By the Summer of 1258 E.F., most opposition to the Germanean First Reich had been obliterated. Prance had fallen, the blitzkrieg there leaving thousands of casualties. The Griffin Kingdoms had been annihilated, Germanean forces left over thirteen-and-a-half million casualties behind. The Griffin capital, Olympus, had been reduced to ruins, and the Griffins brought to the brink of extinction.
The collapse of the Crystal Empire had been catastrophic for the Equestrian War effort, as it caused widespread demoralization. This was only compounded by the capture of both Princess Cadence and the charismatic General Shining Armor prior to the fall of the Empire. Furthermore, the Elements of Harmony, considered Equestria’s last, best, hope had been terminated during the Battle of Ponyville, causing widespread demoralization and desertion among the Equestrian rank and file.
The Hooviet Union had been occupied after years of heavy fighting. Over twenty-four million casualties were left in the wake of the ruthless Germanean advance. Only Equestria remained defiant, their capital of Canterlot still proudly jutted from the craggy heights of Mount Avalon.

On June 21st, 1258 E.F., Germanean forces reached Canterlot. It was an event considered both impossible and unthinkable in equal measure during the outbreak of the war in 1256. Canterlot had originally been considered by many to be impregnable. That had been shattered by the Changeling Invasion in 1250. Even then, the Equestrian Royal Guard had been sluggish to adapt. A millennia of peace had made them ineffective, bloated and incapable. The pacifistic tendencies of the Equestrian ponies had made military development unviable and unfeasible. This lapse in judgement would be punished by the harshest of outcomes.

As Germanean advanced units approached the gates of Canterlot, both Princesses Celestia and Luna prepared a defensive shield network unlike any other in Equestrian history. General Shining Armor’s defensive network could not even compare to the Princesses’. At this point, Canterlot was once again considered impregnable. Life continued almost as usual underneath the dome, although supplies were heavily rationed by the Princesses. There was the hope that the Germaneans would eventually be discouraged and withdraw from the walls of Canterlot.

Captain Golden Phalanx stared out from the walls of Canterlot. In the distance, he could see the grey mass of Germanean forces in the distance. The colors were slightly distorted by the golden glow of Celestia’s shield. Distorted color didn’t make a difference, Phalanx supposed. They could be annihilated, no matter how they looked. They wouldn’t be able to exact any damage upon the city, and would be summarily annihilated once they attacked. Many had claimed that the Germaneans would withdraw soon. Phalanx hoped that it would not be the case. He wanted revenge for all of the lives the Germaneans had taken.

There were several bright flashes in the distance. Phalanx was puzzled as to what they were. He had not been on the front before. There was a sudden succession whistling shriek. Phalanx winced at the noise. It had been thoroughly unexpected. The shield lit up in the areas the shells hit, and there were thundering explosions in the air overhead. Several civilians looked up in fear at the spectacle, while others flattened themselves against the ground, covering their ears. Celestia’s shield held. Several more flashes appeared, and the shield flashed more. Phalanx found himself almost deafened by the horribly loud noises. He smiled. It would be over soon. He was right, the shelling ended after exactly six hours. Night had fallen.

Celestia was confused. Why had the shelling stop? She knew Dieter Heinrich well enough to know that he would not quit. Surely he realized that she could only hold the shield for so long? Judging from his personality, he would not stop doing something unless he had found a much more efficient way of going about it. Celestia shivered. That could not bode well.

She reached out with her mind, trying to sense something, anything. What she found nearly broke her concentration. There was a being of momentous magical power. She recognized that mind, for she had touched it many times before. It was different, though. It was grey, emotionless and devoid. It was the mind of something controlled, leashed, and subdued so that all free will was lost. It was painful to look into. Celestia gasped.

“Twilight...”she whispered.

Ruhig Todesfall and fifty of his Eindringlingesturmbrigaden troopers watched Twilight Sparkle cautiously. Her personality and mind had been completely suppressed, they had been told. However, one could never be too cautious. They were under strict orders to kill her if she rebounded from having her mind shattered. A lavender aura surrounded her horn as she concentrated on Celestia’s shield. She strained and pushed against it, unwinding the magical threads that had been used to build it. The shield began to flicker. After a few more seconds, it died. It was not dramatic. It was there one moment, and gone the next. The siege began in earnest.

“You have done well, Twilight Sparkle.” Dieter spoke without emotion.

“I am here to serve, my Fuhrer.” Twilight replied blandly, like a machine.

Golden Phalanx was afraid. He hated to admit it to himself, and he would not admit it to his ponies, but he was seized by terror. Celestia’s shield, one of the most complex constructs on ponykind’s history, had died. What could have done this? In the distance, there were bright lights as Germanean artillery resumed fire. This time, Golden Phalanx didn’t smile. He threw himself to the ground as fifteen and seven-point-seven centimetre shells began to land in the streets of Canterlot.

The civilians, who had frozen when the shield died, began to scream in terror. Their screams mixed in with the whistling of the shells. Explosions pounded the walls. Several Guardsponies were thrown from the walls, plummeting to their deaths at the base of mount Avalon. Several ponies were obliterated by shells, their blood coating the streets and walls. Phalanx almost vomited, despite the fact that it was almost physically impossible for Equines to wretch.

He spun to see a guardspony laying on the ground, his hoof covering his neck, where a piece of shrapnel had imbedded itself. Blood spurted wildly from the wound, and the guardspony made a gargling noise, drowning on his own vital fluid. Mortars joined the bombardment, and buildings crumbled under the force of direct impacts. Ponies were crushed by falling debris, their cries torturing Phalanx’s soul. There was a scraping noise behind him. He wheeled around.

“What the f—?” His query was cut short when Hochrot Nacht shot him cleanly through the head with her MP-56, pitching him back to fall into the city.

Hochrot Nacht scaled the wall with the rest of her ten pony squad. The captain had been an easy kill. The Royal Guard were tactically unaware. Their primary objective was to secure the royals, and to break up Royal Guard attempts to coordinate. They had been given complete freedom of action within those boundaries. The logical method to sow chaos, was to terminate the commanding officers. It was nothing new.

They moved up scanning for targets. Their telepathic link with the artillery officers told them the vicinity in which shells would land, enabling them to avoid shell fire. The Eindringlingesturmbrigaden unit, in turn, would help designate shelling positions. It was undeniably efficient. The Fuhrer was truly a military genius to have though up such a plan.

They cloaked, and became invisible to the naked eye. Their mental signatures were also cloaked, so that they were undetectable in all ways. They saw a squad of Royal Guardsponies rallying around a captain. One shot. The bullet punched through his heart. His comrades recoiled in shock as blood sprayed wildly, and he collapsed to the ground.

They continued, scanning for targets as they went along. There was another contact, a singular officer calling out a rally point. Another shot. This bullet punched through her jugular, shattering her larynx. She tried to gasp through a ruptured throat. They left her to choke on her own blood.

There was a shell incoming. They teleported as one, leaving the blast area. They re-appeared in the midst of several Guardsponies. The guards had barely time to think before they were shot down in a hail of bullets. Their lacerated corpses fell to the ground, dead. The squad continued. Their targets were terminated, thus needing no further thought. They were almost at the palace. They re-cloaked.

They came upon the central palace courtyard. They found hundreds of ponies gathered around, waiting for the order to advance. Several grenades were lobbed. The Guardsponies stared at the potato mashers in confusion. Their confusion ended when the grenades exploded, sending shrapnel and limbs flying wildly around the courtyard. Bone fragments acted as shrapnel as they lacerated the ponies around them. The survivors were ruthlessly gunned down by the advancing Eindringlingesturmbrigaden.

The gates to the throne room were locked. This had been expected and accounted for. Each of the Eindringlingesturmbrigaden pulled out a piece of plastic explosive. The explosives was attached to the bolted doors. Timers were connected. The Germaneans fell back to a safe distance. There was a thunderous explosion, and the door was blown off its hinges.

Inside, the two royal sisters prepared to sell their lives dearly. Celestia’s horn glowed a vibrant gold, while Luna’s was a dark blue. The Eindringlingesturmbrigaden were hardened by years of warfare, and their minds were extremely focused. Furthermore, mental stimulants were coursing through their veins. Together, they were magically superior to both the Princesses combined. Prior to this, it would also have been considered an impossibility, ten ordinary unicorns overpowering two alicorns.

In the distance there was the sound of marching hooves, punctuated by gunfire. Hochrot Nacht stepped forward.

“Your forces are caught in a pincer movement. They are only moments away from total annihilation. Tell them to stand down and surrender to our forces, or thousands more will die.” Hochrot Nacht spoke without emotion.

Celestia froze in a moment of indecision. Then, she scowled.

“No.” she replied, “I will not yield to your evil intent.”

Celestia jerked back as her mind was suddenly filled with an agony that she considered impossible. From the way Luna’s face was contorting, she knew that her sister was experiencing as well. Even worse, she could feel Twilight’s magical signature registering intense agony. She and her sister could withstand that kind of pain for protracted periods of time, but an ordinary unicorn such as Twilight could not. Celestia ceased to resist.

“I submit.” She hissed in pain.

“Then do as you were told.” Came the reply.

Celestia flew to the top of the palace spire. The magical suppression eased just enough for her to use the Canterlot voice for the first time in centuries.

“BRAVE SOLDIERS OF EQUESTRIA, THY PRINCESS SPEAKS! THOU HAST FOUGHT WELL AND HARD FOR US, AND THOU HAST SACRIFICED MUCH! WE CANNOT DEMAND THIS FROM THEE ANY LONGER! THOU ART TO LAY DOWN THY ARMS AND SURRENDER TO THE GERMANEAN FORCES! WE HAVE DISCUSSED THIS WITH THEM, AND THEY HAVE STATED THAT NO HARM SHALL COME TO THEE!”

Celestia’s voice resonated around the city. The Royal Guardsponies ceased to fight. They all recognized the Princess’s voice. They hesitated before throwing down their weapons. They slowly raised their front hooves in surrender. After a day of hard fighting, Canterlot had been taken. Equestria had fallen.

Dieter swept into the palace, his red cape billowing out behind him. He showed no emotion, and his face seemed as though it was carved from stone. He paused a moment. Celestia and Luna glowered at him with hatred in their eyes. Dieter finally smiled. It was a cold, chilling thing.
“I have returned.” He said simply.

Author's Note

Thanks to Nuggetmanu2 for proofreading and ideas. Thanks to the readers to support and suggestion. Please feel free to comment.