Warning: This story contains the cruel and senseless abuse of cute characters. If this is not your thing, stop reading now. You have been warned!

Disclaimer: I do not own Ori and the Blind Forest. Ori and the Blind Forest is property of Moon Studios, Microsoft Studios, and Nordic Games.

Ori and the Eternal Dungeon

How long had it been? The constant pain seemed to make the moments melt together. Ori once again let his sight wander to the deceased nimbat next to him. The body lied motionless, still nailed to the crucifix where she had been executed, blood and entrails spilling from her open chest cavity to the ground below. Though the corpse had long fell silent, her tortured screams still rang loudly in Ori's mind. He shivered as the scene played out in his head again, and the bat's promise was repeated "Witness the fate that awaits you both!".

The poor spirit was terrified beyond belief, the thought of suffering through the same torture as that nimbat twisting his stomach into knots. He didn't want to die; especially not like that! He had to get out of here! Primordial fear led the exhausted spirit to reach deep within himself, drawing on what little reserves of energy he had left. He began to tug at the nails pinning him to his own crucifix, causing him to yelp as sharp pain shot through his extremities. But desperation coaxed him to push onward; he wouldn't quit, no matter how much it hurt. Gritting his teeth to endure the agony, he continued to pull against his restraints with everything he had. At first his efforts seemed futile, but little by little the nails worked their way from the wood they were embedded in until...

Ori's right paw pulled free from the cross, the sudden momentum sending his body forward, and tearing his left paw free as well. The spirit continued his trip downward, ripping his lower paws from their binds, and sending him crashing onto the cold unforgiving floor. Ori screeched at the top of his lungs as excruciating agony wracked his body. His paws felt like they had been violently ripped off, while the rest of his body was left reeling from the harsh impact with the ground. The poor spirit curled into a fetal position, cradling his aching paws, which still sported the nails that were used to pin him up. He shivered and sobbed, his mind torn between coping with the immense pain and the terror that his cry had surely alerted the wicked bat.

He had no idea how long he had laid there, trying to recover from the ordeal, terrified that the evil bat would return any second. But as time went on, the bat remained a no show, and Ori slowly began to recover some of his energy. Once his pain had subsided back to manageable levels, desperation pushed Ori to attempt the next leg of his escape. Once again mustering his strength and courage, the spirit began to rise to his feet. Beaten, bruised, and bloodied; his entire body trembled violently from the effort to rise. He squeaked and whimpered as surges of pain shot through his lower paws from the nails still embedded in them. But Ori persevered through the agony, slowly but surely managing to lift himself up onto his own two feet. He swooned a little, almost losing his balance as his abused body struggled to hold up his own weight. But he was up, and one step closer to salvation.

The few feet to the door might as well have been miles. Each step was an excruciating ordeal for Ori. The nails in his lower paws twisted and shifted with his movements, sending sharp jolts of pain through the wounds. But he didn't dare remove them yet, for fear of bleeding out. He stumbled a few times, even falling to his knee once to catch his breath. It felt like hours before the exhausted spirit collapsed against the cold metal door. There was a small sense of relief at finally reaching his goal, but now another daunting obstacle stood in his way. The door blocking his exit was large, heavy, and designed for someone at least twice his size. It would have been a challenge for even a healthy spirit to open, but Ori was weak, exhausted, and in pain, making the task seem almost insurmountable.

He had no choice but to take a break and recover what little energy he could in his shape. It was a tense few minutes as Ori waited for his strength to return. He tried his best to relax, but there was always the looming fear that every moment he spent here was another moment that the bat could return and discover his attempt to escape. But fortune seemed to be on his side, and the bat still did not make an appearance.

After several minutes of rest, Ori felt that he had mustered as much strength as he possibly could. He pressed his left shoulder against the door and pushed with all his might, putting his entire body weight into the effort. At first nothing happened. Was he too weak? Was the door locked? Had his entire painful journey all been for nought? But just as things started to feel hopeless the door began to give way to the spirit's weight, slowly opening with an eerie creek. It seemed fortune had shined on him once again. The bat must have been quite confident that no one would ever escape for him to leave the room unlocked. Finally Ori would be free from that hellish chamber, the sight and smell of the rotting nimbat left far behind him...

"Gnarrrr...?" a pitiful weak whimper stopped Ori in his tracks.

The spirit turned around to meet the pleading eyes of his only other cell mate. Another unfortunate victim of the bat's cruel abuse. The poor thing had also been tortured, crucified, and made to watch the nimbat's horrific death. And if he was left there, he would surely meet a similarly horrible fate. Ori was torn. He hardly knew the creature, but his altruist nature told him that he couldn't just leave the poor thing like this. But on the opposite end was sheer primal terror. The bat could return at any moment, and the more time he spent here, the more chance he had of getting caught. A battle of wills raged within him. The thought of leaving the poor creature to be tortured to death twisted his stomach. Could her really do that to another? But the thought of what the bat would do to him if he got caught scared him even more. Could he really endure anymore suffering? Besides, there was nothing he could do the help the unfortunate creature anyway. Even if he expended the energy to reach him, he did not have the strength to free him.

Tears of sorrow ran down Ori's cheeks as his fears won out. With a heavy heart, he turned back towards the exit. "Gnar? Gnar! Gnar!" the creature begged, filling Ori with terrible nagging guilt. But the spirit pushed it all down, burying those feeling beneath a mountain of fear and pain. He stepped out into the dimly lit hallway, leaving the poor creature behind, doomed to a grizzly demise.

Ori may have escaped the chamber, but the road ahead would be even longer and harder. The hallway stretched on into the darkness, making the distance he had trudged to the door seem like a short stroll. He had no choice but to take it one painful step at a time, often stopping to rest when the agony became to great. He used the wall to support him, preventing him from stumbling this time, but the journey was still taxing on his sore and tired body. There were several branches along the hall, but Ori knew the path from his countless times here. Still he trembled as he passed each one, memories of being dragged into those rooms and tortured mercilessly flashing in his mind. With each passing moment, his anxiety increased, his heart practically leaping from his chest with how terrified he was. Every flickering shadow had him on edge, his paranoid mind seeing shapes that weren't actually there. He began to feel sick, and had to fight to keep his breathing under control, hyperventilation threatening to make him pass out. He stopped for a moment, clutching his burning chest as he tried to stave off the oncoming panic attack. It was taking him so long to progress; the bat was sure to catch him! Then he would be tortured and killed, just like the nimbat! No, no, please no... Stop! He had to calm down! Don't think about the past! Don't think about the bat! Focus on the light at the end of this long dark tunnel! Think about freedom, home, and an end to this nightmare! He had come too far to give up now! Slowly, his breathing came back under control and his nausea subsided. He was still in a lot of pain, but at least his nerves had settled... for now.

He trekked on for what felt like hours, before he came to a fork in the hall. Again Ori knew which path to take, because he knew exactly what lied down the other hall. And as the nervous spirit drew closer to the split, he began to hear them; the tortured sobs, whimpers, and groans of the bat's other captives. An entire dungeon full of poor innocent souls, taken from their homes and brought to this forsaken place to suffer for the bat's amusement. Again Ori felt a pang of guilt at not being able to help them. But there was really nothing he could do, even if he still had the courage to try. He tried not to think about what would happen to them, how they would be tortured and abused in all the most horribly painful ways possible. And all just so some sick bat could get his sadistic kicks. A fresh batch of sorrowful tears ran down Ori's cheeks as he left the ghastly chorus behind him. This place truly was hell, not only for his body, but also his soul.

Ori had made his way into unknown territory now. He had never been led down these halls before, and the layout seemed almost labyrinthine. All he could do was stick to the same path as much as possible, feeling that this main hallway was the most likely to lead to a way out. He followed the corridor for what felt like forever and still everything looked the same; cold dark stone, and dim glowing torches. Just how big was this dungeon? The long trip was taking its toll on Ori's abused body, the pain and weakness starting to catch up with him. He didn't know how much more he had left to give, and feared that if he didn't find the exit soon, he would collapse from exhaustion. He prayed that someone would give him a sign. Something; anything to show him the way.

At that moment, his ears perked up as they caught a pair of voices echoing down from the hall ahead. Ori's heart filled with dread as he recognized one of the voices all too well... it was the bat and he was coming this way! Oh no, nononononono. Ori started to panic, looking around frantically for any place to hide. Fortunately there was a branching hallway just across from him. But what would have been a short distance to cross for a healthy person, seemed like a vast expanse to the debilitated spirit. Still, he was left with no other options. With a fresh surge of adrenaline triggered by his terror, he limped as fast as he could towards his only hope. He covered his mouth with his paw, suppressing squeals of anguish as he pushed through excruciating pain to get even the smallest chance at safety. All the while, the voices loomed ever closer. Just when it seemed his goal was in reach, his leg gave out. He let out a squeak of shock and pain as he fell hard to the floor. The fall dazed the poor spirit for a moment, and when he recovered, it sounded like the voices were almost on top of him. Desperation pushed him forward, driving him to claw at the ground, and pull his broken body the rest of the way into the hall. And there he laid, curled up against the wall and shivering violently. There was nothing he could do now, except pray that his yelp had not given him. Things were out of his hands now; it was all up to fate.

"Where are you taking me?!" Ori heard an unfamiliar voice demand.

"Why, I'm taking you to your new home." the wicked bat replied, his very voice making Ori feel sick "Better start getting settled in. You're going to be here for a very long time."

"No! I don't want to go! You can't make me!" the voice protested, followed by the clattering of chains.

"Is that so?" the bat replied ominously.

Ori tensed, having been around the bat long enough to know what was coming next. Even so, the tortured scream that followed still sent a chill down his spine.

"And that is only a taste of what awaits you here. So why don't you just make things easier on yourself and cooperate? Ah, who am I kidding, you're going to go through hell either way." the bat cackled maniacally.

Pitiful sobs and rattling chains were the only sounds that remained as the poor soul was dragged off into the deepest darkest recesses of the dungeon.

Despite the imminent danger passing him by, Ori was heavily shaken by the whole ordeal. He just sat there, trembling and crying tears of his own for minutes on end, lamenting the fate of someone he didn't even know. Everything about this whole thing just disgusted him; this place, this bat, these poor tortured souls. But most of all, he was disgusted in himself and who he had become... A coward. Back in Nibel, he had braved countless perils and made countless sacrifices to save his home, but now he was willing to turn his back on those in need and allow them suffer unspeakable horrors, just to save his own skin. He felt so weak and powerless, and it made him sick. But that bat; he had never encountered anything as harrowing as that bat. No other creature had ever filled him with such dread or terror as that monster did. He had never really been faced with true evil before, but now he was thrust right into the heart of it, and the shock had scarred him both physically and emotionally. Even if he did manage to escape this place, he would never be the same again.

There was one silver lining to the incident though. That poor creature seemed to be a new arrival, and it had come from the direction he was heading, which meant that he was on the right track. This small sliver of hope, combine with the short bit of rest he had just gotten gave Ori the energy he needed to press onward. The final leg of his journey was every bit at as slow and painful as the rest, but with each step he felt just a little bit lighter. It was like he could feel the darkness of this place being lifted from him. Finally this nightmare would be behind him; finally he would get to go home; finally he would see Gumon, Ku, and most of all Naru. Oh how he couldn't wait to cradle himself in her arms and have her rock all of his sorrows away.

It had been a long and arduous journey, but Ori had finally arrived at his goal. Another set of heavy metal doors was all that stood between him and freedom. His heart pounded in his chest as he reached out for the door, praying that it was also unlocked. Despite the relief he had felt a moment ago, there was still a chance that this could all be for nothing, and the thought of that terrified him. He pressed against the door with all the might his feeble body could muster. Again there was a moment where the heavy slab would not budge, and it started to reinforce Ori's fear. But eventually the door gave way under his weight and began to creak open.

Ori stepped into the room on the other side, but what he found instantly made his heart sink in despair. The room seemed to be completely empty, save for a large stone archway in the center. No, no! This couldn't be! Ori hobbled towards the archway and stared up at the structure in disbelief. The inanimate construct just sat there, towering over him as if to mock him. B-But how?! He was sure the bat had come from here. So how could there be nothing?! There had to be something he was missing. He looked over the archway, and noticed that it was inscribed with many arcane runes and demonic marking. Though it looked like none of the ones that Ori had ever seen, he could only guess that this was some kind of gateway. Of course! He should have known that the bat wouldn't be so careless! How could he have been so stupid! Ori fell to his knees, feeling utterly defeated. His worst fear had been realized. All that effort, all that pain, all that terror... it had all been for nothing.

"Now do you understand?" a voice suddenly said from behind Ori, a voice that made his blood run cold and his eyes grow wide with terror "There is only one way in and out of this place, and no soul aside from myself has ever set foot back through that gate. You are trapped here, mine to play with until you are broken, and there... is... no... escape!" he stated, punctuating those last three words for effect. Ori heard footsteps approaching, until the unseen figure stood right behind him. "Turn around." he stated bluntly.

Ori was nearly petrified with fear, but he didn't dare disobey the command. He slowly got back to his feet and turned to face his captor. No sooner had he managed to turn his body, when a harsh kick crashed into his stomach, sending the poor spirit flying across the room, where he landed in a crumpled heap on the floor. Ori was left gasping, choking, and coughing up blood from the devastating attack. Stabbing pain shot through his chest, and his lungs burned for air. But the bat gave him little time to recover, strolling over and stomping down hard on his tail. Ori screamed at the top of his lungs as the bat took delight in grinding his foot into the poor spirit's sensitive tail. He didn't let up until Ori's voice gave out, leaving the suffering spirit a sniveling sobbing wreck.

The bat gave Ori a short reprieve to recover before lifting him up by the neck and looking straight into his eyes. "To think, you were so desperate for escape, that you tore yourself from your cross. Oh I bet that was excruciatingly painful. A shame I missed it. I guess we'll just have to do it again, while I watch." The mere thought of going through that again sent Ori's stomach into knots. "Still, I am actually impressed that you made it this far, and I think you deserve a reward. So I've decided that I'm not going to kill you like I had originally intended." Ori actually felt the slightest bit of relief at being told he had been spared the nimbat's fate "Oh no, I want to keep you around, so that I can watch you suffer for a good long time." As quickly as Ori's hopes had been raised, they were dashed just like that. Being kept alive and tortured in this god forsaken place for the rest of his life? It was a fate worse than death! Oh dear lord, what had he gotten himself into?! No! No! He couldn't take it anymore! He couldn't take the fear! He couldn't take the pain! Dear lord, please, somebody, anybody, save him!

Ori began to struggle in the bat's grasp as his mind spiraled into panic. The bat just chuckled at this "It seems you have some energy left after all. Good, you're going to need it for what I have planned for you. Come, your new life of suffering awaits." he said with a wicked grin, carrying the spirit kicking and screaming back into the darkness.