Ori and the Stranger

Chapter 5

     Fil limps across the coarse dirt path, clutching his stomach tightly. He's never felt so hungry before in his life, and he feels cold from the harsh winds. But, worst of all, he feels empty and alone without the Spirit Tree's light. He feels himself quickly weakening; he has to find food, and fast. But, as hungry, cold, empty, and alone he feels, he is not hopeless. He believes that he can survive and find something to eat.

     His mind races with questions. Why? Why had she attacked and slaughtered his siblings? Why did she steal Sein, condemning the forest to rot?

     As he stumbles down the trail, he spots something quite familiar to him: a cavern that he used to practice his wall jumping when he was younger. Though the pang of nostalgia is quickly overthrown by a loud rumble from his stomach, and crippling aches from hunger. Maybe there was something down there! He remembers the lake in the cavern always being full of fat, tasty, cave dwelling fish. His mouth waters at even the thought of food.

     He stumbles to the edge of the cavern, climbing over the edge and allowing himself to slide down the wall. But his weakness and hunger cause him to lose his grip, and he tumbles to the floor. It's not a bad fall, but in Fil's weakened state it is quite painful. He lays for a moment, before stumbling to his feet, using a cavern wall to support himself. He limps down the tunnel to the underground lake, hardly able to contain his anticipation of eating something.

     But, to his horror, he finds that the lake's waters have become purple and putrid, dead fish floating belly up at the surface. But Fil still clings to his hope. He limps over the dock to the center island, spotting a not too rotten fish on the shore. He is so hungry he doesn't care that it looks and smells disgusting. But, as he gets closer, his legs give out. He tries to crawl to the food, but his energy is gone from the crippling hunger. His arms give out, not having any energy left. Fil's vision blurs as he feels the rest of his body die slowly from hunger. He tries to move, but none of his muscles respond. He feels his internal muscles stop and die as well. His heart slows, too weak to beat anymore. Fil feels incredible pain as his heart slowly stops, but he cannot scream.

     At long last, Fil's heart completely stops, and Fil welcomes the numb void that awaits him.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Ori's consciousness returned to his body, and his eyes snapped open. He's still in the air, though the light enveloping him had fully been absorbed into his body. He felt the uplifting force disappear, and he dropped to the ground. He landed less than gracefully, stumbling on his feet.

     Blitz quickly ran over to Ori, a concerned tone to his voice. "Whoa, you okay, little guy?" he asked, putting a stabilizing hand on Ori's shoulder. Ori nodded, but noticed that his body was shaking, and he was sweating. Were those Fil's last moments he had just relived? Ori shuddered, remembering his own touch with the void. "I... I saw Fil's final moments... I felt him die..." he said woefully, ears drooping. He felt sorrow for Fil, but found comfort in the fact that Fil was one with him now, and hopefully at peace. He looked back at Fil's Ancestral Tree, and saw it dull and lightless, as Fil's psyche no longer resided within it.

     "That... couldn't have been fun," Blitz stated, looking into Ori's eyes with concern. "You sure you're okay?"

     Ori nodded again, but was still shaking and sweating. "I just... need a moment," Ori said shakily, trying and failing to take deep breaths. Blitz looked at Ori with concern, before looking down at his own hand. He slowly and hesitantly placed his hand on Ori's head, gently rubbing it comfortingly. Surprisingly, it worked quite well, as Ori's nerves quickly calmed down, and he was able to control his breathing. He looked up at Blitz gratefully, leaning his head into Blitz's hand. "Thank you..." Ori whispered, suddenly overcome by a feeling of immense drowsiness. His body wasn't tired, but his mind certainly was. The mind merging had been exhausting to Ori's psyche.

     "That looks like it took a lot outta ya, Ori," Blitz observed, pulling his hand off of Ori's head. Ori nodded sleepily, before quickly curling up on Blitz's lap. Blitz was taken by surprise, but he did not push Ori off. Ori closed his eyes, quickly falling asleep, feeling safe in Blitz's company.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Blitz gently leaned against the Ancestral Tree, gently stroking Ori's large ears. As Ori fell asleep, he began to purr. The purr brought Blitz a feeling of warmth and relaxation. Blitz had to admit: Ori was really cute.

     Blitz leaned his head back against the tree and sighed. It was good to have some time to rest without worrying about what was outside. Though Blitz wasn't tired in the slightest, he could tell that whatever the Ancestral Tree thing did to Ori took a lot out of the young spirit. So, Blitz allowed Ori to rest in his lap to restore his depleted mental stamina.

     Blitz looked up to see Sein floating restlessly and impatiently above them. "No! No! There is no time to rest!" she said, annoyed. "We must find the Spirit Tree as soon as possible! There is no time to waste!"

     Blitz quickly shushed the irritated wisp, speaking in a hushed, angry voice, "Quiet down, Sein! Ori's only a child, remember? He needs to rest." Ori wriggled slightly, letting out a quiet whimper, causing Blitz to shoot Sein a glare. "Can't you see he's exhausted? He's not going anywhere in this state!"

     Sein didn't respond, instead hovering near the cave entrance impatiently.

     Blitz turned his gaze back to Ori, who had stopped fidgeting and was purring again. Blitz gently stroked the slumbering spirit's head. "I know we have to keep moving," Blitz whispered to Sein after a minute or two of silence. "Just give Ori 30 minutes, then we'll get back to it." After another few minutes of silence, with Ori's gentle purring in the background, Blitz added, "If you don't mind me asking, what happened here? Where am I?"

     Sein stopped for a moment, before floating over to Blitz, gently pulsating as she spoke. "This is the forest of Nibel. It used to be lush and beautiful, but then she attacked us," Sein explained.

     "'She'? Who's 'she'?" Blitz responded, still gently stroking the slumbering Ori in his lap.

     "Your questions will be answered, in time," Sein answered. "My memory was damaged when I was lost; the Spirit Tree will be able to tell you the full story."

     "Oh, I see..." Blitz replied, slightly annoyed. Of course he was going to have to wait to get the answers. As much as he wanted to reach this "Spirit Tree" as soon as possible, he also realized that Ori needed to rest. He couldn't help but feel a sense of care for the spirit; he trusted him, and Blitz did not intend to break that trust. He continued to pet the spirit, reveling in the feeling of his incredibly soft fur and the calm feeling that Ori's purring brought him.

     The minutes went by slowly in silence, broken only by the occasional thick sloshing of the putrid lake and Ori's gentle purring. Only after about 40 minutes did Ori finally rouse from his nap. He blinked his eyes drowsily, looking around. Blitz was happy to see him finally awake. "Welcome back, buddy," he whispered to Ori. Ori perked up his ears curiously. "'Buddy'? Why did you call me 'buddy'?" he asked.

     "Well, since we're friends now, I thought it made sense," replied Blitz, slightly embarrassed. Ori's ears perked up again, and his tail started to rock back and forth happily. "We're friends?" the little spirit asked sheepishly.

     "Of course we are, Ori. We're stuck together now," Blitz answered, smiling down at Ori. "You and I... we're partners now." Ori's face lighted up at his words, and he nuzzled into Blitz happily.

     "If you two are quite finished, we need to move now that Ori has rested," Sein broke in, her patience at its limit. Ori seemed to snap back to attention as his memories set back in. "Yes, we do," he stated with a profound sense of determination, even stronger than his earlier confidence. Blitz looked at Ori, surprised by his strengthened resolve. "What's gotten you all determined?" he asked the little spirit. Ori whirled his gaze to meet Blitz's, his cheery, childlike demeanor replaced with serious confidence and resolve.

     "I made Fil a promise. A promise to save Nibel. He's counting on me. All of Nibel's inhabitants are counting on me, even if they don't know it yet. I will find a way to ward off the Decay, and I will restore Nibel."