Somali Zombie Wars Finale

Strange as it may seem, the citizens of Somalia have adjusted to life in the zombie apocalypse. The ramparts that were erected around major cities like Mogadishu, Galkayo and Borama saved millions of lives from the zombie hordes. The survivors have gained control of a fleet of airplanes and helicopters which facilitate trade and the transportation of goods between cities. Overland travel is too dangerous thanks to the roaming zombie hordes. This is the new world order and the zombies are the world's apex predator. What's left of Homo Sapiens is merely trying to survive it. It has been a decade and a half since the zombies began to rise and Somalia is still standing...

On that fateful morning, decorated former Somali National Army General-turned housewife Fatima Said-Aden prepared breakfast for her husband Captain Amir Aden and their daughter Bismilla. Presenting her family with platters full of tasty goodies, Fatima joined them for the feast. Aden gently took Fatima's hand and brought it to his lips, then thanked his wife for the feast. Fatima blushed and looked dotingly at her husband Aden and their daughter Bismilla. The happy family then enjoyed a delicious breakfast consisting of eggs, onions, buttered bread and overly sugared coffee.

"You've outdone yourself my dear," Aden said to Fatima, who grinned. A few years ago, Fatima quit her position as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Somalia. The very next day, Fatima married Amir Aden at the quaint old Sal Al Din Masjid located in downtown Mogadishu. The wedding was attended by hundreds of people from all over the city. In their time, Fatima and Aden had been heroes to the people of Somalia. Since then, the couple settled into a quasi-mundane life. They bought a house, had a daughter, and now seem like any ordinary family in Mogadishu.

"Don't make a sister blush," Fatima said, laughing. Bismilla rolled her eyes at her parents. Fatima looked upon Aden and Bismilla with love and gratitude. The decorated heroine who is credited with the salvation of Somalia became a wife and mother much later in life than most. Aden, Fatima's current husband and former subordinate pursued her tirelessly during the time when they served together. At the onset of the zombie apocalypse, Amir Aden had two goals, winning over Fatima Said and saving Mogadishu from the zombies. The man succeeded in both endeavors...

After breakfast, the family went about their daily routine. Aden and Fatima exchanged a kiss before parting ways. Fatima took Bismilla to school while Aden reported to the casern located on Shafi Street. Aden has recently been promoted to the rank of Captain. As he walked into work, he noticed that the casern was a veritable beehive of activity. Military men and women went about their duties looking somewhat tense. Aden saw a colleague of his, Corporal Dalia Sadiq, and asked her what was going on.

"Sir, General Idris Suleiman has requested all senior officers to the meeting room," said Corporal Dalia Sadiq. The tall, dark-skinned young Somali military woman gave Captain Aden a weird look and then took off. Captain Aden ran his hand through his freshly shaved scalp and then headed towards the senior officers briefing room. He went inside and saw quite a few familiar faces there. As expected, General Suleiman was standing in front of the projector, and the man seemed frantic, quite unlike his normal stoic self.

"Captain Aden, how good of you to join us," General Suleiman said sharply. The tall, dark-skinned and silver-haired military man shot the Captain a weird look. Captain Aden saluted and then took his seat. Next to him sat Lieutenant Cisman Shariff and Sergeant Hodan Ahmed. The Captain quietly greeted his fellow officers before inquiring about what was going on. The looks of alarm on their faces irked and worried Captain Aden. Inwardly, he braced himself for bad news.

"We lost contact with Puntland," said Sergeant Hodan Ahmed, and the military woman bit her lip, her worry all too evident. Captain Aden sighed as he took it all in. Puntland is one of the most important places in Somalia. A stronghold whose fierce residents have repelled wave upon wave of zombies. The people of Puntland once tried to separate from the rest of Somalia and the zombie apocalypse has done nothing to quell that fiercely independent streak. If Puntland has gone dark, this was dire news for the rest of Somalia...

"Hargeisa has also gone dark," Lieutenant Cisman Shariff said, shaking his head. Captain Aden looked at the short, dark-skinned man and fell silent. Along with Sergeant Hodan Ahmed and Lieutenant Cisman Shariff, Captain Amir Aden is a veteran of many battles against the zombies. The Undead were fearless but there was no way they could have overcome the formidable defenses of both Puntland and Hargeisa. The desert folk had guns, vehicles, fuel and plenty of other resources including traditional weapons and camels, horses and donkeys. They weren't easy to overcome...

"This is footage from a fleet of drones we sent out, the enemy has changed, my friends," said General Suleiman. He then stepped aside and let the video play over the projector. Captain Aden and the others watched with rapt attention as the video began to play. Two armies were duking it out in the desert. Captain Aden frowned. Were the peoples of Hargeisa and Puntland foolish enough to fight each other in the middle of the zombie apocalypse? Will humans never learn? Apparently not!

The firefight went on, and the drone footage showed it in vivid detail. Somali men and Somali women armed with guns, pistols, axes, shovels, baseball bats and large rocks fought against an implacable enemy. Captain Aden's eyes widened in surprise when he saw what they were fighting. Zombies, fresh-looking ones, came at the people with guns, knives and other weapons. A pack of zombies wielding machetes butchered a young Somali woman whose rifle ran out of bullets. She screamed as she went down.

"Incredible," Sergeant Hodan Ahmed said, shaking her head. Captain Aden felt the same way. On screen, a gun-toting and hijab-wearing mature female zombie that looked like everyone's Hooyo ( mother ) snuck up on a trio of humans and killed them. Captain Aden noticed that while the zombies killed the humans, they made sure not to destroy the brain. The creatures were far more intelligent than expected. After the carnage ended, the zombies gathered around one who seemed to be their leader.

The zombie leader was male, and wore the remnants of a Somali National Army uniform. He carried himself with calm and confidence. As his victorious Undead troops shouted in exultation, he stood calmly at the center of their horde. Raising his fist in the air, the zombie leader addressed his troops in a guttural but still audible and all-too-human sounding voice. The drone locked onto the leader's face, and that's when Captain Aden's heart skipped a beat.

"Private Malik Osman," Captain Aden said, shaking his head. He suddenly remembered the young man he'd trained with in the early days of the zombie apocalypse. Along with Mariam Ali and Captain Mohamed Yusuf, Private Malik Osman had been among the first Somali soldiers trained to fight zombies. In fact, Captain Aden's wife, then-General Fatima Said, had sent Private Malik Osman and many others on a mission to pacify the environs of Mogadishu during the zombie outbreak.

"Yes, Captain, this thing was once one of us, and now it is leading an army of intelligent zombies," General Suleiman said firmly. A dreadful silence fell over the meeting room. The senior officers, from colonels to Captains, from lieutenants to sergeants down to corporals and others, were stunned by what they had just seen. The enemy had evolved. The tactics used by the Somali military and civilians against the zombies were outdated, to say the very least. On screen, the drone captured the zombie leader's speech.

"You have done well, you've controlled your hunger to add to our troops, and now, we are finally ready to storm the big cities of Somalia, we will conquer this land," said the thing that had once been Private Malik Osman. An unpleasant chill ran down Captain Aden's spine. Malik Osman had once been a friend and colleague. A brave young man from the Somali countryside who answered the call to defend Somalia against the zombies. A young hero has become a monster. A friend has become the ultimate enemy...

"We must prepare for this army of intelligent zombies, otherwise we will fall like Puntland and Hargeisa, I will warn the city's civilian leaders," General Suleiman said dourly. After saying his peace, the General dismissed the senior officers. One by one they filed out of the meeting room. Captain Aden sighed and looked at his colleagues. Sergeant Hodan Ahmed looked worried. Lieutenant Cisman Shariff seemed quite sullen. Even the General's favorite ass kisser, Colonel Ismail Farrah, seemed quite uncomfortable. The situation was dire and was about to get much, much worse...

"Sir, I know Private Malik Osman, I mean, I knew him, and I can beat him," Captain Aden said as he approached the General. General Suleiman looked at the Captain and smiled. Amir Aden, the pretty boy soldier, had risen to the rank of Captain mainly because the Somali military felt obligated to comply with his wife, former General Fatima Said, secret request on his behalf. In other words, this fool got his job because of his wife's influence. General Suleiman respected former General Fatima Said. She was a good soldier in her day. She had lousy taste in men, though.

"Thank you, Captain, I shall take that under advisement," General Suleiman said sharply. Captain Aden started to say something else but the General held his hand up. Finally, the pretty boy got the hint and walked away. The General had better things to do than to listen to this waste of a man. The Somali troops guarding the Rampart needed to be told that an army of smart, well-armed zombies were on the way. Zombies that talked, used weapons and could drive and operate machinery. The worst nightmare of any surviving human in this zombie apocalypse...

Captain Amir Aden watched the General go. For years now, they had known that there were a few smart zombies among the shambling hordes. The smart zombies seemed to have vanished, and the people of Somalia stopped worrying about them. As it turns out, the smart zombies had a leader. One who was clever enough to go underground while building an army. Private Malik Osman had been one hell of a soldier and it seems that becoming a zombie has done nothing to diminish his tactical abilities. Mogadishu and the rest of Somalia were in mortal danger since Malik and his smart zombie army were on the way...

Rushing home, Aden went to see his wife Fatima. The tall, dark-skinned female ex-soldier was doing laundry when she saw her husband storm into the house like a bat out of hell. Aden walked up to Fatima and gently put his hands on her shoulders. Fatima looked into Aden's face and saw nothing but worry and a hint of dread. Whatever news Aden was about to deliver, Fatima knew they couldn't be good. Taking a deep breath, Fatima braced herself for the worst.

"What's going on, Habibi?" Fatima asked, and Aden nodded, then told her. The Captain gave his wife the rundown of his meeting with General Suleiman and the senior officers of the Somali National Army. Fatima listened attentively. A lifetime of soldiering made her a solid, smart and capable woman. Not one easily surprised or given to panic. Still, when Aden uttered the name of Private Malik Osman, Fatima gasped in shock. She hadn't heard that name in many years.

"Private Malik Osman is now a zombie and he is leading an army of smart, well-armed zombies to Mogadishu," Aden said firmly. Fatima looked at Aden, and fell silent. She thought of the life she'd built in Mogadishu with her husband Aden and their daughter Bismilla. After retiring from the position of Supreme Commander of the Somali National Army, Fatima found peace and joy in being a devoted wife and mother. It had been many years since any zombies came anywhere near the gates of Mogadishu. The threat of the Undead had receded into the background. By design, it would seem.

"Aden, my love, listen to me very carefully, we must take our daughter Bismilla and leave Mogadishu," Fatima said firmly. Aden looked at his wife and actually gasped in shock. Fatima held her husband's gaze. As leader of the Somali National Army, Fatima knew how to play the political game, and she was also one hell of a strategist. She knew which battles could be won or lost. Well-armed humans could defeat any number of the dull, slow-moving normal zombies. Zombies that could think, talk and use guns, well, they were something else altogether. There was no beating them.

"I understand," Aden said after a long pause. Fatima smiled sadly and tears welled up in her eyes. Aden pulled his wife into his arms and hugged her. The moment passed, and they began to plot for their survival. First, they picked up their daughter Bismilla. The family gathered food, water, and weapons, and then quietly left their dwelling. On Somalia's still-running national television, General Suleiman and the top brass warned the people about the threat of a well-armed, intelligent zombie army.

When night fell, Fatima Said, her husband Captain Amir Aden and their daughter Bismilla left the City of Mogadishu in a secret underground passageway. Built by the Italian invaders nearly a century ago, the underground tunnels led to a fortified steel bunker. As Fatima led the way, Aden and Bismilla were astonished by her extensive knowledge of the underground tunnels. Fatima smiled at her husband and daughter, and then explained herself.

"Rank has its privileges, I've been working on an evacuation plan for years," Fatima said with a confident smile. Aden nodded and then he and Bismilla followed Fatima. The Somali matriarch led her husband and daughter to the fortified bunker. It was the size of an apartment and contained its own water source, canned goods, air supply, along with beds, tables, chairs, books and more. Just about everything a family on the run would need while waiting out a siege of the Undead.

"You've done well," Aden said, and he kissed Fatima and hugged her. Bismilla looked at her parents. There was much she didn't understand. The family sealed the bunker and waited. What else could they do? Fatima Said and Captain Amir Aden, former members of the Somali National Army, could be hanged as traitors for what they've done. In the end, survival matters more than principles such as goodness, honor, decency and loyalty. While there is life, there is hope. Fatima and Aden did what was best for their daughter Bismilla and their family. That was all.

In the world above, events were moving faster than anticipated. The City of Mogadishu, well-informed about the zombie onslaught, prepared itself. They had cannons and tanks at the ready. Well-fueled airplanes were on standby, along with a dozen well-armed military helicopters. Those would come in handy when it comes to repelling the zombie onslaught. The defense of Mogadishu was paramount. If the Capital of Somalia falls, so does the rest of the country. General Suleiman and his people aren't about to let that happen.

Zombie messiah Malik Osman showed up at the Rampart with an army of over a million zombies. The City of Mogadishu loomed formidable behind her high walls but he was confident that he could take it. He could smell millions of terrified, armed humans hiding behind the wall. Malik Osman has brought his A-Game, as they used to say. Smart zombies with guns, spears, baseball bats, trucks and more. This was the culmination of over a decade of work. General Suleiman, the remaining Somali National Army and tons of armed civilian men and women readied their weapons and engaged the zombies. Blood, both living and Undead, was spilled. One way or another, this is the end...