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From above, or perhaps from a overhead drone's perspective. The village Oko-Agbon area, in the infamous Makoko floating slum, doesn't look quite so bad.
Small wooden shacks on stilts rest floating on top of stained, dark waters.
Residents excitingly communicate to each other from canoes, and shacks calling out to neighbors and friends. It is a loud community. Some tourist have even fancifully described it as the Venice of Africa.
However, if you look closer, it is an entirely different scenario.
The water is full of all kinds of household rubbish, including needles and human waste. There is also a suffocating smell of rotten fish which is always hanging in the air.
A local villager, named Akin lives in Lagos, Nigeria with his wife and sons. Thousands of people live and exist here in close quarters and there is little to no privacy.
Fisherman Akin moved here several years ago, after being evicted from Yaba, another waterfront community about 3.0 km (16 minutes) away by road.
He has been living with his loving wife Chiasoka and his sons, in a small hut that is used for drying fish. The shed belongs to a local company and he works there to pay his rent. He has lived there for five years now and has not been able to find any place else to live.
Since they were all evicted, it hasn't been easy for the families to live or even exist.
Akin: "Wife, you know that I used to be a special opps soldier, but that was years ago. We now have four children of school age, but I can't afford their fees and we can't afford to feed them, so I've had to sell three of them to a local family."
So I'm hoping to earn enough money by pirating to buy them back. "Only one of my sons lives here with us now."
Chiasoka, our village was only destroyed to make way for a new Chinese luxury resort development: We and other residents of Yaba, Nigeria were violently evicted in 2018 after a greedy neighboring community, who wanted their land, sent the police to kick everybody out.107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdpp80vRGeq
Chiasoka: "Yes, my love, times have been very hard for us since then. But, I'm not to sure about resorting to piracy for a living. It doesn't feel right to me."
Akin: I know, my dear, but what choice do we have? We can't go back to our land, and we can't find any decent work here. The only way to survive is to take what we can from the rich and powerful who don't care about us.
Chiasoka: But what if you get caught? What if they kill you? What will happen to me and our sons then?
Akin: Don't worry, I won't let that happen. Honey, I have another plan. I have been working on a secret project for months now. A device that can hack into any drone, satellite, or computer system. With this, I can easily access any kind of information, steal money, and sabotage any operation.
I call it the, "Eye of the Storm."
Chiasoka: The Eye of the Storm? What does that mean?
Akin: It means that I can create major panic and pandemonium107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt8DWr7xVuj
in the sky, while I remain hidden and safe in the water. It means that I can strike at the heart of our enemies, while they are not aware of my location.
Then I can be the master of my own destiny, and the savior of our people.
Chiasoka: That sounds very dangerous, Akin. And very ambitious. Are you sure you can do it?
Akin: Trust me, Chiasoka. I have tested it many times, and it works perfectly. All I need is one more thing.
A target!
Chiasoka: A target? What do you mean?
Akin: I mean a big score. A juicy one, worthy of our many losses. Something that will make them pay for what they did to us, that will make them remember our name.
Chiasoka: And what is that?
Akin: The Chinese luxury development! The one that took our land, our home, our life! They are guarded by drones, satellites, and security systems, and are full of money, power, and all sorts of corruption.
Chiasoka: You want to attack that? Are you crazy? That's suicide!
Akin: No, it's justice. And it's possible. With the Eye of the Storm, I can hack into their systems, disable their defenses, and loot their vaults. This will cause a massive blackout, a firestorm, and a panic. Making them suffer as we did.
Chiasoka: But what if you fail? What if they catch you? What if they trace you back to here?
Akin: They won't. I have thought of everything. I have prepared for absolutely everything. I have a good backup plan, a getaway plan, and a contingency plan. Nothing can go wrong.107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS23i3mMicn
Chiasoka: Akin, please, think about this. Think about our sons. Think about our future.
Akin: I am thinking about them, Chiasoka. That's why I'm doing this. For them and for us. He kissed her gently on the forehead and hugged her tightly.
Akin: Don't worry, my love. Everything will be fine. You'll see. He then grabbed his backpack and headed silently out the door.
Akin: I'll be back soon. He looked at her one last time and smiled. "I love you!" He opened the door and stepped out into the water and climbed into his canoe and quickly paddled away. Activating his device, he proceeded to scan the sky. Seeing his target, a sly grin spread across his face.
(Whispering to himself)
Akin: Let the storm begin...
[As Akin approached the Chinese luxury development, he saw a swarm of drones patrolling the sky. He activated his device and sent a signal to hack into their vast network. He waited for a few seconds and then smiled as the drones start to malfunction.]
[Some of them crashed into each other, or flew away in random directions, and some dropped to the ground shattering into little pieces]107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDrwwDyvgb8
[He paddled faster and reached the shore. Then climbed out of the canoe and hid it under some thick bushes. He put on a mask and a hood to conceal his identity.
He took out a gun and a knife from his backpack and checked his device. Breaching the security system of the development, Before him was the layout of the buildings, the locations of guards, and access codes to the doors.]
[He chose his target: a tall skyscraper that housed the offices of the Chinese company that owned the development. He knew that there would be a lot of money, documents, and secrets in there. But, also knew that there would be a lot of resistance.]
[He ran towards the building, dodging the guards and the cameras. Then activated his device to open the doors and disable the alarms. Reaching the elevator and entering one of the access codes. He pressed the button for the top floor.]
[The elevator started to move up, but then it stopped abruptly. He heard a voice over the intercom]
"Attention, intruder. We know who you are and what you are doing. You have been detected and identified. Hello, Akin Oluwafemi, former resident of Yaba, Nigeria. You are wanted for theft, and terrorism. And have no chance of escaping.
Surrender now or face some dire consequences."
Akin was shocked. How did they know his name? How did they find out his identity? How did they trace him back to Yaba?
He looked at his device and saw that it had been hacked by someone else. Some clever person who had compromise and overridden the signal while accessing his secretive information.
Obviously, he had been betrayed and he cursed under his breath trying to restart his device.
But it was too late.
The elevator doors opened and he saw a dozen armed guards pointing their guns at him.
He dropped his device and raised his hands. It was over, who had sold him out? He wondered what would happen to his wife and son. If he would ever see them again.
Akin closed his eyes and waited for the end.
"Wait!"
He had a flash grenade inside his backpack. Pulling the pin he threw himself to the floor. The grenade caused blind confusion and several injuries among the guards, and this gave him the time he desperately needed to make good107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFf3ZnO1oYY
107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqpeDqK6a41
his escape.
..............107Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXnCu9qzoK
