At the Iskalian camp outside of Appaloosa, Josta was sitting at a table inside of her tent while overlooking a chessboard, seemingly pondering her next move. The pieces were orchestrated in lines diagonally across the board, the kings behind both of them.

"My empress!" a soldier burst in, causing Josta to lose her focus and grab her sword while summoning its blade, nearly decapitating him. The soldier looked on in fear as Josta realized her mistake, immediately dispersing the blade and placing the hilt on her hip.

"Yes?" She asked, exhaling sharply.

"Draegal would like to speak with you," the soldier replied, "About quite a few things, I might add." Josta reset the board and sighed, sitting down on the white side of the board.

"Send him in," she ordered, barely looking over to the soldier. A few minutes later, Draegal walked through the tent flap, followed by two Iskalian soldiers in red and black uniforms with white armbands, signifying their status as guards. Draegal seemingly sat down at the other end of the board, looking at Josta, "What is it?"

"What is it?" Draegal echoed, staring right at her, "What I asked you to meet for? Well, it's simple. Now that you've taken Appaloosa, what's your next move?"

"Move on Dodge City and use that as a launching point deeper into Equestrian territory," Josta spoke, moving a pawn upwards two spaces.

"My father's army has quite a few pegasi on his side, in case you didn't know," Draegal moved a knight up and over his pawns while Josta took note of the amount of venom that came out of Draegal's mouth when he said father, "What's your plan for that?"

"The Kingdom of Frost's anti-air cannons," Josta retorted, moving one of her bishops up to support her pawn, "They could hit the wings off of a fly from 2000 yards away and not ruffle a hair." The game between the two of them continued, with both Draegal and Josta stating their counters with each other's moves. Eventually, it boiled down to three pawns, two rooks, and one knight for both sides of the board, not counting their kings. Josta smiled and looked at Draegal, who smiled back.

"You forgot about the Kingdom of Sondra's monks," She stated, taking one of Draegal's rooks with one of her own.

"And I believe that Sondran monks aren't as powerful as a unicorn," Draegal retorted, taking the rook with his remaining knight, "Or a sage, but those are a lot rarer."

It was at that moment that both Draegal and Josta realized that both of their moves put their kings it checkmate. Josta tipped over her king while Draegal tipped over his own.

"It's going to end up being a draw," she spoke with surprise in her voice, turning to leave her tent, "Although I have to admit, you played well. That's the first time I've ever been defeated. Since my younger years, at least."

"I was known as the top chess player in the empire before I came here," Draegal replied as he followed outside, walking closely behind, the guards following as well. As they walked, Draegal couldn't help but glance around at the camp. Soldiers doing firing drills, two Sondrans sparring with wooden swords, Frostian soldiers adjusting their armor and cleaning their weapons, and Arcane Legion mages memorizing spells and firing them at targets. Draegal walked to Josta's side, craning his neck to look up at her, "but I must ask, what happens to the other prisoners? Aside from myself, where will they go?"

"The POW wing at Black Spire Prison." Josta told him without changing her focus, making the guards behind her and Draegal pale. Black Spire Prison was one of the most infamous locations in the Iskalian Empire. Located in the Bay of Chankloe near the city of the same name, the prison was the number one location for all sorts of lawbreakers. Serial killers, illegal mages, POWs, even criminal lords. There were many nicknames for it as well, such as the Rock, the Devil's Island, the Home of the Mad, and even, if ironic, the Chankloe Hotel. But what gave the prison its name is the spire in the middle of the island, made out of a special type of black metal that absorbs all light, generating special crystals that empower mage's staffs. Specialized materials made to absorb magic line the room where the spire is, preventing illegal mages from using their powers. The prison was known for making even the most fearless of men snivel and cry at the mere mention of its name.

"Black Spire Prison?! Are you insane, my student?!" An old man suddenly spoke. His robes were red and black, clutching a staff made of redwood and topped with a white crystal, staring into Josta's eyes. His hair was white and his eyes red, much like the one that he called his student. This was Leopoldo the IVth, Josta's magic instructor since her ascension to the throne, and Grandmaster of the Arcane Legion.

"I assure you, master, we will treat them the best we can-" Josta began to speak before Leopoldo smacked his cane on her head, causing her to rub the spot where he hit her.

"Are you certain that there are no other prisons that could work for them?!" Leopoldo was letting his magic flow, causing Josta to let hers flow as well in response. The two waves of magic cascaded into one another, fighting over control.

"You know damn well that Black Spire is the only prison close enough that has a POW wing! Besides, those decrees I made against cruel and unusual punishment are in full effect, so they won't be harmed!" Josta yelled, seemingly regaining some sort of control over her magic.

"Oh, so Moskovol isn't cruel and unusual punishment, then?!" Leopoldo rebuffed, his magic crashing over Josta's. A look of realization came over Josta's face as reality began to set in. She sighed and began to calm down, as did Leopoldo. She looked at her hand and clenched it, making it bleed. She immediately socked herself in the face, before looking directly at Leopoldo.

"You with this round, master," Josta spoke with sorrow and regret in her voice, tears beginning to stream down her face, "But please don't pull that trick again."

Leopoldo sighed and wrapped his arms around Josta's stomach in a comforting manner. He looked up to his student and began to wipe the tears from Josta's eyes.

"Don't cry," he told her, using both his hand and a handkerchief he summoned, "You did what you had to do, even though it was rather brutal. At first, I wasn't proud, but seeing you now," he turned Josta's face towards his own, "I'm as proud as a grandfather who saw their grandchildren for their first time."

"R-right... Thank you, master." Josta went down to her knees and hugged Leopoldo, letting the old man rest his head on her shoulder. That is until she felt a hand on her breastplate. Josta looked at Leopoldo with anger in her eyes as Leopoldo's expression quickly shifted to fear.

"Leopoldo!!!" Her voice rose as her hair shifted to a sudden red, her eyes shifting to black. Leopoldo quickly broke the hug and began to run, with Josta hot on his heels, waving her sword wildly and screaming at the top of her lungs.

Raksha, Twilight, Rainbow, Rarity, and Applejack immediately came rushing out of their tent and to the others, watching Leopoldo run like no old man should away from Josta, who began to throw fireballs at him.

"He'd probably be dead if he weren't immortal," Raksha spoke after sighing, rubbing the bridge of her nose and walking away, mumbling something about him being a "lecherous old crow."

"How does Iskalian magic work, exactly?" Twilight asked, looking confused at Josta's fireballs. Leopoldo stopped for a brief second, only for a fireball to hit him dead in the chest and knock him down. Josta exhaled sharply as she dispersed the blade, looking at Leopoldo as the remaining flames began to simmer out.

"Iskalian magic comes directly from the soul," Josta told her as she cast a spell, making her soul appear from her chest. "The more in tune with your soul that you are, the more powerful your magic is. For example, Leopoldo and I are the strongest mages in the empire, although we've had a lot more training with being in tune with our souls. The average Iskalian battle mage spends 10 years of their life training, and three of those are dedicated to being in tune with their soul. If they try to skip that, however, well..." Josta thought back to her time training with Leopoldo and the many, many explosions that occurred because of her magical mishaps. "There are consequences."

"Like our immortality...?" Leopoldo spoke weakly, being helped up by two mage apprentices. Josta frowned and looked at her mentor.

"You said it was a twelve-billion to one chance if I remember correctly," Josta replied, "To be honest, we're both lucky."

"Excuse me, my empress," One of the guards spoke up, "We found this on Draegal's person when we captured him. It appears to be some kind of communication device." He handed the circular device to Josta, who examined it. Almost immediately afterward, the device began to flicker with blue lightning, and an image of King Dainn appeared, in all of his perverse glory, with Celestia seemingly next to his leg in submission.

"About time, my so-" Dainn's words were interrupted when he saw who was on the other side. His jaw went slack, then to a smirk, "So the Iskalians were beaten back, and you took one of their knights as your personal slave? Impressive work, Draegal!"

"I'm afraid that's not the case," Josta spoke as magic began to come off of her, making the device seemingly flicker, "In fact, it's the opposite." Josta turned the device to the caribou prisoners, making Dainn audibly gasp in surprise and Celestia smirk. Dainn slapped Celestia, making her fall to the floor.

"So who am I speaking with then?!" Dainn yelled in anger as Josta began to walk back to her tent. She placed the device on the table where the chessboard was and sat down opposite of him.

"You are speaking with Josta Romana Isaklia, Empress of the Iskalian Empire," Josta's voice echoed in the tent, "Now then, who am I speaking with?"

"King Dainn, the savior of-" Josta slammed her hands on the table and rocketed up to her full stature. Dainn jumped in surprise as Josta's hair began to stand up, shifting to a blazing red, with strands of her hair turning a dark black.

"Don't give me that 'savior of ponykind' bullshit! You're a tyrant! A monster born in the bowels of the underworld whose only purpose in life is to enslave and pillage all in your wake!" Celestia began to slowly get up, showing the terrible state her body was in, looking directly at Josta. Despite her defilement by Dainn's hands, there was still a spark of defiance in her eyes. A spark that Josta knew all too well. She visibly calmed, her rage leaving her body as the color left her hair, returning it to the natural white it was known for. She sat back down and placed her hands in front of her face, locking her red eyes with Dainn.

"So tell me, Josta," Dainn visibly retched as saying her name, "Care to surrender?"

"Are you so full of yourself that you believe that I would surrender when I've barely started the campaign? You need to know a thing or two about statesmanship before we can even begin to negotiate." Josta was laughing underneath her visibly cold exterior.

"Right, that was stupid of me. But other than that, I want you to know this, Josta Romana Iskalia," Dainn pulled Celestia up by her mane, "We will be ready for you. Not matter your army's size, no matter the advancements you have made, we will hold. You will not break us!" He began to cup Celestia's breast in his hand, making Josta's hair flicker, "And when we defeat you, no matter how brutal your campaign is, I will personally be the one to break you." The device flickered off, making Josta visibly shake, although, not with fear.

BUT WITH PURE, BLINDING, RAGE.

Summoning her blade, she slashed the device in half and threw it out of the tent while screaming at the top of her lungs, storming out after it. Both soldier and mage stepped out of the way as Josta's hair began to shift, but not into a dazzling red, into a dark black that seemed to absorb the light around it. She stormed towards Draegal grabbing him by his throat and lifting him upwards. Draegal was tall by Caribou standards, but compared to Josta, he barely went up to the base of her chest.

"I can see why you have such a deep hatred for your father," her voice began to become ethereal, echoing after a mysterious first, "He's such arrogant coward who thinks that not even the gods can touch him. It's about time someone taught him some HUMILITY!!!"

Throwing Draegal to the ground, Josta looked towards the elements they had found wandering the desert. Twilight, despite her uncanny ability with magic, was on her knees and holding back the urge to vomit, as was Rarity. Applejack had fallen to her knees as well, although in shock rather than in sickness. Rainbow Dash, however, remained standing, albeit barely.

Josta let her power subside, and began to walk towards the four of them, her rage beginning to leave her body, but only just. Dispersing her blade, she placed the hilt back on her hip, before meeting her eyes with Rainbow's own. She smirked slightly, before calmly rubbing Rainbow Dash's head. Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack had gotten their feet underneath them before brushing themselves off, although Twilight and Rarity still looked visibly queasy. Draegal got up as well, assisted by two guards.

"Despite all that's happened, you still have fight left in you," she stated wholeheartedly, letting Rainbow recover, "I can see that Luna and Celestia made the right choice when it came to the bearers of the Elements."

"Heh, thanks," Rainbow Dash spoke with embarrassment, "But what now?"

"Now?" Josta echoed, smirking, "It's time for a change of plans. To truly defeat one's opponent, one must know both themselves and the one they fight against. We know little about the Caribou, but I believe we can learn more about them."

"And how are ya gonna do that?" Applejack spoke up. Josta smiled, sending a shiver up everyone's spine.

"By taking the crown jewel of the west." Josta motioned for a table, placing a map on top of it. Aside from Dodge City and Appaloosa, there was only one town or city nearby that matched the description Josta gave.

Las Pegasus.

Meanwhile, across Equestria, Luna struggled to stay on her feet, feeling a large amount of magic radiate from an unknown direction, then suddenly dissipate. She had only felt that once before, over a millennium ago. Two ponies burst into her tent, a white unicorn, and a pink alicorn. They were Shining Armor and Mi Amore Cadenza, alias Cadence, former rulers of the Crystal Empire. Grabbing Luna, the two of them helped her regain her footing.

"Are you okay, Luna?" Cadence asked the Diarch.

"I'm fine, dear," she answered, although weakly, "Just... happy."

As Luna sat down, a Snake Clan messenger entered the tent. Shining Armor leveled his sword at the intruder before Luna calmly motioned for him to sheathe it. Listening to the Diarch, he placed the sword back in its scabbard as the Snake Clan messenger approached. He handed Luna a letter, before disappearing into the forest. Luna opened the letter and began to read it, with Shining Armor and Cadence looking over her shoulder to read along.

"I apologize for the surge of magic," the letter read, "I was filled with a blinding rage. Dainn and I had an informative, although brief, conversation. I can see now that Dodge City is not the best location for a jumping-off point into Equestrian land. Our next main target will be the city of Las Pegasus, while a smaller force will take Dodge City. If you can, I would like you to inform the resistance group inside of the city, if there is one, to evacuate immediately. Our full fury will be directed solely at the Caribou and the citizens who work alongside them.

We have zero quarrels with any individual who allies themselves with the resistance. If you understand this, please send a letter back as soon as possible.

I look forward to seeing you again, Luna. We will arrive as soon as we can. And to Shining Armor and Mi Amore Cadenza, I look forward to seeing your child. May she grow strong like her father and mother.

-Josta Romana Iskalia."

"Quickly now, Shining Armor, draft a letter to the resistance in Las Pegasus," Luna ordered with haste, "They need to get out of there!"

Shining Armor saluted and rushed out of the tent, grabbing two loyal Royal Guards with him. A letter was drafted to the resistance group in Las Pegasus, which read the following:

"To the resistance faction inside the city of Las Pegasus, evacuate outside of the city immediately. The Iskalians are approaching with the fury of a tornado, and although they have zero quarrels with you, they will strike down all who ally with the caribou and might confuse you with them. If possible, meet with them and provide information on the city and its defenses, but do not try to cause any trouble.

-Diarch Luna."

Almost immediately after the letter was sent, 70,000 individuals, both Caribou and Equestrian alike, left the city, taking anything they could with them. With the resistance in the city gone, the Caribou lords in charge of the city let loose, giving in to their desires.

If only they knew what awaited them.

Author's Note

*kicks down a door* I'M BACK!!! AND BETTER THAN EVER!!! Did ya miss me?! Of course, you did! Sorry that this chapter took so long, quite a lot happened in such little time that I can't properly describe it. I've been so overwhelmed by the events in the U.S. that I had to leave a few other communities that will not be named for a while to get my head back in line. I know the chess section seemed illogical, but I tried to imagine the game in my head, and I haven't played it in a while, and I'm not that good at it!

The inspirations for Black Spire Prison were good old Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, Eastern State Penitentiary, and of course, the Hanoi Hilton.

And another member of Josta's council (as I'm going to call them from now on) has been introduced! Leopoldo the IVth, Grandmaster of the Arcane Legion! He's a bit perverted (ala Master Roshi), but when you get down to it, he's a good mentor and teacher!

So now Dainn (and luckily Celestia) knows the Iskalians are coming for him! Despite the stroke of luck that was the call (which I know is a Deus Ex Machina), There's going to be a lot of action in the coming chapters, so be prepared!

And whoo boy, was Josta pissed! I tried to write some sort of realistic reaction, but when it comes to Josta, I don't even have a filter for her!

So Las Pegasus is the next target on Josta's list! With the resistance in the city gone, and the caribou thinking all is well! Oh boy, are they in for a rude awakening!

You probably already know the drill about fanart right now, but I'm going to say it's optional for once! Anyway, let's hope this year is a hell of a lot better than the last one! I know about the incident in the Capitol, and I am disappointed to even call myself an American, but I hope to god things are better in the future. Let's hold out the best we can!

This chapter was written in the days before I heard of RarityEQM's death, and posted on the day I heard about it, so allow me to say I send my condolences to her family and friends. We'll all miss her, and may she rest in peace. She may be gone, but she certainly won't be forgotten.

-Silver Ghost