The Matalebe's Reaction

The scorching afternoon sun hung high over Kandara as Matalebe fighters moved about their makeshift camps, tending to their weapons, resupplying, and counting the spoils of their recent victories. Scattered among the city streets were small groups of fighters, some gathered around fires, roasting stolen livestock, while others cleaned their rifles and checked their ammunition.

In one corner of the camp, a group of men was hauling crates of supplies into a central warehouse—a storage building they had commandeered from the Zambesian government weeks prior. They worked with a sense of routine, their confidence boosted by their recent string of successes against the weakened Zambesi military.