The Alliance of Chaos

Chapter 10

“No, really, why? I would like to know. Coincidence? I think not!”

“Turquoise Frost!” Shouted Snowmane, hoarsely.

“Who are you?” He said, confused.

“I am Snowmane the Frozen. My days are numbered, and you are a fitting replacement as Snow Shaman. Your magic is that of a biting wind, a winter gale. As the Shaman, you will not fail.”

“Is that an intentional rhyme?”

“No.”

“So, Shamanness and stuff? Is that like a brotherhood of ancient secrets and deep mysteries?” He said, standing on his back hooves, waving them in the air.

“You could say it that way. However, I can do without the sarcasm. Come here.” Turquoise walked up to Snowmane. “Hold up your hoof.” Turquoise complied. Snowmane smacked his hoof into his, and the tattoo sprang up on Turquoise’s leg, glowing brightly. The white tattoo faded, and became a normal tattoo.

“That’s it? Seriously?”

“Nopony said it had to be complicated. At the same time, however, I am no longer a Shaman. And you won’t be a changeling much longer.”

Suddenly, the tattoo glowed fiercely. His pony form was torn away, and his carapace was stripped away, and he became a glowing form. Suddenly, he was no longer a changeling. He used his magic, and instead of a toxic green, it was a liquid cerulean.

“I’m.... me again.” He grinned. “I’M ME!” He shouted, leaping into the air. Unfamiliar with the powers of a Shaman, however, he fired a giant swath of frost into the top of the cave, freezing the roots at the ceiling, causing them to come crashing down. He sheepishly scooted away from the shattered remains of the vines, looking at them, confused. “Is that supposed to happen?”

“That can happen... but no.” Snowmane breathed in, feeling his age.

“You need to learn.”

“So, it’s like using my horn, except it’s my leg?”

“In a way, yes.”  Snowmane lifted his hoof, and firmly set it on the ground. Despite his age, lean muscles were visible under the old coat. Frost spread over the ground, ice crystals forming slowly. The frost went under his hooves, and lifted off the ground. Frost began to curl around his form. He slowly became an ice sculpture, perfectly forming his shape. Turquoise poked it. The ice was hollow. Suddenly, creaking noises sounded. The joints all cracked, and a ice suit now wrapped around him. “This is a great trick for illusion.” Said Snowmane from behind. Turquoise whirled around, and now Snowmane was standing there casually. “I may be old, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun.  After all, who made that a rule?”

“You really haven’t changed much, have you, Snowy?”

“You’re one to talk, Vine. You haven’t even aged.”

“True. Show him the thing with the thing.”

“Ah, the thing. Yes, I believe that would be appropriate.”

“The thing with the thing? What is this thing?”

“This thing!” Said Snowmane. His frost tattoo glowed violently. Ice began to form in the air. The other Shamans did the same. Lighting Dust threw a bolt of electricity into the mix. Vine’s addition seemed to hold the entire thing together. Bubbles formed in the ice, filling with green liquid. These pockets were beginning to glow as metal wove into the mix, from the Earth Shaman. The entire thing grew and grew, metal encasing it, vines forming bonds, frost seeping from holes. Eventually, the whole ensemble formed a patchwork dragon of sorts, fire seeping from holes, large ice crystals forming jagged spikes. Suddenly, a final Shaman appeared from the shadow. His tattoo was of a green double-helix, and at last a bolt flew into a receptacle on the front. It was a sentient machine. Turquoise gaped in awe. He closed his mouth, wetting the inside, and said,

“That is made of epic win.” A symbol was on its forehead, a pony head curved in with that of a dragon, probably the symbol of the Shamans. It looked around, and spoke in a metallic manner.

“Intruder.” Its eye sockets were focused towards Rainbow. Each eye was a lens, several minute servos acting.

Where did those come from? Thought Turquoise. Then he noticed a small pile of assorted spare parts in a niche at the center of the cave. Oh. Turquoise noted the patchwork nature of the machine. Had it been a part of something larger?

“It’s not supposed to act like this. Enemies have to be assigned first.” Murmured Lighting, confused. A small latch opened on its neck, steam spilling out. The surrounding metal began to glow. Glowing metallic and organic parts were at work within. As its neck turned, several ratchets stopped, reversed, raised, latched together, and split apart. Cogs turned in tandem, some of them substituted for wood. Electric sparks flicked through the entire shape, powering mechanical synapses. Turquoise recognized them from his time in the Vortex Runners. This was technology of the future.

“It came to us through a hole in space. Hidden in a cavern. Have you seen a space-hole?” Said Vine.

“I’ve gone through those holes. And this was a time and space hole. This came from the future.” Turquoise paused, and said gravely, “Where Discord wins. It was designed to kill spirits- Hate, Rebellion, Rot, Discord- you name it. Look’s like its gone haywire. Probably has something to do with replacing Corulium with wood. And Lorunium with ice.”

“I don’t know those words.”

“You probably shouldn’t. A paradox probably just opened in this spot in the future. But we don’t have to worry about it. Yet.”

The large dragon’s jaw opened, gears and pistons rotating and extending. Fire began brewing in its throat, and a large gust of fire erupted out. Rainbow quickly dodged out of the way. She flew up to its head, and bucked it forcefully. Two dents appeared in the metal. Gears crunched, pistons groaned, and the two dents were popped back out. The large construct went over to the niche were the spare parts were.

“Proper replacement parts detected. Begin assimilation.” The dragon’s maw opened wide, and the two parts of the jaw split apart, oscillated, and picked parts out of the hole, collecting them through its throat. The machine quickly gathered the parts, and some of the wood was pushed out and replaced with a freshly smelted armor plate, still red-hot. Piping came out, and doused the the hot metal with a gaseous solution.

“This is a full science lab. It engineered liquid nitrogen. However, liquid nitrogen may not be the best idea. Especially not with Corulium.”

Turquoise leaped over to the dragon, heading for the frosted plate. Suddenly, the plate opened, disappearing into the inner mechanism. A cloud of steam rushed from the hole, another colorless gas just visible in the cloud as a bubble. As Turquoise breathed it in, he exclaimed, “Chloroform?!” And he passed out on the floor. The bottom of the dragon opened, and crashed onto Turquoise. Rainbow flew under it, trying to push it up. One of its ribs bent back, suddenly a tentacle of sorts, and wrapped around her. “Rainbow... It’s out of gas... This is your chance.” Said Turquoise, slumping over as a mask enclosed his face, and a strange mechanism closed over his horn. Several needles pierced into his skin, various fluids injected into his blood stream.

“Power conduit connected. Living organism is acting source. Initiate life support systems.”

“That can’t be good.” Murmured Vine.