Sic transit gloria mundi
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Expand on Firemane.
Image Credit: Here. One must imagine them in red outfits. Here.
Canon: N/A.
Permissions: ARGH gear available to Firemane per this thread.
Links: Order of Fire, Celestial Vahana, MACU-ID, Eldorai, Dahomey, Kaeshana, Ring of the Celestial Sanctuary.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Organization Name: Skywatch. Informally called 'Redcoats' because of their uniforms.
Classification: Law Enfocement.
Affiliation: Firemane Industries, Siobhan, House Kerrigan-Alcori, Kaylah Danton, Board of Control, Inner Circle.
Organization Symbol: A shield icon over a field of stars and a planet.
Description: Although Firemane is a business, it has assumed many of the functions normally associated with a government. It administers territory, fields military forces, wages war on its own fiat, issues currency and carries out foreign policy. On worlds with little in the way of central government, Firemane offers alternatives to government services, such as anti-piracy and anti-slavery protection, education, planetary infrastructure and law enforcement. One of its tag lines is that it does what governments cannot and has remained stable throughout while galactic governments come and go.
Its arkships are essentially mobile cities on the move and many residents live there on a permanent or longer-term basis. This does not mean every resident is an employee. For instance, Firemane leases space to organisations or private individuals on the Arx. Most businesses on the ginormous station are not owned by Firemane, but they pay rent and must adhere to regulations. This ensures a steady stream of revenue. Many children in the local schools are the children of Firemane employees. The corporation employs their teachers, pays for their textbooks and provides manifold job opportunities. As a result, the line between citizen and employee is rather blurred. All this means it has become necessary to set up an organised law enforcement body. Using security guards or the military is not an adequate way to police communities or investigate crimes since it is not their job. Thus the Skywatch has been created to fill this niche.
The Skywatch is empowered to enforce the law, investigate crimes and protect the safety and health of residents in Firemane-controlled communities. These tend to be big arkships and mobile space habitats such as the Arx or the Celestial Vahana, but the megacorp also has a number of terrestial settlements that fall under its jurisdiction. Their authority encompasses powers of arrest and legitimate use of force against criminals, disturbers of the peace etc. Specialised branches of Skywatch are also charged with organised crime busting. The Skywatch is explicitly not part of the military, but answers to the newly-created Department of Public Safety and Justice. This department is responsible for law enforcement and justice in Firemane. Its head is a member of the Board of Control, Firemane's ruling group.
Broadly speaking, the Skywatch can be divided into uniformed police who patrol the streets, respond to riots, robberies and other disturbances etc. and plainclothes detectives who conduct more in-depth criminal investigations. Naturally it also has support personnel such as forensics specialists, medical doctors, career negotiators, mental health professionals, analysts, profilers etc. Skywatch officers are typically armed with pistols, but are supposed to resolve situations with minimal use of force if feasible. Thus they are also trained in conflict resolution and nonlethal techniques. Moreover, they are educated about the law and the legal framework of their job. The Skywatch can be called upon to carry out a variety of tasks, ranging from patrols on the streets to providing security at public events, suppressing violent riots, investigating individuals and groups suspected of breaking the law and executing arrest warrants. Policing within the armed forces is the responsibility of the Provosts, Firemane's military police, though both agencies cooperate when the situation requires it.
Most of the Skywatch's officers are Non-Force-Users. However, the organisation also has Force-Sensitives of varying skill and ability among its ranks. They are police, not warriors, and so the earth-shaking abilities the holomedia commonly associates with space mages are very rare, though not totally unheard of. Some may carry a lightsabre, but most Force-Sensitive Skywatchmen cannot shoot lightning from their fingertips or move boulders with their minds, but benefit from Force Sense abilities, enhanced reflexes, telepathic, persuasive and/or empathic abilities. A few manifest skill in healing or defensive powers such as Force Healing and Force Barrier, which is obviously helpful during violent incidents. The force also has some telekinetics. Force-Sensitive officers receive training from the Order of Fire so that they learn how to control their powers and use them productively. They are not 'supercops', simply police officers with enhanced abilities.
While most of the Skywatch's members are organics, the force also has a significant number of droids. Infantry Drones are often used for patrols, traffic control and guard duty. The reason for this is that droids are perfect for handling mundane tasks such unglamorous tasks. After all, machines cannot be bribed and do not get bored. Moreover, they are available in large quantities and can be counted on to remain objective. The presence of emotionless droids who will inevitably record everything also helps keep the organic officers honest. However, all command personnel are organics because droids who are independent enough to command themselves and think creatively might get ideas about overthrowing the fleshbags.
GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Headquarters: Arx Aeternae.
Domain: Skywatch is a police force and thus does not control territory of its own. However, it is responsible for law enforcement on Firemane arkships, terrestial settlements and space habitats. Examples would be the Arx Aeternae, the Ring of the Celestial Sancutary and the Celestial Vahana and the corporate garrison town of Skrael Floe.
Notable Assets: The Skywatch does not control industrial assets per se, as it is a police force. However, it maintains police precincts as well as police schools and penitentiary facilities in Firemane arkships, space habitats and company towns. They also have access to speeders, armoured vehicles and transport vessels.
SOCIAL INFORMATION
Hierarchy: The Skywatch operates under the authority of the Department of Public Safety and Justice. The head of this body has the title of Director and is a member of the Board of Control, Firemane's civilian ruling group. Siobhan is Firemane's paramount leader, and the Director serves at her pleasure, which means she can hire and fire them. The incumbent Director is a Mon Calamari jurist called Roshana.
Aside from overseeing Skywatch, the Department is responsible for the administration of justice, the penitentiary system and the prosecution of war criminals. Firemane has set up its own judicial system to administer civil and criminal justice. The Director is appointed directly by Firemane's paramount leader and in turn nominates the Inspector-General of the Skywatch. This is the most senior officer in the police force. He or she is assisted by several Deputy Inspector-Generals. This is followed by Commander, Chief Superintendent, Superintendent, Chief Inspector, Inspector, Sergeant and Constable. Members of the criminal investigations branch have the title 'detective' as a prefix to their rank.
The executic office of the Inspector-General is the public face of the Skywatch. It provides strategic direction, determines the priorities of the force and ensures its members are trained, paid and adhere to protocol. The Inspector-General does not operate in a vacuum, as they have to follow the decisions of their political masters. How influential it is depends on how energetic the Inspector-General is and how good they are at playing politics.
The Skywatch is organised into various divisions. The Sky Patrol is the largest branch in terms of personnel. It is on duty twenty-four hours day. They are the most visible division of Skywatch and the one people tend to think of when they refer to Redcoats. They are essentially beat cops who patrol an area on foot or inside a vehicle. They are charged with keeping order in the area they have been assigned to and are usually the first to respond to an incident. They also take initial action, even if the case is handed to more specialised investigators. Other duties include maintaining public safety, traffic control, crime prevention, theft, prosecution, dealing with minor infractions of the law and so on.
The Investigation Division consists of plainclothes detectives. They are responsible for investigating serious crimes such as murder, robbery with firearms, slavery, fraud or similar and bringing the perpetrators to justice. Moreover, they specialise in investigating organised criminal networks. The forensics unit is housed here. The Narcotics Crime Division, as the name implies, is composed of detectives who investigate crimes connected with drug trafficking. Moreover, if drugs are discovered at a crime scene, these officers will be responsible for identifying and safely handling them as well as provide advice to interrogators questioning suspects. The Crisis Response Division employs career negotiators, mental health professionals, psychologists etc. While their most well-known task consists of handling hostage situations and negotiating with armed criminals, in truth their remit is far broader and can cover virtually any task where negotiation and empathy rather than violence is the best solution.
The Mobile Reserve Unit is a special unit whose members are more heavily armed and armoured than the typical member of the Skywatch. Their main tasks are riot suppression, security at public events and dispersal of illegal public assemblies. They tend to use less than lethal weapons suited for crowd control such as batons, Czerka headbangers, sonic weapons, blasters set on stun, tear gas and water cannons, but also have access to lethal weapons in the case of a serious breakdown of public order. They wear sealed body armour and carry riot shields.
The Special Response Group is a heavily armed, police tactical unit that executes high-risk warrants, deals with barricaded suspects, hostage sieges, bomb threats and similar scenarios. Another task is providing personal protection to VIPs, witnesses or escorting dangerous felons to prison. Service in this group is reserved for officers who have been members of the force for at least three years. The SRG has snipers, bomb disposal experts and career negotiators, among other specialists.
Customs Enforcement is responsible for screening passengers and cargo that pass through Firemane ports. They confiscate contraband and arrest smugglers. They have access to some starships to carry out these tasks. The Financial Crimes Unit handles, as the name implies, financial fraud. Firemane is a business at heart and the Arx is a commercial hub, so this is a common crime. Unsurprisingly, this department contains many financial experts, economists, mathematicians and statisticians. In comparisins to other divisions, the Financial Crimes Unit is rather small, but gets a lot of funding because Firemane is a megacorp. Besides, financial experts get a hefty paycheck.
The Network Security Unit ensures communications stay secure and deals with cyber crimes, such as hackers, credit siphons and the like. By contrast, it does not handle harassment or cyberbullying. Handling digital evidence does fall under their remit though. Some of its duties overlap with those of the Financial Crimes Unit, which has been the cause of jealousy and bickering over funding. The Skywatch mantains a covert operations division tasked with uncovering, infiltrating and dismantling organised crime. Operatives employed by this division have an extensive mandate...as the very nature of their mission can require them to undertake criminal activities in order to maintain their cover.
Membership: Must be a Firemane employee, loyal to the group and its principles. The organisation is quite young, so most of its members have been recruited from Firemane's military, security forces or planetary law enforcement agencies not affiliated with the company. An example would be former members of Cor-Sec or law enforcement bodies among Firemane's elf allies and vassals.
For the future, it is intended that most police recruits should be recruited after leaving school and then receive training at the Skywatch academy, which combines learning in the classroom with on-the-job training. Successful recruits become regular 'Redcoats'. After spending some time as a patrol officer, a Skywatch member with an exemplary record is supposed to receive the opportunity to study at a higher Skywatch school to qualify for the organisation's upper echelon. Moreover, the Skywatch's university is supposed to provide its few students with the equivalent of a master's degree in public administration and qualify them for service in executive positions.
There are no species or gender restrictions. The Skywatch has both human and alien members. Firemane's sphere of influence is on the galactic fringe, where humans are far from the majority, so it sensible to have a high proportion of non-human members. Unsurprisingly, elves are well-represented, but the non-human contingent is not limited to them. Legal training, firearms training, conflict resolution, first aid, surveillance, and physical conditioning are among the things a Skywatch officer will learn about during their time with the force.
Climate: Professional, disciplined...but also too militarised. Officers of the Skywatch are charged with risking their lives to uphold law and order and protect the public. Their tasks range from dealing with minor offences to facing armed criminal groups and terrorists threats. As a result, the members of the Skywatch have to be able to rely on each other and be able to trust their partners to stay focused on the job. On the surface the Skywatch is all about protecting the innocent, upholding the law and serving the public trust. There are many officers who strive to live up to this ideal. But scratch the surface, and one comes across some rather nasty things.
Fundamentally, the Skywatch exists to protect the established order, the ruling class and property rights. This doesn't exclude that it has honest, capable police officers dedicated to the public well-being. There are several of those. The trouble is that the established order is an oligarchic corporate state largely unaccountable to the public scrutiny. The police force enforces the will of the oligarchy. It is given power to uphold its authority.
The legally dubious but nonetheless accepted principles of qualified immunity and civil forfeiture provide ample scope for abuse, and arbitrariness. Civil Forfeiture means that if an officer thinks you are going to use currency in your possession to buy contraband, they can take it from you without a warrant. Then you then have to go to a court to prove you weren't going to commit crimes with that property (it can and has been extended to vehicles, communications devices, and in very rare cases houses). Its not a criminal case, so you aren't entitled to a lawyer or presumption of innocence. Qualified Immunity has a couple of definitions, but the general onw is 'They can only be sued for violating rights if the rights violated are clearly established rights. One judge went so far as to rule 'if they haven't already been successfully sued for it, then they are immune to it'. Such dubious legal principles encourage arbitrariness and heavy-handed policing.
The initial influx of former members of the armed forces has given Skywatch a climate similar to that of a military unit, though education and the recruitment of professional police officers is supposed to change this. Law enforcement is a collaborative effort and it is stressed that the Skywatch must be professional in dealing with the citizens it is supposed to protect and refrain from performing actions that undermine public trust in it. Officers are supposed to be promoted on merit. Firemane recruits its members from a variety of species and planets, which means that the Skywatch must effectively police a multispecies society.
It is stressed that they must perform their duties without bias and treat members of different strata of society fairly. Wearing universal body cameras is standard for the Skywatch in order to record events they were involved in. This is particularly pertinent in the case of violent incidents that led to use of force on the part of the officers, as the recordings are used to establish whether it was warranted. Officers who are injured in the line of duty receive medical care and counselling from Firemane doctors, psychologists and other specialists employed by the Skywatch, enabling the mentally or physically injured to return to duty. Work in the Skywatch can be a rather stressful job, especially during emergencies such as riots, pandemics and operations against major criminal organisations. However, the group is also very supportive of its members.
Officers get paid vacations and are guaranteed pensions when they retire from the force. Their salaries and benefits are also generous. A day on the job can be fulfilling, satisfying, frustrating and tiring - often at the same time. Each officer also has to deal with a mountain of paperwork. Skywatch officers can seldom complain about boredom though, as each day often presents new challenges, ranging from public intoxication, a traffic accident, attempted robbery, burglary, kidnapping or even a gunfight between armed criminals. On the flip side, the force has been plagued by political interefence and cliqueism. There are honest police officers, but also careerists fixated on massaging arrest figures in order to look good to their masters. There is tension between the group's mission to protect the community and its subservience to an autocratic family business.
Firemane runs the police, but is also the owner of and biggest employer on the Arx. The megacorp has established its own justice system to administer civil and criminal cases. The Skywatch works in cooperation with the judiciary. A large prison population is not productive and penal labour is not very efficient, so some felons are simply exiled after confiscation of their possessions to reimburse the harm they caused. Someone who wrongs the company but has not committed a high crime may be be fined or receive a garnished wage.
A factory worker who mislabels his time sheet to get extra money does not deserve execution and the ramifications from the public would look iffy to Siobhan. But forcing him to work at a higher risk station where he gets no additional pay is another matter. Mandatory overtime without pay increase is a thing, as are mandatory higher risk duties. The Skywatch has come under criticism for lacking sufficient accountability. It is seen as being more focused on traditional policing than community-orientated policing. This means there is an emphasis on protecting law-abiding residents harm, identify and apprehend criminals. Critics say that this only targets crime on the surface level without dealing with the root causes.
The Skywatch possesses an abundance of military-grade equipment that has been handed off to them by the Firemane military. This is justified on the grounds of vague threats to the public well-being and property rights. Civil rights groups criticise it as disproportionate, and as encouraging a militaristic mind set that views upholding law and order as akin to waging a colonial war against the populace, especially members of the lower classes.
Reputation: Mixed. Reputation varies based on the individual and their relationship to Firemane. The Skywatch are part of Firemane, and serve its interests. In general, most people accept that some form of security force is necessary to keep the peace, barring extreme anarchists. The trouble is that at the end of the day, the Skywatch exists to uphold the established political order first and foremost. It has attracted criticism from civil rights organisations for lacking accountability, excessive militarisation and inappropriate use of force that leads to abuse of power. It has been used to suppress workers' strikes in the name of order.
The problem is that Firemane is only really accountable to itself. The force has been criticised for inadequate transparency, which makes it more difficult to identify and punish misconduct such as inappropriate use of force. Critics point out that a police force can hardly be considered a neutral arbiter when it serves the interest of an autocratic oligarchy. In their view, Skywatch is composed of corporate mercenaries forcing people to live under the iron heel of monopolistic capitalism. Potential violations committed by officers are investigated by a bureau within the Skywatch internally, and conducted without requiring evidence and information disclosure to the public. Proponents argue that the Skywatch is more efficient due to being a centralised police force versus having several competing corrupt police forces at the local level for each community all running their own operations and arguing about jurisdiction and resources
Within Firemane itself, the Skywatch is generally accepted. Someone needs to enforce the law and this is a job standard security guards or the military are not suited for. The Skywatch does not have the best relationship with Firemane's security services. It is not bad, but rather mixed and contentious. Police officers and spooks do not mix well, especially when the latter are obstructive and secretive. Skywatch officers, especially on ground level, complain about political interference from above.
The Skywatch and Firemane's military do not interact to a large degree, as they have different jurisdictions. They cooperate to some degree on activities such as anti-smuggling operations. The Skywatch also cooperates with the military police sometimes. Skywatch officers are sometimes deployed to nations the army is fighting in to provide training to allied police forces. But overall their spheres of responsibility are pretty distinct. A not insignificant number of the Skywatch's members are ex-military, which means there is a mutual understanding.
Curios: The Skywatch is easily distinguished when an officer dons the distinctive red uniform. Hence they have been nicknamed Redcoats. However, an officer does not always wear it. To identify themselves in that case, an officer has a holo-badge. It has a verifiable hash code and a gene-locked, encrypted identichip. Each officer is also issued a small booklet that serves as an instruction manual, covering police procedure and Firemane's laws.
Skywatch police officers are all armed. They are typically equipped with blaster pistols, carbines, shotguns, and batons and wear flexible combat suits or armoured uniforms. Furthermore, they have access to personal shield generators. Specialised ion rifles, riot guns, sonic weapons, elektrokinetic maces, sonic carbines, stun pistols and shotguns are also available. Heavier weapons and specialised equipment such as riot shields and tear or coma gas are stored at Skywatch arsenals for emergencies.
Bantha Class Armoured Transports are in storage for use in major arrests, personnel transport, emergency response and so on, while Napasji-class Police Patrol Craft are utilised for patrols. Aside from organic personnel, the Skywatch has access to a variety of security/combat droids such as the CS1 "Custodian" Police Droid, Infantry Drones, defence drones and the C1 Security Drone. The Skywatch has even received armoured personnel carriers through a controversial Firemane military surplus programme.
Rules: The Skywatch's members must swear an oath to obey, uphold and enforce the laws of Firemane. The officers may not violate these regulations. They are responsible to the Department of Public Safety and Justice, a board level executive department of Firemane. The officers are bound by the standards outlined in Firemane's code of ethics, which requires them to creat all citizens impartially, regardless of their species, gender or creed. They are also required to identify themselves with their name, warrant number and rank, unless this would jeopardise their safety. Officers must take all reasonable steps to end an incident without the use of force, but are authorised to use lethal force when they have reasonable cause to believe that failing to do so will expose them or someone else to grievous harm or death.
The officer in question is required to provide a log of the incident if it comes to that. For this reason, they are also equipped with cameras. Contact will all individuals during a shift must be recorded, filed and logged. Likewise, the Skywatch requires a warrant to carry out an arrest, search a suspect's place of residence or undertake similar actions. They may detain a suspect at the station for a limited period if there is reasonable cause to believe they constitute a threat, but must obtain a warrant by the time the period has elapsed or release them. Of course, they serve at the beck and call of what is essentially a corporate state that has issues with public accountability.
Goals:
- Protect the innocent
- Obey, uphold and enforce Firemane law
- Defend Firemane's interests.
Harz'akrav (NPC): Harz'akrav is a Kar'zun and the Inspector-General of the Skywatch. Kar'zun are essentially big, walking rocks. Though stereotyped as barbarians by their Eldorai enemies, they actually have an advanced civilisation and complex culture. They tend to be stoic and law-abiding. Their long life span helps in that regard. There is no better embodiment of law and order than someone who is as solid and unrelenting as a mountain. The Kar'zun have a caste system and Harz'akrav was trained to become a lawkeeper. He was born after the Kar'zun had lost the great war against the Eldorai, who subjected them to a genocidal crusade and forced the few surviving Kar'zun into reservations.
Thus he grew up in a situation where there were laws clearly being flouted by the Eldorai in order to keep his people down. But that only increased his determination to ensure everyone followed them now. His people have now been emancipated and were, after lobbying from Firemane, saved during the Exodus from Kaeshana. However, for obvious reasons, genocide and centuries of oppression are not forgotten. Harz'akrav is a serious by-the-book cop with a grim, severe attitude. He is sometimes willing to tolerate unorthodox activities if they are properly justified and get the job done, but is known to be a hardliner. At the same time, he is determined to maintain the 'classical policing tools' at his disposal to uphold the law he cares so much about.
Harz'akrav fired a promising but reckless sniper who kept complaining about red tape, irresponsibly endangered the life of a hostage during a standoff and finally disobeyed orders from the board. Said officer eventually ended up playing vigilante on Nar Shaddaa after deciding that even Kerrigan's personal hit squad had too much red tape for him. Harz'akrav sympathised with his desire to fight injustice, but considered his crusade quixotic and believed it had more to do with the rogue cop's personal ego.
Officially, Harz'akrav's job consists of supervising all the individual branch departments (Arkas, Tygara, Arkas, the Celestial Vahana, the Ringworld of the Celestial Sanctuary, each Ark, etc. each have their own groups), but because the scale it is harder to find out details. A culture of 'don't ask, don't tell' pervades to distort reports that reach his office. Though a proponent of old-fashioned policing, he is aware of the problems of the system, very grumpy and gearing up for an internal purge.
Zex Wenser (NPC) - a Falleen police officer who specialises in crisis negotiation. Very empathic, and diplomatic, he employs pheromones to excude calm around him and keep hostage takers and other armed and dangerous criminals from becoming frantic. Unfortunately, this onl benefits him after a while of talking over the comm, if he can keep criminals and overzealous police officers alike from triggering an escalation. His modus operandi is to utilise active listening techniques, maintain an adaptable, open-minded approach and attempt to build a rapport with whoever his counterpart is in order to influence them. Wenser has a degree in xenopsychology. He used to work for GRU, but quit the agency to join Skywatch. He is tight-lipped about the reasons, and prone to deflecting whenever the matter comes up, though it is clear the circumstances were not pleasant. He's married, and has a daughter.
Karuvika Tivala (NPC): Karuvaki is a Togruta detective who has become famous for busting crime rings and resolving many high-profile cases. She has been highly decorated for her achivements. She enjoys a bit of a celebrity status due to her exploits. Karuvika is a Force-User and has been trained by the Order of Fire. In terms of Force powers, she focuses on cerebral abilities such as Force persuasion and extrasensory abilities. She has ties to a prominent journalist who works for Firetruth, Firemane's news agency. She's one of Firetruth's darlings, which makes her almost untouchable. What is less known is that she has used 'enhanced interrogations' and Force mind tricks to acquire confessions. She has also tampered with evidence to incriminate suspects, even to a point of planting weapons and drugs on them. Outwardly she looks beautiful and can get away with a lot, but in truth the methods she employs often bend or disregard the law.
She justifies this with the argument that 'bureaucratic red tape' has turned the law into a leash around the neck of police officers, and thus 'extraordinary measures' are needed to keep the peace. Sometimes you need to 'bend the rules', conduct illegal surveillance, tamper with evidence, rough up suspects and use your supernatural powers to 'persuade' them to make a confession. Sometimes you need to manipulate criminals and vigilantes into doing your job for you when legal means do not suffice or make deals with criminals to take down bigger criminals. Her arguments are very self-serving though. She games the system to get away with her actions and look good.
Incredibly manipulative, Karuvaki is not one for hot-headed violence. Rather than being a cowboy cop, she is very calculated in her actions...especially those that violate law the Skywatch claims to uphold. She has acquired degrees in psychology and law, and is well-versed at applying that knowledge to manipulate people and shield herself from any fallout. Essentially, she complains about 'red tape', but is also a textbook case for why regulations pesky due process are needed. Needless to say she hates Internal Affairs and armour cameras.
Adarni Taldanthar (NPC) - a female Eldorai who has been promoted to a top job right beneath the boss. Today, she runs the day-to-day operations on the Arx and Tygara. The Ringworld and the Celestial Vahana are both bigger than the Arx, but not concentrated in the same location, unlike the space station and Tygara. Thus running both gives her a lot of clout, not to mention the ability to network with important players in politics and business. She is very interested in optics. So the Skywatch patrols in great numbers in the richer areas where there's less street crime. Lower down the pecking order they act roughly and a 'safety first' mentality pervades, including a 'shoot first' protocol. It doesn't help that she is a bit of a classist, xenophobic bigot.
Namana Jai Saobana (NPC) - a Qadiri officer from Krolis. Her childhood was a peaceful, pastoralist life, until she was captured by slave traders, becoming a statistic in an epidemic slave trade. Sure enough she was put on auction in a slave market. Auctioneers peddled her just like silk, spices and coffee beans. She caught the eye of a merchant, who purchased her. Her new owner brought her to Krolis, where she was eventually bought by an officer who was highly-placed in the city watch.
Ironically, her new owner was a slave herself, but one who had risen to a high rank in the city bureaucracy. Slavery was a horrific practice, but among the Qadiri it did not necessarily mean back-breaking labour on plantations and mines annd lack of upwards mobility. Certain slaves were groomed for important roles in the military or bureaucracy. Of course, giving slaves weapons and military training was dangerous, but the Qadiri had an intricate system of punishments, rewards and indoctrination to make it work. As slaves, the mamluks theoretically had no power or influence except what was given to them by their masters.
Her new owner brought her to a special school, where Namana was trained as a soldier. Namana was determined to attain a higher position through determination and grit. Her superiors noticed her keen intelligence when she discovered weapons' thefts and embezzlement, and she was groomed for a role in the city watch. However, honesty and diligence were not always rewarded. Krolis was the holy city of the Qadiri, but she bore witness to all manners of unholy things, but was powerless to stop them.
The justice system was cruel and arbitrary, and the powerful could get away with things that would result in a commoner being brutally executed or enslaved. Namana's patron eventually fell victim to a purge on trumped-up-charges of heresy, leaving her without a benefactor. She was eventually able to buy her freedom. Namana has joined the Skywatch for reasons of personal advancement, the lure of adventure in the stars and out of a desire to do good. However, she has discovered that far from being bringers of wisdom, in many ways the sky people are just more of the same. Her commitment to justice remains firm though.
Modahm Paceq (NPC) - most unusual for his species, given common stereotypes, Modahm is a Neimoidian who has chosen to become a law enforcement officer. His specialisation is, however, more conventional, because he specialises in investigating financial and white-collar crimes. This is obviously appreciated by a megacorp very determined to protect its patents. Modahm has degrees in interstellar financial law and business management, which he applies to combating crimes such as accounting fraud, embezzlement, money laundering and theft of intellectual property. He has an excellent memory for memory for numbers and patterns, and can do mental calculations lightning-fast. His considerable knowledge of the world of finance is a boon to the Skywatch. Contrary to the stereotype, Modahm is very dedicated to doing his job properly. He is not lacking in courage, but prefers to rely on his brain rather than brawn.
Tha Gredar (NPC): Rodians are often stereotyped as criminals and bounty-hunters. Their culture is supposed to be obsessed with violence and death. Detective Sergeant Tha Gredar is an upright, competent and dutiful detective though. She grew up in an environment defined by crime and violence, and has taken a hard turn in the other direction. Her parents were robbers and drug smugglers. She takes a low view of people who romanticise a life of crime, without being blind to the structural issues that drive people to it. She does heretical things like conducting thorough, careful investigations, gathering evidence and building cases against high-level criminals instead of cracking skulls and busting minor street thugs, even though that would improve the crime statistics. She does not even show disregard for property or poor people.
For a while, she worked as an undercover cop in a drug cartel operating on the Arx. Tha is a taciturn workaholic with an obsessive drive to solve cases. This has contributed to her becoming a high-functioning alcoholic. Because her duty is so important to her, she manages to remain functional on the job, though her private life is another matter. She has a moral compass, but a cynical, jaded, and abrasive attitude. She does not have a lot of respect for budgetary rules, protocol or even Firemane and its bosses in general. But she follows the rules pertaining to the individual rights of citizens, even when it is difficult. Tha fights crime in a literal sense and is not averse to getting into a scrap. Tha is a more diligent investigator than Karuvika, but the results she produces are less immediate. Moreover, the Togruta is more polished and better at politicking.
Courage (NPC): Commander Courage is a human male from Dahomey. The Dahomians have a curious way of naming their children, since around their tenth birthday they choose a descriptive name that embodies their personality and is different from their birth name. Of course, some name choices end up being awfully ironic. Courage fought in the Dahomian war for freedom against warlords and foreign slavers, and is keen to empathise his record as veteran of the struggle. Later he served in Firemane's military. While he likes to play the part of heroic rebel, he is a quite different person now. Courage is a career-minded officer, or rather a self-serving careerist.
Courage has retained his military mind set and treats 'upholding law and order' as akin to a military operation to subdue 'forces of anarchy'. His tenure is more focused on serving this political objective than on protecting and serving the population. He justifies his methods on the basis that he is responsible for a problematic sector with a lot of crime, but receives few resources. At the same time, he has to deal with a lot of political meddling. As long as officers play ball, he will shield them, but he will drop those who rock the boat. To his credit, he is good at playing politics, but this also makes him a slave to public relations because he cannot afford negative publicity. He is a member of the Mandla tribe and part of Firemane's Dahomian clique. The commander is willing to tolerate not-strictly-legal activities of officers if they 'get the job done'...and don't get him in trouble. To keep his job, he has also cut deals with shady actors.
Courage has been able to rise in the ranks by doing his best to produce a good crime statistic. Of course, papers can be deceptive. For instance, he has undertaken dubious actions in order to clear a case quickly, which makes the crime statistics look good. He has applied strong pressure on subordinates to bring down the crime rate. This enables him to tout his rapid response to crime when serious crimes do occur. According to him, at the end of the day Skywatch serves the interests of the oligarchy and their corporate masters want results that create a safe business environment, the sooner the better. To this end he is a strong proponent of arrest quotas. He is canny about it though, always pushing the numbers down during politically sensitive times.
R-3PO (NPC): No one suspects the prissy protocol droid of being an Internal Affairs agent. Er Threepio plays dumb and manifests the cheerful, self-important, fussy personality typical for protocol droids. However, he is able to gather and collate a massive amount of data. His last memory wipe is decades ago. Moreover, he maintains a network of droid contacts. After all, machines are so ubiquitous and yet so mundane that no one notices them. Outwardly, R-3PO looks just like any other 3PO-series protocol droid, so he can hide in plain sight without arousing suspicion. A droid like him easily fades into the background and is dismissed as a harmless, obstructive bureaucrat.
Aside from being fluent in six million forms of communication, he possesses extensive knowledge of the law, psychology and criminology. R-3PO is charged with gathering information on police misconduct such as corruption, inappropriate use of force etc. He has been using his inconspicuousness to secretly investigate officers of the Watch suspected of taking bribes. His role is top secret in the force. R-3PO follows the protocol droid stereotype in the sense that he is not a fighter and will avoid committing acts of heroism. Completion of his mission dictates that he preseve the crucial data contained in his data banks, which by extension means preserving his own existence. Acting contrary to his self-preservation protocols is illogical, and he is a logical droid.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Firemane started out as a humble corporation that was meanly meant to serve as a retirement project for its founders since a life of leisure was quite boring. At the time it was limited to its headquarters on Kaeshana, with mining operations on Dahomey and Vandelhelm. It enjoyed the support of the Eldorai Matriarchy and the Omega Protectorate. However, over time it grew into a megacorporation with the ability to evacuate planetary populations, build professional military forces, wage war and conduct its own foreign policy.
Leaving the Protectorate and Kaeshana behind it, Firemane went on a campaign of expansion on the fringes of space. Here, far away from the galactic centre, it assumed many of the functions normally associated with a government entity. On worlds with little in the way of central government, Firemane offered alternatives to government services, such as anti-piracy and anti-slavery protection, education, planetary infrastructure and law enforcement. One of its tag lines was that it did what governments cannot and had remained stable throughout while galactic governments came and went.
The culmination of this process was the creation of vast arkships and the Arx Aeternae, an enormous space station that served as the hub of Firemane's manifold operations. At the same time, it was home to millions of residents. Not all of them were employed by Firemane, as it leased space to groups or private individuals. It was eventually eclipsed by the Celestial Vahana, a Dyson Sphere. Firemane's growth generated wealth and influence, but also produced problems.
Suddenly Firemane had to administrate, police and tax a population of residents. There is a reason why in many ways it makes more sense for corporations not to exercise the duties of a government - not the least because it is cheaper to gain leverage over politicians via bribes. Ideally, the Arx was supposed to be a model city with a fully employed population, where everyone fulfilled their duties diligently, paid their dues and spent their money. One might fall it 'welfare capitalism'...but it was and is very authoritarian.
But it was inevitable that people fell through the cracks. Criminal elements came into being. Authoritarian practices led to workers' unrest, as unionisation was prohibited. Lack transparency led to corruption. Firemane governed its 'realm' autocratically and thus while workers received benefits and generous pay checks, they were expected to obey. People were rarely laid off, but conditions were authoritarian. For a while Firemane relied on standard security forces to keep the peace.
However, when a large protest broke out and the security guards found themselves overwhelmed by angry protesters disgruntled about poor working conditions, the army was called in to support them. Few of the soldiers had experience in peacekeeping and so things inevitably got out of hand, leading to many wounded and two dead. Officially, Firemane blamed the disturbances on Selectivist agitators and rioters. However, the incident was a blow to Firemane, since it liked to present itself as a family run by an autocrat who cared about her people. This led to a special session of the Board of Control to address the issue.
Vivian: Well, that went well. Given how short-lived memories are, it should be a storm in a teacup. But in the meantime, the optics of troopers bashing their way through protesters are terrible.
General Devotion: They cleared an illegal assembly. They came under attack. Calling this is a peaceful protest is ridiculous.
Vivian: That may be so, dear General, but I have an angry mob of journalists and an even bigger mob on Fwitter screeching about tyranny and police brutality. You've seen those pics about blood-covered protesters.
General Devotion: It's regrettable, but they were given ample warning to disperse. You deploy the army, expect it to comport itself as the army.
Roshana: A state of emergency had been declared. Less than lethal weapons were used.
Vivian: Nonetheless, optics, perception. You have your truth, they have a different one. I can spin this as your brave boys putting down a mob, but the damage has been done.
General Devotion: The incident will be investigated. If there was misconduct, those responsible will be punished. But I'm not going to politicise the inquiry.
Siobhan Kerrigan: Order must be maintained. If we capitulate on this, we open the door to anarchy. I'm not scapegoating a couple soldiers for doing their job. But this must not happen again. It is clear reforms are needed.
Kaylah Danton: If I may, we must look into this, but we can't expect the troops to be both policemen and soldiers. Those are two very different tasks. But ad hoc contingents of security guards don't suffice either. We've become too big for that. Millions live on the Arx alone. So what I propose is setting up a permanent police force.
Vivian: To police employees?
Kaylah: Anyone who lives on the Arx, or any company habitat or town, for that matter. Robberies, murders, riots - they deal with all that.
Roshana: Many residents aren't employees, but they pay rent all the same. Our by-laws stipulate they are subject to Firemane regulations.
General Devotion: I don't object. It would relieve a burden from our shoulder. There will have to be cooperation when it comes to matters like combating smuggling, piracy and so on. And servicemembers will continue to be policed by MPs.
Kaylah: Agreed.
Wicasa Tahoka: This won't come cheap. I'll have to revise the budget, but I see it's necessary. Some of the funding will have to come out of prestige projects. I can reallocate surplus and old materials with the equipment.
Siobhan: They'll need some ships, but nothing big. You've given thought as how this force would be organised, Kaylah?
Kaylah: I have a draft, and someone in mind to lead it. It could exist within the framework of the Department of Administration.
Vivian: Your department, you mean.
Kaylah: Barely since I assumed the Vice Presidency, and in any event, it's about efficiency. Administration handles all matters of internal governance.
Siobhan: The police force will be created. But let's not overload Administration. We don't want it to become too cumbersome for anyone to exercise oversight.
Kaylah: With all respect, I believe I can manage it. It will streamline things.
Siobhan: You're already deputising for me and running Administration. I can't burden you too much. Roshana, you're in charge.
Roshana: I'm...not a policewoman, ma'am. I advise you on galactic law.
Siobhan: And the police will have to act in accordance with the law. Kaylah said she has someone to lead it, so they will handle the nitty-gritty details while you exercise oversight. Call it the justice or public order department, whatever.
Roshana: Understood. Well, I shall formulate a preliminary plan, along with an Order-in-Council and present them at the next Board meeting. Kaylah, since you've already written a draft, we could pool our efforts.
Kaylah: Yes...of course.
Vivian: My office will initiate a media campaign. PSAs, social media, recruitment ads when we've got something solid, the works. 'Join the police - the opportunity of a lifetime. 'Be a defender, be a hero.'
Siobhan: We need a name. Not Firemane Security Force. Too bland.
Devotion: Gendarms.
Roshana: Implies it's a military force. Constabulary.
Vivian: Skywatch.
Siobhan: I like it. You have your instructions. Keep me abreast of your progress. I expect your departments to extend their full support to the Skywatch.
The newly-formed Skywatch was made responsible for law enforcement in Firemane's sphere. This authority was limited to areas directly controlled by Firemane. Initially, most recruits were former members of Firemane's armed forces, giving the force a very militarised profile and attitude. However, Firemane managed to attract former members of established law enforcement agencies such as Cor-Sec or the Corellian Security Force, as well as Eldorai police officers. The Skywatch entered into an agreement with the Order of Fire, which would provide training to any Force-Sensitive officers. The group was charged with upholding public order and combating crime. There was an emphasis on traditional policing methods.
The force was placed under the authority of the Department of Public Safety and Justice, a new executive department headed by Director Roshana. She was Firemane's chief lawyer. Ironically, she was a bit uncomfortable with her new position. However, Siobhan did not want to give her Vice President Kaylah Danton too much power. She reasoned that since Kaylah wanted the police to be part of her jurisdiction, it should be run by someoe else. Busy with military affairs and Firemane's space exploration programme, Siobhan was not able to give the Skywatch a lot of attention. This meant she did not micromanage it, but also that she sometimes lacked a deeper understanding with the challenges it faced. In addition, it meant that for a long time the Skywatch was in a fairly weak position when it came to jurisdictional friction.
At first the force struggled with detective work, as it was equipped for armed conflict such as riots and civil disturbances, not casework. A rise in organised crime necessitated a reorientation. The reformed Skywatch was able to capture several notorious smugglers, thieves, drug barons and gang members. One of its cases involved apprehending a notorious serial killer who targeted dancers and whose killings had produced panic among residents. Moreover, it unmasked a network of sentient traffickers who had deceived refugees with promises of work, but then forced them into servitude. Siobhan took an interest in the case because some corrupt officials had been bribed to look the other way. She had the verdict for a corrupt Firemae bureaucrat altered because she believed it was not harsh enough and wanted to make an example. Over time, Skywatch absorbed customs security to improve its ability to combat sentient trafficking and smuggling of contraband. It was given access to military spaceships to improve its ability to interdict and search suspicious vessels.
However, the Skywatch got into a turf war with the GRU, Firemane's counterintelligence service. Though officially part of the military, the spooks were notoriously secretive and independent-minded. They also had a very broad conception of how far their remit to protect Firemane's security extended. The Skywatch came to dislike the influence of the GRU, which went so far to try and recruit members of the force as 'informal collaborators'. There was a somewhat comical episode when both GRU and Skywatch agents infiltrated the highest levels of a crime syndicate and dark side cult operating on the Arx. Matters reached a point when all but one member of its leadership group were actually agents, but all were unaware of each. The friction proved problematic when the Arx was plagued by a rogue artificial super intelligence that tried to sabotage its systems and droid population. Both groups eventually cooperated more maturely, but begrudgingly.
The Skywatch was put to the test when certain troublesome districts of the Arx were rocked by riots. Lay-offs, authoritarian, arbitrary management, corruption and racial tensions all contributed to the crisis. Heavy-handed responses by Firemane management and security forces caused the at first peaceful protests to escalate. When the Skywatch deployed military-style equipment to protests, the gear contributed to escalating tension between law enforcement and protesters. Buildings were torched, shops robbed and officers assaulted. Seeing it as an insurrection, Siobhan was inclined to clamp down hard, encouraged by her majordomo Royal, Wicasa, and Devotion. However, Harz'akrav, with the help of Kaylah and Shazora Jai Vahal, was eventually able to persuade her to take a different approach.
Harz'akrav got four weeks to make it work. Rather than storm the 'havens of anarchy', the Skywatch quarantined them, setting up a blockade. No one got in or out, unless they were legal residents. Moreover, the Skywatch severed all utilities, cutting the rioters off from water and electricity. In time, their morale plummeted, as did their food supplies. The groups fractured, and some rioters tried to give themselves up. Finally, the Skywatch moved in, retaking the districts with minimal resistance.
The Skywatch's capabilities were expanded to meet the challenges posed by the galactic refugee crisis, working in cooperation with Hearthfire. Skywatch officers provided security for humanitarian relief efforts after a storm devastated several villages on Arkas. However, Firemane's rapid expansion and construction of even more vast stellar engineering projects stretched the capabilities of the Skywatch. It is, in the greater scheme of things, not economical for a megacorp to act like a government because it is not profitable. Far easier and more rational to buy politicians and use them as a tool to facilitate pro-business policies, without the corporation directly exposing itself. Massive worldcraft such as the Celestial Vahana and the even larger ringworld were impressive, but they were not only expensive, but more difficult to police, manage and maintain.
This necessitated a massive recruitment drive for the Skywatch. Political pressure to provide total security in Firemane's model habitats meant that policing and recruitment standards were negatively affected. Moreover, there was an increasing focus on militarisation, firepower and the enforcement of 'order'. This went hand in hand with a focus on aggressive efforts to gather intelligence on public and political activists, such as labour rights activists who agitated against Firemane's anti-union measures. The nominally civilian police adhered to a military model, and had access to military bases and equipment. A Skywatch unit adopted the practice of entering the names and personal information of death penalty opponents, Tygaran independence activists, and trade unionists a database used to track terrorists.
The Skywatch's controversial practice of stop and frisk aroused criticism from civil rights organisations and workers. Justified by the Skywatch as an essential policing tool, it essentially allowed officers to stop anyone for made up reasons, in order to question and search them for weapons or contrabrand. Technically they had to suspect the person of possessing those items, and have reasons to suspect them, but the officer could just claim they had reasonable cause to believe so. Some officers even targeted defence attorneys by placing posters of these people in precincts, saying to stop them at any time and for any reason to harass them. This caused a scandal when a defence attorney was arrested on the courthouse step. The scandal this caused led to a crackdown on corrupt officers, but the practice itself was retained. However, universal armour cameras were introduced to ascertain justification for use of force by officers.
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