Catalyst, ch 2: The Display

>Rarity insisted on two things.
>One: that you wear the ludicrous Twilight Firmware uniform. You were then in a skin tight white suit, with a single pink and purple, horizontal stripe.
>Two: you use the AR screens to get some interaction down.
>apparently, they have modules for training schoolkids in digital OS usage.
>Fuck, you're on the level of a ten year old.
>You step into some sort of automated chairiot thing. The inside is minimalist, just like Twilight's skyscraper. But the seats are quite plush, and there is a concave, rectangular TV screen.
>You browse the help files and locate them, sifting through the chapters and visual aids.
>Eventually there is a full on, interactive tutorial.
>You fidget with it for quite a while.  It get easier, as you start to understand the queues used for each command.
>The chariot is off, and as you delve deeper into the advanced tutorials, you notice it again.
>Silence.
>Soundproofed everything. It was a bad reminder.
>You place the fake PDA on a little notch at the back of your neck. You start to directly fiddle with it, figuring out how to open windows, traverse the OS, and alter files through it. It's all through some sort of thought command,  mental ticks that you have to calibrate.
>Wierd... and tingly. But it beats a keyboard.
>You finish up the modules as you arrive at the Convention center. How long had the trip been?
>You only traveled a few blocks...
>The door opens with a hiss, and you peer out.
>Rarity is waiting for you at the travel pod exit.
>”Ready, darling?” She asks. She shoots you a smile.
“No.” You reply.
>Behind her, there are ponies to either side of a cleared path.  As you exit, as far as you can see, are ponies. Hovering cameras, eyes of every color and shape.
>Staring.
>At you.
>”Good.” she says. “It's cute.” It takes her a moment. “And... The walk will... Give you character.”
“Good save.”
>She sticks her nose up a moment, but it's with a smile.
>You follow behind her. She's wearing the same body white suit you'd been given, the flanks bare to expose the cutie mark.
>You get this feeling that everyone is staring directly at your synthetic ass. You thought you had gotten used to the whole “being naked” all the time thing.
>But, trailing behind Rarity, and her strutting her flank just under your eye level, you realize otherwise.  Shit, why did the suits have to be so tight?
–
>You felt like a piece of meat the whole time.
>Up on stage. Skin tight suit. Hot lights. Ponies and cameras watching your every move.
>Those lights were so goddamn bright you couldn't see the back of the room. You had to turn away to keep your eyes from tearing up every so often.
>All you did was stand there. Turn around a few times at the behest of Rarity.  You had to admit, she took over quite nicely, and didn't miss a beat.
>She went into tech jargon every so often.  It was a lot of stuff you didn't understand. You kept going back and reviewing some of those interactive manuals on stage to get your mind off where you were.
>Fuck it, it was in the augmented reality documentation.  Nobody else could see it. And you had to admit, this wireless linking was cool.
>You surfed the PonyNet while half listening, without anyone knowing. You even managed to prank a couple of photographers that had left their devices unsecured by uploading porn to fill their memory cards.
>It takes what feels like at least a half hour to flaunt you. You still don't fully understand why they're doing this, but... You haven't even really been paying attention, have you?
>She says something that you determine is a wrap-up of sorts. The crowd seems almost awe-struck at you, yet, in disbelief about something.
>”Are you for real?” A skeptical pony asks. “I mean seriously. He's plain. He's average build, height, everything. He doesn't even have a cutie mark.”
>Rarity gives a little nervous laugh. “Well, that. With our synthetic models, it's purely cosmetic.”
>She grabs your ass a moment. Right fucking there, on stage. As you perk up, your eyes go to a few very confused ponies in the audience.  She works her hoof to your thigh, right where you'd expect your cutie mark, and there is a feeling of a static shock.
>You look back, and there, floating the AR vision, is the symbol of Twilight Firmware on your flank.
>She presses it again, cycling through various vanity marks. You eventually grunt at her to stop.
>”As you can see,” she leans on you with one arm, pulling you close. Right fucking there, on stage. “this fine stallion body can have any cutie mark... even ones from the original bodies.”
>Your brain stops.  That's right, you're interchangable.
>Many of the ponies immediately start to yell. What ponies call obsceneties are rattled off.
>Rarity leans in, whispering through clenched teeth. “Don't let them put you off. You're just scaring them.”
“What? How?”
>”It's a discussion for later, Darling, I promise, but-”
>From the corner of your eye, you see  movement.  Off-stage, there is a bustle of activity. The white Twilight firmware uniforms pile in off stage.  They are all wearing some sort of goggles. The fabric is quite different from yours. Thicker, a consistency of sandpaper, and much, much more rigid.
>Small cylinders extended from their shoulders, facing forward. Dark, transparent barrels are attached to the back, and the entire contraption looks like some sort of sleek metal harness.
>You recognize the contents of the containers.
>45. acp rounds.  Your AR recognizes it moments later, and brings up info on the weapons you inadvertantly searched for.
>Rarity notices.  She looks to the other side of the stage.  One of the ponies motions for the two of you to leave.  There is no passion in his movement, only urgency.
>She doesn't miss a beat. “Ladies and gentlecolts, it appears we have a... Bit of a safety issue to deal with at this point. We shall return to further our informational showcase tomorrow, hm?”  all the while, she's edging you to move away and off stage with her.
>The other ponies start talking in earnest with each other, and you swear as you leave, you hear “I can't believe this shit.”
>Rarity is immediately in the face of the closest armed pony. “What's happened?”
>”Security leak. You're to move off site immediately.”
>”In the middle of a show that bad? Are you positively daft? Do you have any idea what this will do to our rep-”
>The words are cut off by a noise you hear as an odd ping, mixed with some sort of thwack.
>The security ponies immediately crouch down in unison. The one to which she is scrunching her nose at grabs her and dives with her, as if shielding her.
>Then, the screams.
>The pinging noises sound off.  The screams dampen one by one, until there is only the sound of stomping hooves.
>You turn to see one of the security ponies on the far side motioning with a hoof. He mouths out a set of words, and they appear on your AR vision as a text from an anonymous source.
>”Get. The. Fuck. Out.”
>The armed pony ahead of him leans his head out for an instant.
>The pinging noises sound off.  A piece of his ear shoots away, leaving a bloody stump.
>He recoils a moment, and as the pings rattle off repeatedly, his head dissappears into the wall behind him, piece by piece.  So many rounds hit so quickly, his head is completely dismantled into wet chunks before he hits the ground.  A round penetrates his barely-fleshed jawbone, after the top half of his skull is picked away, and you see his teeth scatter. The entire scene takes roughly a second, but every detail burns into your brain.
“Oh fuck me.”
>Rarity pushes out from pony shielding her as you back away. “Get him down! GET HIM-”
>The curtains don't make for good cover, you realize.  And you just made your first noise at whatever was on the other side.
>You hit the floor, and feel needles of air rushing over you back, where you had just been standing. The wall of televisions explodes into shattered plastic, sparks, and fizzling circuitry.
>The bullets shred the curtain, letting it drop atop you, and you are in darkness.
>You feel one of the ponies grab you.  He drags you off stage, and as your sight comes free of the cloth, you see the presentation room.
>Five ponies, clad in pail yellow. Even past the blinding glint of the stage lights, you can see.
>Not a single one of those ponies in the audience was alive.
>Ever single one of them had a hole directly placed somewhere vital. Skulls were vented and glistening red. Chests were pierced with such power that you could see the shredded seat behind them.
>Five ponies had entered the room, and killed no less than a hundred civilians in a few seconds. The sheer perfection of execution had you in pure, terrified awe.
>You were up and stumbling, one of the security ponies dragging faster than you could walk. You regained your balance, and text came on your AR screen while he pointed. “Secure route. That way. Go. NOW.”
>He crouched and crept forward, toward the ripped curtain.  He hopped out and began to fire, the same pinging noise erupting from the cylinders on his shoulders. His upper half filled with bloody, ragged holes, and the impact of the bullets striking him kept him aloft until his torso simply fell apart.
>Then, Rarity was there. Pulling you. Whimpering and saying nothing.
>Then, you began to run.