Power abhors a vacuum. And despite the wars they lost and the crises they ignited, the West had not yet learned how to surrender.
Nigeria's rise wasn't just unexpected — it was unacceptable.
For decades, Africa was their playground — a continent of puppet regimes, NGO diplomacy, and quiet extraction. But under Michael Ogunlade, Nigeria had not only risen — it had dominated. It no longer sought Western validation. It demanded obedience — and, in many cases, reparations.
The Nigerian Empire's ascendancy had overturned the global balance of power.
Washington fumed.
London whispered of war.
Paris was humiliated.
Brussels splintered.
Berlin? Terrified but silent.
They had underestimated the pharmacist-turned-intelligence czar.
Now, they wanted him eliminated.
Langley, Virginia – CIA Headquarters
The strategy was not brute force. It was subversion.
Assassination would make Michael a martyr. The better strategy was to rot him from within.
The CIA formed an off-the-books task force called "Project Ibadan."
Its objectives:
Recruit disillusioned Nigerian generals
Fund exiled politicians and so-called "activists" abroad
Collaborate with discontent elements inside Israeli intelligence
Re-ignite extremist groups in the Sahel, Niger Delta, and the borders
And most importantly: manufacture scandal
They wouldn't shoot Michael.
They would shatter him.
London – BBC World
A so-called investigation titled "The Empire Beneath Abuja" aired — complete with doctored satellite images, hired actors pretending to be political prisoners, and forged documents.
In France, Le Monde published stories accusing Nigerian special forces of war crimes in the Congo — all sourced from unnamed "whistleblowers."
In seconds, a social media storm followed.
Michael Ogunlade was called a tyrant, a warlord, a genocidaire. Hashtags trended. Nigerian embassies were protested.
But Michael's media division, crafted with Chinese and Russian expertise, had anticipated this.
Within hours, counter-campaigns flooded the web — showing real war crimes committed by NATO in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan.
They painted the West as hypocrites, colonizers in new clothes. The internet turned — and much of the Global South cheered for Nigeria.
Tel Aviv – Shadows and Secrets
In Israel, Mossad was divided.
Some respected Michael — they had worked with him. But a powerful faction wanted him dead.
They linked up with rogue CIA elements and European intelligence assets. Their goal: fabricate a leak suggesting Michael had sold Israeli secrets to Iran and Russia.
But Michael's hands were deeper in Mossad than they realized.
By the time they executed their plan, Michael had already flipped several key operatives.
The "leak" went live.
But it revealed not Michael's betrayal — it exposed a CIA-Mossad plan to destabilize the entire West African coast using engineered pandemics.
The scandal was nuclear.
Western officials scrambled. Denials poured in. But the Global South had seen enough. The streets of Nairobi, Luanda, Kinshasa, and Algiers erupted in pro-Nigerian rallies.
Abuja – The War Room
Michael watched the collapse of their operation with clinical calm.
> "They think information is power," he said to his inner circle.
"Let's show them what real power looks like."
Operation Black Spire launched.
Nigerian intelligence cells activated in London, Washington, Paris, and Tel Aviv
Disinformation campaigns turned Western media against their own politicians
Dark web dossiers were leaked — incriminating European ministers and American senators in child abuse, offshore corruption, and sexual perversion
Proxies across West Africa launched surgical strikes on rebel camps funded by Western powers
Western intelligence safe houses were raided; weapons caches burned publicly with flags of origin shown
But the West Wasn't Finished
In underground meetings in Brussels, London, and D.C., the last true believers in Western dominance began planning:
Covert assassinations of Nigerian diplomats
Sabotage of Nigerian oil tankers in the Gulf of Guinea
A quiet alliance with discontent elites in Ghana, South Africa, Egypt, and Morocco
And whispers… of a blockade
But even that was hard.
Because Michael had built not just an empire — but a new model of global intelligence warfare. One that didn't rely on borders or armies — just ruthless loyalty, absolute information control, and fear.
One MI6 officer muttered to his handler after seeing the latest Nigerian counter-op succeed:
> "We tried to play chess with a man who plays god with the board."
And in Abuja, Michael simply lit a cigarette and looked out at the skyline he owned.
The West had started this game.
Now, it was his move.