Since I played Ori and the Blind Forest I had this kind of idea rattling around in my head of a Metroid, Ori cross over story. Honestly I think that it could work but Ori and the Blind Forest ended so perfectly that any attempt to go further with it would just be a let down. Instead I have jumped years ahead and a new trouble has arisen.
"Voice of the Spirit Tree"
Thoughts
"Spoken words"
It's been years since the forest was Blind. Now the Warmth of Mt Horu is gone and Sein has been stolen away by Space Pirates. Now Ori must team up with Elite Bounty Hunter Samus Aran to save Sein and the land of Nibel from the tragedy that befell it many years past.
"I shall never forget those days many years ago... When the forest was blind and darkness ruled supreme. Koru's sacrifice will always be remembered." ~Ori
...
The wind billowed and curled around Ori as he looked out over what remained of the forest he lived in. His mother, Naru, was still alive as was the Spirit Tree but Sein had been ripped away once more. Ori shivered as the cold started to get to him it was then that Gumo showed up and helped take Ori back to the cave where they all lived. It was the only safe place left since the day a strange craft flew over head and stole Sein away. Even now the warmth of the forest seemed to be fading and Ori knew that the others would soon follow.
Naru lifted Ori up onto the leaf covered nest that was his bed while Keru, Koru's last child, rested against Naru's side. Gumo hunkered down near all three of them and before long they each were asleep save for Ori who was staring at the roof of the cave. He knew that if Sein were not returned to the Spirit Tree then there would be more than warmth that they would have to worry about. Soon the waters would become tainted as the Ginso Tree would dry up without the warmth of Mt. Horu, and the winds would become still till the only thing that stirred was the dust of the forest.
Something has to be done. Ori thought to himself. I need to get Sein back or else the forest will die. He looked towards Naru and the others. I don't want to lose them, least of all my mother. He kept thinking on what he should do and how he could go about getting Sein back but he kept encountering the same problem time and time again. How will I follow that strange metal craft? Little did he know that his question would soon be answered but it'd be answered in the most unusual of ways.
He remained staring at the ceiling thinking for the better part of the night till Naru awoke to see that he was still awake. She made a slight sound as if to ask 'What's wrong?' to which Ori only responded with his own 'Just thinking.'
"You were thinking about how to get Sein back weren't you Ori." Naru said.
"Yeah... Unfortunately I keep running into the same problem. How am I going to follow that... whatever it was." Ori replied.
"Don't worry about it for now little one. For now let's sleep, we'll figure something out tomorrow." Naru consoled as she picked Ori up and held him to her chest.
Ori smiled and curled up into Naru's arms and soon was asleep. Naru smiled at this before setting him back on his bed and heading outside. Gumo opened one eye and watched Naru leave the cave upon which he got up and followed after her. Once outside Naru was looking out towards the Spirit Tree and shivered as a cold wind blew through. She knew what her son was worried about. He was worried that the other elements would soon become darkened as the Warmth had been.
Gumo sidled up to Naru and crouched on the ground as he looked up at her for a moment before he too felt the gravity of their situation. He knew well what would soon lie ahead of them. That strange metal object had hit Mt Horu after it took the Light of the Spirit Tree. The impact from the object must've knocked the Element of Warmth out of balance. The two remained there for a moment longer before Gumo all but drug Naru back inside.
"Come on Naru we shouldn't stay out here much longer." Gumo said as they walked back into the cave.
Naru shook her head as she walked past Gumo and towards her two adoptive children where she laid on the ground after picking Ori up. He was now curled up on her chest sleeping soundly as Keru slept close by. Thankfully the others like Ori were safe with the Spirit Tree at least for now they were. However a dark shadow loomed over the horizon as the fates would soon cause trouble to rise up within Nibel once more.
...
(Meanwhile)
A strange craft orbited the planet as a being in strange armor looked over the planetary scan report.
~Scan's indicate that the planet is supplied life from a great tree in the center of the vast forest. However life on this planet would be highly hostile without the planetary elements of Water, Wind, and Warmth. Current scans indicate that Warmth has faded and that the great tree is in a state of slumber. Scans also indicate sentient life on the planet the largest of which is the great tree.~
"Hmm not much information. May hap a focused scan will help out." a blue clad female said as she pressed a few buttons on the console before her.
She targeted the "great tree" and initiated the scan.
~Focused scan report... Upon further analysis the great tree is called the Spirit Tree, which seems to have lost it's source of power. The small creatures that are housed amongst it's leaves are kind and caring creatures that seem to not want to fight. Further more it would seem that without the Spirit Tree's source of power the forest will likely begin to die out.~
"Now that was more useful. Alright let's see what this area has to offer." She said brushing a few stray blonde strands of hair from her face.
She placed her hand on the planetary map and moved the focus of it up to a rather large volcano a fair ways from the Spirit Tree. The map she was looking at made the planet seem wild and untouched but something had been there and took the one thing that kept it alive.
~Scans indicate impact with the volcanic mountain. It would seem that the planet's source of warmth emanated from this place but it seems to have gone cold. Related locations are ruins to the south west and a giant tree to the east. The tree appears to be the planets source of clean water while the ruins hold the source of it's winds.~
"Interesting." The woman said as she then had the system scan for life forms. She was not disappointed as it picked up the most life forms around the Spirit Tree but there were four others that were off to themselves for some reason. "That's peculiar. Wouldn't they rather be near the tree rather than way off out there?"
Shaking her head slightly she looked at the scans she had gotten. "I guess that I should drop in and see if there is anything that I can do." She said as she packed her side arm but instead of flying her ship down to the planet she decided on a different tactic.
"Adam I'm going to attempt a Re-entry." She said.
"Samus are you insane? Such an attempt would be near suicide. At least allow me to get in closer to the planet."
"No Adam. That planet has not been touched by technology and I want it to stay that way. If anything see if you can't magnify the ship's beam so as to beam me down to the planet instead." Samus replied.
"Very well, lady." Adam, her ship's computer, said.
Samus stood waiting till the transfer beam was ready as she did though she kept wondering what those four life forms were doing off to themselves. She also wanted to learn more about the planet itself. From what the scans indicated it was primal with life forms that were peaceful and strong. Yet it was so vulnerable at the moment. It was then that she made up her mind completely. If she were to be on that planet then she was going to accept the consequences of what would happen. So long as she was able to save the planet and restore it's source of life.
"The transfer beam is ready now." Adam said just as Samus put on a device that had a lens over one eye.
She was then surrounded by yellow rings that soon turned red before turning blue as she was beamed down clearing on the planet below. Once she was on the planet Samus opened her eyes and looked around at the environment. She gasped at the beauty of the forest she was now in and she marveled at it.
...
(Ori and the others)
Ori was awoken by something though what it was he could not say. He carefully climbed down off of Naru's chest and to the ground. From there he went outside to look around to see if anything was amiss. Once he got outside he saw a number of strange blue rings and a beam of light in the distance. Ori surmised that the light came from the direction of the trees and he and Naru gathered various fruit's at. He steeled himself for whatever came next and he was ready to use his abilities if he had to.
Swiftly Ori headed in the direction of the light and the trees but soon slowed as he reached the makeshift bridge. He walked across it slowly so as to sneak up on whatever it was that was near. As he got closer he saw that it was a strange creature looking around as if awestruck by the world around them. This confused Ori as he got a bit closer and noticed that their skin was blue in color but their face seemed to be kind of white. Ori was perplexed and curious about this new creature within the forest. As he kept observing them he noticed that the fur on their head seemed to be golden in color. He took a step closer and wound up snapping a twig on the ground which alerted the strange creature to his presence.
...
(Samus)
Samus heard a twig snap close by and she quickly spun and had her hand on her Paralyzer as she faced the direction of the noise. She saw a faint blue glow of light from behind a tree and kept watching as it seemed to go up the tree and into the branches. Samus followed the trail of light and looked up into the branches to see a small white creature looking down at her. It seemed to be looking at her with a curious and calculative look as if assessing her as a potential threat. It was then that she looked into it's eyes and saw something hidden there. Intelligence combined with a heavy burden.
I guess this thing is the Guardian of this planet's forest. She thought to herself as she kept her gaze locked with it's.
...
(Ori)
Ori was surprised that the creature could react so quickly and not only react but spotted him in the tree. He sat there staring at it wondering if it was a threat to the forest or if it was the answer he was looking for. He kept staring and calculating as their eyes met his. He didn't flinch but kept staring at them for what seemed like ages.
As their gaze never faltered he soon saw glimpses of images of some strange armored being fighting ferocious beasts that were ten times bigger than they were. One of those images revealed the same strange creature he was looking at now thus causing him to surmise that the armored one was the very one as this creature before him. He closed his eyes and shook his head as he still wondered if they were hostile.
"Fear not my child... For this one has come to help us..." A loud booming voice spoke to Ori's mind. He knew it was the Spirit Tree and decided to trust his word.
Ori leaped from the tree to the ground and walked up to the strange being. He then looked up at them and smiled, though he was a bit wary of them still.
...
(Samus)
The creature seemed to have seen something that frightened it as Samus saw it's stance and demeanor change to one ready for a fight. After a while she watched the creature become calmed once more before it leaped from the tree to the ground. She kept watching as it walked up to her and smiled at her. She was unsure as to what she should do but shook her head as she knelt down and touched the creatures hand. At that moment a flash of Light hit her and she was thrown onto the ground.
...
(Ori)
Ori was surprised as the Charge Flame went off without him having first charged it. He watched as this strange being was thrown to the ground just moments before a Spirit Leaf flitted over the beings form before returning to the Spirit Tree. Ori crawled over to the strange being just as Gumo and Naru arrived after being awoken by the explosion of the Charge Flame going off. Upon seeing the strange creature knocked out Naru and Gumo picked them up and returned to the cave. In which time Naru was giving Ori a talking to.
"Why did you leave the cave like that?" Naru asked.
"Something woke me up. Once I left the cave I saw a strange blue light back there." Ori replied.
"Well you could have been killed." Naru stated sternly. "I know you can handle yourself but the fact remains that what if this creature had of been hostile? What if they had of killed you? What would happen then?"
Ori could only close his eyes as he knew what would happen. "You would be sad." He said solemnly.
"Exactly." Naru stated as she clutched Ori to her chest. "I don't want to lose my dear Ori to anything."
Ori smiled as he nestled into her arms and smiled as he let out a yawn. To this Gumo moved a bit quicker and got back to the cave before the other two. He then laid the strange creature on the ground and stood aside so as to let Naru enter. She laid down where she had been before but kept Ori in her arms for the rest of the night.
As they slept a small sphere of light seemed to float out of nowhere and land on the creatures chest before being absorbed into the beings body.
"With my blessing you are now connected to this world Great Protector. With my blessing you will be able to utilize our Light as a weapon and understand those of this land." A deep voice spoke from within the forest. "When you wake things will be different. Come find me to receive the only gift I can grant."
...
Samus' sleep was anything but peaceful. She was tossing and turning as she slept and kept seeing a variety of images flash through her dreams. She was dreaming about that strange creature she had seen but it felt as if she were the creature. She saw her self jumping through the trees freely as if she were a bird. She saw herself unleash bolts of white flames from a crystaloid entity that hovered above her head. She later saw a giant owl like bird fly over towards the Spirit Tree...
Samus remained asleep but soon realized that what she was seeing was not her dream but events that had long since past. She watched as she bore witness to what had happened years ago to this very world due to the wrath of a mislead creature. As she saw what had happened she couldn't help but relate with her own experience due to the Baby Metroid. The creature had lost his mother, found out that the forest was dying and that the Spirit tree was almost dead as well. Soon he was told of the three elements that had been extinguished since the attack so many years back.
As she slept a single tear trailed down her face as the sorrow built. She slowly opened her eyes to see that she was inside of a cave and upon looking around saw that she was surrounded by a number of strange creatures. She was still shaken by the amount of emotions that had filled her mind and shakily got to her feet and head outside the cave. She sat on a rock and looked out over a vast valley towards what she surmised was the Spirit Tree.
This place has suffered much over the past years. I don't want to know what would happen to this planet if their source of life is not returned to it's rightful place. Samus thought as she kept gazing towards the tree. Soon though a leaf of light flitted towards her and swirled around her. She could have swore she heard a faint laugh from the thing but as it had arrived it was gone.
Samus smiled slightly before hearing a voice to her left.
"You alright?"
Samus turned to look at where the voice came from only to see the strange creature of light from earlier.
"Yeah. I'm alright. Had a dream that seemed like memories of the past." She said not wanting to question how she was able to understand this creature.
"My name's Ori by the way." He said as he sat on the ground beside her and looked up at her. "What's yours?"
Samus smiled slightly and she petted Ori's head, "My name is Samus Aran." She turned her gaze back to the Spirit Tree. "Can I ask you something Ori?"
"Sure." Ori replied.
"Was this forest attacked by a giant owl like creature before?" She asked.
Ori remained silent for a good while as he remembered those days so long ago. Tears formed in his eyes as he remembered everything that had happened back then.
"Yeah it was how did you know?" he finally replied
"That dream I had. It wasn't my memories that I saw." She said. "You lost your mother back then too. I guess it was your memories that I was seeing"
Ori didn't want to remember back then. He did not want to remember the sorrow and loneliness that he felt back then all he wanted was to be happy.
Samus took note of his saddened state, she reached over and picked him up before cradling him in her arms.
"I'm sorry to have brought up some bad memories Ori." She said sadly.
"It's alright." He replied curling up in her arms.
"You know I used to have a pet that was a bit similar to you back on my home planet. Though that was many years ago." Samus said with a smile, "I've had my fair share of bad experiences myself. First off my parents were killed before my eyes when I was a child. Then the race of beings that took care of me went missing. Later on a baby hatched and began following me. Later on though it was killed before my eyes. So I think that I can relate to the amount of pain that you must have felt."
"I'm glad there are some who can relate." Ori said with a sad smile and laugh.
"Well think of it like this. At least your mother is still alive." Samus said as she lifted Ori up to face her. "Besides it would seem that you are worried about something."
Ori looked into Samus' eyes for a moment and realized that they were kindred spirits to an extent. They both suffered great loss and endured a great tribulation only to survive it. Though for Samus she was not granted any kind of happiness at the end.
"Yeah... I am worried." Ori said, "I'm worried that what happened so many years ago is going to happen again."
Samus heard the tone of Ori's voice as she set him on the ground. He walked a little ways towards the Spirit Tree but stopped at the edge of the rock.
"What happened?" She asked.
"Kuro, the owl like beast, attacked the Spirit Tree back then because his Light had mistakenly killed three of her children. She was only trying to protect her last child. When she attacked she killed everyone and tore Sein away from the Tree. Sein was tossed into the forest so as to remain lost forever. Years passed and the world slowly died around me and my mother, Naru. You see without Sein the three elements of this forest will fall out of balance and become enshrouded with darkness. The warmth of Mount Horu is gone from the forest because of the strange object that collided with it a few months ago. I had gone to see if I could stop the trespassers but unfortunately the strange metal object took off into the sky. I had seen one of the creatures carrying Sein in some kind of strange container. Once they were gone I've not been able to sleep very well and have been worried ever since. Before they took Sein inside the thing Sein called out to me for help. I tried to save her but one of the creatures caught me off guard and threw me into a rock. I lost consciousness shortly after but woke up to my mother and Gumo standing over me with worry."
Samus listened intently to Ori's tale till he was finished with it.
"I see. Can you draw up an image as to what one of the creatures looked like? As well as the container that Sein was being held in?" Samus asked.
Ori nodded, "I won't forget what they looked like." He said as he picked up a small stick and began to draw in the dirt.
Samus looked over his head at what he drew and from the head she knew exactly what the creature was.
"Space Pirates." She said angrily.
"You know what they were?" Ori asked now wondering once more if he should trust her.
"Yeah I know them. I've sworn an oath to hunt every last one of them down and kill them. If they've come here and taken Sein then there is only one reason why." Samus said as she stood to her feet and clenched her fists in rage.
"Why would they take Sein?" Ori asked curiously.
"Research." She said simply. "From what I've heard and learned Sein is a permanent source of Light and Power. As such there is nothing more that the Space Pirates like than Power. They don't care about the survival of other creatures. All they care about are results and if it means ending an entire planet then so be it. They don't care and Sein may end up dead by the end of it all."
Ori looked up at Samus and could feel the anger radiate off of her as he lowered himself to the ground.
"Don't worry Ori... I'll help you get Sein back. I'll even help you restore the forest's Elements if I have to." She said as she looked down at Ori.
"Y-you will?" He asked with a touch of surprise. "But... how?"
Samus smiled and pointed up at the night sky as a ray of starlight moved. "See that moving light?" She asked
Ori looked up and saw it. "Yeah."
"That's my ship. We can use it to track down the location of the Space Pirates that were here." She said.
"But what about everyone here? The warmth of the forest is gone and the other elements may follow soon after." Ori said looking back to the cave.
Samus thought on this for a moment before remembering something.
"I have an idea. An ancient race gave this to me as a parting gift to remember them by." She said as she reached up to her ear piece.
"Adam I need you to beam down item number three eight zero nine one dash Lumin." She spoke.
Soon after a beam of yellow, red, then blue light shined down from the stars above only for a small sphere of iridescent light to be revealed and light up the area they were in.
"It's so bright." Ori said.
"Yeah it's solid Starlight. The Luminoth of Aether gave it to me as a parting gifting to remember them by. The guardian sentinel at the time blessed it with the essence of his mother, whom was the greatest of the sentinels." Samus said.
"This is supposed to help our situation?" Ori asked.
"I hope so." Samus said, "We're still going after Sein."
...
"And so a new ray of light arrived to the forest bringing an even brighter ray of hope. Soon a new light would be added to the land of Nibel."
I hope that this chapter pleases your eyes and mind. If so then please leave a review.