Ori and The Lands Beyond Nibel

Prologue

We'd reach the border of Nibel in only a couple of hours, 3 at most.

Hour 1- Ups and Downs & Feelings and Frowns

It was a particularly windy afternoon and the group had just stopped to rest. They'd been walking for hours, but it wasn't far to the border anymore. With Aura as navigation, the others did not worry about getting lost or anything of the sort. Aura herself was climbing a tree to retrieve some fruit hanging from its thin branches. Ku waddled over, investigating her small activity. "Just getting some grub Aura? "She asked. The spirit looked down to spot the small owl at the tree's base. "Oh, good afternoon Ku! I'm just getting some berries, so yes, some grub indeed. "She said, as she began climbing down backward. Gracefully landing on the ground, the spirit brushed herself off a bit. A simple tree climb was a bit too easy for this nimble girl." Is anyone hungry? "She asked, approaching her resting friends. Mira stood up, but there was a sudden pain in her flank. Toppling over, Mokk quickly rushed to her aid, as he wasn't too far away. Laying her down in the soft grass, he began to speak softly. "Are you sure you want to accompany us, Mira? I would say that you aren't in the best condition to travel.."Mokk almost hesitated to say, oddly. Something wasn't sitting right within him about this trip, especially while his sister was injured from their last outing. "I assure you Mokk, I think I'll be okay. If I didn't want to accompany the group, I would've asked for you to take me back home." The moki's sister responded respectfully. Mokk gave his sister a faithful nod and helped her receive the berries from Aura, which the Moki happily indulged in eating. Being rather attentive, Aura discovered that Ori seemed to have been very silent this entire time. Even though the spirit was able to talk through the power of the spirit brush, they'd still been very quiet ever since the group set out for Nibel's border."Has anyone seen Ori? Where'd that spirit go?"The leader of the pack asked. Ku motioned her head past her right-wing."I believe my sibling is still behind us somewhere. The last time I saw him, he was pacing around." The owl stated, leading Aura to only nod her head."I'll be right back, in that case. I hope he's alright, but I'm gonna go talk with him before we get going again just to be sure." The female spirit stated, trotting off past Ku. The girl walked through a rather thick bush before spotting her friend sitting on top of a tree stump, looking a bit lost entirely in thought. Approaching the spirit guardian closer, she was able to notice that Ori wasn't just sitting idle, but was actually reading the book that the girl gave to them during one of the dreams."Just catching up on some reading, Ori?"Aura asked, taking a seat next to Ori. The fellow spirit nodded slowly and softly, but overall something still seemed wrong."I suppose so. I'm just wondering if I'll be even remotely able to do anything in this little book. I wasn't formally trained in combat. I told you that I used to have a spirit flame, correct?" Ori asked, closing the small book before tucking it away in a small bag that they carried. Aura took Ori's paw with her own and held it tightly. "Ori, with your potential, I believe you can do just about anything you set your mind to. If need be, I can assist you with anything in my book, alright?" The smaller spirit said. Ori nodded, smiling softly. "Thank you, Aura." The spirit guardian happily said afterward. The two got up together and began to make their way back to the group. The Moki planned on finishing the berries, and Ku managed to snatch up a worm for a quick snack. The sun was about halfway set. Ku looked up at the giant light source, then gazed over at the path that the five had been walking on this entire time."How close are we to the border now Aura?" Mokk asked, helping his sister to her feet."Mmph. I'd say over halfway there, some might actually arrive early!" The spirit replied, letting her tail get blown a bit by the sudden wind. The rest of the group felt a bit of tranquility hearing that from their friend. With those words, the group pressed on to cover more ground on their way to the border of Nibel. As they passed by familiar landmarks and locations, an overwhelmed feeling came over Ori suddenly. The spirit had been all over the Nibel with Sein when they had their first adventure, but it just seemed so much more dangerous back then. Our spirit guardian slowly began to remember all the times they'd got hurt. All the times they bled. All the times they cried. As memories came flooding back to Ori, one thing stood out to them.Had Ori died before?Even while trying to save the forest the spirit and many other animals call home, it seemed rather unfitting and odd to think about the topic of death. Ori remembered that Naru had sacrificed herself so that the spirit could live on instead of her, but Gumo was able to bring her back. Their own death didn't seem familiar, besides "The Last Breath." That was a rather, unexpected memory as well. It served a good purpose though, at least in hindsight. Seeming a little bit distraught and confused, Ori somehow managed to keep their feelings hidden away. At least, for now. The group carried on at an increasingly steady pace. Aura didn't anticipate that ground would be made this fast, but many things are more unexpected than one may think.After passing by the frozen wasteland that is the Forlorn Ruins, our group of tiny heroes managed to find themselves on a secluded cliff area that wasn't far from the ruins themselves.The newfound area was incredibly grassy and supported a large view into a forest below.This is where the journey would begin.