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It's 3pm in the afternoon on January 4, 1897 in Benin, a kingdom in what is now Nigeria.

Captain Alan Warrigan trudges along a narrow path through a forest

following the footsteps of the men in front of him.

Warrigan is the commander of troops in the Niger Coast Protectorate,

a British controlled state in neighboring Benin.

But today, he is part of a delegation of 250 men,

all but nine of whom are African servants and porters, hoping to strike a deal with the Oba,

the ruler of Benin.

But the sound of a single gunshot halts the delegation's process,

confused, Captain Warrigan turns around and looks at the line of people snaking behind him.

As he tried to figure out which of them fired,

a fuse a lot of more shots brings out.

Several men in a column fall, smoke rises from the side of the path,

and Warrigan spots Benin warriors from the Oba's army,

crouching in the undergoat, ready to ambush.

As bullets rain down on the delegation,

Captain Warrigan sees some of his companions bolt into the forest,

trying to escape the attack.

Without a weapon of his own for protection,

...