The Grim Congregation
The cloud I stood on was fluffy, white, and completely pristine; in other words, a total opposite to the large field situated within viewing distance. Said field was slightly bleached by this world's unrelenting sun, dead weeds and scrubby brush blemished what should have been verdant meadow. But that would not be so for long. The encroaching magical barrier was close enough to be seen from all sides, slowly crawling over the land and transforming anything it touched into something of pure beauty.
But I and the other ponies were not here to watch the plant-life change; we were all here for the field's animal inhabitants. Humans were crowded together in the center of the grassy valley, huddling against one another in a futile attempt to block out the finality of the situation they were in. The magic of Equestria was, unfortunately, lethal to humans. Almost anything else it touched would immediately be purified and enhanced, but humans were a special case. Their corrupted minds and bodies were incompatible with harmony, meaning that the magical force of it would shred their very essences to nothing more than dust.
A few humans were able to look me directly in the eye. Most of them stared with wide-eyed fear, silently or otherwise begging me to stop the wall. I couldn't, even if I wanted to. A few were misguided enough to look at me with unmasked hatred, blaming me personally for everything that had happened to them. I truly pitied all of the poor creatures. Why couldn't they just accept that I wanted nothing more than to save them? A long lifetime of true happiness awaited any creature that would only go so far as to accept my love.
The humans shivered as a mass, muttering pointless assurances to themselves that everything was just a bad dream, that they only needed to wake up. A few children could be heard crying, bawling that they didn't want to die. My heart went out to them. I felt compassion for the terrified humans, but I was here to ensure that not a single life would be lost. I cleared my pristine throat, readying myself to address the last remaining vestiges of the once nefarious species.
"People of earth," I called to the throng, "Be not afraid, for I bring you a final chance to save yourselves. All you have to do is come to me, and allow yourself to be cleansed of the evil that holds its iron-clad grip on you. I do not wish for any being to suffer, please allow us to help you."
Every eye turned to meet mine. Surely upon seeing my unfettered sincerity, a flock of the remaining humans broke away from the pack to make their way over to my little ponies. A few children left their parents' arms, running to save themselves from the doomed state of their species. Those that were brave enough to see the light were quickly converted, greeted, and shepherded onto Equestrian territory.
The large majority of the humans however, started yelling obscenities and rudeness at my being. They cursed me for my perceived xenophobia, calling out empty threats and gesturing madly. The humans continued this for a while, before all growing silent again. They fell back into their despair, huddling together for safety once again.
"Should we begin the mandatory conversion, your majesty?" questioned a gruff voice from beside me.
I turned my head to look at the pony in question. He was Flighty Feet, an ex-human who had joined the royal guard after his conversion, and quickly risen to prominence in the Equestrian Conversion Bureau. His gray coat and wings bristled in anticipation as I, his liege, considered his words.
"No, Flighty," I answered, "I want to have as many voluntary conversions as possible. We shall wait for a few more minutes."
"Of course, your majesty," Flighty replied, routinely, "By your orders."
The two of us turned back to the depressing collection of people before us, watching their despair in silence. Of course, we felt empathy for them; but this was a necessary unpleasantness, if the humans were to be saved from themselves. A few of the adults began openly weeping with the remaining children, misplaced hopelessness having finally become too much for them. Some humans began banding together. They divided into groups, clasping their hands, bowing their heads, and praying to their gods for salvation. It was all for naught.
Over the course of the next half hour, a dozen more humans gave up. They walked over to the waiting Conversion Officers and allowed themselves to be cleansed. Every human that had seen the light was immediately welcomed to Equestria with open hooves. They were taken away to the reeducation facilities, to be integrated into harmonious society.
I again cleared my royal throat, ready to offer peaceful conversion again, but a voice stopped me. The voice was quiet, quavering, and just barely audible over the din of the other humans. The voice came from a singular source, a young woman stood amidst the others. Just as my alicorn ears had barely noticed her, so too had many humans not noticed. The woman was singing, looking around to her fellows for support. She was so quiet, I could barely hear her words.
The woman sang of imagination, and rejecting religion. She gazed around her, gesturing for the others to sing with her. She gained a few cursory glances from the other humans, but not much more. Her soft voice was barely enough to inspire silence in some of them. Unabated, the woman continued singing.
'No Heaven or Hell? I thought humans cherished their myths,' I mused to myself, now fully intrigued by the unfolding events.
The woman continued on, singing of a world without conflict or war. The humans around her merely ignored her. As I had suspected, none of them seemed the least bit interested in words of peace. Her confidence was waning, her words seeming to fall into gloom. I truly had to congratulate this woman on her morals, but I knew that humans would never be able to accomplish those goals; not without my little ponies' intervention. Just as the woman's voice began to die out, a man stood and joined. The woman shot a look of truest thankfulness to the man, as they worked in synchronous efforts to encourage others to join the song. The duo sang in union.
They sang about peace, and how the ideal was not unreachable. I barely stifled a loud guffaw at the mere concept. Humans were far too chaotic to truly find peace on their own. More voices were beginning to sing, the song was now gaining more support. Ten humans sang in tandem, all encouraging the others to join.
The human chorus sang about the end of greed and famine, and the prevail of unity. At this point, I was beginning to grow annoyed at the human's repeated silliness.
"You can't have peace as you are now. That is why I am here," I thought; but the humans continued in spite of themselves.
Now, nearly half of the congregation sang, their voices echoing through the valley. I heard muttering coming from beside me and looked to see Flighty Feet mouthing along, a blank look of long-forgotten memories covering his face. The humans sang a final reprieve, about the union of humanity, their voices lifting their own downtrodden spirits.
"Live as one... But how, without help?" I had to ask myself.
The song ended, the people all clamoring to embrace one another. They all laughed and cheered, holding each other in friendship. I saw, but I couldn't believe. Harmony was, by nature, opposed to humans. There had to be something else at play here.
The scene was disturbing to me. Offensive, even. To see such a horribly... discordant species crowded together, unified in spite of everything, seemed completely against nature.
I turned to my commander and barked an order, "Flighty Feet! Begin mandatory conversion."
The pegasus newfoal jumped, startled out of a stupor. He looked to me with slightly unsure eyes, but nevertheless saluted.
"Of course, your majesty. By your orders, " the guard stated, as he had been trained to do.
He turned to the other guards, calling out the order. As they all rallied, I was left alone with my thoughts. So lost in them, I was barely even aware of the human's clamoring as the Agents of Conversion closed in on them. Some begged to be spared, others challenged my ponies, some merely stood still and accepted their fate. As the final humans were converted, I felt something. Something long overdue, and far too late.
For the first time since I had begun the cleansing of the humans, I felt a sliver of doubt.