In the far of land of New Questria, the use of steam power has enveloped the land. Machines are now an everyday thing and the world has broken up into distinct factions. The most distinct factions are the Skyway Airfleet, the faction of the Pegasus. With their own flight and the steam powered leviathans they have designed, the Pegasus rule the sky. While the Earth Ponies have several of their own faction, the biggest one is the Clockwork Dominion, a faction so big that one of the major New Questria cities is named by them. Most of the Earth Ponies, with this new technology, have long since forgotten the natural ways of their ancestors, though there are patches of natural Earth Ponies that still remain. With the shift to steam power and the less reliance on the old ways of magic, the Unicorns are rarely ever seen, but they are not unheard of. The sight of a Unicorn is a head turning event and will often spark rumors.

This story is about a young Unicorn alchemist called Syn Thysis and his steam powered pet snake Gadget.