Ori and the Stranger

Chapter 17

     Ori shuddered a little, clutching his torso from the phantom pain of the memory. Luckily, he wasn't completely exhausted this time; he was getting better at this. He shook off his goosebumps, staring up at the vine lantern above him. All he had to do was reach it.

     Ori took a deep breath, leaping upwards with a double jump. His paws grasped the lantern, and time seemed to slow. He curled himself around the lantern, maneuvering his body into a better position. Then, he kicked down with his legs. His legs were already quite strong, but there was an added burst of light energy that sent Ori flying up the shaft and landing comfortably on the ledge above it. He looked back down at Blitz, who was staring in amazement. He felt a jolt of pride.

     "That's cool and all, but how exactly do I get up there?" Blitz asked, staring up the shaft skeptically. He knew that his damaged jetpack wouldn't provide enough lift, and even if it did there was nothing to grab onto on the walls of the shaft. He would just slide back down. But then, Ori had an idea.

     Ori leapt back down the shaft, landing lightly next to Blitz. Blitz eyed him with confusion. "Whatcha doing?" he asked playfully but also skeptically. Ori didn't respond. Instead he leapt onto Blitz. He focused, and time slowed again. He maneuvered his way around Blitz's body, so that the little spirit would be under him. He placed his hooves on one of the metal plates, and kicked.

     Blitz was sent flying up the shaft. He let out a surprised yelp as he flew, barely managing to get his bearings in time to grab the ledge and pull himself over. Ori bashed upwards to be beside him. Blitz gave him an irritated glance. "Warn me next time!" he scolded, but quickly calmed down.

     Ori simply shrugged. He saw nothing wrong with what he just did. It was the only way. And, since he kicked off of one of Blitz's metal plates, Blitz was relatively unharmed. Blitz sighed, and shook his head. "Alright, let's go."

     The atmosphere had gotten just a little more rotten, with the bark of the tree's interior being drier, briars being more frequent, and the atmosphere taking on an orange hue. They climbed through chamber after chamber, each one introducing another challenge. One required Ori to bash off of several projectiles to traverse it, which was nerve-racking but surprisingly easy. Due to the projectiles' smaller sizes, Ori was able to effectively bash while barely making contact. Blitz, however, had to take a much slower and more painful way, brute forcing through the briars and hoping that his suit didn't fail him. Ori couldn't help but giggle at Blitz's unfortunate predicament, watching as he slowly climbed his way up the walls, barely managing to find any footholds. Meanwhile, Sein floated above them effortlessly, almost tauntingly.

     Eventually, they made their way into a particularly small platform, with several wooden platforms spanning around it, and briars lining nearly everything else. They hopped onto one of the platforms, and heard rumbling. Oh, no, not again, Ori thought, watching as one of the far platforms sprouted several cracks, and another one of those worms burst out. It fired a glob of that revolting substance, before burrowing back into the safety of the wood before Blitz could even fire a shot off. Ori bashed the projectile away, earning an approving nod from Blitz.

     The worm thing popped out again, firing another projectile. Ori bashed the projectile away, and Blitz managed to hit a couple of shots, but the creature didn't seem too bothered. "Damn, that thing has some thick skin!" Blitz shouted with irritation.

     Over and over the worm kept appearing, firing a projectile and hiding again. Blitz kept shooting it, but it didn't seem ready to slow down. Ori felt his frustration grow along with Blitz's.

     Finally, he had had enough. He bashed one of the projectiles, this time towards the worm. But he hadn't taken his trajectory into account, and he was sent careening into the briars. He screeched, Reem's last moments flashing before his eyes. But he felt Blitz catch him just barely in time, using his jetpack to prevent himself from landing in the briars. He landed at the far end of the chamber, clutching a panting Ori in his arms. "You okay?" Blitz asked, looking down at Ori. Ori nodded shakily, but continued to pant. As he calmed down, he looked over Blitz's shoulder to see that his plan had in fact worked. The worm was hanging limp, the foul substance dissolving its lifeless body. It was a gross sight, and Ori quickly looked away.