Fanon:Outset

Outset is the second episode of the Revolution series by WikiBuilder1147. It depicts the adventures of a group of youngsters as they struggle against a regime to which the previous generation refuses to act against.

Previously on Revolution...
With his best friend now in the hands of the Government, Ben Faulkner must now find a way to get her back. In gym class, a fight broke out between a fellow student and the teacher, resulting in a security alert. The boy made an escape, running away to avoid sharing the same fate as Miami the day before...

Chapter 1
"HEY!" the gym teacher screamed. "COME BACK HERE!"

He put his communicator to his mouth.

"We have a situation here," he said, struggling to control his tone. "Close all the gates! NOW!"

"ALEX!" Ben heard another boy shout.

Ben Faulkner saw in the distance Alex sprinting towards the front gates of the school. The gates slowly began to swing shut. The boy dodged security guards as he made his way off the school premises.

Ben could hear shouting from the entrance.

"STOP!"

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!"

"FREEZE!"

But Alex ignored them all as he almost flew out the main gates and made his getaway.

Ben looked back, and he could see that his gym teacher was red with rage.

The gym teacher stormed around his class, cursing like a sailor before he shouted, "ONE HUNDRED LAPS! ALL OF YOU! YOU HAVE FIFTEEN MINUTES!"

Chapter 2
After school, Ben cautiously made his way to the residence of Alex and his family after finding out where he lived from Alex's friend. Ben then came across a panel with a number of buttons. The silver buttons looked dull in the absence of sunlight. Ben pressed the button that corresponded with the number of Alex's apartment.

There was no response.

Ben held the button while he spoke into the microphone.

"Alex," he whispered. "It's me. Ben Faulkner. I'm from your class at school."

For a while there was no reply. Then, the voice of Alex came quietly through the speakers. It was a small little thing, almost fearful.

"Ben?" Alex stuttered. "Come up. Quickly!" Ben walked briskly through the entrance to the apartment block and he entered the elevator.

"Fifth Floor," he said. The elevator cab shot up and slowed down upon reaching the fifth floor of the apartment block. Ben exited and ran towards Alex's apartment. He knocked on the door.

"It's me," Ben whispered. "It's Ben. I'm alone."

Ben saw a frightened eye look through the peephole before the door slid open. Ben quickly went inside. Alex closed the door and locked it.

"Alright," Alex said. "What do you want?"

"You know you're in big trouble, right?" Ben said.

"Of course I'm aware of that!" came the reply. "I'm not stupid."

"Of course," Ben said in an attempt to calm his classmate. "Of course."

"Now," Alex whispered. "Is that all you wanted to tell me?"

"No," Ben replied. "Remember how Miami got taken yesterday?"

"Yes."

"It was because she spoke out against the Government. It's obvious you hate the Government as well, because you did the same thing."

"You're not here to get information to report me, are you?" Alex's eyes were wild with fear. Ben could see the boy was petrified.

"Of course not," Ben said. "I want your help to get Miami back."

There was an awkward silence for several seconds. The apartment was absolutely silent. The traffic outside, oblivious to the conversation, continued to slowly slither across the skyways of Bridgeport.

Finally, Alex spoke up. "Evading those guards was hard, and now you want to charge at the Government itself? You must be crazy!"

"Why would you not do anything when the Government are Satan's incarnates?" Ben replied. "Miami is my best friend. All she was doing was voicing her opinions. For that, she is being punished. How could you let this atrocity go without justice?"

Alex said nothing, allowing Ben to continue.

"We're doing this for a good cause. We are fighting evil! Evil cannot go unpunished. Will you come with me? Will you help me liberate the one who spoke for all of us?"

Alex smiled. "Let's do it."

Chapter 3
"Alright, I managed to steal a world map from school," Ben said, laying out a large map onto the dining table in Alex's apartment the next day. The map looked quite similar to one we would use today, aside from the fact that there were several red shapes scattered across it, censoring pieces of land and sea from public examination. Each shape had large text written in their centres: "RESTRICTED AREA".

"Miami must be in one of those restricted areas," Alex said.

"There are so many!" Ben exclaimed. "How are we supposed to figure out where she is?"

"We could try the Government Archives in the middle of Bridgeport," Alex replied.

"That's a maximum security building! You must be a complete madman to set foot within a hundred metres of the Archives!"

"It's worth a try," Alex said, winking.

"We're missing school!" Ben exclaimed. "We'd better be on our guard. Government officers will be looking high and low for us." Alex nodded in agreement.

As Ben and Alex attempted to blend into the crowd as people walked about, living their lives under the complete scrutiny of the Government. The boys tried not to look out of place - failure to do so could mean the end of their mission. They even went as far as to wear similar clothing as the average worker: grey polo shirts, navy blue trousers and black shoes. Ben and Alex walked with as straight a back as they could. They could not look any different from their indoctrinated adult counterparts. Just as they were about to exit the bustling army of men and women, they saw a patrol of Government soldiers marching past.

"Back in," Ben said, his voice shaking in fright. "Back in!" The duo slowly shuffled back, once again melting into the crowd of people. They tried to stay in their position, but the busy flow of workers forced them to move.

"Where are the Archives, anyway?" Alex whispered. Ben put his hand into his right pocket and pulled out a map of the city centre.

"You stole a lot of maps, didn't you?" Alex asked. Ben said nothing, smiling. He unfolded the map, holding out in front of them, hoping that the crowd of workers would continue to unwittingly provide cover for them.

"We are here," Ben said, pointing to a spot on the map depicting Bridgeport's Central Business District. "The geography teachers told us that Government buildings tend to lie on the northern end of the CBD, so..." Ben trailed off, whirling his finger around and around the map in an attempt to locate the Government precinct. Eventually Alex put his finger on the spot.

"There," Alex said. "Bridgeport Federal Quarter. It's around a kilometre--"

"Get down!" Ben whispered with a panicked tone. Both boys immediately shrunk down as the tremendously loud roar of a large police hovercar's jet engines filled the air. The hovercar slowed to a halt as it hovered above the crowd of workers, who continued walking on to their destination, unfazed. The intense heat generated by the engines made Ben and Alex sweat profusely...

more to come...