While walking, they saw the mountain they would climb, and Atreus could not help but remark.
"The mountain, boy, this would be a long trip."
But Deimos stays silent, he was reflecting on the fight against Baldur and his future memories.
"Yes, but an important one," Kratos said to Atreus
While walking, Atreus cannot help but observe his surroundings and realize how much damage was done in their forest.
"Who was he, Deimos? Father?
"I do not know," Kratos said while Deimos just silently observed the damage from their battle.
"It was necessary to do what father and I did to stop him, this was just the collateral damage." Deimos said to Atreus.
"Both of you could have died," Atreus said while there was a slight shaking of the ground, and suddenly a large piece of rock fell due to the damage.
"Never leave me alone again, alright?" Atreus said to both of them
"Alright," Kratos said while Deimos just nodded and said.
"How come you don't trust us to come back?, Have we ever broken, especially I, a promise?" Deimos asked to Atreus.
"No, I just don't want to be alone again," Atreus said while continuing their journey.
They continued their journey, walking towards the forest, going deeper and deeper than they had ever ventured before since Atreus and Deimos grew up in a protected environment, always in near of their cabin, never venturing alone. They reached a part where they needed to climb.
"Up!" Kratos said to Deimos and Atreus
"Do not worry about me, Father, I can climb that height, worry about Atreus," Deimos said while starting to climb the cliff. While Atreus latched onto Kratos's back, he couldn't help but voice a concern he had since the beginning.
"You've had to kill people before, haven't you, Father? Also, you, Deimos? You both seem… used to it. I understand about animals, that's our food. And Draugr are already dead. But living humans?"
Deimos paused mid-climb, his grip firm on the rock face. He looked down at Atreus, his expression thoughtful. "I have not yet killed a single person in my entire life, Atreus. Not until that stranger. What drove me in that fight... it was the thought of losing you. Of losing all of you. You were threatened, and I promised Mother that I would protect you, as your older brother. Even though we are twins, I am still older than you, and that was my duty." His voice resonated with a deep sincerity, a fierce protectiveness that underlined his words.
Kratos, his voice gruff but laced with a weariness born of experience, added his own perspective. "We do what we must to survive, Atreus."
Atreus, however, struggled with the moral complexity of their actions. "But those living humans… they are trying to survive too."
Kratos's tone hardened, his words a stark lesson forged in the fires of his own tormented past. "You must close your heart to it, boy. On our journey, we will be attacked by all manner of creatures, by all manner of men. Close your heart to their separation, close your heart to their suffering. Do not allow yourself to feel for them, because they will not feel for you."
They reached the top of the cliff, and Kratos carefully set Atreus down. Ahead, they saw the dark maw of a cave, and the sound of flowing water echoed from within. Without hesitation, Kratos entered, followed by Deimos and a hesitant Atreus.
"I understand," Atreus said, his voice subdued, but his eyes still reflected a struggle to reconcile his empathy with the harsh realities of their journey.
They ventured deeper into the cave, the air growing damp and cool. The sound of rushing water grew louder, and the darkness pressed in around them. As they rounded a bend, the cave opened into a large chamber, and before them stood a stronghold, built into the very heart of the cavern.
Atreus stared in astonishment. "Has this been here all this time?"
Deimos, equally surprised, surveyed their surroundings with a cautious eye. "I don't know. This is my first time here as well." The sheer scale of the stronghold, its ancient stonework and imposing architecture, hinted at a history and a power that was both intriguing and unsettling.
They navigated around the stronghold, trying to find a path. Suddenly, Deimos, who was observing his surroundings, could see where should go. He jumped to the upper bridge, and Kratos also jumped since Atreus was there, and they continued their ascent. Deimos begins climbing where Atreus latched on to Kratos' back again
"Father, will we see others on the road?" Atreus asked Kratos while on his back.
"Yes," Kratos answered shortly
"Friendly?"
"No"
"They'll try and rob us?"
"Possibly....Yes" Kratos said with a deliberate pause
"Or eat us, since you know, there are cannibals in these woods, I've heard from my mother," Deimos shouted from the top, hearing the conversation of Kratos and Atreus.
"Oh," Atreus answered
After a while, they reached the top of the cliff, where both Atreus and Deimos saw the protection stave around their woods. Deimos knows that the pyre they use was one of those tree.
"Look there's been a protection stave around our entire woods, but the stave's broken there, did you cut those down?" Atreus said to Kratos.
"She had marked the trees she wished to use for her pyre" Kratos answered.
"Why'd she do that?" Asked Atreus, confused by his mothers action, but to Deimos, knows why, they both needed to take on the journey, and he needed that both Atreus and Kratos is not ready, but she needed them to took on the path, that's why she broke the stave's protection so that Baldur can get in, but he did not tell it to Kratos and Atreus, he knows that they will learn about it in the future, ahead of their journey.
"Come. No looking back now," Kratos said after looking at the entirety of the forest.