It was sunrise. After several days of walking the three soldiers finally reached the outskirts of the town of Ponyville. The orange-like glow on the sun illuminating the landscape below.

The ground was scorched in many places. Shell-holes scarring the only green fields. Roads and houses since long gone.

Only a few tents were set up among the giant clusters of goblins, orcs, vellemons, and some more unknown nightmarish creatures. Inside said tents were the officers.

Steiner was holding his commander cap on his left hand while his right hand was on the trigger of the mp40, which hung from a strap in his right shoulder. The uniform in his chest and belly along with his leather gloves and boots were completely stained with dried blood. His Luger was still in the old, worn out brown holster in his right hip; the knife sheathed on the other side. On his back hung a simple dark brown leather backpack in which he had some magazines for his pistol and smg, first aid kits and human’s melee weapons.

To his left stood Archie with his own backpack which held the elements, uniform covered with dirt, same as Jean who was on Steiner’s right. The young british man had his rifle at the ready, bayonet plugged; while Jean clutched his mp18 tightly.

* A few days earlier *

The soft bright light of the moon bathed, in different colours thanks to the steiner glass, the three human and the solar princess standing in the long hallway where the elements were located. Said magical artefacts were in Archie’s leather backpack along with another one which held ammunition, a first aid kit and the human’s melee weapons.

Celestia had a look mixed of confusion and anger. Second turned to minutes as both partied stared at each other, as if trying to win a competition on who would falter first under the other’s gaze.

“What are you doing?” Celestia’s question was spoken with a neutral voice, not a shred of anger or rage. She expected a very, very, good explanation for what was going on.

Suddenly, he heard the small device Steiner was holding fall to the ground as he drew his Luger and aimed it directly at the princesses forehead. His comrades did the same with their main weapons.

“Get out of the way, Celestia.” Steiner’s voice was just as neutral as Celestia’s.

“Are all those dead ponies and humans your doing? Have you harmed MY PONIES? MY ALLIES?” Now there was pure anger in Celestia’s voice.

“I will not ask again.” Wenck did not even flicker from the sun goddess’s outburst.

“You know you can’t defeat me. And as we speak more Royal Guard and Valyrian soldiers are heading this way.”

Steiner was about to pull the trigger when he was hit in the back on the head by a rifle butt, Archie’s rifle. The brown uniformed soldier then kicked Jean in the chest strong enough to make him lose grip of his mp18.

Celestia was just as surprised as the other two humans. “Don’t move.” Archie ordered Steiner, who was about to get back on his feet.

“Was zur hölle?! What are you doing?!”

“Shut up german scum! Heh, you really thought I would let you go?”

“Let me go? What are you talking about?”

“You german bastard killed my best friend, and I’ve been waiting for a bloody long time to get back at you. Even if it is just you Steiner.”

“Verdammt traitor!”

“Traitor? Me? Wasn’t it you who killed at those friendlies? Wasn’t it you the one who robbed the elements just now?” Archie turned to face the princess and threw both leather backpack at her hooves.

“Princess Celestia.” He approached her, though Celestia was still wary and confused about the human’s sudden change of loyalty. “I hand you the traitors.”

Celestia nodded her head at Archie and began walking towards Steiner.

Just as she passed him, Archie reached from behind him and took something off his belt. With lightning speed, he put the magical dampener on Celestia’s horn. The object was a stone cylinder with the same shape as a horn and it attached itself to the top of the goddess's horn.

The british man hit her in the temple with his rifle just as she turned around. she fell to the ground with a thump as didn’t move, she was unconscious.

Archie helped his friends up and handed Steiner the backpack with the supplies while he kept the one with the elements. “Let’s bug out, now.”

As the group was running out the main gate of the hall they saw several Royal Guards and Valyrians approach.

“Feuer frei!” came the order from Steiner as the three humans let loose a hail bullets upon the charging enemies, many going down among a red mist of blood in the process.

They quickly rounded a corner and kept running. They sprinted down the stairs. As they got to the base they saw several pnoy civilians along with four Valyrians guards.

They group stopped and opened fire. Archie fired an accurate bullet which entered through the left eye socket of one of the black uniformed humans.

Jean fired five rounds at the leftmost enemy. One bullet penetrated the stomach, ripping it and spilling gastric juices over the other organs. Another one entered exactly through the middle of the abdomen and got stuck in the spine. The final bullet went clean through the right lung, puncturing it and leaving the soldier gasping for air on the ground. The other two bullets missed the target and continued their path just barely going over the heads of ponies only to be stopped by the rock wall some metres behind.

Steiner fired a two bullet burst. The first projectile struck the enemy's lower jaw, shattering and spraying bone and some undamaged teeth around. The other bullet penetrated just below the right eye socket, smashing its way through the cranium and then exiting.

The last Valyrian aimed his PPSH-41 at Jean, but before he could fire he felt something in his throat. He caught a glimpse of Archie pulling his bayonet out before collapsing and drowning in his own blood.

“RUN!” yelled Wenck and then group continues their sprint. After they left the chambers were the civilians were behind, they stopped at a large gate. It was a giant, thick wooden liftgate which separated one chamber from the other.

They walked to the chamber further ahead and simply destroyed the lifting mechanism on the other side by riddling it with bullets. The liftgate then collapsed and locked them away from the castle.

*

“Get moving.” Wenck ordered.

The group resumed their trek towards the now wrecked Ponyville.

*

Archie, Jean and Steiner were standing inside of a big tent. Their backpacks and weapons on a corner. Across from a simple and thin wooden table sat Novenor, his dark eyes inspecting the humans in front of him with detective-like professionality, not missing a single detail. From his neck hung the Lord’s Stone.

Next to him was Venotenko, who was too thoroughly studying the new guests.

Atop the table was an open purple box, inside, the elements.

“So let me get this straight.” The orc finally broke the reigning silence. “You killed many of your own species and ponies too, just so you could steal the elements which are the only defense the ponies have against what it to come and brought them to me. So what’s the catch?”

“There is no catch. Celestia is a tyrant. She should not be in power.” Steiner answered.

“Ah! She is a tyrant, so you come join us. The role model of democracy, huh?” shot back Venotenko.

“Well, you’ve got to be better than her mate. I mean, look at this cutie mark business. A tattoo that magically appears and tells you your destiny. Sound like a pretty good control method for me.” Archie could not believe that those words have left his mouth. He and his two friends actually began to ponder for a second is maybe what he was saying was true.

“Well shit. I thought I was the only one who saw that.” Venotenko said with a grin.

“Hmm...Tell me, human. Do you know why I am here? Why I am leading an army besieging Canterlot?” Novenor inquired.

Steiner shook his head.

“Let me tell you. Thousands of year ago, before I existed, before the Great War we lvied in peace. Goblins and orcs, which were already united under the banner of the Xanthian nation; gryphons, humans, ponies, minotaurs, zebras and whatnot.” the orc took a deep breath before continuing. “Well, this one time the humans and ponies decided they did not like us, just because we look ‘horrible’ ‘as if we were out of a nightmare’ as they put it. So both of them became allies and fought us. We put up a good fight, but the pony magic and human technology, not as advanced as the one now, eventually defeated us. We were exiled from our lands, just because they did not like us.”

“Shortly after we found a new home, and quickly prospered. But we were isolated. The centuries passed and my race lived in peace, still no contact from anyone. Until one day, we heard of a brewing civil war between the humans. W saw this as our chance to get revenge, so we sided with my friend Venotenko here.”

“Have any of you lost their whole family?”

Wenck nodded slowly.

“Then you know what it feels like. I was a young farm orc, just minding my business, tending to the family farm. I went to the nearby river to get some water since the humans had unleashed their chemicals weapons on our underground water system. I was walking back to my village when I saw a black thing in the sky above it, a Valyrian airship. And then I could only watch helplessly as it mercilessly bombarded the town. It was a simple old town, no military there, no tactical ground, nothing of importance, yet they just...annihilated it.”

“I joined the military shortly after and worked my way up, it costed me a lot, but I finally got where I am...only to be defeated by those fucking humans. At least I had the consolation that their race had sustained such heavy casualties that it went extinct shortly after. So what happened then? Well I ended in Tartarus along with Venotenko here. However, not all goblins and orcs died, no. They just went into isolation again. We finally broke free, gathered my kind and rallied them to war and I was just about to crush those fucking princesses until you showed up, along with the goddamn Valyrian military.”

“Faust...The creator of this spinning ball of shit I call my homeworld. She thinks she is a white knight, that she knows right from wrong. Heh, all she cares about are her perfect, innocent little ponies. Meh, no matter, she’ll die too. Anyways, you want to join? You’re in, but I’ll be watching you closely, now get your things and scram.”

*

The three men sat around a campfire on the outskirts of Ponyville, the sun above them about to set and give way to the night.

They were in silence, the only sounded were those of the the flames burning and the occasional Xanthian that walked by them.

Archie was the first one to speak up. “I didn’t think I’d say this, but I don’t want to kill him anymore.”

“Me neither.“ Jean agreed. “Looks like we’ve been fooled from the beginning.”

“This is just two sides fighting a war. Remind you of something?” Wenck told them.

“Yes, but, mate. Everyone hates the orcs and think they’re evil. Everyone- Well, not everyone, but a lot of people hate germans and think they’re horrible nazis. It was just like you. Before we knew you, we hated you. But now...We see you’re a soldier just like Jean and me.”

“And the same happened with the orcs.” Steiner said. “I still can’t believe they lied to us like that. ‘Celestia and the humans are the best, bla bla, kill the orcs’. Verdammte stück scheiße (Fucking pieces of shit).”

“Look, I know you guys love your mares and will probably go back to Canterlot, but I‘ll stay here.” Archie’s voice indicated he wouldn’t change his mind.

“I do still love Applejack but...I...I just...I can’t look at her the same now.”

Wenck just sat there, silent. Suddenly he stood up “Stay here.” he ordered, and walked off.

*

Steiner practically stormed into Novenor’s tent. The orc in question was standing next to Venotenko looking over a map of Canterlot city and another one of the Ponyville plains.

“Tanks.” Wenck said.

Novenor raised an eyebrow. “Care to elaborate my good sir?” he said in a mocking tone.

“You have the Lord’s Stone and the elements. They know that unless they take you down quickly you’ll continue to gain strength. So they have to attack, they have tanks, so they can make a successful attack on land now. Tell me Novenor. Can you, with the power you currently have, get object and beings from other worlds?”

“I do…”

“Any can you revive dead people?”

“It’s hard, but it is possible.”

“Can you read my mind?”

“If I tried. Why are you asking all this?”

* Three days later *

Steiner stood atop one of the hills near Ponyville, he was wearing a German Field Marshall uniform. Next to him were three human and one orc, all equally stunned and with their mouths open.

“Gentlemen.” Wenck said “I present to you the 3rd, 653rd and 654th Panzerjäger Abteilung.”

Author's Note

I hoped you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it guys.