Out of His Element (African Imagi-nations Backstory)

This is the last bit of background before continuing the Uwanda-Mugabia War on the tabletop.

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The message regarding the Soviet demand for a meeting was met with chaos by the acting leadership of the ULF.  The senior leadership were abroad, couldn't readily be reached, and could not possibly be back in time to meet the Soviet demand of meeting within 24 hours of notice.

The acting leader was a man named Kijana, a greatly respected fighter, but with no real political or administrative skills.  Though the war had come as a result of the ULF's main purpose, the group had been relatively quiet since the broader war had started.  With the lack of activity, it seemed safe to leave Kijana in charge for a few days, as it was believed that little could happen in the time that the leaders would be gone.

Kijana was known for being resourceful and fast thinking, but that was when the goal was to kill his enemy, not talk with them.  And enemy is how he saw the Soviets.  A foreign nation intervening in someone else's business, with the power, but not the interest to set things right.  They were little better than the American's, except that they made the AKM rifle, a far better a weapon in battle than the M16.

Kijana accepted the terms of the meeting, without consultation, naming the location of the meeting and time that the ULF "delegation" could meet.  Then he began issuing orders to prepare a spartan building with table and chairs, set well within a safe ULF encampment.  If something went wrong, he wanted to make sure that the ULF could respond appropriately.

The next day, the he awaited the arrival of the Soviet and Mugabian government representatives.  The visiting delegation arrived in a convoy that included both Soviet military escort, and a unit of Mugabian Presidential Guard troops.  The Convey was lead to the meeting place, with the Soviet and Mugabian representatives riding in separate armored SUVs.

Soviet paratroops took up positions around the meeting site, as did the Presidential Guard.  Soviet helicopter gunships could be heard in the distance.  Kijana thought it interesting that this was how his allies greeted him, then considered that given his preparations, maybe his allies were smarter than he gave them credit for.  

The Soviet and Mugabian representatives were directed to the front room of the small building.  They consisted of the a Soviet Colonel, his two aids, a Mugabian government representative, who Kijana didn't recognize, and his aid.  Kijana made them wait for a moment, before entering the room.

Kijana entered, greeted the men, pleasantries were exchanged, and the men were seated at the table.  The Mugabian began a flowery introduction to the proceeding, but was cut off by the Colonel, who abruptly began to outline the Soviet "proposal".  It essentially dictated a return to pre-war conditions, including the return of Pettu land in Uwanda.

Kijana was beyond shocked by this.  The Soviet "plan" undid all of the previous efforts by the ULF, wasted the lives of the dead, and insulted the Pettu people to an extreme.  He attempted to walk back the terms, but the Colonel explained that there was ... "no room for negotiation".  The ULF was involved in something far bigger than just their own interests, and simply, "This was the way it had to be."

Kijana was outraged.  How dare the Soviets come in here and try to dictate terms of a situation that didn't even involve them?  Clearly, the colonel's tone was that of an enemy, not an ally.  This was a waste of time.   Kijana wanted to reach across the table and destroy the colonel, but somehow maintained his composure, stood up, and without a word, walked out of the room.  The Mugabian stood up, with intent to try to stop Kijana, but two ULF guards stepped into his path.

Kijana went into the back room and stood silently for a moment.  The colonel looked at the Mugabian, unruffled as always, gave an instruction to his aids, and exited the room.  The Mugabian chased after them apologetically, hoping to restart the meeting, but to no avail.  The convoy mounted up, and began to leave the meeting site.

Kijana waited until he heard the vehicles starting to leave, went over to the man with a radio, grabbed the handset out of his hand and screamed, "Attack!  Attack!  Kill them alllll!!!"