WARNING: This is a violent story, including curse words and other inappropriate content. Also, the ending of this is unbelievable. If you cannot handle or hate these topics, I'd suggest you leave this story. Don't say I didn't warn you! It's rated M for a reason. All rights go to Aurora Dawn. I've made a few improvements here and there, for I am going to sort them into chapters, but most of it is the original content. Start reading...if you dare!

Introduction:

There's long been rumors as to how, exactly, rainbows are made in Equestria. While a great amount of Pegasi ponies are employed in the Rainbow department of the weather factory, almost all of them do the low-end work. What's known is that the great streams of Spectra, the individual colors of the rainbow, flow through large grates and into vast vats. From there, workers carefully and equally mix the Spectra into the coagulated rainbow pools that dot and run through the factory, and surrounding the city. Next, that mixture is pumped to the floor below, where other emplyees atomize it and store it, until the active weather Pegasi deploy it in field. However, no one knows how individual Spectra is made. Supplies are never seen being brought in, leaving not eve a clue of what goes into a rainbow. Tourists, while visiting the factory, are treated to an extremely foreboding and plain wall, with massive, solid doors baring entry to any pony at any time. While most of the facility's various signs and achitecture is bubbly and welcoming, the Rainbow Factory's upper floor ws protected by harsh imagery of potential hzards and death, and the cloud wall was not made out of the clean white of the rest of the city, but of a black, quietly thundering fog. To become an employee of the upper Rainbow Factory meant sacrificing any life outside those black walls. Workers are sworn to secrecy and forbidden from leaving, and live inside the facility itself. Those few who ever managed to make it out not in a body bag were twisted and disturbed, too damaged to ever bring themselves to talk about it. A lot of theories were proposed; dark magic from captured unicorns, chemicals, and environmental hazards that no sane pony would tolerate, and even thoughts of another unknown sister of Celestia's, destined to create the Spectra instead of raise a sun or moon.

None of them could be farther than the truth...you'd better read to find out about the actual procedure.

Chapter 1: The Flight Test

"C'mon, Orion! We're gonna be late for our final test!" Scootaloo called to a friend of hers.

She was older, now, in her last year of flight school. She, like all other Pegasi in the school, was terribly nervous of the final test. Those that have passed were granted freedom into the world, to find their cutie marks if they haven't yet, and become working ponies.

A little known, or at least a little "thought-about" fact, was of what happened to the fillies that failed their test. While uncommon, one or two from every class generally didn't have it in them to perform the rigorious acts and maneuvers. Those that failed their tests were looked down upon in the worst of ways; shunned and hated. Cloudsdale had always bred a form of nationalism amongst it's occupants. If you weren't the best, or didn't show the potential of being the greatest, you weren't allowed to be part of the "glorious collective".

Scootaloo moved a little to the side as Orion, a tall yet fairly skinny pony, settled next to her. He fluffed his light brown feathers, and gave a worried attempt at a smile as he stared around where he had sat.

They were sitting in the large, open waiting room, onlooking the coliseum, with all the other graduating Pegasi. Just visible in the distance was the factory. Orion glanced at it, and gulped.

"What's the matter Orion?" Scootaloo inquired. "You afraid of getting a dead end job on the snow line?" Orion chuckled a bit, then closed his eyes and sighed. "No...it's just...I don't know. I don't think I can do this. What if I fail? What if I don't fail, but do just bad enough to still be disliked by everyone? I don't know if I can take being deported. Where do we even go anyways?"

Scootaloo gave Orion a friendly punch. "No one knows, you dolt. And we're not going to fail. Everyone here is going to be fine. I know I will at least pass," she laughed. "Thanks to the tips from Rainbow Dash, I'm sure to be fine."

"Oh, yeah, sure. That reassures me. That's actually just as, if not even more reassuring, than the psychopathic hate every pony here seems to love to spread." Orion said.

"Quit panicking, scaredy-wings," Scootaloo replied. "The only one here I think even might fail is that yellow pony with that dark green mane. She's the one who was out sick for that month, you know.

"Oh, yeah," Orion remembered as he craned his head in the other pony's direction. "The one who had that bad case of hoof and wing. She looks pretty confident though."

"I suppose we'll see," Scootaloo trailed, turning to look at The Factory herself. It gave her chills, not of fear, but pride. "I hope I get some cool active weather job. Can you imagine? Everyone in Ponyville of Fillydelphia staring up at me, going 'There goes Scootaloo! Such an amazing flier! And from Cloudsdale, there can be no doubt!'" She smiled in excitement, forgetting her tension for a moment.

"That would be something, I admit. Mind you, just coming from Cloudsdale...who wouldn't be in awe?" Orion pointed out.

"Exactly" Scootaloo agreed. "Praise the Flock."

"Praise the Flock," Orion followed along.

"Places, places, every pony." A massive, buff Pegasus walked towards the entrance to the coliseum. "We're doing to do this by name. Your adjudicators are on the east side of the field. Do not, I repeat, do not, fly too far west. If they lose sight of you for any reason, you'll be failed, immediately. Take deep breaths. Stretch your wings one last time. The test will consist of three sections. Weather clearing, agility, and finally recovery. Clear the clouds, fly through the hoops, and then fly to the marked elevation. Close your wings for at least three seconds. Any less and you'll fail, but keep in mind there's no "extra points" for extra seconds. Finally, recover before you hit the cloud floor. Understood? Any questions?"

The instructor paused, and carefully glanced ay every single pony in the room. Every ponies' eyes were completely focused on him, and none were creased with confusion. "Alright. Aurora Dawn. You're up first. Clear, fly, fall, complete."

The yellow pony nodded and walked quickly up to the starting ramp with purpose. She stared at the watching judges, waited for a nod from all three, and then took off with a powerful force. The ramp bounced slightly from the force of the take-off. Every pony watched as Aurora quickly reached the starting altitude, and then began a direct and purposeful attack on the positioned clouds. With expert timing and intelligent angles, the sky was soon empty of any moisture.

Scootaloo and Orion watched with open mouths as they watched the first testee pull fast and tight turns, expertly shooting dead center through each and every hoop. Finally, Aurora pulled herself up to the proper altitude, hovered, and closed her wings.

The group of students gasped as she started plummeting, down towards the clouds, and counted breathlessly. One...two...three. They sighed as they watched her wings open in the correct amount of time, collectively holding that relief.

Suddenly, Aurora's wings whipped upwards, and the group of students flinched in horror as they all heard the loud, hollow snap, only to be suddenly replaced by an unending, piercing scream. Many, like Orion, shielded their eyes with their wings, as others like Scootaloo could only watch, terrified, as the blur of yellow, green, and red plummeted into a cloud with a dull thump.