Ori and the Stranger

Chapter 2

     Ori stared at the creature in fear. He could tell that it definitely wasn't friendly. The creature let out a guttural growl, shaking its body in anticipation. It didn't want to intimidate Ori, it wanted to kill him.

     Suddenly, the creature let out a roar and charged at Ori. Ori gasped, trying to will his legs to move. But they were paralyzed by fear. He could only sit and stare as the creature got closer and closer. But at the last second, Ori regained control of his legs, and he quickly leapt out of the way, feeling the creature's carapace brush against his fur. The creature crashed into the cracked wall with immense force, and the wall crumbled. The creature lost its footing, growling in confusion. Then it looked up, and screeched in fear. The rock above it was loose and crumbling. A large section of the ceiling broke loose and tumbled onto the creature, cutting its screech off with a sickening squish. Purple tinted blood flowed from under the rocks.

     Ori stared at the rock pile in complete and utter shock. The silence was deafening. Ori found his gaze glued to the crushed creature. Did... did I do that? Ori thought, tears welling up in his eyes. He had never seen something die before, let alone so brutally. Naru was different, at least in her death she looked to be asleep. But not this. The poor creature was crushed. Ori covered his eyes, not able to bear looking at the dead creature anymore. He felt the presence call to him once more, past the now crumbled wall. Ori quickly walked by the pile of rocks, wincing as he felt his hooves splash in the creature's blood. Even though it had tried to kill him, the little spirit felt horrible for what he did.

     Once Ori had passed the gruesome scene, he opened his eyes. He found himself outside once more, in yet another ravine. Dead grass and rotting bushes lined the bottom, while decaying tree roots wrapped along the cliff walls. On a particularly large tree root, was a patch of healthy green grass. As Ori approached the patch of grass, he saw something: a small orb of light, gently and weakly pulsating.

     Ori felt an urge to touch the small orb. As he reached his paw to the orb, it glowed a little bit brighter. Finally, when he made contact, he felt power surge into him. The ravine was suddenly bathed in blue light as the orb's luminescence increased ten fold. The orb floated out of Ori's hands and hovered above him. It spoke to him with an angelic, echoing voice.

     "My strength... is returning... I am Sein, the light and eyes of the Spirit Tree."

     Ori stared at the orb in complete awe, unable to believe his eyes and ears.

     "I was lost in this glen when she loosened her grip. I can guide you on your journey, if you allow me to come."

     Ori nodded his head vigorously. This light orb was important. He could feel it. Suddenly, Sein's voice took on a sense of urgency and worry.

     "But be still, can you hear that? They must have followed you here!"

     Then Ori heard it: a low growling. Then another. Then another. Soon, a cacophony of frog-like growling was heard. Ori tensed up, eyes darting around in fear. He saw several shapes move across the branches of the rotten trees, before leaping down into the ravine. They looked like frogs, but elongated unnaturally, and were a dim shade of purple. They croaked and warbled maniacally as they landed and hopped towards Ori madly, hunger in their eyes. Ori screamed in fear and tried to run back towards the tunnel entrance, but one of the creatures landed in front of him before he could escape. They came from every direction; Ori was surrounded.

     Not knowing what else to do, Ori curled up on the ground in fear as the monsters crept closer and closer to him, warbling madly and foaming at the mouth. Sein dashed above the creatures, trying to draw their attention away from the little spirit. But the creatures' attention remained solely on Ori. A particularly large creature raised its fists, preparing to slam them down on Ori's frail body. Ori closed his eyes. This was it.

     A loud crack rang out. Ori yelped in surprise. He noticed the creatures had gone silent, and he slowly opened his eyes. The creatures were all staring at the one that was about to attack Ori. The creature was clutching its chest, as purple tinted blood leaked out. Its face went pale, and it crumpled to the ground. Behind the creature, at the mouth of the tunnel, stood Blitz. He was holding one of the long pieces of metal, the barrel pointed at the dead creature, smoking. "Get away from him," He said, his voice cold and angry, devoid of the gentle warmth he had shown to Ori.

     The creatures stared at Blitz with uncertainty and hesitation. They glanced down at their fallen friend, and began to twitch. They started warbling and croaking with even more madness. They all charged Blitz at once. Blitz fired several more shots, dropping a few more creatures. Once the creatures reached him, he drew a long, metal blade from a sheathe on his belt. He cut down the creatures one by one with surprising grace and precision, his rapidly vibrating blade effortlessly passing through their bodies. Within moments, they were all dead on the ground. Blitz wiped his blade clean of their foul blood, putting the blade back in its sheathe. He turned to Ori, his voice going warm and gentle once more. "Are you alright?"

     Ori's nerves slowly calmed down, and he shakily nodded, feeling amazed and slightly intimidated by Blitz's abilities. Blitz glanced at the dead creatures, then back at Ori. "This place is not too friendly to-" Blitz jumped when he saw Sein, hovering near Ori. "What the hell is that?!"

     "I am Sein, the light and eyes of the Spirit Tree. You have my gratitude for saving Ori."

     "The Spirit Tree? Is that the big tree in the center of the forest?" Blitz asked.

     "Yes. 'Their lights will return to me', these words the Spirit Tree once said. In the glade past the caverns we'll find him, there's a path up ahead," responded Sein, floating towards the tunnel, "Follow me, child."

     Ori nodded and started in the direction of Sein. However, he stopped short of the tunnel entrance, before turning to Blitz. "Can you... come with me?" he asked sheepishly, giving Blitz a pleading look.

     Blitz sighed. "Sure. Why not?"

     A smile spread over Ori's face. "Thank you," he replied gratefully. He then followed after Sein, Blitz close behind.

     They reemerged into the ravine. Ori looked up and his heart sank. He turned to Sein. "How are we going to get out?"

     Sein floated over to a small plant, covered in the bulbous decay growths. Sein flashed with bright light, and the growths sizzled and melted away. Then, she moved to a wall of the growths and did the same thing. Full of curiosity, Ori entered the now unblocked cave. Inside was a well of light, made of stone covered in intricate, glowing carvings. Ori looked at the well inquisitively.

     "Spirit Wells are ancient structures that were used to traverse all of Nibel," Sein said, hovering over the well as she answered Ori's unspoken questions, "The light of the Spirit Wells will also replenish your strength when you are weary."

     Blitz stepped into the cavern, glancing at the well hopefully. "I could use some rejuvenation right now," He said as he stepped up to the well. But as he put his left hand into the light, it sizzled and burned at his flesh. He yelped in surprise and wrenched his hand out of the well, rubbing his hand and grimacing.

     "You are not a spirit, Blitz," Sein said, "The light will not heal you, but harm you."

     Ori looked at Blitz rubbing his hand, and felt a pang of worry for his new friend. "Are you okay?"

     Blitz responded through gritted teeth, "It really hurt, but I'll live." He rubbed his hand again, grimacing. He took a cautious step away from the spirit well. "I think I'll keep my distance."

     Ori looked from Blitz to the well, feeling a sense of doubt. "I won't get burned, right?" Ori asked Sein sheepishly.

     "Of course not, little one," Sein responded reassuringly, "You were born of the light. Why would it harm you?"

     Ori nodded. "Yeah, you're right." He took a hesitant step towards the spirit well. He took a deep breath, and stepped inside. The light surged all around him, lifting him off of his feet and flooding him with a sense of warmth. He felt energy surge into him with the light, and after a moment, the light dropped him back to the ground. His glow was a bit brighter now, and he was filled with even more energy and determination.

     Ori looked up at Sein and Blitz and spoke confidently, "Let's go to the Spirit Tree."