There was an awkward silence. I honestly wasn't sure why the air suddenly felt so tense.

"Well... we should move on," Peach eventually said. I was so grateful that she stepped up to break the silence and move the story along.

"We?" Mr. L asked, frowning and looking up at her.

"We," Peach confirmed.

Mr. L inhaled sharply, then crossed his arms, though it looked more like he was hugging himself as if he was cold. 

"You must be... really lost if you're asking me for help," he admitted. His shoulders slouched slightly. The breathy, tired quality of his voice was back. I didn't like it on him. Mr. L from the real world was always so energetic compared to this. 

We eventually decided that the best way to move forward was to follow the railroad tracks onward to see if there was anything else further down the line. If there wasn't, then our next steps were going to be getting one of the lost ones to lead us to my father so we could get Mario back for Peach, then figure out what was going on. The cherry on top would be Dimentio unleashing his anger on my father for "killing the Ink Demon."

Peach and Dimentio stayed behind to do one last check around town while Mr. L and I headed down to the train station. The original plan was to have Dimentio and Mr. L check the train station first, but Mr. L rejected the idea and chose to have me go with him instead. I couldn't tell if Dimentio seemed hurt by the rejection or not. It was always hard to tell how he was feeling unless he was screaming it in people's faces, and he only did that when he got hysterical.

I don't think Mr. L rejected the idea of checking with the train station because he disliked him, though. I mean, he might actually dislike him, since the guy is literally insane, but I think he chose for me to come with him because he knew that I still had my memories and that he would be more likely to get an answer out of me than anyone else.

"So... you're Blumiere. I know that." Mr. L breathed while we walked down to the subway.

Blumiere. He was perhaps one of the only people in this place who knew my full name. Even my father and Timpani had just called me Blu.

I think he was THE only one who knew my real name. I mean, there was that one time I tried telling Peach and Mario my name by showing them the audio recording of me and Timpani, but neither of them were smart enough to put the puzzle pieces together.

"I just... I've had this theory about you," Mr. L admitted. "I didn't consider it possible at first. But... each time I listen to that tape recording, YOUR tape recording, it makes more and more sense. I mean, it explains why someone I've never heard of has shown up in this place as THE perfect Brooks. It explains why Timp stuck around you. It doesn't explain a lot of things, but..."

I waited for him to finish his thought, but I knew what he was going to say before the words even left his mouth. Mr. L was smart. I always knew that.

I also always knew that he'd figure it out eventually.

What I didn't know is that I would feel so... relieved.

I didn't think I'd feel that wave of relief wash over me as soon as he said it, but I did.

"Are you Count Bleck?" He asked.

And just like that, a weight had been lifted.

I don't know why. I would think that this would make me nervous or afraid. Instead, it made me feel like I no longer had to live with such a big secret weighing me down.

I nodded.

He didn't look at me with disgust like I thought he would either. He too looked relieved. For him, this was one of those unsolvable mysteries finally solved.

"Next question. The Ink Demon's not really dead, is it?" He asked me.

I honestly didn't know. I don't think the Ink Demon is dead. However, I can't tell if what I saw earlier was the Ink Demon itself or my imagination-

He suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me back. We had just gotten to the bottom of the stairs and into the dark station. There was a chill in the air, to the point where we could see our breath.

In front of us, the Demon was basically running around the room, snarling and growling. It looked angry yet smaller than usual. Still, it was the Ink Demon. The same distorted monster that everyone was afraid of.

"You see that too, right?!" Mr. L asked me with a somewhat frantic quality to his voice. I quickly nodded.

Why did it look so frustrated? I mean, yes, it was always a violent and growly monster. But now, it looked like it was upset. There was an almost panicked quality about the way it was moving.

Suddenly, the world around us began to glitch once again. Not the same way it glitched when Count Bleck was in the picture, though. This glitching had... color?

"What the heck is happening?!" Mr. L asked me.

Oh good, he could see this all too. That meant I wasn't imagining it.

Or that we were both losing it at the same time.

The Ink on the Ink Demon began to drip to the floor as if its skin had been melting away. It ran around the room like a wild animal, running into walls and growling until it collapsed down by the railroad tracks. The world seemed to continue glitching around us, briefly flashing colors I hadn't seen in so long. Colors like red, orange, purple, pink, and blue.

Then, the Ink Demon disappeared. Its inky exterior melted away, leaving just one thing behind.

Inky.

The little demon looked up at us with terror in his eyes.

I couldn't help but silently gasp and cover my mouth. Mr. L too had wide eyes.

Inky quickly hugged himself, then ran to the left, disappearing into the darkness.

I just couldn't believe it.

Inky, the adorable little demon who looked nothing less than PERFECT compared to his original drawing, was the Ink Demon?! That terrified little cartoon character was the terrifying distorted monster that everyone was afraid of?! He was the being with no soul, composed of all my fear and anger?!

Mr. L looked just as shocked as I felt. Neither of us said anything for quite some time. We had to wait until Dimentio and Peach finally caught up. Of course, they hadn't seen any of this. I doubt the world would even let them see it, even if they were here. The world would just replace their memories with other fractured memories.

I didn't care about any of that, though. I had gotten past the point of wishing the people around me didn't have broken memories. What I found myself wondering about was, well, what the heck happened?! What were all those colors? Why did the world seem to glitch like that, and why did that glitching turn the Ink Demon into Inky? 

Did my father do that? Is that what he meant by saying he defeated the Ink Demon?!

I hate to break it to you, father, but briefly containing it in a cuter form is NOT the same as outright killing it. 

On top of that, why was it so terrified? I knew that it was composed of my anger and fear, but it had no soul, right? So why did it smile at me and hold my hand? Why did it take a liking to Mr. L so quickly? Why was it like that?

Was Inky really just that evil demon this whole time?

"Say, Mr. L, you're the creator, yes? So why were you all alone in that little town, hiding way out of bounds," Dimentio asked with a partially sing-song tone, which snapped me out of my spiraling thoughts.

The man in green's eyes briefly flickered up to Dimentio, then back down to the ground.

"They're looking for me." He breathed. "If he thinks you're a threat to his plans, he locks you away. Forever."

"He?" Peach asked.

Mr. L nodded.

"I don't expect any of you to understand this. Frankly, I don't understand this. I woke up, and he was there. I don't know who he is, exactly, but he had me for a while, until I ran off. Then... everything was so different. He's looking for me too."

"Because you're the creator?" Dimentio asked. "Is he planning on sacrificing you as well?"

A small smile crept its way onto Mr. L's face as he rolled his eyes.

"No. And me being the creator isn't why he wanted me locked away. I... I'm what he called a cycle breaker. Once upon a time, I knew how to start the cycle over. Obviously... this new guy doesn't want that."

"The what?!" Peach asked.

"How did you do it?" Dimentio questioned at the same time.

"Well... it turns out that the Ink Demon was the key," Mr. L tiredly admitted. "The world would always reset once I tried confronting him and finding the truth behind this world. I use to think that he would kill me, then the world would reset. That's what I've always assumed. However... every time it happens, I don't feel any pain. It just... goes dark and starts over. It's made me wonder..."

We all waited for him, but he didn't finish that thought.

Instead, there was a distant rumbling sound and lights coming from the tunnel.

"Is that... a train?" Peach asked, frowning and slowly stepping towards the tracks so she could peer into the tunnels.

No. No way. A train couldn't be coming. I saw the paper that said no trains were scheduled.

"Clearly," Mr. L breathed while grabbing her shoulder and pulling her back. "It's a subway station. Don't be so surprised."

"Trains weren't supposed to come though..." Dimentio trailed off.

My point exactly! If we knew trains were coming, then we wouldn't have walked on the-

Oh no...

Inky disappeared onto those tracks! He was in that tunnel!

Oh no, oh no, oh no, what if he got run over?!

Would that even be a bad thing? I mean, he's the Ink Demon-

What am I saying?! Of COURSE, it would be a bad thing! Even if he was the Ink Demon! There were times when he was just a terrified little cartoon. 

The world began to glitch again. Colors seemed to flicker all around us. I could hear static-like noises. I felt like everything was spinning.

I could tell Mr. L felt the same way, because he began to stumble slightly.

"L?" I heard Dimentio ask while my vision began to blur.

It's hard to describe what happened next. I wouldn't say I blacked out because I didn't see black. I saw lots of colors. 

What's the opposite of blacking out? Coloring in?