As the three of them continued trekking through the winding cave that Freya had guided them to, the sound of dripping water echoed faintly across the stone walls.
The path was narrow and dimly lit by patches of glowing moss that faintly illuminated the area.
While following Freya's directions, they encountered a group of draugrs stationed just outside the range of a faintly shimmering protective barrier that surrounded the cave's entrance.
Without hesitation, Zelos raised his hand, and several orbs of bright energy formed around his fingertips.
In a brief flash of light, he muttered the familiar incantation, "Zoltraak," and instantly, the draugrs were struck down before they could react.
The spell cut through the silence of the cave, leaving behind faint traces of steam where the enemies once stood.
Atreus, watching this, couldn't contain his curiosity.
He had seen Zelos use that same spell many times before, but never anything else.
Kratos noticed the boy's growing curiosity and silently listened, as he too was wondering about the same thing.
"Zelos, why do you always use that same spell?" Atreus asked directly, lowering his bow slightly. "Don't you have other kinds of magic you could use? You've only used Zoltraak and that fire spell before."
Zelos smiled faintly, his tone calm but confident. "Zoltraak is efficient. It's fast, quiet, and doesn't cause unnecessary destruction. It minimizes collateral damage, and the enemies die before they can alert others. But since you mentioned it, maybe next time I'll show you something else."
He smiled a little wider, the kind of mysterious smile that made Atreus tilt his head in mild confusion.
They kept walking, following the sound of a nearby stream echoing deeper inside the cave.
The path was uneven, with small pebbles crunching under their boots as they advanced.
Then, suddenly, a sharp screech filled the tunnel, followed by a cloud of dark mist that rushed toward them.
From it emerged several floating figures with twisted, screaming faces—nightmares.
"Nightmares!" Atreus shouted, his eyes wide in shock. "I thought those were just stories! Mom used to say they'd come for me if I didn't go to bed!"
He quickly drew an arrow, his bow already raised.
Kratos stepped forward, ready to strike, but before either could act, a faint purple glow illuminated the side of the cave.
When they turned, they saw Zelos standing still with his right hand extended, his fingers shaped like a gun.
A small sphere of condensed purple energy began to form at his fingertip, spinning rapidly as the air around it distorted.
"Hollow Purple," Zelos said quietly.
The small orb shot forward almost faster than the eye could track. Everything it touched—rock, dirt, and the nightmares themselves—was immediately obliterated, disintegrated into nothingness.
The blast continued forward until it struck the far wall of the cavern, where it exploded with tremendous force, shaking the ground and carving out a massive crater in the stone.
Dust and fragments fell from the ceiling, and a low rumble echoed through the entire cave.
Atreus stared, mouth wide open in disbelief, as the cave trembled around them.
Zelos simply lowered his hand, a faint satisfied smile on his face, as if nothing extraordinary had just happened.
"What the…" Atreus finally managed to say, pointing toward the destruction. Zelos turned to him with a teasing smirk and a mock expression of innocence so exaggerated it almost looked like he was mocking Atreus's reaction.
"What?" Zelos replied casually. "You wanted to see another spell, didn't you?"
"I said I wanted to see another spell, not a world-ending one!" Atreus exclaimed, gesturing frantically toward the massive hole in the wall.
Zelos chuckled softly. "Please, that's an overstatement. This wasn't even close to my maximum output. That was only about one percent of the total power. A real world-ending spell would look very different."
Kratos, who had been silently observing the exchange, finally spoke. "What purpose does a spell like that serve, Zelos?"
His tone wasn't angry, but there was a deep curiosity in his voice.
Zelos crossed his arms and answered calmly.
"It's a fusion spell that merges two opposing forms of magic—repulsion and attraction.
The purple glow comes from combining the red and blue energies into a single force.
Normally, that process takes time, but I've adjusted it to happen instantly, at a reduced output, so it's safer to use in smaller spaces.
If I ever combine both at full capacity, you'd see entire mountain ranges crumble.
It's a large-scale extermination spell meant for when you face an overwhelming number of strong enemies.
Instead of fighting them one by one, it eliminates everything within a certain range."
Atreus's eyes widened further. "That's the weakest version?" he said in disbelief.
Zelos nodded slightly. "You never know when something like that might be necessary. It's practical for situations where escape isn't possible. The reason I mostly use Zoltraak around you and Father is to avoid unnecessary destruction. When I'm alone, survival matters more than what the terrain looks like afterward."
Kratos said nothing, but his expression softened. He understood the reasoning.
If Zelos were ever separated from them, he wanted him to live, regardless of the cost.
Atreus also nodded silently, realizing the logic behind his brother's methods.
They continued walking, the rumble of the cave slowly fading as they followed the stream deeper underground.
After several minutes, the path opened up into a wider cavern where they found a small wooden boat resting by the edge of an underground river—the one Freya had mentioned earlier.
The three boarded the boat, and Zelos extended his hand again, conjuring a faint spell that made the oars move automatically, propelling them smoothly through the water.
The steady sound of rowing mixed with the faint echoes of the cave walls.
"Ugh… what's that smell?" Atreus complained, covering his nose as the stench grew stronger the further they went.
"It's the ocean," Kratos replied plainly.
"The ocean smells terrible," Atreus muttered, earning a small chuckle from Zelos, who found the boy's complaint oddly amusing.
Eventually, the cave opened into a vast expanse of water.
The fog began to thin slightly, revealing a brighter sky above.
As they drifted forward, Atreus spotted something large in the distance—a colossal statue half-sunken into the water, with faint runes carved into its base.
"Zelos, over there," Atreus said, pointing toward it. Zelos nodded and directed the oars toward the statue.
When they approached, Atreus squinted at the runes. "It says, 'Surrender your arms.' I guess that won't be a problem for you, huh, Father?" he said, glancing playfully at Kratos.
Kratos stepped up from his seat, holding the Leviathan Axe in his hand.
He summoned frost over it before hurling it deep into the water.
After a few moments, he raised his hand to call it back—but it did not return.
"The axe did not return," Kratos said, his tone calm but cautious.
"Wait for it," Zelos said suddenly.
Both Kratos and Atreus looked at him in confusion. "Wait for what?" Atreus asked.
Before Zelos could answer, the sea began to move violently.
The water churned and rose in waves, the air shaking as if the very world trembled.
The fog scattered further, and then a massive, slit-shaped eye opened just beneath the surface near their boat.
The Leviathan Axe suddenly reappeared beside Kratos's seat, just as the enormous head of the World Serpent emerged from the water.
Its size was beyond anything Atreus had ever imagined, its body stretching farther than the eye could see.
"It's the World Serpent!" Atreus shouted in awe, his excitement replacing all fear.
The massive creature opened its mouth and began to speak in a deep, rumbling language neither Kratos nor Atreus could understand.
The sound shook the air around them.
Zelos listened quietly, not revealing that he understood the words being spoken.
"It speaks," Kratos said, his tone steady but cautious.
"Of course," Atreus said with wonder in his voice. "Mother told me it's friendly. This is amazing!"
"What does it say?" Kratos asked, his gaze fixed on the enormous creature.
"I don't know," Atreus admitted, still grinning with awe. "But this is awesome!"
As the World Serpent continued to speak, the water level around them began to drop slowly, revealing the distant shores and structures hidden beneath the surface.
Zelos calmly adjusted the magic guiding the oars and steered the boat toward a nearby dock that had just become visible.
The three of them said nothing more for a while, the silence filled only by the echo of water dripping from the massive serpent that still loomed behind them.