Camilla

For a few seconds, her mom's face was a blank, empty slate. Then, in an instant, it was pinched in a mixture of horror and fury, and she looked like she wanted nothing more than to make Camilla disappear right then and there.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" her mom hissed, sounding as if she was barely containing her rage.

"Good to see you too," was all Camilla could think of, too stunned to say anything else.

"Don't give me that shit!" her mom snapped. "Do you have any idea what you being here will do to me? What it would do to my career? Can you not think with that empty head of yours? Leave now, before you mess things up more than you already have!"

That was the voice Camilla knew. And at that moment, Camilla realized that the future she had hoped for was nothing more than a childhood fantasy. Blaire was more threatened than relieved to see Camilla alive. Blaire would be the very first one to alert the Org of Camilla's location, just to save her own face. Blaire would never welcome Camilla back, not unless there was something in it for her. And Blaire would never offer Camilla words of comfort, and in its place, she only had scathing remarks and underhanded insults.

How could you have let this happen? How could you have screwed up so badly? You should've known better. That was always your greatest weakness: you were always so desperate that you would believe what anyone said, so naive that you never thought anyone would have ill intentions. You're still exactly like a child, so gullible and impressionable that you would believe just about anyone. None of this would've happened if you just listened to me. Don't you remember what I always told you? You can't trust anyone; you can only trust me.

The voice in Camilla's head wasn't her own; it never was. For all this time, Blaire was the one that had always put Camilla down, dragging her along like a puppet until Camilla's thoughts mirrored her own. But now, Camilla knew what was real and what was not. She knew now what thoughts were her own and what were Blaire's. And she was done letting someone else have control over her.

"I'm here to tell everyone the truth," Camilla said, her voice much steadier than she felt. "How it affects you isn't my problem."

As Camilla moved to take a step past her, Blaire seized her wrist and held her back.

"Like hell you will," Blaire said, her hold on Camilla's wrist tightening before she dragged Camilla back to where she was. "You may have done an excellent job screwing up your own life, but I won't have you messing up mine. Now I am your mother, and you will do as I say. Get. Out. Now."

"No," Camilla said.

Somehow, Blaire's face became even more twisted.

"Camilla—!" she began.

"I'm not your daughter anymore," Camilla cut her off. "You said that yourself when you disowned me. Besides, you've always wanted me to be on TV. Isn't this what you had in mind?"

For once, Blaire was left speechless.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, we're on a clock," Camilla said before yanking her wrist out of Blaire's hold.

She gave Blaire one last look before stepping past her, making her way to center stage. Camilla hadn't realized how quiet the studio had gotten, and she instinctively braced herself for an onset of nerves once she noticed everyone's eyes following her. But when the anxiety never came, and she instead felt nothing but calm, Camilla embraced the sensation and looked at each of the cameras with fierce determination.

"Hello everyone," Camilla began, her voice seemingly echoing throughout the studio, breaking through the tense silence. "My name is Camilla Wyatt, and I'm here to tell you the truth.

"The American Protection Organization isn't what we thought it was. For years, they have been lying to us, and using all of us for their personal gain. They were the ones that created Exodos, manipulating people's anger to show the public the importance of guardians. They orchestrated the attack on the Academy, allowing dozens of young students to die for the sake of financial aid. And they've continued to use Exodos as their way to gain the public's trust—your trust.

"But it's all a facade. They are trying to build an army that would be capable of defending their own agenda and need for power. They are responsible for the disappearances of hundreds of people, civilians and guardians, metas and non-metas, all to serve as subjects for their illegal, unethical, and non-consensual human experimentation. They authorized the attack on LA's City Hall to cover their tracks, and they've killed countless others for the same reason. They won't stop until they get what they want. And they'll kill anyone that dares to stand in their way."

Camilla glanced at Elsie, who, at some point, had taken over the spot that the floor director had been standing. Just in time, Camilla saw Elsie's mouth move ever so slightly, then she sent Camilla a thumbs-up. Hitomi had successfully managed to upload the evidence they gathered.

"I know that what I'm saying may be hard to believe," Camilla continued, turning back to the cameras. "After all, it was the Org that labeled me a traitor against everything they stood for. But they also said I was dead, yet here I am, more alive than I've ever been before.

"I don't expect you to take my word for it though. Moments ago, we uploaded all of our evidence on GEN Studios' website, including a confession by one of the primary perpetrators, Doctor Bridgette Hester. From that, you can make your own decision about where you stand, and how we, as a country, can move forward from this crime against our nation."

Camilla paused, looking past the cameras. It was hard to see the audience within the darkness, especially while the lights were blinding her, but she needed them to know her words were meant for the people, not the media.

"Now, the fate of our country is in your hands. If you want, you can turn a blind eye and let the Org bury the truth of their crimes once more. Or, you can choose to do something about it.

"As of now, we still need to find out everyone who was and is complicit in the Org's crimes, but we can only do so with everyone's help. And even if everyone chooses to ignore the problems right in front of them, we will continue to fight for what we believe is right. Because for too long, the Org has gotten away with lying and harming the people they swore to protect, and we have the power to stop them.

"And if this is truly what the Org stands for, then maybe I am a traitor. If that's what it takes to protect all of you, then I can live with that. But what about you? You have to decide for yourself what you are willing to do to protect your family, your friends, and everyone else around you. And, for the sake of our future, I hope you can make the right choice."

At that moment, there was the sound of a muffled explosion, and the studio went black. The darkness was filled with a commotion of gasps and worried whispers, and Camilla quickly lit a small fire in the palm of her hand before someone could hurt themselves in the panic. As expected, the audience and staff members looked at each other anxiously, unsure of what was going on.

"Everyone, stay seated!" Camilla ordered as she reached into her pocket for her own comms, and she was mildly surprised when everyone actually obeyed.

"The Org cut power to the building," Elsie explained as she hurried onto the set to join Camilla. "They got here maybe a minute after you first went on camera."

"Terrific," Camilla replied. As soon as she put the comms to her ear, she was immediately greeted by a flurry of radio chatter. She winced slightly at the chaotic sounds before switching her outgoing channel to the Studio Team's. "Hitomi, status."

"I managed to get coverage over two other public stations before they cut me off," Hitomi replied. "Not that they did not try to stop me earlier though; they just were not very skilled. Also, your SNS is much more popular now than it was when all you posted were sponsored advertisements. Maybe you should fake your own death more often."

"I'd prefer if I stuck to exposing political corruption," Camilla retorted. "If we get power back, would you be able to keep everything online?"

"That, and I can replay your very lovely speech on multiple networks," Hitomi offered. "Just get the power back and I will be good to go."

But before Camilla could confirm her understanding, the lights suddenly flickered back on without warning. As the audience and staff gasped again, Camilla and Elsie looked to each other in confusion, then to Nakia, Bev, and AJ who were still stationed by the studio entrance. In response, Nakia and Bev shrugged, while AJ squinted suspiciously at the lights above.

"That was fast," Hitomi commented.

"That wasn't us," Camilla replied, extinguishing the fire in her hand. "But we'll take it. If you've got things here, we'll support the Defense Team for as long as you need to make sure everything stays online."

"Yes, Captain."

Once that was settled, Camilla and Elsie immediately began to walk off the set.

"Camilla!" Blaire called out.

Camilla couldn't help but pause, but she at least could keep herself from turning right away. Ahead of her, Elsie stopped as well, but didn't do anything other than look at Camilla. She would stay out of this unless Camilla wanted otherwise. And now, Camilla knew she could handle this herself.

When Camilla finally did turn around, she couldn't make sense of the unusual expression on Blaire's face. At the same time, Camilla realized she didn't care.

"No," Camilla said, just as Blaire opened her mouth to say something. "Whatever you have to say, save it. I've had to listen to your conceit and narcissism for twenty-six years already, and I'm not willing to waste another second flattering your ego. You wanted to disown me, and I'm fine with that. Just make sure to keep it that way."

She turned back around without waiting for a response, and she didn't stop until she was back outside in the hallway with Elsie, Nakia, and AJ—with her family—following close behind.

---

Thank you for reading, voting, and commenting!