Reborn

"You have beautiful eyes."

That's all I remembered before I felt nothing but pain and relief from the grinding blades of the Pegasus Device, while the pegasus that I had admired all my life laughed at me in the hour of her bittersweet victory. I was nothing but trash to her. A nuisance. A pawn in her game of murdering innocent pegasi, just because they failed at a flying test. I never thought this could happen, nor that the pegasus who had accepted me as her sister could dispose of me without shedding a single tear. I thought she loved me, but apparently, I was mistaken.

After the sound of my own flesh and bone grinding had subsided, I remember falling into a darkness. My only thought was that I was going to be stuck in that factory as one of the many innocent victims who had met their fate through the Pegasus Device, but this darkness was not anything like the factory itself. It was always quiet, and I was the only pony there. I was alone for eternity. At least that's what I thought, until I heard a faint cry within the dark void I had ventured through for countless years. I had found another pony. Another victim.

Something was different about her. Her wings were missing, something I found both sad and humiliating. I didn't know whether or not to approach her, even though I was dead and I couldn't be killed again. I knew that her wings had been removed by some sort saw, due to the consistency of the two severed limbs on her back. They were cut neatly, and still swollen. Her wings had been cut off by force. Somepony had removed her of what makes her a pegasus. A hanus act that should never be performed.

I was angry, sad, and lost. I hadn't seen somepony in years, and if anything, neither had she. She needed somepony in this place. This void of darkness that I couldn't explain. I decided to approach the young pegasus, and as I did, she became aware of my presence.

"Who's there?" asked the pegasus.

"It's alright. I'm lost, just like you," I spoke.

She turned toward me, her eyes full of tears. She hesitated to say a word to me, seeing I was only a stranger to her.

"How can I trust you?! For all I know, you could be an Orchestrator here to laugh at me, all because I have no wings!" snapped the pegasus.

I didn't know how to act. She still thought she was in the factory, left to die in some part of the large building. How had she gone, I wondered. Had she met her fate through the Pegasus Device, or had she met her end a much worse way? She couldn't have flown to save herself from the guards. Had she been tazed to death? Committed suicide somehow? All these options reminded me of my time in the factory. I was so close to escaping the factory that I could taste it, but I was outsmarted by a pegasus I didn't even recognize anymore. She was only a monster to me now.

"I'm no Orchestrator. I'm just a pegasus," I said. "I met my end through the demented machine you and I both know as "the Pegasus Device." A machine designed to extract spectre to create rainbows."

The young pegasus calmed herself, looking at me differently. I was prepared for anything she planned to do.

"If you died through that machine, then why do you still have your wings!?" she asked me. "When I was forced into the factory, I was taken as one of the weaker pegasi, and my wings were cut off by one of the Orchestrators! The one thing that makes me a pegasus was taken from me and tossed aside like garbage, and broadcasted for everypony to see! I was humiliated!"

The thought of a pegasus's wings being cut off against a pegasus's will, made a chill run down my spine. Had Rainbow Dash truly gone so low to do something so horrid? Rainbow Dash used to be a legend, but now I saw her as nothing but a ruthless monster. Going so low to remove the wings of pegasi seemed a bit extreme, but after seeing her true colors in my final moments of life, nothing would surprise me.

"At the time I was taken to the factory, cutting wings off wasn't a necessity, so I got to keep mine," I said. "However, in the time I was in the factory, I lost somepony I loved and cared for. He was taken from me by Rainbow Dash, all because I failed to pass the flying exam, after teaching me everything that she knew. Everypony makes mistakes, and just because I made one tiny mistake, I lost the one I loved through greed and selfishness! I HATE HER!"

My anger had startled the young pegasus, and I was surprised just how angry I had gotten. It was as if I had released all of my hate for the monster I once knew as a sister in one sentence. I did hate her! She was a horrible pegasus that I wished I could inflict the same pain I felt in my final moments ten-fold! I was dead though. I would never get that chance. As much as I wanted to kill her, I had to accept that I had lost that opportunity.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," I confessed. "It's just that the pegasus you know as the factory's ruthless leader used to be somepony I was very close to, until I saw her true colors."

The young pegasus looked at me with a surprised look. She wiped away her tears, turning toward me.

"You.. were close to her?" she asked me.

"Closer than you can imagine. We were practically sisters, but before you think I had anything to do with that factory, I never knew, until I was taken there. I tried to convince her what she was doing wasn't right, but she didn't care. She didn't even show any emotion when I attempted to convince her, so it's clear that she will never give up her madness. If only the other pegasi in Cloudsdale knew that the pegasus they all look up to, is only out to kill them."

From the expression on the pegasus's face, I could tell she could care less about anything I was telling her. If anything, I was only making myself seem as if I were Rainbow Dash's right-hoof mare, even though I wasn't. I decided to continue onward, since I wasn't getting anywhere with this victim of the Rainbow Factory. I was only wasting my breath and effort. I took two steps from her, until she spoke out, and said something that I wasn't expecting her to say.

"I-I'm sorry," she confessed to me.

Her voice was innocent, as I turned to face her once more.

"For what?" I asked.

"You were close to her, and she played you for a fool," she stated.

I shrugged my shoulders, speaking back to her, holding back as much anger as possible.

"No need to be," I replied. "It doesn't matter anymore anyways. I'm dead. That dirty mare lives on, killing innocent pegasi, while we wander throughout this darkness after death. I wish I could've stopped her, but I was too weak. She outsmarted me, and made me pay the ultimate price."

The young pegasus put her hoof to her chin, as I stood in confusion. What could she be thinking in such a depressing place? She turned back to me, and asked me an unlikely question.

"Let me ask. If you had a second chance to go back, would you?" asked the pegasus.

I paused, wondering how to answer her question. The obvious answer was "yes," but I had already said enough. She could've been setting me up, seeing I had claimed I was once close to Rainbow Dash. I just decided to be honest, because what's the worst she could do?

"I would. To take down Rainbow Dash for good, but that's impossible. There's no second chances here, kid," I answered roughly.

"Nothing's impossible," replied the pegasus. "I know somepony who might be able to give you a second chance at destroying Rainbow Dash."

My ears perked. I was immediately intrigued at the sound of the pegasus's words. I wasn't sure to believe her about such an impossible opportunity. One that I wanted. One that I needed.

"Who?" I asked.

"His name is unknown, seeing he forgot his name in his years of working in the Rainbow Factory," she responded. "He has been waiting for somepony like you to come along, to take out that factory, but he needed a strong pegasus."

I wondered who this pegasus could've been, but at the same time, I didn't care. If I could have another chance to destroy the Rainbow Factory, and its ruthless leader, I'd take it. What surprised me the most though, was the fact that this pegasus had worked in the factory, but he had somehow ended up here. Had he rebelled against Rainbow Dash, died in some sort of factory accident, or had he eventually met his fate as I had?

"Speaking of names, I never caught yours," I said.

"My name is Crystal," she responded. "What's yours?"

"It's Scootaloo," I responded.

She paused, as her eyes bulged.

"You... You were the leader of the first assault against the factory workers!" she claimed. "You were the first pony to ever get into Rainbow Dash's head! Your death weakened her!"

I was surprised. How could she know this? My assault against Rainbow Dash was before she was admitted into the factory, and by then, I was already being presented as a rainbow.

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"The pegasus I mentioned before told me about it," she confessed.

My death had gotten into Rainbow Dash's head? It sure didn't seem like she cared the slightest when I was fed into that machine. All she did was laugh. With that information, I knew that the key to escaping that factory of nightmares was to kill Rainbow Dash, and since I had known Rainbow Dash more than anypony, I knew how to do it. This was my chance. My chance to end her game of madness. All I had to do was "push" her both mentally and physically.

"If this pegasus can give me one chance at Rainbow Dash, I promise to destroy her, along with the factory itself," I spoke. "Rainbow Dash looks at herself as a god. If I can have another chance at life, I'll prove otherwise. She isn't a god. She's just another pegasus that needs to be taken out. If anypony can destroy her, it's me."

Crystal could see clearly that everything I said wasn't just to intimidate her. Everything I said was true. I no longer had any sort of love for Rainbow Dash, only hate and disgust, and my only wish for the pegasus I once knew, was for her to die the same way I did with no mercy spared. Crystal knew that, as she nodded her head, and stood back on all hooves.

"Follow me, and I'll take you to him," she stated.

I didn't smile or make any sort of grin at the sound of Crystal's words. Instead, I just proceeded to following her deeper into the void of darkness.

It seemed as if I had been walking for hours, when Crystal finally came to a stop. My hooves were weak, as I planted my back end on the cold ground, fear and hatred penetrating my mind. I had no idea what was coming next, nor who this pegasus was that Crystal had spoke of. I knew I couldn't die, but I could still feel pain, even if I was dead.

"Wait here," commanded Crystal, taking a few steps forward.

I nodded my head as a response, even though my instincts were telling me to run. I ignored my instincts, despite my fear. If there was any sort of possibility to return to the factory, and destroy everything that Rainbow Dash had managed to create, I couldn't refuse that opportunity. The factory had existed for millennia, killing and poisoning the minds of innocent pegasi. It's existence was futile. I had to destroy it, along with it's ungrateful leader. I couldn't let another pegasus die over greed and selfishness.

I watched, as a tall pegasus stepped out of the darkness. His coat was grey, and his mane was yellow, much like a pegasus that I had met when I still had a life in Ponyville. Her name escapes me, due to my mind being ridden of all memories outside of the factory, along with all the countless years I had spent here. This endless darkness had slowly corrupted my mind, coating it with some sort of fog that had changed me. I wasn't the pony I was before. If anything, I was just an empty shell.

Crystal gave me a signal to step closer, now that she and the other pegasus had finished their discussion. Once again, my instincts erupted, telling me to run, but I ignored them, stepping closer. Standing next to the much bolder pegasus made me feel uncomfortable. He clearly was much more powerful in both strength and wits. I could see that he had been in the factory for a long time just by his stare. It was intimidating, causing me to hesitate and wonder just how long this pegasus had been in the factory.

He continued to stare at me, sending a chill down my spine.

"So, you're the pegasus that stood up against the mare that we both used to admire?" he asked me.

Once again, I nodded my head as a response. We were both equals, yet I still felt weak next to him.

"I admire your bravery. You were the first pegasus to make Rainbow Dash worry that somepony was going to escape the factory," he stated to me. "She admitted it to me, not too long after you were put through the Pegasus Device. Unfortunately, your efforts led to a grim requirement. Something she entrusted me to do, which was cutting off the wings of every newly-admitted pegasus. That's what made me finally gain enough courage to try and escape the hell I was stuck in. Yet, I was outsmarted, just like you."

I was shocked. I really had gotten into Rainbow Dash's head. I had pushed her to a point where I thought she'd never go. Her wings were part of her destiny, and just because of my near-escape, she had enforced that all pegasi who were admitted into the factory shall have their wings cut off. I truly was Rainbow Dash's greatest adversary.

"How did she get you?" I asked.

The pegasus let out a long sigh before answering.

"She knew of my plans to escape long before I finally decided to escape," he admitted. "The only exit to the roof of the factory was sealed off without me knowing, and despite putting a nasty impression on her head, she had thought ahead. The only exit turned out to be a death trap, and foolishly, I, along with another young pegasus named Starlight Spark died of lack of oxygen. I was doomed from the start."

Anger was all I felt at the sound of the pegasus's words. I had heard enough.

"If you can give me one shot at Rainbow Dash, I promise that I'll her pay," I stated, my voice low and raspy.

"I know you can," replied the pegasus. "You are much bolder than me, otherwise I would've went back myself. As much as I hate that bitch, I could never come as close as you did. I was there when you nearly escaped, and even though I was a factory worker, I truly wanted to see you escape. Maybe then, I could have gotten out of that factory much sooner, and avoided the many terrible things I was forced to do! ALL BECAUSE OF RAINBOW DASH!"

His words surprised me. He truly had been in the factory for a long time. He had seen and done horrible things to survive, including cutting off the wings of Crystal, and unlike the other workers, he cared for the helpless victims that he had to kill and torture by force.

"One chance. That's all I need," I confirmed. "I. WILL. FINISH. HER."

The pegasus could see I wasn't kidding, so he nodded his head.

"One chance," he spoke. "Once you get the chance, don't hesitate. Kill her."

I nodded my head. At long last, after all these years, I finally was going to get my chance. I had one chance to finish the factory and Rainbow Dash both. That's all I needed. I felt a surge enter me, as I was transported to the roof of the weather factory.