The young man coughed once, hard, the rough and vicious movement shaking free a small splatter of blood from his lungs and into his closed hand. Shakingly reaching over to a small table to his right, he pulled a tissue out of a half-empty tissue box, which he used to clean his hand before dropping it in a trashcan to his left. His gaze drifted around the room he was in, taking in every inch of it for what must have been the fortieth time. Stark white walls met a stark white roof, mirrored by a stark white tile floor, with a single window allowing sunlight to stream into the room, though it fed no plant, only the sick. A single, brown oak door led out of the room and into the hallway of the hospital he was in, whichever one it was now. The man was moved around so much that there was just no way he could remember which he was in at the moment, nor could he promise he would still be there within the month.

The heart monitor- EKG?- beeped steadily from farther over to his left, the screen turned just enough that he couldn’t see his own vitals. Three other machines sat silently next to it, each measuring something different in his system, though he knew not what. A small TV flickered images across it, though he paid it no mind. It was near muted, there only to drown out the incessant beeping and provide ambient noise. The man shifted slowly in his bed, a sharp spike of pain driving through his side as he did. The bed was stainless steel, like every other hospital he had been in, and was covered in stark white sheets, a stark white blanket, and he was even given three stark white pillows. No doubt the nurses pitied him.

He hated that. Pity. Even the word itself inspired the feeling within him. So what if his various bodily systems were FUBAR? People died all the time, he himself had outlived his grand-everything. His father had passed away some decade and a half ago as well, his aunts and uncles were who-knows-were and possibly dead from various drugs- though he had last heard one of his aunts had been through rehab, gotten a job, and moved on- and he didn’t know most of his cousins. His mother and step-father had grown unable to watch as he slowly withered away and couldn’t visit, a fact compounded by the fact that he kept being moved to hospitals farther and farther away from home, where they weren’t able to make it to him.

Ranting aside, the man utterly despised pity. Sympathy or empathy? Sure, but not pity. Actually trying to help rather than just offer condolences? Well, help doesn’t exist in his condition but he would appreciate the effort. There was something about that sad, resigned look that just irritated him far more than any pain he was in. There was nothing in that look that actually helped, that tried to make things better; there wasn’t even understanding.

Sighing to himself in his empty room, he weakly grabbed his phone from the table, tapping the screen twice to cut it on. It was an old thing, an LG VS425 if that meant anything, that could store about four gigabytes in a time when most phones could hold a thousand times that. He didn’t care. It could hold the few idle games he had, the sixty or so songs he regularly listened to, and the two and a half thousand downloaded My Little Pony fanfiction he had read, categorized, and then subsequently reread.

The man was many things; a gamer, a scientist, an Atheist, a nerd, but above all, he was a brony. That was one thing that had not changed since he was nine, when the show first came out. Sixteen years, from nine to twenty-five, ponies had been his constant companions. The show, and the characters, felt more like a friend than anything at this point. Through the death of his father, the loss of various friends and girlfriends, and as he got older, the struggle to fight his strange disease was accompanied by the knowledge that he could always retreat from his world via the books on his phone.

Loading the app he used to read .epub files, the app automatically launched the most recently opened book, a cheery, heartfelt, cheesy little romance entitled How to Court Alicorns: A Human’s Guide. Those cheesy romances, he found himself drawn to more often than the action-adventure stories that permeated the fanfiction world. With a small smile on his face, he lost himself to the story, loving the way the characters were portrayed from the start.

Time passed as he descended himself into the book, chapter after chapter flying by over the course of four hours. Sounds were easily heard from outside the door as people walked up and down the hall; families visiting loved ones or nurses taking certain medicine to certain patients. Sometimes, his hearing barely caught the sound of a passerby crying, but nothing registered, lost in the book as he was. It was this distraction that allowed his door to open and four people to walk in without his noticing. They took their seats at chairs around the room and patiently waited for him to look up.

Near a half-hour passed before the man felt a hand on his shoulder. Snapping his head up to look caused him to wince, his hand coming up to rub at his neck. A couple laughs greeted his reaction, the person touching him smiling softly. The man just grinned. “Hey, Ter.”

“How are you today, Ash?” She asked, a slightly worried look on her face. He didn’t sound very bad. She knew he was weak and tired, but his voice was still strong and deep like always. That was a good sign.

Ash sighed, sounding so tired even to himself. “I have news for you, and it’s not good.”

The others crowded around the bed as Ash’s gaze drifted across them. Taytum, Chandler, Jonathan, and Terra. The four people that Ash had kept close over the years. They had been the old friends that accepted everything about him without question, but with plenty of jokes. They were the ones he had kept, slowly dismissing all others. They were the ones who made sure to visit him in any hospital, even with his own parents wouldn’t.

“Things aren’t looking good. The doctors have finally outright told me that there’s no cure for my condition currently.” Ash said simply, not bothering dancing around the subject with those he knew could take the news.

“We knew that, Ash.” Chandler said. “Even if they never told us. There’s something worse than that.”

“Aye.” The man replied. “There’s no cure. There’s also no treatment. I’ve been passed around doctor-to-doctor for the last three years because they hoped that someone would stumble on an answer. I was told that some of the things tried only made it worse, progressing the disease further.”

The room was silent for a moment. None of them felt pity for him, something he made sure they would never do. Taytum’s bruise had healed only a few months ago from that little display. No, no pity was felt. After a moment, Terra spoke up. “What happens now?”

Ash just sighed, leaning back in his bed, Terra’s hand slipping off his shoulder as he did. “I’ve told the doctors to stop. No medicine, no morphine, no melatonin, nothing. I told them that, should I go into cardiac arrest again, don’t try to save me. I live or die under my own power, not the power of machinery.”

Terra’s eyes closed, forcing the forming tears to fade as the others nodded. Of the five, she was the most openly-emotional one. Ash had no doubt that he and the others had cried over his condition- by the God he didn’t believe in, did Ash cry and rage throughout the first year- but only Terra did it in front of others. Reaching out slowly, he grasped her hand and smiled at her, though she couldn’t see it. Slowly pulling, he wrapped an arm around her once she was close enough. As he held her, he allowed his mind to drift through possibilities. Maybe in another time, had Terra been a few years older or he a few younger, they might have been involved, but it wasn’t to be. She was twelve and he fifteen when they first met, so they developed a more familial relationship. Ash didn’t regret it whatsoever, Terra was a wonderful person he was happy to be a brother to. He had to admit that he was closer to her than his other friends, though they all knew every secret about each other. They knew it too, shown by the fact that he received a nod and gesture from Taytum before they left, closing the door behind them and giving him and Terra space and privacy.

After a short while, Terra forced herself to choke out the question on her mind. “H-how long?”

“Two days? Five? Thirty? We don’t know, really. The doctors are amazed my heart is still beating with how many times I’ve been brought back from the brink. They don’t know how much longer it’ll beat without any medicine or help, though, so they can’t say. A couple of the doctors in one of the other hospitals, Lady of the Lake, I think, believe that I won’t even die from this- that I’m too stubborn.” Ash said honestly.

Terra let out a short bark of a laugh through her tears, her eyes still tightly shut, before she asked him what he considered a frankly stupid question, not that he would tell her that. “Are you ready to die?”

Ash just scoffed. “Hell no, I’ve got too many pony books to read.”

He allowed himself to smile, hearing her soft laugh, before he continued. “In all honestly, I kinda am. I mean, if I had a way to survive this, I’d take it, but it’s not to be. Since my death is practically guaranteed at this point, I’m ready for it. I don’t believe in prolonging my suffering, but I’m certainly not eager to die.”

“I meant...after.” Terra said, making him sigh. Of the five, she was also the only believer among them. Maybe that’s why she was so nice and the rest of them were pessimistic assholes. Compared to the guys, Terra didn’t have a mean bone in her body. “After all, an ass like you doesn’t have much to look forward to.”

‘Compared to the guys’ being the keyphrase. Ash laughed loudly, even though it hurt to do so, at her words. He knew she didn’t really mean it. Maybe Ash was going to Hell, maybe Heaven, maybe the nothingness void that he believed awaited him. “You know I don’t believe in any of that.”

“I know. But I do.” Terra said. “Do me a favor, Ash? Pray. Pray and thank every good thing you’ve ever had. Thank your friends. Give thanks.”

“Terra, if God is real, I’m damned to Hell just for not believing.” Ash said tiredly.

“I don’t believe that.” Terra said firmly. “Being Atheist doesn’t matter. God doesn’t require you to believe in Him. God requires faith. Not in Him, but in humanity. In the Love. In the Kind. In the Just. In the Honorable. In all things Good. In Life.”

“You are the strangest Christian I’ve ever met.” Ash said softly, cracking a smile, which she returned.

“I know. I don’t think anyone else shares my belief, but I don’t care.” Terra stood slowly, leaning down to hug him again. “Don’t pray to God and don’t thank God. Pray to the world and thank it for what you have. Visiting hours are ending. We got here late and have to go, Ash. We’ll be back tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay.” Ash replied with a smile. “I love you, sis.”

“Love you too, bro.” Terra replied with a smile, walking out of the room slowly. It was clear to him that she didn’t want to leave, but had to. The door clicked closed, the noise sounding out with finality. Ash didn’t want to think about what that might be hinting at.

Grabbing his phone from his side, he tapped it twice again and resumed reading, the story having caught his attention long ago.

Four Hours Later

Ash set his phone down on the table, the final words of the final chapter drifting through his mind. It had been an adorable story that he loved, sparking a long-familiar feeling of longing within him. Perhaps he preferred romance stories because he himself lacked a partner? Whatever the reason, he did not doubt that it was his favorite genre. Pulling the covers up and over his shoulders, he rolled over onto his side and closed his eyes. He wasn’t going to sleep though, not just yet.

Thank you for every true friend I have. Thank you for every hour I was able to spend with them. Thank you for my mother. Thank you for my father. Thank you for allowing my mother to find my stepfather. Thank you for giving me a love of reading. Thank you for giving me a love of science. Thank you for every year I’ve had…

The list when on and on, slowly getting more detailed as he thanked the world for smaller and smaller things. Tiny things that he had taken for granted for years were thanked, things that were a guarantee in the modern world were thanked. As he thought to himself, Ash felt himself tear up slightly, small droplets of water rolling down his face and into his pillow. He paid them no mind. It wasn’t until two hours had passed that he finally expended his list. Once he had started, the act of thanking the world had felt so good that he couldn’t stop himself. Struck by a thought created by what Terra had said as she left, he added six more things to his thanks.

Thank you for the Love in my life. Thank you for the Kindness in my life. Thank you for the Justice in my life. Thank you for the Honor in my life. Thank you for the Good in my life. Thank you for my Life.

Finished and with nothing more to add, Ash allowed himself to begin to drift off to sleep. His sleep did not last long, descending into something else as flashes of images, phrases of songs, and lines of books faded in and out. Scenes of romance danced through his mind next to scenes of betrayal; kindness next to evil. Behind it all, vaguely in the distance, Ash could hear talking.

“-cardiac arrest, not to be defibr-”

This is gospel for the fallen ones, locked away in permanent slumber.

“-his final wish, we can’t go agai-

...but will you go out on a date with me? Please?

“-duty as a doctor to save this man!-”

You look exotic...and stunning. And yes, I’m frightened, but not of you, not of my Chrissy.

“-specific. Not to be revived by any means. He even signe-”

You roll your diamond dice and you send us all to die in your Pegasus Device!

“-let him go. It’s his final wish.”

She doesn’t love you. All’s she feels is fear! I can love you! I can...love...yo-

“Time of death: 3:04 AM.”

Time to awaken, Ashephyles.

In Another Place and Time

Ash’s mouth snapped open with a gasp, a feeling of intense heat and relaxing cold overtaking him as his sense returned suddenly. The air was filled with the burning scent of sulfur and the myriad of fragrances of a flower field. The ground was hot and felt cracked, yet flowers brushed against his bare arms, back, and chest as he lied sprawled out on the ground, clad only in his pants. Wind flowed over his form, cooling the heat while keeping him at just the perfect temperature. He could hear the field rustle as the wind flowed through the grass and flowers, countless plants brushing against each other. In the distance, he could hear the crackle of fires and popping of magma. He could hear echoing songs being sung around him, the source too far to make out the words. Above all, he could hear someone humming to themselves from several feet away.

Finally opening his eyes, he was greeted by a ring of flowers around his head, above which golden light shone down on him. Moving slowly, he realized the ring of flowers were just incredibly tall flowers around his body, reaching up to the sky. With his movement came no spark of pain like he expected. Instead, he felt healthier than ever. Rising into a sitting position, he looked down to the ground and saw that it looked like baked clay, cracked in countless places, and red light filtered through the cracks, giving off the heat. Slowly standing, he found that the flowers, clad in a multitude of colors that he couldn’t even begin to name, were taller than his six foot two frame, making him wonder just where the fuck was he?

Turning to his left, he slowly started walking, his arms pushing the large flower stalks aside as he followed the sound of the humming. The songs touched at his hearing, singing of praise and of glory, yet the words could not be remembered. As he grew closer to the source of the humming, the songs grew louder. Finally, when he guessed the person was just a few feet in front of him, yet the flowers were still too think to see through, he heard them speak. The man’s voice was clearly old and sounded wise, yet also mischievous. It was deep, yet also soft. It carried confidence, yet also a tinge of curiosity. It was the voice of someone who knew exactly who he was and what he was doing, yet wanted to see if things would go differently. “Come, Ashephyles, join my side.”

“Kudos to you, first in a long while to pronounce my name right.” Ash said, pushing aside the final barrier of flowers and found himself at a cliff edge. A little to his right was no doubt the man who had been humming. He didn’t look very old, maybe thirty. His eyes were multicolored in shades of red, purple, yellow, green, and white. The colors faded and blended around his eyes, strangely looking like they were shifting. Looking over the man, Ash saw that he was wearing a black tuxedo, complete with tie, undershirt, shoes, belt, and jacket. He even had a hat.

“Do you know who I am? Where you are?” The man asked. When he received a shake of Ash’s head, he gestured down off the cliff, then up at the sky. “Look and guess.”

Looking down at the cliff base, he could only see fire. Fire and magma, the two sounds he had heard earlier. Trees, towns, and whole cities were burning down there, yet refused to collapse fully. Small dark shapes scampered over houses and around cars, though they made no sound. Looking up, he could see a city in the clouds. It was the source of the singing. Thousands of voices joined together in a symphony of joy and love that echoed over the plains and down into the cliff base, teasing whatever was down there with a hint at joy. Slowly turning his gaze back to the now-smiling man, Ash frowned. “Fucking damnit.”

The man just laughed. “That’s not an answer.”

“You’re God, that’s Hell down there, and that’s Heaven up there.”

“A shred of each.” The man confirmed. “I can’t truly show you Heaven or Hell without you being truly sent to one place or another. I can only give you a hint.”

“‘Can’t?’” Ash asked.

“Even I have rules I must follow.” God said. “Granted, I made them myself, but I enforce them very strictly.”

“So why am I here?” Ash asked, slightly irritated. “Well, why are you here? I’m here because I’m dead.”

“I personally greet every new arrival, whether they go to Heaven, Hell, or are undecided. I’m currently greeting well over two hundred thousand people right now.” The man answered. “Though I’ll admit that I’ve taken an interest in you. Most everyone give thanks for what they have but not quite the way you have. They thank me for giving it to them. They don’t thank the world itself.”

“Thank my sister.” Ash said with a tinge of amusement, not quite sure why he was taking this so easily. Maybe it had something to do with being dead? “I wouldn’t have done it if she didn’t ask me to.”

“Either way.” God dismissed. “I wanted to ask you a few questions.”

“Can’t stop you.”

“Do you regret all the lying you’ve done?”

The unexpected question threw Ash off guard, making him raise an eyebrow to the man, who just stared back as he waited for an answer. Turning his attention inward, he thought the question over. Ash did regret a lot of the lies he’s said over the years, particularly when he was younger. But he couldn’t say he regretted all the lying. Some of it spared others, even if they never learned it or did learn and came to hate him. Having his answer, Ash replied. “No. I regret some of what I’ve lied about, especially when I was younger, but I can’t say I regret it all.”

God nodded as if he expected the answer. Thinking it over, he probably did. Omniscient and all that. “What about the stealing when you were younger?”

“Yes.” Ash said instantly. “I never stole for a good reason, like trying not to starve. I was just an asshole who wanted what he didn’t have. I most certainly regret it.”

He nodded again. “And the general sinning?”

“The what?

“Swearing, general rudeness, the like. Small stuff.”

“No. Well, maybe the rudeness, but not the swearing. Swears are just words, after all.” Ash replied.

God started humming again, clearly thinking something over as his gaze drifted from Heaven to Hell and back again. Something was on his mind- actually, a lot of somethings was probably on his mind- and he was considering his options. After a few minutes of silence, Ash started to try to memorize the layout of Hell, or at least the city he could see. He wasn’t sure how it worked and didn’t know if he would be trapped somewhere, or free to run as demons chased him down. Ash was sure he was going down, so he wanted to have the advantage of knowing the layout slightly when it came to running from things that wanted to nibble at him. After several more minutes, God spoke up. “What about the ponies? You’re a bit more interested in them than most. Some would say that alone is a sin.”

“I don’t regret that.” Ash said firmly.

“Even though you thought of them in a romantic and sometimes sexual way?”

“Yes.”

God nodded once more and Ash had enough.

“Why are you asking me this? You already know the answer and what I will say.”

“Free will.” The man answered. “I know the answer, yes, and I know what you are most likely to say, but you have free will. You can say something I won’t expect. I don’t know if you’ll lie to me.”

“So it was a test.”

“Yes.”

Ash just groaned, making God crack a smile. “I have a proposition.”

“Oh?”

“I can tell you right now that Heaven and Hell don’t work the way you expect. Everyone spends some time in Hell, depending on how bad they were, before being allowed into Heaven. You’ll go to Hell for a while, won’t say how long, before being allowed into Heaven for the rest of eternity until Hell literally freezes over.”

“Propositions usually have an ‘or.’” Ash replied.

“Or you go to Equestria.” God said simply.

Ash froze as shock hit him. The offer was slipped out so bluntly that he didn’t know how to react. He wasn’t even sure if this was real and not a last minute hallucination done by a dying brain. After a moment of debate, he decided to act like it was real. There was something off about the offer. Ash doubted God would just send a person to Equestria, not without a higher plan. If he did that for everyone who wanted to go, the world would soon have more humans than other species. No, there either had to be more than one Equestria or God only made this offer to him. Or both.

If God was making this offer to only him, then that meant that there was definitely a higher reasoning. He wanted something. Ash needed to know. “What’s the catch? There’s got to be a higher reasoning than just ‘because I like the idea.’”

“There is.” He replied with a nod. “There are other deities than me, and you could say that we started a game quite some time ago. They already got their players ready. Now it’s my turn. I’ve chosen you as my player.”

“What’s the game?” Ash asked, annoyed at being nothing more than a toy, even if he had always believed that if God existed, that’s exactly what he would be.

“Can’t say. It’s against the rules. The players have to figure it out themselves. I can only confirm or deny suspicions.” He replied.

Ash thought it over before groaning. “It’s a free-for-all, isn’t it?”

“It is, somewhat.” God answered with a smirk. “Gather your allies, grow your power, and make your moves against the enemy. Last one left wins.”

“Equestria won’t survive humans going to war.” Ash muttered.

“Different Equestrias. Every player starts off in their own. Entirely random.” The man replied.

The human just sighed. “So I’m supposed to grow my power? How? I have no powers!”

“Yet. General rule is that any power I give you has to be from a game or book or movie.” The deity explained.

“Goddamn Displaced!” Ash yelled aloud. “Motherfucker!”

God just laughed. “Yes, though the ‘Merchant’ isn’t the only deity putting his players in the game. Generally speaking, it’s the Merchant’s Displaced against everyone else, though that’s not entirely accurate.”

“How do I know you aren’t the Merchant and not actually God and that this,” here he waved his hand toward Heaven and Hell. “isn’t just a ruse?”

“You don’t.” God said. “Maybe God doesn’t exist and I’m the Merchant in disguise, maybe God is the Merchant. Maybe I’m telling you there are other people like you but you are actually going to be the only one. Maybe the Displaced don’t exist. You don’t know. True be told, I can’t promise you that the Displaced actually exist. I can’t promise you that I’m not lying to you. The question is, are you going to accept my second option? You get to choose what power, too, rather than just being sent suddenly, like the people who may or may not exist.”

“Of course you pick the one guy who never watched any kind of anime or show where the people had powers.” Ash groaned.

God nodded. “You did always love watching the science channel. Maybe a bit too much. Anyway, games too, remember?”

“Fuck.” Ash groaned out again. “I didn’t play many video games, either. Those I did were usually games like Battlefield and Call of Duty.”

“You don’t have very much options, then.” God replied with a smirk. “Maybe a book?”

“I don’t know the ancient language from Eragon, and I’m not a demigod like Percy.” Ash grumbled. “Lord of the Rings magic wasn’t quite as useful as I would want for something like this.”

God just hummed. “Perhaps this is why others don’t get a choice. They take too long to decide.”

“I’m thinking!” Ash insisted. “Only one franchise or several?”

“Three, max.” God replied, with a hint of a smirk. He knew damn well that Ash didn't know three franchises well. “For each you don’t use, you get a random blessing I won’t explain.”

Ash thought it over, thinking of all the books he read- most of which were, ironically enough, My Little Pony fanfiction, all the games he had read, and all the shows he had watched. He had very few options. Ash groaned. “Skyrim magic, most definitely. It’s the only thing that I’m really familiar with.”

“I’ll include alchemy.” God said. “And everything else, really. You might be able to find all the metals, plants, and other materials throughout the world. I'll give you a guide and nothing else. You’ll have to figure out the rest.”

“Please don’t tell me I’ll level up.” Ash pleaded. “That’s too much.”

“I’m not saying.” God replied with amusement. “You’ll have to figure it out as you go along. I will tell you that it’ll be very different from playing a video game.”

Ash sighed “Thank god.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I wasn’t...er...nevermind.” Ash said.

“Next.” God said. “Two more.”

“Er… I don’t think I know anything else?” Ash replied sheepishly.

“You know plenty.”

“Yes, I know of Dragon Ball, Naruto, Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Avatar, Prototype, Harry Potter, Eragon, Percy Jackson, and so much more! But I don’t know enough to be able to wield any of the abilities. Perhaps you would be able to give me the knowledge?”

“No.” The deity replied.

“Didn’t think so. Yeah, I don’t think I know anything else.” The man said.

“Two blessings, then. You won’t know what they are or when you get them. I’ll give them to you when I decide to. Understand?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“I’m going to send you to an Equestria. It’s entirely random, but most likely attuned to your new abilities. That's how this works, isn't it? Be careful and try not to die because not even I know what you’re going to get while you’re there.” God said.

“Understood.”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

Ashephyles’ vision faded into white as his hearing, smell, and touch faded away. Mere moments before he blacked out, a single thought went through his mind. Goddamnit all to hell and back. This is going to be strange.

Though he couldn’t hear it, God chuckled. “Most definitely, Ash.”

Author's Note

This is my first, and possibly only, attempt at a Displaced fic. I know a lot of Displaced writers like to do crossovers once their character sends the token into the void, and I intend to do that, just not soon... If there's any Displaced writers left alive. In any case, this idea hit me one night and I started writing on it. I've written four chapters already with several others planned, but I intend to write a chapter for Daedalus' New World after I post this.

As always, feel free to tell me how you feel! Not much really happened this chapter plot-wise except Ash's death, so leave a comment describing how you feel about the scene with the deity.