Tyuzukang

"Tyuzukang" is a blanket term that refers to the organised crime syndicates founded in Tybalteva. While the term "Tyuzukang" - which literally means "grouping of mobsters" in Tybaltevan - is officially used by the press and bodies at international level, the criminal organisations call themselves Tyuzuka ("shadow" in Tybaltevan), thus playing with the polysemy of the root word. Tyuzuka is also the name of the members of such organisations.

The Tyuzukang - that has historically been engaging in unlawful activites such as undercover brokering, arms sales, drug-trafficking, gambling, loan sharking, money laundering, prostitution, protection racketeering and slave trade - also extends its influence in legal ways by maintaining a presence in various businesses, nonprofit organisations, media and political parties. In 2018, it achieved an estimated "turnover" of five billion tybaltos.

Since the 1950s, the successive Tybaltevan administrations - supported by the Crown - have been fighting actively against these groupings without having succeeded in shutting them down to date.

Etymology
Tyuzukang is a portmanteau word that appeared in the 19th century. It is composed of the terms "Tyuzuka" (that could be translated as either "shadow" or "mobster") and "Kang" (group), and specifically refers to Tybaltevan mafia.

When used in reference to a member of the Tyuzukang, the word Tyuzuka is an invariable noun that has neither feminine nor plural forms.

The term mafia is mostly used abroad in comparison with other structured criminal organisations in Natia.

History
Organised crime in Tybalteva is said to originate from the split of individuals who refused royal authority from the population following the Exalted March led by Tybalt Aedan The Brave and Eva Swedan The Ruthless in the 18th century. The profile of those people varied greatly, ranging from retired pirates to secessionist barbarians to rebellious knights to mercenaries.

As the nation was deeply reformed during the next centuries, movements of population occurred and the creation of unsupervised guilds and associations was fostered by fast-growing economy and urban areas. It's in the early 19th century only that the phenomenon of organised crime became particularly visible and unsettling to the general public, forcing the authorities to put a name on it - Tyuzukang - and fight a force that had grown out of control for a long time.

Until today, the Tyuzuka do not recognise the Crown's legitimacy, thus corroborating the belief that many of them are descendants of anti-monarchists and bandits hunted down by the royal army.

Structure and composition
The Tyuzukang is an ensemble of criminal entities that share a common organisational structure and code of conduct. Each entity, historically led by a family, is called a "clan" (flaenth in Tybaltevan) and claims sovereignty over geographical territories and fields of activity. The precise composition of a clan is complex to comprehend for the uninitiated: it is led by a boss (Mezzetino) who is aided by an advisor (Coviello) and an underboss (Arlecchino). Particularly large clans comprise several Coviellos and Arlecchinos. The boss is typically "appointed" by the family that historically rules the clan, until they step down for reasons that prevent them from fulfilling their obligations (major injury, imprisonment, old age...) or get deposed due to misconduct or incompetence. The advisor (Coviello) is elected on a yearly basis and generally is not related by blood to the ruling family; he is responsible for supervising the decisions of the boss and foreseeing their consequences. He also serves as a mediator in internal disputes.The underboss (Arlecchino) is second in command, it often is a family member who can take over the clan in case the boss is unable to command, although competence always prevails over blood ties. Serving under him, several right-hand men assume strategic positions meant to partition information and actions, thus making it harder for rivalling clans to anticipate their future moves.

In the event of a major leak that could potentially jeopardise the integrity of the organisation, clans prefer killing their weakest links themselves to ensure the judicial authorities cannot reach them.

At the bottom of the pyramid, the agents are people who are working for a clan under a specific category without being treated as true members. They are considered expendable and do not hold critical information about their "employer".

Every position in the clan is named after a character of the Commedia dell'Arte; it is not gender-restrictive: a woman can be appointed as Arlecchino while a man can be an Isabella. It is unknown whether those names are purely folkloric features or they actually imply specific qualities, responsibilities and behaviours in the manner of the characters being referred to.

Introductions
To prevent spies and undercover policemen from infiltrating the organisation, a tyuzuka must never introduce himself to another tyuzuka whom he does not personally know. If he wants to establish a relationship, he must ask a third tyuzuka who knows them both to introduce them to each other in a face-to-face meeting. This intermediary can testify that neither of the two is an impostor.

During the initiation ritual, new tyuzuka get a tattoo resembling a barcode along with a series of numbers that corresponds to the date of their joining and their first position in the clan.

Etiquette
Tyuzuka of equal status call each other "tamàèpse", while inferiors call their superiors "pàentuùs": "tamàèpse" means "comrade-in-arms", while "pàentuùs" is an archaic Tybaltevan term for "master".

Commandments

 * 1) Never present yourself directly.
 * 2) Act like a gentleman.
 * 3) Be silent as the grave.
 * 4) Neither drink nor take drugs.
 * 5) Show respect to your comrades and their relatives.
 * 6) Always go unnoticed.
 * 7) Always be available for your clan.
 * 8) Make the clan your first choice.
 * 9) Do not demonstrate selfishness or greed.
 * 10) Kill traitors: those who behave inappropriately, break the rules or do not hold to moral values.

Currently active clans
At national level, the Tyuzukang acts in highly localised places: densely urbanised areas for the most part, such as the coastal resort of Màgarti in the South, the industrial centre of Okast in the East, and the cities of Joekeong and Latha-Rone in the North-East. Latha-Rone, that noted the biggest increase in corruption and violence in the country, is said to be home to the families ruling the clans.

Beyond national borders, the Tybaltevan mafia was present in a total of fifteen nations as of 2018. According to reports published by the International Criminal Police Organization "RAZORBLADE", money laundering activities tend to increase in island countries where the clans are established, while slave trade and raw material-trafficking are fostered in anarchistic nations.