Maze Police

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Maze Police
Founded E5-210, Pentema 20
Headquarters Citadel Lambeth
Activities Enforcing Standard Law
Fighting criminal groups
Arresting and incarcerating suspects
Leaders Sheriff Len Hargrave


The Maze Police is a major faction in the Mazes. They are an organization focused on the concept of unified law enforcement across the Mazes.

Organization

Monochrome symbol of the Maze Police

The organization of the Maze Police is centered on the concept of the Police station. Each town under the control of the Police has a station, home to a Police unit, which fulfills a multitude of different roles.

Each station has personnel dedicated to patrolling duty and responding to calls in towns protected by Standard Law (see below for details), a Special Response Team unit, a detective unit, and various types of station jobs, among which are desk duties and paperwork, call operator duties (acting as a communications relay between police stations and towns requesting help), armorer duties, kitchen duties, and last but not least, prison duties.

Every police station is also equipped with a prison, built under the grounds of the station, where arrested suspects are sent after having been processed and served a sentence.

Purpose

See also: Standard Law

The primary purpose of the Maze Police is the enforcement of Standard Law, a unified, standardized set of laws and rules created by the founders of the faction. The Standard Law system was designed to standardize the laws across multiple towns, and the Maze Police was created to provide backup and assistance to local Town Security, but also and most importantly, relieving local town jails by handling the arresting and incarceration of lawbreakers.

To qualify for Police assistance, a town or a faction must sign a contract with the Maze Police to ensure that their towns' local Town Security will enforce Standard Law as outlined. In exchange, these towns are allowed to request backup from the Police; something that is commonly referred to as "benefitting from Police protection".

Arrested suspects are then sent to one of their aforementioned police stations, where they are processed into prisoners and placed into cells, either temporarily or permanently, depending on the gravity of their crimes. Each station's Police Chief has the final say on the fate of each prisoner and has the power to set and modify sentences, or even pardon them altogether.

Part of all of the possessions of a prisoner may be confiscated by the Police as part of the punishment served, with no duty to return the items at the end of the sentence. The practice is highly controversial; some consider it to be theft in all but name, others believe that it is an essential part of law enforcement to take resources away from criminals to fuel the Police's own.

In a more general sense, other than the enforcement of Standard Law and the management of prisoners, the objective of the Maze Police is to root out and destroy criminal organizations, as well as deter people from joining or associating with gangs or criminal groups.

Police Code of Conduct

Upon joining the Maze Police, recruits must respect and uphold the Code of Conduct during the entirety of their career. This code of conduct states the following:

  • Law and Order First: Laws and rules are what differentiate Civilized Areas from the UA. Therefore, the highest and most important duty of a Police Officer is to uphold and enforce Standard Law.
  • Unity and Integrity: Without a dedicated, united force specialized in the domain of law enforcement, Standard Law would be mere words on paper, powerless. Therefore, so long as doing so would not breach Law and Order First, the second most important duty of a Police Officer is to remain united with their colleagues.
  • No Masters, No Subjugation: Although the Maze Police explicitly makes it their duty to uphold Standard Law and assist Town Security in all towns that have chosen to follow Standard Law, the role of the Police is not to do the bidding of any other groups, parties, factions, individuals, or other interested parties - especially not criminal or terroristic groups. The Police is no-one's personal army or security force, has no masters, and will not tolerate subjugation.
  • Arrest, Don't Kill (popularly shortened to ADK): Although all Police Officers have access to lethal force, a Police Officer should always try to arrest suspects, no matter how violent or dangerous. Killing a suspect should always be the last resort. If possible, rendering medical assistance to suspects during or after an arrest is highly recommended.
  • Detain, Don't Enslave (popularly shortened to DDE): Police Officers may not force prisoners or perpetrators to perform unpaid or forced labor; doing so would be slavery.

History

See also: History of the Mazes

The early days

Although the general concept of a united law enforcement organization dates back at least to the medieval ages, the Maze Police as it is known today was first conceptualized on E7-210, Duplima 14, during the Great Debate; a forum organized by and for Town Security personnel from across the world. The original idea was for every town in the world to follow the same procedures, enforce the same laws and rules, and simplify communication between law enforcers. In particular, when the questions of how to best manage the growing threat of organized crime, as well as how best to deal with prisoners were asked and debated upon, the concept for a unified police organization, who would be dedicated to the enforcement of a singular set of laws, as well as manage prisoners on behalf of other towns, through the construction of large police stations and correctional facilities. The idea received praise, particularly when it was clarified that its role would not be to replace existing Town Security, but instead to assist them.

Months later, in Pentema 20 of the same year, Citadel Lambeth was founded, and construction of the first police station began. The Maze Police had officially been established. The first leader, Sheriff Martin Sinclair, drafted an initial version of what became known as Standard Law. He also created the contract system; if they wished to receive police protection and delegate prisoner management to the Police, these towns had to sign a contract stipulating that local Town Security had to enforce Standard Law just as the Police did. Nearly every human town of the era agreed to sign a contract, but all of the youkai towns refused, out of a concern for independence.

The Resource Wars

Members of the Maze Police were involved in the Ferland Incident, assisting the Ferland Town Security. The Police was the only faction that did not suffer casualties during the incident. It is widely believed that this incident is the reason behind the Police not accepting youkai recruits, a policy that has remained unchanged for over 1600 years.

During the Resource Wars that followed, the Maze Police only had a minor involvement in the 355-year-long conflict, mostly tasked with the defense of the towns under Standard Law, and Neo Khazrun in particular. At the time, the Police did not have enough personnel to cover every town and trade route under their jurisdiction, leading the faction to request the assistance of the Maze Military, forming an alliance designed to repel youkai raiding parties.

After the Resource Wars ended, the Military ended the alliance with the Police, citing divergences on each faction's purposes and missions.

Aftermath of the Resource Wars

During the Resource Wars, many criminal organizations formed and seized control of various communities, sometimes participating in the looting and raiding to consolidate their power and influence. By the end of the Resource Wars in E5-557, Joliet Sector fell to the hands of a criminal organization known as the Delaney Syndicate. The same year, confident in his power, Joliet Sector mayor and Syndicate leader Ray Delaney publicly announced that Joliet Sector would no longer welcome "cops and cop sympathizers". The town quickly gained the reputation of a crime haven, where crooks of all calibers congregated.

To the Police, it was clear that the time to rebuild and consolidate their forces had come. After several years of recruitment campaigns and training exercises, the Police finally conducted their first true raid in E5-571, invading Joliet Sector and arresting or killing most of the Delaney Syndicate. Ray Delaney himself was killed while exchanging fire with the raiding police officers. With the death of their leader and most of the members either dead or arrested, the Delaney Syndicate effectively ceased existing instantly. Not content with stopping at that, the Police unit became an occupation force, rooting out every last crook or gang member they could find, eventually conquering the town. Joliet Sector fell in the hands of the Police, remaining under their control ever since.

Rise of the Wraiths

In E7-54, Triema 18, shortly after Sirvarris was rediscovered and re-settled, a secret room behind the Sirvarris Silverlight Library is discovered. A tiny chamber is found inside of it, containing a handwritten medieval document, a greatsword, and a large, intricate crown made of silver, platinum, and white gold. This crown was later confirmed to be the Silver Crown, belonging to King Maratuxa, the last ruler of the medieval Silverlight Kingdom. The document found inside the chamber explained that the crown was designed to be used as a key, intended to open another secret cache hidden somewhere else in the Mazes. This cache contains the Silverlight Kingdom's treasure, intended to be used by the "rightful heirs to the Silverlight Kingdom's legacy" and encouraging whoever finds the treasure to use the money for re-establishing the Kingdom. The King warns that the crown alone is not sufficient; without its specially shaped diamond, the crown cannot be turned all the way and the cache cannot be opened.

In light of the joyful news, Sirvarris Mayor Darius Palkovich organized an exposition of the crown, the sword, and selected books and medieval artifacts, in an attempt to attract tourists and give Sirvarris an early economic boost.

Unfortunately, a few days later on Triema 23, the Crown was stolen from the exposition, and Mayor Palkovich was found dead in his office, shot twice in the back of the head, with the keys to the Crown's display case missing. The investigation did not take long, immediately concluding that the Crown had been stolen and that the suspects were likely also responsible for murdering the Mayor.

On Quartema 11, one month after the grisly events, the Mazes Broadcasting Company receives an anonymous package containing a videocassette and a message, urgently requesting the broadcasting of the videocassette's content.

In the video message, Keith "Spectrum" Daxon, a small-time gang leader from Elusec, claimed that he and his gang, the Wraiths, are responsible for last month's heist of the Silver Crown. He claims to be the rightful descendant of King Maratuxa, announcing his intention to re-establish the Kingdom under his rightful rule. He then explains that the crown is missing its diamond, then issued an ultimatum: the world has 72 hours to find the Silver Crown's diamond and deliver it to the Wraiths. Whoever finds it and brings it to him would be "handsomely rewarded"; however, if no-one heeds his demands, then he threatens "terror and misfortune", specifically to the towns of Neo Khazrun and Citadel Lambeth.

The message was broadcasted at 2 PM onto the MBC television channel. In the days that followed, eight individuals attempted to claim the reward by bringing various objects, none of which were the real diamond. The leader of the Maze Police at the time, Sheriff Anton Hennessy, appeared in a televised message of his own, urging the population not to take this message seriously and to dismiss it as a mere hoax.

This decision turned out to be a disastrous one, as 3 days later, on Quartema 14, the Wraiths sent another message to the MBC headquarters. In it, Spectrum explains that eight people have attempted to "deceive" him and that none was able to bring him the diamond he sought. In turn, he once again threatened Neo Khazrun and Citadel Lambeth, promising to "make them pay" for keeping what was his out of his reach. The message was broadcasted once again at 2 PM onto the MBC television channel.

Hours later in Neo Khazrun, thirty heavily-armed and heavily-armored men identifying themselves as members of the Wraiths force their way through the town gate, killing all four TownSec officers on duty, then proceeded onwards to open fire on every citizen they could find. Despite exchanges of fire between the invaders and a population desperately trying to defend themselves, the Wraiths were able to briefly take control of the social square, killing 31 citizens and wounding 67 more, while sustaining no losses and 3 wounded. The Wraiths ended the operation by breaking into the town hall and capturing Neo Khazrun Mayor Rodney Vanden.

Virtually at the same time in Citadel Lambeth, multiple explosions were reported at the Maze Police Headquarters. Multiple bombs had been planted into the station's offices, killing 11 and wounding 5. Among the casualties was Sheriff Hennessy.

These events became known as the Spectrum Twin Terror Acts, cementing the Wraiths' reputation as a criminal organization.

On Pentema 21, while Neo Khazrun is still grieving their losses, the MBC receives yet another video message; in it, the kidnapped Mayor Vanden is forced to recite demands of the Wraiths: Scrap the Standard Law contract between Neo Khazrun and the Maze Police, stop all communication between the town and the Police, appoint Nancy Falkner (known associate of the Wraiths) as the new Town Security Chief of Neo Khazrun, and finally, resign as the Mayor of Neo Khazrun, and designate Spectrum as his successor. Vanden is then executed on video by Spectrum, who ends the message with the words: "Neo Khazrun is mine, the rest of you will follow soon." The town had effectively fallen in the hands of the Wraiths, becoming an outlaw town.

The first Police reforms

In E7-54, Hexema 2, in a famous internal speech to her personnel, the newly-appointed Sheriff, Trudy Lanier, described the situation as "dire", stating that the criminal organizations of the world "are making fools and clowns out of us" and that "enough is enough, it is time for us to respond to fire with fire".

The first measure was to modernize the standard equipment issued to all Police personnel, largely inspired by military equipment. Body armor became standard-issue, officers were now expected to carry and be proficient with a wider array of weapons - most notably, automatic rifles, shotguns, and submachine guns. An attempt to phase out the revolver was made, in favor of more modern semi-automatic pistols, but resistance from detectives led to revolvers remaining an integral part of police armories. Additionally, other types of equipment started being issued, such as then ultra-modern mobile phones and tactical radios. The measures were accompanied by more stringent combat and marksmanship training, raising the bar significantly.

Last, but not least, a new division of Police activity, the Special Response Team, was established. Members of the Special Response Team had to pass even more stringent training standards; they were expected to be fully proficient with any type of weapon, wear full body armor, and operate in small, highly-coordinated tactical teams. The purpose of the SRT is to respond to high-risk situations and intercept the most dangerous of criminals, minimizing the need to expose regular personnel to deadly situations, as well as providing heavily-armed backup to patrol teams and detective units, should the need arise.

SRT training was of such high quality, it surpassed even military training until the introduction of the Phantom Forces, hundreds of years later. Becoming SRT qualified became a mark of excellence; Sheriff Lanier's intention was for criminal groups to fear the Police and fear these three letters even more.

Operation Velvet Cake

Months later, on Penultima 28, Sheriff Lanier greenlighted Operation Velvet Cake. The first SRT raid in history was conducted against the outlaw town of Elusec, resulting in the arrest of 33 suspects; members of the Wraiths, and associates thereof. Operation Velvet Cake was notable for having no casualties on either side; only light wounds were sustained by the SRT, in part thanks to their new, full-body suits of armor. Four of the suspects were wounded during the brief exchanges of gunfire, all of whom sustained gunshot wounds to the arms, legs, or feet. Sheriff Lanier had intended for this operation to be a show of power and a demonstration of what the Police's finest and most skilled could do.

Over the days that followed, the SRT unit continued the operation, in search of Spectrum and his closest members; however, he was not found. The Police continued occupying the town of Elusec, eventually raiding the local bank, and making history; it was the world's first heist of a bank controlled by a criminal group... by members of the Maze Police. Tens of thousands of Parallars worth of assets and equipment belonging to the Wraiths are seized. However, the Silver Crown is not found among the seized assets.

Police occupation of Elusec continued until the town's criminal population was either arrested or forced into exile. In a televised announcement, Sheriff Lanier declared her intention to "make an example" out of Elusec and "show what happens to crooks and crook towns when they go too far." By the Day of the New Year in E7-55, Elusec was officially conquered by the Maze Police. In celebration, the law enforcers built a new police station and started a new recruitment drive, further expanding the means and personnel at their disposal.

Operation Bleeding Bear

Police investigations to find Spectrum's whereabouts continued throughout the year. Spectrum and his last remaining lieutenants were finally sighted in the newly-founded town of Greening, another independent, outlaw town.

Nearly a year after Elusec was captured, in E7-55, Ultima 25, Sheriff Lanier authorized Operation Bleeding Bear. Several SRT teams are sent to the town, organizing a methodical invasion and lockdown. The elite officers searched every last facility for Spectrum's whereabouts, interrogating any inhabitants they came across. Four hours into the operation, he is finally sighted in a residential area alongside his last lieutenants; all of whom were reportedly incapacitated and placed in restraints before a single shot could be fired.

In a peculiar display that had been lauded by some as a show of power, and criticized by others as naked police brutality, Spectrum was dragged to the social square center of Greening, where SRT officers proceeded to strip him of all of his clothing and equipment, beating him and publicly humiliating him in front of Greening's population until the operation was finally declared over.

Keith "Spectrum" Daxon was dragged to the Citadel Lambeth police station, where he (finally) received a prison outfit, as well as a life sentence.

Unfortunately for Sirvarris, the Silver Crown did not turn up in the police searches for evidence and assets. Detective units at the time began emitting doubts that the Wraiths had ever really stolen the Crown. The investigations to search for the Crown are quickly dropped, believed to have been stolen by another group, or somehow lost in another manner. The occupation of Greening was called off, leaving the town to its inhabitants.

Following the news of Spectrum's arrest, Nancy Falkner, an associate of the Wraiths and mayor of Neo Khazrun, fired the entirety of her Town Security before announcing her formal resignation from the post of mayor. All of them left town briefly after the official announcement, presumably to avoid arrest. A new mayor is quickly elected, and Standard Law is finally re-established in Neo Khazrun.

A year later, in E7-56, Keith "Spectrum" Daxon is found dead in one of the shower units of the Citadel Lambeth correctional facility. His body was found with 77 stab wounds, mostly located in the chest, stomach, and neck. The perpetrators were neither identified nor pursued by the officers on prison duty, but are believed to be members of rival gangs getting revenge on the Wraiths.

The GSL/Yatela rivalry

In E7-414, Nonama 11, the Guild of Silver Larceners performed their first most famous heist, the Super-Heist, hitting the town of Greening, now under the control of the newly risen Yatela Crime Syndicate. Between Parallar symbol.png2 and 4 million worth of goods had been stolen by the 50-man heist team, which suffered no casualties, only 7 wounded.

In retaliation for the affront against his town, Syndicate Don Benito Yatela III ordered a retaliatory siege of the town of Gimrun on E7-415, Duplima 27, sending dozens of enforcers and capos to block anyone from entering or leaving the town of Gimrun. The Don intended to starve the town of resources for one year, intending the Guild to make the Guild "beg for mercy". Syndicate forces laying siege routinely attack caravans attempting to bring goods to the town, supplementing their supply lines, and depriving Gimrun of many resources. Casualties are unknown, but it is believed that many inhabitants of the town have died of hunger or thirst as a result of rationing and depletion of reserves.

Gimrun's population, locked inside of their town, repeatedly and desperately attempted to make contact with the Maze Police to liberate them of their plea. The Police, however, refused to intervene, citing that Gimrun is an independent town controlled by a criminal organization, therefore sitting outside of their jurisdiction.

On E7-416, Duplima 27, exactly a year later, the siege was finally called off. Larcener activity all but disappeared outside of Gimrun for many years afterward.

The Police Protection Plan

Between the years of E7-415 and E7-417, the Police decided to launch several settling parties, founding three new towns and police stations; Beadsor, Murberry, and Wayward.

A month after Wayward was settled, during the month of Heptima, the Police announced the formation of the Regional Coverage System, assigning each of their towns and associated police stations to a particular area of the Mazes, improving the efficiency and speed of responses to calls.

  • Citadel Lambeth continues assuming the role of a command center/headquarters, but now has the authority to send backup officers worldwide, primarily to aid other stations.
  • Joliet Sector and Wayward share coverage of the Eastern Zone, under the Joint Eastern Coverage Treaty. Wayward is also symbolically assigned to the Northeastern Zone, but due to the near-total youkai control of this geographic area, police coverage is virtually nonexistent there.
  • Elusec is assigned coverage of the Southeastern Zone.
  • Beadsor is assigned coverage of the Southern and Western Zones.
  • Murberry is assigned coverage of the Northern and Northwestern Zones.

Aftermath of the Roazon Catastrophe

In E7-419, all communications with the town of Roazon were mysteriously lost in the month of Pentema. Traders and caravans reaching the town found it completely abandoned and littered with dead bodies. The Maze Police was called to conduct an investigation; the town is quickly referred to as Ghost Town Roazon.

Roazon, home to the Theoretical Physics Science Team, had been running a scientific project called Project Psyker since E7-417, intending to research psychic powers. Though rumors of unethical practices had been floating for the past few years, nothing could have prepared the detective units in charge of figuring out what had happened to Roazon. Extensive police investigations revealed that the team in charge of the project kept satori and psionic-augmented humans called psionics in captivity, under abject, farm-like conditions. The situation reached a breaking point after an unspecified atrocity (detectives suggested that it could have been rapes or tortures, but there was no definite proof), after which the captives organized a breakout, murdered most of the team members, taking their weapons and using them to break out of the town. Roazon's populace, hearing of the existence of these new monsters that could kill with mere thoughts, thought it more prudent to leave rather than fight them, and escaped the town en masse.

Reaction to the Youkai Nation

In E7-454, shortly after the Youkai Nation announced their official formation in a televised announcement, the Maze Police officially condemned the news alongside the Maze Military, believing that an independent youkai territory is an unsafe and subversive decision that would only make the world more dangerous.

Reaction to Operation Red Temple

Although the Maze Police was not involved in the events of Operation Red Temple, an official televised statement was made a few days after the events, in which the Police strongly condemned the act, declaring the Youkai Nation to be a criminal organization and reaffirming their intention not to allow youkai individuals into their ranks.

See also

Occupations:

Towns: