The Eternal Rainbow

Achroma gazed up at Cloudsdale, and felt her jaw drop like a sack of cement at its glory. When she was a little filly, she had always wanted to visit the cloud city. And now, here she was, a newly turned vampire, ready to enter the city and locate the Rainbow Factory.

All right, let's do this thing, thought Achroma as she took to the clouds with her powerful new wings. As the first glimpse of the moon peeked out on the horizon, Achroma began to feel strange. Almost like there was something inside her that was beginning to stir once again. The higher the moon climbed, the more intense the feeling became, until, finally, the moon's full glory became visible and the feeling Achroma was experiencing grew to an extraordinairly painful peak, nearly causing her to crash into somepony's cloud home if it hadn't been for a well-timed flutter of her wings, which caused her to land upon a soft cloud instead.

As Achroma lay there upon the cloud and writhed in agony, her feathery wings began to change into leather ones of the same color while her fingers began to turn into claws, the canines of her teeth grew into razor sharp fangs, and her eyes turned a deep shade of crimson.

In a matter of excruciatingly painful moments, where once stood an ordinary pegasus was a monstrous and bloodthirsty creature of the night... and she'd just caught sight of her first meal of the night. A fine pegasus mare whose skin was pure as snow and a fiery yellow mane style clad in what appeared to be a businessmare's attire. Achroma smirked and giggled a little as she leapt forward to try and attack her... only for the mare to duck in an almost nonchalant manner.

“First thing to learn child? Never giggle with delight if you go on a hunt.”

“What the buck?!”

"Stealth is the name of the predator game, Miss Burst. Also, it is most unwise to attack other vampires. They don't take it too well, most of the time, save for during..." the mare said before trying to find the right word. "... relations."

"Other vampires? You mean you're a vampire too?" asked Achroma, before she realized something. "Hey, how do you know my name?"

The mare chuckled. "Why, Mother told me who you were, child. My name is Aurora Dawn. I am the founder and owner of the Rainbow Factory." said Aurora, a small smile on her face, before she suddenly exploded into a swarm of bats that appeared to have a shimmering white glow around them.

“Whoa… okay that is AMAZING!” shouted Achroma as she followed the swarm. They flew a bit before arriving at a surprisingly big and high tech factory.

As Achroma drew near to the Factory, she quickly began to realize there was one problem: there wasn't a door.

"Who the hay builds a factory WITHOUT a door?" Achroma muttered to herself as she began to circle the Factory, but was unsuccessful at finding a way inside the facility.

You want inside the factory, Achroma? Then you'll need to truly open your eyes as a vampire. This nation of ours is full of secrets that mortals completely overlook. Of course, some of that was the doing of our own kind, but even then it's amazing what you can find with truly clear vision. a voice that Achroma recognized to be Aurora's said in her mind.

"Right... now, how the buck am I supposed to do that?"

Think long and hard… imagine trying to find a thing of blood. said Aurora’s voice. Achroma took a deep breath and thought long and hard... before she opened her eyes. Instantly, a new world opened up to her.

“Holy... this is... how did I see none of this before?”

You were never truly seeing before.

“Fair enough.” said Achroma. She looked around and saw a pipe that was glowing rather brightly… a little TOO bright, in fact. It seemed as though it was hiding something.

There's my way inside the facility, thought Achroma, before she swooped in towards the pipe. As she grew closer to the pipe, Achroma began to realize that it had some kind of markings on it.  Landing next to it, Achroma began to examine the markings using her newly enhanced vision. As she did, more marks seemed to light up in her mind, before they suddenly disappeared and a voice Achroma immediately recognized as Shade's began to speak in her mind.

Welcome, newly-turned, to the Rainbow Producers and Weather Maker Facility, or as I'm sure you've heard it called, the Rainbow Factory, Shade said in Achroma's mind. You may have heard some... unsettling rumors about what happens within the Factory, particularly in regards to the fate of those Cloudsdale Pegasi who are not terribly gifted fliers.

A sudden chill ran through Achroma at these words. She had indeed heard the stories of a terrible machine supposedly deep within the bowels of the Factory known as the Pegasus Device that killed thousands of Cloudsdale Pegasi a day and used their blood to help create the beautiful rainbows that arched across the sky. Although, nopony was really certain what happened to the bodies. Two friends of hers had said different things, one stating the bodies are turned into glue, the other claiming they're sold off to a psychopathic pony, and are used for cupcakes.

Well, I can safely assure you that, while there IS a Pegasus Device in the facility, it's merely a giant chemical mixing chamber, and that while those who fail their final flight examination are indeed shipped to this Factory, they are NOT in any way used in the rainbow-making process, nor is their blood. We instead give them something far greater than those who manage to pass. I'm sure you want to see for yourself. As you can see, this pipe is far too small for even a foal to enter, so you will need to use your Shadow Swarm power.

“Right… Shadow Swarm… what the buck is a Shadow Swarm?”

The Shadow Swarm is how a vampire is able to move freely and without any trouble. Simply embrace the shadows in your mind, allow yourself to melt into them, and you'll transform into a swarm of bats. said Aurora's voice in Achroma's mind.

"Okay... if you say so."

No sooner had Achroma started to channel in so-called inner darkness, than she exploded into a swarm of bats, which had an eerie blue glow to them. To Achroma, it felt as if her mind had been splintered along with her body, yet it all still seemed to be connected somehow.

Unfortunately, it proved to be VERY difficult to steer a swarm of bats.

The Shadow Swarm is very difficult to control if you do not focus on where it is you wish to go. For instance if you wish to go down the chimney of the factory you must think that it’s where you want to go.

“Right… would’ve been nice to know that BEFORE hand!” growled Achroma… and it sounded rather… distorted. Not at all what she was used to… and then she remembered she had some training to do so she did as Shade told her to and soon the swarm went down the chimney and she found herself reassembling into a normal pony... several feet off the ground.

"WHAT THE BUCK?! SOMEPONY, ANYPONY HELP ME-OOF!" screamed Achroma as she desperately tried to get her wings going, only to crash into a nearby wall, earning a groan from some of the workers below as she dizzily fluttered down to the ground.

Nearby, Aurora suppressed a giggle. "Oh, I never get tired of that," she said.

"What the buck just happened?" asked Achroma as she pulled herself up and wobbled around a little.

"You ran out of blood," said Aurora as if Achroma had just asked what time it was.

"What do you mean, I ran out of blood? Vampires drink blood to survive, not fly around as a flock of bats," said Achroma.

"Vampires need blood for more reasons than mere survival, young one. Nearly every single power at your disposal, save for your Vampire Vision, enhanced physical capabilities, and Hypnosis are fueled by the blood of mortals. From Shadow Swarm right down to the most complex of Necromancy spells, blood drives everything in a vampire's life. Now, come. Let me give you the tour," said Aurora. Achroma followed right behind her as the tour began.

All around Achroma were high-tech pieces of technological equipment, far, far in advance for their time. Dominating the scene was a massive machine that Achroma recognized as a chemical mixing chamber, with paint on it dubbing the machine the Power Efficient Gem Augmented Sky Unicolor Synthesizer.

"So, that's the Pegasus Device?" asked Achroma.

"Indeed it is," said Aurora. "It's the Rainbow Factory's central mixing chamber for the chemicals we need in order to make the beautiful rainbows that color the sky after a rainstorm. However, rainbow production is merely a front that pays our expenses for the true purpose of this facility."

Achroma couldn't help but watch as hoards of young Pegasi, both mares and stallions, were in total states of panic, from rocking back and forth in the fetal position, to crying uncontrollably, to muttering, "This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening..." over and over again, to simply staring straight ahead, only moving when the crowd moved.

"And... what exactly is that purpose?" the new vampire asked Aurora as they entered an elevator.

"You'll see in a moment," said Aurora as she pressed an elevator button and it started going down.

“Wait all this tech is advanced….. so why can’t you all just sell some on it to the public? You know kinda HELP THEM OUT A BIT?!” complained Achroma.

“The world isn’t ready for this kind of tech yet… when it is THEN we’ll share but for now it’s not ready.” replied the more senior vampire. They finally reached the bottom and Achroma was surprised by what she saw.

Everywhere she looked, Achroma saw countless Pegasi vampires, lifting massive weights, meditating, fighting with both their bare hands and with weapons such as swords, long spikes that seemed to be made out of decorative wood, and, unless her new Vampire Vision was making her hallucinate, a few vampires were summoning fireballs, freezing barrels of water, and powering robots with what seemed to be black lightning with a red glow around it, amongst other magic that seemed too dark to be normal Unicorn magic, all while heavy metal rock music played overhead.

Achroma's jaw dropped as she watched the spectacle. Aurora smiled at the filly. "Welcome to the Cave, young Achroma," she said.

As she and Aurora walked along the walkway, a few heads turned toward Achroma. More than once she thought she heard someone mutter, "New girl."

"What IS this place?" asked Achroma.

"The Rainbow Factory on the surface is where the students work during the day, when they're mortal. During the night, when the mind of the vampire emerges, they come down here to learn how to better use their powers, and develop the self control needed to better control the primal bloodlust all vampires have," explained Achroma.

“Then what’s with all the panicking ones above us?”

“Oh, they just got told they’re going to be working overtime without pay.”

“...that is horrible.”

“Yes, well, you showed up and we have to keep up appearances now don’t we?” asked Aurora, before she stopped in front of Apartment 618. "Here we are... welcome to your new home for the duration of your training."

And with that, Aurora opened the door, revealing a somewhat decent studio apartment. On a coat hanger near the door, Achroma caught sight of a shirt that matched the color of her fur, a black tie, black slacks, black leather boots, a long white lab coat, a black mask of some kind, and goggles.

“Whoa... looks like something out of a horror story. Some kinda mad doctor outfit.”

“You will need to wear it here. Asbestos practically runs the upper floors.” said Aurora. "You should get some rest, Achroma. You've got a big day tomorrow."

Achroma nodded, before she thought of something. "Hey, wait. What exactly will I be doing during the day?" she asked Aurora, who chuckled.

"Ah, yes, I almost forgot. You'll be helping operate the Pegasus Device. Fair warning, though. It's a pretty messy job, what with all the chemicals and whatnot. Anymore questions?" she asked Achroma, who shook her head. "Well, then good night."

And with that, Aurora left Achroma with her thoughts. And damn, were those thoughts tumbling around in her mind. Even now, she could hardly believe what she'd become and where she was.

That doesn't matter now, Achroma, the young vampire thought to herself as she made her way into the bedroom and began to remove her robes, before crawling into bed wearing her bra and panties. What matters now is how you go about dealing with your new life in the morning. Because Aurora's right. I have a big day tomorrow.

And with that, Achroma closed her eyes and fell asleep to the mixture of rock music and thumping from machinery overhead.

...

During my decades at the Rainbow Factory, I eventually rose to the rank of Supervisor of the Production line. They paid very, very well, and within twenty years I had more money than I knew what to do with, and then some.

My vampire studies were interesting to say the least. I learned about binge drinkers, disgusting monsters that drink more than they need, and Dark Vampires. These guys? Scare me. I’ve never met one but they still terrify me on the idea of them alone. While unlike binge drinkers they drink only what they need, they are pure evil to the point of taking advantage of a mortal’s generosity and hospitality so they can kill said mortal’s entire family, stallion or mare, adult or a newborn foal. And to top it off, they’re more proficient with Necromancy due to their natural connection to the so-called Nightmare Forces. And of course, I learned about werewolves, but if truth be told, they’re not all that different from the legends.

Of course, I didn’t merely learn about the enemies of vampire-kind. I managed to learn a few combat techniques. In fact, I was top of my class in weapons combat and hand-to-hand combat.

Vampire Magic, on the other hand, I’m no great shakes at. I mean, I can throw fireballs, freeze ponies, and shoot bolts of black lightning that had a red glow to it, but I can only really do the basic attacks.

But, the one thing I was downright, no-way-around-it terrible at was Necromancy. I tried bringing back a GERBIL and I sucked epically at it. I repeat. A GERBIL. But that’s not the point of this… the real point is because I want to tell about how I saved Granny Smith’s ass one time.