EXCESSIVE FORCE:
MILITARY-GRADE POLICE ARE HERE
Reddin Belk, Pallad City Post

Private military contractors are often hired to wage war on foreign battlefields, but what happens when they do the same on your streets? Notorious contractor, Vivid Defense—yes, the one with over a dozen charges of misconduct, negligence, and accusations of war crimes on foreign soil—now has a presence in Pallad City. Contracted to the city under an initiative by Mayor Hynden Neville, the Tactical Armored Unit is Vivid Defense’s answer to a semi-privatized police force.

Thus far, Vivid’s Tactical Armored Units are only utilized in situations “beyond what the Pallad City Police Department can handle,” as quoted direct from the Mayor. With a police department suffering from increased budget cuts, the hiring of a specialized police unit seems paradoxical at best. Recent polls have revealed that not all Palladians are trusting of Vivid Defense’s presence in the city, but the same poll has also shown that many citizens are equally skeptical of the PCPD’s current ability to combat crime. Perhaps, most alarmingly, 40% of Palladians claim to be fine with the complete dismantling of the PCPD in favor of a fully privatized police agency.

Danger Zone One. Story by Midnight. Art by Salaiix.