Author's Note

Behold, the only part of this whole shabang that actually references the Rainbow Factory! Big thanks to Qaletaqa on Discord for that Poem at the end, very epic.

And What Was That Note Left, Friend?

“348 348 348 348 348 348 348”

“I know now. I know now. I know now.

The Colorless Eyes have kept me locked in a loop, a loop of eternal suffering. I awakened in an abyss, before being risen by Chains, into the maw of that Machine, the one I sent so many into.

Bones, Flesh, Muscle and Mind, rendered over and over, as if amidst a Storm. I see flashes of faces in my nightmares, ponies I’ve wronged, ponies I’ve helped. Everyone there to watch me drown in the very thing I bled out of others.

But HE let me out, out of the loop, just for a fleeting moment. Even as I write this, I can feel my eyes trying to close. He’s in the corner, laying down and watching, as if a foal seeing his mother reading the morning paper.

So, using what awareness I have left, I leave two messages to my Friends.

I’m Sorry. I’m sorry for all the crap I did during the time we’ve known each other, being a jerk with the whole Mysterious Mare-Do-Well situation, being egotistical all the time, all that. I would have apologized back when you all visited, but I was busy screaming at the walls. Sorry.

I wish I had more time, leave you all notes, but I can feel his gaze sharpen. I leave just one last request.

Bring this letter to Celestia, tell her to investigate Cloudsdale. Screw it, tell her to send in the entire Guard, to that damn Rainbow Factory.

It’s story isn’t quite as nice as the story we knew of Sugar and Spice.

The letter continues on for about 4 more lines, repeating the numbers 348 in an increasingly shaky manner. At the foot of the page is a splash of ink that seems to melt into an odd poem.

SLEEP TIGHT, ATOP ENGINE PURR,
LEARN WELL, IN MOMENT SPUR,
REMEMBER TRULY, OLDEN TALE,
SILENCE CHILD, DO NOT WAIL,
KNOW IT'S STORY, HEAR IT'S TALE,
LEAST WINGS TAKE FLIGHT,
WE AID IN MACHINES MIGHT.