Chapter 4

The following week...

A newscaster is reporting;

"There have been many casualties In the North, as the northerners and soldiers clash in a deadly-"

Kunle puts off the TV, he picks up his briefcase from his table and heads out. Kunle is driving to his office when micheal call enters.

"Hello." 

"It's all over the news Kunle, soldiers were sent to stop the mobs, this people attacked the soldiers and there was a gunfight, many Northerners were killed." Kunle shook his head in confusion, trying to concentrate on driving.

"I know, i know! Micheal I saw the news okay?"

"I am just trying to let you know that I sense an inter state war."

"No, don't talk about war."

"It's the truth man. He paused. What?" 

"Hello what is it?"

"Kunle we shall see at the office, there's an update from the north."

"What is it?"

"Just go to the office man, things are getting ugly, I will meet you there."

"Fine."

Beep.

"Call ended sir."

Kunle walks briefly to his office, he drops his briefcase on his desk and sits, he sighs heavily then Micheal and Mrs Sade walks into his office. Kunle sits up with a straight face, Micheal holds a file.

"Just look at these. He drops the file on Kunle's table. Kunle opens it and sees pictures of bodies, they are the bodies of the Northerners."

"My goodness." He checks again and again until he couldn't endure the horror anymore and closes the file. He sits back on his chair with a heavy sigh.

"That was the same reaction almost everyone around here gave. Says Mrs Sade who's sitted on kunle's desk."

Micheal rest his hands on Kunle's table and speaks to his friend.

"Kunle it's getting worse, our troops have been sent there to assist their own soldiers against the rising resistance. I don't have another word to classify them, that's why I chose resistance."

"There's a lot we don't understand." Sade adds.

"Kunle, insurgents are joining the fight against the Government."

Kunle sits up, he couldn't believe his ears.

"Insurgents?

"I thought they have been dealt with in the past."

"This is bad really bad."

"I know what's going through your mind Kunle, I guess we had runaway insurgents that are now regrouped and are striking back. I'd say they are smart, they must have been waiting for a moment like this."

"They helped the willing fighters at the north with firearms against the soldiers, their numbers would have increased to hundreds by now. Sade adds."

"Wait, that means-"

"The states might go into another war. Micheal says."

Kunle feels dizzy with the last statement, then he remembers his wife and son.

"Micheal has the East been affected yet?'

"No, I would have updated you if I heard the slightest whistle about the East man, I know your wife and son are there."

"Thank you, thank you very much. Kunle replies with a relief."

"Besides the king of the East has announced a state of emergency, there's no movement in or out of there." Sade says.

"What security measures has-" 

There's a loud explosion, the ear defeaning sound travels across the state, the blast wave affects the buildings around the blast radius, making them collapse. The department of human affairs building rumbles, lights flickers in Kunle's office, there's mumuring from every office. The fire alarm rings and there are people clamouring around. 

Kunle stands very close to the glass wall, staring at the large plume of smoke coming out of what was left of the advertisement company that once stood there erect.

Micheal joins him, Sade walks towards the glass wall hands on her mouth.

"My God. She exclaims." 

"What is going on? Kunle mutters."

"Let's check if everyone is okay." Micheal says.

Kunle stood there numb, sirens from ambulance can be heard throughout the city. The city's security alarm comes up and drones heads towards the destroyed site.

People are running around, screaming and yelling. Cars around the blast radius are damaged with their windscreens damaged. There is heavy dust and smoke in the air, the police men ushers people to a safer place away from the destroyed building, some people are taking pictures and videos of the site.

Fire fighters are battling the fire on nearby buildings and stores. Medical teams roll out stretchers with dead bodies covered up. Some people in the buildings that collapsed are saved by the rescue team, those that didn't make it are carried out and covered up with body bags. The survivors are covered with dust, some of them coughs heavily. A medical team approaches them and checks them for any injury or complains.

The advertisement company destroyed by the bomb was reduced to dust, and files scattered across the site, the fire is finally defeated. Just then a convoy of black trucks approaches the site, on the trucks are a tiger head graffiti on the sides. people stare at them with surprise they didn't even slow down when the police ask them to halt. 

They park around the site and men in hazard suits comes out from the trucks. They yell at people to clear away from the site, people are surprised by the sudden action. These men started spraying some kind of gas in the air around the destroyed building. Some of them speaks to the police men to get the people away from the site. 

Just then a man, also in a hazard suit approaches the leader of the police men, he shows him a tab, the police man reads and nods. 

He orders his men to clear the site of people, he tells the people that the atmosphere around there isn't safe and that the men in hazard suits are there to funmigate the area for safe breathing. The police men leads the people away from the site, those to be taken to the hospital are in the ambulance. Children that missed their parents during the pandemic are being reunited with their parents and guardians by the police.

Kunle and the other staffs are led out of the building by the police, the staffs are asked to go their homes for safety until the area is safe again. The medical team checks them and asks questions for any sign of pain. Kunle gets into his car, Micheal waves at him, he waves back and drives off to his home.