Ori and the Spirits Within

Chapter 2: Fragment of Life

...

Ugh. My head feels like it's splitting.

Where... where am I?

It's so dark I can barely see anything.

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?"

...

No response. Well, I might as well find my way out of whatever this place is.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

...

Silence again. Well, guess I'll just keep going.

Looking behind him, he sees a small glimmer of light, pure and white.

Ah, there's something interesting.

Beginning to dash towards it, he immediately trips on something, and begins to fall rapidly downward. As he does, he begins to feel light headed, and soon falls unconscious once more.

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The day is bright, as the winds carry a few leaves strewn about towards a small hill overlooking the beautiful landscape, with a huge lake standing in between. In the distance, there shines the golden radiance of the Spirit Willow, symbolizing the new era for Niwen. On the hill, the familiar purple owl sits still, while the black furred, motherly figure moves around the forest behind them, and the dark grey Gumon brings a small wooden pot towards the hill. Laying it down, Naru comes closer to Gumo, bringing with her a few apples and peaches.

"You got everything, Gumo?" Naru asked.

"Yep! Got bowls, mortars, food, stuff for Ku, the whole thing." Naru nodded, and made her way towards her beloved daughter, gazing at the Spirit Willow in the distance. The owl closes her eyes, trying to hold back something in her mind. As she does so, she gets surprised by two loving arms, being picked up from around her chest.

"Ah!" Ku yelps. Naru slightly chuckles at her daughter's precious reaction. Although Ku was always a very perceptive girl, her mother always finds a way to attack when she isn't expecting it. It was something she was always good at, especially with Ori. He was always so oblivious to his mother's or father's mischief and plans, but he always loved when they did it. Ku, although being similar to Ori in that regard, sometimes felt that it wasn't that funny. But, she was just trying to cheer her up, or at least, that's what she thought, so she went along with it.

"Come on, it's time for lunch." Naru carried Ku over to the small hill, where they both promptly sat down next to each other. Gumo handed out the rational portions of apples to Naru and himself, with Ku being given a few bugs and worms for herself. It was a delightful meal as a whole, for everyone involved. As it continued, they began to discuss some things with each other.

"So, do you have any plans, Gumo?" Naru asked.

"Yes, Grom asked me to help renovate some of the houses in the Glades later today." Gumo replies. "He also told me about possibly making some residences in the Wellspring itself, probably to make sure it keeps running properly."

"I thought the Wellspring was working fine." Ku added to the conversation.

"It was, until someone accidentally damaged a bit of the structure as a whole. We repaired it a while ago, but the structure just seemed to mess up ever since. So, we'll probably have some residences built there to make quick work of the repairs."

"Well, it's probably for the best. We don't want that place to go under." Naru answered. They kept the conversation going, until a couple of Moki arrived at the hill, seemingly in a hurry towards them. One, slightly taller than the other, having short stubby ears, and the other being a bit smaller, and having long floppy ears.