❗Hold up… this is Chapter 10.
Unless you’re the kind of thrill-seeker who reads the last page of a mystery first (you monster), you might want to backtrack.
👉 [Click here to start at Chapter 1] — where the real madness begins.
Otherwise, carry on… but don’t say I didn’t warn you when things stop making sense and someone you’ve never met suddenly dies.
Written by Thomas Mai
© Copyright held by Thomas Mai
Chapter 10 – Al-Shabaab And His Merry Men
Yusuf was unsure of his exact age – he could have been 5 or 6 when the men came to his village and slaughtered everyone except for him. It was a massacre that he did not understand; why were the other villagers killed while he was spared? As the flames consumed the village, Al-Shabaab took Yusuf with them. He never had a chance to say goodbye to his parents or his siblings, but he saw their lifeless bodies lying on the ground.
Years went by, and in order to survive, Yusuf had to integrate with them. However, it always felt like he was wearing a disguise that didn’t quite fit him. They initially put Yusuf on kitchen duty, and after enduring numerous beatings, he mastered the art of preparing meals that appeased everyone. As time passed, he took on the role of delivering messages between various government agencies. The roads still required maintenance, the religious police were still needed to handle public disruptions, and there were still public executions to be carried out.
Yusuf had lost track of the number of public executions he had seen. People were killed for a variety of reasons, including attempting to leave the area controlled by Al-Shabaab, listening to music, showing public displays of affection, and not adhering to the strict Sunni Islamist Militant doctrine and allegiance to al-Qaeda.
As soon as the men in charge discovered Yusuf’s ability to speak English, he was given a position in the intelligence department. This division was tasked with gathering intel on Al-Shabaab’s adversaries, which included all Western nations. This required a variety of jobs, such as monitoring shortwave radio and scouring the internet for information.
Yusuf had come up with the idea of getting a Starlink satellite dish, enabling them to have internet access wherever they went. Without it, their intelligence gathering was sporadic and limited. It became Yusuf’s primary task to ensure that they were always connected online, no matter where the leader of Al-Shabaab traveled to. Yusuf felt a sense of importance and admiration among the campers, as he was the only one who knew how to operate the dish.
Yusuf would sneakily watch Mr. Beast videos on YouTube when he had a moment alone. To be caught meant certain death, so he kept his fascination with the American world and its abundance of cars, boats, challenges, and wealth to himself. He couldn’t comprehend why someone like Mr. Beast would be considered an enemy to his people.
Each day, Yusuf would provide a comprehensive report on any public information about western troops in the region, updates on the movements of foreign leaders, and detailed satellite imagery and maps before attacks were carried out on schools, churches, or government buildings. This also meant daily meetings with Ahmad Ali, known as the most feared man in Africa.
Yusuf would over time learn all about the exploits of Ahmad Ali and Al-Shabaab. Ahmed was the unquestioned commander of Al-Shabaab, who had masterminded the assault on the Westgate Shopping Mall in Nairobi, Kenya in September 2013.
Through talks with fellow mujahideens he learned that Ahmad Ali had targeted the mall because Kenya had joined forces with other countries to launch military attacks against Al-Shabaab in Somalia. However, Ahmad also saw the mall as a symbol of western materialism, secularism, and moral degradation – all qualities that he believed were synonymous with the oppressive regime of The United States.
On the 21st of September, 2013, Ahmad Ali participated with six other mujahideens to attack the mall at noon. Their mission was simple: kill as many infidels as possible, cause maximum destruction to the mall, and prolong the attack for as long as possible. The six men were aware that they would not survive this mission, but they saw it as a holy war – Jihad – with the promise of martyrdom – Shuhada – and eternal reward: 72 virgins in the afterlife.
Amidst screams and chaos, the gunmen launched grenades and opened fire, killing or injuring numerous people in the mall. Survivors scrambled to hide in different areas of the building to evade the attackers. The assailants took hostages and barricaded themselves in certain sections of the mall. In a swift response, Kenyan police and military forces arrived on the scene, cordoning off the area and immediately working to secure the mall and free any hostages.
The second day of the attack, September 22nd 2013, saw the Standoff continue with intermittent gunfire and explosions as security forces tried to make progress against the attackers. A number of injured individuals were rescued from the mall and taken for medical treatment, while hostages continued to escape in ongoing rescue operations.
As the attack entered its third day on September 23, 2013, intense gunfire and explosions echoed through the air. Despite their best efforts, security forces were still struggling to end the siege. While some progress was made in taking control of the mall, the attackers continued to put up significant resistance.
Ahmad Ali didn’t just survive the chaos of Westgate Mall — he thrived in it.
On September 24, 2013, after four long days of gunfire, explosions, and global headlines, the Kenyan government finally declared the siege over. Sixty-seven people lay dead — shoppers, children, and the security forces who tried to protect them. More than 175 were wounded, and the country reeled from the sheer brutality of it. Officially, all attackers were said to be killed.
Unofficially? Ahmad Ali disappeared into the smoke.
He had slipped out while the world watched live coverage of a crisis no one could understand. A mere handful of men had brought a nation to its knees. For Al-Shabaab, it was a tactical masterpiece. For Ahmad Ali, it was a crowning moment. Inside the ranks, no one questioned it now — he was the undisputed leader, forged in blood and flame.
But Westgate was only the beginning.
Two years later, on April 2, 2015, he orchestrated the Garissa University massacre. The siege lasted fifteen hours. By the end, 148 students and staff lay dead — most of them executed at close range. That wasn’t war. That was message-sending. And the world received it loud and clear.
Then came October 14, 2017. A truck bomb exploded in the heart of Mogadishu, killing more than 500 people in seconds. No claim of responsibility ever came — but everyone knew who was behind it. It had all the hallmarks of Ahmad Ali’s leadership: maximum carnage, zero mercy, complete denial.
By January 2019, his reach extended far beyond Somalia. In Nairobi, Al-Shabaab gunmen and a suicide bomber stormed the DusitD2 hotel complex, killing 21. Surveillance footage later showed the calm precision with which the team moved — military-grade ruthlessness that bore his fingerprint.
And then October 29, 2022 — twin car bombs at the Ministry of Education in Mogadishu. Over 100 killed. More than 300 injured. The blood ran into the gutters of the capital, staining another chapter in his growing legacy of terror.
Ahmad Ali didn’t need medals or parades. His power was built on fear, ideology, and a body count that kept rising.
He dressed like the thousands he commanded — in a loose, earth-toned macawis, a knee-length kamis, and a turban-style headscarf wrapped tightly above weathered eyes. But the real uniform was the AK-47 always within reach. That, and the unwavering belief that jihad would outlast borders, governments, and time itself.
Under the leadership of Ahmad Ali, Al-Shabaab wielded control over the daily affairs of around 3 million inhabitants spread across a vast area of 15,000 square miles in the rural regions of central and southern Somalia. Ahmad Ali enforced an uncompromising application of Sharia law within these territories, holding absolute authority as the ultimate arbiter of all matters concerning the local population.
In 2012, prior to Ahmed Ali’s rise to leadership, Al-Shabaab held a larger territory with almost 5 million people that encompassed almost all of southern Somalia, along with significant portions of central Somalia and the capital city, Mogadishu. The ultimate objective was to have complete authority over Somalia, followed by Africa, and eventually the entire globe. Every action must align with the will of Allah.
As the military offensives led by Somali and African Union forces intensified, the hold of the terrorist organization in these regions began to weaken. Their previous leader was killed in the attacks. The “Shura Council,” a council within the organization, selected Ahmad Ali as their new leader due to his strong leadership skills and strategic mindset. However, they were mainly drawn to his unwavering commitment to their ideology and strict enforcement of Sharia law.
Ahmad Ali’s family had been farmers, cultivating maize for generations. But their peaceful way of life was shattered when civil war erupted in Somalia during the 1990s. The removal of dictator Major General Mohamed Siad Barre by rebel forces led to the collapse of all forms of government and widespread famine. Armed men showed up at their farm, demanding all of their maize from the harvest. When Ahmad’s father refused, they brutally killed him without a second thought.
Ahmad’s mother had no choice but to escape with her youngest child, Ahmad, leaving behind his sisters to face whatever fate the men chose for them. This experience left Ahmad questioning why Allah would allow such horrors to occur, and he made it his life’s purpose to enforce strict adherence to Allah’s will through Sharia Law.
Ahmad was feared by men because of his unwavering devotion to upholding the holiest of scriptures, the Quran and Hadith. His strict and brutal indoctrination instilled fear in his followers, but he took pride in being chosen by Allah to fight against injustice, corruption, and moral decay.
Ahmad may have been small in stature, but his piercing gaze held a power that made people uneasy. He was not intimidating or frightening, but the intensity of his silent stare seemed to judge those around him. His quietness was a weapon, making others nervous and causing them to stumble over their words as they tried to explain or justify their actions.
Ahmad’s prayers were a sacred and uninterrupted time for him to connect with Allah. This was well known among his troops, and after a few public floggings, no one dared to interrupt him again. It was his moment of solitude and privacy, and he cherished it deeply.
Ahmad was taken aback when Yusuf suddenly burst into the room, disrupting his peaceful moment of connection with Allah. Ignoring the disapproving glare from Ahmad, Yusuf gasped out, “Air Force One has crash landed in northern Somalia. The President of the United States is on the run, being pursued by Warlord Farid Al-Masri.” Yusuf struggled to catch his breath as he spoke.
Ahmad rarely smiled, and when he did, it was a rare and unsettling sight. It went against his usual stoic demeanor. But in that moment, he broke protocol and displayed pure joy as he praised Allah and lifted Yusuf up in a joyful embrace, just like a father celebrating his son’s winning goal.
“Praise be to Allah, our prayers have been answered. The infidel leader and evil crusader will finally face justice in Somalia for his heinous crimes against Muslims, Somalia, Africa, and Allah. Yusuf, assemble 5,000 of our men and let us begin the journey north immediately. It should take us 2 days to reach our destination. We have an opportunity to achieve two goals with one action: eliminate the sinful warlord in the north and capture Satan himself.”
🛑 That’s it… for now.
I know.
Cruel.
Unforgivable.
Borderline illegal.
But Chapter 11 isn’t ready yet — because I’m currently juggling:
✅ Writing this book
✅ Building Suspense Club
✅ Working a full-time job
✅ Being a dad/husband/family/human
✅ (And occasionally sleeping)
But I promise I’m working on it — the entire outline for the book has been written (35 chapters and chapter 11 is being edited/redrafted. (lets just say that President Harrington gets a moment of rest or may find an ally)
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