16/05/2026
Episode 6 – Run or Stand
The figures were getting closer.
Fast.
Even from a distance, Tamuno could tell they weren’t moving like trained patrol units. There was no controlled spacing, no tactical caution, no effort to conceal their advance.
They moved with speed.
With aggression.
With the kind of momentum that came from men who believed fear alone could break whoever stood in front of them.
Dust rose behind them as they pushed across the rough terrain, their silhouettes becoming clearer with every passing second.
Bello tightened his grip on the injured soldier.
“We’re not outrunning that.”
Tamuno didn’t answer immediately.
Because he already knew.
The injured soldier was slowing them down badly. Every few steps, his body threatened to collapse under its own weight, yet he kept forcing himself forward through pure determination.
Chinedu looked back again, his breathing sharper now.
“They’ve seen us.”
Another burst of gunfire cracked across the rocks.
Closer this time.
A round struck the stone beside them, sending fragments into the air.
“They’re firing!” Bello shouted.
“Keep moving!” Tamuno ordered immediately.
They pushed harder.
Boots scraping against rock.
Breathing growing heavier.
The injured soldier stumbled again, nearly dragging Bello down with him.
“I said I can move,” the man growled through pain.
“And I said stay on your feet,” Bello snapped back.
Tamuno scanned the terrain desperately while running.
They needed cover.
Real cover.
Not open rock formations that could trap them.
Then he saw it ahead.
A narrow break between two elevated ridges.
Not perfect.
But defensible.
“There!” Tamuno pointed.
“Move to the gap!”
The squad shifted direction instantly, forcing themselves toward the narrow passage as gunfire continued behind them.
By the time they reached it, their lungs burned from exhaustion.
But there was no time to rest.
Tamuno immediately took position near the entrance, scanning the advancing figures now becoming visible through the dust.
And for the first time…
He saw their faces clearly.
Young.
Hard.
Focused.
But different from the enemy they had encountered before.
There was no patience in them.
No calculation.
Only intensity.
Only destruction.
Bello lowered the injured soldier carefully behind cover.
Chinedu dropped beside Tamuno, checking his surroundings.
“How many?”
Tamuno kept watching.
“Too many.”
Another shot cracked against the rocks.
Closer.
Testing them.
Bello looked toward Tamuno, his voice tighter now.
“What’s the plan?”
Tamuno didn’t answer immediately.
Because there were only two options.
Run again…
Or stand and fight.
And neither felt good enough.
The injured soldier tried to sit upright despite the pain.
“You can’t stay here long,” he warned.
“They’ll surround you.”
Tamuno nodded faintly.
“I know.”
Chinedu glanced toward the narrow opening behind them.
“There’s another exit further through the ridge.”
Bello frowned.
“You sure?”
“I saw it while we were moving.”
Tamuno looked toward the deeper path briefly.
A possible escape.
But reaching it would take time.
And time was exactly what they did not have.
Gunfire erupted again.
This time more aggressive.
Rounds struck the outer rocks repeatedly, forcing dust into the air.
“They’re closing in!” Chinedu shouted.
Tamuno made the decision instantly.
“Bello, get him through the ridge.”
Bello looked at him sharply.
“What about you two?”
“We hold them long enough.”
The answer came too quickly.
Too calmly.
Bello stared at him for half a second longer.
Then shook his head.
“No.”
Tamuno’s eyes hardened.
“That wasn’t a discussion.”
Bello stepped closer.
“We split here, we may not regroup.”
The truth of that hung heavily between them.
Because both of them understood what holding a position like this could mean.
Especially against numbers.
Chinedu checked his weapon quickly, then looked toward Bello.
“Just move him,” he said quietly.
“We’ll catch up.”
The injured soldier immediately protested.
“No. Leave me here.”
All three of them turned toward him.
His face was pale now, exhaustion and blood loss draining what strength he had left.
“I’m slowing you down,” he continued.
“If you stay because of me, all of you die here.”
“No one’s leaving you,” Bello said firmly.
The soldier gave a weak, bitter smile.
“That’s easy to say before reality catches up.”
Another burst of gunfire slammed into the rocks.
Closer than before.
Tamuno could hear voices now.
Shouting.
Advancing.
The line was collapsing quickly.
He looked back at Bello.
“Go.”
Bello didn’t move.
Tamuno’s voice sharpened.
“That’s an order.”
For a second, anger flashed across Bello’s face.
Not disrespect.
Not refusal.
Just frustration.
Because soldiers understood something civilians rarely did—
Sometimes survival demanded choices that stayed with you forever.
Finally, Bello nodded once.
Slowly.
Reluctantly.
He grabbed the injured soldier again, pulling him upward.
“Move.”
Chinedu shifted beside Tamuno, eyes locked on the approaching figures.
The sounds outside grew louder.
Closer.
More violent.
Then—
A figure appeared briefly at the edge of the passage.
Tamuno fired instantly.
The shot echoed through the rocks.
The figure disappeared.
But many more remained behind him.
And they were still coming.
Chinedu exhaled slowly beside him.
“Well…”
A pause.
“I guess this is where things change.”
Tamuno kept his weapon raised, eyes focused ahead.
“No,” he said quietly.
“They already have.”
The next wave of movement surged toward the ridge.
And this time—
It came fast.
To be continued…
👉 Season 3, Episode 7 – Holding the Ridge
