God of War: Daughter of War

Faye's camp, as the family discovered, was about fifteen minutes into the forest she had emerged from, where they found a single tent and a campfire, which meant that she wasn't expecting company and was still willing to share her camp with a bunch of strangers, despite their current situation.

"I know it's not much, but make yourselves at home." Faye said, where Flurry noticed that there weren't any horses, nor were there any animals at all, meaning the lady had a limited amount of supplies and might run out at some point in the near future, which meant it was fortunate for her that they were there, "I wish I had more to offer you, but I honestly wasn't expecting to encounter a group in need of assistance."

"We have food covered. Flurry?" Kratos replied, causing his daughter to reach into her bag and produce some of the food containers she had saved before they fell into the maelstrom, while at the same time Faye just looked at her with interest in her eyes, instead of surprise.

"Interesting. You have a Bag of Holding? I thought only the dwarves had them." Faye commented, showing them that she was actually familiar with the bag that Flurry had spent her life using, though at the same time she walked over to the box that had been pulled out and found a bunch of food inside it, confirming what Kratos had told her.

"Dwarves?" Pandora asked, though at the same time she pulled out a few of the items from the box as she noticed that the camp was well cleared, so they didn't have to worry about room or setting things on fire, while it looked like the forest had more than enough cover to keep everyone safe, allowing her to put the food out.

"Right, sorry. I'm used to people knowing about them." Faye said, because she knew that they weren't from Midgard, due to how some of them were dressed, not to mention how they arrived near her camp, though she was thankful she had kept the campfire up, since it looked like Pandora knew what she was doing and everyone seemed hungry, "So, where are you four from? I know you aren't from Midgard."

"We... are from Sparta, located in the land of Greece. Or realm, now that I think about it." Kratos replied, though while he knew the others might be surprised by his openness on the subject, since they had no idea who to trust right now, he felt that they could trust Faye, she seemed far different from most of the people he had encountered over his many years, a fact that caused Flurry to silently nod her head as she moved some rocks for them to use as seats, "We were invited to this realm by a goshawk with special markings or tattoos on it."

"Really? Can you describe these tattoos?" Faye inquired, as this was very interesting to her, though that was when Pandora held out a journal that was open to the page she had made about the bird, where she noticed the triangular mark on it's forehead and the markings on it's left wing, causing her to raise an eyebrow as she returned it to the girl, "Those tattoos are associated with Tyr, our God of War... whose been dead for who knows how long. The goshawk is associated with him, even after his passing."

Flurry glanced at her father for a moment, as it sounded like the time maelstrom had not only cast them into the future, but had also made it so that the one that had invited them to Midgard had been slain in some manner, as Faye told them about how Odin, the All-Father, struck Tyr down for his attempts to betray the Norse gods. Kratos frowned as he heard that, because it sounded completely like what happened back in Greece, a God of War seeking some sort of end goal and the King of the Gods bringing about their death, just like how Zeus tasked him and Flurry to bring down Ares. Faye also shared with them an interesting piece of information, there had been no replacement for Tyr, meaning Odin likely took his position and added it to what he did, no doubt to keep the peace or something like that, but Faye told them that it was all lies, to make Odin look good. The reality, to the best of her knowledge, was that Tyr was a peacekeeper, a god who fought for peace and not for his own gain, but there was no way for her to confirm or deny her opinions, as Tyr was long dead and Odin had control of all information, so everyone believed what he said on the matter.

As Pandora passed around the food, which was meat and fruit, Faye asked them what they were going to do now that they knew the one who had invited them to Midgard was dead, all while a large falcon, which had to be Jophie, landed and ate a bit of the provided food as well.

"I... would like to explore this land. If Tyr invited us, he might have left a path when he realized we were missing." Kratos answered, because based on what little he knew about this God of War he suspected that there might be something for him and his family to find, especially when one considered that Tyr had likely pointed them in the direction of the Land Between Realms, "We will, of course, need to find a place to call home while we see what the rest of the land has to offer, since there is no going back until we complete our quest."

"Exploring might be difficult, thanks to the Desolation... Kratos, would you like to spar with me for a while?" Faye inquired, which made sense, as she had no idea that three of them were gods and could handle themselves, though she could see that they were just fine despite the nature of their ship, meaning she might have some idea as to what they were, though to Flurry it seemed as if she was letting them tell her on their own time.

"...Yes. I would like to spar." Kratos replied, because he knew she was stronger than what they had seen previously and he wanted to see what else she had to offer, as he suspected that Faye might have been like him at one point, a powerful mortal, and was using her power to help those in need, before he turned towards his daughters, "Use the mirror while we spar. Try and contact the others."

"Others?" Faye asked, though she was starting to realize there was more to the family than they were telling her, but she looked interested in what they had to say and wasn't annoyed, though it did worry her that there might be more people out there that they weren't helping right now.

"We... were fleeing our own desolation, and left those we could save in the hands of some of our allies, gods that we could place our trust in... Tyr's bird delivered a message that brought us there." Flurry answered, something that seemed to surprise Faye, or maybe it was the fact that they decided to leave a safe haven and travel to another realm entirely, all for some reason that they had yet to share with her, before she produced the mirror that her father had mentioned, "One of the goddesses gave us this mirror, so we could communicate with them and get updates... they're likely worried about us, as it has been a while since we last spoke to them."

Faye glanced at it for a moment before nodding her head, as if realizing that she would learn more about the situation in the future, before she and Kratos headed off to another part of the area while Jophie took off, ignoring the girls and Albis, causing Flurry to lift the mirror before uttering the spell that Aphrodite taught her. Following that they watched as the glass shimmered for a moment, showing that it was working as intended, before the surface shifted and revealed what looked like a chamber that Aphrodite called home, almost like what she had back in Olympus. The only difference the trio could see was that there was an area set aside for a stone that looked like it had four figures on it, where Flurry realized that it was of her, Pandora, their father, and Albis, either something made to remember them by or something to mourn their passing. As they looked at the chamber, however, the bed stirred as Aphrodite, wearing a less transparent robe than before, bolted up and glanced around wildly for a couple of seconds, before she noticed that her mirror was glowing and rushed over to where it was resting.

As Aphrodite picked up her mirror the trio could see that she was overjoyed to see it working, like she had been worried for their safety due to it being dark for so long, causing tears to form in her eyes as she sat down in front of where she had kept the item, which she wiped away a few seconds later.

"Flurry! Pandora, Albis! You guys are okay!" Aphrodite said, though it was clear that she was fighting the desire to break down after seeing that they were fine, but she did raise her right hand for a moment as a spell was released, which looked like a summoning spell or alarm of some kind, before she noticed something, "Where is Kratos? Where are you guys?"

"Aphrodite, father is fine... he's sparring with someone at the moment." Flurry replied, which was the truth, her father and Faye were going at each other in an area that Faye must have prepared to keep herself fit while she happened to be in this area, though before she could say anything else the door of Aphrodite's area opened and a number of gods, as in Artemis, Apollo, Athena, and Deimos, entered the chamber and closed the door before gathering around her.

"Thank the titans... they're alive." Athena remarked, letting out a sigh of relief as they found that three of them were alive and well, which meant that Kratos had to be the same as well, though she wasn't the only one who thought that, as the others were happy to see that their friends were just fine, "Flurry, Pandora, what happened to you guys?"

The trio took turns explaining the days following their departure from the Land Between Realms, which was easy to do due to the fact that they had just been sailing for a time, before going into the sudden creation of a 'time maelstrom', as that was what Flurry was calling it. She went on to explain that her magic had told her about how much time she and the others had missed thanks to being subjected to the power of the time maelstrom, missing out on nearly a thousand years by her reckoning, but they were able to reach their intended destination, the realm of Midgard. The group was interested in everything that was going on right now, though Flurry told them not to come after them, because right now she didn't trust the waters between realms, while Pandora filled them in on what was going on right now. Of course they were happy to see that the family had reached their destination, despite losing so much time, and were sad to hear that the one who sent the invitation had been slain, but were worried about their presence drawing Odin's attention to their position.

While they were talking Kratos went flying by and smashed into one of the trees, as it looked like Faye had thrown her axe at his chest and the force of it colliding with the Blades of Chaos, though he got up, said 'hi' to the trio and the gods that were on the other side, before rushing back into battle, though Flurry noticed that he seemed happy.

"W... Was that Kratos?" Athena asked, as they had seen him go by rather quickly, which was amazing since most of the foes he had faced could barely do anything like this to him, though it wasn't long before they found Faye flying by as well, who also dusted herself off, said 'hi' to them, and rushed back over to where Kratos was waiting, "I take it that the lady is the one called Faye?"

"Yeah... she might not be who we're here to speak with, but I think she might be what father needs." Flurry remarked, as battle was something that allowed people like her and her father to think about things, it was an interesting process when she thought about it, though with how the pair were sparring it seemed like a fair dance between two skilled warriors who might see each other as equals, "So, what's been going on in the Land Between Realms?"

Athena explained that they had named the new settlement 'New Sparta', out of honor for the family, and that there were more settlements resting all over the island, just to give them some more room since the main group they had arrived with had grown quite a lot since their arrival. There were three main cities on the island, those being 'New Sparta', 'New Athens', and 'New Delos', the second resting on the northwestern side while the third was on the eastern side, three cities that lived in harmony as everyone hoped and prayed that the family was alright. It was easy for Flurry to tell who the patron gods of the three areas were, as Deimos stood for his people, Athena for her people, and Artemis and Apollo for their followers, it made sense when she thought about it, especially since Aphrodite didn't have the desire to lead like the others. Other than that they had preserved the natural beauty of the island, taking only what they needed while allowing all of the animals to maintain healthy numbers, plus they made sure that any tree taken was replaced and the stone used to help make certain things came from smaller islands scattered around the main island.

In the end it seemed like things were going well on Athena's side, the people were happy, keeping up with their training while not really needing it, and now that their friends knew they were alive and well it was only a matter of time until one of the gods told the people, but Flurry told them that it would be some time before they returned, her father was still searching and she intended to give him the time he needed.

"Of course. We are happy that you are well, and wish Kratos luck in his personal quest... just... be sure to give us an update every now and then if you intend to remain in Midgard." Apollo said, while at the same time the others nodded as well, as all of them knew that when Kratos set his mind to something there was no real way to change his mind, something Flurry knew all too well even though she had more luck in convincing her father to do certain things.

"Don't worry, we'll be sure to do so in the future." Albis replied, though she had been quiet during the entire conversation, allowing Flurry and Pandora to speak and answer questions while she kept an eye on Kratos, but she wanted their friends to know they'd do their best to keep them informed from this point forward.

Their friends wished them well, Aphrodite even saying 'I love you', before they cut the connection, just in time to see Kratos and Faye walking over to the camp, seemingly in a better mood than when both warriors left to spar, meaning Flurry had been right, this might be just what her father needed. Faye told the trio that they had come to a decision, Kratos wanted to travel alongside her for a time, to get to know such a strong warrior more, something she was fine with since she also had such a desire to get to know all of them better as well, not just Kratos. With that in mind Faye realized that this camp was far too small for all five of them, so if they were going to spend more time together she determined that finding a more suitable place to live, even if it was for a short period of time, should be their first course of action, something they agreed with, as it made sense to them. Flurry made sure to collect the bits of wood that they had salvaged from their wrecked ship and put it in an area of her bag so they wouldn't have to carry them all the way to whatever area they ended up in, while Faye quickly disrupted the entire camp to make it look like no one has been here for a very long time.

Once everyone was ready the group continued deeper into the forest as Faye explained that she was the lone survivor of her clan, having been decimated by a rival clan, and for the time being she was acting like there were pursuers on her tail, even if Jophie seemed to indicate that none of her enemies were closing in on her. Still, she was being cautious, making sure not to leave any trace of her existence behind since she knew her clan's enemies had an expert tracker and she didn't want to leave a trail for him to find, especially since it now might put all of them, total strangers, in danger. Albis asked if there was anything they could do to help her, it was only fair since she was being so helpful to them, causing Faye to tell all of them that it was alright, she would make the best of the rest of her life without seeking revenge on the rival clan, which again struck another cord with Kratos. Flurry realized that there was no denying it, Faye was likely the best person right now that could help her father not only master himself in a way that not even she could help him accomplish, but also give him some lessons that would no doubt forge him into a better person than before.

They might have missed their chance to speak with Tyr, the one who invited them to Midgard in the first place, but she would argue that this was better, as she was positive that Faye might be the best person to help her father grow overall and she was looking forward to how things changed as they explored the land.

While they walked through the forest Flurry took in the sights, as the area felt different from what they were used to and this allowed her to focus on all of the tracks that happened to be around them, something Faye took notice of and asked her if she was an archer, causing her to chuckle for a few seconds. Flurry confirmed that, while that wasn't her main thing, she was very skilled with a bow, which caused the lady to reach into her pack for a moment and pulled out her own bow, a longbow made from a yew tree and well crafted, all of which she told them as she pulled it out. She explained that she was somewhat good with the bow, either because she didn't like to boast or she was telling the truth about her skill, and that this made her look forward to potentially hunting with Flurry so she could see her skills in the field. Flurry smiled as they made their way through the forest, using an actual bridge, made of wood and ropes, to move across a small gorge and continue on towards an area that Faye had scouted out before Jophie caused her to make her way to the camp that she had set up.

Kratos noticed that there was definitely more to the forest than he and the others initially assumed, as there seemed to be a decent number of ruined structures that not even Faye knew what they had been once upon a time, all she knew was that none of them were being used and, to the raiders, that meant each one was still full of treasure that was waiting to be plundered by someone.

After some time Faye stopped at the area she had been referring to, a decent flat area that had a path leading down to a river that they could put a boat in and use to find a good fishing spot, with a few other interesting directions they would have to check out at some point. She admitted that this was probably good for a single house for two people, though she had no idea how they were going to work with five people, if they fully intended on sticking around for more than a couple of days, where Pandora looked at the area for a moment before figuring out a good solution. She was a smith, which the rest of her family knew, and by looking at the stone wall that was to the left of the area that Faye was suggesting putting a house in she was able to determine a way to make a good three room house for her, Flurry, and Albis, while providing her with an area to work that would also heat the area, especially with some slight changes. Kratos gave a light chuckle and told Faye that this was common, as both Pandora and Flurry did or said things that would surprise anyone that wasn't used to what they could do, causing her to smile and nod her head, showing them that she sort of understood what she was being told.

Flurry glanced around the rest of the area, helping Pandora plan out the layout that Faye had talked about, as they came up with a few other ideas, like a walkway resting above the river so they could use the area for animals, since a steady food source was necessary, though this only made them interested in what the future held in store for them.