The crack of branches grew louder. Out of the sparse gloom, a beast's gaze emerged feral eyes blazing with madness. In the next instant, the creature burst from the thicket.
I caught a glimpse of it. This was no spawn of our world: a long serpentine tail writhed behind it, its legs were those of a goat, hooved and powerful, while its head… the head belonged to a wild boar, crowned with massive tusks. Its eyes glowed red filled with hatred and a thirst for blood.
"Forward! Tisaya flank it! Atreus support!" Bokrat roared, hurling himself into the attack. His shield absorbed the beast's first crushing blow.
Tisaya, swift as ever, circled to its side, thrusting with her spear. I looked for an opening, striking when I could, shielding them to keep the monster from breaking free.
The creature was monstrously strong and fast; its claws ripped through metal with ease. My gear was of poor quality bronze, soft and brittle compared to true steel.
But Bokrat's shield was different: forged, they said, upon the island of Hephaestus himself. Only such a shield could withstand the titanic blows that would have shattered any other armor.
Again and again, I tried to pierce its defense with my spear, but the beast's claws batted it aside. Then, with a sudden lunge, it turned on me its talons tore through bronze as though it were cloth, raking open my arm. I had no time to block the next strike; death was upon me.
"Raaah!" Bokrat's roar split the air as he threw himself in front of me. His shield slammed into the monster with a thunderous crack, hurling it back. But in the same breath, the beast lunged forward again its tusks drove deep into Bokrat's neck. A ragged gasp tore from his throat as he collapsed to one knee, blood flooding down his chest.
Time itself seemed to shatter. I froze, paralyzed, torn between fear and despair. But deeper than fear burned something fiercer resolve. My hands clenched the spear shaft, and with every shred of strength I had left, I thrust.
The point drove straight through the beast's brow, skewering its skull. Its gaping jaws released Bokrat as the demon collapsed lifeless into the dust.
Bokrat fell nearby, blood pouring endlessly from the wound. I dropped beside him, pressing my cloak desperately against his neck, but the crimson tide flowed through my fingers, heedless of my efforts.
"It's… too late… Atreus…" he rasped. "Take my shield… Finish the mission…"
His eyes dimmed, and the empty stare of the dead remained fixed upon me. I looked at the man who, despite my birth, had accepted me and given me a home. His death weighed on me like a curse, and the guilt was unbearable.
"Come," Tisaya said at last. Wounded and weary, yet still holding her weapon, she stood tall. "His sacrifice cannot be in vain."
I nodded in silence. My broken shield slipped from its straps, falling to the ground with a hollow thud.
I lifted Bokrat's shield. In its polished surface I saw a reflection: a man filled with doubt and grief.
"Is this all you are capable of, Atreus?" I asked myself.
I rose to my feet, my blue cloak soaked in my comrade's blood, turned crimson in its folds.
We pressed onward toward the heart of the island. With every step, the sounds of battle grew louder. Through the trees we glimpsed a scene of carnage: two armies locked in a furious clash.
One side I recognized at once the Spartans. I knew their banners too well. They fought with unmatched mastery, merciless both to their foes and to their own flesh. They were warriors who had known only war since birth, unyielding, relentless, ready to fight under any circumstances and to the very end.
Their opponents were women. By their armor, their grace, and their indomitable fury there was no doubt Amazons. Legends themselves brought to life before my eyes. They matched the Spartans in strength, ferocity, and savagery.
The clash was desperate. I saw one of the Spartan commanders cleave an Amazon's head from her shoulders, and in that moment the warrior women's spirit faltered. I froze, unable to tear my eyes away from the Spartan. The face was familiar, the scars, the unbreakable spirit.
"Kratos…" The name surfaced in my mind, like a memory long forgotten. This was the world of the God of War.
"You know him?" Tisaya asked.
"No… only stories," I answered.
"He is too strong," Tisaya said.
"You're right. We must tread carefully. They are not here for alliances," I replied. At last, the truth fell into place in my mind: the Ambrosia was not simply a legendary cure it was a cruel game of the gods. They had chosen their champions, placed their wagers, and now they watched to see who would survive to claim the prize. Everyone who had come here was doomed to the same fate: to either succeed in the mission or watch those they loved perish.
My mind wavered between fear and resolve. I wanted to save the villagers. But my faith in the gods had turned to dust leaving only contempt for their cruelty.
"What troubles you?" Tisaya asked.
"Nothing… We should leave. We cannot take the Ambrosia," I said.
"Leave? When we are so close?" Tisaya's voice trembled with doubt.
"We are too few. We cannot win," I answered. There were only two of us left, and even a single clash with our enemies would be our end.
Suddenly, Tisaya jerked her head, as if listening to a voice I could not hear.
"Yes… that's right… he is a traitor!" she cried. "I told Bokrat never to bring him into the guard. But he never listened to me…" Her voice faltered, as though repeating words not her own. "I will wash away this shame and every memory of him in the temple with blood."
In the next instant, her spear shot toward me.
"Tisaya, wake up! Come to your senses!" I shouted, stumbling back.
"Raise your weapon. It is no honor to slay an unarmed man," she rasped.
"Wait!" I pleaded, but my shield barely caught the next strike. Steel rang, sparks bursting across the stone.
"Fight me!" Tisaya roared, raining blow after blow. I dodged, blocked, tried not to hurt her. But something else had claimed her mind. Her movements grew more savage with every heartbeat, her eyes blazing with an unnatural light.
Her spear thrusts came in relentless waves, and more than once the tip grazed my skin, leaving crimson lines across my flesh. I tried to reason with her, to push her back, if only for a breath, but Tisaya fought like one possessed unyielding, merciless.
At last, I had no choice but to meet her strike with all my strength, forcing her to stumble back. We had been fighting for minutes, and I knew we would not stop until one of us was dead.
"Ah!" Tisaya gasped.
She staggered suddenly, her eyes darting past me. I turned just in time to see the arrow protruding from her back the archer, a barbarian, lowering his bow. Rage filled me. With a cry, I hurled my spear with all my might. The point pierced him clean through, pinning him to the earth.
Tisaya's legs gave way, and she collapsed.
"Tisaya…" I called, rushing to her side.
"The voice… it whispered to me…" she murmured weakly, her lips barely moving. "I could not resist it…"
"I'll carry you to the Ambrosia it will heal you!" I said, refusing to believe what was happening.
"It is too late," her breath came ragged. "I can feel death pulling me down… My comrades await me there…" She managed the faintest smile, lifting her gaze to meet mine. "Promise me… Promise me you will finish the mission…"
"Tisaya…" I gripped her hand, but it grew limp. Her spirit departed for the underworld.
Why must all die for the amusement of the gods? I could not accept it. Yet I could not change it either. I was only mortal. No hero. No demigod. Just a man, born to till the earth, and yet forced onto the path of a warrior.
I was nothing. Even her death was my fault. A coward that was all I was.