Chapter 4: The Crocodile and The Falcon
"Atreus has spent the last four years traveling, making new allies. Tyr had been doing that since long before our journey started. But, if we are to do this, I would not simply replace one unchained king for another. We just freed your people and the others from the rule of a single man. I would not replicate that mistake. We will do this together, but not with the clenched fist of a self proclaimed rule. I would take on this responsibility, if you would have me at your side," he finished, turning to Freya for her reply.
The goddess blinked, at a loss for words. He simply continues to surprise me.
"You're the one that's always said gods do nothing for others, only with their own interests in mind. Why would they bring us here simply to propose this? There is some unseen benefit to them that we should take into account," she warned, not wishing to be trapped in some scheme lying in wait.
"Perhaps, your majesty," the head hanging from Kratos' fist finally spoke, "the unseen benefit is that they don't have the man that toppled two regimes of gods as a potential, unaccounted for enemy! I mean you saw as well as I, at least half of that group looked at Kratos with nothing but fear or weariness. I'd imagine in their eyes, with Kratos now seemingly free to strut about the world…keeping you busy up north, brother, as opposed to visiting them, potentially stirring up trouble there…well, it's a preferred alternative."
Freya's hand gently rubbed her forehead as she considered everything that had been said. "If we do this, we do it outright. Not just ducking in and killing monsters when needed and running back home when it's done. You'll need to take a more active role, you'll need to actually speak with the mortals if you wish to truly do this correctly. You cannot remain a ghost. And Mimir, your reasoning is sound but..I suppose I've just never had any form of partnership that didn't turn on me at some point to bite me in the ass."
"If they attempt to bite your rear, I'll be there to shield it," Kratos grunted.
"Was that a joke?" Freya scoffed with a smile.
The Greek god frowned, "No, it was a fact. We do this, together. And if any of them do try something in the end, well, as has been stated, there is a strong chance it would not end well for them."
He has changed more these few years than even I realized. A memory sprang to mind of the day Kratos and Atreus had first burst into her life. The boy's eyes were full of fear and regret having learned he shot Hildisvini, but then wonder and light upon seeing Chaurli rise from the ground for the first time. Kratos had been his natural silent, distrusting self. A fair enough reaction, given his history with gods.
With the party in agreement, now came the matter of telling the rest of the gathering of gods. "Alright, now how do we bring…" Freya's question was immediately answered as Thoth appeared.
"Were you listening the whole time?" Kratos growled.
The bird god seemed taken aback. "No, no, but the glass keys I gave you signified mine that you were ready. I made them, you see, now-"
The glass orb in the Egyptian god's hand began to glow, and once more the procession of other gods all flashed back into view.
"So, you have come to a conclusion then?" Ra questioned from his seat before them.
"We agree to assume the roles of head of our lands, and in turn work, as it suits us, with you," Kratos affirmed.
"Excellent!" Ra called out with some light applause. The three gods before them rose from their seats, and offered a shallow bow in their direction.
Freya wondered just how true Mimir's words were, and if even these powerful gods in leading roles here feared Kratos' potential presence. The trio were dismissed back to their seats, and the procession continued. There was discussion of the fall of the Babylonian pantheon as their people had been all but wiped out, and thus most of the gods diminished into nothingness. There was talk from several groups of their respective "end of days" from their prophecies and calendars. Following that, many simply gave updates to the progress of their people or cultures. After what felt like hours the meeting was finally at its end, and gods began blinking away back to their lands in short flashes.
"A moment, Kratos and Freya," Ra called out as he approached them when the others had all disappeared.
Ra was joined by Thoth to his right, and the woman with the cat head they had passed before at the sun god's left
"I am deeply regretful to admit that there was an ulterior purpose for your coming today. But I had to wait until the others all left before I could come to you with it, for I am not sure who to trust."
Freya rolled her eyes, having anticipated some ulterior motive for their presence and being proven correct.
"What do you want?' the pale god scoured asking the trio of Egyptians.
With a look of regret Ra took another step forward, as much regret as a falcon's face could emote in the least. "Everything we said during our inquiry is true. I believe you will be an invaluable voice to this procession, but I find myself needing an outside perspective and ally I know I can trust. This is Bast, my daughter." Ra signaled to the cat headed woman beside him. "Her son, my grandson, has gone missing. We believe he has been abducted by Apophis, the dark lord of chaos of our lands and bringer of destruction. Last you were in my realm, the chaos beasts you faced were a result of him. About three months ago, Sekhmet, another daughter of mine and Bast's twin, and Mahees were attacked one evening while traveling. When one of our kind came upon the scene, Sekhmet was drawing her final breaths, with Mahees nowhere to be seen. With her last words my daughter whispered that none of hers or my grandsire's weapons or powers could harm her attackers, and that she had been attacked by foreign gods she did not recognize."
Ra looked deeply troubled, while Bast's expression was one of great sorrow and concern. She stepped closer to them and spoke now, "My son is the god of war in our lands, and my sister was a fierce warrior, and goddess of healing, but… by the time she was found, her body had not healed. I do not know who these foreign gods are that align with Apophis, but they have found some immunity to our weapons, and ability to stifle our powers. I seek vengeance, and to learn what has become of my son."
"We only just started righting our own lands," Freya exclaimed in exasperation, "I am deeply sorry for your family's loss, but what are you asking of us?"
"He wants us to come to his lands, track down these god slayers, and kill them," Kratos stated plainly.
Ra's shoulders fell as the proud god's gaze dropped to the shallow waters engulfing their feet, "Yes. As unfortunate as it is to say, I do not know if any here are aware or complicit in these events. The only one I have spoken to of them is Tyr, for I know he can be trusted. His counsel was to ask you. I know you do not know us, and have no reason to trust us. You have not had fond experiences with most gods in your lifetime, but we have nowhere left to turn. I am old, spartan, very old. My powers are not what they once were. I do not wish to see more of my family dead, and with our abilities seemingly useless against these unknown foes…"
The sun god took a few paces forward now until he was standing right before Kratos. "I would ask for your assistance, as I am not sure where else to turn and do not wish to see my family's light snuffed out." With that, the god dropped to one knee before Kratos, as did the other two lesser gods behind him following his lead.
Kratos glanced over to Freya, looking for some form of agreement or dissent. Freya's eyes closed as she drew a deep breath, and nodded.
"Very well, but if we are to assist you, there will be some conditions."
A few weeks later, Kratos and Freya were in the midst of preparing for their journey. The stipulations Kratos had laid out for their aid were: Ra must send one of his own kind, a trusted ally, north to help protect the realms in their absence. They also would be requiring shipments of food and other supplies to assist in rebuilding, and getting the mortals through the harsh winter. Lastly, there was a hefty sum of gold on its way north, to help bring Midgard and other's economies back to a former state. With Odin having taken so much from the mortals as taxes, prizes, or sometimes just on whims, and with Asgard crashing and breaking over the realms leaving all of that wealth destroyed, the people lacked for much.
There had been several unpleasant conversations after sharing the news with the rest, firstly was Mimir.
"What? You want me to stay!?' The head yelled. "No, I'm going with you two, brother. I will not be left behind while you two go risk your lives in some forsaken desert. I know I can't fight, but I can help in other ways."
Kratos kneeled to meet Mimir's golden gaze on an even plane upon his pillowed resting spot beside their fire. "Ra sends a god of unknown power and temperament here to fill for our absence. I do not trust these gods fully, you I do. Your skills are your mind and your tongue, and they will be put to better use here helping Sif and the others continue our goals while we are away. I am not asking you to stay behind for your sake, I ask for mine. Atreus is gone, you are one of the few friends I can fully trust, and having you here to continue our work will put my mind at ease."
Freya joined Kratos' side as she rested a hand on his silver shoulder pauldron. "He's right, Mimir. You can do more good here than down there," she affirmed with a gentle expression.
Mimir looked around the room and let a great sigh escape his lips. "Aye… I suppose you're right. Well, I've been spending a night or two a week with Sigrun anyways. Guess I shall see how she'd feel about a few months, then."
The second unwelcome debate of their decision was with Sif, Hildisvini, and the others.
"You what!?" Sif seethed. "We have only just begun to reclaim these realms from the outstretched, dead fingers of that bastard and you want to just leave? And have some foreigner come in your stead?"
"It would only be temporary, Sif, I assure you. Their presence would only be here to slay the occasional troll or wolver or whatever else pops up," Freya tried to assure the group.
"We have the shield maidens, and other warriors for that, my queen. We need you here, the people believe in you. You two are the most solid support for our path ahead at present, without you, I fear for where our progress shall turn," Hildisvini, Freya's trusted advisor and friend cautioned.
Now, Kratos stepped forward to take the lead. "We wish not to admit it, but there are worse things out there besides wolvers. Thrudd has gained skill with her father's hammer, yes, but Odin's allies are not dead and not wanting for power. Having another seasoned god here will help you in the grim occurrence something of such a scale does happen. If we do this, we gain allies, much needed supplies, and can further strengthen our path forward. The shield maidens have their duties, and cannot be everywhere at once. With this, you have another player for the board."
The spartan looked directly at Sif now as he spoke. "I know you and I have matters that yet need resolution, but I ask you to look at this with an unbiased eye. You know this is the best course forward for where our feet are laid now. Your daughter is strong, but I would not risk her life, or the rest of you, in case something powerful and unforeseen does occur."
Lady Sif sighed, but her glare towards Kratos never faltered. "Very well, but if anything happens then I will put sole blame on you, and for leaving us at such a delicate time in our restructuring."
"I can live with that." Is all the Greek god said in reply.
The final conversation which Kratos knew would be uneasy, was with Freya herself.
"Your magic is bound to these eight realms, yes? When you leave them, I imagine what happened to me after I left Greece will occur once more to you." The two of them were sitting in their chairs beside the fire, on a night when Mimir was with his love, leaving them alone to discuss.
Freya's eyes dropped to the ground in thought. She had considered what would happen to her spells should she leave the borders of Midgard to venture out into the rest of the world many times, but now that it was actually happening…
"If my magic fails then it is of no consequence. It will render my bow practically useless, but I have my wings as well as my swords. I am no trifling matter in combat, as you know," she replied with a smirk.
Kratos snorted, "Yes, but the lands of the pharaohs… The few chaos beasts I have fought already proved to be larger and stronger than most of the creatures we have slain here. I hesitate to think how powerful these unknown gods are that have slain a warrior goddess and abducted their god of war."
Her hand reached for Kratos' as she leaned in to stare eye to eye with him. Her fingers slid over the back of his hand and held. "'Where I go, you go', I believe were your words, yes?"
Kratos snorted once more, the faintest upturn to one corner of his lips barely visible behind the dark black facial hair. "Yes, I believe they were."
With matters settled, mostly, it was now the day the Egyptian god was due to arrive. The three weeks since the meeting of the gods had seemed to fly by. Time had a way of quickening its pace when potential doom was on the horizon, Freya supposed. They had received a letter from Thoth three days prior placed on their doorstep, saying their temporary replacement would find them at their home. Apparently this god had a keen sense for direction. So Kratos and Freya waited by the fire, unsure of the exact time of their expected guest's arrival. It was yet another night Mimir was with Sigrun, so the goddess had prepared dinner for just the two of them.
The pair sat at the table mostly in silence. The unease in Kratos' body was plainly visible for her to discern with little difficulty. For a stone wall of a man he had very small tells she had become quite skilled at picking up on. The way his eyes fixated on the candle's light, the occasional tapping of two fingers to the wood of the table. It was not often the spartan was anxious.
"Everything will be okay, Kratos, we'll be down and back before spring even has a chance to settle in," she assured with a light smile.
"Hmmh," was the only reply she received as Kratos continued to just stare into the candle's fire seated in the middle of their table.
They did not have to wait long, as only an hour after they finished supper a loud pounding came to the door. Kratos stood, slowly making way to the door, before turning to Freya to make sure she was prepared. They were expecting a guest this time, but the nature and attitude of said guest was still up in the air. Freya gave a quick nod in affirmation, and Kratos opened the door.
The spartan was a tall man, standing nearly seven feet, two heads taller than most mortals. Their door was built to accommodate such height, standing roughly two heads above the top of Kratos' bald skull in height. So when this foreign god came into view as the door swung open, and was only visible midway up his chest, the pair knew this was a tall man. From what they could tell he had the body of a very burly, strong male. Tree trunks for arms, a broad, muscled chest, and the same bronze skin of Thoth and Ra. A white cloth was draped around his waist, with golden pomeled daggers strapped to either side.
The hulking figure leaned forward, squatting to fit their incredible height through the door. Of all of the Egyptian gods the pair had met thus far, this being had the strangest profile. Rather than the head of a bird or cat, a long-jawed, scaled face reached out from its human shoulders. The jaws must have stretched nearly three feet with teeth stabbed out from both the upper and lower lips along its length. Small, unnerving, golden eyes looked down at them with slim black slits for pupils. Its scales were a pale olive green, standing in great contrast to its human body. Freya thought it bore a striking resemblance to the heads of the dreki that they fought in Svartalheim. Kratos must have thought so too as it was the first question out of his mouth.
"What creature are you? Why do you look like the dreki from our realms?"
The towering god blinked with lids that went side to side instead of vertical. "The fuck is a dreki?" The visiting god growled from its long jawed mouth. "Name's Sobek"
"Apologies, Lord Sobek, Kratos intended no disrespect. They are large, powerful creatures from our lands we have contended with on several occasions. I am Freya, queen of the Vanir and eight realms here, and I'm sure you already are quite aware of Kratos and his reputation," she quickly interceded before Kratos could cause further offense. She gave a slight bow, Kratos remained fully standing.
"Yeah, I know who yu' both are. Right, uh, I'm god of the Nile, fertility, and other shit I'm sure. Ah, god of crocodiles, obviously. Dunno what the fuck a dreki is but they sound fun. Where I'm from we call 'em crocodiles. Gods, is' a good thing I didn' wear the full headdress huh? Already hittin' my head against your damn ceiling, can't imagin' what my stupid, tall crown would do much good," the Egyptian deity growled as he shifted around trying to find a place to get more comfortable. The god's voice was coarse, as if always growling, and his words seemed muffled by the sheer length of his mouth on occasion.
If Kratos was nearly seven feet then this crocodile god must have stood at nearly twelve. It was as if Kratos' body were grown to larger proportions and his ornery personality personified into a scaly, toothed reptile's head. Freya smirked to herself at the thought.
"They sent the reptile god to the freezing Norse winter?" Kratos posed, justifiably perplexed.
The crocodile man scoffed with a hiss, "Reptile? You bald shit roll'r, who are you calling reptile? I look like a crocodile, sure, I created em'. But shoulders down I'm all man, I can remove the shendyt here if you'd like the proof. But don't want to make the lil' lady faint." He patted the white loincloth around his waist as what could only be called a smile grew across his long lips.
"The lady is fine, thank you my lord," Freya swifty dispelled with a palm raised to stop any further instigation.
Kratos was not done, however. "What is a shit roller?"
The crocodile looked back to him and drew a few steps closer as he chided the Greek god on. His large hand braced against the ceiling as he bent his back to fit into their common room. "Back in my land we got this lil' bug see, and all it does all day is find the shit from some bigger animal and roll it up a hill. It takes the shit left behind by some other creatur' and rolls it up its little hill and it slides down the next one, and then back up ag'n. It does that for its whole damn life, and dies. Its whole life jus' rollin other animals' shit. Taking on that weight til' it kills em'. You remind me of that little beatle, bald man. I can tell jus' from looking at you. Your whole life been nothin' but rollin other people's shit up and down your hills till it gon' kill ya."
Kratos said nothing in reply, just continued his stern glare at the stranger.
"Lord Sobek if we might move on from this," Freya stressed.
Of all the gods they could send, they send what must undoubtedly be their most crude. How this thing is a god of fertility is beyond me.
"Right, well, my brother Ra sent me here. See, I swim the fastest so I'd beat any of them others up here. Snow or not, was lookin' forward to swimming some new waters besides the one I made. I hear yur' quite the fighter, though I did think you'd be tall'r," the crocodile god snickered as he hulked over Kratos, staring down at him with an imposing figure.
Kratos did not raise his head to meet the visiting god's stare, only looked up at him through roofed eyelids as he retorted, "And I was told Egypt had some of the most beautiful gods outside of Greece, I suppose we were both misinformed."
Freya's eyes shot wide as she stifled either a snicker or a gasp. That was a joke, that surely counts as a joke. Mimir will be sad to have missed this.
Sobek continued his leer down upon Kratos for a few seconds more before bursting into a raucous laughter.
"Aye, Ra said you pale skinned fucks up here would be fun. Glad I made the trip."
Kratos himself made a slight snort at the exchange and what could almost be considered the faintest, slimmest of smiles.
"What?" The Egyptian asked, confused by the break in stoicism.
"You just remind me of a friend I once had."