Sigma & Lambda's Tales: The Rainbow Factory Incident

by Echo Montana Juliet

Second Opinions

Chapter Six: Day Three: Forty Four Hours Remain

Sitting in the ash and the soot, Sigma laughed. Echo, hearing his son's deep voiced chuckling, couldn't help but grin.

"What's so funny, boy?"

"You can't let the dead rest, can you?"

"Well, first off, you're not dead. Secondly, you clearly need some kind of clean off. You look like you're a living volcano, covered in all that ash."

"Can I get a second opinion?"

A voice came from the doorway out to the hall.

"You're ugly too."

"Love you too, Jules. How long was I out?"

Echo checked his imaginary watch.

"I'd say, about thirty minutes, or so. Big Mac wasn't using many words when he came up to me, so I had to guess what the problem was."

"Say, speaking of him, where is he?"

"He's outside with Lambda, talking to the robot."

"So you found him, what's he doing here?"

"Trying to prevent us from leaving."

"Really? Has he seen how over powered we can be? I mean seriously, Lambda made this entire village, with just her mind, and the surrounding woods. I can generate floating orbs of light from thin air. Echo's the living bass cannon, and you Jules, are the power cord to it."

"Insanity, isn't it?"

"Who, us or the world?"

"Doesn't matter, let's take care of the robot."

"Who sent it? Anyone I know?"

"No one special, just the silly thing that gave us these powers."

"I thought you two were born like that?"

"It's an awkward story, best saved for a day we won't tempt fate on, okay."

"Alright, best go to Lambda."

Sigma tried to stand, but found his legs were fully asleep. Echo walked over to him, and looked down. Sigma held out his hands like a little kid would if he wanted to ride on your shoulders. Echo grabbed his hands and threw him over his shoulder and casually strolled out of the room, to the door, and then out to the courtyard. Outside the robot looked even bigger, and ready for a fight. It's metal fists were clenched, and a strange whirring sound was being emitted too. It's scanner was fixed on Lambda, then it looked at Echo and Sigma and pointed a large steel finger at them.

"You!"

It's voice was crackling with electricity. There was such a limited amount of emotion in it, that it nearly sounded opposite of what it clearly did feel, which from the giant metal finger and increased whizzing sound, was most likely anger.

"Me!"

"The bane of my master's existence!"

"Finally got free of our entrapment I see."

"Yes, and now he sent me to make sure you cannot do it again."

"What are you going to do? Kill me?"

"No, just trap you in this dimension."

"Jules, take Sigma."

Jules took Sigma off of Echo's shoulder. Echo walked up to the gargantuan robot.

"Do you really think you can do that?"

"Yes. Our master-"

"He. Is. Not. My. Master. Anymore!"

"You own him a debt."

"I owe him nothing!"

"You don't deserve your powers."

"At least I use them as righteously as possible."

"That's not why he gave them to you."

"I know why he gave them to me, but he can find someone else to do his dirty work."

"He can't, you're the only one current;y possible of such a task, until every version of you is deleted."

"Which can never happen now, can't it."

"According to my database, this is the last time you will die."

"But others will live on, not here, but in other dimensions."

"All he needs is for enough of you to die, and you are enough."

"Well I am dying in a time previous to my actually having lived, so you're master is going to have to wait a very long time."

"But you are dying now. Time is irrelevant, so long as you die, he will get what is rightfully his."

"So why do you have to be here to prevent me from leaving?"

"Because he doesn't want intervention from others."

"Like who?"

"Unknown."

"Unknown? What do you mean unknown? How can you prevent something from happening if you don't even know what to look for?"

"Orders dictate to prevent others from coming in and/or out of the door. No further instructions."

"Well you are a sheep, and you're very close to the edge of a cliff."

"What are you going to do about it, punk?"

"Is that some kind of challenge?"

"I'm indestructible, what do you think you can do to me?"

"Destroy you."

The robot began to laugh. The laugh sounded like grinding gears, and was loud. Suddenly, the robot vanished, and Echo stood there, looking proud.

"I take it you destroyed him."

"Quite easily, if you ask me."

"I thought he said he was indestructible?"

"I guess I missed that part. Let's get moving, we got to find the 'Rainbow Factory' and deal with the mess."

"I guess we're going on foot?"

"Yeah, and it's probably way out there."

"Can't we just teleport out there?"

"Not unless you know where we're going."

"It's going to be boring."

"I've got time to kill. Rather, 'til I'll be killed."

"I don't want to walk that far."

"It could be just over the hill."

"That'll put me over the hill."

"Shut up and get moving, I'm done arguing."

"Alright, alright. Which direction?"

"Westward!"

Echo, Sigma, and Jules headed to the west of the forest. Lambda stayed back for a second to talk with Big Macintosh.

"Will you be accompanying us Big Mac?"

"Nope."

"Alright, good luck. We'll be back with everyone."

"Thank you."

Big Macintosh nodded, and Lambda performed a quick bow and chased after her family. Big Macintosh walked back to the house, and into the kitchen. He noticed that his sister's favorite hat was on the island, soot and blood free. He smiled. When Lambda finally caught up with the others, she set up the light barrier.

"Reassured a hopeless guy?"

"That's a way to put it, yes."

"Maybe you are the good child."

"You're not half bad yourself."

Sigma looked to the withered canopy and sighed.

"This is going to be the longest trip of my life."

"Only if you die in the factory too. You may encounter longer trips in the future."

"Okay, this is the longest trip of my life, at the moment."

"Longest distance or time wise?"

"Either."

"Well firstly, we've barely left the town, and secondly, time is irrelevant when used for counting."

"You are a horrible person."

"I may be, but you are leaving yourself to be taunted will this negative attitude."

Sigma groaned and pushed on in silence. The forest to the west was significantly thicker then other part of the forest. By noon, they'd cleared the forest, and were in a kind of desert plain. Lambda walked out and looked around.

"It's like we just stepped out of an oasis, the sheer lack of trees."

"Anyone else going to mention the clouds in the distance?"

Jules had pointed to the sky, and in it were clouds that appeared to be rain clouds. Rain clouds in a wasteland however, were not a welcoming sight. Green-ish lightning flashed in the clouds, and the wind became furious. The desert wasteland was not completely plains however, and a mountain was close by. The group rushed towards the mountain for cover against the acid rain. In the mountain was carved out a passage, and there they took shelter.

"Blasted wasteland. How did ponies figure out nuclear power?"

"Well it wasn't them that were fighting, you know that right?"

"It wasn't? Who was it then?"

"It was our current universe counter-parts."

"Oh that right, of course we're in a universe that already has you two in it. That doesn't explain why you glassed this place."

"We got angry at each other, and it turned into something like Superman would do. Destroy entire towns to defeat a boss."

"Well I just hope they don't start fighting anytime soon."

"Why? Are you afraid we couldn't defeat them?"

"No, just that we have a job here, and their fighting would interfere with it."

"Anyone know when this rain is going to stop?"

"I don't know, why do you step outside and check where the clouds are?"

"Because I would prefer not to get my face burnt off, thank you very much."

The clouds were almost never ending in their downpour of rain. The group would have had a problem with it, if it didn't cause a large hole to be melted in the area in front of the cave.

"This rain! It's really getting on my nerves!"

"Calm down Sigma, it'll end. Nothing lasts forever, and you know it."

"Can I get a second opinion on that, for the sake of me living forever?"

"You've already used your daily second opinion."

"Curse my wastefulness! Lambda, can you do something about those clouds?"

"No, I can manipulate light, not clouds."

"Can't you blast the clouds away Echo?"

"I could, but I don't want to."

"And I don't want to sit here while my friends are dying and being killed!"

"They aren't, trust me. That factory couldn't be working under nuclear apocalypse conditions."

"What makes you so certain?"

"Because this place isn't actually glass. If these ponies developed nuclear technology, then the 'Rainbow Factory' would be the first to utilize it, and defend against it. Only some kind of nuclear event could have caused this, really. Nothing else would explain the acid rain either. There's also a lack of rainbows in the sky as you can clearly see, and those clouds aren't rainbow colored."

Sigma considered this information as the stormed raged on. Thunder and lightning occurred outside while he thought.

"I suppose you have a point. Fine, but I still hate being in one place for too long when I have friends in need."

"I can understand that, which is why I am proud to call you my son. Now rest, time always passes faster when you sleep, trust me. I've had entire days pass, because I napped."

"Alright, just wake me up before you decide to leave, I don't want to walk across a desert alone."

"You can trust me, you'll be fine. Now rest."

With that, Sigma snapped his fingers and a bed appeared. He got into it and slept. When Echo woke him, it was night time and the acid rain had turned the majority of the sand to acid slush. Sigma rubbed his eyes and got out of the bed.

"That storm took it's time."

"We were going to leave a couple of time because the rain had stopped, but then it would start back up again second later."

"That's why you always got to check the clouds. It can't rain if there's no rain clouds."

"You'd be amazed at what mother nature can pull off. I mean think about it, the weather is traditionally controlled by the pegasus, but acid clouds are untouchable by them, and only true pegasus can effect the clouds."

"You got a point there, those clouds were not being controlled by traditional means."

"It's like the whole world has become the Everfree forest, in the sense that you don't have to control the weather."

"Enough philosophy, time to get this show on the road."

"The show must go on."

So they left the cave. The sand had created a maze around the cave and further. They continued west, weaving along the twisted sand path, laid out for them by the acid. They saw a large dune in the sand after awhile of playing a balancing act. the dune was made of sandstone, and hadn't been effected by the rain, as far as they could tell. They climb over the top, and saw a ruined, burnt out, old factory. It was a plain looking square steel building. It had three smoke stacks, one of which was broken. A large cargo bay door, slightly unhinged. Also a smaller square section, most likely as a kinder front to what truely went on behind the scenes.

"Sigma, Lambda, I give you-"

Pause for dramatic effect.

"The 'Rainbow Factory' and all in apocalyptic glory."

"How much longer do we have until you're actually supposed to die?"

Echo twirled his finger in the air. The night suddenly turned to day, then back to night.

"A few hours."

"Couldn't have done that before?"

"I wanted to find the factory before I got ahead of myself. Now, let's go say hello."

The family began to walk towards the factory. They discussed a plan of action.

"We'll blow up the cargo bay door. If they assault us we'll take cover. Sigma and Lambda, go through the front entrance and flank around catch them in the cross fire."

They made it to the factory cargo bay door. Echo and Jules began to place explosives around the door in various places. Sigma and Lambda did as Echo said and went around to the front. They waited until Echo and Jules announced their arrival, and walked in. The main lobby looked innocent with white walls, and vats of unfinished rainbow liquid. The entire lobby was abandoned. Sigma jumped behind a counter and found a button labeled 'Emergency' and pressed it. The wall behind him was fairly generic besides the words 'Weather Control Factory' which quickly turned into a large rack of weapons. From spears and axes, to pistols and machine guns.

"Pick your poison, sister."

"I like that aqua-camouflage marksman rifle."

So Sigma jumped onto the rack and threw to her the rifle and a bag of ammunition for it. He grabbed two small sub-machine guns, some ammo, and a Claymore sword.

"I think I hear it whispering to me. I think it wants heads."

"You going to grab a tower shield to, think I see one hidden in a slot there."

Lambda joined Sigma on the racks and grabbed a vertical rack, pulling it out revealed a large assortment of shield types. There was classic bucklers, kite shields, shields that you wore like a gauntlet, and Sigma's favorite, the tower shield. He grabbed a gray one with intricate golden patterns on it.

"We should get moving, I don't hear guns or other fighting, but they might be in trouble."

Sigma took point. They jogged through a pair of double doors next to the receptionist's area where they got the weapons. Through a hall they went, and into another set of doors into the processing area where the rainbows were brought together in their liquid forms, before being finalized into a vapor to be released into the air. Along the right side wall was a staircase into the upper floors of the main factory floor.

"Come on, that's where we'll find Echo and Jules."

"Following, lead the way."

Up the stairs they ran. When they came through the doors they were on the top most scaffolding. The place smelled of the rotting dead and motor oil. It was choking Lambda, but Sigma appeared unaffected by the putrid stench. Sigma handed his sister a gas mask. She put it on and stopped gagging. They walked over to the ledge and looked out onto the factory floor. Down there was their father and uncle in front of a gaping hole they'd made. Immediately below them on some lower scaffolding was a shocking sight. The fair princess of the sun herself, Princess Celestia. She hadn't noticed them, none of the robotic workers had either. Only Echo and Jules had expected them, and saw them up there. Celestia was talking in monologue, mostly about how she had trapped these pests, and that they would meet with a terrible fate, along with their friends, etcetera. Suddenly, Echo commanded attention with his enhanced voice.

"Celestia! Would you kindly shut up! I came here to liberate the damned, not to listen to you talk endlessly. I just have to do something really quick, then I will end your miserable life."

"What would that be?"

From the shadows came a figure who struck Echo in the back with a blade. Their father dropped, only to reveal that the assassin was Echo. He dragged the body to that wall. With his last breaths, the body against the wall yelled to the heavens above.

"All I needed was to die! Does that satisfy your needs?"

And with that, the body slumped to the side, lifeless. Jules looked to his brother, and said in a barely audible tone.

"Godspeed you inglorious son of a gun."

The living Echo collected the weapons off of his dead body, and walked next to his brother. Then another figure dropped down from the rafters onto the other side of Echo. It was another Jules. They were all talking inaudibly, but while they did so, Lambda was restraining Sigma from leaping over the edge to mourn their father's death. Having wrestled him onto the ground, waiting for the fighting to begin, Lambda waited for the fire fight to begin. They heard banging on the balcony below.

"Quiet insolent colts! Your treason against your princess will be punished to the highest degree! Servants, kill them!"

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!"

Sigma and Lambda rushed to the ledge and aimed down.

"Vamanos, vamanos!"

Celestia head whipped around to spot the duo on the rafters above jumping down. She quickly began to hurry through a set of doors behind her. Sigma and Lambda would have followed her, but they were preoccupied by deadly robots with lasers and saw hands. There was about twenty robots on the factory floor, and they piled in through doorways and skylights. There didn't seem to be a living soul around, just the robots and the family fighting them. Two hours and approximately two thousand robots later, the fight was over. The original Jules called from the factory floor to the siblings on the second story scaffolding.

"Bang, bang bang!"

"Vamanos, vamanos!"

"Where did Celestia go?"

"Somewhere up here, let's go."

A fire escape type ladder was dropped to the group on the ground level. They climbed up and everyone went through the doors into a darkened area. Sigma produced one of his light orbs, and they continued to walk through the hallway. It was a narrow concrete corridor, so narrow in fact, that they had to walk single file.

"I don't like this. It's quiet, too quiet, the kind of quiet that kills."

"I don't like this darkness, it's the kind of darkness that death lurks around in."

"I don't like this hallway, it's too narrow. It's smaller than the hallway in a shotgun shack."

"Would everyone just be quiet, you're all going to jinx us."

They continued down the hall in silence. At the end was a white door. When they walked through the door, they discovered the place where they keep those who must wait for their fates. In large bird cages sat the rotting dead and dying. They all became effected by the scent in the air, except for Sigma. Sigma handed out gas masks for them so they'd be able to pay attention to the task at hand.

"Check the cages, we've got friends in need."

Sigma generated orbs for everyone and passed them out. They spread out amongst the cages. The room was enormous, however the cages only lined the bottom of the room. Abruptly, Celestia's voice shattered the silence with a deranged laughter.

"You'll never find them in time. I finally have the factory working again, and you can't stop me this time!"

"You won't get away with this you fiend!"

"But I already have, check the factory floor yourself and say goodbye to your friend!"

"Jules-es, check for any survivors and evacuate them! Lambda, Sigma, factory floor now!"

Sigma generated ten more light orbs and threw them into the air for the Jules clones. Running back through the narrow hallway, they came out into the factory floor. Two large pits had opened up in their absence. A conveyor belt ran to each one, and at the bottom of each vat was acid. Platforms appeared to prevent one from immediately falling into the acid, but they didn't look like they were meant to be your true saviors. A multitude of needles surrounded each platform and were connected to a larger vat in the corner of the room closest to the smaller section of the factory. On the conveyor belts were strapped their friends, including the lost Twilight Sparkle. They were all crying for help. Echo shouted a single word that reverberated through the entire facility.

"Stop!"

And everything did. Time had stopped for the world around Echo. Everyone and everything was immobile. He looked around at what he had done. On of his lesser used abilities, the ability to absolutely halt time. He jumped down to the conveyor belts and broke the mechanism that caused them to move. He continued to unbind his friends from their restraints. Further back along one of the conveyor belts was strapped the poor, misguided Rainbow Dash. Like his other friends, he showed his mercy and released her. He dragged her off the belt and hoof cuffed her himself and threw her next to his dead body. When he finished with the releasing of his friends, he put them on the balcony next to him and his children.

"Start!"

The world returned to it's regular time. Twilight and friends continued to scream, until they realized they were no longer in danger, and began to look around. Twilight was the first to recover from her astonishment.

"How the- How'd I get here? I was just about to be killed, and-"

"Your safe now. Was there any other survivors before you were brought to the conveyor belts?"

"One, maybe two. They were in poor condition. Did you save us?"

"Yes, I did. You'll be fine for now, my son and daughter will take you to 'New Ponyville' back in the 'Everfree Forest' with your friends here."

Dazed and confused, Twilight nodded. Sigma and Lambda stepped forward and bowed. While Sigma and Lambda prepared their friends for the journey ahead, the Jules came out of the narrow hallway with ponies in tow.

"Lambda! We need you over here now!"

"What is it?"

"We got a couple of survivors, but they're not doing so hot. You'll need to restore them quickly, or else they'll never make it out of here alive."

"Got it, put them down and clear the area. I need room to work."

The Jules set them down on a large table they'd produced from the surrounding air. They all stepped back as Lambda began to work her powers. She put a hand on each pony, and produced a greenish glow from them. She was having to strain because normally she would need both hands or hooves on the target in order from the regeneration process to work properly. When she finished, she staggered backwards and fell against the railing. The two ponies were rustling on the table, still unconscious but stable. Twilight stepped forward.

"I feel as if I know these ponies."

"You could. I tend to find that if you are friends with someone in a close dimension, but not in one like this, then you recognize them. It's inexplicable, but it's always fun to see people get confused when I appear randomly and think they know me."

"Do you recognize them?"

Echo looked at the two stallions. One was like a winter camouflage coat, white and grey. His eye were closed, tightly. His hair was a mess, and his tail was cut short, but unevenly. He was strange because even being about as old as Twilight or her friends, he still hadn't obtained a cutie mark, but it was a disturbed area. Like he had one, but he had willed it away. The second one was like a brick. His hair was like some kind of Egyptian crown, how it was prepared. His eyes were shut, but only lightly. He was clearly a unicorn, and appeared to be a master of explosives or some kind of thing according to his cutie mark.

"I know them, yes. Old friends of mine. They'd always get into trouble. Never could go anywhere with them, but nowhere was fun without them."

"Do they have names?"

"Sure, of course they do."

"Will you tell me?"

"There's a time and place for everything, but not now."

"Can I get a second opinion."

"You're also insane."

"Ha ha ha, very funny. Why won't you tell me their names?"

"Because they don't belong here, and to know what doesn't belong, is to not belong."

"That doesn't make any sense, what so ever."

"Well it's not my job to make sense, just to make use of my abilities. For better or for worse."

Lambda had recovered and stood.

"For those who suffer."

Sigma joined the circle that was being formed around Twilight and the two ponies.

"And those who damage."

And in unison, the Jules spoke.

"From the darkness we rise."

The family spoke in total unison, as if they were one person.

"And to the light we will guide."

Then one of the Jules stabbed the other and shoved him over the railing to his death. No one said anything about it. Echo and Jules rigged the place with explosives, and sent Sigma and Lambda back to the village with their friends, and their dead father and uncle. Shortly after the factory left their sight, Echo and Jules teleported to them.

"The parties about to start, Rainbow Dash, you want to light the fireworks. The start of a new leaf."

Echo held out a explosives trigger to Rainbow Dash. Her face was of sad surprise, as if she hadn't expected to be shown such actions. The group had stopped. Rainbow Dash took the trigger. They all looked back as Rainbow Dash hit the trigger mechanism. It took a few seconds, then an explosion engulfed the skies where the 'Rainbow Factory' used to be. Echo hadn't lied either, there were fireworks going off. It was a display to be seen from nearly anywhere. It was most visible in 'New Ponyville'. Big Macintosh had been looking out the window, hoping his family was alright. Suddenly, a large mushroom cloud appeared over the horizon, accompanied by colorful explosions. He rushed outside to get a better view of it. He'd seen the strange family walk off in that direction. Back in the desert wastelands, everyone was cheering. They would no longer have to deal with the death and murder that was the dreaded 'Rainbow Factory'.

"So did you just produce the fireworks, or did you actually make them?"

"We used up the liquid rainbows and coated the gun power in it."

"How did you make them explode into non-circular patterns?"

"That's a secret to everyone."

"You and your secrets. They annoy me because they seem so minor."

"Even the smallest ant, can hurt the most."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, that if I told you something you thought was minor, or insignificant, then it would hurt you in ways you wouldn't like."

"Oh, I didn't realize."

"No one ever does. Everyone always overlooks the important stuff and sees it as minor."

For a few seconds, they were all quiet. Then Echo began heading back east, and everyone followed. For the next hour everyone was silent, not a peep. Not even from Pinkie Pie, the only one who would have tried to break the silence and awkwardness. When they emerged from the forest, it was noon with heavy overcast. From the looks of it, everyone was in their houses. The group headed for the large house, and went inside. Big Macintosh was sitting in the kitchen, and there was ten plates on the island with apple based foods of varying types.

"So I take it you saw the explosion?"

"Eeyup."

"Big Mac! I thought I'd never see you again!"

Applejack, and Apple Bloom hugged Big Macintosh. Rainbow Dash stood there confused. She looked from Big Macintosh, to all the others in the room. She looked down, and began to walk away.