The New Beginning

The city of Lagos had changed, but not in the ways Ada Sobowale had once dreamed of. Where the streets had echoed with the sounds of war, now they buzzed with the hum of hammers, saws, and the murmur of conversations as citizens organized themselves into work groups. Vendors set up makeshift stalls, children ran barefoot through dusty streets, and once-oppressed civilians—now rebels—pitched in to rebuild what the Eternal Council had torn apart.

Ada stood at the edge of one such gathering, watching as volunteers unloaded crates of food and medicine from the back of an old truck. She should have felt triumphant, but a gnawing sense of unease kept creeping in. Victory had not brought peace—it had only brought more responsibility.