Ori and the Stranger

Chapter 7

     As the memory faded away, Ori was slowly lowered to the ground by the light in the Spirit Well. His mind raced with questions. But before he could ask any of them, Sein broke into his thoughts. "You received the Spirit Tree's light, he put our fate in your hands," she declared. "Listen carefully now, for you must understand.

     "The Spirit Tree sustained the three Elements of Light, and in turn they brought balance and kept Nibel safe." Sein floated to the east, and Ori saw a huge, slender tree at the top of a plateau surrounded by a large swamp. "The Element of Waters, high atop the Ginso Tree..." She then floated to the west, guiding Ori's gaze over to a mountain range covered in crumbling buildings, several large chunks of the mountain range levitating in the air, separated from the rest of the forest by a deep canyon. "The Element of Winds, deep within the Forlorn Ruins..." Then, Sein floated to the north, and Ori saw a single, massive volcano with a thin stream of ash billowing out of the top. "The Element of Warmth, beneath the fires of Mount Horu..."

     Then, Sein floated back down and hovered above Ori. "To restore Nibel, we must rekindle their light before it's too late," she said, floating back in the direction of the Ginso Tree. "The first we will find beyond the Spider Coves, atop the tree where the waters once flowed."

     Ori looked over to Blitz for some sort of reassurance, but Blitz looked just as baffled as Ori did. Ori turned back to Sein. "So... the Ginso Tree contains the Element of Waters?" he asked. "And if we restore it, the waters will be cleansed?" Sein floated up and down in a strange sort of nod. "Okay. Let's get moving, then," Ori said, determined. He had a clear objective now: restore the Elements of Light.

     "Wait, wait, why can't you just go back onto the Spirit Tree? Can't you rekindle the Elements when you two are reunited?" Blitz piped up. Ori nodded in thought, and glanced up at Sein expectantly.

     "Because the Elements and the Tree sustain each other. Until the Elements are rekindled, the Spirit Tree will be far too weak to bear my light," Sein answered. "And if I can't reunite with the Spirit Tree, the only way to rekindle the Elements of Light would be for me to physically touch them." Ori nodded in understanding, but Blitz looked irritated. "What was I expecting? Of course it isn't simple," he said sarcastically, letting out an annoyed sigh. "Well, let's go then."

     "Yes. Now, we must make haste. To the Ginso Tree! We haven't time to waste!" she said, before quickly floating off towards the swamp and the Ginso Tree. Blitz and Ori followed close behind.

     The Thornfelt Swamp, where the Ginso Tree resided, was separated by a small patch of forest, looking even more rotten and decayed than the Sunken Glades. As they trudged through the unforgiving foliage, they noticed something disheartening: cobwebs. Large cobwebs that coated almost every inch of the rotten trunks that surrounded the path. The deeper they traveled, the more clustered and larger the cobwebs became. Spiders began to attack them, firing clusters of decayed cobwebs at Blitz and Ori from their mandibles. Blitz took care of them, though with more difficulty than the frog things and the slugs.

     As they walked, Sein suddenly stopped. Ori perked up, eyeing her curiously. "What is it, Sein?" Sein responded after a moment. "I sense another Ancestral Tree nearby," she informed. "We should find it, Ori. We need all the help we can get."

     Ori nodded. Blitz and Ori followed close behind Sein as the wisp led them off of the path. A couple cobwebs stuck into Ori's fur as he walked through the trees, causing Ori to shudder and quickly wipe them off. The little spirit hated this place, and wanted to leave as soon as possible. Ori started to notice a faint light, radiating out of a ditch. Ori peaked into the ditch, and saw another Ancestral Tree. The light it radiated caused a small patch of living plants to grow around it. Ori felt another pang of sorrow, imagining the spirit that perished in a place as creepy as this.