Dead on the inside

"Send me back,” Inhio said, as if sure that it was the only way.

"What?” The surprised ponies all shouted out as one.

"My curse is of my own world, your world doesn’t need to suffer for it.”

"And you would simply go and doom your own world in order to save ours?”

"Aye, without regrets.” A brief silence took over. Inhio’s tone never really changed, and he never seemed to lie.

"Why?” Twilight asked, surprised at how a man that sometimes seemed to not even have a heart, could be so benevolent at the same time.

Inhio hesitated to answer, but not because he had trouble thinking of what to say or because he was uncertain. He slowly walked up to the window, moved the edge of the curtains aside and gazed outside at the streets of the town as they slowly began to darken. The day was nearing its end. "Because there’s much more to this world than there is to ours...I can say that much after spending just less than a full day here.” Inhio released the edge of the curtain and turned around to face the ponies again. They hadn’t moved an inch and were carefully listening to every one of his words. Inhio could speak on uninterrupted for hours, it seemed.

"The sky is bluer and the grass is greener,” Inhio said those words out in hopes that they wouldn’t sound like too much of a cliche in this world. "The way peace and harmony rules here...Your world has everything our world dreams of and strives for every day.” The ponies couldn’t even begin to imagine what Inhio’s world was like, they stood and kept staring at him as surprised as ever. "Peace and harmony, yes, those are the things your world is built on...Do you know what our world is built on?” There was no answer, only guessing in the ponies' minds, but not one word out loud.

"Things that your world doesn’t even know, we see them around each and every corner.” Inhio tightened his fists more and more with each dreaded word he named. "Lies, anger, violence, treachery, hate, disorder, war...and death.” Inhio took a step closer to the ponies with each word, bending down and whispering the last word to Twilight, so close that she could almost feel his breath. "Those are the things our world is built on.” Inhio straightened his back and returned to a less dramatic tone. "Imagine if those villains of yours, that you defeated before. Imagine if they had never been banished, but instead, your rulers would have formed an alliance with them.”

That was quite the wicked thought Inhio gave the ponies to think about. What if it really was like that? They wondered. What if Celestia and Tirek sat on the same throne?

"Imagine if your own ruler never cared for her own land, imagine if she only ever cared about lining up her own pockets...” Inhio stumbled as he remembered that the phrase he just said might not be so clear to the ponies. "Forgive me, what I meant to say is - what if she only ever cared about herself? I’m not saying it is like that, I’m just saying imagine if it was like that!” Inhio added, as he saw Twilight raising her hoof, ready to protest. "Imagine if while she was so busy tending to her own needs, that everyone could do what they want and no one could stop them.”

The ponies began to wonder if Inhio is really referring to the things in his own world or if he’s just making this up as he goes...Surely, it couldn’t be that bad...could it?

"Imagine if those big, strong workhorses used their able bodies to rob the elderly ponies. Imagine if there was someone lying on the street, half-dead, and not a single soul would even ask him if he’s all right. Imagine if the entire town was starving, and it would all be happening right under your ruler’s nose, and she would do nothing to prevent it!” If not for Inhio’s dead-serious expression and fierce tone, the ponies would have denied his every word right away, but looking back at him and calling him a liar would be a damn near impossible thing to do. "And the list goes on,” Inhio added, as a final remark.

If it’s really as he says in his world, then no wonder he couldn’t find a reason to smile for eight whole years. They all thought, but none dared say that out loud.

"Of course...” Inhio spoke again, with words loud and sudden, startling some of the ponies as a result. "It’s not all bad. Naturally, I doubt our world would even still exist if it was only bad. Good still resides in the hearts of men, but that good side of them is put to the test, each and every passing day. The things that happen on our world every day, the things we have to witness...It’s no wonder that someone who started off as a good man would eventually start to question his own ways and spend every day wondering if there’s any point left in still being one of the good guys when all the good he does is in vain...It doesn’t take a genius to realize that a single soul, no matter how noble, can’t change the world...That’s a thought that drives men to succumb to the darkness."

Inhio gazed out the window, once more. By now, the sun had faded away, and the darkness on the streets matched that of his story. "It’s true what they say, I guess. You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become a villain.” The ponies listened to Inhio like fillies during story time, only without asking any questions. "But the thing is...that’s not always true. Sometimes all it takes is just one kind-hearted person at the right time and place, just one good deed that everyone sees...Sometimes that’s all it takes for some people to be reminded that good still exists...Sometimes, the only thing one needs is a chance.”

Inhio turned away from the window. "But the problem is, one doesn’t need a chance to prove their cruelty, and one can go on for years without a chance to show how kind they truly are...For this reason, people keep thinking that evil rules the world. They choose to close their eyes to the good and see only the bad." Inhio turned his sights to the ponies again. They were rather calm now, after getting further insight on Inhio’s world. They weren’t surprised or shocked anymore, they were just patiently waiting for Inhio to finish.

"You see now, don’t you? Our world looks all bad, when in fact, it’s actually more or less in balance. Because the thing about noble and cruel is that the cruel aren’t afraid to show their true nature. On the contrary, they consider it their sworn duty to show it off, so that the world would know that they’re still a force to be reckoned with, and the only reason we don’t see so much good is because the truly noble souls do not brag about being good!”

Another moment of brief silence took over. It no longer mattered if Inhio was done with his story or not, because Twilight had heard all she wanted to hear. "I see...” She started off in a rather fragile voice. She knew what she had to say, but still felt like she was interrupting. "I see now, why you said that our world is everything your world dreams of...”

She hesitated to continue. "Go on,” Inhio encouraged her.

"Because the good isn’t afraid to show itself in Equestria!”

"Exactly!” Inhio clapped his hands a single time. He was glad to hear that his words weren’t wind for the ponies "Couldn’t have said it better myself!” Why did I ever question the smarts of this one? Inhio secretly wondered. "But you know what this means, right?” Inhio squatted down to match Twilight’s eye level. "The real reason you need to send me back, I mean.” Twilight didn’t answer, she only slowly hung her head to hide her sorrow. "You can deny it as much as you like, but you still know it as well as I do.”

Twilight’s friends still looked clueless. Apparently, Twilight was the only one of them that knew what Inhio meant. "What does he mean, Twilight?” one of her more worried-looking friends asked. "Twilight?” she asked again after getting no response. Twilight still lingered, but the answer came this time.

"He said it himself...This place is his dream world.” That wasn’t the most enlightening answer one could hope to hear. It actually sounded more like something one should be happy to say, but then why was Twilight so sad? "Don’t you see?” Twilight raised her head. "Men like Inhio have spent their entire lives in naive hopes of seeing a world like this, but if after a whole day of seeing and feeling what seems like a dream come true, Inhio still couldn’t even smile once...that can only mean one thing.”

Twilight went through enough trouble to say as much as she did. Inhio decided to relieve her a bit, by saying the most difficult words, "Inhio is dead.”

***

After saying those three words that left the small crowd speechless, Inhio didn’t feel like there was anything else that had to be said. He got up and started slowly walking towards the door. Only by the time he had already begun to reach for the handle of the door, did he finally hear the word that he was expecting to hear, eventually.

'Wait!” Twilight shouted out to the man about to leave. Inhio turned around and put his hands up in the air. Not all the way up, only up to his shoulder level. He lowered them after a few seconds. He wasn’t trying to mock anyone, he was merely showing that he was being cooperative. "You’re not going anywhere!” Twilight’s serious tone was inspiring for her friends. It sounded like she had a plan.

"Can’t a man go out for some fresh air? I’ve always been a fan of the night.” Inhio wasn’t joking, but his tone still had a touch of sarcasm in it. Naturally, he knew damn well that Twilight wasn’t just stopping him from going outside, but from leaving Equestria. Twilight almost seemed irritated by such a reply. "It’s not like I could just teleport my way out of your world, anyways, so why worry?” Twilight’s irritation swiftly turned to a slight state of embarrassment. She had just remembered how Inhio got here in the first place, and felt rather awkward realizing that he couldn’t have gotten far, even if he had left the building. "Go on, say what you will.”

Twilight ran over to Inhio, leaving her friends a small distance away, just enough to be able to whisper without being heard. "I’m afraid we haven’t been all that honest with you.”

"We?" Inhio asked and reproachfully stared at Twilight, and then at her friends, who only gazed back at him with surprised expressions, clueless of what could he be mad at them about.

"No, no, no! Not them!” Twilight got a bit nervous after making a mistake that gave the wrong idea to Inhio, and to her friends, from him. Inhio immediately turned his gaze away from Twilight’s friends and faced Twilight.

"What’s she telling him?” Rainbow Dash quietly asked, but got no reply from the equally as confused ponies around her.

"I meant myself and Celestia.” Twilight explained.

"This should be good,” Inhio muttered.

"You see, the darkness in you, the one that broke free for a moment earlier today...it’s not from your world.”

This is getting interesting. Inhio thought. "And I suppose you’re about to tell me about it’s real origins, am I right?”

The question had an obvious answer. Twilight sighed and began to explain further. "It was after we defeated an ancient foe, right here in Equestria. We thought we had banished him for good, but somehow, a fragment of his soul still survived.”

Wait, Sauron was in Equestria? Inhio suddenly thought to himself as a joke.

"Ever since our foe lost his material form, he started searching for a new host. It had to be someone emotionless and careless, someone who wouldn’t have the will to fight him off. There was no such soul in Equestria, but somehow, he found a way into your universe...and then it found you.”

"The perfect host!” Inhio added in a faked poetic tone.

"Not quite...” Inhio raised an eyebrow and wondered what Twilight had meant by that. "You see, when his soul merged with your own, he was expecting to take over your body instantly, and judging by the kind of power he wielded, he should have been able to do just that...but there was something he did not foresee.”

"Another presence?” Inhio asked a question that he already knew the answer to. "Is that what you were about to say?”

"It’s the only reasonable explanation! That’s how I know there’s still hope for you! Your good side is the only thing keeping the darkness in you from breaking free, and as long as it keeps up the fight, the evil can’t take over! All we need to do is stack the odds in its favor by giving it something to live for.”

"Lets assume we succeed for a moment, what happens to the darkness then? Won’t it simply escape and search for a different host?” Twilight looked uncertain, she hadn’t given a thought about the aftermath, but then again, none can really blame her for focusing on the more important matter for the time being. "Right, right, we have our priorities, lets focus on beating him first, then we can think about banishing him for good.” Twilight nodded in approval. Inhio let out a sigh that could have only meant either him being displeased or tired. "It seems like I have no choice but to stay here and hope that you and your friends know what you’re doing, because when I think about what you’ve just told me, I’d say that by going back to my own world I wouldn’t be saving yours, but only delaying it’s downfall. Ain’t that right?”

"Yes. He found a way to travel between worlds once already, I doubt he’d have trouble doing so again. Especially after having regained full strength.”

There was nothing left to say. The goal was clear, all that remained was to find a way to achieve it. Inhio noticed that one of Twilight’s friends was trying to hide her yawning, probably because she felt that it would be fairly rude to look bored at a moment like this, but apparently, the long day was finally beginning to get to them. Funny thing about yawns is, they sometimes work like a chain reaction, and this time was no exception. Even Twilight herself didn’t seem so full of energy anymore.

"You know now what you must do, you know how hard your task is, and you know what are the consequences for failing it.” Inhio stopped whispering and turned to talking loud enough for all six of the ponies to hear. "It has been a long day for all of you. You are all tired and fresh out of ideas. Rest for the night, spend some time to gather your strengths and think of a new plan.”

"No!” Twilight tried to protest, despite being tired. She yawned against her will, trying to hide it as best she could. "We don’t have that much time, we need...”

Inhio squatted down and gently silenced Twilight by placing his finger against her lips. "A tired mind can get desperate when forced to work against its will, and no good can possibly come of that. I need all of you to be at your best if you hope to succeed in this ordeal.” Inhio got up and was about to reach for the door handle again. "Get some rest, all of you, and don’t worry about me. Tonight is not the night I let the darkness take me.” Inhio opened the door and had almost closed it behind himself already when Twilight asked.

"How do you know?”

"Trust me, I wouldn’t lie to you,” he answered and closed the door behind himself. Twilight was left standing with a bewildered look and half-open mouth, ready to ask something.

The ponies spent some time staring at the door the man had just left through. "Inhio’s right, Twilight.” Twilight shifted her head backwards to where her friends were standing. Applejack yawned loudly without attempting to hide it any longer. "I don’t think any of us are up for another round.” The four other ponies agreed with either a nod or an "Mmhm.”

"Yeah.” Rainbow Dash yawned as well. "We’re not gonna get anything done at this rate. Besides, Inhio seemed to know what he’s doing.”

Twilight rubbed her chin and slowly answered with a touch of uncertainty in her tone, "I suppose it couldn’t hurt to spend more time to figure out just how are we going to get this done.” Twilight’s friends were happy to hear that. They started walking towards the exit. "But I want all of you to actually spend some time to think about this. Remember, this is no joking matter!”

"Of course, sugarcube. Don’t worry about it.” The ponies walked outside with Twilight at the very back. She didn’t seem to pleased about how lightly her friends were treating this.

"Oh!” Pinkie Pie laughed. "I Forgot I was already home, ha ha!” She rushed back inside and closed the door behind her. "See ya tomorrow, girls!”

"Right...Well, I guess there’s not much left to do here right now, so...”

"Psst,” Applejack interrupted Twilight and directed everyone’s attention to something that was barely visible through the dark. It was a cowboy, sitting quietly and comfortably on a bench and reclining against the walls of Sugarcube Corner. Both his legs and arms were crossed, and his hat was covering his face. He seemed so at peace that it would almost seem not right to disturb him. He seemed to be asleep, but the ponies still felt like it would be wrong to just leave him out here through the night.

Rainbow Dash was the first to respond, "Huh...You know, I was kinda wondering where did he wander off to after leaving. "

"Not too far, it seems,” Twilight added. They all started slowly walking towards Inhio. He wasn’t really asleep. He had heard every word they said since the moment the door opened and they walked outside. He knew it was only a matter of time before they spotted him. They tried to walk quietly, but hiding the sound from an equine’s hooves wasn’t as easy as it was for one that could walk on fingertips.

"The night is simply divine, wouldn’t you agree?”

The ponies got a bit startled by Inhio. They hadn’t expected him to acknowledge their presence. "Yeah...sure,” Twilight replied, trying her best to sound unsurprised. They slowly walked up to Inhio. Trying to hide their presence would have no point now. They stopped and stood right in front of the sitting man as if expecting him to say something, but Inhio didn’t feel like anything had to be said. "Are you...all right with staying out here all night?”

"More than just all right. I might never get another chance to see a night this beautiful again.” After another moment of silence, one of the ponies felt like she should say something, seeings how Inhio clearly wouldn't say a thing.

"Well, in case ya change your mind, there’s always a warm bed waiting at Sweet Apple Acres!” Applejack wasn’t the only pony to offer Inhio a place to stay for the night, but he rejected everyone of them by simply not showing any signs of interest.

"I suppose you could stay at my boutique, if you know how to behave yourself...Just for the night, that is.”

"You could always stay at my cottage...if you’d like to, that is.”

"I’m sure there’s a big, royal bedroom somewhere in my castle, if that’s more your thing.”

The only pony present that didn’t offer Inhio a place to stay for the night was Rainbow Dash...Well, what did you expect her to say? Plenty of clouds in the sky?

"I wouldn’t feel warmer in any bed than I would under the veil of the night. I wouldn’t find beauty more explicit in any boutique than I would under the white light of the moon. I wouldn’t find a place more quiet in any cottage than I would in the calm and empty shadows. And I certainly wouldn’t find a place more regal than the one right under the nose of the moon goddess herself.” Poetry aside, Inhio’s mind was clearly made up, and he wasn’t about to move by his own will, that was as clear as his own words. "In all of my life, I have never felt so at home. The nights here in Equestria...they seem so...magical.”

"Magical or not, I sleep outdoors almost every night and see nothing wrong with that, so just give it a rest, you guys. I’m out. Good night, everyone!” Rainbow Dash flew up and chose a cloud not too far from their sights as her place to stay for the night.

"Right...Well, I’m not about to try and force him over to my castle, so I guess we’re done here.” No one else seemed to protest, so the ponies all separated and said their farewells to each other for the night. Fluttershy also said good night to Rainbow Dash as she passed by, since the cloud she was on was on the way to her cottage. Rainbow Dash politely replied with the same kind of gesture. Applejack was the slowest to leave the area, she wasn’t in a hurry, since she was wondering on how to best explain the situation to her family back at Sweet Apple Acres. She had promised to tell them everything, earlier today, but secretly, she still hoped that they would have all gone to bed by now. She wasn’t in the best mood for talking right now.

Applejack looked back for a moment, only to see that she was the last one still within Inhio’s sight, even though he clearly wasn’t looking her way. "Goodnight, Inhio!” she shouted from afar.

"Goodnight, partner!” Inhio kindly replied.

Inhio was left alone in the middle of the night. It was calm, quiet and warm. There was a slight breeze, but it only made Inhio feel even warmer. The only nearby soul he could spot was Rainbow Dash, whose tail was hanging over the edge of a cloud. For some reason, Inhio still felt like he was being watched. He slightly raised his head and gazed forward, right into the open second floor window right in front of him. He waved to the curious little filly that was staring at him with wide eyes. She smiled at him and waved back. Who knows for how long she would have kept on staring if her mother hadn’t pulled her back inside and closed the window shut. Inhio lowered his head again and let his hat slide over his face.