Code Of Silence
Location: Misery-Upon-Dream, Seven Corners District
A slummy warehouse down a one-way street
Anakin Stormrunner
Hoslin Koddar
Samnai Rouber
Darkwire Operatives have been dispatched to rendezvous with members of the local population who’ve grown increasingly agitated by CorpSec Brutality. Their mission is to provide training in street tactics & defensive manuevers in order to resist further violence by CorpSec. Daylight is fading, but the city never sleeps.
A slummy warehouse down a one-way street
Anakin Stormrunner
Hoslin Koddar
Samnai Rouber
Darkwire Operatives have been dispatched to rendezvous with members of the local population who’ve grown increasingly agitated by CorpSec Brutality. Their mission is to provide training in street tactics & defensive manuevers in order to resist further violence by CorpSec. Daylight is fading, but the city never sleeps.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The crowd was smaller than she’d hoped. The ones that had decided to show up were, she reminded herself, at least dedicated.
A small crowd had gathered in the center of the old building Darkwire Operations had provided. The building was nondescript, nigh forgotten - surrounded by remnants of the slums which had once permeated the entirety of the district. A number of alleyways, some only wide enough for a single sentient to walk through, connected the building to the rest of the district; others were so congested by refuse that to tread on foot would be neither safe or quiet. Only a single road allowed vehicle traffic and provided enough space for a few vehicles to park. Buildings overhead provided some cover from the air, and ample cover from the daylight; since mid-afternoon, the warehouse had been in shadow.
Ivory, as was her custom, was the first to arrive. She’d taken her time, grabbing a bite to eat at a noodle shop nearby, sipping a soft drink and blending in with her surroundings. She’d taken mental note of each and every passing vehicle & pedestrian, trusting in her ability to discern friend from foe - if she’d spied anything marking the location as “Hot” by CorpSec standards, she would have simply walked away and called the entire mission off…
But she hadn’t. So here they were.
All 28 of them.
She had taken a moment to remind herself that she’d done more with less before.
Most of them were human, though not all. She’d counted one Ugnaught, a female Togruta, and a Duros male who appeared to be the leader of the group. His name was Tiggrin Tolvarial; a name she recognized from her brief time on the streets of Denon. He was a power-player for the local community and a Water Quality activist who’d gone toe-to-toe with the Corpos in the past. The Duros was the first to meet her inside the building, and had given her the nod on everyone arriving after.
Most of the humans were male, but a few women had also arrived. Some might have been mothers, but most looked like children born of the streets. Most were middle-aged, but one of the human males was young… close to Anakin’s age, but she knew her fellow Shadowrunner was older than he appeared. She’d have to keep an eye on that one. A street fight was no place for youthful naivete.
She began by explaining to the group the power of Non-Violence (A strange concept coming from her, to be sure), and that their goals of resistance could be attained better through the use of hunger strikes or the occupation of important areas such as malls or transit hubs. Corpos, she explained, would be less likely to engage in violence if the general public supported the protests; “Make specific demands,” she explained, “Bargain for what you want.”
If a protest descended into violence, CorpSec would respond in kind. “You want the Media to champion your cause, not demonize it. Let CorpSec become violent first… and even if they do, be persistant. Defend yourselves, if necessary, but do not take lives. Or they will take yours.”
To this, she’d made a point to look every Sentient in the eye. There were murmurs and shuffling of appendages, but no argument. She went on to explain the value of allies in the Public Eye - individuals, even some in power, who’s aid could be obtained by following the philosophy of non-violence to the letter. “Even Corpos,” she’d reminded them, “Can be reasoned with sometimes.”
When she was certain her point had been made, she began talking about how, in certain cases, active resistance could be accomplished. And so, it began:
These four words were the centerpoint of her lesson.
Using a small holo-projector placed in the center of the large open space, Ivory had erected a mockup of a city block; complete with buildings, alleyways, roads, dead ends, vehicles, barricades, and the like. She’d even managed to insert a few images of flickering holographic fires - a refuse container or two, an overturned vehicle, and a building bellowing smoke from its lowest-story windows.
“Corpos, like most Para-Military organizations, are generally used to working in smaller groups. The greatest advantage you have is your familiarity with the neighborhoods you live in.” She’d explained. “Air Superiority means little in confined spaces. That’s especially useful if you can find some way to confuse them, or make communication difficult. One useful tactic is wearing similar clothing - a uniform, if you will. Raggedy clothing, the same color hat, or the same color scarf. Hit & Run tactics are key in this kind of environment - your enemy only glimpses you for a moment before you vanish and another takes your place.”
She illustrated this on the holo by inserting pedestrians (colored in grey), friendlies (in green), and CorpSec (In Red). Friendlies would inter-mingle with pedestrians, or if pedestrians were few or non-existant, would utilize the labyrinth of back alleys to flank, approach, attack, and disengage.
“The goal is to keep moving!” She said, punctuating the lesson by animating a group of friendlies remaining for too long in one location and being overtaken. “CorpSec, like the CSB on Coruscant, know from experience that they cannot take to the back streets to fight an insurgency. Typically, their goal is to either protect a location or take control of an area. By wearing similar clothing, you rob them of the chance to chase down & capture a single person.”
“What if they just start firing wildly?” One of the men in the group asked, eliciting murmurs in the crowd.
“Well… if you’ve made them angry enough that they start doing that, it means you’re succeeding in your goal.”
“Which is?” Another asked, with a confused look.
Ivory eyed the woman carefully before cracking a smile.
“Your goal should be to break their will to fight. The same thing they try to do to you.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
When she'd finished her portion of the lesson, she gave her companions the floor and approached the Ugnaught - a tiny, bearded creature with a sour face and bushy eyebrows who regarded her with mild suspicion. After a hushed conversation with the Sentient, the two of them retired to a corner of the building where they would remain for some time.
Ivory was accustomed to the Ugnaught's industrious, crafty nature and sought to harness it.
The crowd was smaller than she’d hoped. The ones that had decided to show up were, she reminded herself, at least dedicated.
A small crowd had gathered in the center of the old building Darkwire Operations had provided. The building was nondescript, nigh forgotten - surrounded by remnants of the slums which had once permeated the entirety of the district. A number of alleyways, some only wide enough for a single sentient to walk through, connected the building to the rest of the district; others were so congested by refuse that to tread on foot would be neither safe or quiet. Only a single road allowed vehicle traffic and provided enough space for a few vehicles to park. Buildings overhead provided some cover from the air, and ample cover from the daylight; since mid-afternoon, the warehouse had been in shadow.
Ivory, as was her custom, was the first to arrive. She’d taken her time, grabbing a bite to eat at a noodle shop nearby, sipping a soft drink and blending in with her surroundings. She’d taken mental note of each and every passing vehicle & pedestrian, trusting in her ability to discern friend from foe - if she’d spied anything marking the location as “Hot” by CorpSec standards, she would have simply walked away and called the entire mission off…
But she hadn’t. So here they were.
All 28 of them.
She had taken a moment to remind herself that she’d done more with less before.
Most of them were human, though not all. She’d counted one Ugnaught, a female Togruta, and a Duros male who appeared to be the leader of the group. His name was Tiggrin Tolvarial; a name she recognized from her brief time on the streets of Denon. He was a power-player for the local community and a Water Quality activist who’d gone toe-to-toe with the Corpos in the past. The Duros was the first to meet her inside the building, and had given her the nod on everyone arriving after.
Most of the humans were male, but a few women had also arrived. Some might have been mothers, but most looked like children born of the streets. Most were middle-aged, but one of the human males was young… close to Anakin’s age, but she knew her fellow Shadowrunner was older than he appeared. She’d have to keep an eye on that one. A street fight was no place for youthful naivete.
She began by explaining to the group the power of Non-Violence (A strange concept coming from her, to be sure), and that their goals of resistance could be attained better through the use of hunger strikes or the occupation of important areas such as malls or transit hubs. Corpos, she explained, would be less likely to engage in violence if the general public supported the protests; “Make specific demands,” she explained, “Bargain for what you want.”
If a protest descended into violence, CorpSec would respond in kind. “You want the Media to champion your cause, not demonize it. Let CorpSec become violent first… and even if they do, be persistant. Defend yourselves, if necessary, but do not take lives. Or they will take yours.”
To this, she’d made a point to look every Sentient in the eye. There were murmurs and shuffling of appendages, but no argument. She went on to explain the value of allies in the Public Eye - individuals, even some in power, who’s aid could be obtained by following the philosophy of non-violence to the letter. “Even Corpos,” she’d reminded them, “Can be reasoned with sometimes.”
When she was certain her point had been made, she began talking about how, in certain cases, active resistance could be accomplished. And so, it began:
Delay your enemy by making their movements difficult. Place obstacles in their path. Make them fight for every inch of ground. Use shields and cover - be it home-made or natural - to conceal your movements and prevent them from causing casualties.
Disrupt your enemy’s communications, resources, patrols, and actions. Be where they do not expect. Never be where they expect. Take what you can from them; leave them no resources to use against you and use whatever resources they have against them.
Distract your enemy through organized chaos. Use your environment to your advantage; sewer systems, rooftops, buildings you control. Learn every inch of your neighborhood, then use that advantage to fight from places they can’t imagine. Fires, smoke, loud music or none at all, total darkness; all of these things become your friend when you can navigate your home blind-folded.
Disable your enemy by indirect attacks. Attack their vehicles before personnel. Seek to anger them, but not to the point of murder. Engage them emotionally, but never, ever let them see you bleed.
Disrupt your enemy’s communications, resources, patrols, and actions. Be where they do not expect. Never be where they expect. Take what you can from them; leave them no resources to use against you and use whatever resources they have against them.
Distract your enemy through organized chaos. Use your environment to your advantage; sewer systems, rooftops, buildings you control. Learn every inch of your neighborhood, then use that advantage to fight from places they can’t imagine. Fires, smoke, loud music or none at all, total darkness; all of these things become your friend when you can navigate your home blind-folded.
Disable your enemy by indirect attacks. Attack their vehicles before personnel. Seek to anger them, but not to the point of murder. Engage them emotionally, but never, ever let them see you bleed.
These four words were the centerpoint of her lesson.
Using a small holo-projector placed in the center of the large open space, Ivory had erected a mockup of a city block; complete with buildings, alleyways, roads, dead ends, vehicles, barricades, and the like. She’d even managed to insert a few images of flickering holographic fires - a refuse container or two, an overturned vehicle, and a building bellowing smoke from its lowest-story windows.
“Corpos, like most Para-Military organizations, are generally used to working in smaller groups. The greatest advantage you have is your familiarity with the neighborhoods you live in.” She’d explained. “Air Superiority means little in confined spaces. That’s especially useful if you can find some way to confuse them, or make communication difficult. One useful tactic is wearing similar clothing - a uniform, if you will. Raggedy clothing, the same color hat, or the same color scarf. Hit & Run tactics are key in this kind of environment - your enemy only glimpses you for a moment before you vanish and another takes your place.”
She illustrated this on the holo by inserting pedestrians (colored in grey), friendlies (in green), and CorpSec (In Red). Friendlies would inter-mingle with pedestrians, or if pedestrians were few or non-existant, would utilize the labyrinth of back alleys to flank, approach, attack, and disengage.
“The goal is to keep moving!” She said, punctuating the lesson by animating a group of friendlies remaining for too long in one location and being overtaken. “CorpSec, like the CSB on Coruscant, know from experience that they cannot take to the back streets to fight an insurgency. Typically, their goal is to either protect a location or take control of an area. By wearing similar clothing, you rob them of the chance to chase down & capture a single person.”
“What if they just start firing wildly?” One of the men in the group asked, eliciting murmurs in the crowd.
“Well… if you’ve made them angry enough that they start doing that, it means you’re succeeding in your goal.”
“Which is?” Another asked, with a confused look.
Ivory eyed the woman carefully before cracking a smile.
“Your goal should be to break their will to fight. The same thing they try to do to you.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
When she'd finished her portion of the lesson, she gave her companions the floor and approached the Ugnaught - a tiny, bearded creature with a sour face and bushy eyebrows who regarded her with mild suspicion. After a hushed conversation with the Sentient, the two of them retired to a corner of the building where they would remain for some time.
Ivory was accustomed to the Ugnaught's industrious, crafty nature and sought to harness it.
Last edited:
