Rainbow Factory Quality Control

Chapter 1: Under New Management

Meeting the new facility manager would be her primary task of the evening. She doubted that anyone would have given him a proper welcome and took it upon herself to be the first. Before she closed up her office she returned to her bag and pulled out a blue gift bag with a curl of silvery rainbow ribbon. QC turned the lights off as she left and began the long trek to the managerial offices deeper in the facility.

The administrative block of offices was located on the thirteenth floor, and much like the cafeteria and HR had been, were mostly empty hollow rooms with the bare minimum of furnishings. The last group of management and supervisory personnel had been purged years ago and these rooms had been collecting dust for at least that long. So it was with some nostalgia that QC observed the tell-tale blue light of a monitor under a closed door. She stood before the closed door for a moment and studied the fresh name plate mounted at just above the normal height for her eyes.

Walden Darling, Factory Manager.

QC knocked twice, the taps firm yet polite. After a moment she heard a muffled male voice call out "Come in." Her hand went to the doorknob and she gently pushed it open.

After the last facility manager and her crew, QC wasn't quite sure what to expect. She had heard that the new guy was a Puppet, not a Pony, and her interest in him went only so far as his ability to get the job done well and right. She hadn't met many Puppets in her time, but they were a race like any other, with their own culture and ways. The office was dark with only a small desk lamp and computer monitor to provide any light but still she could see the man behind the desk clearly.

He was humanoid and well built with a barely kept mane of dark blue hair that was styled into a loose pompadour. A vintage style but he was making it work. His hands had four fingers instead of a humans five, and QC couldn't quite tell if he had skin or a fine layer of felt-like material, either way it was bright yellow. Dark brown nearly black eyes were fixated on a pair of cords he held in his hands and she couldn't help but admit that he was fairly good looking for a guy with no nose. "Good evening Mr Darling. Sorry if I interrupted you," QC gestured to the computer screen.

"Hmm? Oh this," he mumbled. His voice was deep and rather pleasant to listen to, it would be a nice break from all the high pitched screaming of his predecessor. The desk had been designed for pony use and even from this distance, QC could see that it was far too small for the Puppet man. In one hand he held a five pin coaxial cable connected to a mechanical keyboard. In the other he held a connecting end for the pony-tech that ran the current computer system. She could practically feel his frustration radiating off of him. He eventually sat up from his hunched over position and and dropped the cables to the desk in mock defeat. "Can't seem to get a decent keyboard to use. I keep calling around and no one in this entire fucked up place is answering their phones."

QC gave an apologetic nod. "Sometimes it takes IT a few days to set up accounts and credentials...or equipment."

The Puppet sighed heavily and then tilted his desk lamp to get a better look at his visitor. She was a small woman, barely reaching four feet tall and almost swimming in her lab coat, it made her seem child-like. Yellow hair peeked under her yellow hard hat and amber yellow unblinking eyes regarded him neutrally, with the beginnings of dark circles under them. She was human...of a sort. Then again nothing in this strange place was constant. "And uh...you are?"

She nodded politely again, turning her amber eyes toward the floor. "I am the Quality Control Manager of the Rainbow Factory. I ensure that procedures are followed and that all aspects of production are aligned with putting out a consistent and quality product." her voice was soft yet held an air of confidence and authority. This was a woman that didn't need to yell or scream to get what she wanted. It didn't matter how low her voice was, those around her were compelled to listen.