The Damned Chevron

Denizen · Apr 26, 2009

Written by local journalists in the field of Criminology, this study is accurate at the date of publication. The journalists cannot be named for protection reasons.

The Damned Chevron:

The Damned Chevron was created on the ideology that every Pendragon is his or her own creator. They control life - they create it, they take it, they encourage it, they prevent it.

Members of the Damned Chevron could be described as couriers - go betweens and runners - all playing parts to achieve bigger goals, and each part is as big as the next, and every single member is judged on his or her ability to execute a requirement or set of requirements - and the definition of "requirement" is as vague as it is fundamentally specific.

The Damned Chevron is broken into parts. At the very top is a selection of the most successful, resourceful and fearless members. There can be only 9 Seniors in TDC, one to govern over every major landmass and region. Below them are 25 Horde Captains, who oversee a Horde, which is made up of at least 25 hand-picked members. This is not to suggest that anyone can't try out for a place in The Damned Chevron, but, if you fail, then you become a potential bargaining chip (if you're in the least bit important), or done away with for having met members face to face on mutual grounds.

Hand-picked members are always Junior TDCs. Every Junior wears the emblem of the TDC on the back of their hooded jumper.

This emblem is a branding. It deliberately makes TDC obvious in the face of the public, and can either instil fear (under a successful Horde Captain) or residents will resist that Horde (under a failing Horde Captain). A failing Captain will not be long for the world, at which point a superior Junior may be elevated to Captain, but, unless given the go by all 9 Seniors, a neighbouring Horde Captain will assimilate the failed region's Horde into his or her own and control their own area and their "conquered" asset at the same time.

A Horde is directly responsible for a Horde Captain's failing. If a Horde has been assimilated into another Horde, then the first group is always perceived to be lower. While their ranks stay the same, the difference is that one failed, and the other didn't. If you fail and you are still alive, you are a disgrace.

In almost every case, an assimilated Horde can never gain respect, let alone gain a new rank. For this, they're usually sent on suicide missions, because death is perceived as more forgiving than being branded a failure in TDC.

The drive behind every member of The Damned Chevron is the emblem. The aim is to gain the right to discard it. In other cultures, more superior members got bigger or better icons. In TDC, the better you are, the more removed you appear. This backwards pride is more prudent to the smooth running of TDC than one initially believes. Horde Captains are the first to be allowed to be seen without the red emblem of the Junior. Instead, Horde Captains can be noticed for their gauntlets.

Gauntlets are viewed as to keep one's hands from getting dirty. Gauntlets are usually fashioned from the hides of large mammals native to whichever area they happen to oversee. If no mammals are native to an area, then a Horde Captain is forced to wear the Junior TDC emblem until they can fashion a respectable set of gauntlets themselves, and then present it to the Seniors for approval.

Failure to fashion adequate gauntlets is an insult. Insulting the Seniors in this way results in dismembering the left hand. If any more time has been wasted by a Horde Captain in a separate event, his or her right hand is dismembered. This is viewed as one not being fit enough to wear TDC gauntlets. They are then forced to defend themselves against potential Horde Captains, whose numbers incrementally increase if each blood-sport bout is won.

This is a cultist modus operandi. The Damned Chevron IS a cult. They believe anything is possible, and believe that there is a way to achieve everything. Those who totally believe this doctrine will do well and will receive their rewards. Those who don't fully believe will fail. Those who DO believe, also believe that becoming a Senior allows them the rights to see the Halls of TDC. In addition, Seniors are seen as having other-worldly connections, i.e. greater strength drawn from Fronima and greater influences through Fronima.

The key to a fully functioning Horde and their Captain is what seems to be teamwork. Although The Damned Chevron is built on individualism, self-sufficiency and "survival of the fittest", sometimes Juniors need to use one another to gain an advantage during their designated requirement. Juniors are hardy team members. They will use one another at the drop of the hat, but will instantly seize the opportunity to be rid of any one of them if possible.

There is one rule in TDC: Do not fail The Damned Chevron.

Seniors do - to greater degrees - have better connections with Fronima. Seniors are usually made up of Dark Summoning Masters. This is why progression through The Damned Chevron takes years. Entire lifetimes can be spent attempting to achieve Senior rank. Very few do. It is more common that Juniors will stay Juniors but dedicated TDC members will be given more and more risky jobs. Devoted Junior TDCs, after many years of unfailing and loyal service, are rewarded with more resources from the Halls of TDC itself. Outstanding performance and loyalty may warrant a Senior meeting with that particular member, but such attention is extremely rare, and usually ends with an informal handshake.

However informal and brief a meeting such as this is, it is regarded as the greatest honour a Junior can receive without achieving a new rank. They are revered, and usually envied, becoming the attention of frequent attacks and murder attempts by other Juniors. So one has to be prepared to suffer for doing well.

Seniors bear no insignia - unless a situation is serious enough to make a Senior attend their area, then they'll wear a chrome version of the emblem which represents - what they call - "The Jaws of the Nothing".

These cases are far and few between, but to make a Senior consider setting foot in their land, then one must either:

i) Kill someone related to that Senior and must definitely still be in the area with Juniors watching their every move. (It's at this time an entire Horde will work together without question)
ii) Kill a Senior.

If one manages to kill a Senior, they must have killed someone related to that Senior. The danger of doing this is that the Horde Captain is without a Senior; their entire Horde and assets are adopted under a new Senior, the Horde Captain is beheaded and Juniors known to have failed and allowed a Senior to be murdered are paralysed and locked inside a barrel of acid. This method is cheap - but is viewed as being as cheap as the life of that Junior. Cheap Junior. Cheap death. No one sheds a tear.

Once discipline has been dealt, then 2 Hordes, a Superior Horde Captain and their new Senior is honour-bound to find and eliminate the murderer in the first instance.

Up until that time the murderer is eliminated, both Hordes and their Superior Horde Captain must work together. Planning and action is done with all members present. Everyone has a job - regardless of the size of the party - and everyone must fulfil their role for the betterment of the entire group.

In the eyes of the police, The Damned Chevron is viewed, simply, as an organized crime ring, and as such they want to shut TDC down. However, due to the internal structure of TDC and the way in which they recruit, attempting to crack the entire organization would take an exceedingly long time of concerted effort. Recruiting is similar to the IRA, in that a single TDC may approach and recruit any number of potentials, at which point, each one of those new members go off and recruit their own handful. Being able to accurately trace the line of recruiters back is more complex than a family tree if you ever get around the stubborn silence.

Generally speaking, Junior TDCs can be spotted in densely populated regions like Watani and Chafuo, and also in low population density locations like Gyakusatsu.
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The Damned Chevron

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