The Conversion Bureau: Night of Reckoning

This 1st chapter is just the introduction. I hope you enjoy it.

"Thank you, sir. We're doing very important work down here at Birch Pond. I think this tour will help your foundation members see that. And thank you very much for the funding so far...every little bit counts." With the phone to her ear, Harmony forced a smile. She felt silly shortly after; Getting used to human technology was hard. She sat the phone down, and turned to face the window. A sigh escaped as she took in the starkly beautiful Utah view, which stretched for miles and miles more.

They were doing important work here at Birch Pond Human Refuge. Something reminded her every day...right now it was the carefree kids playing by the water pump, as their mother watched on from a newly built bench. A few months ago those kids would be playing in rubble. This stretch of Utah was an HLF stronghold, until the new joint Equestrian/UN force pacified the region. That peace had a high cost, though: months of bombings and ground operations. Harmony had worked ground as an aid worker. Thanks to that, she knew the fighting wasn't even the worse part. It was the disruptions in water, electricity, and food supply that exacted the true human toll on this battered region. She'd seen desolate trailer holed up with enough ammunition, but not enough food and water to survive the drought. She still couldn't forget the smell of death and squalor. It was a shame what the HLF had wrought.

Harmony checked her schedule, in an attempt to clear her mind. She'd finished the last sponsor call for today, leaving just one event left. That last event, circled in red many times over, could brighten even the hardest day.  When she'd first came to Birch Pond, her relation with the humans was strained. They were still suffering from much loss. It made them lash out at the wrong ponies. She never liked "horse bitch" being shouted in her face, but "oppressor" and "conqueror" hurt even more. Bit by bit, though, they were warming up to her. A few of the human residents were actually throwing her a birthday party tonight..."in honor of all she'd done for the Refuge." Even some of the problem humans were coming! It felt like a vindication of all the work she'd been doing these past six months. For the first time, the view outside wasn't just a sagebush-flecked desert...it was home. One of the kids outside had noticed her. She cheerfully waved a hoof, smiled, and headed to her washroom to prepare herself.

Tonight, Harmony was going all out. Old Canterlot grad friends had visited last week, and she was embarrassed how used she'd gotten to the "caked with dust and grime" look. This time, she groomed fastidiously. She shampooed every inch of her white coat and chestnut mane, getting nice and soft. She had a small bottle of flowery perfume, which had gone unopened for years. Timidly, she dabbed a drop one with her hooves. She didn't normally wear clothes, but tonight she dressed in a pair of gracefully-fitting black socks, which rose well above her knees. It was the latest in human-influenced fashions. She didn't like how much it emphasized her flank; Harmony had always felt embarrassed about the few extra pounds on her thighs and rump. Her best marefriend on the refuge had told her not to worry about it. "You'll look like a million bits." Looking herself over in her cabin-cum-office's mirror, she had to admit: she felt like a million bits too.

"Alright! I can't keep them waiting. This is going to be the best night ever!"

As Harmony approached the rec center, she didn't see many people around. Only Jim, one of the residential assistants, was there. The lanky human leaned against the center's prefab tin wall, smoking a cigarette. He noticed her, and waved heartily. Harmony politely tried to ignore her distaste for smoke.

"Evening. Glad to see the mare of honor."

"Good evening, Jim. Are we still using the rec room? I thought it's schedule was clear, but if..."

"Don't worry, the plan's all worked out. Here. Put this on, will you? It's a surprise party."

Jim handed her something he'd dug from his pockets. Uncrumpling it with her hoof, she saw it was a black blindfold. Harmony wasn't fond of surprises. She thought it was awfully considerate of Jim to warn her in advance. She gingerly put the blindfold on, taking care not to disturb her mane.

"Here we go."

Without any sight, Harmony only heard the door opening, and felt Jim's hand on her rump, firmly guiding her forward. Inside the rec center was dead silence.

"Should I take it off yet?"

"Not just yet. There's just one more party favor."

"Party favor? What do-MMPH!"

Harmony's muffled gasp was caught by a thick cloth gag, which someone...Jim, probably...had hoisted into her muzzle. Harmony didn't remember any human customs like this. Confusion filled her with questions, but they all came out as a muffled whimpering."

"Don't worry. This'll be a night you never forget."

Jim's hand had stopped pushing the mare forward. Now it was rubbing against her flank, making slow circles as it moved further to the rear. Her body tensed up as a natural reaction, while her mind tried to tell it there was nothing to fear. The humans here respected her. This must be some kind of...

Harmony gave a high-pitched yelp. Jim's hand had brushed, ever so lightly, over her marehood.

"Yeah, get that horse bitch good and ready."

For the first time, Harmony heard another voice. She couldn't place it, but it was deep and very male. Jim's hand was getting far too familiar for her comfort, and she tried to pull away. However, strong arms gripped her in place, keeping her fiercest thrashing to a weak quiver.

"Don't fight it, girl. You'll just make things worse."

She could hear Jim's voice, hovering right above her bent-back ear. She squealed in protest, but the many arms just held tighter. She gasped in relief, though, as Jim's hand left her rump. That relief was short-lived.

"I said, don't fight it."

"MMHN!"

Harmony felt a hard slap on her rump. The sound lingered in her ears, making her even blinder for a while. The faceless hands took advantage of her sudden docility, groping her all over, and all under. The blindfold held back her hot tears. "Please," she tried to beg, "Please, I won't tell anyone. Just don't touch me there." Her muffled whimpering only brought obscene laughs from the voices surrounding her.

A finger's tip lewdly stroke against Harmony's marehood, pushing it apart it just the slightest bit, almost on the edge of forcing itself in. Her head fell, and she moaned loudly in shock. Her body couldn't help reacting, and she quivered all over.

"She's getting wet already. That's horses for ya."

A hand crudely grabbed the mare's muzzle, and pulled her head back up.

"How about we give you a rest, and let you get gagged with something else, huh?"

Harmony tried to shake her head no, but the hand pulled her muzzle back straight.

"Now, now. I said not to fight it. Do you need some negative reinforcement?"

It pushed something against her muzzle's side. It was plastic, rectangular, and she shivered at it's cold touch. It felt like...a camcorder.

"Who needs words when you have pictures, right? 'Refuge camp becomes organizer's personal harem...bizarre sex rites stain camp's reputation.' We certainly wouldn't want anything like that, would we?"

Harmony valued nothing more than Birch Pond. But it already had a bad reputation, back in the Equestrian homeland. Just one bad news story, and funding would dry up like a puddle in the desert. Or worse, it might be closed by Royal Decree. After torturous seconds, Harmony weakly nodded yes, causing tears to drip down from the blindfold.

"Goood. So let's play nicely won't we? Won't you be a nice toy for our friends here, my little concubine of the oppressors?"

To be continued.