Instantly, the shackles released, and the little amber filly was dropped down onto the floor with a thud. Quickly, before the guards had time to react, I spread my wings and flew down to her, positioning myself protectively infront of her.

"No."

"What was that? Sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly... WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Dash seethed.

I glared at her. "I said, NO."

I turned to the filly. "Follow me, ok? Stay behind me at all times, were getting out of here." I whispered.

She nodded quickly.

I watched carefully as Dash hopped down from her platform and approached me with the look of a predator stalking its prey.

"You had one job. Pull the stupid lever. You can turn this around! You've been warned, now get the buck back onto that platform before I throw you into the Pegasus Device!"

I stood my ground. "What part of NO don't you understand?"

She sighed. "That's it, you're fired. GUARDS!"

The circle of guards around the room stepped forward, tasers at the ready. I surveyed the room quickly, trying to remember if there's an exit other than the front doors. The two doors up on the scaffolding...

One problem. I glanced back at the filly. Both her wings are bandaged. That most likely means she can't fly.

We're running out of time. The guards are getting closer, and the front doors are probably our only chance.

Then I had an idea. There seems to be an excess of other foals in this room. Foals that don't want to die.

"Everypony run for your lives! Here's your chance!"

The young fillies and colts didn't need more encouragement. They all took off in random directions, heading for any exit they could find.

The guards stopped in their tracks, not sure what to do. If anypony escaped the factory, they would tell, and that would be the end of it. They couldn't afford to let anyone escape.

Dash, also overwhelmed by the situation, frantically called out orders. "WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR?! STOP THEM! KILL EVERYONE!" She turned and pounced on a little brown colt that was running past her. "Cloudsdale can have a shortage of rainbows for a while!"

The guards took off after the dozens of foals. Here was our chance.

"Follow me!" I called to the amber filly, and she quickly stood up, ready to run.

Ponies were dropping dead all over the room now, some of them foals, some of them guards. It was already a bloodbath.

I raced for the door, kicking aside any guard that would get in my way. Most of them were targeting the escaping foals, but a few tried to catch us.

We finally reached the door. Locked. What did I expect?! I fumbled for my keys. They should be in the back pocket of my labcoat...

"FORGET THE STUPID FILLIES, GET THEM!" Dash pointed frantically at us.

Come on, come on... I thought, fitting my key into the lock and hearing a click from the other side.

The door burst open ad we ran out into be hall. I didn't pause, just randomly turned right. I know this factory like the back of my hoof, wherever we end up, I'll be able to find my way out.

"SOUND THE ALARM! THEY'RE ESCAPING!" An angry cry came from the Pegasus Device room. Instantly, a siren started to blare.

I didn't stop, not for a second. I could hear the little amber Pegasus panting behind me, but I didn't slow. I gave her the chance she needed. Now, if she's too stupid to keep up, that's her problem. No matter what her objective is, I'm getting out of here.

I continued on through the factory, guards emerging at every corner. I couldn't keep at this forever. I needed to lose these guards. And I know just how to do it.

I turned one last corner. We're in the old factory wing now. This part hasn't been used since before I came to work here. There's lots of old pipes and hazardous chemicals here.

I heard a yelp from the amber filly, and when I glanced behind me, I saw a group of guards running after us. Perfect.

I ducked around another corner, where I knew there was alot of machinery. I let the filly catch up to me, before bucking one of the pipes. Just as I suspected, a thick white gas started hissing out of the hole.

"Come on, that should hold them for a little!" I called, flying further into the pipe works.

Sure enough, my stunt had left the two front guards coughing on the floor. The last was catching up fast.

I reached another pipe. This one had a skull and crossbones on it. This could be dangerous, but oh, so worth it if I can escape this stupid factory.

I waited until she was a few meters from the pipe. "DUCK!" I yelled, then without checking if she had followed my warning, bucked the pipe.

She hit the floor, just as a clear liquid sprayed out if the pipe at an extremely high speed.

She yelped a bit as some of the stuff was sprinkled across her flank, but the majority of the damage went to the guard, spraying him right in the face.

He stopped in his tracks, and when the liquid finally stop flowing, it revealed that his entire face had been melted off. He collapsed to the floor in a heap.

The little filly screamed. My expression stayed the same. I've seen worse.

"Come on, we've got to keep moving if we want to get out of here. What's your name?!"

She looked up at me fearfully. "A-Amber S-Strike..."

"Well Amber Strike, you're awfully lucky, cause you might be one if the first ponies to ever escape the Rainbow Factory. Now lets go."

She took one last look at the heap of guard lying in the middle of the scaffolding, and nervously followed me deeper into the factory.

I figured we could escape through the ventilation system, we just had to find an entrance without being seen. As we walked, I scanned the scaffolding for any possible exit.

"There!" I whispered, spotting a vent on one of the walls. I ran up to it. "Help me unscrew this panel!"

Amber Strike nodded and began to paw at one of the screws that fastened the vent to the wall. I did the same on another one.

It took longer than it would have with an actual screwdriver, but we managed to unscrew the panel. I carefully set it aside, trying not to make too much noise, as it might travel through other rooms via the ventilation system.

Since the passage was pretty big, I could almost stand upright in it. That made it alot easier to move around in. I had never actually tried this before, but I knew where most of the vents led, so it shouldn't be too hard to find one that leads outside.

When we reached an intersection, I paused for a second to think. Reluctantly, I turned left. This should lead to another passage that should lead outside. I think...

We crawled farther into the system. Finally, I spotted another panel on the wall that branched off. This one definatly led outside, I could tell from the dim moonlight glinting off the silver surface of the vent. However, the passage was half the size of the one we were traveling through. Even Amber couldn't fit into a space that big. Great. Just great.

I sighed, another plan forming in my head.

"It's too small, were going to have to keep going." I explained to Amber.

"Where to?" She whispered back, but I didn't answer.

Instead I just continued to crawl through the vent. I turned right at the end and kept going without another word.

I stopped, reaching my destination, another vent on the floor. I peered through the gaps, checking for any guards.

I couldn't see all the way to the door. For all I know, there might be guards there, but with the lack of space in this hallway, there could only be one or two at most. We should be able to take them. Though strong, the guards tend to not be the brightest ponies in Equestria. If we can be fast enough, they won't know what hit them.

"Amber! Climb on my back!" I hissed.

"Huh?"

"Just do it. When we drop down from the vent, we'll have to get out of here quickly, and from what I see, you can't fly."

She nodded slowly and did as I asked.

"Ok, hold on tight. On the count of three, I'm going to jump on the vent. If my estimates are right, it should come off. Then I'll bolt for the door and well... What happens after that is up to fate."

I took a deep breath and felt Amber's grip tighten around my neck. Alright. I can do this.

I looked up one last time to judge how high I could go without hitting my or Amber's head, then jumped as hard as I could on the panel.

I cringed as the sharp metal dug into my hooves, but tried my best to ignore it and jumped again.

This time the vent gave way. Amber let out a little cry as we fell to the floor. I quickly lunged towards the door... Then stopped.

There were no guards standing at the door. Nope, we weren't lucky enough for that. Instead, looking at us with a surprised expression, was WoodenToaster.

Oh joy, we couldn't have one of the stupid guards, could we? No! We run into one of the only intelligent ponies in this Factory!

As the surprise wore off, his expression changed to anger. "It was you! You were the worker that tried to escape! Mystery, I thought you were different than all the other Pegasus Device operators! I actually believed that you were just maybe one of the ponies that wouldn't go insane!"

I didn't flinch. Maybe I felt like crying, but I was about to let all the training I had gone through go to waste. We had come so close to escaping... We were so close...

Then I saw it. I had only glanced behind him for a second, but it was enough. The red light over the door was off. That only meant one thing.

Toaster may be one of the smarter ponies in The Factory, but he had forgotten to do one important thing.

Lock the door.

I didn't think, just acted. I glared at him for a second, then lunged forwards strait into him, pushing him straight into the door.

I heard the clunk when he banged his head, but didn't pay any attention to it. The door swung open with the impact and I flew out into the fresh night air. The first thing I noticed: it was winter. Strange how you don't notice these things when you're stuck inside The Factory all your life.

I watched guiltily as Toaster fell fast towards the ground. He must have been knocked out when I slammed him against the door.

There was a loud splash as he landed in the lake below Cloudsdale. I sighed. He's going to drown. Even if he doesn't, he'll freeze to death in that water. I can't just leave him there...

I zipped down to the shore of the lake. It's nighttime, I can actually fly, I thought gratefully.

"Amber, you stay here." I said, letting her off. Then, without another word, I flew back out to the middle and dived into the waves.

I had never been a good swimmer, but I found an easy way to propel myself with my wings, as if I was flying. Slowly, I made my way down below the surface, and let the yellow Pegasus sink until he was positioned more or less on my back.

I emerged from the surface, gasping for air. Luckily, though it was windy, the waves weren't too violent, so it was easy to pull myself back out of the water.

I flew to shore, freezing cold and soaking wet.

"Oh, you owe me Toaster!" I spat, even though I knew he probably couldn't hear me.

Amber trotted over towards me. "Who?"

"Toaster. That's him." I gestured to the limp yellow and green Pegasus. I glared at her. "You owe me to. I don't know whether to thank you, or hate you for this."

"Huh?" She gave me a confused expression.

"You either cost me my job, or saved me from it." I explained. "I just threw my whole life away for you, I hope it was worth it."

She took a frightened step back. One thing this filly has to learn is that I don't tolerate any crap. I glanced back over to where Toaster was lying.

"I feel like just leaving him here..." I said angrily.

"Then what's stopping you?" Amber asked quietly.

I paused. "... I have no idea."

Suddenly the other pony stirred. He coughed a bit, then sat up.

"What.. What's going on?"

Now that I know he's ok, I thought about leaving before he notices that we're here, but there wouldn't be a point in that.

He spotted us before we could do anything.

"Mystery? Where are we...?" A look of realization crossed his face. "Wait a second..."

He stood, and looked around, finally noticing that we were outside The Factory. "No... No! No!" He glanced around frantically. He stopped and turned on me angrily.

"You!" He seethed.

"I just saved your life and now you're mad at me!?" I exclaimed.

"Saved my life? Pfft, you just ruined it!"

"Ruined it?! You'd be dead at the bottom of that lake if it wasn't for me!"

He took a step forward. "If it wasn't for you, I'd still have my job!"

"THEN GO BACK TO YOUR STUPID FACTORY YOU UNGRATEFUL MULE!" I yelled.

"I CAN'T!" He shouted back. "DON'T YOU GET IT?! They'll kill me if I go back! Nopony is allowing to leave The Factory! If I go back there, they'll think I'm a traitor like you and put me through the Pegasus Device!" He growled and began pacing back and forth across the snow. "What am I going to do now?!"

I sighed, feeling bad for him. No matter where I go, I can't seem to stop ruining lives. "That's your problem." I replied curtly. "I'm off to find the nearest town. Make up your mind, Toaster. If you're not going back to negotiate with Dash, then you can either come with us, or get lost."

He rolled his eyes. "Dash doesn't negotiate..."

"Well that narrows down your options. Come on Amber." I turned and began to trudge away through the snow, Amber Strike hesitantly coming up to join me.

"Who was that?" She asked curiously.

I sighed. "WoodenToaster, one of my coworkers. He works the day shift on the Pegasus device." I leaned over and whispered the rest. "He may seem cruel, but he's not as tough as he looks." I grinned. "Trust me. In fact, I bet he's following behind us right now."

Sure enough, when I looked back, the yellow Pegasus was trailing behind us, teeth clenched and an angry scowl plastered on his face.

I turned my head back to the road and smiled. "What'd I tell ya?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just felt like warning everyone: The second the real Glaze finds out about this fanfic, it comes down, whether it's finished or not. So, yeah. Don't tell him about it, or shit will go down.