The Ghost of Scandinavia

Being hunted

Weeks have gone by. Everything was fine, nevertheless but Kratos had been going on a rampage yet again. No one was safe, many armies fell before Kratos and the Spartans who followed him on his unending path of conquest all in the name of his master, Ares. Kratos brought in Spartan soldiers to a village, ready to take action when the full moon reveals from the clouds.

"They built this temple to offer prayers to Athena. This entire village stands as an affront to lord Ares. BURN THIS VILLAGE, BURN IT TO THE GROUND." Kratos shouts as he began to take over the village. Temple after temple, the Spartans were slaughtering the people like animals. Kratos's army was ruthless, feared through out the world of their brutality. All that mattered was conquest in the name of their leader, Kratos who had become near invincible. He had stumbled upon a temple more different from the rest of the others. He felt something telling him to never cross its threshold, never step inside. A village Oracle steps in front of Kratos blocking his path.

"Beware Kratos, the dangers in the temple are greater than you know."

Kratos just simply ignores the words of the Oracle, he grab her shoulder and moves her aside as he kicks the door down with his blades of choas in hand. People who reside in the temple began to scream in panic and fear. Kratos began to kill them one by one, as a an orange aura was seen on the chained blades. He slaughters his next victim as two more were seen a few inches away from the Spartan general. A mist inside the temple was blocking Kratos's vision unable to see in front of him but he didn't care as he was consumed with only rage and bloodlust. He killed the two people with a slash and as the bodies laid before him, his knees hit the ground after he realized who he had killed. The images of his final victims were nonetheless than his wife, Lysandra and child, Calliope. He picks up his wife's dead body and looked in sorrow.

"My wife, my child. How? They were left in Sparta?"

A blazing fire appeared before the marked warrior amd the source of the element was showing Ares. He began to have words with Kratos.

"You are becoming all I'd hoped you'd be Kratos. Now with your wife and child dead, nothing will hold you back, you'll become even stronger along with Atreus. You will become death itself."

And as the flames consumed the temple, Kratos realized that his true enemies was the god who once saved his life and was now the same god who had taken everything from him. Kratos was on his kneels and clutching his fists in anger.

He yelled, "ARES!!!"

The Oracle approached Kratos.

"From this night forward, the mark of your terrible deed will be visible to all. The ashes of your wife and child will remain to your skin. Never to be removed."

And with that curse, all would know him for the beast he had become. His skin white with the ash of his dead family. The Ghost of Sparta had been born.

"It would seem that the boy had been right. He knew that something terrible would happen this very night. And this must be the very moment." The Oracle said to the Ghost of Sparta.

Kratos looked at the Oracle with confusion clouding his mind, "What are you talking about?"

The Oracle gestures her wooden cane to left side of the temple, Kratos was looking in the direction of where the Oracle was pointing and what came out of the shadows was Atreus with Lysandra and Calliope behind him. They were alive?