XY Revolution

Of course he’s right. Travis is annoyingly right a lot of the time it seems. I’m going to have to hit him extra hard when I’m cleared to go back into training, that’s for sure.

“The terrorist responsible for the attack on the United Nations building in Los Angeles has now been identified as fifteen year old Freya Belmont.”

A picture taken at the start of my last year at school is brought up on screen, alongside a still frame of my Ideal self at the UN. You’d think they were different people, if not for the same facial structure.

“Belmont is to be considered extremely dangerous, trained by the terrorist organisation known as the Resistance. She is responsible for the deaths of thirty-seven during the United Nations attack alone. We now ask for a moment of silence for the dead.”

Faces of the dead officials, scum and…

“Is that Xander?” I whisper, cutting the tension in the room like a knife.

“Yes,” Henriette growls.

“Thank you. The authorities believe that Freya Belmont will still be in North America, however it is just as possible that she will return to her home in New Zealand, or anywhere else in the world. You are strongly urged not to engage this woman if you see her, but contact the appropriate authorities immediately. As global citizens, it is our responsibility to capture criminals such as these, and remain strong-”

The screen goes black and Henriette stands up, paces angrily for a minute and then returns to the head of the table. She slams her fist down on the table.

“Get me Kevin. Now,” she snarls.

Travis and I share a sombre look. Derek has gone paler than my hair, and my heart clenches in sympathy. A couple of agents I didn’t even notice were standing by the door move swiftly and come back before I know it, with a trembling Kevin in grasp.

“Kevin, why is our secret weapon on international television screens months before our plan had intended her to be?” Henriette asks very calmly.

No one’s fooled though. That voice reminds me of thin, cracking ice; the kind Kevin is standing on. Kevin just hangs his head. He knows the question is rhetorical.

“You had one job to do, and yet you still decided to do it incompetently. Either you wished to betray us, or you have been promoted above other perfectly capable artists without reason. This is the home base, Kevin. We do not make mistakes.”

All eyes are on Kevin, whose are closed, tears flowing down his beautifully sculpted cheekbones.

“You have compromised a plan of highest priority. You may have just cost young Agent Belmont her life. You may have cost many people their lives. All because you didn’t put on some make-up like you are employed to do.”

“I didn’t mean to,” Kevin sobs. “It was an-an a-a-acci-d-dent.”

“We will put your punishment to a vote now. You must realise the seriousness of this situation.

“All in favour of sanctions?”

Travis’ hand is the first to go up.

“All in favour of execution?”

An equal amount of hands goes up this time too. Henriette sighs.

“Sanctions it is,” she says with a definitive nod. “Now get him out of my sight.”

I watch in petrified horror as they drag him from the room. Henriette turns her back to us all and looks up at the screen, paused on the gigantic image of my face.

“How soon can we have a replacement stylist sent in?” she asks.

“I’ve already sent for Claudia from the New York Base,” Natasha supplies. “She should be here in approximately four hours.”

Henriette turns back to us and nods in approval.

“Then it’s time for Operation Topside. We are out of the ground.”

A buzz of excitement goes around the group, even though nobody speaks. Everyone’s postures are tense and eyes are bright. I know enough to guess what’s causing the frenzy.

“Are you sure this is the opportune moment for Phase Static?” Travis asks, leaning back casually in his seat. “We will have to follow through immediately and Agent Belmont has not been cleared for field work.”

“I’m clearing her.”

“I am not satisfied with her training.”

Henriette’s jaw locks and her eyes flit across the room then pleadingly back to Travis’.

“Our hand has been forced, Travis. We go ahead with Phase Static as soon as Claudia arrives,” there’s a finality in her tone but she focuses on me and tells me, “Stay behind, Belmont. Everyone else, dismissed. I’ll talk to you later, Hunt.”

Everyone else gets out of their seats –even Intelligence behind us, who you always forget about – and leaves. Once again I am alone with the leader of the Resistance, and all I can think about is how coldly she ordered Kevin away. I feel like I should be running in the opposite direction, while I still have a chance.

To my surprise, she slumps into a chair and puts her head in her hands.

“I didn’t want to do that,” she whispers.

“Um, excuse me?” I stammer.

“Kevin. We couldn’t find anything on him that would suggest he was a traitor, but that never eliminates that option. The only other reason would be incompetence and we can’t have that either, especially on this scale. It was the only solution,” she rambles and I’m truly stunned by the confession.

She seems to read my thoughts and laughs.

“Believe it or not, Freya, I am human. I’m perfectly capable of compassion. The Resistance needs me to be strong though, so I am. I am mostly okay with being thought of as heartless, as long as it is for the greater good. That is my sacrifice.”

I frown at this and ask, “Why are you telling me this?”

She sighs.

“Because you need to learn these things now. I wanted to put this off at least till you were sixteen, but like I said to Travis, my hands are tied. We have to act, and we have to act now. You are going to be on every screen in the world; the name on everyone’s lips. You are going to be the face of us. You are young, strong, and rebellious. It makes you beautiful and it turns you into the embodiment of the Resistance.

“But you are going to be pushed right into the middle of all the chaos. And I’m not just talking about the UN.”

“The Resistance has problems,” I say carefully and she nods.

“It’s in our nature as human beings to argue and fight for power. Others will try to use you for their own endgames, which is high status once this war is over. But you must stay out of this, Freya. I cannot stress this enough. You are not politically minded, and nor are your friends here.”

“From what I’ve seen of politics, I’m glad. But I agree.”

She nods.

“The Resistance was founded on certain principles and those remain pure. It is why people join us. The Resistance itself is not, because it is made up of people, and people are corruptible. My advice to you, Freya, is to remain as pure as possible. Once Operation Topside goes live, things are going to change drastically. You alone will have the power to sway the public, and at the end of the day, that’s what will matter. Trust that. And only trust me and Travis.”

“How do I know you’re not using me for your own agenda?” I ask her after a minute of letting it all sink in.

Finally she cracks a smile.

“Do you trust me, Freya?”

I look her over and smile back.

“Funnily enough, I do.”

She then reaches over and touches the centre of my chest with the palm of her hand.

“At the end of the day, this is what guides you. You’re a survivor; trust your instincts and you will survive.”

Henriette then stands up, straightens out her pant-suit and then leaves, but not before telling me, “I’m so sorry for throwing you into this mess. Agent Hunt is right to be concerned: your training is vital. But a strong body will not be enough for you, Agent Belmont. I can tell you that now. So toughen up, and be prepared to make certain sacrifices.”



I don’t see Travis at lunch, so instead I sit with Phil and Julia, the weapons instructor. Today’s pickings are slimmer than what they were just days ago. We have bread, meatless soup, and a small mountain of green vegetables. My stomach’s already groaning from the lack of meat, and I want to kick myself for how spoiled I’ve become.

“How’s your shoulder doing, Freya?” Julia asks, her spiky hair bouncing as she chews on the tough bread. “Walsh said you’d gotten grazed.”

“It’s getting better. I’m still a bit stiff, and it hurts when I touch it, but other than that, it’s all good.”

She shakes her head and says, “You wouldn’t even have that if they’d given you proper protective gear.”

“We don’t have enough of it, Jules,” Phil interjects, mouth full as per usual.

“I think we can spare some when we’ve got agents in clearly hostile situations. They only broke into the L.A. UN building, for Pete’s sake.”

“There was no time,” I explain, “It all happened so fast. We were eating one minute, and the next, half the room was dead.”

They go quiet for a moment, but Julia recovers quickly, “One of the greatest lessons I can teach you, Freya, or anyone for that matter, is to not underestimate how much safety equipment can change things. You’re automatically in a better position if you’re not worried about protecting yourself. I know it’s the reason I’m still alive and other bastards are not.”

Phil then flicks a vegetable at the side of her face with his spoon and the mood changes. It doesn’t last long though, because Travis strides into the cafeteria with a determined look on his face, all business. The trace of a smile on my face immediately dissipates.

“Follow me please, Agent Belmont,” he requests and I get to my feet with a sigh.

“Of course, Agent Hunt,” I mock but follow nonetheless.

We don’t go straight to the blue-corridor though, but instead to Travis’ room. It’s only then that he says anything to me.

“I have to make this quick. We don’t have much time,” his voice is slightly panicked and I frown.

“Is everything okay?” I ask.

“You’re about to go live. On camera. You’re going to claim responsibility for what happened at the UN and you’re going to announce the Resistance going topside.”

My throat suddenly goes dry and I understand Travis’ anxiety.

“I told them you weren’t prepared for this. We only just got back from the mission, and Henriette should’ve had more time to coach you. I’m sorry, Freya.”

“It’s alright. I knew this was coming, after the meeting and all,” I say with a meek smile.

“Hair and make-up, script-learning and then in front of the camera? Don’t tell me this is what you expected when you joined us.”

I frown.

“I assumed when they told me I was going to be the poster-girl that I wasn’t just going to be some badass sniper. Why are you so mad?”

He hesitates for a second but then tells me, “It just doesn’t feel right. It’s unnatural. I’m just hoping like hell it works out.”



Travis was right. There is a script in my hands that I’m supposed to memorize even though they’re going to have the words on a teleprompter anyway, and I’m being poked and prodded by stylists deciding on my outfit and hair and face. Claudia is more of an overseer and lets her assistants do all the touching. It just seems kind of lazy to me.

“I wish we could do something about how pale she is,” one of the assistants says mournfully like I’m not even here and the others nod.

“We have to leave her looking natural,” Claudia states.

And by natural she means making my hair look sleek and shiny and covering up any pimples on my face. They’ve even covered up my fresh scar, which has just had the stitches out, by clothes. I naively thought that ‘natural’ just meant brushing my hair a bit. I miss Kevin.

“Is she ready?” a familiar voice asks and we all turn to see Henriette with her regular stone mask on.

“As ready as we can get her, though I really don’t think natural is the way to go with this one,” Claudia responds and I resist the urge to punch her.

“Then please restrain your assistants and get her in front of the camera.”

Henriette then turns on her heel and stalks off. Claudia’s assistants have detached themselves from my hands and hair with embarrassed looks on their faces. I don’t bother hiding my smug smirk.

“You heard the boss!” Claudia barks at me and I lazily get to my feet. “Over there!”

I then wander over to the place where a bunch of the technology-inclined Intelligence workers are crowded around the cameras.

“Hi?” I try when they don’t look up from their devices.

“Oh good! You’re here! In front of the black screen please!” a small man squeaks at me and I do as I’m bid.

I look down at the padded black jumpsuit I’m wearing. If this is what the Resistance uses their protective gear for, Julia is definitely right that their priorities with this stuff is screwed up.

“Ma’am, we are ready to film!” the squeaky man says and suddenly Henriette and her entourage are there. She nods and then they’re all counting down till the camera rolls for the first take. My throat goes dry and I’m sweating off all that natural make-up they caked on me.

“My name is Freya Belmont,” I stammer. “You should know who I am by now. You should know that I am responsible for the events at the United Nations building in Los Angeles. You should know that I am dangerous to anyone who supports the tyranny and oppressive reign of the United Nations.

“I stand with the Resistance for the rights of all citizens. We will not stop until we are equal once again. We will do whatever it takes. We will sacrifice ourselves for the good of our children. We will destroy the United Nations. This attack was just the beginning. We are coming for you.

“Welcome to the Resistance.”

There’s silence for a moment and then applause. I feel myself go red.

“That was perfect!” one of the camera-operating people says.

I’m more focused on the way Travis is storming out of the room.

And I’m running after him.



“Travis!” I yell again as I burst into the elevator, just before it closes.

He lets out an exasperated sigh and folds his arms.

“What the hell is your problem? Did you not hear me yelling, you asshole?!” I scream, pressing the emergency stop button.

“This was an even worse idea than I could’ve imagined,” he tells me calmly.

I frown, cross my own arms and point out, “Everyone in there seemed to think I did great.”

“Yes, you were the perfect little puppet, weren’t you?”

To say I’m taken aback is an understatement.

“I happen to believe those words.”

“You could’ve fooled me. Honestly, Freya, what part of that felt genuine to you? You were lucky if you had half the conviction you did when you sang in the prison.”

“That was different.”

“Really? Because you weren’t saying you were doing this for the children when you’re a child yourself?”

“A child?” I spit. “I’ve killed people, Travis. Haven’t you noticed? Of course I’m dangerous. The UN has to go down.”

“You looked like a nervous, young girl thrust in front of the camera, reciting words people much smarter and older than you wrote. No one will believe you, Freya. I don’t believe you, and like you said, I’ve seen you kill people for this.”

I lean back against the elevator wall and sigh.

“Do you have any suggestions then? Because if you don’t, they’re going to run with what we just filmed.”

He takes a sudden step towards me and I hear the tear before I see what he’s done. He’s ripped my suit from the neck down my arm, revealing my still taped up shoulder.

“Take that bandage off. If you’re going to be the face of the Resistance, you can’t be some Ideal. You’re a fighter and you have the scars to prove it. That’s something people will believe.”