The Sovereign Order is an organisation created in Alliria by Dauner A. Light, shortly after his participation in the defense of Alliria during the siege led by the Geladryx, the Emerald Death. It acts under the guise of a mercenary guild by the name, the Reaper's Den, using this identity to cover its real identity as a growing military organisation. They are currently involved in petty street fights, as one of the orders vying for power in the Allirian underworld, but their goal is much greater than just that.

The Sovereign Order strives for nothing other than obtaining absolute power. They do not seek to dominate the world, but rather to obtain enough power that no other organisation or nation in the world can pose a threat to them. Their means of achieving this goal is through conquest and expansion, for only after they've a steady source of revenue and manpower can they claim to truly be at the top.

The Sovereign Order, although still in its infancy, already has a well fleshed out hierarchical structure, as defined by Dauner during its creation. This structure, however, has yet to be fully implemented due to the small size of the order at present. Although it currently acts as a crime organisation, the structure of its hierarchy reflects its final intended form as a military organisation. Every member within the organisation, safe for the monarch, carries with then an identification token, which signifies their status, and can be used to uniquely identify them.

The titles in descending order of authority are:
Supreme Monarch > The Council > Knight Commander (Celestial Knight) > Grand Knight (Celestial Knight) > Golden Knight > Silver Knight > Initiate > Trainee.

The head of the order. The Supreme Monarch, or simply Monarch, runs the overall operations of the order, be they military, administrative or diplomatic. He holds supreme authority within the order, and his decisions, though subject to criticism from the council, are all final. He is referred to by members of the order by the title 'Great Monarch'. The supreme monarch does not carry any identification token.

The Sovereign Order, by design, is intended to be a large organisation. Such an organisation could prove difficult to run for the Monarch alone. The Sovereign Council, also known as the Council of Seven, is the body that actively runs the order in place of the monarch. Most decision of the council must pass through the monarch, and the council has the right to criticize the monarch's decisions, and offer advice on what course of action to take. In extremely urgent situations, the council has the right to bypass the monarch's approval, and take action themselves, through a majority vote.

Members of the council each have a primary assignment as the supervisors of a department, and have the authority to appoint and remove the head of the department they supervise. Member's of the council are also called apostles, and the collective name given to all seven councillors is 'The Seven Apostles'. Their identification tokens are all black, and each carry a unique figure.

The positions on the council are as follows.

Wrath
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Wrath, and is in charge of supervising the department of military affairs. The apostle of wrath can be identified through the dragon symbol on their token.

This position is currently held by Clark Orson

Pride
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Pride, and is in charge of supervising the department of internal administration. The apostle of pride can be identified through the lion symbol on their token.

This position is currently held by Ayana Alys Elleran

Greed
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Greed, and is in charge of supervising the department of finance. The apostle greed of can be identified through the fox symbol on their token.

This position is currently held by Vershek Midas

Lust
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Lust, and is in charge of supervising the department of diplomatic affairs. The apostle lust of can be identified through the succubus symbol on their token.

This position is currently held by Aizuki Sato

Sloth
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Sloth, and is in charge of supervising the department of resource management. The apostle sloth of can be identified through the sloth symbol the on their token.

This position is currently held by Sophia Wright

Envy
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Envy, and is in charge of supervising the department of internal security. The apostle envy of can be identified through the serpent symbol on their token.

This position is currently held by Nika Semenovna

Gluttony
The councillor holding this position is known as the Apostle of Gluttony, and is in charge of supervising the department of Covert Operations. The apostle of gluttony can be identified through the symbol of a taotie, a beast from Chinese myth, on their token.

This position is currently held by Otaen Axebraid

The Celestial Knights are the highest ranked members of the order after the monarch and council. They are granted a title, and have the right to hold a position of Knight Commander. Those celestial knights that cannot hold this position are given the position of Grand Knight. It is a special position which implies that, should the monarch grant them the permission, they can leave the headquarters and establish a branch of the order in any part of the world within the order's sphere of influence. A Golden Knight is promoted to a celestial knight after he has met all the required conditions. The conditions to become a celestial knight are:

• Must have gotten a great achievement on the battlefield.
• Must have gained renowned by venturing out into the world and making a name for themself.
• Must have proven their cunning in challenging situations

Although there are a few more conditions, these are the main conditions to be fulfilled. Also, only the Supreme Monarch has the right to promote a celestial knight.

A celestial knight is identified by their green token, each bearing a winged cloud symbol.

Golden Knights are those that have proven their mettle time and again in the face of challenge. They are Outstanding warriors, who have mastered at least one discipline. They possess the skills to survive any battlefield, whether in war, or in politics. To become a Golden Knight, one must have mastered at least one discipline, and proven their cunning. Golden Knights are identified by their golden tokens, with a three crossed swords symbol on them.

Silver Knights are those knights that have surpassed the limit of an average person. Through training and venturing out to complete missions, Silver Knights seek to perfect their mastery of their art and rise to even higher heights. Once a member becomes a Silver Knight, they are allowed to learn a magic discipline. Silver Knights are identified by their silver tokens, with a two crossed swords symbol on them.

The bulk of the order. Squires are Initiates who have made it through the training period and officially become members of the order. It is at this rank that they are allowed to choose a primary discipline to train in, and accept missions, which will lead them to venture out into the world and gain experience while making a name for themselves. Squires are identified by their bronze tokens, with a single sword symbol on them.

The fresh bodies of the order. Initiates are new members who are still in training. Every new recruit joins this rank, and only after making it through a training period of 4 months to 2 years, can they be promoted to Squires and become official members of the order. Initiates are apprentices, so they are not permitted to accept missions, and are only allowed to venture out under supervision during field examinations. Initiates bear wooden tokens with the letter, "I", carved on them.

The order's structure consists of three tiers:

This tier consists of the overall leaders of the order. They are the ones in charge of deciding the order's courses of action, and future development. It consists of the monarch and the sovereign council.

The Sovereign Order is subdivided into seven departments, each under the supervision of a councillor, and the leadership of a Celestial Knight. The Celestial Knights that sit at the head of a department are known as Knight Commanders.

Department of Military Affairs
This department is in charge of managing the order's military. Their roles are:

• Recruiting new members into the order.
• Drilling the military of the order.
• Mobilizing military power for the order.

Department of Internal Administration
This department is in charge of the order's internal administration. Their roles are:

• Managing any businesses owned by the order.
• Managing the order's overall internal state.

Department of Finance
This department is in charge of managing the order's finances. Their roles are:

• Managing the order's funds.
• Eliminating corruption within the order.

Department Diplomatic Affairs
This department is in charge of managing the order's diplomatic relations, stances, and views. Their roles are:

• Negotiations with other organisations or nations.
• Managing the order's image.
• Brokering deals for the order.

Department of Resource Management
This department is in charge of managing the order's resources, from items such as food and horses, to the order's workforce. Their roles are:

• Ensuring that the resources of the order are properly maintained.
• Ensuring that the resources of the order do not run out.
• Ensuring that the resources of the order are properly allocated to the various other departments.
• Ensuring that members are not overworked.
• Ensuring that wages are not delayed.
• Ensuring that each member is health insured.

Department of Internal Security
This department is in charge of ensuring the order's internal security. Their roles are:

• Ensuring the safety of the order's members and interests.
• Screening every new member to ensure that no spies can infiltrate the order.
• Arresting violators of the order's rules.
• Eliminating all threats to the order from the within.

Department of Covert Operations
This department is in charge of managing the order's information, as well as it's spy and assassin units. Their roles are:

• Making sure that information about the orders does not leak out.
• Training and managing the order's spies, assassins, and scouts.
• Building, maintaining and managing a network of spies and informants for the order.
• Managing dispatches of assassins, spies, and scouts as necessary.

Members that are not a part of any department fall under this category. They make up the active personnel of the order, who make up the army during times of war, and are assigned missions by the various departments. Members in this category can still be affiliated to certain departments.

This refers to the two groups within the order that answer directly to the monarch, and to the monarch alone. They are known as The Swords and Shadow, both being the monarch's right and left hands respectively. Officially, they are both just bodyguards, though their actual missions are kept secret. Whereas The Swords operate in the light, Shodow operates in the darkness. Both groups are each made up of 20 silver knights, and are each led by a golden knight.

The Swords carry out orders that need not be hidden, from investigations, to raids and arrests. they are more of the official bodyguards of the monarch, being the ones seen accompanying him wherever he goes officially.

On the other hand, Shadow works in the darkness. Be it information or blood, Shadow is the one responsible for making sure the monarch gets it. They are the monarchs private spies and assassins. They are the ones that follow the monarch from the darkness, whenever, he goes somewhere unofficially.

The Hall Family
One of Alliria's wealthy merchant families. Initially enslaved by Dauner, the Hall family now pledges their immense wealth and connections to him, and in so doing has cemeted its position in the order. They are one of the order's main sources of income.

The Reaper's Den
A mercenary guild, located in the outer city of Alliria. The Reaper's Den specializes in raising mercenaries who take on the many bounties posted by the inhabitants of the city, and accepted by the guild. It also serves as the order's link to the Allirian underworld.

All new recruits of the order are recruited by the department of military affairs. These recruits are then given the rank of initiate with their corresponding token. Initiates are required to undergo a training period, ranging from 4 months to 2 years. Every four months during the training period, an assessment is held. Initiates who manage to pass the assessment are immediately promoted to the rank of squire, while those who fail remain in training. It is also during the assessment period that new recruits are accepted into the order. Initiates who fail the assessment as many as six times are stripped of their membership and expelled from the order.

During the training period, all initiates are thoroughly screened by the department of internal security. Also, during this period, it is the duty of the department of resource management to note the specialties of each Initiate. Based on the noted specialties, after graduation, some newly promoted Squires can be directly assigned to a department if they have proven to possess the skill that department needs.

As squires, the members first have to go through an awakening ceremony, where they are awakened to haer, and their haer circles are formed. After the ceremony, they now have the right to choose a discipline and haer technique from the library, in which they would have to train in till they reached the level of a Golden Knight.

Some higher level members with better understanding of a discipline can organize tutoring sessions for those of the same discipline, and teach the younger ones more about that discipline. Training of all members of the order, from initiates to silver knights, is handled be the department of military affairs. Members, ranked Golden Knight and above, train on their own to pursue their own enlightenment. Those who have already attained it can impart their knowledge onto those who have yet to, to help them get there faster. On very rare occasions, the monarch himself would hold a session, and impart his knowledge onto the members.

There are a total of three types of disciplines within the order: Melee, Ranged and Magic disciplines. All main disciplines have training exercises and knowledge written down by Dauner from the knowledge and experience he'd accumulated over thousands of years. Any weapon which does not fall under one of these is highly discouraged, since it would be harder to train in them, but not forbidden.

Melee Disciplines
There are six main melee disciplines available for squires to choose from: The sword, the greatsword, the spear, the axe, the mace, and the Warhammer.

Ranged Disciplines
There are two main disciplines for ranged weapons: The bow and the crossbow.

Magic Disciplines
Unlike the previous two, the magic disciplines are only auxiliary disciplines. They cannot be chosen as a primary discipline, but instead can only complement another discipline.

Magic disciplines refer to schools of magic with a wide variety of applications. There are seven main schools of magic taught in the order:
The school of fire, the school of wind, the school of water, the school of earth, the school of healing, the school of light and the school of darkness.

The order's uniforms vary for the different ranks. The Monarch and Apostles do not have strict dressing codes enforced on them, as their outfits tend to be more custom to their liking.

All uniforms within the order are black overall. They consist of buttoned up leather jackets over linen shirts, and linen pants with matching shoes. The jackets have wide colored stripes along the shoulders, and a badge attached to the left side of the chest area. The color of the stripes and badges differ with ranks.

The uniforms are laced with slight traces of protective magic, which provides the same amount of protection as a high quality leather armor. During times of war, however, some pieces of armor are added on top the uniform to provide additional protection on the battlefield.

Celestial knights have green stripes and a winged cloud symbol on their badges.

Golden knights have golden stripes and three crossed swords as symbol on their badges.

Silver knights have silver stripes and two crossed swords as symbol on their badges.

Squires have bronze stripes and a single sword as symbol on their badges.

Initiates do not have stripes on their uniforms, and have the letter I in bold as symbol on their badges.

Haer is a type of energy unique to the members of the order. It is the most basic requirement for practicing the order's techniques. Haer is awakened in the members, who have officially become squires, during an event known as the awakening ceremony which precedes the graduation of initiates. Members who leave, or are kicked out of the order, have their haer centers abolished.

Once awakened, haer can be trained. Training increases the purity of haer, and thus, its relative strength. Training also increases the capacity of a person's haer center.

The Sovereign Order saw its dawn barely two weeks after the invasion of Alliria. During the invasion, Dauner had taken back a few warriors from the grasps of death. These warriors who were made to sign a soul contract with him then became the first members of the order, and received training directly from him. These are those who would become the first generation of the council and the heads of departments. In order to secure funds for the order, Dauner targeted one of Alliria's rich merchant families, the Hall family. After convincing Wallace Hall through a bit of violence and a lot of fear, Dauner made him sign a soul contract ensuring his loyalty.

From there, he created the Reaper's Den mercenary guild, and used it as a front for the order. During the months that followed, Dauner not only recruited massively from among the inhabitants of the Areck slums, he also created a small village not too far from Alliria where all the recruited members now lived, and underwent training, all this while, searching for a better place to serve as the order's HQ.

The Sovereign Order is Dauner's attempt to rise to the top once again. 7000 years ago, he stood at the top of his world, but then he got betrayed and fell. However, 7000 years later, he will rise again, albeit in another world. The conceptualization of the order had already begun, when Dauner was still barely 2 months in his new world, and it took him four more months of planning before the order would see the light of day.

In the year 370, life was breath into the order. Dauner, assisted by his right hand, Ayana, and a few others, founded the order. Knowing it would only bring him more trouble if the order's existence was revealed early, Dauner did so in secret. He needed to ensure that it grew strong enough before coming out into the world. A new military organisation might not attract much attention, but a fast-growing one will, and they'd have too many unnecessary enemies before they knew it.

The order founded a small village in a dense forest in the Allir Reach, which it used as temporary headquarters. Hundreds of people were recruited from the Areck Slums and from among the homeless that wandered the area into the order. The next two months saw these homeless men and women, transform into warriors. Under the strict training of the apostles and celestial knights, supervised by Ayana, These hundreds of men became strong enough to compare with the average soldier in any military. These became the first batch of squires of the order. Although their strengths still lacked, this was quickly remedied in time.

Following Dauner's orders, a special doctrine has been passed on in the order. Discrimination against anyone based on gender, race, bloodline, or birth is strictly forbidden. Dauner had enforced a belief of condemnation not based on the actions of a predecessor, but on one's own actions. As such, the only crimes anyone gets punished for in the order, are the ones they committed.

He also instituted a clear system of reward and punishment. Every member gets rewarded for their accomplishments and merits, but also gets punished when they break a rule or fail in their duties. This has gone a long way to increase work efficiency within the order.

Currently, the order, though still unknown to most, is active across a quarter of the Allir Reach. This is mainly because of the desire to not attract too much attention. However, in the coming months, as soon as the order finds itself a proper headquarters, it will expand its reach to the edge of the Allir Reach, while recruiting and training more warriors for the sake of its ultimate goal.

Welcome to Sovereignty Castle
In the Pursuit of Power
Of Broken Swords and Shattered Shields