The Siege Of Canterlot

The Shadow Army and their Changeling allies made camp outside of cannon range, on the plateau, in and around the village of Newgrange. There was a forest of tents, an entirely new city that had sprung up through the late afternoon and early evening, protected by a thick line of infantry and some roaming cavalry. Other units had explored the rest of the plateau and its villages, finding everywhere to be empty, void of pony life, every resident having fled to the city. The plateau was theirs, for the Equestrians simply lacked the numbers to defend it. There was no single route up the hillside that could have been easily blocked or defended. Almost the entirety of the ten mile long stretch of raised ground could be climbed with relative ease by infantry, and there were a number of tracks, paths and roads that could take horses and wagons. Only around Canterlot itself did the western edge of the plateau become steep, jagged and unclimbable, which was one of the reasons the city had been built where it had. The approaches to the plateau could not be controlled easily, but the approach to the city could be.

Messenger Pegasi had been sent hurriedly to the Holy Army, to Stalliongrad, to Baltimare and also to Vanhoover. The hope was to summon aid at the behest of Starswirl or, failing that, General Hawkeye. Like Hawkeye herself, some senior officers and nobles were reluctant to show Starswirl their full support because of his experiments and alchemy, some of which bordered on blasphemy with their attempts to create magical spells and artifacts more powerful than the Princess. Nevertheless, when danger threatened Canterlot, it was to be expected that relief forces would be sent immediately upon receipt of the message, unless Celestia herself ordered otherwise. With the forces from Baltimare involved in the eastern province and the Holy Army likewise occupied, however, it could be weeks before any relief arrived. Until then, they were on their own. Spotters on the wall were also reporting worrying but expected developments- the enemy were sending forces north, farther up the valley, presumably in an attempt to either block the valley to reinforcements from Stalliongrad or, worse, capture and potentially block Saint Swiftmane's Pass, stopping the Holy Army from returning from the Eastern Province.

The night passed without incident, the enemy content to simply wait until morning before they took any further action. They kept up a strong picket and regiments of infantry standing by in case it was a trap and thousands of Equestrian soldiers were waiting to burst forth in the dead of darkness, but nothing happened. The dawn broke early, the sun rising slowly in the east, over the mountaintops, casting them in fiery gold. The city waited beneath its dome of magic, the protection Starswirl had promised, proof against cannon fire, mortar shells and musketry.

It was not, however, protection against magic of equal or greater strength.

As Hawkeye and Firetail had warned, the Changelings and the Shadow Army both had magic of their own. However, as Starswirl had countered, ordinary unicorn magic and that used by Changeling officers and drones was no match for the elemental forces that he had mustered, combined with his own great power and knowledge. What he had failed to consider was that it was not just ordinary drones and unicorns who were accompanying the Shadow Army.

A large tent had been erected at the front of the enemy camp, thrown up almost overnight by the antlike labour of a thousand drones, toiling ceaselessly. In truth, calling it a tent was rather misleading, for although it was surrounded by fabric and silk, that was merely a smokescreen of sorts. In reality it concealed a wall of thick earth thrown up by the drones and pony engineers. Atop it was a simple viewing platform with wooden decking, fit for royalty, with comfortable chairs, cushions, and rather incongruously, a drinks globe, as though it were for viewing a sporting event or perhaps an opera, rather than a siege. It was from here that the army's commanders would observe the ongoing efforts to capture the city. Being at the front of the camp, it would make a tempting target for Equestrian gunners, but that was the purpose of the masquerade. If cannonballs began to fly, the commanders could simply retreat into the interior of the tent, behind the earthen walls which were more than thick enough to resist the impact. In a way, it was a kind of taunt to the defenders who might wish to try and kill the army's leaders, but even if their guns had the range, they would have difficulty in doing so. There was another large tent in the centre of the camp which was more usual for a besieging army; that was where the leaders actually lived. The concealed earthwork was something more unique, but then this army was not led by any mere general.

Together, Queen Chrysalis and King Sombra made their way out onto the viewing platform. It was a fine early morning, too early to be opening the drinks globe, but a cup of hot tea would suffice. Chrysalis sipped delicately from a fine porcelain mug, not something an army would normally carry with it in campaign- though some nobles of high military rank in the Equestrian forces had been known to do so, the Princess included. While the majority of their army toiled with metal mess tins and copper kettles over a campfire, the elite, as they so often did, lived in relative luxury even while out in the field.

"A fine morning for it, my Queen, don't you think?" Sombra smiled, looking out at the city and the shimmering shield that protected it. "What a spectacle it shall be. Soon enough, that flag will be torn down and replaced with our own." He gazed up at the distant tower of the royal palace, at the far northern end of the city, where the banner of the Princess flew at half staff to signify that she was not in residence. If Sombra and his wife got their way, it would not fly from the palace at all.

"It is a pity that good campaigning weather means clear skies," Chrysalis lamented. "It means we have to endure the interminable heat of the sun. I do not like the symbolism of that."

"Then I shall have the servants fetch you a parasol, my Queen," Sombra replied with a chuckle. "But first, we have a matter to attend to...once you have finished your tea, of course."

Hawkeye stood upon the balcony of her office, high up in the palace, though not in the spire that towered over her. It gave her a fine view of the whole city, and the enemy camp, several miles distant across the rooftops and beyond the wall. Even from here, she could clearly see that the enemy was forming up into their companies and regiments. During the night, earthen revetments had been built for the guns of the Shadow Army. She had counted fifty of them when she lost her train of thought and decided not to start again. One could become entranced with trying to work out exactly how many guns, how many ponies, how many Changelings, how many companies there were out there.

At first light, an envoy had approached under a white flag of truce, standing beyond the impassable shield wall just ahead of the palisade line. A noble of the Shadowlands, he had proclaimed on behalf of his King that Canterlot was under siege and should surrender peaceably to the Shadow Army and Changelings to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. Their quarrel, he said, was not with the citizens and soldiery of Canterlot, but with the Princess and her nobles.

At Starswirl's direction, a reply had been issued. The Princess was not present in the city and so could not directly issue a surrender, but that as her regent, Starswirl had no doubt that she would refuse outright, and thus, so would he, for Canterlot was a proud city and would not surrender to darkness. The envoy had bowed and left, the end of the formal ceremony, which was followed immediately by increased activity in the enemy camp.

What Hawkeye did not understand was why they were now starting to draw up into assault formation. Starswirl's promise seemed to have held so far. The enemy guns had fired several volleys at the city shield, to no effect, and any magic that would prevent cannonballs from passing through would also stop a line of infantry, either by repelling them with a kinetic push or by frying them where they stood. They were preparing for an attack, but as it stood, there was no way the attack could succeed. What did they know that she, and Starswirl, did not?

Hawkeye received her answer moments later. From the front of the enemy camp, where there seemed to be some sort of large tented structure, two beams of light suddenly blazed into life. One was a lurid green, the other a swirling mix of purple and black. They both struck the shield above the city wall. Hawkeye watched on perplexed. Starswirl had assured her that no ordinary magic could bring down the shield after he had imbued it not just with his own power, but also that of the orb he had used, which evidently held some kind of special properties to which she was not privy. The green magic she could see was the same colour as all Changeling magic, giving no indication of it being any different. But the other, the purple-black cone of light, that was unusual, and it was giving her reason to be concerned. What happened after that gave her reason to be downright terrified.

With a sudden concussive bang and a feeling like the air being partially sucked from her lungs, the shield collapsed, starting from the point that the two beams of magic had struck it, the whole dome rapidly withering away to nothing, like a pricked balloon. The roar from the Shadow Army was audible even from the palace as they saw the shield fall.

"Shit...you old bastard, you promised..." Hawkeye snarled out through gritted teeth. "Damn it..." She rushed into the hallway outside her office. "You there!" she shouted to a Guardspony standing watch nearby. "Sound the alarm. All personnel are to take up their defensive positions at once!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" the guard saluted and rushed away to spread the word. Hawkeye turned to another guard. "You, find the duty officer, tell them to assemble the war council!" Once the other guard had gone, Hawkeye climbed the stairs angrily. It was a tedious, torturous climb up into the spire, but she knew she would find him there.

"Your Excellency!" she opened the door with an angry thud as it rebounded off the stone wall. "I do not know if you have noticed, but your promise has been broken."

Starswirl was busy, muttering over some formulae in an ancient tome. "Yes, yes...I can make things right..." he replied.

"Then do it quickly!" Hawkeye grunted. "I thought you said magic could not harm your shield?"

"I said normal magic!" Starswirl cried. "Ordinary, like that possessed by your common or garden drone or your average unicorn. Clearly, this was something different."

"Or else you were simply wrong," Hawkeye postulated. "Either way, you have made a grave miscalculation, Your Excellency. Unless you can get that shield up again, Canterlot is as vulnerable as any other city to this siege."

"Yes, yes...please do not pester me," Starswirl responded. "I will make it right. Just give me time."

"How much time, Your Excellency?" Hawkeye asked. "Minutes? Hours? Days?"

"I do not know that yet," Starswirl answered, rising from his chair and moving to the orb and staff upon the table where he had placed them after performing the shield spell the day before. "General, can you tell me who is leading the enemy army?"

"No..." Hawkeye replied. "I see the banners of General Deathscythe and General Ghast, but I do not know which of them is in command. There are banners of several Changeling commanders but I have no names for them. As far as I know, no Changelings even have names in the sense we would understand them."

"There is one Changeling with a name," Starswirl replied, "and I fear that she is here. As for the Shadow Army, I do not believe either General Deathscythe or General Ghast are in command. I believe their King is with them."

"What...?" Hawkeye frowned. "Their banners are flying, yes, but...I have not yet seen their personal standards. Even if I did, who is to say it is not merely symbolic in their case? The standard of the Princess flies from this very tower, yet she is not here."

Celestia was relatively unique among current rulers in actively taking to the field of battle. Many other nations, such as the Griffons and Zebras, had seen that custom fade away over time. King Sombra and Queen Chrysalis had not been known to lead from the front in any recent campaigns their armies had undertaken; for them both to be here together in person was a factor which had been overlooked. It had seemed likely they would arrive after the city was captured, rather than with the invading army. The possibility of them leading their troops into battle had been considered at the council meeting, but dismissed as unlikely by all concerned, including, Hawkeye refrained from pointing out, by Starswirl himself.

"I sense it may be the case," Starswirl replied. "The magic that defeated the shield...it had to be of unusual power or unusual origin. I spoke the truth to you yesterday. No ordinary magic could have done that. Therefore I believe that King Sombra and Queen Chrysalis are present in the enemy ranks."

"I am not sure what would be worse...you being correct or incorrect," Hawkeye replied. "If you're wrong then there must be some other unknown explanation, and if you are right...then I doubt that the presence of their monarchs will do anything to diminish the enemy's relish for this fight, to say the least. That speaks nothing to their own prowess in battle, either. From what I understand, despite their lack of overt campaign experience, they are both formidable fighters. At least, that is what our intelligence tells us."

"Intelligence is vital, General," Starswirl answered. "We must establish for certain if the King and Queen are indeed present, for that will influence my response to this...unfortunate development."

"Then we shall find it out," Hawkeye nodded. Another roar came from outside, beyond the walls. "If you will excuse me, Your Excellency...I believe I am needed elsewhere. I fear hell is about to be unleashed."