My Little Pony x God of War: Ascension

Many years ago...In Ancient Greece...

Three Weeks Earlier...Before the Prison Break

He sat by the window, looking and gazing. Kratos felt that the room was familiar, but something wasn't right. Nothing he touched or sensed struck him with that sense of firmness - for almost each item he touched felt off, incorrect. He attempted to pick up that blue lace and ring, but both simply vanished the moment he cupped them into his hand. Sadly, he looked at it...Unsure where he was, and when.

Then spoke the voice behind him.

"Your mind is troubled..."

With a yell, he turned around to swing the Blades, and yet, there was no one there.

Only for the voice to reappear at his side.

"Your skills are still without equal..." The voice said.

"Do you have business with me!?" Barked Kratos, taking steps forward with the Blades.

"I do..." said the dark figure before him, with strange and sickly - insectoid like holes on his chest and right arm, coupled with a pair of glowing eyes. "But this is not the matter to discuss it."

"I see no other way." Barked Kratos...Then, he saw her.

Lysandra...Right behind this stranger as she walked past him...

Beyond the door, there she was - her, his daughter Calliope, and his seven friends, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Spike...He wanted to walk towards them...

But the voice behind him stopped him. And the figures...turned to ash.

"You have no reason to trust me, Spartan. I only ask that you try. Your thoughts are not your own, but I can help you. I believe these belong to you..."

Extending his hand, the mysterious figure presented him with those two objects that Kratos held so near.

The necklace, and the ring...

"Use these items to still your mind, Kratos. Do not let illusion deceive you. Have the visions ceased?"

Upon taking them...The room that he'd consider something of a home vanished - leaving behind decrepit waste and nothingness.

"I see only you..." Said Kratos.

The dark stranger nodded. "Good, you will need this skill for the path ahead."

"...And what path is that?"

"The path of freedom...Kratos."

Kratos leaned in. He wondered - what was he saying? Was this madness? Why was he in need of freedom? Was he not free already?

"Freedom?"

"Yes!" Responded the stranger. "Freedom! Freedom from the Furies who relentlessly hunt you in the name of Ares...And ultimately freedom from your bond to the God of War himself."

Immediately, Kratos scoffed and smirked. "Break an oath with a God? Hah! Of all the minds in question, mine is not the one to worry about." He said, turning to leave through the front door - but stopped immediately as he was met by the dark stranger, who had teleported before him instead.

"You waver from sound mind to illusion in the beat of a heart!" Barked the ghost-like man. "Is that any life for a great warrior?"

Then came...The howling sound of terror and destruction. The stranger gasped, looking to the sky.

"The Furies are near...They cannot know I speak with you. I will draw them away. The truth waits for you in Delphi, Kratos. Seek the Oracle! And before that...Seek those who protect harmony!" He exclaimed...And promptly disappeared.

With a grunt of frustration and anger, Kratos set out to make his way to that place...Delphi. He ran - sandals kicking up the dust and sand beneath him. However, he had only needed to take the most modest number of corners before he bumped into something soft, and roughly a head shorter than him. He heard a female cry of pain, and the sound of unsheathing weapons.

Then, collective gasps.

"Kratos!?" Cried out the woman who had bumped into him and was sitting on the ground, holding her head as she tried to get her thoughts together and collected. Upon seeing him, her grit teeth turned into a surprised smile. "Kratos! We knew we'd find you here!"

"Twilight? And...all of you!?" Kratos gripped the Blades - but felt the lace and ring that was on his person...He remembered that the illusions must have abated by now, and that the forces that taunted him and tricked him were limited by the artifact. He relaxed a little, feeling at more ease knowing that they were real. "...Why are you here?"

"We got 'proached by a certain Demi-God." Applejack spoke up, wiping the sweat off her brow. "Had us haulin' our butts over half of Greece just to get to ya! Care to explain what's goin' on? What happened? And...What's up with your skin? How long have you been without the Sun?"

"I cannot explain that yet." Sighed Kratos. "I need to get to Delphi, now."

"Why? What happened?" Twilight put a hand on his bicep. "Kratos, something is happening. I saw the Furies - they're tearing this whole place apart, trying to find you, or someone...What happened since you disappeared? And...Where are Lys--"

"I said I need to get to Delphi." Kratos firmly stated once more. "Do not get in my way, Sparkle. I--"

"You crazy!?" Kratos was approached by Rainbow Dash, who painfully nudged him in the chest. He was used to this - and while a human would have kneeled over in pain, it was to him but a mere bump that he hadn't flinched to in the slightest. "Kratos, we're your comrades! We're with you on this all the way! I'd rather go down to Tartarus than leave you to do this by yourself!"

"Darling..." Rarity stood beside Rainbow Dash, putting a hand on her shoulder in order to get her to calm down. "If we cannot stop you before you do something mad and brash, please let us join you. We would at-least want to keep our friend safe."

"Just like the good ol' days!" Pinkie giggled. "C'mon! We've dealt with lotsa Barbarians, right? I'm down for a trip down memory lane! What about you, girls?"

"Always." Said Fluttershy, who was usually very quiet and reserved - until now, her voice was set and serious. "Kratos, I cannot leave you behind. Please let us help you - even if we ultimately leave the main burden of your task to you."

"...Fine." Kratos sighed. "I at-least don't want you to get stuck in this. Once we can find a way out of this village and away from this place, I want you six to take Spike, get on a boat, and leave. The farther from Olympus, the better."

As they spoke...The sound of an elephant's trunk distracted them. In a bout of instinct, the seven immediately jumped to the sides. A large anthropomorphic elephant-man beast charged through them, tusks and fists ready to gore and maim them.

Twilight grit her teeth, standing and supporting herself with her spear. "Look alive!"

They all turned around to see another massive elephant run up, swinging its fists and attempting to trample Kratos and the others.

"Brought a friend, huh!?" Rainbow Dash grit her teeth, unsheathing her sword. "At-least he understands the Magic of Friendship, huh!?"

"Split up!" Twilight said. She, Kratos, and Fluttershy focused on the first one, while the rest focused on the newcoming elephant biped.

It seemed strange to have Fluttershy join the two best fighters on the team - but there was a secret to it all. Twilight and Kratos, in the time they fought together, understood how the other worked. Fluttershy let out a shrill whistle - enough to startle both elephants. Then, the first elephant looked up as a shape moved at the top of his vision.

Shortly, a pained and excruciating scream came from the bipedal elephant as he held onto his eye, one of which was gouged out with the talon of an eagle that swooped in with the speed of an arrow. The distraction was just enough for Twilight to get a clean shot at the elephant's stomach. Taking her spear like a javelin, she threw it right into the stomach of the beast, causing it to back up.

Kratos used it as an opportunity. He sprinted up and hopped up, before planting his feet into the spear and jumping into the air, having used it as a springboard. He was able to raise himself right up to the face of the beast, before jabbing both of his Blades into the sides of its head, causing it to scream as it started to pour blood from its skull. It stumbled, and promptly fell, allowing Twilight to retrieve the spear.

In the meantime, the second elephant was not faring much better. It raised both fists, attempting to smash down right at the group. However, that went nowhere when Rarity pulled back two arrows at the same time and released them, sending them right into the wrists of the elephant, causing it to back up. It attempted to use its legs to kick Applejack away, but she easily blocked it with her arms - and with Pinkie Pie, they struck at the same time, shattering the bone.

Rainbow Dash allowed herself the glory, flying in and swiping her blade against the elephant's neck, dropping it right beside the corpse of the other monster.

"Phew!" Rainbow wiped the sweat off her brow as she stood above the two dead monsters. "Let's get a move on. I don't wanna imagine what other freaks this village has hiding around!"

***

They went deeper into the village. They were set upon by Satyrs - the goat-legged and goat-faced- - yet humanoid fiends who kept attempting to ambush them. Rarity and Pinkie became vital to holding back their hordes - able to beat back several foes at the same time. Pinkie's mallet would sweep and swoop in wide and bloody arcs, while Rarity's arrows were true, rapid, and multiple - causing the Satyrs to fall one after another.

The deeper they went in however, the stranger it all appeared.

Kratos frowned immediately as he saw the face of Ares - engraved into the wall and formed into a furious face, with flames surrounding it. Before it was a large fire - contained in a bowl from which the hot embers produced a hot, white searing flame.

"...For those who seek the truth, the heat of Ares' fire has no burn." Twilight said - repeating something which she once heard and read. "...H-Hey, Kratos, where are you going?" She extended a hand towards Kratos, who came close to the flaming basin.

"...It may be the power of Ares..." Kratos thought "But I am going to use his rage against him. Do not stop me."

"Hey, boss, uh..." Applejack rubbed the back of her neck. "T-that's a proper big fire, a-are ya sure you wanna go sticking your hands in it? 'Ah don't feel like that'd be the most pleasant experience and--"

She was interrupted as Pinkie giggled and placed a hand on Applejack's shoulder, shaking her head and smirking wide. "What do you mean? It's a classic party trick! It's not even gonna hurt a bit! Go for it, Kratos!"

They all jumped in surprise as Kratos let out a furious rage. Grabbing both Blades, he stuck them into the flames. He roared - the fire did nothing to hurt him. The only thing that burned was the sheer anger that he had. He felt the anger of Ares seep into his blood - but the blood refused to serve the God of War. When he pulled away, a flurry of flames washed over the area, making the girls wince and cover their faces, only to realize the fire did not burn them at all.

"...Kratos, darling, are you done?" Rarity asked as she prepared an arrow and set it into her bow. "I don't mean to alarm you with your fun little date with fire, but it seems that you've alerted the locals." She said - for they were once again surrounded by enemies. The Satyrs and Minotaurs grinned and huffed with anticipation, weapons prepared to maim their targets.

They had no time to react before Kratos engaged them with a flurry of fire the likes of which they hadn't seen before. With a triumphant yet vengeful, uncontrolled scream of anger, Kratos swung his Blades with such intensity that the sheer speed at which he threw the weapons caused fire to stick to the Blades, burning through like butter. Fluttershy yelped in surprise when a Satyr's head flew-by close to her, lopped right off his shoulders by the angered Kratos.

However, there was something about this fire that invigorated the others. Applejack prepared her fists, but she felt her biceps bulge in rage as she saw the jeering and taunting Satyrs, many of them laughing at her or even pointing at their own genitals to tease them. She wanted nothing more than to...to...

Kill them all.

With a scream, Applejack dashed forward. Her knuckles were alight with fire as she struck a Centaur, and the fist went through his torso like a hot knife through butter, practically dismembering him and causing him to shower into a myriad of gory bits. As the blood landed on Applejack's body, it evaporated, for she was consumed with hot and red fury - the same that Ares bestowed upon his angriest warriors.

Although the girls were more clean warriors, those who never liked the appearance of viscera and suffering...There was something about all this that motivated them to fight harder. More brutally. Rarity's arrows moved with intensity and speed - her arrows followed by a trail of fire. Rainbow Dash's sword moved in circular motions that sliced through arms and legs, spinning it in her hand as she screamed and dashed from Satyr to Satyr. Pinkie Pie was smiling - but in a malicious way that betrayed joy for a fight - a single swing of her mallet causing a Minotaur to explode in a mist of blood.

Even the more civilized fighters were losing it. Twilight was hyperventilating from fury and rage, spinning her lance and thrusting it with precision. When the tip of the spear struck them, the enemy would be engulfed into fire. Even as they screamed, she continued - swinging the weapon to disorient and concuss the foes, before piercing them right into their throats.

Fluttershy had no idea when she was stabbing the face of a Satyr who had tried to flank Rainbow Dash, piercing his face and eyes repeatedly as she screamed with sheer rage and anger. She herself was engulfed in flames that did not hurt her, and so were her pets. Her falcon was spreading fire and flames, pecking and clawing the throats and faces of the Satyrs.

The seven were lost in the haze of the fight. They swung and struck, sliced and stabbed - their screams of fiery fury turning into a mad choir. They attacked the swarm of foes that believed they had an advantage due to sheer numbers and the flanking ability. But no matter how many poured into the area to face them, they couldn't even make a handful of steps before the seven Spartans swiftly ended their lives.

However, then it all abruptly ended...

Moments before both Kratos and Twilight nearly stabbed one another.

Twilight gasped, taking a step back.

"Kratos!" She exclaimed, immediately dropping the spear. She saw the flames that erupted on the weapon, but the moment she started to breathe and realize what she had done, the spear's flames were snuffed out, and the fire abated. She looked down at the weapon and sighed - before looking over at the others to see that all her friends were safe and unharmed.

Kratos looked at his Blades and sighed. "The power of Ares thrives on anger and fury. If all you can see is red and can't differentiate friend from foe, then you shouldn't try to tap into it."

"It happened almost naturally..." Muttered Applejack as she looked at her fists which stopped burning once she started to take deeper, more relaxed breaths. "...'Ah never thought 'ah'd wanna fight and kill as much as this ever in 'mah life..."

"...We should keep moving." Rarity muttered under her breath, setting her quiver comfortably on her shoulders and trying to forget her rather primal and primitive outburst that made her look no better than one of the typical Barbarians. "Let us not be sitting ducks for another wave of those uncouth Satyrs."

Silently, they went forward. Delphi awaited them - though not, even Pinkie had lost her bubbliness.

***

They waded through the decrepit and nearly collapsed passages of the village. If Kratos had gone alone, Satyrs would have jumped and ambushed him from the corners of the street. But now, seven brutal warriors were walking through with their weapons drawn and some of them sparking with fire. Only after the Satyrs and other monsters regrouped, did they find the bravery to start attacking them in much larger groups.

The walk from the village and through the cisterns was mixed with battles and periods of rest, when they could walk through the water and mull over - what happened, and why it had happened. They felt as if the fire of Ares had been within them for a moment yet, lingering somewhere deep in their hearts.

"...Do we really want to pretend it didn't happen?" Asked Fluttershy meekly as she glanced at her fiery dagger. "It's...not good to ignore something like that. Maybe we should really consider things, try to understand if...if maybe it's all really gone?"

Kratos humphed, blowing air from his nostrils. "Such thoughts are not going to help. In-fact, I believe you'll end up eating yourself out from the inside so much that nothing will be left of you. Leave it for when you realize that you've fought enough. I'm not going to bother - because I'm going to be fighting for a lifetime. I can promise you that much."

"Everyone takes a break from fightin' now and again, sugarcube." Applejack frowned at Kratos, before noticing how distraught Twilight felt. She placed a hand on her shoulder, and softly spoke to her, holding her hat to her heart. "Twi, talk to me. How're you holdin' up, after all that happened?"

"I feel shaken over what happened..." Twilight sighed to Applejack. "I never thought I'd get so...wild with the spear. It wasn't meant to be used as a tool of suffering or torture. But the power that was infused into it..."

"The Gods always had this approach..." Rarity sighed softly. "They cannot do a single thing without involving a great deal of...how to put it into more proper and less uncouth terms...Emotional manipulation."

"They're freaks." Rainbow Dash muttered. "You saw how we acted, right? That's not normal! We're not supposed to be freaks who just wanna butcher our enemies! Sure, they're just some filthy Satyrs and Minotaurs who've probably hurt a lot of people themselves, but..."

"I don't feel too terrible..." Pinkie nervously giggled in an attempt to brighten up the mood. "If you just imagine that your enemies are just huge walkin' jugs of wine, then it kinda lightens things up a little! Try it next time!"

"Ah yes." Kratos scoffed. "Jugs of wine wielding swords and spears who want to gut you. Take care you don't spill your wine yourself, Pinkie. This is war. If you're going to kill, register the fact you're killing someone. I wasn't taught the art of war just because I think I'm here to break pottery."

"Kratos, you..." Twilight took a break. "Stop."

Immediately, they took a break from the trek. Kratos grit his teeth softly, but wouldn't dare display hostility towards her.

"Kratos..." Twilight said. "You weren't...Always like this. I know something bad happened, I know there's a reason your skin looks like that, I know there's a reason you're here and that the Furies are chasing after you, but if you're not going to tell us why this is happening, all I can ask is that you snap out of it." She said. "You are Kratos of Sparta. You're not Kratos the Butcher, you're not Kratos the Murder, You're not Kratos the God of War. You're the man we fought alongside and trained alongside, and that's it. Please remember that you are more than just a soldier."

After a while of looking at her from above, squinting and narrowing her eyes at the spear-wielding girl, he finally spoke. "...I'll consider that." Kratos dryly said. "Now, we need to move--"

The loud hiss erupted as a green shape began to slither around the columns. They raised their weapons, specks of fire beginning to burst from the Blades and blunt weapons that the seven held up.

The Gorgon was fast, immediately rushing in and twirling, contorting and coiling around its target, Rarity. The woman let out a cry of pain, immediately dropping the three arrows she had prepared to fire.

"Rarity!" Rainbow Dash cried out, holding her blade high above her head as it lit with fire. She was about to slice right in, but Twilight swiftly placed a hand on Rainbow's wrist, gripping and stopping her from strike the Gorgon.

"Rainbow!" Twilight shouted. "You need to control yourself! If you strike, you might hurt Rarity! We can't let this fury get the best of us!"

"Nggh..." Rainbow Dash's biceps pounded with frustration as she could not strike the monster constricting her friend. Twilight instead took the initiative and aimed the spear - however, the Gorgon noticed this, and repositioned Rarity so that she used her as a human shield.

Applejack understood the gravity of the situation, so she pounced forward to perform a light jab into the scales of the beast. She held back, not putting the same amount of force she usually would. It may not have injured the beast much, but it produced ripples and cracks in her bones. The Gorgon turned to her and hissed, spilling blood out of her mouth.

The beast launched a beam at Applejack. She blocked with her arms but cursed at her mistakes. She could not undo her block, nor move. She cursed as her head looked down. She could not budge. Stone was starting to envelop her ankles and wrists.

However, it was not allowed to petrify Applejack further. Kratos let out a roar as he threw his Blades, but in a large arc. He could not slice the blade of the beast, he'd certainly hurt Rarity. Instead, however, he used the chain of the Blade to wrap around the neck of the Gorgon, before pulling the chain and forcing the choked beast to lower its head, screaming and hissing.

The attack gave an opportunity for Fluttershy, who swiftly slid underneath the Gorgon's throat with her dagger held up. The cut was clean, the neck was so weak and cut into, that it simply rolled off her shoulders. It uncoiled off of Rarity, and Applejack felt the rocks around her limbs crumble, allowing her body to return to normal.

"Gorgons..." Rainbow Dash grit her teeth and punted the beast with her foot. "I always hated Gorgons..."

"Hmph." Kratos swung his chain into the air to throw the yet-dry blood off of it, before wrapping it around his arm. "Afraid of snakes, or afraid of staying in one place forever?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes. Fluttershy sighed at the corpse - ashamed to have been the one to kill what she considered to be a majestic creature. Anything for self-defense - she supposed.

***

A bloody path carved through the cistern, they anxiously approached yet another strange basin. Before it stood the metallic image of the face of a bearded with glowing, icey eyes.

Twilight muttered under her breath. She knew this, too...

"Take the ice of Poseidon...And you will find your path." She spoke. "We have to use it if we want to move forward..."

"This again!? Poseidon!?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "We had just to go through having the same rage as Ares would bestow upon his craziest followers, and now it wants us to don Poseidon's aspect too!? What...What is this!? Some kind of joke!?"

"..." Kratos spoke no words as he approached the basin, and just as before, stuck his Blades in. He glanced at the others, waiting for them to be ready.

"Rainbow Dash..." Twilight frowned as she put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "Look, I know this is very tricky...We're fighting against the Gods, but we're using their power, and we may even start, well...having a few changes in how we do things...But if we really wanna challenge the Gods - or at-least Ares, then we can't do it as we are right now. We're gonna have to become stronger, and that's a fact. Please?"

"...Go." Rainbow Dash responded.

As Kratos pulled the Blades out, sharp layers of spiked ice covered them. The others felt a strong, yet harmless chill run down their spines - and they too felt their weapons as they were coated in a layer of ice.

"Maybe I can dip it into wine..." Pinkie giggled at the ice that was forming on her mallet. "That'd be a really fun shape for a popsicle! Maybe we should...uhm..." She felt, however, the comedy drains from her words as it became colder. Whatever joke she had in mind was gone. "...Nevermind."

It was right on cue as another horde of Satyrs and Minotaurs leapt out at them, believing that in this place they were cornered, and thus easy prey.

If under the influence of Ares they fought with ferocity, they now fought with heartless and cold efficiency, using their weapons like surgical tools rather than instruments of death and destruction. Even Pinkie's mallet found itself swinging in a near mathematical way - using the newly found ice magic to carve swirls of ice that cuts the enemy at just the right angle to chain kills - able to not only kill the Satyr within the reach of the giant hammer, but several behind as the disc of sharp ice bisected them.

To Kratos, whether under the influence of Ares or Poseidon, he found it being very much the same. Neither magic had an effect on his psyche. It was the girls who were more in touch with humanity and normality that they were unable to comprehend the true God-like strength they were given.

However, it was not to say they were unable to fight with it effectively. Now more self-aware, they checked to make sure that in the fray, they hadn't targeted one another. Twilight used her now frozen spear to swing it to force a group of Satyrs into becoming frozen, before using quick and surgical pokes right into the brain to kill them one by one, moving as fast as a hurricane.

Kratos did not lose ferocity a bit however - but it appeared that this worked well in tandem with the other six. His wide swings shattered the many frozen beasts that were incapacitated by the others. Fluttershy had called upon her falcon, who spread his wings, and shot out a rain of icicles that jammed themselves into some of the Satyrs. They were frozen, and Kratos was able to swing his Blades from above to shatter them in one easy motion.

Soon, they were no longer surrounded by enemies, nor their corpses. Instead, they were left with a flurry of shattered, bloody ice.

They sighed in relief over the finished encounter.

"At-least..." Rarity let out a sigh of relief as she hung her bow over her shoulder. "Things do not seem to be so...undignified with this ice magic. I felt almost lady-like brutalizing those brutes."

They made their way further along the paths lined with stones and streams of water.

Moving further on, they saw what appeared to be a large snakeskin. It was a cylindrical platform, which was completely motionless, big enough that they could get on top of it...and they did.

"Is that a giant serpent!?" Fluttershy gasped with excitement as she stood on what appeared to be a gigantic snake. However, when her sandaled feet felt the texture, when she crouched to run her hand along the scales, and when she noticed the lack of movement or breathing, she immediately frowned. "Ah, that's...Python..."

"Or what's left of it." Twilight noted. "Seems after Apollo had slain it, they reproduced it...It looks so mechanical, but...What did they try to do with it?"

"Looks like a lock is holding it in!" Pinkie giggled. "Think they were trying to stop it from doin' something? Maybe it was grounded for being a party-pooper?"

"..." Kratos said no word as he approached the gigantic lock, and began to pull it...Before then, with a thunder snap, the massive heap of metal flung off...

And the giant serpent was free. With mechanical creaking, it began to move. It nearly threw the group off as it started to slither right through the air. It felt like a near unnatural movement, but the slithering was nearly realistic to nature.

"Whoa, this is fun!" Pinkie giggled, holding onto the serpent as she raised her arms, almost as if she's on a rollercoaster. "Do you think this is Zeus's personal rollercoaster or something!? We aren't gonna get in trouble for usin' it, are we?"

"You've found a strange time to get worried about quarreling with the Gods, seeing how far we've come..." Kratos sighed. They held onto the mechanical scales of the serpent as it floated up through the mountains...To Delphi.

***

The mechanical, giant Python carried them all across the mountains and valleys, brushing past the trees. It was not long until they saw a massive tower, standing tall and nearly piercing the heavens. The Python would fly towards it, before stopping to coil halfway at the base, and finally stop.

It was then, when they got off the giant mechanical snake, that they saw just how high up the tower was.

"...Well." Rarity narrowed her eyes at Rainbow Dash. "I guess you and Fluttershy can enjoy a break while the rest of us get out calf and glute exercises..."

"I-I can walk with you!" Fluttershy patiently smiled. "I uhm, can join in for the sake of team spirit!"

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash pounded her chest with a fist, humphing and scoffing at the archer. "I'm great at jogging and climbing, you can bet this tower's gonna be a piece of cake!"

"If y'say so..." Applejack muttered. "Just so you know though, sprinting and going up on incline's got different demands. Your uh...legs got the muscle to--"

"I got this." Rainbow Dash laughed, placing an arm in-front of Applejack. "The Olympic Games would've gone bust if I participated. All the first-place spots on the podium would've been-"

"You'd be second place." Twilight muttered. Rainbow Dash was confused - until she saw that Twilight was pointing a finger at Kratos. He had no time for their chatter, as he was already a quarter of the way up the tower.

"H-Hey!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, jogging up to catch up to him. "You can't start the race before it's announced! Hey!"

***

Rainbow Dash was panting for air as they climbed up the ladder. It was a long and perilous ascent, one where they had to challenge several beasts that waited to ambush them. The rainbow-haired woman was elated that at-least now, there was no way but down. On the horizon, they saw a door with two snakes, and now she walked with an easier step. "Okay, finally. Let's get it done with this stupid tower, because this is enough cardio for--"

She yelped when a snake's head emerged from behind the edge. She used her wings to propel herself back, landing on her rear. She moved back as the rest of the creature emerged - revealing that the snake was merely the tail. The beast was a horrid amalgamation of two more beasts - with a goat's head. and a lion's underneath - horned with claws, and razor-sharp teeth.

"Not a Chimera too!" Fluttershy cried out. She was not so concerned over the appearance of the dangerous as the fact that she was certain it would be killed within the next few minutes. She was proven wrong - as to defend Rainbow Dash, Applejack quickly dashed in. The blonde had learned to better control the new powers over the last several encounters, so much so that she was able to combine her strengths. She entered with an uppercut while one of her fists was coated in ice. The punch had blasted the Chimera with a layer of ice, coating its lion face. As itwas launched into the air, Applejack followed with a haymaker - this time, her fist covered in fire that melted the ice off, making the beast scream as it was covered in boiling water.

The punch caused it to fly at Pinkie Pie, who let out a yell as she held her mallet as a baseball bat, she sent the beast flying back at Kratos, who used the opportunity to throw his Blades at the snake-like tail. The chains wrapped around it, and with his chains and Blades coated in fire, Kratos swung the beast once more with such force that the snake was ripped right off of the Chimera. He threw it onto the floor, where the beast began to screech and writhe in tremendous pain. It however did not back down, and instead attempted to charge at Twilight.

The spearwoman was ready however, and aimed her spear almost like a pool cue. When the beast came too close, she imbued her spear with the power of ice to make a precise attack, where the spear thrust itself right into the chin of the goat face, making a straight line from the underneath side of its head, and out of the top of its skull. The beast retreated, writhing and spewing ice-breath everywhere. Rainbow Dash had to dodge a layer of ice, before she and Kratos immediately pounced on the beast. With Applejack running in to help Rainbow Dash, the three had gripped the horns of the beast and pulled them off - a bloody explosion, leaving it thrashing until, with one final strike of Kratos' Blades, it perished.

"..." Fluttershy sighed. Suddenly, as Kratos pulled the mechanism that was mounted on the floor, the Earth shook.

The Python moved once more, adjusting his position. This time however, they saw as the side of its belly was exposed, showing off the frozen interior.

"...Into the belly of the Python, I suppose." Said Rarity, who picked out some of the arrows that were stuck in the corpse of the beast.

***

They walked through the interior of the massive snake. It was curious to see that the hollowed-out snake was very much like a transport used for cargo - not unlike the tower deck of a ship. They waded through the ice and the Satyrs that were cut apart trying to stop them, and all seemed like it was a smooth trek, until once again they saw the face of a God.

...

And a basin of lightning.

"For those who have eyes to see, I offer the lightning of Zeus." Twilight repeated. "...Good things come in threes, don't they?"

"But..." Applejack bit her lip. "Twi, Zeus...He ain't exactly right in the head. A-Ares is more rational than he is! Poseidon's a schemer, but he's not so...so..."

"You can insult the Gods all you like." Kratos said. "I figured that worshiping them and speaking well of them won't get you anything. They'll treat you like an ant if you let them. But I won't." Kratos grits his teeth, sinking his Blades into the lightning. The others were not asked if they were ready - but they did not have to.

As the electricity coursed through their weapons, as sparks began to light their arms...

Kratos did not feel any different. To him, he was dull to emotions such as these.

But the others grinned. They felt...alive. Too alive. They felt greater than mortals. For with the power of Zeus, how could one be content with something as mundane as...mortality?

Kratos scoffed - particularly at Fluttershy, who for once in her life grinned maliciously. "In time, you'll figure out how dangerous blind emotion is."

"Maybe..." Twilight flicked the tip of her spear with a smirk. "But I think I'm gonna enjoy this for now...Come here, lil' goats..." She laughed at the approaching Satyrs. "Let me show you why you're underneath the dirt on my sandals."

"...Heh." Applejack cracked her knuckles. "Let's let loose! Up and at 'em, cowgirls!"

"...I actually don't feel too different." Muttered Rainbow Dash, though then smiling all the same as she raised her electricity-imbued blade. With that, the seven rushed the Satyrs - wildly swinging their blades as they electrified all flesh and fur that stood before them. They would make their bloody way - using the power of ice, electricity, and fire, as they moved out of the Python's belly, and to the caverns.