Moon Goddess of War Ascended: A Side Story – By Ocramed
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon, the God of War franchise and other properties belong to their respective owners.
Note: This is a limited, crossover fusion story. C&C are welcomed.
Special Note: This is a sort of prequel to "Moon Goddess of War". Also, the sequel to "Moon Goddess of War" (called "Moon Goddess of War, Guardian of Sparta") has been uploaded as well.
Part 6
When Orkos reappeared with Usagi and Kratos, they all appeared in another part of the Statue of Apollo.
"You will never reach the 'Eyes of Truth', now that my mothers, the Furies, now know of your quest," said Orkos.
"What is the meaning of this?" Kratos raged.
"Kratos, allow me," Usagi said, as she stepped forward and lifted Orkos by the lapel. "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS? You never said we'd run into the Furies?"
"Please, if you calm down, I explain myself," Orkos pleaded.
"Fine," Usagi said, as she lowers the son of the Fury. "Speak."
"You were not supposed to know," Orkos said. "However, by killing Castor and Pollux, you and the Spartan sent a clear signal as to how you were going to free your companion from the blood oath to Ares."
"Humph."
"What now?" Kratos said. "We cannot reach the eyes within the Apollo's Lantern."
"With the Amulet of Uroborus, you will find a way, Spartan," Orkos said, as he forms what looked like a red conk shell in his hands. "I present to you a power of my own design. With this, I will aid in your quest for the Eyes of Truth, the eyes belonging to the Oracle of Delphi…"
Orkos gives the object to Usagi, before she then gives it to Kratos.
"I formed this thing while imprisoned at the Prison of the Damned, within the bowels of Hecatonchires," Orkos said. "I call it my 'Oath Stone', which I now pledge to you…"
"Thanks," Usagi said, as she feels the power of the Oath Stone flow into her, like the Amulet of Uroborus did before now. She would soon know how to utilize its power as well…
"I wish I can do more for you," Orkos said. "Hopefully, this bit of aid will be enough..."
Pause.
"Farewell…for now."
POOF!
"You know how to use it?" Kratos asked.
"Yeah," Usagi said. "I think."
"You think or you KNOW?"
"Learning a new power is not easy," Usagi said, as her moon mark began to glow. "I think this power goes like this…HA!"
Suddenly, a puff of black smoke enveloped Usagi. But when she moved, a black duplicate of Usagi remained, although stationary.
"How do you feel?" Kratos asked.
"A little tired," Usagi replied, as she stared at her duplicate. "You know, I never knew how cute I look."
"Riiight," Kratos said, as he looked at the Oath Stone of Orkos. Already, he wondered how he could utilize the artifact in combat…
"Listen up," Kratos said, as he puts away the Oath Stone of Orkos. "The only way we can retrieve the Eyes of Truth is by repairing the Statue of Apollo piece by piece, using the Amulet of Uroborus and the Oath Stone."
"Yay!" Usagi said cheerfully. "I can finally see this statue in its prime!"
"Riiight. But first, we have to get to the torso of this statue, and we already know the Furies will be looking for us."
"Well, I'm ready," Usagi said with confidence. "Bring 'em on, you witches-!"
A short while later…
"Ah!" Usagi yelled, narrowly avoiding getting smashed with a hammer from a Fire Golem. "Keep 'em away-!"
As Usagi and Kratos make their way to the torso of the statue, they find themselves in a cork screw-like elevator that led to the torso (aka "The Rib of Apollo") of Archimedes' statue. Unfortunately, the minions of the Furies were right on their proverbial tails.
BLAM!
"Rrrrr!" said the Fire Golem, as he picks up his hammer once more.
"Bunny, stop acting like a coward!" Kratos said, as he whirled his blades in response to the attacks on him.
"Oh, right," Usagi said, as she turned around to face her foe. She then makes an inappropriate hand gesture.
"Come and get me! Nyah!"
"Rrrrr!" the golem replied, as he brings down the hammer…
"Oh!" Usagi said, as she utilizes her new power, based upon the Oath Stone of Orkos.
BAMF!
At the last minute, a duplicate of Usagi was formed, just as the golem brought down its hammer.
BLAM!
"You missed!" Usagi said, as she sticks out her tongue while making more handgestures. "Nah, nah, nah! Ha!"
"Rrrrr!"
"Ah!"
BAMF!
BLAM!
"Rrrr!
"Uh!"
BAMF!
BLAM-!
And so it went, as Usagi used her duplication power to mock her opponent, with different poises. At least, until the last minute, when, after making her final duplicate, Usagi appears over the golem, and brings down her Silver Club.
"Ha!" Usagi said, as she smashes the golem to bits.
KRISH!
"I guess he wasn't all cracked up to be," Usagi said, as she smiled broadly, while eliciting a groan from both Kratos and the Satyr soldiers…
Eventually, like Kratos, Usagi was able to master the power of the Oath Stone of Orkos, but with an interesting effect…
"Ah, this is nice," Usagi said, as she leans on a makeshift recliner while her duplicates fanned her. She and Kratos were resting just outside the area within the Statue of Apollo where Archimedes' main workshop, including a furnace, was located.
"I am not going to ask how you were able to do THIS," Kratos said, as he shook his head in disbelief.
Once inside the furnace area, Usagi and Kratos dealt with more monsters.
"Uroborous!" Usagi said, as she throws a green sphere from her hand. The sphere envelops a troll, causing him to slow down. The Moon Princess then turns around to face incoming chimera.
"Skreeek!"
"Poseidon!" Usagi yelled, as she threw shard of ice at the monsters. Upon contact, the creatures were frozen solid, before falling and shattering into pieces.
"Take THAT!"
Afterwards, the Moon Princess and Kratos continued to explore the workshop, until they came upon a grim discovery…
"Oh, no," Usagi said, as she sees the desiccated remains of Archimedes himself. His body was slump over his desk, as if he knew his time was running out…
"Humph," Kratos said grimly, as he looked at the corpse. "Looks like the Furies got to him…"
"We can't let this go unpunished, Kratos," Usagi said, as she takes out the rest of the notes and pages from Archimedes' writings, and gathered them together. "We HAVE to rebuild this place…and the Temple of the Oracle, once all this is over."
"You seem passionate about all this," Kratos said.
"Look, it's just that I never saw myself as a, well, smart person-"
"Obviously."
"Ha, ha. Anyway, but I admired people who were, like my friend Ami. She…she would tutor me in school whenever she had time to do so, and I really like that…"
Pause.
"Let me read Archimedes' notes, so we know how to rebuild this place."
"How?" Kratos asked. "You just said that you were smart."
"No, but I know how to read, and I know pictures," Usagi said with determination. "Besides, it's the only way to get that lantern, where the Eyes of Truth are…"
Pause.
"So, you're in?" Usagi asked.
"I never seen you so…determined before," Kratos said. "Usually, you whine about…everything."
"Well, I can't let this injustice go unanswered," Usagi said. "Like I said, I may not be as smart as I should be, but I do appreciate the gifts of other people…"
Inspired, Usagi and Kratos work to rebuild the statue that was, according to Archimedes' own journal, destroyed by the Furies, even as the minions of the Furies did much to harass the pair along the way. The Moon Princess thought long and hard over what her friend Ami had taught her about geometry and other aspects of mathematics. She did like the fact that Archimedes' own notes was complete enough to follow without too much difficulty…
DING!
With the crystal in place, the rays of the sun in the sky went through the crystal within the head of the Statue of Apollo. The concentrated rays went from the eyes of the Statue of Apollo, and into the lamp that the statue held in its hand.
"We did it!" Usagi yelled, as she jumped on Kratos for joy.
"Um, yeah," Kratos said uncomfortably, reminding himself that he was already married, in spite of the fact that Usagi was now a young woman now. "Do you mind?"
"Um, sorry," Usagi said, as she stands back onto her two feet. "But…isn't this exciting?"
"I do have to hand it to Archimedes for his craftsmanship," Kratos said. "It's curious as to why the Furies would want to destroy this place, as well as the Temple of Delphi."
"Maybe we'll find out why inside the lantern itself?" Usagi said.
"Well, we best hurry, since I doubt that the Furies will want US to get the Eyes of Truth without their say in the matter…"
Usagi and Kratos climbed to the very top of the Statue of Apollo to assess their options.
"Okay, we can climb along Apollo's arm there," Usagi said, as she points at the statue's arm.
"Or, we can get a ride from that chimera that is just below us," Kratos replied.
"What chimera-?"
Suddenly, Kratos grabbed Usagi by the waist, and leaps into the abyss.
"Ahhh!" Usagi yelled, as Kratos hops on the chimera he saw passing by. Stabbing it allowed the Ghost of Sparta to maneuver the flying beast into the Lantern of Delos.
"Grrrak!" the chimera screeched, as it, Usagi and Kratos lands in a heap.
"Oof!" Kratos yelled.
"Ow!" Usagi yelled.
Before the chimera could recover, Kratos rushes forward and eviscerated it.
SPLURCH!
"That ought to do it," Kratos said, just as the beast disappears.
"DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" Usagi yelled.
"We DID get to the lantern quickly, correct?"
"Yes, but, well…AUGH!" Usagi said, as she threw her hands up into the air. "You're hopeless, you know…"
Suddenly, Orkos reappears.
BAMF!
"Your quest for the Eyes of Truth is almost over," Orkos said, as he stepped forward.
"Oh, THERE you are," Usagi said. "Having fun watching us fight our way to this point?"
"I apologize for not helping you more, but I had to make sure that all of my mothers were sufficiently…distracted," Orkos said. "But soon, you and the Ghost of Sparta will have the Eyes of Truth, the very eyes that were ripped from the head of my beloved Alatheia."
"You have yet to explain yourself to my satisfaction, Orkos," Kratos said. "What is your role in all this?"
"Yeah, why would you help us against the Furies?" Usagi asked.
"Very well, I will tell you thusly," Orkos said. "If my mothers were the Furies, then my Father is Ares, the god of war."
"Whoa," Usagi said.
"Originally, the Furies conspired with Ares, and created me, to serve as an instrument of Ares, just as Kratos was to become the instrument of my Father," Orkos said. "Unfortunately, I did not live up to their expectations, for I had none of the warrior that Kratos…or even the Moon Princess had."
"So, I was your replacement," Kratos said with a sneer. "So, my oath was nothing more than a means to place me into a state of servitude."
"Yes. You had been manipulated from the beginning, even your confrontation with the Barbarian, thanks to my Father. And by forcing you to become his servant, the Furies would have their way with you, even if it means forcing you to kill your family to do so."
"But why?" Usagi asked.
"Only in bloodshed can Kratos be the weapon of war that Ares and the Furies could use to conquer Mount Olympus itself," Orkos said. "However…you, Moon Princess, prevented all that, and thus stopped the plan to bring down the Olympians."
"So, I was just a random encounter?"
"That I do not know," Orkos said. "Only the Fates would know how you came to this era. Nevertheless, you have proven yourself more than capable of meeting the challenges that have been beset upon you and your companion."
"And what about you?" Kratos said. "What is YOUR motivation in all this?"
"I would be lying to you if I said that my loyalties were not to my parents," Orkos said. "In the beginning, the Furies were kind to me, until they began to conspire against Olympus…"
Pause.
"But, it was not until I fell in love with Alethea, that I decided that I could no longer ignore what they wanted to do," Orkos said. "So, Aletheia and I decided to warn the Olympians of what was about to befall them, only to have the Furies learn about this, thanks to my father. As a result, I was punished by witnessing my beloved's eyes being ripped from her, and then later imprisoned in her own temple. Her eyes were then hidden within the Lantern of Apollo, which is here…"
Pause.
"Kratos, I know that you are still needed for their plans, and, to do so, you have to return to the service of Ares," Orkos said. He then looked at Usagi.
"From what Alethea has shown me of your exploits, you have the necessary qualities to serve as Kratos' conscious, which you have done admirably," Orkos said.
"All I want to do is help Kratos, before I return home," Usagi said with a sigh. "Is that too much to ask?"
"And you will do just that. All you need to do is help Kratos redeem himself. However, in the meantime, the Furies have to be dealt with."
"These are your mothers, Orkos," Kratos said.
"My mothers no longer care whether or not I live," Orkos said. "They only care to rule all of mankind by my Father's side, violating their own oaths of non-interference in the politics of the gods. They have to be stopped."
"Ares will have to find another to do his bidding," Kratos said.
"Good, I am glad to hear that," Orkos said, as he looks around the inner workings of the lantern. "Within here, you will solve the mystery as to how to gain access to the Eyes of Truth…"
Pause.
"Good luck."
BAMF!
"Well, it's puzzle-solving time," Usagi said, as she sees the Eyes of Truth that was set within the bust of Alethea.
"Why do you say that?" Kratos asked.
"Since when have we NOT solved a puzzle to get something?"
"Point taken…"
Tbc.