Present Day...

"...I still don't get it." Sunny shook her head. "Twilight, I know that you guys made it this way, and I know you've done some crazy, crazy things... I mean, even at this point in the story, you all did something that not even a single human could ever hope to do in a lifetime. But... Why did you even think it was possible? What made you understand that vengeance against Gods was somehow...well...possible?"

"A good question." Twilight chuckled. "I mean, I can give you the easy answer and explain that we were all Spartan-trained, and that means we fight better than others."

"Mhm. That's the excuse 'ah give." Applejack giggled.

"Yeah." Twilight smiled. "In reality? It's a number of things. I mean, our motivation for one. I feared that maybe there could have been retaliation for even helping Kratos escape the illusion cast by the Furies. What would happen to Spike?"

"No need to worry about Spikey-Wikey." Rarity laughed softly, looking over to see the Dragon as he sat with Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo near the other campfire - they had been there the whole time, but they had their own conversations and their own topics. Twilight didn't want to speak of those times around them anyway, not when she could barely do it in-front of the team of warriors she was trusting the future of their legacy with.

"Anyways..." Twilight said. "I think the fact we saw no other way gave us the strength we needed. I'll tell you that much. It's hard to back out when you know that the only way is forward, and that the only thing you can do is act. If you don't, then, what have you got left?"

"But..." Izzy chuckled softly with a snort. "Come on, you don't mean to tell me that the power of determination alone was what you needed to take down a huge castle-sized prison giant dude and then a Fury, also a dude with a Demi-God grown into his side and, uh, you know, all those other monsters you had on the way."

"Well, we did gather four powers to help us - aspects of the Gods and all."

"..."

"..."

"...Four?" Sunny asked.

Twilight broke into a cold sweat. She and her big mouth...

Applejack shot Twilight a look. "Sugarcube, might as well tell 'em. 'Ah mean..."

"Tell us what?" Pipp tilted her head.

"...Damn, I really didn't want to." Twilight muttered.

Sunny leaned in. Something wasn't right. "Hey, hang on, what do you mean? What's going on?" The question made tension heavy in the air. All eyes were on Twilight, who had no idea what to say. Not when she tried so hard to forget.

"...There was another God whose power we...borrowed." Fluttershy whispered, wincing at the memory.

"Which God?" Sunny swallowed.

"..."

"Twilight, which God..." Sunny spoke, her tone hushed yet tense.

"...It was the Soul of Hades." Twilight whispered.

Sunny understood why she was so hesitant to speak. But she was, unfortunately, too curious. She thought about it... If Poseidon had made them feel ice cold and emotionless, if Ares made them feel bloodthirsty and aggressive, and if Zeus made them feel Godlike and invincible - then what did Hades' powers do to them?

"...I didn't want to talk about it." Twilight softly whispered. "I think of all the four powers, that one made me feel the worst... But I really just can't... I can't think about it."

"...It was a little before we ran into Castor and Pollux." Applejack said. "Let's... backtrack a lil' bit."

***

Flashback

"What... What is this!?" Twilight felt the darkness consume her. Whether it was a mistake or not, she was now swimming in violet. Death - the color of the end.

She had no idea what happened. She had no idea where she was. She had no idea why she was here. All she understood was death. It was the only certainty.

They stood among the bodies, quiet. Monsters tried to ambush them, and the monsters were all butchered swiftly. The death that coursed through their weapons made them move like a sheer force of nature. They were not killing machines. They were not warriors. They simply moved - and whatever they touched, died.

So, where was Twilight right now?

Twilight was looking at a living being.

A living being that had to die - because that was the will of Hades. River Styx was calling. The end was calling.

"Twilight..."

Twilight kept trying to drive her spear into the victim, trying to push it in.

"Twilight!"

She grits her teeth, trying to push it in harder.

"TWILIGHT!"

Kratos had to intervene, and with one of his massive arms, pushed her off.

Twilight let out a gasp. The death left her eyes, and she realized her mistake.

Twilight looked at her hands with terror, and the spear was dropped before her. The spear was covered in blood, and before her was Applejack, who was gasping. There was now a scar on her collarbone, and the hat-wearing blonde was gasping for air, backed up against the wall.

"W... What did I... What did I do?" Twilight whimpered, her eyes pacing from the spear and then looking at Applejack. "A... Applejack? No... I... I didn't... I--"

"T-Twi, you're you again!" Applejack gasped happily. "You... You were sayin' creepy things! Your eyes were all black, and you were muttering somethin' about River Styx!"

"...She's not alone." Rainbow Dash sighed softly. All turned their eyes to see the blue Pegasus, who stood close to Fluttershy. There was an immediate shock - when blood had pooled on the ground below.

"Rainbow Dash!" Rarity cried out, running up to her. "What... What happened?"

The yellow Pegasus could not believe what she just did, shutting her eyes closed and began whimpering. She had stuck her dagger right into her friend, the blade dug right into her abdomen. "...I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry..." She whispered, over and over again.

"...Take it easy." Suddenly said Pinkie Pie, who was now serious. She approached the two, and gently placed her hands on the blade, taking it away from Fluttershy. In a swift and smooth motion, she pulled the dagger out, without any other injury. Considering they were strong; this was far from a deadly injury. Even then, Fluttershy hated herself - as she had just attacked her friend.

"There, all better?" Pinkie Pie softly asked. There was something in her eyes - something sad and something depressed. She went through it too. Seconds ago, she was swinging her mallet at Rarity. She snapped out of it - but only when she was a hair away from killing her friend.

"...What did it do to us?" Rainbow Dash quietly whispered.

"...Death." Kratos murmured. "Made you all obsessed with death. Not victory, not triumph, not fighting. Just death itself. What a vile trick..."

"...How do you feel, though?" Rainbow Dash asked. While talking, Applejack helped her get a sewing kit. While Rainbow Dash spoke to Kratos, she began to sew her own injury shut as well.

"No difference." Kratos said. "This doesn't affect me."

"...I wonder why." Twilight sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Why do we end up losing our minds to these "gifts"? Some presents these are..."

"...I have my suspicions." Kratos said - thinking about the fateful events that happened before, all that led him on this seemingly impossible, mad quest.

"...I don't want to use this power ever again." Twilight said. "...And I don't want to ever point a weapon at a friend, ever again. I don't care if the Soul of Hades put us in some trance. I don't. I just... I never want to let myself be in this position. Ever again. Never, ever again."

***

Back to the present...

They sat, frowning and solemnly thinking of their words. Sunny couldn't process it. The fact that there was a power capable of that - making you try to kill someone you cared and loved for.

"...I'm so sorry you had to go through that. All of you..." Izzy said, her eyes starting to water. She rubbed her face. "B-But that thing is long gone, right?"

"Well, you could say that..." Rainbow Dash smirked. "We forgot how to channel those powers specifically. That's the funny thing about being a warrior. Skills come and go and mutate. Nopony nor human does the same trick twice, right? Or at-least, not two thousand times."

"...Let's get back on track." Twilight said, trying to bring the mood back up. "So, after we took down Megaera..."

Author's Note

Here it is! The Chapter 4 Sneak Peek of the MLP x God of War: Ascension Crossover story!

Now, I know that the Soul of Hades wasn't mentioned or seen in Chapter 3, but I hope that the Chapter 4 Sneak Peek of this story covers it, as it does mention and shows the Soul of Hades.

I will bring out Chapter 4 of this crossover soon. I might edit this Sneak Peek, since it is pretty rough. IDK!