Kratos (God of War)/Synopsis

The story of Kratos from God of War

Past
Kratos was born in Sparta, where he and other children were observed and tested to see if they had the skills to join the Spartan army. If they failed, then children would be sent to die in the mountains. Thus, Kratos trained with his brother, Deimos, so that they could one day join the Spartan army. But one day as they trained, Sparta was attacked by Ares, Athena, and an army of centaurs, seeking a “marked warrior” that had been prophesied as the one who would destroy the gods. The gods decided that Deimos was that warrior given the birthmarks on his body and Ares took him. Kratos tried to stop the war god from taking his brother, but Ares just struck him away, scarring his face. Ares raised his blade to kill the boy, but Athena stopped him, saying they’d only come for Deimos. Athena apologized to Kratos for this and left with Ares as he watched helplessly as they took his brother away. Losing Deimos had a powerful impact on Kratos, who swore to never to hesitate again. In memory of his brother, he put tattoos on his skin designed to resemble Deimos’ birthmarks. Kratos went on to join the Spartan army and was married to Lysandra, with whom he had a daughter, Calliope. However Calliope fell victim to a plague and according to Spartan tradition, her weakness would’ve resulted in her being tossed into a chasm to die. But Kratos learned about the healing elixir called Ambrosia, which he set out to obtain to save Calliope. What he didn’t realize was that he’d been selected to act as Ares’ champion in a bet between the gods, a contest between chosen champions where the winner would be the one to obtain the Ambrosia. Kratos managed to get the aid of an army of Spartans and eventually encountered a healer that gave him the Flames of Apollo to help him. Kratos’ first major obstacle was Herodius and his army, Poseidon’s champion, but Kratos and his forces slew him and his fellow Atlantians. Angry that Kratos had taken him out of the running, Poseidon unleashed numerous obstacles against the Spartans at sea, but they managed to get to land. Kratos later killed Pothia, Artemis’ champion, and her army, and Hades became fearful Alrik, his champion would also fall. Thus he unleashed fire from the skies upon Kratos’ forces and though he killed many of the Spartans, Kratos survived. He finally found the Ambrosia, slaying Helios’ champion as well, and regrouped with his soldiers. Alrik and his barbarians engaged the Spartans since his father was sick as well and needed the Ambrosia. After a fierce battle, Kratos recapture the Ambrosia, though losing all of his soldiers in the process, and summoned a number of Rocs to torment Alrik. He returned to Sparta and used the Ambrosia to heal Calliope, earning the title of captain by the Spartan king.

Servitude to Ares
Kratos began to win victory after victory, slowly gaining thousands of soldiers under his command after only starting with fifty. His brutality and bloodlust grew and grew and his tactics reflected this, growing unorthodox and brutal, but still effective. But Kratos and his soldiers were unable to battle the ruthless barbarian army, who they were no match for. The Spartans soon found themselves being slaughtered and Kratos was about to be killed by the barbarian leader, Alrik. Desperate for victory at any cost, he called out to Ares, offering his life and servitude if the war god destroyed his enemies. Ares accepted and wiped out the Barbarians, and gave Kratos the Blades of Chaos, marking him as the god’s minion. Kratos eagerly obeyed Ares’ will, conquering and slaughtering in the war god’s name. But as he raided a village dedicated to Athena, Ares manipulated Kratos into killing his wife and child as he slaughtered people left and right. The war god explained that he’d done this because he wanted to make Kratos the perfect warrior. However the Spartan instead became enraged with his master, consumed by grief and anger and left the bodies of his family to burn in the temple. The village oracle cursed Kratos, so that the ashes of his family clung to his skin, turning it pure white and giving him the name “the Ghost of Sparta”. He became consumed by terrible nightmares and visions of his family’s death and his past sins, driving him to the point of insanity. Kratos left Sparta and found some solace in traveling across the Aegean Sea. In hopes of restoring peace to his mind, he swore servitude to other Olympians, hoping they’d forgive his past atrocities and rid him of his nightmares. Thus Kratos traveled through Greece, battling monsters and Greece’s enemies in the name of the gods. But to others, his white skin served as a mark of his sins and people viewed Kratos as a savage beast, with some preferring death as opposed to let him save them. The Ghost of Sparta would spend ten years in the gods’ service, driven by his desire for revenge on Ares.

God of War: Ascension
"Never...Never again."

- Kratos in the opening. For breaking his oath, Ares sent the Furies to capture Kratos and force him to once again serve the God of War. Kratos was trapped in an illusion of his home in Sparta, but the Fury Orkos appeared before him and encouraged him to see past the illusion, using Lysandra's necklace and ring as totem to discern reality from illusion. Though Kratos distrusted him, he followed Orkos' instruction to seek out Aletheia the Oracle at Delphi. The Oracle was captured by Pollux and Castor. He took the Amulet of Uroborus from them after he killed them. Kratos traveled to the Harbor of Kirra where he encountered Orkos again. The oath keeper revealed that he is the son of Ares and Alecto. Ares wanted a perfect warrior who could help him overthrow Zeus. Disappointed in Orkos, Ares disowned his son, and Orkos became the oath keeper of the Furies to please his mother. He explained that Kratos was the warrior Ares sought and for that reason, Ares helped Kratos against the barbarians. The murder of his family was meant to be one of three "tests" that would bind Kratos to Ares's will. Orkos did his bidding as the oath keeper and did not question the Furies until Ares tricked Kratos into killing his family. Armed with this knowledge, Kratos took a ship to Delos.

Kratos arrives at the island of Delos and traverses the giant, ruined statue of Apollo. He is attacked by all three Furies and manages to cut off Megaera's arm, but Alecto uses her power to capture Kratos. Orkos appears and frees Kratos, taking him elsewhere upon the statue, with Alecto vowing that he will never succeed. After a perilous journey, Kratos uses the Amulet of Uroborus to fully restore the statue and retrieves the Eyes from the Lantern. Unfortunately, after completing the Trials of Archimedes, he is ambushed by the Furies, who take him captive and steal the Eyes and the Amulet.

Over the next two weeks, Kratos was tortured by the Furies in the Prison of the Damned. He managed to free himself when Megaera went too far with her torture. He then pursued the Fury through the prison. She and Tisiphone attempted to misdirect him, as a building he enters is projected as a brothel. When he goes to sleep with a woman, he spots the ring on her finger and he realizes that this is an illusion and tackles Tisiphone. Megaera interferes, insisting that Kratos belongs to her. She then released insects into Aegaeon's hands and mouth, thus mutating them into insect-titan hybrids. After Kratos killed Megaera and Aegeaon, retrieving the Amulet of Uroboros, Tisiphone creates an illusion of him being honored by the King of Sparta. But again, Kratos sees through it. He soon finds the Scribe of Hecatonchires, who reveals that Ares and the Furies planned to overthrow Zeus. The Scribe was the first to be imprisoned by the Furies. They were originally fair in their punishment, but became ruthless because of Ares.

Making his way to Alecto's chamber, Kratos manages to retrieve the Oath Stone from Tisiphone's pet bird, Daimon. But upon entering the chamber, the Furies project another illusion, this time of Kratos' home in Sparta. Kratos is nearly taken in by this, for he got to see his wife and daughter again. He grows close to sleeping with "Lysandra" but notices the ring on her finger and reminds himself that he's in an illusion. "Lysandra" is revealed to be Alecto. She tried to convince him that he could live in this illusion if he rejoined Ares; however, noticing the Eyes of Truth hanging on her hip, he defiantly refused, preferring truth to living a lie. Enraged, Alecto drops the illusion and decides to execute him if he would not serve. However, Kratos breaks free of her sludge trap and manages to snatch the Eyes from Alecto, who retrieves deeper into her sanctum before she realized they were gone. Tisiphone joined Alecto as Kratos advanced on the remaining Furies. They created an illusion of a massive whirlpool, with Alecto transforming into Caribdis the sea monster. Using the Eyes, Kratos broke through the Furies' illusions and forced Alecto back into her human form. As he advanced on the Fury Queen, Tisiphone dispatched Daimon against him but Kratos simply used the Eyes to destroy the bird. He proceed to physically at Tisiphone, as she shapeshifted between the forms of the King and Kratos himself, belittling him.

As he wrapped his hands around her throat, Tisiphone transformed into Lysandra. Kratos briefly ceased his assault but shrugged it of and continued. Tisiphone then changed into the Village Oracle, telling him that his family was not there that night he killed them by chance, before Kratos snapped her neck, killing her. With Alecto left for last, Kratos drew his blades. The Fury Queen coldly tells him that the truth would only bring him pain before he plunges his blades into her chest. With her last breath, Alecto spitefully promises that her death would change nothing before Kratos bisects her, destroying the Fury Queen.

Kratos returned to his home in Sparta, where he was met by Orkos. Although praising Kratos' victory over the Furies, he reveals that he was remade the oath keeper once again, maintaining Kratos' bond to Ares. He begged Kratos to give him an honorable death, as it would free them both from the god, to which Kratos refused, proclaiming that no more innocent blood should be spilled. However, Orkos' continuing please ultimately forced Kratos' hand. After killing Orkos, Kratos experienced the first of his many nightmares, previously masked by his bond to Ares: this was the price he had to pay for the truth. He also discovered his path to redemption through continual service to Olympus. Kratos proceeded to burn down his house, with the corpse of Orkos inside it.

God of War: Chains of Olympus
"Is this all you would have me do? Is there nothing else!?"

- Kratos, serving the gods. It was during his ten years of servitude, Kratos was given one of his greatest tasks after he aided Attica in defending against the armies of the Persian empire. He managed to kill the Persian King, defeat much of the Persian forces, and slay the Basilisk they had unleashed on the city. However Kratos watched as the sun suddenly fell from the sky and followed the dim light on the horizon where it had landed. He found the temple of the sun god, Helios, crashed in the city of Marathon. Upon arriving, Kratos was told by Athena that Helios had been taken from the skies by some unknown persons. With Helios’ light gone, Morpheus, god of dreams, was able to place the Olympians to sleep and take control of the land by covering it in his black fog. Kratos fought his way through Morpheus’ minions and managed to enter the temple of Helios, where he found Eos, Helios’ sister. She told him to awaken the sun god’s fire steeds, which would lead him to Helios. Kratos succeeded in doing so and the steeds brought him to the Underworld, where he could see Helios’ light at the Pillar of the World. The Ghost of Sparta fought his way through the Underworld and eventually battled Charon, who refused him passage across the River Styx. Kratos battled the ferryman, but lost and was dropped into Tartarus, though he eventually escaped, gaining the Gauntlet of Zeus in the process and discovering the Titan, Atlas had escaped and captured Helios.

Kratos managed to slay Charon in their second battle and headed for Persephone’s temple. But throughout his journey, he’d been plagued by memories of Calliope and the song she used to play on the flute he’d once made for her. As Kratos arrived at the temple, he saw Calliope and finally became determined to reunite with her. Upon reaching the Pillar of the World, he encountered Persephone, wife of Hades, who told Kratos that he could be with his daughter if he gave all his impurity (and thus his strength and powers) to the Forsaken Tree. The Ghost of Sparta did so and was able to enter Elysium, reuniting with Calliope and knowing the first happiness he’d felt in some time. However Persephone revealed she’d been the one who freed Atlas and sent him to capture Helios. She planned to have him use Helios’ power to destroy the Pillar of the World, thus destroying everything in existence. Persephone mockingly told Kratos that though he’d gotten to see Calliope again, he’d doomed her, along with everything else in the process. Determined to save his daughter, Kratos killed the innocent souls of Elysium to again become the Ghost of Sparta, regaining his strength and powers. As he prepared to pursue Persephone, Kratos realized the Fates were never kind enough to do something like let him be with his daughter again and as he heard Calliope weep behind him, his hate for the gods strengthened. Kratos managed to kill Persephone, free Helios, and chained Atlas so that he replaced the damaged Pillar of the World. The Titan asked the Ghost of Sparta if he really thought the gods would keep their word and Kratos replied it was all he had left. He left the Underworld aboard Helios’ chariot, but found himself too weakened from his journey and fell unconcious from the Chariot. But before Kratos hit the ground, Athena and Helios stopped him and took the Gauntlet of Zeus and Sun Shield from him, noting that he was an exceptional mortal.

God of War
"The gods of Olympus have abandoned me. Now there is no hope."

- Kratos in the opening of 2005's God of War. Five years later, Kratos managed to slay the Hydra and was given the final task that would earn him freedom from his nightmares and redemption, as well as a chance at revenge. Athena commanded Kratos to save Athens, which was under siege by Ares and his army. He fought his way through the ravaged city, killing Ares’ minions as he did so, and eventually found the Oracle of Athens. She told him he needed to find Pandora’s Box, which would give him the power to destroy a god and was located in Pandora’s Temple on the back of Cronos. Kratos went into the Desert of Lost Souls and summoned the Titan with use of the Titan Horn. He climbed up Cronos' body and entered the temple, overcoming the dangers within and retrieving Pandora’s Box. However Ares sensed that Kratos had succeeded in his quest and picked up a piece of rubble that he threw towards Pandora’s temple. It impaled the Ghost of Sparta and Ares’ harpies claimed the box, while Kratos descended into the Underworld. However as he fell towards he River Styx, he refused to give up and grabbed onto the leg of a ship captain (who Kratos had let die before) as he clung to a ledge. He was able to get onto the ledge and kicked the captain down before he managed to escape the Underworld with help from a mysterious gravedigger (Zeus in disguise). Kratos managed to get Pandora’s Box back from Ares and opened it, with the power inside growing him to giant size to match the war god and granting him incredible strength. Kratos was able to fight Ares evenly, prompting the god to trap him in a void where he saw phantoms of his family being attacked by a number of evil versions of himself. Kratos managed to fight the phantoms off, but Ares took away his Blades of Chaos and used them to slay the Ghost of Sparta’s family again. Now left despondent and without any will to fight, Kratos just knelt as Ares prepared to slay him. However he noticed the Blade of the Gods being held by a statue of Athena and dodged Ares' strike, taking up the sword. With this sword, Kratos was able to beat Ares, who said he had just been trying to make the Ghost of Sparta a great warrior to which Kratos replied that he’d succeeded and finished the war god off. But despite his success, Athena informed the Ghost of Sparta that though the gods forgave his past crimes, they could not take away the nightmares that tormented him. Kratos was left with no hope and tried to kill himself by jumping off a cliff into the sea. However Athena saved him, offering him the throne of the God of War in Ares’ place and he accepted.

Second Quest for the Ambrosia
Shortly after becoming an Olympian, Kratos entered Tartarus to once again find the Ambrosia. However this time, he wanted to destroy it since followers of Ares wanted to use it to resurrect the former god of war. On this quest, Kratos began to remember his first quest for the Ambrosia and eventually encountered a giant spider monster, who’d been sent to kill him. However he bested the arachnid and its offspring and Athena tried to warn him of the new dangers that awaited him. But Kratos ignored her, believing nothing could stop him, and eventually met Athena again, who told him he should now fear the dead. Kratos just moved on, coming across the bodies of the Spartans he’d sacrificed in his first quest for the Ambrosia. The Spartans suddenly rose from the dead, determined to have revenge on Kratos for letting them die, but the Ghost of Sparta fought them off. He managed to reach the island where the Ambrosia was located, but the island revealed itself to be a monster called Gyges. He wanted revenge on Kratos since he’d burned off a hundred of Gyges' arms with the Flames of Apollo when he’d battled Helios’ champion. However Kratos avoided Gyges' grasp and revealed why he sought the Ambrosia again. Though Gyges begged Kratos not to destroy Tree of Life as its Ambrosia kept him immortal, the Ghost of Sparta used the Flames of Apollo to incinerate Gyges, destroying the Tree of Life and all the Ambrosia. Kratos then left, knowing Ares’ followers would seek revenge for his taking away their only hope of reviving Ares.

God of War: Ghost of Sparta
"It is not over, Athena. The gods will pay for this!"

- Kratos to Athena after Callisto and Deimos' death. Soon afterwards, Kratos had a vision of his mother, imprisoned in the Temple of Poseidon in Atlantis. He headed for the city and argued with Athena when she tried to dissuade him from pursuing his visions. Kratos was suddenly attacked by Scylla, but was able to defeat the monster and had a vision of his training with Deimos when they were children. He managed to enter the temple and found Callisto, whom he had believed to be dead. She told Kratos his father had brought her there and that Deimos was alive, having been imprisoned in the Domain of Death. Shocked and enraged at being lied to for all those years, Kratos demanded to know why she lied and the identity of his father. Callisto tried to tell him the truth, but changed into a terrible monster and attacked her son, making him kill her. Kratos became angered that the gods had taken another family member from him and set out to save Deimos. He eventually came across the volcano prison of Thera, a Titan, who asked him to free her. Kratos did so, gaining the power of Thera’s Bane, letting him empower his blades with flame. As he descended deeper into Atlantis, he battled Scylla again and managed to kill her by impaling her with the Archimedian Screw. Kratos headed back to Sparta and along with way, was confronted by Erinys, daughter of Thanatos, who told him Deimos belonged to her father, as did the Ghost of Sparta’s blood. Kratos replied that nothing, including Erinys could stop him and battled the daughter of Thanatos, eventually slaying her. He found the way to the Temple of Ares in Sparta, where he found the key to saving Deimos. Kratos returned to Atlantis as it was sinking where he managed to enter the Domain of Death. He finally found Deimos, deep in Thanatos’ temple and freed him, only to be attacked by his brother, who blamed him for his imprisonment since Kratos didn’t save him. The Ghost of Sparta was eventually beaten down by Deimos, when Thanatos intervened, carrying Deimos away. Though badly weakened from the fight, Kratos pursued them to the Suicide Bluffs, where he’d tried to end his life after killing Ares. He saved Deimos from falling to his death and reconciled with him, joining forces to battle Thanatos. Together they were able to fight the death god, but Deimos lost his life in the battle and an enraged Kratos finally killed Thanatos. He carried his brother’s body to a grave being dug by the mysterious Grave Digger, laying him down to rest there and said Deimos was now free. Kratos was on the verge of throwing himself off the cliffs again, but stopped himself and asked what he had become. The Grave Digger said that the Ghost of Sparta had become “Death, the Destroyer of Worlds” and vanished. Athena appeared, begging Kratos to forgive her for not telling him the truth and saying he’d become able to be a full god. However the Ghost of Sparta just replied that the gods would pay for what they had done, before he returned to Olympus, now more hateful of the Olympians than ever.

God of War: Betrayal (non-canon)
As Kratos helped the Spartans besiege a mortal city, he was attacked by Argos, servant of Hera. But before he could defeat the monster, a mysterious assassin killed it, which Kratos realized was an attempt to destroy his reputation amongst the Olympians. He pursued the assassin, but found himself having to fight the servants of Hades. Kratos refused to let them stand in his way and continued his pursuit, only to find Ceryx, the gods’ messenger, barring his path. Thus the assassin escaped and Ceryx ordered Kratos to stop, a command that came from Zeus. However since he wouldn’t give him a reason, the Ghost of Sparta just became angry and killed Ceryx. It was only afterwards that Kratos realized Zeus wouldn’t react kindly to such an action.

God of War II
"If all of Olympus will deny me my vengeance, then all of Olympus will die. I have lived in the shadow of the gods for long enough! The time of the gods has come to an end!"

- Kratos response to a dying Athena. As Kratos’ Spartans conquered Rhodes, Athena warned him that with every city he destroyed, the more of the gods’ anger he incurred. Kratos didn’t listen to her and leapt down to Earth to deliver the final blow to Rhodes. However upon landing, an eagle took a great deal of the Ghost of Sparta’s godly powers, shrinking him to mortal size and placing it in the Colossus of Rhodes, animating it. Assuming Athena was behind this, Kratos fought his way through Rhodes while battling with the Colossus. Eventually Zeus offered him the powerful Blade of Olympus and the Ghost of Sparta infused what was left of his godly power into it. With the blade in hand, Kratos destroyed the Colossus and called out to the gods, asking if they needed more proof than this. However the giant’s hand fell onto Kratos, knocking the Blade of Olympus away from him. Bloody, beaten, and without his immortality, the Ghost of Sparta knew his only hope was to reclaim the Blade of Olympus. But as he staggered towards it, the eagle flew down and revealed it was actually Zeus, who told Kratos he would not give the Ghost of Sparta a chance to kill him as he had Ares. The king of the gods demanded that Kratos serve him, but he refused and Zeus killed him, impaling him with the Blade of Olympus, before destroying the Spartan army. The arms of the Underworld reached up and dragged Kratos down into the Underworld, but he found a new ally. Gaia, a Titan who’d watched him throughout all his life, gave the Ghost of Sparta the will to fight death and healed his wound. Kratos climbed out of the Underworld and commanded the only surviving Spartan to return to Sparta and be prepared to fight. He then mounted the Pegasus, a winged horse sent to him by Gaia, and tried to fly back to Olympus to have his revenge. However Gaia informed Kratos that he was no longer a god and that he had to seek out the Sisters of Fate so as to travel back to the time when Zeus betrayed him. That would be the only time when Zeus would be vulnerable and Kratos could reclaim the Blade of Olympus. His journey to the Sisters of Fate brought Ghost of Sparta to the mountain prison of Typhon, where the Pegasus ended up trapped in the Titan’s grasp. As he sought to free the Pegasus, Kratos came across Prometheus, who’d been condemned to be partially eaten by a large bird then rehealed everyday by Zeus for giving the Flames of Olympus to humanity. Prometheus begged Kratos to burn him in the flame to release him and the Ghost of Sparta managed this after ripping out Typhon’s Bane, a bow with wind powers, from Typhon’s eye. As Prometheus burned, Kratos took in his ashes, gaining the power of the Titans. He eventually found his way to the Island of Creation, home of the Sisters of Fate and came across Theseus, who had become guardian of the Steeds of Time, which Kratos needed to activate to get to the Island. They fought to determine the greatest warrior in Greece and Kratos eventually killed Theseus, impaling him with his own spear and smashing his head in a door. As he continued to fight his way to the Sisters, Kratos battled the Barbarian King that he’d killed when he joined Ares, who escaped the Underworld to change his fate, Perseus, who was attempting to bring his love back to life, and Icarus, who was insane and certain he was the only one who could reach the Sisters of Fate. After struggling with Icarus when he caused them to fall into a chasm, Kratos found himself upon Atlas in the Underworld. The Titan at first tried to crush the Ghost of Sparta for getting him stuck there, but Atlas relented when Kratos told him he was now determined to destroy Zeus and change his fate so as to do so. Atlas helped him get back to the surface and Kratos found his way into the Palace of the Fates. It was there that the Ghost of Sparta encountered a mysterious warrior, who was also determined to reach the Sisters of Fate. Kratos defeated the warrior and struck him a fatal blow, but discovered the warrior was the last surviving Spartan he’d met in Rhodes. The Spartan told him that Zeus had destroyed Sparta and that he’d come to the island to try and change Sparta’s fate. Before dying, he said that he had faith that their brothers in Sparta would live on through Kratos, the true god of war. Enraged, the Ghost of Sparta roared at the heavens, demanding that Zeus come and face him, but was attacked by the Kraken. However Kratos didn’t fight and was so overcome by frustration that he didn’t care about his quest anymore. As the Ghost of Sparta found himself held by the tentacles of the Kraken, he saw an image of his beloved Sparta burning. Gaia, in the form of Kratos’ wife, appeared; telling him that even if he relented, Zeus would torment him still and would never rest as long as the Ghost of Sparta lived. Even when Kratos died, Zeus’ brother, Hades, would put him in a place of torment forever. Gaia went on tell him that victory favored him, but he had to take hold of his destiny and command it and that there was a war on the horizon and the Titans wanted him to lead him into battle. Regaining his will to go on, Kratos slew the Kraken and found his way into the Sister of Fate’s temple. The Ghost of Sparta met with Lahkesis, who said the Fates determined the fate of all and it was she who allowed him to get this far. She told Kratos that it was not his destiny to kill Zeus, but he replied they didn’t control his destiny and began fighting her. The Ghost of Sparta was able to take her on, prompting Lahkesis to summon Atropos, who took Kratos back in time to the Blade of the Gods during his fight with Ares. She tried to destroy it so that Kratos would lose that battle, killing his past and present selves, but he managed to stop her. He managed to get back to the Sisters’ throne, where he fought both Lahkesis and Atropos at once. Eventually Kratos trapped the two in one of the mirrors they used to go into the past and shattered it, ridding himself of both of them. He proceeded to the Loom Chamber, where the last sister, Clotho, warned him that manipulating his fate could have severe consequences. However Kratos killed her and used the Loom Chamber to take control of his fate and went back in time to the time when Zeus betrayed and killed him. Taking the Blade of Olympus from Zeus, the two engaged each other on the Summit of Sacrifice. Eventually Zeus unleashed a powerful wave of lightning, prompting Kratos to apparently surrender. He asked the king of the gods to free him from his torment, but Zeus replied “I will release you from your life my son, but your torment is just beginning.” However Kratos blocked Zeus’ strike, pinning him down with his Blades of Athena and drove the Blade of Olympus into the king of the gods’ stomach. As Kratos tried to finish off Zeus, Athena intervened, trying to defend Olympus and the king of the gods’ tried to retreat. Kratos tried to finish him off, but Athena intervened and was stabbed through the chest, killing her. Athena revealed to the Ghost of Sparta that he was Zeus’ son and Zeus tried to kill him out of fear of Kratos overthrowing him as Zeus had done to Cronos. Athena begged the Ghost of Sparta to stop seeking revenge and the gods would defend Zeus, before dying. Kratos simply said that if all of Olympus would deny him his revenge, then all of Olympus would die. He went back to the end of the Great War and brought Gaia and the other Titans to the present, leading them against Mt. Olympus.

God of War III
"Zeus, your son has returned! I bring the destruction of Olympus!"

- Kratos screaming to Mount Olympus on top of Gaia. As the Olympians engaged the Titans, Kratos battled their forces until Poseidon began using his Hippocampi to pull the Titans off the mountain. The Ghost of Sparta battled the Hippocamp attacking Gaia and eventually engaged Poseidon, who was in an enormous Titan-esque form made of water and rock with Hippocampi coming from the base of his torso. With Gaia’s help, Kratos was able to fight Poseidon, eventually forcing the sea god out of the form. He tried to warn the Ghost of Sparta that the end of Olympus meant the end for all, but Kratos ignored him and beat up Poseidon. He eventually gouged out the sea god’s eyes and snapped his neck, before tossing him down into the sea. As Poseidon’s body landed in the ocean, the seas rushed forth, swallowing much of the land. Gaia and Kratos continued their ascent up the mountain, eventually reaching Zeus and Kratos faced his father, declaring that he would not see the end of this day. However the king of the gods fired a powerful lighting blast at his son and Gaia, sending them both falling down the mountain and partially severing the Titan’s hand. Kratos found he couldn’t hold on and called out for Gaia to save him, but she replied if she did, they would both fall. She said Kratos had been nothing more than a pawn of the Titans and that this was their war, not his. Unable to hold on, the Ghost of Sparta fell into the Underworld and landed in the River Styx, thinking about the events of his life. Weakened by the souls of the river, Kratos managed to pull himself out and swore to escape Hades again so he could destroy Zeus. However the spirit of Athena appeared before him, saying her death had brought her to a higher plane of existence. She now wanted to help Kratos destroy Zeus, which the Ghost of Sparta found suspicious after she gave her life to protect the king of the gods. To try and win his trust, Athena transformed Kratos’ ruined Blades of Athena into Blades of Exile and told him that to defeat Zeus, he needed to seek out the Flame of Olympus. Kratos journeyed through the Underworld, eventually coming across the Judges to the Underworld, who decided that the afterlife was not ready for the Ghost of Sparta, opening the way for him to move on. Kratos eventually came across Hephaestus, who told him about the Flame of Olympus, which had the power to destroy both mortal and god. He finally entered Hades’ Palace, where he found the coffin of Persephone and used it to smash open the way into Hades’ throne room. At first, Hades taunted him from the shadows about all of the god of the Underworld’s family members that Kratos had killed. They battled each other and Kratos eventually managed to take the Claws of Hades, using it to rip out Hades’ soul, killing him. With his death, the souls of the Underworld roamed free and Kratos came across Hephaestus again, who told him about his daughter, Pandora, who had been taken from him. The Ghost of Sparta managed to escape the Underworld via a Hyperion Gate, ending up back on Mt. Olympus. He continued to fight across Mt. Olympus, running into Gaia, who begged for his help. Kratos jut replied that she was a means to an end and nothing more, as she had to him and used the Blade of Olympus to sever Gaia’s hand, causing her to fall. He continued to fight the gods and the Titans as he attempted to reach the Flame Of Olympus. Kratos later tried to find Pandora, who was the key to retrieving Pandora’s Box, which was within the Flame of Olympus and supposedly had another power inside it, greater than the one Kratos used to defeat Ares. In his quest, the Ghost of Sparta ripped off Helios' head, stabbed the Titan, Perses, in the eye with the Blade of Olympus, sliced Hermes’ legs off and took his boots, beat Hercules’ face in with the Nemean Cestus, and snapped Hera’s neck for insulting Pandora. Kratos encountered Hephaestus yet again, telling him that he wanted to find the Labyrinth. The smith god realized that he was seeking Pandora to sacrifice her to retrieve Pandora’s Box at first became angry and said it was Kratos’ fault he was imprisoned in the Underworld and Pandora was imprisoned in the Labyrinth. However Hephaestus seemed to change his mind and sent Kratos to Tartarus to retrieve the Omphalos Stone, which he could use to make the Ghost of Sparta a weapon. After entering Tartarus, Kratos was confronted by Cronos, who wanted revenge for the Ghost of Sparta apparently killing Gaia. However Kratos killed Cronos, taking the Omphalos Stone from within his stomach and killed Hephaestus soon afterwards when the smith god tried to trick and kill him so as to protect Pandora. Kratos eventually retrieved Pandora from the Labyrinth and brought her to the Flame of Olympus. But as she tried to sacrifice herself, Kratos stopped her, having second thoughts since Pandora reminded him of his own daughter. However Pandora refused to let the Ghost of Sparta stop her, saying this was her destiny when Zeus appeared and captured her. Kratos demanded that he let her go, but the king of the gods replied that he should not confuse Pandora with his own daughter only to sneer that the Ghost of Sparta already had. Zeus told Kratos to look around at what he had wrought in his need for atonement for killing his family. However the Ghost of Sparta replied that he could see only what he had come to destroy and took on Zeus as the chamber crumbled around them. Pandora tried to throw herself into the flame to extinguish it, but Kratos grabbed her, determined not to let her do so. Zeus commanded at him not to let Pandora into the flame, but when he told Kratos not to fail her as he had his family, the Ghost of Sparta’s rage overtook him and he threw himself at Zeus. Pandora extinguished the flame, sacrificing herself in the process and Kratos opened the Box, but found it was empty. Zeus mocked him for “another stunning failure” and went outside to await his son for a final battle. Enraged even more, Kratos went out to fight his father in the pavilion, but as they fought, Gaia appeared. She attempted to crush the two, but they jumped into a hole in her chest left by Poseidon’s Hippocamp and ended up fighting in the chamber housing Gaia’s heart. After a titanic battle, Kratos managed to defeat Zeus, impaling him on the Blade of Olympus, against Gaia’s heart, finishing the two off. The Ghost of Sparta awoke amongst Gaia’s crumbled body and found Zeus’ body, still impaled on the Blade of Olympus. Kratos pulled it free and walked away, but his father’s spirit was still determined to finish him. Zeus blasted the Ghost of Sparta with lightning, destroying most of his weapons and magic items and draining his will to fight, replacing it with overwhelming fear and loss. Kratos was left trapped in his own mind, haunted by his memories and his father’s taunts. But Pandora aided him in forgiving himself for his failures and allowed him to regain his feelings of Hope. As Hope empowered Kratos, he broke free of Zeus’ grasp and managed to drive his spirit back into his body. Tossing away his Blades of Exile, the Ghost of Sparta bloodily and relentlessly beat Zeus to death, finally killing his father. Athena congratulated Kratos on his victory, then asked that he give her the power he’d taken from Pandora’s Box. The Ghost of Sparta replied that there wasn’t anything in the Box and Pandora had died for nothing due to his need for revenge. Athena said that was impossible since she saw Kratos use the power, Hope, she’d put in the Box to kill Zeus. She explained that she put the most powerful power in existence in the Box when Zeus put the evils of the world inside in case they were released. Athena demanded that Kratos give her the power he’d taken in, since it was rightfully hers and she could now use it to rebuild the world. However Athena realized that when Kratos opened the Box to defeat Ares, he’d taken in the power not the evils as everyone believed. The evils instead infected the gods, causing them to change, even Zeus, making him into the monster Kratos had battled. It had been sealed in him by all his guilt, anger, and need for vengeance and when the Ghost of Sparta finally forgave himself, he released it. Athena asked Kratos for Hope again, but he refused and drove the Blade of Olympus through his stomach, releasing the power to the mortals. Angered at that action, Athena removed the Blade of Olympus and Kratos had disappointed her, before leaving Kratos to 'die', as he laughed to himself at one last victory, his quest for revenge finally done. However in a post-credit scene, a trail of blood from where Kratos had been dying was seen, leading off a cliff, hinting that he is still active.

A New Life
Sometime after the events of God of War III, Kratos left Greece for good. Before leaving, however, he rediscovered his original Blades of Chaos and took them with him. He traveled further into Europe before settling in Scandanavia (called "Midguard" by it's inhabitents). At some point after arriving he met a woman named Faye (Secretly the giantess, Laufey the Just) and fell in love with her.

Eventually, after revealing his past to her, Kratos and Faye married and had a son. Faye initially wanted to name their son "Loki", but they eventually decided on the name Atreus, after a friend of Kratos' who was always joyful. They chose this name, because Atreus' birth filled them with joy and hope.

While we know little of this time. It is known Kratos would leave his family at times (presumably on hunting trips). Atreus was often sick as a small child and stayed at home with his mother. Despite some distance from his family, he spent enough time with Atreus to teach him to speak Greek (As Faye taught him to speak and read in the languages of her lands.)

When Atreus was still a young boy, Faye would die from unknown causes. Before her death, she passed on her Axe "Leviathan" to her husband and marked the trees she wished to be used in her funeral pyre. Her last request was to have her ashes scattered by Kratos and Atreus at the highest point in all the realms. Unknown to them at this point, Faye was referring to the Giant's Fingertips in her homeland of Jotunheim.

God of War (2018)
It all began when Kratos was chopping down a tree with his Leviathan axe. After chopping the tree down, he carried it with his arms, along with his son, Atreus, to the boat where they journey home. While riding on the boat and before reaching home, Kratos' son told him that he felt that the forest had changed, but Kratos told him not to dwell on it. By the time they've reached home, Kratos then, carries a corpse covered in a bag, which turns out to be his deceased spouse and mother of Atreus, laying her on the a bunch of logs, and then begins burning her, carrying to the afterlife by the flames. As Atreus took the knife from her mother, Kratos insisted that it was his to keep. Atreus's father then demands him to prove himself to become a true warrior, as where they're journey was about to begin.

"Kratos: What are you doing?! Now his guard is up! Only fire (Calming himself) Only fire... When I tell you to fire Atreus: I-I'm sorry... Kratos: Do not be sorry, be better"

- Kratos teaching Atreus a lesson about hunting

As Kratos and Atreus had spotted, then started hunting the deer, Atreus then shoots an arrow, but missed, without his father's signal, which infreariates him at first, but then calms himself and teaches his son a lesson about hunting. Kratos then tells his son to find it, and not willing to give Atreus his bow back, because he's not ready, until they find the deer. But before they could find the deer, they encountered Draugar. At first Atreus wanted to help, but then Kratos insisted that his son was not ready and killed all them by himself. After Kratos killing all the Draugar through their paths, and finally reached the point where they found the deer, Kratos's son now listens and wait patiently for his mark. As Atreus successfully, and finally, hit the target, they, then, started finishing it off. At first Kratos's son gave the knife to his father, but Kratos denies it and tells his son finish what he has started. Atreus was unwilling to kill the deer, but Kratos helped him finish the job by gently holding his son's hands that are holding the knife, penetrating the deer's neck. After successfully hunting down the deer. A troll began to attack both Kratos and his son, first, grabbing the deer's corpse, with Atreus attacking first but thrown off the edge of a small cliff where they both begin the first major battle. Together, as a team, both Kratos and Atreus must fight the troll in order to survive. Kratos does the close-combat, while Atreus does the range attack with his bow and arrow.


 * "Kratos: You are not ready.
 *  Atreus: What? Are you serious? I found the deer. I proved myself. How am I not ready?
 *  Kratos: We are going home.
 *  Atreus: I haven't been sick in a long time. I can do this.
 *  Kratos: You are NOT ready.
 * - Kratos telling his son, Atreus, that he's not ready, after witnessing his son enragedly attacking the corpses of a deceased troll."

After defeating the troll, Kratos then begins knocking the troll's head, breaking one of his horns, with his shear bulk, beating his head a couple times and then finally slaming it to the ground and finished it off by cracking its neck with his godly strength. But after finishing off troll, he witnesses his own son, Atreus, visousily attacking the fallen dead corpse of the troll repeatively with all his anger and hatred and coughing with his sickness, a reminder of Kratos, himself, from the past, and Kratos, then, stops and calms his son down. Finally, Kratos made the decision that his son is not ready. After Kratos' son heard his decision, Atreus was upset, arguing towards him that he had proved himself by listening to whatever his father commands and believes he is ready and hasn't been sick for a long time. But Kratos still told his son that he is not ready and says they're going home. By the time they were finally home, Kratos picked his wife's ashes and put her inside the bag, so he and his son could later on prepare to spread her ashes on the highest mountain, while his son already went inside the house. Then, inside the house, both Kratos and Atreus had a discussion. Kratos told his son he was out of control, but Atreus argued that even his own father does angry as well during fights. Kratos then points out anger be a weapon, but also manageable, and claims to his son that he cannot, worried that his son will put himself in danger. But Atreus still argued that he is ready. After hearing his son's claim that he was ready, Kratos then tries to test whether what Atreus says is true, by encouraging him to punch both of his hands. As Atreus did as his father told him to do, Kratos purposely hit his own son's knuckles, which later on, his own son became enraged, after repetitively slapping his knuckles, and starts hitting his father and lose his control falling to the floor. Kratos then proves to his son, picking him up, telling him that he is not ready, due his out of control behavior.


 * "The Stranger: Long way from home, aren't you?


 * Kratos: What do you want?


 * The Stranger: Oh, you already know the answer to that.


 * Kratos: Whatever you seek, I do not have it. You should move on.


 * The Stranger: Hahaha. And here I thought your kind was supposed to be so enlightened. So much better than us. So much smarter. And, yet, you hide out here in the woods - like a coward.
 * Kratos: You do not want this fight.
 * The Stranger: Oh... I pretty sure I do.
 * - Kratos and The Stranger, before starting a fight."
 * The Stranger: Oh... I pretty sure I do.
 * - Kratos and The Stranger, before starting a fight."
 * - Kratos and The Stranger, before starting a fight."

Suddenly, coming from outside of the house, both Kratos and Atreus felt the whole house shaking, which leads to mysterious person that was knocking on the door, demanding Kratos to come out of his house. Sensing that the mysterious person could be dangerous, Kratos tells his son to hide under the base, which at first, at the time tells his son not to go there, but with no choice, the base was the only place Kratos can think of for his son to hide. Kratos opens the door and the Stranger began talking to him, saying that he knows who he truly is where he comes from. Kratos asked what the Stranger wants, but the stranger assumes that he knows the answer. Kratos, then told the Stranger that he doesn't have what he wants, and tells him to leave. But the Stranger refused and starts taunting Kratos about his kind and claim he's like a coward, hiding in the woods. Kratos warns him that he does not want this fight, but the Stranger insist that he does. The Stranger, then, purposely, hits Kratos to try agitating him. But Kratos, again, warns him to leave his house. Things began to get worse between Kratos and the Stranger, as the first fight between the two them gets physical. The Stranger, shockingly, strong enough to punch Kratos high over his own house, and also matching Kratos' strength. While fighting behind the house, Kratos was thrown by the Stranger, while grabbing him, started landing on Krato's house, where they both started fighting on the rooftop. The Stranger punched through Kratos' rooftop, realizing there were two beds, hinting him that Kratos is not alone in his house, and asked Kratos who he was hiding. But Kratos, never willing to answer, for his son's safety, just kept on fighting him. As the fight rages on, more of Kratos' property and territory, outside of his house, began to demolish and destroyed. The Stranger at first attempts to get into Kratos' house to see who was hiding, then Kratos began to unleash his rage, bursting out and attacking the Stranger and used a tree to push him farther away from his home, as the fight still continues. Kratos then bangs him into the huge boulder of rock, then thought of finishing him off by punching off parts of the huge boulder and then slams it on top of the Stranger. At first it seem over, but the stranger, still alive throws the huge rock at Kratos, but Kratos manage to use his shield to protect himself and used it to smash the boulder to pieces. The fight continues, but while fighting, the Stranger then tells him personally about himself to Kratos that he can't feel anything like Kratos does, and warns him he'll keep on coming back, no matter what he does to him, while at the same time, their strength during battle, had caused an enormous crack the ground. Kratos was then thrown into the big crack, but managed to hang on with his Leviathan axe on the edge of the cliff, in the center, which the axe created a big hole for him to climb, until the Stranger attempts to push him of the cliff. Kratos luckliy fell onto the other side of the cliff, and climbed up, while being taunted by the Stranger that he can't win no matter what he does to him, while Kratos, on the other hand, using his rage to heal himself from his injuries during battle. The final part of their first battle with each other leads Kratos wrestling with the Stranger. But before the fight was over, the Stranger did tell Kratos that he'd hope he can make feel something that Kratos can, and then Kratos cracks the stranger's neck, finishing him, by pushing him off the cliff.

As Kratos had finally defeated the stranger, he now realizes that his home with his son is no longer safe. Worst come to worst, Kratos' son was not ready. He talk to himself about it and claims to himself that he dosen't know what to do without Faye's help, now that she's gone. Kratos finally made his decision that he and his son can't stay home. Kratos came home and opened the base where he hide his son. Kratos told Atreus that they leave and start their journey. Atreus thought that Kratos says that he wasn't ready, but Kratos told him they don't have a choice and also encourages him to prove him wrong, as now their real journey begins. While getting across the edge of the cliff, Kratos and Atreus had a disscussion about what they'll encounter in their journey. Atreus stated to Kratos that animals, he understood, are for hunting, draugar are soppose to be dead, and other people are trying to survive as well. Kratos teaches his son to close his heart and emotions towards his enemies' suffering and pain, and warns him that they will feel for him back. Meanwhile, by the time they got to the bridge, Atreus was ignorant enough to assume that the bridge was safe, but Kratos warns to stop jumping on it, but failed to signal his son's command. Before the bridge began to break, Atreus was slipping while Kratos attempts to rescue him by walking on the bridge slowly. By the time he reached his son, the bridge colapsed and both of them fell into an area filled with draugar. Both father and son are wary of the draugar surrounding them, as one of them could come back to life. Then, one of them came back to life, one after another. Kratos and Atreus began fighting their way out killing every last one of them. But then something pushed down a boulder, and yet, another draugr appeared, but this time, a more heavier and bulkier one. More of the other draugar appear as well, and both Kratos and Atreus managed to make through the battle. Kratos and Atreus climbed up to the wall and entered an area filled with green fog, while hearing the scary singing, which they're heading to. As they approach towards the scary singing, a revenant appears. If Kratos tries to attack the revenant by himself, the revenant would teleport imediately, but with Atreus' help shooting at her, she is less likely to teleport for a while, giving Kratos time to kill her imediately, which he did.

Atreus told Kratos that he is willing to kill men who try to attack them, but Kratos told his son no and that he'll stay out of it when they encountered men, and says he'll handle them on his own. As they continue their journey in the dark place below the broken bridge, Kratos opened the gate, and he and Atreus encountered Reavers, cannibals that haven't eaten for days with all the left over remains of fallen victims that prey to the Reavers, which Atreus, at first, smelled one of the rotten corpses, knowing it smells awful. The Reavers attemptted to kill Kratos and Atreus for their meat, but Kratos manged to kill them all, and then encountered and also killed shadow warriors. But then Kratos was attacked from behind by one of the last remaining Reavers, but managed to strangle him down, while witnessing his own son being attacked by another Reaver. Atreus had managed to kill that Reaver with a knife down to his throat, but was traumatized while the corpse lies on top of him. And Kratos, then cracks the neck of the last remaining Reaver and starts heading towards his son to see if he's okay. As Kratos picked up the corpse, he saw Atreus terrorified and crying a bit, after being attacked the cannibals. Kratos comforts his son and told him to close his heart to their suffering and pain. But before Kratos could finish his sentence, the dead Reavers came back to life trying to attack them, as Hel-walkers. Again, Kratos managed to kill them all by himself, and terror of the attack is finally over. Atreus claims he wants to get out of the place filled with corpse of people that had been killed by the Reavers, after being attacked. Kratos points out to high level and the chain that he can climb by boosting his son up there, who is small enough to fit in the tight hole. Kratos reminded him twice about the chain, due to Atreus still being scared, which his father told him to let it go. But the third time, Kratos warns that he and Atreus will go home if can't handle the journey. Atreus finally pushed chain for Kratos to climb out, so they can finally get out of the Reavers' hideout.

While Kratos and Atreus managed to get out of the hideout from the Reavers, Kratos teaches his son to not to feel for his enemies to be a warrior, effective in combat. After escaping, they met up with Brok, the blue dawrf that owns a Huldra creature, that refuses to get across the bridge. Atreus told Brok that the animal is afriad of something hiding in the tree. Atreus told his father, Kratos, to throw the axe the tree top. After Kratos listened to his son, the Huldra creature now continues to cross the bridge, with Brok amazed about the boy's talent. While crossing the bridge, Brok told Kratos that he and his brother were the ones that made the axe, knowing that Faye gave it to him, Brok talks to Kratos to trust him on helping him to make improvements and changes on his axe. At first, Kratos didn't trust Brok, but then finally agreed, as both Kratos and Atreus began to head to Brok's shop and start improving their weapons and gear. After the improvement, Kratos notice some great changes from the axe and gear, which leads to Drauger about to attack him, and Kratos tests the improvements on the Drauger by attacking them to see the changes. After killing them off, Kratos and Atreus were about to move on. Atreus thanked Brok for their help before continuing their journey and told Brok he'll think of a name for his creature, since he never gave the Huldra creature one, but, then Brok, finally, came up with one, calling it "Fucking Gratitude". Kratos opened the gate, which Brok warns them that their death traps. Both Kratos and Atreus managed to pass the death traps and make out alive, leaving Brok behind.

After making out of the death traps and leaving Brok behind, Kratos and Atreus continued their journey towards their path where they spotted tracks of another animal, but a different species this time. Atreus immediately recognized the tracks belong to a boar. The second hunt among father and son begins. After encountering the enemies and killing them and finally found the boar, Kratos teaches his son how to be effective with his bow and arrow, in order to be ready for his shots. But as Atreus successfully shoots his arrows at the boar, strangely, the arrow bounced off, after hitting the boar. Atreus, puzzled, why it didn't penetrate the boar's hide, ask his father what kind of boar it is. But, despite Atreus' failure in killing it, they continued to hunt it down. By the time hid from the boar the second time, with Atreus ready shoot his arrows, again, this time, the arrow penetrated the boar's hide, and began fleeing. Kratos tells Atreus to go after it, which his son did, but dropped his knife, but Kratos knows, so he picked it up to give it to his son, later on. Kratos, now worried, knowing that both his son and the boar headed to a place filled with fog, called his son's name multiple times, while shouting and running at the same, afraid something bad may happen to Atreus without Kratos by his side. Kratos also heard Atreus talking to a mysterious voice, as Kratos rushed and finally managed to get out of the fog and caught with his son and met up with a woman.

When Krato finally saw Atreus alright, they met up with woman, known as the Witch of the Woods, who both Kratos and Atreus had unintentionally hunted and wounded her friend. The Witch instructs Kratos to stop the boar's bleeding by placing his hands by blocking the wounds. All three of them, while Kratos carries the wounded animal, headed towards the Witch's house that, which is under the giant tortoise, along with other animals the walk by. By the time all three went inside the Witch's house, the Witch told Kratos to place the wounded boar on the floor to heal it. While the Witch told Atreus to get some plants for medical attention, alone with Kratos, she claims that she know who he was and what he had done in the past, and assumes that his son doesn't. Kratos claims it's none of her concern, which the Witch agrees, and also warns him that the Gods in the land Kratos is in don't take kindly to foreigners and will find and make him and his son's journey difficult. She then told Kratos to get her some medical plant from her background garden. As Kratos got all three medical plants, and giving Atreus his knife for accidently dropping it without realizing it, when hunting the boar, both Kratos and Atreus were guided by the Witch inside her house, after Atreus told her about their jounery to spread his mother's ashes to the highest peaks of the realms, and willing to help them finish their jounery. She gave both Kratos and Atreus magical markings that she tells both of them that it hides them from anyone who would make their jounery difficult. Before leaving through the exit of the underground cave of the Witch's house, the Witch gave them a compass, so they'll know where they're heading for their journey.

(To be Con.)