Ori and the Stranger

Prologue

     Ori awoke from a particularly blissful slumber to hear his mother Naru calling to him. As the drowsiness left his mind, his stomach grumbled loudly. Ori listened to his stomach, and eagerly ran outside. The sun shone in his eyes, and a warm breeze blew through his fur. He saw Naru, busy shaking a tree, but she quickly stopped when she heard Ori. She turned to look at him, and gave him a warm smile. "Come now, you must be hungry," she spoke warmly, holding out of her large, strong arms invitingly. Ori didn't hesitate, and ran into her hand. Naru lifted him up onto her shoulder, giving him a bit of airtime which made Ori giggle with excitement. Though Ori was dwarfed by Naru's immense size, he felt safe and secure in her grasp.

     Naru turned to the tree and shook it firmly. A single fruit fell from the branches. Naru caught it, and tossed it into Ori's mouth, who bit down eagerly. The sweet juices pleased his taste buds, but he was still hungry for more. Naru scratched an X onto the now bare tree, then walked to the riverbed. She pointed across the river to a large trove of trees, branches sagging from the immense weight of the countless fruits on them.

     "But how do we get there?" Ori asked, and Naru smiled. She set Ori on the ground, entered the cave, and reemerged with several long logs and a large bundle of rope. Ori hopped up and down excitedly, and they got to building.

     After a long day of hard work, they were done. The new bridge spanned over the length of the small creek, allowing them access to the fruitful trees on the other trees. They shook the first tree, and an immense amount of fruits fell, blanketing the ground around them.

     Ori and Naru celebrated by digging in. They shoveled handful after handful of the sweet fruits into their mouths. Ori's tiny belly filled up quickly, and he decided to take a large armful of fruits back into the cave for safe keeping while Naru continued to eat. He scooped up the fruits, and hobbled in the direction of the cave. They had spent all day building the bridge, and it was sturdy and reliable as Ori walked over it. He relished the feeling of the grass under his hooves, allowing his nose to take in the scents of the forest. Despite it being evening, the forest was still very colorful, despite having a hue of deep blue over it.

     But as Ori was at the entrance of the cave, he looked to his right at the huge tree at the center of the forest. It was glowing, brighter than usual. Suddenly, the light increased in intensity, streaks of the bright light flowing off of the tree and enveloping the forest below. The display of light captured Ori's mind, and he couldn't help but stare. His arms went limp, dropping the bundle of fruits to the floor.

     It was as if the light was... beckoning to him. He felt a sudden, strong urge to follow the light to the big tree. But as he took a step forward, he felt himself being scooped up in Naru's arms. It was firm and violent, with a strong sense of urgency behind it. He looked down at Naru's face, and saw it full of fear and worry. She quickly ran inside the cave, letting out a wail of worry and shielding Ori with her body. Ori didn't understand. What was wrong?

     As they entered the cave, Ori heard a violent, powerful, angry screech which made him jump, and heard powerful wingbeats from above the cave, though he could not see what was causing the noise.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Days passed. Their food storage dwindled rapidly. When Ori went outside to get more, he was quickly stopped by Naru. But he did cast a quick glance outside, and his heart dropped. The forest was... rotten beyond recognition. Why? Even the plants and greenery inside the cave had browned and died, and the ray of sunlight that shone through a hole in the ceiling was gone, as if the sun itself had rotted away.

     Ori's stomach hungered, and he shifted in his straw bed uncomfortably. It had become brittle and dry, and his hunger didn't help either. He opened his eyes as Naru placed their last fruit on his bed in front of his face. As she sat down, Ori held the fruit up and offered it to her. But she shook her head. "Don't worry, sweetie. I'm not... hungry..." she said weakly, before closing her eyes. The smile on Ori's face disappeared, and he turned his head to the cave entrance. He dropped the fruit in his hands and walked outside with a determined look on his face. He was going to find more food.

     The outside world was almost unrecognizable. The once lush grass crunched underfoot, and the warm breeze was now a cold wind that ruffled through Ori's fur and chilled him to the bone. The leaves on the trees were long gone, leaving their branches barren like jagged fingers, their bark dulled and gray. The creek was entirely dried up, except for a tiny little stream of purple, foul-smelling liquid that barely resembled water. Ori walked over the bridge, which creaked dangerously underfoot. But as Ori scanned the trees, he found what he was looking for: a surviving bundle of fruits on the very tip of a rotten branch.

     Ori walked over to the tree, and shook the few surviving fruits loose. They fell to the ground with dull thumps. Ori jumped from the branch and scooped the fruits into his arms. He set off in the direction of the cave, just like he had done several days earlier. He started having flashbacks, of him and Naru building that bridge, and other happy memories with Naru. Why was he remembering these things? It didn't matter. He was going to get the food back to Naru, and everything was going to be okay.

     Ori walked back into the cave, stopping in front of Naru. He dropped the bundle of fruits to the ground, and held one up with a happy chirp. "Look, mom! I got food!" But the smile quickly drained from his face when Naru didn't respond. He walked closer to her, holding the fruit to her face with another chirp. "Mom? I got food!"

     As realization began to creep in, Ori dropped the fruit and began to shake his mother's arm, chirps now desperate. "Mom, wake up! Please!" But Naru didn't respond. She slumped onto her back like a ragdoll, confirming Ori's fear. Ori jumped onto her stomach, tears in his eyes. "Mom..." He wailed in despair, curling himself onto his dead mother's stomach, sobbing quietly.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Ori stood on a cliff overlooking the rotten forest. He cast one last mournful glance back in the direction of his home, before hopping down to the forest floor.

     His hooves were met with dry, coarse dirt. He looked around, frowning and ears drooping at the decay and rot that surrounded him. The bushes and plants were gray and dead, some covered in purple, pulsating vines covered in thorns that choked the life out of them. Ori took in a mournful breath, cheeks still wet from crying, and started to venture through the forest, searching for that light he had seen on the big tree.

     He wandered like a lost child, gaze whipping around in fear at the slightest noise. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be back at home, safe in Naru's loving arms as he chomped down on those delicious fruits. As Ori slowly and painfully trekked through the forest, he felt his strength rapidly waning. He hadn't eaten in what felt like years, and his hunger was taking its toll. Ori clasped one paw to his stomach as he steadily lost his strength. His walking slowed down more and more, until he was practically tiptoeing out of his weakness.

     Suddenly, Ori's spirits lifted slightly as he saw a break in the treeline. He started walking a bit faster, but suddenly fell down a small drop. He yelped in surprise and pain as he tumbled to the bottom of the ditch. He laid still for a moment, wheezing. After a moment, he opened his eyes and tried to get back up.

     After stumbling back to his feet, Ori grabbed the edge of a log to climb out of the ravine. His arms wobbled with uncertainty and weakness as he slowly pulled himself onto the log. He crawled up the log, and found himself standing before a trove of spine infested bushes. He pushed himself into the bushes, wincing and crying out as the spines pierced his skin. He started to bleed from several areas. He struggled to break free of the bushes, and the bushes suddenly gave out. Ori tumbled to the base of another log, bleeding from his wounds and even weaker than before, and his mind and vision were becoming fuzzy. But he saw the break in the tree line. All he had to do was get up this one log.

     Ori winced, tears streaming down his face as he slowly pulled himself up the log. After almost reaching the top of the log, Ori reached out, trying to pull himself just a little further. But he was too weak. His arm dropped limply, as did his body.

     Ori exhaled for the last time.