The Imperial capitol was just a day's travel away, and Starlight was eating lunch with Checkmate in her regal tent. A dark-blue light flashed before Starlight's eyes as she swallowed her last spoonful of pomegranate seeds. After the flash, a sealed letter appeared. This seal was the image of a bat hanging upside-down from a crescent moon.

Starlight looked over the table to Checkmate.

Checkmate looked back at her over a glass of red wine. “Who's it from?”

Starlight glanced at the seal. “Princess Luna. I can tell by the seal.”

“Luna? I thought we were done with her.”

“I guess she has some parting words for us.”

Checkmate took a sip from her glass. “I doubt it's worth reading.”

“Likely not.” She peeled off the seal and unfolded the letter. “But there's always the off chance you find something useful in these things.”

“Too true.”

Starlight turned the letter upright. It read:

Dear Starlight Glimmer,

Our forces have been driven from the field. They have been for a while now. Those five Legions who defeated us with ease now come for you. We are aware that the river crossing is now destroyed, but this has not stopped them, only stalled them. By several weeks, according to our estimation.

We would like to update you on the happenings back in your home country.

Our sister's mental state has deteriorated to the point where she has been formally declared unfit to rule, and has been placed under house arrest in a far-off royal retreat in the northernmost fringes of Equestria. I, Luna, will be taking her place as head of state. Cadence has been given control of the sun, as I do not trust myself with it. The corpse of Twilight Sparkle is now in the custody of the royal research and development department, so that we can try to resurrect her, in the hopes that bringing her back to life will help our sister on the road to recovery.

Here is what this means for you, as we are sure that is all you are concerned about.

Our personal disdain for you and those with whom you associate will not take precedence over our duty as this nation's primary executor. We will not attack you militarily, nor will we embargo you, nor will we seek to form political alliances against you. The enemies of Equestria are many, and we would rather not create more, especially not in these dark times. Indeed, we are glad that the openly hostile “Holy” Empire of Styx has been done away with, even if its replacement is less than ideal. A morally questionable trading partner is better than that horrific and violent remnant of a bygone age.

You may have your modernization. You will have no help from the royal coffers, and you will not be given any special consideration from the Crown, but we will not demand that Equestrian firms refuse to deal with you. Indeed, we could use the extra tax revenue.

Our military involvement in this war was done only according to our sister's brash, vengeful, impulsive decree. We had only acceded to this in the hopes that we could have had you as a bona fide ally, if not a loyal vassal of the realm. Although we see now that this was among the loftiest of pipe dreams, and many good lives were lost due to it, we cannot say that we fully regret this decision so long as you remain at least a neutral entity.

So here is our conclusion: We will trade with you. We will accept you in the council of nations. And we will even invite you and any guests you choose to bring (even him) to political gatherings. But that is as far as it goes.

Sincerely,

Her Grand Royal Majesty, Arbiter of Friendship, by Destiny's Grace, Eternal Ruler of Equestria and Her Tributaries, Queen Luna

Starlight set the letter down on the table and looked back to Checkmate, who was taking another sip of her wine.

“So,” Checkmate said, “what does it say?”

“Luna's the Equestrian head of state now.”

Checkmate sighed. “Oh, dear.”

“She calls herself a queen.”

Checkmate took another sip of wine. “Compensating, I guess.”

“Good news is, we can still trade with the Equestrians.”

“Hm. So, they don't know about…”

Starlight shook her head. “I don't think so.”

Checkmate flicked a hoof. “That's likely why. Probably grateful that we helped them exact their revenge.” She sipped her wine.

Starlight smirked. “Yeah. Grateful.”

The sound of ruffling cloth emanated from the tent's entrance. Starlight and Checkmate looked there; Imperator and Shattered Bones had just entered.

Imperator magically pulled a piece of paper out from underneath his cape. “I got a letter.”

“What a coincidence!” Starlight replied. “I got a letter, too. From Luna.”

“Hm. What does it say?”

“Well…” She looked at the letter. “According to 'Her Grand Royal Majesty, Arbiter of Friendship, by Destiny's Grace, Eternal Ruler of Equestria and Her Tributaries, Queen Luna…'”

Bones snickered. “Seriously?”

“I suppose a grandiose title is one way to compensate for a poor reputation,” Imperator said.

“Anyway.” Starlight looked back to Imperator, “Celestia's out. Luna is completely in control now, but she's still going to let us trade with Equestria.”

“Quite fortunate.”

“It is.”

“Hm. So, how is Sucker Pop? Is she useful at all?”

Starlight nodded. “Oh, yes, she's very useful. It turns out that she's a math whiz. She has a doctorate, in fact. And she made robots in her spare time.”

One of Bones' eyes tensed. “Robots? What in God's sterile shithole is a robot?”

Starlight put a hoof to her chin. “Hmm… how do I put extremely cutting edge Equestrian technology in terms that someone from a backwards Ice Age world will understand… Ah!” She put her hoof back down. “Think of them as semi-conscious servants, designed by extremely well-read engineers and mathematicians. They're built out of mechanical steel parts and powered by magical energy shells, from the ground up, for just about any simple, rote mechanical purpose that you can think of.”

“You mean like a slave?”

Starlight nodded. “Yes. Like a slave. But it doesn't need any training, any lobotomies, or any bathroom breaks.”

“How many of these do you have in Equestria?” Imperator asked.

“Almost none. It's still in the prototype stage, and it's not very popular, anyway. Associated with snake oil salesponies, apparently.”

“All the more reason to maximize our own development of this technology.”

“And,” Checkmate added, “if it really is unpopular in Equestria, then we can probably buy their roboticists for a great price. We will suck them dry of robot-related talent and capitalize on it ourselves.”

Bones pointed to Checkmate, still looking at Starlight. “Ooh, she's good.” She looked to Checkmate. “You are the deceased Prime Minister's daughter, correct?”

Checkmate nodded with a smile.

“I heard about you. It takes real skill for a mare to run a country that doesn't let mares in any sort of office.”

Checkmate chuckled. “A male figurehead with limited intelligence makes that a lot easier.”

“I'm curious. What is your purpose in the Commonwealth? Your Byzuntonia won't exist anymore, I'm sure.”

“Director of Education and Propaganda.” She looked to Starlight. “Isn't that right?”

Starlight nodded. “Yep.”

Checkmate looked back to Bones. “And your father will be the head – Marshal is the title – of the army and police forces. You'll still be Grand Dragon of the Secret Service, but you'll be subordinate to him.”

“Do not fret, though,” Imperator added. “The Imperial Legions will be integrated into the Secret Service, as an armed contingent. The Weaponed Secret Service. That is all I will be tending to as far as you are concerned. I will let you continue doing what you do best. And I will assign a delegate for all the other police forces.”

Bones smiled at Imperator. “Thank you, father. And that reminds me. Have you decided on whether or not you will make me an alicorn?”

“You know what?” He raised a hoof, then wrapped it around Bones' chest and pulled her up to him in a squeeze. “I will. I will make you an alicorn. I would hate to see my sole surviving child die of age, especially when she is so outstanding in her own right.” He released her.

Bones unleashed thunderous laughter. “Yes! Godhood! I love you so much. You have my deepest thanks.”

“You earned it.” He looked to Starlight. “Would you like to know what my letter contains now? I think you will appreciate it.”

“We'll see.”

“A formal letter of unconditional surrender from the Kaiser, himself.”

Starlight put on a devilish smirk. “So, that's it, then. The Wasteland is ours now. It's officially conquered.”

“Correct. Total conquest with only one pitched battle and one siege, both of them incredibly one-sided. Quite remarkable, if I do say so myself. Not even Planetvoid ever did so well.”

Starlight's smirk grew. “So I'm even better than Planetvoid.”

“At the risk of being smitten for blasphemy… yes. Yes, you are.”

“My agents tell me he did it under stress from the Praetorians,” Bones said. “I guess bribe money doesn't matter much when everything else is going to hell.”

“Additionally,” Imperator added, “A short while ago, I gave Lightning Dust her first assignment.”

“What?” Starlight asked.

“With the aid of my daughter's secret agents within the Brotherhood of the Sun, she has been sent to kill Elder Big Rat, and all other major leading figures in the Brotherhood. That way, they will be scattered like the rodents they so emulate, and will be picked off more easily by the Secret Service should they ever attempt to act against us.”

Checkmate smiled and rolled her eyes. “So you're not just stabbing Luna in the back, but also Big Rat?”

“Are you surprised?” Starlight replied. “We did a lot of backstabbing to get here. Sort of necessary when you're starting from pretty much nothing.”

“Miss Glimmer is really quite deft with a knife aimed at the back,” Imperator said. “One of the many reasons why I adore her so much.”

Starlight put a hoof on her cheek and leaned her head into it. “Aww, that's so sweet.”

“But wait,” Checkmate said. “I took all that time to write him a speech. Is all that going to waste?”

Imperator shook his head. “I am afraid so. I apologize, Checkmate. It was a very excellent speech.”

Checkmate sighed. “No, no, it's fine. These things happen. It wouldn't the first time.” She took another sip of wine.

The next day, Starlight stood side-by-side with Imperator and Bones, standing in front of the gates of Wenn, whose walls were just as gray and bland as Benn's, but were thicker and had more towers dotted along it. They waited for the Kaiser and his Praetorians to emerge.

Behind them stood Legate Freezing Sword, who was given a brand new suit of armor, which was commissioned by Imperator to the same artisans in Starlightopolis who forged Starlight's armor. The plates glistened with a light-blue hue; they were adorned with metal spikes forged to look like icicles, and emblazoned on both flanks was a white equal mark. His helm had acryllic glass eyeplates, and a plume of sharpened light-blue steel wires.

Behind the Legate stood his First Cohort, behind them stood the rest of the Second Legion, and behind them stood the stone centaurs.

The rattling of chains echoed from the gate, and the gate's doors kicked up dust as they were dragged open. Six Centuries of Praetorians emerged. They were of great stature even by Imperial standards; they were clad in purple plate armor, with purple capes that were outlined in golden thread. Heading them was a single Praetorian, whose horn had a golden thorny branch coiled around it, and whose helm had a golden plume. Next to him, this Praetorian magically dragged a metal red wagon, and in this wagon, a red Imperial stallion laid naked on his large, flabby belly, his legs bound together with ropes. A green apple was stuffed in his mouth, and his open jaws emphasized his sagging double chin. Starlight laughed to herself at this.

As the Praetorians marched towards her, Starlight looked into the obese stallion's pink eyes. They were blank, soulless, and thoughtless. It was no wonder now, why he wasn't resisting. She then looked at his flank. His mark was an image of a pink heart split by a crack.

Once the head Praetorian was within speaking distance, his Praetorian Cohort formed a line behind him.

The head Praetorian saluted Starlight. “Ma'am. I am Head Praetorian Steel Spine. My Guard now presents to you Kaiser Shattered Dreams, for your review, ma'am. His fate is yours to decide.”

Starlight smirked. “You Imperials have an amusingly dark sense of humor. Looks to me like he was lobotomized. Is that true?”

“Yes, ma'am.”

“Ha, ha! How ironic. Well, I'd really hate to ruin this joke by choosing a bad punchline.” She pointed to Imperator. “Let him decide how he goes out.”

The Head Praetorian looked up to Imperator.

Imperator looked down to the Head Praetorian. “Rost tze schwein. Ayn arsönisch pyre.”

“Az zu dikture.”

The Head Praetorian took a few strides away from the Kaiser, then stood to face him. His horn was then lit ablaze, and the Praetorian sprayed the Kaiser with fire, consuming him in it.

Starlight smiled wide, then looked up to Imperator and asked, “What'd you say to him?”

Imperator looked to Starlight. “Roast the pig in fire.”

Starlight let out a roaring laugh. “That's good! I wish we had black humor in Equestria.”

“I doubt that it does not exist in Equestria. Lightning Dust seems to have a fair grasp on it.”

Starlight looked back to the roasting pig. “Well, if it does, I haven't seen it.”

Imperator did the same. “This reminds me. You are an honorary Imperial now. I will have to teach you Reichschpeak quite soon. I know you think it is an ugly language, but still, it would be useful for you to know.”

“You know, I'm starting to see a sort of charm in Reichschpeak. Sure, it's a bit rough, but it's not all bad.” Although the flames hid the Kaiser for the most part, Starlight could see glimpses of his increasingly charred and blackened countenance. She looked to the Head Praetorian. “Are you almost done?”

“Almost,” he replied. After a little while longer, he stopped the fire. There laid the last Kaiser, an obese, smoldering carcass inside a hot metal wagon, with the blackened fruit still wedged in his mouth. The Head Praetorian then turned to one of his Centuries and spoke. “Centurion. Have one of your tent-groups take this trash to the landfill.”

The Centurion saluted his leader, then issued the order. A line of eight Praetorians peeled off from that Century, lifted up the wagon with the body still inside, then marched in single file to the right side of the city, with their tent-leader in front.

“I would like to know,” Imperator said. “All the Praetorians here are drawn from the First Cohort, as they should be?”

The Head Praetorian nodded. “Jawohl. Every last one of them.”

“If you are truly of the First Cohort, then neither you nor your subordinates will have issue reciting the First Cohort's Creed. Get to it. On tri.” He was silent for a moment. “Wonn… tuwe… tri.”

Every Praetorian held his right forehoof across his chest in straight and rigid form. Then, in unison, they spoke. “We are the most ruthless, the most skilled, the most disciplined soldiers on the face of the planet. We have the hardiest muscle, the fastest reflexes, and unwavering stamina. We have war-cries which make dragons freeze in horror, stomachs which hunger for the screams of the suffering, and gazes which tear souls to ribbons. We are the reapers of the Reich – the First Cohort. There is no foe we cannot defeat. There is no land we cannot conquer. There is no wall we cannot tear asunder. We are strong. We are legion. We do not die – we are death!” After reciting the creed, they let their forehooves back down.

“So,” Starlight said, “did they do it right?”

“They did,” Imperator replied. “Their recital was not only immaculate, but also was done with the harsh roughness that only a real First Cohort could recognize or iterate. These Praetorians are honest and true.”

The Head Praetorian turned to Starlight. “And you are now under the protection of these fine Praetorians. Rest assured that we will guard you well and faithfully from any threat pointed at you.”

Starlight rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I'm real assured.” She looked to Imperator. “Tell him.”

Imperator stomped up close to the Head Praetorian, then glared into his eyes. “I tell this to you as Wärmarschal, as a former First Cohort Centurion, and as a demigod. Grand Dragon Shattered Bones, she who watches your every move and listens to your every word, is my daughter, and is loyal to me implicitly. Premier Starlight Glimmer is my future wife. If I ever find out that you or one of your Praetorians has so much as rubbed a hair on her head the wrong way – and if it happens, I will find out – then I will personally kill you, the offending Praetorian, and your entire families in the most cruel and humiliating of manners, with utmost ease and with total legal impunity. Is that understood?”

The Head Praetorian slunk back, then drew his gaze to the side and downward. “Y-yes, sir. N-not a hair on her head.”

“Good. You know the risks of treason, then. But I do not believe it will be a problem. Miss Glimmer is a fine leader, and very amicable to those who do not tempt her wrath.”

“It's true,” Starlight said with a smile. “I'm sure you Praetorians are really nice. I really don't blame you for betraying the Kaiser, but I have to look out for myself, too. I'm sure you understand.”

The Head Praetorian sighed. “Yes, ma'am.”

“Now,” Imperator said, “what is it that you Praetorians normally do after you have killed a Kaiser?”

The Head Praetorian picked his head back up. “Ravage the Kaiser's concubines and ransack his quarters, sir.”

“Then I will no longer keep you or your soldiers waiting. I am sure they are quite eager. Will you, Starlight?”

Starlight shook her head. “Nope. I'm done with him for now.”

“Yes, sir and ma'am.” He saluted Starlight and Imperator, then turned back to his subordinates to shout. “You heard 'em! The Kaiser's bitches are ours now. Let's have at 'em!”

The rigid Praetorian ranks suddenly broke into a hooting and hollering mob as they turned to the city gates and galloped through them like a swarm, towards Wenn's citadel on the hill, kicking up dirt as they went.

Starlight looked up at Imperator. “So, where to now?”

“To the Pillar of Justice. I was told that should you channel your Un-Marking spell through the Pillar, it will be amplified to cover the entire Wasteland. And I assume you will be leaving the Reichsfolks' marks alone, as we agreed?”

Starlight nodded. “As we agreed.”

“Very good. Now, both of you, follow me to the Pillar, if you please.”

When Starlight turned around another corner in the labyrinth of empty city streets and gray apartment blocks, a gargantuan eleven-sided obsidian pillar, glowing in a sickly green aura, awaited her. It emanated a continuous hum. Etched in white, on each of the pillar's eleven sides, was seven commandments written in old-style Equestrian. Starlight felt her mouth gape in wonder.

“This is the Pillar of Justice,” Imperator said. “When God created Planetvoid's first wife from the dust, He also erected this Pillar, which has His Seventy-Seven Divine Edicts engraved on it. The Empire was built on the principles and rules expounded in these Edicts.”

“What's the green stuff for?” Starlight asked.

“To protect it,” said Bones. “God blessed it so that only one stronger than Planetvoid could destroy it. Which, at the time, only meant Celestia and Luna. All else who tried would be reduced to a shapeless mass of boiling flesh.”

“Eugh. Well, anyway. Let's get to it!”

Starlight touched her horn on the Pillar, and channeled her energy through it. She sunk every ounce of her being into the Un-Marking spell. Then, an immense bolt of bluish-green light shot up high into the atmosphere through the Pillar, and made a deafening boom that echoed throughout the whole planet. Now, the sky became littered with removed cutie marks that soared upwards, then southwest, to the place where they'd be locked away and stored until further notice. Starlight stepped back from the pillar, feeling her eyelids go heavy as she took quick and deep breaths.

“I do wonder,” Imperator said. “Where do these marks go once you have removed them? It must be filled to the brink by now.”

“There's a vault near Our Town,” she replied. “The Cutie Mark Vault. I made it myself. Well, I did with the Staff of Sameness.”

“I thought that was just a useless hunk of wood you found on the ground.”

“That's partly true. It was useless when I found it, but then I turned it into the Vault's link between the Mundane and the little pocket in Tartarus where it puts all the cutie marks.” Starlight grinned. “It has enough room for hundreds of trillions of them!”

“Was it a lot of effort to get that much space?”

“No, not really. Tartarus is a pretty big place.”

“Well, however you did it, I am sure it required quite a bit of ingenuity, if not a lot of effort. It also sounds to me like something that needs defending with arms.”

“We'll have the Weaponed Secret Service do that. They'll build a secret military base around it. Heavily guarded, and armed to the teeth. And we can't let anyone know about it.”

“And about your old town?”

“Security hazard. They have to go.”

“Really?” A moment of silence. “Sure. That makes sense to me. I will get Legate Sword right on it. Now, there is something I need to do…”

Imperator took several strides back, and charged his horn, creating an enormous golden sphere  of blinding light that pulsed with electric veins and hummed even louder than the Pillar. He launched it at the Pillar, and it exploded into innumerable black obsidian shards. Starlight cast a round shield around herself and Bones to protect from the giant dust cloud and the flying debris, which bounced harmlessly off it and Imperator's armor. The surrounding buildings around a fifty yard radius were blown back by the blast, and they were reduced to rubble. Thousands of smaller booms were heard in quick succession from outside the city. Once the dust and the debris settled, Starlight glared at Imperator, whose armor was black and gray from being covered by it. Starlight cast a spell on him, and a gust of wind blew it all away, bringing back its white and gold luster.

Starlight then grimaced and stomped a hoof on the ground. “What'd you do that for!?”

“There is another thing about the Pillar. It was Wolfram's link to the Wasteland. By destroying it, I removed any influence Wolfram ever had on this place.”

Starlight took a quiet moment to digest this, then was flung into a snickering fit. “You betrayed your own god. You actually, willingly betrayed your own god. How did you even think of that!?”

Imperator looked up to the sky. “Let us just say I was told by a kindred spirit.” He looked back to Starlight. “We are the gods of the Wasteland now. You, me, and my daughter.”

Bones raised an eyebrow. “When are you going to ascend me, anyway?”

“Now. In the citadel. Follow me.”

Imperator started his way to the citadel, then Bones trailed behind him, her smile stretching far on both sides.

“Wait!” Starlight called out.

Imperator looked back at Starlight. “Yes, dear?”

“The war's pretty much over now, right? Once we make it official, I want to give you a gift.”

“Is that so? And what would this gift be?”

“A name. I'm tired of not having a real name to call you by. Everyone either calls you by your nationality, or some job description. It's stupid. Names exist for a reason. And since you're clearly not lying about not remembering your old name, I think it's about time I gave you a new one.”

He paused for a moment. “I will be honest. I feel the same way.”

Starlight smiled. “I'm glad.”

“When we discuss this with Miss Master, we will come up with a suitable name. Perhaps we can also give new names to the more poorly named cities. Planetvoid, for all his political and military savvy, was never very good at coming up with names.”

“Alright. I'll go bring Checkmate over here, and we can talk it over.”

“Very good.”

“And since we're going to be married, I think you should meet your in-laws. Or rather, I think your in-laws should meet you.” Her eyebrows tensed, and her smile grew. “Especially your father-in-law.”

“My father-in-law?”

“Yeah. My dad. He told me I was too 'crazy' to ever get married. I'd like to rub it in his face!”

“I thought you were his favorite.”

She waved a dismissive hoof. “We had a bit of a falling out. Don't dwell on it too much.”

“Of course. I would hate to spoil such an entertaining family reunion.” Imperator continued on his way, with Bones following. “I can hardly wait to put a ring on… wherever it is Equestrian grooms place frivolous ring-shaped jewelry on their brides.”

Starlight extended her wings, then launched herself up into the sky. As she flapped her wings and flew in the direction of her camp's main tent, she looked back at the city of Wenn, and her every fiber tingled with excitement. It was hers. The whole city was hers. The whole Wasteland was hers. And this was just the beginning. The Wasteland was hers today. Tomorrow, she would have the world. Next Chapter: Chapter 26 Estimated time remaining: 22 Minutes