‘Lina sighed heavily as she sat down to write her paper. She had gone
through the Warder’s Library to get the class specified by Saphire Sedai.
"Silent Killing," by Rian Th’athor Ji’Alantin. She had read the paper three
times before sitting down to write it. She fiddled with the paper thinking
about what had landed her here, and had to admit that it had been worth
it.
She started writing, "Rian taught a class on silent killing. His teachings
included way to silently kill your opponent to actually stalking and killing
someone. In this paper, I plan to summarize his lessons with my own insights
as well."
There, she thought, that should work as a starting sentence.
She stooped to think before starting again. "I plan on doing this by summarizing
each section of the paper.
"Section One: A Silent Kill Tactic
"In this section, Rian tells us the best way to silently kill someone
is to simply break their neck. Not only is there no tell tale scream, but
there is no mess. He says the best way to go about this is to attack the
opponent from the front, cup your right hand under his chin and your left
hand goes around the back of his head so that you can "wrench their head
counter clockwise." He cautions that this is best accomplished by surprise
and that it should only be done when absolutely necessary. As he said, "Death
is death."
"Section Two: Silencing Tactic
"In this lesson, Rian shows how to silence an opponent without killing
him. To further this goal, he demonstrates the "Standing Choke Hold."
He advises that before you use this technique, you stun your opponent with
a chop to the neck. He cautions not to hit too hard or you may do more than
silence your opponent. To begin you place your hand on your opponent’s right
shoulder with your palm facing upwards. Your left forearm is placed across
the front of your opponent’s throat, keeping it as low as possible. You then
pull back on your left elbow and right hand while pressing your head and
chest close to the opponent. To stop your opponent from throwing you or wrestling
out of your hold, Rian says to break their balance with one of your knees
in the small of their back.
"Personally, I believe that this should only be used for capture. If you
leave a live enemy behind you, he will only return at the worst possible
moment. There are exceptions to this, of course. Things like a serving maid
coming in at the wrong moment. If you are sneaking into an enemy camp, however,
then do not leave him simply silenced.
"Section Three: The Unit
"In this section, Rian outlines how to work with a team. He points out
that most capture or kill missions are usually carried out by a 4-6 person
team. He goes over the equipment that all team members should carry, such
as gags, blindfolds, and any other gear that is needed. He explains that
these items must be able to be used quickly, silently, and in absolute darkness.
He also explains the individual’s role within the unit.
"The Team Leader is the one who is to kill the enemy in a "very silent
fashion" if the mission goes wrong. He also is used to as cover for the attacker
when the team is close to the enemy position. He is essentially, the one
in command of the mission.
"The Cover. According to Rian, there are usually two or three team members
employed as the cover. It is their job to secure the area outside the scene
of the attack or capture. They make sure that the attacker has the confidence
to carry out their attack without added distractions. On a capture mission,
they have a secondary function. Once the attacker has the enemy under control,
the cover moves in and disarms, secures, and carries the enemy out. During
this, the Leader provides cover for all involved.
"The role of the attacker is relatively self explanatory. He is the one
that kills or overpowers the enemy. His field training is usually of the
highest level in the unit. The final approach of the target will depend on
the terrain and enemy routines. He must be the most trained in "dealing with
different types of sentry, dress, and weapon carriage methods." If the attacker
is seen, it is the job of the Leader to take out the enemy, usually with
a ranged weapon of some sort.
"He explains that these are the most common positions in a unit’s make-up.
He cautions that they are not universal and can be altered to suit the mission.
I would think that they could be changed to suit as the need arises either
before or during the mission."
‘Lina sets down her pen and rubs her eyes. The essay was not due for another
couple of days yet, but she wanted to get it done. She had been up for hours
researching the Light blasted thing. That had proven to be the easy part.
Now she had to write it so that she was not plagiarizing Rian’s work. That
proved to be a bit more difficult.
Light blasted Sedai. She could have at least given me a topic someone
else hadn’t already written, she grumbled silently. Maybe something
like sword forms, or something. Light.
She slowly stretched her back and arms before looking over her work. It
seemed ok so far. She agreed with most of what Rian said. There were just
a few minor things she would do differently and she had already said what
those were. With a sigh, she picked up her pen again.
This bloody paper will not write itself, she thought as she began
to write again.
"Section Four: The Three Phases
"In this section of the class, Rian explains that there are three major
phases to a silent attack. The Approach, the Attack, and the Escape.
These must all be accomplished while carrying out the main goal of a silent
attack, which is to get in and get out without being seen or heard. He explains
that there are few, if any, guaranteed methods of silent attack, but that
the amount of noise created is minimal when compared to the noise of a battlefield.
"The first phase he outlines is the Approach. He says that the approach
to the target must be silent, well planned, and done with "maximum ground
appreciation." You must know how to take full advantage of battlefield noises
and animal noises to distract the enemy, cover the minimal sound of your
approach, and close in.
"The second phase is the Attack. He is very precise in when he believes
the attack should start. He says that the attack should begin 10 meters
from the target. He explains that it is possible to cover this distance
before the sentry can react positively. He says that the training program
must be must be geared towards testing this concept. He cautions that causing
maximum damage on another human being can lead to either short or long term
physiological or psychological damage to the attackers. Rian holds that if
the attacker is aware of all that involved in the attack, they will be able
to operate more efficiently."
‘Lina stopped writing for a moment and looked over that last paragraph.
She thought for a moment, If that concept needs to be tested, does that
mean that it is possible to start the attack sooner or later than 10 meters?
She wondered if she would be able to meet this Gaidin and ask.
"The final phase is the Escape. This needs as much, or more in my opinion,
attention to planning as the rest of the mission. This is because the escape
can happen during any phase of the mission. If the team is detected during
the approach, then they will need to use the escape, scrubbing the mission.
As Rian says, "You have to get in and be gone, without being seen or heard,
and leave nothing but bodies."
"Section Five: Knee Takedowns and Capture Tactics"
An idle thought ran across ‘Lina mind as she wrote out the title to this
next section. Ah, knee takedowns, the favored weapon of most women.
She chuckled at the thought imagining a barmaid have to forcefully tell
an over friendly patron she was not interested. In this case, though, Rian
means taking out someone’s knee. The other would be effective, but the men
tend to at least groan when they are hit with a woman’s knee, and women go
down, but yell as they do so.
"Rian starts by saying that there are many ways to take down an opponent,
but in a silent mission, the main goal of the takedown is speed and silence.
He shows the class how to break a person’s knee from behind. He recommends
covering the opponent’s mouth with your hand as the goal of the mission is
silence and most people will yell when a bone is broken.
"Rian goes on to explain that one method of capture is the rear knee take
down with a hand clamp over the enemy mouth. He recommends a strong pair
of gloves to protect you from any bites. He says that you must then stun the
opponent with a blow to the neck muscle below the ear lobe or disable his
arms so that he looses control of his weapon. Rian explains that from the
rear position it is possible to maintain the mouth clamp and step round to
stamp the weapon out of the opponent’s hands.
"Rian cautions to make sure they are disarmed and never leave the target
alone. You need to keep him under your eye and never turn your back on him,
especially if he is not tied. I would think your first object once you have
disarmed and quieted the target would be to tie him in such a way that he
or she cannot move. I would also gag the target so that there was less possible
chance of noise during transport. That would also leave your hand free from
covering his mouth.
"Section Six: How to Sneak Up and Eliminate"
"Why didn’t he just say kill?" ‘Lina questioned out loud. She could never
understand why people tended to be squeamish about using the word kill. Sure,
you knew what they meant by eliminate, but it had been her experience that
if you told someone you were going to eliminate the target in question, they
were more likely to go for the idea than if you said you were going to kill
the target.
"In this section, Rian goes into great detail on how to silently stalk
and kill your target. He explains and demonstrates exactly how to perform
this feat. He cautions the one must be ready to strike at any moment if you
are detected. He says to focus all of your attention on the targets head,
as this is where the sentry generates all of his movement and attention. He
cautions that you should not stare as this may cause the enemy to sense your
presence through some sixth sense."
‘Lina could believe this. She could remember times when she felt that
she was being watched only to turn and find someone staring at her. She
has noticed that this sense had increased with her training. Some called
in paranoia, but she rather thought it was more a great awareness of ones
surroundings.
"To end the class, Rian conducted a game of capture the flag using the
techniques that he had been teaching in this course.
"In closing, I found this information, both helpful and informative. Rian’s
class was comprehensive and easy to understand."
‘Lina looked at her paper and smiled with satisfaction. This should
please Saphire Sedai, she thought. If not, well, then, the woman could
do the bloody thing herself. ‘Lina cleaned her pen and ink bowl before putting
them away. She lightly sanded the paper to help dry the ink, idly noticing
the way the light sparkled of the sand.
She gathered the papers into a neat pile. She would deliver the paper
to Saphire Sedai on the morrow. She looked outside and noticed that it was
almost morning. With a shrug, she shooed the pups of the bed and quickly
made. She got ready for her day with quick efficiency. This would not be
the first night she went without sleep.