Warning: Feels chapter ahead xD

I awoke in the morning to Jace shaking me. I slowly sat up and shook myself. "Mm hmm?"

"Mystery, you're the only one who's not up, and these two are getting restless."

I sighed. "Sorry, I'm just really tired... We escaped while I was on my night shift, and I usually sleep in the daytime, so I've been awake for almost a full 24 hours."

Jace nodded sympathetically. "It's fine. I just don't want your friend to hurt himself. He won't listen to me when I tell him that he should lie down, and you're the only one who he seems to somewhat obey."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me! For one, he's not my friend, and two, he doesn't listen to anyone, LEAST of all me." I scoffed. "I don't know if you've noticed, but he kinda hates me for forcing him out of the Factory. Not that I meant to or anything." I rolled my eyes.

She laughed. "I'm surprised you've put up with him for this long. You're not one who likes to deal with others ponies' crap."

I grinned. "You're totally right on that one. I was hoping I could ditch him back in Ponyville, but noooo, he decided to jump in the train car with us."

"You know, I'm right here." The yellow and green pony called from across the room. "I can hear everything you're saying."

Jace shot me a nervous glance, but I shrugged it off. "Eh, I don't care. You've heard it all before from me."

He sighed. "Unfortunately. I was kinda hoping Dash would have caught you back in Ponyville, but nooo, you had to choose the exact same train car as me to hide in! I didn't even know you were there until you started yelling at me!"

"I guess we were both unlucky then, weren't we?"

"Would you two stop fighting for two seconds?!" Sighed Amber, who had just came out of the bathroom. "We need to figure out what we're gonna do about this Factory thing."

I nodded slowly. "Yeah. Once we've figured out a general plan, we'll get out of your hair, I promise Jace."

She smiled. "It's fine, you can stay as long as you want."

I shook my head. "No, we've caused you enough trouble. If we succeed, when this is all over, I'll come for a visit so we can get caught up on everything."

She sighed and nodded, knowing it was for the best.

"Alright, let's get this plan thing out of the way."

The other 3 ponies sat themselves around the coffee table infront of me.

"First things first, we can't stay in Manehatten. The Factory Guards already know we're here, and they're bound to catch us at some point if we don't stop this. We can't run forever."

Amber nodded slowly. "What ponies have the authority to shut down the Rainbow Factory?"

I thought for a second. "Celestia and Luna obviously. Probably any of the princesses."

"The mayor of Cloudsdale too," added Glaze. "And Dash herself, but that's obviously never going to happen. I'm not sure if the mayor will listen either, since the Weather Corporation is Cloudsdale's main way of making money, and also it's biggest tourist attraction."

I thought about this for a moment. "True, but if we alerted the mayor to what they're doing up there, wouldn't they HAVE to do something? I mean, if word of the Factory's doings got out to the rest of Equestria, it would give Cloudsdale a horrible reputation." I argued.

"Yeah, but there's already very little chance that anypony will believe us. The Rainbow Factory has been keeping this up for years, and gone through several inspections without raising any suspicion. They would think we've gone mad! Yet another reason, why we should have kept our labcoats. They would have come in handy as proof."

"It's a little late for that now. We can't go back to Ponyville now that everyone there probably knows that we're wanted."

Amber sighed. "That's true. We don't really have any evidence that this place ever existed. If the princesses ARE the best way to go, how are we going to convince somepony as important as them that we're not lying?"

"That's the one thing that I don't know." I frowned.

Glaze sighed and shifted his weight, then cried out as pain tore at his side. "Buck, this wound is going to be the death of me..."

I stared at him for a second, and slowly smiled. "I think we just found a piece of evidence."

Glaze looked up at me, then back at the bloody bandage that covered his flank. "Guns are illegal in Equestria." He said, realization finally hitting him.

I grinned and nodded. "It may not be enough to convince ponies about the Factory, but a gunshot wound is sure to warrant the attention of the princesses that something bad is going on. They're more likely to believe our story if that's the case."

"Mystery, you're a genius!" Exclaimed Amber Strike with a smile.

I shrugged. "Hold your horses Amber, (get it? Cause they're... Nevermind xD) that's not the end of it. The question now is, how the hell are we going to get to Canterlot unnoticed? The Factory somehow keeps finding us, it's like they have some kind of tracking device. Though Dash is either dead or out of action for the moment, we still have Dr. Atmosphere and the rest of the Factory guards to worry about. Plus, I'm still famished, and we're going to need food and a place to stay along the way."

"I think I can help with that." Jace spoke up for the first time since the conversation started. She tossed a small sack across the table, tied closed with a blue ribbon. I heard the clink of coins inside.

"I was thinking about your predicament last night, and I figured that I could do you a favor. 100 bits should be enough to get you food for a few days, though it won't be enough to pay for a hotel."

I looked up at Jace, startled. "Jace... No, we can't accept this. All we've done so far is been a burden to you."

She shook her head and smiled. "Think of it as a 'welcome back from exile' gift. After all you three have been through, you deserve it. I know it isn't much, but it'll help."

I smiled gratefully and took the bag. "Thank you."

"As for transportation," she continued. "The best method is probably by train. Once you're on and the train is going, the Factory guards will have a hard time getting to you, especially if you hitch a ride in one of those cargo cars like you did last time. Plus, that way you wouldn't have to buy a train ticket."

I nodded. "Alright, that makes sense."

"As long as I don't get my tail stuck this time," Glaze growled.

I couldn't keep from laughing a little bit, only to be met with a sharp glare.

He rolled his eyes. "What's the plan once we're in Canterlot?"

"Straight to the princesses?" Suggested Amber. "It would save us the cost of a hotel room."

"True, but there's always the question of if they'll be free. They may be busy the day we go."

"It's always worth a try isn't it?"

"Yeah ok, you've got a point. There's no way to tell whether we'll be able to get to them the first day, so we'll have to take our chances."

I glanced over at the clock, checking the time. Just a little past 9:00.

"When does the train arrive at the station?" I asked Jace curiously.

"The one headed for Canterlot leaves at noon. You have a little less than three hours, so in the mean time, maybe you could get some food? There's a fast food joint down the road from here. Feel free to come back here if you need to kill time after that."

I nodded gratefully. "Thanks for all your help Jace. Would you like to join us for lunch?"

She laughed. "9:00 is a little early to eat lunch, don't you think? I just had breakfast a few hours ago."

"True, true. I guess I'll see you... Around, then?"

She smiled. "Come back when this is all over, and we can have a nice chat. Oh, and don't get yourself killed. That would be nice too."

I grinned. "I'll try not to."

I opened the door with one hoof. "Remember, not a word to anypony about the Rainbow Factory," I warned. "If you don't hear anything on the news about this in the next few weeks, you can assume that we're dead. Even then, don't speak of this, because saying the wrong things to the wrong ponies, could put you in grave danger."

She nodded sternly. "I understand. I promise I won't speak a word."

I smiled. "Good. I suppose we'll be off. Goodbye Jace."

"Goodbye Myst. Good luck to all of you."

I shut the door quietly behind me. Alright. Now to cure my empty stomach.

We walked down the road until we came to the restaurant that Jace had mentioned. When we got inside, I opened the sack of coins and counted out 10 bits.

"If we want to conserve our money, we better limit ourselves. We've got ten bits worth of food to share between us, ok?"

After a few minutes of thinking, we ordered two veggie burgers for me and Glaze, a salad for Amber, and a drink for each of us. We ended up using two extra bits, but I figured two bits wouldn't make that much of a difference, as long as we got our much needed food. Though the restaurant had reasonable prices, 10 bits still wasn't enough for all of us to eat.

We sat down and ate in silence, too hungry to think about what was going to happen next. After finishing my meal, I glanced over at the clock. 10:13. We've wasted about an hour, but we still have to wait around an hour and a half for the train to even arrive.

We could go back to Jace's house for a little bit, that would probably be the safest way to spend our time, since no Factory guards had seemed to be able to locate us there.

"If you're both done eating, why don't we-"

BANG!

I was interrupted by a loud noise, and the sound of screaming from the kitchen. I saw a staff pony run out as grab a fire extinguisher from the wall, then hurriedly rush back into the scene.

"It's just a kitchen fire, they'll get it under control," Glaze waved the matter aside. He recoiled as Amber kicked him under the table.

"Just a kitchen fire!? It sounds like they're dying back there!" She protested.

She yelped as he kicked her back. "Workers overreact to these things all the time! As I said, they'll get it under control!"

"Would you two stop kicking eachother?! This could be serious!"

"It's not serious, or-"

He was cut off as a group of frantic employees scrambled out of the kitchen and jumped over the counter.

"It's no use, that thing can't be stopped! It's like it's immune to everything!" I overheard one worker say to another. She turned to the rest of the customers. "CLEAR THE RESTAURANT! FIRE! I REPEAT, CLEAR THE RESTAURANT!"

A few ponies screamed as flames rushed out of the kitchen and engulfed the front counter, spreading fast to the walls.

I exchanged startled glances with Glaze. He answered by saying one word. "Run."

He didn't need to tell me twice. I scrambled out of the booth and bolted to the door. Most of the other customers were out and safe by now, mostly because they didn't have to deal with the shock of what was happening. They didn't know what was going on. I did, and so did Glaze. Let's just say, this is no ordinary fire.

The entire room was engulfed in flames now. Amber and Glaze were first out the door, and I followed close at their heels until-

CRACK!

I gasp and jumped back as a ceiling beam crashed to the floor.

"Mystery!" I heard Amber scream from the other side, though I couldn't see her through the flames.

I heard a bunch of other yelling from them, but I wasn't listening anymore. All I could hear was the crackling of the fire and feel the heat of the flames on my back. I backed up another step and turned, heading for the emergency exit, when a second beam fell infront of me. I frantically looked from one side to the other, flames being the only thing in sight in all directions.

This seems all too familiar. As a third ceiling beam fell, I relived a scene in my mind, and at that moment, I knew I wouldn't escape this. I'm going to die here. In the exact same way, as...

~~~

I frantically glanced around, my eyes wide with fear. What's happening? Why is everything on fire?!

"Mom! Dad! Where are you?!" I called out helplessly.

I felt a wing wrap itself around me as my mother arrived at my side.

"I don't know what's going on, Mystery, but we need to get out of here. Where's your father?"

"I don't know..." I sobbed, nuzzling my face into her wing.

"Rose! Midnight Rose! Where are you?! Mystery? Anypony?"

"Dad! Over here!" I called. His head soon appeared out of the wreckage.

"Come on, this way," he instructed. "Stay low to the ground."

We crawled in a line, dad going first, mom last, and me in the middle. He led us down the hallway, finding a path through the maze of burning wood. Finally the door was in sight, and dad pushed me infront of him.

"Go Myst, I'm right behind you."

I took a cautious step towards the opening, and after another nudge from dad, took off at a run. I could hear them following behind me, until-

CRACK!

I watched in horror as a rafter fell from the ceiling, right ontop of dad. Mom screamed and jumped back, trapped on the other side.

"No... No..." She pawed at her husband's body, frantically trying to wake him.

"Dad!" I cried, running towards the scene, tears in my eyes.

Mom shook her head. "No, Myst, get out of here! Run!"

"No! You have to come with me!" I protested. "You and dad both! You're going to come out with me!"

"Go!" She yelled. "I'll find another way out! I'll find you! I promise!"

I met her gaze one last time, then turned and ran. I made it out the door and ran for my life. I had no clue where I was going, I just ran. Somehow I found myself in a back alleyway, and it was there that I collapsed on to the pavement and sobbed my eyes out. Hours passed, and I waited, and waited, and waited. Soon it was dawn, and as the sun rose above the horizon, I began to accept the inevitable. Mom hasn't found me. If she was searching, she would have found me by now. Something happened to her... I knew it.

I buried my face in my hooves and cried.

"You... You promised..."

~~~

"You promised..."

As I gazed into the growing firelight, I felt my fear disappear. I took a step forward. I almost swore I could see my parents faces in the flames, calling me to join them. And for a second, that's what I wanted to do. I held my hoof out to the fire, feeling it's heat on my fur. So... Warm...

Suddenly I was knocked over from the side and fell against the concrete floor. I quickly snapped out of my trance and looked around.

Glaze was holding me down with one hoof. "What the buck are you doing?! Snap out of it!" He slapped me.

I shoved him off and pushed him towards the door. "What the hell were you thinking come back in here! It's practically an inferno! Get out of here!"

"Oh, nothing, I'm just SAVING YOUR FLANK, now GO!" He shoved me towards the emergency exit.

The scene replayed in my head again as I saw the light flooding in from outside. I wasn't about to make the same mistake again.

I shook my head. "No... No, you go first!"

He gave me a weird look. "What, are you afraid of outside?! Would you rather stay in the burning restaurant?!"

"Go!" I yelled, and it seemed like the urgency in my voice got him moving. He bolted for the door, and I ran after him, half in fear that another beam would fall and crush me, like it did to my father so many years ago.

It never came. We made safely outside, but I didn't stop, even when Glaze slowed to a walk.

I heard him yell something, and suddenly Amber was running after me.

"Mystery! Where are we going?"

I didn't answer, just turned random streets until I finally stopped and collapsed onto the ground. With that, I burst into tears. I honestly don't know why, maybe the shock was too much, maybe I was mourning for my dead parents, or maybe I just can't believe all of this is happening. Why can't this all be a dream?! Why can't I just turn back time to when everything was fine?!

"Mystery?! Are you ok?! What's wrong?!"

"She... She promised..." Is all I managed to get out.

"What? Who promised what?!" Amber frantically shook me, but I pushed her away.

Glaze, who had finally caught up, sat down, tired and confused. He took one look at me and sighed. "Crybaby."

I stood up and turned on him, furious. "ARE YOU BUCKING SERIOUS?! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT I'M GOING THROUGH RIGHT NOW! I JUST RELIVED MY WORST NIGHTMARE... YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE TO WATCH SOMEPONY YOU LOVE DIE RIGHT BEFORE YOUR EYES!"

He whipped around, his eyes meeting mine with a glare of pure hatred. "I don't know what it's like?! I DONT KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE?! OH, I KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE ALRIGHT! YOU DON'T KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO LIVE WITH YOURSELF AFTER MURDERING YOUR OWN LITTLE BROTHER SO YOU CAN KEEP YOUR JOB!" He took an intimidating step closer. "YOU DON'T KNOW, HALF THE SHIT I'VE BEEN THROUGH. YOU BETTER THINK A LITTLE HARDER BEFORE YOU ACUSE ME NEXT TIME OF "NOT KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE."

I took a step back, my anger slowly draining away. "I... I'm sorry, I didn't think..."

"You're right, you didn't think." He clenched his teeth and turned away, obviously trying to contain his anger and not turn around and hit me. I honestly wouldn't blame him if he did just that. I deserve it right now.

I sighed and lay back down on the pavement, laying my head on my hooves.

Amber slowly walked up and nudged me. "Mystery? What's wrong? What happened in there?"

I shook my head. "I... I'd rather not talk about it at the moment. Just... Childhood memories. Bad ones." My parent's faces briefly crossed my mind before I pushed them out, unwilling to let the depressing scene get to me again.

She nodded slowly, deciding it was better not to bug me about it right now. "What... What was Glaze talking about? With his brother?"

I shrugged. "I honestly have no clue. I don't know much about him or his past. Sounds like his brother failed his flight school test, and he was forced to send him through the Device, or something along those lines."

Amber glanced over at the pale yellow Pegasus, who was muttering something angrily with his back turned a few meters away. "You should ask him about it later."

I shook my head. "That wouldn't be a great idea. It's probably best to leave him alone right now. He seems REALLY mad."

I looked up and tried to judge the time from the position of the sun. "We should get going. We need to find the train station before noon, and right now, I have no clue where we are. I shouldn't have run off like that, it was a stupid idea."

"It's fine, we'll get there in time," she reassured, trying to convince herself just as much as me.

I sighed. "Come on Glaze, we have to go," I called.

He growled in protest, then slowly turned and followed behind us. I swear to Celestia, if we miss this train, I am going to kill somepony. And that somepony will most likely be Glaze.