//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: The Storm Factory // by Rarity Belle //------------------------------// Heavy storms and hurricanes, are not made in Cloudsdale Making them inside the city is far too dangerous No, storms are made, far out of the city’s reach The sun rose back from its slumber while the weather had changed drastically from the day before. Instead of another warm and sunny day, there were dark clouds that occupied the skies. Hinting to a heavy –if not massive– upcoming storm. Yet both Star and Feathers slowly woke up in each other’s hooves. The blue eyes of Shooting Star gazed outside into the eye of the storm. None spoke a word, as they had said their goodbyes over and over. And when the time was there that the young mare would go without hesitation or struggling, no matter how hard that would become for any of them. When the clock hit noon a bright flash filled the skies soon to be followed by a heavy roll of thunder as a chariot made its way from the clouds and began to flew over to the cloud palace. It didn't took long before the chariot had reached their house and came to a hold nearly before the door. Both Star and Feathers had made their way over to the window to inspect it and patiently awaited who, or what, would come out it. The pegasus who was pulling it made its way over to the door and opened it under a light bow. Out of the chariot appeared a pleasantly grey coated stallion with black mane, a deep blue coloring in his eyes and missing the tip of his ear. The stallion gave a nod to the pegasus before making his way over to the door of the house and knocked three times on it. Star let go a deep sigh and moved away from the window only to grab her bags. Feathers silently turned herself to her friend and tried her best not to shed a tear. Rainbow slowly opened the door as her eyes met those of the stallion. One that spoke in a kind voice. “Afternoon, miss Dash. The name is professor Blackheart, manager of the Storm Department. I am here for Shooting Star.” He couldn't help it but too take note of the sadness in the eyes of the pegasus. “I know this is hard for you, for all of you. But that are the rules, miss Dash.” “I know... Let me get her, okay?” replied Rainbow. She turned herself around and began to make way to the bedroom of her daughter. “Star honey, they are here for you.” said the mare as she slowly opened the door of the bedroom. The time had come to make the departure. “I know mom... I will miss you... All of you,” sighed Star as she hugged her mother for probably the last time. Then her attention turned to Feathers who also received a last hug. “Feathy, I will miss you the most.” Both her mother and her best of friend returned the hug tightly before Star took her saddlebags and slowly began to make her way down the stairs. Blackheart had taken the opportunity to invite himself into their residence and stood in the living room. He was listening to the soft hoof steps coming down. “You are, Shooting Star I assume. The name is Blackheart,” he said while Star stood on the floor. She walked over to him and stood there. The stallion raised out his hoof to shake it. Star simply shook it with a sad smile. “That is correct, I am Shooting Star. A pleasure to meet you.” There wasn’t much else that she could be saying in the moment. “Shall we go?” Blackheart asked under a nod. The young mare let go an even deeper sigh as she gave him a nod. The stallion turned himself back around and walked back to the door as Star had one last look at her family and close friend while a small tear ran down her face. “Goodbye.” ---                      With an uncomfortable feeling did she made her way over to the chariot. There where the stallion was waiting for her and she entered it. Only to be followed by him. The door fell shut as the pegasus moved back to the front where it slowly began to pull the chariot again, slowly lifting it off of the ground. Star had a final glimpse to her mother, her father, her sister and her friend with her mother as they all were tearing up. While the chariot got further away, she couldn't help herself. Her own eyes began to tear up as well. It just wasn’t true in her eyes. Back in the house, Rainbow couldn't believe it. Her foal, was taken away. “No... No... Soarin’, please, tell me this is all a dream, that I wake up soon in the middle of the night,” she said in a confused, scared voice. “I wish it was honey, but she is gone...” replied Soarin’ as he couldn't hold his tears anymore and hugged his wife tightly. “My, my sister... Gone... No,” said Twist while she shook her head. But she was truly gone. Fluttershy couldn't hold yourself either anymore and many tears left her eyes as Feathers tried to comfort her mother but only to tear up herself. Shooting Star was taken away from them, to work in the Storm Department. They couldn't do anything against it, except accept that fact. No matter how hard it is. ---   In the chariot was the young mare sobbing quiet and to herself. Yet Blackheart tried his best to comfort her. It was a little thing that didn't really work. “I know this is hard for you Shooting Star, but the rules are the rules. You will be able to see them, you are allowed to go to them, but only in vacations,” said Blackheart in a caring tone. One of his hooves was wrapped around her and gently stroking her shoulder in a comfortable manner.                     “I, I should be happy, right? I mean, I am going to work in one of the weather factories... Right?” said Star before she wiped her tears away.                     The stallion nodded before making his reply. “The things you answered on the questions about storms, were all perfect answers, Star. You are made for the Department.” She looked him in the eyes as he spoke those words and could see they were true.                     She could only accept her fate. A fate of working in the Storm Factory. ---   Eventually did the chariot came to a standstill and Star gathered her guts to take a peek outside. She wanted to look where exactly she had been brought. Her eyes fell through the window of the chariot and she saw the factory. The place where she would be working in. A tall and wide building that was created out of dark, storm clouds as lightning shot up from the roof to nearly everywhere in Equestria. It penetrated the atmosphere and disappeared out of sight. Out of the many chimneys on the side of the building where more black clouds left and were either brought or floated to their needed locations. Yet its overall design looked very familiar to all the other factories she had been and read about. The stallion opened the door and left the chariot as the young mare slowly followed him outside. Her eyes opened themselves widely as she now saw the place in its full glory, if you can call it that. “Don’t let the looks fool you too much, Star. She’s a beauty on the inside,” said Blackheart. He held the door open for her like she was some kind of royal. Shooting Star smiled a little at him and followed him closely after getting her saddlebags again. They both entered the building the stallion let her wait in the hall for a little bit of time. “I will show you your room first and then give you a tour through the Factory. Your first official work day will be tomorrow then.” He then proceeded the walk and she followed him a couple hooves behind. Her eyes were glancing over at the interior. Which awkwardly enough was rather nice compared to the products it had been producing for so long already.   From the entrance they walked through a long hallway before turning themselves to their left and up a set of stairs before entering a door on the level they needed to be. As she looked in the new hallway many numbered doors could be seen and the stallion walks over to one door specifically. “Here we go. Through here is your room, miss Dash,” said Blackheart while he stood before a door. The stallion opened it before he gave her the key to it, “It is not much, but the things necessary are there. Place your saddlebags on the couch and follow me again, please.” The young mare gave a nod and did what he said. After that would she be going with him on a tour through the Factory. She would be visiting all of the departments. They walked passed the room filled with Tesla-coils which created the lightning and ventured on to the basins for water for the rain. From there, they went to the boiler room where the clouds were created and in the department next to it the fans for the hurricanes stood. By each department Blackheart told what happened there as Star listened carefully. Finally he guided her back to her room and as they were in the hallway leading to it. “Tomorrow, you will start by the cloud department. Report by the foreman, a stallion with a hat on, and he will tell you what to do. For now, take a good night rest. You will need it.” “I will. Thank you, professor,” said Star before she went to her room and closed the door. She made herself ready to go to bed and dropped herself on it. “My new home. Let’s make the best out of it, now shall we?” Star mumbled just before her eyes closed themselves. She began to slowly drift off to the worlds of her dreams. She had to make the best out of it all, not just for herself, but her family as well. ---   Blackheart on the other end went to his office. There he stretched his wings a little bit along the way. Only to feel a sharp pain in his right one. It was scarred from an old wound that never fully healed, one he had gotten from an old foe. “Ugh...I still need to return him that favor one day,” he mumbled as he continued on his way. Eventually he plopped down in his chair. The file of Star laid on his desk and he began to read it through his glasses which were on every minute he was in the factory itself. “Out of all the foals who could have ended up here, I got the Dash... I need to talk with somepony, soon. Otherwise, things, will not turn out good. History repeats itself, they say.” He closed and placed the file aside while turning the chair to the window looking over the lightning department and watched the many coils do their job, having both a grin of pleasure and a look of uncertainty on his face. ---                      As the night slowly made way for the morning the young prepared herself for her first workday and refreshed herself in the small bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror and gave a slight smile. After that she would be making her way out of her room and trying to remember where the Cloud Department was. While she made her way through the factory, Star ended up in a massive boiler room. There where the only light visible came from the lambs above and the fire of the boilers themselves. Her eyes spotted a stallion with a hat and the words of Blackheart echoed through her head, knowing she was in the place. “Shooting Star Dash, I assume?” said the foreman with a deep voice. The young mare gave him a nod and perked her ears to his upcoming words. He began to explain how the clouds were made. That feeding the boilers with coals kept the fires raging on, which would heat the water inside, resulting in the powerful steam which was used for clouds. But only if the pressure valve was released on time. The darker the cloud needed to be, the more coal there would have been used. Star understood the manner of working and began by taking a shovel on her front hooves and dug it through the pile of coal she stood before. Before feeding it into the ever raging fires of the boilers. Her first couple attempts were all failures which was much to the annoyance of the foreman. Though as her mind began to make the calculations, the clouds became better and better over time. Light white clouds, pure white clouds, dark clouds and black clouds all left the boiler as ordered and at this remarkable presentation the jaw of the foreman dropped. Star had managed to get everything as it should. She began to work harder than anypony else in the department and her clouds that were already good, became perfect in the foreman’s eyes. ---                      After a couple hours of working the horn sounded indicating it was lunchtime and Star made her way over to the canteen where she took place on a chair behind a table where she sat alone, looking at the many other ponies who were running the day shift. The young mare wanted to bring her sandwich to her mouth before the foreman of the Cloud Department took place against her. “You know, miss Dash, your clouds, were just perfect in size, shape and color. I have never, ever seen anypony who made that much process in such a short time. The name is Cloudchaser by the way, Storm Cloudchaser, in fact,” the stallion said before he stuck out his hoof to shake it. Star shook it and smiled in return. “A pleasure to meet you, Storm, and thank you. I have studied quite a lot about making weather.” “Hm, something most of us could learn from,” said Storm before he swallowed a piece of sandwich. The both of them talked a little about each other before the horn signaled that they all had to work again. The young mare went back to work where she made again perfect clouds. The longer time would have passed by, she felt herself more home in the factory then she originally thought. With Storm being kinder to her then the rest, Star didn't want to leave the department. She really enjoyed it there. Eventually the final horn did its way through the Factory letting everypony know the day shift was over and the mare flew to her room where she fell on her bed with a smile on her face. ---   Dinner would be served soon enough and she tried to get some rest by taking a small nap. But that plan was shattered as somepony knocked on the door of her room. “It is open,” said Star before she opened her eyes again. She wanted to see who her mysterious visitor would be. The door slowly opened and in the opening stood the grey coated stallion who began to walk into the room, taking place on the chair as he looked over to the young mare. “I heard you did well in the cloud department. But you still have three other departments to go. Tomorrow, you will be standing by the drivers for the hurricanes,” he said while his blue irises pierced through the glasses. Star listened to his words after which she nodded and he went away just as mysterious as he came. But by the time he was done and gone, it happened to be dinner time. Star made her way again to the canteen but noticed how Blackheart went to his office and winced in pain. He had spread his wing a little bit before retracting it. Star didn't really pay much attention to it as she took her plate and sat down behind a table and just wanted to enjoy a great cooked dinner. ---   “I do not care if he can’t come to me, then I go to him! We need to solve this, otherwise she will find it out sooner or later. You know what? Drop it, drop the disguise, there is no way for her to leave and sooner or later she would found it out herself!” said Blackheart angry. Though a unicorn mare wrote a letter. She was writing everything down that he spoke to her. Though the mare looked up to him with a nervous glance. “Are you sure about this, professor? I mean, dropping it for her, might cause her to go, you know,” she brought forth, scared. Blackheart stood up from his desk and walked toward the unicorn. He pressed his face against hers. “I pay you to do what I say. I never wanted to hear questions from you! So stop asking them or you might end up in one of the lighting coils. Now send that message, please,” he said to her in a tone that was filled with anger. The unicorn gulped loudly before doing what he asked of her. The letter got rolled up and the seal of the storm factory was placed on it. After which it dissolved into small particles and disappeared out of sight. The unicorn then moved over the middle of the room. There where she would have raised on her hind legs and charged up her horn a bit further. It didn't took long before the horn was humming with even more power. Blackheart had taken place behind his desk once more, having his eyes peeled on her. All the sudden a beam left the horn and created a shield around the Factory for a moment before it died down again, at first glance nothing had changed. But the changes, were there. The stallion looked as the mare discharged her horn. “Good, unicorn, now leave me alone.” “Well excuse me, but I have a name,” the mare replied as she lowered again on all four of her hooves. “I said leave, unicorn.” She didn't want to anger him even more than he was and let the matter to rest as she removed herself from the office. But while the events happened in the office, Shooting Star had made herself comfortable in the warm bed and was deep asleep and only stirred a little as the shield was created around the factory. “Why do I have to get ending up with her. Can’t she work in his precious factory like her mother?” mumbled Blackheart angry as he slammed his hoof in the desk, cracking the wood a little. The stallion turned himself around and his eyes gazed upon the many Tesla-coils that were visible through the window and he signaled that all of them had to be fired up as he slowly got a mad stallion look in his eyes before slowly removing his glasses to watch the scenery.   Soon the dozens of coils were all sparkling with lightning. The employees removed themselves from the room as it was too dangerous to be near a coil as it charged up. And without any warning, the stored energy released itself into one lightning bolt that shot right up into the atmosphere and far beyond that, not having any plan nor sign it would ever come down again. But what it did create was an odd shooting star that made its way through space. All of the coils slowly died off as their energy was released and smoke left them as on the ground laid something, a smoking and smoldering hump of something. The deep blue eyes of the grey stallion fell on it and immediately turned away not willing to look further at it and returned to the place behind his desk. The buzzing sound of an intercom did its turn through the room as he sighed deeply and answered the incoming call. “Professor Blackheart, we have a casualty. Foreman Cloudchaser, he flew into a coil...” He let go a deep sigh before saying his words. “You know what to do.” “Yes professor,” said the voice and the call ended. ---   Meanwhile at the Dash residence Rainbow was moving a little through the room of Star, cleaning a couple things here and there as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Our baby girl... She has become a mare now,” she said under a sniffle. After some time of gazing she closed the door behind her and slowly walked down the stairs only to plop down on the sofa where she began to cry softly. The taking of her daughter left a bigger scar than anypony originally imagined but there was the small hope she would come back from time to time. Rainbow released one of the biggest sighs of her life followed up by a couple more sniffles as she tried to accept the facts. Something her husband and other daughter already had, or at least made it look that way. Rainbow got up and without a warning she just flew away. She would be flying her way through the skies and clouds while she tried to forget it. Though no matter what she did, she couldn't forget her little Shooting Star. Later that night as they all sat on the couch, the tension was to cut between Rainbow, Soarin’ and Twist. “Mom, is, is it really as bad, as the stories tell?” asked Twist after hearing some rumors about the place at her school. Rainbow sighed deeply and tried her best not to cry, “Yes... Yes it is Twist...” Soarin’ let go a deep sigh upon the answer and so did Twist. They could only hope now. Hope for the best. ---   Back in the factory had the sun began to rise again and Star woke up with quite the headache. As her eyes opened themselves she took notice of the new looks the Factory had gotten, or better said: the look it always had. She blinked a couple times in utter disbelief. The warm and friendly look got traded in for a cold and dead one. She refreshed herself and sat on the edge of her bed as her thoughts wandered back to her home, thinking about her family and friends she had left not too long ago. But her thoughts were disturbed by the sound of somepony rampaging into her room. Star shocked up from the suddenness and stared into the deep blue eyes of Blackheart whose tone had turned into one filled with anger. “Miss Dash! Before you ask, this is how the factory really looks like. There is no escape from this place, you may never even leave this place! You want to know why? Because it is a prison! I save you the trouble from finding it out yourself and thus nosing around on places you shouldn’t be. But I have a plan for you. You will work on the Lighting Department from now on. Make yourself ready and report by the foreman.” After he said those words, Blackheart turned himself around again and left by closing the door again. Star was hit by surprise from this sudden revelation. Why would he have told it to her in the first place? Though she made her way over to the canteen a little stunned. She wandered through the cold steel hallways before entering it and took her breakfast. While she walked over to a table, words caught her ears over what happened during the night shift. “Sorry but, is it true?” she asked. The stallion nodded for confirmation. “He flew against a charging coil, dead on the spot. A shame, Storm was a good stallion.” The young mare couldn't believe this and her appetite was just gone as she went to another table for she didn't wanted to bother the stallions more than she would, but not before asking one last question. “Is this a prison?” Now it was another stallion who nodded. “Aye, worst of the worst are placed here... Lifelong work to create the most severe weather in Equestria... Tis a good deed, might redeem yar soul a little, not much, but hey, every bit counts right?” As those words entered her ears it was her courage was dropped as a whole. ---   As the horn sounded once more she made her way over to the Lightning Department and searched for the foreman. “Oh no,” was all Star could bring out upon the sight of him. For it was nopony else then professor Blackheart himself. “Miss Dash. I placed you here, so that I can keep an eye on you. I need you to coordinate the lightning bolts with precise aim,” he said and pointed to one of the many desks with a radar screen of Equestria. “Take place and send a bolt to this location.” He gave her a piece of paper and she carefully took place behind the desk. She would be typing in the coordinates and pushed the button to fire a bolt. After a small wait did one of the coils began to charge up and hum from the stored energy before it released everything, causing a powerful bolt and roll over to the city of Los Pegasus where the Factory had been floating to overnight. “Good miss Dash. You know what to do. Soon, more colleagues will come, but they may not speak to each other, thus you included. You may not speak to them. One pony not paying attention and we get, nasty, accidents,” said Blackheart before he went back to his office. Star just sat there, waiting for the next order with patience. Though the order luckily came fast. The bolt she released for practise, was the starting sign of a heavy storm over Los Pegasus. With the stallion standing in his office he connected his intercom to every speaker in the factory and soon enough, the infamous chant of the factory would be doing its turn through it once more. “No joyful sound shall be heard! Nopony shall look to the clouds with hope. For this day be cursed, by we who dare to release... The might of the storms!” He spoke the chant the whole factory burst out in a shout of the employees but on the lightning department everything was a silent as the grave as his booming voice did its turn once again. “Fire up the turbines, make the darkest clouds and fill them until they nearly explode! Charge up the coils to the given locations!” Everypony began to work their flanks off, for this truly was a big storm they had to produce all the sudden. “Professor, coils are charging up and should be ready to be released soon enough as the coordinates are filled in. The rest will be soon enough,” said a stallion over the intercom to him. And indeed, soon enough all the coils were ready to be fired as more and more clouds began to block the sunlight over the city. “We shall topple Los Pegasus into the worst storm in years! On my mark... Fire!” Blackheart spoke up with a demanding tone. On his mark all the stored energy was released as countless lightning bolts shot up and made their way down to the city. But the roaring sound of the thunder was more than enough for the clouds to release their content as the stored rain began to pour out of them. None of the departments could take a break as this storm would rage on for the rest of the day if not night. ---   All day Star was busy coordinating the bolts and making the coils ready to fire. Eventually the signal was given that the storm had to die down and she was happy the day had ended after so many speechless hours. The young mare had her dinner and went to bed early afterwards. But no matter how hard she tried she couldn't fall to sleep. The thoughts of never be able to leave this place, kept haunting her and hearing about these ‘accidents’. It only made her get the shivers all over her body. Shooting Star knew she was in for a sleepless night. Something she couldn't have while working on the lightning department. Nonetheless she did her best to sleep but wasn't granted any. ---   Meanwhile in his office, Blackheart was sitting there while his eyes gazed upon the coils. One by one they came by, some still firing a bolt in the air. A smirk appeared on his face while he watched the sight before him but was interrupted by somepony walking into his office. He turned around, only to see the unicorn mare that was his assistant. “Professor, doctor Atmosphere is here to see you,” said the unicorn mare. “Bring him to the conference room, I will come shortly,” the stallion replied. He turned back around to enjoy the lightning show. The mare gave a nod before turning herself back around. “As you wish.” After a minute he too went to the conference room. He greeted Atmosphere with a cocky smile. “It is so nice to finally have you here again, Atmosphere. Tell me, was it hard for you to drag yourself to here?” he said chuckling. “Spare me your jokes and speak up, you big idiot,” spoke Atmosphere angry. “Straight down to business, as usual... Anyway, it is about miss Dash. She doesn't belong in this hell hole, Atmosphere, and you know it!” said Blackheart in the same tone. “Now all the sudden you care for a prisoner of yours? What has happened to you? Gone soft?” answered Atmosphere. “I wonder what caused that.” “She is a Dash and she is not supposed to be here! Her mother worked in your precious factory remember, on the rainbow department for crying out loud!” replied Blackheart as he slammed his hoof on the table. “I know that. Thank you for pointing out the obvious again,” said Atmosphere annoyed. “But why did she had to go here?” asked the other stallion. “Because she will look into things. Things never meant for her. Never meant for her family.” “And that is why you drop her here? She is smart, she could go anyplace better!” said Blackheart as he took place in a chair against the other stallion. "Oh, is that so? Did you really think, I placed her, under your command, just because she was smart? No, I placed her, under your command, so she wouldn't find out what happened to her mother!" spoke Atmosphere with even more anger to the stallion. “Oh right, your precious rainbow factory... That is why? That is the whole reason why she is here? I am sorry, Atmosphere, but I am not buying that, you are holding something back here.” Atmosphere couldn't control his anger anymore. Without a single warning did he flew up to Blackheart and dragged him out of the chair. Ending up into a wall where he was lifted by Atmosphere’s foreleg against his throat. The glasses fell off of his nose as he tried to get the leg away from him. “There are things in pegasi history, we never may speak about and that Department is one of them!” spoke Atmosphere. “And what if I tell her anyway? Are you going to kill me for it? Go ahead then! You already broke my wing, what stops you from doing the rest, eh?” said the stallion in a taunting tone under his breath. “You and I both know, that nopony else, can run this place.” Atmosphere let the stallion go and made his way over to the exit of the room. “One more of these jokes, and I will find a replacement for you Blackheart.” The grey stallion laid on the ground catching up with his breath as he gave a death stare to his boss as he reached for his glasses. ---   In the following days did life got much harder in the factory. The work got heavier and the safety priorities would be lowered under Blackheart's personal command. If there was a casualty, it was its own fault, said the gray stallion who ruled with an iron hoof by that point. The life of Shooting Star got worse by the day for she was placed all over the factory. Shifting between departments each couple of days. The young mare couldn't take it anymore and the dozens of accidents that happened every day and heard about didn't really help either. It was all getting too much for her mind. She needed to escape that horrid place. She knew one thing for sure. Doctor Atmosphere might be her only way out of the hole she got in. She had to get an audience with him. Star was trying her best to keep up with the raising tempo but kept making mistakes. She couldn't keep up with it. A problem the whole factory had though. Her whole appearance had changed drastically as cuts and bruises all over her body and her normally friendly and life full eyes, were now nothing more than dim and near colorless. Her smile was gone. He coat, manes and tail, under the dust soot of the coals. Hairs rose due to the static electricity since the coils were always running now, always charging up and ready to release their lethal cargo. ---   Though on one day did she saw her chance. While in the lightning department, she noticed the figure of Atmosphere standing in front of the window of Blackheart’s office before returning to her work. Finally the horn did its job again and Star removed herself out of the spot she had been in and opened her wings a little, flapping them lightly before taking off. “Are you insane!” said a stallion who pulled Star down to the ground. “You almost flew against a fully charged coil! Do you have a death wish or something, foal?” “Huh, what... Did, thank you,” said Star while looking dead tired and confused. “I see, you are tired as well. The name is Thunder Dasher,” he said in a kinder tone. He would have offered his hoof to pull Star back up. “Thank you, Thunder, the name is Shooting Star Dash,” the mare replied as she took his hoof and got back up. Star inspected the stallion. A young pegasus with a white coat, purple manes, having brown eyes and wearing a red sweatband. “Pleasure meeting you Shooting Star, but I have to go now,” said Thunder. Before even one more word could be said, he was gone. Star looked a little confused but focused her attention on Atmosphere. She would speak to him. One way, or the other. “Doctor Atmosphere, may I speak to you for a minute?” asked Star as the stallion left Blackheart’s office once more. “What is your name child?” he asked with his stern voice as he kept moving towards the exit. “Shooting Star Dash.” Atmosphere froze in his tracks and turned himself around. “Speak the words you have to say,” he said to her. Obviously, her name had sparked something within his mind. A terrible thing. “Is, is there, is there a way I can get out of this place?” she asked in a gentle voice. “There is no escape from the storm factory. It is the best guarded prison known to the pegasus race. Only the worst of the worst end up here. Might I ask, what have you done to end up in here?” Atmosphere replied before he rose an eyebrow. He wanted to know why she was there, even though he knew that fact all too well himself. “Well, I did nothing wrong, all I did was making the test and the results said I should work here. I didn't even know it was a prison,” replied Star a little scared. “Nopony who enters, leaves, my child. I am sorry,” said Atmosphere in a stone cold tone. After that would have made his way to the exit of the factory. He still didn't want to replace her because of an incident that happened so long ago. As much as it was true her mother worked in the rainbow department and had witnessed and executed its many horrors, she had vowed to never speak about it ever since she left it for her husband and children. But records of the place still existed and were hidden deep in the factory itself. A part only Atmosphere could enter, but didn't want to take the risk of the rumors becoming true. Blackheart often had called him paranoid about it and was probably right about it. Star sighed deep and defeated while she looked after the stallion leaving the factory. With a couple tears build up in her eyes did she saw how he left her. She slowly began on the way back to her room. She laid down on her bed and began to sob softly for the rest of the day and night.