Ori and the Stranger

Chapter 8

     Ori gritted his teeth together, entire body tensed as he tried to concentrate his energy into the boulder. He felt his energy slowly start to cluster in his chest, but he couldn't maintain his concentration any longer. He released his concentration and the energy dissipated back into his body. Ano shook his head, and Ori looked at him with an exasperated expression.

     "Can't you just give me your light so that I know how to do this?" Ori pleaded. "I don't think I can do this on my own."

     "If you absorb my light, that's it. No take-backs. I want to make sure that you can handle the release of energy first. Now, try again!" Ano bellowed. His powerful voice rattled in Ori's ears. He lumbered over to the Spirit Well to regain his strength. Now revitalized, he stepped back over to the boulder.

     He shut his eyes tightly, concentrating his energy. It clustered itself into his chest, and Ori could feel it growing stronger and stronger. This was his chance!

     Once enough energy clustered together, Ori suddenly released his concentration. The energy burst out of him in a powerful shockwave, and the boulder crumbled to dust. Ori felt a surge of agony burst through his entire body as the released energy ravaged it. He felt like he would die. He felt Ano's strong arms hurriedly lift him up and place him inside the Spirit Well. The pain was quickly washed away as the light repaired his broken body.

     Ori opened his eyes to see Ano standing above him, but to Ori's surprise, he was nodding in approval. "W...What? Did I pass the trial?" Ori asked, still in phantom pain. Ano nodded. "Yes. I know the blast damaged you, but you're still alive. And that means your body can handle it, if barely," Ano said, each word filling Ori with hope. "I will give you my light. With my knowledge, you will be able to control these energy blasts, and hopefully not hurt yourself with them. Now, give me your hand."

     Ori lit up with joy. "Really?! I did it?!" he asked, unable to contain his excitement. He had passed his first Ancestral Trial! Ano did not respond, and Ori quickly realized he was waiting for Ori to give him his hand. Ori quickly held out his paw, feeling a sudden rush of dread. He was going to have to relive Ano's final moments as well. But Ori didn't have any time to back out, as Ano's paws were already wrapped around his, and Ori felt Ano's light merging with his own. Once again, Ori's vision faded to white, and he lost all feeling.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Ano shakes the disgusting cobwebs off of his body. His idea to seek refuge in the Spider Cove isn't going well. The Decay seems to have made the spiders more dangerous, more aggressive. Their cobwebs line almost every inch of their territory now, and the Decay seems to have taken hold of their very minds, driving them to madness and trying to kill anything that doesn't have eight legs.

     Ano has already had a few encounters with the hostile creatures, and has used up far too much of his energy fighting them off. He doesn't know if he has enough energy to fight anymore, so he hopes that he won't encounter anything else, at least until he finds a Spirit Well.

     Unfortunately for him, he will not leave the ditch he had stumbled into.

     Ano hears a spitting sound, but cannot turn around. One of the spiders has spat a glob of web at him, completely entangling him. He tries to free himself, but he's far too weak to do anything but watch as the spiders come out of hiding all around him, and surround him. Ano finally stops struggling, realizing that there's nothing he can do.

     One of the spiders sinks its venomous mandibles into Ano's neck. Ano yelps weakly, and the venom quickly circulates through his body. Within moments, it's already stopped his heart.

~~~~~~~~~~

     Ori's eyes shot open, and he was lowered to the ground. The light at the top of the Ancestral Tree disappeared, as did the glowing aura around it. Ano's light was now one with Ori's. Ori wobbled on his feet, though managed to gain control of himself before Blitz could help. His brain was once again exhausted, but not nearly as much as when he absorbed Fil's light. But the pain and the horrible feeling from reliving Ano's last moments were still just as potent as before.

     After a few moments of lightheadedness, Ori finally managed to regain control of himself. He looked up at Sein and Blitz, speaking in a calm, collected voice. "Alright, let's keep moving." At these words, the trio set back off, deeper into the Spider Cove.

     Somehow, the cobwebs got even more numerous, and even thicker than before. Eventually, they came upon the very heart of the Spider Cove: a tangle of large, dead trees completely blanketed in thick cobwebs. At the center of the mass of trees sat a boulder, dangling from a web over a pit of jagged stalagmites. At the bottom of the pit was a tunnel; a tunnel that led to the Thornfelt Swamp. But the pit was quite a ways downward; if they simply jumped, they would surely be impaled by the stalagmites.

     Blitz was about to leave and search for another way around, but Ori had an idea. Ori leapt onto the side of the dangling boulder, using Fil's wall jump to clamber up to the top. A chill ran down Ori's spine as the uncomfortably soft cobwebs and spider eggs stuck to his fur. Upon reaching the top, Ori stared at where the web connected to the ceiling. Time to use Ano's power. Ori concentrated, Ano's memories and knowledge allowing him to concentrate his energy with ease. Ori then leapt into the air, and released the blast. This time, he did not harm himself too badly, but the energy blast was quite exhausting. The rock that the web was attached to crumbled before the shockwave, and the boulder started to free fall down into the cavern, taking Ori along with it.

     Blitz quickly leapt over the hole as the boulder fell inside, intercepting Ori's fall and catching the spirit in his arms. They both landed on the other side of the hole and laid still for a moment, before Blitz looked down at Ori cradled in his arms. "You okay, buddy?" he asked. Ori looked up at him with fearful eyes, giving him a little nod. "That was scarier than I thought it would be," the spirit spoke sheepishly.

     After a beat, Ori climbed out of Blitz's arms, and looked down the hole. To his joy, the boulder hadn't crumbled from the fall, making it a perfect platform to land on. Blitz looked down as well, giving Ori an encouraging pat on the back. "Pretty smart, you."

     Ori beamed with pride at Blitz's compliment. "Come! Come! The Thornfelt Swamp is just beyond this tunnel!" Sein yelled excitedly. "The Ginso Tree is close. The Element of Waters is-"

     Sein was caught off by a hiss and a loud rustling. Another hiss, from a different direction. Soon, a cacophony of hisses and growls echoed throughout the cove as a swarm of Ori-sized spiders roused from their slumbers, awakened by the loud crash of the boulder. Their glowing white eyes scanned Blitz, Ori, and Sein, glinting with malice and madness. They steadily got closer and closer, hissing at the trio, particularly at Ori. One particularly brave spider tried to lunge at the young spirit, but was interrupted by Blitz stabbing it through the head with his blade. It fell to the ground, twitching slightly.

     The other spiders didn't seem perturbed or bothered at all. They didn't even acknowledge their fallen comrade as they advanced. Blitz and Ori were up against a corner, and the swarm was blocking every possible exit. They were going to have to fight their way out. However, the spiders were quite numerous, and Blitz didn't like his chances.

     Suddenly, Ori got another idea. "Blitz, toss me over the hole," Ori piped up, gesturing towards the hole. Blitz stared down at Ori as if Ori had said something completely insane. "What? Why?" Blitz asked, full of confusion.

     "Trust me," Ori responded.

     Blitz let out a sigh. He didn't have any better options. He slowly picked Ori up, staring at him with confusion and hesitation. "I hope you know what you're doing," Blitz spoke, before tossing Ori above the hole with all his might. Ori flew through the air, and concentrated his energy once more. Upon reaching the center of the cove, he released the energy. The shockwave blasted against the walls, completely eviscerating most of the spiders. They screeched as their charred bodies fell from the walls. However, the shockwave didn't reach the entirety of the cove, and the spiders at the farthest ends of it, and Blitz, were unharmed. Blitz stared at Ori with surprise and amazement, but then worry as Ori landed heavily on the other side of the hole, body limp from exhaustion. 

     Then, his worry turned to horror as the surviving spiders advanced on the weakened spirit.