The Last Spartan

The Last Spartan was a young Spartan commander loyal to Kratos, the sole mortal to survive the destruction of Sparta by Zeus. He kept the Arms of Sparta safe for his absent lord and later died at Kratos's own hand within the Palace of the Fates, neither warrior knowing the other in the dark.

The loyal commander#

The Last Spartan was the very image of a Spartan soldier, vigorous, disciplined, fearless, and bound by a deep sense of camaraderie. He served Kratos faithfully during his reign as the God of War, addressing him as his lord and carrying out his will. He was an able commander, leading a successful assault on Rhodes that brought the city to its knees, and Kratos trusted him above others, evidence that he had perhaps stood as Kratos's second-in-command even in the days before the Spartan general bound himself to Ares.

His devotion was plain in small things. When Kratos returned to Sparta during his search for his brother Deimos, it was this young commander who ordered his men to tear down the statue of Ares, the last vestige of the city's former patron, singing the praises of the new God of War. He had kept the Arms of Sparta, Kratos's old mortal spear and shield, polished and cared for as if they were his own, and he presented them back to his lord, then bade Kratos return one day and protect Sparta. Kratos, openly pleased, made no effort to hide his fondness for the soldier, and counted him among the few people he cared for beyond his own family.

The fall of Sparta#

When Zeus turned against Kratos, the entire Spartan army that had marched on Rhodes was destroyed by the Blade of Olympus. This warrior alone survived, though he had stood nearest of all to the King of the Gods when the blow fell. When Kratos returned from the Underworld, the weakened commander greeted him, and Kratos charged him once more to go home and defend the city.

Yet Zeus struck again, this time at Sparta itself, loosing the full measure of his godly power upon the city. Once more the young commander endured what should have killed him, knocked unconscious and shielded from further harm by a pile of fallen rubble. When he woke, every other citizen of Sparta lay dead, and he found himself the only one left alive, the Last Spartan in truth.

Death in the Palace of the Fates#

His city in ruins, the Last Spartan resolved on a desperate course: he would reach the Sisters of Fate and beg them to change the outcome of Sparta's fall. He braved the monsters and traps of the Island of Creation and came at last to an area within the Palace of the Fates, where he and Kratos met in the dark. A shadowed warrior declared he had come too far to fail, and the two fought without knowing each other. Kratos prevailed, impaling the stranger and smashing him through a window, and the two fell from the chamber together.

Only then did Kratos see, with horror, that the man he had slain was the Last Spartan, the same warrior he had ordered home to guard the city. Demanding to know why Sparta had been left undefended, Kratos learned the truth: Sparta was no more, and only this man had lived through its end. The dying Spartan held no anger toward the lord who had struck him down. He told Kratos that he had faith their fallen comrades would live on through the true God of War, and with that, he died. Enraged and grieving, Kratos cried to the heavens for Zeus to face him.

When Kratos at last traveled back in time and reclaimed the Blade of Olympus, he changed the very events that had led to Sparta's destruction, sparing his warriors and his city. In that altered course the duel in the Palace of the Fates never took place, and the Last Spartan lived. His ultimate fate beyond that was never revealed.