Alternate Worlds: Humanity's Century of Oblivion

A lone boy, about fourteen years of age, was skipping down the roads of Vagruz, one of the HRM's bustling cities. He hopped along down the sidewalk with a thick roll of posters in his right arm. He whistled a tune to himself as he scanned the populated streets for a good place to put a poster. He found a wall on the side of a bakery to be the perfect spot for a poster.

The boy walked over to a crossroads and turned to his right. The cars kept themselves behind the path of white lines and allowed the boy to continue his journey to the bakery. He hopped from the black pavement and onto the sidewalk again as he took a single poster from his roll. He peeled off the thin coating on its back and slapped it onto the bakery's famished wall. He then skipped along to another building a few blocks away, waving at people as they drove or walked by. Once he made it to the building wall, he took another poster, peeled off the coating, and placed it onto the wall.

A middle-aged man leaning against the wall noticed the boy and his posters. He held an electronic cigarette in his right hand and wore a gray business suit. "Hello there, boy. What are you doing there?" He talked with a scratchy and constrained voice with Russia stamped onto it.

"I'm putting up posters for my father," the boy answered with a somewhat high and chipper Russian accent. "He wanted me to put these up for him, so I'm going around the town and putting them where everyone will see them."

The man eyed the poster carefully for a second. He rubbed his eyes and stared again. "Boy, why don't you take a look at what you were propagating."

The boy looked up at the poster and frowned at it. "I'm not sure what you mean, sir. What could possibly look odd from a poster like this?"

The man stepped closer to the poster and examined it thoroughly. It presented to be what looked like a bleak and grayscale atmosphere with war machines and bombs on its left half and an unusually bright and colorful landscape with trees, rivers, clouds, and a shining sun on its right half. A strange building on a hill was placed in the center of the poster. A line of people marched up the hill and into the building, and a line of ponies, sometimes with horns or wings, trotted out of the building from the other side. The poster said 'Do not live a life filled with war, avoid the horrors and live in peace!' in bold Russian letters on the top and bottom of the poster. There was even a stamp of approval from the HRM in the bottom right corner.

The man glanced at the boy and back at the poster. He swore under his breath and shook his head. "Is this a joke from the government? Is this what they find as funny?"

"No, sir, this is not a joke at all," the boy answered to a rhetorical question. "There's even a gathering involving this near the water fountain."

"A gathering?" the man asked as he smoked his cigarette and blew a plume of smoke. "What could this gathering be?"

"You'll have to see it for yourself, sir." The boy walked away from the building wall, posters still in his hands. "I need to put up more of these posters. Bye!"

The man stared back at the poster for a full minute. He then walked around the building to a small parking lot. He unlocked and opened the front door to a futuristic Volkswagen. He climbed into the driver's seat and drove out of the parking lot and into the streets. He drove down the slightly congested turns and curves until he found a parking lot in a local supermarket and parked his car in it. He then looked over to the public water fountain to his right.

There was a sea of people standing in the grass of the small park. Some people had cameras, some had phones, and others stared like an audience in front of a play. In front of the expansive crowd was a horse creature that the man could describe as only one thing: majestic. The sight of Princess Celestia, a mare that obviously stood over the crowd, looked like an angel of the heavens themselves. The area around her radiated with a warm, sunny glow not present anywhere else in the overcast city. A large ray of sunlight beamed down from the clouds and onto Celestia, making her even more surreal than imaginable.

The man shoved through the people as gently as possible. When he made it halfway to Celestia, he listened to and watched her with open interest.

"What type of powers can you say you have?" asked a reporter almost right next to Celestia.

She turned to the reporter with a warm smile. "I'm afraid I need to continue my speech. Any further questions need to be asked after the speech." Celestia turned away from the reporter and to the mass in front of her. "Anyway, I believe that every single one of you is wary of this war you all are part of, am I correct?"

There were several murmurs, yesses, and nods sprinkled in the crowd.

"Well, I have a special program that I believe can provide an escape for all of you. I have seen the costs that this war has put on you and your families, and I cannot bear to see your land tear itself away with every hundred or so dying for your government. That is why I am here to announce a grand opening of a gateway to a new, peaceful, and blissful life for every single one of you. This gateway may look like a simple building to all of you, but it is what determines your life. Will you become a greater form and escape this terrifying war as a new species, or will you face the missiles that have been aimed at this city?"

Most of the crowd exploded into an uproar from Celestia's last sentence. People shouted and murmured with both fear and anger.

"Missiles?" a man declared bitterly. "The GEST want to destroy millions of civilians too? What is wrong with them?"

"I've never liked the war anyway!" screamed another man. "It's draining me of my hard-earned money!"

"As long as I can leave this horrible war, I'm in!" shouted a woman in the far back.

The chattering continued until an HRM soldier returned the peace with a single cock from a gun. Celestia frowned and shook her head at the soldier. He put it away in respect.

"Yes, yes, I know how much this war hurt all of you," Celestia continued. "The HRM also knew how unsupportive you all were of the long conflict, so they decided that letting you decide your fate in the war is the best option for mankind. This gateway to a new life can save every human here from certain death. All you have to do is trust me and my words."

"So, what exactly does this gateway do?" a man in the messy crowd asked.

"This gateway converts any humans that walk into it into these creatures called ponies. They look like me, except shorter. The conversion will do two things for you. First, it allows you to enter my nation and prosper while the war continues. Second, it washes you of all terrible thoughts, fixes any physical injuries you have, and extends your lives longer than what most of you will live to. You will be given a second chance at life in a new world where the word war is never spoken."

"Wait a second, I know what this is," a woman closer to the front of the crowd thought out loud. "This is an ascension! We are being saved from the horrible future to come!"

"Hey, you might be on to something!" agreed a man from a few people away. "Yeah, this is an ascension! Nothing could look more glorious and beautiful than this angel that speaks before us!"

A few people in the crowd shot awkward frowns at the rejoicing civilians. One of the men looked around the crowd and spoke up. "Um, I can agree that this is a nice gift this being is giving us, but it seems a little terrifying to say the least. Does anyone here understand that this gift involves giving up your humanity and becoming another creature for the rest of your life?"

"The change will be temporary," Celestia answered with her still calm voice. "You will all become humans whenever you want to if you believe that the body of a pony is too much for you. Speaking of pony bodies, there are three types you can choose from. There are earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. Earth ponies are strong and durable, pegasi have wings that allow flight and control over the weather, and unicorns can use several fields of magic to obtain whatever their heart desires."

The man narrowed his eyes at Celestia. "I still do not like this idea. What is the point of us becoming one of your kind?"

"This war will become much more disastrous than it already is. I will take all of you to my nation, Equestria, so that you can escape the future destruction that will approach this city and country. You will have to become a pony to live there until the war ends. So, now that you know everything there is to know, what is your choice? Will you stay here and risk being a casualty of war, or will you become a pony to survive?"

The crowd radiated with discussion over themselves. A large portion of the crowd agreed with Celestia and her plan to escape the war. Some of them hated the war enough to do anything to escape it, some were afraid of what the GEST would do next, and a few others believed that this was the beginning of the rapture. A few dozen or more in the crowd distrusted this idea and left the crowd.

As a few people got into their cars and left the event, Celestia cleared her throat. "For all of you wanting to start the program, please proceed to 8th Street. The facility on that street is open and ready for any and all participants."

The crowd shuffled and misshaped in the field. flocks of people walked through the mess of cars and got in the ones they owned. Cars hummed and drove down the clearing roads. The field was soon vacant as everyone and their cars left to enter the facility. Celestia smiled a small smile and turned to the HRM soldier next to her.

"I think they will love Equestria," Celestia softly spoke to the soldier. "Do you agree with me?"

The soldier shrugged. "I don't care for it right now. I'm just waiting for the colonel to call me to battle."

Celestia turned back to the empty field and dreamed about the citizens of Vagruz. She saw them enjoying Equestria's beauty, getting new jobs that they excelled in, and smiling happily. She still felt confused and awkward about the converting part of the plan, but it was for the best. Equestria needed to be safe, no matter what had to be done.

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General Solk was pacing in the command station for a second time. However, instead of being nervous, he was enraged from a new set of news involving abominations and genetics. Solk's face kept itself in the most passive pissed off face possible, and his hands were trembling for a strangulation. His heart and mind raced against each other, and his skin was melting with a salty liquid known to most as sweat.

"I, I have no words for this," Solk hissed through his clenched teeth. "Kidnapping and interrogating GEST personnel with torture is one thing, but, genetics involving altering human DNA? How, fucking, dare they?" Solk turned his head to Sandra. "Put up a view of one of our reconnaissance drones in Vagruz. I want to see what the goddamned HRM built."

A panel popped up from the table. Solk sat down in front of it and examined the scene. A huge city with various buildings and skyscrapers covered the surface. Not only were the streets paved with cars, but the sidewalks were molded out of people. Long lines stretched from one medium sized facility to all over the area. They stretched farther than the drone's view, and they were moving inhumanly fast. Most lines for a restaurant, store, or someplace that has something in high demand takes hours to get a couple hundred people satisfied. This line had a couple hundred people move into the facility every minute.

The drone flew down to the entrance of the facility. Above the front door was a plaque that read 'Human Conversion Center' on it. The drone flew inside and saw five more lines diverge from the first one. The lines waltzed into six separate chambers with metal sliding doors. Every time a door opened, up to a dozen people shuffled into the chamber. The door closed, gave a shake from the whirring and machinery inside for twenty seconds, and opened with a vacant chamber. Around the room was a few HRM soldiers that eyed the people that passed by. One of them gave a deathly glare at the drone, pointed his laser pistol at it, and shot it in the camera twice.

"Dammit!" shouted Solk as the panel fuzzed with static. "Well, the HRM has something strange going on over there. If that's where they're changing those people, I need some more intel for what they are actually doing to them." Solk opened up a comm link. "Corporal Manke, are you there?"

"Alive and ready!" Manke replied. "What do you need?"

"You and the rest of the squad need to meet me in the command station. I got a very important job for you."

"Yes, sir!" The comm link was cut, allowing General Solk to ponder the HRM's dark intents again.

When Manke and his squad—which was composed of three privates, a corporal, and a sergeant—arrived at the command station, Solk gestured them to sit down at the table. They took their seats and kept their eyes on Solk as he took his seat.

"So, what's the situation?" the sergeant asked politely.

"You six are going on an investigation," Solk answered. "You'll be visiting Vagruz to gather some intel on their conversion facility. Something is happening there, and I need answers."

"We'll be safe, Solk," a corporal assured as he cocked his laser gun. "This shouldn't be too difficult."

"No no no, you're missing the whole point. Whatever you do, do not, and I repeat, do not kill anyone. You're investigating a facility, not going out guns blazing and shooting everything. Tell the HRM that you're there for a formal negotiation."

"What the hell will that do?" the sergeant argued. "They'll just shoot us anyway!"

"The HRM won't attack if you're there for negotiation. They may be against us in the war, but they like to act as civil as possible to make us look like savages. We can use that to our advantage and make them show us the facility." Solk put six small, circular metal pieces on the table. "Put these on your helmets. If things get serious in the facility, press them to teleport back to the barracks. I don't know what the hell they're doing there, so be very careful." Solk got up from his chair and checked the time. "Your flight to the city is on platform A-17. Good luck."

The squadron got up from their seats and walked out of the command station. They traveled through the dozens of halls until they made it to the correct set of helipads. A singular drop ship was waiting for them, ready to take off and depart. The squadron walked into the drop ship and took their seats.

"Vagruz, right?" the pilot asked the squadron.

"Yes, that's right," the sergeant answered. "We're ready to depart."

The ramp door closed itself as the ship ascended into the sky. It faced northeast and began its journey. The ship gradually sped up until it reached full speed and zoomed through the sky and clouds.

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Once the ship reached Vagruz, it landed in the expansive field where the water fountain was located. The ramp door lowered and clanked onto the ground, and the squadron walked out the ship and onto the green grass. Before they could search for the facility, an armored HRM truck rolled onto the field and next to the ship. Eight HRM soldiers and Captain Kliment marched out the truck and in front of the squadron. The soldiers cocked their weapons and aimed them at the squadron. Kliment stepped forward to see the group.

"Здравствуйте, вы негодяи," Kliment started with a harsh tone. "Why are you here, to start another fight in front of Celestia?"

"No," the sergeant answered with a calm tone. "We are here for negotiations, not violence."

"General Solk finally gave up? Поделом ему. What exactly are you here to negotiate? Peace, land, resources? What is it that you're in one of our biggest cities for?"

"We're here to see what is happening at your facility. We heard that you have this new human DNA altering building here."

A grin wrapped around Kliment's concealed face. "You're here for that? Well, why didn't you say so? You have complete permission to examine it to your heart's content. Вы будете жаль, что вы пришли сюда."

The soldiers lowered their weapons and positioned themselves around the squadron. Four soldiers stood in the back while four more and the captain were in the front. Kliment ordered the squadron to get in the back of the truck and wait for their arrival to the facility. The squadron sat in their seats as they waited.

When the truck arrived at the facility, the back door of the truck opened. "Stay between my troops," Kliment ordered to the GEST soldiers. "We're only a hundred meters away. It won't take long to reach the facility."

The group walked along the sidewalk, giving the squadron a marvelous view of the city. Towering buildings and skyscrapers lined the streets, cars roared through the streets, and a few pedestrians walked down the sidewalks either opposing or with the group's direction. Manke noticed a strange poster on one of the buildings. It was the exact same one the little boy smacked on dozens of walls. Manke felt his stomach flip on its side and eyes widen a smidgen.

When the group reached the facility entrance, they slowed to let Kliment clear the way. "Каждый человек, из пути!"

The line split itself to allow the group through it. The squadron immediately noticed a few more posters in Russian writing. They were unintelligible, but the squadron knew that they were definitely propaganda posters. The unified people, the artistic style, and the use of political figures like Vance Nemsin revealed the true nature of the posters. The squadron also took note of the HRM soldiers that scanned the moving lines like hawks high in the sky and looking for prey.

"Go through doorway three," Kliment declared as he and his four soldiers moved out of the squadron's way. "You can see for yourself what this facility has to offer."

Manke felt a few shivers crawl up his spine as he eyed the doorways. "This doesn't seem like a the best way t–"

"Get in there before we have to force it," one of the HRM soldiers demanded.

The squadron walked through the open doorway with no more questions or concerns. The room they walked into had an impossible, glistening white covering every tile and section of the room. On the ceiling were twelve hollow domes hanging from thick metal tubes. They were arranged in a three by four pattern. Lights flashed and sounds beeped from the mysterious machines above the soldiers.

The hanging devices lowered down to just above the soldiers' heads and stopped in a sudden halt. "Please remove any headwear to properly complete the conversion process," a robotic, feminine voice stated with a monotone voice.

"Conversion?" the corporal questioned with a snarky growl. "There's no way in hell that I'm changing my body."

"Alright, it's time we get out of this room," a private noted as he took out a cutting torch from his toolbox. He walked up to the next door and held the cutting torch up to it. He slowly cut through the metal door from the bottom to the top. He then put away the tool and tugged onto one of the sides of the door. "Hey, I'm gonna need a hand or two!"

The sergeant and another private pulled the other side of the door. Manke and the other two soldiers joined in, making two groups of three on both sides of the door. They pulled open the door until it was big enough to let them through. The soldiers then ran through the opening and out the small room of pure white.

"Comrades," the sergeant started with a tremble in his words, "I believe we found out what the HRM are doing."

The next room left all of the soldiers surprised and scared at the sight they saw. The room mimicked the first one, but it had a few slight changes. The propaganda posters were replaced with welcome posters presenting various smiling, cheering ponies and Russian writing. Lines of stumbling ponies struggling to walk tried their best to walk over to a strange, swirling vortex inside of a somewhat large metal ring. A few more ponies in golden armor helped the ponies stand up and move along to the portal. There were absolutely no other humans in the room.

"So, is it safe to assume that these civilians are being turned into ponies?" Manke asked to the sergeant.

"Yes, but we need more intel. Let's go through that thing and see what's on the other side."

As the squadron walked into a struggling line of ponies, one of the armored ponies walked up to the squadron and confronted them. "You Six didn't change. Don't the you want to go back and try again?"

"Thanks, but no thanks," the sergeant answered with a head shake and a hand held up in front the guard's face. "We're here to investigate. Just leave us be, and nothing will happen."

"Investigate what? Non-converted humans are prohibited in this area. May I suggest yo–"

"We're investigating, and that's final." The sergeant raised his voice and shoved the guard aside. "I won't hesitate to stab a combat knife into your skull if you don't back off and leave us alone."

The guard walked backwards with a quivering frown and small pupils. The squadron continued along through the portal and to another world.

The first thing the soldiers saw was a blinding sun that was brighter than usual. After they adjusted to the light, they saw some rolling hills, a few trees, and the metal checkpoint they were standing on. A small reception desk with a single unicorn mare sat next to a rotary gate. The mare had a peach coat and a swirly mane full of magenta and cyan. A long line of ponies stood and tripped as they waited for their turn. In the distance was a train station with an idle train filling up with ponies.

"Let's see what is happening here before our hearts explode," the corporal declared. The sergeant agreed with him and ordered the squadron to go to the receptionist. Once they walked up to the desk, all eyes locked onto the soldiers, including the receptionist.

"Uh, um, may I help you?" the mare asked with uneasiness.

The sergeant put one hand on the desk and looked down at the mare. "Yes, we would like to know what exactly is happening here so that we don't have to die by this land's disease."

"Oh, these ponies are moving into Equestria. I'm just registering them as citizens and giving them brochures so that they can be free to choose where they want to go here. Other than that, I don't know. I was just placed here to deal with these ponies. If you want actual answers, talk to a pony with authority like Princess Celestia or Princess Twilight Sparkle."

"Do you know how far away they are? I don't see any civilization for miles."

"You'll have to take the train to get to any of the towns. The ride to Canterlot is about two hours."

"We'll be bled out by the time we get there," a private blurted. "We need a faster route."

"What else can we do?" the corporal shot back at the private. "We got no vehicles, and we got no time. Our work here should be done now."

Right when the corporal's sentence ended, eleven HRM soldiers rushed out of the portal and aimed their laser rifles at the squadron. The ponies in the line and the receptionist panicked and kept themselves out of the soldiers' lines of sight.

One of the HRM soldiers stepped forward and aimed for the sergeant. "You're coming with us. Formal negotiations don't involve sabotaging a facility, trespassing, and threats to employees."

"Alright, investigation is over!" barked the sergeant. "Everyone, activate your emergency teleporters!"

The six GEST soldiers pressed the circular devices on their helmets. Their bodies fizzed into blue and green particles and disappeared into the air. The HRM soldiers opened fire on the soldiers, hoping to get at least one shot on them.

They missed every time.

One of the HRM soldiers threw his gun on the ground. "Проклятье! We almost had them!"

Another soldier glanced at the area once populated with six GEST soldiers. "At least we made them run away. We stopped them before anything else could happen."

"Правда. At least we did something other than ruin the captain's plans."

"What just happened here?" the receptionist squeaked from under the desk. Only her head popped out of the desk and planted itself on the table, staring right at the HRM soldiers with two petrified eyeballs.

"We fought soldiers, that's what happened," vaguely answered another soldier. "Go back to your business. No one will disturb you again."

As the soldiers hustled back through the portal, the receptionist slithered back into her seat and recalled the entire event. She snapped out of her long gaze once she heard tapping next to her ear. "Can we get back to the famous cities thing again?"

"Oh, right!" She smiled sheepishly and levitated a brochure up to the stallion next to her. "All this ruckus is distracting me. Here, this brochure will tell you all about the different sights every town has to see. It even has a few occupation recommendations for you too."

The stallion struggled to grab the brochure in one hoof. He balanced it on his hoof and walked through the rotary gate and to the train station.

The receptionist glanced at the portal one more time. She watched as a dozen ponies waddled through the portal and into the line. "That's better. No more freaky metal things pointing things at me."