The air grew thick, heavy with unspoken power, as the masked Keeper raised their staff. Symbols on the walls of the citadel began to glow, each one representing a different realm under the dominion of the New Pantheon. Energy rippled through the room, pulling the air into a cyclone of crackling light and shadow.
"You do not understand what you are unmaking," the Keeper said, their voice calm yet tinged with sorrow. "The gods you've slain were not tyrants, but guardians. They were the threads that held the fabric of existence together."
Kratos gritted his teeth, his fists glowing faintly with the mingled powers of fire, shadow, strength, and eternity. "The gods I've slain were fools who sought to control through fear. If your threads snap so easily, then your balance was flawed from the start."
The Keeper sighed. "Your hubris blinds you. But no matter. You are the last piece of this broken equation, and I will ensure you do not unravel the realms further."
They slammed their staff into the ground. The entire chamber shifted, bending and warping as though the laws of reality were being rewritten. Kratos staggered briefly, regaining his footing just as the Keeper unleashed their attack.
Beams of energy arced from the staff, each one laced with the essence of the realms they protected. One beam struck the ground near Kratos, erupting into vines that clawed at his legs. Another sliced through the air, freezing everything it touched in crystalline ice.
Kratos dodged and retaliated, summoning flames from Solinara's essence to burn away the vines. As another beam hurtled toward him, he called upon the shadows of Malgrin, wrapping himself in darkness to absorb the blow. Emerging unscathed, he lunged at the Keeper, fists blazing.
The Keeper blocked with their staff, the force of Kratos's strike sending a shockwave through the citadel. "You wield power that was not meant for you," they said, their voice carrying a note of warning. "It will consume you before long."
Kratos pushed harder, forcing the Keeper back. "I am no stranger to being consumed," he growled, striking again and again, each blow breaking through the Keeper's defenses.
But the Keeper was not finished. They spun their staff, creating a barrier of light that hurled Kratos across the chamber. As he rose to his feet, the Keeper began to chant, their voice resonating with the power of countless realms.
The ground beneath Kratos fractured, splitting into floating platforms that drifted in an endless void. The Keeper hovered above, their power surging. "This is the fate you have chosen, Spartan. To face the weight of all existence."
Kratos stood tall, the chaos around him only fueling his determination. "Then existence will fall like the gods before it."
The final battle between the Keeper of Realms and the Ghost of Sparta had begun