her at edge. And it disgusted her, for it was so dreadening to the point that, and, it would have seemed like she was ready to take her kindness out, to crackle her knuckles, to show the scruffy, filthy ruffian standing feet of her what she's capable of, how awful and brazenly fierce she can really be—

But...

She couldn't.

She'd never.

Instead of doin' so, doing what she usually wants done, what she does the best, she chiefly leverages, and the most elegant way provided.

She didn't.

She eased down.

Breathing an intake calm as a honeysuckle's petal floating down the cushion.

Her fire smoldering to a harmless ember.

Instead of doing a rash course of immediate action to do the dirt in, she lamented, but in her most slightest level of tone she could:

"Oh, look at that armor of yours, darling, it's so barbaric. And look at that beard etching your face, oh it's so densly scruffy, sweet stars. Sounds like it would need a little bit of shaving, and a bit of a large-scale embellishing on all of it. Are you inhabiting a life full of this awful, dreadful filth? I must say, that style of living is not to be accepted, not on this civilized community you won't. Not to worry, dear, when all of these shenanigans come at a close, I'll make you that the most gorgeous and stunning garment a gentlecolt like you would put on at my boutique."

Those words she described of his state fell on ears hard as a rock, as much as his ears are completely unsealed, for Brother, retaining his steel-stiff adamant stature, seemed to disregard every phrase and sentence the Unicorn was giving him. Just as so remaining firm on his feet, he responded, coldly for one:

"No. "

It did take the Unicorn a few feet back mentally, for the utterance of simple an answer as that meant refusal to reshape his state of wrinkles and spots. Before she would bring herself to retort back to that answer, the Ghost of Sparta battered her down to the headstart, continuing:

"What I wear, or look, or of my state of insanitation is not of your concern." Well, Brother is not that type of man that had a taste for fashion, not even engage.

"I beg to differ, but if I could just try to modify your armor to make it spit-spot-." She tried talking back, but was ultimately shut off as the husk of wrinkles concluded her that:

"It is not of your concern." The utterance being louder than last by volume of tone. Though simple, they told her, and told her only for the last and final time, to keep her hooves separated from tampering who he was outwardly, to tell her that her vanity is something that's never valuable at best, lest she wants to face a painful and fiery lesson from that furrow-brow that is...

Rarity tried to protest further, but... seeing the eyes of the man that burned with heated fury, eyes that tell her to keep off, whatever he had kept, she thought, away and miles from her vicinity. She gave in, and decided to lay off, leave his looks and everything unhampered the way the Spartan wants in his own preference. With a soft and humble sigh pumped out:

"Oh, I see, then. That's alright, darling. If you want to keep that look of yours the way you wish to prefer, then that would be tolerable with me."

"Hmmmmmph."

Spike: "Rarity, what happened to you? Did you dream something?"

"Oh, it was horrible, Spikey-Wikey. There I was back in the Carousel Boutique. Then we were attacked by these Storm brutes and Sweetie Belle was stuck in the closet. The ruffians were after her, but something was different about them. They glowed horrid blue and orange, and, and Ooh! The horror!" As soon as she uttered that string of syllables, I noticed that, what she was referring to when she described her nightmare and I thought, in my quippy own braincase....

"Hel energy and Seiðr magick... so that's what happened in that nightmare of hers. Hmm."

"And then what happened?"

"Oh, it was so deadly horrendous. Sweetie Belle...She...she-" the Unicorn's eyes began to open up a small tear, a tear filled with griefing emotion, so sad, that flows down from her eyes straight down her face. And then...

She cried.... she weeped of all the emotion overwhelming her lips, that emotional breakdown winning the fight against her lips, against the words trying to break free from her throat, breaking down her own steadfastness. Unable to fathom the dreaded conclusion that had stricken down someone, a significant other, someone she so dearly loved with all her pounding heart...

But as for Brother...

Oh no...

Just those words, and the sight of that emotional bout illustrated... it reminded him... of something....

Something unspeakable, terrible even...

Something he was to forget years ago....

His head, it started showing off some array of twitches, each one growing more prominent, with each buildup of twitching growing horrible and ever escalating like ice exhibiting slowly lengthening crevices from cracks that they had made existant with. Never leaving, only worsening. Its only purpose to bring about and excel torture. Nothing else but torture alone. Until that twitching eventually sliding, transforming into quick shaky jerking, so prominent and patent, that groped the feignin' attention of his nearby young son, inches next to him, it did.

"Father? What's wrong?" What he asked fell on deaf ears as his father's head begin to twitch on, jerked on something so familiar to him, so close to his brain, an attachment so firm and so closely held tight, that despite all these years, these periods of extreme endeavour, it would always remain with him, wherever he goes, whatever he does... inside his brain.

Never detatching.

Not ever.... it was a scene that reminded him...

A scene abstaining pleasantness. An everlasting scene. A scene that will always centrifuge all round, all day long as it damn pleased, around his brain. Constantly playing. Constantly showing itself, without shame. Without mercy. Without sympathy.

Nothing.

And would always haunt him for the rest of his misery-driven life, always a close and constant companion till the tail end of his own eternity, in the coldest, grimmest pits of Hel.

And finally, it would always remind him... of the despicable atrocity that this monster committed those years passed. A somber reminder... of the monster he had become...

Of what he had done.... years ago....

During his lifetime of ever-ghastly hells that constantly drove him mad for blood... mad as a Wulver...

A family member, two at most... mowed down, blood streaked... by a monster....

Aye....

That vision....

"Argh!" Brother growled out loud, falling to his knees as he quickly kept himself elevated using his two palms, planted against the cold, dusty marble floor, the dust flying along, being the only means of keeping him from impacting into a dark unconsiousness. Panting heavily, as it all began to flood his memory once more, coming back to haunt him, to make him tremble upon himself, completely blotting out the worried cries of his wee boy... and all others behind his ass... completely. What he feared.... what he was trying to rid himself of....

To forget...

It resurfaced once more....

Like mentioned... to remind him...

Of that monstrosity...

That night....

(Zooms into Kratos' eyes, initiating a flashback)

Kratos: IIIIUUUUAAAAAGH!!! (Blades swinging sideways)
Lysandra and Calliope: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!
Kratos: They were left in Sparta.
Kratos: AAAREEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSS!!
Village Oracle: The mark of your terrible deed will be visible to all. The ashes of your wife and child will remain fastened to your skin, never to be removed.
Kratos: AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGHHHHH!!!!!!

(Flashback ends with a screech, returns to Kratos' face)

Brother fell down.... for the horror he tried to erase, to forget, to put behind, it seized him, haunted him.... again, like a Nightmare that soared around sowing its nutrition of such nefarious nightmares.

Those harrowing images....

Of his greatest fatal mistake commited...

Aye...

But those who noticed that I was repeating the whole thing over and over... My apologies, just... trying to build a little bit of suspense on that issue... well, it's been far since I released word-full of these stories, must've gotten a bit rusty on the way... sorry, but let's just go with it. But I promise ye that I'll make shorter that suspense buildup...

Struggling to stand up by his hands, temple slumped deep down to the ground, the sweat of terror flowin' down his head.... for it... it, wasn't supposed to happen....

But because of one mere mention.... of a family member slaughtered by a monster....

It did....

A poor, a-hum.. miserable old bastard he is....

"Father! Hey Father! What happened?! What's wrong with you?!" The young lad asked his father, expression in the mix of confusion and was as worried as a giant in the frozen wastes of Midgard. Though much had been blown out ever since Brother had to, crossing no other choices, because of that bloody sickness. Not all had been exploited, however.

Two twigs intertwine as we speak, that the lad still did not aquire acknowledgement by his da's admission that he had bore himself a family long before the son. The family he had stained their innocent blood with... to be frank lads, he engrossed me with a lot through with his lifetime. I was supposed to spill everythin' to the boy, but, fearing for his response for such abhorant revelation, he bawled me off right on my face. And yes, it was true, if I have the lad ingest the molten ice relayed me by that wrinkle-skin, that could portend potentially hazardous outcomes, and the result would be borderin' on terrifying uncertainty, even for me, so that's where I put everything lads, for it may be risky, but that seems to do it, for now, if we could hold compartmentalization on that, that is...

The people surrounding the near-waste of bones shifted gazes on him, both loose and direct. Some exchanging glances for one another, some simply watching his plight, puzzled being the best choice of word to describe the response that dominated their heads, also some casting cascades upon cascades of murmurs and hardy-heard wording in regard to his weighted situation...

Some murmurs I can give ye:

Capper: "Hey, is he okay, he looks a bit...broke or something."

Mullet: "What's with him? Did his neck cracked or what?"

Lix Spittle: "I dunno what's with him, must be the the heat or whatnot?"

Calaeno: "What's going on with him?"

Fluttershy: "Oh, dear. Kratos, are you okay?"

As they kept on with their murmuring, the yellow one being the most worried of the bunch.

Ponderous breathing, sweat as cold as a snowflake dripping rivers' down, coiling, trickling, flowing down his thick, ash-white skin as it makes a quiet splash towards the ground, after that horrendous slew of endless visions he was forced endearing, Brother's breathing heavy with strain, synchronizing the aftermath of his traumatic breakdown. It didn't took much long, after picking himself back on his knees, though hands still a tad shaky after that he bridged through, and slowly but steadily rising up as his mind was slowly receding of the painful memories, slowly imprisoning them in ice, keeping them, holding from tainting his own cloud of thinking, his son behind him all the way, helping him get to his feet, it took little for his visions that plagued his mind perennial seemingly fading out. His head.... seemingly now empty of such horrid visions, as he slowly rose up higher and letting go of his hand from the ground panting still, and he was now quite.... fine.

Maybe.

"Father, what happened?"

"Nothing. Huff, huff... I am fine Boy."

"Bu-but, I saw you-"

"What happened to me does not concern you, boy. You need not mind it." Brother, speaking a rasp-stricken tone, stopped the lad before he could egg his load on, while the pink mare had considered helpin' him cheer up, but seeing the treatment he exhibited on her—and so she shifted her winds to the white one instead.

"Okay." The lad replied, deciding not to become a pester off his father's shoulder.

Speakin' of which....

The white Unicorn....who is still cascaded off every tears on eyes, dribbling with the upheaval of her most sensitive emotions, usually when it comes to all that drama trifle she always gets into. But this time's different I assure. A-a-hum, the dragon and the pink lass beside prodding on her real dearly as the horrors of what she told them about her younger sister felt like real, muttering something that somewhat, to me, told her to let everything out. Such a pity for a little damselfly as such, a poor prone tad snowflake shedding on a heap of snow indead. By Tyr's kindness do I feel so sorry for her back in that day.

I felt so sorry, so like, like willing to also provide a little bit of help, you know, sharing the pang of sentiment with those people—the reverberating of her sobs, growing intense, was as heavy as a block of ice, that by the milk of Auðumbla, in most ways the opposite of the lugger I was strung on—sure both of us, the boy included, are a good bunch, but... seeing as Brother is not of a type that drowns himself in pity, well—I... (sob) I was shot. Shot down with all the most profound duly, as if I lost myself a son if I had any, a father, or a brother, a family even, if I had them back with me for certain. Like the fires of sentiment assaulting the wall that contained all my tears. If that burnt to cinders however, I could have. I should have. But abstained I have, I had to keep myself shut, I had to remain strong, stone-stiff. Because that should pose some risk in front of everybody because you know (sob)—talking head.

Imagine that... if I ever lose two of my most humble friends a talking head would ever stumble, I'd probably feel the same quite frankly.

"Shhh, there, there, Rarity. It's only just a dream." The drake patted the Unicorn in the shoulder with all the sentiment he could offer, returned by a heart-warming wrap around his spine as she continued her weeping on his belly, urged to let everything in tears drip down, while the pink mare tried her silliest to cheer her spirits up.

"Don't cry silly-filly, cuz we're gonna beat the cakes outta Stormy Wormy and save Equestria! After which, we throw ourselves a huge party!" Heh, heh, heh, heh, even after all the darkness that plague her surroundings, no matter how many dangers she faces, or even how many times Brother hurts her this numerous much, she always keeps her smile tender and holds firm her cheerfulness... big as.... I'll be damned as a kick by a Draugr to the ass me lads, for what a fascinatin' lassie she is to have company.

As she wiped off her tears, "Th-Thanks, Pinkie Pie darling. I'm feeling better now." Then, with a newfound hope and determination surging within her inner system, nightmares she described blotted off by her spirit, the optimism that slowly heightened her energy steadily, all that valor heightening. After all the hardships she did to make it this far, a perk tall and as candidly steadfast, as headstrong as a man stranded in the unforgiving frosts of Helheim. And aye, with this courage bestowed upon her thanks to the jolly efforts that jolly lil' pony had offered, all tears she got rubbed dry in a nick, and in spite of all things under her medium relating to her looks and beauty, she declared, stiff and final as an unfearing Enherjar who stood true to his code in his very finest stand in the tides of war: "I may going to let myself fall down like a fragile lady I am. I may concern about my looks, I know I can't stand violence, brutality, and barbarism. But I will stand up. I'm not going to just let those scoundrels overtake Equestria and get away with it. If that meant for the sake of my friends. Then I swear to Celestia's crown that I'm willing to get my hooves and my mane all braced filthy if it's the last thing I do. That's what a true lady really is."

And that might you call, a daring and bravery-inspiring speech, and oh by Tyr's might, right in the bloody face of adversity and the ubiquitous terror it struck! This is what a true warrior's supposed to dwell for, what he's standing for, to struggle and fight for the honor and the best of what he holds dearest, be it the people or his homeland. And that lads, is why a true warrior never turns his back acoil on anything, no matter what it takes, or whatever odds standing his way.

"That's the spirit milady. Glad you're back." Capper responded clean as confindent for the lady.

"Yaaay." exclaimed the yellow Pegasus, with a very... faint voice. I'd say, her shyness really is quite the real thing for her innit?

"Oh, Thank you m'dear. Now let us fire ourselves up and kick—"

"WAAAAIT!! WE FORGOT SOMEPONY!!" The little pony we good people henceforth will refer to as—Pinkie Pie, interrupted what the Unicorn was dictating her objection—everybody collected together, hearing her wails, shot her various glances, with Brother doing so without any mutterance of anything, just blankly and silent towards her, never taking anything about her abhorantly ear-breaking tone of voice there, just being as frigid as there was a towering ice statue standing meters with the rest of our group here.

"What is it, Pinkie Pie?" Fluttershy asked her.

"We forgot Rainbow Dash and Applejack!" She yelled, everyone all gulp down each other's lungs the most heard gasps they had ever had haled in, for all those people seemed to know who Pinkie Pie was referring to, as won't the lot of us, since then back there we didn't even try guessing nor question who were they so shocked in for. Because we knew them, we saw it with our very wide eyes, and we can bet our bony withers that we, for our part, is already punctual all the way, only never giving the others not a semble of a word, nor be pointed.

We simply knew, knew before the others, nor can the pink pony, could even sum up.

Who those two she's refering to, that's right. You can easily guess it—two forms of life, lying on the dusty, and lifeless floor further in the background, surrounded by rows upon rows of those once-illustious, now gravely misshapen structures sprawling around, staring blankly, lifelessly, right down their lying forms.

The blue Pegasus.... judging by what Pinkie called her, is named Rainbow Dash. No wonder why she's called that lads. That mane of hers, it's in the colors of the rainbow, exactly like the very bridge that twines any realm to that of Odin's gold-ridden haven... a very apt yet peculiar way to name it.

And the orange pony with a hat... named, Applejack.

"Rainbow-who? Who they're talking to Father? Was it someone they know? Someone they, um..." Young Atreus to the 'da on who the pink one was pointing out to, but it seemingly fell on deaf ears, as his small baggy eyes kept peeling on into the surroundings, towards the world blacketed by the darkness that seemed to consume the delicate peace this realm runs on to—a type of darkness that seemed no ending as we speak, like it did occured naturally and perennially, and with the crumbled and sprawling structures that vary in built—all that lay in absolute waste littered with nothing but dust, to add grim aptness to the ordeal.

And as he, the former Fist of Ares, seemingly not confering heed to any word the lad's saying. And a great background of pure, ear-ringing silence dominated the whole atmosphere that all of us good people are forced to endure—broken only by the curious questions the boy tried relaying his 'da, and each time, time and time he kept on questioning and questioning, did he never took it in any way asserted, whether be by movement, a twitch... not even a swivel from his adamantine thick neck. But just as he is about to oust more and more from his tiny young lips...

He suddenly went dead.

Dead in the middle of his lyric...

"Father, are you even-" Just like that. At this moment that he had broken his slur of questions, as he had seen as the father's head had twisted his neck languid in the swift of the second.

Curiousity growing more hungrily, "Um, where are you looking a-" the instant he turned his eyes away from his father and into the direction of his head, he stopped, he narrowed his eyes to get a clearer look to what Brother's seen' from futher on the background...

What he saw surprised him a tad bit....

What he and Brother saw...

Was her...

The blue Pegasus...

"Hmm....Boy. Tell them. We found her."

"Uh, yes Sir." He understood what his father meant as he was turning himself to everyone behind him so that he'll be gonna inform them of what they've found...

"Hey everyone! We found something! Over here!" He cried in an echoing voice. As for everyone, who heard his cries, they complied and hurried for him.

As they were runnin' about, "Ooh, I sure hope Rainbow Dash's okay." Said the worried Fluttershy as she and her friends were on their way towards the boy, wasting no time to save one of her friends.

Their friend....

As they bound themselves off their way, further on the side of the rubbled structures, is a cage—a cage that contains—a lone prisoner. A prisoner who, just like an animal or a measly beast in a menagerie, has no way of escape, and no way to see the fresh light of freedom that he so longed to haul in. And he was a pony, like all that thrives his world. And he was a rather odd one considering his looks—lined with wrinkles on his features, and on his eyes a pair of glasses of sorts, tinted with a deep amber, and a smooth down and ruffled grey mane. By the looks of it and everything, he was very senile, and spoke with a voice no younger than that of Brother's... an old man's voice.

"Hey. Somebody get me outta these cages, I've got plenty and a ton of stories to tell, and I'm not supposed to be stuck in here sittin' around and crap. Hell, I'm not even supposed to be in this story. Hello? Somebody?"

No one answered, leaving this old pony to rot and wither for the rest of his ripen life.

"Oh... oh, gee."

"Oh well. Excelsior."

1 minute later

Everyone stood in front of Rainbow Dash. Aye, ice-cold on the dusty streets after that swift yet astonishing swatting she garnered from that magic-accursed fur-mess, lying on the floor, chunks and splinters of stuff accompanying her motionless form—well after all lads, she had hit many rows of hard and solid stuff the moment she was sent zoomin' out by that swat... so hard, that's going to leave a feignin' mark on her part. Just as everyone could broker even a small rustle, Brother landed with his son at the scene lastly just in time hoping to see the Pegasus for themselves, as soon as the boy saw her at last in more closer proximity, he asked his father:

"Is this the one they're looking for? That's the one Father?"

With only the feeblest of nods to a go, Brother gave his confirmation to that question as he continued his undetached gazing at the downed, almost out blue one. As everyone kept fixing on their eyes, the smart-ass conman... as they had worded me back then, broke off from his own blank sightseeing and, detatching from the group to step closer—down on his knee, he checked her out about on her condition, paws prowling around the fur as he prodded every part he could rub on, from the skull, to the tail, probably trying to feel his bloodiest the tiniest semblance of pulses from her pumping off her skin as her heart would pulsate in sustenance of life as we know it.

As everyone started to worry about her very life, well—scantly hopefully for them however, girl made her first but sudden swing of movement—she started to cough out dust, accomodating relief the lungs cool for one of her friends, thank the blessings of the Valkyries for that... sparing her from the bittery grasp of Hel and making it out most of her intact, barely.

"(sigh), she's okay."

Feeling relieved, he then told everyone.

"She's okay. She's breathing." Everyone showed expressions of relief as they're told that she was alright, having survived that horrid ordeal barely, her groaning heard all around as she tried hardly to pull open her eyes...

It was no use.

She can't.

The pain she sustained her delicate features was too much to seep in energy to even open her eyes.

The heavy toll of pain she sustained definitely put her system at this much levels of excruciation....

She continued to cough out more dust from her mouth, with some droplets of life-giving blood to mix in the contents, as everyone shot out various moments of worry and shock in response, in addition to the cake-colored mare's mane becoming flat again.

Rarity: "Rainbow Dash, darling."

Fluttershy: "Rainbow Dash. No."

Capper: "Rainbow."

There was a bleak moment of silence, the bleakest in a long time of chaos and carnage, the longest we have got into since, um... let's here, how could I put this, ehh—sorry lads, I couldn't remember my rusty ol' brain with that one, like I told ye, I'm still just fresh out of that damned tree and a fresh sprouting of reanimation from that point there.

Anywho, with the blue Pegasus named—Rainbow Dash—oh, fascinating—a-hum, still groanin' her throat. Everybody's face continued to look on in corncernin' worry. As everyone was going to express their sadness about her not-so-good bodily condition....

"Boy." Brother muttered as he summoned his son. Everyone didn't notice as they were too busy grieving over their pained friend....

Atreus: "Yes?"

"To her. Now." Well, well, well, for a big grumpy mellow shellhead, Brother actually kind of had a soft spot in him for someone after all....well besides his son and wife. He tossed another Health Stone to the lad in hopes of recovering the prone Pegasus nearby.

"Yes Sir." Catching the stones, he complied as he began coming past everyone straight to his intended patient, the Pegasus, to be remedied of her painful burden about with the Health Stone.

Atreus: "Don't worry. I'll take care of her, just hold on."

Capper: "Okay, I hope you know what you're doin'."

The long lad then lifted her hoof, followed by him placing the healing stones underneath her. Then, like before, using her held hoof, the lad slammed it at the stone. Boom! It goes...

BOOM! (Green energy exploding)

We slit a few seconds, a few seconds.... let's spit it together shall we? 1, 2, 3-

"AAAH! Ouuh!" The blue Pegasus suddenly shot up, startling the lad a tad bit, while garnering various semblances of relief and a fresh intake of the oh, the Ymir-bestowed flow of air within their lungs. Still unstartled though, he backed away a few inches from her. Barely even keeping her legs, the winged horse began to breath heavily as she struggled her worst to keep her legs at steady on her own weight:

"Wha-wha-what happened? Where did I-oof!" She was suddenly met with another one of Pinkie's deathly hugs, again... much like before, nearly squeezin' the feigning life out her withers, the precious supply of air she was desperate to inhale constrained off her nose, her spine nearly broken like a twig under the seemingly potent strength applied by the little squeaker:

"Ooooh, Dashie! Thank goodness! Oh, I'm so, so, so, so glad you're okay, we thought we lost you like for-EVER!!, Ooh, Dashie, please don't ever scare me again, okay!?"

Rainbow Dash: (squeezed voice) "O-o, okay...now...Pinkie, I-I-I..won't. I-I'm...okay now...please...w-will..you..let..m-me be n-n-now?"

Pinkie: "Oh, sorry Dashie."

Heh, heh, heh, quite an adorble yet a very deadly display of affection, eh lads?

Unwrapping her friend, she bounced around back to her bunch of good people. The Pegasus, of course, after that incredibly unpleasant experience she went through—earning a hammering hard to her skull, really did a profound jumble on her bones, but saying that she had only just lost a spit of it after all that befell on her temples—she asked:

"What the, where the hay am I, why I oughta, where'd that jerk go? Why I'm not finished with him yet! Grr, when I get my hooves on that creep, nopony messes with me and gets- WAAH! " As the arrogant flying horse hovered a tad around aimless seeking, fruitlessly, the Storm Guard that knocked the skull out of her, but the moment she got herself searching, she quickly finds herself bumping right into the face of someone—oh, by the Gods no, it's him, not this bag of muscle of all people.

Reminds me of the time when in a story that I was indelibly proud to enthrall me friends—the time when Thamur bumped into the one man met he doesn't like.... and was also his demise...

Thor.

"Whoawhoawhoa!!" the bluish girl sputtered as the grim tall man just close to contact made a very deep and roughly groaning out his neck, paddling her way back in her own confusion and surprise as said grimmed man kept on gazing his balls her way, hostility probably the most plausible disposition resonating on that stare, she thought, a little, ventilating her nose up with some apprehension as she offered back her own looking towards the man.

The Pegasus flew back to her friends, frightened after meeting face-to-face with the man staring at her coldly for the moment, behind the cat named Capper, askin' him:

"Who the heck is that, or should I say, what the heck is that thing?"

Brother snarled, lighting up slightly upon hearing referral from the girl about him as a "thing". Sure he tolerates being called such things, as he went through before, he simply rubs it away like they were of no significance, only takin' it as like an itch on a patch of his skin.

Capper: "No worries girl. He's a... a guest, a friend. Whatever he is."

The Pegasus still hid behind him, after a few moments, the yellow lass took the stand and inroduced Brother towards the blue mare, along with his son, her left stretched out for the two figures standing a pint of distance from her, the blue one turning eyes on the left's trajectory .

"Umm, Rainbow Dash, I'd like you to meet Kratos. And this his his son Atreus."

Turning to Brother, she then introduced the blue mare to him:

"And Kratos. This is Rainbow Dash, she's one of my friends." The lad simply waved at her in response to his introduction of each other...

Rainbow Dash: "Oh, I see."

Pinkie: "Dashie!"

Rainbow Dash: "Aah!"

Then out of the sudden, the pink lass from before appeared right on bloody cue and startled the blue Pegasus. What a silly little bugger she is, heh, heh, heh.

"Oh, you won't believe what Kratos did to those Storm baddies Dashie!! Wish you could've seen all the action!! He was like WAAH!! and then he was like HAAAAH!! and guess what, he beat all those meanies by himself! He was like crazy swinging his axe! It was the coolest, and not to mention extremly gruesome, but still the coolest, awesomest fighting I've ever seen!!(Imitates Kratos' swinging arms)"

Rainbow Dash: "Whoa, whoa, whoa, lemme get this straight, so this old geezer beat the living hay out of those jerks by himself. Pffff, I don't believe it. No way, there's no way that guy could beat this fast. Just look at 'im, I don't see any reason for him so strong, I don't see him have any muscles. I mean he's so old and scrawny, look, that he'll probably swing his axe thing straight to his flank."

Those slur of sentences, resonating of nothing but pure derision, scoff, and scorn, gave the overhearing man a little bit of trigger on his side, like a small dagger running through his heart of steel, it kept him departed from being easy—almost at the very edge of erupting all his white-hot rage out, the trajectory of the fire raging within his dark-earth eyes concentrated on the one that spat such mockery like a flurry of knives, or better, a broadside of swords. But he kept himself stiff, so hither to blowin' up, but stiff, calm, and restrained as he possibly could hold in, as so he couldn't so a thing so rash and impetuous as he'd be fool to alienate the lot of his company whom he sought to finish what he was embarking and hurl his ass back home on rugged ol' Midgard.

"And who's that little squirt over there, he looks like kind of a small dork."

Hearing this harsh mockery, the lad attempted to lash out at the insolent Pegasus, and thank the gods for the hand that tugs the feisty lil' goat kid back by whoever else but his 'da—the Ghost of Sparta.

"Boy." Brother. Though felt a knife gorging through in his heart, he managed to stop the boy from firing up a ruse that could consequently crumble down this newly-established alliance they had forged with these odd creatures. I never thought this lassie could be this full of herself, kind of reminded me of the Æsir back in the day—and aye that was some day that I came to regret, and as repercussion it cost me my arms and limbs, talk 'bout the way in how life is supposed to be livin': a life full of prices... hard prices that is forced to be paid with—especially when you talk about my case here—a limbless, helpless head with no ways of defense or, a proper way to artifice me own life whatsoever, just depending on anyone strong to keep me hoisted up.

Oy, enough bollocks, lads, can't afford carrying meself away in the wind ye know...

"Oh pffft, please, if I was there, I'll blow past that old hairy chin of his away when I perform my most a-"

WHOK WHOK WHOK WHOK

CHLLK!!

CHHIILLL!! (Ground cracking)

And the Pegasus was cut off in the middle of her own haughty boastin' when she felt somethin' swing narrowly near her at immense speeds, as fast as Mjölnir's own speed may compare, suddenly shockin' the big bolt out of the mare, as the winds that seemed to appear in her right all of a sudden to blow past her, tugging her colorful ol' mane into a fluent and smooth thicket, as well poofing out in a puff of dust and air the ego and all the pointless pride she'd exhibited seconds ago.

It was none other than the Ghost of Sparta, the still apparent monster who still seemed lived only to shed blood... slightly sacrilaged.... teeth a bit gritted like an angry Ogre....

One who never tolerates arrogance...

One who repudiates anything as dangerous, and as costing as pride...

What she just did somethin' so incessant... that it somewhat ignited the fire that burns still within him—the same fire that he tried to contain within himself.

He actually threw his dwarf-bestowed axe, the Leviathan, whose might and prowess possibly rival that of Mjölnir, straight at the Pegasus, but the idea was to narrowly and intentionally miss. Close enough as to not actually kill her. Just to keep her frozen and her pride dissipate.

The Pegasus gulped what spit she collected within her jaws, her large balls for eyes never refusin', even if she wanted to because she had done it. But she could never. Never will. As the person—the man, who threw his deadliest of weapons at whose trajectory only stripped off only little strands of hair from her head, continued to send a heated glare, a glare so hot, hot as the brightest flames maybe, a fire that rivals that of Musplelheim itself, that this alone would be enough to melt even the toughest metals of the Nine Realms, and even he could not do anything when everyone so close to him gasped their lungs out for what happened. Oh I tell ye lads—for the brazen mockery she spat out, the sheer but foolish boldness she tried, the arrogance, the pride, all things of great ruin, was something that she, to the Ghost of Sparta, Killer of Gods—dreaded, and would one day opt... to regret.

T O . B E . Ω . C O N T I N U E D

Another definition of a hero is someone who is concerned about other people's well-being, and will go out of his or her way to help them -- even if there is no chance of a reward. That person who helps others simply because it should or must be done, and because it is the right thing to do, is indeed without a doubt, a real superhero...

Nuff said...

STAN LEE
1922-2018

A T R E U S . B E S T I A R Y

CAPPER

Aside from those talking horses, called... ponies? I guess. Also, there's this strange cat-looking creature that also talks. I believe they call him, Capper is it? Oh yeah, Capper. Not much known have I got with this guy, or where he came from or what's he doing. (sigh) I seriously need to learn more and more about this weird new world and how it works.

Author's Note

Sorry guys for taking such a hell of a long long freaking long time. I really, desperately, and not lyingly need an extra hand in writing down the next chapters, and whoever helps me on the way, till the end of the line, will be credited by me. No seriously, I don't kid, I really, really need some of your help right now if I wanna make it out of this.

Wanted: Editor, with Docs

Before the next chapter I'll be dropping in a trailer of another story, connected to this universe.

Chapter 3 - The Cycle Ends Here, Once and for All, Part 2

E Q U E S T R I A N . Q U E S T S

E P I S O D E . I I I

THE CYCLE ENDS HERE, ONCE AND FOR ALL

P A R T . T W O

Narrated by Mimir

Aye, lads, although it was the most horrifying image she had ever seen before her sparkling blue eyes: the Storm Guard lying on the ground face-first with an axe stuck on his head, havin' been killed by somebody she did not expect.

However lads, Nothing could attract the attention of the yellow Pegasus, her very fragile being shaking at the very tip of her spine, all out of fear, and curiosity...to what she saw as the figure with the white skin, and the red markings, as well as the beard. Aye, what I'm referring to you lads is our good ol' Spartan brother.

The Ghost of Sparta.

"W-who-, who, a-are, you?" Spoke the yellow lass for the first time in front of Brother. Although he heard her speak, right on bloody cue. Still, son of a bitch wouldn't give a damn about what she was trying to communicate. Aye, he still continued to give the creature a very intimidating stare, a stare so fierce, cold, and steady, that it nearly shattered the consciousness out of the little lassie.

Then, for the first time in what she felt like forever, she felt more...

Safe... and at the same time,

more terrified...

Brother staring coldly at her. Then, for the first of what she experienced with our Spartan brother, she heard him speak his first words..right in front of her.

"Boy." Brother called, then out of the dust, his son, young Atreus came out to meet with him.

Standing beside him, he said, "I'm here, Father, Wha-", lookin' his eye around to the front, what he saw in front a' him, not only "Whoa.", gave him little bit of surprise. It also quite gave the lad the feelin' of symphathizin' for the poor, poor, creature, "It's one of those horses, but, look at it, Father, it's a good thing we saved it, from that guard, if we didn't, you could've known what happened to it."

That creature can talk? And that small one, he did too, I-is that his child, maybe, but I don't know how I'm gonna do this...but, I should, I should, I should-, the yellow lassie thought herself, not very sure of what to do now that she stood in front of our Spartan brother and his little son.

Not sure what to say, aye, but had enough guts to say a word to at least communicate, and get herself and Brother closer better. "E-e-e-excuse, m-me, Mister, c-can you tell me who you are, y-you saved my life from that c-creature, so, c-can you tell me, please?" She was expecting either a polite-soundin' introduction or a reason why Brother saved her life. But, all she got, are words, t'was a little harsh, but fairly didn't terrify the bloody lights outta the lass.

"My indentity is not of your concern, horse, now leave us be." Brother turned below to his son, "Let us go." He told him, as he started to walk off, away from her.

This terrified the yellow Pegasus a tad little, but had enough courage to still remain on the spot, not movin' a single muscle, to make any sudden bloody movements.

Then, when our brothers are about to leave, little Atreus approached the yellow lass and started to talk with her, communicating with each other as foreign beings, her gasping a little as she was now face-to-face with our little brother...a foreign creature...just in front of her face...for the very first time.

"So you CAN talk, just as we thought, well, we saw your city, so, did you horses built it? I mean, we saw more of you here, so, did they built it?" Lad asked her, the Pegasus a little nervous, but with enough guts to reply her back.

"Uh, E-excuse me, mister, but we-we're not horses actually, we're ponies, and y-yes, the ponies built the city of Canterlot, but y-you, I've never seen such a creature like yourself. You-you've seen me and everypony being attacked? B-but, why?" She asked, with nervousness comin' out of her body.

But the lad, finding the urge to help the little lassie, finds it in mind to maybe help the yellow Pegasus in solving this bloody crisis:

"Oh, that guy." Pointing his palm at what remained of that Storm Guard Brother just took down with his axe for the yellow mare to see, the lass covering her mouth in pure shock, being the timid type she was, "We saw everything, he was infected with Hel energy, we thought you guys are gonna lose. So we..sprung into action, no need to thank us though, especially Father."

This tad shocked the heart outta the yellow mare, her eyes as wide open as a Nightmare being struck by a bloody arrow. Confirming all the thoughts in her bloody mind, that the little one is INDEED, the large one's son, then came the thought:

So it is true, the one beside the big white, um...what is he anyway? That was his son, he was quite, nice. I don't know what I'm gonna do, but, I think I should know more about him

"Boy." Suddenly called out our brother, getting the attention of his son whom he was callin'. Approaching his son, while startling the young Pegasus a tad bit, "Leave her be, focus on what we are doing and do not distract yourself." He turned around, and left off, waiting for his son to come with him. Man, that Brother, he always does not care about...pretty much anything, whatever his goals were his one and only concern. Aye, that son of a bitch...

"Bollucks, Brother, respectfully, we should consider goin' back and mend her melancholy, just look at that sweet pitiful look, the poor thing has lost herself. After all, you saved her life from that big bloater."

"Quiet, Head."

"I'll be right there." Turnin' to the Pegasus, "Sorry, I better get going now, Father can't wait for me forever, but, if you'd like, you should come with us. That'll be good, if you wanna know much 'bout us." He said, causing the nervous little lass to grow a bit interested, her eyes as wide as well, sorry for repeating...a Nightmare.

"C-come with you? A-are you sure? I mean, I've been quite good with strangers here b-but, I've never seen or know what kinds of creatures you are..o-or if you're from these parts, I don't know, I-" She was interrupted when at this moment Brother started to call his son one more time.

"Boy!" He called, slightly intimidating the fragile little mare.

"Yes, Sir." The boy called out, but before he could go to his father, he turned to the yellow Pegasus. "I'll see you later then, if you want feel free to tag along, 'kay." He then left off for his father, the great fight waiting for them afar.

Meanwhile, The sweet little lass couldn't help it..but getting this kind of feeling, a feeling that proves warm to her heart, what little Atreus was treating him was quite the opposite of what his father percieved her. What this feeling she got from the lad, is a little taint of...

Kindness...

Aye, my friends, kindness...

Feeling relieved...However, the moment when she was about to be overjoyed, the yellow mare promptly lowered her ears down...tears flowing down her eyes that sparkle as bright as the light of the Bïfrost itself...feeling every single bit of regret as she lamented about her apparent weakness..and,....the inability to defend herself when the enemy she's tryin' to tame would turn against her will, at this very sorrowful moment...she thought:

I..wasn't strong enough...I can't even protect myself when those who won't turn good turns against me...I-I

She fell down into utter and complete...despair, the amount of tears aggravating more and more in her eyes as she continued to cry out her sadness...the thought that she thinks of herself...as pathetic and worthess...pitiful, aye lads...

But wait...

What's this...

Lads, take a closer look...what you've seen now, is waht is contrary to what ya think is going to happen next..oh, this had better be good.

The yellow mare slowly, but steadily...lifted her head up, the pink mane that flowed very down covering her surrowed face had slowly slid from her face...and the look on her sweet, fragile face...very ditfferent from what we've seen earlier...judging by the look on her eyes, narrowed...deeply narrowed..as narrow, as the bravest Valkyrie that you've seen in your lifetime, aye, a very..brave, Valkyrie. What we now see in her face, is not of fear...but of rather...

Determination...

Aye, pure, unbreakable determination...

"No..I won't..I maybe shy..timid..and easily scared..but..but..I...will, I will never give up. My friends need me...I'm not about to give up hope right now, there's still hope, still hope for my friends. That's why I must keep going, to fight what we feel is right, to fight...for the sake of..Friendship...Friendship may have failed me, or them..but I won't fail Friendship, that's why...I must..keep going!" The once-fear stricken Pegasus was suddenly fueled with a huge amount of hope and determination in her heart, as she began to stand up on all of her legs, her face now as bold...and as tough as a Valkyrie, now filled with a new sense of confidence within her, eager and swore in her that she will never falter again, she will face the dangers ahead of her...and she will never fail her friends...now that is what I call some determination, aye lads.

The yellow pegasus, now filled with utmost determination, galloped off in an effort to find the two people that saved her very fragile life: the Ghost of Sparta and his son, so that she, along with them, will face the great danger that's about to befall upon them.

Meanwhile...

"This is it, darlings! It's been nice meeting you, you were also very kind Capper."
The white Unicorn with the swirly mane exclaimed as she and the cat creature who wore a jacket are about to face their ultimate fate, stickin' their bloody backs to each other as they are surrounded by the huge swarms of Seiðr-empowered Storm Guards while the pink mare "Same goes for you too, My dear.", behind the two, pulled out a piece of paper and a quill from who knows where and began to write her Will. The rainbow-maned blue Pegasus still remained unconscious after the swattin' she took from that other Storm Guard. The orange mare, also the same, after facing such a devestating blow from the same one.

While the white parrot and her crew, also about to be facin' the same fate, holdin' their hands together in a circle as they too,..were swarmed around by those same empowered Storm Guards and some Storm Guard Hel-Walkers, it all seemed like,

The End...for all of them...

"It's been an honor fightin' with you, Captain Calaeno." The green muscular parrot told his parrot captain, who appeared to go by the name of...Calaeno, am I right? U-u-hum anyways:

"It's been fun hangin' with ya, Captain, it's been an aventure....and probably our last..." The pink parrot said before he closed his eyes, ready for what's comin' upon him and his mates.

"Yeah. We fought hard, but wasn't enough, looks like,..this is it, my crewmates." The one named Calaeno said before closin' her eyes as well...ready to let them: their fate...take her and her crewmates' lives...

Or did it?

Maybe...

That was...

Until...

(shwing)

WHOK WHOK WHOK WHOK WHOK

THSSSLK!!
THSLK THSLK THSLK THSLK THSLK THSLK THSLK
TSSHELLLK!!! (Blood splattering)

Still closin' her lashy eyes, just as she was about to be finished off by the Storm Guards...

Nothing...

Nothing's happenin' to the lass at all...

The parrot creature named Calaeno...she opened her eyes slightly, but still waiting for the moment that she's about to meet her maker, she opened them more so that she could see what's goin' on. The moment she opened her eyes...wide and fully, they went more wide, as wide as the eyes of her pony friends, as what she saw definitely confused the livin' shit outta her lads. Totally...

The Storm Guard that was about to finish her off just stopped what he was supposed to do, confusing the parrot captain even more. After a few moments of standin' still like an ol' statue of Thor...he started to go down...that's right lads, he collapsed, collapsed like a tall pillar of a temple, but the moment as did so:

Thhhshlk. (Flesh sounds)

His head...

It fell off...

Yikes, hsssss, tch tch tch...

It defenitely but slightly frightened the livin' sun outta parrot captain at the sight of this...gruesome display of death. Her face...filled with nothin' but fear, and confusion...eyes wide...jaw or should I say...beak...dropped hard, like a heavy hammer much like Mjölnir...for what she now saw in front...is completely terrifying, absolutely terrifying to every corner of her bone and flesh...as what she saw wasn't anythin' she always saw in her life as a "swashbuckin' captain" uh-hum excuse me. All of the guards that surrounded her...they all collapsed, in a wee similar fashion to the first one. And like him...their heads...

They also slid off and fell...

The level of such violence...

Is beyond comprehension...

Very, very, gruesome...

The other parrot crewmates didn't know what was happenin' all of a sudden, so they opened their eyes as well and much like their captain, they all froze in complete and utter shock of what they just have witnessed before their very eyes. Every last Storm Guard that was supposed to execute them were all but cold, stone-hard, headless corpses...decapitated...by somebody, but the question is...Who? Who is the one responsible for commiting such a terribly barbaric deed? That is when the green one which I believe his name must be...umm...Mullet, am I pronouncin' it right, a-hem lads alright...Mullet. That is when Mullet started to ask his captain on what happened to that guards, "Captain Calaeno, what jus-" when suddenly he was cut off his own words, along with the captain and crewmates, who are abandoning their attention on the bloody corpses when they suddenly heard somethin'...or someone...

Screaming...

"RRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"

"What was-" Calaeno was about to ask when she saw something, or should I say someone, plowing out of the dust. Then, out in the open...

"HAAAWAAAA!!''

PUSHLK!!!

(Slow-Motion)

CRACK!!

A Storm Guard flew through the air and crashed into the ground and remained motionless, his mask completely shattered, revealing what was once a face now horribly unrecognizable and fuckin' caked with blood and gore. However, her attention soon turned to the one that caused all this,.

It wasn't anythin' she'd ever seen in her adventures with her crewmates, a being unlike any other. A species of an unknown origin... .

A creature...

A warrior...

A brute...

A killer, at least to her opinion...

Aye, lads...once more, he returned...back in action. You can guess who was that. The same tattooed creature from before...

Our brother, Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta, had made his most glorious and most violent entrance...

https://m.

(Normal Speed)

"YAAH!!" Brother unleashed his war cry as the Storm Guard he just pummeled in the face with his bare fist landed on his back in a very hard thud, before landing victoriously, grabbing the attention of the parrots and the ponies upon him, but were cut off as they heard yet another but, younger, yelling...

"Ulfr Hlaup!"

(Atreus leaps out of the dust in arrow shooting position in mid-air, Slow-Motion)

Then out of the sudden blue, his son, little Atreus, came out next, jumped out of the dust, his bowstring in hand. Of course as we heard those familiar words spoken from his lungs.

Aye lads...

That move...

It happened...

Some of the ponies, the cat, and their parrot friends hadn't got this much time to process what was really goin' on, and who are these mysterious creatures and why they came out of bloody nowhere, as they are forced to dodge somethin' that might probably kill them...

They noticed them...

As our little brother shot his arrow. Sooner...Oh, it was a big amount of hurt for the bad guys. Because sooner...A large pack of electrified wolves began appearing out of thin air and began maulin' the bloody crap out of the remainin' Storm Guards and their Hel-Walker selves, one-by-one. Everyone down was forced to dodge this ferocious assault, while this happened, the pink pony, began to bounce around the assaultin' pack as this was some sort of playground...of death! Why, as she bounced around, "Wheeeee!! This is super fun, hey doggy, wanna play?!" She yelled as she was havin' fun with the spectral wolves, completely oblivious about the risks she takes her life in. She even tried ridin' one a' them...but was subsequently given the...literal...shock, of her lifetime. Aye, ouch...electrocuted like the crazy attitude she was, she landed to the ground, a hard bonk to her clanker.
Heh, heh, heh, silly little lass, you should know better than ridin' things as dangerous as them...

With everyone watchin' on the sides, what they saw completely left them in total awe. Their eyes as wide as ever, well except for the crazy green parrot, who simply squawked all the way. Aye lads, the rest looked on in utter display of total shock..as what they saw was the true pinnacle of ferocity in battle. Yes...ferocity, one of the greatest attributes of a true warrior, a warrior just like Brother was already. That hit their bloody faces real hard...

I mean...real...hard.

"Timberwolves?! Why are timberwolves here?! And why do they look like ghosts?!" Oh, lads, did I forgot to mention that the group of ponies also had a dragon...yes...a dragon. A rather, pint sized one...a baby...wee bit tinier than the dragons we have back in Midgard but, yes lads you know it...

"Pinkie! Pinkie's in there! We gotta get her outta there." The young dragon called his pony friends...but help was already comin' to complete his pleadin' when...

"Got it, I'll get her!" The hippogriff we saw earlier just made her sudden comeback after some time of absence, on her way just in time to save the still-knocked down pink mare, who was still as black as crispy roasted deer...delicious don't you agree?... A-a-hem anywho, the hippogriff descended mid-flight, snatchin' the poor unfortunate pink mare before she would be trampled...and cooked up, by the rampaging spectral wolves, haulin' her to her friends...to her safety. Phew, that was close, aye lads.

As the ones in the sides now in their safety and out of the rampage, they still looked on in complete awe, as well as shock...well for the white Unicorn, disgust....what they had witnessed was a true spectacle of what we call a battle....

All the violence...

All the gore...

Will be at its finest...

Back to Brother, he plucked his axe from the dead Storm Guard he just hit, gettin' ready to face the real threat facin' his very front. He then readied his axe, called the Leviathan, that contained all the magic of a hundred Ice Trolls. He charged it up, causin' the blade's glyphs to glow bright blue with all the might of its icy magic before it became encased in a decent amount of ice, before he proceeded to do it...

Aye lads...

"RRRRAAARRGH!!"

He spins his axe for a moment before enticin' its frozen fury into the ground. Roarin' a mighty scream, he slammed the axe with all the force of its icy power, sending a huge shockwave that instantly froze all that surrounded the Spartan.

"EEEYUUGH!!"

Brother, with all his strength, threw his axe infused with the power of winter itself straight into the frozen statues of his enemies...

TSHHH TSHHH TSHH TSHHH TSHHH TSHHH TSHHH
TSSSHHHHHLLL!!! (Ice chattering)

shattering the life outta all a' them...one by one. It was horrific...but at the same time, spectacular...for our part. Chunks of the Storm Guards' remains were littered all around the floor, along with pieces of shattered ice, spilled in blood....

The level of violence I tell ya lads...

Am I repeating myself?

Sorry...

Back on the sides, while the parrots and the baby dragon watched on in the same expressions I told ya before, terrified and in surprise at the same time, the pink mare just sat on a chair, eating a box of what we call popcorn, what an exotic delicacy it was, and was wearin' what we call glasses of some kind, all of those she got from who knows where..."This is so fun!! All that phssw!! And that pow!! And that wham!! All that swinging that axe!! And ooh, those ice powers!! Take that you Storm meanies!! This is super-duper marvelous!! I wanna see more!! I wanna see more!! That timberwolf summoning thing!! I wanna see it again!! X!! Triangle!! Square!! Circle!! Wheeeee!!" There we go, as rambunctious as she can be she yelled with all excitement in her heart. Well, as for the white Unicorn's part...well seein' all of the barbaric display in front of her eyes, must be a wee bit sensitive if I should know...

She fainted on the spot...

All that hippogriff had to say with the events transpiring in front of her are:

"Whoa."

Back to us, me included, Brother was simply standin' there, seemingly finished with his end of the business with his foes. Victorious and a bit exhausted, panting a bit, he was followed by his son who now stood beside him, havin' survived the battle himself.

"How'd I do?" He asked Brother.

"Better as always, Boy." He answered, as he turned his sights from his little lad...to what was watchin' in front of him, all wearin' surprised looks on their pale faces. But that was about to be cut short as was there is about to be somethin' behind us we wouldn't expect. Someone is tryin' a sneak attack behind us...there was still another one, seekin' behind our unsuspecting Spartan brother in an attempt to ambush him, if I weren't there, Brother could've suffered bloody greatly. So, what did I do?

"Brother, behind you!" I called on to him. Alerted by my call, in a quick and rapid instinct, Brother lowered his head forward, and the moment hid did so...he catapulted his thick, hard head backwards in a rapid succesion and then...

(shwing)

Bonk!!

DSSHHHLK!! (Blood splattering)

(Slow-motion, X-ray of the skull cracking)

(shwing)

Aye lads...he did it, he slammed his head behind, smashing what was tryin' to pounce on him from behind but was bloody thwarted the moment he has done it...a Storm Guard, no. A Storm Guard infected with Hel energy.

A Hel-Walker...

(Normal speed)

Cracking his mask open, and as if the entire world had slowed down at this very moment. Brother then proceeded to throw his hands backward, grabbin' the unfortunate bastard in his shoulders, then....he flipped the big dobber to his front like an Olympian and then slammed him into the floor with a hard crack that sounded like bones fracturin' in its own weight, on the floor of the streets of the now-ruined city with all his hulkin' might and ferocity...

(X-ray, Storm Guard's spine breaking apart)

It absolutely was painful...aye lads...a level of pain not reacheable even by this world's standards. Besides the level of violence of course.

A very excruciating...

Hard...

Spine-breaking...

CRACK!!

Ohh, those sounds...

and unbearable, pain...It was the most horrifying sight ever saw by the still-awe stricken audience watchin' the fight, eyes widened in pure terror. This is even comparable to the pain that I myself suffered at the hands of Odin and Thor before they got me into that prison of a tree.

"This is too much for me, I-I don't wanna watch." The baby dragon exclaimed as he turned around, his claws coverin' his terror-stricken eyes, deeming the violence displayed in front of him, too gruesome...too much nightmare-inducing...too violent. The rest simply watched on, their heads unable to process what was going on, where these creatures came from or why are they even here, but all questions were simply out of concern. As the violence displayed in front was too much..too much...even for the likes o' them...

R1-R2 (rapid tap)

Anyways, to his credit, Brother held the Storm Guard now at his bloodthirsty mercy by his legs. Unable to escape, the Storm Hel-Walker tried to escape, flailing his arms around but was bloody useless as the Ghost of Sparta forced his legs to him with just the mighty grip of his arms. Then, as the struggle of the guard keeps goin' on...

His face...

The bastard's prone, soft and vulnerable face....

It was met with a hard slam by the foot of our Spartan brother, but still keepin' his resilience, bastard keeps strugglin' his way outta the grip from our deadly Spartan here, but it was no use....

No use at all...

Useless...

There was no escape for that slow son of a bitch...

He was met with another hard stomp by the same fella.... aye...a very...hard one. His flattened face exploded, bursted with huge amounts of Hel energy, spreadin' around the bloody surroundings...as for the guard, no longer movin'....only twitchin, dead....

All but bloody dead. His legs let go by Brother, his son watchin' on....seemingly unaffected by the amount of violence shown in front of him despite his wee age, but, he simply watched on, confusing the audience watchin' him. Well, they expect the lad to scream his lungs out at the gory spectacle shown in front of him.

(Pant, pant)

Panting, for it was over, for now...Brother stood up to catch his breath, his son walking beside him, as he did so he would say:

"That was...close. (pant) (pant) Father, are you-"

"I am alright, Boy." Brother answered his question as he stopped his panting. Lookin' at his son.

"All thanks to me, brothers." I proudly said, but concernin' the creatures watchin' us from the other side might be in a bit of a fright, Brother silenced me. Now that's one bad way treatin' someone who helped him out during that fight, if it weren't, son of a bitch could've been a bloody goner, but aye, nothin' I can do about it, I'm just a head now you know....

"Quiet, Head, they will hear you."

"Sorry, Brother." I apologized...

As Brother already caught up with his breath, the Storm Guards he mercilessly slaughtered...they all disintegrated, all gone, vanishin' into thin air while leavin' behind clouds of sparkly Hel energy and Seiðr magick, all flutterin' into the air. As this was goin on, Brother and the young lad heard a noise, no....noises, from behind

The noises of feet, or hooves...galloping.

to our tiny surprise, the young yellow Pegasus from before, whom we just left back in the streets where we killed a Storm Hel-Walker...she's back, havin' followed our bloody trail ever since she had found her new sense of determination. But what confused the little lassie a tad bit, was that...

The battlefield....it was....empty.

No Storm Guards on sight...

Just Brother, his son, and on the further behind...her friends...

All safe and sound, well...almost.

Then she came across the two beings responsible for it all, yet unbeknownst to her...but still lads, she had the guts to follow them here, no sign of fear..weakness....nothing. Upon lookin' at the two, the yellow Pegasus set her sights at the boy, who began approaching her. A few moments later, the two were now face-to-face amongst each other, the timid mare backing a tad little:

"Oh, it's you. I thought we left you back there, you decided to follow us?" He asked the young lassie, who was a tad bit shy bein' asked by the lad, but with some courage, she replied:

"Well, I-I was thinking that you might help my friends, so-so I decided to follow you, i-is it bad for me to follow you?"

"No, it's okay. I'm glad you came back."

"Oh, I-I see, but still, mister, I-I didn't got your names yet, when we first met, I-I didn't catch who you are. Who are you?" She asked, curious to know more about the lad and his father.

"Oh, right, Atreus. What's yours?"

"Tha-that's a very nice name. I'm, I'm, Fluttershy." The sweet yellow Pegasus named Fluttershy....oh....Fluttershy, eh. No wonder she's this easily intimidated. Anyhow Fluttershy introduced herself in a rather, low, almost quiet tone o' voice, well considering her rather, well...shy...demeanor of course lads.

"Come again, I didn't hear you."

"My name is...Fluttershy." the lass spoke a bit louder and this time, young Atreus can hear her.

"Oh. Nice to meet you." He held out his hand at the timid Pegasus, her at first refusin, lime I said considerin' her shyness...but nonetheless gave out her forehoof and touched each other in a well-warmed greeting.

"It's nice to meet you too Atreus. And your dad-" the curious Fluttershy then let go of the young lad's hand, and went to our Spartan brother, who's simply lookin' somewhere in the front, and began to ask, "You mister, are you Atreus' dad? What's your name?"

Brother then turned his head at the little Pegasus, who was givin' him...oh...the most innocently adorable face he'd seen in his eyes. Her eyes, well...big, blue and sparklin' like gold, so adorable, that almost nobody can resist its charm. But nonetheless...all the Pegasus got from Brother...was a single, neutral chuff from him. Aye, just a chuff. After a few moments...he turned his head back to whatever he's lookin', not carin' about who he's looking at.

Not ever....

"Umm, Sir? Didn't you hear-" She was cut of when the son walked beside her...

"It's no use. That's just what he is. Let me introduce him to you. He's Kratos, my father." The lad introduced Brother to the young Fluttershy for him, quite a stubborn grump he is as always, don't you agree lads?

"Oh, that's, that's a good name."

"No, not really, you do not wanna know what his name literally means." The Pegasus was about to ask the lad another question but...in the end...she sighed...and nodded, for the sakes of Brother's secrecy...

Then there was a moment of complete silence....

"Well, that was a rather...gruesome display you did there sir." All silence was broke off when the cat standing beside the parrots, began to walk and come towards our Spartan brother, quite describing the gory display being showcased in his front, as he came closer to him, his son came by his side toward him and faced him eye-to-eye lads, we, and the ponies have...somewhat...officially met for the first time, and here's how it goes:

"Oh, hey there little one, I see you're the ones who saved us from the Storm King's goons, did you not?" The cat asked the lad, although he slightly flinched at the fact that he was actually talking to a creature not of his world, but...

"Yeah, we did. And you. You actually ARE a cat, well a cat who can talk and stand on twos and wearing clothes. But, are all cats like this?" The lad said while describing the cat's rather odd posture.

"Well, not all the time, kid. But that's strange, if you know I was a cat, then how can we not know what you are? We've never seen creatures like you around these parts." The lad was about to say somethin' back, before his father interrupted with his rather....deep tone of saying it.

"It is because we are not from here. You do not even know us." Brother began to speak regarding what they are...or where we're from...

"Ahh, you sir, finally having the urge to speak up, eh? Well, what you did there, that was a bit brutal, I mean, c'mon, there are kids around here." The jacketed cat spoke to brother in a rather...calmer tone.

"That does not concern us, cat. We did what we had to do here." Replied Brother.

"Oh, I see, not the concernable type. Well, I should be talking to your, judging by him always by your side..your son a bit more, he's more fun to hang with than you."

"Hmm, fine. But do not lay a finger on him." He said while keeping his narrowed eyes staring straightforward at the snarky feline.

"Oh, I won't, I won't, after all, son's always gonna stick to his daddy, don't you agree kid?" Cat faced the boy, still staring at him in a rather indifferent expression.

"Well, not all the time, Father always lets me do my thing whenever I'm ready." Young lad replied.

"I see. You sir, do you always order your boy around?" The cat asked Brother.

"Not all the time. But I discipline him when he loses control."

"Ahh, managing his anger issues I see. Say, what a good father you are, friend," the cat complimented his ways with the lad as a father. Him only replying with a chuff.

"Umm, yeah he is, why do you ask?"

The cat began to walk around, circling Brother AND young Atreus back and forth as he was sort of..inspecting our bodies to see what we had in store in our sleeves, until he noticed the bow of the lad. Coming towards it, he began inspecting it, laying a finger once done so...causing our Spartan brother to mildly snap at what he's bloody doin' with that bow...

"I said do not lay a finger on him-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, easy there, Snappy-pants. Just checkin' on your boy's bow to, kinda inspect what was with it. You know like checkin' it out. See, not laying a paw or a claw on his skin, just the bow." He reasoned Brother. And aye, seriously, why he should be just getting along with these fellas for at least once, well at least to me they're friendly...

"Hmm, fine. But only the bow. Touch his skin..." he pointed his finger at the cat as and sign of aggression and a threat. Man, is he a big grump.

"I'll be fine Father. You don't have to be like that all the time." The lad looked at the jacketed cat, "Okay, sir, you're free to check out the bow, hang on..." he removed his bow off his shoulders and as he did so...

"See, the kid's right. Nothing to worry about, I only just want the bow." Brother replied with a snarl. Dammit, again him expressing how easily irratated he always was...

The lad then handed his bow over to the cat, him taking it gladly. Now with the bow on his paws, he began inspecting it. First off, he handed the thing onto his nose and he sniffed it off part-by-part so that he can find something funny about it....does it have to be this bloody way? Aye, never mind, after all, cats have an excellent sense of smell. Anywho..after sniffin' it, finding nothing of a smell but the usual smell of wood. He then decided to test out the bowstring's toughness, the witty feline then held his thumb and finger on the string, slidin' it sideways, the boy watchin' as he did this, but as for Brother...he simply looked on, seemingly unimpressed...and slightly irritated...

"Interesting." He said as he turned the bow around on his paws, scaling every part, every area of it with his eyes, checking out if there were some things strange about it, well...he found, nothing.

"Well, can I have it back now?" The lad asked, wanting to have his bow back from the cat.

"Wait, wait, still checking for more." He got an even more closer look at the center of the bow....nothing, he found nothing interesting about the bow, "Done, here kid." He gave the bow back to its rightful owner. Handing it back, the lad placed his bow back to his back.

"That certainly quite an interesting bow you have kid. Now, about those ghost wolves I saw earlier mauling the Storm creatures, that was the work of your bow, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah. But don't ask where it came from, we'll tell you...the rest of the way, how's that."

"Fair enough", the cat exclaimed smugly as Brother looked on. But after a short while of complete silence...

Someone spoke up...

"Hey you!" Someone called, the voice probably going into Brother's attention, grabbing it, he turned around to see who was calling the voice, and it was...

"Yeah you, the one with the white skin." It was the parrot captain, named Calaeno, well just fresh outta her bloody long stupor, got the urge and approached our Spartan brother, quite giving her the interest at what she saw in him. Walking towards him, she complimented the Ghost of Sparta's way in fighting the Storm Guards "That was very impressive you two, although what I saw would probably scar anyone's heads for life, but...that was very fierce of what you did with the Storm King's goons. I'm quite impressed."

"And what do you want with me, bird." Brother demanded...aye, as usual he can always be lads....rude.

"Oh, where are my manners, I'm Captain Calaeno by the way, and these three are my mates, Squabble, Mullet, and Lix Spittle." The three parrot mates greeted us quite...simple. The green one named Mullet winked. "Hey.", was all he said to him. the small pink one named...Lix Spittle was it? U-hum, Lix Spittle, right. He simply waved at us, sayin' the usual "Hi." at him. The crazy-lookin' green one, named Squabble...well...all he did...was squawk, that's right lads, squawk..like your average parrot at sea. Brother simply looked on the three, completely indifferent..yet, he found a tiny hint of interest at the one named Squabble.

"That one does not talk." He noted at that crazy-eyed green parrot, finding the fact that he only squawks..not speak.

"Well. Squabble doesn't really talk that much." She said, Brother only replied with:

"Hrmph..."

Later, the burly green parrot, Mullet, came towards the Spartan and also complimented his capabilities against the empowered Storm Guards, despite his...current age.

"Wow. You know, for an old timer, you were pretty good yourself, to think you can handle those freaks." Again, Brother replied with a simple but quite acceptable chuff..."What? Not quite the talk are ya?"

"I'm sorry sir, Father doesn't really talk that much, only when necessary." The young lad grabbed the attention of the green parrot, lookin' at him with a questionable look, before turnin' back to his father.

"So, little boy's got a point, I kind of like him more than you." He said, before turning back and returned to his crewmates.

A few minutes of awkward silence...

"Well hi there!" Then suddenly, outta the bloody blue, the rumbunctious pink mare from before jumped in front of Brother, givin' him a little bit of flinch, but was not fazed all the way, bouncing and bouncing in front of him while:

"Ooh, thank you so, so much for saving our flanks out there. If you weren't there we would've been goners. That was super-super-duper amazing ot what you did to those Stormy baddies! You were all super-crazy with what you did to those meanies! Ooh, thank, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank YYYOU SOO VERY MUCH!!" as she went on ramblin' like a chatterin' madman, bouncing around our Spartan brother on the way, then she suddenly appeared behind him. Unstartled, he turned his sights on the lassie behind while still kept on ramblin' innecessant nonsense. "Ooh, what's with your axe? Are you a logger or something? And those two big knives? They look aweful scary. What recipes do you make using them?" She was shaked off by Brother, who is now beginning to get her on his nerves...uh-oh.

She then appeared face-to-face in front of our Spartan brother, once again still unfazed by her surprise appearance, again with her rambling, "Do you wanna be my friend, Mr. Alien? Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie. And I'm the Element of Laughter and you know what that means? I'm the best party planner in Ponyville and I turn every frown faces in all of the world upside-down, Do you like parties? Oohh, I love parties! I plan the best of the best parties of all. Do you love having fun? Because I do, a came up with all sorts of crazy fun parties for everypony here! Do you like sweets? Because I do, I love candies, cakes, ice cream and all sorts of sweet stuff! Wait, I don't see your face even having any fun at all. Do you-OOH!" She attempted to stretch Brother's lips to make a stupidly silly grin....but as she tried so, she felt something grab her by the ear...ya guessed it lads.

Aye lads and lassies, Brother....now more than pissed off at her incessant rambling. Instead of makin' him smile wide as she was supposed to do, all she did, was make him even more agitated than ever, grabbed the noisy little mare by her ears, pulling her directly to his face. Not good, as the lass will have to face the bloody wrath of our Spartan brother, facing him with very narrowed eyes and barely-shown gritted teeth...a sign of complete anger, she smiled...bloody sheepishly, hopin' that he wouldn't dare hurt her, but as he continued his wrath-filled stare at the now-terrified lassie's face, until...

"You will not bother us, ever again...horse....I am warning you." he told the lass as she continued to slightly shake in fear, teeth barely showin' any chattering, a tad bit realizing that what she's dealing with is someone not to be pissed of with, to be taken with utmost caution. Seriously brother, bollocks, you don't have to be this harsh, the poor lass can't help herself, yes. What a killjoy he was.

"Okie dokie (gulp) loki-AAAAOOOOUCH!!" Brother's grip on the pink mare's ears grew even tighter, nearly crushing the huge pain outta the poor, poor lassie's left ear. Ouch, now that is going to leave a very numbing mark on her part...

"Awwwww, you big meanie."

"Quiet! Or your ear comes off." Aye, that's just Brother...

"M-Mr. Kratos, y-you have to let Pinkie Pie go, she-she didn't actually mean to-"

"Quiet, Girl." Brother silenced Fluttershy...who tried reasoning him about his painfully harsh treatment of the pink one named...Pinkie Pie, oh..no wonder why she's named like that...what a big grump Brother really is.

After which, Brother turned his eyes on his surroundings to see, while still holding the crushing pain in the pink mare's ears...

What he saw afar...

Her...

The white Unicorn...

In an unconscious form...havin' fallen down after seein' the utmost brutality in the battlefield. Making up his sturdy ol' mind, he called out:

"Boy. Here." He called out to the lad, while havin' his hands full from searching up his pocket, as the boy came towards him, still holding the pink mare by her ears, Brother tossed some..green glowing stones of some kind? Aye lads, there they are...Health Stones..things that are used to rejuvenate anyone's health...he tossed them to the lad for some good use but, whom will he use them to? The Unicorn? The orange pony? Or the blue Pegasus? We'll see lads...

"Health Stones, what do we do with these?" Young Atreus asked, catching the stones by his hand before asked....for what can he do with these stones that can restore anyone's health and consciousness. Waiting for his answer, all what Brother did in response to his question...

A simple, but questionable response, but the meaning...

We will find out...

"Hmmph."

The Cycle of Betrayal....is coming to an end....

T O . B E . Ω . C O N T I N U E D . . .

A T R E U S' . B E S T I A R Y

Storm Creature

These Storm creatures, or at least what I've heard what they're called, are the ones pretty much responsible for enslaving and imprisoning the horses that live in this city. They became empowered with deadly Seiðr magic and Hel energy, thus becoming stronger. Question is, who is this "Storm King" they're talking about? Is he the ruler of this place? Is he the one responsible for enslaving these horses? Is he the one leading an army of these guys? I guess we'll wait and see.

Author's Note

This is done...Chapter 5, will be the end of the Cycle of Betrayal. After which, Phase 2 of this story will begin...

Constructive criticism may be allowed, as the chapters will be better and better.