The walk back to the cabin was silent and a little bit awkward. Atreus rubbed his shoulder and glanced at his father who had the same stoic expression the whole time. Deciding to break the tension, Atreus spoke up. "Look. I'm sorry for what I did back there. I just… I just wanted to prove to you that I'm ready for whatever is out there."

Kratos grunted. "When I said that, I meant it." He replied bluntly. "You disobeyed me and you lost control of your anger."

"So what? Does that mean I'm not capable of taking care of myself?" Atreus shot back.

Kratos glanced at Atreus and gave him a disapproving look. "Do not speak again. Not until we have returned home."

Atreus sighs and looks at Kratos. "Yes, sir."

…

…

…

Eventually, the two manage to reach their cabin area. Kratos looked at the altar and noticed that the flames have died out and all that's left is a pile of ash. Kratos's face dropped a little bit before glancing back at Atreus. "We will continue this discussion inside."

Atreus then went inside the cabin without saying anything, leaving Kratos alone outside. Kratos approached the ashes and pulled out a pouch. Carefully, Kratos scooped up the ashes and placed them inside the pouch. Once the remaining ashes had been obtained, Kratos tied the pouch with a string tightly and held it in his palm.

Kratos stared at the pouch of his deceased wife's ashes with sorrow and closed his eyes. He carefully caressed the pouch before placing it on his belt and proceeding into the cabin where Atreus sat on his bed. "It's not fair…" Atreus muttered under his breath.

Kratos approached Atreus and stood before him. "You disobeyed my orders." He declared. "And you lost control."

"So what? Those things were trying to kill us anyways! Don't you get angry when you're in a fight?" Atreus replied.

Kratos snapped at Atreus and raised his voice a bit. "Anger can be a weapon… If you control it. Use it. You clearly cannot."

"But I haven't been sick in a long time, I'm telling you! I'm better now!" Atreus declared.

Kratos hummed. "Fine." He says before crouching down and holding both his palms up in front of Atreus. "Come on, then."

Atreus raised an eyebrow at what his father was doing. "You… Want me to hit you?"

"I want you to try."

With no other choice, Atreus went for Kratos's left palm only for Kratos to swat him away with his right. "Ow! What the?"

"Try again."

Atreus tried to hit one of Kratos's palms and just like before, he swats his hand away with the other. "What are you doing?"

"Try again."

The Imp attempts to hit his palms and once again, is swatted away. "Cut it out!" He yells, getting more and more frustrated.

"Again."

Atreus gave out his all this time but like all the other times, is blocked and swatted away effortlessly. "STOP IT!!" He shouts with frustration and lunges at Kratos only for him to move to the side and make Atreus trip and fall on the floor. Atreus coughed again just like last time and breathed in and out heavily.

Kratos approached the Imp boy on the floor and grabbed his arm to pull him up from it. "Your anger… You can get lost in it. The path ahead is difficult… And you, Atreus, are NOT ready."

Atreus tried to pull his arm away and speak out but was stopped when both he and Kratos heard what sounded like wings flapping from just outside the cabin. Kratos and Atreus stared at the ceiling, then the walls then finally at the door when suddenly…

SLAM!

SLAM!

SLAM!

"Come on out! I know you're in here, asshole!!"

Kratos glanced at Atreus and placed a finger on his mouth to signify silence. He then quickly removed the rug which revealed a hidden trap door and flung it open. "Get inside."

"Who is that?" Atreus asked fearfully.

"I don't know. Just get inside and don't come out until I return." Kratos commanded his son.

Nodding, Atreus hops into the trap door and Kratos closes it and covers it up with the rug. When all that was important was hidden, Kratos cautiously approached the door. The person on the other side is still slamming on it, demanding for someone to open the door or answer the call. "Come on out or I will bust this door down! Don't fucking test me!"

Kratos stood by the door and took heavy breaths. He sighed one last time before opening the door to reveal himself to the person outside.

On the other side of the door were two individuals. Two angels who have followed the trail from Pentagram City all the way back to the cabin. Kratos stared at the two individuals before him. Adam chuckled as he checked Kratos out. "Hm. Not bad. I thought you'd be bigger. But killer beard though!"

"What do you want?" Kratos interrogated the angel in front of him.

"Well, we're just here to ask some questions. Questions like, 'Do you know what happens to dicks like you who have angel blood on their hands?'" Adam replied with a smirk.

"Whatever it is you speak of, I am not affiliated with. You should leave."

"Pfft! Hah! Do you see this shit, Lute?" Adam glanced at the angel next to him while snickering and pointed at Kratos with his thumb. "This dumbass thinks he could fool us with this politeness bullshit! Anyways, there's a reason why we came here! So back in the big city, we saw a bunch of dead angels and footprints that led in the direction of this very cabin, right here! Funny how that works out, huh?"

Kratos glared at Adam and stared him down. "You do not want this fight." He stated coldly.

"I'm pretty sure I fucking do!" Adam replied. He turned to the angel next to him. "Step aside, Lute! Things are gonna get ugly."

Lute did as she was told and walked a few feet backwards to observe the confrontation. With Lute out of the way, Adam grinned and backhanded Kratos across the face which did nothing but only anger the Spartan even more. "Leave. My. Home." He growled at Adam.

"Well that ain't happening until I'm through with you, big guy!" Adam replied before throwing more punches and hits at Kratos. When he went for a punch to the face, Kratos grabbed his fist and twisted it to the side.

"I warned you." Declared Kratos before decking Adam on the chest which made him fly a few feet backwards and stumble over.

"Adam!" Lute exclaimed and turned to Kratos. She drew out her sword and was about to charge at him before Adam called out to her.

"No!" Adam said. "Stand down, Lute. This asshole is mine." He stated with a malicious smile on his face. "Why don't you go ahead and gather the other Exorcists. This won't take long."

Lute was hesitant at first but she ultimately nodded and flew off towards the city, leaving Adam behind to deal with Kratos.

"You will not listen!" Kratos said before approaching Adam and grabbing him by the arm.

"Alright! My turn now!" Adam declared before punching Kratos with a mighty uppercut that sent him flying over the roof of the cabin. Kratos landed onto the ground painfully and steadied himself from the sudden attack.

Kratos looked back to see Adam flying right above him. Adam then dove towards Kratos's direction and summoned his axe mid air to slam it on the ground and emit a powerful, bright shockwave which Kratos narrowly avoided.

"Let's rock, fuckface! Come on!" Adam taunted, the guitar-axe dematerializing in his hands.

Kratos quickly pulled himself up from the dirt and put up a battle stance with his fists, ready to face the Exorcist leader. The Spartan then charged at Adam and began to throw a flurry of punches at the angel. Kratos manages to land a few blows but Adam dodges most of the punches.

Adam then threw another punch, this time with his fist slightly glowing which sent Kratos flying backwards and into a tree, making it collapse and plummet to the ground. "You hit hard, I'll give you that!" Adam remarked with a smirk. "But you're still going down, fucker!"

Adam flew himself to deliver a blow at Kratos's abdomen and then another uppercut below his chin which launched him upwards. Adam then grabbed Kratos by the legs and slammed him on the ground, spun him around and threw him into the air. Adam then launched himself to tackle Kratos in mid air and crash onto the roof of the cabin. The angel wrapped his hands around the Spartan's neck and smiled. "If you give up now, I'll make your death quick and painless! Real simple!" Adam then went for a punch to Kratos's head but he avoided at the last second, leaving a hole on the roof. Adam looked through the hole and noticed something interesting. "Two beds, huh?"

Kratos struggled under Adam's grasp before kneeing him at the abdomen and punching Adam before grabbing him by the neck and slamming him on the roof. Kratos got on top of the angel and began to viciously beat away at his face. The punches filled with so much weight and anger over this intruder. "LEAVE. MY. HOME!!!"

With a roar, Kratos slammed Adam through the roof and into the side yard. Adam then got up from behind Kratos and hit him with a blast from his palms. When Kratos keeled over, Adam kicked the Spartan through an array of trees, collapsing over. "Getting real pissed, aren't you?" Adam taunted.

Kratos glared at Adam before grabbing a nearby tree and swatting him away with it. Kratos then tackled Adam and rammed him through more trees while Adam elbowed him. "Who else is in there??" Kratos slammed Adam onto a boulder but Adam hit Kratos with an overhead slam and brought Kratos to the ground. "You put up a pretty good fight, you old fuck!"

"You talk too much." Kratos stated before getting up and grabbing Adam by the neck to punch his face repeatedly but by the last punch, Adam headbutted him and dashed around to Kratos's back where he threw another punch with a glowing fist and sent Kratos deep inside the boulder.

"While you're in there, how 'bout I just find out myself who you got stashed inside that shithole you call a cabin!" Adam declared and began to walk towards the cabin.

Kratos felt nothing but pure anger building up as his hands started to emit flames and his eyes turned bright red. With a mighty roar, Kratos's rage reaches a breaking point and he bursts through the boulder. With his arms on fire, Kratos lunged at Adam who turned around at the last second before being decked on the face which broke half of his mask off and sent flying. Kratos then lifted up a nearby tree, pointed it at Adam and rammed him through the forest.

"Who the FUCK are you hiding??" Adam demanded answers from the Spartan as the two went deeper into the forest. Eventually, Kratos and Adam reached an open area with a large boulder in the middle with Kratos slamming Adam on it. Adam grins and breaks the tree apart with another blast from his palms.

Having had enough, Kratos went at Adam like a rabid animal, roaring and wildly punching at the angel. Kratos jumped upwards and slammed on the ground with a shout that sent a massive shockwave that stunned Adam for a brief moment. In that moment, Kratos grabbed Adam by the legs and threw him across the area and onto the boulder. Kratos lunged at Adam and threw another flurry of punches at Adam which produced a spray of golden blood with each hit. One last hit to the face and Adam was in a daze, Kratos noticed that the boulder was becoming unsteady so he shoved the angel in the direction of the boulder and punched away at the bottom, chipping the foundation and making it lose balance.

When the boulder felt loose, Kratos dropped the boulder onto Adam which rumbled the area and shook the trees for a moment. Kratos breathed heavily as he gradually calmed down from the rage, his head still spinning and aching. He stumbled towards the cabin in an effort to get back home. After a few feet of shambling, he felt the ground shake and looked back to see the boulder lifting itself from the ground.

"We're not done yet, fucker!" Adam shouted, he used the strength of holy magic to lift and toss the boulder at Kratos. Kratos then harnessed the power of his rage for a brief moment and punched the boulder, destroying it completely but as it crumbled, Adam launched himself at Kratos and clashed with him.

Kratos and Adam struggled against each other, growling and glaring at the other. The ground shook and cracked, the trees fell and the boulders collapsed around them, creating a small chasm. "You're making this way fucking harder than it needs to be!" Declared Adam. "But it doesn't matter! Your old ass will give out soon! And when I'm done with you, I'll find whoever it is you got hiding in that dump and when I find them? Let's just say, it won't be quick and painless…"

Adam then pulled one of his hands away and swatted Kratos in the face. When he was stunned, Adam grabbed Kratos by the waist and flew high upwards. High in the sky, Kratos escaped from Adam's grasp and grabbed his neck and threw more hits and punches. Eventually, Adam counterattacked and sent Kratos plummeting into the ground but Kratos pulled out his axe and used it as an anchor to slow his descent by lodging it into the side of the chasm. Kratos then began scaling the wall, Adam could be heard taunting from above. "You really think you can beat me? ME? I'm a fucking Exorcist! I kill scum like you for a living! Just you wait! It'll all be over soon!"

As soon as Kratos reaches the top, Adam appears to stomp at Kratos but he quickly reacts and jumps away to the other side of the chasm. "Wow! And you're still fighting? Why don't you just accept this whole thing is pointless! Your struggle is fucking pointless!"

Kratos breathed heavily, he focused on healing his wounds and bruises. When all is healed up, he turned around to face Adam. Adam flashed another grin at Kratos and used his wings to launch himself with a punch which Kratos dodged by sidestepping. "No more games, bitch!" Adam said, summoning his guitar-axe and setting it on his shoulder. "Let's finish this!"

Kratos scowled at Adam and pulled out his own axe. The two began to trade axe swings at each other, Kratos managed to slash pieces of Adam's robe apart while Adam made a huge cut on Kratos's tunic. Kratos and Adam jumped away from each other with Kratos charging up his axe to produce frost and Adam charging his to emit bright holy energy. The two then swung their weapons to create an energy slash which clashed right in the middle, creating an explosion which knocked Kratos and Adam away and knocked their weapons out of their hands.

Adam tries to pull himself up from the ground but then, Kratos appears to chokeslam him back down. Kratos then got on top of Adam and wrapped his hands tightly around Adam's neck. Adam struggled against Kratos's grasp but he couldn't break free. Kratos's grip on Adam's neck became tighter and tighter and the angel began to struggle on breathing.

Kratos stared at Adam with rage but before anything else happened, Kratos felt another presence coming. He looked to the side and felt a sharp, painful sensation when a glowing sword stabbed into his shoulder. Kratos grunts in pain as he fell off of Adam and onto the ground next to him.

"Adam!" The angel from before had returned, she flew into the area and landed by Adam. "Are you alright, sir?"

Adam looked at Lute with an annoyed expression. "Lute, what the fuck?! I was doing just fine without your help!"

"But you took too long and I assumed the worst happened!" Lute explained.

Adam scoffed. "Tch, whatever. We're running out of time anyways." He said before getting up from the ground and dusted himself off.

Lute walked over to Kratos, her sword still plunged into his shoulder. Lute pulled the sword out of him with a swift motion and walked over to Adam. The Exorcist leader looked over at Kratos. "You may have survived today but mark my fucking words, we will be back! And when we come back? You will be sorry. See ya, asshole!"

And with that, both Adam and Lute fly away into the sky, leaving a bleeding, battle-damaged Kratos on the ground. Kratos stared at the red sky momentarily before slowly pulling himself up from the dirt. His body was aching and his muscles were in pain. Cuts and bruises were plastered everywhere on him.

Kratos struggled to get on his feet but he did anyway and when he did, he began to shamble towards the cabin. "Who… Was he?" He started speaking to himself, still rattled from the fight. "They… They found me… After all this time…" His fear was building up slowly as he proceeded to the cabin. He looked up at the sky and yelled out in desperation. "MONA! What… Should I do…"

Kratos outstretched his palm and recalled his axe. The Spartan then stumbled forward and used his axe as a means to balance himself. Kratos concentrated and healed himself from the cuts and bruises on him. "Our son… Is not ready… To carry your ashes to the highest peak…"

Kratos got up from the ground and set his axe on his back. He continued to shamble his way back to the cabin before grabbing on to his slashed tunic and ripping it off, finding no use of it anymore. "I'm….Not ready… Mona… I cannot do this without you…" Kratos continued until he eventually reached the door to the cabin. He paused for a moment and sighed. "...But we cannot stay here."

Kratos then pushed the door open and approached the rug. He tossed it aside and flung open the hatch to reveal a fearful Atreus still inside. Atreus looked up at Kratos with a mix of disbelief and relief. "There was so much… I thought you… You're alright!"

"I am alright." Kratos assured him before holding out his hand for Atreus to grab. Kratos then pulled him out of the cellar. "Gather your things, we are leaving."

Atreus then walked off to prepare his tools and equipment for the journey. Meanwhile, Kratos closed the trapdoor and covered it with the rug, he then walked over to a chest at the end of the room and opened it. He pulled out a leather shoulder guard, leather arm bracers and a leather waist guard. Kratos quickly put on the armor pieces and when that was done, he closed the chest. Atreus returns, wearing a leather chestplate. "I thought you said I wasn't ready?"

"You are not." Kratos replied bluntly. "But we have no choice." Kratos glanced at the Imp boy. "Prove me wrong."

"Yes, sir." Said Atreus before leaving the cabin. Kratos followed suit, he took one last look at the cabin before closing the door behind him.

Now outside, Kratos and Atreus looked up at the valley and noticed the highest mountain amongst the others. Atreus pointed out and said. "There it is! The highest peak! …It's gonna be a LONG journey."

"But one that is important. Come." Kratos said. Then he and Atreus traverse through the thick woods, their journey to the highest peak in all of Hell begins now.

To be continued...