CHAPTER 99 — THE CRIMSON ASCENT
The spiral of the Seventh Realm tightened, the jagged walls pressing close, dripping with blackened mist and residual crimson energy. Each step Kratos and Atreus took felt like wading through molten stone, the air heavy with the acrid tang of shadow and decay. Silence lay over the spiral, but it was deceptive—a stillness that screamed with the promise of violence.
Kratos' eyes narrowed. The Leviathan Axe glimmered faintly with frost as he gripped it tightly. "The Realm watches. It waits for a misstep. Stay sharp. Every moment here could be our last."
Atreus' threads shimmered faintly along his arms, bow drawn, eyes scanning every shift in the mist. "I can feel it, Father… the Realm's heartbeat. It's angry. It knows we've survived its trials so far. And now… it's preparing something worse."
Kratos' jaw tightened. "Then we move. Hesitation is death."
Ahead, the spiral opened into a narrow ledge, suspended above an abyss that seemed to stretch infinitely downward. From the crimson mist below, shadows rose like smoke, twisting and writhing into grotesque humanoid forms. Some had faces frozen in silent screams, others were faceless, smooth as obsidian, with hands tipped in jagged claws that glimmered with red energy.
Kratos' voice was low, lethal. "Do not falter. Strike only where it can be struck. Every wasted blow strengthens them."
Atreus fired arrows in precise volleys, threads lacing each shot to bind shadows to jagged stones. Shrieks of the fallen echoed through the mist, and fragments of shadows burst into shards as the arrows struck. But for each one that fell, two more rose in its place, multiplying like a living nightmare.
From the depths of the mist, a figure began to emerge—towering, impossibly tall, its body a twisted fusion of shadow and jagged stone. Veins of crimson energy pulsed across its form, synced with the Heart of the Realm, which could be seen faintly through the thick mist at the base of the spiral. Its eyes burned with intelligence and fury, scanning Kratos and Atreus as a predator would track its prey.
"You trespass," it intoned, its voice echoing in their minds. "All who enter here fall. You cannot survive what you have awakened."
Kratos' eyes narrowed. "We define our own survival."
The figure lunged, tendrils of shadow whipping violently toward them. Kratos rolled aside, swinging the Leviathan Axe in wide arcs, frost exploding with each strike. Atreus fired a continuous barrage, threads lashing outward to bind and tear at tendrils, but the creature adapted instantly, moving with unnatural speed, its limbs twisting in impossible angles.
"It's learning from every strike!" Atreus shouted, dodging a tendril that would have impaled him. "Every attack… every defense!"
Kratos' voice was sharp and deadly. "Then we make it learn faster than it can adapt. Strike precisely. Strike without hesitation."
He leapt onto one of its massive arms, running along the writhing surface. Frost spread with each step, cracking veins of crimson energy. The creature screamed—a silent, mind-shattering roar that clawed at their sanity.
Atreus lashed threads outward, binding tendrils to jagged stones and yanking them into the abyss. "Father… it's feeding on the Realm itself! Every move we make strengthens it!"
Kratos growled. "Then we give it no choice. Strike harder. Strike faster. End this before it regenerates."
He drove the Leviathan Axe deep into the creature's chest. Frost erupted violently, scattering shadows across the crimson mist. The figure thrashed wildly, but Kratos' strikes and Atreus' threads kept it constrained, forcing it closer to the Heart of the Realm.
The Heart pulsed violently, crimson veins flaring, reacting to the creature's pain. The spiral quaked beneath them, stones splitting, debris raining into the abyss. Shadows from the mist twisted into humanoid forms, clawing and reaching with desperate intent.
"Father! We must strike the Heart now!" Atreus shouted.
Kratos' eyes narrowed. "We will. But only when the creature is truly weakened. One mistake, and we both fall."
The figure lunged again, sweeping massive tendrils at them. Kratos rolled and swung the Leviathan Axe, frost exploding, shredding the shadowed limbs. The creature faltered, slower this time, its form unsteady.
Atreus released fracture-infused arrows into its veins of crimson energy. Sparks erupted as shadows screamed silently, fracturing its body further.
Kratos' voice was sharp and commanding. "Now. Together."
They advanced in perfect coordination. Kratos struck deep into the creature's chest, frost erupting violently, cracking veins of crimson energy. Atreus' threads coiled around the tendrils, yanking them into jagged stone, destabilizing the creature's movements.
The figure reeled, shadows collapsing inward, while the Heart pulsed violently, reacting to the damage.
Kratos leapt high, driving the Leviathan Axe into the very core of the Heart. Frost spread violently, shards of shadow scattering into the crimson mist. The creature screamed, imploding, fragments dissolving into the abyss.
The spiral quaked violently one last time. Mist swirled, shadows dissipated, leaving only faint energy pulsing from the scarred Heart. Silence reigned.
Kratos and Atreus stood, battered, frost and blood clinging to them. Their breaths were heavy, but their focus unbroken.
"Atreus," Kratos said, voice low and measured, "we have survived. But the Realm is far from finished. It will recover. It will strike again."
Atreus nodded, threads dimming slightly. "It's afraid now, Father… but not defeated. We've made it hesitate."
Kratos' gaze swept the plateau, calculating the path ahead. "Fear is temporary. Survival is permanent. We move forward. The spiral continues deeper. Every step is a challenge… but we endure, or we die."
The crimson mist swirled, shadows retreating just beyond their vision. The spiral stretched further, into the heart of the Seventh Realm, darker and more hostile than any place they had faced.
Kratos tightened his grip on the Leviathan Axe. "The Realm tests us, boy. But we endure. And we will endure… or die trying."
The whispers returned, faint and insistent, carried on the wind. Promises of terror, despair, and pain. But Kratos and Atreus ignored them, their focus absolute, resolve unshakable.
The scarred Heart throbbed weakly, a reminder that the Realm's true challenge was far from over.
Kratos muttered under his breath, eyes narrowing. "This is only the beginning. The Realm has more to show us… and when it does, we will be ready."
The crimson mist swirled, shadows coalescing beyond perception. Every heartbeat was a warning, every step forward a test.
The Seventh Realm's darkness was patient. Merciless. And hungry.
Kratos and Atreus pressed forward, together, into the unknown abyss.